welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. i'm mike embley. our top stories: in the united states, more than 300,000 people register for disaster assistance to help cope with the impact of storm harvey. the white house is to ask congress for emergency funding. and in bangladesh, weeks after the worst flooding in decades, a third of the country is still underwater. millions are affected across south asia. three rounds of talks, but both sides in the brexit talks are sounding frustrated by a lack of progress. the english premier league transfer window closes after clubs spend $1.5 billion on new players. as teams search door—to—door across houston for survivors and bodies in the wake of tropical storm harvey, authorities say the process could take another two weeks.

the white house is to ask congress for emergency funding. vice president mike pence says more than 300,000 people have registered for disaster assistance. president trump has pledged $1 million of his own money. and just outside houston, a fire is still burning at a flooded chemical plant. 0ur north america correspondent james cook reports. it is an unsettling sight — a fire smouldering in the water. this plant makes organic peroxides which must be kept cool but when the hurricane hit, the powerfailed and now they will explode. they planned for this, but not well enough. police have a simple message — get out, now. already 15 officers have been to hospital for checks amid fears of fumes in the air. i know they got all kinds of chemicals, and ijust don't know which ones is in the water and coming down into my house, which means i got water into the house right now.

so it's going to be pretty nasty. as specialist teams roll in, the messages coming out are confusing and contradictory. reports of explosions are now being denied. federal officials say the smoke is incredibly dangerous. the firm tells a different story. this isn't a chemical release — what we have is a fire. and when you have a fire where hydrocarbons, these chemicals are burning, sometimes you have incomplete combustion and you have smoke. the company which operates this plant says there is only one thing to do now, and that is to let this fire burn itself out. in the meantime, people are being warned to stay back as there may be further explosions. i live at the end, down the corner. in houston, with the floods receding, frank rogers is heading home to count the cost. when he escaped, the water in here was up to his chest, and this scene is being repeated today in thousands upon thousands of homes. upset.

all the work we got to do to get it back up. it's going to be a long, trying time. a long trying time, man. and still, this storm is not stopping. to the east, the rain and the rescues are continuing on the border between texas and louisiana. saving civilians is now a military operation. trapped by the flooding and running out of food, dozens of residents had to be rescued from this care home in port arthur. tensions were at a very high level when i came into this facilities from the relatives and even from some of the volunteers who have come to try to take these people out. the weakening storm is still capable of inflicting misery, and she wants to know, everyone wants to know, when will this end? let's speak now to michael e mann, who's professor of atmospheric science at penn state university for more. professor, good to talk to you,

thank you for your time. what is this storm say to you? well, this is pa rt this storm say to you? well, this is part of a pattern where we have seen extreme storms, extreme hurricane, striking the us, unprecedented measure, whether you are talking about the strength of the storms as measured by windspeed, we saw the strongest storm ever in the northern hemispherejust strongest storm ever in the northern hemisphere just 1.5 years ago or so, 01’ hemisphere just 1.5 years ago or so, or in this case the largest amount of rainfall and flooding that we've ever seen in a of rainfall and flooding that we've ever seen in a storm of rainfall and flooding that we've ever seen in a storm of this sort. of rainfall and flooding that we've ever seen in a storm of this sortlj guess whatever you think about climate change, hurricanes thrive, don't they, on warmer seas, rising sea levels and air with more moisture in it. that's right. the fa ct moisture in it. that's right. the fact that we've got 15 centimetres 01’ so fact that we've got 15 centimetres or so of sea level rise caused by climate change off the coast of texas, that meant that the storm

surge was worse and there was more coastal flooding. the ocean temperatures were warmer which means more moisture in the atmosphere, worcester that was available to produce record flooding rain. and so the research and properties of the storm were we can say those properties were made worse by climate change. what about the way cities such as houston has dealt with this? there is a lot of water around but as i understand it the highways we have seen, terrifyingly full of water, have been repaired through the years the secondary use in mind, as flood drainage channels. they've done theirjob, haven't they? young. well, these seawalls and defences have been built to withstand hurricanes of certain strength, certain of coastal flooding but what is happening, what we have seen in recent years is we are starting to see storms with

worse characteristics than what we have seen in the past and our infrastructure just isn't up to the task. we have not built climate change into our infrastructure and u nfortu nately change into our infrastructure and unfortunately in the current administration, they're actually doing away with protections that we re doing away with protections that were put in place by the previous administration to help prevent building infrastructure in increasingly flood vulnerable areas because of sea level rise, because of climate change. so, in a nutshell, if possible, for people in houston and looking at houston and thinking why is this happening and can we expect more of it, what would you say to them? our hearts go out to our friends there and the loss of life and the loss of property is awful and unfortunately, what we need to recognise is not only are we dealing with the new normal, things will get worse if we don't do something about the underlying problem which is our continued

