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tv   BBC News  BBC News  April 2, 2020 2:00am-2:31am BST

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this is bbc news, i'm duncan golestani. our top stories: expect it to be like italy, the trump administration issues a stark warning about the spread of coronavirus. together, we have the power to save countless lives. we are attacking the virus at every front, with social distancing, economic support. here in the uk the daily death toll passes 500 for the first time. italy extends its stringent lockdown measures, but families are now allowed to take their children for a walk. and the painter david hockney, in lockdown in france, shares with us some of the drawings that have kept him busy.
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hello, and welcome to bbc news. the us vice president has warned americans to expect a coronavirus scenario comparable to italy. there have now been more than 200,000 confirmed infections in the united states, and more than 4,500 deaths. in new york alone, nearly 400 people died in the past 2a hours. people in florida and texas are now being told to stay at home. all this after president trump warned of a rough few weeks ahead. 0ur north america editor jon sopel reports. at this time of year, central park in new york would normally be getting ready for concerts and festivals. instead, a massive field hospital is being built there, to help alleviate an overburdened health system. in this state alone, there have been 2000 deaths.
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america is shifting onto a war footing, and it brought a dramatic change in tone from the president, now urgent and sombre. i want every american to be prepared for the hard days that lie ahead. we are going to go through a very tough two weeks. and then hopefully, as the experts are predicting, as i think a lot of us are predicting, after having studied it so hard, we're going to start seeing some real light at the end of the tunnel. but that is going to be a very painful, very, very painful two weeks. and if that didn't frighten the american people, this message today from the vice president, visiting essential workers, surely would have done. he said that the us was on a path to follow the worst—hit country in europe. we think italy may be the most comparable area to the united states at this point. for the first time in this crisis, donald trump and his senior medical advisers seem to be marching in lockstep.
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but one area where washington seems at odds with the rest of the country is on testing, on vital equipment. here, the president says that everything is under control. that's not what you're hearing on the front line. cheering chant: what do we need? ppe! today, exhausted health workers across the us have been protesting outside hospitals at the lack of protective equipment, and those working inside say supplies are running low. we're running out of medications, we're running out of equipment, and we're even running out of oxygen, which is something that patients that have covid—i9 need. and we're running out of equipment in the hospital, nearly everybody coming to the emergency department has this, and we are getting completely overwhelmed. if new york is the foretaste of what's coming to america, this is what's ahead. in the money capital of the richest country in the world, a forklift truck outside a hospital lifting corpses into the back of a refrigerated lorry. jon sopel, bbc news,
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washington. president trump says the country has a decent amount of ventilators with more on their way into the country. we are shipping things right in. we have, as you know, almost 10,000 ventilators which we need for flexibility. it's a lot, it sounds like a lot but it's not, because as you see on the board from yesterday, as this scourge, as this plague, as this virus moves, it moves very fast and we don't know yet whether we are going to need it in louisiana, new york, wherever it may be. so we're ready for it. we are totally ready for it. we have already agreed to ship out over 1000 today to different locations, but we have to have the flexibility of moving the ventilators to where the virus is going, and we'll be able to see that from charts a couple of days in advance, so right now we have a nice pile of ventilators, we have
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a lot more coming in. i think we have 11 companies making ventilators right now. that was president from speaking a few hours ago. 0ur north america correspondent peter bowes has more on the white house briefing. with every new day, every new white house briefing, the president's language, the tone, becomes ever more ominous. he described the next two weeks as potentially being "horrific", in terms of the number of cases and the number of deaths in the united states, likely to peak during that time and this echoed, of course, what he was saying 2a hours ago, when he said the next few weeks would be painful. and we have the projection that mike pence, the vice president, was talking about, that the united states is on the same trajectory as italy, of course, where there have been more deaths than anywhere else in the world. which is really very difficult for americans to hear, as they are struggling day to day just to deal with the situation that
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they are faced with. social isolation is causing a lot of hardship and, at the same time, we are getting some officials here on the west coast, in los angeles, saying that people — some people — are still not taking social isolation seriously enough. they are very concerned about the spread of this virus by people who are infected but are otherwise healthy — in other words, they are not showing any symptoms. and they are still tryingto get the message out that, no matter how you feel physically at the moment, you need to stay at home. there has been another significant rise in the number of people in the uk dying with coronavirus. the government has described it as an "invisible killer" and the biggest threat the country has faced in decades. 563 patients have died in hospitals in the uk in the past 2a hours, bringing the national total to more than 2,300. most of the cases are in london but the health authorities say the threat is everywhere.
