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tv   BBC News  BBC News  February 16, 2020 1:00pm-1:31pm GMT

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good afternoon. a major incident has been declared in south wales as the strong winds and heavy rain from storm dennis causes flooding and disruption across the uk. there are a record number of flood alerts and flood
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warnings in england. travel continues to be affected. helena wilkinson has the latest. in south wales this lunchtime, a major incident has been declared. emergency crews are dealing with landslides like this, and widespread flooding. this is what residents in a village near cardiff woke to this morning. a road now looking more like a river, the sheer volume of water left car is submerged. emergency services had to rescue people as the water levels rose, including this elderly lady. and this is a high street in pontypridd in south wales. not everyone heeded the don't drive through flood water advice. i workjust down on the corner, and i had to leave at eight o'clock last night because of the floods, so to come down this morning and see it like this is a shock.
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others have been left stranded. that is what one family woke up to in crickhowell while on holiday. is what one family woke up to in crickhowell while on holidaylj is what one family woke up to in crickhowell while on holiday. i can see coming down the street now where there is an inflatable boat, so i'm hoping we won't be here too much longer. so far in the calder valley in west yorkshire, it has not been as bad as people feared. it has not really gone up overnight. it's all right at the moment. no panic as of yet, but keep an eye on it. in glasgow, the river clyde was battered by torrential rain. scotla nd battered by torrential rain. scotland has borne the brunt of the storm. three severe flood warnings remain in place for the borders. in carlisle, a lucky escape. a couple had to be rescued after their car was swept from the road by an overflowing river, leaving their vehicle wedged against this gate. this storm is far from over. communities continue to battle against appalling weather conditions. more devastation for
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those already bearing the brunt may be yet to come. helen wilkinson, bbc news. in a moment we'll speak to our scotland correspondent, alexandra mackenzie, who'll give us an update from the scottish borders. first to tomos morgan in the rhondda valley. tomos, it has been a dreadful morning. what is the situation across wales now? well, this is one ofa across wales now? well, this is one of a few communities in south wales that has had to be evacuated due to storm dennis. as you can see behind here, the emergency services doing an incrediblejob here, the emergency services doing an incredible job trying to get people out of their homes, homes that have been ruined by water gushing through, destroying all their possessions. but it is a slow process in treacherous conditions as the rain continues to fall here, causing issues. there are severe flood warnings still in place in wales. that red alert has now come to an end, but there are still alerts out there for rain and wind
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across the day across wales and all of the uk. the issue has been here that we knew the weather was coming, but we didn't know how quickly and how severe it would be. one of the people that was rescued here earlier told me that itjust happened in a matter of minutes, her downstairs living room completely decimated. the hope is by the evening the rain will subside and then the rescue and clean—up operation will begin. will subside and then the rescue and clean-up operation will begin. tomos morgan in nantgarw, thank you very much. letsjoin morgan in nantgarw, thank you very much. lets join alexander mackenzie. we can see how fast flowing the river is. yes, wet and windy, i am here in hawick, the wind and rain reached record levels last night. here in hawick, a lot of it was on the outskirts of the town, you could see the field surrounding hawick are com pletely see the field surrounding hawick are completely flooded and completely
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saturated. and in the nearby town of newcastleton, about 20 miles south of here, they also suffered serious flooding there, and people had to be evacuated from their homes, and several properties and businesses we re several properties and businesses were also flooded. it is also incredibly windy here, there is a yellow weather warning across all of scotla nd yellow weather warning across all of scotland today. alexandra mackenzie in hawick, thanks very much. and for the latest information on storm dennis in your area, you can find out more on your local bbc online pages or tune in to your local radio station. further tributes have been paid to caroline flack, the tv presenter who was found dead at her home yesterday. herfamily‘s lawyer said she had taken her own life. laura whitmore, who succeeded caroline as presenter of love island, criticised newspapers and socia media users over their treatment of her friend. caroline flack had been due to stand trial next month for assaulting her boyfriend, a charge she denied. angus crawford reports.
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it's the return of the flack! love island, x factor, i'm a celebrity — caroline flack, a life which appeared successful and glamorous. let's talk love. until december last year, when she was arrested and charged with assaulting her boyfriend. yesterday, her family confirmed she had taken her own life. today, friend and fellow presenter laura whitmore, who replaces her on love island, could not hide her grief and anger. anyone who knew caroline knew she was vivacious, loving, and had a passion for life. to the press, the newspapers who create click bait, who demonise and tear down success, we've had enough. you don't have to tear down someone to feel good about yourself. there have been many other tributes from friends, fans and fellow celebrities.
