TWO homes have been gutted by fire in North Dorset in an incident which lasted for much of the day. The drama began at 8.30am, when Dorset Fire and Rescue received over 15 999 calls to a serious blaze in a home at Vale Road, Stalbridge. At the
POOLE Town wide man Luke Burbidge could be on the verge of a dramatic U-turn after confirming he is in talks over a move to Weymouth. Dolphins had announced that Burbidge, 21, was contracted to the club for next season but both the player and boss
BOURNEMOUTH and Christchurch hospitals have been highlighted as having worrying numbers of weekend deaths. Figures analysed by Dr Foster Intelligence found that 12 of 146 health trusts were classed as “higher than expected” for weekend deaths,
Quick-thinking rangers from the National Trust put out a fire on the heath at Studland this afternoon with the help of onlookers. Two members of staff were made aware of the aware of an unattended camp fire at Bramble Bush Bay and worked to put
AROUND 30 people have been evacuated from their homes after a gas main ruptured following a blaze in Stalbridge. A 100 metre cordon is still in place and 25 homes have been affected. Dorset Fire & Rescue Service is asking members members
CHAIRMAN Eddie Mitchell has confirmed Cherries will open the new South Stand for the first time when European giants Real Madrid come to town on Sunday. The temporary facility houses around 2,500 seats and Mitchell said tickets for the prestigious
The 2013 Swanage Jazz Festival was hailed a huge success after over 2,700 people turned out for the event. Running from July 12 to 14, the event promised a range of jazz and rock music organised by the fans, for the fans, says the event’s artistic
TRAINS across Dorset are delayed as emergency engineering work is being carried out. South West Trains in and out of Waterloo may be delayed by 30 minutes or cancelled and passengers are advised to find alternative transport where possible.
Police closed the A31 briefly this afternoon so the family of the pedestrian killed on Saturday could visit the crash site. Traffic was diverted up and onto the Ashley Heath roundabout from around 4pm.
AN ALARM sounded for several minutes at the Dolphin Centre in Poole today due to maintenance work being carried out on the fire alarms. The false alarm started just after 3pm and was not scheduled in advance. There was no official evacuation
TODAY marks the start of Farm Animal Week and the RSPCA’s Freedom Food charity is calling on readers of Taste to Switch one for Welfare. To mark the campaign, the charity has launched a Celebrity Recipe Collection which includes dishes by Jamie
THE Dorset Seafood Festival has been hailed as ‘the best ever’ by visitors, stallholders and organisers. The event on Weymouth harbourside attracted more than 50,000 people over the weekend. Thousands of people from as far as Yorkshire and
One of our 3 priorities this year is opportunities for young people, with particular emphasis on the arts, such as drama. In recent months it has become clear that many young people believe that Poole is somewhat lacking in the opportunities offered
A MYSTERY envelope believed to be bearing royal birthday wishes popped through the wrong letterbox on Saturday. Care home worker Sara Randall was stunned when she saw the Buckingham Palace stamp on the mail delivered to her Bearwood home, but when
A BOURNEMOUTH-based charity is looking for people to take on the Thames Path Challenge to help make wishes come true for children with life-threatening illnesses. Round Table Children’s Wish (RTCW) is recruiting participants to take part in one
SCORES of people turned out to Ashley Cross in Parkstone over the weekend for the annual Grooves on the Green festival. From music and dance to face painting and children’s activities, there was a whole host of entertainment for families to enjoy
HUNDREDS of young people took to their bikes over the weekend for the Slades Farm Festival of Sport and Talent in Bournemouth. In addition to stalls, demonstrations and entertainment, there were people of all ages who took to their BMXs, track
THOUSANDS of spectators lined the streets of New Milton on Sunday as fundraisers geared up for the pedal car grand prix. Forty-nine teams representing local businesses, organisations and schools used pedal power to race around the Monaco-style
TRADERS and residents in a Bournemouth suburb have united to support the town’s Britain in Bloom bid. People living and working in Charminster are hoping their colourful floral displays will help Bournemouth succeed in the prestigious competition
