A HUGE manhunt was expected to resume today in the search for a missing teenager.

A search party assembled in the New Forest village of Frogham yesterday to hunt for 17-year-old Ross Haughey, 48 hours after he was last seen by his parents.

Follow live updates in the search for Ross here

The experienced walker and runner left his family home on Sunday afternoon and said goodbye to parents Brian and Penelope to go for a walk.

The alarm was raised by his anxious parents, who live in the village on the outskirts of Fordingbridge, when he failed to return home that night.

The A-level student is not thought to have been carrying a mobile phone. A handful of unconfirmed sightings are currently being investigated by police.

Police said there had been around six calls from people who had seen someone matching Ross's description. Most were in the Forest, but one was near to the Wiltshire border.

Former pupils from The Burgate School, where Ross is a student, joined anxious parents, parish councillors and a contingent of local residents in freezing and at times wet conditions to search, under guidance from police.

Wendy Monkcom, whose children went to school with Ross, rallied local residents to search for him yesterday morning.

Around 18 people including her son Austin joined her and spent around two hours scouring a stretch of the the Forest as well as contacting liveries to raise awareness with horse riders.

She said: “I just felt compelled to do something. I know the area well, I have the time and we could cover some of the tracks that many people won't even know about.

“It’s just awful. I cannot think what his family must be going through right now.”

The Burgate School started an awareness campaign on Twitter which had, within hours, reached five million people.

Head teacher David Pover described Ross as “a bright young man who is academically talented.”

He told the Daily Echo: “He is a modest, gentle student who has settled well in our sixth form at the Burgate with excellent effort and attendance.

“Ross is known for his fitness and ability as a middle distance runner.

“Students have set up #FindRoss on Twitter which has already reached 5 million people and the school community has offered the emergency services support in the physical search for Ross.”

Follow live updates in the search for Ross here