The family of a teenage boy who suffered severe brain damage after jumping off a pier into the sea at Margate have described him as 'amazing but as wild as they come'.
Jack Dolan was knocked unconscious after performing a flip off Stone Pier last month. The 15-year-old was flown to a London hospital but a scan revealed no brain activity.
Also in today's podcast, with less than 48 hours until polls open for the general election, it's feared some people in Kent might not get the chance to vote.
There have been concerns about delays with sending out postal ballots for those who are on holiday or otherwise unable to get to a polling station in person.
A petition's been set up calling for traffic lights to be installed outside a school in Broadstairs, after a girl was knocked down.
The teenager suffered serious injuries in the collision near the Charles Dickens School on Friday.
The people behind a huge art trail in Maidstone this summer are hoping it raises thousands of pounds.
If you've been to the town you might have seen some of the decorated Shaun the Sheep sculptures.
There's more than 100 and there'll be there until the end of August.
And in sport, Kent's Emma Raducanu has marked her return to Wimbledon with a first round victory over Renata Zarazua.
Can't online news news. You can trust. This is the Kent online podcast, Nicola Everett. Hello. Hope you're OK on Tuesday, July the 2nd. Thanks ever so much for downloading today's podcast and our top stories and incredibly tragic one. The family of a 15 year old boy who was left with severe brain damage after jumping off a pier on the Kent coast have made the heartbreaking decision to move him into end of life care. Now, Jack Dolan had been out with friends in Margate when his family say the freak accident unfolded. Kate has the details on this story for the Kent online podcast today, Kate. Well, Jack had been out with his friends enjoying the summer sunshine on June 23rd. They were at Stone Pier in Margate when Jack performed a flip jump at around 130 in the afternoon, but he was not unconscious when he hit the water. His friends were quick to act and there was a huge emergency response. He was airlifted to London's King's College Hospital, but an MRI scan showed he had no brain activity. Speaking later, to Kent online, Jack's stepdad Dave said he suspects he overdid the jump, not realizing how high the pier was. He hit his face on the water, winding himself and he drowned. And despite doctor's best efforts, his family, as I mentioned, have decided to move him to end of life care. That's right. Doctors say that with the severe brain damage, Jack has suffered. Even if he were to wake up, he would be unable to leave unassisted. Dave says they've chosen to take him into a hospital, so it's a nice environment for him when they turn his machines off. They're also hopeful he may be able to breathe on his own for a time. He's pretty much in a vegetative state and will only live for a short time once he comes off live support. And his family have been telling the Kent online podcast about Jack, haven't they? They've said he was an amazing boy, but as wild as they come. Yes, mom Lisa says Jack had the kindest soul and purest heart. His family say he had ADHD and was as wild as they come, but that he'd gone on well with everyone and loved being active and spending time with his friends. There's been a swell of community support for the family. A close friend has started an online fundraiser to help them cover the cost of Jack's care. The just giving page has already raised more than £4,000, as well as well wishes for the family. Hey, thank you ever so much. Kent Online News. Next today and with less than 48 hours until polls open for the general election, it's feared some of us in Kent might not get the chance to vote. There have been concerns about delays with sending out postal ballots for those of us who might be on holiday or otherwise unable to get to a polling station in person. Well, Abby Hook from our colleagues at KMTV has been speaking to Medway's Labour Council leader Vince Maple. Now Vince, you wrote to Royal Mail this weekend about constituents not receiving postal votes. What do you think is causing the delays? Have you heard anything back? Well, I can say first time anywhere publicly that I've received very late this afternoon a response back from the Royal Mail who have confirmed that everything has now been dispatched. But I am very concerned that in a number of cases, this has taken much, much longer than normal. And we know this is not a Medway problem. I was in the green room just a few minutes ago and the SNP leader is saying actually voters across Scotland may have a similar issue with postal votes. So I do think this is something that post-July 4th. I think there will be a lot of conversation about it. I've had emails from certainly a couple of residents who will not be able to vote in this election because they arrange for a postal vote. That's been dispatched in good time by the Council, but it hasn't been delivered by the Royal Mail. So I do think there will be questions to answer both before July 4th, but realistically far beyond that. Conservative Councillor Habib Tejam was also on last night's show. I totally agree with Vince said, yes, I mean, it will leave residents disenfranchised