this is bbc news. i'm james menendez. our top stories: the red cross says more than a million people have already been hit by hurricane irma with up to 26 million more at risk in the coming days. road and airports in florida have beenjammed as half a million people try to leave before the storm hits on sunday. pope francis appeals to colombians to show forgiveness following the peace agreement with farc rebels. and venus williams bows out of the us open in dramatic style. and i'm rachel horne with the business. weathering the financial storm. harvey could overtake katrina as america's costliest hurricane, but will irma prove even more expensive? we look at the spiralling cost of extreme weather and who pays. plus, contingency plans. the boss of virgin atlantic tells us how they're helping customers in the caribbean and aiding the recovery effort. hello.

hurricane irma, one of the strongest storms ever recorded in the atlantic, is barreling across the eastern caribbean with devastating force. at least ten people have died and hundreds of buildings have been flattened or flooded. deaths have been reported in the us and british virgin islands, and the island of anguilla. the islands of barbuda and st martin were the first to feel the full force of the winds and storm surge followed by puerto rico. haiti and the turks and caicos islands are the latest places to be hit by the storm. cuba and florida still lie ahead. andy moore has the latest. this is what it's like to look out of your hotel room in the turks & ca icos of your hotel room in the turks & caicos knowing one of the strongest storms in recent memory is heading your way. starting to hear the noise of the wind as well through the

doors and windows. and from all around us really. but we're not even close to the worst bit yet, which is a bit scary. on the british virgin islands there have been an unknown number of deaths. with communications severely disrupted, the governor issued this audio message, declaring a state of emergency. all of a sudden have been affected by irma, some more than others. apart from the structural damage there have been reports of casualties and fatalities. i'm sure you're heartbroken by this nudes. our thoughts and prayers are with each and every one of you. -- news. at least one person is known to have died in the british territory of anguilla where residents sheltered in their homes for safety. we were in their homes for safety. we were in the bath with a mattress above us, that's how we managed to keep safe and dry. i think a lot of people were in a similar situation. we have seen houses with cars that

have been picked up and thrown through the house. barbuda was one of the first islands to be hit by irma. it's now less than 48 hours away from the impact of a second hurricane. jose has sustained wind speeds of 120 mph and it looks likely to gain in strength over the next day or two. andy moore, bbc news. more than half a million people have been ordered to leave their homes in florida before hurricane irma hits the us state on sunday. many tourists are already stranded at miami airport with no seats left on flights back home. tens of thousands of people have also been told to evacuate their homes along the northern coast of cuba. the red cross estimates that up to 26 million people in total could be exposed to the destructive winds and torrential rains brought by irma. the bbc‘s will grant is in havana. cu ba ns have cubans have spent the past few days watching as nearby islands were

devastated by this vast storm as it ploughed through the caribbean. now they know their country's next on its path. the pace of preparations has picked up significantly with residents on the eastern end of the island taking steps to secure their homes and stock up on basic goods. fresh thinking water and fuel for generators top of their lists. cubais generators top of their lists. cuba is now also a hugely popular tourist destination and the island was busy with holidaymakers when irma began to form. now many of those visitors find themselves trapped in a situation they never expected and have never experienced before. countries with large numbers of citizens in cuba are co—ordinating with the cuban authorities to get them out. assuming the hurricane doesn't change course at the last—minute kicks expected to barrel around the cuban kicks expected to barrel around the cu ban coastline, kicks expected to barrel around the cuban coastline, dumping large amounts of rain on the island as it passes. then it should to move up to the invited states and into florida. there a state of emergency is

