News


downsmail.co.uk Triathlon death ‘a tragic accident’


FIT young man Paul Gallihawk drowned taking part in Ocean Lake charity event, a Maidstone inquest heard.


The 34-year-oldwas a keen sports-


man who regularly played football. Hehad taken part in a half marathon and other running events. He had been training for his first triathlon at Leybourne Lakes onAu- gust bank holidayweekend last year and, although nervous,was looking forward to taking part. Mr Gallihawk, who lived with his partner Hayley Wright in Postmill Drive, Tovil,wanted to raise money for King’s College Hospital, where his father Malcolm had been treated the previous year. Hayley raised the alarm when Mr Gallihawk failed to emerge from the water at the end of the 750-metre swim in the Ocean Lake Triathlon onAugust 29, 2015. Asearch of the lake with boats and


scuba divers failed to find Mr Galli- hawk, who worked for a sales re- cruitment company. The Kent Fire and Rescue Service


joined the search, along with volun- teers from Kent Search and Rescue, but itwas not until 9.30am on Mon- day,August 31, that MrGallihawk’s


Scout grant


MEMBERS of St Luke’s Scout Group were thrilled to hear that The Big Lottery Fund had granted them almost £10,000 to renovate their headquarters in Heathorn Street, Maidstone. The building, dating back to


1961, needs new windows and a new roof. More than 100 young people aged from six to 18 use it everyweek. The fundraising team has been working hard for two years to raise funds for the group to enable more young people to take part in activ- ities, camps and weekly meetings and this grant is a huge boost to their efforts. St Luke’s Scout Group is run by volunteers. Anyone who wants to get involved should call Group Scout Leader Gavin Mills on 07970 939668 or email gsl@stlukesmaid- stonesouts.org.uk


Summer drama OPEN-AIR theatre returns to the Maidstone area this summer with the Changeling Theatre offering a choice of Shakespeare’s All’s Well that Ends Well and Oliver Gold- smith’s She Stoops to Conquer. The season opens at Boughton Monchelsea Place on Friday, July 1. Other Maidstone area locations in- clude The Friars, Aylesford, Egerton House, Great Comp Gar- den at Platt and Tithe Barn, Lenham. For details go to www.changeling-theatre.com


36 Maidstone Town May 2016


for 10 years and took daily medica- tion to keep the condition at bay, the inquest heard.Healso suffered from Crohn’s disease but this was un- likely to have contributed to his death, said Dr Rouse. The inquest heard that therewere


seven kayakers watching the group of 108 swimmers, aswell as a safety boat with a crew of two on board. One man was pulled from the


Paul Gallihawk


bodywas discovered by a dive team brought in from Norfolk. Mr Gallihawk’s body was found


seven metres deep in the lake, 87 metres from the start of the race. Pathologist Dr David Rouse found


the cause of death to be immersion. Therewere no marks or signs of in- jury on Mr Gallihawk’s body and therewas nothing to suggest he had been injured or suffered a fit. Mr Gallihawk did suffer from epilepsy, but had not had a seizure


water after getting into difficulties, but nobody sawMrGallihawk,who was swimming with the less-confi- dent contingent, disappear. He had been suffering from dizzy


spells and, a few weeks before the triathlon, consultant neurologist Dr Jonathan Chan foundMrGallihawk may have suffered a vasovagal (fainting) episode and advised him to increase his salt andwater intake, particularly while hewas in training. Dr Rouse told the inquest: “If Mr Gallihawk had suffered a fainting episode, it would not be evident from the postmortem examination.” Although Mr Gallihawk was not an experienced open water swim-


mer, thewaterwas not cold enough to cause hypothermia and he was wearing awet suit. Dr Rouse said: “Unfortunately, the


post mortem only gives us possibili- ties, rather than probabilities.” Mr Gallihawk’s parents Malcolm


and Linda, who attended the in- quest,were concerned at the amount of weed in the lake, but coroner Pa- tricia Harding assured them the weeds were well below the level of the swimmers, with six metres of clearwater above. Following the inquest, Mr Galli-


hawk Snr, from Leeds, said he felt questions remained unanswered. “It’s not the outcome we were hoping for,” he said. The coroner said she was unable


to determine how exactly Mr Galli- hawk had drowned but recorded a verdict of accidental death. She said: “The death of this young,


fit man was a tragic accident. How- ever, Ido not have concerns that any further deaths may occur. It was a very great tragedy that he died the way that he did.”


Parking boost


AN additional 145 parking spaces for patients and visitors could be es- tablished to the east of Maidstone Hospital. It would be set up on hardstand-


Boxer’s pledge to Becs


SNODLAND’s unbeaten welterweight boxer George Hennon has pledged a quarter of his next fight purse to a fundraising appeal for the family of a friend who has cancer. Hennon (21) will donate the sizeable chunk of the winnings from his third professional bout to The Becs Factor, a fund formed to enable Larkfield mum Rebecca Watts to take her two young children, Alfie and Mason, to Euro Disney to make memories. He said Rebecca (41) was the


aunt of his friend Shelby. “As I’ve been in and out of her


house since secondary school, I’ve always known Becs and she has come to support me in my fights.” Hennon, of Malling Road, is


looking to extend his winning run to three in his debut at the York Hall boxing venue in Bethnal Green, east London, on April 29. He said of Rebecca: “She just


keeps on fighting and looks so well, it’s like nothing phases her, she’s that brave and she inspires me every day. So this cause is really close to my heart. I’ll give a minimum of 25% of my purse and I’ll be looking to give more if I can. I’ll also have her logo on my shorts and T-shirts to promote the fundraiser. There’s a 49-seater coach taking my support from Maidstone up to the York Hall for my fight and my mum will take collections on the day as well.” To donate or find out more, visit www.becsfactor.org.


ing currently used for a mobile scan- ner and as a temporary vehicle base for the Maidstone and Tunbridge WellsNHSTrust’s general transport department. Eleven of the spaces would be disability compliant. Asupporting statement said: “The hospital currently has 85% of its pa- tient and visitor parking located to the front of the hospital. “However, with extensive services


nowoperating to the rear of the hos- pital it is clear that there is an inade- quate amount of parking available for patients using these services.” Maidstone Council will decide the planning application


Drink driver


A MAIDSTONE man caught driv- ing while over the limit has been banned from the road for 18 months. Jeremy Graham (64), from High-


land Road,was sentenced oat Med- way Magistrates’ Court after admitting drink driving and failing to surrender to court bail. Hewas stopped in a FordMondeo


inWallisAvenue, in Park Wood, on November 21whena test showed he had 249mg of alcohol in 100ml of urine, when the legal limit is 107mg. Magistrates also ordered him to


pay a £250 fine, £85 costs and a £20 victim surcharge.


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64