23/02/2017 Midlands Today

The headlines tonight: so it's goodbye from me,

A woman in Wolverhampton dies from head injuries -

after a piece of debris is blown off a roof by storm force winds.

Everything has been shaking nonstop. I'm indoor Staffordshire, strong

winds brought down trees and HGVs. This is as bad as it gets, we are

struggling to stay on our feet. After Storm Doris caused chaos

throughout the country, when will there be calm? I will have the

details later. Also tonight: full speed ahead,

the final piece of legislation for building HS2 is passed -

we look at the winners and losers A woman has been killed

in Wolverhampton, after being struck on the head by a piece of debris,

blown off a roof An eye witness described

the object as a piece of wood West Midlands Ambulance

said the pedestrian died at the scene in the city centre,

after suffering very As you can see the cordon is still

in place, West Midlands Police is yet to release the identity of the

victim but we have been told in the past few minutes that the lady's

family has been informed of her death. Earlier this area of the city

centre was a hive of activity as police tried to gather evidence as

to what happened. From a busy shopping

thoroughfare to a no-go zone, West Midlands Police say a 29 your

old woman was walking past Starbucks when a piece of debris hit her.

Some shoppers say the strength of the wind in Wolverhampton has

It's a wonder to me, with how windy it was,

there wasn't more things falling off the roofs than there were.

My auntie phoned me up on the bus on the way here and she said,

do you know the main street in Wolverhampton is closed off?

She said apparently there's been an accident.

You've just got to expect it from the wind.

Police and fire crews have been busy here all day and as a consequence

some of the shops in this centre had to close.

Five hours on and the cordon is still very much in place

as the emergency services continue their investigations.

West Midlands Ambulance Service said it received no fewer than 15

Unfortunately when paramedics got here it was clear that the victim

had suffered very serious head injuries and they confirmed

This wooden panel is now being taken away to be forensically examined

and the Health and Safety Executive has been informed.

Police are now trying to piece together the sequence of events that

Earlier Starbucks released a statement to the BBC, saying they

are shocked and saddened by this terrible incident. And that they are

supporting the police with their investigation and they will remain

closed until further notice. Clearly the high winds have caused a lot of

problems and it is a reminder of how lethal they can be and how loose

objects can turn into missiles. Extremely sad to think that one

family tonight will have to come to terms with the loss of a loved one.

Thanks for joining us. The storm force winds have

been causing wide spread problems on our roads,

rail and for air travel. Rebecca Wood has been looking

at its impact across the Midlands. Driving rain and gale force winds

signalled the arrival of Storm Doris on the Staffordshire Moorlands.

Here, the winds Keane are gusting towards 70 mph and high sided

vehicles are struggling and it has been a busy day for Fire and rescue

teams. It proved too much for these HGVs and one by one they toppled

over, but thankfully there were no injuries. Fire crews had to battle

with the elements to rescue the driver, here, eventually walking to

safety. He was able to get out because the vehicle was on its side.

He is OK, no injuries. This is about as bad as it gets. We are struggling

to stay on our feet and the winds are in excess of 80 mph at the

moment. They often see the words of the weather here but for many today

came as a shock. -- the worse. We often get the brunt of things but

this is pretty extreme. Just a windy day. We are high up, this is Leek!

