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AIRPORT REOPENS AFTER CRASH Birmingham International Airport has reopened following a plane crash on Friday in which five people died. Full flight schedules have resumed and no further disruption is expected, an airport spokesman said. The airport reopened on Sunday morning and the first aircraft to touch down was a Lufthansa jet arriving from Frankfurt, Germany. GBH FIREMAN TO BE SENTENCED A fireman who fractured a colleague's skull with a Winnie The Pooh mug is due to be sentenced at Birmingham Crown Court for causing grievous bodily harm. Michael Andrew Mole, 41, of Tividale, was convicted last November after a trial at Wolverhampton Crown Court sitting at Brierley Hill. Mole attacked Peter Talbot during a row at Cradley Fire Station. MINISTER TOURS LEGAL CENTRE Solicitor General Harriet Harman is visiting Birmingham for a tour of the newly-opened Legal Advice Centre at the city's College of Law. The advice centre, set up in October last year, gives law students the chance to provide practical help to local people with legal problems. The minister will meet college director John James as well as students. BODIES RECOVERED FROM BLAZE Two people found dead after a blaze swept through a Tamworth house are unlikely to be formally identified for a few days, police said. The bodies were recovered from a semi-detached house on Hints Road after fire crews arrived at the scene, by which time the building was well ablaze. The cause of the fire is not thought to have been suspicious. HORSE OF YEAR SHOW MOVES TO NEC The Horse of the Year Show is moving from Wembley Arena to Birmingham's National Exhibition Centre. The NEC Group said a two-year deal had been signed with organisers Grandstand Media, with the first event at the NEC Arena planned for October 2002. The show's audience has doubled in the past four years, and the NEC move will provide extra space and facilities. BIG GAME PASSES OFF PEACEFULLY Police have praised the behaviour of the vast majority of the 28,218 crowd which watched the Stoke City versus Everton FA Cup tie. Police said a large operation in and around Stoke's Britannia Stadium had led to just three arrests. The arrests were for a public order offence, drug possession and a pitch invasion by a jubilant Everton fan. CHORUS OF APPROVAL FOR ARTWORK A musical work of art has proved to be an unusual hit with visitors to Walsall's New Art Gallery. The voices of 40 choristers are being transmitted through 40 separate speakers in the audio-composition by artist Janet Cardiff. More than 1,000 people recently visited the gallery on one day alone to listen to the composition, Forty Part Motet. CAN YOU HELP CATCH THESE ALLEGED HOOLIGANS?
APPEAL FOR INFORMATION Police are appealing for information about an incident in which a 75-year-old man sustained a broken hip. He was a passenger on a bus and suffered a fall. Police are trying to piece to together what happened. the incident happened in Fenton Street, Smethwick on 5/12/01 at 15:46. Anyone with information is asked to contact 0845 113 5000 and ask for traffic officers at Langley or call Langley road policing unit on 0121 544 7261. BIRMINGHAM BRIDES SOUGHT FOR TELEVISION SHOW
MPs TO EXAMINE THEATRE PLANS Plans to develop the Royal Shakespeare Company's home in Stratford are to be examined by a panel of MPs. RSC managers will meet representatives of the Department of Culture, Media and Sport's select committee to discuss the proposed £100m redevelopment. The RSC wants to demolish the existing 1930s theatre and create a waterfront village with a new auditorium. DEAD WOMAN 'MISSING FOR A WEEK' A woman found dead in the car park of a vet's surgery in Redditch, Worcs, had been missing for more than a week. Police have named the missing woman as mother-of-three Venetia Walsh, 40, of Lilac Close, Southcrest, Redditch. Mrs Walsh, found by a member of staff at Southcrest Veterinary Centre, may have been dead for several days. Police are treating the death as unexplained. DONOR DIED OF NATURAL CAUSES A coroner in Birmingham has recorded a verdict of death by natural causes on a 47-year-old man who collapsed during a blood donor session and later died. Christopher Taylor, of Halesowen, had a rare undiagnosed congenital heart defect which caused his heart attack. He was taken to hospital after the cardiac arrest at a mobile blood donor unit in Washwood Heath. MG ROVER LAUNCHES NEW CAR Details of a West Midlands-built high performance sports car, designed to replace the