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Live Reporting

All times stated are UK

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  1. Weather: Gradually brightening up

    Kate Kinsella

    BBC Look East weather

    Early low cloud, mist and fog patches should very gradually clear most areas to reveal a dry day with some sunny intervals and a high of 16C (61F).

    Here is my full forecast...

    There are more details on the BBC Weather website.

  2. Welcome to Essex Live

    Jack Warren

    BBC Local Live

    Happy Halloween to you. 

    On the day Essex Police launches its gun amnesty, the force says there has been a "concerning rise" in the number of offences involving firearms in the last three years.

    More on that shortly.

    A cabinet of guns
  3. Our live coverage across the day

    Jack Warren

    BBC Local Live

    Updates for Essex Live have now finished for the week - here's what we've covered today:

    • A Colchester man's parking fine woe has sparked the town's MP to call for a debate on the regulation of private parking companies
    • An Essex man has created military-grade dog armour after becoming increasingly concerned about vicious attacks  
    • Basildon Hospital has stepped down from its internal critical incident which was declared yesterday

    The team will be back on Monday from 08:00 with more live coverage from the county.

    Have a great weekend.

  4. Overnight weather: Mainly dry with some patches of mist and fog

    Julie Reinger

    BBC Look East weather

    Tonight will be mainly dry, with clear intervals and some patches of mist and fog. 

    Temperatures are expected to fall to around 10C (50F) across the Eastern region.

    Overnight weather map

    Tomorrow morning any mist and fog may take a little while to clear and then it’ll be a dry day with some bright or sunny intervals as the temperature peaks at 17C (63F).

    Get the full forecast where you live from BBC Weather.

  5. Colchester man's parking ticket woe gets parliament talking

    A Colchester man's parking fine woe has got a mention in parliament after he received a ticket for a car that wasn't his.

    Will Quince/Parking ticket

    Brian McGonagall says he has written at least 15 letters to the parking company UK CPM, notified the DVLA and Essex Police, but UK CPM refuses to remove the formal demands.

    Will Quince, Mr McGonagall's MP, has now also got involved. 

    Yesterday he demanded a debate in the House of Commons on the regulation of private parking companies. 

    UK CPM said it was investigating the matter. 

  6. Weekend football round-up with BBC Essex Sport

    Ben Fryer

    BBC Essex sport

    Southend United manager Phil Brown wants his side to come out attacking in their League One match at home to bottom club Shrewsbury tomorrow. 

    The Blues are unbeaten in three games and could climb into the top half with a win. 

    Brown has the option of naming an unchanged side, though striker David Mooney is likely to be missing from the bench due to an ankle injury.

    Football boots

    It’s a different prospect entirely for Colchester United in League Two. 

    They’ve gone seven without a win and face a cross-country trek to leaders Plymouth Argyle, who are unbeaten in 12. 

    Head coach John McGreal insists his injury-hit squad can pull off a win, but they’ll have to do it without the likes Lewis Kinsella, Tom Lapslie and Doug Loft who remained sidelined. 

    They’ve added youngsters Louis Dunne and Michael O’Donoghue to the squad.  

  7. Dog poses in military-grade armour

    Meet Tilly - the "Puggle" whose Essex owner has made military-grade dog armour to protect pooches from vicious attacks.

    View more on twitter

    Read on this story more here.

  8. Family's tribute to man who drowned off Norfolk

    The family of Leszek Puchala has paid tribute to him after he drowned in the sea near Great Yarmouth.

    His son, Przemek and daughter-in-law Katarzyna, who live in Thetford, were at the hearing with their baby daughter. 

    Their statement said: "We would like to thank our father for always providing us with help, advice and his loving heart. 

    "He was a very good man who never refused to help anybody...a loving and decent husband, father of three and grandfather, and a loyal friend to many - around 200 people attended his funeral." 

  9. Rip tide drowning 'a tragic outcome'

    Caroline Kingdon

    BBC Local Live

    An inquest in Norwich today heard that medical fitness may have been a contributing factor in the death of a Leszek Puchala at Sea Palling.

