Kent Tonight - Wednesday 21st August 2024
Catch up with all the latest news across your county with Abby Hook.
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00:00Hello, good evening and welcome to Kent Tonight live on KMTV.
00:29I'm Abbey Hook.
00:30Here are your top stories on Wednesday 21st August.
00:34Double Standards, LGBTQ plus bar says Thanet Council's decision to stop them playing music
00:41will bust business.
00:42I don't see how a little bit of background music on a terrace outside a bar is affecting
00:48Margate at any kind of level at all.
00:50Post Box Problems.
00:52Dartford residents say chocolate themed vandalism is taking the quality out of their streets.
00:59It's just it's giving a bad name for it and you know, you don't see it anywhere else.
01:06Kickstarting the campaign, Maidstone United players opened charity shop with a goal of
01:12helping the homeless.
01:13What the guys do down here is such an incredible thing, so much selfless work goes into it
01:18so just to help out a tiny bit we're more than glad to do so.
01:30First tonight, the manager of a bar opposite one of Kent's biggest concert venues has slammed
01:37planning rules stopping him playing music outside.
01:40Margate's oldest LGBTQ plus venue wants to play cocktail music from a single speaker
01:45on their seated terrace, but it's recommended for refusal.
01:49Sundowners Bar is now calling it Double Standards as the council allows Dreamland to blast music
01:55till nearly midnight.
01:56Our local democracy reporter Gabriel Morris has more.
02:00It's one of Kent's oldest LGBTQ plus bars.
02:04Sundowners uses the terrace above Margate's Victorian shelter during the summer and bosses
02:09here have now put in a bid to allow background music to be played from it.
02:13But the local council recommends refusal saying it would result in significant disturbance
02:19to nearby neighbours and a director here has been left confused saying other venues including
02:24Dreamland are freely allowed to blast their music across the town.
02:28So Dreamland will put on Tom Jones, will put on Status Quo, will put on Olly Murs, Madness,
02:34UB40 and so on and so forth and they're great shows and great entertainment for people.
02:38It brings a massive amount of business into the area but it also has an effect to the
02:42residents here in terms of noise and their peace and quiet.
02:47So I don't see how a little bit of background music on a terrace outside a bar is affecting
02:52Margate at any kind of level at all.
02:55Ian says the speakers would be no louder than 60 decibels, that's the equivalent of two
03:00people having a conversation.
03:02And in the application it's seen more than 100 representations mostly supporting the
03:07bid.
03:08But when it came to objections most of those were coming from the neighbouring Albert Terrace.
03:14Many saying it's just too noisy in the evening.
03:18Some people have said they can barely watch TV, the noise of the venue makes it a terrible
03:22place to live and they dread the summer months.
03:26However the final decision will be made by Fannett District Council's planning committee
03:30this evening because it was called in by the local councillor.
03:33The kind of key message I'll be getting across is we've got to support our own direct representation
03:37of groups in the area such as the LGBTQIA plus community and more importantly actually
03:44this is good for the local economy.
03:46You know the terrace has wonderful views, it's a really good opportunity to demonstrate
03:51how beautiful Margate is.
03:53Under previous ownership music was played here without a licence but a new owner say
03:58they're playing by the books but with a refusal on the cards he worries about what long term
04:03impacts it could have.
04:05Without having that background music our clients will wander to other venues where there is
04:09music being played and we will lose that trade, we will lose that business.
04:15Sundowners is also a nightclub and whatever happens this evening will have no influence
04:20on that and despite promises the outside music will remain quiet some neighbours will be
04:25hoping that recommendation is listened to.
04:28Gabriel Morris in Margate.
04:32Next the night a trial date has been set for a man accused of murder in Dartford.
04:3620-year-old Ernestus Juskow was arrested and faces charges of murder and a serious sexual
04:42offence against the deceased body.
04:44It's been confirmed that the victim and Juskow were known to each other.
04:48The victim was found to home in Henderson Drive early Saturday morning having suffered
04:52stab wounds and died at the scene.
04:54There's some pictures from earlier this week.
04:57Following the incident the road was cordoned off.
05:00Juskow will face a trial in February that's expected to last three weeks.
