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tv   BBC News  BBC News  October 11, 2017 4:00am-4:31am BST

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packing in here. south—west scotland having a wet start. pretty miserable rush hour in glasgow. rain moving across northern ireland for a time, but the wettest weather welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. my name is mike embley. our top stories: deadly wildfires rage on across the wine region region of california. at least 15 people have been killed. catalonia's president signs a declaration of independence, but the spanish government dismisses his offer of talks. fresh allegations against harvey weinsten, the hollywood producer denies claims he raped three women. it's the ultra—stinky fruit which is loved and loathed in equal measure, now scientists reveal the secret behind the durian‘s overpowering aroma. the wildfires raging across the wine region of california have left
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at least 15 people dead and destroyed hundreds of houses. 20,000 people have fled their homes, and a state of emergency has been declared. california is no stranger to wildfires but these are some of the worst on record. a combination of dry weather and strong winds are fuelling the ferocious pace of the flames. the bbc‘s dave lee is on the scene. it's the vast scale of these wildfires that's most alarming. more than 15 major blazes raging across 73,000 acres, creating an apocalyptic landscape. the conditions were perfect: dry tinder, ignited with the help of 50 mph winds. when the flames came up, we came down here, and you could not see your hand in front of your face. fire was coming up over the houses, about 100 feet, both sides of the street.
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firefighters say containment has been virtually impossible, so they have been concentrating on getting people to safety. these people in this car fleeing to escape, shocked by the mass destruction. holy moly! and in towns and cities north and south of san francisco, fires have disintegrated home. many have been left with nothing. all our pictures are gone. everything — everything is gone. we've got a fire pit. it is pretty awful. fires of this ferocity in this famous wine producing region of northern california are rare. it is not yet clear how they started. every spark‘s going to ignite a fire. so regardless of what that might be — wind can impact, downed power lines, vehicles pulling into dry grass, all those things have the potential. under these conditions, the risk is extreme of new start. it has been two days since the fire
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swept through this part of town. you can still see pockets of flame, still smouldering away. we understand there were around 30 homes in this area, and, as you can see, most of them have been completely destroyed. but some houses were, miraculously, spared. we are very lucky. ten more minutes and my house would have been gone. so as the fire department rolled up, this is where they started fighting. here and across the street. and... and they were able to save my house. others are taking refuge in a number of shelters across the region. to see the fire that close, and the popping, you know, like, it was like gunfire, explosions. just to see some of the sites that we know, you know? to know that they are no longer there, and that friends have lost their house... i suspect it is going to be years before everything gets back to, truly, a normalcy. the flames have taken almost everything they could touch — people's lives, their livelihoods, and their community.
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izzi magee was forced to flee her home in santa rosa after it was surrounded by fire on saturday. she's waiting to go back and see the damage. she joins us now via webcam from sebastapol where she's been staying with friends. and though you are waiting to see friends. you get home and about three hours after you get home what happens? 0ur landlord came running into our home and up the stairs to our room, telling us that we needed to grab everything we could right now and evacuate. that there was a fire about three miles from us. so we did just that. we grabbed our cats and very few possessions and got in our
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ca i’s very few possessions and got in our cars and started driving down the mile long private road. that's when we saw the entire sky was orange. fla mes we saw the entire sky was orange. flames everywhere and it was incredible. indescribable, really, and very hard to... to understand what was actually happening. when you have to live with that kind of urgency, so you have to live with that kind of urgency, so unexpected, and seeing the sky like that, what's going through your head? well, it's sort ofan through your head? well, it's sort of an automatic thing. you find yourself drawn to certain things and that's what you grab. you know, you hope that there be something there for you to return to and you know that you really... you don't have
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any options left. i know you live opposite a very rural area. there must have been flames all around you. people have talked about the fla mes you. people have talked about the flames moving so fast, they were jumping a—lane highways? flames moving so fast, they were jumping 4-lane highways? they did do that. i was fortunate, along with my partner, do not actually see that happening, but that definitely is exactly what happened. the fire came up exactly what happened. the fire came up over the mountains from us and passed by as and ravaged into our smalltown, crossing this huge freeway. it's very surreal. everyone iam sure freeway. it's very surreal. everyone i am sure is wishing you the best. thank you for talking to us. the catalan leader carles puigdemont
