Local News Thursday 10th August

Thursday, 10 August 2023 06:00

By Steve Haigh

A Crewkerne man who drove his car on the wrong side of the M5 crashing head-on with another car and seriously injuring a passenger has been sentenced. Somerset Council says its commercial investments are not providing any net income due to rising interest rates. Organisers of South Petherton Carnival are appealing for more entries for this year’s event...and more.

A Crewkerne man who drove his car on the wrong side of the M5 crashing head-on with another car and seriously injuring a passenger has been given a sixteen-month suspended prison sentence and banned from driving for two-and-a-half years. Ryan Physick, aged twenty-seven, of Langmead Road, Crewkerne, admitted causing injury by dangerous driving and having no insurance. Exeter Crown Court was told that Physick failed a roadside breath test and told officers he’d been drinking to celebrate his birthday.

Somerset Council says its commercial investments are not providing any net income due to rising interest rates. Somerset's former four district councils, including South Somerset and the County Council, spent two-hundred-and-ninety million pounds buying properties with the aim of using the rental income to fund public service. Somerset Council, who took over ownership of the properties in April, says the returns are now less than the original borrowings and are losing money rather than generating income. It says the value of the properties, which include the Wilko store and Marks and Spencer store in Yeovil, have dropped by twenty-five million to two-hundred-and-sixty-five million pounds.

Organisers of South Petherton Carnival are appealing for more floats for this year’s event. South Petherton is the first illuminated carnival on the South Somerset circuit and takes place on Saturday 9th September. It’s free to enter and details can be found on South Petherton Carnival Facebook page.

Station Road in Crewkerne will be closed for three days next week. Work to resurface the road starts on Monday and should be completed by Wednesday. Access for residents and businesses will be maintained with a diversion in operation.

Ilminster Town Council is appealing for the return of a waste bin that’s disappeared from the Shurdrick stream at Ladymeade. They that until the bin is returned, people in Ladymeade should take their litter home with them.

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