Hereford

West Mercia Police have called on people not to ignore signs of domestic abuse.

Det Insp Liz Warner, who leaders on domestic abuse for the force, tweeted that it was "no different" to seeing a "neighbour's car being broken into" and said it should be reported to police.

Her comments came after reports officers were called to reports of a row involving Boris Johnson and his partner Carrie Symonds, in Camberwell, south London.

At a hustings in Birmingham at the weekend, Mr Johnson refused to answer questions on the incident.

His supporters have said it was a private matter. One of them, Priti Patel said the neighbour's decision to record the dispute and pass to a newspaper suggested the action had been "politically motivated".

Defending his actions, neighbour Tom Penn told the Guardian he had been worried about his neighbours' safety, adding: "I hope that anybody would have done the same thing."

Det Insp Warner said it was important to "use this moment to correctly educate people". She urged anyone with suspicions to call 101 or 999 in an emergency.

Thunderstorms and showers are likely tonight with weather warnings in place until the end of Tuesday.

The Hereford Times is covering these stories today:

• Plan to close Post Office and stores
• Villagers take part in major European research
• Lancaster Bomber flypast planned for Herefordshire festival

Physical attacks on paramedics have risen by nearly a quarter in a year, latest figures have revealed.

West Midlands Ambulance Service

West Midlands Ambulance Service said in April and May, 80 ambulance staff were physically assaults, 15 more than the same months in 2018.

Over the same period, verbal attacks increased as well, from 102 to 165.

But the service said "security incidents", such as theft of property, fell from 46 to 38.

Severe weather warnings for thunderstorms are in place across the West Midlands with flooding and travel disruption expected to continue throughout the day.

The Met Office warning is in place until the end of Tuesday.

It will be dry and bright at times but also some showers with highs of 22C (72F).

It should be a dry night with largely clear skies and lows of 7C (45F).

The severe weather warning for thunderstorms across the West Midlands has been extended to Tuesday.

Localised flooding, lightning strikes and up to 30mm of rain in an hour is possible between 12:00 on Sunday and the end of Tuesday, said the Met Office.

Three stories from the Hereford Times today:

• Farm worker was killed by falling machinery
• Pop up shop for independent businesses
• Herefordshire girl becomes headteacher for a day

It will be a dry day with a good deal of sunshine and highs of 18C (64F).

Any lingering rain should clear to leave a dry night with lows of 9C (43F).

Thunderstorms are set to bring more travel disruption and possible flooding across the whole of the West Midlands at the beginning of next week.

The Met Office has issued a yellow warning for severe weather starting at 15:00 on Sunday until the end of Monday.

Where thunderstorms do develop, 20 to 30mm rain may fall locally in an hour, and close to 40mm of rain may fall in two or three hours, it said.

After some patchy rain it should be a largely dry day with highs of 18C (64F).

The new leaders of Herefordshire Council are asking what the costs of scrapping the Hereford bypass and southern link road would be.

The coalition group includes Green Party members who were elected on a promise of scrapping the bypass and it has asked officers to draw up a report on the likely financial implications.

Google

No decision on the plans have been made yet, but the leader of the Liberal Democrat group on the council, Terry James, said scrapping the bypass would be "financial suicide".

And the former Conservative councillor responsible for infrastructure, Philip Price, estimated the immediate cost would be around £10m, with "immeasurable" damage to the potential growth of the county.

We should get a dry start to tonight with clear spells. Here's the full forecast, including for Thursday in the West Midlands:

Keep up-to-date with the weather where you live by visiting the BBC Weather website at any other time.

While they're at lunch at Chester Road, Kidderminster, on the second day of Worcestershire's rescheduled game with Sussex, things are now looking a little brighter 15 miles away back at county headquarters, at New Road.

It has stopped raining, the River Severn has now reached its peak, the waters are starting to recede and the clean-up operation has begun in parts of the ground.

Worcestershire CCC on Twitter

Ged Scott - BBC Sport

On past experience, it usually takes three weeks to get the place ready for cricket again after a New Road flood, which would wipe out next week's one-day game against Australia A, on 25 June.

But the next home game after that, the Championship fixture against Derbyshire on 7 July, at least looks a reasonable target.

The club are yet to comment on how long they expect to be at Kidderminster this time.

A survey of 13 UK rivers including the River Severn and the River Wye has found they all contain tiny pieces of plastic known as microplastics.

In one hour, researchers from Greenpeace found 42 pieces of plastic measuring less than 5mm were in the Severn and 10 in the Wye.

BBC

The microplastics ranged from fragments of straws and bottles to tiny microbeads, which are now banned.

The charity is calling for the Government to introduce "bold" new plastic reduction targets and create an independent watchdog with powers to enforce them.

Any overnight rain should soon clear away and we're set for a dry, sunny day:

You can get a latest forecast for your area at any other time by heading to the BBC Weather website.

Areas of showery rain will move in this afternoon with more widespread rain expected throughout the night and lows of 12C (54F).

Ambulances carrying 20 patients had to wait more than an hour to be admitted to the Royal Stoke Hospital yesterday because of "annual maintenance" at its accident and emergency department.

