We’ve heard that a former Conservative councillor for Canewdon, Derrick Wood , has died at the age of 92. As the Echo explains:
He was one of the founders of campaign group, the Defenders of Essex, which fought plans for an airport being built at Maplin Sands, in the Thames Estuary, in the Seventies.
Mr Woods died on March 10. A funeral service will be held at St Peter?s Church, Church End, Paglesham, at 11.30am on Wednesday, March 24.
Derrick was a larger-than-life figure in the Conservative administration in the 1980s. Whether he agreed with you or not he was always willing to listen and was never nasty. He was there for residents, not under the thumb of the party….
This photo from the Echo website shows him speaking against the proposals for a Maplin Sands airport……
I was a member of the defenders in those days and met Derrick on several occassions at Paglesham .He was a man of principle and humanity .I still have a poster from those days and remember well the calvalcade of cars which invaded the A127 to bring to the attention the likely congestion on the london approaches .Not much different to todays scenario .Then there was the proposed motorway and railway through Rawreth which would have changed the whole area and opened up huge traits of land for developement .All sounds familiar perhaps there is still a role for the defenders !God rest .