Aberdare Police investigate after a walker discovered the remains of a skeleton near Llwydcoed late on Friday afternoon.
The discovery was made in a countryside road near Llwydcoed, not far from a busy intersection on the Heads of the Valleys Road.
The road connecting Hirwaun and Llwydcoed, via the Heads of the Valley intersection, was closed for most of Friday and Saturday as Police carried out a detailed forensic examination of the area.
This part of the Heads of the Valley A465 Road is a notorious accident blackspot.
In 2002 this section of road was given high priority status as part of the Welsh Assembly’s Trunk Road Programme.
Dualling of the A465 between Abergavenny and Hirwaun is being managed by the Welsh Assembly.
Divisional commander, Ch Supt Jeff Farrar, said: “People in the area can be reassured that extensive enquiries will be conducted over the weekend to establish the identity and origin of the remains.”
BBC Radio Cymru C2 have organised a big music gig at Cwmaman Institute for FRIDAY 10th FEBRUARY at 8pm.
Welsh-language bands Ashokan and Mattoidz will feature along with local punk rock band Naked Threat.
Large parts of Cynon Valley have no water supply today as Dwr Cymru battle to fix several burst mains.
Residents of Llwydcoed and Trecynon have reported no water since Monday evening. Comin School based in Trecynon was unable to open today due to no water supply. The water supply for Penywaun was also cut off this afternoon.
Dwr Cymru Welsh Water are unable to say when the problem will be fixed but will deploy free bottled water and water bowsers in the area if necessary.
A Welsh Water spokesperson explained that there are two burst water mains in the Trecynon area near Aberdare. This has affected the water supply in many nearby villages.
But the problem seems to be much bigger than Dwr Cymru acknowledge.
Residents of various parts of Merthyr have also been without a water supply since Monday evening and most of Dwr Cymru’s stock of water bowser containers seems to have been deployed in Merthyr.
There are rumours that Dwr Cymru are facing serious operational problems further up the Valley in their water reservoir system.
The Rt. Hon. Carwyn Jones AM, Welsh Assembly Minister for the Environment, helped launch Rhondda Cynon Taff Council’s new Environment Improvement Strategy today.
The aim of the Environment Improvement Strategy is to provide a framework for improving the living space of Rhondda Cynon Taf from 2005 and up to 2015. The document also sets out priorities for environmental improvement and demonstrate how we can enhance the quality of our living space over the next ten years.
There were many range of delegates in attendance representing groups with a common interest in the environmental improvement agenda such as the Rambler’s Association, and also Too Good To Waste, the 10-year old furniture re-use Charity based in Aberdare and Ferndale.
Rhondda Cynon Taff’s Environmental Improvement Strategy was developed after wide-ranging consultation in partnership with many other local organisations.
Members of the union working for the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) in
Aberdare Job Centre, and other local benefit offices, pension centres and the Child Support Agency (CSA) have voted for strike action in a dispute over deteriorating service levels and government job cuts.
60% of those voting, endorsed the union’s call for a two-day nationwide strike. The ballot result comes as job cuts in the DWP have already contributed to one million benefit calls going unanswered, leading to people having to wait up to eight weeks before they receive their first benefit payment.
The axe has so far fallen on approximately 15,000 posts in the DWP as it seeks to cull 30,000 jobs as part of a government drive to cut a further 70,000 across the rest of the civil service. The resultant pressure on staff has now reached unacceptable levels and the deteriorating service has led to a significant increase in problems in local offices.
The union is calling for the DWP to halt the job cuts programme and to objectively assess with the union adequate staffing levels based on operational need.
A spokesperson for the union said : “It is unacceptable that job cuts in the name of efficiency are actually leading to people having to wait longer to get advice about finding a job or understanding the benefits they are entitled to. The department and the government need to halt the job cuts programme and engage with the union in objectively assessing staffing needs and the impact of staffing levels on services. As ever we stand ready and willing to reach a negotiated outcome that meets the expectations of the public and staff alike. But if no agreement can be reached we will have no other option but to strike in defence of key public services.”
See also
“Bryn Pica site will be instrumental in meeting recycling and landfill targets” said Cynon Valley AM Christine Chapman today.
On a visit to the Bryn Pica recycling site near Llwydcoed, Cynon Valley AM Christine Chapman has said that such facilities will be the key to achieving challenging targets for how we dispose of our waste.
The Bryn Pica site has recently received Objective One Funding for a new £1.9m project to improve its recycling capability so that it is now able to process much more waste material for recovery and composting. This has given a considerable boost to the prospects of hitting the target of recycling and composting 25% of waste by 2007 in Rhondda Cynon Taff, before meeting an even stiffer task of 40% by 2010.
In addition to its new recycling capacity, Bryn Pica consists of a community recycling centre and a landfill waste disposal facility and which disposes of Rhondda Cynon Taff’s domestic refuse. Recycling targets set by the Welsh Assembly Government are the main mechanism by which Wales hopes to contribute to the UK’s requirement to reduce the amount of waste that is sent to landfill as a result of the European Union Landfill Directive.
Once fully commissioned, the recycling facility at Bryn Pica will have the capacity to process 30,000 tonnes of waste and the composting facility will have a capacity of 20,000 tonnes per annum.
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The Government’s new “Respect Action Plan” contains chilling proposals which could vilify the vulnerable and poor, human rights group Liberty said today.
In speech entitled “Asbomania” (excerpt below) Director of Liberty, Shami Chakrabarti said:
“In a press conference this morning, the Prime Minister described a radical extension of summary powers to police and local authorities. We now understand this to involve powers to evict council tenants and board up private homes for a period of three months.
