5:44 am, October 9, 2022
Tributes paid to 10 petrol station blast victims
Tributes are being paid to the ten victims of a devastating explosion at a petrol station in Ireland.
Friday’s blast at the service station in Creeslough, Co Donegal is being treated by Irish police as a ‘tragic accident’.
The huge explosion claimed the lives of four men, three women, two teenagers – a boy and girl – and a girl of primary school age. Taoiseach Micheal Martin said the ‘entire nation’ is mourning following the tragedy.
Putin tightens security after blast on bridge
An explosion yesterday caused the partial collapse of a bridge linking the Crimean Peninsula with Russia, damaging an important supply artery for the Kremlin’s faltering war effort.
Nobody immediately claimed responsibility for the blast, which killed three people, but Ukrainian officials have repeatedly threatened to strike the bridge. Some lauded the destruction, but Kyiv stopped short of claiming responsibility.
Putin signed a decree late last night tightening security for the bridge and for energy infrastructure between Crimea and Russia, and put Russia’s federal security service, the FSB, in charge of the effort.
‘I’m glad he’s dead’
A former wife of notorious serial killer Peter Tobin has said she is relieved at the news of his death.
The murderer, rapist and paedophile died in hospital on Saturday aged 76 after becoming unwell at HMP Edinburgh where he was serving three life sentences. Detectives have long suspected Tobin had more victims, but the killer refused to admit to any more murders despite officers questioning him on his deathbed.
Cathy Wilson, 52, told the Sunday Mirror: ‘He was a monster and there is a feeling of relief that he is now dead.’
Ministers urge Tories to rally behind Truss
Four Cabinet ministers have urged colleagues to rally behind Liz Truss as the PM battles to steady the Tory ship following a week blighted by infighting.
Home Secretary Suella Braverman, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Nadhim Zahawi, Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt and Environment Secretary Ranil Jayawardena have all penned articles calling on the party to unite around its new leader or risk ending up in opposition.
A No 10 source said the ‘cold hard reality’ is the party must ‘get behind Liz’ or wind up with a ‘monstrous coalition of Labour and the SNP’.
Banned fans must hand over passports
More than 1,300 people subject to football banning orders will be forced to hand their UK passports to police under measures that come into force on Friday.
The measures will prevent violent and abusive football fans in England and Wales from travelling to the World Cup in Qatar next month.
The Home Office said those who fail to hand over their passport and attempt to travel to the tournament could face six months in prison and an unlimited fine.
Drugs worth £15.5m seized by warship
A Royal Navy frigate has seized £15.5m worth of drugs from a dhow in the Arabian Sea in its fifth narcotics raid this year.
HMS Montrose targeted the small vessel after the ship’s Wildcat helicopter tracked the movements of the suspect boat.
A boarding party of Royal Marines searched the vessel and found 870kg of crystal methamphetamine in a secret compartment following the six-hour operation. The haul has a wholesale value of £15.5m, according to the National Crime Agency.
North Korea launches more missiles after US drills
The South Korean military said North Korea has fired two ballistic missiles toward its eastern waters, the latest in the country’s barrage of weapons tests in recent days.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement the launch occurred early on Sunday but gave no further details, including how far the weapon may have flown.
The Japanese government also said North Korea fired what was a possible ballistic missile.
UK exports lamb to US for first time since 1989
Liz Truss has hailed a ‘milestone’ for the UK’s rural economy as British lamb has been exported to the US for the first time in more than 20 years.
President Joe Biden committed to lifting his country’s decades-old ban on imports of the British meat in September 2021, in a move that delighted UK sheep farmers – with the market worth an estimated £37m in the first five years of trade.
The government has now confirmed the first shipment was made this week, containing lamb produced by meat processor Dunbia from its site in Carmarthenshire, Wales.
Saturday Car Dealer headlines
- Auto Trader branded ‘expensive’ but ‘valuable’ by car dealers in anonymous survey by stock broker
- Family-owned car dealer Masters of Beckenham sees profit slump
- Online retailer Vansdirect appoints Samantha Ward as new managing director
Hybrid-powered Dacia Jogger to debut
Dacia has confirmed it will reveal a new hybrid version of its Jogger MPV at the Paris Motor Show later this month.
The ‘140 hybrid’ engine uses a similar powertrain to those already found in Renault models – pairing a 1.6-litre petrol engine with twin electric motors.
It will be available to order early next year, with deliveries arriving in spring 2023.
Weather outlook
Today will be cloudy in the north and west but it will remain dry and sunny in the south-east, reports the BBC. A band of heavy and blustery rain will move across Scotland, Northern Ireland, and northern England.
Tonight, the band of rain will sink into England and Wales from the north-west, with clearing skies behind it.
Tomorrow will see cloud and patchy rain clear the south-east through the morning to leave a dry and sunny day for most. Blustery showers will blow into the north-west at times.
