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Death of Esther Dingley

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Esther Dingley
Disappeared22 November 2020 (age 37)
Pic de Sauvegarde, France
StatusDeceased
Known forHiking around Europe and blogging
Benasque, the last place where Esther Dingley was seen

Esther Dingley was a British woman who disappeared in November 2020 while hiking in the Pyrenees.[1][2] On 23 July 2021, part of Dingley's skull was found near a track by mountain runners. On 9 August of that same year, her partner Daniel Colegate found her other remains.[3]

Background

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Esther Dingley and her partner, Dan Colegate, met as students at Wadham College, Oxford.[4][better source needed] They began hiking around Europe in 2014, living in a campervan and recording their experiences in a blog. Both partners were dealing with severe health problems: Colegate had depression and had nearly died from necrotising fasciitis he had contracted during surgery, while Dingley had chronic fatigue syndrome.[5][6][7]

On the day of Dingley's last known communication, which was with Colegate on 22 November, the couple had been profiled on the front page of the BBC News website.[8] The BBC story, written while Dingley had left on a solo hiking trip, includes a contemporary interview with Colegate, who was house-sitting at a farmhouse in France, and Dingley, via a remote video link from the couple's campervan. Other articles about their trip and lifestyle appeared on other news sites around the same time.[9]

Disappearance

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Dingley and Colegate completed an 80-day unbroken hiking trek through the Alps on the Via Alpina on 4 October 2020.[10] After a further ten days travelling in their campervan, the couple took up temporary residence in a borrowed gîte in Gascony. On 22 October, Dingley set off on a solo trip in the campervan.

On 21 November, Dingley set off from Benasque, Huesca, Spain, for a multi-day hike. On 22 November at around 4pm, she sent Colegate short text messages via WhatsApp from the summit of the Pic de Sauvegarde, a 2,737-metre (8,980 ft) mountain in the Pyrenees.[1] Colegate then made a video-call to Dingley lasting around 90 seconds. She planned to spend the night at the fr:Refuge de Vénasque, an unstaffed mountain refuge nearby, but it is not clear whether she did so.[1] Three days later, on 25 November, Colegate reported Dingley missing after she failed to return from her solo trip. She is not known to have communicated with anyone during these three days.[11][12][2]

The peloton de gendarmerie de haute montagne (PGHM) confirmed that they were searching for Dingley, which involved search teams and a helicopter.[1][13] Colegate travelled to Bagnères-de-Luchon to take part in the search.[13] However, in early December 2020, authorities announced that the search had halted due to heavy snow.[11][12]

In February 2021, Colegate said that he was convinced that Dingley had been taken "against her will" and that "somebody else was involved".[14] He also suggested that Dingley might have been killed by hunters.[15]

In spring and early summer 2021, the physical search for Dingley in the Pyrenees was resumed by both Colegate alone and by the French and Spanish authorities.[16][17][18]

Colegate is being represented by the crisis support organisation LBT Global.[2][19]

Remains found

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Around 23 July 2021, human remains were found near the path below the Port de la Glère, a mountain pass a few kilometers to the west of where Dingley was last seen.[20][21] On 30 July 2021, following DNA testing, the remains – part of a human skull – were confirmed to be Dingley's.[22] On 9 August 2021, Colegate located the rest of her body.[23][24]

On 13 August 2021, the investigation team announced that it was believed Dingley's death was due to an accidental fall,[25] though investigations at that point were still ongoing.

On 1 October 2021, Colegate released a final statement on the couple's Facebook page that Dingley had been laid to rest, thanking the public for its support.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d Parveen, Nazia (29 November 2020). "UK woman who has travelled Europe for six years goes missing in Pyrenees". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
  2. ^ a b c "Esther Dingley: Missing Briton was 'experienced hiker and loved life'". BBC News. 15 December 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
  3. ^ Lyons, Izzy; Rosman, Rebecca (10 August 2021). "Body of missing British hiker Esther Dingley discovered by boyfriend". The Telegraph.
  4. ^ "wadhamoxford". Twitter. Archived from the original on 2 August 2021. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
  5. ^ "Necrotising fasciitis". nhs.uk. 19 October 2017.
  6. ^ "'Life started when I almost died': the couple who left everything..." AlKhaleej Today. 23 November 2020.
  7. ^ Madrid, David Brown | Adam Sage, Paris | Lucinda Elliott (21 June 2023). "Esther Dingley 'may have deliberately gone missing to retain nomadic lifestyle'" – via www.thetimes.co.uk.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  8. ^ Leatherdale, Duncan (22 November 2020). "Van life: Durham couple's six years on the road (and counting)". BBC News. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
  9. ^ "Durham couple launch book series inspired by van adventure with five dogs". The Northern Echo. 4 November 2020.
  10. ^ "Information Pack Regarding The Disappearance of Esther Dingley from the Pyrenees mountains in November 2020" (PDF). LBT Global Hotline. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
  11. ^ a b "Esther Dingley: Missing hiker search 'off until weather improves'". BBC News. 10 December 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
  12. ^ a b Stubley, Peter (5 December 2020). "Esther Dingley: Search for missing British hiker halted due to bad weather". The Independent. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
  13. ^ a b "Esther Dingley search: Six teams look for her in Pyrenees". BBC News. 29 November 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
  14. ^ "Esther Dingley: Missing hiker 'taken against will'". BBC News. 3 February 2021. Retrieved 23 April 2021.
  15. ^ Paris, David Brown | Adam Sage (21 June 2023). "Boyfriend fears missing hiker Esther Dingley was attacked by hunters" – via www.thetimes.co.uk.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  16. ^ "Esther Dingley: Missing hiker's boyfriend resumes search alone". BBC News. 26 April 2021. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  17. ^ "Esther Dingley: Police search for missing British hiker resumes". BBC News. 15 June 2021.
  18. ^ Staff Reporter (15 June 2021). "Police in Spain resume search for British hiker Esther Dingley as snow thaws in Pyrenees".
  19. ^ "Family step away from Lucie Blackman Trust, which rebrands as LBT Global". Isle of Wight News from OnTheWight. 10 November 2020.
  20. ^ Penza, Natalia (23 July 2021). "Police searching for missing hiker find bones near where she disappeared". mirror. Retrieved 1 August 2021.
  21. ^ Press Association (24 July 2021). "Esther Dingley family call for clarity after claim human remains found in Pyrenees". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  22. ^ Vinter, Robyn (30 July 2021). "Esther Dingley: remains found in Pyrenees are missing Briton's". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  23. ^ Lyons, Izzy; Rosman, Rebecca (10 August 2021). "Body of missing British hiker Esther Dingley discovered by boyfriend". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 10 August 2021.
  24. ^ "Body of British hiker Esther Dingley found by partner in Pyrenees". The Guardian. 10 August 2021. Retrieved 14 August 2021.
  25. ^ "Esther Dingley: Hiker's Pyrenees death an accident, police say". BBC. BBC. 13 August 2021. Retrieved 14 August 2021.
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