Latest news with #Leominster
BBC News
a day ago
- BBC News
More street lights and cameras to make towns safer for Herefordshire women
Street lights and CCTV cameras have been installed in areas highlighted as giving cause for concern over women's new equipment focuses on routes in Ross-on-Wye and Leominster, in Herefordshire. that women take home at high-risk areas were identified as giving cause for concern after police looked at crime statistics and Julie Watson, from Herefordshire Police, said keeping women and girls safe was a "key priority" for the West Mercia force and the new lights and cameras would help to achieve this. Some areas in the towns had suffered from antisocial behaviour, particularly towards women and girls, Herefordshire councillor Carole Gandy said, but they were now "much safer places".Funding came from the West Mercia police and crime commissioner John Campion and the two town councils. Mr Campion said police listened to the community to "target our resources where they would make the most difference". Follow BBC Hereford & Worcester on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
BBC News
2 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Leominster crash train hit trailer at 80mph, investigators say
A passenger train that crashed into a trailer on the track in Herefordshire was travelling at about 80mph (129 km/h), investigators have said in initial the 66 passengers and eight staff members on the Transport for Wales Manchester to Cardiff train, six people were reportedly treated for minor injuries, the Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) train hit a loaded agricultural trailer that was being hauled by a tractor across a user-worked level crossing at Nordan Farm, near Leominster, on 22 said the tractor driver was not injured and had phoned a signaller before using the crossing. The RAIB will look at the actions of people involved and any previous incidents at the crossing as part of its investigation, with findings and any recommendations to be published later. 'Really loud bang' The crossing at Nordan Farm is fitted with telephones and users are directed by signs at the crossing to phone and get permission from the signaller before opening the crossing gates and crossing the railway, the RAIB said."Evidence available to RAIB shows that the driver of the tractor involved in this accident telephoned the signaller before using the crossing," a statement added. Investigators described how the crash caused the tractor and trailer to come apart, and how the trailer became wedged on the front of the train, which ran on for about 500 metres (0.3 miles) while braking, before it crash damaged the train, trailer, track, lineside equipment and another level crossing beyond Nordan Farm. Rail disruption hit the network for more than 24 hours, with the line blocked between Hereford and Shrewsbury, after the Transport Police arrested a 32-year-old man who was released under of the people who were injured were taken to hospital and later on board described a "really loud bang" as the train hit the trailer, leaving "debris everywhere".The level crossing takes a farm track across the railway lines and is only used by agricultural vehicles. Follow BBC Hereford & Worcester on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
BBC News
3 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Herefordshire trains 'unreliable and filthy', meeting told
Concerns about unreliable train services and cleanliness on board have been raised at a meeting between rail passengers and operator West Midlands Railway (WMR).Issues raised by Leominister Rail User Group secretary Jim Scott, and also Herefordshire councillor Jenny Bartlett, included complaints of just a two-minute window to change trains at Hereford for Birmingham passengers reported a lack of replacement bus services and filthy toilets with no head of performance Kelly Henshall said she would take the concerns back to colleagues after the meeting in Leominster, which was organised by the Green Party. 'Got worse' Mr Scott said trains from Leominster arrived at Hereford two minutes before outgoing Birmingham trains, which meant "you either run across the bridge, or you have a 59-minute wait".Another rail user said it would be "nice to go out for an evening and not worry about getting back home", but they said there was "very rarely a bus replacement".Rail & Bus for Herefordshire representative Jago Frost said there had been recent improvements in service reliability, but the cleanliness of Birmingham-Hereford trains "had got worse"."They start the day with no soap in the toilets, and by the end of the day they are filthy," he said. Ms Henshall said service improvement was headed in the right direction said WMR wanted "to keep our new trains nice and clean – and we get audited on this".The company had gone from 20% of services cancelled last summer to 4% currently, she said, adding: "Having sufficient train crews has been part of that."Asked whether the recent crash between a Transport for Wales express train and a farm vehicle at a rail crossing near Leominster had caused WMR to look at how it operated services in rural areas, Ms Henshall said: "Safety is at the heart of everything we do." This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service, which covers councils and other public service organisations. Follow BBC Hereford & Worcester on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
