Image: Search for missing Portuguese tourist illustration/CU
The coordinated search for missing Portuguese tourist who disappeared in the Velebit Channel has been suspended after several days of extensive operations at sea and from the air.
Croatia’s Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre in Rijeka (MRCC Rijeka) ordered the suspension after the fourth and final missing member of the group was not found. The Portuguese national had been missing since August 12, when four people set out in a small inflatable boat from a campsite northwest of Senj despite severe weather conditions.
The coordinated operation continued, with short overnight interruptions, until 7 pm on August 16, when MRCC Rijeka ordered active search and rescue efforts to end.
Extensive search of the Velebit Channel
The search for missing Portuguese tourist covered the waters around Rijeka and Senj and a wider area of the northern Velebit Channel.
The operation was coordinated by MRCC Rijeka and involved the harbour master offices in Rijeka and Senj and their local branches, maritime and airport police, the Croatian Coast Guard and members of the Croatian Mountain Rescue Service (HGSS).
Vessels travelling through the area were also regularly informed through coastal radio stations and asked to maintain an increased lookout for the missing man.
The operation was carried out both at sea and from the air, with aircraft from the Croatian Coast Guard and police taking part.
Search crews faced particularly difficult conditions during the first three days, when strong bura winds and high waves affected the area.
Two found alive, one died
The search initially brought encouraging news. Two of the four Portuguese nationals were found alive and uninjured on the first day of the operation.
The body of a third member of the group was subsequently found, leaving rescuers searching for the fourth person.
Despite several days of intensive efforts, the final missing Portuguese national was not located.
Search for missing Portuguese tourist ends as coordinated operation
MRCC Rijeka has now formally suspended the coordinated search for missing Portuguese tourist, but this does not mean authorities will stop looking for him entirely.
The missing man will continue to be sought as part of regular maritime traffic monitoring carried out by the Rijeka Harbour Master’s Office and its local branches.
The four Portuguese nationals had set out from a campsite northwest of Senj in a small inflatable boat on August 12, when severe weather was affecting the Velebit Channel. Strong bura winds and high waves complicated both their journey and the subsequent rescue operation.
