January

It was weather that dominated the news at the start of the year on Sheppey.

Children had to be evacuated from a nursery at Warden Bay Village Hall after it was submerged beneath 18in of water during torrential rain. Flood doors had been ordered but weren’t arriving until the following month.

And did it or didn’t it? Islanders were adamant they woke up to the white stuff, even making snow men out of it. But the Met Office maintained no flakes fell and it was actually a phenomenon called rime ice.

An Alice In Wonderland maze painted on the seafront at Minster had to be removed because of health and safety fears, to the dismay of families. Some children were said to have slipped and fallen in the rain on the artwork, commissioned the previous summer by the parish council.

And there was drama in Jefferson Road, Sheerness. when an armed siege played out over several hours. Neighbours spoke of the moment firearms officers shattered the peace of a Saturday afternoon and began training their lasers on one of the homes. A crossbow was seized and a man arrested but the charges were later dropped.

February

There was no argument over whether it had snowed this time. Good Samaritans banded together to clear roads and rescue stranded drivers as Sheppey was buried under 16cm of the white stuff.

Swale’s vaccination hub came under fire after it emerged teachers were ‘leap-frogging’ the elderly for Covid jabs. Organisers stressed its reserve list of key workers, used only when older patients failed to turn up to their appointments, was necessary to avoid wasting doses.

A group of teenagers, including Sheppey College students Jack Williams and Kyle Pattison, were given Try Angle awards by Kent County Council for saving an 18-year-old’s life when they wrestled him away from the edge of a train platform in Herne Bay.

And tributes poured in following the death of much-loved lollipop lady Sylvia Everest who died from coronavirus aged 72. Among other Islanders sadly lost in 2021 were former Mayor of Swale Lesley Ingham, Sheerness councillor Mark Ellen and one of Britain’s oldest war veterans, 107-year-old Leslie Stelfox.

March

After the longest Christmas break in history, pupils flooded back to their classrooms after spending two months being taught at home. By the end of the month, as Covid rules were relaxed following the third lockdown, outdoor gatherings, sports and weddings were also able to resume.

And fossil hunter Cameron Carron got more than he bargained for when he stumbled across a live hand-grenade at Warden Point. The beach was cordoned off for a controlled explosion. The 18-year-old said: “I felt very lucky to be alive, as it could of exploded at any time.”

April

A young driver who left a man with life-changing injuries in a hit-and-run in Minster and killed a father-of-two months later was jailed for three years. Empty nitrous oxide canisters were found inside 21-year-old Gary Haffenden’s vehicle both times.

The future of bus services on Sheppey hung in the balance after Arriva announced plans to axe nearly all of its Island routes.

It said it would close its Sheerness depot and pull out of running the 360, 361 and 367. But following a successful Times Guardian campaign to Save Our Services, Chalkwell stepped in to rescue them.

May

One of Sheppey’s most unexpected tourist attractions - a giant oil rig - was towed away to its new home in the Dutch North Sea after dominating the skyline for almost a year.

It arrived at Sheerness docks the previous July with another and they had become something of a hit with locals, particularly with photographers who went out to capture stunning shots of them illuminated at night.

The Island was also reaping the rewards of a staycation boom with the new owner of Eastchurch Holiday Centre investing £1million in luxury lodges to cash in on the demand.

And volunteers banded together to put the smile back on the face of 76-year-old Arthur Chew after he was badly beaten by robbers the previous October.

They redecorated his Minster home, added security gates, replaced the £700 that was stolen in the raid and organised a birthday limo ride.

June

Thunder and lightning proved very, very frightening for Islanders as the weather turned from one of the hottest days of the year to one of the stormiest.

A lightning bolt caused a fire at a house in Warden and another knocked out power to a hotel forcing 700 cyclists hoping to start the 205-mile Chase The Sun bike ride to find alternative accommodation. Some were even forced to camp on the beach.

Metal detectorist Chris Papworth was hailed a hero after finding a heartbroken mum’s wedding, engagement and eternity rings lost in the sand at Leysdown. After seeing a social media plea he leapt into action and managed to retrieve all three within 10 minutes.

And staying with nuptials, The Aviator pub in Queenborough was granted a wedding licence.

Couples could choose to get married inside the pub, in a marquee or in the garden. It hosted two weddings in the summer and has more lined up for the new year.

* Watch out for part two - July to December - tomorrow