hello and welcome to bbc news. the most powerful storm to hit cuba in more than 80 years is moving slowly along the island's north coast, causing floods and widespread damage. fierce winds from hurricane irma have ripped off rooftops, uprooted trees, and torn down powerlines. one million people, nearly a tenth of cuba's population, have been evacuated. our correspondent will grant reports from havana. cubans had hoped they might avoid the worst of the hurricane. they had no such luck. with the full force of a category—five storm, the hurricane tore through the island's northern shore. the storm surge almost completely engulfing several small fishing villages. electricity and communication links are out across swathes of the country. as some communities along the coast are wondering how they will ever rebuild, others are bracing themselves for irma's impact. even in the big cities, people are getting nervous.

translation: i'm really worried. my home isn't in a good state, so i hope the hurricane stays away and moves out to sea. translation: it's one of the bigger storms we've ever seen, so we have to get ready. as hurricane irma rumbles along the coast of cuba, even those places that were supposed to serve as safe havens, like the capital, havana, are now under hurricane warning. and, for the many thousands who were evacuated here, well, they are just hoping they still have homes to go back to. cuba was in the middle of a tourism boom when the storm struck and thousands of holidaymakers found themselves suddenly trapped in the biggest hurricane to hit cuba in 80 years. beyond those who've had the holidays ruined, this could also cut short

cuba's efforts to rebuild its crippled economy. tourism has been the main economic motor of the island recently. irma could set that back for many months. there has also been widespread damage in the british virgin islands. laura bicker is in tortola. well, it's five people died here in the british virgin islands, and you can see the devastation wrought by hurricane irma. as we flew in, we saw homes that looked like they've been blasted away by the hurricane. they lie tattered and in ruins, and scattered across the island, as do boats. because you can see the effect of a 20—foot storm surge. there's boats lie scattered all across the island, and when they've been moored together they've obviously crashed into one another, and they're now in pieces. there is a massive effort now underway, after criticism here of the british government's response to this crisis. i've been speaking to the royal engineers,

who are here. they've been repairing this runway, that's been their first priority. and the reason for that is they need to get aid in and people out. so, now that they've done that, they say they can try to re—establish communications. when it comes to other problems on the island, there have been reports of looting, especially in the east side of the island. now, i spoke to the deputy governor. he says he'd get things back under control, but there is an appeal for calm and law and order to prevail. very difficult conditions for people to really deal with the aftermath of hurricane irma, because they're all so worried about hurricanejose, which is on its way. the latest forecasts show that skirting the island and heading north, rather than being a direct impact. so that may bring some relief as they try to continue the recovery efforts. in the united states, southern parts of florida are already beginning to feel the effects of irma.

governor rick scott said the south—east is experiencing tropical—storm—force winds, and that thousands of people were without electricity. the bbc‘s aleem maqbool is in miami. there is little left for people to do in florida but to get somewhere safe and wait. this hurricane shelter, like so many more across the city, is packed to capacity. wejust decided, you know, we're going to leave, and then we got up and saw on the tv all the traffic backed up. they say it's backed up to atlanta. we said, well, we've waited too late to leave, so we stayed. i mean, we left everything, you know. our furniture. our apartment. but, like i would say, material things, we can build them again. i think the most important is the family, you know? after days of talking, after all the warnings, it is now starting to feel real for the people of florida. the skies have darkened,

the winds have picked up, and in the coming hours, people here expect to be in the firm grip of hurricane irma. nasa has recorded this spectacular footage of the eye of irma, and its massive cloud mass, all on a projected course for florida. in spite of the huge evacuation of the state, there are many in florida, like vince, who won't leave their homes, preparing before the rains came. it's out of your hands, it's in mother nature's hands, you can't control it but what you can control is boarding up, protecting it, having water, generators, gas. do you think you'll be ok? i do. but thousands don't want to risk gambling with nature. they are anxious, though,

