this is bbc news. i'm lukwesa burak. the headlines at 5pm. a tropical storm tears through the southern philippines, triggering flash floods and landslides. more than 130 people have died and dozens are missing. london zoo is closed after a fire early this morning, leaving an aardvark dead and four meerkats missing. the zoo will reopen tomorrow. we are all really really upset by this incident, because this is one of our most loved animals in the zoo, misha — and the meerkats are also, great affection for all of us who work here. a man has appeared at york magistrates‘ court charged with the murder ofjodie willsher at an aldi supermarket in skipton. also in the next hour. the prime minister releases a christmas message for the armed forces. theresa may said british

troops were helping to combat islamic state in the middle east and in the fight against terrorism in the uk. strange lights in the sky spark fears of a ufo invasion over arizona — we'll reveal the truth about what happened in the next half hour. sir bruce forsyth, liz dawn and sir roger moore — just a few of those who left us this year, and whose lives are celebrated in review 2017: we remember — that's in half an hour. good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. in the philippines, it's reported that at least 130 people have been killed by a tropical storm. two days of heavy rain have led to flash flooding and mudslides. the rescue effort is being hampered

by roads which are blocked or have simply been washed away. a state of emergency has been declared in several areas on the worst—hit island of mindanao. howard johnson reports from the philippines capital, manila. high winds and heavy rain have been battering mindinao as tropical storm vinta makes its way across the country. local reports say a farming village on the north of the island has been entirely buried by a mudslide. flood waters also hit the war—torn city still recovering after five months of fighting between the islamic state inspired group and forces. camps and nearby towns have been destroyed. officials say evacuees have been moved to covered sports centres. the philippine national disaster council had worked pre—emptively to move residents in landslide and flood—prone areas to shelter. the priority is to try

to rescue people and take care of the evacuation. we have provided water and hot food and we will be distributing non—food items like blankets and hygiene kits for those who are in centres, to alleviate the suffering of many of the folks there. the philippines is hit by around 20 typhoons every year, bringing death and destruction to some of the poorest communities in the country. tropical storm vinta is now headed towards the popular tourist island when it is expected to intensify with winds up to 120 km/h. howard johnson, bbc news, manila in the philippines. earlier we spoke to andrew morris, the head of unicef‘s mindanao field office. he explained what is happening on the ground. typhoon vinta reached the east coast

of mindanao and gust of wind is more than 100 miles an hour, flash floods and landslides, and. bobby population in the east of mindanao seem to have been a bit better prepared, some moving into the evacuation centres, the province is north mindanao, and areas particularly affected. yesterday winds of 70—80 mph and a province is the poorest in the philippines. in the poorest in the philippines. in the past seven months there have been around 350,000 people displaced because of conflict, and 20,000 of

those living in tents for the last seven months. the priority yesterday and this morning has been to check their situation and thankfully less than 100 people had to move from their tents to alternative accommodation. there has been interruption of electricity supplies, waterfor interruption of electricity supplies, water for those displaced families is often from pumped water, and the electricity stops the pumps from working. 0ur and the electricity stops the pumps from working. our partners on the ground are trying to quickly, with the local authorities, put that right. but outside of the evacuation centres, the situation seems to be much, much worse. there are around ten municipalities very badly affected. we've seen some of the media pictures earlier. we are hoping that in the next day the water will recede very quickly. 0ver the next two days our staff and our

partners will be in those areas, looking to see what the immediate needs are. of course, in this situation there are big risks for children. risks of outbreaks of diarrhoea, waterborne diseases, the sanitation situation in those affected areas in north mindanao have been particularly bad, and this has added risks. we think that water and sanitation needs will be a particular priority. an aardvark has died and four meerkats are missing after the large fire at london zoo this morning. a number of staff were treated at the scene for smoke inhalation and shock, as it was brought under control by 70 firefighters. the zoo is one of london's busiest attractions, and was expecting tens of thousands of visitors over the christmas holiday. jane—frances kelly reports. flames could be seen from surrounding areas shortly before dawn.