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here's our political editor laura kuenssberg. hilda churchill, who lived through a pandemic a century ago — the oldest victim at 108. dr adil el taya, the first medic to pass away. doreen hunt, a grandmother, who died on mothering sunday. as coronavirus has taken hold, just some of the faces of its hourly victims, but as the numbers grow, more families lose mothers, daughters, fathers and sons. and one of the latest, the fourth medic to lose his life, dr alfa saadu, who had returned to work to help. this is his son. we said our goodbyes and we just told him to fight for us. and then, the next 2a hours, 48 hours, his bodyjust deteriorated, from what they told us his body shut down, he had organ failure. he just couldn't fight any more. i massively admire the people in the nhs and the job that they're doing because it's no joke. this is a serious virus and people are risking
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their lives to save people out there. a message repeated by the government today... all our thoughts and prayers are with the families and loved ones of those who have lost their lives. this is more tragic evidence that this virus does not discriminate. look at how the numbers have grown... from the first counted on the sixth of march, eight days later the daily toll reaching double figures. 20 days from the start it reached over 100, and now less than a week later more than 500 people recorded to have passed away in 2a hours. the overall count 2352. the peak of the disease seems to be coming earlier than the government expected, but you're missing testing targets, there is a lot of evidence of staff not having the equipment they need and not enough ventilators. do you now accept that the approach and response from government has been too slow?
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increasing testing capacity is absolutely the top priority for the government and we are now at 10,000 tests per day, we're rolling out additional networks at labs and testing sites and in terms of phe, 390 million products have been distributed in the last two weeks and, of course, we will continue to do more. there is evidence, too, that people are taking to the roads again, flouting the stay—at—home advice. there are frantic efforts under way to make space for those falling ill. the army moving in to help in cumbria tonight. in belfast, in glasgow, in cardiff and around the country, hospitals are being created out of conference centres in just a matter of weeks. but the broad political consensus that's backed the government's approach is starting to fray. what we're calling for now is a national testing strategy, to ramp up community testing and contact tracing, like we're seeing in other countries. that's how other countries have
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been able to beat this virus or get it under control. we're not doing it yet so we need that national plan. a former minister and practising gp says the governmentjust hasn't moved fast enough. we'd anticipated this is a risk, a tier one national security risk, that's in the public domain. it beggars belief that we didn't act quicker because we knew, we'd done an exercise and we knew we had these challenges. no ordinary recovering patient — prince charles urges us all to stick together. as a nation we are faced by a profoundly challenging situation which we are only too aware threatens the livelihoods, businesses and welfare of millions of our fellow citizens. none of us can say when this will end, but end it will. but a time of anxiety for our health and the country's wealth is a growing time of political pressure, too. laura kuenssberg, bbc news.