Many of the Government’s policies and initiatives, from marching louts to cash points to sin bins and baby asbos, may have been drafted on Westminster beer mats by ambitious advisers. But they reveal an underlying philosophy nonetheless – that the presumption of innocence is too cumbersome.
What of the kids with ADHD or Tourettes who are banned from swearing and set up for inevitable failure? The suicidal woman banned from bridges? What of the mentally ill and the homeless banned from begging under pain of criminal sanction?
Should this behaviour be regulated by the law, let alone mediated by police, local authority and court intervention? The reality of asbomania in 2006 is a new mutant strain of criminal law.
In 1998, ASBOs may have looked like a last chance for offenders to avoid the criminal conviction. Today they appear to provide a short cut into it.
Up to December of 2003, 42% of all ASBOs were breached with 55% of breaches resulting in custody. This suggests that like the traditional criminal justice system, ASBOs are very good at achieving what has never been this Government’s stated objective- namely, higher levels of incarceration.
No one could contend that an ASBO has never been properly or proportionately framed against an offender. But the Prime Minister must consider the many ways in which the innocent and the vulnerable may be swept up with the guilty. With the move to summary, arbitrary and loosely defined community justice, anti-social behaviour laws have to date been at best neutral and at worst positively damaging.”
Young people who attend the County Youth Club at Penrhiwceiber have been treated to a special celebration ceremony to commemorate their achievements over the past year.
The young people – Daniel Davies, Stevie Jones, Scott Cutland, Beth Brittain, Cori Jones, Nicole Trampelli, Jacob Long, Tammy Sheehan, Jarrad Williamson, Tiffany Holloway, Joseph Long, Sally Crockett, Dale Jones and Rio Jones – received trophies for their achievements in pool, darts, table tennis, quiz, ten-pin bowling and self-development before relaxing with a buffet and karaoke.
“It was an enjoyable event and I would like to thank all the local traders who supported it,” says Mary Driscoll, Senior Youth Worker. “The generosity of L. Williamson ‘Jaz,’ Auto Bitz, Sue’s Florist, Clock Fish Bar, Cut Loose Hair Salon, PJ’s Better Buys, Post Office, Mrs B Hughes, Garth Bakery and Ferrari’s means a lot to the young people.”
Youth Club is held at Penrhiwceiber on Monday and Wednesday evenings between 6.30pm and 9pm in a purpose built building above the school. All young people aged between 11 and 19 years are welcome.
The Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust is running a new year recruitment drive to encourage volunteers to join twenty five First Responder schemes across South East Wales.
As part of the First Responder scheme, volunteers are trained by the Welsh Ambulance Service to carry out basic life saving skills, recognition of cardiac conditions, cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and the use of a defibrillator. The training is provided by the Welsh Ambulance Service who also provide the necessary support needed to carry out the role.
First Responder schemes are a valuable additional resource for communities in giving swift emergency help before an ambulance can arrive and do not in any way replace existing emergency ambulance services.
There are currently more than 70 First Responder Schemes in Wales but the Welsh Ambulance Service wants to increase this number and ensure that more communities have the ability to gain access to CPR and defibrillator training. The earlier someone suffering from a heart attack receives defibrillation, the greater the chance of survival.
First Responder Officer, Tony Rossetti said: “Every second counts when you are trying to save someone’s life and First Responder schemes are hugely beneficial in assisting the ambulance service to provide the best possible pre-hospital care for patients. All training for volunteers who wish to take part in such an initiative is provided by the Welsh Ambulance Service and we look forward to delivering more schemes across South East Wales.”
The service is seeking volunteers in the following areas: Caerphilly, Senghenydd, Abertridwr, Newport, St Julians, Rogerstone, Mountain Ash, Penrhiwceiber, Abercynon, Monmouth, Chepstow, Caldicot, Usk, Abergavenny, Penarth, Llantwit Major, Cowbridge, Risca, Cross Keys, Pontyclun, Llantrisant, Talbot Green, Treherbert, Blaencwm and Maerdy.
To become a First Responder you must be between 18 and 70 years old, be physically fit and hold a clean UK driving licence. Applicants will also need to undergo a Criminal Records Bureau check before being registered to the scheme.
For more information on the First Responder scheme please contact Tony Rossetti on 07734 744819.
The BBC Wales Roadshow will be at Michael Sobells Leisure Centre on Sunday 22 January 2006, between 10am – 4pm
Entry is Free – Just Turn up
This is the start of three months of events, programmes and shows that will take place in and around Aberdare – part of BBC Wales’ Here For You.
Come and see Stuart Cable launch a search for new bands.
Share your consumer problems with the X-Ray team.
From BBC Radio Wales meet Roy Noble, Owen Money, and Chris Needs
Plus have a go at football commentating with Match of the Day’s Ian Gwyn Hughes, and from CBeebies meet the Bobinogs.
SHELL have confirmed that the fuel service station on Hirwaun Road, Trenant will close on 24th January 2006.
The fuel station site suffers from subsidence problems and Shell have decided that it is uneconomical to invest in a solution.The loss of the Shell garage reduces the choice for local motorists and strengthens the monopoly of the Supermarket fuel service stations within the Cynon Valley. ASDA and Tesco are both situated within a mile of Aberdare town centre. It seems very likely that the loss of the Shell garage will further increase the traffic congestion near Aberdare, in particular near Tesco.