about the city they will emerge out into, once irma has passed. aleem maqbool, bbc news, florida. relief work is under way in mexico after thursday's massive earthquake. at least 65 people have died and many more are afraid to return home after thousands of buildings were destroyed or damaged. more than half of the victims were in the southern state of oaxaca, and many others in neighbouring chiapas. the deputy representative of unicef mexico told us about the most pressing challenges they are facing. the biggest challenge so far here is not the destruction but, in particular for the children and women, it's the trauma and the fear that the earthquake will come back, and that they will not feel very safe in their homes. just now we have visited some shelters where these children are, and you could see that the children are very stressed. the space is cramped and hot,

there are no play areas for them and the municipality have requested unicef to help with support for the children, and also for school materials, because they would like the children to come back to school on monday. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news: pope francis, who is visiting colombia, is celebrating mass in colombia's second—biggest city, medellin. huge crowds of up to a million people have gathered at the city's airport to join the mass. the pope is also due to visit a children's shelter on the fourth day of his tour of colombia. the main opposition party in angola, unita, has asked the country's constitutional court to annul the results of last month's election. unita alleges that in many provinces the published results did not reflect the votes which had been counted locally. the electoral commission published final results on wednesday, announcing the poll had been won by the mpla, which has ruled angola since independence in 1975. stay with us here on bbc news. still to come: after a career spanning close to half a century, the bbc‘s veteran cricket commentator henry blofeld gives his final broadcast

at lord's in london. let's get more now on hurricane irma, as it bears down on florida, in the united states. on the line is eunicia baker, public information officer with the city of north miami. thank you forjoining us. just in terms of how is so far things are going, what has it been like? well, right now, like all of miami dade county, the city of miami is working ha rd to county, the city of miami is working hard to make sure that our businesses and residents are well prepared for the arrival of hurricane irma. so at this time the city of north miami, we are experiencing tropical storm force winds. we have had a couple of re— occurring rain squalls and some thunderstorms. so we are monitoring hurricane irma very close. in fact, we are the sixth largest municipality in the county, so it is imperative that we continue to step to speed with all the latest information from miami dade county

officials. currently our emergency operations centre is in full operations centre is in full operation status and has been operational since tuesday this week. the centre is... the centre is being made by essential personnel from various departments, as officers are currently closed for regular business. so we actually have representation by some of our north miami elected officials, as well. some of our local representatives, some of the smaller surrounding cities that surround the city of north miami are also represented there. so right now our objective is to make sure that we are passing on all essential information, that we are using various information sharing tools such as our local cable television station, here in the city of north miami. we are updating our website constantly. we are making sure that we are sending out newsletters to our residents, because that is one way that they are accustomed to receiving information, and we are also utilising a social media platforms, facebook, twitter, instagram, to make sure that we are doing all we can to keep our residents up to

speed. what is the predicted storm surge that? do you know?|j speed. what is the predicted storm surge that? do you know? i do not know, but i think the last update i had everything from six to 12 feet appearing in the area. wow, so, 0k, that will mean of course, have you any estimate to how many properties are going to be affected by this?” do not know how many copies will be impacted per se, buti do not know how many copies will be impacted per se, but i do know that we have roughly 60,000 citizens in the city of north miami. so we have had a small section of north miami that had to get evacuated, as a result of the hurricane. so some of the places that are far eastern city have been evacuated, such as keystone, and some of the universities that lie along the coast in the city of north miami have also been evacuated. and your advice, you say you are using the local tv channels as well, for anyone watching this in north miami oi’ anyone watching this in north miami or that area, what would your advice be? right now we in the city of

