Nicola Bulley's partner has spoken out for the first time since she went missing, revealing his heartbreak and saying that the ordeal feels "like a dream."
The mother-of-two, 45, went missing on January 27 and was last sighted walking her dog near the River Wyre in St Michael’s on Wyre, Lancashire, at around 9:15 AM, per the BBC.
Her disappearance was noted at around 10:30 AM the same morning after a dog walker noticed Bulley's brown springer spaniel looking distressed with no owner in sight.
Her phone was also found on a park bench sitting opposite the river with it still connected to a work conference call.
Bulley's partner Paul Ansell has spoken out for the first time, telling Sky News that it seems "absolutely impossible" that she hasn't been found yet.
Ansell told reporters that his main focus is to stay strong for the couple's two young daughters - nine-year-old Harriet, and six-year-old Sophia.
"I just can't believe that we're a week on, and as yet, it seems like we're no further on. it just seems absolutely impossible, just like a dream. I can't get my head around any of it," he told Sky News.
Ansell took a moment to show his gratitude for those searching for Bulley: "I just want to say a massive thank you to the community, friends, for everything that they're doing."
He added that he has replayed every scenario "around and around" in his head, but that "every single scenario comes to a brick wall."
Ansell expressed that it's almost as if his partner "vanished into thin air" as, after a week of searching, there has been no progress in finding her whereabouts.
He also had the heartbreaking task of telling their two young daughters that their mother was missing, but he doesn't know how long he can keep up appearances.
Speaking to the Sun, Bulley's mother Dorothy said: "He just said, 'Mommy’s lost,'" while Ansell's dad David added: "They cried their eyes out."
Bulley's father Ernest told the Mirror, "When I look at the kids, I have to go out of the room because I can't hold it together. They are asking where Mommy is and when is Mommy coming home? It's so hard."
Bulley had dropped her children off at school on the morning of her disappearance before taking their dog Willow for a walk on a well-known route.
Lancashire police are urging anybody with information to come forward as soon as possible.
