Archive

  • Gas leak closes store

    A SHOPWORKER was taken to hospital after a gas leak left her feeling ill. The Tesco Express store in London Road, Westcliff, closed two hours early this evening, November 17, after a woman in her 20s, who was stacking shelves, fell ill and

  • Teen motorcyclist taken to hospital after collision

    A TEENAGE boy was taken to hospital after a collision between a car and a motorbike. Canvey Road, on Canvey, was blocked near to Charfleets Road after a Volkswagen Sharan and a blue motorbike collided. The incident happened just after 4pm today, November

  • Driver jailed for six years after fatal crash

    A DRIVER has been jailed for six years after he had an epileptic fit at the wheel and killed a woman. Philip Chapman, 56, of The Drive, Rayleigh, had caused the tragic crash in Sutton Road, Southend, on September 15. He was driving a

  • Temporary closure for swimming pool refurb

    A COMMUNITY swimming pool will close for three months for major improvement work. The pool at Shoebury Leisure Centre will temporarily shut from Monday, November 21, until March 2. Essential works will improve the pool side and plant

  • Charity slams council’s £20 switch-on stall fee

    CHARITY volunteers have been left fuming after being told they have to pay £20 to run a stall at Canvey’s Christmas light switch on. Supporters of the Castle Point British Red Cross have hit out at the “charity tax” which has led them to pull out of

  • McEvoy aiming for joy in South Africa

    RICHARD McEvoy has departed for South Africa. The Thorpe Hall golfing star hopes to make the cut in both the Alfred Dunhill and Leopard Creek competitions this week and the South African Open, at the Serengeti Golf Club, next week. But it’s a big

  • High Schools dominate

    SOUTHEND’S two high schools once again dominated the district’s schools cross-country championships. The High School for Girls won the overall team event, each of the four age group awards and had three individual winners. And that was a feat matched

  • Yobs go on £2,500 tyre-slashing spree

    YOBS slashed 34 tyres in just one night as they went on a vandalism spree in Pitsea and Vange. In total 18 vehicles were hit. The cost of repairing all the damage is estimated by police at £2,680, but that figure could grow. The thugs struck overnight

  • What is the future for Shoebury shopping parade?

    TRADERS have demanded help to save a parade of shops from closing. Several stores stand empty in West Road, one of two main shopping parades in Shoebury, including the old post office. Kevin Mylroie, 60, whose father bought Mylroie butchers in 1959,

  • Teen arrested for breaching dispersal order

    A 15-year-old boy has been arrested for breaching a dispersal order in Tilbury. The order, which came into force in July this year, aims to stop yobs gathering and causing a nuisance and covers parts of the town centre, Civic Square, Calcutta Road and

  • Neil by Mouth: Busy time both on and off the pitch

    THERE has been plenty to keep everyone happy at the club, both on and off the pitch, this week. Footballing-wise, we were pleased to go to Preston North End last weekend and pick up a good 0-0 draw in the FA Cup against a team from a higher

  • Blues fans to out-number Daggers?

    SOUTHEND United could have almost as many fans as Dagenham & Redbridge when the two teams meet this weekend, despite the match being played at Victoria Road. Blues have completely sold out their allocation of 1,500 tickets. And, with Dagenham currently

  • Bereaved parents’ bid to raise cash for unit

    A MUM who lost one of her triplets is now raising money to help the medics who tried to save her. Emma Houghton, 29, gave birth to identical triplets Skye, Lillie and Gracie by Caesarean section at Basildon Hospital, when she was 30 weeks pregnant –

  • Residents lock out car park hooligans

    A GROUP of residents are celebrating after they succesfully stamped out antisocial behaviour in a Benfleet car park. The residents took on the running of the WRVS car park, in Richmond Avenue, after yob drivers started congregating there to

  • Asante bags hat-trick for Gulls

    CANVEY’S on-loan striker Kyle Asante bagged a hat-trick as the Gulls cruised into the next round of the Ryman League Cup with a 5-1 win over Ware. Asante, on loan at Park Lane from Southend United, was joined on the scoresheet by Jay Curran and the fit-again

  • Older people need their own Minister

    I am asking readers to join Anchor’s Grey Pride Campaign and sign our petition calling for a Minister for Older People to help end the prejudices faced by the elderly. We hope the Minister would be called upon when the cabinet discusses such issues as

  • Say no to cull of badgers

    Shortly the Government will be making a statement with regard to their intentions whether or not to cull our most ancient Briton, the badger. The badger, here for 250,000 years, and the most iconic of British wildlife, is already persecuted with unimaginable

