Chris King
Reporter, BBC Radio Stoke

A narrowboat owner says he's currently living at 30 degrees after a canal embankment collapsed in Cheshire, draining the water.

A massive hole appeared at the edge of the Shropshire Union in Middlewich at the end of last week causing a stretch of the canal to empty.

Up to 20 boats are believed to have been left stranded after the collapse, including that of Richard Kill, who was visiting the area.

Shropshire Star

Here are some of the stories making the headlines in the Shropshire Star today:

• Jailed: Telford man and woman in petrol station knifepoint robbery, external
• Pothole crisis after another Siberian freeze in Shropshire, external
• Telford child sex exploitation: Tory councillors call for full council meeting to set up independent inquiry, external

BBC News Travel

Drivers are being warned to expect long delays on the M6 southbound between junctions 14 to 13, near Stafford.

A burst water pipe is flooding the carriageway, with one lane closed.

Image source, Crown / Highways England

More than 1,700 homes and businesses in Stoke-on-Trent are without power.

Western Power Distribution said people in the ST3 and surrounding areas were mainly affected and engineers hope to restore supplies in a couple of hours.

Matt Lee
Reporter, BBC Radio Stoke

A police car has been involved in a crash in Stoke-on-Trent this morning.

The unmarked vehicle collided with a Toyota Avensis on Cobridge Road just before 10:30, although nobody was injured.

Staffordshire Police says it's not thought that the car was involved in a pursuit at the time.

A solicitor who represents survivors of sexual abuse said new victims of child sexual exploitation (CSE) in Telford have come forward because they have the "strength to speak out, because they will be believed".

Siobhan Crawford, from Bolt Burdon Kemp Solicitors told Victoria Derbyshire said they'll no longer "be written off as liars".

There needs to be a separate inquiry into CSE in Telford, from the national one led by Professor Jay, she said, "because I think that will mean survivors will be waiting years for answers as to why they've been let down".

"The inquiry needs to be put into place quickly but with proper terms of reference to ensure that they do obtain the answers that they need as survivors," she said.

Rail passengers continue to face severe disruption with the cancellation of all trains between Birmingham New Street and Lichfield Trent Valley until 19:00 this evening.

Damage to overhead power lines has led to West Midlands Railway services being affected.

The firm says "all current alternative transport arrangements will remain in place".

A new yellow weather warning for ice has been issued by the Met Office, external for the whole of the West Midlands.

Image source, Met Office

It said the freezing temperatures could affect travel between 19:00 tonight and 09:00 tomorrow.

A woman charged with murdering another woman in Cheadle has been remanded in custody by magistrates.

Charlene Sargeant, 24, of Sun Street was arrested on Friday, following the discovery of a 53-year-old woman's body at a house on the street.

Police say the women died from multiple stab wounds.

Ms Sargeant is due appear before Stafford Crown Court on Wednesday.

BBC Sport

Britain's Menna Fitzpatrick and guide Jen Kehoe won gold in the women's visually-impaired slalom at the Winter Paralympics in Pyeongchang.

Image source, Reuters

The pair, who had already won two silvers and a bronze in South Korea, beat Slovakia's Henrieta Farkasova and Natalia Subrtova by 0.66 seconds.

It was GB's first gold of these Games and only their second Winter Paralympic gold ever.

"We wanted to show what we are capable of," Macclesfield-born Fitzpatrick told BBC Sport.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, PA

On top of her four medals, the 19-year-old's achievements saw her given the honour of being flagbearer for the GB team at the closing ceremony yesterday.

Image source, PA

Victoria Derbyshire

Opposition councillors have repeated calls for an inquiry into Child Sexual Exploitation in Telford.

The Labour-run local authority, which published an independent review in 2016, has called for a government-led inquiry to make sure witnesses can be called and ensure its independence.

However, the home office has made it clear that it's for the council to lead on the matter, as in the case of Rotherham.

Conservative councillor Nicola Lowery said it was important for the council to launch an inquiry in a bid to "fully understand the level of CSE in Telford and make sure voices of victims are heard".

The Sentinel

Here are some of the top stories being covered by The Sentinel this morning:

• More than 2,000 complaints made to a council in one year, external
• What Martin Atkinson told Stoke players after Everton's offside goal, external
• Will £70 fines and a 'no-stopping' red route be brought in on a congested road?, external

Simon Gilbert
Political Reporter, BBC Coventry & Warwickshire

A decision is due on whether people were unfairly fined for parking in Coventry city centre.

Image source, Google

The row is about a Restricted Parking Zone which covers the entire city centre - and whether signage is clear enough to let people know where they can and can't park.

The Traffic Penalty Tribunal is responsible for considering appeals against fines and it told BBC Coventry and Warwickshire a decision on whether to take the matter to court will be made this week.

About 60,000 fines have been issued since the zone was introduced.

Coventry City Council has been approached for a statement.

A man charged with the murder of his eight-year-old daughter has failed to appear in court due to an error at the prison where he is on remand.

The case at Wolverhampton Crown Court has been adjourned for three weeks by a judge due to administration error over his date of birth.

William Billingham is yet to enter a plea over the murder charge.

Image source, PA

His daughter, Mylee, died from a single stab wound to her chest on 20 January - she was discovered at his bungalow in Brownhills, Walsall.

The 54-year-old has been remanded in custody until a further hearing in April.

Worcester Warriors confirm scrum-half Luke Baldwin will miss the remainder of the season with a knee injury.

A power failure in south Warwickshire is affecting water supplies in the area, said Severn Trent., external

Customers in Southam are being affected with water supplies at low pressure or off for some customers

The water company said engineers were working to get supplies back on as quickly as possible.

In all, some 150 homes and businesses are without power this morning across the West Midlands.

Coventry Telegraph

Some of the main stories on the Coventry Telegraph website today are:

• Police investigate shotgun incident in Keresley End, external
• Severe delays at Nuneaton Train Station due to overhead line problems, external
• Coventry's top cop answers your questions, external

It could be a year before any changes are made to Shropshire's midwife-led units, according to local NHS commissioners.

Health bosses have done a review of the current service, and have said it's not sustainable.

Image source, Getty Images

Bridgnorth, Ludlow and Oswestry units would be affected under proposals by Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin clinical commissioning groups (CCGs).

Before any changes can be made, a public consultation has to happen and be considered, as well as approval from the wider NHS.

Dr Julian Povey, the chair of Shropshire's clinical commissioning group said it might be April next year before any "significant changes" can be seen.

It could take months to repair damage to a canal in Cheshire, caused by a 50ft sink hole, according to the Canal and River Trust.

Investigations are continuing into what caused the sink hole to open up on the Shropshire Union Canal in Middlewich

Image source, @Canal_Network

The hole opened up late on Thursday night in Middlewich - causing 17 million litres of water to drain out of the canal, as well as leaving boats and wildlife stranded.

Image source, @Canal_Network

BBC Business News

Melrose has promised an extra £1bn , externalfor the GKN pension fund, if its deal to buy the engineering giant is successful.

Melrose originally offered to invest £150m cash into the GKN pension schemes.

Image source, GKN

"The proposal we have made to the trustees of up to £1bn of contributions under our ownership is a clear example of what Melrose does which is good for pensioners and shareholders alike and shows we are a good custodian for all stakeholders," said Melrose chairman, Christopher Miller.

Last week, GKN rejected an offer worth about £8.1bn from Melrose.

Redditch-based GKN is one of the UK's largest industrial firms, employing more than 59,000 people globally - 6,000 of them in the UK.