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a media scrum at her first court appearance, distressing allegations she denied, a trial date in march and bail conditions banning any contact with her boyfriend, lewis burton. he denied being a victim and did not want the prosecution to go ahead. today, he posted this message. "my heart is broken", and, "we had something so special". he also appeared to criticise the way the case was handled, saying, "i was not allowed to be there this time. i kept asking and asking". questions, too, from her management, who labelled it a "show trial". the crown prosecution service says it won't comment. weeks before her death, she wrote of the weight of media intrusion, saying:
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angus crawford reporting. and if you've been affected by any of the issues raised, information and support is available from bbc action line, and there's the number for you. the government's budget, which is due to be delivered on the 11th of march, may be delayed according to a cabinet minister. the timetable to set out the government's spending plans has been thrown into doubt after the appointment of rishi sunak as chancellor last week. mr sunak replaced sajid javid after his resignation on thursday. today the transport secretary, grant shapps, said the new chancellor would decide the date. this is a matterfor the new chancellor, rishi. of course. i don't think we've said it will definitely go ahead on the same date that was mentioned before. so it might be delayed? that would be a matter for the chancellor. but we will clearly need to have a budget. the guy's only been in place a few days. let's give him a few days to decide on the date.
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the united states has sent two planes to japan to bring home its citizens, quarantined on a cruise liner in the port of yokohama for the past 11 days. there are now 355 cases of coronavirus on the ship, making it the biggest cluster outside china. rupert wingfield—hayes is in yokohama now. rupert, why have the americans made this decision? i think it's very clear from a statement put out by the us government that they do not, oi’ the us government that they do not, or at least they are very concerned, that the quarantine going on on board the diamond princess behind me on the last 12 days is perhaps not working, and the virus is still spreading around the ship. they think their citizens are in danger, and that is why they have triggered this evacuation, which is happening now as we speak. there are buses that have pulled up, you can't quite see them but they are beside the ship, processing the 380 us passengers to be put on those buses,
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taken to an airport in tokyo sometime tonight where two planes are due to land in the next hour or so. they will be put aboard those planes and flown to california to a military base in california where they will be processed, checked to see whether they have the coronavirus and then quarantined if they test positive. there are obviously more than 2000 other passengers stuck on this ship in quarantine for a number of days yet. the canadian government, the hong kong government, the taiwan government have said they will send planes too. that is putting pressure now on the uk government to decide what it's going to do for the 57 uk passengers and 20 crew who are still on board. rupert wingfield-hayes, thank you very much. that's it for now. the next news on bbc one is at the slightly earlier than usual time of 5:40 this afternoon. bye for now.
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hello. you're watching the bbc news channel. let's stick with that story of the ship stranded injapan because of the coronavirus. rupert was saying there is pressure on the british government to possibly consider bringing out its citizens from the ship. a british couple quarantined on the cruise liner have accused the uk government of ignoring their pleas for help. david abel spoke to bbc breakfast this morning. the americans that have tested negative, they are leaving the ship today. there are two aircraft that have been sent and i understand have now landed in yokohama, probably at haneda airport, i'm not sure which airport, but that doesn't matter. they are being taken out. we're told the canadians are also sending an aircraft over to repatriate the canadians. australia has sent a specialist to assess the situation and then see what remains for them.
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the british, we have not heard. i've had a message from the ambassador here, or the office, let's say. this is what i was told ten minutes ago. "we have been told by the us government that they are organising an evacuation flight for their nationals. this process is likely to begin today. however, the general clinical advice of the world health organization is not to repatriate. therefore, we are working urgently with the japanese government and other partners to explore the options". other countries are seeing the need and the necessity to get their people back to their home countries and take them into quarantine there. that is what the brits on board would love to happen to them.
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and from what you have just read there, if the world health organization are going to strongly suggest to the brits, it's not going to happen. sounds negative. we understand that some 300 people have tested positive on the ship. are they testing you regularly? what's going on? the test takes two to three days for the result to come in. we had our throats swabbed yesterday, and we are now awaiting the result. depending on the result, it will determine whether we are allowed to be released on the 19th of february. if one of us is tested positive, that person will be taken into a medicalfacility. currently, the hospitals are now so filled that it would be at least four hours away. can you tell me as well,
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how are you keeping up morale and how are you feeling? i'm really trying to put a brave face on. it's not easy. deep inside, we're very frightened. we really are frightened. we don't want to be split up if one of us is proved positive. after 50 years being together it's just unbearable, the thought of being split up, so we are struggling now. we are, as are others on the ship. it's not just about us, as are others. we are all going through the same thing. the foreign office says it's "working around the clock" to ensure the welfare of britons on board. tributes have been paid to the tv presenter, caroline flack, who died yesterday.
