Archive
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FLOODS: Residents want to know why flood pumps failed
ANGRY residents on Canvey want to know why multi-million pound pumps failed to protect them from Saturday’s flooding. Canvey councillors have requested a meeting with Environment Agency bosses to find out why the island’s 14 pumps, which were upgraded
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FLOODS: Supermarket forced into evacuation
A SUPERMARKET is back in business after it was forced to shut due to flooding. More than 150 shoppers had to be evacuated from Waitrose, in Billericay High Street, after water rushed into the store on Saturday afternoon. It was the supermarket
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Dog day afternoon for pooches
SAY hello to Vange’s dogs with the waggiest tails. Roz and Sky, owned by Sue Hocking, took home the dog show title when perfect pooches and their owners strutted their stuff at Vange Hill Drive Community Park. The show was organised to encourage
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Poor don't know how to feed themselves says Essex's Jamie Oliver
MOST of the poorest families in Britain do not know how to feed themselves properly and choose expensive rather than cheap options, TV chef Jamie Oliver has said. The star, 38, who had a food TV show based at Southend Pier and has an estimated
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FLOODS: Roads damaged, manholes missing
SOUTHEND Council is still working out the total cost of the floods, while water bosses fathom if they were to blame in any way. Andy Lewis, director of planning, said the council was in the process of identifying the full extent of the damage across
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FLOODS: John finds car submerged
A MAN returned home from holiday...to find his car submerged under 5ft of water! John Wickham was away when the underground car park at Chapman Sands, Chalkwell, started filling up with water. Retired John, who moved into his flat, in Chalkwell
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National award for Rawreth nursery
A RAWRETH nursery is celebrating winning a national award just five years after opening. The Day Nursery, in Church Road, achieved the financial award in the Action Coach Business Coaching UK Business Awards for growing its profit by 127% in five
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FLOODS: My garden has been left covered in sewage
A WOMAN was left with sewage all over her garden after the flash floods. Lynda Smith’s home, in Wyburns Avenue, Rayleigh, was swamped with raw sewage when the drain in her drive overflowed. She described how a torrent of sewage ran past her
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FLOODS: Drivers stuck in Tesco car park for four hours
DRIVERS have told of their shopping nightmare after being stuck in a supermarket car park for four hours due to flooding. Motorists were left stranded at the Mayflower retail park, Basildon, after torrential downpours blew a manhole cover on the
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Group gets cash for new roof
A PENSIONERS’ club is celebrating after being awarded £500 to repair their community hall. The Number 2 OAP Club was awarded the grant from Canvey Town Council to help them carry out vital repairs to their hall in Central Avenue. The hall is
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Cockle pick pair caught
TWO cockle pickers were caught on the seafront. A concerned member of the public spotted people on the shoreline near to the Kursaal in Southend with a torch and thought they were in trouble. They contacted Thames Coastguard who sent a team
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Jessica Judd vows to come back even stronger
JESSICA Judd believes the highs and lows of the season of her life will only make her stronger in years to come. The 18-year-old 800m star has been forced to end her track campaign early because of a pelvis injury picked up during the World Championships
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Protesters seek union status for workers at new superport
UNION members have held a protest in a bid to get representation at the new £1billion London Gateway port in Thurrock. Unite members demonstrated at the Uniserve depot outside the Port of Tilbury after owners at the new port failed to reach an
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FLOODS: Businesses left to count their costs
SEAFRONT businesses in Southend are still tallying up the hefty cost of flash flood damage and lost trade – estimated at up to £1million. Ye Olde Chippy was left in a bad way when sewage came through its two doors. The Zinonos family are waiting
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FLOODS: 'Police ignored flood to pull over vehicles’
ONE man has criticised Essex Police for carrying out a traffic operation, rather than dealing with the flooding. Nicholas Cronk e-mailed the Echo to complain after seeing police doing an operation in Progress Road, Eastwood. He wrote: “I passed
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Ladies Rolex stolen in Leigh burglary
Police are appealing for information after a ladies’ Rolex watch was stolen from a house in Leigh. The watch was among several items of jewellery stolen from a house in Mountdale Gardens between 8.30am and 9.30am on Friday, August 23 after a door
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Shocked England fan given new car by former player
SHOCKED football fan Nick Tedder got a right result when a former England goalkeeper turned up at his house to give him a new car. Dave Beasant visited Nick’s house in Langdon Hills to hand over the keys to a Vauxhall Adam. Nick knew he had
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FLOODS: Cafe staff man the barricades to keep water out
STAFF at a cafe made a makeshift barricade using their A boards, outside tables and rolled up towels to keep the floods at bay. Lunch In a Bag cafe, in Fairfax Drive, Westcliff, was open when the torrential rain came down. Owner Paul Crane
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FLOODS: Fireman on call as own house floods
FIREFIGHTERS told how they spent hour after hour up to their knees in floodwater helping to pump out people’s homes and businesses. One firefighter even heard over the radio how his own home had been flooded. Leading Firefighter Paul Jones
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iFools: Victim receives snaps taken on stolen phone!
