The closure of the A483 due to high winds this morning is causing extra traffic through Llangollen this morning.
Traffic Wales posted earlier this morning n Twitter:
#A483 : Both directions : Ruabon to Chirk (Gledrid) : Road closed : Due to high winds : #TrafficWalesAlert
* Simon Baynes MP outside Chirk Castle during one of his runs.
Clwyd South MP Simon Baynes recently completed the 50-mile running challenge in aid of Maggie’s Centres and managed to raise over £2,000 for the cause in memory of family members.
Maggie’s Centres are based in various locations and offer support free to anyone with cancer and their families who walk through the doors.
The centres were founded by Maggie Keswick Jencks who used her own experience of having cancer to create a new type of cancer care.
The first centre opened in Edinburgh in 1996 and, since then, a network of centres across the UK and some abroad have now been established to offer care to those facing cancer.
Mr Baynes had to run 50 miles for the challenge, with the money raised assisting those who use the centres.
In total, he raised over £2,000, which was inclusive of match-funding.
His efforts and those of others who took up the challenge resulted in a total of £115,037 being raised.
Mr Baynes said: “I was pleased to complete this challenge for a cause that is close to my heart as both my parents and my father-in-law died of cancer.
"It is quite a long time since I did any running and therefore I had to build up my fitness gradually over the 5 weeks of the challenge.
"I did the running in Wales and also in London in the evenings after working in Parliament and I discovered many sights which I had not seen before.
"I am very grateful to the large number of family and friends who sponsored me for this truly inspirational cause which brings so much comfort and hope to people suffering with cancer across the UK.”
Dog owners are being reminded to pick up after their pets while out walking.
A Public Space
Protection Order is in force in the county which allows Denbighshire County Council
to take action, including issuing fines against owners who allow their dogs to
foul in an area of public land without cleaning up after them.
The council
works with District Enforcement who deploy officers to regularly patrol the
county in order to prevent littering and irresponsible dog ownership.
Cllr Mark
Young, Lead Member for Planning, Public Protection and Safer Communities, said:
“The majority of dog owners act responsibly and the Council would like to thank
them for ensuring our communities remain clean and attractive for our
residents.
“However, we
have noticed an increase in dog fouling on pavements over the winter months as
many dog walkers change their usual routes due to the darker evenings and
mornings.
“We have
received a number of complaints from residents because some dog owners are
allowing their dog to foul outside people’s homes,
businesses and even schools and not
clearing it up.
“We want to
make it clear that irresponsible dog owners are in breach of the Public Space
Protection Order and could receive a £100 fixed
penalty notice.
“Patrols are
ongoing and we are also encouraging people who witness this to contact us with
information so we are able to target our enforcement patrols.”
To report a
dog owner not clearing up after their pet,
please provide a description of the person, a
description of the dog as well as the time and location of the offence.
All
litter bins and your black bin at home can be used to deposit dog mess which is
bagged and tied and free dog bags can be collected from the Council’s one-stop
shops.
To
report an incident of dog fouling visit www.denbighshire.gov.uk/en/environmental-health/dog-issues/report-a-dog-related-issue.aspx
A Llangollen Railway volunteer is currently staging a new temporary exhibition in Llangollen Museum.
Entitled Along Lost Lines, the display is by Peter Dickinson, one of the founding members of the railway's Heritage Group.
It charts the history of the old railway line linking Ruabon with the coast at Barmouth.
The exhibition includes a range of artefacts, posters and exhibits relating to the line.
A dedicated section includes some original parts from Queen Victoria's Royal Train from 1897 which are being shown in public for the first time.
The exhibition opens today (Saturday) runs until April 3. Entry is free.
Currently, the museum will be open Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday from 11-4pm.
The exhibition is a joint collaboration between the museum and the Llangollen Railway Heritage Group.
Denbighshire County Council has issued the following warning on social media of a lane closure on the A483 viaduct due to Storm Eunice:
𝗔𝟰𝟴𝟯 𝗗𝗲𝗲 𝗩𝗶𝗮𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁
There is currently a 𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗲 𝗰𝗹𝗼𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 on the A483 Dee Viaduct due to Storm Eunice. 
A traffic management plan is in place to help manage the additional traffic diverted via Llangollen.
