Catch up with all the latest news from across the county with Bartholomew Hall.
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00:00Hello and welcome to Kent Tonight, live on KMTV.
00:26I'm Bartholomew Hall. Here are your top stories on Wednesday the 30th of April.
00:31A prisoner in her own home.
00:34Tunbridge woman's been unable to find somewhere to live, suiting her mobility issues for more than three years.
00:42The countdown is on. Another party leader joins the campaign trail to Kent, with polls opening in less than 12 hours.
00:50And a rare pair, two mandarin ducks, have made their feathered fling official in Hive.
00:59But first, trapped in my own home.
01:02That's how a wheelchair-bound widow from Tunbridge has described her ordeal after a life-changing fall.
01:08Denise O'Toole has been waiting to be rehoused for three years, despite being told by medics that she was a high priority.
01:16Finn McDermid went down to her home to speak with her.
01:18I am trying to move. I need to move. I'm a prisoner in my own home.
01:27Denise O'Toole has lived at a current house on Trench Lane in Sevenoaks for three years.
01:32And she says it was supposed to be her forever home.
01:34But after a life-changing accident in 2022, where she fell down her stairs, it left her with limited mobility.
01:40She says she needs somewhere more accessible.
01:42I broke my back. So I had a T3 and four burst fractures to my spine.
01:52I broke my breastbone.
01:55Shattered the left-hand side of my face.
02:00And deglubbed my head.
02:02It's like, I can't cook.
02:04I can't even put washing in, because I'm not able to get the washing downstairs.
02:12After leaving rehab, she realised the house was too small for her needs.
02:16But following her husband's death from sepsis, any potential move was delayed.
02:20And she's been stuck in her home ever since.
02:22And she wants to move as soon as she can, with her lack of independence making daily life difficult.
02:28Today's a lovely day. I can't just go and sit in the garden.
02:32Have a coffee in the garden or anything, you know.
02:36I'm now having to go back into counselling because I've not come to terms.
02:42I've not had time to come to terms with how my accidents impacted me.
02:47And it's not just her mobility issues that make finding a new home difficult.
02:50It's also the system.
02:52If she wanted to find a new flat to live in, she'd first have to bid on it,
02:56then fill out an application form.
02:57And only once that form is successfully accepted, can she then go and see the property.
03:02Now, once she sees the property, she has to make a decision.
03:04Is it suitable for my needs?
03:06If it isn't, she'd obviously have to turn it down.
03:08She can only do that three times before being taken off the waiting list.
03:13A spokesperson for housing developer Clarion said,
03:16Ms O'Toole currently holds the highest level of priority on Tunbridge and Morling Borough Council's housing list.
03:21But due to the significant pressures on social housing availability,
03:24securing a suitable property has taken longer than hoped.
03:27The priority date on her housing application was October 2022.
03:31And Denise worries that with her condition worsening over the years she's been here,
03:34all of the efforts she's put into her rehabilitation will be wasted.
03:38For her, finding a new suitable home isn't just about getting her independence back.
03:42I have to rely on people to assist me, which is a lot on my children and friends.
03:52But, you know, I just, I need to get my life back. I have no life.
03:58Finn McDermid for KMTV in Tunbridge.
04:01Now, a huge emergency response was triggered in Herne Bay following a loud explosion and a garage fire.
04:10Crowds of neighbours watched on as black smoke rose above the town shortly before 10am.
04:16Crews from three fire engines worked to contain the fire in Broomfield and one person was treated by paramedics.
04:23Well, the cause is unknown, but images show what's left of a classic mini
04:26parked in what would have been the garage in Hoare Farm Way.
04:29Fire crews left the scene shortly before 2pm, four hours after the call-out.
04:37Political parties across Kent are making last-minute attempts to get votes
04:41as polls open tomorrow morning for the county council elections.
04:46The leader of the Liberal Democrats campaigned in Tunbridge Wells this afternoon,
04:51but Sir Ed Davey isn't the first politician to set foot in the county on the campaign trail.
04:56Our local democracy reporter, Gabriel Morris, has been looking back at the campaign.
05:01The temperature's heated up today and campaigners stepped up their efforts in the county council elections.
05:06On the eve of voting day, Ed Davey visited Tunbridge Wells in a bid to get last-minute votes.
05:12If you get a Liberal Democrat councillor, you'll get a local champion who will really speak out and work for the community.
05:18And you don't need to take my word for it.