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has signed a document declaring catalonia's independence from spain. but he told the catalan parliament the effects of the declaration would be suspended to allow time for talks. he says he hopes for a negotiated solution. the spanish government has dismissed the move, but will hold an emergency cabinet meeting on wednesday to discuss the crisis. 0ur europe editor katya adler reports from barcelona. they came in hope today, in expectation and determination. thousands and thousands of them to this central barcelona square, believing they'd witness the declaration of catalan independence today. independence! "now is our time," geneve told me, "the president here has to announce an independent catalonia today." their wish for separation from spain so nearly came true when their president, inside the regional parliament,
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announced the decision by catalans in favour of independence in their recent referendum. applause this is the moment the crowd has been waiting for. catalonia has won the right to be an independent state, says their president. they believe they're witnessing the birth of the new republic of catalonia. then came the "but..." translation: the government and myself propose that this parliament suspends the effects of the independence declaration in order to establish dialogue without which we cannot reach a solution. this was the catalan president acknowledging the fact that spanish courts deemed the referendum illegal, so it hasn't been recognised by the spanish government or by catalans wanting to remain a part of spain. but disappointment amongst this pro—independence crowd was deep. translation: i'm really sad.
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we were expecting something very different. so, too little indepdence for the spanish catalans, too much for the spanish government. translation: the speech the president gave today is that of a person who doesn't know where he is, where he's going, or who he wants to go there with. the government can't accept the validity given to the catalan referendum law because it was ruled illegal by the spanish constitutional court. tonight, a roller—coaster of emotions here, including confusion. separation from spain may not be happening now, but the catalan president has simply put it on ice. the hollywood producer harvey weinstein has now been accused of sexual harassment by some
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of hollywood's biggest stars — angelina jolie and gwyneth paltrow. and the italian film star asia argento and two other women claim he raped them, according to an investigation by the new yorker magazine. weinstein was sacked by his own production company at the weekend. he has issued a statement unequivocally denying any non—consensual sex. few people have dominated hollywood quite like harvey weinstein, a movie mogul who changed the face of the film industry, but who now stands accused of abusing that power by harassing women and preying on them sexually in a modern day version of the casting couch. he could not. some of the biggest names in movies are now coming forward. gwyneth paltrow claims that when he hired her as the lead in the film, emma, he suggested they head to his bedroom for massages. she was a kid, she told the new york times,
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and was petrified. angelina jolie, who was in the weinstein movie, playing by heart, claims he made unwanted advances in a hotel room, which she rejected. in los angeles tonight, louissette geist, who was then a young actress, described pitching a film to him in 2008. when i finished my pitch, i was obviously nervous, and hejust kept asking me to watch him masturbate. i told him i was leaving. he quickly got out of the tub and grabbed my forearm, as i was trying to grab my purse, and he led me to his bathroom pleading that i just watch him masturbate. the italian model, ambra battilana gutierrez, has accused weinstein of groping her and, after complaining to police, wore a wire to capture a conversation at this manhattan hotel, in which he appeared to admit it. i'm everything, i'm a famous guy. i'm feeling very uncomfortable right now. please come in now and one minute and if you want to leave, when the guy comes with myjacket. why yesterday you
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touched my breasts? oh, please, i'm sorry, just come on in, i'm used to that. you're used to that?! please. yes, come in. in a statement from his lawyer, harvey weinstein denied accusations he'd raped three women. "any allegations of non—consexual sex are inequivocally denied by mr weinstein. "mr weinstein has further confirmed that there were never any acts of retaliation against any women for refusing his advances." leading liberals were much quicker to condemn donald trump after a tape emerged of him boasting about molesting women than the movie mogul, a major democratic fundraiser. tonight, his friend, hillary clinton, gave herfirst response, saying she was "shocked and appalled." america is a country of second chances and improbable comebacks, but given the number of women who are now coming forward, it's hard to see how harvey weinstein can ever be such a force in the movie industry again. hollywood hierarchies have been dramatically upended, the power now lies with his accusers. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: the last da vinci —
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we'll tell you about the portrait of christ that may sell for $100 million. this was a celebration by people who were relishing their freedom. they believe everything's going to be different from now on. they think their country will be respected in the world once more, as it used to be before slobodan milosevic took power. the dalai lama, the exiled spiritual leader of tibet, has won this year's nobel peace prize. as the parade was reaching its climax, two grenades exploded and a group of soldiersjumped from a military truck taking part in the parade and ran towards the president, firing from kalashnikov automatic rifles. after 437 years, the skeletal ribs of henry viii's tragic warship emerged. but even as divers work to buoy her up, the mary rose went through another heart—stopping drama. i want to be the people's governor.
