The A61 at Ripley has reopened this morning after a collision involving a lawn mower caused a gas leak last night.

As well as closing the road, emergency services advised nearby residents to close their windows.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service said a crew was called to the scene just after 6.30pm.

Its incident log said:

“A crew from Harrogate and an officer from Ripon responded to reports of a grass cutting machine that had impacted a large gas main and caused it to rupture creating a significant leak.

“Crews stood by and assisted with traffic management whilst gas engineers excavated to locate the leak and worked to isolate the supply.”

Northern Gas Networks was on the scene soon after and firefighters issued advice on social media.

https://twitter.com/SierraZero4/status/1675929780955258904?s=20

Traffic between Harrogate and Ripon was diverted through the village as engineers worked to repair the rupture.

The road is open this morning.

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The A61 south of Harrogate has been closed this afternoon as police deal with a serious collision.

The road is closed between Swindon Lane near Kirkby Overblow and the A659 Otley Road near Arthington, at the bottom of Harewood Bank by the bridge over the River Wharfe.

The collision reportedly happened in the early hours of this morning and the road has been closed all day.

Neither North Yorkshire Police or West Yorkshire Police have issued any details about the incident or the closure, which is near the boundary between the two counties.

The closure is affecting public transport, with the 36 bus between Harrogate and Leeds having to divert from its stops at Walton Head Road, Rigton Lane End, Kirkby Overblow Lane End, Dunkeswick Lane End and Harewood Bridge.

The Harrogate Bus Company has issued advice to passengers, saying:

“There are no alternative stops due to the length of diversion for this route.

“Customers wanting to get to and from these stops will need to find an alternative way of travel as the bus cannot get to these stops.”

Drivers are also being diverted away from the scene, via either Otley or Wetherby.

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A six-year-old child has been airlifted to hospital after a collision outside a primary school near Ripon.

It happened near Fountains C of E Primary around 8.50am today and involved a light blue Hyundai i10 which was travelling towards Sawley.

The was taken by air ambulance to James Cook Hospital with serious leg injuries.

A spokesperson for North Yorkshire Police said:

“The driver of the Hyundai was spoken to at the scene and is assisting officers with their enquires. The stretch of road was closed for a time to allow officers to investigate the scene.

“Officers are appealing to anyone, including motorists with dashcam footage, or who witnessed the incident, to come forward.

“If you were driving in the area at the time, please check your dashcam footage in case you have captured the vehicle on camera prior to the crash but may be unaware.”

Anyone with information can call North Yorkshire Police on 101, select option two, and ask for Steve Wright, or email steve.wright1@northyorkshire.police.uk, quoting reference number 12230107761.

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A woman has been left with serious injuries after a collision between two vehicles in Studley Roger near Ripon.

A white Citroen car and a white Volkswagen Crafter van were travelling in opposite directions on Limekiln Bank when they collided at around 2.05pm on Monday.

The driver of the Citroen suffered serious but not life-threatening injuries.

A spokesperson for North Yorkshire Police said:

“We are appealing for any witnesses who may have seen the collision itself, or either vehicle immediately prior to them colliding, along with any dashcam footage.”

Anyone with information should contact PC Michael Spittlehouse by emailing Michael.spittlehouse@northyorkshire.police.uk or calling 101 and asking for him, using incident number 12230092030.

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A woman has been fined for a collision in Killinghall which left a father of young children with serious injuries.

Susan Marshall hit the man with her car as he used the pedestrian crossing near the Tesco Express shop in the village at around 5.15pm on Monday, January 30 this year.

She pleaded guilty to causing serious injury by careless driving at Harrogate Magistrates’ Court today.

The man, who was named in court, had to be taken to hospital by ambulance. His ankle was broken in several places and he had significant bruising to his hip, as well as a haematoma on his brain.

He had to have an operation to insert two plates into his ankle and was kept in hospital for four days for observation.

The cast on his ankle had only recently been removed and he was still having physiotherapy, the court heard.

Prosecutor Alison Whiteley said:

“He was previously very active and athletic. Now, of course, he has difficulty walking, let alone running, and it impacts on his driving ability.

“He needs to drive as part of his job. In addition to that, he lives alone with young children and of course he needs his car to ferry them about and look after them.”

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The court heard the collision took place in the dark in heavy traffic, when weather conditions were good. Ms Marshall, 56, pulled out of the Tesco car park to turn right and travel north on the A61 towards Ripley.

