Tributes to ‘sweet and beautiful’ girl, 6, killed in Leicester house fire

Published

2 months ago

September 13, 2024

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Tributes have been paid to a “very sweet” six-year-old girl who died in a house fire in Leicester.

She has been named locally as Chamiah Brindley, although Leicestershire Police are yet to confirm her identity.

Officers were called after a fire in Bedale Drive, Leicester, in the early hours of Tuesday morning and later confirmed that a person was found dead inside.

A 14-year-old girl was arrested on suspicion of arson and was then released on bail while inquiries continue, the force said.

Since then flowers, stuffed animals, cards and candles have been left outside the terraced house and tributes have been paid by local people.

“She was very sweet, very beautiful. I just think of her and I shed tears. That’s their little baby,” said one neighbour, who added: “She was very nice… she was so cute.”

Another neighbour, who did not want to be named, said: “We know the child, she is always playing around here.

“A child died here, that’s shocking. She’s a child, only six years old.”

In a statement, Leicestershire Police confirmed other people within the property received hospital treatment after the fire as a precaution.

Forensic teams – wearing boiler suits and face masks – could be seen entering the terraced house on Wednesday.

From the street, fire damage was visible from a window in the roof space.

Detective Inspector Michael Chandler said: “This is an extremely tragic incident in which a person has sadly lost their life.

“Our investigation is at a very early stage and we are keeping an open mind as to what caused the fire.”

Bedale Drive is in a largely residential area, a few miles north of the city centre.

Gatwick Airport: Police release two people who were detained amid security incident as South Terminal reopens

Published

27 mins ago

November 23, 2024

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Gatwick Airport: Police release two people who were detained amid security incident as South Terminal reopens

Two people detained during a security incident at Gatwick Airport have been allowed to continue their journeys after a suspect package saw a “large part” of the South Terminal evacuated.

The terminal was closed for hours after the discovery of a “suspected prohibited item” in a passenger’s luggage sparked an emergency response. It reopened at around 3.45pm.

Officers from the EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) team “made the package safe” before handing the airport back to its operator, Sussex Police said.

Their statement continued: “Two people who were detained while enquiries were ongoing have subsequently been allowed to continue their journeys.

“There will remain an increased police presence in the area to assist with passengers accessing the South Terminal for onward travel.”

The force also thanked the public and airport staff for their patience while the incident was ongoing.

Earlier the airport, which is the UK’s second busiest, said the terminal was evacuated after a “security incident”.

“The earlier security alert has now been resolved and cleared by police,” it later said in a statement on Friday afternoon.

“The South Terminal is reopening to staff and will be open to passengers shortly.”

Gatwick said some flights were cancelled while others were delayed.

It said passengers should contact their airlines for any updates on flights.

Footage on social media taken outside the airport showed crowds of travellers heading away from the terminal building.

“Arrived at London Gatwick for routine connection. Got through customs to find out they’re evacuating the entire airport,” one passenger said.

“Even people through security are being taken outside. Trains shut down,” another passenger added, who said “thousands” of people were forced to leave.

Another passenger said people near the gates were being told to stay there and not go back to the departure lounge.

People outside the airport were handed blankets and water, passengers told Sky News.

The airport said its North Terminal was still operating normally.

Gatwick Express said its trains did not call at Gatwick Airport during the police response, but the airport said trains would start calling there again once the terminal was fully reopened.

More than 600 flights were due to take off or land at Gatwick on Friday, amounting to more than 121,000 passenger seats, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium.

Starmer says UK will ‘set out a path’ to raise defence spending to 2.5%

Published

3 hours ago

November 23, 2024

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Starmer says UK will 'set out a path' to raise defence spending to 2.5%

The UK will “set out a path” to lift defence spending to 2.5% of national income in the spring, the prime minister has said, finally offering a timeframe for an announcement on the long-awaited hike after mounting criticism.

Sir Keir Starmer gave the date during a phone call with Mark Rutte, the secretary general of NATO, in the wake of threats by Moscow to target UK and US military facilities following a decision by London and Washington to let Ukraine fire their missiles inside Russia.

There was no clarity though on when the 2.5% level will be achieved. The UK says it currently spends around 2.3% of GDP on defence.

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A spokeswoman for Downing Street said that the two men “began by discussing the situation in Ukraine and reiterated the importance of putting the country in the strongest possible position going into the winter”.

They also talked about the deployment of thousands of North Korean soldiers to fight alongside Russia.

“The prime minister underscored the need for all NATO countries to step up in support of our collective defence and updated on the government’s progress on the strategic defence review,” the spokeswoman said.

“His government would set out the path to 2.5% in the spring.”

The defence review will also be published in the spring.

While a date for an announcement on 2.5% will be welcomed by the Ministry of Defence, analysts have long warned that such an increase is still well below the amount that is needed to rebuild the armed forces after decades of decline to meet growing global threats from Russia, an increasingly assertive China, North Korea and Iran.

They say the UK needs to be aiming to hit at least 3% – probably higher.

With Donald Trump returning to the White House, there will be significantly more pressure on the UK and other European NATO allies to accelerate increases in defence spending.

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