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one key tool in the fight against coronavirus is the ventilator which aids patients' breathing. another less—well known piece of apparatus does more thanjust help people breathe — it actually does the work of the lungs themselves — removing carbon—dioxide from the blood and putting oxygen in. extra corporeal membrane oxygenation machines are highly—specialised and not in abundant supply — but they can sometimes make a difference in severe cases of covid—19. joining me from the kyoto prefectural university of medicine injapan, is the director of the intensive care division, professor satoru hashimoto. thank you very much forjoining us thank you very much forjoining us here on bbc news. can you explain to us, what is the difference between a ventilator and a ecmo machine. 0k,
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difference between a ventilator and a ecmo machine. ok, so when the patient has pneumonia, we first supply oxygen masks. when it does not work well, we insert a tube to the airway down to the lung and start ventilation with a mechanical ventilator. if there is a high concentration of oxygen to the lungs, with positive pressure to descend the lung, so many can be saved by ventilators, however some sicker patients do not respond to this therapy, as their lungs are filled with water. we call it wet lung or white lung. in that case, we apply ecmo, as a last resort. during ecmo therapy, we do not stop ventilators, we add ecmo to ventilator and wait until the lung recover. it would take five — 30 or more days depending on how the patient responds to the therapy. how
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can ecmo machines help in cases of covid—19? can ecmo machines help in cases of covid-19? so far, we have saved many lives using ecmo who are infected with severe pneumonia, like h1n1 influenza, so pneumonia, like h1n1 influenza, so covid—19 is one of the forms of pneumonia, so we thought it would work. what has been your experience with this treatment injapan? experience with this treatment in japan? so far, we applied it to 40 in japan? so far, we applied it to a0 some patients on ecmo for covid—19, and the number is increasing slowly, and i hope 50- 60% of increasing slowly, and i hope 50— 60% of these patients will recover, ecmo cannot save all lives. sounds optimistic, thank you very much professor hashimoto. we require time,
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space, and manpower, and many equipment, if we encounter and overshoot lake in italy, we might not have time to avoid this kind of death. 0k, might not have time to avoid this kind of death. ok, you professor hashimoto! stay with us on bbc news, still to come: italy extends its lockdown — but there are first signs that the outbreak may be stabilising. the accident that happened here was of the sort that can, at worst, produce a meltdown. in this case, the precautions worked, but they didn't work quite well enough to prevent some old fears about the safety features of these stations from resurfacing. the republic of ireland has become the first country in the world to ban smoking in the workplace. from today, anyone lighting up
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in offices, businesses, pubs and restaurants will face a heavy fine. the president was on his way out of the washington hilton hotel, where he had been addressing a trade union conference. the small crowd outside included his assailant. it has become a symbol of paris. 100 years ago, many parisians wished it had never been built. the eiffel tower's birthday is being marked by a re—enactment of the first ascent by gustave eiffel. welcome back. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: the trump administration issues a stark warning about the spread of coronavirus, saying it could get as bad as italy. the daily death toll in the uk passes 500 for the first time. now, where people have been living in lockdown, more people have been going online to shop for groceries and goods,
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which can be delivered. some of the big online retailers have seen sales spike astronomically. according to a report in the wall streetjournal, visits to the amazon website are up 32% compared to a year earlier, and amazon, which acquired the supermarket chain whole foods in 2017, is now seeking to hire thousands of workers for both businesses. but some workers have been striking this week, demanding improved workplace safety and sanitation, and benefits including hazard pay and sick pay for employees who may be unwell, but haven't been tested for the coronavirus. let's talk about this a little more than. for more on this, i'm joined now by professorjoshua murray. he's an assistant sociology professor at the vanderbilt university in nashville, tennessee. how much leveraged these
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workers have at this point in time? a good amount. amazon works, during normal times, time? a good amount. amazon works, during normaltimes, on what may be similar to normal deliveries, their whole business model depends on getting things out really quickly. they are barebones, they get things in common package them and with this increase in demand, it puts a strain on their system so any large amount not coming in is going to reverberate down the supply chain and seriously damage their ability to stick to the business model, and that gives workers. what are the chances of getting concessions out of these companies, because wouldn't have set a precedent? yes, absolutely. ithink wouldn't have set a precedent? yes, absolutely. i think there isa yes, absolutely. i think there is a good chance, in addition to the structural leveraged that i mentioned, there is also kind of legitimacy and public image leveraged that is happening right now, so these