A passenger in the car behind said the lights on the pedestrian crossing ahead of her turned red, but Mrs Marshall failed to slow down. She collided with the pedestrian, who was knocked to the ground.

Defending, Andrew Coleman of Watson Woodhouse solicitors said Ms Marshall’s record to that point was otherwise unblemished, without even any points on her driving licence.

Describing the collision as a “momentary lapse in concentration”, he said:

“She was concentrating on the traffic and she didn’t see the red light.

“She stopped immediately and went straight to the victim to see if he was OK. She didn’t realise the extent of his injuries.

“She shouted immediately for someone to assist in calling an ambulance. She stayed until the emergency services came.”

He told the court she had worked as a carer for 30 years and, faced with losing her licence, was determined to continue in her job, despite a two-mile walk from her home in Town Street, Shaw Mills, to the nearest bus route.

Magistrates imposed a £500 fine, £200 victim surcharge and £85 costs on Ms Marshall, along with a 12-month driving ban.

They said compensation for the victim was not for the court to decide and would be arranged through their insurance companies.

Police are appealing for witnesses to a collision near Weeton in which a cyclist was seriously injured.

It occurred on the A658 Harrogate Road between Weeton railway station and Pool Bridge on Monday, January 30, between 5.50pm and 6.15pm.

A North Yorkshire Police statement today said:

“It involved a van and a bicycle, which collided near to Riffa Business Park, resulting in serious injury to the cyclist.

“Anyone who witnessed the incident, or may have relevant dashcam of the collision or the van or bike involved, is asked to contact TC174 David Minto of North Yorkshire Police Road Policing Group.

“Please either dial 101, or email david.minto@northyorkshire.police.uk, quoting reference number NYP-30012023-0380.”

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Two people were taken to hospital after a collision on the A658 near North Rigton last night.

The collision happened around 8pm last night, at the junction with Hall Green Lane, and involved two cars.

Sgt Paul Cording, of North Yorkshire Police‘s roads policing team, posted images of the damage to the cars on social media, adding:

“Amazingly no serious injuries although two taken to hospital by our [Yorkshire Ambulance Service] colleagues.

“Huge thanks to the off duty student nurse who stopped to help.”

Emergency services remained on the scene to deal with the situation for some time.

A flying start to the nightshift too as we turned out straight away to a 2 vehicle RTC on the #A658 near North Rigton. Amazingly no serious injuries although two taken to hospital by our @YorksAmbulance colleagues. Huge thanks to the off duty student nurse who stopped to help pic.twitter.com/mGGytqlZWR

— Sgt Paul Cording BEM (@OscarRomeo1268) February 3, 2023

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• Two Rossett pupils seriously hurt in collision remain in hospital tonight
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Two 15-year-old Rossett School boys remain in hospital tonight after being seriously injured in a collision that involved three vehicles.

The incident happened around 8.45am when one of the vehicles, a pick-up truck, collided with a wall and went into the grounds of Ashville College on Yew Tree Lane.

The boys were walking to school when the accident happened.

Tonight police gave details of the three vehicles involved: a black Ford Ranger, a blue Ford Fiesta and a white Vauxhall Astra. All the drivers remained at the scene and provided information to police.

No arrests have been made and the boys, who were taken to hospital by ambulance, remain there this evening and continue to be treated. Their families have been notified.

Road closures are still in place but are due to be lifted later this evening.

A nearby resident told the Stray Ferret she heard screaming and “a lot of commotion”. She said:

“I didn’t know what had happened but I was saying to my boyfriend, ‘how has this person done this?’ Then there was a lot of commotion and I said, ‘I think they must have hit someone’.”

The witness, who asked not to be named, said there were ambulances on the scene very quickly, followed by other emergency services, and she had “never seen so many emergency vehicles”.

Although she did not witness the collision, the witness said she saw the scene moments later as others rushed to help.

She added:

“The school children were down there first, trying to help and do something. Everyone got ushered and moved away when the teachers came out from the school.

“The school first aider came out and covered [the injured teenagers] in silver foil blankets until the paramedics arrived and took over.”

Tonight, police appealed for all witnesses to come forward:

“This will have been a distressing incident to witness, and we urge those who have been affected by the events to seek the necessary help if needed.

“We are appealing for anyone who witnessed the events or who has a dashcam and was travelling in the area around the time of the collision to contact us.

“This can be done by calling 101 and quoting reference number NYP-02022023-0100.”

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 Firefighters release the trapped person.

Ambulance and police were also in attendance