UPTON Carnival proved to be a sea of colour on Saturday as people of all ages took part in the annual event. Floats of all shapes and sizes travelled from Factory Road and along Dorchester Road, to Lytchett Minster Rugby Club, where a fete complete
A MAN had his laptop and iPhone stolen before being pushed to the ground in a robbery in West-bourne. The incident happened at around 11pm on Monday, July 8, along the junction of Tregonwell Road and Cranborne Road. The victim, a 32-year-old
WITH blazing sunshine lighting up a host of colourful entries, it was a golden year for Lymington and Pennington Festival. Thousands of people flocked to the New Forest annual event on Saturday to watch the lively carnival leave from Pennington
WAREHAM Carnival Week came to a colourful close on Sunday afternoon with a grand procession of floats through the town centre. Crowds lined the route as the procession made its way from Sandford Lane to the quayside which provided the setting for
HIGHS of 31C, 120,000 visitors, sold out hotel rooms and more events than you could shake a stick at. Here's how the weekend looked in pictures: This was the scene on Bournemouth beach by 11am on Saturday.... Bournemouth council reported all
TAXI and private hire vehicle drivers fearful for their jobs turned out in force to express their feelings to Poole Council about deregulation. The Law Commission is reviewing the law relating to the regulation of taxis and private hire vehicles
A MOTORCYCLIST has been taken to hospital after a collision with a car ouside Tapper Funeral Service on Parkstone Road earlier today. The collision occured at 9.56am and the busy road was blocked until 11.12am. The ambulance attended the scene
A MAN critically injured in a head-on crash between two cars on the A31 last week remains in the same condition. The pensioner, who was driving the silver Citroen three-wheel convertible, was airlifted to the neurological unit at Southampton General
DEFENDER Stephane Zubar is today expected to sever ties with Cherries and complete a move to League Two outfit Bury. Zubar is understood to be close to reaching agreement with Cherries over the remaining two years of his contract. And providing
KENNETH Branagh will be beamed via satellite to the big screen at the Regent in Christchurch with his barn-storming new interpretation of Shakespeare’s darkest of plays. Macbeth runs on July 20 at 8.30pm. National Theatre Live will be broadcasting
HE may have mysteriously exited the jungle from the last series of I’m A Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here, but entertainer Brian Conley is back. The comedian, TV presenter, singer, actor and panto king Brian Conley will return to the south coast
A FAMILY is asking its council landlord to dig up its garden, claiming that potentially hazardous glass, nails and other building materials are still surfacing a year after they moved in. Gary Murphy, who lives at the Poole Housing Partnership
HORSE riders in the New Forest are demanding action to reduce the risk of accidents involving cyclists. They are calling on organisers of cycling events to adopt a voluntary code of conduct in a bid to keep the roads safe. It follows growing
IT was the hottest weekend of the year so far. People packed the beaches as they enjoyed the scorching temperatures. And the sizzling weather with wall-to-wall sunshine was a guaranteed shot in the arm for tourism in Dorset. But the downside
IN July and August, cyclists are very sensibly prohibited on the Poole promenade between 10am and 6pm. May I suggest that charity walks and other events should start after 10am and end at 6pm. This obese nation must encourage people to get
EVERY year visitors to Poole Quay have to put up with aggressive drunks who cause problems (Drunken dog owner case, Echo July 2). Where are the police? Why are they not stopping these anti-social drunks from ruining such a lovely spot for locals
ON Saturday, July 6, I had the pleasure of escorting the deputy mayor to a fantastic performance of the Dorset Police Male Voice Choir in concert with Avon and Somerset Constabulary Male Voice Choir. St Ambrose Church was full with standing room
REGARDING the recent letter you published from a lady in your letters page praising Cllr Ron Whittaker. I fully endorse her comments. He was born in Bournemouth, as was my late wife Alderman Mrs Jeanne Curtis, and was very kind to me when she passed
