Missing woman

[MyOldCaravan]

BBC News - Nicola Bulley: Partner describes perpetual hell over missing mum
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-lancashire-64450243

Just been reading about this. How awful for her partner and children. Really hope she is found soon

Her parents didn't seem to imply any MH issues and they obviously were very involved in her life looking after her DC regularly. They didn't seem to agree with police's line of enquiry which looks like why they've spoken out

Some people hide their depression very well. The ones that display their depression and anxiety give a cry for help and aren’t the ones to worry too much about. It’s the silent ones that are more alarming. No one knew I was depressed and traumatised in my mid-late teens (and I lived with my parents) until I kept disappearing and got so bad no one thought I’d recover. Luckily I did :)

Surely if she fell in the river, trying to save her dog they’d be some signs of paw marks, footprints etc and as someone said, the tide was out so water was very shallow.
I really hope that she’s found safe and well. 🥺

@ofwarren latest BBC report - police Sgt Riley appears to suggest greatest danger from some ‘treacherous’ parts of riverbank where searching public could come to grief not from any third party potential attack. Presumably, they have another (strong?) line of enquiry they can’t go public on as yet & its due diligence to search river etc. Uncharacteristically ignored text from sister night before & out of hours work meeting etc might point to that. Hopefully they’ll be progress & an update soon.

Apologies I wasn't trying to make out that individuals have nothing to worry about, just that other factors are also involved in saying don't go searching alone.

By anyone you mean somone who knows her well enough to know her full name to find her on strava or someone who decided on where they wanted to abduct a woman from then searched Strava to find someone who used to walk that route a couple of months ago?

I really can't see it

Oh really? I didn't know that about the sisters text. How worrying.

Her Strava app showed the same route daily. What if someone at the caravan park was observing that and came through the gate behind the bench pretending to be in a panic and asking for help, using a child in trouble as a reason for example. Nicola could’ve hastily put her phone down and followed them only to be abducted? If she left willingly there would be no evidence of a struggle. It would explain her phone being left mid video call as she’d been lured away suddenly and the dog being in distress not being able to follow her through the gate.

I really hope the Police explore all avenues thoroughly and that the family get answers soon. My heart breaks for those little girls.

@Moonlightdust yes, exactly. Apparently, mobile phone, some reports say was originally on the ground. Mobile phone data will prob help clarify a lot.

If not in water, she might be alive. The poor family, unimaginable.

Yes. Because nothing to suggest a third party was involved means just that.

If there is no evidence, no body, no sign of a struggle, no blood, that kind of thing then there is nothing to suggest a third party involvement.

And that will remain the case until they find evidence to suggest otherwise (not just in this case but any case where a missing person is reported).

But if the police are asking for dash cam footage etc then they clearly haven’t ruled out the possibility.

And it’s also worth remembering that a third party involvement doesn’t necessarily mean someone who brought her to harm, it could be someone who was helping her disappear, could be another man for instance, or a friend, someone who knew what her plans were. Or it could be something more sinister.

It’s also entirely possible that the dog wasn’t left there but was put there.

I do think that the phone being left will be a key factor but who if asked to help with a missing child would think I'll leave my phone behind while I go and help? Would anyone actually that?

I can see 3 reasons, going into the water and not wanting it to get wet, leaving it so she can't be tracked or leaving it as she was taken suddenly by surprise

The last one least likely as a planned abductor would probably throw the phone in the river

Nicola's Facebook was very open, which is quite unusual these days I think -and she was quite a regular poster till the beginning of December. There's lots of family pics, they look like any other normal, happy family - but it did make me wonder why she stopped posting after the 7th December - or did she just tighten up her security post-7th, and if so, maybe there was a reason for that?

I'd be very frustrated if I was her family that the police seem quite firm that a third party was not involved. I'm assuming they have good reason for thinking this but if they aren't sharing those reasons with her parents you can see why they feel exasperated by the situation.

Yes @lemmein if another line of enquiry, hopefully phone data will point to that. The very late work meeting & ignored text etc, too. Sounds like they’ve done a super thorough job on the river, coastguard, helicopter over several days. Apparently mill pond calm in parts & you’d struggle to play pooh sticks, also fairly shallow. The meandering nature etc means you’d expect to see a hat, boot etc you’d think, too

I don’t know. If I were suddenly confronted by someone very distressed and if I thought it was involving a child I might just put my phone down without thinking if it was on a Teams call. She might’ve thought initially the ‘emergency’ was just behind the gate and would still have a view of the phone/dog?

I still think she’s fallen in the water as she tried to help her dog who may have slipped down the bank. She may have quickly left her phone so it didn’t get wet. There wouldn’t necessarily be any signs of that. However you would have thought they’d have found a body by now, but searching a river rather than pond is difficult as the body can be swept away.

@Catstaps waist deep, shallow in many places & focused attention from experts for days, inc coastguard & helicopter, plus twisty, too calm for pooh sticks in many places, no clothing found, no hat, no boot. How puzzling & traumatic for friends, family & community.

It would likely be someone she knew or she fell into the river further up where it was deeper. There is no car access close enough to take her away unnoticed by anyone.

It is also possible the phone was found further along the walk and someone unrelated found it and decided to put it on the bench for them to find easily and went on their way.

@It would likely be someone she knew or she fell into the river further up where it was deeper. There is no car access close enough to take her away unnoticed by anyone.

It is also possible the phone was found further along the walk and someone unrelated found it and decided to put it on the bench for them to find easily and went on their way."

See the location of the camping field. There's car access up to the trees that run beside the bench. It's also highly improbable a random walker set the phone down on the bench and hasn't mentioned it to the police by now.

You really think a passerby found a phone and a lead and a wandering dog and just popped them on the bench then went on their merry way, oblivious to the news that was all over the local media a couple of hours later?

I'm sorry for a simple question, but were her earphones or earbuds also abandoned by the bench? I've probably missed it being mentioned.

@arghtriffid how deep is it upstream, low tide so mo real current? Locals seem to think unlikely drifted out to sea (?) & meanders v narrowly in parts. Apparently not fast flowing (?) How far is caravan park? Road access there?

she had wellington’s and a long thick coat on. If she lost her footing with heavy clothing on it hard to move in water. Sadly you can drown quickly even in water that’s not deep and the river will still be moving and have some current.

The police have said there were no signs in the mud of footprints from her or the dog, no signs of slipping/falling in, no signs of a struggle.

You really think a passerby found a phone and a lead and a wandering dog and just popped them on the bench then went on their merry way, oblivious to the news that was all over the local media a couple of hours later?

Yes maybe the dog was not at same place when the phone and harness were found. It is possible the dog at this point is still following it's owner and assailant the phone was dropped in the attack and soon after picked up by a disinterested stranger and for whatever reason they do not know/want to be involved with the investigation. They may have never set eyes on the dog if they were further up the path.

@Catstaps with all super focused attention on the river by coastguard & helicopter over 5 days, starting immediately it feels so odd. Apparently millpond calm in places so she’d not move easily, poss in a tidal part & so that’s where they focused resources. Hard to Asses without local knowledge.

This is from the local paper
www.blackpoolgazette.co.uk/news/crime/nicola-bulley-search-continues-as-woman-tells-of-how-she-raised-alarm-after-finding-missing-mums-worried-dog-wandering-alone-near-river-4011278

It's an open space @arghtriffid

She took the same route each day and was seen not long before at the other side of the field on the path. What you are describing is very unlikely.