this is bbc news, the headlines at 7pm. six people have died after a seaplane crashed into a river in australia — it's thought four of the victims may be british. the plane has hit the water and it has subsequently sunk. it is sitting in approximately 13 metres of water. a major fire at the liverpool echo arena multistorey car park — police say a number of vehicles are on fire and traffic restrictions are in place. fireworks and festivities usher in the new year — hong kong welcomed in 2018 with a spectacular display above victoria harbour. iran imposes restrictions on social media and uses watercannon to disperse protesters — as demonstrations against the ruling clerics continue. thousands of rail travellers have faced new years eve disruption as workers from two train companies stage 24—hour strikes. manchester city's 18 match winning run comes to an end

after they were held to a goalless draw by crystal palace. good evening and welcome to bbc news. a majorfire has been reported at the liverpool echo arena multistorey car park. the arena is currently staging the international horse of the year show and the horses have been moved inside the venue for safety. how correspondent has been following the story, steve, what more can you tell us? at around 4:45pm, initially a small blaze in a multistorey car park that is now burning out of

control. several levels are now on fire. we understand that the animals that widget to take part in the international horse of the year show that has taking place at the arena in itself has been moved inside for safety. this afternoon's performance was cancelled and it is looking likely that this evening's concept has also been cancelled. we are told that there is around 150 cars inside this multistorey car park. thick lack smoke can be seen pouring from the area. merseyside fire service are sending 12 fire engines to the scene, declaring it a major incident. the city mayor of these liverpool, joe anderson, says that he and stand everyone is safe and accounted for and no animals have been hurt. the real problem is now up been hurt. the real problem is now up at 150 cars inside this multistorey car park. visitors to the show mainly, who are being told to go away and come back tomorrow and try and receive your car and pick up yourcar and try and receive your car and pick up your car if it is still there to be picked up. there are

several cars involved in this place inside, there are a number of nearby apartment blocks are evacuated due to the intensity of the flames coming from a multistorey car park. this started at a:45pm this evening, at kings dock car park, that is the car park that is right next to liverpool echo arena. steve, the arena is clearly a major venue in liverpool, how many people will have been at this event? gives some idea of the scale. this is a major arena holding 50 to 60,000 people. the liverpool international horse show is always very popular with thousands of people coming to visit. the real issue tonight is that people are being told to come home and come back tomorrow to see if their car has survived, it is an issue of hiding somewhere to stay and also getting home. they have been inviting people to use public transport to get time, but there is a strike in operation on the rail services today, making that a real issue for people to get home. many

thanks for that update. we will no doubt be coming back to you for more later on leaving. 0n the line is 0lly harrison, who is at the scene of the fire. i think you had a car in the car park when this incident happened, what happened ? park when this incident happened, what happened? no, no. iwas about to trade in the car park and they stopped me saying that there on fire so stopped me saying that there on fire so you better not that going. so we turned around and went to another car park. as we got out of the car we could smell smoke and then within assuming it's the fire brigade arrived. we were lucky that we did not go into the car park. yes, you really were. what will you able to see? at first it was white smoke and then there were banks and explosions, presumably tires or petrol tanks or whatever. and then the smoke died down originally at first when the fire brigade first turned up, but then about 20 minutes later it got worse and now it has taken hold later it got worse and now it has ta ken hold obviously. later it got worse and now it has taken hold obviously. i am out of the town centre now because it was getting a bit chaotic as people are

leaving the building. when you say chaotic, that is because people which rang to leave, try to get to their cars, what was going on? what has happened was that i think there we re has happened was that i think there were two different events at the show, there were people leaving from the afternoon one. their cars were in the car park and the security would not let anyone go near it. people would say that the cars are in there, and they said they can go on. said they were panicking and did not know what to do. so, that was the problem, really. there weren't many the problem, really. there weren't any the problem, really. there weren't many many cars that survive, now i would not have thought. of course. and liverpool echo arena is a major venue, they been a lot of people there? yeah, i think this was the first time they have done this event for new year's eve, i'm devastated for new year's eve, i'm devastated for them because it took some organising and now they have to get eve ryo ne organising and now they have to get everyone to leave safely. and cancelled the evening, the new year's eve celebrations. i think they had all sorts planned, as well. so... but we were supposed to be in