  • The shame of Remembrance

    On Canvey, we have a war memorial campaigned for and contributed to by Canvey people and the Canvey British Legion. Its main purpose is as a meeting place where, every Remembrance Day, islanders gather to join in the official national two-minute silence

  • Wickford is a great place to live, please don’t spoil it

    I read in Monday’s Echo that Basildon Council is having talks with several large developers who are interested in buying the car park near the Wickford Co-op. Where are the people of the town going to park when they shop? Councillor Malcolm Buckley

  • MP Metcalfe: Let's get tough on metal thieves

    A TORY MP is calling on the Government to take tough action on metal thieves targeting war memorials. In recent weeks, several monuments, dedicated to those who have lost their lives in conflicts, have had lead or iron plaques stolen from them

  • Police attend crash on A130

    Police were called to an accident on the A130 shortly after 9:30am. A green Ford Fiesta and an articulated lorry collided on the south bound carriageway of the busy road, near Rawreth. A section of the road was closed off while the lorry was recovered

  • 20-strong gang fight in Vange park

    SEVERAL people suffered broken bones after a 20-strong gang fight in Vange. The fight broke out in Swan Mead Park between around 20 teenagers. One suffered a broken nose while a parent who tried to help suffered a broken hand. The fight happened at

  • Stars back charity night in aid of Nicky

    A HOST of football stars have made donations to a charity night in aid of a young goalkeeper left partially paralysed after getting caught up in a fight. England captain John Terry has donated a pair of signed football boots, while Tottenham Hotspur

  • Drunken yob remanded for smashing a window

    A DRUNKEN yob vandalised a doctors’ surgery while showing off in front of his pal. Adam Wells, 22, of Valkyrie Road, Westcliff, downed a whole bottle of wine and a bottle of port before smashing a window of the Valkyrie Road surgery. In mitigation,

  • Firefighters’ hairy charity challenge

    THEY are used to facing extremes in their working life, so firefighters aren’t finding their latest fundraising challenge too hairy. Handlebar moustaches, fully-grown beards and stubble are just some of the facial hair firefighters on Basildon’s green

  • No post deliveries – unless it’s a package

    ROYAL Mail has been branded “ludicrous” after it emerged delivery staff from one of its companies were dropping packages on unmade roads from where posties have been banned. The postal service stopped delivering letters to a dozen unmade roads in Benfleet

  • John Baron MP: It’s claptrap to talk about saving euro

    MP John Baron has labelled efforts by the UK government to save the euro as “economic claptrap”. The Tory MP for Basildon and Billericay spoke during a debate in Parliament, and criticised plans for Britain to pump another £10billion into the International

  • MP Baron gets tougher security at Basildon rail station

    AN MP, who was outraged after seeing a fare dodger get away without paying, has claimed victory after security at Basildon station was beefed up. John Baron, Tory MP for Basildon and Billericay, was going through a ticket barrier at Basildon Station,

  • Work starts on first homes at Gloucester Park

    BUILDING work has started on the first show homes at the controversial Gloucester Park housing development in Basildon. Campaigners have been fighting council plans to build houses on the site of the former swimming pool, which closed in April

  • More waste recycled than sent to landfill

    MORE waste is now being sent to be recycled rather than to landfill sites in Castle Point. For the first time in the borough, more than half of all waste is being recycled. In the past six months, residents recycled 51.73 per cent of waste, a huge increase

  • Cable thieves cut off phones

    UP to 300 homes and businesses were left without phone or internet access after thieves went on the rampage. It is thought some people could be left without a phone line for up to three weeks following the theft. The incident, which

  • Paint stripper poured over family’s car

    A WOMAN has condemned vandals who poured paint- stripper over her car, causing hundreds of pounds of damage. Jacqui Skeats, 46, of Brookside, Canvey, was about start the school run when she spotted the damage to her Renault Megane. Mrs Skeats still

  • Medic is bailed over £1m hospital fraud

    A HEART and blood specialist at Basildon Hospital has been arrested on suspicion of carrying out a fraud worth more than £1million. John Mulholland was arrested by three detectives at the hospital, in Nethermayne, Basildon, as he arrived to

  • Lung group is desperate to find chairman

    A SUPPORT group for people with lung problems is in danger of closing because it cannot find a chairman. Breathe Easy, which has been going for 18 years, supports people affected by lung conditions, and their family and friends. The group needs a volunteer