Rescue attempts were called off last night for a woman believed to have fallen overboard from a Condor fast ferry between Guernsey and Poole.
Crew of the ferry raised the alarm at yesterday afternoon and a full search was made of the vessel.
Lifeboats and aircraft searched for the woman while the ferry also changed its course to assist. Portland Coastguard suspended the search at 10pm.
A spokesman said the missing woman was from the Bristol area, the BBC reported.
Portland Coastguard Watch manager Nigel Robson said: “We have searched the route of the ship and the areas where our search planning expertise indicate a person might have been carried by the tide. Sadly, we have found no-one.”