Members of a Lincolnshire support group set up to help people who've contracted sepsis say they welcome the introduction of a new test to speed up diagnosis.

Image source, University of Strathclyde

Sepsis happens when the body overreacts to an infection and it's believed to kill more than 50,000 people in the UK every year.

But researchers at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow have announced they've come up with a new rapid test for diagnosing sepsis which they believe could save thousands of lives.

Phil Crow set up the Lincolnshire Sepsis Support Group after contracting the infection during a routine operation. He then spent eight weeks in intensive care and several weeks on the ward.

Mr Crow says the new test could be great news:

Pictures are appearing on social media of the burst water main in Horncastle.

Many people have been left with very low water pressure or no water at all.

And it seems water is bubbling up in the road...

Engineers expect to have the problem fixed by about 16:00, external.

A water main has burst in Horncastle leaving some people with very low water pressure or no water at all.

Image source, Anglian Water

Anglian Water said engineers are working on the issue and hope to fix the problem by the late afternoon.

The company has apologised for any inconvenience.

A Lincolnshire council has decided to reduce the amount of council tax it originally intended to ask tax payers for.

Image source, Google Street View

Louth Town Council had originally agreed to raise it by almost 30%, but they've now decided to raise it by around 17% instead.

The cost for a Band D property will now be £63.79, which is an annual increase of £9.21 and equates to a weekly increase of just under 18p, compared to last year.

George Horton, the town's mayor, says they've taken the decision, in part, because the police and other councils have hiked their share and they don't want to put too much strain on residents.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

An additional spend of £85,950 on the 2018 Lincoln Christmas Market was partly down to its success, requiring extra cleaning and waste collection, say organisers.

Image source, Steve Smailes

The City of Lincoln Council says it required extra cleaning, waste collection and security due to the extra visitors.

The authority estimates more than 239,000 people visited this years market, that's 39,000 more than last year's figures.

Although the full cost figures are not yet available for 2018, in 2017 the market lost almost £54,000.

Union leaders say hospital staff across Lincolnshire have been racking up large fines since the introduction of a new parking system in the county.

Image source, Google Street View

Number plate recognition technology was brought in at Lincoln, Boston and Grantham hospitals late last year, but a series of "teething problems" have left nurses, doctors and other workers with fines.

Some staff have been fined several times a week.

This is usually because they've finished shifts late or the system hasn't recognised their staff status.

A petition has been launched calling for charges for staff to be scrapped.

The United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust says it is aware of staff being fined and says it is advising those who think they are being treated unfairly to go through an appeal process.

The trust also says staff need to ensure their car is registered properly with the system and that they park correctly.

You can see more than just fish at Skegness Aquarium, external today as mermaids are going to swimming in the tanks as well.

It's part of three live underwater shows taking place today and Thursday.

Doors open at 10:00 each day

RAF Tornado fighter jets are due to fly over Yorkshire and Lincolnshire this afternoon as part of a farewell tour.

Image source, PA

The aircraft are being retired after returning to RAF Marham in Norfolk earlier this month.

They will fly over eight RAF stations including Cranwell, Waddington and Leeming.

BBC Weather

A sunny but rather chilly start this morning, with the odd early mist and fog patch.

Staying dry throughout, but the sunshine will turn hazier as cloud gradually builds from the west later on.

Cloud and any rain quickly clearing east at first.

A few isolated showers will then threaten from the west again for a time.

However, skies will eventually become clear, with a chilly feel developing:

Tributes have been paid to an 18-year-old from Lincolnshire who died following an accident in Market Rasen.

Image source, Lincolnshire Police

Jack Varah, from Misterton, was killed when the Ford Fiesta he was driving collided with a Land Rover on the A46 Caistor Road on Monday 11 February.

A 19-year-old woman also died in the collision.

Three other passengers in the Ford Fiesta were seriously injured.

In a statement, his family said how much Jack would be missed and described him as a "joker who made people smile".

Two men have appeared at Lincoln Crown Court charged with the murder of a 41-year old man in Boston.

Image source, Lincolnshire Police

Przemyslaw Cierniak, 41, was found with stab wounds in Wormgate just before 12:30 on Thursday 10 January. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Mariusz Skiba, 32, of Chapel Street in Boston, and 33-year-old Dariusz Koczkowski, of Woodville Road in Boston, appeared in court charged with murder and possession of a bladed article in a public place.

They both pleaded not guilty to the charges and have been remanded in custody until the trial, which is due to start on Monday 10 June.

Lincolnshire County Council says it hasn't resorted to positive discrimination to drop its gender pay gap.

Image source, Calvin Robinson

Over the past year, the authority's reduced the difference between what they pay men and what they pay women overall by 11% down to 2.1%.

In 2017, the authority was the fourth worst council in the country in terms of that difference.

Debbie Barnes, head of paid service at the county council, said: "Because we have a higher proportion of women in our workforce, this work is particularly seeing more women moving into higher paid roles."

Lincoln Labour MP Karen Lee has tweeted to say it's "sad that colleagues have chosen to leave the Labour movement".

Her comments come after seven MPs resigned from the Labour Party in protest at Jeremy Corbyn's approach to Brexit and anti-semitism:

Mr Corbyn said he was "disappointed" the MPs had felt unable to continue working for the policies which "inspired millions" at the 2017 election.

Police are appealing for witnesses to a crash in Horncastle which left a pedestrian with serious injuries.

It happened at about 16:30 last Thursday afternoon on Boston Road, near the Gulf petrol station.

The crash involved involved a VW Passat and a pedestrian.

Hundreds of Anglo-Saxon artefacts which were discovered near Grimsby are expected to fetch more than £50,000 at auction.

The items, which were found when a cemetery was excavated at Welbeck Hill in the 1960s, include jewellery, scissors, and pottery.

They'll be on show at a private viewing at an auction house in Derbyshire this evening before going under the hammer.

Five heritage projects in South Kesteven have been awarded new cash as part of a new funding programme.

Image source, Google

A total of £9,200 has been awarded to community groups as part of Heritage Alive, which is run by InvestSK.

The money has been given to Grantham Civic Society, The Christchurch Community Project, The Lincolnshire River Trust, The Lincolnshire Vintage Society Society and Stamford Community Orchard Group.

It will be used for a variety of work including a public archaeology project in St Peter's Hill, a geocache trail and funding for seven vintage buses.

Answering 999 calls can be an incredibly busy and pressured job.

But, sometimes, it can be quite frustrating too:

The top stories so far today in Lincolnshire include:

• Motorcyclist dies after crashing into tree in Sutterton
• Investigation over 'no MOT' council vehicle in Boston
• Fire crews tackle derelict building fire in Skegness.

Przemyslaw Cierniak was found with fatal stab wounds on Wormgate in Boston.