13/01/2017 East Midlands Today

It's almost 6.30 and you're watching East Midlands Today.

Tonight: An off-duty nurse saves the life of Leicester City

The nurse was at an awards ceremony when the former player suffered a

cardiac arrest. After the fourth shot comic he came around and was

breathing for himself again on the first thing he said to me was, wow,

what just happened? So straightaway, he was alert. Also tonight, caught

on CCTV. The RSPCA say what happened next was sickening. Plus the latest

chapter in the amazing story of the development of MRI in Nottingham.

And in sports, in northern Italy, Nottingham Pampers historic

Continental cup campaign gets off to a winning start. -- Nottingham

Panthers. Good evening and welcome to Friday's

programme with Anne Davies For years now, former

footballer Alan Birchenall has campaigned for defibrillators to be

installed at sports grounds. Last night his life

was saved by one. The football legend

and Leicester City ambassador collapsed at an awards event held

at the home of Leicester Tigers, but he was saved by the emergency

first aid he received. He is affectionately known as the

Birch. Since the early 1970s, Alan Birchenall has been part of

Leicester City. As well as being a player coming he is also known to

raising millions for charity. While handing out awards at the Leicester

Mercury sports event last night, Alan collapsed because of a cardiac

arrest. His life was saved by nurse Lisa Fereday. She was there because

her daughter was nominated for an award. Read I started chest

compression is, asked for the automated defibrillator to be

brought to me as soon as possible. Somebody got that. That was brought

quickly to me and all the time, it is obviously important to continue

effective chest compression is, which I did. When the automated

defibrillator came, we attached it and was able to deliver a shock for

his day with me, which was obviously pivotal in saving his life. How

Bhagwati 's condition? He did speak to me afterward. After the fourth

shot coming he came round and was breathing for himself again. The

first thing he said to me was wow, what just happened then? This doctor

has worked with Alan Birchenall public events to promote the use of

defibrillators. The very equipment which kept him alive. There were two

things that saved his life last night. One was the immediate

commencement of resuscitation, compression of the heart and the

second thing was the defibrillator that was quickly available and the

shocks from it saved Alan's life. Is it fair to say he has been

overwhelmed by messages from the public? He has had many messages.

I've warned him not to spend too much time trying to respond to them.

He is overwhelmed and overjoyed at the support he has had.

Simon is outside the King Power stadium now.

I understand you managed to speak to Alan earlier this evening?

Yes, late this afternoon I was able to speak to Alan Birchenall at the

Glen field hospital. Understandably, he is very tired, be very happy and

recovering well and pleased with all those hundreds and hundreds of

messages of support that are coming through from members of the public.

It gave me a great big smile on the thumbs up. It is remarkable by his

life was saved by the device as he has been promoting to the public.

We've had a stem from Leicester City, they've also thanked everyone

who is helping Alan Birchenall for the messages of support and have

sent all the love from everybody here at Leicester city football

club. Alan posted a Facebook message this afternoon, it said he hopes to

have an operation tomorrow and be out of Spittal in the next few days.

He said to all his well-wishers that one of his favourite songs was

Staying Alive. Thank you. Best wishes to Alan.

"Violent, sustained, brutal and degrading."

That's how a judge has described attempted rapes and serious sexual

assaults on two women in Nottingham last autumn.

But the judge also said what makes the attacks more shocking

is that they were carried out by a 16-year-old boy.

It was last October, just after 8am, when a woman in her 20s was walking

along this alleyway. Suddenly, she was grabbed from behind by a man and

subjected to a terrifying and serious sexual assault. The attacker

ran off, but then 15 minutes later, struck again. This time, a woman in

her 60s who was walking her dog ear. She was attacked and subjected to

two serious sexual assaults and two attempted rates. From DNA at the

scene, the police sooner arrest the attacker. He was 16 and had been

drinking and taking drugs or lie before the attacks. Today,

Nottingham Crown Court heard both victims had been strong, independent

women before that October morning. But the younger men now says she

needs somebody to go with her wherever she goes and lives in

terror another attack. The older victim also said she now

can't go far from her house, because of the memory of the attack, which

now controls. They've both been affected terribly

and this attack was in broad daylight. So they both made the

comment that it is not even as if it was at night. So it has caused

significant trauma since that time. Judge Gregory Dickinson told the

youth, this is to all intents and purposes the same as rate. It was

violent, sustain, brutal and degrading. These offences are

shocking enough, but what makes it all the more extraordinary for the

courts and the public is that you are just 16 years old. You have

admitted terrible crimes with very serious consequences for the

victims. The judge sentenced the US to nine years in prison, with, if

and when he is released, five years afterwards of extended licence.