05:21Camille Badenauk, the leader of the Conservatives, she said that Liberal Democrats are the sorts of people
05:25who fix your church roofs and people in the community like them.
05:29I think she meant it as an insult.
05:31We're wearing it as a badge of honour.
05:34But he hasn't been the only Westminster figure to visit the county.
05:38Nigel Farage, leader of Reform UK, also campaigned here, promising to bring Trump-style politics to KCC.
05:44So don't forget national issues. They are relevant.
05:48I just think when one party is in power for too long, it needs a shake-up, it needs a change.
05:53What are you going to do now?
05:54Well, we're going to come in and fix it.
05:55We're going to come in with a fresh mindset.
05:58We're going to bring our own form of doge, which you've seen in America, to Kemp.
06:02Get rid of excess. Stop wasting money.
06:05Camille Badenauk, Conservative leader, raised family farm inheritance tax fears to rally support.
06:10I'm an MP for a rural constituency myself, and I have made it very clear that I think the family farms tax is immoral.
06:18Farming is a way of life. People need to hand over to the next generation.
06:23The assets may be worth a lot, but the income is tiny.
06:26And if you're forcing people to sell off their equipment, sell off the farm that they need to grow food,
06:30then they're not going to continue in farming.
06:32The Green Co leader knocked on doors in Dartford, saying her party would bring a breath of fresh air to KCC.
06:38Voters are feeling really, really frustrated and ignored by the two old tide parties, Labour and the Conservatives,
06:46and I completely understand that. I can see why.
06:52And they're seeing the Greens as, yes, a way of sending those parties a message, but not just a protest vote.
06:59And Environment Secretary Steve Reid outlined how the Labour government is tackling sewage pollution.
07:05We've passed a law to ban the payment of the unfair, multi-million pound bonuses
07:10that the water bosses were awarding themselves for overseeing this environmental catastrophe.
07:15We've made sure that there will be accountability for lawmakers inside the water companies
07:20who will now face the full force of the law, potentially even jail time.
07:24Polls open at 7am on Thursday 1st May, and a full list of candidates can be found on KCC's website.
07:31Well, now, before polling day begins, it is, of course, the final day of the month,
07:37bringing with it an end to Stress Awareness Month.
07:40It's a campaign observed every April since 1992, with the aim of increasing public awareness
07:46about the causes and cures of stress, as well as teaching its effects on mental and physical health.
07:52And there are many ways to deal with stress, but just one possibly unconventional way could be hypnotherapy.
07:58Melanie Brooks joined Cameron Tucker on the Kent Morning Show earlier with more.
08:03Hypnosis is just a tool for relaxation, which helps you process the things you're working on
08:08and come up with great solutions to the problems you're dealing with.
08:13I think when a lot of people, myself included, when they might first hear that word hypnosis,
08:18will think of a pocket watch going back and forth like a pendulum and watching that.
08:23But, you know, bust those myths for us, or is that actually what it is like?
08:28Give us a little bit of an overview.
08:31No.
08:31So, obviously, hypnosis can be like that on stage.
08:36In hypnotherapy, it's a therapeutic process.
08:39Most of us will use a far more gradual process of going into trance.
08:45So, trance is a very natural state.
08:47We'll go into a trance about eight, ten times a day, reading a book, watching TV, out for a walk.
08:54It's when you zone out, you're focused, aware of your surroundings, but feeling very, very relaxed.
08:59And we go into that state, we guide our clients into that state, using storytelling quite often,
09:05body relaxation, just gradually talking you into that relaxed state.
09:10It sounds quite a spiritual approach.
09:13Is that something that you find with going into that trance state with some of your clients,
09:17that there is almost a spiritual effect from it?
09:23Certainly some clients find it that way.
09:25One of my clients would describe it as a bubble bath for the mind.
09:28So, however you feel relaxed, that's how you experience it.
09:33You don't have to be completely unaware.
09:37Some clients will go into hypnosis with their eyes open.
09:40They'll talk back.
09:41They might be drawing, crocheting, knitting.
09:46It's very, very individual.
09:47You can go into a hypnotic trance while walking around.
09:50When it comes to stress, you're obviously looking at this story with it being the last day of Stress Awareness Month.
09:56How can hypnotherapy help someone manage their symptoms?
10:00I think you briefly mentioned it there about sort of taking themselves out of a situation, putting themselves in, you know, a bubble bath for the mind.
10:07But just give us a bit of an overview of how, you know, someone dealing with stress, anxiety or any of those or depression, you know, how this might be the route for them.
