Police searching for British man swept away by floodwaters with his girlfriend while walking in Mallorca, find second body
Police are searching for a Briton who was swept away in the water with his girlfriend while walking in Mallorca and have found a second body.
This morning, a body was found in the Torrent de Pareis gorge in the Tramuntana mountains near Sa Calobra on the island, which has not yet been identified as that of missing Briton Alexander Johnson.
Shortly after 11:15 p.m. local time, a spokesman for the Guardia Civil reported: “The Guardia Civil has found the body of a young man. Pending official identification, it matches the body of the man who disappeared on Tuesday while walking in the Torrent de Pareis.”
It is feared Mr Johnson, 32, was overcome by floodwaters as he tried to rescue his partner. Sarah Jane Thompson, 26.
Her body was found Wednesday morning in a flooded ravine where the couple had been hiking when they were swept away by a torrent of water during a storm on Tuesday afternoon.
The trousers of missing British walker Alexander Johnson, who is feared to have been swept away by a devastating flood, were found yesterday by search teams in Mallorca (pictured)
The grim discovery was made yesterday after divers joined the search for the missing 32-year-old, who was swept away by floodwaters as he tried to rescue his girlfriend (Picture: Search teams wade through water)
The head of the Guardia Civil’s specialist mountain rescue team yesterday remained confident they would find Mr Johnson’s body (Pictured: A helicopter searching the gorge)
Search teams yesterday found a pair of trousers believed to belong to Mr Johnson, as divers searched for the missing man in the flooded Torrent de Pareis gorge.
Before the trousers were discovered, a Guardia Civil spokesman said yesterday: ‘The search was immediately resumed, with specialised divers from the Guardia Civil joining the operation.
‘Air and land resources were deployed by the Guardia Civil. Several teams of firefighters were also mobilized.’
The Guardia Civil yesterday released footage showing officers wading through water and flying drones in an attempt to find the missing Briton.
Relatives of the couple, who were on holiday in Mallorca, are currently being assisted by psychologists.
According to other hikers who were with the British and later rescued by the Guardia Civil, the young woman was swept away by a strong tidal wave and the man was swept away shortly afterwards when he tried to rescue her.
An official said: ‘The British man and woman were a couple. They were here on holiday and staying locally on the island. They also have family here with them and we are helping as best we can.’
Authorities had launched a special operation on Tuesday to prevent hikers from reaching the river, despite several weather warnings issued across the island.
The mountain rescue team evacuated ten people later that day, including some relatives of the tragic couple, who were trapped and had no warm or protective clothing with them.
Emergency services resumed their search for missing British tourist, 32-year-old Johnson, on September 5.
Helicopters (pictured above on September 5) were deployed in the search, as authorities believe the man was swept away by the floodwaters while trying to rescue his girlfriend.
Rescue teams waded through river waters yesterday in an attempt to find the missing British tourist
The area where the British hikers disappeared was hit by flash flooding on Tuesday (pictured above)
The group, who ventured into the Torrent de Pareis, a river that flows through the Tramuntana area in northwestern Mallorca, reportedly showed signs of hypothermia due to the low temperatures that continued to drop as they became increasingly soaked by the downpour.
Considered one of the most scenic and famous day hikes in Mallorca, this UNESCO World Heritage Site follows a deep, kilometre-long gorge that starts at Lluc and ends at the bay of Sa Calobra.
Hikers wishing to begin the walk start at a place called Escorca, on the Ma-10 road that connects Pollensa with Soller.
Visitors are warned that the gorge can sometimes flood and should exercise caution.
Large parts of the lower half are inaccessible on foot during severe flooding and people have drowned trying to swim across part of the gorge.
The cliffs that mark the gorge are extremely high and steep, and there are no easy exits along the route.
The group affected by Tuesday’s flooding was taken to safety by helicopter. One person was taken to a medical facility in Palma and two were taken to the Son Amer shelter in Escorca, the Majorca Daily Bulletin reported.
The two, who were rushed to Son Amer, say they are “devastated” by the incident as they desperately await news of their loved ones.
Three of them managed to reach a safe mountain hut just after midnight on Wednesday morning. One of them was reportedly ‘slightly injured’.
The search for Johnson was suspended for more than two hours on Wednesday as emergency services waited for another storm that has battered the area with torrential rain and high winds to clear.
The operation was later resumed, but only on land, as authorities encountered problems using the helicopter.
Police previously attempted to track down the man’s whereabouts by triangulating his mobile phone.
Officials at the scene of the search said the group was “not properly equipped,” but that the hikers were not wearing warm clothing.
Guardia Civil can be seen in the area where emergency services continue to search for a British national who went missing yesterday in Torrent de Pareis, Mallorca.
An official said earlier: “We are tired of rescuing tourists from the area who only go out in flip-flops.”
He added: ‘This is not a walk in the park. It is a very difficult and technical hike and you need the right equipment and clothing.
‘Some of the people in the group we rescued were soaking wet and hypothermic due to the bad weather.
‘If you are going to do this walk, you need to be well prepared. And most importantly, check the weather conditions before you set off.’
Another told MailOnline: ‘There was a larger group of people who started the walk and the other two people joined them later.
‘They came by scooter to meet their friends and the brother of the missing man was at the scene, but has since left.
‘We found the woman this morning after the helicopter spotted her backpack from the air. We were able to recover her body, but the man is still missing.
‘The woman was found not far from the path, but the search for the man is difficult due to the weather conditions.’
Mallorca has been hit by bad weather this week, with a shocking clip showing the terrifying moment a resort is flooded.
Rescue crews reported that the woman’s body was found near the start of the trail, but there were fears the man had been washed out to sea.
A firefighter told MailOnline: ‘That’s a possibility, but we’re hoping that maybe they’re still alive somewhere, if they’re already dead and the body is trapped under a rock or other debris.’
A video obtained exclusively by MailOnline shows a foaming wave of water rushing through the Es Port restaurant on the coast at the mouth of the River Paris on September 4
Bad weather has plagued Mallorca for the most part this week
Airports in the Balearic Islands were experiencing major delays on both departures and arrivals in Palma, Ibiza and Menorca on Wednesday, with rainfall ranging from 50 to 90 litres per square kilometre and wind gusts of 90 to 120 km per hour.
The Torrent de Pareis is a riverbed that you can walk through during the dry months. However, this river often suffers from flash floods, because a lot of rainwater falls on the mountain and is then led through a narrow valley.
According to Ultima Hora, heavy rainfall in Mallorca on Tuesday caused 70 to 100 litres of water per square metre in the Serra de Tramuntana area.
In Escorsa, where the mountain range is located, the Torrent de Es Raco flooded, forcing emergency services to rescue a hundred people who were trapped.
MailOnline has contacted the FCDO for comment.