A short time ago, Suffolk County Council released a new update on the emergency response which said preparations are being made to evacuate 200 caravans if required.

It said: “Firefighters remain at the scene, with relief crews now in attendance to maintain firefighting operations. The incident ground has been reorganised into a number of sectors to support the ongoing response.

“As a precaution, crews have been focused on protecting properties including Coastguard Cottages, Mount Pleasant Farm and Cliff House Holiday Park. Preparations were also made for the potential evacuation of around 200 caravans at the holiday park should conditions require it.

“Specialist drone support is being used to help assess fire behaviour and support operational decision-making through the night. Members of the public are still advised to avoid the area and keep roads clear for emergency vehicles.”

St Mark’s in Friday Bridge has invited comparisons to the iconic Italian tower because of its lean

Permission has been granted to remove the spire of a church with a lean which has invited comparisons to the leaning tower of Pisa. The application for St Mark’s in Friday Bridge was made to Fenland District Council following fears that the spire was structurally unsound.

The planning officer’s report said the grade II listed church is a “notable landmark” which is “distinguished by its prominent spire”. The conservation officer said they had “considerable concerns and sadness” for the loss of the spire but concluded it is “ultimately structurally unsound and the issues are live”.

They said the scale of repairs “is simply not affordable” but that “it is hoped that this removal is temporary, subject to funds becoming available”.

Historic Buildings and Places were also consulted and called the application a “very difficult case”. They said the church is among “several historic buildings in Fenland which have been or are threatened by unstable ground conditions.”

They said: “The analogy of the leaning spire with Pisa is sufficiently long-established for it to be assumed that the lean has been manifest for decades – settlement of this sort tends to take place in the first decade of a building’s existence after which it begins to stabilise.” They said they would opt to support the application if it meant repairing the rest of the church.

The planning officer’s report said they gave “substantial weight” to evidence “that the spire is structurally unsound and presents an ongoing risk to public safety”.

They said the plans would remove “this structural liability” and “help secure the continued use, maintenance and long-term preservation of the church as an important place of worship and community facility”.

The council approved the planning application on July 16.

‘I did what I hope anyone would do’

A Rochdale mental health worker has been hailed as a hero for his brave actions after he saved a person from a canal.

Marcus Urey has been granted ‘heroic recognition’ by Rochdale Borough Council for his ‘incredible bravery and compassion’, saving the person and later ‘making sure they received support’.

The Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust shared on Facebook that Mr Urey works at Stansfield Place, a rehabilitation centre for men with serious mental illnesses.

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The trust said he ‘acted quickly to save someone from the canal’ while not on shift’, showing ‘incredible bravery’ to assist the person.

He was handed the certificate by mayor Faisal Rana and mayoress Iram Faisal at a ceremony at the town hall.

The trust wrote: “Care and compassion don’t stop at the end of a shift.

“We’re incredibly proud of Marcus Urey, technical instructor at Stansfield Place, whose bravery has been recognised by The Mayor and Mayoress of Rochdale.“Marcus acted quickly to save someone from the canal, making sure they also received the support they needed.“He showed incredible bravery and compassion in a difficult situation, acting without hesitation to help someone in need.“It’s fantastic to see Marcus recognised for his actions. He is a real credit to Stansfield Place and Pennine Care.“Marcus said: “Thankfully I was in the right place at the right time and did what I hope anyone would do to help someone in need.“I’m grateful the person was able to get help, and I’m humbled by the kind words from my colleagues.”

She was wearing a cream top and pink shorts and was carrying a blue Lilo and Stitch bag

A seven-year-old girl has gone missing from a town in Rhondda Cynon Taf on Wednesday evening.

Ivy was last seen at around 9pm on Wednesday on Enid Street, Trealaw in Tonypandy. Her hair is brown and is styled in two braids.

She was wearing a cream top and pink shorts and was carrying a blue Lilo and Stitch bag.

A South Wales Police spokesperson said: “Help us find Ivy, 7, missing from Tonypandy, Rhondda Cynon Taf.

“Ivy was last seen at around 9pm this evening (Wednesday, July 29) on Enid Street, Trealaw.

“She has brown hair in two braids and was wearing a cream top and pink shorts. She was carrying a blue Lilo and Stitch bag.