CBS News
28-05-2025
- General
- CBS News
Vandals destroy Massachusetts Little League fields, "it's heartbreaking"
There's outrage in the Leominster community after vandals targeted Little League baseball fields. Now because of the damage, the young players can't play there until it's fixed because of safety concerns. Vandals cut the 30-foot-long backstop and ripped out all the padding, which is there to protect the kids. The damage was discovered Monday morning by longtime volunteer coach and league president Rob Lora. The team had been away in Connecticut this weekend when the vandals struck. "Something very malicious" "They did something very malicious to hurt the kids. They knew that. It was not throwing a cone, they took the action of ripping it apart, ripping it all out and they knew what they were doing," said Coach Lora. "You're not hurting us, you're not hurting the park, you're hurting the kids because they can't use that facility. So, it's heartbreaking." Vandals destroyed the backstop at a Little League field in Leominster, Massachusetts. CBS Boston Instead of hitting it out of the park on their own home field, the Leominster American Little League had to play ball on a borrowed baseball field. Tuesday night, the game was 40 minutes out of the way in Barre. "It's kind of devastating, it's for kids and people are just going to go up there and destroy it, I don't know why they would ever do that," said little leaguer Rorke Lora. Now every game in June has to be moved until the backstop is replaced for safety. "It could take a month to six weeks or more to get them in and now it affects the rest of our season we won't be able to use the field until June and it could affect our districts in July," said Coach Lora. Thousands of dollars in damage The price tag too is a curveball for the community, costing thousands of dollars to fix the damage which is estimated between $3,000-$7,000. But parents and business owners are stepping up. Melissa Bible started an online fundraiser. "It's frustrating, it's sad, we spend countless hours there," said Melissa Bible. "It restores my pride in my community knowing that the majority of everything is good people." Good people who hope to be back at the home field to celebrate a little league's hard work going 75 years strong after being established in 1950. "I just hope it doesn't happen again because it's for the kids," said Rourke Lora. Police are investigating the vandalism.
BBC News
23-05-2025
- BBC News
Leominster rail line stays shut after train hits tractor trailer
A rail line is to remain closed after a train hit a tractor and trailer on a level crossing in Herefordshire. A 32-year-old man was arrested following the crash involving a Transport for Wales (TfW) train near Leominster in Herefordshire, on Thursday morning. Two people were taken to hospital following the crash suffering minor injuries, said British Transport Police (BTP).The line between Hereford and Shrewsbury is expected to remain closed throughout Friday. A joint statement from TfW and Network Rail said work was under way to reopen the line and restore services "as quickly as possible"."Replacement road transport remains in place between Hereford and Shrewsbury and tickets will also be valid for use with other operators via all reasonable alternative routes as well as with Stagecoach bus," the statement said. A further update is expected at about midday on Friday. Morgan Shake was among 56 passengers on board the 08:30 train from Manchester Picadilly heading to Cardiff when the crash happened at about 10:40 GMT. She described hearing a "really loud bang" as the train hit the trailer on land at Nordan Farm. "The train just stopped moving, there was just debris everywhere," she said. "Not many people knew what was going on," added fellow passenger Sophie Hughen."But thankfully no one was severely injured at all so that was really good." A spokesperson for the Rail Accident Investigation Branch said a team of inspectors was at the site, gathering Midlands Ambulance Service said one man was airlifted to hospital in Hereford, and a woman was taken to the hospital by road. Fifteen other people were checked over and discharged at the scene. The tractor driver was uninjured, the ambulance service added. The level crossing takes a farm track across the railway tracks and is only used by agricultural facility is a user-worked crossing - in these cases, when a railway crosses private land, the owner of the land, working with a signaller, is responsible for opening and closing the gates. Last month, investigators found several faults in a safety system on a TfW train after a fatal crash in October trains - the Shrewsbury to Aberystwyth service and the Machynlleth to Shrewsbury service - were travelling in opposite directions on a single line and were meant to pass on an extra section of line but the braking system man, 66, died and four other passengers were seriously RAIB's investigation into the 2024 crash continues and a final report will be published at a later date. Follow BBC Hereford & Worcester on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
