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A "lasting memory" had been left by firefighters who have been working as ambulance drivers during the coronavirus pandemic.

Bedford firefighters enlisted to the East of England Ambulance Service (EEAST) have designed and built a memorial garden at Luton ambulance station to show their appreciation to their new workmates and in memory of those who have died of cancer and suicide.

They received help from Bruce Liddle of Newbury Farm Plant in Silsoe, who offered advice and supplied the plants for free.

Mike King, a firefighter, said: “They have made us feel so welcome and we thought the best way to say thank you was to leave a lasting memory by building the memorial garden – something they have been trying to get enough funds together to build for some time."

Simon King, head of operations at EEAST for Milton Keynes, Bedford and Luton, said it was a "phenomenal gift" and "the garden itself is magnificent and is a fitting tribute to our much-missed colleagues".

Image source, EEAST

More than 500 cannabis plants worth £500,000 have been seized from a six-bedroom house in Northamptonshire.

Police said one person had been arrested and charged after a warrant was executed at the property in Denford Road, Ringstead.

Fans found there have been donated to Kettering General Hospital and the compost, bamboo canes, water butt and fertiliser donated to the local allotment society.

Sgt Françoise Goodwin said:"I would like to thank the community who provided us with the vital local intelligence needed to secure and execute this warrant.

“A lot of people may think that the production of cannabis and the selling of drugs is a victimless crime, but what people don’t realise is that the people at the top of the chain will often exploit vulnerable people and put them to work in these factories, using them to make money with no thought for their welfare."

Image source, Northamptonshire Police

A university has set up a buddy system to help international students who are isolated due to lockdown.

Under the "check-in and chat" programme at the University of Northampton, staff and volunteers are matched up with students, who have stayed in the country and not returned home.

So have more than 70 have signed up.

Simi Chacko, from India, said was helping her as she did not have a "clue what to do" when the university closed.

"Even if we wanted to go back to India, we didn't have the flights, we didn't have anything here to support us," she said.

"We were in a dilemma."

Image source, Philip Jeffrey/Geograph

Staff members at a bank have stopped an elderly woman from withdrawing £7,000 from her bank account to pay for her roof to be fixed.

Suffolk Police, external said two men tried to convince the woman in Felixstowe that her roof had a hole in it, at about 10:00 on Tuesday.

They drove her to the TSB bank in the town's Hamilton Road to withdraw cash.

Bank staff called the police when they became suspicious, but when they arrived the men had gone.

They are described as white, of medium height and build, with short hair and were driving a white van.

Image source, Google

A police dog is "recovering well" after receiving facial injuries after being kicked at while assisting officers in an arrest.

Northamptonshire Police, external said Nala showed "incredible bravery" having racing after two men who ran away from police by the junction 16 (Watford Gap) of the M1.

Insp Andy Hall said she was resting and "being given the best care there is".

“As a result of her and her colleagues’ bravery, four suspects were detained and remain in police custody at this time," he said.

“Our police dogs are not just assets to us – they are fellow officers, colleagues and friends.

"It is a stark reminder of the danger our dogs and our officers face every day in the line of duty."

Image source, Northamptonshire Police

Cameras are being installed at 13 level crossings in the East to catch motorists who do not stop when barriers are coming down.

It is to help Network Rail , externalprosecute drivers who jump the lights across Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex and Cambridgeshire.

Offenders are automatically notified of their offence, and could be sent on an awareness course, fined £100 and given three points on their licence, or prosecuted, it said.

The RLSE cameras are being paid for by Greater Anglia.

Daniel Fisk, from Network Rail, said: "They are clearly visible for people to see as a deterrent."

Image source, Network Rail

Jason Noble
Suffolk Local Democracy Reporter

A recycling centre needs to be updated to make it "future-proof", a council says.

Suffolk County Council, external said the Foxhall Recycling Centre on the edge of Ipswich "currently operates under a time-limited planning permission".

Without site improvement, a new permission will not be secured and would result in the loss of the council’s "most important and well-used site”, it said.

The planned upgrade includes a new feeder lane, raised car parking so that people do not need to walk up steps to dispose of waste, and increased capacity for the number of vehicles.

Image source, Chris Holifield/Geograph

Construction is due to start next year, should be completed by 2023, but costs have not been revealed.

The council said that Foxhall alone receives nearly 12,000 tonnes of recycling waste per year, about 20% of Suffolk’s entire recycling waste.

The consultation runs until 20 July.

Travel companies want clarity from ministers over which countries will be exempt from the quarantine rules.

Last weekend, the government said it would establish a traffic light system to rate which countries were safest but hasn't yet produced the details.

Passenger services returned to London Southend Airport yesterday, when the Ryanair flight to Malaga in Spain took off, and at London Luton Airport, EasyJet flights took to the skies again.

The Luton-based airline is looking to reduce staff and has begun consultations on plans to close bases at Stansted, Southend and Newcastle.

Matt Precey
BBC Look East

Nineteen more patients have died in hospital of coronavirus in the East of England, according to the latest daily government figures , externalissued on Tuesday.

The deaths were at the following NHS trusts:

• Basildon and Thurrock Hospitals: 2
• Bedford Hospital: 11
• East and North Herts: 1
• East Suffolk and North Essex (Ipswich and Colchester hospitals): 1
• Northampton General Hospital: 4

The deaths did not necessarily happen in the previous 24 hours as there are often delays in certifying Covid-19 deaths.

The total number of deaths for the eastern region so far is 3,994.

Across the UK the number of deaths increased by 176 and stands at 43,906.

Alex Pope
BBC News Online

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