    Norwich Coroner's Court heard that Mr Puchala had coronary artherosclerosis, a furring up of the heart and arteries. 

    Under stress, that may have contributed to him becoming unconscious and having collapsed.

    Norwich Coroner's Court

    Area coroner Yvonne Blake gave a narrative conclusion, stating Mr Puchala got into difficulties while swimming and "he was pulled ashore and rescued and resuscitation commenced. Unfortunately that did not succeed and he was pronounced dead at the scene".  

    She added that it was a "really tragic outcome" on what should have been a happy occasion. 

    Ms Blake passed on her sincere condolences to the family and also said several people who helped in the rescue, including 14-year-old David Castleman from Essex, have been recommended for awards by the Royal Humane Society.

  10. Sea Palling locals 'know what to do in a rip current'

    Caroline Kingdon

    BBC Local Live

    Matthew Steiner and his wife were at Sea Palling on the day that a man from Poland got caught in a rip current and died.

    Today, an inquest into the death of 52-year-old Leszek Puchala heard a statement from Mr Steiner, which said he'd seen four men in the water.

    Initially he'd thought nothing was wrong, but then heard shouting: "A man came running towards me, and I ran with him to see what was going on... I saw something was wrong."

    "The two other men were about 50m from the beach, the water looked calm and still... locals nearby said the rock barriers by the sea can make strong rip tides... they know if they're caught in the tide [they should] to go with the current and it'll eventually come clear.

    "The other thing I'd like to mention is the delay in people getting into the water to help was because it was not clear the four people were in distress - it appeared they were just having fun in the sea. 

    "As soon as it was apparent they were in trouble, the public were very quick to help rescue."

  11. North Sea drowning: Rip tide 'didn't appear to be strong that day'

    Caroline Kingdon

    BBC Local Live

    Norwich Coroner's Court heard statements from several people who'd been at Norfolk's Sea Palling beach on the day when a group of day trippers got caught in a rip tide.

    Neil Ramsay, who does a lot of kite surfing in the area, is aware of the rip tides but his statement said "they didn't appear to be strong that day".

    Mr Ramsay (pictured) saw the group in the water, shouting, but "there were no signs of distress".

    That changed about five minutes later, when he said people were waving and shouting in Polish. He dialled 999 and asked for the coastguard.

    Neil Ramsay by the river in Norwich

    They advised Mr Ramsay to tell the people going into the water to come back, as they didn't want any more casualties. He got a body board and went to help the larger man. 

    "The man was unconscious, and looked in a bad way," he said. "I got him on the board to keep his head out of the water. He kept slipping off the board, but I asked the girl to help keep him on the board."

    A statement from another beach-goer, Matthew Steiner, said he'd seen four people in the water, the noise was of people having a good time and it was a normal day on the beach - "there was no indication anything was wrong".  

  12. Daughter-in-law saw swimmers in difficulty

    Caroline Kingdon

    BBC Local Live

    A Polish man who drowned after getting caught in a rip current off the Norfolk coast in July had come to the this country to visit his family.

    In a statement for Norwich Coroner's Court, Katarzyna Puchala said her father-in-law, Leszek, had come to the UK to visit her after she'd given birth to her baby. 

    On the 23 July, she and her husband Przemek, along with his brothers Tomosz and Sebastian and their father Leszek, went to Sea Palling, arriving at 10:30.

    Some of them went into the sea, while she stayed on the beach with a friend. She heard shouting but ignored it initially, believing it to be someone kidding. 

    Beach visitors at Sea Palling and a ilfeguard

    Her statement went on to say she saw "Przemek swimming towards the beach, screaming, he was so close I thought he was joking. I ran towards the beach and shouted 'help' in English".

    "I ran towards Tomosz, I was in shock... somebody put him on a foam board and brought him to the beach," she said.

    "Some other people pulled my father-in-law onto the beach... a man was holding me and I was crying. I saw him breathing... he tried to say something, but he had a medical tube in his mouth."

    "A helicopter and lifeboat landed. The people approached my partner and told me he was breathing. 

    "They went to help my father-in-law. They were using a machine. They told me he had died".