Summary

  • Covid-19 outbreak on blood cancer ward

  • Freezing conditions expected with snow warnings issued

  • Four in court accused of killing disabled man

  • Schools set to benefit from rebuild money

  • Hotel bookings for quarantine being made 'at pace'

  • Dancer 'swept away and killed' in storm landslide

  • School for 900 pupils given go-ahead

  • Updates from Friday 5 February

  1. Warning of snow and ice issuedpublished at 13:57 Greenwich Mean Time 1 February 2021

    Snow and ice could bring disruption to travel in parts of Staffordshire later, the Met Office is warning.

    Weather mapImage source, Met Office

    A yellow warning for snow and ice has been issued from 22:00 until the end of Tuesday.

  2. Incident causing rail disruptionpublished at 13:34 Greenwich Mean Time 1 February 2021

    BBC News Travel

    An incident close to rail lines at Witton is delaying rail services between Birmingham New Street and Walsall.

    Disruption is expected until 16:00, said Network Rail.

    Emergency services are at the scene, it added.

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  3. Two boys in court charged with Keon Lincoln murderpublished at 13:32 Greenwich Mean Time 1 February 2021

    Fifteen-year-old Keon was shot and stabbed in an attack thought to have involved up to six people.

    Read More
  4. 'Enhanced surveillance' planned after SA variant detectedpublished at 13:29 Greenwich Mean Time 1 February 2021

    It is not known how many cases of the South African variant of coronavirus have been identified in Walsall.

    CovidImage source, Getty Images

    Dr Lola Abudu from Public Health England told a meeting on Friday she was aware of cases in the West Midlands that the health protection team were investigating.

    "We undertake enhanced surveillance to understand where the infection has come from and share this information nationally so that we understand the epidemiology and we can take the necessary control measures," she said.

    Experts are studying the variant to understand what risk it poses.

  5. SA variant: Urgent tests after community cases foundpublished at 12:57 Greenwich Mean Time 1 February 2021

    Urgent testing for the South Africa variant of coronavirus is to start in Walsall and other parts of England, after cases were found with no known links to travel or previous cases.

    TestingImage source, Getty Images

    Two cases were found in Surrey, and testing will also take place in London, Kent, Hertfordshire and Walsall.

    Previous cases in the UK were traced back to South Africa.

    Cases caused by the variant were identified as part of Public Health England's random checks on tests.

  6. Murder probe after fatal shootingpublished at 12:41 Greenwich Mean Time 1 February 2021

    A 39-year-old man dies in hospital after being found seriously injured in Dudley on Sunday.

    Read More
  7. Wasps lock Cardall signs new contractpublished at 12:38 Greenwich Mean Time 1 February 2021

    Wasps lock forward Tim Cardall signs a new undisclosed-length contract with last season's Premiership runners-up.

    Read More
  8. Thousands of patients wait for routine surgerypublished at 12:37 Greenwich Mean Time 1 February 2021

    A hospital leader in Coventry has said the latest peak in cases of coronavirus has been almost two thirds higher than the first wave.

    University Hospital CoventryImage source, Google

    Andy Hardy, chief executive of the University Hospital in the city said at the height in January the hospital had 262 patients - up from a high of 161 patients in April.

    "It's going to take many months to recover," he told BBC CWR.

    The hospital currently has 217 patients, of which 43 are in intensive care.

    He also said the hospital now has more than 3,000 people who have waited over a year for routine operations.

    "We're going to have to have some honest conversations with the public," he added, "to say what the NHS will be in a state to do moving forward."

  9. Flood warnings remain in placepublished at 12:09 Greenwich Mean Time 1 February 2021

    Flood warnings are still in place across the rivers Severn and Avon in the West Midlands.

    flood water south of WorcesterImage source, Environment Agency

    Water levels have peaked and are slowly falling, said the Environment Agency, but with further heavy rainfall forecast this week, it said it was monitoring levels "very closely".

    The flood warnings cover:

  10. Arson attacks investigatedpublished at 11:33 Greenwich Mean Time 1 February 2021

    BBC Radio Stoke

    Two arson attacks in Staffordshire over the weekend are being investigated.

    Joules BreweryImage source, Staffordshire Fire Service

    A fire was started on Friday night at the old fire station in Stone - now owned by Joules Brewery.

    The Club House on Granville Terrace in the town was targeted on Saturday morning.

    The fire service said it was looking into whether the two incidents were linked.

  11. Mass vaccination centre to openpublished at 10:28 Greenwich Mean Time 1 February 2021

    A centre in Stafford is to start operating as a mass vaccination centre from this morning.

    Kingston Centre

    The Kingston Centre on Fairway will predominantly offer vaccinations for care workers this week before opening to the general public for appointments.

    It has already been used to offer rapid coronavirus tests to people with no symptoms.

  12. Man dies in house firepublished at 10:06 Greenwich Mean Time 1 February 2021

    A man has died in a house fire in Wolverhampton in the early hours, said the ambulance service.

    AmbulanceImage source, West Midlands Ambulance Service

    A woman also suffered potentially serious injuries in the fire at a property in Dawson Avenue, Bilston.

    The man was found inside the property,ambulance crews said, and was confirmed dead at the scene.

  13. Man critical in hospital after shootingpublished at 09:31 Greenwich Mean Time 1 February 2021

    A man is in a critical condition in hospital after being shot in Dudley, police have said.

    Scene of shooting

    The man, in his 30s, was taken to hospital after being found injured in Queens Cross at about 00:35 on Sunday.

    West Midlands Police said it had launched an inquiry. No arrests have been made.

    Search teams have examined the grounds of a nearby gym, mosque and community centre.

  14. Boys charged with murder of Birmingham teenagerpublished at 09:03 Greenwich Mean Time 1 February 2021

    Two teenagers are due to appear in court charged with the murder of a boy who was killed in a gun and knife attack.

    Keon LincolnImage source, West Midlands Police

    Keon Lincoln, 15, was attacked by a group of youths on Linwood Road in Handsworth, Birmingham, on 21 January.

    West Midlands Police said a 14-year-old boy from Birmingham and a 15-year-old boy from Walsall are set to appear at Birmingham Magistrates' Court later.

    Keon died at Birmingham Children's Hospital after the attack, which is thought to have involved up to six people.

  15. Flooding closes stretch of A49published at 08:40 Greenwich Mean Time 1 February 2021

    Flooding has closed a stretch of the A49 in Herefordshire.

    Closed roadImage source, Highways England

    The road remains closed from Hereford to Hay-on-Wye with large amounts of water still covering the surface.

    Traffic is being diverted through Monmouth.

  16. What's the weather got in store?published at 08:14 Greenwich Mean Time 1 February 2021

    It will be a dull and overcast day but should remain dry with highs of 6°C (43°F).

    Weather map
  17. Live updates for the West Midlandspublished at 08:10 Greenwich Mean Time 1 February 2021

    Vanessa Pearce
    BBC News

    Welcome to our live service for Monday.

    We'll be bringing you all the news, sport, travel and weather for the West Midlands.

    We love to hear from you so share your news, thoughts and photos of the area with us via email, Twitter, external and Facebook., external