10:17Absolutely. So, I'm a solution focused hypnotherapist, which means I'm very focused on the present and future, how you want things to be.
10:27So, we don't need to focus on the problem.
10:29And just taking yourself out of that moment where you're dealing with the stress into a more pleasant situation, pressing pause on quite often those physical symptoms of stress can be helpful.
10:42But in a long-term approach, what we do is we come up with solutions.
10:47We visualize solutions from thinking about how we want that future to be and taking small steps towards that.
10:53And then hypnosis is about helping you process that.
10:57So, it's a collaborative process.
10:58We're working together to get you in a relaxed state where you can be creative about those solutions and move you towards that in a very, very natural, gentle way.
11:09And focusing on those positives.
11:11And they're often quite small positives.
11:14But getting yourself into a place where you can start to move a more comfortable situation for you.
11:20Well, time for our break now this evening.
11:23More news from across Kent coming right up, including a row of trees cut down in Sandwich,
11:28the pairing of rare ducks making a new home in Hyde, and all the latest weather forecast as Kent has been, of course, hotting up this week.
11:37Apparently hotter than Ibiza.
11:39We'll have your full forecast where you are after this very short break.
11:42See you soon.
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16:31They've given me a lot of
16:33very good news.
16:34See you soon.
16:35And there are a lot of
16:35trade お Nigel Ridge.
16:37The Chief Nilenthalis, Nick
16:38Mitchell, is outraged after
16:39local producer Mans Fields
16:41made the decision to cut helped
16:42down the sure poplar trees on
16:42land they are currently leasing
16:44from.
16:46Highland Court Farm
16:48fundamentally.
16:49We're talking about hundreds of
16:51trees all in one go.
16:51With taken away apparently to
16:53be burned and it was done in
16:53nesting season.
16:58Gary Walters who runs Highland
16:59court farm today.
17:00orchards a new lease of life built and they had been pollarded in the past there was a knuckle
17:04where they've been pollarded and reshoot common practices to pollard poplar trees on routine but
17:10these hadn't been done for a long time and then they've come along and done it in one fell swoop
17:13they were mature trees in they were planted in I believe the 60s in a statement Dover District
17:21Council said it's aware of people's concerns about the trees and is looking into the matter
17:25Mansfield was approached for comment but Nick might not be convinced that this was the right
17:32call to make it's really hard it can get a bit depressing the amount of destruction we're
17:37continuously seeing but I also have nature as a healer so so so I get over it but it feels very
17:44relentless it's relentless destruction en masse quite often at the wrong time Ronnie Glastel for
17:50KMTV next tonight friends and family of a young woman from Aylesford have come together to raise
17:57money for the air ambulance service that tried to save her life it's the third year they've taken
18:02part in a special charity bike ride in memory of Amy Williams who died in a crash in West Sussex back
18:08in 2022 our reporter Kristen Hawthorne went along to meet those keeping her memory alive
18:14a sense of pride and community filled the air in Rochester as friends and family of Amy Williams
18:20came together for the third year to raise money for the KSS air ambulance Amy was just 30 years old
18:26when she tragically died in a crash in West Sussex in 2022 since then her family have turned their grief
18:33into something positive by raising thousands of pounds every year for the people who tried to save her
18:39Amy was a friend of the family and we feel very passionately about trying to raise money for the
18:47air ambulance in memory of Amy so today was very much about getting on a bike and riding from the
18:53air ambulance base in Redhill to Rochester to support the family in their quest to raise as much money
18:58for the air ambulance who attended Amy when she had her fatal car crash with each air ambulance flight
19:06costing around 4,000 pounds fundraising events like this one are crucial writers completed the journey
19:12between the Redhill and Rochester base celebrating Amy's life and saying thank you to the air ambulance
19:18team what a lot a lot of people don't realize Kent air ambulance Sussex and Surrey is a charity and
19:2588% of their of the money they need is from donations from people so that's why now for the rest of my life
19:34I do everything for KSS to get as much money as possible they've got a brilliant aftercare surface
19:40that can talk you through things you know and even if you do survive but they can help you you know
19:46because people suffer in different ways you know and stress and things like that but I couldn't do
19:51enough for them you know and please anybody out there if you've got some spare money please give it to
19:57this charity by raising money every year since 2022 Amy's friends and family have been able to
20:03raise more than 55,000 pounds and with just one day costing the charity nearly 56,000 the team have
20:10been able to fund the air ambulance for a full day it's like for them it's having a jigsaw puzzle with
