North Wales missing teenagers: Police find car searching for boy on Snowdonia trip – latest

A school in Shrewsbury that all four teenagers had previously attended said they were all “well known” within the school community. They had attended Meole Brace School until moving to Shrewsbury College to do their A-levels.

“Jev, Harvey and Wilf left us at the end of Year 11 last year and Hugo the year before. All four boys were well disposed [of] and well known in the school community,” said Principal Alan Doust.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with them and their families for their safe return.”

Gareth Pritchard, former deputy chief constable of North Wales and trustee of the charity Ogwen Montain Rescue Team, said finding the teenagers was the emergency services’ biggest challenge.

Gareth Pritchard told BBC Radio Cymru: “It’s such a large area and if you don’t know the teenagers’ route it will be even more difficult and it will take a lot of time.”

He added that the community’s knowledge and help was crucial in attempts to locate the youths.

A mother of missing teenager Harvey Owen said she “didn’t sleep a wink” and traveled to north Wales to be closer to the search operation.

“I’m really worried, we haven’t turned a blind eye, we’re desperate to follow up on every possible lead,” Crystal Owen told the BBC.

“If I had known [where he was going] Due to the winter weather conditions I would not have allowed him.

“They’re all sensitive, intelligent guys and we just hope they’re parked, lost and OK.”

She said she believed the last time the group used their phones was in Porthmadog around midday on Sunday. She added that her son had not logged into WhatsApp since then and they had been on the phone “incessantly” with the police.

According to the BBC, a forensic van was seen on the road near where the car was found.

A rescue aircraft was also spotted in the area and two emergency vehicles drove through the cordon near the villages of Garreg and Llanfrothen.

At this point in time, the police have no further information.

We have just spoken to a volunteer warden at Snowdonia National Park who described the weather conditions in the area as mild.

Roger Greenhalgh, who is also a warden at Lancashire Mountaineering Club, said he would be more concerned about the weekend’s rain, which had caused high water levels in some of the region’s rivers, such as the River Glaslyn.

He said: “If these guys were camping high up and the weather was particularly bad then I would be worried about it, but it’s mild at the moment. The weather certainly wouldn’t stop me from going out appropriately equipped.”

He added: “It was quite wet on Saturday, my concern was less about the weather and more about the rising water levels. You can only hope that no one got stuck in a river because that could be quite dangerous.”

A local resident told how he was woken up by the sound of a helicopter over his home this morning as he expressed concern for the four missing teenagers.

He said the weather in the Garreg area was “horrible” on Sunday when the teenagers were last seen.

Speaking to the BBC, Emyr Owen said: “I was woken up at around 5am by the sound of the helicopter upstairs, so I got up to look through the window.

“The policeman told us all that he had orders to close the road – you couldn’t drive through there towards Beddgelert.

“It was terrible weather on Sunday. I don’t know what happened to the four young men in the car, hopefully nothing bad.”

We know that at least one of the four missing teenagers attends Shrewsbury College. The college has issued a brief statement on the “concerning” situation.

A spokesman said the college “hopes the teenagers will be found safe and well soon.”

They added: “It must be a very worrying time for the teenagers’ family and friends.”

– Tuesday 3am – HM Coastguard responded to a request from North Wales Police to search the Porthmagod area. Nothing found.

– Tuesday 10.18am – Welsh Ambulance Service was called to an incident near the A4085 between Nantmor and Tan-Lan.

– Tuesday, 12:00 p.m. – The silver Ford Fiesta in which the teenagers were traveling is found by police, according to information from the public.

We’ve just spoken to Tom Hopkinson, who runs Walk Snowdonia and brings walking experiences to people in the region. He revealed what to take with you on a trip and what to do if you get lost.

He said people should take camping gear, as well as a good sleeping bag and roll-up mattress to keep them off the ground. As for hiking gear, protective clothing will help against the conditions, he said.

He added: “The phone signal can be very patchy. You’re obviously trying not to let it happen [getting lost] First of all, but if you get lost, return to the last known location, don’t panic and call for help, and then try to find out where you are.”