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Missing woman

1000 replies

MyOldCaravan · 30/01/2023 21:12

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

OP posts:
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25
Catstaps · 05/02/2023 11:39

I think the dog running around not knowing where she went reinforces she’s gone under the water. It was probably sniffing about and she suddenly disappeared so it didn’t see her. I think once in water it is easy to drown. Having said that I can’t see how she actually would have fallen in or entered the water , that bit does seem a bit odd as these things happen when you’re drunk, it’s dark etc. it is all very difficult to get your head around. The poor family, what a terrible nightmare for them..they seemed a lovely couple..it’s so sad 😞

Allgoodthings1 · 05/02/2023 11:40

Dunkindonuts8 · 05/02/2023 11:17

I'm just wondering, and excuse my ignorance, but then the tide comes in, does the water flow the opposite way 🙈 I realise that's probably a stupid question. Is it possible that the body got washed UP the river when the tide came in? 🫣

Show quote history

On the news I saw that the bit not far upstream from there has a sort of step and something across it that the water is all running down from so I don’t think it would be possible to be washed very far up as I don’t think you’d go past that. It does seem a total mystery how if she’s in there and they’ve got all this equipment she hasn’t been found yet

User45378754 · 05/02/2023 11:40

I find it bizarre that the woman found the dog and tied it to the bench at 9:35 - and it was only an hour and 15 mins later that her DIL called the school / PA / police at 10:50.

So was the dog tied and unattended all that time and no one else walked passed?

Did the DIL or original witness walk back to the bench to meet PA at 10:50?

Allgoodthings1 · 05/02/2023 11:43

MontyK · 05/02/2023 11:19

I've also been thinking a lot about the person who found the dog.

Am I right in saying that they came across the dog with no harness on, then put the harness back on the dog and tied it up? I find it strange that anybody would do that and not take the dog/phone with them?

They then raised the alarm sometime later so the dog was left tied to a bench and the phone was left too and nobody else encountered any of that until presumably (the partner?) was alerted and came down to rescue the dog who had been tied up for over an hour? No wonder the poor thing was agitated.

The whole situation is really bizarre, surely most people would survey the scene if they came across a loose dog and discarded phone, did they check the river? Why were they down there if they were rushing off to an appointment?

It’s all so odd 🤔 I think a lot of the confusion over the dog is coming from the fact that the harness was off, this person put it on, the lead was off, this person put it on etc. The police said it was 10:50 the family were alerted but I don’t know if the partner was alerted first and it wasn’t until he got there and saw she wasn’t there that he alerted the rest of the family. Does anyone know what time he came at?

Allgoodthings1 · 05/02/2023 11:44

User45378754 · 05/02/2023 11:40

I find it bizarre that the woman found the dog and tied it to the bench at 9:35 - and it was only an hour and 15 mins later that her DIL called the school / PA / police at 10:50.

So was the dog tied and unattended all that time and no one else walked passed?

Did the DIL or original witness walk back to the bench to meet PA at 10:50?

I think the second person found the dog not long after she did but im also wondering about that timeline.. what happened in that hour and 20 minutes?

Catstaps · 05/02/2023 11:50

They probably didn’t want to take the dog and phone with them in case the person came back so decided to make the dog safe and then go and call to report it. I think that’s what I would have done.

Peverellshire · 05/02/2023 11:56

@User435787532

  1. Family friend has updated to say phone ‘usually on loud speaker’ on conference calls. Why is she choosing to let us all know that. Why do the family, by inference, want us to know above other factors? Ditto where CCTV not working.
  2. Lock screen on so woman who found & tied dog saw Nicola’s photo, she says? Half recognised her & couldn’t place dog
  3. A Dog was off lead, again (?) which we know may have been an apparent sensitivity for this woman due to chickens at site plus. Also Nicola ‘officially’ breaking rules (again)?
  4. Do we know for sure who even found dog & did they take phone at this time/if not (?) why not?
justgettingthroughtheday · 05/02/2023 12:00

@prh47bridge the river at that point would almost certainly still be experiencing the effects of tidal pressure. Particularly in the winter or with higher tides. 300m isn't far.
Local people on this thread have said that it is tidal at the point of the bench. Photos in the media of the water levels being different at different times would also suggest that. Rivers don't suddenly stop being tidal. It's a gradual reduction of the amount of pressure the tide has on it.

UselessExLondoner · 05/02/2023 12:01

The dog might have had a collar on as well as the harness. I often don't use the harness for the whole of my dog's walk but she does keep her collar on.

Lisbeth50 · 05/02/2023 12:05

Those of you who think she fell in do you have a theory on how or why she fell in. I am wondering why a popular walk area with a bench didn't have some railings or similar if it was a health and safety risk. Why have a bench near a potentially dangerous place?

Unfortunately, all rivers are dangerous. I think I read there was a sign warning of deep water next to the bench but its not possible to put railings all along a river.

Sadly, I have some knowledge/experience here. People do fall into rivers and they can be missing for weeks before being found, even with searching constantly taking place. Usually, it doesnt make the national news. Being able to swim doesn't mean they'll be safe. It's generally the cold water that's the problem, not being unable to swim.

justgettingthroughtheday · 05/02/2023 12:10

The first person to find the dogs account doesn't make much sense.
IF Nicola had fallen in the water it would be unlikely she wouldn't have been visible at this point. Or at least some of her clothing would be.

