Search and rescue teams deployed after F-15 crashes off English coast near Middlesbrough
A US Air Force F-15 aircraft based in the UK crashed into the North Sea off the coast near Middlesbrough on Monday morning while it was on a training mission.
The status of the pilot onboard is unknown following the crash, which happened on a routine training mission at around 9.40am. UK search and rescue teams were being deployed to try to locate the pilot.
Continue reading...Tobias Weller raises £60,000 for charity by walking up and down Sheffield road for 70 days
There were cheers from physically distanced crowds as nine-year-old Tobias Weller, a boy with autism and cerebral palsy, completed his remarkable challenge to walk a marathon to raise money for charity.
Nicknamed Captain Tobias, he has been walking up and down the Sheffield road where he lives for 70 days. He initially hoped to raise £500. A flood of support led to him raising the target to £30,000. On Sunday evening the total stood at more than £60,000.
Continue reading...Big Kid Circus has been stranded overlooking the beach and promenade at the Lancashire resort since lockdown began
Continue reading...Jonathan Philip Clayton found guilty of 13 sexual assaults at North Yorkshire school in 2019
A supply teacher has been jailed for eight and a half years for sexually assaulting six girls at a primary school in North Yorkshire, two years after similar allegations were dropped.
Jonathan Philip Clayton was convicted of 13 counts of sexually touching girls aged between seven and 11 over a period of six weeks last year.
Continue reading...Empty shelves and complaints of inconsiderate stockpiling as public prepares for self-isolation amid coronavirus crisis
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Panic buying continued to sweep parts of the country over the weekend, with many shoppers buying many everyday essentials in excess as they prepared for periods of isolation during the coronavirus crisis.
Despite the highly unusual move of all major operators signing up to a letter urging customers to shop responsibly and ensure supplies are shared out fairly, some customers continued to stockpile.
Continue reading...The next leader should focus on building support among young people, families and precarious workers around urban centres
The candidate who secures the mandate of the Labour membership in April will require humility and subtlety. Humility, because the size of the Tory majority is formidable; subtlety, because the electorate is changing in ways that suggest there is no easy path to revive Labour’s vote share.
To win the most seats at the next election, let alone form a majority government, the new leader will need to engineer a breakthrough in several parts of the country simultaneously, from politically ambivalent Cornwall to the new SNP strongholds in Scotland. Along the way, of course, large chunks of support will need to be clawed back in the so-called “red wall” areas of the post-industrial north and Midlands, which turned so decisively blue in 2019.
Continue reading...Storm Jorge may bring 70mph winds on coast and downpours in Wales and northern England
People living in flooded areas are facing more misery as the third storm to hit the UK in a month takes hold over the weekend.
Storm Jorge is expected to batter coastal areas with winds of up to 70mph, while downpours of up to 80mm could fall on already flooded areas.
Continue reading...In the north of England, the arguments over whether to push on with the HS2 project are as polarised as they are in Westminster. Amy Walker speaks to those opposed to HS2
Ask commuters in the north of England what improvements they would like to see on the railways and their wishlist is usually fairly modest: regular, reliable services with adequate carriages, non-leaking roofs and toilets that don’t empty straight out on to the track. Forget USB ports or wifi. Justthe basics – and some dignity.
Few would put at the top of their list a £100bn-plus railway that will get them to London an hour quicker.
Continue reading...Mother appeals for help finding Natalie Jenkins, 32, who was last seen on 10 December
A woman has appealed to the public for help finding her daughter as detectives launched a murder inquiry.
Natalie Jenkins, 32, was last seen in Middlesbrough on 10 December and although she was close to her family, they have not heard from her since. At a news conference in Middlesbrough, DCI Mark Dimelow said the force was treating her disappearance as a suspected murder.
Continue reading...Report calls for work on second phase of high-speed rail project to be put on hold for six months
The political battle over HS2 has intensified following the leak of a government review that found the costs of the high-speed rail link could reach £106bn, leaving supporters in the north fearing the government may scale back or axe the project.
The draft report said there is a “considerable risk” that costs could rise by another 20% from the last estimate in September, which priced the scheme at £81bn-£88bn. The original budget was £34bn.
