It was news that no one wanted to hear.
The sleepy Lancashire town of St Michael's on Wyre has been in the eye of a media storm in the three weeks following Nicola Bulley's disappearance. She vanished without a trace after dropping her two girls off at school on January 27.
Then today came the news that a body had been pulled from the river near where she went missing. Police said officers were called to reports of a body in the water shortly after 11.30am this morning. The force said it was unable to confirm whether the body is that of the missing mum at this stage.
READ MORE: Nicola Bulley police statement in full as body recovered from River Wyre
There was a large police presence near to the site, with divers also seen searching the water. Roads were blocked off, a helicopter searched, hovering in the grey skies above. News teams gathered.
Everywhere you turn in this besieged village, you see the face of the mum-of-two splashed on missing posters and banners. It is a village of people shattered by the last few weeks. Exhausted and running out of hope.
Many of those living in the rural west Lancashire village, trying to go about their daily lives and attempting to carry on with some sense of normality, have become fatigued at the sight of journalists and photographers flooding the streets, knocking on doors and probing every new emerging line of the investigation. A national spotlight has been shining prominently on their idyllic home for weeks on end. The focus of armchair and social media detectives.
Residents walking through the town muttered expletives or shook their heads as cameras and microphones emerged once more to capture the huge emergency services response in St Michael’s on Sunday.
Despite the ongoing police presence, a solemn silence still echoed through the small village at times. Amidst the occasional bursts of activity there remained a sense that one day, this was expected.
On a small bridge over the Wyre, hundreds of yellow ribbons adorned with heartfelt messages praying for Nicola’s safe return rippled in the brisk wind.
Police blocked off Rawcliffe Road for a number of hours after the body was reported in the river nearby. Officers diverted traffic away from the scene. A forensics tent was seen being erected in a field in the distance beside the river, as officers patrolled the nearby area.
As the evening turned to night and the temperatures plummeted, in St Michael’s there remained an uncomfortable stillness. You wouldn’t think that just hours earlier, the narrow roads were swarming with police after the tragic discovery was made.
Only a few cars passed through, with their headlights shining and lighting up Nicola’s face on each poster. News reporters were seemingly the only people around, stood in front of their cameras beside yellow roses and ribbons tied to a nearby bridge.
Lancashire Police announced there was no plan to hold a press conference on Sunday. A coroner's vehicle was seen leaving the area. Tonight, the once more silent village, and the country, again waits - hope fading - for whatever comes next.
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