already in place and even the man who approved it is having to take measures against irma. president trump's mar—a—lago golf resort boarding up against the storm. many have tried to leave before it makes landfall. 0thers have tried to leave before it makes landfall. others are trapped.” have tried to leave before it makes landfall. others are trapped. ijust came here for a couple of weeks, i must post to fly out next week but all flights... a lot of them are cancelled. i'm just going to stay m, cancelled. i'm just going to stay in, get waters, canned foods, snack bars for a week or two and pray and hope for the best. i don't know, i'm going to go to the airport and just figure out what to do. people across the caribbean are used to dealing with hurricanes, they're an annual part of life in this region, however many have never seen anything quite like hurricane irma in their lifetime and fear the worst. cu ba ns in their lifetime and fear the worst. cubans are well aware these are the final few hours of calm before the devastating force of irma reaches the island, and having seen

exactly what it's capable of elsewhere in the caribbean, many are just hoping the storm is a little kinder here and begins to weaken en route. will grant, bbc news, cuba. and you can get all the latest updates on hurricane irma, including a map showing when its predicted to make landfall and where, on our website. just go to bbc.com/news. rachel home is here with all the business news. we are also looking at hurricane irma. as you've been hearing, it's one of the strongest storms ever recorded and aside from the human cost of the disaster, experts warn it could also be one of the most expensive. much depends on what happens when it reaches densely populated miami but estimates range from $70 to $190 billion. the financial cost of this year's hurricane season is already spiralling to record levels. let's show you the numbers involved. there's no official figure yet for hurricane harvey, which caused severe flooding and displaced more than a million people in texas last week.

but some including the governor of texas are estimating costs of around $180 billion. if that figure is accurate, it would put harvey ahead of hurricane katrina in 2005, officially the costliest hurricane in us history. katrina did damage of nearly $160 billion. until this year, nothing had come close to katrina, although hurricane sandy in 2012 caused more than $68 billion in damage. but it's clear the economic damage from extreme weather is on the rise. since 1980, the us has experienced 212 major weather disasters with costs totalling $$1.2 trillion. so is climate change behind this spiralling bill? who will end up paying it? we'll speak to a top insurance boss in 20 minutes' time. we are also looking at the response of the airlines to hurricane irma. they're putting on extra flights to get tourists home from florida and the caribbean but some

are also starting to play a role in the recovery effort. the chief executive of virgin atlantic, craig kreeger, don't forget you can get in touch with me and some of the team on twitter, i'm @bbcrachelhorne. pope francis has urged colombians to set aside any desire for revenge as they come to terms with a peace deal signed last year with farc rebels. and he told leaders they needed to address the inequalities that led to the violence in the first place. he was speaking to huge crowds in bogota on the first full day of his visit to the country, the first by a pope in over three decades. from colombia, our south america correspondent katy watson reports. more than a million people came to attend pope francis pass first open—air mass here. political leaders and people from all over colombia listening as he spoke frankly. here, as in other places,

there a thick darkness which threatens and destroys life. the darkness of injustice and social inequality. the darkness of this respect for human life which destroys the lives of many innocent people whose blood cries out to heaven. the mass ended a busy day for the pontiff which started early, meeting with the president and other government leaders. colombia had long wanted the pope to visit but it was only after mr santos signed a deal last year with the revolutionary armed forces of colombia, ending more than 50 years of conflict, that the vatican decided this was the time to come. translation: we trust your visit will open the hearts and minds of colombians for the peace that comes from god and that lives in the soul of men. that piece we are now constructing. we want to reconcile oui’ constructing. we want to reconcile our differences and accept one

another not as a burden but as a gift, a gift of life. thousands of colombians waited patiently to see the pope in this deeply catholic country, the first papal visit in more than 30 years has been a long time coming. in the city's main square, pope francis appealed to the youth to help colombia. translation: our youth makes them capable of doing something that is very difficult to do in life, forgive. forgive those who have hurt us. it's remarkable to see how you don't allow yourself to become entranced by old stories. you are taken aback when adults keep mentioning events of division simply for us to hold grudges. colombia needs us all and our adults need you. the argentine pope has a huge following here in latin america. for some it was too much. from the capital, he comes here to a city not farfrom some of

