Police continue search for French teenager who went missing on mountain in Bali

Police were today continuing to search for a missing French teenager who fell down a mountainside while hiking with his family in Indonesia.

Thibault Stein, 14, was trekking with his mother and two brothers when he tumbled down the side of the steep trail on Mount Batukaru in the Tabanan Regency of Bali on August 25.

Thibault's brother Rafael, 17, also fell but reportedly survived by following a river toward a nearby village.

Rescue teams this week were scouring the mountain, said to be the second highest peak in Bali, though no sign of the youngster has been found despite 'significant resources' being mobilised.

Iptu I Gusti Made Berata, head of public relations of the Tabanan Police, said on September 1: 'The search was extended by three days at the request of the Honorary Consulate of France.'

Heavy rain and thick fog were said to be impeding the operation.

I Nyoman Srinadha Giri, chief of the Tabanan Regional Disaster Management Agency, said: 'The team is still on the mountain but there are no results yet. The key witness who knew exactly where the victim fell has returned to France so we had difficulty determining the exact point of the search.'

Authorities have urged tourists to always bring local guides who are familiar with the terrain when hiking.

On July 28, a French tourist died while fishing off a beach in Lampung province.

Leo Bauthamy, 25, told his friends he was going bowfishing using spear-like arrows at Walur Beach, but was washed away from the shore by rough waves. His lifeless corpse was found drifting off the coast a day later.

While on July 2, British backpackers Matthew Forster, 22, and Andrew Forster, 18, went missing while trekking up Mount Agung, in Bali.

Local rescue teams launched a mass search with officials fearing the lads would be unable to survive on the treacherous route without a guide.

They were finally found at around 6 pm local on July 4 - more than 40 hours after they set off.