this is bbc news, i'm rebecca jones. the headlines. storm eunice is battering parts of the uk. forecasters say it could be one of the worst storms to hit the country in three decades. i don't know what the actual wind speed is but you can barely stand up in it. i'm literally at a 45—degree angle, it's crazy. the dome of london's 02 has been shredded by the winds, with damage and disruption across the country. a gust of 122mph has been recorded at the needles on the isle of wight — provisionally the highest gust ever recorded in england. you're being urged to avoid travelling if you can. there are snow and ice warnings in northern england, scotland and northern ireland. all trains in wales have been cancelled and there are further cancellations and delays

across the uk. you should really consider whether you need to travel today, because we are still expecting extreme weather and that some extreme weather in that zone and the likelihood of flying debris, the likelihood of further power issues — we're already being hit by those — and further travel disruption. as russia carries out military drills in the black sea, world leaders meet in munich for a security conference, with the tensions in ukraine top of the agenda. a body representing nhs bosses says they want ministers to keep free covid tests — three quarters of senior health service staff want self—isolation rules to continue too. russia pushes back against ioc criticism of the coach for skater kamila valieva — after the russian star failed to win a medal.

hello and welcome to bbc news. storm eunice is beginning to batter much of the uk, causing widespread disruption and damage. forecasters say it could be one of the worst storms to hit the uk in three decades. the south—west bore the brunt of it this morning — with winds of an astonishing 122mph recorded at the needles on the isle of wight. a met office red warning for wind is in place for london and the south east of england, for the first time. it means a danger to life is likely, and people have been told to stay at home. amber warnings are in force across much of england and wales until 9pm, bringing the possibility of power cuts and falling trees. and there are yellow warnings for snow in scotland and northern ireland.

rail services, ferryjourneys and flights have been cancelled, schools are closed and thousands of homes are without power. our correspondent simonjones looks first at how eunice is affecting us so far. we were warned. as forecast, storm eunice swept in this morning, battering the coast of wales. and in cornwall — a red warning meaning a simple message, the storm is so severe, that lives are at risk. i don't know what the actual wind speed is, but you can barely stand up in it. i'm guessing it's 80, 90 mph on top of the cliff. it has caused power cuts, forced hundreds of schools to shut, and businesses to close. red warnings are very rare. since we change the warning system in 2011, we have only issued 16 red warnings.

they don't come along very often and to have two in place at the same time is exceptionally rare. oh, my gosh, oh, my gosh! gusts strong enough to bring down the street in gloucestershire. it's notjust the wind causing the worry, snow has been falling and lead to difficult driving conditions in county durham. yellow warnings are in place for much of northern england, scotland and northern ireland. at this control centre, they have been monitoring the roads. it feels like we have less traffic than normal on friday so people are heeding the warnings but there will not be a good time to drive today with these horrible conditions so please do not get into a rush hour related accident, it is not safe. this flight into heathrow had a bit of a bumpy landing. many others have been cancelled. rail companies have been advising people not to travel. large parts of the network have been shut anyway.

if people do need to travel, they should first of all be prepared for very long delays and secondly check with their train operators that the train is running. in common with other agencies, our strong advice is not to travel. london and the south—east of england are facing an unprecedented situation. even part of the 02 arena even part of the o2 arena could not stand the storm. the met office don't issue a red weather warning as a matter of course. the first time ever in london. storm eunice is the worst storm we have faced in three decades in london. it is really important you err on the side of caution. whether warnings remain in place until tonight but even then that won't be the end of the story. i don't want to be the bringer of doom and gloom but today, as serious as it is — and it is a serious, severe event today — but on the back of this, we have more rain coming

so there could be possibilities of further flooding as the week pans out. let's get today out of the way first and let's make sure that all of our infrastructure, all of our defences, are still in good shape to be able to deal with whatever might come for the rest of the week. the battle with the elements is far from over. simon jones, bbc news. let's speak to our reporter, lucinda adam in brighton. ican i can see the size of those waves behind you. what is the situation there? ~ ., there? well, when the red warning was called for _ there? well, when the red warning was called for the _ there? well, when the red warning was called for the south-east - there? well, when the red warning was called for the south-east we . was called for the south—east we were always told it would be coastal areas that would be worst hit and we have seen that come to pass in the last hour or so because the storm is at its peak but it has also been high tide and you can see how ferocious the waves are behind me. we have watched all morning as those waves have battered that marina. brighton marina isjust behind me. we have been up and down the

seafront and people have been out and about despite the weather. we have seen them struggling to stand with those strong winds, they have been taking their dogs and their cameras out to catch these images. sussex coast guard has been patrolling up and down, asking people to keep their distance, be simple and be as safe as possible. what about other travel arrangements in brighton? are the trains running? the trains to brighton are running. across the south—east, in kent, all train services have been cancelled. we believe that is unprecedented. in sussex there is a critical incident on the railway but they are keeping that from london to brighton, bognor regis sutton open. but trees have fallen across many train lines and roads. a couple of trees hit but travel around the south—east is getting more difficult.