capital, he comes here to a city not far from some of the worst fighting that took place in the armed conflict. the wounds here are still fresh as the country tries to rebuild but many look to the pope to help the healing process. the pope is the most important visitor this city has ever had and this stop is seen as the most symbolic part of the pope's tour here in colombia, a chance to talk about reconciliation and how the country can move forward. people are excited, they want a souvenir to ta ke excited, they want a souvenir to take home with them and there's plenty on offer here. katy watson, bbc news. let's head to haiti, a country that's been the said by many man—made disasters in recent years and joining us is the executive director of haiti's air ambulance in port—au—prince. thanks for being with us. what's the mood at the moment, our people braced for what might come? people are pretty calm

considering we are further afield. in the north there's been more tension and people are probably starting to regret not evacuating. the government had been urging those in threatened areas to evacuate but with mixed results. haiti of course isa with mixed results. haiti of course is a very poor country and as i mentioned has suffered from many disasters in the past, not least the earthquake a few years ago. how prepared is it for this kind of eventuality? not very. infrastructure is strained here and of course there are natural challenges both according to the typography and as well with the resources that are typically available. the in terms of the average public, i guess one of the benefits of the earthquake and hurricane matthew, which was less

than a year hurricane matthew, which was less thana yearago, hurricane matthew, which was less than a year ago, is they kind of know what's coming and there is an airof calm and, know what's coming and there is an air of calm and, of course, fearfor many but for the most part people kind of know what to do. tell us about the airambulance, kind of know what to do. tell us about the air ambulance, what are you able to do if needed in the aftermath of the hurricane? haiti is a country of 10 million people and we are the first and only helicopter emergency service throughout the country. we work here and ourdaily throughout the country. we work here and our daily mission is to provide those in need of critical care with it. in the aftermath of irma and matthew, we take medical personnel and stock to the areas most devastated, as well as bring patients out. probably starting late tomorrow or saturday depending on

the conditions, we will be able to reach those in the far north that will probably be cut off. nada marjanovic, thanks for joining will probably be cut off. nada marjanovic, thanks forjoining us, speaking to us live from port—au—prince. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news. the french prime minister, edouard phillipe, has announced a $1.9 billion increase in defence spending, reversing a planned cut that, less than two months ago, led to the resignation of the head of france's armed forces. mr phillipe said the spending boost would apply for the next three years because he said the world was now a more dangerous place. president trump has offered to mediate in the dispute between qatar and some of its neighbouring arab states. a saudi—led coalition of nations severed ties with qatar injune, citing what they said was its support for extremist groups. mr trump said he thought the parties would have a deal worked out very quickly if he intervened. security forces in togo have fired tear gas to disperse hundreds of anti—government protestors in the capital, lome. police moved in following a second day of mass country—wide demonstrations demanding an end

to the gnassingbe family's 50 years in power. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: all aboard the high—speed express. meet the train passengers with a front—row seat to an unusual performance. you freedom itself was attacked this morning, and freedom will be defended. the united states will hunt down and punish those responsible. bishop tutu now becomes spiritual leader of 100,000 anglicans, here — of the blacks in soweto township, as well as the whites, in their rich suburbs. we say to you today, in a loud and a clear voice, enough of blood and tears — enough! the difficult decision we reached together was one that required great and exceptional courage. it is an exodus of up to 60,000

people, caused by the uneven pace of political change in eastern europe. iam free! this is bbc news. the latest headlines — hurricane irma hits and leaves a trail of devastation across the eastern caribbean islands. at least ten people are dead. pope francis has urged colombians to set aside any desire for revenge as they come to terms with a peace deal signed last year with farc rebels. the spanish prime minister says the government won't allow catalonians to hold a vote on becoming a separate state. pro—independence politicians in the region are arranging