05:06Next the night a group of teenagers have been caught on CCTV after setting fire to a strewed
05:10pub garden.
05:12The coach and horse's cameras captured the boys setting furniture alight before running
05:16away.
05:17The fire spread to the neighbouring fence and some plants.
05:19The fire service were then called and arrived within 10 minutes.
05:23They used hose jets to deal with the fire and there was no damage to the actual building
05:26itself.
05:27But the total cost of the damage to the pub garden is near £4,000.
05:34Now post boxes around Dartford have been redecorated as chocolate treats as a fresh wave of graffiti
05:39has left some residents feeling anything but sweet.
05:42It follows a wave of graffiti earlier this year that saw Mr Blobby and Kareem Egg post
05:48boxes cropping up around the town.
05:49Oliver Leder de Sacks has been on the trail of the post boxes that have been given a controversial
05:55new look.
05:56When some say life is like a box of chocolates they probably weren't referring to post boxes.
06:03On the residential streets around Dartford letter boxes have been given a new lick of
06:08paint.
06:09One being repackaged as a whisper wrapper and others decorated like Mars bars and stenciled
06:16with the Twirl logo.
06:19One of those five post boxes which has been vandalised is here at Temple Hill Square.
06:25It's been painted like a Mars bar and the business behind me Zaza Barbers is concerned
06:32that residents could be confused by the different colours.
06:36I think it should go back to normal red colour.
06:40They think it's not working anymore and they walk away.
06:43Because I'm a barber shop here and I see them, they're coming up there, close and after they
06:49just walk away.
06:51This is not the first time that Dartford's post boxes have been vandalised.
06:55I'm standing next to a golden post box on East Hill.
06:59That was one of more than 20 post boxes vandalised earlier this year in a separate spray painting
07:07spree.
07:08It's not yet known who is behind the latest spate of post box repaintings or the cost
07:14of the recent illegal wrapper revamps.
07:18But residents are divided about whether this vandalism is cause for celebrations.
07:25It's just, it's giving a bad name for it and you know, not to be afraid, you don't
07:31see it anywhere else.
07:32It just makes for more of a fun day if you know what I mean, it brightens your day up.
07:40It's not too bad, as long as it ain't really vandalising it then you can't really see what's
07:45going on in there but I think it shouldn't be done anyway but then I think people like
07:50banks shouldn't be allowed to do things on walls.
07:53Royal Mail say that they are aware of the vandalism and have carried out initial inquiries
07:58to understand its scale.
08:01They say they'll be carrying out further investigation and have been in contact with the police.
08:07But Kent Police say that Royal Mail has not formally reported these incidents and therefore
08:13can't provide any further details.
08:16Regardless of who's behind the recent vandalism, it's clear that the new chocolate look to
08:22Temple Hill's post boxes has left a bad taste in the mouths of those who live here.
08:29Oliver Lewis for KMTV in Dartford.
08:35Now a couple from Sevenoaks, Jonathan and Judy Bloomer are still missing.
08:39They were aboard technology entrepreneur Mike Lynch's super yacht when it sank just off
08:43the coast of Sicily.
08:45Mr Bloomer is the chairman of Morgan Stanley International Bank and according to his twin
08:49brother Jeremy the family haven't received any updates but have their fingers crossed
08:56that they will be found.
08:57Well we're getting updates through this afternoon and Finn McDermott joins us in the studio
09:01now.
09:02Finn what can you tell us?
09:04Well this has been like you say a constantly updating story.
09:07Now today we have heard that four bodies have been found meaning there's only two people
09:13left missing and this brings the number of confirmed deaths up to five.
09:18The bodies were found by a team of eight divers who have been transporting body bags back
09:23to awaiting emergency services at the shore.
09:26The identities of those discovered are still unknown at this stage except Chef Ricaldo
09:32Thomas whose body was recovered earlier this week on Monday.
09:36Now like you said Jonathan Bloomer is the chairman of Morgan Stanley International Bank
09:40and shares a Sevenoaks address with his partner Judy.
09:44The yacht trip itself was apparently a celebration of Mike Lynch founder of software company
09:49Autonomy being cleared of fraud.
09:52Mr Bloomer was reported as being a defence witness in the trial for Mr Lynch and apparently
09:56the two are close friends.
