QUICK-THINKING air cadets came to the rescue of Hadleigh town centre’s Christmas tree lights switch-on ceremony.

Castle Point mayor Jackie Govier was preparing to turn on the lights for a giant Christmas tree outside St James the Less Church, in Hadleigh town centre, when the ceremony’s organisers realised a gardener had cut through a connection cable.

Retired parishioner Mervyn Cooke came up with the idea of using other lights instead, which had been hung from nearby trees.

A team of ten volunteers from the Thundersley Air Training Corps raced over and took them down, with help from a council worker.

They carried these to the Christmas tree and wound them round just in time for the start of the ceremony, allowing the mayor to switch on the lights in front of around 400 people.

Relieved Una Kipps, who helped organise the ceremony, said: “The youngsters saved the day with their quick actions. They only just got the lights on the tree in time. I think they were in place three minutes before the ceremony started.

“We had a quick flash to make sure they worked, then after the mayor did the count down, lo and behold we had light.”

Castle Point Council will now have to pay for the original lights to be repaired.

David Marchant, the council’s chief executive, said: “It was a tremendous team effort that saved the day.”