Did she not check the river? Why?

Why tie the dog up and leave it and the phone at the bench? Why not call the number on the dogs tag?

Why did it take over an hour for anyone to come for the dog?

Has the cctv been checked to cover all of that timeframe to? Checked that Nicola hasn't left the area after the dog was initially found?

Eatentoomanyroses · 05/02/2023 12:21

User45378754 · 05/02/2023 12:13

I think that’s the same guy that was on sky on Friday. I don’t know what to make of it at all.

60smusic · 05/02/2023 12:22

Just read on SGI page that Peter Faulding has offered their services free of charge.

NothingButAWalkover · 05/02/2023 12:22

SlaveToTheVibe · 05/02/2023 08:53

Think the police have completely fucked up by clearly never treating it as a crime scene and that’s why they’ve basically said “yep she’s in the water”

and that’s why her family are rightly pushing back

it’s basically too late to properly investigate now as a potential crime

I believe this is the case too.

oakleaffy · 05/02/2023 12:24

This forensic expert in Drownings says Nicola isn't in the river.
It seems very accurate in what he says.

He is sure she isn't in the river.

Newnamenewme23 · 05/02/2023 12:24

User45378754 · 05/02/2023 12:13

to start GB news is not a reliable source.

second he’s a search and rescue specialist. He’s not any sort of investigator or expert in that field.

He may make fair comment on the search and recovery process, but not the police investigation itself.

Nicknacky · 05/02/2023 12:25

I said this on another thread and I will repeat it. I deal with missing people nearly every shift and am regularly at crime scenes. This would not have been treated as a crime scene with a forensic examination without there being evidence to indicate a crime.

Yes , there will have been a visual examination of the scene but unless there was something to indicate a crime had been committed you will not do a forensic examination at that time.

OntarioBagnet · 05/02/2023 12:28

What sort of weir is it? I’m picturing a stone type weir which will be very deep on the side of the river that she was last seen at? So if she fell in and went downstream towards the weir how deep is the water when it overflows the weir? Deep enough for someone to go over or not? How deep down is the weir wall on the upstream side? Some weir walls can be very deep, is there a ledge/hollow in the wall on that upstream side? You’d like to think it’s been thoroughly checked but has something being missed?

Some private company with much better equipment have offered to help, the bloke says he can cover ten miles of river a day whereas the police sonar he says is very basic. But as of yet they haven’t taken him up on his offer.

prh47bridge · 05/02/2023 12:30

justgettingthroughtheday · 05/02/2023 12:00

@prh47bridge the river at that point would almost certainly still be experiencing the effects of tidal pressure. Particularly in the winter or with higher tides. 300m isn't far.
Local people on this thread have said that it is tidal at the point of the bench. Photos in the media of the water levels being different at different times would also suggest that. Rivers don't suddenly stop being tidal. It's a gradual reduction of the amount of pressure the tide has on it.

There is a weir where the river stops being tidal. That would certainly reduce the effects of tidal pressure. Depending on the height of the weir, it may indeed suddenly stop the river being tidal.

XelaM · 05/02/2023 12:33

UselessExLondoner · 05/02/2023 12:01

The dog might have had a collar on as well as the harness. I often don't use the harness for the whole of my dog's walk but she does keep her collar on.

If that's true the woman who found the dog would have just clipped the lead to the collar. Why would she need to put the harness on?

I find it strange that she used to regularly allow her dog to run around without a harness. Is it not a legal requirement for a dog to have a tag on? I would be so worried if my dog ran off and got lost without a harness or tag.

prh47bridge · 05/02/2023 12:35

OntarioBagnet · 05/02/2023 12:28

What sort of weir is it? I’m picturing a stone type weir which will be very deep on the side of the river that she was last seen at? So if she fell in and went downstream towards the weir how deep is the water when it overflows the weir? Deep enough for someone to go over or not? How deep down is the weir wall on the upstream side? Some weir walls can be very deep, is there a ledge/hollow in the wall on that upstream side? You’d like to think it’s been thoroughly checked but has something being missed?

Some private company with much better equipment have offered to help, the bloke says he can cover ten miles of river a day whereas the police sonar he says is very basic. But as of yet they haven’t taken him up on his offer.

I've been wondering that too. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find a decent picture that is definitely this weir. All I've been able to find is this aerial image on Google maps.

Missing woman
prh47bridge · 05/02/2023 12:36

I've also found this image but I'm not certain this is the correct weir.

Missing woman
OntarioBagnet · 05/02/2023 12:39

@prh47bridge i think that is the right weir, just found the same image myself. The blurb says it raises the river depth to 9 ft. I’m no expert but I’d have thought that would mean that under the water the wall must extend down at least 9ft?

prh47bridge · 05/02/2023 12:44

OntarioBagnet · 05/02/2023 12:39

@prh47bridge i think that is the right weir, just found the same image myself. The blurb says it raises the river depth to 9 ft. I’m no expert but I’d have thought that would mean that under the water the wall must extend down at least 9ft?

I'm no expert either, but I think you are right. It looks high enough to me that I can believe the river does indeed suddenly stop being tidal at this point.

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