A heartbroken family has paid tribute to their “adventurous” dad and husband after a fatal cycling accident near Tenterden.
The 65-year-old was knocked off his bike by a car door and died in hospital just days later.
Also in today's podcast, eyewitnesses have described the “scary” moment a huge shed blaze destroyed their neighbour’s garden and threatened to engulf their homes too.
Firefighters now believe the blaze started accidentally due to an electrical fault within a shed.
Hear from residents who are calling for action to be taken to improve a “dangerous” zebra crossing close to three schools.
Drivers have been accused of constantly ignoring people attempting to cross the road in Dartford.
We're being warned to expect disruption on a key route through Kent, ahead of three weeks’ worth of closures.
The link between Faversham and Ashford is set to be intermittently closed later this month for maintenance work.
And McDonald’s could return to a Kent town as bosses have earmarked a former leisure centre site for a new drive-thru.
Burger giant bosses there is now a “long-standing need” for one of its venues in the area.
10 to 10. Martin Walsack was taken to hospital after getting injured in Rolvendon but died four days later. Lucy has the details for the Kent Online podcast. Lucy, how did the accident unfold? Martin was cycling along Matham Road at around midday on March 24th when he was knocked off his bike by a car door. He'd tried to avoid it but was hit in the jaw and neck by the bottom of the door causing a nasty injury. He was able to get back home to his wife Jan, who was a nurse. She carried out first aid and kept an eye on him for the rest of the afternoon but at around 8.30 that evening he suffered what his family thought was a stroke and was taken to the William Harvey Hospital. There it was discovered a clotted formed in his carotid artery causing a bleed on the brain. He was taken for surgery but died days later. We know the 65-year-old was born in Rolvendon and had lived in the Ashford area for most of his life. I imagine the death has had quite a big impact on the community. That's right, when Martin was younger he'd played for football clubs in Rolvendon, Tentedon and Whittisham as well as Cricket for Stone in Oxney. He'd had his own company and worked as a painter and decorator for more than 35 years. He's been remembered as incredibly independent and an outdoors person who'd hoped to travel to Australia to see England play in the ashes. Martin had previously agreed to organ donation and on the day he died doctors were able to use both kidneys, liver and heart valves for life-saving transplants. His family say they hope it'll encourage more people to register for organ donation and to also spend more time with their family. And I believe investigations are now underway. Yes, it's being looked into by the Serious Collision Investigation Unit and officers are appealing for witnesses to come forward. They're also looking for anyone with dashcam or CCTV footage. Police believe the owner of a blue Ford may be able to help them with their inquiries. In her 80s fell over on Windmill Street on the morning of March 25th while she was on the ground, the suspects tried to take her jewelry. They left empty-handed. Investigators want to speak to any witnesses. A man in his 30s has been left in a critical condition after a serious assault in Chatham. The victim was found at a property in the high street on Monday afternoon but it's thought he may have been attacked earlier in the day in Magpie Hall Road. A 53-year-old man has been arrested and taken into custody. A fuel company boss from Ailesford has been jailed for 11 years for conspiracy to supply cocaine. Michael Wheaton of London Road denied the charge but was linked after a drugs career was found with 1.5 kilos of cocaine in 2019. Police found the driver had been in frequent contact with a phone belonging to Wheaton. Residents in Chatham have described the moment they tried to tackle a fire that broke out in their neighbor's garden. Fire crews were called to Holcomb Road on Sunday afternoon after an electrical fire sparked the blaze in a shed. It was contained to the garden which was completely destroyed but there were no reported injuries. Hattie Tink has been talking to reporter Ellie Hodgson about what she saw. I was literally at my bedroom window and the roof started smoking so I thought oh it's because obviously when it's hot obviously wood steams like the condensation. A next thing it literally just went up. I literally shouted to mum because it was a lot of clear white smoke and I was like oh mum that's a lot and I was like mum come here quick and she was like what's going on? What's going on? I was like I don't know and then literally we both turned our heads and it just went wolf the whole thing called and then yeah and then literally my mum was like oh the fire brigade, she called them. She then got the key running to theirs to try and get the animals. I was shouting at my neighbor's kids because she was getting her washing in because she thought they was having a fire like a bonfire as such so she was like