“If you have seen Ivy, or have any information which will help us to find her, please contact us quoting ref: 2600245630. Or phone Crimestoppers, anonymously on 0800 555111.”

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It was a famous night for Team NI who won gold, silver and bronze in Glasgow

Kate O’Connor delivered a history-making performance on Wednesday evening, winning Commonwealth Games heptathlon gold to secure Northern Ireland’s first gold medal of the Games and its first athletics title in 40 years.

The 24-year-old sealed victory in emphatic fashion, dominating the closing stages of the competition. After winning both the long jump and javelin during the morning session, O’Connor produced one final statement by powering to victory in the concluding 800m in 2:10.45.

She had built such a commanding lead that she could have finished 18 seconds behind nearest challenger Jade O’Dowda and still claimed gold. Instead, O’Connor refused to settle, storming home to win the race and underline her superiority across the two-day competition.

The triumph also ends a remarkable wait for Northern Ireland in the combined events, with O’Connor becoming the nation’s first Commonwealth multi-event champion since Lady Mary Peters captured pentathlon gold in 1974.

Fellow Northern Ireland athlete Anna McCauley also impressed, finishing eighth overall after producing the second-fastest 800m of the field behind her victorious teammate.

O’Connor will receive her gold medal on Thursday evening at 6:30pm, capping a breakthrough achievement. Competing at her third Commonwealth Games, she had finished eighth in 2018 before claiming silver in Birmingham in 2022. This latest success marks her first senior outdoor international gold medal.

After taking world championship silver last year, O’Connor arrived in Glasgow as the favourite following the withdrawal of defending champion Katarina Johnson-Thompson. She lived up to that billing with a composed, dominant display that culminated in one of the most significant athletics victories in Northern Ireland’s recent history.

Elsewhere, Daniel Wiffen added to Northern Ireland’s medal haul by claiming silver in the men’s 1500m freestyle.

Having boldly declared himself a “medal guarantee” before the Games, the Olympic champion bounced back from disappointing fourth-place finishes in both the 400m and 800m freestyle to earn a place on the podium.

Australia’s Sam Short completed a distance freestyle clean sweep, winning in 14:42.11, with Wiffen finishing 2.69 seconds adrift but comfortably ahead of Australia’s Benjamin Goedemans in third.

There was further success in the pool as McCartney claimed a surprise bronze medal in the women’s 200m breaststroke. The 21-year-old, who had qualified with only the sixth-fastest semifinal time, produced an outstanding swim to finish third in 2:24.73.

She finished behind home favourite Angharad Evans and South Africa’s Kaylene Corbett, edging Australia’s Ella Ramsay by just 0.16 seconds to secure a memorable podium finish.

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Ukrainian tourists have been sunbathing as Vladimir Putin‘s army rains down bombs near a Black Sea resort. 

Photos taken from the port city of Odesa showed scores of sunbathers looking on in horror as smoke rises from the distance. 

Russia’s defence ministry said its forces struck two vessels it said were carrying weapons and military equipment to Ukrainian ports. 

It later said Russian forces had also hit a fuel storage facility in Odesa, two additional vessels in the port of Pivdennyi nearby, and another vessel north-west of Zmiinyi (Snake) Island in the Black Sea. 

It said, without providing evidence, that all the vessels were being used to transport military supplies to Ukraine.

Russia and Ukraine have both stepped up attacks in recent weeks on shipping in the Black Sea and Sea of Azov, driving wheat prices higher.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces hit two of Russia’s biggest oil refineries overnight in its latest long-range strikes, officials said Wednesday, as Kyiv deepened its economic, military and diplomatic pressure on Moscow.

Ukraine’s almost daily long-range drone and missile strikes using domestically developed weapons have battered Russian oil facilities for months. The operation has brought a fuel crisis that is embarrassing the Kremlin more than four years after Russia’s all-out invasion of its neighbour.

Photos taken from the port city of Odesa showed scores of sunbathers looking on in horror as smoke rises from the distance

Firefighters work at the site of the postal distribution centre of Nova Post company, hit by a Russian drone strike, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, July 25, 2026

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The overnight attacks started fires at a Lukoil refinery in Russia’s Perm region, more than 900 miles from Ukraine, and a refinery in Ryazan, about 180 miles from the border, Ukraine’s Security Service and General Staff said in separate statements.