north miami, of italy we have no essential personnel working here, as i stated. but we are asking that all residents stay indoors. right the full effect of the hurricane had not yet been felt, but we are asking that all residents stay indoors. in fa ct, that all residents stay indoors. in fact, just this evening, a city mayor has implemented mandatory cu rfew mayor has implemented mandatory curfew in our city. so that is going to span from the night, saturday september night, from 10am, until sunday, september ten at six a.m.. so we are asking that all residents stay in doors. that means vehicular traffic, pedestrian traffic, we are asking that all residents stay in doors, just to make sure that we are maximising our level of safety in oui’ maximising our level of safety in our city. thank you very much. thousands of people have attended the manchester arena tonight for its first event since the bomb attack which killed 22 people. among the acts playing at the benefit gig are noel gallagher's high flying birds, and rick astley. our entertainment correspondent colin paterson reports. manchester arena — back, open for business. there is heightened

security with armed police and after the show, a cordon will be in place around the arena. but that wasn't stopping those going in from having fun. even if many were experiencing mixed emotions. obviously there is, like, a little bit of scaredness, but not as much as excitement. it's the overriding emotion of hope, just to show that the event's open again, and what the terrorist did won't overcome us. we just want to come back to the opening and show that nothing's going to stop people from coming here. we're manchester, and we're proud. and it is going to be a challenging evening for this family, who bought tickets for tonight despite having been in the foyer when the terrorist bomb went off. scary, nervous, but we're going to enjoy it. we are here for the 22 people what died. we've got to make memories. they can't make memories any more, can they? no.

inside, the first people to sit in these seats since the bomb exploded in may. before the concert, greater manchester's mayor read the names of the 22 victims. of saffie rose, of megan, of courtney and philip, of wendy. and then the poet tony walsh started proceedings. always remember, never forget. and, to make sure that happens, the proceeds from tonight will go towards a permanent memorial for those who died. hurricane irma is pummelling the northern coast of cuba, lashing towns and villages in its path with strong winds and heavy rain. the hurricane is also beginning to batter the us state of florida. the governor there says the south—east is already experiencing tropical—storm—force winds. i've been speaking tojude holmes, a co—ordinator and medic for the virgin islands sea rch—and—rescue in

the british virgin islands. she told me how difficult the recovery effort was. the recovery effort is starting to get out around the island. currently, the rfa ship is deployed to tortola. we have also had reports that the military planes landed this evening bringing supplies and troops. and of course, i think there isa troops. and of course, i think there is a second ship on its way. how big a task they face, though? oh my gosh. i cannot put into words how big the destruction has been across the british virgin islands. people have been shocked and saddened by the destruction. there is barely a house standing. people are without shelter and people are starting to run out of food and water. what is the british virgin islands search and rescue team able to do?m

the british virgin islands search and rescue team able to do? it is in emergency service that provides emergency service that provides emergency medical services and emergency medical services and emergency presentation across the 16 islands of the virgin islands. at present, while they are not operating emergency services, we have advanced medics, emergency co—ordinators, and first responders on ireland. and the aim is to link them and have stations operational by monday. -- island. you are in las vegas. i gather you took the last evacuation plane out of the virgin islands. but your husband is still there. how is he getting on, and when did speaking in? yes, he still there. i heard this morning that he is still safe. —— and when did you speak to is still safe. —— and when did you speakto him. is still safe. —— and when did you speak to him. considering everything, i consider myself lucky. there are thousands still unaccounted for to both their friends and families, and i am just glad that i know that paul is alive. today, spoke to him and he said that

the situation on the ground is desperate. our islands are a goodly mounis. we know it'll be difficult to get aid to some populations. —— are incredibly mountainous. in regards to what you are going to do, you would try to speak to him as frequently as you can. but indications must be difficult, as well. communication is incredibly difficult. i would like to reassure friends and family members of families at home that the cellphone networks are currently down. every effort is being made to try and restore them. the internet signal is very patchy. although there are now hot spots in some areas, like tortola. communication is hard. there is the occasional word here and there. there is to indicate and around the islands with the use of vhf radio, but we are hoping that

with the introduction of the military and the satellite is that they bring, they communication will be to get out to families is partly seeking to hear from their families. —— families desperately seeking. rohingya insurgents in myanmar have declared a month—long ceasefire from sunday so that aid groups can help to ease a growing humanitarian crisis. large numbers of rohingya muslims have fled to neighbouring bangladesh because of fighting between the militants and police in myanmar. that ongoing violence has left hundreds of thousands of people hungry and traumatised. justin rowlatt reports on their continuing plight from teknaf, close to the border. they fled persecution and now they are desperate, fighting just for a bag of rice. many refugees arrive with nothing. well—meaning bangladeshis arrive in trucks to hand out food but the refugees need much more than this. yesterday, we met rashida.