travel around the south-east is getting more difficult.- travel around the south-east is getting more difficult. lucinda adam in briuhton, getting more difficult. lucinda adam in brighton, thank _ getting more difficult. lucinda adam in brighton, thank you _ getting more difficult. lucinda adam in brighton, thank you for _ getting more difficult. lucinda adam in brighton, thank you for that - in brighton, thank you for that update. let's speak to our reporter, josie hannett in dover. a lot of the ferry services have been cancelled, what is the picture there? ,., ., been cancelled, what is the picture there? ., , . there? the port of dover is closed and ferry services _ there? the port of dover is closed and ferry services between - there? the port of dover is closed and ferry services between doverl there? the port of dover is closed i and ferry services between dover and calais have been cancelled until further notice for the safety of passengers and freight traffic. incredibly the sun is just coming up but extremely windy, gusts of up to 66 mph. we have been seeing some amazing scenes of tug boats pulling these in and if i can set back, you can see a shakespeare beach, we have a number of people stood there watching the incredible waves batter against that harbour wall. people being told to stay indoors, many people getting close to that. i

guess being nosy and seeing how much this storm is affecting us. dover town, we have seen a couple of lorries, they will not be going anywhere because ferry services are not running and many of them travelled back to france on a thursday anyway. in terms of dog walkers, a few people out, just seeing how bad the storm is here. will there be a knock—on impact? until we know when these ferry services are back up and were running and they have said until further notice, the weather gets better, they could be delays that will impact future services. you said the port — will impact future services. you said the port of— will impact future services. you said the port of dover is closed. how unusual is it for the whole pour it to be close in this way? it is unusual and _ it to be close in this way? it is unusual and there _ it to be close in this way? it is unusual and there are - it to be close in this way? it 3 unusual and there are reasons behind it. i talked about the tugs earlier and they can work when winds are really strong. even though they are tiny boats, they can work to get the ferries back into position. the port does not close very often so this is very severe it will only open when

it is safe enough to do so. qm. it is safe enough to do so. 0k, josie it is safe enough to do so. 0k, josie hannett _ it is safe enough to do so. 0k, josie hannett inc _ it is safe enough to do so. 0k, josie hannett inc dover, thank you very much for that. let's cross over to gatwick and charlie rose is there. it looks a little bit calmer where you are. what is happening at the airport? this morning it looked like business as usual but in the past couple of hours ago, the wind and gusts have really picked up and it makes things very difficult for pilots. we have captured some exclusive pictures of planes, dramatic footage of planes on two separate flights trying to land here at gatwick. metres from the ground, they had to abort those landings and fly away simply because the conditions were just too treacherous. now most flights appear to be taking off and landing

successfully. but on the ground the into terminal rail shuttle, which normally carries passengers between the north and south terminals here has been cancelled. many flights, several flights have been cancelled today and there has been widespread disruption. people are still turning up disruption. people are still turning up with theirfingers disruption. people are still turning up with their fingers crossed expecting to catch their flight out of gatwick today. they may well be lucky but the advice is to check with your airline before heading to the airport yet. with your airline before heading to the airport yet-— the airport yet. those pictures really capture _ the airport yet. those pictures really capture how _ the airport yet. those pictures| really capture how treacherous the airport yet. those pictures i really capture how treacherous it is. i wonder, really capture how treacherous it is. iwonder, given really capture how treacherous it is. i wonder, given the number of cancellations you are talking about, is there any sense of the knock—on effect that this could have? it will clearly go on for a few days. there will be a knock-on _ clearly go on for a few days. there will be a knock-on effect - clearly go on for a few days. there will be a knock-on effect but - clearly go on for a few days. there will be a knock-on effect but at. clearly go on for a few days. there | will be a knock-on effect but at the will be a knock—on effect but at the moment the arrivals board, the departures board show some cancellations but most flights are

taking off and landing successfully here today but i imagine if you are a passenger on one of those flights, being a passenger is not for the faint—hearted. 0ne flight came from bordeaux to gatwick here and had two attempted landings at gatwick before the pilot took the view it was just too dangerous. that flight left to gatwick, returned to bordeaux and was cancelled. will we see more of those? quite possible. we have not seen the last of this storm yet, lots of disruption still to take place, i imagine.— lots of disruption still to take place, i imagine. good to talk to ou, place, i imagine. good to talk to you. charlie _ place, i imagine. good to talk to you, charlie rose _ place, i imagine. good to talk to you, charlie rose there - place, i imagine. good to talk to you, charlie rose there in - place, i imagine. good to talk to i you, charlie rose there in gatwick. wales has been battered by the wind and waves. there are no trains running anywhere in wales — the first time that has happened — and people are being advised to stay at home. 0ur correspondent tomos morgan is in porthcawl in south wales. as storm eunice crashes over porthcawl, the majority of cafes

and businesses are shut in and around the south wales coastline, as it took the brunt of the weather this morning. gusts of over 90 mph have been clocked, as eunice sweeps up everthing in its path. i have lived in porthcawl many, many years and i have never experienced anything like this before. it has even taken my breath away, it is so windy. you could barely walk on the prom, could you? you can't. i am literally at a 45 degrees angle. it is crazy. stronger than we have seen for a long time. the lack of rain is a big help, but i haven't seen a wind as strong as this for a while. the seafront here in porthcawl really bore the brunt of the weather here this morning, as within the hour of the red warning coming into force it coincided with high tide, meaning waves came crashing over the promenade here. although the met office's red warning has now ended, the whole of wales is now under an amber alert for winds until this evening.

