Mountain search resumes for missing teenager

Mountain rescuers have resumed their search for a British teenager who went missing while out walking in Romania last year.

George Smyth, 18, from Newport in Shropshire was last seen in the Bucegi Mountains, in the central part of the country, on 23 November.

The local mountain rescue service, Salvamont Brasov, said the search at the time had been carried out in "difficult conditions" in areas where the snow was up to 3m (10ft) deep in places.

A spokesperson said they hoped warmer temperatures would melt the snow to allow more inaccessible areas to be searched.

But added: "Unfortunately, no other conclusive hints have emerged at this moment."

The University of Bristol student's last known location was in a "very isolated and hard-to-access mountain area", Sebastian Marinescu from the rescue team said in December.

In a statement on social media, he said the deep snow made it "considerably difficult to inspect the ground completely", but search teams continued looking in "areas they considered relevant".

The rescue service said the area had seen a "prolonged winter", which caused the snow to rise "well above original estimates".

In January, the family said they had come to accept he had died.

"When the mountains that took him are ready to let go, George will be found, and we will bring him home to say goodbye," they said.

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