burning of fossil fuels and the continued warming of our planet. professor, thank you very much. thank you. the full impact of the devastating floods across south asia is now becoming clear. heavy rains at this time of year are not unusual, but the sheer loss of life certainly is. more than 1,200 are believed to have died in the region, and relief agencies are struggling to get help to millions of people. the monsoon rains are the heaviest that india, nepal and bangladesh have seen in decades. the bbc‘s sanjoy majumder reports. weeks after the worst flooding in decades, a third of bangladesh is still under water. many villages in the northern part of the country are still cut off. aid agencies are desperately trying to reach those affected. it's a similar situation across large parts of south asia. the eastern indian state of bihar has been hit the hardest. heavy rain and overflowing rivers have left large areas under water. more than 500 people have been killed, here, in the last few weeks. tens of thousands of people have lost their homes, and are staying in temporary camps.

there's still a lot of water, there's a lot of damage, a lot of people still out of their homes. people are surviving and getting on with things as they can. and india's financial capital of mumbai, a city of 20 million, was brought to a standstill after heavy rain on wednesday. transport services ground to a halt, forcing many to simply wade out. we are in the middle of the annual monsoon season. it is raining intensely across india, nepal, and bangladesh. it has done so for weeks. it has caused the worst flooding in decades, and it has led to a massive humanitarian crisis across the entire region. south asia is not unused to floods but the scale of the disaster this time round has meant that the authorities have struggled to cope. sanjoy majumder, bbc news, delhi. staying in south asia — at least 2a people have died

after a building collapsed in mumbai. police say the torrential rains could be a contributing factor. it's the third building collapse in the city in less than a month, as the bbc‘s devina gupta reports. the wall has been subject to an president trump's first orders prompting protests from both sides. the united states has ordered russia to close one of its main diplomatic missions by saturday. the state department said it was shutting the russian consulate in san francisco, as well as diplomatic annexes in washington and new york. it's in retaliation for moscow's expulsion of 755 us diplomatic staff, which takes effect on friday. the latest brexit talks appear to have foundered over the amount brussels says the uk should pay to settle its obligations. the eu's chief negotiator, michel barnier, said there had been no "decisive progress" on key

issues, while his british counterpart, david davis, admitted there were still significant differences between the two sides. from brussels, here's the bbc‘s europe editor, katya adler. trust building between the two sides. that is what the eu says this first phase of brexit negotiations is about. so by today the end of round three of these first talks, how much trust is there? it is clear that uk doesn't feel legally right to honour its obligations after departure. how can we build trust and start discussing the future relationship? for his part, david davis said the uk could not blindly trust and boss bill presented by the eu. the commission set out its

position and we have a duty to our taxpayers to interrogate it rigourously. behind the smart suits, the stiff smiles, it was clear both sides were talking at cross purposes today about what brexit subjects to tackle in which order and whether and how much progress is actually being made. iwill and how much progress is actually being made. i will repeat that. david davis painted a picture of a rigid, inflexible eu while he argued... it is only to reflect ability and imagination that we will achieve a deal that works trolley for both sides. michel barnier in sifted the uk had to be more clear and realistic about brexit deal. the eu couldn't show for its ability, he said, if the uk didn't show its hand. conflation macro i'm not frustrated but i am impatient. it is not that i am angry, i am determined. so where does that leave all of us? we know that brexit will have a big impact on our lives but

just how huge will depend on the nature of a transition deal and the future permanent trade deal between the eu and the uk. we are nowhere near that yet and all this dealmaking could still fall apart. the rest need to panicjust yet. the eu refuses to talk about the eu— uk future until the substantive progress on the divorce deal. so where are we on the three core issues? both sides agree reassuring eu citizens in the uk and uk citizen in the eu is a top are lucky that they disagree still on whether the european court of justice they disagree still on whether the european court ofjustice should have a role in guaranteeing the rights of individuals. 0n ireland, progress has been made, especially around protecting the northern ireland republic of ireland common travel area. but the so—called divorce deal is the biggest sticking point right now. eu wants the uk to pay up point right now. eu wants the uk to pay up to 100 billion euros in what it sees as financial obligations the uk agreed to while an eu member. the

uk agreed to while an eu member. the uk says no, it will pay something but refuses to specify. these brexit talks have been largely technical, political pressure to push for progress is unlikely to come from the uk or the eu until after the conservative party conference or the formation of a new german government following elections next month. meanwhile as the eu likes to repeat, the clock to the end of the uk's eu membership is ticking. about two million muslims from across the globe are participating in the annual hajj pilgrimage in saudi arabia. dressed in simple white clothes, pilgrims have been retracing the route they believe the prophet muhammad once took — most walk the more than 17km on foot, as an act of piety. this is something that every adult will still ideally should undertake if they can afford it and are physically able. 0ne if they can afford it and are physically able. one of the biggest