seas in holyhead disrupting ferry services across the irish sea. elsewhere on the transport front, eunice's impact on the road overturned a lorry on the m4. fallen trees damaged a car in swansea, with both severn bridges now closed. all trains have been postponed for the first time ever in wales. i have been on the railway 30 years in wales and i do not recall a storm of this magnitude where we have taken the decision of suspending the service in advance. over 25,000 homes are now without power, and that number is steadily rising. most schools are closed. half term here starting a day earlier than planned. as eunice continues to create dramatic but dangerous scenery, the advice is to stay indoors and to only travel if absolutely necessary. tomos morgan, bbc news, porthcawl. here with me now is dan mcgowan, who lives with his family in ely, cardiff, which is very joining me now from natural resources,

wales is andy wall. those were some dramatic pictures. what is your assessment of the impact of the storm so far? it has been a severe _ impact of the storm so far? it has been a severe storm, _ impact of the storm so far? it has been a severe storm, we - impact of the storm so far? it has been a severe storm, we are - impact of the storm so far? it has i been a severe storm, we are taking it extremely seriously as your report suggested. we have had a very close call on the flooding front. we have had to look at predicted types, we have had a severe storm coming in and it is the timing of the tide, the wind, the waves, and all forecasts suggest they could coincide. we have had a very close call in large parts of wales where the worst of the storm surge and ways up coming after high tide. we keep a close eye on the north wales coast between anglesey and liverpool. the tide isjust coast between anglesey and liverpool. the tide is just about peeking now. liverpool. the tide is 'ust about peeking newt liverpool. the tide is 'ust about peeking now. situation in wales should steadily _ peeking now. situation in wales should steadily improve - peeking now. situation in wales should steadily improve but - peeking now. situation in wales should steadily improve but we | peeking now. situation in wales . should steadily improve but we had over 100 flood warnings in force, we haven't seen that for many years and reports are showing some of the conditions in wales have been atrocious, over 90 mass per hour gusts off pembrokeshire.

you had 100 warnings in force, how about now?— you had 100 warnings in force, how about now? ~ ,, ., ., , :: . ., about now? approximately 50. we have taken those off — about now? approximately 50. we have taken those off the _ about now? approximately 50. we have taken those off the coast _ about now? approximately 50. we have taken those off the coast where - about now? approximately 50. we have taken those off the coast where the - taken those off the coast where the tide has passed but the warnings remain in force on the north wales coast and into late afternoon, evening, the conditions will improve as the storm passes through that i can't emphasise enough, this has been an extremely close call for wales and evidenced by the met office warnings and the strength of 0ffice warnings and the strength of the winds, we are into that territory. the winds, we are into that territory-— the winds, we are into that territo . ~ ., , ., territory. what is your detailed advice to people _ territory. what is your detailed advice to people living - territory. what is your detailed advice to people living in - territory. what is your detailed advice to people living in areas territory. what is your detailed i advice to people living in areas at risk of flooding? ilil" advice to people living in areas at risk of flooding?— risk of flooding? our advice is lease risk of flooding? our advice is please check _ risk of flooding? our advice is please check whether - risk of flooding? our advice is please check whether you - risk of flooding? our advice is please check whether you are | risk of flooding? our advice is i please check whether you are at risk, you can go on our website which has maps of which areas are a flood risk, we offer advice. those are free and give people the times to prepare and act. people rightly said we were never told it could be that bad but we are now able to do

that. storm is a difficult, the weather is difficult to predict, we have to allow for some uncertainty in that but i would say to people, take the risk of coastal flooding seriously and there is lots of advice on websites where you can bring the flood mine and there are preparatory actions you can take. above all, stay away. if you are thinking of travelling to look at the waves, please don't, it is dangerous and there is a degree in some of those waves so there is a risk to life. we some of those waves so there is a risk to life-— risk to life. we take the point that bodies like _ risk to life. we take the point that bodies like yours _ risk to life. we take the point that bodies like yours where _ risk to life. we take the point that bodies like yours where issuing i bodies like yours where issuing warnings, giving people time to prepare but i wonder what the authorities can do to help and to prepare for such an event in advance. prepare for such an event in advance-— prepare for such an event in advance. ~ ., �* , advance. we don't prepare in advance. _ advance. we don't prepare in advance. we _ advance. we don't prepare in advance, we work _ advance. we don't prepare in advance, we work very - advance. we don't prepare in| advance, we work very closely advance. we don't prepare in - advance, we work very closely with the met office. they can forecast weather events a number of days ahead as the event approaches the confidence gets greater. we work with the met office and our partners in wales and scotland and england, work with the emergency services and local authorities to help them plan and prepare so they can target

