Seldom has Newhaven hit the headlines in recent times except, in the dark winter days of 1998/99, when P & O pulled their ferry service from the port, and the occasional drugs haul by Customs.

There have, however, been two freak instances when Newhaven captured the eyes of the nation.

The first was the curious case of the Daubentons bat which, in June 1996, was found in a poor condition at the Hope Inn. This particular species of bat was well away from its known areas of habitat on the Continent and, on investigation, also found to be rabid. This being the first case of rabies reported in the UK since 1969, the incident was considered important enough for questions to be raised in Parliament. Visitors to the Hope will still see memorabilia of the event in the bar

The second was an unscheduled rapid return of the Dutch sailing ship, Eendracht which went aground on Tide Mills beach soon after leaving Newhaven Harbour during a gale on 21 October 1998. As with the Athina-B, which made a similar visit to a Brighton beach some years before, the event proved to be a magnet and many people travelled great distances to see this drama unfold.  A Dutch tug made repeated efforts to free the 200 ft schooner during the next day but it was not until the 23rd that the vessel was finally dragged off the shingle.  The gale continued throughout and the Newhaven lifeboat, accompanied by one of the tiny pilot boats, held station just offshore the entire time.  

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