Nicola Bulley was 'laughing and joking' before she vanished by river

dailyrecord.co.uk:

A missing mum was "laughing and joking" just minutes before she vanished while walking her dog, according to a friend.Nicola Bulley's dog Willow was found off her lead on a path along the River Wyre last Friday.

The 45-year-old's mobile phone was understood to have been found on the ground next to a bench overlooking the water, which has an estimated 18ft underwater drop, reports the Mirror.

The friend, who wishes to stay anonymous, said she has spoken to two people who are thought to be the last people to see Nicola before she went missing.She said: "They say she was laughing and joking with them as she went by." Two other dog walkers later came across Nicola's phone and recognised her screensaver photo.They were unable to unlock the phone and contacted a friend who then called St Michael's-on-Wyre Primary School, where Nicola had dropped her two children that morning.Partner Paul Ansell was contacted and called police, after racing to the scene from the family home three miles away, the friend said.

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."A large-scale police search was launched, which included 25 trained volunteers from Bowland Pennine Mountain Rescue.