About 220 patients are currently being treated in NHS hospitals in Lincolnshire after testing positive for coronavirus - up from 95 this time last week, it's been confirmed.

Image source, Google

Since the start of the month, 46 patients have died after testing positive for coronavirus at hospitals run by United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust (ULHT).

That's 20% of the total number of Covid-19 deaths at the ULHT sites in Lincoln, Boston (pictured) and Grantham since the start of the pandemic, the trust says.

Andrew Morgan, ULHT chief executive, says staff are feeling the pressure and the situation is far from over.

Six people have been arrested in Market Deeping on suspicion of harecoursing and driving offences, police say.

Officers say they received several reports of harecoursing yesterday morning, largely in the east of Lincolnshire.

Two vehicles containing people suspected to be involved were later identified in Baston.

Police pursued these vehicles and the pursuit ended just after noon in Northfields Road, Market Deeping, when one of the vehicles collided with another car.

No police vehicle was involved in the collision.

Five of the six occupants of the vehicle were detained at the scene. Another who left was detained shortly afterwards, police say.

Five males aged 14, 27, 32, 38 and 40 , and a woman aged 36, were arrested on suspicion of harecoursing offences, failure to stop, and dangerous driving, according to Lincolnshire Police.

Officers are appealing for information, or anyone who saw a Mercedes ML500 in the area, to get in touch.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

The councillor in charge of transport in Lincolnshire says hear fears the county will “be left behind” by the government’s plan to ban sales of new petrol and diesel cars in the UK from 2030.

Image source, Google

Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced a “green industrial revolution” on Tuesday in a bid to combat climate change and create 250,000 jobs in green energy industries.

Announcing his plan, the prime minister said his 10-point plan "will create, support and protect hundreds of thousands of green jobs, whilst making strides towards net zero by 2050".

However, Conservative county councillor Richard Davies has said: "We are a long way from ready here in Lincolnshire."

Mr Davies says he agrees there is a need to develop sustainable and environmentally friendly modes of transport, but argues that “outside major cities, the infrastructure doesn’t exist”.

"The real risk for rural areas, like Lincolnshire, is that we’ll be left behind," he warns.

A walk-through coronavirus testing site has opened in Newark.

It's at Castle House car park and is open from 08:00 until 20:00 each day.

It's another option for people living on or near the Lincolnshire border who need to get a test.

People are being reminded they must have an appointment to use the facility, though.

Ben John, 20, appeared in court on Wednesday charged with offences under the Terrorism Act.

Part of Lincolnshire now has one of the highest coronavirus infection rates in the country, latest figures show.

Image source, Reuters/Molly Darlington

East Lindsey is up to fourth in England, with over 550 cases of Covid-19 per 100,000 people.

The England average is currently 223.

Professor Derek Ward, Lincolnshire's director of public health, says: "All of the advice is to stay at home. If you can work from home, please work from home."

BBC Weather

Sunny spells but with wintry showers at first, these becoming confined to the east.

A drier afternoon as the showers moves off the sea.

Cold with a fresh north-westerly wind, stronger near coasts.

A clear, dry but cold evening.

Into the night, cloud will increase from the west, albeit it will stay largely dry.

A chance of drizzle in the west. Moderate westerly to south-westerly winds:

More coronavirus testing sites will open soon in Lincolnshire, it's been confirmed.

Image source, Reuters/Phil Noble

Currently, one is located at the Lincolnshire Showground and another at the University of Lincoln, as well as pop-up mobile clinics around the county.

But Mark Garthwaite, from Lincolnshire Resilience Forum, says more fixed sites will be created in Skegness, Grantham, Gainsborough and Boston.

He says: "The staff here have taken on a tremendous number of cases in their first week, but I think that more localised approach will give us a greater knowledge of where those cases are and what the issues are. That is a fantastic step forward for Lincolnshire."

Building work will begin on the testing site at Gainsborough next week, Mr Garthwaite says.

A new grant scheme is aimed at providing support to businesses in South Holland which were ordered to close during the coronavirus lockdown.

Image source, Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire

The district council has so far helped distribute over £18m of government support since March to more than 1,500 businesses.

Now, the Local Restrictions Support Grant will provide eligible businesses with a fixed payment based on their rateable value - with some receiving up to £3,000.

To apply, businesses need to meet five main criteria and can apply via the council website.

Any businesses which are not eligible for the grant may still receive future support through the discretionary Additional Restrictions Grant, which is being finalised by the government.

A man from Lincoln has been arrested and charged with terror-related offences, police say.

Ben John, 20, of Addison Drive, Lincoln, was arrested in the city this morning and charged with seven offences under Section 58 of the Terrorism Act, according to Lincolnshire Police

These charges relate to possessing a record of information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism.

It is alleged that the offences relate to right-wing terrorism, officers say.

He is due to appear before Westminster Magistrates' Court later.

Police are appealing for information after graffiti reading "Covid Lies" was sprayed on a wall in Louth.

Image source, Lincolnshire Poluce

Officers say it was sprayed some time between 15:00 on Monday and 09:00 on Tuesday on a boundary wall on St Mary's Lane.

Anyone who saw any suspicious vehicles or people in the area within that period, or who has any information about the criminal damage, is being asked to contact the Lincolnshire force.

Have you seen this man who's wanted by police in Lincolnshire?

