Emergency services have attended an incident of major flooding on a busy Manchester road this morning after a water main burst.
Dramatic photos and video footage shared across social media earlier today showed water gushing down Hyde Road in Gorton and the neighbouring Far Lane, and residents in the area had also reported that their water supply had been turned off following the incident.
Hyde Road has since been closed between Reddish Bridge and Thornwood Avenue to deal with the incident, and engineers and firefighters were spotted wading through the deep water.
Delays have been reported on roads in the area.
Transport for Greater Manchester tweeted about the incident and confirmed that it is “due to a burst water main which is icing over”.
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They said gritters were being used to get rid of the ice.
Councillor Julie Reid – Labour and Cooperative Councillor for Gorton and Abbey Hey – also took to social media this morning to alert United Utilites that “a main arterial water pipe has burst and emptied Debdale reservoir”, but that thankfully “no one is injured”.
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United Utilities said engineers were on site to fix the issue.
Offering the latest update on the current situation, a spokesperson for United Utilities said:
A spokesperson for United Utilities said: “We are very sorry to say that a large water main burst in Hyde Road earlier today causing flooding and leaving some customers temporarily without water.
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“Our engineers have been on site since the burst happened and have now successfully isolated the main.
“This should mean that water is subsiding and we can shortly start repair work [but] in the meantime, our fleet of water tankers are pumping directly into the mains at strategic points to support local supplies and get them back to normal as quickly as possible.
“Our insurance team is also on site to check whether the water has caused any localised flooding or damage to property.
“They will liaise with anyone who has been affected to make sure they get the help and support they need.”
The incident also came as a number of crashes were reported on roads across the region, with icy conditions causing collisions on the M61, the M66 and Mancunian Way, and Greater Manchester Police urging drivers to “take care on the roads and only travel if you need to”.
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The force tweeted: “Please take care on the roads today and only travel if you need to.
“There have already been a number of collisions this morning due to adverse weather conditions across Greater Manchester.
“Thankfully no-one was seriously injured – follow @OfficialTfGM for any travel updates.”
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Marcus Rashford pays heartwarming surprise visit to Manchester school
Danny Jones
Manchester United star Marcus Rashford is backing warming hearts and bringing smiles to young faces once again after he paid a surprise visit to a local school.
The Man United forward and England international emerged as a national hero during the lockdown through his support for the free school meals campaign, even earning an MBE for his services to charity, and has continued to offer his services outside of football ever since.
Club members regularly engage in community outreach through official United Foundation events, but this time Rashford decided to team up with fellow non-profit Football Beyond Borders (FBB) – an education and social inclusion charity he’s worked with for some time – to make some kids very happy.
During a recent session at The Barlow RC High School in Didsbury, children in the classroom were caught off-guard when the 27-year-old footballer popped his head around the door and came to sit in on a session. Here’s their reaction.
Just look at their faces – we’ll never get over the wide-eyed stares clips like produce. The week in and week out of actual game day aside, this is what football’s all about.
Although one particular pupil had sniffed a surprise in their midst, excitedly repeating, “I told you, what did I say?!”, it’s fair to say that the entire room was still stunned to see the United number 10 just casually walk into the room.
We especially like the moment when Rashford sits down next to one of the unsuspecting students and can’t stop double-taking to his friend, all the while grinning his head off – well, him and everyone else in attendance at the school for the surprise visit, adults included.
Taking place before this past weekend’s Premier League fixtures, the Wythenshawe winger then proceeds to join the aspiring young players out on the school pitch along with the other FBB ambassadors, who recently celebrated 10 years of vital work,
Naturally, the responses underneath videos have been as equally wholesome as you would expect; one person commented, “Forget the football, Marcus Rashford is a top, top man. Nothing but respect”, while another said, “I respect the leadership and the guy really cares. Rare…”
A third went on to write: “A very grounded footballer. Remembers and knows what it’s like to be at the bottom and work your way up. Has done more for people in this country than people running this country! Respect.”
While his performances may not have been their best, both in his eyes and that of the fans at this present moment, many more simply went on to add that it “was nice to see him smiling” and when you’re doing important and inspiring work like this in your hometown, you can only admire and applaud.
As is the nature of the beautiful game, the goals will no doubt start flowing again eventually but in the meantime, well done to Rashford for continuing to be a legend on and off the pitch.
Chester Zoo opens new ‘cutting-edge’ science centre to help fight global extinction crisis
Emily Sergeant
Chester Zoo has opened a new science centre which is set to play a “significant role” in the conservation of the world’s most-threatened species.
The new cutting-edge facility, formally named the International Centre for Zoo Science, will enable researchers to study some of species most at-threat across the globe, as well as support conservationists and scientists to fight the ongoing global extinction crisis.
The specialised centre is equipped with state-of-the-art technology to assess the health of plants and animals, Chester Zoo has revealed.
Inside is a demonstration lab to help train future conservationists, as well as a special cryo-conservation unit where genetics from endangered species will be preserved in liquid nitrogen at -196°C, and the new facility also houses Europe’s largest dedicated wildlife endocrinology lab, giving scientists the chance to study and track hormone levels in animals to further understand their reproductive biology.
In case you didn’t know, Chester Zoo is already at the forefront of vital research to protect a wide range of different species from extinction, with it being home to 37,000 animals from more than 500 species – but this new centre will take things one step further.
Scientists at the UK’s biggest charity zoo say the new centre – which is triple the size of the zoo’s previous lab facilities – will enable them to attempt to “unlock the secrets” of different species which have, so far, remained “unstudied” and a therefore a “mystery to science”.
It will also help the zoo significantly expand its scientific capacity, and boost its conservation training programme.
“Our new International Centre for Zoo Science will help us to play an even more significant role in the conservation of some of the world’s most endangered species,” explained Dr Sue Walker, who is the Head of Science at Chester Zoo.
“At a time when species face extinction on an unimaginable scale, we’re already making a substantial contribution to the task of preventing extinction and restoring biodiversity… and now our new science centre will enable us to grow our research, not only in wildlife reproduction, but also in terms of innovating within our other areas of expertise.”
Dr Walker added that this will also be the first time the Zoo is able to accommodate training courses for visiting researchers from all over the world.