gatherings in the world. this is this — azlan shah are returning to mecca after hiatus as there was a diplomatic spat between the rivals and in 2015 a deadly stampede. the upset we are being told about people not being able to go because they haven't been able to get a permit of those permits were brought in to try to prove —— prevent overcrowding which has caused problems in previous years. also they are mired ina previous years. also they are mired in a political processes is how thousands of faithful making the journey from neighbouring cutter staying away. much more to come. we meet some of the many mourners and fans marking 20 years since the death of princess diana. she received the nobel peace prize for her work with the poor and dying in india's slums. the head of the catholic church said mother teresa was a wonderful example of how to help people in need. we have to identify the bodies, then arrange the coffins and take them back home.

parents are waiting and wives are waiting. hostages appeared, some carried, some running, trying to escape the nightmare behind them. britain lost a princess today, described by all to whom she reached out as irreplaceable. an early—morning car crash in a paris underpass ended a life with more than its share of pain and courage, warmth and compassion. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: the us government has estimated that

100,000 homes have been damaged by hurricane harvey. the white house is preparing to request emergency funding from congress. let's get more on our top story, the ongoing disruption caused by tropical storm harvey. as we saw injames cook's report, many people are returning to their homes to see the scale of the damage and begin the huge task of cleaning things up. tim allman now tells us about one man who shared a rather unusual homecoming. sitting almost knee deep in rainwater, his house flooded, arik harding finds a moment's solace in the storm. a local musician and pastor, he returned to the neighbourhood of friendswood to fetch some of his childrens' belongings. to reassure his son that the family's piano still worked, he played a tune as a friend recorded the moment. later, arik would post the video online, admitting that what they used to have as the city is gone. but he was excited to see

new beauty in the suffering. and as for the piano? i'm going to have to tune this one. elsewhere in houston, the sun shines, but many of the streets are still rivers. air boats making search and rescue trips nearly a week after the storm hit. this man is looking for his pet cat, left behind when he had to flee. and this story has a happy ending. the animal was found, alive and well. this is a surreal experience. this is something i have never been though my life. i lived through hurricane katrina, but it was not this bad. this is — my faith in humanity has been restored by all of the fine volunteers who are helping us out. these are just a few stories amongst thousands of similar stories. lives turned upside down,

lives that will now have to be rebuilt. tim allman, bbc news. a cricket match has had to be abandoned after a projectile was fired into the pitch on thursday. it happened at the 0val, one of the oldest and best known grounds in world cricket. it's thought a crossbow bolt was fired — and it landed very close to the umpires while middlesex were playing surrey in a county championship match. laura westbrook reports. what is that in the field of play? they've just pointed out something. and unexpected interruption during a cricket match. at first, nobody knew what it was. some sort of... a meteor or something? the umpire held up meteor or something? the umpire held up the corporate, an arrow fired from outside the ground had landed only inches from the players. 0ne from outside the ground had landed only inches from the players. one of the players tweeted: it appears to

have been fired from a crossbow. everyone was evacuated and the police were called to the scene. we could see now that it was an arrow, a red arrow with a yellow quiver, about 18 inches long and very sharp point. if that had hit someone, it could have reaped absently catastrophic. luckily, no one was injured. so far, there have been no arrests. we don't know if this was a deliberate act. whether it was targeted or whether this was an accident, someone's fired it extremely irresponsibly and we just happen to be in the place where the bolt landed. the metropolitan police said it was not terrorism related. while some chose to see the humour in the incident, this could have been so much worse. now, whether you're into football — soccer — or not, the fees paid

in this transfer period have been eye—watering for everyone. more than $4.8 billion has been spent in europe's top five leagues — and the transfer window for english teams has now closed. so is the whole thing nowjust completely out of control? let's speak to tulsen tollett at the bbc‘s sports centre. tulsen, the money these clubs are spending just seems to be going up and up and up — astronomical figures involved. it is eye watering. this is how these things come about. in england, a six and a half billion dollar television rights deal last year, it has given premier league clubs on told riches. the deal was worth 71% more than the previous rights deal backin more than the previous rights deal back in 2012. the tv rights for spain's top club, it was a three—year deal worth around three and a half billion dollars. in france, just $970 million per year.

