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

This case is very odd, they do a whole press conference to say they think she just had an accident? Not to sound insensitive, because it's tragic, I just find it odd to have a breaking news press conference like this for an accident, but I guess it's because they haven't found her yet? I don't know how you fall in a river, I really don't...

I walked by a river a couple of weeks ago and it was muddy and very slippy. I did slip a couple of times and turned back as it was dangerous tbh! I wasn’t wearing an ankle length gilet either. It’s a terribly sad case but it does look like she fell in - probably going after the dog.

They've probably had to do the press conference like that due to all the media interest and worry in the local area women have had about going out on their own. It's probably standard to do so for reassurance purposes. I agree with a PP about saying 'concerned for her safety' yet they think she's gone in the river so it's contradictory. They still don't know and are guessing that's the likelihood. Without other evidence to go on they probably won't look further into the case due to funding purposes. They will have to draw a line under it somewhere. Very sad, I hope the family get the closure they need.

'I don't think people are desperate for it to be a crime, but there seems to be little evidence to proove it was an accident either.. if the dog goes in the water regularly, why would she have gone so close to the edge and put herself at risk of falling? She must have known how steep the bank was if she walks that route regularly.'

But couldn't that also make somebody complacent? Maybe if you're new to the area you're extra cautious.

Yes complacency and being distracted by thoughts of her teams meeting call could have been a factor, you're right. I don't think we'll ever get the answers tbh

I just looked into the map and the Upper field where she was last seen at 9.10 is literally metres away from the Rowanwater caravan park with the pond in the middle and also there is road, all very close.
And the walk she took on the tow path, behind the hedges is very close the other caravan park, so there is lots of spaces where anyone could be hiding, lurking in bushes etc.. Locked gate or not, anyone can get through the bushes and the both caravans parks are very close to where she walked.
plus I didn’t like the walk they reconstructed yesterday seems very isolated, full of hidden places, obstructed by trees, bushes..

I am not police obviously, but I think it’s really unlikely she fell in the river.

What's your theory on it?

Where I put the yellow mark, that’s where she was apparently seen at 9.10? Literally metres away from the Rowanwater.

@concernedalot , I have no theory, but I think it’s unlikely she felt on the river. She did three walks daily. Just no.

@Januarydayss yes but her phone was on that bench at 0920 as confirmed by mobile phone technical data, police seem pretty sure of that

This video shows some of the bank in front of the bench. It looks grassy and I don’t think the ground was wet and muddy. Say she twisted her ankle or had a medical episode it’s not unreasonable to think there are no signs of a fall. Some other theories require far greater stretches of the imagination.

www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/nicola-bulley-latest-police-divers-29114434.amp

Also if she had 'staged' her disappearance, leaving her dog loose not even tying her to the bench (highly doubtful) surely after seeing the massive publicity, distress of her parents on the news, her DP saying her DC were hysterical and seeing the massive police resources that have gone into finding her, she'd have at least contacted someone to say she was OK. Even the police themselves, There's just no way anyone would have let this go on for this long.

She could easily have 'disappeared' while pretending to go to work or the shops leaving the dog at home.

I wonder if the police have done reconstruction of someone carrying someone of her size off from the area she was last seen in and how long it would take them to get to an area where a vehicle could have been left, what tree cover there would have been, assuming they've thoroughly checked every inch of land in the vicinity where she could have been left.

The caravan park - assume they checked every caravan on the day she disappeared. Guests who left that day etc.

Not overly invested just such a weird, upsetting case and just hope for her family's sake it doesn't turn into one where there are no answers and she's never found which is worse that the alternative IMO. Couldn't imagine it if it was my adult DD especially if I feared she been abducted and could still be alive, or was alive for a while afterwards but wasn't found in time.

I know what you mean, I feel the same. But I guess we'll never know. I think from what i've gauged from the press conference, unless the public come up with some new information, they're just going to be focussing on the search for her body - by releasing information of what she was wearing hoping members of the public will find these items and talking about the search, it seems they're talking like they've exhausted all other avenues. Says they searched within 1km radius of where the phone was found (which doesn't seem a wide enough area to me) but that's what they've done..

The bench does look as though it is strangely sited, at the top of a steep slope ? I can imagine twisting an ankle and falling there. However as the water wasn’t deep and there is a slope first that you would slide down it is hard to imagine that killing someone, or the slide leaving no traces.
Local people will have a better idea though, as they must walk past that bench.

I hope this in no way upsets or offends anyone involved in the case, but is it possible that this is a strategy by the police to deliberately de-escalate the pressure on someone if he they did take her?

If they turn it into a manhunt, the person might panic...whilst if they say they think she fell in the river, that person may not panic, and it might buy the police time??

I've no idea if this is something the police would do (does anyone on here?).

I've just read on social media from a retired police inspector that this is a tactic they could be using. So the offender drops their guard. It's feasible. The police use the media to their advantage in these cases too..

I really hope the police do use the media. And I hope the media play ball - for once!

I think I need to stop thinking about this now, it's hard not to though sometimes.

I have no idea what's actually happened to her but the police theory that she fell in raises many questions.
Why would she be so near the edge that she falls in? She was a fit, active woman. She could have slipped but would have had to be right at the edge and it would leave marks on soft ground. It's not clear how deep the water is and the river bed would be very muddy and soft but in one of the news photos you can see a sandbank arising to one side which suggests it's not too deep right at the edge. Again how does a fit young woman become totally incapacitated immediately in that setting? And the coat, it's going to be buoyant at least at first. Enough to wriggle out if it surely but a week has now gone by with very good searches of the area but no sign of any clothing. Ankle wellies, not easy to get off in water but easier than tight laced shoes or traditional wellies. The keys clipped to the harness seems very weird. Those clothes had multiple pockets. Why would you clip your keys to your dog (annoying the dog) when you've got perfectly good pockets. I'm also perplexed as to why you'd take the dog out of its harness On a fairly muddy, shortish morning walk? She wasn't going to be there for hours. Plus any spaniel I've ever met would have taken the falling in as a signal to join you in the water. Just all so inexplicable.

The water is very shallow at that point at the moment

Yes the angle isn’t great, an image from the other side would be better. I feel like if she fell it would be close to the bench as she left her phone there. Police haven’t said the actual depth where she is most likely to have fallen in. If it was deep and combined with the long gilet, coat and freezing water and along a stretch that’s hard to climb out I can see it happening. But it’s certainly a freak accident if so.

I think maybe it's a good time to pause all the speculations as hard as it is. It's such an eerie story and the river, the bench, the path and the wintery landscape looks so glum and cold, like from some sort of thriller. It's best to leave to with the police and experts and focus on RL.

With all that in mind, what a sad and creepy situation.

There are overhanging trees/bushes immediately downstream of the area in front of the bench. If you fell in you'd be able to grab them surely. Maybe not get out but help you keep above the water.

Sadly I agree! I hope the lady and her family find some peace and closure with the situation.