there, but never mind. indeed, you are safe, which is the most important thing. thank you for joining us. a seaplane has crashed into a river near sydney, killing all six people on board. reports suggest four of those who've died are british, although this hasn't been confirmed by the police. the foreign office here is in contact with officials in australia. the aircraft, which was on a sightseeing trip in advance of the new year celebrations, came down in a river, close to the suburb of cowan. phil mercer reports from sydney. the seaplane crashed intojerusalem bay near the town of cowan. on board were five passengers and the pilot. the single—engine aircraft is thought to have sunk rapidly. a witness said it had made a tight right—hand turn and then nosedived into the hawkesbury river. a full—scale search was $0011 under way. there were no survivors. police divers have

found the six bodies. the wreckage of the plane remains in more than a0 feet of water. the authorities say a full investigation will take place. i cannot confirm the identity or ages of the people who were on the plane. we are... it is early in the investigation, and we are working with the plane company, getting investigators here to confirm the identities and investigate why the plane crashed into the water. the seaplane was returning from a waterfront restaurant to rose bay on sydney harbour. it's a journey that would normally take around 20 minutes. the aircraft is owned by sydney seaplanes. it provides flights around some of the city's most popular tourist attractions, including the opera house, the harbour bridge, and to the north the hawkesbury river. the company said in a statement that its pilots are some of the most experienced in the world and that

all its flights had been suspended until further notice. air—crash investigators will arrive at the site of the accident early on new year's day to try to establish how and why a routine sightseeing flight could end in catastrophe. phil mercer, bbc news, sydney. disruption is continuing for thousands of rail travellers as workers from two train companies stage 24—hour strikes. members of the rmt union on south western railway and crosscountry are taking action in disputes involving the role of guards, and rosters and sunday working. when the corresponding is at uk's busiest station, london's waterloo. this is the country's busiest station, and not far from this is the country's busiest station, and not farfrom london's big fireworks display for new year's eve this evening. we have been in

and out and have checked on things and out and have checked on things and there have been a few cancellations, but there are posters up cancellations, but there are posters up warning that strike action is taking effect, and they believe it will get really busy this evening. indeed, south—western railway, which operates a number of services, including two hampshire, surrey and berkshire, it says that there are reduced services running and they believe a quarter of trains would be running at all. it is notjust here that it running at all. it is notjust here thatitis running at all. it is notjust here that it is likely to be disruption this evening. indeed, cross—country services are also affected because of industrial action. that means services between newcastle and edinburgh are affected, reduced services there. and also glasgow and aberdeen, it is affected between those two cities. members of the rmt union are striking and saying this is their way to raise awareness of their working condition, reuters and their working condition, reuters and theissue their working condition, reuters and the issue of driver only trains. they believe they are unsafe and

that you need guards on those trends as well. —— rotors. the advice is to check online for updates. people across asia and the southern hemisphere are celebrating the start of 2018 with fireworks and parties. here was hong kong bringing in the new year, just an hour ago above the historic victoria harbour. and this was the scene in sydney earlier where the harbour and its iconic bridge took centre stage as usual. apparently people were queuing up to secure a good vantage point more than nine hours in advance of the show. around a million and a half people were there to watch. this year the display featured a rainbow—theme to celebrate the passing of the country's same—sex marriage law. north korea has also held a firework display in pyongyang to mark the new year. the fireworks display was held by the taedong river. later, the country's leader kimjong un plans to deliver his annual new year

address — he's expected to talk about his country's relationship with the usa, and president trump. we will have more on the new year celebrations and the preparations here for the midnight fireworks. but let's go back now to our breaking story in liverpool. which is of a fire that has broken out at the liverpool echo arena, which is staging the liverpool international horse show 2017. there is a fire that has broken out in the multistorey car park there. on the line is someone inside the arena. good evening and thank you to joining us on bbc news. tell us what is going on and exactly where you are? we had actuallyjust left the arena and i'll outrank to walk over to the train station. we are told we

