Exeter flanker Dave Ewers tells BBC Sport how grateful he is to be playing again after recovering from his latest injury.

One cat was shot five times with an air rifle, causing it to lose its eye.

The photo appearing to show a group of students sporting offensive slogans was widely shared.

Johnny O'Shea
BBC News Online

Two drivers died after a head-on crash following a sharp hail storm in north Cornwall, an inquest has heard.

Gemma Sleeman, 34, and Aaron Hunt, 30 died as a result of the accident on the B3266 at Advent near Camelford in January.

The inquest heard Mrs Sleeman was driving over the 50mph limit and at a speed "inappropriate for the conditions".

Police evidence stated her silver Skoda Fabia was doing 62mph when it crossed into the incoming lane of traffic.

She was travelling towards Camelford from Bodmin when she collided with Mr Hunt's blue Citroen Picasso, which was travelling the other way at about 40mph.

Image source, Devon and Cornwall Police

Aaron Tindall, a witness, said she had overtaken him just seconds before the crash prompting him to think "what an idiot".

Seconds later he discovered the two cars in the road. He described the conditions as "very wet and sleety".

Mrs Sleeman from Bodmin died at the scene on 19 January. Mr Hunt, from Camelford died at Derriford Hospital on 24 January.

Evidence from MPC Mike Lackey, forensic collisions investigator with Devon and Cornwall Police explained how the speedometer had frozen at 62mph when the power on the Skoda was cut.

He said: "There is a 50mph speed limit but more importantly the speed was inappropriate for the weather conditions."

The coroner, Barry van den Berg, concluded both died as a result of a road traffic collision.

BBC Weather

Mild on Wednesday night with cloud cover staying quite extensive. There will be a risk of mist and hill fog and perhaps a few spots of drizzle.

Gentle to moderate south-westerly winds.

Minimum Temperature: 10 to 13C (50 to 55F).

A grey start to Thursday once again but into the afternoon there is the chance of some bright or sunny spells developing.

Gentle to moderate south-westerly winds.

Maximum Temperature: 14 to 17C (57 to 63F).

Chris Quevatre
BBC News Online

A seal that had a "plastic noose" around its neck for four months has finally been freed.

The male grey seal "Lucky Star" was spotted on 17 May with a green fishing net tangled around its neck.

British Divers Marine Life Rescue and and the Cornish Seal Sanctuary were alerted, but the seal proved difficult to rescue, and kept evading volunteers.

Image source, Cornwall Seal Group

Cornwall Seal Group Rescue Team volunteer Kate Hockley spotted Lucky Star on Monday, and a rescue was mounted, involving three of the team abseiling down a cliff face.

British Divers Marine Life Rescue said: "The operation came close to failure just as it began, as Lucky Star did spook and moved halfway down the beach towards the escape of the sea."

"After many tense minutes as the rescuers remained frozen to the spot and the collective breath of everyone watching from the clifftop was held, Lucky Star settled down and the team were able to continue creeping down the cliff."

Image source, Cornwall Seal Group

After a "snarly and scrappy struggle", Lucky Star was pinned down, and the fishing ropes were cut away from around his neck.

Underneath the net, a "raw, deep wound" was revealed across the back of his neck that would have caused him "a great deal of pain" every time he moved.

The wound was cleaned, and Lucky Star was released back into the sea.

A drunk man who had been driving at 120mph killed a grandmother while on a stag do.

Lisa Hay
BBC News Online

More than 400 knives have been handed in and destroyed in a four-day blade amnesty by Devon and Cornwall Police.

Among the haul of samurai-style swords, hunting knives and cleavers was a lock knife brought in by a mother who had found it in her son's bedroom.

Image source, Devon and Cornwall Police

Supt Matt Lawler said 404 blades were handed in from 18-21 September as part of a national knife crime reduction initiative, Operation Sceptre. The blades are placed in metal drums and destroyed by the force waste contractor, Mitie.

Image source, Devon and Cornwall Police

Outside of amnesty periods, police say unwanted knives such as domestic kitchen blades can be disposed of in household waste as long as they are packaged securely to avoid handling injuries. Or they can be deposited in the metal recycling skip at local reclamation facilities.

Johnny O'Shea
BBC News Online

Image source, Handout

A grandmother on holiday was killed in a multiple car crash when the driver of a high performance gold Jaguar lost control of his vehicle while over the drink-drive limit and on a stag party in north Cornwall.

Faye Rowe (pictured), 70, from Kent, who was in another car, and Daniel Chaffe, 30, from Helstone in Cornwall, the driver of the Jaguar, both died after a head-on collision near Camelford on 23 September 2017.

Mr Chaffe had been doing speeds of up to 120mph on the A39 shortly before the crash, an inquest heard.

Toxicology reports also found cannabis in his system.

At the hearing at Truro Magistrates' Court, the coroner recorded a conclusion of gross negligence manslaughter in relation to Mrs Rowe.

The conclusion for Mr Chaffe was one of accidental death.

BBC Radio Devon

Native hornets are mistakenly being destroyed by people worried about the advance of the bee-killing Asian hornet, according to Devon Wildlife Trust.

The charity says it has heard from people who have destroyed nests because of fears about the spread of the invasive species.

There have been confirmed reports of Asian hornet nests in North Devon and in Cornwall.

Asian hornets are devastating to honey bees as they raid and destroy colonies but Devon Wildlife Trust says European hornets are "a beautiful and vital part of our environment".

