Monday 19th February

Monday, 19 February 2024 06:00

By Steve Haigh

There's an increased risk of flooding on local roads today following a weekend of heavy rain. Police have issued an urgent appeal to find a missing teenager, thought to be in South Somerset. A new public clock was officially unveiled in Ilminster town centre at the weekend...and more

The Environment Agency is warning of floods in parts of South Somerset today following a weekend of heavy rain. The River Parrett at Chiselborough is reported to be bank-full with overtopping likely, threatening the road between Norton-sub-Hambdon and Stratton. The River Yeo at Huish Episcopi is also causing concern with the road between Langport and Muchelney, and the road at Ashford Mill at Fivehead at risk of flooding.

Police have issued an urgent appeal to find a missing teenager, thought to be in South Somerset. Segun, who also goes by the name of Joshua, was last in Castle Cary. He’s described as black, 5ft 11 inches tall, with short dreadlocks and brown eyes. When last seen he was wearing a shiny black puffer jacket and carrying a red and white striped man bag. Police say he has links to Chard, Yeovil, Bruton and Castle Cary. If you see him, you’re asked to call 999.

The Electoral Reform Society says the names of up to 12,000 people in the Yeovil constituency are missing from the Electoral Register. That’s around one in eight aged over 18 people living in Yeovil who currently are not entitled to vote in elections. Now, two Somerset councillors, Adam Dance and Tom Power, have launched a campaign to encourage younger people in particular to check that their names are on the Electoral Register. To check that you are registered to vote go to: elections@somerset.gov.uk

A new public clock was officially unveiled in Ilminster at the weekend. Positioned on the corner of Silver Street and East Street, the clock pays tribute to the late Queen Elizabeth and has been paid for with money raised by the town’s Rotary Club.

A long-standing British fishing record looks set to be smashed after a huge Pike was caught at Chew Valley Lake in Somerset. The catch, weighing forty-seven pounds, was landed by local angler, Lloyd Watson. If ratified by the British Record Fish Committee, it will beat the previous national Pike record of forty-six pounds and thirteen ounces, set in 1992.

A man in Chard has been doing his bit to reduce speeding traffic by cutting back overgrown hedges hiding a speed sign. Rob Culliford decided to trim the hedges on the A30 Crewkerne to Chard Road as they were blocking a 30 mph speed sign, making it difficult for motorists to see what the speed limit was on the road.

More from News

Friday 17th May

A new website has been launched to support people in Somerset with mental health issues. One of Yeovil’s oldest pubs has been sold. Artwork on the theme of aviation produced by students at Yeovil College has gone on display at Leonardo Helicopters in Yeovil.A pupil at Tatworth Primary School near Chard has won a prize in a national competition for writing a book review...and more
Thursday 16th May

Work laying a gas main on the A37 Dorchester Road near the Quicksilver Mail roundabout in Yeovil is to continue for a further two months. Somerset Council says the public toilets in Yeovil bus station will close at the end of the month but the waiting room will stay open temporarily. Former Yeovil Town Captain, Josh Staunton, has set up in business as a professional gardener...and more.
Wednesday 15th May

Somerset Council seeking to save £40 million by cutting one thousand jobs says 201 employees have so far applied to leave the authority based on voluntary redundancy. East Somerset Railway near Shepton Mallet has been used for filming the TV adaptation of Jilly Cooper's novel Rivals. An old-style red phone box in Castle Cary is being turned into Somerset's smallest museum...and more
Tuesday 14th May

Somerset's Chief Medical Officer says GP surgeries using healthcare professionals alongside doctors to provide treatments has freed up GP appointments. A farmer has been fined £15,000 for polluting a household water supply. Avon and Somerset’s new Police and Crime Commissioner has officially started work in the role. Chard Post Office is closed today for the handover of the business to new owners...and more.
Monday 13th May

Health inspectors have criticised Somerset's maternity services, including those at Yeovil Hospital. Somerset Council says re-opening Yeovil’s Octagon Theatre in its original form could cost up to £200,000 if a multi-million-pound upgrade of the building falls through. A film made by a Yeovil man on a budget of just five thousand pounds was screened at the prestigious British Independent Film Festival...and more.
Friday 10th May

The Ferne Animal Sanctuary near Chard says it needs an immediate injection of £100,000 to keep going. Yeovil’s Marlie Packer has returned to Yeovil Rugby Club where she began her rugby career 20 years ago. Twenty-five Town criers from across the South will be in Ilminster tomorrow competing in the annual Ilminster Town Criers' Competition...and more.
Thursday 9th May

Train services through Somerset are again being disrupted today due to continued strike action by the train driver’s union ALSEF. A campaign has been launched in Somerset aimed at stopping people overdosing on opioids. A Somerset business is raising a smile with its name.‘Top Of The Clops’, a tack shop near Taunton has won a place in the top ten of the UK’s funniest business names...and more.
Wednesday 8th May

A woman driver has been told she faces a prison term for causing the deaths of two people in a crash on the A303. The AA says there are more potholes than ever on Somerset’s motorway network, leading to an increase in damage to vehicles. The new cancer treatment unit at Yeovil Hospital should be open before the end of the year...and more.