Local Democracy Reporting Service

A permanent coronavirus testing centre for the winter is to be built in Harrogate.

Image source, Google

The testing site at the Dragon Road car park is being built in response to the recent rise in virus infections.

A mobile testing facility has been operating from the car park but the site is being upgraded as testing efforts are ramped up.

Richard Webb, director of adult social care at North Yorkshire County Council, said the county had retained good testing capacity and that it will lobby the government for more.

He told the briefing: “We have been fortunate to retain our testing capacity when other parts of Yorkshire have seen it stretched.”

Construction of the site will begin on 15 October. The testing facility is expected to open a week later.

Rail passengers are being warned of delays of up to 30 minutes on trains between Sheffield and Manchester as a result of flooding.

Train operator Northern says heavy rain has flooded the tracks near Edale.

BBC Weather

Rain this morning should clear to allow a few sunny spells and occasional showers in the afternoon.

This evening cloud will increase ahead of a cold front with showers, possibly heavy, developing overnight:

More than 500 staff and students at the University of Leeds have tested positive for Covid-19. d NHS.

Image source, Google

Three staff members make up the 558 people who have contracted the virus since the start of term on 28 September.

The latest figures show that more than half of the cases have been reported since the beginning of October.

Vice-Chancellor Professor Simone Buitendijk said the university was working with the city council and NHS

The University of Leeds says it is reviewing the cases to see if it needs to take additional measures.

BBC Sport

Two venues will be used for the UK Snooker Championship this year to comply with government Covid-19 social distancing guidelines.

Image source, PA Media

The qualifiers and first round will be staged at the Marshall Arena in Milton Keynes next month with the second round onwards at the York Barbican as usual.

It is not known yet whether spectators will be allowed to attend.

The arrangements were outlined as the World Snooker Tour (WST) announced its schedule for the season.

Snooker competitions have been held behind closed doors in recent months at the Milton Keynes venue, which is equipped to deal with the larger number of players in early-round matches.

The UK Championship first round will take place there from 23 to 26 November, with the second round onwards in York from 28 November to 6 December.

WST chairman Barry Hearn, who has been in isolation with coronavirus, said: "In these difficult times we are working relentlessly to keep our tour going.

"We will continue to explore all avenues in terms of staging events and providing access for live fans, while keeping health and safety as our top priority."

A man has died in a fire at a house in Doncaster.

Image source, South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue

Firefighters were called to Leamington Gardens, in the Intake area, at about 01:00 this morning.

South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue said the body of the man was found inside the "completely smoke logged" property.

A fire service spokesperson said a joint police and fire investigation into the cause has begun but it is not thought to be suspicious.

A man who ran 100 miles in one day has raised more than £2,200 for charity.

Image source, David Shaw

Gavin Pittman set out to run 100 miles running back and forth between the Standedge Tunnel in Marsden and Huddersfield New College, clocking up the miles in just over 22 hours.

His aim was to raise £850 for the Holme Valley Mountain Rescue Team.

He's since raised more than £2,200 in donations.

Gavin, who runs for Marsden Racers, set off at 05:00 and was joined by a number of fellow club runners along the way.

The cases were recorded at Catterick Garrison in recent weeks, according to a public health director.

Up to 25 cases of Covid-19 have been identified at the largest British Army garrison, a public health official says.

Image source, PA Media

Dr Lincoln Sargeant, director of public health for North Yorkshire, told the BBC Catterick Garrison has recorded the coronavirus cases in recent weeks.

The figures have been passed on to North Yorkshire County Council.

An Army spokesperson said: "We can confirm that a number of service personnel at Catterick Garrison are currently self-isolating following a small number of personnel testing positive for Covid-19.

"The health and wellbeing of our personnel remains a priority and, in line with government guidance, we are taking appropriate measures to support individuals affected."

Look skywards tonight and you could be rewarded with a shooting star spectacle.

Image source, Getty Images

The Draconid meteor shower is set to reach its peak on Wednesday evening.