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i want to represent everybody. i believe in the people of california. good to have you with us. the latest headline on bbc news: deadly wildfires continue to rage across california's famous wine region — at least 15 people have been killed. many are missing at the moment. let's get more on our top story now. peter heitz is a winemaker for turnbull wines. the family has two vineyards — one of them has had some infrastructure damage. peter also has his own vineyard. he is now at home with his family in calistoga, california. you would be fourth generation in this business. i know you are ready pretty much to leave at the moment's notice. when you look out your front
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porch, what do you see? thank you for having the, and being interested in the wine country in california. the view out the front door is of a smoky sky and, in the evening, there isa smoky sky and, in the evening, there is a glow of fires on the ridges around us. it is a bit intimidating. i don't want a overdramatise it. they're as being people that are not sitting in their home and they have lost their home of their life or their pets, their property. and we've been rather fortunate. their pets, their property. and we've been ratherfortunate. but it is of great concern. we have the car loaded up and ready to roll at any second if the fires should head our way. our kids, now young adults, with us. and i think school's cancelled, life is paused while we consider what will happen. it is unknown. you are sounding impressively calm about something that sounds pretty intimidating. so
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at the moment it is worse for people around you. what kind of tales are you hearing? well, it is an agricultural community. most of our compatriots are involved in the growing grapes and making wine. 0r, you know, leading hospitality — people come from around the world to this great brewing area, whether it is sonoma or the napa valley. it is a very cohesive group of people that have a unified goal of making fantastic wine. and providing great hospitality. so we are connected with a lot of those people. some people have lost vignettes or cellars. —— vinyards. there are stories people raising a way, trees crashing down, and people have to ta ke crashing down, and people have to take shelter in a wine cave to try to avoid the heat. so we have not
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had any of the drama ourselves. but we have heard those tales from our friends and their friends. peter, i know you say it is only wine but it matters to a lot of people around the world. just briefly, what is this doing — did many people get their harvest in already? oh, yeah. the harvest has almost tailed off. so for the projects i am involved in and for most of my compatriots we are about 95% harvested. so, you know, that is fairly fortunate. the wines that are in the tank, even though we have had spurious whether this season, not as devastating as what happened with our friends in bordeaux or in italy. we have been more lucky with that. it has still been a bit of a strange season. but even so, been a bit of a strange season. but even so, we been a bit of a strange season. but even so, we have made wines that we think have amazing freshness and great acidity and wonderful richness. we had a lot of rain last winter, about 250 centimetres, or 72
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inches for your listeners globally. and that was about two and a half times normal rainfall. i think that probably caused the fuel load that is helping these fires be so destructive today in the wild lands. that rain made for an interesting vintage. peter, everybody i am sure is wishing you and everyone all the best. thank you very much indeed for talking to us. thank you very much for having our story on your show. take care. french public sector workers have gone on strike and organised demonstrations across france to protest against president macron‘s programme of budget cuts. all unions representing public sector workers called joint strike action for the first time in a decade. they accuse the president of stigmatising state workers and favouring private business. mr macron‘s approval ratings have improved slightly after the rapid slide during the summer, but five months after this election he's still determined to prove his reforming instincts, despite the protests, as stephen sackur reports. france's pensioners are spoiling for a fight, the government has