resources and support to where the risk is greatest. the challenge we face with this particular event is the risk across the whole of wales which meant all local authorities and services are having to mobilise to be ready because north or south wales or a west wales was potentially at risk. returning to what ou potentially at risk. returning to what you said _ potentially at risk. returning to what you said at _ potentially at risk. returning to what you said at the _ potentially at risk. returning to what you said at the beginning, potentially at risk. returning to - what you said at the beginning, you fear that we have had their worst, you are hopeful i suppose is a better way of putting it, that's the worst is over. what knock—on effect will this have? we worst is over. what knock-on effect will this have?— will this have? we always learnt lessons from _ will this have? we always learnt lessons from events, _ will this have? we always learnt lessons from events, we - will this have? we always learnt lessons from events, we work i will this have? we always learnt i lessons from events, we work with partners in terms of communications, warnings, we will have teams on the grounds once conditions are safe to check coastal defences. we have got there that wet weather forecast, fortunately nothing like what we have had in terms of the coastal risk but unfortunately we have further wet and windy weather, particularly on sunday and it is quite possible we will be issuing further flood warnings during sunday. further flood warnings during sunda . , ., ., further flood warnings during sunda . , ., further flood warnings during sunda. , ., ., ,, ., sunday. 0k, very good to talk to ou. sunday. 0k, very good to talk to you- thank _ sunday. 0k, very good to talk to you- thank you _ sunday. 0k, very good to talk to you. thank you very _ sunday. 0k, very good to talk to

you. thank you very much. - here with me now is dan mcgowan, who lives with his family in ely, west of cardiff, which is very close to the ely river which is flood prone. dan, have you seen flooding? not toda , dan, have you seen flooding? not today. which _ dan, have you seen flooding? ijrrt today, which we are very grateful for. it is a river, although it is quite small, level fluctuates and when we have storms like this it brings that risk. i think in previous years we have seen flooding a little further down from us, it has not yet reached us in those years but got close once or twice. it must have been pretty tense. yeah. you're never quite sure what you are going to wake up to, i suppose, and this storm currently seems to be doing nothing, where it will for a bit and then there will be a quieter period and you think maybe it is on its way out and then it comes back with renewed vigour. we have had a little bit of property damage to garden fences and stuff like that but thankfully nothing

greater than that of.— like that but thankfully nothing greater than that of. what about houses at the _ greater than that of. what about houses at the other _ greater than that of. what about houses at the other end - greater than that of. what about houses at the other end of - greater than that of. what about houses at the other end of the i greater than that of. what about - houses at the other end of the road? have they been less fortunate than you? have they been less fortunate than ou? ., , ., , have they been less fortunate than ou? ., , ., _ ~ you? yeah, in previous years i think if ou no you? yeah, in previous years i think if you go back _ you? yeah, in previous years i think if you go back 100 _ you? yeah, in previous years i think if you go back 100 metres _ you? yeah, in previous years i think if you go back 100 metres further i if you go back 100 metres further down the road, the other side of the road bridge, they have had some problems with flooding in previous storms and i think the worry is we are getting more of these storms, they are more frequent and seem to get bigger each time as climate change starts biting so my concerns my around that and probably similar for others in this area as well as elsewhere across the country. given storm eunice _ elsewhere across the country. given storm eunice was _ elsewhere across the country. given storm eunice was well— elsewhere across the country. given storm eunice was well flagged, - elsewhere across the country. given storm eunice was well flagged, what sort of preparations did you put in place preparing for the worst? brute place preparing for the worst? we were place preparing for the worst? - were mainly stocking up on provisions within the house and we had originally planned to go and visit relatives this weekend, so we were not going to be here beyond later this afternoon and now we are staying on a bit longer. so we

haven't done a heck of a lot, i have to say, but i think with this storm it being a bit different, it hasn't had quite the same amount of rainfall as previous ones, so we felt with that knowledge that it might not be quite such a risk from flooding this time around. lian flooding this time around. dan mcgowan. _ flooding this time around. dan mcgowan. very _ flooding this time around. dan mcgowan, very good to talk to you ely in wales. thank you forjoining us on bbc news. ely in wales. thank you for “oining us on bbc news.�* the south west of england saw the worst of the weather this morning — a red met office warning was in place until midday, that is now an amber warning. there are flood warnings still in place along the severn estuary, caused primarily by tidal surges following huge waves. 0ur correspondent andrew plant reports from maisemore in gloucestershire. this is the west coast and it is where the bristol channel is coming in off the sea and becomes the river severn and gets much narrower as it goes north. you can see it is high tide now,

it is getting really choppy and really windy as eunice starts to hit, but it is up there in that direction, as it goes into gloucestershire, that is where they are worried it could start to cause flooding. along the river, homes and businesses have been blocking doors with sandbags, and everyone here keeping a close eye on the water after environment agency warnings that flooding was likely. further south, the high winds brought down trees. this crashing down this morning. 0n the coast at st ives in cornwall, the high winds brought big waves and a warning to keep away from the water. it is still very dangerous. the winds are still gusting away. we are up to hurricane force at the moment and it really is getting quite... i think we are now coming to the eye of it, to be fair. others had to leave their holiday

