A British sailor is lost at sea after his yacht was found "eviscerated" off the south-western French coast in stormy weather, maritime officials have said.

The 73-year-old set off his distress beacon on Saturday after getting into difficulty approximately 80km (50 miles) west of Lacanau, the Préfecture maritime de l'Atlantique, a French government organisation, said in a statement.

A French air force helicopter was dispatched to find the man, but found his 12-metre yacht, the Tiger PA, "eviscerated" in the Bay of Biscay.

Two divers were then winched down to the wreckage, where they discovered an empty raft, officials added.

A Portuguese cargo ship and a Spanish hospital vessel were both diverted to the area and to help with the search, alongside the French navy.

After several hours of searching, it was called off in the early hours of Sunday morning "due to a lack of information".

The incident came after officials were first alerted to the Tiger PA on Friday evening when it did not respond to radio messages, the Préfecture maritime de l'Atlantique said in a statement.

A Portuguese cargo ship later established radio contact with the yacht and spoke to the 73-year-old sailor, who said he was safe.

In the statement, the Préfecture maritime de l'Atlantique reminded people to be careful in the waters during the stormy weather.

Storm Herminia, named by the Spanish weather service Agencia Estatal de Meteorología (Aemet) on Friday, brought heavy rains and wind battered the north of Spain and western France.

Gusts of wind exceeded 62mph and floodwaters caused by the storm also left cars and buildings submerged in western France.