six-day search covering 16,000 miles.

The yacht L23 was one of eight which set off from Portsmouth, Rhode Island in early December. They were due to be delivered to Fort de France, capital of the French Caribbean Island of Martinique.

Of the eight, only three reached their destination. So far the L23 is missing, one has been abandoned, one is believed to have sunk and another -- the 37-foot Lagoon 37 -- reached Bermuda on Saturday, resuming its journey to the West Indies on Sunday.

The missing 42-foot catamaran has been the subject of a major search by the US Coast Guard, the US Navy and the Canadian Armed Forces. Four planes have been used since the search began in late December.

Bermuda's Harbour Radio has also been involved in alerting shipping to look out for the L23 .

A spokesman said: "The search has been suspended because of bad weather and it really is a case of the search being exhausted. All possible options have been spent.

"In total, an area of 16,200 square miles was searched over that period of days.

"The search will be suspended because of the declining possibility of success. It will only start again if there are any developments.'' A US Coast Guard official has spoken to the families of the crew members, based in Fort de France.

The Lagoon 37 experienced problems in the harsh weather in December and was forced to dock in Bermuda. It is expected to reach Martinique at the end of the week.