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she killed herself at her home in east london. laura whitmore, who took over presenting love island, started her show on 5 live this morning by speaking about the abuse her friend had received: i wish we were talking under better circumstances. i've been debating whether i should, would or could come on air today. but this isn't about me. yesterday, we lost someone before their time. at age, a0 caroline flack made the decision to take her own life, and i want to talk about it. i'm going to talk about her and give her the respect that she deserves and that she didn't always get. i met herjust shy of ten years ago at v festival and then we became friends. she was bubbly and for such a small stature, commanded a room. she loved to laugh and had the most infectious chuckle. she also had many struggles. i am not going to pretend she was perfect, but as anyone. she lived every mistake publicly
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under the scrutiny of the media. caroline loved to love. that's all she wanted, which is why a show like love island was important to her because the show is about finding love, friendship and having a laugh. the problem wasn't the show. the show is loving and caring and safe and protected. the problem is, the outside world is not. anyone who's ever compared one woman against another on twitter, knocked someone because of their appearance, invaded someone else's privacy, who have made mean and unnecessary comments on an online forum, need to look at themselves. sorry. to the press, the newspapers who create clickbait, who demonise and tear down success, we've had enough. i have seen journalists and twitter warriors talk of the tragedy who themselves have just twisted what the truth is.
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you don't have to tear down someone to feel good about yourself. so to listeners, be kind. only you are responsible for how you treat others and what you put out in the world. i've had messages and been harassed just for doing myjob, and this is where the problem is. i want to use my platform to call people out, because it's gone too far. if you or someone you know has been affected by the issues raised this morning, you can find help and support on the bbc‘s actionline website, at bbc.co.uk/actionline. heavy rain and strong winds are causing disruption across the uk, as storm dennis continues to batter the country. the winds from storm dennis are making sea waters very dangerous. i'm joined now via webcam by ross mcleod — he's water safety manager at the rnli.
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he is at poole in dorset. it looks wonderfully calm where you are this afternoon. how has it been in the last 2a hours across the country for the rnli? last 2a hours across the country for the rn li ? it is last 2a hours across the country for the rnli? it is pretty wet and miserable here today, but we are pretty lucky compared to some places. it has been a really busy 2a hours for the rnli. we have had upwards of 16 shouts for our volunteer life—savers. we have 238 stations around the country. at least 16 of those have dropped what they are doing in the last 2a hours to try and help a stranger in danger. so it has been a challenging couple of weeks, especially with storm ciara a couple of weeks back. busy times. we had two incidents yesterday morning off the kent coast which resulted in fatalities. they seemed to even predate storm dennis because of when they started, but
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what sort of operation did you have to mount? presumably someone goes in the water and you don't know exactly where they have gone in and you don't know where they are going to be by the time you get the boat out? the incidents yesterday, there are still some uncertainty around what happened so it would not be appropriate to comment into much detail. but we do know that margate station went out to assist the gentleman who was found off the tanker. there was another incident down at herne bay and details are still emerging from that. the main message is to warn people to stay at home this weekend. the weather is horrible. heading out to the coast is not the place to be. but if you are out and about and you see people in danger, the number one piece of advice is to call 999 and ask for the coast guard. then we can get one of our volunteer members out to you. if you are struggling in water in inland areas, if you feel in danger, dad 999 again and ask for the
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coastguard. in terms of your operation, you are heavily dependent on volunteers and voluntary donations from people to help support the work of the rnli. how difficult is it managing the intensity of a period like this where you had major storms last week and this week. you have to give people some rest and recuperation periods. you have to keep kit up to scratch. it must be difficult to balance between the operational stuff and being prepared, and doing the stuff that makes you effective? absolutely. we have had almost the perfect storm over the last few weeks. we have had really high winds and waves. the water is very cold at this time of year. the rnli have found that demand for our services has increased. particularly at this time of year, people try more extreme sports. commercial fishing fleets are also going out in these conditions to try and make money, so
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it isa conditions to try and make money, so it is a challenge. as you say, we do rely on donations from our generous supporters, so we thank them for their support. but our volunteers are fantastic and courageous and a lwa ys are fantastic and courageous and always ready to help. we don't want to have to put them in harm's way if we can avoid it, so we are asking people, particularly at this time of year when it is so cold in the water, the risk is very high if you end up in there. of course the rnli will come out to help, but it is better not to put our volunteers in harm's way if possible. you remind me of what happened last weekend with the surfer who had to be rescued. it is a salutary reminder that you don'tjust put rescued. it is a salutary reminder that you don't just put your own life in danger if you decide to have agoin life in danger if you decide to have a go in the conditions we have seen. i hope people take your advice seriously. ross mcleod, water safety manager at the rnli, thanks for joining us. dozens of homes have been evacuated near neath in south wales over fears about flooding. jessica falk perlman is on holiday
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in crickhowell, near abergavenny. she and her family have taken refuge on the top floor of their holiday home and were woken by the fire service in the early hours of the morning to alert them to the flood waters rising. i asked her how they were coping. well, bored is better than nervous, which is what we were last night when the firemen knocked on the door and told us at four in the morning that we need to evacuate because the river was about to burst its banks. then he said, "i'll be back", but then the river did go and it wasn't safe for them to come back. so we've been waiting for more news from them. it is very flooded. all of the ground floor of this holiday let we're staying at at is completely submerged, since four o'clock in the morning. that suggests that there is still quite a lot of activity outside whilst they work out the best way to manage this until the flooding recedes?