Traffic management contractors will manually operate traffic lights on Castle Street, Llangollen during today (Friday, February 18).
Castle Street will then temporarily open to two-way traffic between 5pm on Friday and the morning of Monday, February 21.
Denbighshire County Council continues to monitor the weather position as Storm Eunice is predicted to bring extremely strong winds to the region during the remainder of today (Friday)
A number of Council services have decided to change their arrangements, due to the strong winds forecast.
Libraries and One Stop Shop (County Hall):
In the interest of the safety of staff and
visitors, it has been decided that all of Denbighshire’s libraries will remain
closed on Friday.
The One Stop Shop at County Hall will also be
closed on Thursday.
Waste and recycling:
The garden waste recycling service will not operate
on Friday, due to the temporary closure of the composing site where we deliver
most of the garden waste we collect. This is down to the strong winds
expected with Storm Eunice. We’re asking garden waste customers NOT to
put out their bin and present it on their next scheduled collection day in two
weeks time.
However, the other waste and recycling services are
due to take place as usual today.
Public transport:
Most public transport (bus) services are running as
normal at the moment, but operators will make a decision if the weather
situation deteriorates.
The T3 service (Barmouth –Wrexham via Corwen and
Llangollen is not operating this morning, but may return this afternoon.
Severe Weather Emergency Protocol
This protocol was initiated
yesterday. It aims to prevent rough sleeping during extreme weather and
provides emergency accommodation for rough sleepers.
This is additional targeted
support to the ongoing work of our Homelessness Prevention Team.
No issues have been reported
overnight.
Other developments include:
Councillor Brian Jones, Cabinet Lead Member for Highways, Waste and the Environment, said: “Our teams have been working hard to minimise the risk of disruption to residents and we’re in regular contact with the emergency services and Natural Resources Wales to gather as much information as we can to track the storm and its effects.
“The warnings state that Eunice is a severe storm and we want people to be as prepared as possible for its impacts. The main impact in Denbighshire is expected to be the wind and there are calls for people should stay away from coastal promenades during the storm, for their own safety.
“We are monitoring the position hour by hour and we have teams on stand-by to deal with any issues caused by the storm and to try and keep our roads clear from debris, fallen trees and branches”.
The Council is urging residents to continue to monitor the weather forecasts and updates in the media and on social media for any storm related advice and information. The Council will publish updates on the impact of the storm on its website: www.denbighshire.gov.uk and on its Facebook and Twitter accounts.
* Simon Baynes MP, left, with Joel Rees-Jones at the newly-restored stone access ramp in Llangollen.
Clwyd South MP Simon Baynes recently visited Llangollen to see the latest developments at the LIFE Dee River Restoration Project.
Mr Baynes met with Joel Rees-Jones, the Project Manager from Natural Resources Wales, and visited the Llangollen site to learn more about the developments taking place as part of the Natural Resources Wales’ project.
As part of the LIFE Dee Project, restoration work is taking place on the two weirs in Llangollen with the aim of improving conditions for threatened species such as Atlantic Salmon, Sea Lamprey and River Lamprey, by minimising the impact of physical barriers in the river and help these species build sustainable populations.
The development has also provided an opportunity to help improve safety for paddle sports, as well as improving the stone ramp used for access to the River Dee near the downstream weir.
The LIFE Dee River Project have also been working on similar projects across the catchment.
The project also focuses on in-river restoration work, such as work recently completed on Brynkinalt Estate.
Iain Hill-Trevor of Brynkinalt said: “The contractor has done an amazing job, the results are great, and the boost for the habitat of the river is really exciting.”
Joel Rees-Jones, Project Manager of the LIFE Dee Project at Natural Resources Wales said: “The LIFE project is providing us with a great opportunity to work with partners across the Dee catchment to improve the conditions within the river for the species and habitats found there. We look forwards to seeing and sharing the positive results from the interventions carried out.”
Mr Baynes said: “My recent visit to the LIFE Dee River Project was a wonderful insight into how the restoration work is going to benefit the local area and it was great to hear from Joel about the exciting developments taking place.
"This is a positive step forward in ensuring conditions are improved for threatened species and will also improve safety for users of the river.”
The project is supported by the European Union LIFE+ Nature and Biodiversity Programme, Environment Agency, Snowdonia National Park Authority and Dwr Cymru.
