Nicola Bulley latest: Police extend search into sea as far as Morecambe

Superintendent Sally Riley of Lancashire Police said at a press conference today: “Our search of the river and the river banks extends out to sea particularly the area from Knott End out towards Morecambe.”

Detectives say they are looking at 500 active pieces of information in the search for mother-of-two Nicola Bulley - and have not found "anything of note" yet, reports Sky News.

Lancashire Police remains "fully open-minded" and have not yet detected a "suspicious element", said Superintendent Sally Riley.

Data from Ms Bulley's Fitbit device has been checked and the Coastguard is involved in the search.

Supt Riley also said her officers had conducted an "unprecedented" number of inquiries and had a team of 40 detectives working daily to sift through the information they have so far gathered and received.

Six specially trained officers are searching the back of the River Wyre, near to the village of St Michael's on Wyre, where Ms Bulley went missing on January 27 while walking her dog.

Detectives say their "main working hypothesis" is that the 45-year-old fell into the river and Supt Riley reiterated at a press conference on Tuesday that this remained their belief.

But her family and friends have claimed there is "no evidence whatsoever" behind this.

Specialist teams, including a private company with underwater sonar equipment, are carrying out comprehensive searches over the river, but they are yet to find her.

Earlier, a friend of Ms Bulley said it "may be time to start looking down other avenues" if search teams looking in the River Wyre cannot find her.

Family friend Heather Gibbons said: "I think it's incredibly hard, but up to a certain level, we understand it's human nature, it's natural for everyone to have speculation, because the truth is in this, nothing is making sense.

"The truth is if we look at it factually, no one knows until we have some evidence.

"I know that the family are massively appreciative of all the police have done.

"As family and friends, the way we are looking at it is, we feel we have got the best of the best on that water and hopefully it will be a completion, one way or the other.

"And if they find nothing, then maybe it's time to start looking down other avenues."

A dive team from Specialist Group International (SGI) joined the search for Ms Bulley yesterday.

The company are using a £55,000 side-scan sonar, with a high frequency of 1,800 kilohertz, to help police carry out a comprehensive search of the river.

The team helped search part of the river on Monday, in an area around and downstream from a bench where Ms Bulley's mobile phone was left, still connected to a work call.

On Monday night, chief executive Peter Faulding said their search, covering around "three to four miles" of the river, had shown up negative.

He said the team would search another stretch of the river, close to where detectives believe Ms Bulley fell in on Tuesday.