With callers to BBC local radio stations helping to chart the storm

progress, it was not just the West Midlands affected. I'm driving a

coach and it is absolutely murder. There is a tree down and electricity

cables are sparking over the road. Approach with great caution. Storm

Doris toppled callous trees, some bringing down street lamps and power

lines with them. -- campus trees. This the scene on the

A452 near Leamington In Hereford damage to the roof

of a new petrol station forced the closure for a time of the city's

main river bridge causing There were delays for motorists

on the A443 near Holt Heath, In many areas tree surgeons

were on standby Away from the roads

there were delays for train travellers too - this the Cross City

line near Sutton Coldfield. Many bus journeys were cut short

and long queues formed at Birmingham The advice from Highways Agency

staff at their Qunton control centre: don't travel

unless if you really have to - and if you do, keep

your wits about you. In excess of 60 trees have come down

in the region as a whole and quite a significant congestion and delays in

the region. In West Bromwich

garden furniture came blowing down the street -

bedroom furniture too in places! In Smethwick a poplar

80 feet tall crashed into the roof of a leisure centre

causing extensive damage There were many narrow escapes

across the Midlands, For the emergency services one

of their busiest days in years as the power of Doris held sway

across the region. And Rebecca joins us now from Leek

in Staffordshire and reports this evening of a woman in Stoke who has

been seriously injured Yes, thankfully things are calming

down, but it has been a very disruptive day. Down the road in

Stoke reports or woman in her 60s being treated at the Royal Stoke

University Hospital for serious injuries -- reports of a woman. It

is aborted a roof fell on her in a part of the city at around

lunchtime. -- it is reported part of a row. Storm Doris has caused huge

disruption on the railways. Yes, it really has. Seems at Birmingham new

Street with many people waiting, stuck, not able to get anywhere,

many lines are disrupted, not just because of trees falling, but

greenhouses and sheds falling, as well. No service on the Virgin

Trains service between London and Birmingham, and not good on the

cross city line is there. Suspended between Redditch and Lichfield.

Chiltern Railways have also stopped between Birmingham and

Kidderminster. Finally, what about the roads? They are not great. Many

of them blocked, queueing traffic on the M6 because we had a tree down.

In Staffordshire the a 52 at Kingsley all blocked. Because of

fallen power cables. Rebecca, thanks for joining us.

And we'll have more on the path of the storm -

and the forecast later in the programme.

Our other main new tonight - the high speed rail line, HS2,

The law needed to begin building work on the line,

between Birmingham and London, has been given Royal Assent.

It clears the way for construction of the first phase of HS2 to start.

It's been almost a decade in the planning, it will be

almost another ten years until the ?60 billion

Here's our Transport Correspondent Peter Plisner reports.

Here now today London got its link high-speed link to the continent...

It's been a long time in coming - this me was back in 2007

That day I'd been one a select number of people on board the first

train to Brussels via the new HS1 link to London St Pancras

and the possibility of HS2 was the talk of the train.

We've been mad about motorways for the last 30 years.

I think we've got to get mad about high-speed rail

And mad we got - and despite many saying that high speed

rail was too expensive, almost three years later

I was there when the then Prime Minister, Gordon Brown,

came to Birmingham to formally launch HS2.

It just means huge economic transformation is possible

and thousands upon thousands of jobs will be created as a result of it.

The plans would see the high speed line cutting a swathe

through the Warwickshire contryside on its way to stations

at the airport and NEC and Birmingham city centre.

But the announcement also meant thousands of blighted

Nowhere more so than here in Gilson in North Warwickshire,

once dubbed Britain's most blighted village.

Here, HS2 Limited has agreed to buy almost every

There are around 50 house in the village and virtually

Mike Duley has yet to sell and he's one of the last

It's very sad in a way but it was bound to happen.

When the railway comes it would be split in two and it becomes

Royal Assent is also a big blow for Joe Rukin -

the region's leading anti-HS2 protester.

A professional campaigner - he's devstated and

It's bewildering after seven years that it has come to this

because we have won every single argument but politics

But politcians appear to have been swayed by the prospect of thousands

of new jobs in places like Birmingham which is currently

experiencing something of a boom in development.

This is the new HSBC headquarters being built in Birmingham.

When it is completed next year more than 2,000 people will work here,

including 1,000 who will have relocated from London.

And part of the reason it's being built here is HS2.

Not far away, another major devlopment.

Also given a boost by the prospect of high speed rail.

From his office, Birmingham City Council leader John Clancy has

People want to bring their businesses and indeed

their headquarters to the city because they see that actually

in terms of the economic activity it makes sense,

but also nine years down the line, we are at the centre

of the economy of the UK in a new and very real way.

And during the next nine years while HS2 is being built,

development will also happen around Birimngham's second HS2

The man in charge of what's called UK Central reckons

It's a key catalyst for the growth agenda around UK Central Hub

and I think without HS2 the growth opportunities are significantly

So, big benefits, but also damage to the environment

With Royal Assent secured, it would seem that now there's no

stopping the arrival of the high speed train.

Peter's on the site of what will become the HS2 station serving

You have followed every twist and tile.

It's got Royal Assent, what have people been saying

about the fact it's finally going to happen?

Well, it's taken seven years to get to this point -

But that has allowed more time for debate

But ultimately HS2 enjoyed cross-party support

in Parliament and that seems to have a crucial factor.

Many still questioning why it won't be ready until 2026.

It won't be easy to build and it is not really needed until then.