09:58The boat called the Bayesian reportedly left the Sicilian port of Milazzo on the 14th of
10:04August and was believed to be struck by a tornado over the water which is referred to
10:10as a water spout.
10:11Now people might not have heard of what a water spout is before.
10:15It's when the sea surface temperatures rise and it causes rising moist air.
10:23This in turn creates swirling vortexes of wind that picks up the surface water.
10:28Now experts believe that this wind may have tipped the boat onto its side at around 5am
10:32on Monday morning and the hot weather meant the doors were likely open.
10:37So the vessel it's very likely it flooded very quickly potentially leaving people trapped
10:42in the lower cabins.
10:44Now there have been cases where people have survived for around 60 hours at this depth
10:48but those are rare anomalies and the further time goes on it's more more likely so less
10:56likely that the remaining missing people come back alive.
11:00One of the survivors British tourist Charlotte Emsley told Italian newspaper La Repubblica
11:07that she held her one-year-old daughter Sophia to stop her from drowning.
11:10She's quoted as saying, I held her aloft with all my strength, my arms stretched upwards
11:15to keep her from drowning.
11:16They were treated in hospital earlier and as was Sophia's father James Emsley.
11:22And apparently an investigation by the UK's Marine Accident Investigation Branch has begun
11:28into the sinking of the Bayesian.
11:30A team of four inspectors have arrived at the port in Porticello today.
11:34Finn, thank you very much.
11:35A developing situation as we say and all eyes will be on the situation just off the coast
11:40of Sicily there to see and we'll be bringing our audience the update from what affects
11:46us here in Kent.
11:47Finn, thank you very much.
11:49Time for a very short break now and I'll see you in just a few minutes time.
11:52Don't go anywhere.
15:03Hello and welcome back to Kent Tonight live on KMTV.
15:18Shoppers were evacuated from Bluewater this afternoon after a false fire alarm.
15:23People cleared out of the Guildhall section of the centre as three fire engines were called
15:26to the scene and John Lewis was cordoned off.
15:29After discovering the alarm was nothing to worry about and there was no actual fire,
15:33visitors were allowed back inside.
15:34It's not the first time it's happened.
15:36Hundreds were told to leave after a fire alarm in March last year after it was accidentally
15:41triggered.
15:42The centre is now fully open again and Bluewater apologise to shoppers for any disruption.
15:48Now to sport and following the news that Olympic medallist Matt Richardson has switched his
15:53nationality to Great Britain from Australian, it's emerged he may face a two-year ban from
15:59competitive events.
16:00The 25-year-old track cyclist won a bronze and two silver medals in the velodrome at
16:04Paris for Australia of course.
16:06Well, with more on this and the rest of today's sports, our reporter Bartholomew joins me
16:11in the studio now.
16:13It's an interesting story but the development today about this ban.
16:17Yeah, so under the rules of the Union Cyclist International or the UCI, any competitors
16:22who change their nationality are not eligible to compete in the upcoming or the next immediate
16:28World or Continental Championships.
16:31So that would affect Richardson later this year at the Europeans and then early next
16:35year at the Worlds.
16:37Now Ozcycling, which is the governing body for cycling in Australia, aren't necessarily
16:42very happy about the change and it believes that Richardson will now face a two-year ban.
16:48So going beyond those two tournaments that I just mentioned.
16:51Now Jesse Corfe, Ozcycling's executive general manager of performance, has been speaking
16:55with the BBC and he said that there's lots of disappointment around the decision and
16:59the process and he says that he will not compete at the upcoming World Championships as I've
17:03mentioned but the non-competition duration and clauses that's being interrogated and
17:08looked into at the moment means that that ban period will go on for a lot longer.
17:13Now British Cycling has kind of receded that yes, these two upcoming championships he won't
17:19be eligible to take part in but it hasn't commented on this two-year period and neither
17:24has the UCI at this stage.
17:26Now he would know that a ban could have been and would have been enforced so why would
17:30he go ahead with this move?
17:31Well it's an interesting one isn't it?
17:33I mean when he first made the announcement Richardson wrote on his Instagram that it
17:36was a really hard decision to make and that it's not one he took lightly.