THESE pictures of scantily-clad men having fun in the sun were taken on a woman’s phone... just after it was stolen! Snaps taken on the iPhone show the pair seemingly having a whale of a time at a Southend beach, swimming and posing in their boxer
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My bedroom tax fight goes to UN
A DISABILITY campaigner from Canada has vowed to contact the United Nations to raise the plight of a Vange man hit by the controversial bedroom tax. The Echo reported earlier this month Alan Cooper, 49, was being forced to pay an extra £50 a month
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Julian Bennett still has plans on helping Southend United's promotion bid this season
SOUTHEND United defender Julian Bennett is targeting a return to action in the New Year after undergoing surgery on his cruciate ligament injury. The 28-year-old is expected to be out for between six to nine months with the knee problem he sustained
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Ruby rises to occasion in Great British Bake Off show
CREATIVE Ruby Tandoh must produce stunning technical bakes and avoid soggy bottomed cakes to triumph on this year’s Great British Bake Off. Ruby, 21, of Bournemouth Park Road, Southend, is battling it out with 11 other remaining contestants in
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VIDEO: Flooding in Grovewood Avenue, Eastwood
HOUSES were flooded as water poured into Grovewood Avenue, Eastwood. A video posted to YouTube by Paul Hammo shows major flooding in the area. Watch here:
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UPDATED: Sex assault in Westcliff
POLICE are investigating a sex assault outside a takeaway in Westcliff. A cordon was put up around the Pizza Hut Express in London Road at its junction with Ceylon Road, yesterday morning. It stretched around the front of the building to the
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Pair jailed after £1m cannabis find in van
TWO men have been jailed for possession of cannabis worth more than £1million, found in their van by police. James Bailey, 37, of Henshawe Road, Dagenham, was jailed for five years for possessing cannabis and amphetamine with intent to supply and
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Spencer Bellotti goal hands Danny Heale first win as Canvey Island boss
DANNY Heale enjoyed his first win as Canvey manager, despite getting sent from the touchline late on. A first club goal for Spencer Bellotti gave the Gulls a 1-0 victory at Bury Town yesterday as he pounced on a defensive error early in the first
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Concord Rangers stalemate despite late action
Conference South Concord Rangers 0, Sutton United 0 CONCORD made it four points from the Bank Holiday weekend with a slow-burning draw at home to a strong Sutton side. All the best action came in the dying stages with Concord’s James White
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Britt Assombalonga reveals how spell with Southend United made him a £1.25 million player with Peterborough United
BRITT Assombalonga has revealed how his loan spell with Southend United helped him to become one of the hottest prospects outside the Premier League. Assombalonga, who bagged 16 goals while with the Shrimpers last season, has scored four goals
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FLOODS: Birthday girl Ella left stranded by downpour
PARTYGOERS were stranded after the torrential downpour flooded a Hadleigh car park. Friends and family of Ella Green descended on the Old Fire Station, in Hadleigh High Street, to celebrate her 13th birthday, and became trapped inside as the water
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FLOODS: Rain ruined Sam’s gifts on big day
A SCHOOLBOY’S birthday weekend was ruined by the relentless rain which wiped out his day trip, flooded his home and destroyed his presents. Samuel Boslem, seven, had a day at Adventure Island, Southend, brought to an end early due to the downpour
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Protest over arrest of mum who went on the run with baby
THE family of a woman who went on the run with her baby held a protest against her arrest. Michelle Kelly, 28, is took her one-year- old son, Jaden, to Scotland after Essex County Council secured a court order to take the child into care. Police
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South Essex flooding - how it was all caught on video
PEOPLE have been posting videos of their weekend flooding experiences - here's a slection of some of the best.
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We were already on the up...then Rihanna wore our shorts
THE day after singer Rihanna donned a pair of Ragged Priest’s signature studded shorts, sales went through the roof. The pop star’s endorsement bolstered the Westcliff-based clothing label’s already growing success and now they’re currently one
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I was too fat to ride my own horse
IT was Shirley Lee’s love of horse riding which ultimately provided her with the inspiration to lose weight. At 5ft, Shirley weighed 12 stone and three pounds – and feared she was too heavy and unfit to go riding. Shirley says: “I would be
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Theatrical agency in appeal for youngsters
THEATRICAL talent has the chance for that first big break, as Solomon Artistes conducts auditions for its next production, Half a Sixpence. Run by actor-director Ted Houser, Solomon is a long-established agency, which supplies actors and extras
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Neighbours speak of shock as BMW in police chase crashes through five front gardens
NEIGHBOURS have told of their shock after a car being pursued by the police careered off the road, crashed through five gardens and wrecked a number of vehicles. The drama unfolded when the driver of a BMW M6 spun off the road at the junction of
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Our West Side Story is stage for local talent
WEST Side Story has stormed the stage at the Palace Theatre, Westcliff, in many productions, but none of them perhaps quite like the one that will open on August 28. Veteran director and stage school impresario Vanda Morgan says her production
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MP’s plea on Syria
AN MP called on the Government to “go the extra mile” to help Syrian refugees. John Baron, MP for Basildon and Billericay, said the Government must not allow knee-jerk intervention following news the Syrian government may have used chemical weapons
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708 seals are spotted in Estuary
AN INCREDIBLE 708 seals have been spotted in the Thames Estuary in the first count by air, land and sea. The survey by the Zoological Society of London tallied the number of grey and harbour seals along the Thames. The society’s conservation
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Man bailed over fires
A MAN arrested on suspicion of starting a series of fires has been bailed. The man was held after a series of fires in bins and bin sheds in Helmores, Durham Road and Somercotes in Laindon and Whitmore Way, in Basildon. The fires were started
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Mum critical after being stabbed in front of her child
A WOMAN was left lying in a pool of blood after being stabbed in front of her young child. The 33-year-old was injured inside a flat in Osier Drive, Noak Bridge, but managed to escape before collapsing in the street. She was taken to Basildon
