A British sailor is missing in the Bay of Biscay after his damaged yacht was found by a French air force helicopter. Divers who winched down to the yacht, called Tiger PA, found no sign of the 73-year-old man, according to the Prefecture Maritiime de l’Atlantique.
The sailor set off a distress beacon on Saturday around 50 miles west of Lacanau, having previously told a cargo ship he was safe after not responding to radio messages. The air force helicopter found the damaged yacht at around 5.30pm and launched the search for the missing man.
A Spanish hospital ship and a cargo ship joined the search, but officials said the search was suspended on 1.33am on Sunday. The north of Spain and western France have had heavy rain and wind during Storm Herminia, which was named by Spanish meteorologists because the country was expected to experience the worst of the conditions.