Birmingham Live

The Birmingham Live website is covering these stories today:

• Ryanair passenger whose rant went viral 'living in sheltered accommodation in Birmingham', external
• 'Rage-filled' thugs batter driver and smash-up BMW in violent carjacking spree, external
• Staff issue second alert after ‘chubby Asian men’ approach group of girls outside college, external

BBC Midlands Today

More money may be spent maintaining and running CCTV cameras in Worcester.

City councillors will discuss this evening, external whether to give their 66 cameras an upgrade.

Image source, Google

Most of them are almost a decade old and only three of them can take images in high definition.

It comes almost a month after the body of 18-year-old University of Worcester student Thomas Jones was found in the River Severn.

His parents Vicki and Ian have told the BBC that, if the camera on the Sabrina Bridge, where he was last seen, had worked, it could have helped police in the search for their son.

The council admitted that camera hadn't worked for more than a year.

Allen Cook
BBC News

Images of a man have been released by police , externalwho want to trace him after a stabbing at a pub.

Image source, West Midlands Police

A 35-year-old man needed hospital treatment, officers say, after the attack in the Edgbaston Tap pub on Hollies Croft Road, Birmingham on 15 September.

They want to speak to the man pictured.

The government has responded to a petition protesting against the overnight closure of Telford's accident and emergency department, but says it won't intervene.

The petition, set up by Telford and Wrekin Council, called on the government to take action, to help avoid the closure.

The government had to respond after it reached 10,000 signatures.

It wrote: "It is in the best interests of the local NHS and patients for decisions such as this one to be made locally, and for the NHS locally to keep the situation under review to ensure patient safety."

Police described Eamonn Doyle's crimes as "sickening".

Lee Thomas
Newsreader, BBC Radio Stoke

A shop's been robbed by a man with a knife in Stoke-on-Trent., external

Image source, Google

He went into Northwood Store on Myatt Street on Saturday evening, police say.

No-one was hurt and cash, cigarettes and alcohol were taken.

Officers say they want to hear from anyone who saw an "old style" silver Vauxhall Vectra seen in the area at the time.

BBC Weather Watchers

It's looking like a dry day and, already, our local BBC Weather Watchers have been sending in their pictures from across the West Midlands.

These three are from users Laura and Glenn in Delph, Dudley, Foggy in Ludlow and Marguerite in Ellesmere, Shropshire:

Image source, Laura and Glenn

Image source, Foggy

Image source, Marguerite

Worcester News

Three headlines from the Worcester News today:

• Health and Care Trust in need of repairs, external
• Jail for drug dealing pair, external
• Possible February start for football stadium revamp, external

Telford's accident and emergency department is expected to close overnight from 5 December.

The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital Trust says it is taking the emergency measure because of serious staff shortages and the closure will last at least six months.

Image source, SATH

The hospital trust board is due to meet on Thursday to discuss the proposals and will consider starting the overnight closures slightly later - at 22:00, rather than the 20:00 originally suggested.

People in Nuneaton and Bedworth could be asked to pay an extra £40 a year to get the borough council to take away their green waste.

The council is considering introducing the charge as a way of off-setting budget cuts.

The Green Party has complained the move could put people off recycling.

BBC Sport

Coventry City boss Mark Robins says he still needs to see improvement in his side despite their 4-2 away win over Bradford last night.

It takes them to eighth in the table, but he was unhappy that they conceded twice in the second half.

Image source, Getty Images

Coventry are now just one point off the promotion places and play seventh-placed Doncaster on Saturday.

A minibus has been destroyed in a severe blaze which the fire service believes was arson.

Image source, West Midlands Fire Service

Crews were called last night just after 21:30 to the A41 Black Country New Road, Wednesbusy, and found the vehicle under the fly-over., external

The road was temporarily shut while they put out the blaze as smoke was blowing across the road.

A van driver has been flown to hospital with serious injuries after a crash with a lorry on the A49 north of Shrewsbury.

It happened in Hadnall just after 07:00 and the injured man had to be cut free from his vehicle by the fire service.

The collision has caused long delays on the road this morning.

Allen Cook
BBC News

A man's been confirmed dead on the scene after being discovered on a street in Birmingham.

The ambulance service says it was called to Coventry Road, Small Heath, yesterday evening by reports of a medical emergency.

But it says its crews couldn't do anything to save the man.

Stoke-on-Trent Live

A few of the stories appearing on the Stoke-on-Trent Live website this morning:

• Woman found dead in flat after she lay undiscovered for days, external
• Former rock singer opens barbers shop, external
• Shisha lounge boss wins council court battle after being accused of breaking smoking rules, external

Local Democracy Reporting Service
Joe Sweeney

There are concerns cases of fly-tipping could rise in Wolverhampton because bin collections aren't going to be collected every week.

From tomorrow, 25 October, the city council is only going to pick up general waste every fortnight, with recycling collected on the alternate weeks.

But residents have told the Local Democracy Service they fear there'll be more fly-tipping as a result with one saying it's already an issue in areas such as Wednesfield.

The council says it's had to make changes due to government cuts and is making gradual changes to "make things as smooth as possible".

As Halloween looms, people have been out taking their pick of a bumper crop of pumpkins.

Phil Maiden
BBC Hereford and Worcester

Golfers have been joined by an unusual animal on their rounds at a course in Worcestershire.

Image source, Evesham Golf Club

Staff at Evesham Golf Club say a rhea, a bird similar to an emu, appeared on their site at the weekend and nobody's been able to catch it. , external

The 6ft flightless bird, which originates in South America, can reach running speeds of up to 40mph (64km/h).

The club says it believes the rhea is a pet which escaped from a nearby village - they've nicknamed it Linford, after sprinter Linford Christie.

BBC Sport

A European gymnastics champion's told BBC Sport how he was bullied when growing up in Birmingham because he did a "girls' sport".

Image source, Getty Images

Dominick Cunningham says he was called "gay" and hid under a blanket in his mum's car outside school.

It often left Cunningham in tears and he questioned whether to carry on but he refused to give in and this year has been a very successful one for the 23-year-old.

He has won European and Commonwealth gold medals and has been selected for his first World Championships, which are taking place in Doha between 25 October and 3 November.

You can read more of his story, including how his parents supported him and how it feels to be number one in Europe, on the BBC Sport website.

Michelle Dawes
BBC Coventry & Warwickshire

A man says he's thankful smartphone technology from the USA means he can still speak in his own voice, despite losing his voice box due to cancer surgery.

Craig Robinson was diagnosed with extensive tongue and throat cancer earlier this year.

Macmillan Cancer Support staff at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire Trust helped the 34-year-old from Bedworth, Warwickshire, to use the technology to record 1,400 sentences before his operation.