Archive

  • Union anger over fire HQ spending

    THE Fire Brigades Union has criticised Essex Fire and Rescue for spending £250,000 on plans to move its headquarters, which are supposed to be on hold. Last year Essex Fire Authority voted not to move to Kelvedon Park until the future of the service

  • Car hits garage in South Ockendon

    FIREFIGHTERS from Grays were called out at 5.30pm after a car left the road and hit a garage adjoining a house in Juniper Drive, South Ockendon. Nobody needed freeing from the vehicle but the firefighters were called out to deal with an unsafe structure

  • Businesses concerned at police cuts

    A BUSINESS watchdog claims massive cuts to the county’s police force is “bad news” for companies. Essex Chief Constable Jim Barker-McCardle warned “hundreds and hundreds” of frontline officers and police staff could be axed to make savings of up to £45million

  • Smith crafts decent Aquatels carp catch

    LOW atmospheric pressure contributed to a good week for anglers at Aquatels. Lake regular Mark Smith excelled with four carp from the beach — a 15lb mirror, 23lb 8oz ghostie, the “Barnacle” at 27lb 8oz and, the icing on the cake, the carp known as the

  • Extra sewage to give power to the district

    SEWAGE from Rayleigh and Canvey could power homes in Basildon if plans are approved. Anglian Water wants to increase the size of its sewage works in Courtauld Road, Basildon, by 7.4 acres to accommodate the growth of the town. It also wants to bring

  • Thames Gateway minister praises work to create nature reserve

    THE minister for the Thames Gateway made his first visit to the London Gateway super port development yesterday, to officially name its new nature reserve. Bob Neill MP was joined at Stanford Wharf Nature Reserve by children from Abbots Hall School,

  • Roslin Hotel helps to feed 100 needy people a week

    A HOTEL is serving up a treat for a local charity by handing out 100 free meals a week. Head chef Wayne Hawkins from the Roslin Hotel, in Eastern Esplanade, Thorpe Bay, is cooking up the meals for low-income families. The families are being supported

  • Half of NHS managers face axe in spending shake-up

    THE number of health managers in south-east Essex is to be slashed by half under new Government targets. In the last financial year (2009/10) there were 160 staff at NHS South East Essex who fell into the Department of Health’s definition of management

  • Kerridge goes fourth in junior Great Run

    WESTCLIFF’S Jonathan Kerridge came fourth in the Bupa Junior Great North Run on Saturday — the same position he finished in last year’s event. The 15-year-old, who is a member of Southend Athletics Club, finished the 3.5km-road race in a time of 15:

  • Wig woman Linda’s selling hair peace

    LINDA King is the founder of Angel Wigs. According to many women who have lost their hair because of illness, she really is an angel. Linda, from Canvey, has been a hairdresser all her working life and for thirty years owned a salon on the

  • Four trialists to feature for Blues

    SOUTHEND United will take a look at four trialists in tonight's reserve match at Stevenage Borough. Alexandre Tabillon, Walid Bouslimani, John Grant and Nathaniel Jarvis will all feature in the game. French pair Tabillon, 19, and Bouslimani, 21

  • Flood warning sirens set to be scrapped

    FLOOD warning sirens across Essex could be decommissioned after a review found they were coming to the end of their natural life. Tracey Chapman, Essex County Council’s cabinet member responsible for emergency planning, will take a decision on the future

  • Billericay and Gulls revved up for league cup derby

    FIERCE rivals Billericay Town and Canvey Island have been drawn together in the Ryman League Cup. Just three weeks after their last encounter, the football gods have thrown them together again for a Tuesday evening cup tie at New Lodge on October 12

  • Cancer victim: Talk to me before it’s too late

    A WOMAN dying of cancer fears she may be dead before a hospital meets her to discuss complaints over her treatment. Doctors at Southend Hospital missed Catherine Watkins’s pancreatic cancer more than 20 times so when she was eventually diagnosed, her

  • Road rage attack at Sadlers Farm

    A ROAD rage attack happened at a busy roundabout where a driver was punched. Tempers flared in the middle of rush hour at Sadlers Farm roundabouts, Benfleet, and may have been seen by people on their way home. The victim was in a van

  • Have you seen this man?

