Wednesday January 31 | 2018
All the news that matters
YOUR
FREE
Local, National and International
OF TONBRIDGE
PAPER
Cottage Hospital ward closed for 48 hours after outbreak of flu THE Cottage Hospital was forced to close one of its wards at the weekend over concerns about the spread of flu. The 14-bed nursing ward was closed on Saturday (January 27) and reopened 48 hours later. The therapy ward was not affected. The Cottage Hospital on Vauxhall Lane acts as a halfway house for patients coming out of hospital and those who require more care than can be provided in their homes but do not need to be admitted for acute treatment.
Safety Rowena Chilvers, Deputy Head of Infection Prevention and Control for Kent Community Health NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Patient safety is always our absolute priority. We closed Goldsmid ward after five patients became unwell on Saturday showing signs of respiratory illness.” She added: “We acted swiftly, following national guidance, to isolate the five patients showing symptoms and they were swabbed to detect for signs of infection. “One patient was confirmed as having influenza and two patients were diagnosed with respiratory syncytial virus. The other two patients tested negative for any viral infection.” The ward reopened to admissions on Monday (January 29) and it was then ‘business as usual’. Ms Chilvers praised the staff, saying: “The nursing team worked tirelessly to support all patients and stop any signs of infection in its tracks by completing an enhanced clean of the ward.”
‘I was biting the rope to hold on’ INSIDE – rower recalls dramatic rescue CLASS OF ITS OWN
Town’s grammar heads list of secondary schools Pages 4-5
By Andy Tong andy@timesoftunbridgewells.co.uk ONE of the survivors of a desperate transatlantic rescue has spoken of his horror at the ‘huge waves of water coming at us all day long’. Chris Williams and Max Thorpe, both
25, had to be picked up by an oil tanker after their boat caught fire during the 3,000-mile Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge race three days before Christmas. Their Team Tenzing craft had been at sea for nine days and they had rowed 700 miles non-stop when it was caught in a severe storm and capsized under the impact of immense waves. HOME AND DRY Max Thorpe (left) and Chris Williams arrive back at Heathrow after their ordeal
The pair, who both went to Judd School, were left to fend for themselves for more than 16 hours in a Force Nine gale while awaiting a rescue ship. And when the tanker arrived, they had to cling on to ropes dangled down the side of the massive vessel. Chris lost two teeth as he bit into the cord when he felt his hands slipping. After spending 18 days aboard the ship they reached Brazil and then flew home to their relieved families and friends. “It’s one of those funny things,” said Chris, “it feels like a distant memory when I’m walking out my front door on to the St John’s Road in Tunbridge Wells.” The boys were taking part in the gruelling challenge to raise money for Cardiac Risk in the Young, which provides free screenings to identify heart defects.
‘Max fell off into the sea and for about 10 seconds was swimming for dear life’ They were aiming to break the record for rowing pairs despite having no experience of such endurance events. “We had one extreme row on the Channel, a couple of days and a night, but you can count on the fingers of one hand the number of times we were at sea training,” admitted Chris, who captains Tunbridge Wells Cricket Club’s 1st XI. “We were on pace to crush the record. We were doing 80 miles a day and after nine days we were leading the pairs’ race. “We were getting a lot more accomplished and going from strength to strength. We were in good spirits.” The weather deteriorated after they left the Canary Islands heading for Antigua, but they remained confident. “For four or five days the conditions
Continued on page 2
GROUND-BREAKING
Tributes to man who found football club a home Page 6
LIVE THE DREAM
We have 100 tickets to win for Build it Live Pages 46-47
RED-FACED ANGELS
Manager sent off amid fracas over dive simulation Page 71