Search 'paused' for missing British hiker, 25, who failed to return from solo hike on New Zealand mountain

The hunt for a British hiker who failed to instrumentality from a solo hike successful New Zealand has been 'paused', constabulary person revealed.

Eli Sweeting, 25, sparked a large hunt and rescue cognition erstwhile helium went missing aft mounting disconnected for a hike up the mile-high Mitre Peak adjacent Milford Sound connected Sunday, May 4.

The experienced hiker is understood to person been exploring the country astir the 5,560ft upland connected the country's South Island. 

Efforts by 60 hunt and rescue volunteers, with the assistance of volunteers, helicopters and hunt dogs, to find Mr Sweeting person been hampered by atrocious upwind and hard terrain.

But connected Monday afternoon, Inspector Matt Scoles, acting commandant for the district, said constabulary had made the 'difficult decision' to intermission hunt efforts.

'We person been supporting the tramper's [hiker's] household and we cognize this is hard quality for them to perceive astatine what has been an incredibly distressing time,' helium said.

'While the hunt has present been paused, we volition beryllium reviewing our efforts and looking to spot if determination is thing further we tin do.'

In a fundraising post, Mr Sweeting's sister, Serena Sweeting, said helium was an 'experienced climber' who had 'hiked successful this terrain galore times'.

Last week, the household were fixed caller hope after rescuers spotted a torchlight.

Serena said: 'There has been a airy spotted astatine a constituent on the way down the upland and each efforts person been focused there.'

She revealed however searches had to beryllium halted implicit Wednesday and Thursday past week owed to upwind warnings, adding: 'The challenges are that the bush is truthful dense that it is hard for infrared to prime up immoderate signs.'

Family person Samantha Eastwell, 31, besides told MailOnline past week: 'We are each conscionable trying to enactment positive, they support seeing a airy truthful they don't cognize whether helium is live but erstwhile they support having to telephone disconnected the hunt due to the fact that of the weather. 

'He's a precise outdoorsy feline and has been successful New Zealand for a while. He was dressed for the conditions but Serena told maine Eli had lone packed for 1 night.

'The full household is very, precise disquieted for him.'

A GoFundMe leafage acceptable up to enactment the hunt for Mr Sweeting, who is primitively from Bristol, has raised much than £12,000.

In a connection connected the site, Serena said: 'My member has ever enjoyed being successful the mountains, and escapade is what helium lives for.

'Eli is 1 of the kindest, astir compassionate radical successful my life, and helium has ever been determination for me.

'He inspires maine to unrecorded and get retired of my comfortableness zone, arsenic good arsenic listens and genuinely wants to cognize you and your story.

'We are based successful England. We conscionable privation him location safe. We conscionable commune they find Eli.'

The leafage said hunt teams had been 'working astir the clock' successful 'unbelievably dense alpine bush'.

Mr Sweeting, who is primitively from Bristol, moved to New Zealand aft graduating from the University of Derby with a grade successful outdoor enactment and management.

Until precocious helium had been moving for a vessel cruising institution but has besides worked arsenic a kayak usher and successful fields including climbing and watersports.

Darryl Wilson, CEO of Wilsons Abel Tasman, told mag Eli is simply a 'bright, engaging, capable the country benignant person'.

He added: 'Our thoughts are with the household and those who cognize him, due to the fact that it is simply a trying clip for everyone, a concerning time.

'Eli is simply a precise resilient individual, truthful we anticipation and commune astatine this point.'

According to Eli's illustration connected Wilsons, aft 'countless hours moving and adventuring successful the outdoors'