she is nine months pregnant. her baby is due any day. like most of the refugees, she says she escaped myanmar after the radical buddhists attacked her village. translation: they came at 2am. they set fire to our houses and started shooting. that's when we fled. i walked for seven days to get here. it has been so hard but we had to escape. guards moved her and herfamily onto some land but there isn't room for everyone. tempers were high. today we tried to find her to get some help. but there was no sign of rashida and herfamily. after we left, the owner of this area told them, "if you want to stay here,

you have to give money otherwise you have to go away." but how do you find someone in amongst all this chaos? as night falls, it begins to rain. beside the road is a family who crossed the border today. their baby girl is nine days old. she was born in the jungle on the way here. they too have nowhere to stay. if there is one thing, there is no shortage of here, it is misery. this mother and her baby are on their way to hospital. they will get some care tonight. rahida and tens of thousands of others will not be so lucky. let's get some more news from the uk now.

here in london, 50,000 anti—brexit campaigners have marched on westminster to demand that britain stays in the european union. the rally, called the people's march for europe, carried the message "unite, rethink and reject brexit". on monday, mps are due to vote on the repeal bill for brexit. the new leader of the scottish labour party will be announced on november 18. the contest was triggered by the resignation of kezia dugdale, last week. so far, two candidates have put themselves forward for leader, msp's anas sawar and richard leonard. archeologists in egypt say they've discovered the tomb of a goldsmith that's more than 3000 years old. it was found in a burial site on the west bank of the nile, near the city of luxor. our middle—east editor alan johnston has more. staring out of the past, remains from the world of ancient egypt. they lay here in the darkness, deep beneath the banks of the river nile for well over 3,000 years. now they're emerging from their grave.

every detail of their surroundings is being examined. and slowly, the story of this burial place and its dead is becoming clearer. it's believed that this was the tomb of a goldsmith, and we even find an image of this man captured in the sculpture. he sits beside his wife, who is closed in traditional headwear, and a long dress. lower down, between their legs, is the outline of another figure, thought to be one of their sons. the archaeologists believe the goldsmith would have dedicated his work to the glorification of the god amun. along with the mummies and decorated cottons, the tomb has given up other bridges, including masks, jewellery and figurines. all now on show for the first time. and it's thought this place may have even more to offer, there are plans to keep searching for other burial chambers. alan johnston, bbc news.

tennis, now, and america's sloane stephens has won the us open in new york. she beat madison keys in straight sets to pick up herfirst grand slam title. the bbc tim allman has more. there are comebacks and then there are comebacks. six weeks ago, sloane stephens was 957th in the world rankings after nearly a year out with a foot injury. now she is the us open champion and a grandslam winner for the first time. but in truth, it wasn't all that much of a competition. her opponent, fellow american madison keys, never really got started. a series of unforced errors helping stephens to an early lead. the nerves were perhaps understandable. neither player had reached a majorfinal before.

