Updated 8.06pm

A LAND AND sea search operation on the Sheep’s Head Peninsula in West Cork has been stood down for the night, with one man still missing.

Earlier today a body was recovered from the area where the two men, who are understood to be Dutch and German, were reported missing on Saturday.

The Coast Guard confirmed that an unidentified body has been recovered from the water near the Sheep’s Head this afternoon.

It was recovered from an “inaccessible location” by the Rescue 117 helicopter from Waterford.

There were reports this afternoon that a body had been spotted in the sea, and the Coast Guard, Castletownbere lifeboat and LE Eithne are all involved in searching the area concerned.

The Coast Guard had reported at the time that recovering a body from that area would be ‘difficult’.

Missing men

Two men, aged 31 and 33, were reported missing after they failed to return from a walk, a spokesperson for the Irish Coast Guard told TheJournal.ie.

The Coast Guard helicopter from Shannon carried out a search of the area yesterday, and was back at the scene early today conducting a search of the peninsula and surrounding waters.

Local coast guard and lifeboat units have also responded.

This evening, a Coast Guard spokesperson said the search for the second man was stepped down at 6pm and will resume at first light tomorrow morning. Gardaí told TheJournal.ie that the body of the man found earlier has not yet been identified.

The men have been frequent visitors in the area and were staying in a house on the peninsula. The mother of one of the men reported them missing.

First published 10am.

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