Darren Kay: Missing runner's family overwhelmed by support

Darren Kay, 52, has been competing in fell runs since 2004

The family of a British man who went missing while running alone on Madeira say they have been overwhelmed with support.

Fell runner Darren Kay, 52, was on holiday with his partner in the town of Calheta when the couple went on a two-hour run together on Sunday.

Mr Kay, from Sedbergh in Cumbria, decided to carry on by himself but never returned, his brother Jonny said.

The family said they were working with agencies on the island to find him.

Madeira is a mountainous Portuguese island off the North African coast

In a statement, they said: "Sadly we are not able to provide any positive news at this time in the search for Darren.

"We are extremely grateful for the support and commitment of all agencies from Madeira and the UK in the search to find Darren.

"We as a family have continued to search and are thankful for the ongoing efforts of the [Madeiran authorities] and have been encouraged by their increased presence in better searching conditions over the last two days.

"We would also wish to thank everyone back home for their messages of support and we have been overwhelmed by the generosity shown.".

Mr Kay, originally from Bolton, has been running for nearly 20 years and is well known within the fell running community.

Mr Kay had competed for England and runs with Calder Valley Fell Runners.