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Live Reporting

Harry Parkhill

All times stated are UK

  1. Five things we didn't know this morning

    Harry Parkhill

    BBC Local Live, Lincolnshire

    That's all for our live updates for this week, but do keep checking back with the BBC news website for breaking news over the weekend.

    I'll leave you with five things we didn't know this morning:

  2. Pilgrim Hospital fire: Staff treated for smoke inhalation

    Harry Parkhill

    BBC Local Live, Lincolnshire

    Nine members of staff at Boston's Pilgrim Hospital have been treated for smoke inhalation after a fire broke out in a kitchen area.

    Ambulances are no longer being diverted to other hospitals and the A&E department has been fully re-opened.

    Although acute stroke service will continue after 18:00 this evening, the hospital trust doesn't know when the ward itself will reopen.

    If you've missed the story so far, here's a recap:

    View more on twitter
  3. New lifeboat arrives in style

    Tomorrow this beauty will be officially named the Joel and April Grunnill.

    Today, it's arriving on Lincolnshire's shoreline in style, watch this:

    Video content

    Video caption: The Lincolnshire RNLI's new lifeboat is set to be officially named.

    The boat is being named after two members of the Grunnill family who have donated hundreds of thousands of pounds towards buying the new boat.

    Last month Skegness waved goodbye to "The Lincolnshire Poacher" which was retired from the lifeboat station there.

  4. Paedophile rugby coach jailed

    A Lincolnshire rugby coach with a self-confessed interest in young girls has been jailed for three years after being ensnared by a police sting.

    Jacob Cook, 30, from Woodhall Spa, was caught by an officer pretending to be a 13-year-old girl online.

    Cook requested photos of the girl and asked to take her virginity.

    He also admitted three charges of making a total of 230 indecent images of children.

    The man was jailed for three years and given a seven-year sexual harm prevention order.

    Sentencing, Judge John Pini said that paedophile offences are "very worryingly on the increase".

    Quote Message: These offences are significantly and very worryingly on the increase. Hardly a week goes by without this court seeing cases of young girls being groomed online by older men. These offences are... very worrying to the courts and they cause very considerable public concern. from Judge John Pini
    Judge John Pini
  5. Three casualties in Skegness fire

    Helen Gardner

    BBC Radio Lincolnshire Reporter

    Away from the fire at Pilgrim Hospital, which caused a ward to be evacuated , Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue have been attending a different blaze in Skegness.

    East Midlands Ambulance Service say that three people were treated by paramedics at the scene.

    One person has been taken to Lincoln County Hospital for treatment.

    engines
    engines
    engines
  6. Council decides how to spend £5.4m road fund

    Harry Parkhill

    BBC Local Live, Lincolnshire

    £5.4m worth of government funding will be spent improving the A17, according to Lincolnshire County Council.

    a17

    Improvements to the A17 at Gedney, Holbeach and in Sleaford are planned.

    The county council also intend on spending some of the money improving junctions on Wragby Road in Lincoln, making significant repairs to the Louth Bypass and sprucing up bus shelters across the county.

  7. Work on Lincoln's bus station begins

    Harry Parkhill

    BBC Local Live, Lincolnshire

    You may have experienced the disruption in Lincoln caused by the building work on the transport hub.

    Well, good news is, it's taking shape nicely:

    construction

    You may have seen the assembly of the multi-storey car park (pictured in the background) taking shape in the last few weeks.

    Now the first pieces of the new bus station have been erected on the site.

    The £30m Transport Hub project will include 1,000 parking spaces, the new bus station, and improvements to the railway station.

  8. Marmalade sandwich hunt and Paddington sculpture in Skegness

    Harry Parkhill

    BBC Local Live, Lincolnshire

    How he's going to get his marmalade sandwiches out from underneath this hat I don't know, but Paddington Bear has arrived in Skegness:

    Paddington sculpture

    The famous teddy bear has been immortalised in cement for a Marie Curie cancer event at Hildred's Shopping Centre in Skegness.

    A Mr Brown sculpture will also be joining the young bear for the Easter event, which includes a hunt for marmalade sandwiches hidden around the shopping centre.

    But children should be on their best behaviour because this bear will give a VERY hard stare... 

    Paddington sculpture
  9. Isle of Man TT: Lincolnshire rider to run own team

    Double TT race winner Gary Johnson will run his own team at this year's event in the Isle of Man.

    Gary Johnson

    The Lincolnshire rider will run the all-new GSX-R Suzuki in the Superbike, Senior and Superstock races and Triumphs in the two Supersport races.

    He told  BBC Sport : "I'm feeling as strong as I've felt over the last few years and although it's a massive undertaking to run my own team, I'm really focused."

  10. Cheques Bomber Command Memorial

    Rod Whiting

    BBC Radio Lincolnshire

    The last surviving Dambuster has been at Lincoln's International Bomber Command Centre memorial today to present a £6,500 donation to the centre.

