A total of 75 patients are currently being treated for Covid-19 in Lincolnshire's main hospitals, it's been confirmed.

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Figures from United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust show 47 are being treated at Lincoln County Hospital and 28 at the Pilgrim Hospital in Boston.

Grantham Hospital remains a Covid-free "green" site.

A floodlight at Boston United's new stadium appears to have collapsed in the strong winds.

The structure has bent in half at the new Jakeman's Stadium.

Staff are on site investigating what happened.

There hasn't been a single death on Lincolnshire's roads so far this year, latest figures show.

The county's Road Safety Partnership says it's the first time this has been the case at this point in the year since 1985.

Five people had already died on Lincolnshire's roads by this point in 2020.

The East Coast Main Line is currently blocked through Lincolnshire.

LNER says it's dealing with an incident at Newark:

The Humber Bridge is currently closed to all high-sided vehicles because of the wind.

A 30mph speed limit is also in operation:

BBC Weather

This afternoon will be brighter with spells of sunshine and a few well-scattered showers.

Strong westerly winds easing later on.

Tonight will be a chillier night than last night with clear periods.

A chance of one or two isolated showers overnight but often dry. A brisk westerly wind:

Local Democracy Reporting Service

A former secondary school in Mablethorpe is to be demolished to prepare the site for future development, according to Lincolnshire County Council.

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In a planning application, the county council says the Monks Dyke Tennyson College buildings are “becoming unsafe, vulnerable to arson and attracting vandalism and anti-social behaviour”.

The Mablethorpe campus closed its doors for the final time in July 2016 after merging with the Louth site of Monks Dyke Technology College, which itself was amalgamated into Louth Academy.

At the time, Lincolnshire County Council said there were falling pupil numbers and the site was financially unsustainable.

It had celebrated its 50th anniversary the year before and was the first secondary school in the area when it opened in 1965 as The Tennyson School.

The government pledges £95m for ports on the Tees and Humber to support offshore wind farms.

You can expect a mix of showers and windy weather this evening.

Find your local weather forecast here.

PA Media

A lottery winner has been cleared of causing the death of a pensioner by dangerous driving in a Christmas Day crash.

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Matthew Topham had hit another car in North Cockerington, Lincolnshire, at about 17:50 on 25 December 2019.

The crash resulted in the death of Mary Jane Regler, 75, who was the front seat passenger in the other car.

The 31-year-old, of Swinderby, Lincolnshire, had earlier admitted causing death by careless driving.

The defendant's BMW had struck an oncoming Ford Fiesta head-on killing Mrs Regler. Her 77-year-old husband Rodney, who was driving, survived the crash but was seriously injured.

Jurors at Lincoln Crown Court head earlier heard Mr Topham had been reaching for his two-year-old son's teddy bear at the time of the crash.

The defendant, who won a £45m EuroMillions jackpot in 2012, was also cleared of causing serious injury by dangerous driving.

He will be sentenced for causing death by careless driving on Thursday.

PA Media

A jury trying the case of a lottery winner who killed a pensioner in a Christmas Day crash has retired to consider its verdicts.

Image source, PA Media

Matthew Topham, from Swinderby, was reported to be Britain's youngest EuroMillions jackpot winner after pocketing £45 million in 2012.

He is alleged to have caused the death of 75-year-old Mary Jane Regler by dangerous driving on Louth Road in North Cockerington, on 25 December 25 2019.

The 31-year-old's trial has heard the defendant took his eyes off the road for "up to three seconds" as he retrieved a teddy bear for his two-year-old son - which led the defendant to veer onto the wrong side of the road.

Mr Topham admitted a charge of causing death by careless driving before the start of his trial, but denies causing death by dangerous driving and causing serious injury by dangerous driving.

A private parking firm which operates at hospital sites in Lincolnshire has been criticised after "wrongly" issuing fines to patients and staff.

One nurse in Boston received a total of three tickets while off sick with Covid.

