Local News Monday 11th June

Monday, 11 July 2022 06:00

Yeovil MP Marcus Fysh is urging his colleagues to get on quickly with electing a new Leader of the Conservative party. The end of July has been set as the date for completing the long-running road improvement scheme on the A30 at Haselbury Plucknett. The charity Guide Dogs has criticised the government's decision to extend the E-scooter trial.

Yeovil MP Marcus Fysh is urging his colleagues to get on quickly with electing a new Leader of the Conservative party. Currently, there are nine candidates bidding for the top job with the process not expected to be completed before the Commons returns from summer recess in September. Mr. Fysh says a new Prime Minister is needed as soon as possible

The end of July has been set as the date for completing the long-running road improvement scheme on the A30 at Haselbury Plucknett, near Crewkerne. The scheme had been due to take thirteen weeks but had to be extended after the damage to a wall was found to be worse than anticipated. The scheme has so far cost Somerset County Council £283,000 to undertake.

The charity Guide Dogs has criticised the government's decision to extend the E-scooter trial, including in Yeovil, by 18 months before publishing its safety evaluation. The Department of Transport says the extension will help to build a better understanding of the benefits or otherwise of the E-scooter pilot.

Motorists travelling near Wincanton will have to add up to 17 miles to their journeys later this month to allow for repairs to take place. Somerset County Council plans to close the A371 north of the Holbrook roundabout for five weeks to replace drainage channels and gullies. The road will be shut between July 25 and August 26 with motorists diverted back to Sparkford, adding 17 miles to journeys.

People travelling in and out of Somerset by train this week are being reminded to bring a bottle of water with them. Great Western Railway has warned that there could be speed restrictions on some services because of the heat so that journeys could take longer than normal. People are being advised to check travel websites before making journeys.

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Friday 31st July

Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service says July has been its busiest month ever for emergency calls. Police have recovered a 1970s Austin Mini pick-up stolen in Shepton Mallet. A specialist spinal injuries service at Yeovil Hospital has treated three hundred patients in its first year... and more
Thursday 30th July

The Environment Agency has declared a drought across Somerset as the hot weather takes its toll on the county's water supplies. Police are appealing for witnesses following a fatal road traffic accident near Crewkerne. A bowls player from Yeovil has won a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow...and more
Wednesday 29th July

Police have arrested two suspects in connection with a series of moped thefts in Chard. A combine harvester has been destroyed in a farm fire at Forton, near Chard. A bowls player from Yeovil has won a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow... and more
Tuesday 28th July

The former Beales department store in Yeovil could be brought back into use as part of a wider masterplan for the future of the town. A yellow heat health alert is in place across Somerset from nine o’clock this morning until nine o’clock on Friday morning. A Somerset farmer says this year is the driest on his land since 1976... and more
Monday 27th July

Gooch and Housego, based in Ilminster and one of the town’s biggest employers, has been sold in a multi-million-pound deal to an American private equity firm. A father who shook his four-week-old baby to death at a house in Chard has been sentenced to life in prison. A doctor who works for the Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance is one of five people to have jointly set a new world record for rowing around Great Britain... and more
Friday 24th July

Avon and Somerset Police are warning people to watch out for scammers posing as Amazon. The CEO of the company that provides Somerset's recycling is warning of a major incident if people continue to put used batteries in waste bins. A former Yeovil pub could be demolished to make way for a major hotel expansion.
Thursday 23rd July

The West Country is officially one step closer to being declared in drought. Somerset Council says it's remodelling its service after a children's home was closed following an inspection. A new McDonald's planned off the M5 at Bridgwater could create up to 120 local jobs... and more
Wednesday 22nd July

Two men have been jailed for stealing electrical items and cash from a property in Yeovil. Somerset Council has defended its use of Yeovil’s new performance area in The Triangle, in Lower Middle Street. Tintinhull Primary School, near Yeovil, has won a top national award for outdoor play... and more