a fire had broken out in the animal adventure cafe before spreading to a shop. it also affected an animal petting section. zookeepers who lived on site led animals to safety, some suffering smoke inhalation and shock. fire crews are still on the scene. shortly after 6am ten fire engines and over 70 firefighters arrived. it took over three hours to contain the flames. a man walking his dog on primrose hill said he alerted staff when he saw the flames. i went over to the security and basically had a word with them and told them there is, well, there is flames, there is smoke coming from inside, do you know anything about it? the zoo had to be closed today, disappointing hundreds of visitors. we have travelled down from nottingham today. that must be disappointing? yeah, it is a bit, but as long as the animals are ok. the zoo has said that misha the aardvark has died in the fire

and four meerkats are missing. we are absolutely devastated that misha the aardvark has been killed and we are still trying to find out what has happened to the meerkats. but at the moment the site where this fire took place is closed down. london zoo thank the fire brigade are reacting so quickly. london zoo thanked the fire brigade for reacting so quickly, preventing the fire spreading and endangering its staff and many animals. jane—frances kelly, bbc news. london zoo have said that after consultation with fire experts attending today, we are confident we can attending today, we are confident we ca n safely attending today, we are confident we can safely open the zoo tomorrow. that is christmas eve, london zoo will be open from 10am. the prime minister has paid tribute to the work of the armed forces in a

special christmas message. she banked them for their work in combating islamic state and acts of terrorism here in the uk. combating islamic state and acts of terrorism here in the uki combating islamic state and acts of terrorism here in the uk. i want to send a message of thanks to every member of our armed forces and your families, wherever you are in the world this christmas. earlier this yeari world this christmas. earlier this year ijoined the centenary commemoration for the battle of passchendaele. gathered in flanders, we remembered the hundreds of thousands of young men who gave their lives on that battlefield in their lives on that battlefield in the cause of freedom. through a sentry of great change since, the high standards and devotion to duty of our armed forces have remained co nsta nt. of our armed forces have remained constant. today, as we face new threats, your work continues to make the world a safer place. i saw that first hand this month in iraqi, when i met british soldiers training and supporting the iraqi security forces as they fight against daesh. thanks

to their efforts and the skill of the royal air force, daesh no longer hold significant territory in iraqi 01’ hold significant territory in iraqi or syria. and a betterfuture is in prospect for that region. in the caribbean, the royal navy supported by the other services brought disaster relief to those suffering in the wake of hurricane irma. twice this year, after acts of terrorism here at home, we deployed troops on the streets of the uk to help keep us the streets of the uk to help keep us safe. whenever you were called upon, regulars 01’ us safe. whenever you were called upon, regulars or reserves, you a lwa ys upon, regulars or reserves, you always give of your best and inspire us all with your service. the enormous debt we owe to our armed forces and veterans is enshrined in the military covenant, and the cove na nt the military covenant, and the covenant also recognises that your achievements made possible by the love and support your families. partners and children are often called on to make huge sacrifices of

their own, from a change of school orjob to coping with extended periods of separation. that separation is especially difficult at christmas time, and we should all be immensely grateful for that sacrifice. at the passchendaele memorial service thisjuly, those gathered signed the ypres hymn 0 valiant hearts. this christmas, as people across the uk celebrate this special time of year with their families and friends, we will do so secure in the knowledge that the valiant heart of our servicemen and women, many far away from their own loved ones at this special time of year, are working to keep us safe. thank you all for your service, and i wish you a very happy christmas. sport now, and a full round—up from the bbc sport centre. lots of football today. manchester

city 14 lots of football today. manchester city 1a points clear at the top of the premier league after they beat bournemouth 4—0 at the etihad stadium. sergio aguero scored twice, raheem sterling also on the scoresheet. city have won 17 matches ina row scoresheet. city have won 17 matches in a row in the league. manchester united play a bit later. in the early lunchtime kick—off that plays chelsea missed out on the chance to draw level with united in second after they were held to a goalless draw by everton. newcastle united are out of the bottom three, they beat... at the london stadium. they are now one point above the relegation zone. christian atsu scored what proved to be the winning golf in newcastle. the pressure it has eased a bit and mark hughes at stoke. they beat west brom 3—1. joe allen... west brom remained in the

relegation zone, they haven't won in the league since august. celtic are eight points clear in the scottish premiership after beating aberdeen 3—0. rangers could have jumped up to second but they let a 1-0 jumped up to second but they let a 1—0 lead slip at kilmarnock. kris boyd scored twice in three minutes to give kilmarnock that 2—1 win. barcelona are now nine points clear at the top of the spanish la liga after a convincing 3—0 win away at real madrid in el clasico.

after dani carvahal was sent—off for handling the ball on the line and the win was completed in the closing stages. messi on hand to set up alex vida. real are now 1a points behind their bitter rivals. there are four matches in rugby union's premiership today. champions and league leaders exeter beat northampton 35—14 at franklin's gardens, in the saints' first premiership match since the sacking of director of rugbyjim mallinder. exeter‘s will chudley opened the scoring with the best try of the match in the first half. sam simmonds, thomas waldrom and jack yeandle also scored to seal a bonus point win and put exeter 11 points clear at the top. the british sprinter, nigel levine, has failed a drugs test.

