Marion Scott: Body of 'lovely lady' was found by chance at remote site near Market Rasen

THE body of former Grimsby nurse Marion Scott was found by chance by a beater from a shooting party, Lincolnshire Police revealed.

The 83-year-old dementia sufferer, pictured, who had been missing since December 27, was discovered about seven miles from her home in Market Rasen's Acre Close on Monday.

Yesterday, grieving relatives visited the remote site, which is off a track more than a mile from the road linking Sixhills and Hainton, near Market Rasen.

The results of a post mortem examination held at The Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham were being studied today in advance of an inquest opening due later this week.

Her family had described her as a "phenomenal lady".

Grandson Alex Stork confirmed on Facebook the woman found near Sixhills was his grandmother and thanked all members of the public who had helped in the search for her.

She had worked as a ward sister at the Diana, Princess Of Wales Hospital, Grimsby and was highly regarded for her dedication to patients. Residents in Market Rasen today mourned the loss of the "generous and lovely lady".

Sadly she developed Alzheimers and on previous occasions she had gone for long walks before relatives had found her.

A Lincolnshire Police spokesman said it was not yet clear which route the grandmother had taken, but it was suggested she may have gone from her home into Market Rasen town centre before heading out along Queen Street and Willingham Road, into Legsby Road.

It is about a five mile walk to Sixhills and a further two miles to where she was later found at about 1.30pm on Monday.

Although at the time of going to press, she had not been formally identified, a Lincolnshire Police spokesman said: "It is remarkable that she got that far and it is surprising for someone who is 83 years. At that age, the parameter to search would normally have been about six kilometres round Market Rasen.

"But as her family said during the search, she was a fit woman for her age and walked for miles."

He said there had been three positive sightings of Mrs Scott by members of the public, who had seen a fit woman walking in a brisk manner and looking agile.

He added her physical appearance was that of a woman up to 20 years younger than her actual age.

Police said the Sixhills area had been searched extensively during the 12 days in which she was missing.

Village resident, Valerie Makiewicz, pictured below, said: "It doesn't take much to get lost around here. She was off the road which goes towards Hainton and the only people that might go down there are those who go out with their dogs. We had the helicopter going over here a lot during the past few days and there were teams of people searching with dogs."

Another villager, Ben Chamberlain said: "The searchers were all over the place. But the track goes to nowhere, just a field.

"It is a public bridleway but I don't know who would go all the way down there. It is uphill and down dale all the way to the end. It is very sad."

Residents in Market Rasen were also mourning the loss of a popular lady.

The Reverend Michael Cartwright, pictured, said: "Everyone has been very worried about her well-being.

"Everyone feels very deeply for her family. Most people would have thought after a couple of days there was not much hope of finding her well.

"It is sad for all the people in the town who have shown care and everyone cares for her family."

Pamela Clarkson, pictured, of Greens grocery and delicatessen in Market Rasen's Queen Street said: "A lot of people have been in today to say how sad it is. At least she has been found and the family can be at peace.

"It is so sad. When I used to work at Oxfam she would come in regularly and support the charity. She was a very nice lady."

Danny Bates, pictured, of Market Rasen said: "There were quite a few people went on the search for her. Everybody is upset that she has been found and people are talking about it. It is a shame how it ended, but good that she was eventually found."

Market Rasen town centre manager, Nicola Marshall, pictured, said: "I live near to where she was found. I remember her grandson's partner coming around the village knocking on people's doors asking if they had seen her.

"She was going house-to-house. We all felt so helpless and worse that she was found so close."

Lincolnshire Police launched a search which initially focussed on the large acreage of Willingham Woods.

Louth Search and Rescue Dog Team volunteers searched during daylight, while police underwater units combed waterways which criss-cross the woods and surrounding farmland.

Humberside Police helicopter Oscar 99 with its heat-seeking capability was drafted in for the search during the first few days.

There were volunteers turning up each day at the Search Control Unit at Market Rasen Police Station offering to join in, and on one day there were more than 100 volunteers.

Many of them were friends of Mrs Scott along with Market Rasen residents. There were also walkers from all over Lincolnshire who had responded to appeals on Facebook.

After the first two days, senior officers asked members of the public not to attend the search for fear of them coming across a body.

The three positive sightings led to an expansion of the search area into Hainton and surrounding villages, including Sixhills.

It has a church and a small number of homes but is dominated by a several large farming estates.

There are a series of tracks which are designated public bridleways for horseriders and walkers.

Despite extensive searches of the Sixhills and Hainton areas by search teams, Mrs Scott remained undiscovered beside a hedgerow off the farmtrack.

The police spokesman said she was found by a beater, who is understood to have been part of a shooting party.

Updates on this story will appear on www.thisisgrimsby.co.uk