Jean-Jacques Savin's canoe was found this weekend while the adventurer has not given any sign of life since Friday.
The Portuguese authorities announced to his relatives that they had found his body in the boat before finally denying this information on Sunday evening.
Those around him say they are "appalled" by this confusion.
The French authorities claim to be following the case closely via the embassy in Lisbon.
"We are appalled", admits this Monday one of the relatives of Jean-Jacques Savin to
20 Minutes
in the face of the approximations of the Portuguese authorities about the disappearance of the adventurer. The latter denied Sunday evening having discovered the body of the septuagenarian in his canoe after having affirmed the opposite 24 hours earlier to the family of the navigator from Arès in Gironde. There would therefore still be hope at this stage, even if it remains extremely slim.
Jean-Jacques Savin, 75, had left Sagres in southern Portugal on January 1 to try to row across the Atlantic after having already done so in a barrel in 2019. But very quickly, he was confused due to bad winds with an initial route extended by 900 kilometres.
Last week, he was facing serious energy and communication problems according to his last exchanges with his relatives.
What do we know about the shipwreck?
The browser has not given any news since Friday at 0:34.
He was then off Madeira and was on his way to the small island of Ponta Delgada, in the Azores archipelago, to repair his canoe
L'Audacieux
.
According to his team, he had just triggered his two distress beacons and indicated that he was "in great difficulty".
Since then, his boat has been found, returned, as evidenced by a photo released by the Portuguese Navy, and a waterproof bag containing the navigator's identification documents was discovered by a merchant ship.
Why so much confusion around the discovery of the body?
The greatest vagueness reigns around the body of Jean-Jacques Savin. On Saturday, the Portuguese authorities in charge of the investigation told his relatives during a telephone conversation that he had been discovered inside the boat, explains Xavier Daney, the mayor of Arès. A version finally denied Sunday evening by the Portuguese navy to AFP: "The search ended yesterday at the end of the day (Saturday) without it being possible to find the victim", she indicated. While specifying that during the rescue operation the rescuers had "strong reasons to believe that a body could be inside".
Problem, the entourage of the browser has had no new official communication for its part since Saturday.
“The family is completely lost.
It's terrible especially for his daughter.
She was even preparing to leave there to repatriate her father's body, ”laments the city councilor.
What do the navigator team and the French authorities say?
“There have been some confusions that we are currently trying to clear up.
We don't know any more.
We are waiting for information, ”said his entourage at first.
But anger has been rising in recent hours: “We are appalled!
says a member of Jean-Jacques Savin's team.
In an attempt to get things moving, Xavier Daney contacted the Gironde prefecture early on Monday in order to obtain clarification as quickly as possible.
She simply says to
20 Minutes
to keep abreast of the situation via her diplomatic adviser and the French embassy in Lisbon but without knowing much more.
For example, we do not know if new searches are planned in the coming hours to find Jean-Jacques Savin.
Society
Rowing across the Atlantic: The body of the French adventurer not found, indicates the Portuguese navy
Society
Rowing the Atlantic: The "lifeless" body of the 75-year-old Girondin adventurer was found in his canoe
Disappearance
Society
Portugal
Adventure
Aquitaine
Bordeaux
Boat
sinking
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