Murder plot charges over deaths

8 July 2011 Last updated at 13:01 GMT Mohamed Abdi Farah and Amin Ahmed Ismail were shot in an alleyway in Fishermead Three men have been charged with conspiracy to murder two Somali teenagers in Milton Keynes.

Amin Ahmed Ismail, 18, from Ealing, London, and Mohamed Abdi Farah, 19, of Birmingham, were shot on the Fishermead estate on 26 May.

Yahya Harun, 20; Sharmake Abdulkadir, 20 and Fuad Awale, 23, all from Milton Keynes, appeared at Milton Keynes Magistrates' Court.

They were remanded in custody and to appear at Luton Crown Court on Monday.

Mr Abdulkadir has also been charged with possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life.

A 17-year-old boy has been released without charge.

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Handler injured after dog deaths

28 June 2011 Last updated at 16:59 GMT The dogs were found in the vehicle in the Met's dog training centre in Keston A police dog handler has been treated in hospital after going missing while on duty following the deaths of two of his dogs that were left in a car.

The animals died after being left in a vehicle on one of the hottest days of the year, at the Met Police's Keston training centre, in London, on Sunday.

The officer, widely reported to be Sgt Ian Craven, was later found in Newham, east London, with a hand injury.

Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson said he was "very saddened" by the deaths.

The Directorate of Professional Standards has begun an inquiry.

Officers had to force their way into the car containing the animals, after being alerted.

'Precautionary treatment'

The working Belgian Malinois and a German Shepherd puppy were taken from the dog training centre to an emergency vets, but both later died from heat exhaustion.

Police have not officially named Sgt Craven, but confirmed an officer had been initially declared "missing" after "suddenly leaving his duty posting".

A Met Police spokeswoman said: "On Sunday 26 June, at approximately 12:25hrs, police were alerted to a police officer suddenly leaving his duty posting, causing concern for the officer's safety and welfare.

"The officer was treated as a missing person and a search began, eventually locating him in Newham borough suffering a hand injury.

"He was taken to an east London hospital as a precaution. He is currently receiving medical treatment."

Disciplinary inquiry

The RSPCA, which is also investigating the incident near Bromley, where temperatures reached almost 30C on Sunday, advised people not to leave dogs in vehicles "for any length of time" during hot weather.

The Independent Police Complaints Commission has been made aware of the incident and the subsequent investigation.

Sir Paul said: "I'm very saddened by what's happened and we are taking it very seriously.

"There's an investigation going on. It's being led by the RSPCA, with a separate internal disciplinary investigation going on in the force."

The Met has about 250 working dogs and the animals at the training centre in Keston were either donated or bred on site.

The centre was set up in 1954.

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Inquiry into four refinery deaths

3 June 2011 Last updated at 11:49 GMT Police said it may take some time to name the victims

An investigation is under way after four contractors were killed in an explosion and fire at a Pembrokeshire oil refinery.

Another worker is critically ill but stable with burns after the blast at the Chevron refinery, Pembroke, at 1820 BST on Thursday.

Chevron said the explosion happened during routine maintenance of one of its 730 cubic metre storage tanks.

Non-essential work was suspended on Friday.

Chevron said it had launched its own investigation, alongside the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) with one storage tank destroyed and another damaged in the incident.

Production was able to continue but the company had decided to suspend all non-essential work on Friday.

A spokeswoman said Chevron was a "close family" and counselling was being offered to the 1,400-strong workforce.

Dyfed-Powys Police said the bodies would remain at the scene and indentification would be protracted because of the severity of the accident.

Their recovery is being made more difficulty by the unstable nature of the building.

Chief Supt Dean Richards said: "Early indications suggest that this is a tragic industrial incident.

"Sadly four people have lost their lives, and a fifth person remains in hospital, critically ill.

"We are not currently in a position to release the names of the victims, as they have not yet been formally identified, and this process may take some time."

Continue reading the main story Hywel Griffith BBC Wales correspondent at the Chevron refinery

I arrived late on Thursday night to find the road leading to the refinery blocked off and signs that the emergency services were at the site.

As the refinery is such a huge complex it was hard initially to assess the scale of the damage.

On Friday morning the scene surrounding the refinery appeared to be fairly normal, but our news helicopter was able to reveal the scale of the damage around the exploded tank.

Although people here are clearly used to living next door to a refinery and the potential hazard that that entails, this event has clearly shaken them.

Most people in the community know at least one person working at the plant and are worried about the identities of those killed and injured.

BBC Wales correspondent Hywel Griffith said it was understood one of those who died was a woman in her 50s.

Greg Hanggi, refinery general manager, said: "The loss of our co-workers has come as a huge shock to us all.

"Our thoughts and deepest sympathy go out to their families. We will ensure that all employees and contractors are fully supported throughout this difficult time."

He added that Chevron would take every step possible to determine the series of events leading to the tragic incident and ensure that any lessons would be learned.

