NICOLA SEARCH
Nicola Bulley cops seal off roads and send in divers close to where mum disappeared over three weeks ago
ROADS were sealed off this afternoon as divers searched the river close to where Nicola Bulley vanished over three weeks ago.
And police have now found a body in their desperate search for Nicola, 45, who was last seen in St Michael’s on Wyre, Lancashire, at around 9.15am on January 27.
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Since there has been no trace of the mum-of-two, with police working towards the theory she fell in the river.
Officers today closed off an area less than a mile from where Nicola was last seen after a tip-off from two dog walkers.
Divers have been seen entering the water after two police cars were raced to the scene at around 11.50am.
A police helicopter has also been seen circling above as a man and woman were seen pointing to the spot where a new search was launched.
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Senior Investigating Officer Rebecca Smith is also at the scene of the significant police presence.
It is not yet clear why the sudden surge in activity is happening or if it is to do with Nicola's disappearance.
But the huge search, which spans along Rawcliffe Road as well as nearby footpaths, is the biggest development at the scene in recent days.
One witness told the : "I drove down Rawcliffe Road for almost a mile. I noticed a man and a woman and two police officers on the embankment.
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"I pulled off at about 11.50am and I heard the man talking to police about something in the undergrowth.
"Police cars were flying down the road with the blues and twos going. A police officer pulled up a few minutes later and got his drone out."
The development comes amid growing criticism of Lancashire Police's handling of the investigation.
In a press conference on Wednesday, officers revealed Nicola was classed as high risk due to "specific vulnerabilities".
They later said Nicola had been struggling with alcohol issues and the menopause and had stopped taking HRT medication.
The police confirmed this week their "main working hypothesis" remains that Nicola fell in the river.
They revealed two other theories for her disappearance - Nicola leaving the area voluntarily and third party involvement.
But Detective Superintendent Rebecca Smith said: "There is not a single piece of information or evidence to suggest there is any third-party involvement."
There is also nothing to suggest Nicola left the field voluntarily.
The nation has been after her mobile was found on a bench still connected to a work conference call.
Nicola’s pet springer spaniel Willow was also found – but there was no trace of the mum-of-two.
Her partner Paul Ansell believes "something happened" on the day she disappeared as people do not just "vanish into thin air".
Officers previously released a timeline of the missing mum’s before she disappeared.
Nicola began her walk along the towpath to the River Wyre at 8.43am after dropping her two children off at school.
Police say around seven minutes later, a dog walker who knows Nicola saw her walking around the lower field with her springer spaniel Willow.
The witness said their two dogs interacted briefly before she left Nicola via the river path.
At 8.53am, the mum sent an email to her boss at Exclusively Mortgages.
She then logged into a Teams call at 9.01am and was seen around nine minutes later on the upper field walking Willow.
Police say at 9.30am, the work call ended but Nicola stayed logged on.
At around 9.35am, the mobile and Willow were found at a bench by the river but there was no sign of Nicola.
Police are probing a two hour gap between Nicola's last sighting and when she was reported missing at 11am.
Nicola has been described as white, 5ft 3ins tall with light-brown shoulder-length hair.
She was last seen wearing an ankle-length black quilted gilet jacket with a black Engelbert Strauss waist-length coat underneath and black tight-fitting jeans.
She had long green walking socks tucked into her jeans, ankle-length green Next wellies, a necklace and a pale blue Fitbit on.
Nicola has an Essex accent and links to the Thornton-Cleveleys area near Blackpool.
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Anybody with information about where she might be is asked to call 101, quoting log 473 of January 27, or ring 999 for immediate sightings.
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