BBC Local Live: Herefordshire & Worcestershire on Friday 24 February 2017

Summary

Storm Doris clear-up - 250 trees brought down
Rise in the number calling child sex images helpline
Woman kept from Egyptian husband by income rules
History of wartime munitions factory documented
Updates on Friday 24 February 2017

Live Reporting

Stephanie Barnard

Travel: Worcester ring-road to close overnightpublished at 17:14 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2017
Jerry Chester
BBC News Online
Worcester's southern link road, external will be closed overnight for more than two weeks starting tonight from 21:00.
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Attempted murder trial openspublished at 16:52 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2017
James Pearson
Journalist, BBC Hereford & Worcester
The trial has begun of a Hereford man charged with attempted murder.
43-year-old Mark Ruck, from Escley Drive in Redhill, faces five charges at Worcester Crown Court, including attempting to kill Michael Ruck in September 2015.
He is also facing two charges of wounding with intent, a charge of possessing a bladed weapon, and a charge of unlawful wounding.
"I feel like a prisoner" says disabled Bromsgrove pensioner after heartless criminals steal his mobility scooterpublished at 16:30 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2017
Bromsgrove Advertiser
A disabled pensioner who had his mobility scooter stolen by heartless criminals says he has been left to feel “like a prisoner, external” in his own home.
Worcestershire Parkway 'a step closer'published at 16:10 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2017
James Pearson
Journalist, BBC Hereford & Worcester
A specialist rail contractor has been appointed to build Worcestershire Parkway railway station at Norton.
Buckingham Group Contracting has been awarded the design and build contract, with site preparation and final design work due to start within a few weeks.
Image source, Worcestershire County Council
Once open, Worcestershire Parkway will enable passengers to use the county’s North Cotswold rail link from Worcester to Oxford and London Paddington, as well as to catch regular long-distance cross country services to Manchester, Nottingham, Bristol and Cardiff.
Quote Message
For the county to thrive, we need to invest heavily in its infrastructure. Improving transport links across the county is crucial to delivering our vision of creating a ‘World-Class Worcestershire’ by 2025 and Worcestershire Parkway is fundamental to this vision, along with the dualling of the southern link road and development of Worcester Six business park."
Ken Pollock, Worcestershire County Councillor
First ever 'Beatles' track handed over in Worcesterpublished at 15:47 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2017
Sir Paul McCartney came to a bank in Worcester in the 1980s to buy back the first-ever recording made by himself, John Lennon and George Harrison.
The track "In Spite of All Danger" was recorded in 1958 by the Quarrymen , external- a group founded by John Lennon with some school friends two years earlier.
The Quarrymen's pianist, John Lowe, held on to the recording for more than two decades, but was approached by Sir Paul when the Beatles star learned it still existed and that John was putting it up for auction.
Image source, Getty Images
Quote Message
The idea was that we'd keep it each of us for a week. So I had it for a week, John had it for a week, George had it for a week and Duff had it for 23 years."
Sir Paul McCartney
France honours D-Day veteranpublished at 15:23 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2017
Claudia Berry
Producer, BBC Hereford & Worcester
A Worcestershire veteran of the D-Day landings has been recognised for his service to the people of France by being awarded the country’s highest honour.
Tom Bridgewater, from Kempsey, was presented with the Legion d’honneur at a ceremony at Worcester's Guildhall, for his role in helping to liberate France during World War Two.
The 93-year-old was a member of the Royal Army Ordnance Corps when he landed on Sword Beach on 6 June 1944.
Image source, Malvern Hills District Council
Quote Message
I feel absolutely overwhelmed - it is a great honour. I’m only sorry my wife isn’t here with me.”
Tom Bridgewater, D-Day landings survivor
The Légion d'honneur was established on 19 May, 1802 by Napoleon Bonaparte.
In 2014 French President, Francois Hollande, pledged to bestow all surviving British veterans with the award during his speech to commemorate the 70th anniversary of D-Day.
Bromsgrove Sporting: 'Nice to avoid South Shields'published at 15:01 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2017
Bromsgrove Sporting's chairman, Mike Burke, says it's "like a dream" to be heading to Cleethorpes Town for the first leg of the semi-final of the FA Vase.
The club secured their place in the semis with a dramatic 2-0 home win over Buckland at the Victoria Ground yesterday.
The tie for a place in the Wembley final will be played over two legs on 11 and 18 March.
Image source, Getty Images
Quote Message
Sort of exciting. Yesterday we were saying we didn't care who we drew after how we played the second half yesterday, but it's nice to avoid South Shields. To get to this stage anyway, as a lot of fans have said, it's quite like a dream, but all four clubs have got here because they deserve to."
Mike Burke, Club chairman
Rugby: Dowson ends playing career and begins coachingpublished at 14:41 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2017
Phil Dowson will retire from rugby at the end of the season to begin a coaching role with former club Northampton Saints, Warriors have confirmed.
Image source, Getty Images
Dowson has made 35 appearances for Warriors since he joined the club in in 2015.
Your pictures: Worcester Cathedral at sunsetpublished at 14:19 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2017
This stunning picture comes from Dave Bright, of Bright Skies Video.
We'd love to feature your images - you can email, tweet using @bbchw, external or use our Facebook page, external.
Image source, Dave Bright
Pub-goer assaulted with a glasspublished at 13:56 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2017
A drinker has suffered facial injuries after being assaulted with a glass , externalat a pub in Kidderminster, police say.
