A couple living in Beaumont-de-Lomagne (Tarn-et-Garonne) has not given any sign of life since March 16 in Madeira in Portugal, Le Figaro
learned
in a press release from the Montauban prosecutor's office this Wednesday, confirming information from
La Dépêche
.
On vacation on the Portuguese island, Véronique and Laurent Blond, aged 56 and 57, disappeared while hiking and did not return to their hotel.
It was their daughter, who went on vacation with them, who alerted the authorities.
“It’s unfortunate because they are adorable, and not “hotheads””
On the networks, many are warning about the dangers of these trails.
“It’s true that you have to be careful, especially along certain levadas (Editor’s note: a levada is an irrigation canal or an aqueduct found in Portugal)
,” says a user on Facebook.
Another confides that one of her relatives also disappeared on these trails in 2021 and was found deceased.
“I know them as a customer of theirs. Beaumont is a village, everyone knows each other. Especially our traders. In addition, they are sporty and we meet each other very regularly around the lake at home
,” confides to
Figaro
Karine, a resident of the town.
“It's unfortunate because they are adorable, and not 'hotheads'.
They were hiking in the Pyrenees, knowing the dangers of this type of activity.
“It’s incomprehensible,”
she asks again, recalling that the couple is particularly appreciated in the village.
“Here we all think of them, of their loved ones, of their employees.
And of course we all hope to see their smiles and their joy of living again.”
A significant mobilization
In Madeira, significant resources have been put in place by the local authorities to find travelers.
Firefighters, police crews, the local gendarmerie but also civil protection, the maritime authority and judicial protection gathered their resources to find the couple.
A team of drones from the Madeira Operational Command, responsible for coordinating relief and crisis management operations on the island, was also called upon to fly over the trails that tourists could have taken.
“The various telephone requisitions carried out immediately”
did not make it possible to locate their mobile phone, reports Bruno Sauvage, the prosecutor of the Montauban court, specifying that, despite a visit to the accommodation of Véronique and Laurent, no clues and elements of investigation could not
“direct the research.”
The couple seems to have completely disappeared without a trace.
“We have no concrete clue that tells us where the tourists went
,” reacted the regional command of the public security police (PSP) of Madeira for the local media
Sic Noticias
.
Despite everything, the local judicial police are continuing the search.
“A close and regular link”
is notably established between the Portuguese investigators and the Montauban public prosecutor's office, through the Portuguese Internal Security Attaché, further details Bruno Sauvage.