popular MGF, have been revealed by the MG Rover company. The car will be built at the Longbridge plant and will be available in four different models. The new MGTF will make its debut at next week's Brussels Motor Show and will go on sale next month. GBH FIREMAN SPARED JAIL A fireman who fractured a colleague's skull with a Winnie The Pooh mug has walked free from Birmingham Crown Court after the attack was blamed on stress. Michael Andrew Mole, 41, of Tividale, was convicted of grievous bodily harm by Wolverhampton Crown Court sitting at Brierley Hill last November. Mole was given 240 hours' community service for the attack on Peter Talbot. TECHNOLOGY INSIGHT INTO BRIDGE The mystery of a Shropshire bridge which changed the world has been solved by a conservation organisation. The Ironbridge, which spans the River Severn, was built in 1779 and was the first metal bridge in the world. English Heritage has used computer technology to discover that each part of the bridge was individually cast and tapered to fit as construction went on. MOTORWAYS REOPEN AFTER SPILLAGE Traffic is flowing normally again on the M6 near Birmingham after a chemical tanker crash caused rush-hour gridlock. Both south and northbound carriageways of the M6 from junction seven to junction 10, as well as the M5 at junction one, have reopened to traffic. The 10-mile stretch of the M6 was closed after a lorry, carrying 22,000 litres of liquid alcohol, overturned. HOLIDAYMAKER SUES BOY AGED 11 A holidaymaker badly hurt in a Majorca swimming pool accident is suing an 11-year-old boy from Nuneaton, hoping to win at least £2m. Anthony Madigan, 47, of Cardiff, was paralysed when he was allegedly struck from behind by Daniel Cooper. Mr Madigan's solicitor said he is suing Daniel for negligence and his parents for failing to supervise him. SHOPPING CENTRE TO BAN SMOKING A second Walsall shopping centre is to become a no-smoking zone later this year after research suggested even those who light up favour a ban. The Old Square is to follow the Saddler Shopping Centre, which introduced the policy in September, on March 13 - to coincide with National No-Smoking Day. A survey found that 72% - of whom 56% were smokers - back the ban. BUS ROUTES MADE PERMANENT Three Warwickshire Sunday bus services are to become a permanent fixture in the county's timetable after proving to be a success. The County Council launched the services in November on a trial basis and says it will continue to fund them. Routes 66, 67, and 68 link Leamington Spa with Warwick and Whitnash as well as the Shires Retail Park. WEST MIDLANDS POLICE DEMONSTRATE LOCALLY DEVELOPED CRIME FIGHTING TOOL TO FBI Officers from West Midlands Police have demonstrated FLINTS - one of the most advanced crime fighting tools in the country - to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The demonstration, to the intelligence section, took place at the FBI's headquarters in Washington. It followed an earlier presentation of the system to analytical staff at the world-renowned George Mason University. Assistant Chief Constable (Community Affairs) Nick Tofiluk, who is responsible for co-ordinating FLINTS, said the invitations had been an honour and privilege for the force. "We believe FLINTS is a major innovation as far as the use of intelligence is concerned and we were delighted to have been given this opportunity," he added. The visit to the USA took place at the beginning of December. ACC Tofiluk, accompanied by Chief Inspector Dick Leary and Sergeant Ken Griffiths, began with a conference in Dallas, Texas, where they addressed a group of law enforcement agencies. That was followed by a visit to Washington and the State Department. "The whole idea of the visit to the United States was to look at ways of sharing ideas about intelligence systems and training methods and looking at how these should be developed," said ACC Tofiluk. "Increasingly, police forces and other agencies are collecting huge amounts of data - but we have to ensure we can make sense of that data and use it effectively. "To do that we need to ensure that analysts are properly trained to be able to interpret the data and go on to produce results. "The visit gave us the opportunity of looking at how other law enforcement agencies are using data and training their analysts and, at the same time, share the ideas behind FLINTS with them." TALKS OVER TYRE PLANT JOBS Union officials are trying to seek assurances about the future of more than 1,000 tyre workers in a factory at