this is bbc news. i'm annita mcveigh. the headlines at 2pm — hurricane irma slams into the florida keys with winds up to 130 miles per hour. over six million people have been ordered to leave their homes as the storm inches closer to the mainland. we do have a lot of power lines down, transformers are exploding causing minorfires. as hurricane irma moves into the gulf, it could still push a catastrophic wall of water inland, exacerbating this deadly storm surge we are all talking about. this is the scene live in miami, described asa the scene live in miami, described as a ghost town, as the storm approaches. overnight cuba has been battered — there's been significant damage as the recovery process begins. in other news — officials in mexico say at least 90 people

are now known to have died in thursday's earthquake. a bbc investigation has discovered that the bodies of more than 400 children could be buried in a mass grave close to an orphanage in lanarkshire. and certain mo farah becomes the first athlete to win the great north run four times in a row. good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. after battering its way through the caribbean, hurricane irma — currently a category 4 storm — has slammed into the lower florida keys, lashing the island chain with winds up to 130 miles per hour. the hurricane made landfall in cuba late on friday. it engulfed villages, causing

widespread damage and leaving whole communities homeless. the eye of the storm has now reached the florida keys, bringing winds that are expected to last in the next few hours. the storm is expected to move north to mainland florida and hundreds of millions of homes are reported to be without power and hundreds of people have taken refuge in shelters. hurricane irma is bearing down on the sunshine state, these seems an indication of what is to come. power outage is widespread and roads flooded. for those who haven't been able to leave, time has run out. we're talking about wind gusts over

100 miles an hour. these kinds of winds can do tremendous damage to homes, groups, trees and power lines. the other deadly risk we have is storm surge flooding. most people who die in hurricanes do so from drowning in the storm surge. the people of cuba are already starting to count the cost of hurricane irma which battered the island for hours before finally moving north. now a popular holiday destination, thousands of british tourists are currently stranded with the airport closed. 0perators have been criticised for not doing enough to help. it's a very unpredictable scenario, some of the airports are still closed so we are having to ta ke still closed so we are having to take each day as it comes. the next 24 hours for us are about looking after the welfare of our customers in cuba and making sure our customers in florida are prepared

for the next 24 hours. the hurricane weakened slightly as it passed over cuba but has strengthened once again on its approach to florida. british airways say it is in contact with its holiday—makers and sending a plane to the region to pick up passengers as soon as it is safe to do so. that may not be for some time. thousands of florida residents are packed into mass shelters. 6 million people in all were advised to leave, making this one of the biggest mass evacuations in the us's history. and this is why, these pictures show what is left of some of the caribbean island already hit by the hurricane. its destructive power all too clear. sarah campbell, bbc news. bbc weather presenter tomasz schafernaker is in the tampa bay area in florida which is expected to feel the full force in the next few hours. how are things over there? we are fine. the weather

is certainly not, it is going downhill. i'm sure you can see it is raining, the winds are starting to pick up as well. we are en route to our shelter which is a hotel in the tampa bay area. this area is at risk of at least some parts, being flooded by the storm surge. the eye of the storm is battering the keys but the storm is still some 200 250 miles to the south of us. the eye of the storm is with the worst of the winds and rain is. that area travel is relatively slowly, around ten or 15 miles an hour. if it is around 250 miles south of us, you can imagine it will take all day before

tampa bay feels the full force of this storm. not many people on the roads. we are heading to a safe place and it does look as though many people have heeded the warnings. we have travelled throughout florida reporting on this in the last day and most of the people we have come across have left their properties and headed to shelters and we're hearing stories of so many people moving out of state. thank you. let's head to miami,jane 0'brien is state. thank you. let's head to miami, jane 0'brien is over there for us. we are told miami is now potentially going to be spared a direct hit from irma but clearly, evenif direct hit from irma but clearly, even if you are not in its direct path, the conditions are still awful. this is a really dangerous situation because we are experiencing hurricane force winds

and we will probably have to make the short because we now have debris flying around. we also have these potential rains which are causing flood warnings across this region. that's on top of the deadly storm surge that is almost certainly going to happen as the hurricane pushes water inland. we are being told that this is a very dangerous situation, anybody who thinks miami is spared and wants to come back at this point, is making a big mistake. authorities are telling people to stay away. even though we are skirting the eye of the hurricane, the storm is so big that nobody in florida is being spared its wrath. at the moment, it's over the florida keys which is where we are looking for information at the moment but it is hard to come by because it is difficult to find out exactly what is happening. we need to let you go, do take care. making it clear that