Today we've been finding out what other questions

Yes, we know the plans, but how effective is it

It will mean faster journey times to places like London, 45 minutes, down

from one hour 22 minutes. People have been asking why it is costing

?56 billion. It would be good to understand how

we might afford this. It is a lot of money and that is for

certain. It could be spent elsewhere, many people are saying

that. But hopefully it will generate money by boosting the region's

economy. This is a question many people wanted to ask.

How much is it going to cost to use the train?

And will there be disruptions if there's any leaves on the rail?

We simply don't know at the moment, but there are expected to be

reductions in Inter-City services on the West Coast Main Line -

so it's hoped that might mean that HS2 tickets won't cost much more.

But we won't know about that until it opens.

If they are building a new lines - they will make

sure that there aren't any trees near the line!

We'll have more with Peter later, on the impact of HS2 on our region -

and we'll be hearing from some of those living in

The automotive engineering group, Liberty House, has announced plans

for a ?10 million centre of excellence in Warwickshire.

The firm, which recently rescued Coventry company Covpress

from administration, plans to build the facility next

Management also announced plans to develop a new Supercar,

as it continues to expand in the automotive production market.

Every car which is released in the country now has

We're the largest privately owned engineering business in the country

The polls remain open in the Stoke on Trent Central by-election.

Tristram Hunt resigned as the MP last month,

to take up a new role at the Victoria and

There are 10 candidates - the polling stations shut

We'll be in Stoke in our late bulletin at 1030.

And on BBC Radio Stoke there will be a special results programme

And there'll be updates from the count during Graham Torrington's

A jury's been told that a firearms dealer manufactured and supplied

home-made bullets found at more than 90 crime scenes -

including fatal shootings and a gun attack on a police helicopter.

It's claimed Paul Edmunds from Hardwicke near Gloucester sold

antique firearms to another dealer, along with ammunition -

who passed them to a criminal gang based in the West Midlands.

He denies the charges and the trial continues.

The police service in Northern Ireland and the Met Police

have been asked if they had advanced notice of the Birmingham pub

bombings, which killed 21 people in 1974.

The coroner overseeing the inquests has today asked them to disclose any

information they may hold about the attack, which remains

Our special correspondent, Peter Wilson was at today's

The families of some of those killed in the Birmingham pub bombings

gathered at the city's memorial to the dead.

Before walking the short distance to today's pre inquest hearing.

The inquest was ordered after new information alleged

that the police and security services in 1974 had advance

warnings that the bombings were due to take place.

Today the court heard that Government departments had uncovered

no such evidence but the coroner has asked for more searches

If the government comes back and says that they still have no

information, how on earth would that be possible?

When this is the biggest unsolved mass murder of England's history

And they are telling us they have no information,

The coroner Peter Thornton QC promised that the inquest,

when it does get underway later this year, will be thorough

21 people died and nearly 200 were seriously injured when two

Now the prison service, and the police in Northern Ireland

and the Metropolitan police have all been asked to disclose evidence.

We would prefer to have everything in the process because as you know

this is the last time for an independent investigation.

We prefer to have everything in, both disclosure and scope,

than leave anything out which may be significant.

So this is a good move by the coroner.

Peter Thornton, the coroner, clearly understands the public

He's authorised that a website should be set up so that everyone

can follow the hearings once they get underway.

Peter Wilson for BBC Midlands Today, Birmingham.

And the full inquest is expected to begin in September,

we will of course be following it here on Midlands Today.

Let's return to our main story, Storm Doris, which has been ripping

Shefali has been keeping an eye on its path,

this was exceptional - what caused it?

It was a result of Storm Doris deepening quite rapidly over a

period of 24 hours. The central pressure dropped by 24 millibars in

that period and it turned into what meteorologists have referred to as a

weather bomb, the process of explosive cyclo- Genesis. That is

what happens when you have a number of factors coming together, a strong

jet stream and a low pressure, and that is what occurred and it was

exceptional on this occasion. It also covered the whole of the

region. Often they are just one area. Weather watchers have been

very busy. Amber warnings still in force until eight o'clock, by the

way, and it has sparked a flurry of these pictures. Depicting the kind

of damage and debris that has resulted from the wind. The

strongest gusts were across Staffordshire, 71 miles per

recorded. Elsewhere wind speeds of 55-65 mph. More of that to come in

the next couple of hours. But those weather warnings will be lifted by

the time we get to eight o'clock this evening. After that things calm

down. Storm Doris is on its way out. But we will see more on that in the

forecast later. Our other main story tonight is HS2,

which has been given the final For dozens of communities up

and down the Midlands, Our reporter Bob Hockenhull

has been meeting some of the winners and losers -

living in the path of Abandoned, a thriving racing

stables. 50 horses were in training

at Horsley Brook farm Now all but one are gone -

sold off because HS2 will slice through a business built up

over 23 years. It is taking a third of my property,

and that is not right. But as I said... There are many other people

affected, I'm not the only one. We've been in this all our lives.

