Bogus charity collections conman described as "saturated in dishonesty" jailed
Plymouth "murder" now being treated as "unexplained death"
Skinned cats found outside Truro Cathedral
Child sexual exploitation awareness campaign launched
Dartmoor Zoo tests positive for TB
Almost 13% of Cornish women kept smoking during pregnancy
Updates from Monday 12 March until Friday 16 March
The high water at 17:00 could cause flooding from Start Point to Dawlish Warren, the Environment Agency has warned, external.
Strong force six south-easterly winds are due to combine with offshore wave heights of more than 2.5 metres to overtop sea defences.
Hayley Westcott
BBC News Online
A student in Plymouth has said she thought the evacuation of her block of flats "was a drill".
It happened at about 13:15 after an electrical fire on the fifth floor of Discovery Heights on Cobourg Street.
Amy Hogarth was in bed when the fire alarms went off.
"I originally thought it was a drill - I wasn't even dressed. I got up, grabbed my hard drive and went downstairs.
"There were fire engines and police everywhere. We're thinking it will be a few hours before we're let back in - we've been emailed."
Crews remain on the scene but the fire is now out, Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service has said.
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A town in Cornwall is set to get its second fish and chip shop almost a year after its oldest one had to close following decades of service., external
Hayley Westcott
BBC News Online
Fire crews remain at Cobourg Street in Plymouth after a fire in a block of student flats.
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Hayley Westcott
BBC News Online
These students are stuck out in the rain after being evacuated from Discovery Heights, after a fire in the boiler room on the fifth floor.
They've been told it could be "a few hours" before they're let back in.
Sarah Gosling
BBC News Online
A fire in a block of student flats was on the fifth floor and started in a boiler room, it's been confirmed.
Seven fire engines were called to Discovery Heights, in Plymouth at about 13:15.
The building, which contains 281 bedrooms, has been evacuated.
No-one has been injured. Firefighters at the scene have told the BBC the fire is out.
Sarah Gosling
BBC News Online
A high-rise block of student flats in Plymouth has been evacuated following a fire, police have said.
It is believed the building affected is Discovery Heights, a student build containing 281 bedrooms.
Seven fire engines and an aerial platform are at the scene at Cobourg Street after receiving reports of a fire at about 13:15.
There are no reports of any injuries.
The cause is believed to be an electrical fault.
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More to follow....
Plymouth City Council has written to Channel 4 Chief Executive Alex Mahon stating its intent to formally bid for the city to become one of Channel 4's three new hubs once it relocates part of its operation outside of London., external
Andrew Segal
BBC Local Live
Students at a Penzance primary school have followed the lead of their hometown gaining a “plastic-free” award, external by hosting a conference looking at plastic pollution.
The conference at Pensans Primary featured talks by pupils, multimedia presentations and displays employing slogans including: “Join the resistance and save our seas” and “Be the solution for pollution”. Pieces of art featuring plastic waste also featured.
It was inspired by recent work with campaign group Surfers Against Sewage (SAS), and pupils taking part in a beach clean at nearby Marazion.
SAS gave the town its accolade, external as the first in the UK to meet its plastic-free coastline criteria.
Those at the conference included parents, members of SAS and Penzance Mayor Dick Cliffe. He said: “It’s inspiring, the enthusiasm of the children. This is a grassroots reaction and it’s fantastic that the children have really latched on to it.”
Trains in and out of Plymouth are being disrupted by 'severe weather', with a number cancelled due to waves crashing over the Dawlish line. , external
Devon
Cornwall
Sarah Gosling
BBC News Online
Ottery St Mary in 2008
A flood risk action plan costing £3m has been given the green light by Devon County Council.
The plan for 2018 is to provide more than 300 properties with greater flood protection. , external
The money exceeds 2017's commitment by £1m, when major improvement schemes in Axminster, Millbrook and Braunton were completed.
A number of other schemes are under way, including £1.1m improvements in Modbury which are due to be completed by the end of this year, the installation of new culverts at Uplyme and culvert repairs in Bideford, the council said.
Councillor Roger Croad said: "This winter has been another reminder of the flood risk which is still very real across Devon.
"Our prioritised approach through our action plan is making a difference and is reducing flood risk to some of the most vulnerable areas in the county."
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Johnny O'Shea
BBC News Online
The Post Office on St Mary's in the Isles of Scilly has been damaged by storms this morning.
The islands have been hit with gusts of more than 60mph (96km/h)
Pieces of masonry and wood have fallen on to the pavement and road from the historic 19th Century building.
In a post on Facebook, external, St Mary's Post Office said: "Due to face of building damage and falling debris the front door to the Post Office is closed until further notice."
There is a side entrance that remains accessible.
Image source, Lindsay RodgerSarah Gosling
BBC News Online
Cornwall Council has revealed that for delays in completing works on the major A30 dualling at Temple, Kier, the contractors, will be fined up to £400,000.
Works costing £60m to create dual carriageways on the main road route through Cornwall were originally meant to have been completed last summer.
The road is currently reduced to a single carriageway in both directions while contractors Kier carry out works, which when announced in January were intended to be finished by 16 March.
Now though, it has been revealed they will continue until 22 March.
Geoff Brown, Cornwall Council Cabinet member for transport, told a meeting yesterday that he was not happy with the continued delays.
He said: "I have asked them to explain why these delays continue to happen. He assured me that it will be done by 22 March."
He added that it was "not good enough" and revealed that the fine for Kier was "approaching now £400,000".
Council leader Adam Paynter previously said any money paid through the fines would be put back into the council's highways budget.
When the road was previously a single carriageway the delays it caused to traffic were estimated to cost the economy £235m a year.
Sarah Gosling
BBC News Online
A businessman who grew £200,000 worth of cannabis in a secret underground bunker in Devon has been told to repay just £32,600 under the Proceeds of Crime Act.
Steven Loveridge, 41, from Torquay built high walls around the site at Shaldon and employed a friend with a guard dog to keep people away.
About 275 tonnes (275,000kg) of concrete was used to build the underground bunker, which was invisible from ground level and only accessible through a secret staircase inside a buried shipping container.
Loveridge was jailed for six years at Exeter Crown Court in 2016 after admitting conspiracy to supply cannabis.
He was brought back to the same court under the Proceeds of Crime Act. The court heard, Loveridge's remaining assets amounted to just £33,600.
Loveridge has been ordered to repay the money within three months or spend an extra year in jail.
