Sussex World reporter Jacob Panons brings you all the top stories from across the county.
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00:00 (upbeat music)
00:02 - Hello and welcome to Latest TV News.
00:15 My name is Jacob Pannins,
00:17 I'm a reporter for Sussex World,
00:18 and I'm gonna be talking to you
00:20 about some of the top stories from across the county.
00:22 (upbeat music)
00:27 A huge fire broke out at a hotel on Brighton Seafront
00:30 over the weekend.
00:31 Dozens of firefighters and emergency service workers
00:33 were called to the blaze on Saturday, July 15th
00:36 at the Royal Albion Hotel by the pier,
00:38 which broke out at around 5.25 p.m.
00:41 At 8 p.m. the following day,
00:42 the incident was still regarded as being ongoing
00:44 by East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service.
00:47 Road closures were in place along Kings Road
00:49 along to the Oldsteen.
00:50 People had been urged to stay away from the area
00:52 and to keep their windows and doors shut.
00:55 There are no reports of any casualties
00:56 as a result of the incident
00:58 and an investigation is underway.
01:00 Airborne has confirmed its flying lineup
01:01 ahead of the 2023 edition of the Free Air Show in Eastbourne.
01:04 45 aerial displays are expected across the four-day show,
01:08 which runs from August 17th to August the 20th.
01:10 Flying begins from lunchtime with ground displays
01:13 starting from 10.30 a.m. each day.
01:15 In addition to the RAF Red Arrows performing every day
01:18 and displays from the powerful Typhoon,
01:20 Battle of Britain Memorial Flight and Chooter,
01:23 air show fans can also look forward
01:24 to the heavy duty Chinook,
01:26 the Norwegian Vampire Jet Fighter
01:28 and the Strike Master Jet.
01:30 The world's only professional wing walking team
01:32 will also be making a popular return
01:34 along with the Tigers Army Parachute Display Team
01:37 who'll be dropping in each day.
01:38 Tributes have been paid
01:40 to a popular Eastbourne school teacher and father
01:42 who has tragically passed away.
01:43 Almost 400 mourners, including colleagues and pupils,
01:46 attended the funeral of Oakley's junior school teacher,
01:49 Andrew Guidson, who was just 39 years old.
01:52 Andrew's wife, Jeanette, said one of his unique qualities
01:55 was his ability to accept everybody for what they were
01:58 and to value them accordingly.
02:00 Andrew was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis
02:03 at the age of six weeks
02:04 and underwent a double lung transplant in 2015,
02:07 which gave him a new lease of life
02:09 and allowed him to spend precious extra years
02:11 with his wife and daughter.
02:12 An investment company has announced plans
02:14 to develop and operate a new solar farm
02:16 co-located with Battery Energy Storage
02:18 on land in Eastbourne.
02:19 Privately owned investment
02:21 and asset management company, Low Carbon,
02:23 said the Suncoast Solar Farm could be on land west
02:25 and east of the East Coast Way railway line.
02:28 It is estimated that the site could generate enough power
02:30 for more than 6,400 family homes every year.
02:33 Low Carbon will shortly be undertaking a public consultation
02:36 to give local residents the opportunity to find out more
02:39 about the proposals and to give their feedback.
02:41 A music and food festival,
02:42 which is due to take place in Eastbourne over the weekend,
02:44 was cancelled due to the weather.
02:46 Beach Life Music and Food Festival
02:47 was set to go ahead on July 15th and 16th,
02:50 but on Thursday, July 13th,
02:52 a Visit Eastbourne spokesperson announced
02:53 that the event would not take place this year
02:55 due to the high winds that were forecasted.
02:58 The tourism group said this was to ensure public safety
03:00 and to prevent public damage
03:02 to temporary event infrastructure.
03:04 Hastings White Rock Theatre
03:05 will be looking for a new organisation
03:07 to lease the building from early next year.
03:09 The current lease and management contract with Trafalgar
03:11 ends in January 2024,
03:13 and Hastings Borough Council officers
03:15 have been exploring options for the venue's future.
03:17 These were put in front of cabinet members
03:19 on Monday, July the 3rd,
03:21 who agreed to market the building for lease.
03:23 Other options, including looking to sell the building
03:26 or mothballing it for a period of time, were discounted.
03:29 Hastings was overrun by thousands of pirates
03:31 over the weekend,
03:32 as the annual Pirate Day took place in the town.
03:34 High winds from the high seas
03:35 failed to deter swashbuckling crews
03:38 who took over the seafront and packed into the old town.
03:40 According to reports,
03:41 this was one of the biggest pirate days yet,
03:43 with a huge number of people taking part
03:45 in the colourful parade from Robert Sutton Street
03:47 in the town centre to Hastings Old Town on Sunday.
03:50 Pubs and restaurants joined in with the fun too,
03:52 with many offering rum cocktails
03:54 and offering pirate specials over the weekend.
03:56 A rare albino squirrel has made itself at home
03:59 in a couple's garden in St. Leonard's.
04:01 The albino squirrel, named Polo,
04:03 was videoed feeding in a garden in Essendon Road
04:06 and is now a regular in the area
04:07 and enjoys eating sunflower hearts.
04:09 Scientists estimate that the odds
04:12 of a female grey squirrel giving birth
04:14 to an albino offspring are one in 100,000.
04:17 Now let's hear from Mike Mendoza
04:19 as he tells us more about the fire on Brighton seafront.