Things have got to change, unfortunately.

Ed is still waiting for his final compensation settlement.

But says HS2 means his past successes in the racing world

Water Orton Primary in Warwickshire -

it dates back to Victorian times - the new line will go

Hs2 has agreed to pay for a brand new ?5 million

school on a new site away from the construction work.

It would be fantastic to the children to have a new building

which will have very little maintenance and it will mean we can

focus our efforts on the education and learning and the enjoyment.

HS2 has proved painful for many people but clearly not

everyone in its path feels they are losing out.

Let's return to our Transport Corresondent, Peter Plisner,

who's at Curzon Street in Birmingham where the city's HS2

Peter, when will construction work actually start?

Some work has been done by engineers based in Birmingham, but we are now

hearing that proper construction will not start until the middle of

next year. Our preparation works start this year and what that will

mean is undertaking key survey work and ground investigation and

environmental work, such as relocation of local wildlife, but

major construction does not start until next year. Phase one was

approved today between London and Birmingham and phase two between

Leeds and Manchester, still on track, but that will take until 2023

over before that is open. Some work will start. In Curzon Street we are

likely to see hoardings going up to protect this historic building, the

first railway station built in the city and I'm being told that it is

the rarest railway building in the world. No surprise that they want to

protect the building, but don't expect construction of the station

to start any time soon. It will be 2020 before construction of the

Birmingham HS2 station actually starts. Thanks for joining us.

Pretty momentum day and there is more in-depth analysis on the BBC

website. The weather has been

dominating the news all day - We call it actually. I don't want to

give an agenda. It is on its way out. -- I don't want to give it a

gender. We have had a window on the damage which has been done, falling

trees and debris, the water whipping up into a frenzy. Plenty of

structural damage in various places and building damage. In

Staffordshire, we had up to 71 miles per. But it was quite widespread.

Across the region. The warnings are now decreasing. Storm Doris is now

heading to the east and it will continue in that direction before

its arts to die away. It would take a wing of concentric circles and

strong winds with it. Much lighter winds tomorrow and a ridge of high

pressure which will calm things down. It will make it much drier, as

well. The amber warning for strong winds will be lifted by eight

o'clock. In the next hour, then things will calm down but we have

another warning in place, that is for ice, later. Showery outbreaks

across the region. Heavy pulses in there, embedded in some of those

showery outbreaks, but they will be dying away later. Clear skies to

end. Dry conditions and temperatures dipping to just 1-2 across most

towns and cities and in rural areas near freezing. Across the North we

might have a bit of ice, across Staffordshire, for which we have a

warning. The ridge of high pressure working quite nicely. Plenty of dry

weather. Sunny spells, as well. Behind that, showery outbreaks of

rain, much colder air. Temperatures will rise to 7-8 and the winds

significantly lighter from the north-westerly direction. Just ten

mph. Tomorrow night, skies will clear further and we will see

temperatures dropping low enough for a touch of frost and showery

outbreaks again as we head into the morning.

A bit of calm after the storm. We will end our coverage of Storm Doris

with scenes from Birmingham new Street as well as other stations

where things have been pretty chaotic as travellers tried to block

their way around the disruption caused by the powerful winds. We

have been in the station since 130 and now we are getting a taxi from

our workplace. Very frustrating. The boards have stopped working. Train

appears, disappears, more and more people building up. Just madness. A

lovely young woman who lives in Stafford, she was coming by train to

Birmingham and she heard me asking about getting to Birmingham and she

said, do you want a lift? And she gave me a lift. The kindness of

strangers. Absolutely, she was called Bella and she was lovely. You

can keep up-to-date with the local travel situation on the BBC local

radio station and the local website. I'll be back at 1030pm,

when we'll be in Stoke on Trent with our political

Editor Patrick Burns, as the polls