Welcome to the Manchester Evening News breaking news service.
We’ll be making sure that you are the first to know what’s happening across the Greater Manchester region.
Throughout the day we will be bringing you constant updates on news across the area.
We’ll also be bringing you crime, travel, health, sport, politics and education stories from the M.E.N team.
And the CityLife journalists are working hard to bring you the best reviews, celebrity gossip and information on going out in the city.
If there’s something you’ve noticed and want us to check out then feel free to get in touch - call us on 0161 211 2323 or tweet @MENnewsdesk
Key Events
Arctic blast heading to Manchester
Brrrr it’s pretty cold out there tonight...
Greater Manchester is bracing itself for a bitterly cold couple of days as Arctic winds sweep across the region.
Forecasters say that temperatures here will only reach around 3C - but the ‘wind chill’ factor tomorrow could make it feel as cold as MINUS 12C.
There’ll also be a sharp frost for the next couple of nights when temperatures will fall below zero, says the Weather Channel .
Thursday - the last day of the meteorological autumn - will feel very cold with the mercury struggling to rise higher than 4C in most parts of the UK.
However, it will feel much colder than this in the wind with wind chill plummeting as low as -15C in Scotland. The wind chill values are expected to hit -12C in northern England and around -5 to -8C elsewhere.
Full story HERE.
Burglars blocked drive with huge rocks
Thieves blocked off a driveway with rocks to stop owners from coming home and disturbing them
According to police, the large stones were placed outside the property in Delph, near Saddleworth in Oldham , to give crooks more time to flee should the occupants return.
The burglary happened at around 7.30pm on Tuesday night on Lark Hill Lane.
Officers say a large cabinet was stolen, leading them to believe there was more than one suspect as it would have taken at least two people to carry it.
Read the full report HERE.
Rochdale Road reopen
Rochdale Road, in Oldham, has reopened following an earlier collision
Traffic should be running as usual now.
Drug dealer jailed after baseball bat fight
This is the most read story on the M.E.N website at the moment...
A Salford drug dealer branded ‘untouchable’ has been jailed after rampaging with a baseball bat during a ‘gang fight’ in broad daylight in Manchester city centre.
Shoppers took refuge as Leevon Birchall squared up to another group of thugs outside Kendals, off Deansgate, on a busy weekday lunchtime, a court heard.
Birchall, 24, and two accomplices fled when the other gang pulled out a machete.
Birchall, who also earned himself thousands of pounds selling cannabis on a ‘commercial scale’, has now been locked up for four years.
Read the full report HERE.
Trams not travelling to Rochdale town centre
Metrolink services are not running between Rochdale town centre and Shaw & Crompton this evening
TfGM have said this is due to a points issue at Newbold.
Passengers affected by the delays can use tickets and passes on the 58, 59, 181 and 182 bus services.
Tickets can also be used on Northern Rail services to Victoria.
Just ten minute delays now on the M60
Traffic is still a bit slow, but now there are only ten minute delays according to Highways England
Read more updates HERE.
M60 delays could last until 9pm
Highways England have said the delays on the M60 could continue until 9pm
Not good news for motorists trying to get home tonight...
More updates HERE.
No serious injuries
A spokesman for GMP said:
“We are still assessing at the scene with the ambulance service.
“At the moment there are no reports of any injuries. There are just walking wounded.
“Three cars were involved.”
Three car collision in Wythenshawe
We’re hearing reports Hollyhedge Road, in Wythenshawe is closed following a collision involving three cars
The road is closed at the junction of Solway Road.
Virgin trains strike over Christmas
Staff on Virgin Trains services between Manchester and London are set to strike on six days over the Christmas and New Year period
The walk-outs over a pay dispute are scheduled for December 15 and 22 and January 5, 8, 26 and 29. Each will last 24 hours.
It comes as a string of engineering works threaten to cause chaos for passengers.
And it follows walk-outs by Arriva Rail North and Mersey Rail over driver-only operated trains.
Virgin Trains bosses today vowed to run ‘the majority’ of its west coast services despite the action.
Full story HERE.
Delays of over an hour
Drivers are being warned of delays of 70 minutes on the M60
There is now only one lane shut between J25 Bredbury and J24 Denton Island.
Congestion is building up to J7 Stretford.
Another collision in Oldham
Police are currently attending a collision on Rochdale Road, in Oldham
It is unknown how many vehicles were involved.
Police, the ambulance service and fire were called to the scene at 5.20pm.
More to follow.
Delays continue
This is what it is looking like on the M60 at the moment...
Highways Englnad have said traffic is expected to return to normal between 6.30pm and 6.45pm.
No injuries
A spokeswoman for GMP has confirmed nobody was injured in the M60 collision
She said: “Two vehicles are in the third lane, just past junction 25 underneath the bridge.
“There is a bit of traffic. One of the vehicles is a red Mazda.”
Highways England statement
Two cars were involved in the smash on the M60
One car has come to a rest on the central reservation barrier and two lanes have been shut for recovery to take place.
No information available yet on whether anybody has been injured.
At the moment delays are backing up to J27 Stockport East.