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workers are seen by many of us that are not —— that are in lockdown right now, they are out there risking the health to get us the goods that we need, and if...jeff get us the goods that we need, and if... jeff basis is the richest person in the world. if he is not willing to meet concessions for them and that end up coming back on consumers, that would look good for coming amazon. the two things together, i think it gives them a pretty good chance to give them some concessions. you mentioned amazon there, we reached out to them for comment but they didn't get to us. they do own whole foods and they say they have increased pay by $2 an hour, they will get double pay for any overtime and any employees diagnosed with covid—19 will get an additional two weeks of paid time off. but those concessions aside, do you think we are going to see a shift in welfare and responsibilities to employees after a ll responsibilities to employees after all this from companies generally? i imagine companies
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won't come to that willingly, but i think that we have seen kind of worldwide a rise in direct action by workers, increase in strikes, and i think that workers consciousness is rising, that they have leveraged and ability to demand this, and this is only helping things. before the crisis, before rotavirus, unions in the us at their highest approval rating in over 20 years —— coronavirus. there has just been an increase in the culture in general of seeing things from the worker ‘s perspective, and i think this is just ‘s perspective, and i think this isjust going ‘s perspective, and i think this is just going to add to ‘s perspective, and i think this isjust going to add to i think and you mention they get sick pay if they test positive, but that is one of the is going to bea but that is one of the is going to be a big issue is that testing is really only available for individuals that have extreme symptoms, but we know that you can have covid—19 with very mild symptoms, and the incentive when sick pay is only available for those who
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are tested positive is for them to come to work on and possibly spread it to their colleagues, get it on boxes and send it out of the rest of us, and that is a public health issue. these things, what ends up looking like to the public is the workers are going on strike... iam afraid workers are going on strike... i am afraid we are up against the clock. we have to leave it there but thank you ever so much forjoining us. thank you. italy's stringent lockdown measures have been extended, although families are now allowed to take their children for a walk outside if needed. the officially recorded death toll in the country climbed by a further 727 on wednesday — a huge number, but slightly lower than the previous day. it takes the country's total number of deaths to more than 13,000. of those, at least 66 are frontline medical staff. from rome, mark lowen reports. a glimpse of freedom in italy's new normal. parents are now allowed to take their children out for a brief walk if urgent.
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after three weeks of lockdown, it's a breath of liberty, but no more. welcomed, albeit with apprehension. translation: we're scared to be outside and a bit spaced out, because this lockdown has been our salvation. the measures are working, i'm happy they are in place, and we want them to go on. translation: this eases the tension. we're not used to staying inside the whole day. we need some natural light and children need some space. the infection rate is slowing, and there is perhaps a little bit more movement on the streets. but the fear is that if the restrictions are lifted too soon, people could get a false sense of security, and then the numbers could start jumping again, because italy is still far from defeating this virus. deaths are still soaring, and among them, doctors. gynaecologist roberto mileti died this week, one of 67 doctors lost to the outbreak here.
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his friend said the deaths were preventable if medics had proper masks and supplies. translation: we're very shocked, he was much loved. and we're very angry because we're lacking protection equipment for doctors. we feel vulnerable. wars must be organised during peacetime, not battle. we're being sent in empty—handed, in italy and around europe. we developed a valve... so young, inventive italians have stepped in to help, using 3d printing to develop a valve that turns a sports—shop snorkelling mask into a ventilator. the blueprint has been downloaded for free a million times by hospitals in need across the world. two days ago, it was my birthday, and i received a message from brazil in which a doctor said to me that 130 people were breathing thanks to my idea, and i was very, very happy. i cannot receive a better present for my birthday. shouting italians are generally following the rules, but some frustration
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is starting to show. in the south, anger over a loss of money and closed shops. it's isolated, but patience has its limits. today, the lockdown was extended to mid—april, so the emptiness goes on. perhaps never again in our lifetime will we see rome like this. the virus is sucking the life out of italy. mark lowen, bbc news, rome. "remember, they can't cancel spring" — those are the words of david hockney, one of the most influential british artists still alive today. he's been creating art on his ipad for over ten years and his latest digital paintings show the spring awakening in france where he's in lockdown. he's shared ten images exclusively with the bbc. here's our arts editor will gompertz. "dear will. in 2018, jp, my assistant, and i came to normandy
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after the window was put up in westminster abbey. we loved it here, and i suggested tojp this would be a great place to draw and paint the arrival of spring. there are apple, pear, cherry and plum blossom, with hawthorn and blackthorn. east yorkshire only had blackthorn and hawthorn. we found this house with a large garden that was cheaper than anything in sussex. we bought it. i began straight away, drawing on a japanese fold—out book. i drew all around the house, and then i drew the house itself. these were exhibited in new york in september, 2019. being a smoker, i do not care for new york, so i never went. we came back here to normandy on march second, and i began drawing the winter trees on my new ipad. i'm here with jonathan and jp, my assistants. then the virus started. we are locked in here, but i don't mind. it'sjonathan now cut off from his family in harrogate, and jp who feel it more.