caravans and take shelter inside. we don't know yet if our caravan is ok. it could still be there or be a pile of rubble. it is one or the other and we are not allowed back on site so i think it is going to be another night in the hotel. eunice arrived later than expected. many hope the threat of flooding may now be receding, but the storm so far has left a trail of destruction behind. andrew plant, bbc news, gloucester. let's talk to our weather presenter nick miller. dramatic pictures. can you give us more of an overview of what is happening across the country? storm eunice didn't — happening across the country? storm eunice didn't even _ happening across the country? storm eunice didn't even exist _ happening across the country? storm eunice didn't even exist a _ happening across the country? storm eunice didn't even exist a couple - happening across the country? sitrr'r’n eunice didn't even exist a couple of days ago, it was a strip of cloud in the atlantic energised by a powerful jet stream and is now a deep area of low pressure essentially sitting across the uk so we are all feeling

the impact. whether it is the snow falling and causing disruption in scotland, where these very strong and damaging winds that are particularly across wales and the southern half of england. that system continues to trek across the uk. the north sea, goodbye to storm eunice and we see the winds begin to subside. we are clearly not at that point yet. we still have some very serious conditions out there. particularly in the met office red wind warning area here. this is an area a lot of people woke up this morning and thought, it is not that windy! morning and thought, it is not that wind ! , ., , , morning and thought, it is not that i windyl— exactly- windy! the sun was shining! exactly. it was all windy! the sun was shining! exactly. it was all was _ windy! the sun was shining! exactly. it was all was going _ windy! the sun was shining! exactly. it was all was going to _ windy! the sun was shining! exactly. it was all was going to be _ windy! the sun was shining! exactly. it was all was going to be worse - it was all was going to be worse before it got better. this is why the red wine did not kick in until 10am and is in force until 3pm. —— at the red morning. we are getting exactly that, 66 mph gusts in essex, heathrow and gatwick airport gusting 70 to 80 mph and just in the past

couple of hours we have just seen the number of reports of damage and disruption increasing across london and south—east england. strong winds have transferred further east and we have transferred further east and we have to remind ourselves we still have to remind ourselves we still have to remind ourselves we still have this have to remind ourselves we still have to remind ourselves we still have this large have to remind ourselves we still have to remind ourselves we still have this large and have to remind ourselves we still have to remind ourselves we still have this large and bit have to remind ourselves we still have to remind ourselves we still have this large and bit warning have to remind ourselves we still have to remind ourselves we still have this large and bit warning area capable still of producing 60 to 80 mph gusts, in force until 9pm. it will be several hours before we can begin to drop our guide. disruption will continue long after that because there is so much out there. ~ . , ., there. what is the potential impact of winds of these _ there. what is the potential impact of winds of these kind _ there. what is the potential impact of winds of these kind of _ there. what is the potential impactl of winds of these kind of strengths? it is exactly what we have been seen, the trees uprooted, very large and dangerous waves hitting the coastline, damaging our coast. there will be things flying through the air that have not been tied down properly. it is caroline's coming down, power cuts, all of those things which have manifested themselves so far today from wales —— knockout power lines coming down. again in these warning areas

particularly in amber. the red wind warning area, those things are happening right now and they are very much a danger to life. that is clearl a very much a danger to life. that is clearly a serious _ very much a danger to life. that is clearly a serious message. - very much a danger to life. that is clearly a serious message. i - very much a danger to life. that is clearly a serious message. i want| clearly a serious message. i want some good news! you did say we would be saying goodbye to storm eunice but what does the weekend hold? i wish i could give you some good news. there are other weather systems. it will not be as bad as it has been in some areas of the uk to date but there is so much damage to clear up and so much to repair. that will not be helped by the fact that it is going to be windy again in south wales and southern england tomorrow. 0n south wales and southern england tomorrow. on sunday, more widely windy, scotland, northern ireland, irish sea coast, gusts in excess of 60 mph and for spells of rain and for some the chance of snow this weekend, as well. not as bad as some of the conditions at the moment, but it remains wet and quite often windy through this weekend. qm. it remains wet and quite often windy through this weekend.— it remains wet and quite often windy through this weekend. ok, i know you will be back with _

through this weekend. ok, i know you will be back with regular _ through this weekend. ok, i know you will be back with regular updates - will be back with regular updates but for now, thank you. as we've heard, large parts of the uk have been affected by storm eunice — which has caused transport chaos for many in the south of england. passengers hoping to travel out of one of london's main stations — at paddington — have arrived to find many services cancelled. 0ur correspondent sanchia berg is on the station concourse. what is the situation? she has been telling me the situation with trains travelling in and out of paddington. the boards here at paddington station, as elsewhere, really tell the story of this storm's approach. so, when i arrived this morning, there were no trains to wales. trains to the west of england were delayed, as they were cancelled as the day continued, and currently, those boards are completely empty. tannoy announcement. and as you can hear, we're getting announcements all the time. there are going to be no trains out of paddington for the next four hours, because lines have come down