17:40He said he has lots of respect for the Australia and the Ozcycling team but he essentially
17:45wanted to push himself to new heights.
17:47He's going to be completing in the sprint team racing and it was Team GB that he lost
17:52out to for the silver medal at the Olympics and he got bronze so you know under the guise
17:59of Sir Jason Kenney maybe he thinks that he has more chance of a silver or even a gold
18:03going into the future.
18:05But in other news, in other Olympian news, Pembrey rower and gold medalist Emily Craig
18:10has been admitted to hospital after suffering a slipped disc in her spine.
18:15The 31-year-old posted this smiley picture on Instagram telling followers that she'd
18:18become Olympic champion with what she described as a disc bulge.
18:23She went on to say that until a scan after the Olympics she wasn't aware that it was
18:27an issue at the time and that after an intervention she hopes things will calm down.
18:31Craig became forever champion alongside rowing partner Imogen Grant after winning gold in
18:35the final appearance of the lightweight double skulls at this year's Games.
18:42Elsewhere, injury-hit Kent Cricket Club has signed left-arm seam bowler Alfie Ogbourne
18:49on a two-match loan.
18:51The 21-year-old took eight wickets for Somerset in the One Day Cup this year after making
18:55his first-class debut last season.
18:57He'll be available as early as tomorrow as Kent are on the road looking to move away
19:01from the bottom of Division 1 of the county championship.
19:04It comes as England international Zach Crawley is out with a broken finger as well as Matt
19:08Quinn, Michael Cohen, Fred Klassen, who are also all unavailable.
19:12Play sets off between Worcestershire and Kent tomorrow at 11am.
19:16Maidstone United manager Giorgio Lacobi says he is going to stop players going over to
19:20fans at full-time after they were met with what he describes as disrespectful reactions.
19:26Speaking after the Stones' goalless draw with Hampton and Richmond at home on Tuesday night,
19:30the National League South manager said that those who chose to walk away rather than welcoming
19:35the Maidstone players with applause weren't real fans.
19:38Lacobi says fans will no longer be getting the privilege of interaction with players
19:42going forward until they start showing the respect the players give them.
19:46Maidstone next face Chippenham Town away on Saturday.
19:49Well that is it for your sport today.
19:53No Invicta this week but we'll be back the week after.
19:55Bartholomew, thank you very much for those details.
19:59Now don't forget you can keep up to date with all your latest stories across Kent by logging
20:02on to our website kmtv.co.uk where you'll find all our reports including this one about
20:08a tidal pool in Margate being given a Grade 2 listed status by Historic England.
20:12In fact it's the only town in the UK with two.
20:15Let's take a look at why they were given such a special status.
20:20Sea swimming has been popular in coastal towns for a long time and Margate is no exception.
20:25Built back in the 1930s, this near 100-year-old pool is now being recognised for its historical
20:31relevance.
20:32A tidal pool is built so that the rising tides fill the space between its concrete walls
20:37leaving a usable seawater pool at low tide.
20:41The marine terrace tidal pool has been Grade listed at Grade 2.
20:45One of the main purposes of the listing is to celebrate the historical importance of
20:49this tidal pool to hopefully give people a better understanding of what they're looking
20:54at when they walk past this part of the beach and we don't know what the future of this
20:58particular pool is going to be but the listing will ensure that it is preserved for future
21:05generations to enjoy.
21:07Like Tim said, Grade listings are given to sites that they believe need to be protected
21:11like this pool, which was originally built in order to make it easier to swim at low
21:15tide with the waters sometimes going out 200 metres from the beach.
21:20Well even though you're not technically allowed to swim in this tidal pool, people still do
21:25and Margate holds the claim of being the only place in England to have two historic tidal pools.
21:31Nearby signs can be spotted warning of the danger of the pool and lifeguards prompting
21:35people not to use its waters.
21:38But the site manager hopes that the Grade listing might increase interest in the site
21:41leading to better maintenance so that people can use it again.
21:45It seems like a safer place to swim if it's been done up and maybe dredged and brought
21:49back to its former glory.
21:52When the tide's out it's very far to walk to get to the sea.