    POLICE want to find this man and return him to prison. Andrew Woods, 29, was last known to be living in Falcon Way, Shoebury, and is wanted on recall after failing to attend appointments with his supervising officer. He has connections

  • Residents get fresh hope in land wrangle

    A SCALED-down housing development may still be built on the Gardiners Lane South area of Basildon. Five families, whose homes have been blighted by the threat of major development in the area for nearly 20 years, could finally be properly compensated

  • Park attack on 14-year-old girl

    A 14-YEAR-OLD girl was left with a broken jaw after she was brutally attacked in a park. The youngster had been in St Laurence Park, Eastwood, when she was set upon by two girls. She managed to make her way to her home in Wescliff, where

  • Basildon Council’s £1million bill for a computer system

    BASILDON Council will have to pay up to £1million for a computer upgrade. The council may have to spend the large sum because ageing computers operating its housing management need to be replaced. It comes after the council said it could have to save

  • Just the ticket for the Pirates

    ESSEX Pirates have confirmed season ticket details for the forthcoming campaign, with adult prices set at just £110. Concessions are available for £70, with children under the under of three able to watch the British Basketball League matches for free

  • Coughlan in double hunt

    GRAHAM Coughlan wants to impress as both a coach and player when Southend United’s reserves head to Stevenage Borough tonight. Blues’ second string have yet to triumph so far this term under the Irishman’s guidance. And Coughlan is hoping to put that

  • Beach clean begins after oil spill hits coast

    THE public has been warned to steer clear of nearly four miles of Southend beaches after an oil slick hit the coast. Southend Council warned people to steer clear of the seafront between the Sea Life Centre in Marine Parade, Southend, to Shoebury East

  • It’s medal magic for South Essex gymnasts

    GIRLS from the South Essex Gymnastics Club took home nine medals and team trophies from a competition in Bury. The Basildon club sent two teams and four pairs to the tournament earlier this month. In the level five team competition, Sophie Goodman

  • Biker friends in memorial ride

    BIKERS from across Essex and London joined together to ride more than 100 miles in memory of a woman who died of cancer at only 29. Keen biker Sheree Paffey lost her battle with a rare form of the disease in September last year. Before she was ill,

  • Police warn over false paedophile letters

    POLICE have issued a warning about a bogus letter which claims to name a child sex offender. The letters purport to be from Essex Police and were sent to addresses in Leigh and Rayleigh yesterday. They have been sent to local businesses and claim the

  • Council writes off £160,000 of unpaid debts

    BASILDON Council has written off nearly £160,000 in unpaid debts. The council is no longer pursuing eight businesses over a total of £97,857 unpaid business rates, after they went into liquidation or their bosses were declared bankrupt. It has also

  • Who could headbutt man of 92 on a bus?

    A THUG headbutted a 92-year-old man on a bus – because the pensioner asked him to move a pushchair so he could sit down. Detectives revealed the shocking details about the attack in the hope they will get witnesses to come forward and identify

  • Council housing list system is scrapped

    A NEW system for allocating council homes will restore the dignity of applicants, a housing chief has claimed. Castle Point Council is set to adopt a choice-based letting scheme from March 2011, which will see the borough’s housing list scrapped. Instead

  • Colchester Zoo tortoises tuck into smugglers' tomatoes

    RARE tortoises at Colchester Zoo have been tucking into tomatoes used in a failed plot to smuggle cigarettes into the country The UK Border Agency was left with boxes of the fruit after it seized ten million cigarettes at the Port of Felixstowe

  • Hundreds gather to see carnival go by

    HUNDREDS of people lined the streets to see floats, dancers, and musicians take part in the Wickford Carnival. Spectators admired the colourful costumes of children and adults, as they danced to music through the town. About 30 groups took part in the