although reports are saying miami will not take a direct hit, even if you are not directly in the path of this hurricane, neither seed of side of it, the wind potential and storm surges are huge and potentially lethal. while hurricane irma causes destruction, one team in the sky flies right through the heart of the storm providing valuable information which helps forecasters predict where it might go. the hurricane hunters are heading out on another 12 hour mission, right into the heart of the hurricane. these edfors reserve this is all have dayjobs and they risk their lives to help save lives on their lives to help save lives on the ground. steve is one of the pilots tonight. the more times we pass through the eye wall, the

better they can tell where the storm is moving. that doesn't mean it is the centre of the storm, that zero wind spot can be 20 or 30 miles towards one side or the other of the eye. this is one of the piece of kit they used to measure the hurricane, onceit they used to measure the hurricane, once it is out of the plane, it parachutes down to the sea, sending back data which then goes straight to the national hurricane centre, plotting irma's progress. it has been very big for a very long time. it's horrible, some of the images we have seen. after some negotiation with the cu ban have seen. after some negotiation with the cuban authorities about their airspace, we get permission for one more pass through the eye. it provide crucial information. we are now right in the eye of hurricane irma. doing a final pass

through the storm. the storm has definitely pivoted to the north as eve ryo ne definitely pivoted to the north as everyone predicted. as we turn for home, there is a sense of a good job well done. more information gathered for people on the ground to help them avoid the worst irma can offer. studio: we'rejust them avoid the worst irma can offer. studio: we're just hearing that the westward movement of irma is going to be the worst case scenario for some florida counties. it doesn't say which ones but the worst case scenario being predicted now for some of florida's westward counties. let's go now to mark robinson, a major religious and storm chaser for the weather network, following hurricane irma in south tampa on florida's gulf coast. that is on the

west, yes? it is. it is quite interesting, i will show you a little bit. we are getting one of the outer bands, quite literally right now, look at the winds on the water. a tremendous amount of rain falling right now so this outer band, this is just falling right now so this outer band, this isjust a falling right now so this outer band, this is just a taste of what the hurricane can do and what it will do as it gets closer. when you hear that warning that it is predicting a worst—case scenario for some of the western counties of florida, that's a pretty scary prospect when we have seen images of irma as it makes its way to the caribbean and now into the keys? that's one of the big problems. with this area, this area is very low and the storms come in quite spectacularly. we might see it potentially four metres of storm

surge are probably pretty excessive but i expect maybe a couple metres here. i will take you over here. look at what you are looking at, all of those boats, millions of dollars in boats and that will all get ripped away from their moorings and potentially deposited over there. this is one of my big worry is because those battering rams literally will hit the structures back there. we're hoping we don't get too much of a surge. is pretty deserted over there? it is not and that got me really worried. there area that got me really worried. there are a lot of cars around. people are saying they are going to withstand it and shelter which is not a bad idea but some people are staying in those buildings. winds over 200 kilometres an hour and those windows. to come out which does worry me a bit. where are you going

to be yourself as the hurricane makes its way to where you are? one of the things storm chasers do is get into parking lots, one of the safest things you can do. a couple of stories up, you are above the storm sturge and protected from flying debris. i suspect we may be talking to you again. stay safe in the meantime. earlier, my colleague ben brown spoke to major richard ra nt ben brown spoke to major richard rant from the miami beach police department tugade is an update on the current situation in the city. the storm keeps getting worse and worse and closer and closer. it has gone eastward slightly. we do have a lot of power lines down, transformers that are exploding, causing minorfires. transformers that are exploding, causing minor fires. unfortunately

when the winds get to 40 miles an hour, we can't send emergency services out there. it's important people stay in their homes and not venture outside because it is just not safe. how many people do you think have left the whole area, left the city? and how many people have sustained? it's a very eerie feeling. i have been here for about ten minutes and not one car has passed by. this is one of our main roads in our city. this is a city of about 60,000 people. a very eerie feeling. most people i think have definitely listen to the evacuation. i think bias getting out in front of this and telling people how dangerous this storm is, people are taking it seriously. the rest of florida, we gather it is already hitting the florida keys and we have just heard one person has died in a

pick—up truck crash caused by the hurricane in florida keys so obviously they are taking the brunt of it right now. yes, and it's moving north so conditions willjust get worse for us in north miami beach. we are about three and a half hours from key west and as the storm moves north, it will bring with it some ferocious winds and we are expecting a lot of trees down and power lines down, about 20 minutes ago, we had a massive power loss. the emergency operations centre, that was, that was very concerning but we are back up and running on generators right now. we are taking it minute by minute as everyone else should be and everyone should be hunted down listing to whatever source of news they have. as you we re source of news they have. as you were saying, once the winds reached a certain strength, it is not safe for your officers to go out on the streets, even though they might want help people. one of the worst things