a referendum on whether catalonia should split from spain. but pm mariano rajoy said the move was undemocratic and unlawful. will andrew plant reports. a warof a war of words across the papers in spain as the country's richest regions as it will hold a vote on whether catalonia should come a separate state. spanish politicians say the vote would be unlawful with its prime minister calling the announcement and intolerable act of disobedience. translation: there will be no referendum or self—determination. it would deprive all spaniards of the right to decide their future. all spaniards of the right to decide theirfuture. neither all spaniards of the right to decide their future. neither the government nor the courts can allow this in any way. with its own language and regional assembly, catalonia's pro—independence parliament already controls things like education and policing. but many want complete control as an independent country

with a separate diplomatic service, central bank and even its own armed forces. translation: it's awful. i don't care as they pass it. they should let it pass. what they are doing is ridiculous. i am from madrid and i live in madrid. but my daughter lives in catalonia and she wants to vote not only her, the citizens they have a right to vote. catalonia's claim to nationhood is the supporters should be decided by its inhabitants. inspired, they say, by scotland's independence referendum in 2014. they call for it to be held on the 21st of october. prosecutors say it goes against the constitution of spain and would be illegal under spanish law. with two weeks to go before the german election, the polls suggest that a far right party will enter

parliament. the alternative for germany called it emerged as a major player. what began in germany's political backwaters is moving into the mainstream and this man intends to help asd win its way. peter worries about immigration. so he is notjust voting aest, he has launched his 1—man campaign cruise. —— afd. transocean 1—man campaign cruise. —— afd. tra nsocean make my 1—man campaign cruise. —— afd. transocean make my biggest problem is that the immigrants do nothing to integrate. they arrive in droves and create ghettos were not even the police debt ago and they lived are laws. —— by their own laws. the voice of the right is growing louder. afd will not topple angela merkel —— angela merkel, but they

are likely to get a say in parliament for the time since the second world war and peers from the far rightare second world war and peers from the far right are expected to take seats. in this state, polls suggest in five voters support afd this man standing against angela merkel in her own constituency. tra nsocean make this as merkel has made many mistakes. people he realised that. they are upset about many things. it began with the euro crisis would cost of billions on where she broke the law. are nuclear power policy was wrong and she called the refugee crisis in 2015 by single—handedly opening the board of. anti— migrant, anti— islam. this is a straightforward campaign. new germans, this post says, we make ourselves. burgers? we like our bikinis. the vast majority of

germans are horrified still by afd, by its xenophobic rhetoric, but nationalism. it appeals to voters who are fed up with angela merkel and the refugee politics. that there isa and the refugee politics. that there is a broader appeal here as well. aplin macca's attracting people who feel forgotten, ignored, even, by germany's centrist policies and its mainstream political parties. those parties vow they will not do business with afd. but it may yet emerge as germany's third—largest party. hard to ignore the current carving its way through the political establishment. the tennis star venus williams was hoping to give her new born niece an early chance to see what she and her mum serena have been doing for the last 18 years — winning major titles. but her run to the us open semi—finals has been ended by a player she's said to have inspired — sloane stephens.

the 24—year—old will now take on madison keys in the final — the first time either of them have reached a grand slam title. colm harrison reports. in the first of the all—american semifinals, venus williams aiming to reach her 17th grandslam singles final was up against an opponent who was only four when venus contested her first back was only four when venus contested herfirst back in 1997. was only four when venus contested her first back in 1997. playing was only four when venus contested herfirst back in 1997. playing in only her second major semi, it was sloane stephens who made the better start and venus williams was blown away in an opening set that stevens won 6—1. that gave little indication of what was to come. is the first set was one—sided, the second was even more so, set was one—sided, the second was even more so, this time with william is coming out on top after being forced to save four break points in her opening service game, she breezed through the set 6—0 to level the match and the momentum was now with the former champion and number nine seed. the deciding set was everything the first two were not. close and very tense. there were m ista kes close and very tense. there were mistakes aplenty by both players yet