and that level of disruption is repeated as other mainline stations, south eastern services being suspended. southwestern, as well, and many other forms of transport, air travel is disrupted, other forms of travel with, there are warnings out there. so this is the effect, as the storm hits the capital. there is an awful lot of disruption, and travel, certainly here from paddington, is unlikely to get back to normal for quite some time. now it's time for a look at the weather with nick. well, as storm eunice moves across the uk, we're seeing the strongest, most damaging winds transferring eastwards across more of the southern half of the uk into more of the met office red wind warning area, as well — damaging danger—to—life gusts, 60 to 80 miles an hour. there's a much bigger amber wind warning area and, again, the stronger winds are transferring eastwards over the next few hours — here, too, 60 to 70 — as high as 80 in a few spots, with widespread damage and disruption. 50 to 60 mph gusts through parts

of northern england, northern ireland and southern scotland, and a lot of snow falling for the rest of the day across scotland. notjust into the hills — lower levels in places, too — so that's bringing disruption here, and quite a range of temperatures from north to south across the uk. getting into tonight, the strongest winds are gradually going to be easing. where we've got clear spells, it'll be turning quite cold. there'll be further snow at times across parts of scotland and into northern england — especially into the pennines. icy patches, too, and not as bad as we're seeing at the moment, but more wet and windy weather over the weekend. hello this is bbc news. the headlines... storm eunice is battering parts of the uk. forecasters say it could be one of the worst storms to hit the country in three decades. i don't know what the actual wind speed is, but you can barely stand up in it. i'm literally at a 45—degree

angle, it's crazy. the dome of london's 02 has been shredded by the winds, with damage and disruption across the country. a gust of 122mph has been recorded at the needles on the isle of wight, provisionally the highest gust ever recorded in england. there are snow and ice warnings in northern england, scotland and northern ireland and you're being urged not to travel unless you have to. all trains in wales have been cancelled, with major cancellations and delays on rail lines across the uk. airlines are urging passengers to check their flights before heading to the airport, with many arrivals and departures being affected by the strong winds. as russia carries out military drills in the black sea, world leaders meet in munich for a security conference, with the tensions in ukraine top of the agenda. a group representing nhs bosses says they want ministers to keep free covid tests. three—quarters of senior health service staff want self—isolation rules to continue too.

russia pushes back against ioc criticism of the coach for skater kamila valieva, after the russian star failed to win a medal. we'll have more on storm eunice in a moment, we're hoping to cross live to ilframcombe to speak to someone there, but first he's all the sport with 0lly. good afternoon. great britains women are playing their curling semifinal against reigning champions sweden at the winter olympics. the swedes started strongly, going 4—0 up after the first end. eve muirhead's team pulled it back to 11—3 and it was level at 5—5 at the halfway stage. we are just in the ninth of 10 ends, sweden 8—7 up but great britain have the hammer, the all important final stone. japan lead switzerland 7—5

in the other semifinal. you can follow that on the bbc sport website. the ioc president, thomas bach, has criticised kamila valieva's coaching team in beijing for having no compassion towards the teenage figure skater. in response, russia's deputy prime minister says it's.. "inappropriate and wrong for bach to weave his own fictional narrative on the feelings of their athletes." the 15—year—old figure skater, who has been allowed to compete for the russian olympic committee despite being investigated for a failed drugs test in december, fell a number of times in yesterday's individual free skate routine and dropped from the gold medal position to fourth. her coach confronted her as she stepped off

the ice, saying, "why did you let it go, why did you stop fighting?" when i afterwards saw how she was received by her closest entourage, with what appeared to be such a tremendous coldness, it was chilling to see this. rather than giving her confidence, rather than to try to help her. lewis hamilton says he's ready to attack again ahead, of the formula one season that starts next month. speaking at the launch of the mercedes car, alongside his new teamate george russell, the seven—time champion admitted that he had a difficult time coming to terms with last season's title climax when he was pipped to the world championship by max verstappen on the final lap of the abu dhabi grand prix. the race director michael masi,

who was removed from his position yesterday, failed to follow the the rules correctly during a late safety—car period. it was obviously a difficult time for me, and it was where i really needed to take a step back and focus on being present, i had my family all around me, creating great moments. and eventually got to a point where i decided i was going to be attacking again and coming into another season and working with toto and george. it is exciting seeing george come in and bring his energy, i can already feel that throughout the team and i think it is going to be an exciting season. rugby union's six nation's championship takes a break this weekend, but ireland's first choice hooker, ronan kelleher, will miss the rest of the tournament. he was forced off with a shoulder problem during the first—half of their defeat to france last weekend. he's started the last seven games