The woman was involved in an argument at the pub in Oxford Street shortly after 22:00 on 11 February before she was assaulted.
The police are asking a woman caught on CCTV footage to come forward to help in their investigation.
Image source, West Mercia Police
Villagers 'terrorised' by HGV'spublished at 13:35 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2017
People living in the Herefordshire village of Callow say they're terrified somebody will be killed as more and more vehicles use their lanes as a "rat run".
They've recorded more than 1,500 vehicles travelling through each day, including many HGV's, and say they're now too scared to walk, cycle or ride horses through their lanes.
The police have been called out twice in the past month and there has been four accidents in the last fortnight.
Quote Message
Last Friday night at about five o'clock apparently, a white transit van coming from the Belmont direction, so on the left-hand side of the road, actually, for some unknown reason, has veered across and hit the wall on the right-hand side. He was jolly lucky, bearing in mind the time, that no one was coming in the opposite direction."
Liz Langford (pictured), villager
Villagers are calling for traffic calming measures.
Ambulance service hires paramedics to work in hazardous environmentspublished at 13:14 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2017
Redditch Advertiser
The ambulance service has hired a crop of specially trained paramedics to work in hazardous conditions, external.
Nurse helps save man who survives 27 heart attacks in 24 hourspublished at 12:54 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2017
A nurse who's credited with saving the life of a man playing walking football in Kidderminster, says the player survived, despite having a further 26 heart attacks over the following 24 hours.
Brad Wright was watching the game when he saw Ray Woodall collapse on the pitch.
He called an ambulance which took Mr Woodall to the Worcestershire Royal Hospital, where he eventually pulled through.
Quote Message
It's amazing, I'm just really pleased Ray's OK. Since it happened I've been trying to find out whether we'd heard anything because I obviously knew something was wrong and sometimes we don't hear what happens to our patients. So it's a good news story that he's OK."
Brad Wright, Nurse
Football: Sporting draw Cleethorpes Townpublished at 12:09 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2017
Trevor Owens
Sports Editor, BBC Hereford & Worcester
Bromsgrove Sporting FC will be going north for their FA Vase semi-final, having been drawn against Cleethorpes Town.
The tie will be played over two legs on 11 and 18 March.
Sporting got through to the semi-finals after a dramatic 2-0 home win over Buckland at the Victoria Ground yesterday.
National title for young Droitwich boxerpublished at 11:55 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2017
A teenage boxer from Worcestershire has been crowned ABA youth national champion and now has her sights firmly set on representing her country.
Sian O'Toole, who's 17 and trains at the Droitwich Amateur Boxing Academy, came through a trio of three-round contests in Rotherham to lift the title.
She's now been invited to Team GB's headquarters in Sheffield to take part in a selection camp for the next European Championships.
Image source, Jayson Doyle
Quote Message
Sian has worked so hard for this and gone from being a complete novice to now being ranked England's number one elite youth female in four years - we're over the moon for her."
Jasyon Doyle, Coach
Former mayor charged over child pornographypublished at 11:33 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2017
Alistair Binney
Reporter, BBC Hereford & Worcester
A Malvern councillor has appeared before magistrates in Worcester on child pornography charges.
Julian Roskams, 53, of Worcester Road, Malvern, has been charged with six counts of making an indecent photograph/ pseudo-photograph of a child and one count of possessing an extreme pornographic image.
Mr Roskams, who is a Green councillor on Malvern Town Council , externaland Malvern Hills District Council, was the mayor for Malvern from 2013 to 2014.
Mr Roskams is due to appear at Worcester Crown Court on 20 March.
Your photos: Magnificent skies over Herefordshirepublished at 11:09 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2017
BBC Weather Watchers
It's a mixture of sunshine and cloud over Ross-on-Wye this morning - thanks to BBC Weather Watcher Terry Gorsley, who took this picture.
Image source, Terry Gorsley
Worcester bank the venue for historic 'Beatles handover'published at 10:33 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2017
A former band-mate of some of the original members of the Beatles has revealed that a meeting in Worcester helped preserve their first ever recording.
The track "In Spite of All Danger" was recorded in 1958 by the Quarrymen, whose members included John Lennon, George Harrison and Paul McCartney.
John Lowe, the Quarrymen's pianist, says he had the record for years before meeting with Paul McCartney in the 1980's at a bank in Worcester to hand it over to him.
Quote Message
So Barclays, bless them, gave me this private room. The three of us went in there, they brought the briefcase into the room, I presented the record to them."
John Lowe, Quarrymen's pianist
Should 2,150-home 'super village' for west Worcester be watered down?published at 10:13 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2017
Worcester News
A daring bid to water down a 2,150-home "super village, external" in west Worcester can today be revealed - amid serious concern it will worsen congestion, damage businesses and force school closures.
Female explorers in training for South Pole trekpublished at 09:49 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2017
A team of British soldiers, including two from Herefordshire and Worcestershire, are part of a team preparing to become the first all-female group to walk across Antarctica.
Major Sandy Hennis, from Redditch, and Lieutenant Rosanna Baker, from Hereford, will join Exercise Ice Maiden, which will test whether women soldiers can endure the same extremes as men.
Media caption,
How female explorers face challenges of south pole trek
Training for 80-day South Pole trek in September is currently taking place in Norway.
Among the many challenges is coping with extreme cold when you need a loo break.