Wolverhampton where jobs are being cut. Hundreds of jobs at Goodyear are going but the Transport and General Workers Union wants a commitment to employment levels being retained in future. Officials say they could take action if no promises on jobs are given FRESH APPEAL OVER INJURED MAN A fresh appeal has been made for help in the case of a Staffordshire man who has been in a coma for three months. Barry De Lecq Le Montais, 33, was found lying in a Rugeley street with serious head injuries on September 16 and has remained unconscious ever since. Police are trying to trace a man and a woman who were seen on CCTV in the Elmore Lane and Crossley Street areas HUNDREDS OF VEHICLES 'UNFIT' Hundreds of motorists in the West Midlands counties are driving vehicles unfit for the road, police say. West Mercia traffic officers examined the condition of more than 1,600 vehicles in Worcestershire, Shropshire and Herefordshire before Christmas. Immediate action was taken against 100 drivers and a further 300 were warned about the condition of their vehicles. RAIL MEMORIAL AT NEW HOME Sleepers, spikes and track from the Second World War Thai-Burma "railway of death" have been brought to Staffs. The track will form a permanent memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum of Alrewas to the thousands of Allied troops who died building it. Up to 50 former Far East prisoners of war were there to see the 30-metre section of line arrive. 8,700 MANUFACTURING JOBS LOST A total of 8,700 manufacturing jobs were lost in the West Midlands last year, a new report claims. A survey by the GMB union showed that 112,000 manufacturing jobs were axed in the UK in 2001, equivalent to one for every working minute of the day. General secretary John Edmonds said uncertainty over the euro had deterred UK investment by multinational firms. MAN ARRESTED OVER SEX ATTACK A man has been arrested in connection with a sex attack on a 78-year-old woman in Birmingham on New Year's Day. A West Midlands Police spokeswoman said the suspect was being questioned at a police station after the assault on the pensioner at her home in King's Heath. The victim was subjected to an ordeal lasting around two-and-a-half hours after she was woken by an intruder. FIGURES HIGHLIGHT MOBILE THEFTS Mobile phone thefts account for a large proportion of crime in Birmingham City Centre, figures show. The Home Office found that 41% of robberies in the city centre are phone thefts but they account for just 24% in the West Midlands as a whole. The Government has accused mobile phone companies of not doing enough to combat the huge rise in phone-related crime. MONEY DOES MAKE YOU HAPPY The old adage money cannot buy happiness is wrong - but you need a windfall of at least £1m to be euphoric, according to new research. A study at the University of Warwick found that receiving an inheritance or win of as little as £1,000 can improve people's outlook on life. But it found less than £1m is unlikely to have a lasting effect. ACTRESS DEFENDS THEATRE COMPANY A £100m revamp of the Royal Shakespeare Theatre is essential to get rid of Stratford-upon-Avon's "boring old fogey" image, a top actress has said. RSC member Sinead Cusack said she wanted the theatre to be open to all types of people. It came as MPs on the Culture Committee had questioned why £50m in Lottery cash was being ploughed into the project. CHRISTMAS DRINK DRIVE FIGURES SHOW SLIGHT INCREASE OVER LAST YEAR Figures for the West Midlands Christmas drink drive campaign have shown a slight increase compared to the same period last year. More than 12,500 motorists were stopped in the West Midlands during the Christmas and New Year period and just over 2,500 were required to give a sample of breath. Of those, 239 (9.9 per cent) were found to be over the drink drive limit or failed to provide a sample - a rise of 0.8 per cent compared to last year. Sergeant Brian Wevill, the force's road policing policy officer, said: "In view of the extensive media coverage this campaign was given it is a little disappointing to see a slight increase in the failure rate. "It is also disappointing to see the number of road traffic collisions, resulting in injury, rise for the second time in two years to a total of 248, and the number of drivers failing breath tests following these collisions double from 32 last year to 64 this year." He said that although the spell of snow and icy conditions may account in part for the increase in collisions, it did not account for the number of people found to