in a row and has 18 caps. dan sheehan came off the bench to replace him in paris and is expected to make his first start against italy next weekend. england's courtney laws has been passed fit for their next match against wales. the forward had been suffering with concussion and has played no part in the championship so far. that's all the sport for now. will it be over for the british women in the semifinal? don't say that! just asking _ women in the semifinal? don't say that! just asking the _ women in the semifinal? don't say that! just asking the question. - let's get more on storm eunice and joining us in ilfracombe is ben benjee, a fisherman who also serves on the lifeboats. you are clearly on a boat, is it a lifeboat or fishing boat? you are clearly on a boat, is it a lifeboat orfishing boat? it is you are clearly on a boat, is it a lifeboat or fishing boat? it is my fishin: lifeboat or fishing boat? it is my fishing boat- _ lifeboat or fishing boat? it is my fishing boat. what _ lifeboat or fishing boat? it is my fishing boat. what is _ lifeboat or fishing boat? it is my fishing boat. what is it - lifeboat or fishing boat? it is my fishing boat. what is it like - lifeboat or fishing boat? it is my i fishing boat. what is it like there? it is not fishing boat. what is it like there? it is not too _ fishing boat. what is it like there? it is not too bad, _ fishing boat. what is it like there? it is not too bad, the _ fishing boat. what is it like there? it is not too bad, the tide - fishing boat. what is it like there? it is not too bad, the tide has - fishing boat. what is it like there? | it is not too bad, the tide has gone out, we have lost the scroll from the harbour but when the time comes in later, we will see a bit of

carnage. in later, we will see a bit of carnage-— in later, we will see a bit of carnage. in later, we will see a bit of carnaue.~ ., ., ., _ carnage. what do you mean by carnage? _ carnage. what do you mean by carnage? there _ carnage. what do you mean by carnage? there is _ carnage. what do you mean by carnage? there is a _ carnage. what do you mean by carnage? there is a lot - carnage. what do you mean by carnage? there is a lot of- carnage. what do you mean by carnage? there is a lot of tidalj carnage? there is a lot of tidal suru e carnage? there is a lot of tidal surge with _ carnage? there is a lot of tidal surge with the _ carnage? there is a lot of tidal surge with the water _ carnage? there is a lot of tidal surge with the water coming i carnage? there is a lot of tidalj surge with the water coming in carnage? there is a lot of tidal- surge with the water coming in and out of the harbour quite quickly. it is not often a time when you often break what we moved to the key with. i am right that problems at the coast are often caused by the combination of high tide and high wind? so how has the picture been during the first part of the day? have you got away with it? yes. during the first part of the day? have you got away with it? yes, this mornin: , have you got away with it? yes, this morning. we — have you got away with it? yes, this morning. we got _ have you got away with it? yes, this morning, we got away _ have you got away with it? yes, this morning, we got away with - have you got away with it? yes, this morning, we got away with it. - have you got away with it? yes, this morning, we got away with it. a - morning, we got away with it. a south—westerly this morning, the pressure system was a couple of hours late. we had south—west and me my girlfriend came down at 6am, there was not a breath of wind, the stars were out, and then at 9am, it was blowing a gale.— stars were out, and then at 9am, it was blowing a gale. have you've seen conditions like _ was blowing a gale. have you've seen conditions like this _ was blowing a gale. have you've seen conditions like this before? _ was blowing a gale. have you've seen conditions like this before? are - was blowing a gale. have you've seen conditions like this before? are the i conditions like this before? are the quite common or is it rare? the wind bein: so quite common or is it rare? the wind being so much. _ quite common or is it rare? the wind being so much, not— quite common or is it rare? the wind being so much, not so _ quite common or is it rare? the wind being so much, not so much - quite common or is it rare? the wind being so much, not so much but- quite common or is it rare? the wind being so much, not so much but the| being so much, not so much but the see conditions, we have seen it before. in see conditions, we have seen it before. , ., , .,

see conditions, we have seen it before. , ., y., , before. in terms of your fishing boat, it must _ before. in terms of your fishing boat, it must be _ before. in terms of your fishing boat, it must be quite - before. in terms of your fishing boat, it must be quite scary - before. in terms of your fishing boat, it must be quite scary if. before. in terms of your fishing i boat, it must be quite scary if you see it bobbing around on the sea. how easy is it to secure when you are not actually own it?— how easy is it to secure when you are not actually own it? quite easy. it's not are not actually own it? quite easy. it's not the — are not actually own it? quite easy. it's not the nicest _ are not actually own it? quite easy. it's not the nicest of _ are not actually own it? quite easy. it's not the nicest of things - are not actually own it? quite easy. it's not the nicest of things when i it's not the nicest of things when it's bobbing around but it's one of those, you don't come and look at it, you can do anything.— it, you can do anything. there reall is it, you can do anything. there really is nothing _ it, you can do anything. there really is nothing you - it, you can do anything. there really is nothing you can - it, you can do anything. there really is nothing you can do. l it, you can do anything. there - really is nothing you can do. now, it is the safety _ really is nothing you can do. now, it is the safety factor, _ really is nothing you can do. now, it is the safety factor, there - really is nothing you can do. now, it is the safety factor, there is - really is nothing you can do. now, it is the safety factor, there is no | it is the safety factor, there is no point trying to risk your life. if you can get a rope on, cracked on, but if you cannot, it is better as being alive than trying to save the boat. �* , ,., , , being alive than trying to save the boat. n, , , ., boat. absolutely. use a unc girlfriend — boat. absolutely. use a unc girlfriend were _ boat. absolutely. use a unc girlfriend were out _ boat. absolutely. use a unc girlfriend were out and - boat. absolutely. use a unc| girlfriend were out and about boat. absolutely. use a unc - girlfriend were out and about early doors but are people generally heeding advice to stay at home or are the people wandering around taking selfies and walking the dog? this morning, it was there were coastguards and the environment agency, that is about it. since the