20:16the little bits missing of understanding what happened at scene and we're able to feel those
20:21little pieces and that and and that helps them on their road to recovery the family say that they
20:27hope to keep the ride going for many years to come turning loss into hope and making sure Amy's
20:32smile is never forgotten Kristen Hawthorne for KMTV in Rochester
20:37now let's take a look at the weather
20:42just as it has been for most of the week this evening we're looking at clear skies fairly warm
20:53temperatures in the low teens as we go into tomorrow warming up slightly winds staying low
20:59at highs of 20 degrees in Ashford as we go into the afternoon the same picture highs of 28 in the
21:06north of the county winds increasing ever so slightly and here as we go towards the rest of
21:12the week and the weekend it is cooling down as we go towards the start of next week and the clouds are
21:17returning now don't forget you can keep up to date with all your latest stories across Kent by logging
21:29on to our website kmtv.co.uk you can check out all of our latest reports including this one for years Maya has
21:38been providing vital support for the community in Herne Bay and today that support has grown even
21:43bigger with the help of her team of around 30 people Maya was able to transform the warehouse in
21:50just six days filling it with free clothes food and furniture literally our volunteers work day and
21:56night we were here till 2 3 a.m. every single night just to make sure it's back up and running because
22:02house fires floods or homelessness or escaping domestic abuse these things they happen every
22:08single day so we have to be up and running all the time our charity in last 12 months but 219,000
22:16people we saved 9,250 tons of co2 and we've done 41,000 volunteering hours we furnished 780 houses I
22:26didn't have bed for my kids I didn't have bread I didn't have clothes now this shop has 128
22:32people visiting an hour and they all getting food clothes furniture or anything they like they
22:39need that that helps them to pay the bills this new food bank has brought a fantastic atmosphere
22:45to Herne Bay today with many coming along to celebrate its opening by this time next year Maya
22:50hopes to have helped provide around half a million meals to help support those in the community we're
22:56very fortunate to be able to open the warehouse bring everything under one roof and you see from the
23:01number of people that turned out today the community really really supports this and needs it Maya's
23:07been working around the clock and Maya works at incredible speed incredible pace that I've never
23:12seen anyone been able to dedicate that amount of time but to turn this around in six days working
23:19through the through the night every day whilst running the charity it's incredible but it's not
23:23just about handing out items it's about offering a sense of community and locals say it's already making a huge
23:29difference as the cost of living continues to affect the lives of many here in the county this kind of
23:35support is a lifeline and shows no signs of slowing down Kristin Hawthorne for KMTV
23:41some lovely work going on there in the
24:11in Herne Bay now finally according to the records for the first time a rare breeding pair of
24:17mandarin ducks has been spotted on a canal in hive well the breed originally comes from East Asia and
24:23we reduced we introduced to the UK in the early 20th century but a mating pair especially here in
24:30kent is still considered a very rare coincidence well this could splash some unexpected color in
24:38for the wildlife in the area our reporter Kerry King has been finding out more
24:47spring has brought an unexpected splash of color and wonder to the royal military canal among the quiet
24:54reflections and budding greenery a rare and beautiful pair of mandarin ducks have made a surprise
24:59appearance and their courtship has been turning heads the sighting has thrilled both seasoned bird watchers
25:06and casual walkers alike with their exotic good looks and delicate behavior these ducks seem almost too
25:13magical for the english countryside they originate from East Asia and were introduced to the UK in the early 20th century
25:23century but the sightings of a mating pair are still considered rare the mail is unmistakable and together
25:31they cut a regal figure a scene that looks more like a brush stroke from a chinese silk painting
25:38locals have already begun keeping a hopeful eye on the pair and watching for signs of nesting
25:52if all goes well this unexpected romance may result in a clutch of ducklings Kerry King hive canal
25:59oh what a lovely lovely story there that is all the time we have for today's program but a quick
26:06reminder of course polls open at 7 a.m tomorrow until 10 p.m for you to vote in the kcc elections do
26:15remember you need to bring appropriate id along here's some of the accepted forms on the screen now and
26:21if you pay your council tax to medway council your bins are collected by them you do not have a vote this
26:26time this is just for kent residents for the kcc elections
26:33that is it from us this evening we'll be back with the kent morning show from 7 a.m tomorrow see you then bye
26:56we'll be back with the kent morning show from 7 a.m tomorrow see you then bye
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