In today's Gazette: Essex's Chief Constable Stephen Kavanagh wants to cut the opening hours of pubs and clubs in Colchester in a bid to reduce trouble.

He is calling for a review of late night licences after spending a night on patrol and witnessing a mass brawl.

* A red river hog has gone on the run from Colchester Zoo.

Zoo director Anthony Tropeano said the wild pig, which is about the size of a labrador dog, was not dangerous but he asked residents not to approach it.

* A disabled man has been convicted of being drunk in charge of a mobility scooter.

A blood test revealed Mark Wood, 50, of South Street, Colchester, had a reading of 121 mgs of alcohol in 100 mls of blood when he crashed his scooter in Southway, Colchester. The legal limit is 80.

* A dad has descvribed the dramatic moment his car exploded into a fireball.

Mark Garrad had parked outside his house in Sittang Close, Colchester, moments before the Peugeot 206 erupted.

For more on these and other great stories, see today's Gazette. There is always more in the paper than there is online.