be drinking and driving. "We have been extremely proactive and vigorous in our campaign this year, which may have led to the increase in detections for this type of offence," said Sgt Wevill. "While we are particularly conspicuous at this time of year, our message is relevant 365 days of the year - 'don't drink and drive, don't take drugs and drive and don't offer drink or drugs to someone who you think may be going to drive. Sooner or later you will get caught." CITY IN BID TO TACKLE DISEASE Birmingham is leading research into a potentially fatal rheumatic condition to find quicker ways of treating the disease and easing suffering. City Hospital and experts at the University of Birmingham are leading a clinical trial into vasculitis, which affects about 5,000 people in Britain. A total of 50 sufferers from around the UK are to take part in the tests. POLICE CHIEF'S BRAVERY AWARDS The Chief Constable of Staffordshire Police is to present six members of the public with awards for bravery. The six are to receive Certificates of Appreciation from Chief Constable John Giffard at a ceremony to be held at the police HQ in Stafford. Fifteen police officers are also due to receive a Certificate of Commendation for bravery in the course of duty. MAN ACCUSED OF STABBING A man is due in court charged with the wounding of a county council chief executive in Leamington Spa. Bruce Pullar, 33, of no fixed abode, will appear before Mid-Warwickshire magistrates charged with wounding and causing GBH to Ian Caulfield. He is also charged with causing actual bodily harm to Geraldine Caulfield and the theft of a purse and of burglary. MAN JAILED FOR COUSIN'S MURDER A businessman who enveloped his cousin in packing tape before dumping his weighted body in a West Midlands canal has been jailed for life for murder. Nirmal Singh Gill, 37, of Leicester, dumped Sarjit Singh Chauhan in the Birmingham Main Line Canal, Smethwick. Gill had denied murdering father-of-two Mr Chauhan, 55, of, Evington, Leicester, at Wolvehampton Crown Court. MP TAKES ON WAR GAME ROLE A Warwickshire MP has been revealed as the star of the world's biggest-selling military computer game. Warwick and Leamington MP James Plaskitt plays the platoon commander in Operation Flashpoint, which has sold more than a million copies worldwide. His role began when his photo was taken on a visit to the Warwickshire base of the game's makers, Codemasters. UNIONS SEEK PLANT JOBS PLEDGE Union officials have sought assurances about the future prospects of more than 1,000 workers in a Wolverhampton tyre factory where jobs are being lost. Hundreds of jobs at the Goodyear plant are being cut but the Transport and General Workers Union wants future employment levels to be be maintained. Unions are to report to workers on the outcome of a meeting with plant bosses. CLOTHING CHAIN CREATES 200 JOBS Clothing and furniture chain Laura Ashley is to buy land in Leicestershire to build a distribution centre for furniture, creating 200 jobs. The centre will be opened at Interlink Park, Bardon, in May, and the firm has already started recruiting. Not all the jobs will be in Leicestershire, as the firm will hire drivers in other locations in the UK. WOMAN, 62, RUN OVER BY THIEF A 62-year-old Black Country woman was left with a broken arm after a thief ran over her in a supermarket car park. The pensioner was loading shopping into her car at Asda at Great Bridge, West Bromwich, when a man pushed her to the floor from behind. He stole her handbag before getting into a grey Austin Montego and driving over her arm. ARMED RAIDERS STEAL SAFE CASH Two armed men forced a booking office worker to open a safe at Coseley railway station, near Wolverhampton, before fleeing with cash. The employee was confronted by the raiders, one of whom had a firearm and the other a knife. Central Trains is offering a £1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the offenders. CALLS FOR TOUGHER SAFEGUARDS Consumer chiefs and health watchdogs are calling for tougher safeguards in food outlets and factories after a hygiene study by a Birmingham academic. Madeline Smith, of the University of Birmingham, visited 43 city butchers. She found those who had been trained and implemented food safety management systems necessary for licensing showed a "significant improvement" in hygiene. POLICE PANTO TREAT FOR YOUTH CLUB Members of a youth club in Parkfields joined the audience for Goldilocks at the Grand Theatre - thanks to police in Wolverhampton. Thirteen children, aged