Family scours Indian Ocean for jet-skier

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/family-scours-indian-ocean-for-jetskier-1297568.html

Wife believes husband missing off Bali for months may be stranded on island

By Jonathan Brown
Saturday, 10 January 2009


Eastern Bali's miles of palm-fringed beaches and crystal clear seas have helped make it a paradise for water sports enthusiasts from around the world. That is what Jeremy Hoyland thought when he set out with friends in October to jet-ski between his resort at Tanjung Benoa beach and a nearby tropical islet.


Now nearly three months on, nothing has been heard or seen of Mr Hoyland, 41, who had two children, after he used his mobile phone to report engine trouble as he became separated from his fellow skiers returning from the exotic excursion. But his family refused to give up hope and set out again last night to continue their search, desperately hoping that he may still be alive, stranded on an uninhabited Indian Ocean island.

One theory is that Mr Hoyland, a highly experienced power-crafter who had gone out to Bali to act as race director for the jet-ski sports event in the 2008 Asia Beach Games, may have drifted in the region's notoriously powerful currents. While it is possible the powerful swimmer may have been swept out into the deep ocean towards Australia, the seas off the Bali and Java coasts are dotted with hundreds of small islands.

Here, there is said to be enough fruit and fresh water to survive on. Many are inhabited but locals have no means of communicating with the outside world, and the family is said to be optimistic after hearing reports of divers turning up weeks after going missing in the region.

Jacqui Holland, who is going to Bali to lead the search, said she would "leave no stone unturned". After a meeting with the Indonesian ambassador in London, Yuri Octavian Thiamin, she said she was encouraged by his support and the offer of boats and expertise. "He definitely shares our optimism that Jeremy may be alive on an uninhabited island," she said. "Ultimately we have to find something because it's so difficult for us. We can't do anything with our lives and get on with our lives without knowing."

There is also a glimmer of fresh hope. Phone records obtained through the British mobile companies Virgin and Vodafone showed Mr Hoyland had made calls for help from about three miles off Bali, near Lembongan island, his destination that day. The new hunt will focus on this area, some 15 miles from the initial search area.

Mrs Hoyland will be accompanied by her brother-in-law Nicholas and a liaison officer from South Yorkshire Police. They also engaged the services of Clarence Mitchell, the former BBC royal correspondent who has dealt with media relations for the McCann family, as well as Fiona MacKeown, whose daughter Scarlett was murdered in Goa, and the parents of Jimmy Mizen, stabbed to death in London.

The family says it will spend whatever it takes to find the missing jet-skier and has raised money with a charity concert at his daughters' school. The family has been inundated with support from around the world by jet- skiers after they set up a website to raise money for the search.

Rescuers deployed seven helicopters and four boats in the initial seven-day search, drafting in police, military and local people. The family then urged the British Government to put pressure on the Indonesians to keep looking, resulting in yesterday's meeting. Mrs Hoyland said: "We hope we will have a good chance of finding something that will help us to understand what happened to him."

STATEMENT ON BEHALF OF JACQUI AND NICHOLAS HOYLAND

The Hoyland family today have been offered support from Sir Richard Branson in helping to search for the the still missing Jeremy Hoyland. This along with the continued support on Diplomatic levels and the assurance from the Chief of Police in Bali that the search will continue until Jeremy is found, has been most reassuring. The continued search is progressive and structured, of the tidal waters in the area. We are encouraged at the confidence of the local search and rescue teams both on the water and in the air, that they will find Jeremy alive and indeed we both look forward to returning back to normal daily life with the whole family very soon.

We would also like to thank the local community in Bali as without their help, the search would not have achieved the level it has. The messages of support and donations from Jeremy's worldwide friends have been overwhelming and again, we would like to take this opportunity of thanking each and every one of you.

We again await daylight to resume the search. 2.45pm, Wednesday 29th october 2008


http://jeremyhoylandrescue.myblogsite.com/entry11.html

Jeremy Hoyland Rescue

To friends and wellwishers of Jeremy Hoyland. We know that Jeremy has a lot of friends out there who will want to be kept up to date and to help with the rescue. I'm sure you have all seen the news about the massive air and sea search that is currently underway for jet ski expert Jeremy who went missing in Indonesia on Friday 24th October. Popular race director and IJSBA offical, Jeremy, was in Bali for the Jet Ski Sports events of the 2008 Asia Beach Games.

So far 6 helicopters, 2 navy vessels, other official boats and numerous private people have been searching for him. The search has now been going on for 4 days. Jeremy's wife Jacqui has joined the rescue and is chartering a plane in a bid to do all she can to help find her husband and father of her two girls. We are now in desperate need of your help. Whilst the Indonesian authorities are doing what they can to search for family man Jeremy, we want to extend that search. To do this we need funds. We are asking for any help with our quest and hope that you can contribute to the Jeremy Hoyland Rescue Fund. We need to bring Jeremy home safely. Please help us.

To donate to the fund please either pay via paypal (Please see Paypal instructions above) or in to the following account: account number: 40790818 Sort Code: 20-26-55. Jacqui and her family and friends thank you for helping her find Jeremy.



http://jeremyhoylandrescue.myblogsite.com/entry1.html

Similar to the Mccanns isnt it?

he's been missing 3 months and now his wife is flying out to Bali? She couldnt have missed him much. I would have been out on the next plane.