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i went on drawing the winter trees that eventually burst into blossom. this is the stage we're at right now. meanwhile, the virus is going mad, and many people said my drawings were a great respite from what was going on. why are my ipad drawings seen as a respite from the news? well, they're obviously made by their hand, depicting the renewal that is the spring. i intend to carry on with my work, which i now see as very important. we've lost touch with nature rather foolishly, as we are part of it, not outside it. this will, in time, be over, and then what? what have we learned? i'm 83 years old — i will die. the cause of death is birth. the only real things in life are food and love — in that order — just like our little dog, ruby. i really believe this, and the source of art is love. i love life. all my love, david h." that was david hockney‘s letter to will gompertz.
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you are watching bbc news. do stay with us. hello. 0ur weather is about to do a 180—degree turn in the next few days. for the end of this week, it's going to feel chilly and there will be some frosty starts. come the weekend, it starts to warm up quite dramatically, but it will get quite windy on sunday as well. here's why — at the moment, we're on the tail end of one area of low pressure, moving into northerly or north—westerly winds for thursday or friday, and come the weekend, we switch to southerly or south—westerlies as low pressure squeezes in from the west. in the midst of all this, there's high pressure, which is essentially keeping things relatively calm and largely dry. some weak weather fronts sliding down across the uk on thursday, but coming in behind this weak cold front, you guessed it, colder air.
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quite gusty winds across the board, but particularly for shetland — up to 70mph at times today. and the temperature profile behind me gives you some indicator ofjust how far south the colder air will have worked its way through thursday afternoon. through the remainder of thursday into friday, that cold air floods right the way across the uk. the isobars open up a little bit. lighter winds, especially across the northern half of the uk, will mean a frosty start to friday, particularly across scotland, but also for parts of northern england and northern ireland. but here's some good sunshine from the get—go. look out for some wintry showers, though, perhaps even down to lower levels at times — that's just how cold the air will be, and we could get the odd thundery shower as well. to the south, a bit more cloud around. the biggest difference is the way things will feel — temperatures just 6 or 7 degrees in northern scotland. there's that high still hanging around, though. 0n we go into saturday. the clear skies friday night into saturday could make for a chilly start in southern
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parts of the uk, but there should be some good sunshine on saturday and with the low starting to approach, albeit quite a way away towards the west, we flip the wind direction round to a southerly. relatively light on saturday, butjust starting to lift our temperatures back up into double figures across scotland. here's the really big change, though, as that low closes in on sunday. the isobars squeeze together, that wind is going to get pretty strong, but look how the mild air works all the way north across the uk. temperatures are set to leap widely in the mid—teens across scotland, and we could even see up to 20 degrees possibly in the south—east of england.
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this is bbc news, the headlines:
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the us vice president has warned americans to expect a coronavirus scenario comparable to italy. the warning comes as america now has 200,000 confirmed infections, and over a,500 deaths. in new york alone, nearly a00 people died in the past 2a hours. britain has also recorded its worst one—day figure for coronavirus—related deaths: 563, a rise of nearly a third. the government is facing increasing pressure over its handling of the outbreak, amid criticism over shortages of protective equipment for frontline health workers and delays in ramping up testing. italy has extended its stringent lockdown measures, but families are now allowed to take their children for a walk. for the third day in a row, italy has registered a relatively low figure of new coronavirus cases.

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