from 9 to 16 years, were accompanied to the pantomime by neighbourhood watch warden Sarah Brookfield and Acting Sergeant Neil Bason, from Wolverhampton East operational command unit. Acting Sgt Bason said: "It's great to give these youngsters the chance to go to the theatre and see a great pantomime, they really enjoyed it. The youth club provides a haven for youths in the area, with members aged between 1 and 25 years. It helps keep them out of trouble and off the streets." ATTACKS HIT AIRPORT NUMBERS Passenger numbers at Birmingham International Airport fell by more than 5% in the last quarter of 2001 after the September 11 terror attacks. The monthly passenger total for December 2001 was down 6.4% on the same month in 2000. Overall 7,816,024 travellers passed through its terminals in 2001 - an increase of 2.8% on the previous year. NEW FACE PUT ON ROAD SAFETY Smiley, sad and straight faces are to be posted up next to speed cameras in Warwickshire as part of a road safety campaign, it has been revealed. The county council wants to depict the "range of emotions" associated with motorists who are caught speeding and the consequences of road accidents. The logos will be put next to the familiar speed camera signs. MYSTERY OVER TERRACOTTA THIEF A Birmingham headmaster has appealed for information over thefts which are threatening to strip his school of its historic Victorian architecture. Alan Tumber, head of Ladypool Primary School, said the building's terracotta adornments have been targeted. Mr Tumber said terracotta chimneys have been found bundled up in the school yard - ready for collection by a thief. FAMILY TREE HISTORY RECORDED People trying to trace their family tree through 1901 Census records are being offered an alternative to the internet by Staffordshire archivists. The Record Office said people were left frustrated after the online version of the 1901 people poll crashed. Entries from Staffordshire and parts of the Black Country are now on microfiche at the Record Office in Stafford. MAN CHARGED WITH STABBING A 33-year-old man has appeared in court in connection with the stabbing of the head of Warwickshire County Council. Bruce Thomas Pullar, 59, was remanded in custody when he appeared before Mid-Warwickshire magistrates in Leamington Spa. He is charged with wounding Ian Caulfield with intent to cause him grievous bodily harm. GIRLS, 13, ASSAULTED ON BUS Two 13-year-old girls have been indecently assaulted by four teenage boys on a bus in Birmingham. West Midlands Police said the victims were left unhurt but very shaken after their ordeal in Chelmsley Wood. A police spokesman said the attack happened on a 97 bus as it travelled along Bosworth Drive while heading into Birmingham city centre. BURGLARS STEAL PHOTOGRAPHS Burglars in Coventry have stolen a bereaved mother's only photographs of her deceased baby daughter. Police said the pictures were taken, along with two wallets containing jewellery, from a flat above Nands supermarket in Station Street East. Police said the woman, whose daughter died a year ago, was appealing for the return of the photographs. DEATH 'INSPIRATION FOR OPHELIA' A woman's suicide in the town were Shakespeare was born may have been the inspiration for the tragic character of Ophelia in Hamlet, it has emerged. Archaeologists in Stratford-upon-Avon have unearthed a well in which, according to local legend, jilted Margaret Clopton drowned herself. Experts from the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust believe there is a possible link. HOSPITAL APOLOGY FOR DEATH A hospital has apologised to the Birmingham widow of a war veteran who died two days after a heart bypass operation was cancelled. Eric Haka, 79, was due to undergo the life-saving surgery at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham. A spokeswoman said the hospital would like to apologise for any distress caused to Mrs Haka of Hall Green. MAN KILLED ON HONEYMOON A Derby man has died in a freak swimming accident on his honeymoon in Costa Rica, officials have revealed. Jamie Knight, 32, died after suffering neck injuries when he dived into the Pacific Ocean. Jamie, who married girlfriend Harriet only weeks before, was taken to hospital in the Costa Rican capital, San Jose, but died later. CITY CENTRE CCTV THAT CAN RECOGNISE YOUR NUMBER PLATE CCTV cameras across Birmingham city centre have been linked up to a piece of hi-tech kit which can read the number plates of vehicles on the roads, in a pilot scheme by officers from Central Birmingham