county news

Exeter researcher named among 2025 Women of Discovery

A University of Exeter researcher has been named on the 2025 Women of Discovery. Dr Divya Karnad, who works on marine conservation and social science, is part of the Centre for Ecology and Conservation on the Penryn Campus in Cornwall. The Women of Discovery list is published by WINGS, whose mission is to “elevate and build community around visionary women pushing the boundaries of science, exploration and conservation”. An awards gala was held in New York on 9…

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‘Eyesore’ Torquay hotel closed for three months by police

‘Eyesore’ Torquay hotel closed for three months by police

A seaside hotel which had become an "anti-social behaviour magnet" has been closed for three months.Devon and Cornwall Police said a partial closure order for the Sherwood Hotel in Belgrave Road, Torquay, had been granted by Plymouth Magistrates' Court on Thursday.The order - the first to be used on a hotel in the region - meant only authorised people such as the landlord, utility companies and the emergency services could enter the property.Police said officers had received several…

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Car fire cuts off internet to Beaminster homes and businesses

Car fire cuts off internet to Beaminster homes and businesses

Hundreds of homes and businesses in part of Dorset are without broadband for a second day after a car crashed into a telegraph pole and burst into flames.The road between Beaminster and the A356 was closed due to the fire in White Sheet Hill at about 22:45 BST on Sunday. Police said they were trying to locate the driver.Openreach said about 1,000 customers had been affected by the outage.In an update on Tuesday afternoon, it said Dorset Council…

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Avon Fire and Rescue service is helping more obese people

Avon Fire and Rescue service is helping more obese people

Adam PostansLocal Democracy reporterAvon Fire and Rescue ServiceAvon Fire and Rescue said it is often using specialist equipment to help ambulance crews move patientsThe number of obese people being rescued by one fire service has increased by nearly 50 per cent in the last three years, according to new figures.Avon Fire and Rescue Service, which covers Bristol, Bath, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire, is now carrying out an average of nine "bariatric rescues" a month compared to six…

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Devon and Cornwall Police digital device investigations rise

Devon and Cornwall Police digital device investigations rise

More than 3,000 digital devices containing the equivalent of two million movies' worth of data were investigated by a police force last year.Devon and Cornwall Police's specialist Digital Forensics Unit (DFU) said the devices had more than two petabytes - 2,000 terabytes - of data involved in offences which included drugs, child abuse, murder and terrorism.The force said the number of mobile phones investigated had risen by 200% over the past two years and the volume of data…

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Warning over dumped batteries after Devon bin lorry fire

Warning over dumped batteries after Devon bin lorry fire

Devon and Somerset Fire ServiceSeveral firefighting crews were called out to the incident in AxminsterResidents are being reminded to dispose of lithium-ion batteries properly after a blaze in a bin lorry.Devon and Somerset Fire Service crews were called to Millwey Rise Industrial Estate in Axminster at about 07:40 BST after reports of a "small waste fire" from the vehicle's driver.Firefighters from Chard, along with crews from Charmouth and Bridport in Dorset, extinguished a blaze after the contents of…

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Three-vehicle crash on A30 Devoran roundabout

Three-vehicle crash on A30 Devoran roundabout

A liquid waste tanker has overturned in an accident on a roundabout on the A39 between Truro and Falmouth.Devon and Cornwall Police said three vehicles had been involved in the collision in Devoran at about 09:45 BST on Tuesday.They said one driver had been released from their vehicle and, although injuries were not currently known, they were not believed to be life-threatening.The road was closed at the top of Carnon Downs carriageway and police asked drivers to avoid…

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Woman’s death in Camelford treated as suspicious by police

Woman’s death in Camelford treated as suspicious by police

Police have confirmed that one of two deaths at a property in Camelford is being treated as suspicious.Emergency services were called to Treclago View at about 22:00 BST on 24 September after a report of a concern for welfare.Husband and wife Anthony Buxton, 71, and Michelle Buxton, 69, were pronounced dead at the scene.Devon and Cornwall Police confirmed that Mrs Buxton's death was being treated as suspicious, that both fatalities were linked, and officers were not looking for…

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‘Furniture scammers left me on antidepressants and unable to sleep’

‘Furniture scammers left me on antidepressants and unable to sleep’

Furniture 'crooks' scammed families out of £1,000sFamilies have been sharing their anguish after "crooks" working at a mobility furniture firm persuaded them to spend thousands of pounds.Gwen Farler, 84, from near Bridgwater in Somerset, said she was "bullied by crooks" into buying a £5,000 bed they falsely claimed was custom-made to suit her sick husband's needs.She said: "I often slept on the sofa in the lounge as the bed they sold us was awful. The stress kept me…

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Truro homes protected from floods ‘for next 30 years’

Truro homes protected from floods ‘for next 30 years’

Environment AgencyThe new gates were installed in August 2024 using a 400-tonne craneNew flood defence gates to protect 185 properties in Cornwall are "fully operational", the Environment Agency (EA) says. The EA said the "major infrastructure refurbishment project" would secure the city's flood defences for the next 30 years.It added that the engineering project, which began in April 2024, involved replacing the existing gates which had "reached the end of their serviceable life".Operations manager Andrew Houghton said: "This…

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Pedestrian suffers head injury in Plymouth road crash

Pedestrian suffers head injury in Plymouth road crash

A woman has sustained a potentially serious injury in a road crash involving a car and a pedestrian in Plymouth. Devon and Cornwall Police said officers were called at 09:10 BST after the incident on Cobourg Street.The ambulance service was also called to the scene.The female pedestrian sustained a potentially serious head injury and had been taken to hospital, the force said. Source link

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