Image source, Lincolnshire Police

Anthony Scott, 45, is wanted for possession of a weapon and criminal damage, officers say.

Anyone who has seen him is being asked to contact the Lincolnshire force.

PA Media

Over 50% of fines issued by police in Lincolnshire to people breaking coronavirus restrictions have gone unpaid, new figures suggest.

Image source, Joe Giddens/PA Wire

Lincolnshire Police issued 237 fines between 27 March and 31 September – of which 142 went unpaid within 28 days, according to data from the Criminal Records Office.

That means 60% of all Covid-related fines issued by the Lincolnshire force went unpaid,

Meanwhile, Humberside Police saw 88 out of 140 fines unpaid within 28 days – which is 63%.

The figures have been revealed as police forces are told to resume handing out £10,000 so-called super-fines less than a week after a decision to suspend them.

The total number of fines issued in England and Wales between 27 March and 21 September was 18,912.

People who receive a coronavirus fine can appeal in the first instance to the police force which handed out the penalty, to try to get it withdrawn.

In total, 293 fines issued between 27 March and 21 September in England and Wales were formally being contested.

A Lincolnshire food company has paid £50,000 towards environmental improvements after untreated waste water from its plant polluted a nearby stream earlier this year.

Image source, Environment Agency

Up to 26,000 litres of untreated waste water leaked from the Noble Foods Co plant in Gainsborough in January this year, of which an unknown quantity entered the stream (pictured), according to the Environment Agency (EA).

The plant, on Corringham Road, slaughters and processes chickens.

The cause of the leak was a series of faults within the company’s treatment plant, with workers on site blocking a drain in an attempt to contain the spill.

However, the untreated waste water instead flooded the area - eventually reaching a surface water drain and entering the stream, the EA says.

Samples taken by Environment Agency officers found a toxic level of ammonia in the water – more than 80 times the natural level.

After an investigation, the company will now pay £50,000 to the Lincolnshire Rivers Trust under what's known as an enforcement undertaking.

Noble Foods has also spent £40,000 on measures to clean up the stream and prevent a repeat pollution, according to the EA.

Hundreds more food parcels were handed out to help feed children in Lincoln during the first coronavirus lockdown than would usually have been given out during the same time of year, a charity has said.

The Trussell Trust, which operates foodbanks across the country, says between April and September it would usually expect to hand out about 700 food parcels to children in Lincoln, but this year it gave out over 1,000.

Amy Colley, who runs the Lincoln Foodbank, which is supported by the Trussell Trust, says the wait for people to claim Universal Credit, combined with financial insecurity sparked by the pandemic, drove up demand.

With the onset of winter, she says another increase in demand is expected: "We would see a natural rise anyway, but I think it's going to be a much steeper rise than it would normally be."

BBC Weather

This afternoon will be largely cloudy with patchy rain.

However, clearer skies will approach from the west this evening.

Brisk west to south-westerly winds.

Tonight will be windy with clear periods for a time.

Cloud cover will increase later in the night, bringing showers.

Strong westerly winds, becoming north-westerly later on:

A superb solo finish from Abo Eisa gives Scunthorpe victory at Port Vale.

A Lincoln man has been jailed for 10 years for raping and repeatedly punching a woman.

Image source, Lincolnshire Police

Nathan Booth, 30, of Swift Gardens, Lincoln, denied the charges of rape and inflicting grievous bodily harm with intent, but was found guilty by a jury last month.

Lincoln Crown court heard that his victim had been treated like a "punching bag" in the sustained attack which took place in October last year.

The woman suffered a broken rib, chipped teeth, black eyes and cuts and bruises as a result of the attack, the court head.

Sentencing Booth, Judge Catarina Sjolin Knight said he "acted like a man possessed" during the "appalling" attack.

She added: "You are a large, strong man who knows what damage he can do. There is no question in my mind that you are dangerous."

The court heard that Booth had a rough upbringing and had no parental guidance from the age of 12.

The judge sentenced Booth to 10 years in jail and added he would risk returning to jail until 2032 after being given an additional two years on licence.

He will also be added to the sex offenders register for life.

Five more schools in Lincolnshire have sent students home after pupils tested positive for coronavirus in the last 24 hours, it's been confirmed - bringing the total number of schools affected in the county to 95.

Image source, Reuters/Eddie Keogh

Lincolnshire's Health Protection Team says it's working with the schools to limit the spread of the virus.

Schools have sent home "bubbles" of staff and pupils who may have come into contact with anyone who tested positive for Covid-19.

Yesterday, the Public Health Team said it was working with 90 schools across the county.

It comes after the latest data showed that two areas in Lincolnshire were included in the top 25 districts with the highest infection rates.

A burglar who targeted homes in Skegness during the first coronavirus lockdown but was given away by an ankle tag fitted for a different offence has been jailed.

Shane Simpson, 27, of Wellington Way, Skegness, carried out a spree of night time raids in April, Lincoln Crown Court was told.

At the time he was wearing a tracking device which was monitoring his movements 24 hours a day while out on bail for a stalking charge.

As a result, police were able to prove he was in the addresses in Skegness at the time of the burglaries.

In a raid at his house, officers found thousands of pounds' worth of stolen property, the court heard.

Simpson admitted nine charges of burglary and one charge of a theft of a Mercedes and was jailed for three and a half years.

The court was told he had 22 previous convictions for a total of 50 offences.