I agree, what she was wearing, the long coat and hat, honestly thats quite a fashionable wear at this time of year and i often see women who have identical coat / hat to my wife.
Found Deceased UK - Nicola Bulley Last Seen Walking Dog Near River - St Michaels on Wyre (Lancashire) #7
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Australia Toni Tiki,26, missing since 1996, last seen Maroubra Sydney Australia- Latest: AzPistonsGirl
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Detective_Popcorn
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They say it was ON the bench, believed to be ON the bench.
Nicola's phone was on the bench believed to be on the bench found at around 9:33
AFAIK Police never said it was found on the ground. I do feel it is quite a suggestive point, and agree it is one which would be helpful to clarify.
EDIT - the comment in the press conference about "sorry, not found on the bench" is the Supt correcting herself on the timings of events, not the location of the phone. It's clear what she is referring to when you watch the video.
Lord Peter Flimsy
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Willow was dry? How long does it take for a spaniel to dry off or look dry if it constantly shakes and charges around?
willyengland
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I have read an eyewitness account which says that the phone initially was found under the tree behind the bench.
She went on to say, the dog walker spotted Willow as she came through a gate onto the towpath but became suspicious when she saw the harness and lead on the floor. A man then came through behind her with his dog and spotted the phone.
"The gent has looked on the floor and two feet from the bench there’s a phone," she said. "I think she’s either been faffing about at the edge of the river because the dog’s been smelling fishing bait and she’s slipped or she’s had a medical episode."
www.lancs.live
She went on to say, the dog walker spotted Willow as she came through a gate onto the towpath but became suspicious when she saw the harness and lead on the floor. A man then came through behind her with his dog and spotted the phone.
"The gent has looked on the floor and two feet from the bench there’s a phone," she said. "I think she’s either been faffing about at the edge of the river because the dog’s been smelling fishing bait and she’s slipped or she’s had a medical episode."
Nicola Bulley was 'laughing and joking' just minutes before she vanished
"They say she was laughing and joking with them as she went by"
We're in Australia and it's summer right now. One of our spaniels takes about 15 minutes to dry, but that's in really HOT weather. In the UK winter weather there's no way it would have been dried out after being in the river that quickly.
If it's been in the water, many hours.
TheKitten'sNose
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I have lived by a river most of my life and what PF is saying about how easy it is to locate a drowned bodies does not tally up with how drowning incidents have panned out here. And that's with most of the time people witnessing exactly where the person got in trouble and 999/help being summoned very quickly. I don't know what to think as he's constantly changing what he says/his opinion and is very forthright/100% convinced in those opinions only to change to the complete opposite hours later.
What would be the equivalent of his search team here that worked the river by me in such circumstances just got on with things and never voiced anything publically let alone their theories and expected outcome with such certainly. IMO, It's really just adding to the social media circus, he needs to just get on with it, professinally work with the police and stop all the media courting for the sake of the case and Nicola and her family/loved ones.
What would be the equivalent of his search team here that worked the river by me in such circumstances just got on with things and never voiced anything publically let alone their theories and expected outcome with such certainly. IMO, It's really just adding to the social media circus, he needs to just get on with it, professinally work with the police and stop all the media courting for the sake of the case and Nicola and her family/loved ones.
Yeah, I was wondering this yesterday after looking at the vehicle tracks in the area between the bench and the weir.
There is a stile next to the bench that leads here (also the Liverpool Echo video from yesterday had the reporter here at the end of the video)
Is the river fordable where the tracks lead to? I’ve marked on the attached where it appears there maybe a sand bank, hence shallower, and possible path under the trees up to the church on the opposite bank.
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curiousbeaver
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Responding to some posts with local knowledge… there is no wading or fording the river Wyre in St Michaels. It’s too deep.
The pictures posted in the linked blog are all upstream near the source where the river is very different.
In response to posters wondering about things on the banks… it is quite barren in the immediate vicinity of the river. The fact that it is tidal and salty in the stretch between the estuary and St Michaels mean there are very few trees or shrubs at or near the waters edge. Scrubby grasses, yes up to the waters edge when the tide is in, but mud flats, nothing growing in the water when the tide is out.
The river bed is almost exclusively mud down from St Michaels - there are no areas I can think of with visible boulders & stones. Again I think this is a result of the tidal nature of the river up to St Michaels - as the tides moves in/out silt is deposited. The water itself is very murky. That said SONAR should give a full topography of the river bed.
There are settlements or odd houses dotted around all the way along the river out to the estuary. I would think that probably every stretch of river bank out to the estuary will be covered by dog walkers /locals where it is accessible. The roads also run alongside the river in places. It is easy to see the banks from the paths/roads due to the lack of foliage nearby. Also a couple of busy or well used bridges. I would think every stretch of the Wyre downstream from St Michaels will have been walked by locals since NBs disappearance.