he's alleged to have tested positive for the banned asthma drug, clenbuterol, levine won gold at the european championships three years ago, as part of the 400—metre relay team, he is also a european indoor gold medallist. he broke his pelvis in a motorbike crash injanuary and although he's returned to training, he hasn't competed since. the england wicketkeeper jonny ba i rstow has the england wicketkeeper jonny bairstow has defended his captain joe root after comments made by the former australian skipper ricky ponting. he said joe root looks like a little boy and had been a bit soft during the ashes. look, everyone is going to have an opinion and that's all well and good. i thinkjoe root is doing a really good job as captain. i think the tactics he has shown that the ball has been really good and i think he'll only learn by doing it. that's saw the sport.

don't forget sportsday is at 6:30pm with all the reaction from today's football. the headlines on bbc news. a tropical storm tears through the southern philippines, triggering flash floods and landslides. more than 130 people have died. london zoo is closed after a fire early this morning, leaving an aardvark dead and four meerkats missing. the zoo will reopen tomorrow. the prime minister pays tribute to britain's armed forces at home and abroad ina britain's armed forces at home and abroad in a christmas message. a man has appeared in court charged with the murder of a woman working at an aldi supermarket in north yorkshire. neville hord, who's 44, was remanded in custody by magistrates in york. jodie willsher was stabbed to death in skipton on thursday. 0ur correspondent, sarah walton, sent this report. arriving at york magistrates‘ court, 44—year—old neville hord appeared in the dock charged with murder.

he's accused of attacking 30—year—old jodie willsher at the aldi store in skipton where she was working on thursday afternoon. she suffered serious injuries and died in the store. there were no relatives in court for the hearing this morning and mr hord, dressed in a blue t—shirt and grey shorts, spoke only to confirm his name, age and address. he didn't enter a plea and was remanded in custody. at the store where mrs willsher worked, colleagues have described her as much—loved and popular. and in a statement her husband malcolm said she was a doting mother and loving wife. mr hord will next appear at leeds crown court on 28th december. sarah walton, bbc news, york. california's deadly wildfire has now become the largest in the state's recorded history. the blaze, which has been burning for more than two weeks, has stretched over more than 600 square miles, an area greater than new york city, brussels and paris combined.

more than 8,000 firefighters have been tackling the flames — among them thousands of prisoners, as our correspondent, james cook, explains. it's pretty challenging. sometimes we're right there, right next to the fire. compared to being in prison and being here, it's completely different. here you feel free. you're out in the world. the biggest change for me is mental, because i've never pushed myself as hard, ever in life. california has 4,000 inmate firefighters, men and women. cutting firebreaks is risky work, two have died this year. but there are rewards too in reduced sentences and a sense of purpose. after being in this programme, ifeel like i've been rehabilitated

and ifeel like i can go out there and achieve anything i want to because i've done this. this is so hard. we were allowed inside this prison camp in malibu. there are no walls or fences here. violent or volatile prisoners are not allowed to join the programme. with a job like this, there is only time to think about the work. latoya najar is serving four years for causing the death of her seven—year—old son in a drunken car crash. the attraction for me was because of my crime, i could come out here and do something positive. it's challenging mentally to get over something. i'm never going to get over it, but to try to ease my mind and this has helped. with california facing more frequent and more destructive fires, some critics call this slave labour. but the project is voluntary, it may reduce re—offending and it provides some measure of redemption.

everyone is like, "we love you firefighters." we all wave back and we wave to the kids. it's amazing, yes. the work may be exhausting, it may be dangerous, but in the words of one prisoner, "it's better than twiddling yourthumbs injail." james cook, bbc news, in southern california. a former us marine has been charged with planning to carry out a terrorist attack at a busy tourist area in san francisco over christmas. everitt jameson is said to have revealed his plans to an undercover agent, thinking he was a leading member of the islamic state group. he denies the allegations. the transport secretary, chris grayling, says the government is consulting on a new system of road charging for heavy goods lorries. speaking on radio 4's today programme, he said both british and international hauliers will pay

