Found Deceased UK - Nicola Bulley, 45, last seen walking her dog on footpath by the river, Inskip, Lancashire, 27 Jan 2023

[shadwell]

Does anyone here use a dog harness and would you take it off during a walk or just detach the lead from the harness ? My dog wears a collar, which is left on, when off the lead.

You might take it off if the dog liked to go in the water, so as not to have to put it on wet again.

 

[HollyHunter9]

Does anyone here use a dog harness and would you take it off during a walk or just detach the lead from the harness ? My dog wears a collar, which is left on, when off the lead.

I'm not a dog owner but that does seem odd to take the dogs entire harness off instead of just unclipping the lead from it.

Edited to add that some dogs (my mums) likes to roll in mud or anything else smelly or dirty so perhaps it was removed to stop it getting dirty if the dog liked to do this.

 

[Firstsnow4]

I'm not a dog owner but that does seem odd to take the dogs entire harness off instead of just unclipping the lead from it.

Yes I wondered why the harness would have been removed.

 

[shadwell]

Yes I wondered why the harness would have been removed.

Do we know for sure that the harness was removed? what’s the source for this?

 

[shadwell]

I note that in this article it says the dogs lead and harness were on the bench - yet if you look at the photo of the tree by the bench in question in this article Missing dog walker was on work Teams call when she vanished it says that dogs should be on leads at all times. I wonder if willow got loose from her harness whilst NB was on her teams call and she chased the dog and slipped into the river. The bank does look steep there. JMO.

Yup - very steep.

 

[Firstsnow4]

Do we know for sure that the harness was removed? what’s the source for this?

In this article it states that the both the lead and harness were found on the bench. So no we don’t know if it was removed or if the dog slipped out of it. Missing dog walker has ‘little girls who need their mummy home’, partner says

 

[shadwell]

So the phone has been found, the lead has been found. Any mention of the dog’s ball?

 

[Allabouttrial]

Where has the info. about Nicola being on a conference call come from?

 

[dotr]

Police found missing mother-of-two's phone still connected to call

The boyfriend of a mother-of-two who vanished three days ago said this afternoon 'She's got two little girls that need their mummy home'.

www.dailymail.co.uk

''Police found missing mother-of-two's phone still connected to conference call that the the 45-year-old took from a bench shortly before she vanished on riverside dog walk three days ago''​

''Police arrived at the scene to find her mobile phone on the bench and the call still active.''

'We appreciate there is a great deal of concern in the local area and that people want to help, however we would ask that nobody puts themselves in any danger.

'If anybody has any questions or concerns they are welcome to speak to officers in the area.'

Anybody who has information should call 101, quoting log 473 of January 27th, or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.''

 

[Officer Dibble]

I note that in this article it says the dogs lead and harness were on the bench - yet if you look at the photo of the tree by the bench in question in this article Missing dog walker was on work Teams call when she vanished it says that dogs should be on leads at all times. I wonder if willow got loose from her harness whilst NB was on her teams call and she chased the dog and slipped into the river. The bank does look steep there. JMO.

Good thinking. Was the lead and harness attached to the bench, do we know? I had a dog that could get out of a harness if there was tension on the line (either by being tied to something, or if the person is holding the lead attached to the harness then the dog going backwards to create tension then slipping out of the harness).

 

[charminglane]

Do we know if the conference call through Teams was with video on?

 

[Officer Dibble]

View attachment 398750

Police found missing mother-of-two's phone still connected to call

The boyfriend of a mother-of-two who vanished three days ago said this afternoon 'She's got two little girls that need their mummy home'.

www.dailymail.co.uk

''Police found missing mother-of-two's phone still connected to conference call that the the 45-year-old took from a bench shortly before she vanished on riverside dog walk three days ago''​

''Police arrived at the scene to find her mobile phone on the bench and the call still active.''

'We appreciate there is a great deal of concern in the local area and that people want to help, however we would ask that nobody puts themselves in any danger.

'If anybody has any questions or concerns they are welcome to speak to officers in the area.'

Anybody who has information should call 101, quoting log 473 of January 27th, or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.''

I wonder if the dog loves a river swim?

 

[Officer Dibble]

Do we know if the conference call through Teams was with video on?

No it just said Teams but didnt mention video. I know some people have to listen to a meeting but no participate . Could have been one of those teams type meetings, perhaps?

 

[heartandsoul]

Does anyone here use a dog harness and would you take it off during a walk or just detach the lead from the harness ? My dog wears a collar, which is left on, when off the lead.

Personally, no. Never. My dogs harness is for her safety more than anything (it makes grabbing her easier). My dog rarely goes off lead, but when she does, I always just unclip the lead. Harness stays on until we're home and the walk is over.

