A British man has been reported missing on a solo round-the-world sailing trip after his faithful dog was discovered alive on board his abandoned yacht drifting off the Canary Islands.
James Nunan, 34, from Reading, set off on his dream voyage in March with his miniature Jack Russell, Thumbelina, aboard a boat called Kehaar that he had bought in Slovenia.
But fears are growing for the adventurer after his yacht was found by coastguards 50 miles off Gran Canaria with no sign of its owner – though documents inside confirmed it belonged to him.
Miraculously, little Thumbelina was discovered unharmed and has since been taken in by a local dog shelter.
Nunan, a builder affectionately known to family as ‘Jemsie’, had last been in touch with his mother, Maura Norton, 56, from Essex, on August 18.
His bank card was used later that evening at 10:39pm at a kebab shop in Las Palmas – the last confirmed trace of him.
The free-spirited sailor had spent a year preparing for his global voyage and had already made stops in Gibraltar and Lanzarote before arriving in Gran Canaria.
His half-sister, Nikita Goddard, 31, from Lincoln, told The Telegraph: ‘He’s always been a free spirit. Before he went sailing he was living in a converted van, and he was travelling around Scotland in it.
‘When he was in Scotland he just got this idea that he was going to get a boat and sail around the world. He’s been doing that since late March this year. He waited until after my son was born so he could meet him and went pretty much straight afterwards.
‘He’s been going all around Europe on his boat. He’s been very good about keeping contact with my mum. I’ve been hearing through my mum how he has been getting on and what he has been doing.
‘She last spoke to him on August 18 – it was a Monday – and by the Wednesday my mum started to get a bit worried. I believe it was Friday, August 22, when she reported him as a missing person.
‘We are told there was a “pan-pan” alert made in regards to his boat – it’s one step down from a mayday.’
Nunan was last seen at a popular British bar, Paddy’s Anchor, in Las Palmas on the same day he contacted his family.
He had earlier broadcast a live Facebook video – but later that night, it is understood his passport and backpack were stolen.
His father has since flown to Gran Canaria to help search for him, while Essex Police are supporting his mother at home.
A Foreign Office spokesman said: ‘We are supporting the family of a British man who has been reported missing in Spain and are in contact with the local authorities.’
Essex Police added: ‘We’re in touch with James’s family to provide support to them at this very difficult time.
‘We have submitted a number of queries through our international liaison officers and Interpol to Spanish authorities. At this stage we are awaiting response.
‘We dearly hope James can be located safely as soon as possible and we will continue to be in contact, alongside the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, with his family, and [will] help where we can.’