in many cases. I was at the count earlier this week, the postal vote count. And I've seen the returns. I know the first day we had a fair few in the mid-late 20% or comments. With the solution in place now, it may have very little impact, I'm guessing, considering the amount of votes I saw coming in to the postal vote count. It is truly disappointing though that I'm interested in how to suffer that. And I think we could have done a little bit more from a comps perspective in communicating and in samples in resident and trying to, you know, let them know what is going on, what they could do about the situation. Well, I would say that we've been very clear on that. Obviously, replacement ballot papers have been available since Friday. If people want to know more, if they live in Medway, they can phone 01634-332099. Other councils across Kent will have a similar number. People are able to get a replacement ballot if they haven't received it. And I would encourage them to do that. It is frustrating that the Royal Mail have left us in this position, but they've been dispatched in good time. In one batch actually went a day early. And nevertheless, some people still haven't received them. Now, the Electoral Commission is promising a full investigation and Royal Mail insist that ballot packs are being delivered as soon as they arrive in their network. Well, if you're in Medway and haven't received a postal vote pack, as Vince Maple said, you can call the following number. It's 01634-332030. That's 01634-332030. There's also more information available at medway.gov.uk/generalelection2024. That's medway.gov.uk/generalelection2024. If you get a postal vote late and you don't think it'll get back through the system by 10pm on Thursday, it can be handed in at a polling station or to the council offices at Gumworf. Kent Online reports. A man's been found guilty of killing another man in the hallway of flats in Dover. A.J. Porter stabbed his victim several times at Ansey Road after being accused of stealing drugs and claimed he acted out of fear and panic. The 36-year-old who doesn't have a permanent address has been convicted of manslaughter and will be sentenced later this month. After the death of a teenage girl who'd been to a festival at Dreamland in Margate, it's claimed other young people from the event were also taken to hospital. A district councilor has raised concerns as friends and family pay tribute to 17-year-old Emily Stokes. She died after attending a drum and bass festival on Saturday. The venue say they're assisting police with the investigation. It's thought a boy who was seriously injured when he was hit by a bus near Fogston may have been kneeling near the curb to do his shoe up. Harrison Sahala was flown to a London hospital with head injuries after it happened on Sangate Esplanade on Saturday. Stagecoach have confirmed one of their vehicles was involved and they're helping with the police investigation. Elsewhere, a petition has been set up calling for traffic lights to be installed outside a school in Broadstairs after a girl was knocked down. The teenager suffered serious injuries in the collision near the Charles Dickens School on Friday. Local mum Lucy Allen now wants a puff-in crossing installed and railings to help students cross the road safely. She's been speaking to Kate. There is a zebra crossing right outside Charles Dickens School which, as you know, the basis of a zebra crossing is that it's by courtesy that you stop and that's why I really want something like a puff-in crossing put in place. So, does that more, much more a visual reminder of the traffic light to stop? Obviously, I don't know what happened in this instance of why he didn't stop, but I think it's quite easy just to sort of strive across them and just not be visually aware of children standing, waiting to cross. So, and it is, it's quite a, there's just three schools on that road from top to bottom and they all have, you know, children coming out at different times. So, it's a very busy road, but also cars do go very fast up and down when there is a gap. So, the other thing I really want to put in place is to have a, the fence boundary on the corner of Fairfax Road that goes towards Charles Dickens School. So, then that just prevents children sort of, you know, walking into the road. So, it kind of forces them down to the crossing rather than just kind of walking across into the little road. And what sort of, what sort of support have you received from the school? Are they behind the petition or are you, or is it sort of separate from them? So, I started the petition because I'm on my own business. So, I've got quite a lot of people on my Facebook page and they're mostly mothers and have children of school age. So, really, a lot of those people, I think, I think last time I checked, we were on 200 people had signed in only 48 hours, which I think is pretty remarkable. And all those people have shared the post as well. I haven't actually been directly to Charles Dickens to see what their support is. It's just, life is just so short and you just don't know, you know, you drop your child off to school and, you know, you had a frantic warning and you kind of bundle them out of the car and say, "See, I'd love you." And just no one would expect that that