can't take any cars out of the car at alternet. —— at all tonight. and i think all events have been cancelled. so your car is inside the car cancelled. so your car is inside the cancelled. so your car is inside the car park? yeah, i think the fire broke out around floor three and we are wrong floor for. we can't even see if our car is damaged or not. what are you able to see? we have just got outside now and we're not allowed to go anywhere near the car park at the moment. there are lots of flashing lights and a big chord in and we are not allowed anywhere near it. use and quite shaken? i am rushing for the train! you are in a hurry, it is good to you to talk to us hurry, it is good to you to talk to us like this. has anybody give in any indication of what is going on 01’

any indication of what is going on or how the fire started? we heard it was a land rover or a range rover. that a car exploded in the car park and there was a massive plume of black smoke. it seems more than one car... but very difficult, and i believe you have children with you? i have, yes, a nine—year—old an 11—year—old. i have, yes, a nine—year—old an 11-year-old. that is very difficult to you? it is, yeah. we will let you go on and catch that train. very good luck, thank you for talking to us. good luck, thank you for talking to us. thank you very much. as you can see, there is a —— merseyside police have released a statement. preparations are under way for this evening's hogmanay

celebrations in edinburgh. there will be an increased police presence in the wake of this year's terrorists attack in london and manchester. 0ur correspondent andrew black has been speaking to chief superintendent kenny macdonald from police scotland. months of planning goes into policing this event. we work with our partners at underbelly, the event organiser, as well as gas security, the security provider, the city of edinburgh council and the other emergency services to make sure that everybody is as safe as they possibly can be at tonight's event. and what kind of potential security issues might you have to deal with at an event of this scale? generally, when you have so many people coming to an event and clearly there is alcohol that will be undertaken by a number of people and we would ask people to drink responsibly. and it's important for people to keep as safe as possible. and this is an event which has been held for many years now and i guess

there has never really been any massive problems at any one particular event, it seems to be the kind of event where most people turn up and want to enjoy themselves. they certainly do and the number of arrests we have seen over the years at this event is exceptionally low. 0ur role here really is to provide that additional layer of security and make sure that people are as safe as possible. and we have in recent years, at big public event like this they have been targeted by people, terror attacks and that kind of thing. is that something that is in your mind when you are policing an event like this? do you have to lay on extra security measures and that kind of thing because of that kind of risk? clearly, given the events that have taken place, particularly over the last 12 months across the uk, we have to be cognisant of the potential for an attack and because of that, this year i have moved to an overt deployment of armed police officers

and that is purely a precautionary measure and to provide a greater level of public reassurance. and we also have a greater number of road closures to make sure the event arena is as safe as possible. but there is no specific intelligence about a threat to this event. and in terms of anyone whose kids might be coming along tonight or any families, what would you be able to say to reassure people? it is a great event, please come and enjoy yourself but please plan yourjourney and in particular know how you're going to get home. if you are coming as a group, please look after each other. i think in particular if you are going to drink, please do so responsibly and be aware that we are discouraging people from bringing bags to the event. the likelihood is you will be searched and for that reason we would discourage people from bringing large bags. joining us now from victoria embankment in central london

is our correspondent jonathan blake. those words telling people to enjoy themselves but he careful will no doubt be being echoed in london as well? yes, that's right. not long to going out until london's new year's eve celebrations kick off. it is a huge events of the city. 100,000 people will be filling the viewing area is here on the victoria embankment and the bridges across the river thames in the hours between now and midnight. metropolitan police say there is no specific threat to delight celebrations in terms of security, but there is tight security in places you would expect. armed officers are on patrol, undercover officers are on patrol, undercover officers are on patrol, undercover officers are also amongst the crowd as well we are told. the police are using cctv as well as sniffer dogs and vehicle numberplate recognition technology and vehicle barriers as

