Wife of former rugby star Scott Hastings missing after swimming in Firth of Forth | Scotland

The wife of Scott Hastings, the former Scotland international rugby player, has gone missing after going for a swim in a Scottish estuary. Jenny Hastings, who “loved the water”, failed to return from Wardie Bay in Edinburgh on Tuesday after going for a swim in the Firth of Forth.

Emergency services received a report of ‘concern’ at around 2.45pm on Tuesday and a helicopter, coastguard rescue teams, lifeboats and other nearby vessels all joined in a search.

However, the agency said the search yielded no results and was suspended at 8.20pm that evening while Scottish police continued their search.

In a statement, the Hastings family revealed that police were treating Jenny’s disappearance as a “high-risk missing person case”. They explained that the 60-year-old mother of two had previously struggled with mental health issues and that this time she “was ultimately unable to cope”.

The family said: “It seems she wanted to end her suffering in a place that was normal and healing for her. She loved the water, but unfortunately her spirit was not safe.”

They described themselves as “absolutely devastated” and asked for privacy. “We miss our Jenny. She leaves a gaping hole in all our hearts and we hope she is returned to us safely so we can celebrate her remarkable life.

“We kindly request that you refrain from sending us direct messages and/or posting on social media for the time being until further news is available.”

As an ambassador for a Scottish mental health charity, alongside her husband, one of Scotland’s most successful rugby players, she spoke out in 2014 about her years-long battle with depression and revealed that she had once attempted suicide.

At the time, she explained that she “just wanted to die and end it all,” adding that she thought she was doing her children and Scott a favor and that “they would be better off without me.”

She said: “I didn’t want to be with anyone. At that point I really felt like I wasn’t part of anyone’s life – I didn’t believe anyone wanted me around.”

Seven years ago she was missing for 36 hours.