their combined ranking the lowest in a us open final since rankings were introduced. either way, sloane stephens soon racked up the first set 6—3. she did occasionally have to work for it, producing flashes of brilliance her opponent had no answer for. and to be fair, madison keys did also set show some of the form that got her to this final but all those unforced errors meant it was too little, too late. applause. the second set was a was a walkover. stephens winning it 6—0. cheering and applause. she is the first american woman who isn't a member of the williams family to win a major title in 15 years. now she has won one, who knows, maybe she'll make it a habit. tim allman, bbc news. england's cricketers beat the west indies by nine wickets

to win the third test at lord's, and wrap up the series 2—1. jimmy anderson, who celebrated his 500—wicket landmark in this match finished with new career—best figures of seven for a2. the match also saw henry blofeld, one of the best known voices of cricket, commentate for the last time on bbc radio's test match special programme. blowers, as he's known to his many fans, has retired at the age of 77. he signed off to applause from around the ground at lord's in london. it is 88 for one. and that, ladies and gentlemen, is the end of it. thank you all for listening, it's been wonderful talking to you all. you all say you're going to miss me. i tell you what, i'm going to miss you something dreadful. i must try not fall over when they hand over to the next commentator.

it is ian smith. our lovely. —— how lovely. the cricket commentator henry blofeld in his final broadcast earlier on saturday. a reminder of our top story. the most powerful storm to hit cuba in more than 80 years is moving slowly along the island's north coast, causing floods and widespread damage. the government has extended its maximum level of alert to more provinces, including havana. the storm has been downgraded to category 3, but is expected to increase in power again as it heads towards the united states. the outer edge of hurricane irma is already hitting florida. the governor said the florida keys were being buffeted by winds of 200 kilometres an hour. and there's much more coverage of the hurricane on our website, including backgrounders such as this video featuring all those in florida

who lived through hurricane andrew and the devastation it caused in 1992. it also explores whether irma could be worse. coming up shortly the headlines. first the weather with phil avery. hello once again. thanks very much indeed forjoining me. the weekend started on a pretty showery note to say the very least across the british isles. even underneath the glorious skies here in derbyshire, the spots of rain on the camera belie the presence of the opportunity for showers. sure enough, wait long enough, and along they came. things have quietened down into the first part of sunday thanks to a little ridge of high pressure just nosing its way in ahead of the next weather fronts coming in from the atlantic. so, a wet start across northern and western parts of scotland. so, too, northern ireland. ahead of that, underneath relatively clear skies, temperatures will have dipped away overnight and it will be a chilly start to sunday

through east anglia and parts of the south—east and the countryside. we were looking at four, five, six degrees or so but with a bit of sunshine, a couple of hours of warmth, you will be back up to 12 or 13 degrees and a glorious start to the new day. further west, close to the weather front, more in the way of cloud. maybe the odd showery burst ahead of the main event, trailing its way down across the irish sea. ahead of it, a bit of cloud and rain across the greater part of scotland. the front will have got through northern ireland in the first part of the day and it is heading further east. here's a bit of advice. if you are taking part orjust watching the great north run, and many thousands do, crack on. because the rain will eventually catch up with you. if you linger on the course too long, here it comes. eventually getting across the pennines in the early part of the afternoon. further south, it stays dry but increasingly cloudy across the greater part of east anglia and the south—east. following on behind the weather front, brightness coming into wales and the south—west but a great raft of showers for the greater part of scotland, northern ireland.

wherever you're watching your premier league football through the afternoon on sunday, be prepared for a little bit of rain at the very least falling from the skies. eventually the weather front pushes on its way over towards the north sea, following on behind some very tight isobars here. especially through south wales, the west country and the south—west for a time. the first part of monday, 50—60 mph gusts on what will be a blustery day. if you stay dry, you will have done very well indeed. does it last? thankfully not. the low pressure fills a little bit in and in comes another ridge of high pressure to settle things down for tuesday. i think we will see new fronts coming in from the atlantic on wednesday. so make the most of tuesday. this is bbc news.

the headlines: the most powerful storm to hit cuba in more than 80 years is moving slowly away from the island, after causing floods and widespread damage. it is likely to be several more hours until storm—force winds subside on the western end of the island. more than a million people have been moved to safety. the hurricane is heading to the us state of florida. the governor there says the south—east is already experiencing tropical—storm—force winds. water levels have already begun to rise. forecasters estimate a storm surge of up to 2.5m. more than 6 million people have been ordered to leave their homes.