20/03/2017 South East Today

Today's main headlines in the South East:

The mother of three young boys has died after being hit by a car

Could the route for the controversial Lower Thames Crossing

working week the site is back for working week the site is back for

tomorrow but it stays cold. The mother of three young boys has

died after being hit by a car on the pavement on Battle High

Street. She was pushing her baby son

in a pram when a car mounted the pavement,

crushing her against the front Her husband and children have now

all been released from hospital. The driver of the car

has been tested to see The floral tributes and words

of sorrow are an insight into the shared sense of grief felt

in Battle today. One by one, tearful mothers

from the local school came here to pay their respects,

having the difficult task of explaining to their own children

of the tragic events that At the Baptist Church After School

Club, there was a sense of shock That one family who comes here has

lost a mother. The boys come to

our after-school club. I think there's real shock

and sadness for the family. As I understand it,

they're a very close family. But I'm sure people will gather

around them, will want to show support in their time when it's

appropriate, in a way that can bring real comfort and support,

that in a small community, that's Eyewitnesses visiting Battle

from Oxfordshire explained what happened after the car

was in collision with the family, and how they tried

to comfort the three children while their parents

were receiving medical treatment. She was grabbing me,

then she'd wake up, and the only thing she was asking

for were her kids and her husband. The poor boys were being so brave

yesterday, especially the older one who was trying to hold it

together and, you know, Today the police have

renewed their appeal for witnesses. We have a duty now to the coroner

and to the family to establish exactly what happened and what went

wrong yesterday afternoon. And we, as part of the enquiry,

will talk to the driver in due course, and also to any witnesses

who saw what happened yesterday afternoon,

which will include taking It's believed the father

of the family is well enough to leave hospital and will be

reunited with his children tonight. Amanda Akass is in

Battle this evening. Amanda, what's the

latest this evening? What is the latest this evening?

Well, this evening the lady who died has been named locally as Debbie,

although we are still awaiting formal identification. The police

have been in battle continuing their investigations and they are

particularly keen to hear from anyone who might have seen that

black VW beetle in the moments before the crash happened. The force

has confirmed they are investigating reports that the driver may have

been under the influence of alcohol before the crash. Blood samples were

taken when she arrived in hospital. We understand that she is still in

hospital this evening but she will be interviewed by the police as soon

as she is released. Thank you.

A Sussex man accused of murdering his former girlfriend

has told a jury he lied repeatedly to police after her death

because he was scared and panicking about being blamed for killing her.

19-year-old Shana Grice was found dead at her home in Portslade,

near Brighton, on August 25th last year.

Michael Lane, who denies murder, has been giving evidence

Michael Lane has admitted he lied repeatedly during seven police

interviews, continuously changing his story about where

he was and what he was doing on the morning of Shana's murder,

eventually admitting he had gone to her house,

Asked why it was better to lie, he said he was scared

of being blamed, and panicked because his behaviour

in the months preceding her death didn't look good.

Mr Lane is accused of becoming obsessed with

BBC South East has been told that a decision on the location

of a new Lower Thames Crossing could be announced later this week.

Last year ministers promised an announcement in due course,

following the largest public consultation for a road project

Highways England is recommending option C, which would see a road

connect the M2 with the M25 from the east of Gravesend

across to Tilbury in Essex, tunnelling under the Thames

Our reporter Leanne Rinne has been following the story.

Leanne, this project has been controversial from the outset.

While most people agree that congestion in Darfur did a problem

when it comes to building new Tamils and wrote many people wanted on

their doorstep. I would -- Highways their doorstep. I would --

Agency the best way is to go from Agency the best way is to go from

campaigners want a new crossing at campaigners want a new crossing at

They say the eight congestion will They say

be tackled that way head-on. be tackled that way head-on.

There is a lot of pressure to build a new crossing

Dartford Crossing as it is Dartford Crossing as it is

struggling to cope? Yes the road approaching the

Dartford Crossing is one of the slowest in the UK and last month the

of Small Businesses wrote to the government urging ministers to

guarantee the earliest delivery of the new crossing. They say the

current infrastructure threatens to bring the south-east to a

standstill. After years of discussions and proposals being put

forward we understand the decision could be made as early as Thursday

week. Thank you.

A 94-year-old man from Rolvenden whose medals from World War II

were stolen at Christmas has been presented with a replacement set.

Geoffrey Blaine lost his medals, along with those of his father

who fought in World War I, during a burglary at his

Today the Royal British Legion honoured Geoffrey, who served time

as a Prisoner of War in Japan, at a special ceremony

Police are appealing for anyone with information about his original

medals to come forward. Tomorrow on Radio Sussex Breakfast,

details of their investigation which has revealed 260 children

were suspended from schools in the county in a single year

because of drugs or alcohol. Now let's have a look at what the

weather is doing for the next few days.

It will be bright but chilly? That is right. And then the rain is back

on Wednesday and Thursday. As we look towards next weekend the

weather should be improving. Today it was cloudy and we had rain at

times but it has cleared. Towards the early hours of tomorrow morning

we have clear skies and a chilly picture. It is breezy as well with

overnight temperatures of two or three and it will really be a chilly

feel to the day. By the afternoon there is a risk of the odd light and

scattered shower and for many of us it is a dry day. Top temperatures

just getting out of single figures. Nine or ten. From Tuesday into

Wednesday it will initially stay dry but the cloud cover thickens and

that is ahead of the rain that we will eventually see early on

Wednesday morning. Overnight temperatures in what wall stops at

-- spots at two or three. It depends how far west you are. On Wednesday

we will eventually all see the rain for a time. Heavy in the first part

of the afternoon. It clears through and behind it temperatures are

perhaps around eight or nine. The winds are back to a southerly

miles an hour. As we look towards miles an hour. As we look towards

Thursday outbreaks of rain but the good news is that on Friday the

weekend there is an area of high pressure building. On Thursday a of

blue on the map and it is wet. Temperatures improve on Friday. Here

is the outlook. outlook for Saturday and Sunday is

for something dry and settled, sunny spells but a bit on the cool side.

This week we are starting off with a taste of winter. This is Paul and

maritime air, it has come from a long way north and will push in lots

of showers. The last of any mild air gets swept away with the cloud.

Tonight we have showers mostly across the northern half of the UK,

which will turn wintry and that means