what the fuck? Why are you getting like what are you doing that for? Do you know what I mean? It's the middle of the day what are you doing? So she was getting her washing in and then I screamed at her, get in and then got her kids in and then my neighbor Tina and her husband and their friend was outside. They then grabbed their hose line. I then grabbed mine. We were trying to get it from the back but we just couldn't reach it. Obviously it went massive. I was just so grateful that no one was home like because he's an electrician so obviously it was all electrical and then it turned into a normal fire and obviously we've all got decking apart from next door so literally and obviously it caught the power line so if it would have fallen it would have gone on all of like a hole all of our houses would have set a light. I can still smell burning literally like looking at it is just horrifying to look at because you just think like you couldn't imagine like if someone's kids were in there like literally it was just awful, awful. I wouldn't wish it upon my worst enemy like to see that and luckily it was just their garden. I didn't get to the house because the police the fire brigade coming time but if it would have caught their house it would have been a completely different story. And organizations set up to help rough sleepers in Maidstone has criticized government plans to criminalize homelessness. Rishi Sunak's facing a Tory revolt over the bill which would give police the power to find or move on those who are deemed to be causing a nuisance. Claire Keeley from Maidstone Winter Shelter says it will impact those who are most vulnerable. How would this impact those that are homeless in Maidstone? Well they'd simply they won't have the money to pay this kind of fine. They there is no chance they've got that kind of money. They are going to be fined for something that they are really struggling to deal with and it just seems absolutely ludicrous that in this day and age homelessness is a crime. On the government's website it says the bill will give power to tackle nuisance begging and rough sleeping where it causes damage disruption harassment but Keeley avoiding criminalizing the genuinely vulnerable. That's what they're saying. So could this work? If it was put into practice in the way it's explained here would it actually work? I mean how easy would it be to define who are genuinely vulnerable and who are nuisance? It's going to be subjective isn't it as to who's looking at it and what they're seeing. So part of the things it says if people look as though they intend to rough sleep so that could simply be somebody walking along with a sleeping bag somebody who's got a rucksack somebody who looks like they haven't washed for a few days and these people the most vulnerable in our society they could really be impacted by this. Hopefully it will be you know if it's pushed through Parliament and the Lords which hopefully it won't be but hopefully it would be done with you know responsibly but bearing in mind nearly half of our guests this season were sleeping on the streets before they came to us. I'm not sure that it's going to be done as kindly as it could be. So what you're saying is actually it possibly could work if it's done correctly if people are following these guidelines of enforcement officers are patrolling it could work? If it's for people who are nuisances people who are displaying real anti-social behaviour, violent behaviour that sort of thing where people are creating a public nuisance and are they're really you know people are at risk from them that's one thing somebody who simply has not got anywhere to go because their relationship has broken down and they've got nowhere to live and they are going to nestle down in a doorway with a sleeping bag. I'm not sure that they're protected by this bill. I think it needs to be looked at through the eyes of people that are experiencing homelessness. I think they need to look at why people are on the streets, why people feel they have no option other to go on the streets. The man who led an inquiry into maternity services at East Kent Hospital's Trust has criticised the compensation process for affected families. Bill Kirkup's investigation in 2022 found 45 baby deaths could have been prevented. NHS resolution says it's examining each individual claim and families will have to prove liability for any harm caused. Around 80 protesters have gathered outside a care home on Sheppy to oppose plans to turn it into a centre for asylum seekers. KCC wants to house 50 people aged 16 and 17 at ocean heights residential home in Minster. They could move in as early as May. A report by Offsteads found children with special educational needs and disabilities in Medway are still waiting too long to be assessed. Inspectors say there are inconsistent experiences and outcomes, but they did acknowledge some improvements since 2017. Council bosses say they have a clear plan going forward to make things easier for families. A dad from Ailesford has raised thousands cycling from Red Hill to Rochester, honouring his daughter who died in a car crash. Amy