A car fitted with CCTV cameras has captured over 600 drivers

parking illegally over the last ten months.

It's part of a crackdown on what's considered to be dangerous

and inconsiderate parking outside schools and bus stops

The county council invested in the vehicle last year,

It says the idea isn't about making money, but changing behaviour.

More than eight million pounds of Government

funding is being awarded to the East Midlands

The money can be used to fix around 150,000 potholes

or stop them forming in the first place.

The Department for Transport's already agreed almost

92 million pounds, to repair the region's highways.

Still to come: Are the Panthers about to make ice hockey history?

Colin Hazelden's in Italy this evening.

Well, here in this hall and atmospheric arena, the Pampers

campaign got off to the best of starts this afternoon. Find out how

later on in the sport. -- the Panthers.

The RSPCA is investigating what it describes as an horrific

They say it's important to catch the culprit.

The incident was caught on security cameras by Millie's owner,

Patrick McGeary, who's been talking to our reporter Geeta Pendse.

And a warning for you - we will be showing the video

So if you want to, please look away now for the next 30 seconds.

Enjoying attention from her owner Patrick.

But 24 hours ago, Millie was attacked outside

Patrick's private CCTV camera captured the shocking moment when a

My cat was just sat there, being friendly and

I felt sick, I felt angry to think that

somebody thinks they have the right to do that to a defenceless animal.

Millie's suffered swelling to her jaw and is now being treated for a

Determined to find out who carried out the attack,

Patrick posted the footage onto Facebook and

I've had messages from all over the world wanting to know how

Millie is and it is nice to know there are some of the good people

The RSPCA are now investigating and appealing for

They say inflicting such an horrific attack on a

defenceless cat is sickening and it is

important we track down the

I think they are the lowest of the low.

If they've got a problem with somebody, they

should go to them, not pick on adefenceless little animal.

Patrick says he will not let Millie out of

the house, fearful it may happen again.

Six men have appeared in court accused of running an insurance scam

where they caused dozens of car accidents across Derbyshire.

The court heard that they targeted mainly older or lone female

drivers and made claims using stolen identities.

This man, the director of the company described today in court as

fraudulent and at the heart of a crash for cash scam. His brother was

the secretary of that company. The pair were part of claims management

firm, dobby enterprise solutions, where 17 number 41 collisions that

are part of this trial were dealt with on behalf of the claimants. The

brothers and the other four defendants have all been charged

with conspiracy to defraud. It is alleged that between November 2000

11 March 2013, they were involved in as gamma whether deliberately caused

road traffic collisions across Derbyshire in order to make a false

insurance claims, including for personal injuries. A quarter of

those collisions took place at the marked Eaton Island roundabout in

Derby. The prosecutor said the group targeted older drivers and lone

women. They are also accused of using stolen identities and false

medical reports as part of those claims. The court heard that this

man from Bradford produced assessment reports on the vehicles

involved in the collisions before the claims were sent to insurance

companies. But the prosecutor says these reports were fraudulent and

produced without the vehicles being examined. The other defendants

include these men are from Derby and Adam Stark from Nottingham who is

also charged with perverting the course of justice. Another seven

defendants have already pleaded guilty to their part in the scammer.

The six defendants he had denied all charges. The trial continues. -- the

six defendants here denied all charges.

An Iraqi family who were moved to Derby so their deaf son

could learn sign language have earned a last minute reprieve

from the Home Office, which means they won't be

Six-year-old Lawand Hamad Amin's family fled Iraq because

Islamic State had threatened to kill disabled children.

A decision on his future has been deferred until a High Court judge

Derby City Council's putting aside forty thousand pounds

for an art installation, featuring thousands

The piece was created by Derby artist Paul Cummins,

and featured as part of his display outside the Tower of London in 2014.

The installation, called Weeping Window, will see the poppies

cascading down the city's historic Silk Mill from June this year.

A nine million pound investment in MRI scanning was celebrated today

It was there back in the 1970s that MRI was developed

Well, things have moved on since then.

