THE wife of a man missing for five days said today she was tortured with worry but still believed he would return.

Mrs Doreen Yates, of Kings Road, Blackburn, said: "The longer it is, the harder it's getting. I haven't slept since he left. I can't even go to bed because when he comes through that door, I want to be here for him."

Alan Yates, 48, vanished at 8.15am on Sunday on his way to pick up a friend for a day out at a vintage bus rally in Keighley.

He left his wife making sandwiches for the trip and said he would return to pick her up in an hour but he never returned. His car was later found parked outside Sappi Paper Mill, Feniscowles.

Mrs Yates, who worked with her husband at Park Products, Blackburn, said she could not understand why her husband would disappear and believed he must have suffered a mental breakdown.

She said: "There's no way he would put us through this if he was well. It's torture. I want to be out there searching but I can't leave the phone. I feel like I'm a prisoner. I just want as many people as possible out there looking for him."

Their daughter, Melanie, 20, said she couldn't understand her father's disappearance. She said: "He never really goes anywhere on his own. He's always either with Mum or his friends. I'm trying not to think 'what if' because there are so many horrible things. I have to keep a clear head because if he walks in he wouldn't want to see us upset." Mrs Yates said police had searched the area using the police helicopter, but had had little response from the public. "The police have been absolutely marvellous,: she said, "they couldn't have done any more if I had given them a million pounds. We are just hoping someone will recognise his photograph."

Inspector Stephen Haworth, of Blackburn police, said: "It's a very peculiar case. He seems to have vanished and there's no real reason to say why he might have gone. He's led an apparently ordered and happy life. He has an excellent relationship with his wife, dotes on his daughter, gets on well with his colleagues and has plenty of hobbies.

"We are certainly not giving up hope that he's alive. If we can get any information, we will act on it."

A man similar to Mr Yates was spotted at 3.30pm on Sunday, standing in the rain on Moulden Brow, Blackburn, with several holdalls. If anyone has any information about Mr Yates, or thinks they may have seen him, they can contact Blackburn police on 01254 51212.

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