Another wind farm opponent (John Spracking ‘Think again over turbines’ July 13) has pitched in to attack Friends of the Earth’s decision to support this development. Like so many, however, he fails on all counts. There are few ‘cheaper or more
WIND TURBINES – Not in our back yard! It would be like stabbing the very heart of our many treasured holiday towns with their lovely beaches, areas of natural beauty and outstanding views, an important corridor for migrating birds. This unique
A senior education official at Bournemouth Council has admitted making more than 600 indecent images of children. Robert Ian Finlay, 53, of Barnes Crescent, East Howe, pleaded guilty to 17 offences committed between January 1 2009 and January 10
A BROKEN down coach is causing traffic tailbacks on a busy Bournemouth roundabout this morning. Police were alerted at 10.13am after the vehicle broke down on the Cambridge Road roundabout near Westbourne. A Dorset police spokeswoman said children
THOUSANDS of people took to the beach at Sandbanks over the weekend to enjoy what the Asahi British Beach Polo Championships had to offer. The sun continued to shine over revellers at the two-day event, as some of the finest polo players from across
DETECTIVES are appealing for witnesses after a conman tricked a pensioner out of money in Christchurch. The incident occurred at an address in the Purewell area between 9am and 11am on Tuesday. The victim – aged in his nineties – returned home
NEW Milton trounced Lymington to lift the New Forest President's Cup on Friday - but both teams suffered hangovers with defeats in Saturday's Southern League matches. Milton put out-of-sorts Lymo to the sword by registering a crushing eight-wicket
THE glorious sunshine wasn’t the only thing in the skies above Bournemouth and Poole this weekend. Bournemouth Airport was the temporary home to the Red Arrows from Friday, who were performing at various festivals and events across the weekend.
DETECTIVES have closed their murder investigation into the suspicious death of a man in a flat in Westbourne. Officers from Dorset’s Major Crime Investigation Team launched the murder probe following the death of Lithuanian national Jevgenij Pisciuliov
FANS of Jurassic Park can discover the Isle of Wight’s pre-historic heritage on a Wightlink Wight World day out at Dinosaur Isle, Europe’s only purpose-built dinosaur museum. Add to this the excitement of the Wightlink ferry crossing and families
BOURNEMOUTH was the hottest place in the UK yesterday as temperatures hit 31C. On Saturday, the mercury hit 28.6C at noon as more than 120,000 sun seekers hit the town. Car parks filled up early on Saturday with Sandbanks car park closed by lunchtime
PEOPLE living in Poole suffered a major power cut on Saturday afternoon with around 2,000 homes affected. The incident, caused by a small fire at the base of an electricity pylon in Upton, affected around 2,000 households in Corfe Mullen, Lytchett
SWIMMERS took the plunge in blistering temperatures yesterday to raise an estimated £180,000 for the British Heart Foundation. Large crowds waved off 1,800 swimmers who set off from the hot sands near Bournemouth Pier at 10am and noon in Europe
A PEDESTRIAN has died after a crash on the A31 at Ashley Heath in the early hours of Saturday morning. The 34-year-old man from Dibden in Hampshire died following the collision with the white Skoda Octavia on the westbound underpass of the A31
MANAGER Neil Middleditch vowed to ignore the critics after defending his Great Britain team selection for Event Two of the Speedway World Cup. Middleditch admitted the job was tough after he had come in for some stick, particularly over his decision
CHAIRMAN Eddie Mitchell has admitted Cherries thought long and hard before deciding to make subtle changes to the club crest. Plans for a minor redesign were revealed exclusively by the Daily Echo in April – with the club today unveiling the “evolved
CHERRIES manager Eddie Howe says he would have no hesitation in handing Stephen Purches his first taste of the Championship. Purches continued his comeback following a double leg break when he lined up in his own testimonial against West Ham at
The Swans floated in on to the Magic Carpet and returned home from Braeside with four points to sustain their A Division title aspirations. Swanmore's match-winners were Linda Pocknell, Sandra Simmonds, Gill Head and Viv Mansell (25-12). They outscored