Meanwhile, an expectant mother in Lincoln says she was also fined multiple times while in and out of hospital before and during the birth of her child.

According to Helen Monday, who also works as a nurse in Boston, ParkingEye has been sending out “erroneous parking notices” since it introduced a new automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) system in November 2018.

“So many of them are stating that staff are parked in drop-off zones. Some also say people have parked wrongly when they haven’t actually been on the property,” she said.

Ms Monday, who is campaigning for the ANPR system to be scrapped, said there was clearly a problem with it.

Hospital trust bosses said they were arranging to meet representatives from ParkingEye to discuss the situation.

A spokesperson for the firm said: “ParkingEye operates a British Parking Association-audited appeals process, which motorists can use to appeal their parking charge notice."

The firm also said it wasn't aware of any technical issues at its Lincolnshire hospital sites.

Lincolnshire Show organisers say the event definitely won't happen in any form this year after it was earlier announced it had been cancelled for a second year in a row due to Covid concerns.

It was confirmed on Tuesday that the show, due to take place on 23 and 24 June, won't now take place due to worries about ongoing coronavirus restrictions.

Stage Four of the government's "roadmap" for lifting Covid restrictions will currently take place no earlier than 21 June.

Jayne Southall, CEO of the Lincolnshire Agricultural Society, says just postponing this year's event until later in 2021 isn't an option.

Ms Southall says: "We did look into that and we are going to do other events during the year, but it won't be the Lincolnshire Show.

"There are other shows which hopefully can go on later in the year. What we wouldn't want to do is clash with those, so we felt the best option would be cancel the show for this year."

A number of large-scale wind farms in parts of Lincolnshire have been proposed as part of plans to reduce carbon emissions.

Image source, Chris Radburn/PA Wire

North Kesteven, West Lindsey and City of Lincoln councils are considering recommendations to build dozens of turbines across the district.

The consultation is part of a Local Plan shared by the councils.

Opponents have criticised the use of onshore turbines due to their impact on the environment and noise concerns.

Richard Wright, leader of North Kesteven District Council, said: "This is about identifying what is needed to hit carbon net-zero in this region."

He added that despite some opposition to the idea, people's attitudes had changed, and there was now "overwhelming support" for action on climate change.

According to a report prepared for the three authorities, the region would need to reduce emissions by 13.4% a year to meet its targets, with 70% of energy being produced by onshore wind, solar, or other forms of renewable power.

It recommended installing a minimum of 75 turbines across the district, which it said would require an area the size of about 150 football pitches.

However, campaigners have expressed concerns about the size of the turbines and the scale of any future development.

Lincolnshire County Council, which has itself pledged to meet net-zero carbon targets by 2050, described the idea as the "industrialisation of a pristine landscape".

A public consultation on the proposals is due to take place in the coming weeks.

Drivers are being warned to avoid the Barrowby area if possible this morning after a crash on the A52.

Police say it could take several hours before things are back to normal there:

BBC Weather

Today will be dull and overcast with outbreaks of blustery rain persisting throughout the day, turning heavy in areas.

A fresh south to south-westerly wind.

This evening, outbreaks of rain will gradually clear to less frequent, scattered blustery showers.

Cloud will break in places later in the night to give a few clear intervals.

Winds will become strong:

A proposal to reopen the A&E at Grantham during daytime hours only has been defended by the boss of Lincolnshire's main hospitals.

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Grantham Hospital was turned into a Covid-free "green" site last year, with many services temporarily removed.

United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust now says it wants to return A&E services, but not for 24 hours a day.

Campaigners say it's not enough, but trust chief executive Andrew Morgan says they can't pre-empt a wider review.

Paul Cook earns his first point as Ipswich Town boss as his new side come from behind to draw with Lincoln City.

Grimsby Town are forced to settle for a point after Offrande Zanzala's last-gasp equaliser in a draw at Carlisle.

Exeter keep their League Two play-off push on course with a comfortable win at Scunthorpe.