 

[Villa1]

Hi everyone first time poster here , normally just read but always itching to write something so here goes .
First of all just want to say I hope NB is found and all is well , but my gut feeling says otherwise just feels wrong. What I wanted to say is why was the dogs harness off as it is reported it was found with the lead. I am a dog owner and have been for nearly 30 years and I can't recall ever taking a harness off one of my dogs when out in public as when they are off a lead they have the freedom but if needed to grab them back quickly a harness would be the thing I would hold them by . The only time the Harness may have come off is if they pull in the opposite direction and can come over their head , let's say they was scared of something and you tried to pull forward and wanted to go backwards . Was someone trying to take the dog out the way as knowing a lone dog would draw attention ? .

 

[shadwell]

Good thinking. Was the lead and harness attached to the bench, do we know? I had a dog that could get out of a harness if there was tension on the line (either by being tied to something, or if the person is holding the lead attached to the harness then the dog going backwards to create tension then slipping out of the harness).

To me the sign indicates that dogs had to be on leads *beyond that point* - making the bench an ideal spot to sit down for the conference call while the dog ran around loose before putting it back on the lead to continue the walk past the tree. Note also NB’s FB photos of the dog off the lead along that stretch of path.

 

[shadwell]

To me the sign indicates that dogs had to be on leads *beyond that point* - making the bench an ideal spot to sit down for the conference call while the dog ran around loose before putting it back on the lead to continue the walk past the tree. Note also NB’s FB photos of the dog off the lead along that stretch of path.

Which is why I mentioned the ball. NB’s FB photos also show that the dog had a ball on its walks. And as anyone who has had a Zoom or Teams meeting knows, a large part of it involves sitting in silence listening to a middle manager drone on at length, providing an ideal opportunity to quickly retrieve a ball that has gone down the river bank when the dog refuses to go after it itself.

 

[Telltale]

The last sighting is said to be on Garstead Road at 09:15. I'd be really curious as to whether she had the dog with her or not, and which way she was walking.

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[Allabouttrial]

TRANSCRIPTION OF POLICE UPDATE

30TH JANUARY

Police - I'm here today to appeal for witnesses in the case of Nicola Bulley. This is a 45 yr. old lady, from the local area, who sadly went missing last Friday morning at about 9.15 a.m. She was last seen walking her small brown dog on the towpath of the River Wyre. The dog was found about an hour later, as was her mobile phone.

So her family are very concerned, as are we. We've mounted a really intensive operation to try and find Nicola, including a number of specialist officers from our Northwest Underwater Regional Search Unit and specialist investigators who are supporting the family, as well as a lot of partners like Bowland Mountain Rescue, Lancashire Fire and Rescue and others and the coastguard. We thank them very much, as well as local people who've turned out in force who were obviously equally concerned for Nicola and we appeal for anyone who may have been driving through the village of St. Michael's, last Friday morning at about 9:15, or who may have dashcam footage that could be of use to us, or people who may have been dog walking in the area or on the towpath, to come forward. They can ring 101 or if they have a sighting of Nicola, 999. Thank you. Happy to take questions.

Reporter - Do you know if Nicola was driving? Are you looking for a vehicle at all?

Police - No, Nicola was last seen on foot. Nicola's described, for those who were in the area, as slight build, 5 foot 3 inches tall. She was wearing a black gilet jacket, dark trousers and short green wellies.

Reporter - Where was her mobile phone found?

Police - Mobile phone was found on a bench near the riverbank.

Reporter - And was the dog tied up or...?

Police - No, the dog was loose and the dog was between the river and the bench.

Reporter - Are you searching any other areas apart from, obviously, near the footpath and the riverbanks? Is there any other areas in this local vicinity that you're checking?

Police - We've searched an extensive area along the riverbank out of St. Michael's, so that we're being really thorough and you can probably hear the helicopter in the distance. That has been up and about since Nicola went missing on Friday.

Reporter - Nowhere outside?

Police - Nowhere outside of this area, yes, this locality.

Reporter -What kind of (inaudible) using in the search?

Police - Yeah, we've been using our police helicopter, our regional helicopter. We've been using underwater search officers. We've got specialist search advisors who have been advising on the area to physically search. We've got a number of officers out on the ground, physically searching this rural area and of course the members of the public have been helping as well.

Reporter - (inaudible)

Police - Well, the police are keeping a really open mind about what could have happened, but we do believe that the likelihood is that Nicola's gone missing and that this is not a crime inquiry, but we are keeping an open mind.

 

[Allabouttrial]

View attachment 398750

Police found missing mother-of-two's phone still connected to call

The boyfriend of a mother-of-two who vanished three days ago said this afternoon 'She's got two little girls that need their mummy home'.

www.dailymail.co.uk

''Police found missing mother-of-two's phone still connected to conference call that the the 45-year-old took from a bench shortly before she vanished on riverside dog walk three days ago''​

''Police arrived at the scene to find her mobile phone on the bench and the call still active.''

'We appreciate there is a great deal of concern in the local area and that people want to help, however we would ask that nobody puts themselves in any danger.

'If anybody has any questions or concerns they are welcome to speak to officers in the area.'

Anybody who has information should call 101, quoting log 473 of January 27th, or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.''

Thank you!