    Martin Withers and the Vulcan to the Skies trust donated the money after Nicki Barr from the centre told the BBC the centre still needs £2m before it can open to the public.

    George "Johnny" Johnson, 95, who took part in the 1943 air raid on German dams, presented the cheque today:

    cheque
  11. Missing man from Holbeach

    Harry Parkhill

    BBC Local Live, Lincolnshire

    Lincolnshire Police are increasingly concerned for the welfare of a 24-year-old man who's been missing for more than two weeks.

    James Dalrymple was last seen on 15 March and may have travelled to London. He is slim, 5'8" tall with short, fair hair.

    Police want him to make contact with family, police or the  Missing People  charity. 

    James Dalrymple
  12. Pilgrim Hospital fire: What we know

    Harry Parkhill

    BBC Local Live, Lincolnshire

    A fire at Boston's Pilgrim Hospital this morning was tackled without any injuries, here's what we know:

    fire
    • The hospital trust says day case appointments and operations have been cancelled, but outpatient appointments are going ahead as planned
    • The blaze caused smoke damage to the building and people working at the hospital have said some units still smell like smoke
    fire window
    • Eight engines were at the hospital this morning. That's been scaled back to just two
    • Fire officers have yet to confirm the exact cause of the fire
    fire
  13. Headlines this lunchtime

    Charlotte Wright

    BBC Radio Lincolnshire

    Let's have a quick look at some of the top stories in our Lincolnshire newsroom today:

  14. Pilgrim Hospital fire: "Quick-thinking" firefighters prevented injuries

    Jake Zuckerman

    BBC Look North

    Quick-thinking firefighters and hospital staff have been praised for their work moving about 25 patients from a ward after a fire at Pilgrim Hospital in Boston.

    The speedy actions of the crew meant the blaze was extinguished without any injuries to staff or patients.

    Matt King is from Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue:

    View more on twitter

    The blaze caused some smoke damage to the one of the wards in the hospital:

    Smoke-stained window
  15. Coastal path for entire English coast

    Harry Parkhill

    BBC Local Live, Lincolnshire

    It's an ambitious plan, but Natural England are working on creating a good quality path along the entire English coast.

    They're currently working on sections between Mablethorpe and Skegness.

    anderby creek

    Although there are paths already on England's coast, the hope is to link them all up and improve them.

    Andrew Best, senior adviser at Natural England, says some areas have better paths than others, and it's a case of "joining these bits together".

    Quote Message: We can improve paths, we can make sure it's really well signposted and make sure it's crystal clear where to go. There are places we can improve the surface and create little link paths. from Andrew Best Senior Advisor - Natural England
    Andrew BestSenior Advisor - Natural England
  16. Veteran campaigns for Bomber Command Centre

    Harry Parkhill

    BBC Local Live, Lincolnshire

    The last surviving Dambuster has responded to a campaign to give him a knighthood by telling people to donate to the International Bomber Command Centre (IBCC) in Lincolnshire.

    Johnny Johnson, who took part in the experimental bouncing bomb attack on German dams in 1943, says people should "dig deep" and support the memorial near Lincoln.

    View more on twitter

    The IBCC (pictured) still needs £2m before it's completed.

    ibcc
  17. Pilgrim Hospital fire: Pictures from the scene

    Hope Bolger

    BBC Radio Lincolnshire

    I'm at Pilgrim Hospital in Boston this morning where the fire service has been attending to a fire.

    There's been a fire, which police say was caused by a microwave on the ninth floor.

    This is the scene now, some of the fire engines have left:

    hospital with fire engines

    Keith Brockelsby who is a patient in the hospital has sent us these photos from earlier:

    view from inside
    hospital
  18. Pilgrim Hospital fire: Ambulances being diverted

    Harry Parkhill

    BBC Local Live, Lincolnshire

    Ambulances to Boston's Pilgrim Hospital are being diverted to other sites after a minor fire this morning.

    fire engines at hospital

    Lincolnshire Police say that the fire is thought to have started at just after 06:00 today.

    They say early indications suggest it was caused by a kitchen microwave.

    United Lincolnshire Hospitals says that the incident is under control and there is no immediate danger to staff or patients.

    Day case appointments and operations have been cancelled, outpatient appointments are still going ahead.

  19. Blueprint for tackling crime released

    Harry Parkhill

    BBC Local Live, Lincolnshire

    Lincolnshire's Police and Crime Commissioner says the abuse of elderly people and those with learning difficulties are a priority for future policing.

    Marc Jones (pictured below) says the police will work with partners to "disrupt threats to the vulnerable" including "targeted scamming".

    It comes as part of the PCC's new plan for tackling crime in the county.

    pcc

    Other priorities identified by the commissioner are:

    • Reducing re-offending with a new offender management programme.
    • New compassionate services that support victims of domestic abuse and sexual crime through the criminal justice process.
    • Support for Neighbourhood Watch-style volunteer schemes.
    • Investment in technology to help officers spend less time at a desk and more time on the beat.