well. all part of a policing plan that has been developed and reviewed given the tragic event in london this year. of course, this city has seen this year. of course, this city has seen several terrorist attacks. but, people coming to watch the fireworks are people coming to watch the fireworks a re close people coming to watch the fireworks are close will as ever be treated to are close will as ever be treated to a spectacular show. earlier this evening, the mayor of london sadiq khan told us it was important for london to put on that show. notjust londoners will be enjoying tonight's fireworks. people around the country will be watching the fireworks on theirtvs, will be watching the fireworks on their tvs, but also people around their tvs, but also people around the world. this is a sign of confidence in who we are, we are showing the world that london is open. we also want london to be a beacon, fighting gender inequality. the second half tonight of the soundtrack being just a great women artists that we are a beacon for pluralism and for equality, we don't simply tolerate difference but we respected and celebrate it. that is

the mayor's intention behind the tea m the mayor's intention behind the team of gender equality that we will see in tonight's display. the second half of the soundtrack, looking toward 28 in fijian exclusively female artists. a few facts and figures, 11 minutes 15 seconds of fireworks, 50,000 individual explosions, and it will all be set of from the centrepiece behind me, the london eye and three barges on the london eye and three barges on the river tyne is holding 30 tonnes of equipment. a spectacular show as a lwa ys of equipment. a spectacular show as always and it always kicks off when big ben, covered in scaffolding, chimes to welcome 2018. thank you. the headlines on bbc news. police confirmed that six people have been confirmed after a seaplane crashed into a river north of sydney, for victims may be british. there is a majorfire sydney, for victims may be british. there is a major fire at a liverpool

echo arena multistorey car park. we say a number of vehicles on fire and traffic restrictions are in place. and fireworks and effects to the tees usher in the new year, hong kong welcomed in 2018 with a spectacular file explain above the iconic victoria harbour. iran has moved to restrict social media networks that have been used to organise four days of anti—establishment protests. the protests have been the biggest show of dissent in the country since disputed elections in 2009. in his first public statement since the unrest began, president hassan rouhani has said iranians have the right to protest, but not cause disorder. 0n the protest go, what canon deployed in the heart of iran. as

they marched down one of the capital's avenues, they made their feelings known, death to the dictator they chanted. 0n feelings known, death to the dictator they chanted. on saturday night, gunshots rang out in the western city. casualties carried away. two people died. but, officials insist the police did not open fire. they blamed the deaths on provocateu rs open fire. they blamed the deaths on provocateurs in the crowd. translation: in these clashes, traces of anti—regime media and western intelligence services are visible. in these clashes, no bullets were fired by the police, military or security forces towards the people. the bowled was for the protests to end peacefully. —— goal was. the violence also brought violence to the government ‘s office

that was set ablaze. and the security forces watched as some of their motorbikes burned. the protest initially focused on economic grievances, but they have become highly political, with demands for an end to the rule of the clerics. demonstrations like these have been organised on social media. so, the authorities have stepped in. the telegram messaging app said it refused to shut down channels engaged in peaceful process. and now the government has restricted access to most users of the service. the government rallied its supporters on saturday, showing that huge numbers of iranians back it. and they promised they will tackle the nation's economic woes. for the first time since the unrest began, we have heard from president rouhani, he said people were free to criticise his government, but they

should be no violence. he knows the anger in the streets is dangerous. the wave of protests represents the most serious challenge that iran's leadership has faced for years. joining me is kasra naji from the bbc‘s persian service. so, as we heard there, president rouhani has spoken. what more has he said? he was speaking at the cabinet meeting today, the speech was televised on national television. about an hour ago. he speaks about iranians having the right to protest but not the right to resort to violence and destruction. he says iran is facing many problems according to him, that date back to previous years. this is a reference to years of international sanctions against iran. if you rememberfor the nuclear programme they had. he also added that he expects the government and the people to roll up

their sleeves and work together and resolving these issues. my own reading is that these words are unlikely to satisfy many of the protesters who are on the streets tonight. and it is unlikely to calm the situation. how dangerous moment is this will be iranians regime?m is this will be iranians regime?m is pretty serious. it is a threat to the stability of this regime. as we speak we're getting more and more reports and videos of demonstrations up reports and videos of demonstrations up and down the country. notjust big cities, small towns, too. and there are reports of some violence in at least three locations. we know in one place in the west of the country, there are some injuries, probably bullet wounds. so, this is serious and if it goes on, these