21:56So I think everyone will benefit from it here and Margate's a place that feels like it's
22:01on the up and the tidal pool will be a nice marker of them bringing Margate back to its
22:07former glory and a lovely tidal pool on the main beach for everyone to use.
22:12Despite the beach rules, locals and tourists still use the pool, which is intended for
22:16boating.
22:17Unlike the Walpole Bay Tidal Pool, also listed at Grade 2, which measures at 4 acres.
22:23Historic England describe the sites as ambitious feats of structural engineering due to their
22:28size but their popularity and local importance help as well.
22:32And they aren't even the only ones in Margate, with the Victorian Leyland Rock Shelter, where
22:36T.S.
22:37Elliott is believed to have written his poem The Wasteland also being Grade listed.
22:41Well T.S.
22:42Elliott and Historic England both seem inspired by the seafront here in Margate, which is
22:46likely to see more and more swimmers across the summer.
22:49Finn McDermott for KMTV in Margate.
22:52Well with the last few weeks of summer in mind, let's take a look at the weather forecast.
23:03Temperatures cooling down this evening across the county between 14 and 16 down in Dover
23:07there.
23:08Some clear skies, a mix of some cloud into Thursday morning.
23:12Highs of 20 over in Margate with that cloud pretty persistent.
23:16The wind too increasing by the afternoon, the sun going away, staying cloudy.
23:20Highs of 21.
23:22And here's your outlook for Kent Friday.
23:24Some rain but it looks like another sunny weekend.
23:38And finally this evening, with a goal of helping the homeless and stopping people going
23:42hungry in Maidstone, the town's players have made the trip just a stone's throw away to
23:48open a new charity shop.
23:50The Make a Difference Trust has extended their building so more items can be stored and sold.
23:54Maidstone United got all the way to the fifth round in their historic FA Cup run, but it's
23:59their support for the local charity that will provide a future for many more.
24:03Henry Luck has the story.
24:14Making a difference to Maidstone is welcoming customers to explore its brand new extension.
24:20The Christian charity saves and sells unwanted goods like furniture, school supplies and
24:26even wedding wear with the goal of supporting Maidstone's people who are in crisis.
24:32The charity shop has been here for about two and a half years but we just wanted more
24:35space so we've expanded it today, we've taken space into the warehouse, we've come into
24:40the warehouse so we can increase the sales opportunities rather than having items just
24:45stored.
24:46We thought we'd want to get them back on the shop floor so we can make some more money.
24:50Players from Maidstone Football Club gave the grand opening some star power.
24:55They made it all the way to the fifth round of the FA Cup earlier this year.
25:00Well, obviously we've been invited down just for this little community event, helping out.
25:07Obviously what the guys do down here is for a great cause and it's absolutely brilliant
25:12all the people working behind the scenes so just to support it a little bit, it's really
25:16nice.
25:17What the guys do down here is such an incredible thing, so much selfless work goes into it
25:22so just to help out a tiny bit we're more than glad to do so.
25:25In the nine years it's been running, the charity has been helping people facing issues
25:30like hunger.
25:31Amanda started off about nine years ago and this came along a couple of years ago as a
25:37great big storage and what she's done today is incorporated more of this warehouse.
25:43It used to be Argos in Maidstone and they've incorporated more showroom into it so this
25:48is a bit of a major achievement for her and she does so much in Maidstone for homeless
25:53people, food banks, she's just, if she wasn't doing what she was doing, a lot of people
25:59would be suffering.
26:01With the return of school coming up fast, there's never been a better time for the public
26:06to come and find a bargain whilst giving back to those in need.
26:10But what plans does the Nine Year Old Trust have for its 10th anniversary next year?
26:16We have a vision to get our own accommodation and there's quite a lot of homeless people
26:20out there at the moment and different people in crisis so that's one of our next, a big
26:25vision that will be for us to get our own accommodation.
26:28Henry Luck for KMTV in Maidstone.
26:33What a lovely campaign the Maidstone United players are involved in.
26:37Well you've been watching Kent tonight live here on KMTV.
26:40That's all from us this evening but our follow mute will be, no, Oliver will be back for
26:43your 8pm news bulletin.
26:45That's all from me.
26:46Bye bye.
26:50Bye bye.