The latest state of the art imaging paves the way for more research

into a whole range of health problems, as our health

The late 1970s at Nottingham University, and the British inventor

Sir Peter Mansfield working on the world's

Today, almost 40 years on, the Nobel Prize winner was back

there to hear about the University's latest

investment in magnetic resonance imaging.

It is nice to hear that there is still some interest, not

just locally, but that there is interest in MRI

One of the University's new MRI scanners.

It provides sharper images, including

of the brain and is being used to research hearing loss.

We are now able to get much better quality

pictures of this part of the brain, which has been

It is the brain stem and I'm interested in how sounds get

There's also a new vertical scan at the

It will be used to investigate a range of conditions.

We want to extend what is possible with MRI to make the new systems

that give us a different kinds of information,

systems we currently have and apply them in the best possible way.

Pam, and her husband, Mike, who was a paramedic,

have raised over ?20,000 for this new development.

Their son Sam from Newark died following a

We had a very difficult time at MRIs and we want

to help young people and children get over the anxieties that he had.

I'd like to thank everybody who donated and supported us to make

this possible and make it for all children who need it in our area.

All part of the latest chapter in the story of Nottingham's

Rob, some interesting developments there which will help patients.

And this of course will go down as a hugely pressured week for the NHS.

After a war of words, is there any sign of things easing off?

Yes, and I can tell you our main A things have eased off a little here

in Nottingham. They say they are seeing fewer patients, but the

pressure is still high. In Leicester, where we have that system

critical incident, which is the highest state of alert, earlier this

week, extra staff had to be drafted in and things have eased off there

as well. And the political fallout continues? It does indeed. A war of

words over the NHS, as you said, Theresa May criticising opposition

and the British Red Cross have also come in for flak for describing the

situation as a humanitarian crisis. Many in the NHS have been working go

overboard on the front line this week and I think they will be glad

to see the back of this week. But we know that although things have eased

off, things can ramp up quickly again and the flu season has not yet

peaks. Not good news at all there. Thank you, Rob.

Still to come this evening - hair with style.

A new exhibition gets underway that celebrates the afro cut and explores

the styling of black hair as an art form.

Time for sport and things rather overshadowed today, Nat,

by the sad news that Alan Birchenall has been seriously unwell.

Yes, we brought you an update on Alan's recovery at

Tomorrow, fans plan to light up the King Power Stadium for the Birch.

On the tenth minute of Leicester's game with Chelsea, supporters

will switch on their mobile phone lights to show the man they call

Today there's been an out pouring of emotion on social media,

as sporting stars, celebrities and former players wish Alan well.

Birchy is a great friend of this programme and is hugely

popular with fans, pundits and the footballing world.

We hope everyone is sending Birchy our get well wishes, too.

Now is almost time for kick off in a massive game for Derby County.

They're at Elland Road tonight facing promotion rivals Leeds

Earlier, midfielder Will Hughes signed a new deal long

Making his debut tonight, new signing David Nugent.

A man who knows exactly what it takes to win promotion

the Premier League, as Angela Rafferty reports.

David Nugent scores and it is one-nil to Leicester!

He is the dictionary definition of a

He wants me to come here and score some goals and get the team

He knows I've been promoted twice, and

he wants me around the place giving a lot of encouragement and hopefully

Reunited with Steve McClaren, who gave him is one

Steve gave me my debut against Andorra and in the

last 20 minutes, he managed to grab a goal and I will

It is the relationship he has to the players.

He's out there on the training pitch.

A firm favourite with fans, his former club has

had flowers delivered to Derby yesterday.

Loved by the Foxes faithful, too, their top goal scorer

I got on with the players really well.

They deserved it, they had an incredible season.

Two promotions to the Premier League with two different teams.

That's the job, coming here and encourage the lads

and make them believe they can get promoted.

In the past couple of years, they have almost been there,

but I'm hoping now I can come in, score my goals and get the lads

playing even better and push them up the table.

A presence on the pitch and a menace off it.

He's one of our own, he's one of our own!

You've got a bit of a reputation as a joker.

Not yet, I think he went out to get some jam roly-poly and left

the table, but I was thinking about it, but it is early days yet.

Onto Forest, and their transfer embargo has been lifted

They also say it does not mean the proposed takeover is complete.

The manager, meanwhile, just trying to get on with it.