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plans to raise the tax on their pensions in order to balance the nation's books. i think this increase of that tax is totally unfair because it's concentrated on one portion of the whole. the sign says, "look out for the teeth of the grey panthers." yeah, you're dangerous? are you angry? parisian pensioners have a reputation for being a little bit grumpy when they see things they don't like, and what they don't like right now is emmanuel macron. emmanuel macron is a young man in a big hurry. he's forced through labour reforms, he plans big cuts in the public sector. the response — protests and strikes, and a dramatic fall in his approval rating. macron knows he's in a fight. the reform agenda has
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plenty of backers. banker erich bonnet has just moved his business back to paris from london because he's convinced macron can deliver change. it wasn't a very difficult decision. thanks to macron‘s election and a much clearer direction for entrepreneurs in france, the move was, for me, natural. president macron wants to bring change to every corner of france. rhone is a country town deep in the auvergne. here they grow tobacco. right now the harvest is in full swing. the cigarette industry has been a big employer in rhone, but not any more. uk based imperial tobacco hasjust closed its factory here. 239jobs gone, and production moved to poland, where costs are lower. the redundant staff don't see macron‘s reforms working for them. in the french parliament,
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emmanuel macron‘s party has a big majority. despite the strikes and the slide in the polls, the president's team is pushing on. we are starting with tough measures because we found a budget which was really a huge problem for our country, so we had to take tough decisions. better to take them now than not to take them at all. so this change is real and it's going to be maybe brutal? no, it's not brutal, it's dynamic. his opponents accuse the new president of governing for the rich. in his drive to change france, mr macron will have to overcome a fierce current of resistance. one of nature's smelliest secrets may have been revealed, thanks to a team of durian—loving scientists in singapore.
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researchers have found an odour gene, which gives the thorny fruit its notoriously pungent scent. andrew plant reports. green and spiky on the outside, pale, soft and very smelly inside, loved and loathed in equal measure. to some, its aroma is reminiscent of fried onions and pickles, while others detect rotten eggs, rancid garlic, even decaying animals. now, a team of scientists has unlocked its secrets, its smell, they say, down to its genetic code, and sulphur compounds, which become more live as the fruit ripens. the durian is this iconic fruit in singapore and south—east asia. it's known as the king of fruits. and all of us have been fascinated since we were young about what makes the durian durian — the husk, the smell, the taste. durian has about 116,000 genes, the building blocks that make durian durian, twice the number
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we found in the human being. durian has expanded more genes related to the production of sulphur. this market in malaysia is serving fans of the fruit. durian is big business in asia. the trade in china said to be worth $800 million a year. singapore imported 23,000 tons of it last year, and they can sell for $20 each. scientist traced durian‘s evolution back 65 million years, meaning dinosaurs could once have snacked on its smelly flesh. and that could be the key to its unique aroma, the pungent smell perhaps useful for attracting wild animals, and so helping to spread its seeds far and wide. a previously lost portrait by leonardo da vinci is to go on sale in new york. it's the last one still in private hands — estimated worth around $100 million.