It's estimated that around five shooting stars should be visible overhead every hour; the event will be visible in UK skies.

Meteor showers are usually associated with comets; as these balls of ice and dust orbit the Sun, it releases clouds of dust and ice.

Meteor showers, or shooting stars, can be seen when the Earth passes through streams of tiny debris, causing streaks of light.

The Draconids are expected to be most spectacular on 6/7 and 7/8 October.

While most other meteor showers are best seen in the early hours, the Draconids are best seen in the evening, after nightfall.

Staff help entertain and relax children who have gone in to hospital for surgery.

A team at Leeds Children's Hospital has been recognised for its work helping to calm children before and after major operations.

The play team at Leeds run activities for young patients to help them understand why they're in hospital while one-to-one painting sessions can help distract and entertain them.

Now the team has been named Health Play Specialist of the Year 2020 by the Starlight Children's Foundation in recognition of its work throughout the pandemic:

The footage shows Stephen Dunford firing from a car into a group in Arbourthorne in January 2020.

CCTV of Sheffield drive-by shooting (Jan 2020)

The interior of one of the towers along York's historical walls is to be exposed for the first time in 200 years as part of repairs.

Tower Two, near Baile Hill Terrace, has deteriorated over the past five years and needs to be stabilised, City of York Council said.

The damage was caused by infilling during the 18th or 19th Centuries.

The walls, described by the council as "the most complete and finest in England", will remain open.

A temporary walkway will be set up allowing a view of the works in progress.

Ian Milsted, of York Archaeological Trust, said; "It will be a surprise to many people that the walls were never designed to have this kind of walkway or that sections of the walls were filled in to create the path.

"The contents of the tower, a rubble infill, are pushing the tower causing it to bulge and crack.

"This will be the first time in 200 years that the inside of this tower will be exposed, and with the infill removed, more of the historic tower will be visible for generations to come."

The work is expected to last at least four months.

A mother and her partner are accused of murdering Keigan O'Brien, two, at their Doncaster home.

A man's been charged with attempted murder after a man was stabbed in Bradford.

Image source, Google

Police were called to the incident in Harris Street on Monday.

A spokesperson for West Yorkshire Police said: "Officers were called to reports of a 34-year-old man found with injuries consistent of stab wounds to be chest and legs.

"He remains in hospital being treated for his injuries."

A 27-year-old man was arrested at the scene and has been charged with attempted murder.

He's due to appear at Bradford Magistrates' Court today.

PA Media

The extension of HS2 to Leeds "will probably not now go ahead", Labour former transport secretary Lord Adonis has claimed.

Image source, HS2

He made the comment after the Government deferred decisions on the design of that section of the high-speed railway until after publication of an Integrated Rail Plan for the North and the Midlands.

Lord Adonis warned that this means ministers are "delaying indefinitely" the building of HS2 between Birmingham and Leeds.

He wrote on Twitter, external: "The Government is only now going ahead with the Manchester leg of HS2 and is delaying indefinitely the eastern leg to Leeds, Sheffield, Nottingham and Derby.

"By deferring decisions on (the) eastern leg of HS2 while confirming (the) Manchester leg, the Leeds leg will probably not now go ahead. Phase 2b will probably become just Manchester."

Image source, PA Media

Rail minister Andrew Stephenson said the Government was "considering the best approach to get the most benefit for Leeds, the North East, and the East Midlands".

It was also "prioritising development of the western leg into Manchester", he added.

Five people have been arrested after shots were fired at a house in Rotherham.

Image source, Google

The property on on Winterwell Road in West Melton was reportedly shot at last night at about 23:00.

The shots caused damage to a window and the inside of the house but no-one was injured, according to South Yorkshire Police.

Four men, aged 41, 30, 48, and 40, and a 17-year-old boy have all been arrested in connection with the incident.

The South Yorkshire force says an increased number of officers are in the area today as an investigation into the incident takes place.