series of events would have happened like that. And it's just really heartbreaking. An 83-year-old man arrested over the crash has been released on bail. Ken's online reports. A convicted pedophile who sexually assaulted a young girl he met at a restaurant in Folkston has avoided being sent to prison. Rasham Rai was subject to a court order banning contact with underage females for a string of offenses that saw him jailed for more than four years in 2018. Following the latest attack, the 33-year-old from FERS Lane in the town was given a two-year community order and must attend rehab. Plans to build a winery in North Kent have been called monstrous by villagers who claim it would be taller than the Berlin Wall. Now, it's the fourth time the owner of Cobham House vineyards has applied to expand onto land between Luddstown and Sol Street. They've previously been rejected over concerns for the landscape and a lack of community consultation. A new medical campus has been given the go-ahead near Thanitz, Westwood Cross, in the hopes it will reduce waiting times. The GP practice care home assisted living building and nursery is set to be built off New Hain Road. The project will also create more than 100 jobs. Now, the people behind a huge art trail in Maidstone this summer are hoping it raises thousands of pounds. If you've been to the town, you might have seen some of the decorated Shawn the Sheep sculptures. It's more than 100 and they'll be there until the end of August. Well, our reporter Cara Simmers has been chatting to one of the artists involved. My name's Annabelle and I've painted the Olympics Emotion Shawn and I've also done the special bench that'll be placed in the hospice gardens. I assume you've gone to see your Shawns in the locations that they are. What was it like seeing them finally there and out in the open? This is amazing and it's just so lovely to see all the kids enjoying them and everyone having photos with them. It looks so colourful in the town centre and it's fab to see it popping up in all the different locations. Obviously, the bench one is a bit more interactive for people to sit on there and sort of actually take it in. What's that like to have, you know, seeing kids going up and getting pictures of the bench and stuff like that? It's really lovely and the bench in particular is really special because it's a memory of our lovely friend Leslie and so everything painted on the bench is something that she laughed or found joy in and all these kids, you know, looking for all the hidden details and finding little mice in the flowers is really lovely and everybody seems so happy when they see it and that brings a lot of joy to everyone and her family as well. Brilliant. And how long did it take you to sort of design, paint, what's the process like to find it? It took a very long time. The sheep in particular is quite a complex design. It's all geometric and forms, a lot of masking tape and a lot of time to get a place over such an irregular shape that is the sheep. The bench I had a lot of help was with because all of Leslie's family came and painted their own bit of the bench and that was lovely. It was like a family outing so that was a bit quicker but all in all it took a good few weeks but the outcome is worth it. And I can imagine, I don't know what you've done before art-wise but I can imagine this is quite a unique project and a unique canvas of Sean to put a design on. What's that been like compared to other projects you've been on? So I've never done anything like this before. The only time I've only ever painted a day today I'm a pet portrait artist as well as a garden designer so I'm normally painting on canvas so I've never painted anything 3D in my life. So this is definitely something different but I have loved it. And Charlie Langhorn is from Wild in Art. Sean's seen such a fantastic sculpt, just such a fantastic character. You can see the cheekiness of him through the artwork and all that sort of stuff. So it's a really exciting day and I hope people know you have come down, enjoy the trail. We know we've already had people getting in contact, book in there, come down here to see it. So hopefully it's going to make a lot of people smile, a lot of people go out and do the trail but what I would say to people is don't forget ultimately this trail is to raise money for the hard-to-care and hospice. So if you can make a donation you can put a little bit of the money in the pot, whatever it is, buy some merchandise. Do do that because it's so important to support the fundraising effort because it's about raising money for hospice as well as having a fantastic time. Exactly. And Sean himself is such an iconic character and any pills to you know children as well as adults. What do you love most about the little cheeky cheeky cheeky cheeky? Well I think what's not to love about Sean, my kids grow up with it, it's such a wonderful character and what Arden and the way it interacts, he's there for everybody. But I think what it does, it brings everyone together. Yeah, everyone come together, they can enjoy the trail, they can enjoy Sean the cheek. So it doesn't matter your background, you know, where you from, where you go, whatever it is, everyone will enjoy it. And I think, yeah, we know times are a bit tough but everyone