25/04/2017 Look North (East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire)

Welcome to the late Look North. The headlines tonight -

The phone went, and they said it was a flood warning, there may be

flooding in your area. I was waist deep in water at the time.

of high-street shopping leave the

That is too much retail space, and the sooner that they can find better

use of that space will help Hull is a location. And join me later for

the weather forecast. People hit by flooding on the east

coast earlier this year have called the Environment Agency's

early warning system a "joke". A new report about Hornsea

and Withernsea, where a number of homes and businesses

were flooded as huge waves breached the sea walls,

says sea defences and warning systems should be reviewed to avoid

a repeat of January's tidal surge. Here's our Environment

Correspondent, Paul Murphy. This is my kitchen,

as it is at the moment. Kathy Webb's home is still being

repaired and she will not be She lives just yards

from Hornsea seafront. This was the worst-affected area

of January's tidal surge. Ten properties were flooded,

and tens of thousands of pounds of On that night, Kathy

was rescuing her pet rabbits from flood water

when the phone rang. I was actually trying

to climb into the I held it up and it said,

"This is a flood warning, "there may be flooding

in your area". I was waist-deep

in water at the time. Today's report by East Riding

Council paints a picture It recommends improvements to sea

defences and flood drainage Better sandbag storage

and provision in Hornsea, that some properties in Hornsea

consider better flood protection. And that the Environment Agency

improves its flood warning system. The Environment Agency did not wish

to be interviewed about why Hornsea did not receive a specific alert

until it was too late, but in a statement, they said that part

of the reason was that strong winds predicted for that night by the Met

office arrived much earlier than had The Environment Agency are in

a difficult situation because they have a limited amount

of time in which to warn people about these events,

and often they may know a day or two days before that there is a chance

there will be a big storm surge event, but they have to be

careful not to cry wolf. There's little doubt, though,

that an early warning would have helped this seaside

business, which is only just If we'd have had sufficient warning,

I do think we could have We could have moved machines.

We could have fortified a lot more. It would have allowed us to have

some resources directly in the affected areas straight

away, and we could have But the size of the

surge and the waves meant that the flooding was bound

to happen one way or another. Many experts believe that tidal

surges are no longer freak events, that they will become more frequent

and more powerful. Today's report makes it clear that

Hornsea and towns like it will need to be better prepared

if they are to cope. Smoking could be banned

in children's play areas in Hull. The city council is

considering the plans as part of a review of the management

of open spaces. The changes could mean

a voluntary code of conduct for smokers or the creation

of tough enforcement measures. It's particularly

bad if children are If they are directly exposed

to smoke, that is bad for their health, but if they

are exposed to the idea that it is socially

acceptable, then they are more if they see adults doing

it on a regular basis. A man has been charged with five

offences of robbery and aggravated The charges are in connection

with a series of incidents last month in the Portland Terrace

and Ropery Road areas of Gainsborough and on

South Street in Morton. 36-year-old Clinton

Sentance is also charged Plans to upgrade the Birchwood

Leisure Centre in Lincoln have been approved despite strong opposition

from the community. The City of Lincoln Council wants

to spend more than ?1 million Campaigners are upset it'll mean

the loss of some sports groups The council says it's working

to find alternatives. The manager of one of Hull's main

shopping centres says the two major national brands which are pulling

out will quickly be replaced. Clothing giants Zara

and Dorothy Perkins have both confirmed they will not be

renewing their leases That's prompted concern amongst

shoppers and other retailers. Our Business Correspondent,

Leanne Brown, has more. When it opened ten years ago,

it was seen as a major boost to Hull's retail offering,

but now two leading because there are some good

shops in St Stephen's, but as long as they replace them

with something decent, Well, it's a shame, really,

because they are so convenient and they have everything

you need, virtually. I just think that instead

of in the department stores, having lots of them,

they could open the shops. I think generally we have got

some quite good stores, but I feel like if we don't maintain

the quality then people are just going to go to places like Leeds

and we are just going to lose out on the money

that we need for the town. But the manager of the shopping

centre isn't worried. The retail world changes in ten

years, and some brands come and go. Dorothy Perkins, that is

going to be two units. We have got two tenants we think

we'll take that one, and we feel we have got a major

new tenant for Zara, so there will be progressive changes

at St Stephen's over the six, Sports Direct is also

relocating, and, although Zara and Dorothy Perkins haven't given

specific reasons for leaving, some shop managers I've spoken

to say rent is particularly high. But visitor numbers are good,

with around 12 million people And smaller retailers

in the surrounding city centre streets are hoping those numbers

will be maintained, as the big stores do help to drive

the local economy. Yeah, we do need them, because once

properties are occupied, people come into the city centre,

and obviously we need a footfall of people going past our

shops to see us and come Fashion in particular

is a business with a shelf life, one that's come to an end

for two shops in Hull. We will find out which stores

will be restocking the I've been talking to retail

consultant, Andrew McVicker, and asked him what this decision

says about Hull. I think it tells us that Hull

is suffering the same sort of pressures that a number of retail

locations Some people are saying

they are asking too much rent. Is it that, or is it that people

in Hull have not got enough money to spend to satisfy

these retail giants? I think it is a combination

of factors, which ultimately means that Zara,

with its current business model, will struggle to make the level

of return in a place like Hull

that they are looking for. You said today that the city has got

to reposition itself to make itself more attractive.

What do you mean by that? I think it has got to

consolidate its retail offer. There is too much retail

space in a number of locations across the UK,

and the sooner it can find better uses of that space,

be it food and beverages, leisure, or outlets

for retail and, I think that will Why does Hull struggle

to attract brand names? cafe, no branches in Hull,

half a dozen in Leeds. Pret is highly reliant

on the number of office workers within a location,

and somewhere like Leeds, with its strong financial services, clearly

has those numbers of office workers, which Hull which

struggles to provide. So how hard is going be for Hull

to attract retailers of a similar prestige to

what they are about to lose in June and July,

or is it likely something

of a much lesser quality? Think it is well going to be

a challenge, but Hull remains a There is no reason that the right

format under the right offer cannot succeed in Hull in the future. Do

you think we will lose other big names like Topshop? I think that

Topshop are experiencing some pleasures at the moment, but Hull

remains an attractive place for a number of retailers.

In football, Lincoln City were given a guard of honour onto the pitch at

Maidstone tonight, after earning a place in League Two next season.

The game itself was not one for the history books.

Time now to have a look at the weather.

We have had all sorts of weather today, and this photo

sent in by one of our Weather Watchers, depicts

For tomorrow, much more of the same to come,

and similar through this evening and overnight as well.

Very heavy showers spreading down from the

north, really starting to confine themselves, though, to the east

A bit further inland will see a largely dry picture.

We could even see a few clearer spells , where

temperatures will drop low enough for it to frost.

Maybe even some ice on untreated surfaces in the far

So, we will start the day tomorrow on a very

cold note, some very heavy, potentially wintry, showers,

maybe some hail and some thunder mixed in there as well, but through

the course of the day, they should start to ease, and I think chould

to ease, and I think could

Temperatures tomorrow, up at about 9 Celsius, 48 in Fahrenheit.

Good evening. Another cold night lies ahead after what was a chilly

day for swathes of