The refineries have a combined annual production capacity of around 220 million barrels of oil, according to Ukraine, and make a vital contribution to Russia’s military effort and its government revenue.

It was not immediately possible to independently verify the claims. Ryazan Gov. Pavel Malkov said only that six people were taken to hospital after a drone attack. He said drone debris caused fires at unidentified ‘industrial sites’.

Russian online retailer Wildberries, a major supplier likened to Amazon that Ukraine has targeted in recent days, said it evacuated employees from a facility in Ryazan but provided no further details.

Russia has sophisticated air defences but its vast territory is hard to comprehensively cover.

The attacks came hours after President Volodymyr Zelensky visited Washington on Tuesday for talks with US President Donald Trump to push for more vital American help for Ukraine’s fight against its much bigger enemy.

‘Russia must feel that every day of this war will only come at a higher cost for it. We need to weaken the aggressor and keep up the pressure to bring an end to this war closer,’ Mr Zelensky said on social media.

Ukraine’s recent high-profile successes against Russia have impressed Washington and helped restore US goodwill after Mr Trump’s reluctance at the start of his second term to keep supporting Kyiv. That stance had raised the spectre of Ukraine and Europe having to stand up to Russian aggression alone.

Russia’s defence ministry said its forces struck two vessels it said were carrying weapons and military equipment to Ukrainian ports near Odesa

Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces said on Tuesday that its drones had now struck 201 Russian shadow-fleet and associated vessels since Operation MoLoCHKa was launched on July 6

It comes as the director and founder of a Russian drone manufacturer was wounded in a shooting on Wednesday, in what prosecutors described as an ‘attempted murder’.

Andrei Cherezov, head of the Russian Air Transport Laboratory, was returning home from work at around 1am (10pm GMT Tuesday) when he was attacked by an unknown assailant, Russia’s Izvestia newspaper reported.

The company is most famous for developing the ‘Ovod’ family of combat drones that the Russian army uses in its war with Ukraine.

Prosecutors have opened an investigation into attempted murder. They did not release any information on Mr Cherezov’s condition.

The shooting took place in the city of Tula, around 90 miles south of Moscow.

‘The victim has been hospitalised,’ the Tula branch of Russia’s Investigative Committee said on its website.

‘Investigative actions are currently underway to identify the perpetrators and establish all the circumstances of the incident.’

Izvestia also reported that Mr Cherezov’s wife had heard three shots but had not seen who opened fire on her husband.

Kyiv has targeted a range of Russian defence and military figures since Moscow sent troops into its neighbour in February 2022. Ukraine’s administration made no immediate comment on this latest attack.

Paul Joseph Smith was found dead in a wheelie bin after he is believed to have overdosed in a bath

A man suspected of carrying out an arson attack which killed an elderly couple was found dead in a wheelie bin a week later, an inquest has heard.

Paul Smith, 40, known as Smigger, is believed to have started the fire at the home of Sheila Jackson, 83, and her partner, Eric Greener, 77, in St Helens, Merseyside, last July.

The couple were rescued from the blaze but died in hospital from burns and smoke inhalation.

Smith’s body was discovered seven days after the attack, in a bin where it had been moved after he died in a bath, having taken a cocktail of drugs, an inquest heard on Wednesday.

The hearing at the Gerard Majella Courthouse in Liverpool was told police were called on July 22 by Steven Wales, who told them a man had either drowned or overdosed in the bath at a property at Coniston Street, Everton, two days earlier.

Senior coroner for Liverpool Andre Rebello said: “Merseyside Police were deployed and located a male, deceased, in a wheelie bin at the rear of derelict properties on Thirlmere Road, which backs on to Coniston Street and is separated by an alleyway.

“The deceased male was identified by police as Paul Joseph Smith.”

Mr Smith, who lived on Lower Breck Road, had last spoken to his family on July 19 and was reported missing by his brother Michael on July 21.

In a report, Home Office pathologist Dr Matthew Lyall said toxicology results showed Mr Smith had taken heroin close to the time of his death, as well as a “relatively large amount of cocaine” and a number of sedatives.

Dr Lyall said drowning could not be proved or excluded.

He added: “Neither can it be entirely excluded that the deceased was held under water by a third party, but pathological findings cannot prove that occurred.”

He recorded the cause of death as mixed drug toxicity.