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absolutely. we're in crickhowell, a nice little town, and apparently it's completely cut off, all the roads coming in and out are completely flooded. they're working their socks off trying to get people out. coming down the street now, i can see one of those rigid inflatable boats. so fingers crossed, it won't be too much longer. it's rubbish for all the people who live here and all the local businesses. yes, i guess it wasn't quite the holiday you were expecting but hopefully, it's not completely ruined. how's the dog coping? he desperately wants to get outside, presumably? yeah! she's been quite good. i think she's just enjoying being allowed on the bed. but all of us could do with going outside, definitely.
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when you do get out, what were you originally hoping to do around there? we were supposed to be driving back to london today, and doncaster, where my family live. but our cars are completely underwater, so that's not going to happen. even if we could get to them, the roads are closed. we've been here since thursday and it has been but very wet in the last 2a hours. i don't know if you can try to flip your camera around and see if we can see anything outside the window? this could go horribly wrong. oh — now, that is very, very vivid. can you still hear me ok? ican.
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is that pretty much the scene you were evacuated to at four o'clock this morning? or has it got worse as the morning has gone on? it became worse half an hour after the fireman woke us up because he was saying the river was going to go, and then within 30 minutes there were a couple of metres of water coming into the house and up the stairs. and the front door of the house was knocked open by the pressure of the water. that was quite worrying. i should imagine it is. the building we're looking across the way from you, the water has reached well up towards the top of the front door and presumably has caused a lot of damage. as far as you can tell, that's the picture throughout the village now? i think this is the worst street, hopefully. we're right next to the river usk.
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i don't know if you can see it, fast moving in the background. apparently, bridge street, where we are, is the worst affected. so fingers crossed, not too many people are going to have to completely redo their homes and businesses. and for the latest information on storm dennis in your area, you can find out more on your local bbc online pages, or tune in to your local radio station. thousands of australians are attending a ten—hour fundraising concert for those affected by the recent bushfires. queen, olivia newton—john, and alice cooper are among those performing in sydney. the australian government has come in for harsh criticism for its response to the disaster. the comedian, celeste barber, opened the event: the volunteers across this entire country, they are the ones who have saved us. they are the ones who
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actively go out and help. they are the ones... cheering. they are the ones that cancel holidays to stay here and look after us. a strong message there. now it's time for a look at the weather with darren. we have had a lot of severe weather across the uk, as expected. the rain from storm dennis has had the biggest impact. we still have some amber rain warnings from the met office for the next couple of hours, may be for higher ground. that is
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where we have seen a lot of rain moving into the rivers. this is the picture behind that across worcestershire, where there are severe weather warnings. we also have two in wales. the rain is now starting to slide towards the south—east of england and east anglia. it is only a brief respite because there are lots of showers following. the rain is less of an issue across scotland and northern ireland, but it is windy and turning colder. if we focus further north, storm dennis is getting close to northern scotland overnight, so here the winds could reach 75 miles an hour. a lot of showers will continue overnight. some strong winds as well, a bit more chilly than it has been of late for england and wales.
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time for the sport. good afternoon. let's start with the deciding match of england's t20 series with south africa in centurion. the home side won the toss and chose to bat first. they were being knocked all over the park to begin with, but england regained some control with three wickets, two of the bowling of ben stokes. south africa will obviously be hoping on home soil to close this one out. you can follow the match with text commentary on the bbc sport website and app — it starts at 12:30. england's women had a big win over new zealand in adelaide, as they warm—up for the t20 world cup. katherine brunt took 3—23 as they restricted the kiwis to 54-9, before england captain heather knight made 45 to guide her side to a six—wicket victory with 12 balls to spare. they play sri lanka on tuesday
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before their first world cup game against south africa in perth in a week's time. in the premier league, arsenal face newcastle in the late kick off while tottenham can move up to fifth with victory away to aston villa. it begins a busy run for spurs, who also play in the champions league last sixteen on wednesday, something manager jose mourinho is all too aware of. so, it's a really hard week for us — sunday villa, wednesday leipzig, saturday chelsea. but let's go match after match and the first one, again, i repeat, always difficult at villa park. always difficult. villa are a good team, fighting to stay in the division, self—esteem really high with a qualification to the wembley final. a very difficult match. we have to go with all the potential we have, forgetting that two days after, we have to play leipzig.

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