moments of breathtaking tennis as well. at 5—5, the tide turned in favour of stevens. she broke with the help of a lob winner that drew a standing ovation from the crowd and that gave her a chance to serve for the match. she duly completed the victory to reach her first grand slam final and this, a player who was unable to walk after a foot operation in january. was unable to walk after a foot operation injanuary. the former world number 11 was as low as 957 in the world as recently asjuly. after an impressive comeback now stands at 14 wins from 16 matches since then and if she can make it 15 from 17 on saturday, sloane stephens will be a major winner. back to germany now. and a novel kind of theatrical production. there's no stage — no curtains — no orchestra. but there is an audience. the passengers on board this train may have seen something a little unusual when they looked out the window. men on ladders saluting

as they passed. trees running — yes, running — in the field. another tree apparently on fire. all this is part of a theatrical show taking place trackside in lower saxony. it's called moving countryside — around 50 performances carried out as a passenger train flies by. real high—speed theatre. translation: you go past and you only have maybe five seconds to see anything, but the journey is 23 minutes and that is a perfect length of time. the whole stretch lends itself to being a stage. it is a short film, so it is not that long. rather unfortunately, there is still 40 kilometres worth of stage, so it is big. about 1000 volunteers, including two local mayors, took part. the various productions involved a fake great white shark, a high—altitude cyclist, and a fleet of old east german trams.

the whole thing designed to bring the city and the countryside together, and create a bridge between their sometimes different lifestyles. translation: it was great fun. i admire the actors, because they were determined to stage everything right. they gave us alljoy. there were some spectacular things which i liked very much. well done. for now, this is a one—off performance. but it certainly made the commute a little more interesting. let us know what you thought about that. you can get in touch with me on twitter. stay with us, there will be more headlines in a couple of minutes. and then there will be world business report. the caribbean is battling three

hurricanes so quite a contrast with us where it is very quiet. weather is driven by this area of low pressure which stays close by through the weekend. what that means for us to end the week is that many of us have a windy day and there will be frequent showers blowing from west to east. some showers merging together more persistent spell of rain across southern counties of england. at eight o'clock in the morning, showers across western part of scotland, not so many in the east, but certainly a lot of cloud. nowhere is immune from seeing a shower through the day and that chance extends down through parts of northern england and ireland. should be some sunshine across the northern parts of wales through the morning, with showers never far away. they are already starting across south—west england through the morning, pushing eastwards on the strong breeze. quite gusty near the coast. showers starting to merge to give a more

persistent spell of rain across southern counties of england through the day and perhaps even rumble of thunder by the end of the afternoon. as we head further north into northern england, scotland and northern ireland it is a day of sunshine and showers but always a blustery feel in the strong winds. the temperatures will be no great shakes. 15—19 celsius. if you get any sunshine and shelter from the breeze it should feel pleasant. but there will be frequent showers through the evening. they will start to ease off, but will never be too far away. potentially clearing slots in between with a fresh feeling night. for saturday, yes, another day of sunshine and showers with the difference being that there should be more in the way of dry weather and not quite so many showers. nowhere reliably dry so keep your umbrella handy. temperatures again 15—19 celsius, cool in the breeze but pleasantly warm in the sunshine.

on sunday, our highs drawn to what is happening across scotland and ireland, wet and windy weather which will slowly start to sink south across the country on sunday. for the weekend there will be showers that time, sunshine in between, quite cool and windy especially by the end of sunday. this is bbc world news, the headlines: hurricane irma has left a swathe of destruction as it sweeps across the eastern caribbean. it's already destroyed almost all buildings on barbuda. deaths are reported in the us and british virgin islands, and anguilla. haiti and the turks and caicos islands are the latest places to be hit by the storm. cuba and florida still lie ahead. the red cross estimates that up to 26 million people in total could be exposed to the destructive winds and torrential rains brought by irma. more than 160,000 rohingya muslims have now fled violence in myanmar. the exodus across the border into bangladesh was sparked

by a crackdown by burmese security forces. pope francis has urged colombians to set