that can happen for police officers, for them to rush to an emergency when conditions are not safe. now we have an emergency when one of our officers has been involved in an accident. in between the squalls, we're watching the winds very closely and monitoring them, when we can get emergency personnel out, we are sending them out as soon as possible. one of the biggest concerns at times like this is people coming in and committing crimes, breaking into houses and ca rs crimes, breaking into houses and cars andi crimes, breaking into houses and cars and i can tell you, we are trying to stay positioned in areas of the city that we can respond quickly, appropriately, in time to save lives and protect property. meanwhile cuba is counting the cost after the storm battered its north coast. the government says it caused significant damage and cut off power to large areas. more than a million cubans were evacuated and there are reports of villages being engulfed by storm surges, with whole communities left homeless.

our correspondent, will grant, is in cuba's capital, havana. he's been assessing how the country has been coping. well, it has been an extraordinary experience being in cuba during hurricane irma and now it is reaching, it has reached havana. this is the bbc havana bureau and i'm speaking from inside because we simply can't go outside any longer. we're boarding in the building. miraculously we still have electricity but much of the rest of the building does not have that. as you can see behind me, the window is flexing with the winds that are buffeting the city and it is raining very, very hard out there. that, of course, is nothing in comparison to what cubans further east on the island have already experienced. these are just the last vestiges, really, of hurricane irma as she moves out of cuban territory and into clear water between cuba

and the united states before making landfall in florida. but we are still feeling the effects of the sheer magnitude of this storm. out east along the northern coastal zone, whole villages were hit very hard by the storm. we understand that some were largely submerged under water. others have had roofs ripped off. scores of houses, and a lot of the roughly one million people who were evacuated from the area may have no homes to go to. for now, from here in bbc havana bureau, it feels really like the time to hunker down, batten down the hatches and wait out the remnants of this massive storm. ben rich is here to tell us more about what to expect in the come

coming hours from irma. the south—east usa has been keeping an eye on the storm for many days. consider how far this hurricane has come. it has drifted westward right across the caribbean, over extremely warm seas and that has energised it, a huge amount of energy in this storm which is now being unleashed, as we have seen from the pictures across parts of florida. you can see the storm on the satellite picture, the storm on the satellite picture, the eye of the storm now drifting very close to the florida keys. the eye of the storm has very light winds, it is around the edge of the item we are seeing sustained and steady winds, around 130 mph, within this category four hurricane. the effects will be many and will be significant. we will see those sustained winds which will cause major damage. also heavy rain, a storm surge potentially some tornadoes as well. the real set of

impacts that will cause some big problems across florida. this storm is moving very slowly. only eight miles per hour. it will take some time for this storm to drift its way across the west coast of florida, unleashing those heavy rains, 500 millimetres in places. those damaging winds and a storm surge which could inundate coastal areas. this story is far from done, hurricane irma will continue to cause major problems and we will continue to keep you up—to—date in the hours ahead. we will just show you we willjust show you some live pictures from miami and you can see how the winds whipping those palm trees around. a lot of water on the ground. you've got to remember that forecasters are saying miami will now potentially be spared, in inverted commas, a direct hit, from

irma but that is not to underestimate quite how dangerous it is even if you are not in its direct path or being hit by the eye of this hurricane. the federal emergency management agency, they have just issued a warning in the last few minutes saying the westward movement of irma is the worst case scenario for some florida counties. it's not specifying which counties those are. but the worst case scenario for the west of florida, the governor of the state, rick scott has also reiterated he is very concerned about the west coast of florida, saying president trump has pledged whatever resources florida needs to rebuild after irma. and there is plenty more on hurricane irma on our website — bbc.co.uk/news.

officials in mexico say at least 90 people are now known to have died on thursday's earthquake, the stronger as the country has seen in the century. more than 70 people have been killed in a south—west state and hundreds of families have reportedly been camping in the streets, afraid of the dangers of after—shocks. clearing the rubble injuchitan in southern mexico, the town worst hit by thursday's earthquake. rescuers have told the bbc they don't believe there is anyone left under the 7,000 buildings that collapsed here. and while the machines, men and sniffer dogs continue their work, others continue to bury their dead. at least 36 people are reported to have been killed here. among them, this man's son.