paris st germain have paid over $200 million for a mile when he moved over recently. —— neymar. newcastle paid a world record amount in 1996. you can see how things have changed. a 19—year—old isjoining paris on loa n a 19—year—old isjoining paris on loan as well with a view to permanency, that is to avoid the fairplay restrictions. he will be the second highest in history, around $250 million. another player has moved to barcelona for $125 million. a club like that can get a dealfor a shirt for million. a club like that can get a deal for a shirt for around $180 million. so, you have that kind of money coming in. germany's top clubs have spent a record of over $700

million as well. they receive around $70 million from chevrolet to have their logo on the shirt. you can see why the clubs have this much money to spend. when we talk about financial fairplay with paris and neymar, it will throw a spanner in the works in years to come. there will be a big gap between the teams at the top and the bottom. still gobsmacking, but thanks to you, i kind of understand it. a canadian man has set a new world record for the length of time wearing a bee beard. juan carlos noguez 0rtiz sat

for exactly 61 minutes with his face covered by bees. a honey farm where he works in ontario provided 100,000 bees for the stunt. although stung twice mr 0rtiz sat calmly throughout, remaining still while the bees were brushed off once the record was broken. mr 0rtiz described himself as a novice bee—wearer, having practised only twice before his record—breaking attempt. a man has been arrested following a sword having been found on his person while at the front of buckingham palace. he has been remanded in custody. thursday was the 20th anniversary of the death of diana, princess of wales, an event that prompted a remarkable display of public grief in the late summer of 1997.

people returned today to diana's former home in london, kensington palace, to leave flowers, messages, and candles, and to insist that the princess and her work will never be forgotten. we leave you with some of the day's words and images, two decades after the princess's death. it wasn't just shaking hands. she was prepared to get stuck in and hold people and talk to them. and she wept with them as well, on occasion. she had a way of connecting with people, of all ages, all backgrounds. she was born with two hearts. 0ne she gave to people, and one for herself. diana is our special princess. she made me unafraid to reach out to people who were suffering, even though there was stigma attached to it. before, i mean, it was unbelievable, the smell of the flowers.

it wasjust wonderful. recapping the main news this hour. police are searching door—to—door for survivors and bodies in the wake of tropical storm harvey. they say it could take two weeks. the white house is to ask congress for emergency funding. mike pence says more than 300,000 people have registered for emergency assistance. and regarding the chemical plant which has been smoking, a senior executive has said that fires and explosions are possible. they have also said that the fire must burn itself out. today marks the first day

of the meteorological autumn, so i thought we would start with a summary of summer. a decent start. temperatures soared up to 35 celsius back in june, but since then it has been rather disappointing. a cool second—half, especially in august. the first few weeks terrible and quite wet at times too. this morning we get off to a chilly start of the day. out in the countryside, temperatures down to about 3—4 degrees in the coldest spots first thing, so a chill in the air. apart from that there will be plenty of morning sunshine. most areas having a dry morning as well. but into the early afternoon the cloud will bubble up, especially in eastern parts of the uk. a scattering of showers begins to develop. a largely dry picture in scotland. a few showers towards the borders and certainly into eastern counties of england. those showers get going. some of them will be heavy.

thunder mixed in, but pretty well scattered. in the sunshine, wherever you are during the day on friday, there will be pleasant sunshine and it should feel reasonable, with temperatures generally into the high teens to the low 20s and a lightish north—westerly breeze in parts of the country. during the evening, those showers begin to fade away slowly. the second half of the night should become dry, and with clearing skies it will be another chilly night. so to start off the weekend again temperatures down to about 11—12 degrees. colder than that in the countryside. about 3—4 in the coldest spots. what about the weekend weather prospects? definitely a weekend of two halves. saturday with the best of it. sunny spells for the most part.

but on sunday, after a bright start, particularly in the east, we start to see a band of rain moving across the uk. here is the pressure chart for the weekend. high pressure initially. there's this zone of wet weather moving into the second half of the weekend, with strengthening winds. in more detail, saturday is a decent day, with sunshine. dry for the vast majority. temperatures doing pretty well. high teens to low 20s, with light winds. it will feel pleasant in that september sunshine. most temperatures towards south—east england. we will see this rain encroach overnight into northern ireland. after a bright start to the day across eastern scotland, much of england will see cloud thicken up. outbreaks of rain moving in and it will turn breezy. temperatures 18—19 degrees typically.

that's your latest weather. this is bbc news. the headlines. president trump's homeland security adviser says 100,000 homes had been affected by the disastrous flooding in texas. he confirmed the white house would ask congress for extra funds needed to help. at least 30 people have been killed since harvey came ashore as a powerful hurricane. across south asia, aid agencies are trying to help millions of people affected by flooding. more than 1,200 people are believed to have died. it's thought to be the worst monsoon season in decades with tens of thousands of people forced from their homes in india, nepal and bangladesh. the eu's chief brexit negotiator has said there's been no decisive progress at the third round of talks in brussels. his british counterpart said there had progress in some areas but acknowledged that differences remained, especially on the contentious issue of how much britain might owe the eu. now on bbc news, as part

of hardtalk‘s 20—year anniversary, another chance to see stephen sackur‘s 2010 interview with sheriffjoe arpaio.