I prefer to look toward what I have than what I haven't.

I'm sure it is the first time in my career that

When times are difficult, you need to be stronger.

Notts County begin a new era tomorrow under new owner Alan Hardy

And what a start for him as Notts play local rivals Mansfield

in the Nottinghamshire derby in front of a big

In rugby, the Leicester Tigers play tomorrow in a European Champions Cup

Now, last but not least from me, it's a huge weekend

for Nottingham Panthers and the whole of British Ice Hockey.

They are trying to make history as the first British club to win

a European trophy and Colin is there live for us now

at an Arena in the mountains of Northern Italy.

Good evening to you. Look at this place. It is just warm enough for me

in here to take my coat off, but I can still see my breath. This is an

old-fashioned place to hold a final. Concrete terraces over there.

Nottingham Panthers have three games to win the Continental cup this week

and a first of this afternoon. It could not have got off to a better

start. It was the captain who was there at the back post to score the

opener for the Panthers. A brilliant start. They are to push in the

second period, but they gave up. On that power play, the captain again

was there to stick home the second goal. A great start for the

Panthers. This is the Panthers assistant coach. A great way to

start these games and they're well on top form. Let us talk about what

it is like to be here. We came up the weather fans would have them,

upon the cable car and the Tramp. It makes it special, doesn't it? Yes,

you quite a bit of nostalgia when you play Italian hockey. It is

different to what we are used to in Nottingham, but it is nice to come

somewhere different. You got off to the best possible start, to more

tough games to come this week. The host in particular on Sunday,

cheered on by their fans. All the bits of? Yes, you're going to be

playing against a stronger teams in European finals, but we've started

well. That is the key to a tournament. It puts the pressure

back on and they are going into the first tonight. David, thank you. We

will have commentary on BBC Nottingham sports Facebook page.

Thank you. We will have live commentary of finals weekend over

there in Italy on our BBC Nottingham Facebook page all throughout the

weekend. It can be your crowning glory

or look like a bird's nest. It can be long or short,

straight or curly. It can make a huge statement

and cost you a fortune, because hair has been important to

mankind for centuries. Now, visitors to the New Art

Exchange in Nottingham a new display that focuses on black

hair as an art form. It all starts tomorrow

but Carol Hinds went From locks and braids,

to canerows and afros. The Art of Black Hair grew

from a workshop that got the black community in Nottingham

talking about their hair. These are crochet braids,

so you curl your hair backwards and you crochet

the extensions into your hair. I have it a bit straighter

and put it in a ponytail, but it is a bit

lazy, though practical. I usually have got this

on and I plait it, most of the time. We are not like many

other races, where we So we're really hair artists

on a daily basis and that is where the idea for the

exhibition came from. The portraits and styles

will be on show at the new Art Exchange in Nottingham from

tomorrow, along with the selection of hair memorabilia

from the 19th century. The iron comb was put on coal

fires and then, latterly, paraffin heaters, when we came

to England, and then on the gas When I was younger, I used to go

crazy with my hairstyles. I used to have it in silver foil,

in my younger days. I do like to have my hair out

in an Afro, pull it back If it gets wets, it is very

curly, and if I run it through with the straighteners,

it goes straight. The Art of Black Hair runs

until March the 19th. I love braided hair. Absolutely

stunning. Now it is time for the weather. It was snowing this

morning? A lot of it was across the

Leicestershire area. This picture was captured by Gary this morning,

falling over the city of Leicester. Loughborough got a light dusting

this morning as well. Ice is the big problem we are

looking up. Especially if there is still snow on the ground. There are

still a a few wintry showers around. Not at the moment, clearer skies

mean a widespread frost and a very cold night. Temperatures as low as

-3 -4-macro in rural areas. Showers coming across the western side,

North Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire into the early part of the morning.

Widespread frost for the rest of us, so cold start tomorrow. Saturday,

few are showers, brighter skies and the wind will ease off as well. So

it is a moderate, North breeze and it will be chilly, temperatures no

higher than four. By Saturday night and into Sunday, this area brings in

rain by Sunday. Sunday is quite cloudy and grey, quite damp. The

temperatures double compared to what we have been used to. Mild on Sunday

and through the early part of next week. But it will go a lot colder by

the time we get to Wednesday. Get well, Bircher, and stop flirting

with the nurses! Goodbye.