will have that free day out where they, you know, rediscover the first time they say they go around, enjoy the trail and have a really good time with it. Finally we can hear from Anne Marie Kelly, she's from the heart of Kent Hospice. So the app's incredible. You can download the app for free. That was a decision that we made to make sure that there was no barrier at all to participating in the trail. So there is no charge for the app. When you visit a sculpture, you tap the four digits code into the app. Now depending on who the sponsor is, the sponsor may have decided to offer a reward. So the first thing that could happen is that you are able to access a reward, a prize of some description. But every time that somebody downloads that or inputs that digit code, it collects it on the app. So one of the benefits of having the app is that you can see how many people have collected that sculpture and how many people have voted for it as their favourite. So there's a little page on the app that says stats and if you go to stats, you'll be able to see how many sculptures have been unlocked. So at 10 o'clock this morning, so 10 o'clock on Monday morning, having launched on Saturday morning, and it was almost 45,000 unlocks in two days. And do we know roughly which one's sort of the winning Sean at the moment or is that still yet to be revealed? Our experience is that it changes a huge amount over the course of the trail. I think when I looked this morning, one of the most popular ones was one of the learning herds. So they are flocks of small sheep that are displayed together between kind of two to five sheep at a time. I think probably there were a few school groups out yesterday and they were voting for the sculpture that their school designed. And obviously they're going to get sold off eventually at an auction. What does it mean? Where will the money go and how much will it mean to the hospice to have that funding come through? So the auction is so important to us. It will take place on the 26th of September at Detling Showgrounds. We are already receiving inquiries about the auction, which is really exciting. We are asking people to submit an inquiry form on the website so that we're able to get in touch with them and have a chat about the auction. We're hoping that the sculptures will sell for an average of 5,000 pounds each. On that basis, it would raise about 250,000 pounds for the hospice. Now that's a really impactful amount of money that will go directly into the hospice providing care to our patients. At the moment, we have 1,088 people who we are caring for at Heart of Kent Hospice. The vast majority of those people are out in the community living at home. We're in a care home and the hospice is supporting them by sending out teams or by them attending some of the activities that we do in the hospice. So the money is so important because the demand for our services is just increasing all of the time and it just means that we will be able to help even more people. And a former Gerker Soldier from Canterbury has become the first double above the knee amputee to climb North America's highest mountain. Harry Buddha Maga spent two weeks scaling Denali in Alaska after conquering Mount Everest last year. He's hoping to climb the highest peak on each of the seven continents. Ken's online sport. Ten is first up and Ken's Emma Rajikanu has marked her return to Wimbledon with the first round victory over Renata Zarazua. She won in straight sets after a late change of her opponent when Ekaterina Alexindrover pulled out through illness. It's never easy playing a first round and especially on Santa Corps you know there's a lot of emotions that go with it. Yeah and I'm just very pleased with the way I fought against a very tough opponent. I had a few friends and family here so it was really nice to have them in the crowd and looking up to them and hearing them and also you know the crowd it's nothing really compared to playing on Santa Corps. I think it's a lot of emotions and nerves go with that but also a lot of support and I think that in some crucial moments today it was really beneficial and really helpful to have a lot of people yeah cheering for me rooting for me and when I made the last drop shot in the last game I really felt the crowd erupt so that was yeah that feeling I definitely missed that last year. And Ekaterina athletes revealed the thought of watching the Olympics at home inspired her to end an 18-month hiatus and defend her title. Kate French won gold in the modern pentathlon at the Tokyo Games in 2020 but then stepped away from the sport. The 33-year-old from Mepam says FOMO was too much not to be part of the team heading to Paris this summer. Well that's all from us for today. Thanks ever so much for listening. Don't forget you can follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and threads. It can also get details on the top stories direct to your email each morning via the briefing to sign up to that you just need to head to kentonline.co.uk and whilst you're on the site today don't forget to check out the general election pages we've got an interactive map there. You can click on the constituency where you live to find out who is standing for election on Thursday. News you can trust. This is the Kent Online podcast.
