By Charlotte Webster-
Nicola Bulley’s death was accidental and she did not have “any desire” to take her own life, a coroner concluded.
Dr James Adeley, senior coroner for Lancashire ruled that the 45-year-old drowned after falling into cold water,
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Experts told the hearing entering cold water can cause a person to gasp and inhale water and drown in seconds.
The court heard evidence from a Home Office pathologist who gave a medical cause of death as well as a police diver who has visited the site where Nicola entered the River Wyre.
Adeley says that the medical cause of death was drowning. He said it likely that Nicola entered the water at 9.22am when her Fitbit recorded a significant spike in her heart rate. He is unable to determine exactly why Nicola entered the water.
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Dr Adeley said: “On January 27 at around 9.22am Nicola Jane Bulley fell into the River Wyre and died almost immediately”.
He said there is no indication Nicola had any intention of taking her life. It is believed it would also be unusual for suicide as she would not have left Willow who was described as her third child. To leave her car keys in her pocket with her car in the school playground where her children would see it would be cruel so there is no evidence to support this conclusion.
Drowning and cold water shock experts also gave evidence, detailing how she would likely have reacted to entering the water and concluded she would have been unconscious within seconds.
After the verdict, Ms Bulley’s family hit out at “wildly inaccurate speculation” on social media that followed her death.
Ms Bulley’s family still receive “negative targeted messages” on social media, as well as seeing “wildly inaccurate speculation” on a number of platforms months after her death, they said in a statement read by their lawyer, Terry Wilcox.
The family urged the public “to look at the facts the evidence that has been heard during the inquest, and the conclusion reached by the coroner, and ignore any amateur views and opinions and be mindful of the impact words bring”.
He added: “The last few months have been extremely tough to process for our family.
“The emotional impact will stay long in our hearts and whilst we will never forget the loss of our Nikki, we will forever remember her as a brilliant mum, partner, daughter and sister that we all knew and loved so very much.”
However, he said the “help and support we have received over these past few months has meant more than words can say”.
Ms Bulley went missing on a dog walk in St Michael’s on Wyre, Lancashire, on 27 January, prompting a major search, which led to intense public interest and a social media frenzy of conspiracy theories.
Her body was found in the River Wyre more than three weeks later on 19 February.
During the huge search after she vanished, police urged against people fuelling damaging rumours making their job harder and attracting sightseers to the village where she disappeared.
Lancashire Police came under fire after revealing Ms Bulley’s struggles with alcohol and perimenopause.
The coroner said one purpose of the inquest was to “allay rumour and suspicion” and he would rely only on “reliable sources” and not explore the “theories advanced by those who contribute to social media fora”.
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