Continue reading...Haircuts for rough sleepers. Beauty treatments for cancer patients. Boilers for disabled people. A wave of specialists are providing skills – and hope – for those in need
Goodwill, it appears, is in high demand. One thing all the altruists I met while researching this article have in common is that they’re on the phone the whole time. Perhaps if mobiles had been around in Robin Hood’s day he would have had one pressed constantly to his lughole. “Marion … yes, love. I’m just having a fight on a bridge with Little John … sorry, you’re breaking up, terrible reception in here, all the oaks... What, the Sheriff’s abducted you? OK, I’m coming!”
Continue reading...Sheffield shopping centre cut off by rising waters as torrential rain deluges large areas and Met Office warns of more to come
Dozens of people have been trapped in Sheffield’s Meadowhall shopping centre overnight after torrential rain caused flooding throughout the city and transport chaos across large parts of northern England.
Heavy rain across the region on Thursday made roads impassable and forced the cancellation of train services, while 35 homes were evacuated in Mansfield after a mudlside.
Continue reading...Meadowhall in Sheffield says those who wish to stay can, due to ‘extreme conditions’ outside
People trapped by flood water in a shopping mall near Sheffield have been told they can leave but were warned there will be severe delays due to “extreme weather conditions”.
People at the Meadowhall shopping centre had earlier been told to stay put by police and not to attempt to leave the mall after flooding left roads gridlocked.
Continue reading...Closure of plant could threaten 220 jobs after being deemed ‘no longer viable’
Ineos is preparing to shut a chemical plant in Teesside which it has owned for the past 10 years in a blow to hundreds of workers in the north-east of England.
The chemicals company, owned by the billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe, said “nothing can be done” to save the plant at Seal Sands, which is no longer economically viable.
Continue reading...Residents told to leave Whaley Bridge after heavy rains damage reservoir above town
Hundreds of homes were evacuated in a Derbyshire town on Thursday when a dam threatened to burst after being damaged during extreme rainfall.
Around 1,400 people in 400 houses in Whaley Bridge were told to leave their properties with just minutes’ notice due to “an unprecedented, fast-moving, emergency situation” caused by heavy downpours.
Continue reading...Rail firm privately backtracks on vow to MPs that fleet would be retired by end of year
Northern rail promised MPs last week its fleet of hated “buses-on-rails” would be retired by the end of the year, but it has emerged the firm had already privately warned the transport secretary it might have to keep some of them in service well into 2020.
Rob Warnes, the rail firm’s network planning director, told the all-party parliamentary group (AAPG) on rail in the north that all of its antiquated fleet of Pacers would be gone by the end of the year, according to Ian Mearns, the Labour MP who chairs the AAPG.
Continue reading...Brackenthwaite Hows is first site bought by charity specifically for its panorama
It is known for its stately homes and country mansions – and its bank-breaking car parks. Now the National Trust has added one of the Lake District’s loveliest views to its portfolio, after the landowners decided to share it with the nation.
The panorama from Brackenthwaite Hows was painted by JMW Turner in his 1797 watercolour Crummock Water, Looking Towards Buttermere, and offers splendid 360-degree views across the north-western Lakes. It was spotted by the artist on his first ever visit to what later became the national park, and was the basis for an oil painting he exhibited at the Royal Academy.
Continue reading...Firefighters tackling blaze on Ilkley Moor, in West Yorkshire
Firefighters are battling another blaze on Ilkley Moor, in West Yorkshire, a month after a devastating fire caused significant damage in the area.
Ten fire engines were called to the affected area and people were urged to keep away. West Yorkshire fire and rescue service later said the fire was largely extinguished.
Continue reading...Ring-tailed lemurs from neighbouring wildlife park will ‘help’ yogis to practise
We’ve had doga, goat yoga and anti-gravity yoga. Now lemurs have joined in the fun.
A luxury hotel in the Lake District has added “lemoga” to its wellness programme, for yogis keen to do the downward dog with a Madagascan primate.
Continue reading...Some major routes to be 208% over capacity by 2022, shows data compiled by Labour
Overcrowding on trains is at the highest level for years, according to official data compiled by Labour showing some major routes are to be 208% of capacity by 2022.
A study of government figures found the most overcrowded services were on average 187% of capacity in 2017, an increase of 25% since 2011.
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