Image source, Devon Wildlife Trust

The charity says it is not always easy to tell the difference between an Asian hornet and its European counterpart so advises anyone who thinks they have found a nest to photograph it and report the find.

The closure news, on signs in the store's window, is expected to "shock some in Exeter".

Councillors describe the proposed merger of Dorset Police with Devon and Cornwall as "absurd".

Neil Gallacher, Business & Industry Correspondent
BBC Spotlight

Exeter's branch of House of Fraser is to close, signs in its windows say, announcing it is to shut in January 2019 and a closing down sale.

The news will shock some in Exeter.

At the start of the summer, it was reported that the Exeter store would not close, while the larger Plymouth store would. This stance seemed to reflect Exeter's wealthier retail catchment.

Then Mike Ashley of Sports Direct took over. The landlords in Plymouth - the city council and British Land - agreed a 12-month rent deal to keep the Plymouth store open.

Curiously, in Exeter, House of Fraser owns most of its building, so whatever the pressures, it is not a simple case of the rent being too high.

Exeter's store was once the pinnacle of retail in the city. When Exeter's Princesshay shopping complex opened 11 years ago, House of Fraser was given a makeover to try to keep it competitive.

Previously known as Colsons in the 1800s, the store has remained in the same location in the High Street despite several rebuildings and rebrandings, including Devon department store brand Dingles.

It was also the first store in the city to have an escalator.

The writing had been on the wall for days, but it's it’s still a shock to think of no Dingles here. Or Colsons before that.

Neil Gallacher, Business & Industry Correspondent
BBC Spotlight

Exeter's branch of House of Fraser is to close, signs posted in the store's windows say.

It comes after nearly a week of speculation, with the signs saying that the closure will happen in January.

It is understood staff were told on Friday but managers refused to comment on those reports.

Back in the summer it was thought that the Exeter store might stay open, while the Plymouth store would shut.

The chain's Plymouth branch had been earmarked for closure when it went into administration. It was later saved after the company was bought by Sport Direct.

But now the opposite appears to be the case, as new owner Mike Ashley of Sports Direct tries to turn the chain around.

Andrew Segal
BBC South West

Image source, Living Coasts

An ill penguin chick has been nursed back to health in Torquay by zookeepers feeding it fish soup.

The chick hatched at Living Coasts coastal zoo early last month but it looked sick and had a poor appetite, staff said.

Hand-rearing it has involved syringe-feeding the African penguin herring soup every three hours.

The little bird has now moved on to solids.

Curator Clare Rugg said: "It was sickly, so we decided to hand-rear.

"We don’t know at this stage what caused the illness, but it seems to have recovered thanks to the hard work of the keeping team."

Brent Pilnick
BBC Sport

The EFL has apologised after supporters watching the match online saw footage of medical help being given to a man taken ill during Exeter City's win over Stevenage on Tuesday night.

The man suffered a cardiac arrest 15 minutes into the match. The game was stopped while he was given treatment.

“Following a medical incident at last night’s League Two match between Exeter City and Stevenage having been caught on camera and broadcast, the EFL would like to apologise for any distress caused and offer our best wishes to the individual concerned," a statement read.

"All camera operators will be reminded of their responsibilities in such circumstances.”

Exeter City manager Matt Taylor says he and everyone at the club hopes the man makes a speedy recovery.

"Our thoughts and prayers go out to the man who was taken ill," Taylor told BBC Radio Devon.

"If you're going to be ill with a serious heart attack then a football ground's not a bad place to be taken ill.

"I know it sounds a strange thing to say, but there's medical people on hand straight away to treat you, so there's the best possible care."

Andrew Segal
BBC South West

A car driver has died two days after being involved in a road crash in Cornwall, police say.

Thirty-two-year-old Ross Chambers, from Falmouth, was injured when his Mazda car and a lorry crashed on the A393 near Comford, at Lanner, at about 14:40 on Friday, 28 September.

He died in hospital in Plymouth on Sunday, officers said, external.

Devon and Cornwall Police said: "His next of kin are aware and are being supported by family liaison officers."

The driver of the lorry was unharmed.

Plymouth Live

It has taken Beth Horton seven years to start getting her 'spark' back after suffering a stroke out of the blue when she was only two-and-a-half years old, external.

Richard Whitehouse
Local Democracy Reporting Service

Police trying to encourage people to support a merger of Devon and Cornwall Police with Dorset Police carried out less consultation in Cornwall than they did in the other two counties.

Documents that will go before the Devon and Cornwall Police and Crime Panel this week show that the police attended 37 public events and meetings in Devon between June and September, 22 in Dorset but just nine in Cornwall.

The figures have been released following widespread criticism in Cornwall over the lack of consultation over the proposed merger and the lack of detail which has been provided about the plans.

The documents also detail the results of a survey, which show a stark difference between how people in Cornwall responded compared to those in Devon and Dorset.

The online survey was completed by 2,080 people in Cornwall and many fewer agreed or strongly agreed with the statement: "As the police forces already work closely together, a merger seems like the next logical step."

Across the counties it was:

• Dorset - 48%
• Devon - 36%
• Cornwall 16%

Going ahead with the merger will depend on whether the forces' chief constables and commissioners decide to submit a business case to the Home Office for consideration.

However, last week that decision was delayed after the Devon and Cornwall Police crime commissioner said she was unlikely to support the merger.

Plymouth Argyle boss Derek Adams is confident his team's fortunes will change after "best performance" at Barnsley in League One.