Williams died in a three vehicle crash in 2022, aged just 30. Two years on, her dad Colin has raised more than 11,000 for Kent's air ambulance charity, which looked after Amy in her last hours. A Kent couple have had their picture taken by celebrity photographer Rankin to celebrate the diversity of foster carers in the modern day. Darren Sharp and his husband James are from Ashford. They've looked after more than 20 children in the last 12 years. It comes as data from national fostering group show stereotypes are preventing nearly half the people in the southeast from considering fostering. Nicholas spoke to Darren. As a gaker, we were never going to go down the conventional route with the child. There would always need to be some and work involved one way or another. We looked at different options, including IVF and adoption, and then we just felt that, so I previously worked for YMCA. My husband was a primary school teacher, and we had that feeling that we made a small difference to a lot of people, but we wanted to make a lot of difference to just a few people. We decided that fostering was definitely the way for us to go, just to help and arrange your children at ages, experiences, and bring different aspects of the life, I suppose. As a gay couple, did you ever think that you wouldn't be able to foster? Because perhaps for some people, they might not realise that they're even allowed to be a foster carer. It seems like it would be a strange thought, but did you ever think that? So, yeah, certainly like growing up, I always thought, "Oh, I'd like to get married, I'd like to have kids," and then when you work out your gay, you think, "Okay, those options might not be available." The world has changed a lot in the 12 years since we started fostering, and yeah, we weren't sure. At the time as well, it was met with some level of suspicion from some people, and I was very aware of that, but actually that's where I think finding the right agency came in, because when we joined Heath Farm, there were already other gay carers fostering there, so it felt like we had some mentorship and some role models, and actually it's been really nice to feel that we can play that role for other families that have come through since. So, yeah, it's brilliant, isn't it, that it's becoming just more every day. I can't tell you enough how boring our life is. It's just as boring as everyone else is. It's all making Pat lunches and driving children, so after school clubs, it's just the same. Glorified taxi driver, that's how you feel sometimes. Fantastic, but it's a fantastic opportunity, and what you're doing for those children, they are going to remember for the rest of their lives, and of course, you've been part of this amazing campaign, and you've been photographed by Rankin to raise awareness of who can be a foster carer. What was that experience like? You know, it was just such a brilliant day, and it reminded me of when we very first applied to be foster carers, we was told, no, you can't go into this job thinking that it's going to be rewarding. Actually, sometimes it's hard, whatever, there's never been a day where I've not felt rewarded, but that day, honestly, I felt like a celebrity, so it was wasting. There was just a whole team of people there, and you go through and you had like wardrobe, and they gave us loads of clothes, and then go into hair and make up for the people that wanted to put makeup on, and yeah, just felt really special the whole day, and actually, so I studied photography many years ago, and so I was well aware of Rankin and just how fortunate we were to be photographed by him, and I thought I'd feel really nervous. I didn't, it was just so much fun, I was caught up in it. It just went by in a flash, it was a really lovely experience, and he even took some extra photos of, so we took our foster children all the way back, and he wasn't supposed to, but he asked, you know, would we like some photos taken, just as a gift from him, and so actually not only we got some brilliant shots of us, but also of the voice, which is really, really kind of him. Nearly 120 new carers are needed in Kent, the faces of fostering campaigns urging people from all walks of life to get involved. Kent online news. More than 100 people have signed a petition calling for upgrades to a dangerous crossing in Dartford. Neighbors and parents say they fear someone will be seriously injured on the crossing on Dartford Road outside Westfield Primary Academy. Campaigners say they've been asking KCC to do something for the last 20 years, and that they shouldn't wait for a fatality to make the changes. Our reporter, Keely Greenwood, has been speaking to resident Gary Turner. So what's the problem with the crossing? So, for me personally, the problem's been I've had two near misses, where I've literally been halfway across the crossing, and a car's come across in front of me. So this isn't something that I'm just doing for a bit of fun. You know, it really is a real issue, and twice I've always been knocked over myself. And in addition, I also am one of the coordinators of Westfield Neighbors Watch, and