The court heard that police were satisfied the death was not caused by criminality.

Mr Rebello said it was understood there were criminal proceedings ongoing regarding the disposal of the body.

Recording the death as drug-related, the coroner said: “He died from taking illicit and and sedative drugs which caused respiratory failure.”

Earlier this year Kevin Weetman, 34, Kylie Maynard, 37, and Lee Owens, 46, were jailed for the manslaughter of Mr Greener and Ms Jackson.

A trial at Liverpool Crown Court heard that Mr Smith had travelled with Owens to the home in South John Street just after 12.30am on July 15.

Weetman was jailed for life with a minimum of 25 years for planning the attack after Mrs Jackson’s son George Jackson, 48, refused to sell drugs for him.

Maynard, said to be the “trusted lieutenant” in Weetman’s drugs line, was jailed for 23 years and Owens was sentenced to 13 years and six months.

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IRFU and David Humphreys might have been onto something, giving themselves a direct line of communication to Schmidt with just over a year to go the World Cup

There was a lot to digest in the revelation that Ulster had snagged Joe Schmidt as Coach Development Advisor.

But there was a niggling feeling the headline was the main course and that the actual meal, oncee digested, wasn’t quite as substantial as it initially appeared.

It is good work to have added Clermont’s former Top 14 winning boss, the Heineken and URC winning Leinster boss, and Ireland Grand Slam winning coach.

The almost-insomniac, inveterate e-mail sender to all and sundry from World Rugby to referees groups, rules groups, anyone he has ever worked with, has always been an ideas’ mine and sounding board

And despite his newly created title, Coach Development Advisor, there is no doubt Richie Murphy will confide in him.

While I’d imagine there will be an Ulster function or two on the likely two/three visits here where he will be speaking.

Schmidt, understand, is always worth the plate-money.

His much nuanced and thought out views on leadership roles and responsiblities were highly prized on the Irish business circuit while his neat self-depracting humour sure helps to delivery.

Moreover, while there is a lot in it for Schmidt to get a couple of visits to Ireland where his son Tim is a ‘finance buisness’ advisor at Leinster.

While it is also likely dad will reconnect with some of the charities he worked with during his time here – there may well be a function or two in a rugby club near you.

Ulster will still be easy-up winners here even if Schmidt won’t be at training, sitting in a coaching box and will only have a minimal presence at a few games.

But the IRFU and David Humphreys might have been onto something, giving themselves a direct line of communication to Schmidt with just over a year to go the World Cup.The 60 year-old has just spent a year as part of the All Black set-up (2022-23) and three years as Australia coach.This means he has up to date dossiers on the top dozen teams in the world, not the All Blacks, Wallabies and the players that made up the 2025 Lions.

Watch this space as Andy Farrell will most likely use Schmidt as a distraction before the November internationals or the 2026 Six Nations.

But here is the real bet: Joe Schmidt to be given an ‘advisor’ or ‘consultant’ role with the Ireland RWC 2027 squad – think of Ulster as a retainer.

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A planning application was submitted to Hartlepool Borough Council for 44-46 York Road, proposing a new shop front at ground level and the conversion of upper floors into “HMO for up to six occupants.”

The applicant describes the scheme as providing high-quality, well-managed, shared accommodation in a sustainable location, contributing to local housing need, “particularly for young professionals and key workers.”

However, Hartlepool Councillor Karen Oliver has raised concerns about the density of HMOs in the area and the lack of outdoor space.

Councillor Karen Oliver said she is concerned over both the “over supply of HMO in York Road – both small and large” and “no outside facilities.”

Despite this, the application insists that the building is “suitably sized to accommodate six occupants without resulting in overdevelopment” and is in an “established residential area with good access to local services, public transport, and employment opportunities.”

The proposed layout includes two en-suite bedrooms on the first floor and four bedrooms with two off-suites on the attic floor.

There would also be a communal lounge and a combined kitchen and dining area on the first floor.

Developers have given assurances that the property will be properly managed to “minimise noise, waste, and anti-social behaviour” and maintained to “a high standard.”

A separate design and access statement says the proposal would introduce “much-needed commercial/office use and a six-bedroom HMO,” delivering “excellent accommodation within the York Road area.”

The plans also note that two parking spaces would be available from York Road, with a dropped kerb to be provided.

A decision will be made after the completion of public consultation.