protests that so far remain small in terms of numbers of protesters, they can grow. the number can grow. the interesting thing is that the numbers are small, but they spread throughout the country. the danger is that the numbers will grow together with a spread across the country. they have to do some in. this crackdown on social media, do you think that will have the intended effect? interestingly, they managed to shut down, or they tried to shut down, telegram, a social media app, very popular in iran. millions of people, tens of millions of people are using it on a daily basis. they tried to shut that down, but we have reports that people are still using it somehow. and we're still using it somehow. and we're still getting videos posted on social media of these demonstrations up social media of these demonstrations up and down the country. if they try to limit these things, they haven't

been successful. thank you. historians have a fresh insight into everyday life in ancient egypt — as a result of new technology . researchers at university college london have developed a scanning technique that reveals what is written on the papyrus of mummy cases. 0ur science correspondent, pallab ghosh, has this exclusive report. the hieroglyphics found in the tombs of the pharaohs show the lives of the ancient egyptians. but the paintings are what the rich and powerful wanted the people to know — they are the propaganda of their time. but now there's a wealth of information about ordinary people being discovered using a new scientific technique. with a specially—modified camera, researcher cerys jones takes photos of a mummy‘s case at chiddingstone castle in kent. you can't see anything with the naked eye, but using infrared, a name is revealed — irethoreru. a common name in ancient egypt, it's a stephen or david of its time. it's amazing.

everyone in the room gasped, and people jumped up and ran for the computer, because in that one image you could read it. these scraps of papyrus are more than 2,000 years old. they were recycled to make the breastplate that covered a mummified body. the writing is obscured by the plaster and paste that hold them together, but researchers can see what lies beneath by scanning them with different kinds of light which makes the inks glow. these now constitute one of the best libraries we have of waste papyrus that otherwise would have been thrown away, so it includes things like, you know, tax receipts, and everyday information that we would nowadays throw away, back they they would throw away, but fortunately it was recycled into these objects. our knowledge of ancient egypt is through the eyes of pharaohs and the very wealthy who were buried with their possessions, but this new imaging technique is enabling researchers to find out about the lives of

ordinary egyptians. until now, the only way to see what was written on the papyrus was to destroy these masks, leaving egyptologists with a dilemma — do they destroy these precious objects, or do they keep them untouched, leaving the stories within them untold ? i am really horrified when i see objects like these papyri cartonnages being destroyed in order to get at the text inside. they're finite resources, and we now have the technology to both preserve those beautiful, precious objects that tell us about, you know, ways of dying, but also looking inside them in order to understand the ways that the egyptians lived. there are hundreds of cases and masks that can be scanned, each one telling its own individual story of everyday life in ancient egypt. pallab ghosh, bbc news. what does the weather had in store

on this important evening? storm dylan brought a lively end to the year, this well if its system we're talking about, and this curve of cloud to the north, brought heavy rain and strong winds into scotland, northern nick ireland and northern england. now it is rolling off into the north sea and things are a little calmer if you are heading out to celebrate new year. but, in the course of the night we will see showers packing in towards the west, still a breezy story as well. as for new year's day, this deep low, this time to the south of the british isles, to concentrate on. it looks like the worst of it will run through the channel, but nonetheless, the southern counties of england could have a stormy start to the new year, intensity winds along the south coast, hats persistent rain a little further north than this

picture may imply. some uncertainty. but it is a wet start for southern england and potentially south wales, too. further north, sunshine. the titley in southern and western scotland, it is a showery picture. for the north—east, clear skies and sunshine, but also a chilly start, too. the area of low pressure to the south moves off to the continent quickly, showers will push on to north wales and northern england through the second half of the day. also some heavy ones for scotland and northern ireland. further north, sunshine but a chilly story, three in edinburgh. ten in plymouth. 0vernight, the first working day of the new year, new year's day into tuesday, noticed the isobars over that little ridge of high pressure, and that will allow temperatures to come down, probably giving the chilliest night of the week ahead. a patchy frost first