Update: Search for missing 75-year-old 'concluding'

Wednesday 08 March 2017

Searches for a woman missing since Friday lunchtime are now concluding after her handbag was recovered from a north coast cliff face yesterday, suggesting that she may have fallen into the sea.

Rescue services have been searching for 75-year-old Valerie Jehan since she was reported missing after saying she was going for a walk last Friday.

Police have told Express that the full land search will be complete by the end of today or tomorrow morning.

Investigations will continue, however, in order to prepare a file for the Deputy Viscount.

Ms Jehan left her home in the Undercliffe road area at around 11:30, and took a bus to Devil's Hole, where she was seen leaving the bus stop at 12:07.

Pictured: CCTV footage of Mrs Jehan on the bus to Devil's Hole.

A pair of walkers came forward to say they had spotted her on the cliff path down to Devil's Hole at 12:50.

Following that sighting, rescue teams were able to focus their search, and around 16:30 on Tuesday evening they found her handbag containing personal items such as her mobile phone. 

“Sadly this discovery suggests what we have feared – everything now is pointing to the fact that Valerie got into difficulties in the area of the Devil’s Hole and has fallen into the sea,” Chief Inspector Chris Beechey commented.

Pictured: A French Search and Rescue helicopter searches for Mrs Jehan on the northern coast, where she was last spotted. (Photo: Jersey SAR/Twitter)

The search operation - now in its sixth and final day - has involved the Police, the Coastguard, the Fire Service, Jersey Red Cross and volunteers from Jersey Search and Rescue. 

Police dogs and helicopters were deployed to the scene, while the Fire Service used a drone to search the Devil’s Hole itself, and investigated several ‘standing water’ areas including the reservoir and nearby streams.