there's been repeated and persistent issues on this same crossing around near misses. And we just think it's about time that Kent County Council took the near misses seriously. What would you like to see down about the problem? There's quite a few ideas that have come from the community, so one could be, for example, there's some quite innovative technology, like a 3D printed crossing, which actually has been evidence to slow down drivers that they get towards the crossing. Maybe it'll be a pelican crossing. We just want a dialogue. We want an adult dialogue between the community and Kent County Council to try and, you know, it shouldn't take someone being murdered or someone being killed for this to be taken seriously, because there's enough near misses to justify it being taken seriously. And it's been going on a long time as well, isn't it? Well, I'm surprised to be honest that over 20 years in some examples. You know, this isn't a new issue. And again, you could look at it one way and say, yeah, but no one's died. And you could go, okay, great, tick in the box. But is it going to take that for this to be dealt with? I don't really know. Residents upset over traffic delays caused by new homes being built near Maidstone have been told it will be over very soon. 421 houses are being built at Passenage Place in Othem. 79 are complete with 120 hope to be finished by the summer. Neighbors have complained of disruption along Daringwood Drive. They're being reassured that work will be done by the end of May. A McDonald's drive-through could be coming to Dover, despite fears it could lead to traffic congestion. It would be the seaside town's only branch if approved and would create 120 new jobs. But Council leader Kevin Mills says, despite demand, the land could have been better used. A key route linking Babisham to Ashford is due to close later this month for three weeks. It's due to maintenance works on a bridge carrying the road over the M2. National highways will shut the road overnight over three weekends between 8pm and 6am. Diversion routes will be in place. Residents in Dover have criticized the condition of free tennis courts, which have fallen into a state of disrepair. Fences are broken and nets are falling down at the facility in Cornot Park. Council bosses say they're not in a position to address the issues raised, so no repairs are planned. Head to catch online for photos revealing plans for the 200 homes earmarked for Midway Council's former officers. It's the first development in the Strewd Waterfront project, which could see up to 1,600 homes across eight sites. It would also see hundreds of new parking spaces in a combination of private and affordable accommodation. A decision is due in June. A nursery and dealers put forward plans to expand to meet a growing demand for child care places. It's currently a shortfall in the area, and bosses at creative minds on Standpipe Road want to increase capacity from 60 to 90. If it's approved, it'll also create five new jobs. Two chappy holiday parks, who were forced to close in lockdown, have had their futures secured as a new holiday company snapped them up. After running into financial struggles, Golden Lees and Holly Bush Farm are two of the five parks who have been bought by Meadow Bay Villages. The owner promises now to further invest and develop the areas. Kent Online News The new owners of the Henngeist Restaurant in Aylesford have revealed plans to give it a new lease of life. The business closed down at the end of last year. It's now been taken over by a former manager, who says he plans to refurbish the 16th century building while keeping its historical features. If you're heading to Medway over the school holidays, look out for some unusual creatures. A new magical beasts Sculpture Trail is being officially launched this morning. It features a T-Rex and baby Iguana Donz, as well as cheeky gremlin characters and two baby elephants. You can also learn more about the town's history by scanning a QR code on each sculpture. Babisham Brewer Shepherd Neem has been named as best partnership pub company at an event described as the Oscars for the hospitality industry. A ceremony has been held for the public and awards at Battersea Park in London. Shepherd Neem was also shortlisted in the best new site category for its recent refurbishment of the Duke of Cumberland pub in Whitstable. Kent Online Sports Briefly in football, Gillingham Chairman says there's the potential to redevelop their stadium if they manage to move up through the leagues. Brad Galenson says one of the reasons he chose to invest in the club was its ability to expand if the time comes. Current capacity is just under 10,000 and the gills still have an outside chance of reaching the playoffs in league to this season. That's all from us today. Thanks ever so much for listening. Don't forget you can follow us on Facebook, X, Instagram, TikTok and threads. You can also get the details on the top stories direct your email each morning by the briefing to sign up. Just head to kentonline.co.uk news you can trust. This is the Kent Online Podcast. [BLANK_AUDIO]
