24/07/2014 BBC Oxford News

Good evening. A teenage boy has drowned in the River Thames in

Buckinghamshire. It's thought Kyrece Marshall`Francis had gone into the

water to retrieve a ball. Police are warning people of the dangers of

going into rivers. Last year 45 people were killed by swimmhng or

jumping into rivers, lakes `nd quarries. Adina Campbell reports.

A tragic start to their sumler holiday ` these friends tod`y paying

their respects to a boy described as charming, friendly and sociable.

Kyrece Marshall`Francis had only been a pupil here at

But he'd made a wide circle of friends.

I was one of the first to know. It was such a shock to us.

He was a fun loving guy, always smiling.

One of my best friends has gone and I won't see him again.

This is an area between Marlow and Bourne End, and it was here that he

got into the river yesterdax afternoon. He had been playhng with

friends but got into troubld just 15 metres away from here.

One of Kyrece's friends then called the emergency services for help `

his body was later found by local search rescue teams.

At this time of year, as telpting as it may be, there are unsden

hazards in rivers, especially following floods this year.

There is a lot of debris and currents on the river.

They can be dangerous places, unfortunately.

Earlier, those who knew Kyrdce went on a special group walk to

His school say the teenager's death has left

The developer Costain has bden fined more than half

a million pounds after the death of a man from Oxfordshire on one

Mark Williams from Nuneham Courtenay was crushed by a forklift truck

Earlier this year, Costain, was found guilty of breaching health

Charlotte Stacey reports from Reading Crown Court.

Last Sunday, family and fridnds gathered to remember Mark Whlliams.

After a lengthy trial, the developer of the site he had been working

on when he died were fined ?525 000 for health and safety breaches.

I just hope it does not happen to anyone else.

The fine to me is irrelevant, really.

Because Mark will never walk through the door again.

Mark had been working on thd site at this shopping centre in Newbury.

The machine he was operating fell and crushed him.

In sentencing today, the judge described Mark Williams

as a loving son, partner and father to two children.

She said Costain fell short of its obligations and that lessons have

not been learned from two previous incidents where the company had been

She said the amount not reflect the value of Mark Williams's life,

but rather reflected the breaches in health and safety.

We asked the company for a statement but they refused to comment.

We would hope that as the construction industry continues

to improve, that contractors realise they must manage thd risks

that go alongside that and this hopefully reinforces that mdssage.

The family will not receive any of the money,

They say that they intend to claim for compensation for his datghters.

A former head teacher who now lives in Oxford has denied sexually

David Tuohy is accused of assaulting the boy ` who went to

the old Eccles Hall School in Norfolk ` in the mid`sevdnties

It's claimed the assaults started when the boy

Mr Tuohy is expected to facd a trial in November.

There's a new approach to challenge of filling in potholes in Whltshire.

The council has started using a machine called The Velocity Patcher.

As the name suggests, it can patch`up the holes at a much faster

And speed matters when therd are five thousand potholes to fhll.

If potholes are the problem, then how about this for a solution?

It makes swift work of holes and cracks in the tarmac th`nks to

It blasts the rubbish out then blasts in the mix of chippings

It's fast, efficient and it's cheaper too.

While an average pothole repair costs up to ?55, a velocity repair

The road doesn't need to be closed as the machine is mobile and repairs

which are ready straight aw`y are actually designed to last for years.

It is capable of taking 40 tonne lorries within

It compacts itself at such a high velocity that it s

Hence the reason I'm able to lean on it here today.

The Velocity isn't the complete solution though.

Main roads like A and B roads need different types of rep`ir.

And at the moment this machine is still on trial.

We will always suffer from potholes, our job is to repair them

as quickly as we can and thhs gives us the tool in our armoury

This is the first year of using them.

We will evaluate the impact after a few weeks.

We are hitting the numbers and the costs.

Wiltshire has over 2,700 miles of roads.

The cost to completely resurface them would run

But with systems like the Vdlocity, the council at least hopes to stay

on top of pothole repairs and keep road users moving safely on.

People in Banbury are being offered cheaper rent if they do somd of the

work to renovate derelict houses. These four storey properties on

Broughton Road had been empty for several years. But the houshng

project run by Cherwell District Council ` has led to their

refurbishment. The scheme is part of the council's wider plans to provide

It was one of the most signhficant archaeological discoveries

of the 20th century ` the excavation of the tomb of Tutankhamen.

Now a new exhibition with artefacts that have never before been

on public display is opening at the Ashmolean museum in Oxford.

It's 1922, in the Valley of the Kings near Luxor in Dgypt.

After 16 years of extensive excavation work, Lord Carnarvon

and archaeologist Howard Carter s persistence pays off ` they've just

discovered the undisturbed tomb of the boy king ` Tutankhamtn.

When they found the rock stdps down to the tomb, they discovered

something that had lain untouched for such a long time and it was

Soon, photographs of the tolb and its spectacular contents

Some of those objects have been brought together in the Ashlolean's

exhibition in Oxford, including Harry Burton's iconic photographs

Their discovery caused a sensation throughout the 0920s,

it became known as Tutmania ` there was even a dance named

It is wonderful that the museum has this exhibition to explain

the background of people involved, my great`grandfather

and how it impacted on the world, in fashion, art and design.

The tale of Tutankhamun and the mystery surrounding

his death continues to faschnate both the public and scholars alike.

Alexis is coming up with thd weather forecast. It's looking like another

hot day tomorrow. That's it from us for tonight. Goodnight.

Hello, good evening, a dry night to come, but humid with temper`tures

Because of this, much of the region will stax dry.

Under clear skies, very mild temperatures but

the good news is, tomorrow, a decent day starting with lots of stnshine.

Temperatures shooting up into the high 20s in Celsius, 2 ,

Some fair weather cloud in the afternoon, but staying dry tomorrow

The wind is light and we do it all again on Friday.

The outside chance of a shower late in the day for eastern areas.

Saturday, dry. Coming up next, the national weather forecast.

from the north. The national picture comes from Philip Avery.

Unusually, I can say good morning. Wednesday has been noticeable for a

number of reasons. From a meteorological point of view, it was

the warmest