towards the upkeep of the road network. it's about a critical level playing field for lorries, our hauliers will complain that continental traffic comes in with a tank full of lower duty diesel, spends several days working in the country, goes away again and pays nothing towards the use of the roads. we already have a system in place that provides limited contributions, we are now consulting the industries. if we were to move away from different types of tax on hauliers and move to a pay—per—use system so that everybody, british, international, contributes to roads, do you think that is a good idea. the government is also starting a 12 week consultation on which key a roads in england will benefit from new funding. the roads will be eligible for money under the new roads fund, as our business correspondent jonty bloom reports. many a—roads around the country are run and maintained by local councils, even when they're important parts of the nation's infrastructure. but the government is aiming

to change that by providing money for improvements from a new central fund. that will be paid for with money raised from vehicle excise duty, improve thousands of miles of a—roads, and provide up to £100 million for each major new scheme such as road junctions, more dual carriageways and improved safety. this is typically all about bypasses for small towns where they have got an a—road going through the middle, lots of heavy lorries and it gets congested, lots of pollution, everyone says there needs to be a bypass — this is about making sure those bypasses can be delivered. it is important for regional connections, it's important for new housing but it's also important to make life better for the people who live on those roads. the plan is that by providing central government money, regions of england will be able to cut congestion, remove bottlenecks and boost economic growth. but critics say that the money would be better spent maintaining the current road network and improving public transport. forgetting to turn on the oven to cook the christmas turkey

could be a sign of early dementia in a loved one. it's one of several pointers outlined by nhs england's top expert in dementia, who's calling on families to look for signs of the condition in loved ones as we all come together at christmas. professor alistair burns has listed a number of indicators that relatives can look out for. he says christmas is a good time to spot any changes in a loved one. christmas is a good time because those changes caused by dementia are gradual. if you haven't seen someone for several months that change can be apparent. it's a good chance to talk about concerns and worries. the other thing is we tend to do the same things at christmas. getting

presents, doing the dinner, watching the queen ‘s speech. to compare what things were like a year or two years ago can bring to the fore. earlier i spoke to kathryn smith about the signs of dementia. when you have not seen a loved one for a while and then you see them. they might not recognise a room or keep repeating themselves because they forgotten what they've just said. ithink they forgotten what they've just said. i think the example about whether you've forgotten to switch the turkey and can happen to the best of us. if that happens to someone who is organised, all of those things put together can perhaps give you some cause for concern. how do you distinguish between a form of dementia that is

developing and ageing?” between a form of dementia that is developing and ageing? i think everybody has moments where they might forget things. people tend to forget things as they get older. dementia is a disease of the brain and affects our memory, emotions and behaviour more significantly than an occasional moment of forgetfulness. if someone seems occasional moment of forgetfulness. if someone seems more occasional moment of forgetfulness. if someone seems more concerned by usual routine, if somebody is not necessarily recognising a room never mind wondering why they went into a room, if they are not recognising memories and macro members of the family, particularly younger members of the family. like you said, if they might be the worlds best cook and have forgotten to put turkey on, that might be a concern. if they don't usually cook i wouldn't worry about that. you are looking for things that are different for that person and more consistent and more often. it's not about the tip of

your tongue moment or i know your name itjust your tongue moment or i know your name it just won't your tongue moment or i know your name itjust won't come to me, it's almost that they've drawn a blank on who you might be. some unexpectedly bright flashing lights lit up the sky over phoenix in arizona on friday evening, leading some people to fear ufos might be taking to the night. but while the real cause wasn't little green men, it was linked to space. take a look at this. spooky music. breaking news. it's been reported by the press association that a star of the press association that a star of the programme gogglebox has died at the programme gogglebox has died at the age of 8a. he is seen along with

his wife june. goggle the age of 8a. he is seen along with his wifejune. goggle box star has died at the age of 83. now the weather. hello, we have a mild night ahead. while much of the uk will be dried as a band of wet weather pushing further south across scotland. and northwards back across scotla nd scotland. and northwards back across scotland where it clears for a fewer hours as we go through the night. a bit of drizzle elsewhere across england and wales where the cloud is thick enough. hill fog around. the cold est thick enough. hill fog around. the coldest spots may be single figures. it is frost free. into christmas eve the rain begins the day across the northern half of scotland, spreading southwards again meaning several hours of heavy rain running into western scotland, turning white across northern ireland. the heavy rain pushing into cumbria. south of that a few sunny spells but expect a

good deal of cloud. brighter breaks into northern scotland as well. on christmas day that band of wet weather still around. mile to the south, turning colder in the north. hello, this is bbc news. our latest headlines: a devastating tropical storm has torn through the southern philippines, triggering flash floods and landslides. more than 130 people are known to have died. london zoo is closed until tomorrow following a large fire. an aardvark was killed and four meerkat are missing. the zoo's director general said staff were in shock. theresa may has released christmas message