Nicola Bulley inquest live: Mother-of-two died after falling into River Wyre in freezing temperatures

Towards the end of today’s proceedings, Senior Coroner Dr James Adeley asked: “Doing the best with your expertise, we could assume entry to the water was after 9.18am and before 9.30am and very possibly around 9.22am, but that’s as far as we can go realistically?

DC Keith Greenhalgh responded: “That is correct sir.”

Rebecca Smith, Detective Superintendent of Lancashire Constabulary, was also asked if there was any indication of third-party involvement in Ms Bulley’s death, to which she replied: “None whatsoever.”

Ms Smith listed the items recovered with Ms Bulley’s body including her FitBit watch and a set of Mercedes car keys. She added Ms Bulley was not using headphones that day to listen to her Teams call.

Ms Smith told the court Ms Bulley dialled into her work Teams call at 9.01am, which Ms Bulley did not need to speak on, so she was muted. This call ended at 9.30am but she stayed logged in until 10.32am.

During today’s proceedings, an underwater search expert said Nicola Bulley's body may have sunk under the surface of the river after she fell in.

Dr Lorna Dennison Wilkins told the inquest in Preston: “Nikki might have had some buoyancy in her clothing which would have dispelled.

“Once that happened, she would have lost that buoyancy and her body would have sunk under the surface, was my assessment.”

Nicola Bulley was alive when she entered the water of the River Wyre and was not under the influence of alcohol, an inquest has heard.

Giving evidence at the two-day hearing, Home Office pathologist Dr Alison Armour said there is “no evidence” that Nicola Bulley was assaulted or harmed as her cause of death was confirmed as drowning.

My colleague Holly Evans has the full report here:

The post-mortem examination also found “very low levels of alcohol” in Ms Bulley’s blood, which indicated alcohol levels “in my opinion, consistent with microbiological post-mortem activity”.

Home Office pathologist Dr Alison Armour explained this is the release of alcohol by bacteria produced in the body when a person dies.

Therapeutic levels of beta blocker propranolol and painkiller paracetamol were also discovered.

The inquest into the death of mother-of-two Nicola Bulley began on Monday.

Emily Atkinson and William Mata have a timeline of the case here:

The diving specialist who led a private search for Nicola Bulley in Lancashire has said he has not been asked to give evidence at her inquest.

Peter Faulding, CEO of Specialist Group International (SGI), who had assisted police with previous missing persons investigations, was asked by Ms Bulley’s family to help with the search after she disappeared near her home in St Michael’s on Wyre in January.

His team spent three days scanning a three-mile stretch of the River Wyre using sonar equipment, but did not find any trace of the mother-of-two in the section of the river they searched.

My colleague Lucy Skoulding reports:

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) will not be taking any enforcement action against Lancashire Police over its disclosure of Nicola Bulley’s personal information, the force said last month.

In an update issued on Tuesday 9 May, the Independent Office for Police Conduct also said its investigation into an officer’s contact with the mother prior to her disappearance identified two areas of learning.

The force came under heavy criticism after the 45-year-old’s body was pulled from the River Wyre in Lancashire on 19 February, more than three weeks after she was last seen on January 27.

My colleague Oliver Browning has more here: