The man, “seasoned in this practice” according to the press release from the maritime prefecture of the Mediterranean, has been missing since Friday morning.
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A 22-year-old freediver hunter went missing on Friday July 21 off Cap Béar in the town of Port-Vendres (Pyrénées-Orientales), reports France Bleu Roussillon. The freediving hunter comes from the Pyrénées-Orientales. According to the press release from the maritime prefecture of the Mediterranean, he was “experienced in this practice and knew the area“.
The alert was given by one of his friends who had been fishing with him since 7am and who lost his trace. He gave the warning “at the end of the morning seeing the equipment moored to a rock with no presence around“. Also according to the press release, “the CROSS Med (the Regional Operational Center for Surveillance and Rescue of the Mediterranean) was alerted to the disappearance around 11:40 a.m.“.
Research interrupted
A major search effort was deployed to try to find him. Divers are notably mobilized, a helicopter, sea rescuers from Port-Vendres as well as maritime gendarmes. “After several hours of unsuccessful searches and in view of the significant drift conditions, the CROSS widened the search area around 3 p.m. to Cap Creus in Spain.“, specifies the press release. The research was interrupted at 6:45 p.m. The investigation is now entrusted to the operational center of the gendarmerie (COG) of the Pyrénées-Orientales.
The maritime prefecture of the Mediterranean also reminds you of a few safety rules: do not leave alone or inform a loved one of your place of launching and the estimated time of return, have a signaling buoy in the event of independent diving, have a means of communication waterproof and with a charged battery, or even check the weather forecast in the area.