Esther Dingley: French and Spanish police carry out search
- Published
French and Spanish police are carrying out a major search for a British hiker missing in the Pyrenees since November.
Esther Dingley, 37, last made contact with her partner Daniel Colegate from the top of Pic de Sauvegarde, on the French-Spanish border, on 22 November.
About 30 officers from the two countries started a search of the mountain on Thursday with the French police also deploying a helicopter.
Mr Colegate, who has been conducting his own searches, praised police.
A spokeswoman for the Spanish authorities said about 20 French officers were searching the French side of the border near the mountain top while 10 Spanish officers were doing the same on the Spanish side.
A French helicopter is also being used, the spokeswoman said.
A French police source told the BBC the operation was being led by the gendarmerie's mountain specialists.
The source said they were unable to say how long the search would go on for as that was dependant on the weather.
The authorities carried out extensive searches in the week after Ms Dingley was reported missing by Mr Colegate but had to call them off in early December due to the arrival of heavy winter snow in the mountains.
Mr Colegate, who was staying at a farm in France when Ms Dingley went missing, started his own search of the area in April while authorities waited for the snow to clear.
Mr Colegate, who has walked more than 620 miles (1,000km) on his searches through the mountains, said he is in regular contact with the police and is "grateful they are continuing to look for Esther".
Ms Dingley, who was travelling in the couple's campervan, had started her walk in the Spanish town of Benasque on 21 November.
Her final communication with Mr Colegate was in a WhatsApp video call shortly after 16:00 GMT the following day, with her planning to spend the night at Refuge Venasque.
Mr Colegate said she was an experienced walker who was well-prepared for her solo hike, with provisions for up to five days.
Police have previously said they were considering all options including the possibility she may have been kidnapped.
The couple lived in Durham before setting off on a campervan tour of Europe in 2014.
Follow BBC North East & Cumbria on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to northeastandcumbria@bbc.co.uk.