04:22 (upbeat music)
04:24 We start today's news with a report
04:33 on the disastrous fire
04:35 of the major seafront hotel in Brighton.
04:37 Hello and welcome to the latest news, I'm Mike Mendoza.
04:42 Well, Brighton's iconic Royal Albion Hotel
04:44 has been gutted by fire,
04:46 which took almost three days to extinguish.
04:49 The fire started on Saturday afternoon
04:51 on the fourth floor of the west wing of the hotel.
04:54 With hundreds of people gathered on the seafront
04:56 as the inferno raged,
04:58 emergency services from across the county
05:00 and neighboring Surrey were called to the scene
05:02 to tackle the blaze.
05:05 Part of the historic building will have to be demolished
05:08 to help with the efforts to fully extinguish
05:10 and dam down the site
05:12 and to prevent the building from collapsing.
05:14 In November, 1998, the east wing of the hotel
05:17 was destroyed by fire that started in the kitchen.
05:20 A trainee chef was cooking eggs and sausages
05:23 when fat started spitting from the frying pan
05:25 and caught fire.
05:26 Flame shot up through an extractor fan
05:29 as far as the roof,
05:30 with about 160 firefighters from across the county
05:33 being called to what was described
05:35 as Brighton's biggest firefighting operation
05:38 for nearly 30 years.
05:40 Hotel reopened to guests in September, 2000.
05:44 Well, hotel staff were understood
05:46 to have found other accommodation for all guests
05:49 and the approximately 100 people evacuated
05:51 from the surrounding area.
05:52 Many are taking refuge at a temporary rest center
05:55 set up by the council.
05:57 Elsewhere on Saturday,
05:59 thousands of people gathered in the city
06:01 to mark the 10th anniversary of Trans Pride Brighton.
06:05 While organizers expected between 5,000 and 10,000 people
06:09 to take part, half the original estimate
06:12 after a yellow weather warning for wind and rain
06:14 forced a change of route.
06:16 The event is believed to have attracted 30,000
06:19 attendees.
06:20 The comedian, Aidea Izard, took part
06:22 while the Brighton Pavilion MP, Caroline Lucas,
06:25 and Brighton & Hove's first trans councillor,
06:27 Raefel Hill, were amongst the speakers.
06:30 Trans Pride Brighton has asked for anyone displaced
06:33 by fire to get in touch.
06:35 There's still no reports of casualties at this time.
06:38 In a statement, the fire service said
06:40 the East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service
06:42 were called to a fire in Oldstein in Brighton.
06:45 Firefighters from Preston Circus, New Haven,
06:48 Hove, Lewis, Eastbourne, Pevensey,
06:51 and appliances from West Sussex were called out
06:53 at 5.24 PM on Saturday, the 15th of July,
06:57 to reports of smoke.
06:58 Four breathing apparatus wearers are using two main jets
07:02 and an aerial ladder to platform to extinguish the fire.
07:06 The Oldstein and part of King's Road
07:08 have been closed while the incident is ongoing.
07:11 They go on to say we're asking the public
07:15 to please avoid the area and find alternative routes
07:18 of travel.
07:19 They say thank you for your patience and understanding.
07:22 The roads, in fact, are still closed.
07:25 At 11 PM on Saturday, the fire service released
07:28 an updated statement which said high winds
07:30 are creating difficult conditions
07:32 for fire crews and firefighters.
07:35 And expected to continue dealing with the fire
07:38 through the night.
07:40 As a precaution, East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service,
07:42 working alongside Sussex Police,
07:44 have evacuated surrounding buildings.
07:47 They say that they are aware of the significant smoke
07:49 in the area, which is being made worse by wind.
07:52 They strongly advise people to avoid the area.
07:55 And from Brighton and Hove, buses who say,
07:59 apologies, but due to an incident at the pier roundabout,
08:02 we're currently unable to service
08:04 the Oldstein or North Street.
08:07 Brighton and Hove City Council Leader,
08:08 Councillor Bella Sankey, said,
08:10 "These are very sad scenes in our city."
08:12 On behalf of the City Council,
08:14 I want to give my thanks to the emergency services
08:17 for attending the fire at the historic Royal Albion Hotel
08:20 in the heart of our city.
08:22 Thank you also as well to all those
08:24 who helped evacuate people from the hotel
08:26 and the surrounding area.
08:28 We urge everyone to continue following advice
08:30 from emergency services and to please
08:32 keep away from the area.
08:35 Another fire in 2017, which has caused less damage,
08:39 was believed to have been started deliberately.
08:42 In a statement issued on Sunday,
08:44 police said closures will be in place overnight.
08:47 Please stay away from the area
08:48 and keep windows and doors closed.
08:51 Brighton and Hove Council is advising people
08:53 to continue to avoid the seafront and Oldstein area
08:57 due to the smoke.
08:58 The Royal Albion Hotel has had a prominent place
09:01 on the seafront for almost 200 years
09:03 and has been hosting notable people from across the ages.
09:07 The 115 bedroom Albion Hotel first opened its doors
09:11 in August 1826 on the site of Russell House,
09:15 which was demolished three years earlier.
09:17 Designed by the prolific local architect,
09:19 Amon Henry Wildes, the classic style building
09:23 boasted giant Corinthian villas and columns,
09:27 shelves, decorations, and balconies.