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but the auctioneers admit it is so rare they don't really know what it will sell for. the bbc‘s tim allman has the story. it's been described as the last da vinci. salvator mundi, saviour of the world, a portrait of christ, dating to around 1500. it was only rediscovered 12 years ago when it was sold at auction, initially believed to be a copy. the new buyers started the restoration process, and once the old paint layers began to come off the new paint layers, you could see the original quality and it was at that point that it was beginning to be understood that it really might be leonardo da vinci's lost original, which was presumed to have been destroyed. leonardo da vinci, perhaps the greatest and most important artist of all time, the creator of the mona lisa and the last supper. so what price do you put on genius? we're being a little vague — around $100 million. i mean, there's never been anything like it sold,
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so, in a way, how much it makes is really... we're not really sure. the market will decide, but it's around $100 million is an estimate. all will be revealed next month, when the auction takes place in new york. soon, the last da vinci will have a new home. still time to get in touch with your dealer, i'm sure. just briefly, the main news, the wildfires raging across california have left at least 15 dead and destroyed hundreds of houses. 20,000 people have fled their homes. a state of emergency has been declared. there are a lot of people still missing. it is thought they may possibly be in some of the many evacuation centres. much more on all of the news anytime on
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the bbc website. thank you for watching. hello there. we have a wet wednesday on the cards for some western parts of the british isles. some heavy rain, some strong winds, as well, courtesy of a slow—moving weatherfront, an area of low pressure drifting to the north—west of the british isles. this front here really dragging its heels, as it pushes its way south and east. so in some places it will rain for pretty much all day long. now, down to the south—west of england, could be some patchy rainfirst thing. but a lot of dry weather at 8:00am in the morning, and that dry theme extends further east, as well. certainly across south—east england and east anglia we'll see some spells of sunshine. fairly large areas of cloud floating around, as well. temperatures around 1a degrees. similar story for the midlands. north—east england getting off to a mainly dry start, particularly close to the east coast. similar story for northern scotland, although some hefty showers will be packing in here. south—west scotland having a wet start. pretty miserable rush hour in glasgow. rain moving across northern ireland for a time, but the wettest weather will be across north wales
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and the north—west of england. and here, with a south—westerly wind just funnelling this rain in across the same places for hour upon hour upon hour, especially over high ground, could see 50mm to 80mm of rain, maybe 100mm or more for some of the hills of cumbria. could be enough to give some issues with localised flooding, and the winds will be strong — could be gales in exposed spots. so our band of rain only slowly moving southwards and eastwards. behind it, something brighter for scotland and northern ireland, but some hefty showers, too. staying largely dry down towards the south—east, but often fairly cloudy, and temperatures 01:14 to 17 degrees. but our slow—moving weather front finally gets its act together during wednesday night, pushing off to the east. and, behind it, it'l leave largely clear skies. could be the odd fog patch here and there, and particularly in the south, where the winds fall light, it could turn a little bit chilly. some spots in the countryside maybe down to four or five degrees. thursday, then, a decent day.
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certainly a drier day for north—east england and north wales. many of us fine, with some spells of sunshine. thicker cloud, though, for northern ireland and northern and western scotland. some outbreaks of rain here later — 12—17 degrees. that cloud in the north—west will then sink its way into the picture on friday. another band of heavy rain, this one also quite slow—moving. the further south you are, though, particularly if you get some sunshine, your temperatures could get up to 20 degrees. a sign of what is to come for the weekend — warm air wafting up from the south. and, if the sun does come out, we could get to 23 degrees. but it will always be cooler, with some rain, towards the north—west. this is bbc news. the headlines: at least fifteen people are confirmed dead in wildfires in california's wine region. more than 150 others are missing — although that may be a result of the chaotic pace of evacuations. one of the worst affected towns is santa rosa where entire districts have been gutted. catalonia's president has signed a declaration of independence
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but suspended secession to give space for dialogue with spain's central government. the independence referendum was illegal under spain's constitution, and the government in madrid immediately rejected his statements. it will hold an emergency cabinet meeting on wednesday. the hollywood producer harvey weinstein has now been accused of sexual harassment by some of hollywood's biggest stars — angelina jolie, gwyneth paltrow, and mira sorvino. and the italian film star, asia argento, and two other women claim he raped them, according to an investigation by the new yorker magazine. now it's time for hardtalk.
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