operational command unit. The software, run from a laptop in the control room at Steelhouse Lane police station, allows officers to check vehicles against a crime database containing descriptions of vehicles that have been involved in crimes. Chief Superintendent Phil Raw, OCU commander, said: "We have an extensive database of vehicles that we know to be involved in breaking the law so it makes sense to connect it to our sophisticated network of cameras run by Birmingham organisation Citywatch. "It allows us to take immediate action if the system recognises a number plate, especially when a vehicle is stationery. "So far, the system has resulted in several hits and has lead to the arrest of three people involved in an armed robbery." The database includes the vehicles of disqualified drivers, stolen vehicles and vehicles without tax and will be specifically used to put a stop to travelling criminals who may move around the city committing a number of offences. "Our main aim is, like that of Birmingham Citywatch, to make Birmingham as safe as possible for all those people who travel into the city every day for work or recreation." OVER SIXTY ARRESTS SINCE THE START OF OPERATION NEW DEAL IN BLAKENHALL Launched officially at the beginning of December 2001, the New Deal for Communities scheme, which has invested £1.2 million into making Blakenhall and parts of Bloxwich and Leamore safer, has got off to a great start. West Midlands Police at Willenhall operational command unit have a dedicated team to cover the New Deal area who have already made over 60 arrests during dedicated police operations to prevent and detect crime since November 2001. Superintendent Peter Goodman, operations manager at Willenhall operational command unit, said: "During November and December, the New Deal area received 160 hours of extra patrolling and a further 90 hours has been scheduled for January. "These extra patrols are focussed on visiting Neighbourhood Watch co-ordinators, New Deal patch representatives and areas that have been particularly hit by burglaries and vehicle crime. "During November, six operations checking vehicles against a database of vehicles that have been involved in crimes were carried out. This resulted in 20 arrests for driving offences, drugs and theft." A vehicle Initiative on Bloxwich High Street and adjoining streets also commenced in November where officers carried out high visibility patrol and the use of a decoy vehicle in order to tackle vehicle crime. After just eight hours of this initiative, 19 insecure vehicles were identified and registered keepers were contacted. On the day of the launch in December, the police executed four warrants on properties in the New Deal area, which resulted in two arrests. Both arrests were for drug related matters and a firearms offence. During December two more vehicle checking operations were carried out in the New Deal area resulting in 33 arrests, these included driving offences, drugs, theft, and possession of an offensive weapon. "There are five more vehicle-checking operations planned for January. One operation has already been carried out resulting in six arrests for various driving and theft offences, " added Superintendent Goodman Chairman of New Deal for Communities initiative Mr. Tom Perrett, said:"I am delighted with the way Operation New Deal is developing and the stirling work being done by the dedicated team of officers. I am sure that the local community are feeling the benefits of the partnership between the Police team and New Deal." OFFICERS TO STAMP OUT BURGLARY AND CAR CRIME West Midlands Police today announced a new drive against vehicle crime and house burglaries in the Sedgley and Kates Hill areas of Dudley. Inspector Paul Roobottom of the Community Safety Bureau at Dudley North operational command unit stated that these crimes are causing particular concern in the area and that a number of initiatives are to be launched during forthcoming weeks. Inspector Roobottom said: "We urge vehicle owners and householders to be particularly vigilant in protecting their property and to report anyone acting suspiciously or who may be receiving stolen goods. "Good financial rewards are always available for information leading to the arrest of offenders and the strict anonymity of informants is always maintained." Anyone with information should ring Dudley North police on 0121 626 8127 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
Fifty Years of….
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