BBC

The hospital said "processes for ambulance handover were delayed and had an impact on the number of ambulances waiting at the emergency department for a brief period yesterday".

It said improvements had been made today.

West Midlands Ambulance Service said it sent someone to help manage the hold-up yesterday and said it brought 205 patients to the A&E department - lower than the expected number.

Here are three of the stories featuring in the Hereford Times today:

• Cider-maker crowned best in country
• Major delays after crash at busy junction
• 'Callous' gang were 'cash mules' in scam

Heavy rain and thunder could cause travel disruption across parts of the West Midlands later, the Met Office is warning.

A yellow severe weather warning is in place from 18:00 today until 21:00 on Wednesday.

Met Office

Thunderstorms may bring torrential rain, with anything from 15mm to 50mm expected.

After a largely dry morning cloud will thicken and areas of showery rain will move in with highs of 18C (64F).

It will be a largely dry night with the chance of isolated showers and lows of 10C (50F).

The Hereford Times' headlines today include:

• Cancer patient's anger at overcrowded Hereford trains
• 'Callous' gang were 'cash mules' in scam against elderly
• Shaggy-top pony is mane attraction on common

Flood warnings are still in place for:

• River Severn at Court Meadow, Kempsey and Callow End

• River Severn at Quatford
• River Vyrnwy at Maesbrook
• River Vyrnwy at Melverley

These are the flood alerts:

• Kempsey Village
• River Avon in Worcestershire

• River Severn in Shropshire
• River Severn in Worcestershire
• River Sow and River Penk
• Severn Vyrnwy Confluence
• Tern and Perry Catchments
• The River Dee Catchment in England from Whitchurch to Chester

Heavy rain and thunderstorms are likely to cause travel disruption across parts of the West Midlands.

A severe weather warning is in force from 18:00 Tuesday to 21:00 Wednesday.

Five flood warnings and eight flood alerts are still in place.

It will be a cloudy day with some showery rain this afternoon and highs of 20C (68F).

Can we expect the rain to dry up over the next few days?

Here's the weekend forecast.

These are the places currently on flood alert across the West Midlands:

• Bow and Piddle Brook, Worcestershire
• Burton Trent, Staffordshire

• Lower Tame
• Middle Tame
• River Anker and River Sence, Warwickshire
• River Avon in Worcestershire
• River Blythe in Warwickshire
• River Leam and River Itchen
• River Mease
• River Sow and River Penk
• Rea Brook and Cound Brook
• River Severn in Shropshire
• River Severn in Worcestershire

• River Stour in Worcestershire
• Severn Vyrnwy Confluence
• Tern and Perry Catchments
• The River Dee Catchment in England from Whitchurch to Chester
• Upper Teme
• Weaver catchment including Nantwich, Frodsham, Crewe, Winsford and Northwich
• Rugeley Trent
• Tern and Perry Catchments
• River Frome in Herefordshire
• River Leadon Catchment
• River Lugg south of Leominster
• Kempsey Village

Flood gates were shut in Upton upon Severn, last night with water levels set to rise well into the weekend, said the Environment Agency (EA).

Environment Agency

Manager Dave Throup said the level of the River Severn was rising and it would keep monitoring it over the weekend.

"These are normal levels for a winter flood," he said, "but the problem is they're happening in the summer."

It should be a "gradually improving situation" over the weekend, said Dave Throup, with just showers forecast.

"The problem is there's an awful lot of water still to come through."

"In Worcester it's going to keep rising well into tomorrow and possibly Sunday, with maybe another half a meter [of water] to go.

Rain will gradually ease and clear with some sunny spells later and highs of 17C (63F).

There's some respite on the way from the rain in the latest weather forecast for the West Midlands.

But the wet weather is due to return tomorrow morning:

You can get a latest forecast at any other time by heading to the BBC Weather website.

Satellite technology's being used in Herefordshire to help stop soil being washed off fields in the heavy rain and on to roads.

Herefordshire Council

The county council said there were several cases last week of mud washing on to routes as well as soil running off into rivers and polluting them.

Drones and images from satellites will be used by the local authority and the Environment Agency to find places where soil's likely to be washed off and warn whoever owns the land.

Herefordshire Council

With the river levels rising across the West Midlands, the Environment Agency said it was working to clear its "'weed screens" on waterways of any debris.

It's tweeted that it has teams working in Herefordshire, Shropshire and Worcestershire today:

Environment Agency

Flooding's expected in large parts of the West Midlands today after heavy rain overnight added to the week's wet weather.

SceneNheard

The Environment Agency said much of the region had up to 30mm of rain last night with 50mm in Solihull.

It has nine flood warnings in place, meaning flooding is expected, in Shropshire, Staffordshire, Birmingham, Warwickshire and Cheshire.

They include the River Cole at Coleshill, the Arrow and Alne near Alcester, Warwickshire, and the River Weaver in Nantwich, Cheshire.

There are also more than 20 flood alerts, meaning flooding in possible, across the West Midlands including in Worcester and near Hereford.

It will be a cloudy day with outbreaks of rain, with some of it heavy, and highs of 15C (59F).