From Our Files: Badly behaved city financiers...cliff fall...fossil hunter in a fix
50 years ago
THESE three boys walked proudly into the A&T office this week with a nine-and-a-half pound sea trout which they caught at the Royalty Fisheries on the River Avon.
The fish was hooked by 13 year old Gary Banks (centre), of Gore Road, New Milton, using a cocktail of luncheon meat and worm as bait.
It took Gary about half an hour to bring the fish ashore with the help of his friends Stephen Neel, 14, (left) and his brother Christopher, of New Milton.
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A LONG section of the undercliff at Barton on Sea between the Cliff Café and the cutting to the West has collapsed. In addition to destroying hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of coast defences, it has emphasized the danger threatening cliff top properties
Failure of the lateral drain system and damage to the toe defences has led to some hundreds of yards of sand becoming waterlogged and sloping forward.
The big question now is how fast and how far will the falls go?
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A fossil hunter got stuck in clay at Barton cliff for nearly four hours and was eventually dug out by firemen.
Mr David Ward, of Bitterne, was on a geological field outing with colleagues from Southampton University.
They put pieces of wood under him but the suction was so strong they could not pull him clear as he had gone in as far as his waist.
After struggling for two hours the fire brigade were called and they took it in turns to dig Mr Ward free with their hands.
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A plea to build a 30-bedroom hotel in Whitby Road, Milford, which met with considerable local opposition, has been rejected by New Forest Development Committee.
The hotel would have a swimming pool, games room and tennis court. Reasons given for refusing the application were that the hotel would be inappropriate and out of character with the quiet residential area, over development and noise disturbance.
25 years ago
Drunken city financiers went on a weekend wrecking spree at Careys Manor Hotel in Brockenhurst causing £20,000 worth of damage.
The London businessmen were on an annual two-day shooting break and had been drinking vintage wine until the early hours of Saturday.
Police said they then played cricket in the dining room, damaging furniture, before putting a Victorian chair and coffee table onto a fire.
The blaze went out of control and the fire brigade were called. More than 100 guests had to evacuate, including the Bristol City football squad who were staying there before their FA match with Bournemouth.
A manager said that the night porter noticed smoke coming from under the door of the lounge. By that time the men had left through a fire escape.
He said: “Sometimes people get very excited but this was over the top behaviour. We have never experienced anything like it.”
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Plans for the new Lymington community hospital have suffered a setback with a ruling by the Environment Agency that it will either have to be built on stilts, or with a bund around it to protect from flooding.
Some councilors opposed to putting the hospital on the Ampress site had expressed fears it could be prone to flooding.
The Environment Agency says measures must be taken to prevent that happening.
The Ampress Farm which used to be at the site was badly flooded in the past. The Environment Agency only became interested in the hospital when Ampress owner John Fay submitted a planning application for 60 houses on land which was on adjoining the farm.
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A Fawley couple may face jail after they ignored a court order instructing them to remove a gate obstructing a public footpath.
Hampshire County Council has stepped in and taken legal action against the couple, who have breached a Southampton County Court order.
The gate had been installed beside their house in Sprat’s Down to prevent people from driving down the path, but leaves an 8ft space for pedestrians.
The pair have launched a High Court appeal against the ruling as they believe the judge was biased. They claim he is friends with the person who owns the estate their home is on.