Heavy traffic on the M60
This is what it looks like on the motorway at the moment...
Two lanes shut on the M60
Two lanes are shut on the M60 following a collision
The collision took place anticlockwise between J25 for Bredbury and J24 Denton Island.
Traffic is moving slowly in the area.
Gritters are out
Manchester City Council is gritting the roads this evening as temperatures are set to plunge to below zero
Weather experts say the temperatures are actually very normal for this time of year, but an icy Arctic blast will make it feel much colder than it actually is.
The North West is getting off fairly lightly compared to some parts of the country, where ice and frost warnings have been issued.
The Met Office says an Arctic blast being funnelled through the UK is responsible for the current cold snap.
Traffic updates
Evening rush hour is approaching...this is what is happening out there on there on the roads if you are leaving work:
- Warrington Lane, in Lymm, is closed in both directions and traffic is moving slow due to flooding between Burford Lane and Lymm Road.
- On the M6 traffic is moving slowly between J19 Knutsford and J18 Middlewich, in the roadworks area.
- There are reports of queuing traffic on the A56 Northbound in Altrincham, at Viaduct Road and George Richards Way, with congestion building up to Woodlands Road.
TalkTalk down for thousands of internet users
Not good news if you are on TalkTalk...
Phone and internet service provider TalkTalk’s service is reportedly down across the country.
The Chronicle report that HUNDREDS of customers have reported issues with TalkTalk’s internet’s service.
Customers have taken to Twitter to report their issues with TalkTalk themselves stating: “We’re aware that some customers are having problems with intermittent browsing issues. Our engineers are working on this. We apologise for any inconvenience caused.”
Website Down Detector currently shows that the service is down all over the country although it was predominately on the Eastern side of England a little while ago.
Read the full report HERE.
Weather tonight
It’s going to be rather chilly...
Overnight it will be dry and breezy, with temperatures plunging to -4C.
On Thursday it’s going to be colder in Manchester than it is in Iceland on Thursday.
Mancunians are expected to wake up to another morning of frost and ice tomorrow, with temperatures hovering at, or just below, zero overnight and remaining there throughout the morning rush hour.
Later in the day, the mercury will struggle to limp above three degrees, while over in Iceland it will be a relatively balmy seven degrees.
Metrolink delays
There are currently severe delays to Bury Metrolink services due to an ongoing medical emergency
The ambulance service are currently treating an elderly woman who has been injured following a fall at the Crumpsall tram stop.
The extent of the woman’s injuries are not known at this stage and paramedics are treating her at the scene.
Transport for Greater Manchester have said tram services on the Bury line are severely delayed due to the incident.
Passengers can use their tickets on bus services 135, 97 and 98.
Manchester Airport tram services are also only running between Cornbrook and the airport at the moment due to a signalling fault.
Severe Metrolink delays due to medical emergency
An ongoing medical emergency at Crumspall tram station is causing severe delays to the Bury line
Services travelling in both directions between Victoria and Bury have been affected.
Passengers affected by the delays can use their tickets and passes on the 97, 98 and 135 bus services.
Manchester Airport tram services are also only running between Cornbrook and the airport at the moment due to a signalling fault.
Man with axe threatened to kill neighbours
...Because they were Scottish
An axe-wielding pensioner subjected his Scottish neighbours to a race-hate campaign in which he threatened to behead the family for parking outside his house.
James Rattigan, known to neighbours as Jimmy, rammed an axe into his own back door after ‘waving it around’ at Kenny McLaughlin in a tirade on their terraced Oldham street.
On one night, during a year of intimidation and abuse, Rattigan threatened to leap over the fence and ‘kill’ and ‘burn’ his neighbours, who were in bed.
The 67-year-old thug would scream ‘Scottish ****s’ at his neighbours - but later claimed he had been shouting it at Celtic matches on the TV.
Now he has been prosecuted for harassing Kenny McLaughlin, 53, his wife Tracey, 50, and their two adult children, who have spoken of how they live in fear of him.
Read the full report HERE.
Two broken down vehicles blocking M6 traffic
One lane is closed on the M6 due to two broken down vehicles blocking traffic
One of the cars is causing problems between J19 Knutsford and J18 Holmes Chapel, while another is blocking traffic between J18 and J17.
Warning to plan ahead if you're heading to Manchester City match
A lot of people are expected to head to the stadium, so a warning is in place to plan your journey in advance
Trump shares 'Muslim crimes' videos tweeted by Britain First Deputy leader
Donald Trump has shared videos tweeted by the deputy leader of far-right group Britain First purporting to show Muslims committing crimes
The US President retweeted three posts by Jayda Fransen on Wednesday.
The posts included unverified videos titled “Muslim Destroys a Statue of Virgin Mary!” and “Muslim migrant beats up Dutch boy on crutches!”
Dedicated live blog following Palatine Road crash
Palatine Road in Northenden is closed in both directions following a crash between two vans
The smash occurred just under the Princess Parkway bridge and a picture from the scene appears to show a van on its side.
An ambulance spokeswoman said: “ An ambulance and a rapid response vehicle are on the scene.”
Follow live updates on our dedicated blog here.
