Police believe the body of a woman found in the canal at Kildwick yesterday is that of a missing Lancashire woman.

Sandrea Pilkington, 70, went missing from her Ramsbottom home at 11.45pm on Sunday, sparking a major police hunt.

Police were so concerned about her out-of-character disappearance, they called in volunteers from Bolton Mountain Rescue to help with the search.

But the search was called off after a woman’s body was pulled from the Leeds-Liverpool Canal yesterday morning.

Paramedics pronounced her dead at the scene.

Police say they are not treating the death as suspicious, but have appealed to the public for information.

Detective Superintendent Dai Malyn, who is heading the investigation, said: “We are currently working to establish the circumstances as to how this lady came to be in the canal.”

Police say a woman matching her description was spotted in Kildwick on Monday morning and had spent some time in a local pub in the afternoon. She was also spotted near the canal at 11.30pm that day.

Anyone with information should contact the North Yorkshire Police control room on 101, quoting reference number 12140026881.