Edited to add - I appreciate that is all very difficult to see from grainy satellite images.
The pictures posted in the linked blog are all upstream near the source where the river is very different.
In response to posters wondering about things on the banks… it is quite barren in the immediate vicinity of the river. The fact that it is tidal and salty in the stretch between the estuary and St Michaels mean there are very few trees or shrubs at or near the waters edge. Scrubby grasses, yes up to the waters edge when the tide is in, but mud flats, nothing growing in the water when the tide is out.
The river bed is almost exclusively mud down from St Michaels - there are no areas I can think of with visible boulders & stones. Again I think this is a result of the tidal nature of the river up to St Michaels - as the tides moves in/out silt is deposited. The water itself is very murky. That said SONAR should give a full topography of the river bed.
There are settlements or odd houses dotted around all the way along the river out to the estuary. I would think that probably every stretch of river bank out to the estuary will be covered by dog walkers /locals where it is accessible. The roads also run alongside the river in places. It is easy to see the banks from the paths/roads due to the lack of foliage nearby. Also a couple of busy or well used bridges. I would think every stretch of the Wyre downstream from St Michaels will have been walked by locals since NBs disappearance.
Edited to add - I appreciate that is all very difficult to see from grainy satellite images.
Indeed she does. Which Police report is definitive anyway? The first one or the updates.
I have read an eyewitness account which says that the phone initially was found under the tree behind the bench.
She went on to say, the dog walker spotted Willow as she came through a gate onto the towpath but became suspicious when she saw the harness and lead on the floor. A man then came through behind her with his dog and spotted the phone.
"The gent has looked on the floor and two feet from the bench there’s a phone," she said. "I think she’s either been faffing about at the edge of the river because the dog’s been smelling fishing bait and she’s slipped or she’s had a medical episode."
Nicola Bulley was 'laughing and joking' just minutes before she vanished
"They say she was laughing and joking with them as she went by"
JMO I think this person may be an unreliable witness.
PeggyHenry
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Ok, I imagine the man has been spoken to by police.I have read an eyewitness account which says that the phone initially was found under the tree behind the bench.
She went on to say, the dog walker spotted Willow as she came through a gate onto the towpath but became suspicious when she saw the harness and lead on the floor. A man then came through behind her with his dog and spotted the phone.
"The gent has looked on the floor and two feet from the bench there’s a phone," she said. "I think she’s either been faffing about at the edge of the river because the dog’s been smelling fishing bait and she’s slipped or she’s had a medical episode."
Nicola Bulley was 'laughing and joking' just minutes before she vanished
"They say she was laughing and joking with them as she went by"
So all items were near the bench I. E scattered around it.
This could either have been done deliberately by a perpetrator or there was a scuffle involving Nicola at the bench.
It would be highly unlikely Nicola would go to the river and leave the items scattered on the floor.
In my view there are three options:
1. She is in river and there’s nothing we can do for her.. police are doing best to locate her
2. Perpetrator has deliberately placed items near bench along with Willow
3. Nicola was taken from bench area and parted from her dog and phone
green leaves
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May be off topic - but use of the word “floor” instead of “ground” when referring to the items that have been found?
Is this a dialect thing to use “floor” instead of “ground”?
Is this a dialect thing to use “floor” instead of “ground”?
lalalemon
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I also wonder if they definitely saw her THAT day, she obviously walks Willow in the same area most days, could you really be 100% you definitely saw her in that location on Friday? and it wasn't Wednesday or Thursday?
I see my neighbour out with her little dog most mornings when I take my girls to school, but I couldn't be 100% certain where I saw her and on what days, sometimes it's down our lane, sometimes on the main road. If you asked me now, if i'd seen her last Friday, I definitely couldn't say with 100% certainty that i'd seen her on Friday or where, it all merges into one when you see someone in roughly the same area, most days.
People tend to use the words interchangeably. It doesn't mean anything.
I'm pretty sure they gave their accounts the same day. I'm sure the police will have thought of all this anyway.
Did his team search from the bench to the weir yesterday or only downstream of the weir?
EDIT: Just seen BBC segment, seems not but has faith police divers covered that extensively on the day
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In the Mail this morning, apols if already shared by someone else. I'd guess someone who wants to kill someone is going to be fairly devious, so leaving the phone by the river as a decoy isn't inconceivable, though the timeframe in which a crime could be committed is limited. There is a fine line between second guessing what a criminal might do, and speculation that is close to conspiracy theorising. Anyways looks as if that might be where we'll find ourselves.
www.dailymail.co.uk
Expert searching for missing mother fears third party may be involved
The 'baffled' diving expert leading the search for missing Nicola Bulley fears her mobile phone discovered on the bend next to the river was left as a 'decoy.'
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