county news

A search is under way for a kayaker who went missing after getting into difficulty in a river, police have said.The man, aged in his 40s, was reported missing at about 15:40 GMT on Saturday. He had been kayaking on the River Exe at Tiverton, Devon, officers said.Devon and Cornwall Police said a kayak had been recovered but the man remains missing.Searches and inquiries are taking place in the area and the man's next of kin has been…

Part of the M5 in Devon is closed due to a car crash, police have said.One person has been taken to hospital with serious injuries after a car hit the central reservation in the southbound lanes between junction 28 at Collumpton and junction 29 near Exeter Airport, said Devon and Cornwall Police. National Highways said diversions were in place while the southbound closure continued, which is expected to be throughout the morning.Police said: "Please use alternative routes and…

BBC/Johnny RutherfordGreat Western Railway is urging passengers not to attempt to travel on the line due to damage at DawlishThe only railway line to the south-west of England has been partially shut until further notice after a sea wall next to it crumbled in a storm.Great Western Railway (GWR) urged passengers not to attempt to travel on the line between Exeter St Davids and Newton Abbot due to the damage at Dawlish.A sea wall protecting the railway line…

An urn which dates back more than 3,000 years to the Bronze Age has gone on display. The ceramic vessel is on loan from Exeter's Royal Albert Memorial Museum and Art Gallery and is in Newton Abbot Museum, Devon.Experts said it had been found in a ditch on the northern edge of Newton Abbot and the clay could have been sourced from the River Lemon in Devon.Museum curator Joanna Eccles said: "The people who buried this urn are…

GrandAndy/Weather WatchersThe sky dazzled with a green and pink light show at St Eval Church earlier this weekOutage outrage as Storm Goretti hits internetTara Robinson was one of the 28,000 people left with no internet after Storm Goretti - she was reconnected after 10 daysPeople in Cornwall were left angry and frustrated over delays in reconnecting them to the internet after Storm Goretti.The storm left thousands of people with no power or water but engineers were able to…

Maria Warne-ElstonFarmer Maria Warne-Elston said a new study was listening to women in farming"For a long time women in farming have been almost invisible," a farmer has said.Maria Warne-Elston, a TikTok star and farmer in Cornwall, has welcomed new research by the University of Exeter which she said was "powerful because it actually listens to women". The university study suggested female farmers experienced lower mental wellbeing than the national average.Warne-Elston, 22, said she wore "a lot of hats"…

A police force has referred itself to a watchdog after a man died after becoming unwell in a custody cell.The 28-year-old man was arrested in Torquay in the early hours of 15 January and died the same day, Devon and Cornwall Police said.The force said he became unwell at Torquay Custody Centre and was taken to Torbay District Hospital, where he later died.It said it had made a mandatory referral to the Independent Office of Police Conduct (IOPC)…

Multiple flood warnings are in place in Devon and Cornwall as Storm Ingrid brings heavy rain and strong winds.A Met Office yellow warning for rain is in force until 22:00 GMT and forecasters are warning of flooding and transport disruption.Great Western Railway (GWR) said the line between Exeter St Davids and Plymouth would remain shut until at least 14:00 amid concerns over the track at Dawlish where waves were breaching the sea wall.The Environment Agency said flood warnings,…