Five Mid and West Wales fire crews had joined the refinery's own fire fighters in tackling the blaze, while specialist fire units, including foam vehicles and a chemical incident unit were sent to the scene.

Chevron spokeswoman Jane James said the company was "hugely saddened"

The tank at the centre of the incident contained a component which refiners "routinely used," said a Chevron spokeswoman.

It had been left "out of action," while another tank was damaged.

First Minister Carwyn Jones offered his sympathy to bereaved families and workers, adding: "I am shocked to learn of the accident at the Chevron refinery in Pembroke".

Welsh Secretary Cheryl Gillan added her condolences to families and colleagues of the dead.

"We've been in contact with Chevron and Milford Haven Port Authority and asked to be kept fully informed about the investigation into this tragic event," she said.

"It is essential to understand how this tragedy occurred."

'No ongoing risk'

Assistant Chief Fire Officer Chris Davies said there was no ongoing risk to health to members of the public as a result of the incident.

Continue reading the main story The UK has eight major operating refineriesThere were 19 oil refineries in the UK in 1975The UK has the fourth largest total refining capacity in the EUMost of the UK's refineries are based in coastal areas for ease of crude tanker accessUK refineries supply over 90% of the inland market demand for petroleum productsAbout 130m litres of petrol and diesel are sold in the UK each daySource: United Kingdom Petroleum Industry Association"We can confirm that any material released into the atmosphere as a result of the blast was immediately dispersed. The wind was blowing off shore, away from residential areas," he said.

The Health and Safety Executive said it was too early speculate about the cause of the blast.

Milford Haven coastguards reported a "blast large enough to shake the windows" with "black smoke in the air" shortly after 1820 BST.

The Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service sent 10 engines to the scene and brought the incident under control within an hour and a half.

Wales Air Ambulance said a man had been airlifted to Morriston Hospital in Swansea with severe burns.

The refinery was formerly known as Texaco, later rebranded Chevron-Texaco and known as Chevron since around 2005.

In March, Chevron confirmed Texan oil company Valero Energy had agreed to buy the refinery for $730m (?446m) and pay a further $1bn (?611m) for the stocks of oil, petrol and other products on site.

Workers laid floral tributes at the refinery on Friday

The site, which can refine 220,000 barrels of crude oil a day into petrol and other products, has yet to change hands.

Earlier this year the sale of the refinery, which is one of the largest in western Europe and employs 1,400 people, was secured.

Valero agreed to buy the refinery site for $730m (?458m) and another $1bn (?611m) for assets including Chevron's petrol stations in the UK and Ireland.

There have been previous incidents at the refinery.

The most notable was in July 1994, with an explosion and fire at refinery, when 26 workers were slightly injured and homes as far away as Milford Haven damaged.

However Simon Hart, Conservative MP for Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire, praised the plant's safety record.

"It's a really important business but it is a dangerous one and it's had a fantastic safety record," he said.

The refinery is close to the Pembrokeshire coast

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Mother held over deaths of sons

24 May 2011 Last updated at 14:21 GMT A woman has been arrested on suspicion of murder after the sudden deaths of her two children in Southampton.

Her two-year-old son died in January while his four-year-old brother died last month.

Post-mortem tests proved inconclusive on both children and police are awaiting further results to establish exactly how the boys died.

The 25-year-old mother, from Southampton, has been questioned and released on bail until August.

A report has been submitted to the coroner, police added.

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Deaths boat 'engulfed in smoke'

16 May 2011 Last updated at 11:25 GMT The fire was on the Banff-registered trawler Vision II A fishing boat in which three crewmen died at Fraserburgh harbour was engulfed in smoke, a fatal accident inquiry has heard.

The men were killed in a fire which swept through the Banff-registered trawler Vision II in August 2008.

They were Filipinos Ramilito Calipayan and Benjamin Potot, both 33, and 50-year-old Latvian, Rimants Venckus.

Witness Alan Beedie told Peterhead Sheriff Court he raised the alarm and there was nothing more he could do.

Mr Beedie, 61, a harbour security guard, said he was on patrol on the night of the incident.

He said a lot of foreign seamen stayed on boats.

Mr Beedie said he saw smoke in the early hours coming from the wheelhouse area, and thought someone was cooking, but realised something was not right.

Likely causes

He went aboard to check but was engulfed in smoke. He opened another door and was again engulfed.

Mr Beedie said the smoke was thick and he could not see anything.

Three men lost their lives in the Vision II fire in 2008

Five minutes later the emergency services arrived.

Skipper Zander Jack, 50, from Gardenstown, Aberdeenshire, told the FAI he only took ownership of Vision II the day before the fire.

A Marine Accident Investigation Branch report after the incident said a faulty heater or a smouldering cigarette were the likely causes of the fire.

The FAI had been due to start last summer.

However it was postponed after the court heard there had been difficulty contacting the dead men's families and that fresh information had been received from the Health and Safety Executive.

The inquiry continues on Tuesday.

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