translation: he didn't have time to get out and the building completely collapsed. it was very old, over 200 years old, and unfortunately out of the seven people who were inside, only four were able to be rescued. the other three unfortunately died. tabasco, chiapas and oaxaca states are among mexico's poorest and least developed. the earthquake that hit them was the most powerful anywhere in the world since 2015. 8.1 in magnitude. tremors were felt in mexico city, some 500 miles away. the earthquake was deep so the shaking felt on the surface was less strong than it would have been for a shallower one. that's little comfort for these people picking up the pieces in juchitan. one in three houses are affected and thousands of families have lost their homes. food and water are scarce and parts of the city don't have electricity. the hundreds of after—shocks felt since thursday have left people fearful. translation: a lot

of people are sleeping on the streets because they fear another quake, because they fear the after—shocks that have been happening continuously, and it's a very ugly fear that we're experiencing. the authorities say tens of thousands of ration packs, blankets and cleaning kits are arriving to help the recovery efforts, but for the homeless and bereaved of southern mexico, it is help that can't come soon enough and will only be the first step in rebuilding their lives. aaron safir, bbc news. rohingya muslim rebels in my unmarked have declared a unilateral one—month ceasefire saying they want to ease the humanitarian crisis in the country. rebel attacks on security forces triggered a two—week military campaign during which nearly 300,000 rohingyas fled to neighbouring bangladesh. soldiers

have been accused of carrying out killings and burning villages. tony blair calling for tougher immigration rules other way to cut numbers without the need for brexit. he is proposing the eu nationals should have a job if they want to live in the uk and that those without work should be barred from renting property or receiving benefits. critics have pointed out that it was his labour government but decided not to impose restrictions on immigration when eight eastern european countries joined the eu in 2004. eight eastern european countries joined the eu in 2004]: eight eastern european countries joined the eu in 2004. i am trying to have the contented look at immigration, which means you don't have to do brexit and then you can concentrate on non—eu immigration which i think is a bigger concern for most people. two of the five men arrested as part of an investigation into the far—right group, national action, have been released without charge. on tuesday, the five — which included four serving soldiers — were detained in a joint operation involving the police and the army. national action was banned after a white supremacist

murdered the labour mp, jo cox. a bbc investigation has discovered that the bodies of more than 400 children could be buried in a mass grave close to an orphanage in lanarkshire. the children were residents of a care home run by catholic nuns until it closed in 1981. our social affairs corresponded michael buchanan reports. this is a roman catholic cemetery in lanark, small and well kept, in the far corner, a mass grave. an investigation has found at least 400 children are believed to be buried here, most died of natural causes like tv and pneumonia in a nearby ca re like tv and pneumonia in a nearby care home. francis mccaul was staying at the home when he died in 1961, aged 13. we're told his brother eddie was told his brother

was one of the 400 children in the grave. i was thought there were at least 120. terrible. the care home closed in 1981 it had been opened for 117 years. in 2004, the nuns who ran it acknowledged some of the children had been buried at st mary is that the records were not good enough to say how many. these death records with acute revealing what happened. once we found out who had died here, we could start asking where they had all been buried. the more we asked that question, the more we asked that question, the more we asked that question, the more we were astonished to be told there was virtually no burial records for any names on that list. the daughters of charity didn't comment on the findings. they said the online scottish child abuse enquiry was the most appropriate way to investigate the care home. it is almost 2:20pm. the weather

forecast in the moment but first, mo farah has won the great north run for a record fourth year in a row. he beat jake robinson for a record fourth year in a row. he beatjake robinson in a tight race. he said the race which isjust over 13 miles, had been tough. it was definitely telling, four miles to go, i was hanging on and gritting my teeth. i managed to believe in myself and dig deep and i was thinking, if i could just sit on him at the end, i could sprint. congratulations. time now for the weather with ben rich. back home things are quieter. but some hefty downpours this afternoon. drifting southwards and eastwards through the night, alone in on a strong and blustery wind. coastal

parts of wales seeing gusts of winds and the south—west also. scotland could turn chilly but generally speaking, temperatures holding up. tomorrow, the winds could cause travel problems particularly across the south—west and wales but gusty as well. coupled with heavy and thundery showers which could crop up anywhere through the date but there will be some spells of sunshine. the winds coming from a north—westerly direction, quite a cool feel. further ahead, a slightly drier day on tuesday, very windy tuesday night, sunshine and showers on wednesday. hello.

this is bbc news. the headlines at 2.30pm: hurricane irma slams into the florida keys with winds up to 130 miles per hour. more than 6 million people have been ordered to leave their homes as the storm inches closer to the mainland. the hurricane is predicted to create a catastrophic storm surge, which could be up to 15 feet high in places. we have these torrential rains which are causing flood warnings across this region. that's on top of the deadly storm surge that is almost certainly going to happen. cuba was battered overnight. there's been "significant damage" as the recovery process begins.