red warning, people walking their dogs on the beach, we have taken it quite well down here. if dogs on the beach, we have taken it quite well down here.— dogs on the beach, we have taken it quite well down here. if someone was to net into quite well down here. if someone was to get into trouble _ quite well down here. if someone was to get into trouble out _ quite well down here. if someone was to get into trouble out at _ quite well down here. if someone was to get into trouble out at sea, - quite well down here. if someone was to get into trouble out at sea, how- to get into trouble out at sea, how safe would it be for you to deploy a lifeboat? if it is one with rubber ribs, you don't want to be going out in that, do you? it ribs, you don't want to be going out in that. do you?— in that, do you? it would be good fun, the in that, do you? it would be good fun. the d — in that, do you? it would be good fun, the d class _ in that, do you? it would be good fun, the d class which _ in that, do you? it would be good fun, the d class which we - in that, do you? it would be good fun, the d class which we have i in that, do you? it would be good | fun, the d class which we have got here, an all—weather boat, it is of service today because of the weather conditions. but yes, we would get it out there. could be quite good fun actually. but out there. could be quite good fun actuall . �* , ., . out there. could be quite good fun actuall . �* y., ., ., actually. but you are not encouraging _ actually. but you are not encouraging anyone i actually. but you are not encouraging anyone to l actually. but you are notl encouraging anyone to go actually. but you are not i encouraging anyone to go out actually. but you are not - encouraging anyone to go out are you? what is your advice? please sta at you? what is your advice? please stay at home _ you? what is your advice? please stay at home and _ you? what is your advice? please stay at home and if— you? what is your advice? please stay at home and if you _ you? what is your advice? please stay at home and if you see i you? what is your advice? please i stay at home and if you see anyone in trouble, cold 999.— in trouble, cold 999. finally, tell us more about _ in trouble, cold 999. finally, tell us more about what _ in trouble, cold 999. finally, tell us more about what might i in trouble, cold 999. finally, tell. us more about what might happen later on today. i us more about what might happen

later on today-— us more about what might happen later on today. i don't know. there is probably — later on today. i don't know. there is probably going _ later on today. i don't know. there is probably going to _ later on today. i don't know. there is probably going to be _ later on today. i don't know. there is probably going to be a _ later on today. i don't know. there is probably going to be a lot i later on today. i don't know. there is probably going to be a lot of, i later on today. i don't know. there j is probably going to be a lot of, we might get flooded down here, it has swung round north—west, the key might get a bit of flooding, so i will be here try to help out anyway we can. ., , , , we can. you seem pretty philosophical— we can. you seem pretty philosophical about i we can. you seem pretty philosophical about it i we can. you seem pretty| philosophical about it all, we can. you seem pretty i philosophical about it all, it strikes me you have seen it all before, but many thanks forjoining us. before, but many thanks for “oining us. . ~' before, but many thanks for “oining us. . ~ , ., y before, but many thanks for “oining us. . ~' , ., , . meanwhile, apart from the strong wind, storm eunice has also brought snow to large parts of northern england and scotland. danjohnson is near stainmore summit in the pennines in north yorkshire, where snow is more the issue. we are just on the boundary here between cumbria and durham, and we are at the heart of the area that is the focus of that amber warning for snow and ice. as you can see, quite a lot has fallen already on this higher ground in the pennines this morning and there is more forecast for later this afternoon. this road, the a66 across the pennines,

was actually closed this morning, mainly due to the high winds, and trucks are still being advised to stay off this and some of the other high roads across the hills, because of the high winds expected this afternoon. the humber bridge is going to close at 1:30pm. that is only the fourth or fifth time in its a0 years that it has been closed because of the weather. so although things aren't as bad here in the north as perhaps they are in the south, the bad weather is having an effect, and it looks like the disruption will last for some time. power cuts are also expected to be an issue. northern power grid said that it did manage to reconnect yesterday all the households that had been affected by storm dudley, around 20,000, but they are braced for more trees to come down, affecting more power lines and putting more people into darkness without electricity, perhaps night and into tomorrow. the disruption could last through the weekend. we have seen the gritters out on the roads, trying to keep routes open.

much more to come and for the very latest, keep checking our website and your local radio station. a product which was designed to deter burglars and protect property is now being used to help victims of domestic abuse. smartwater, when sprayed, makes an invisible mark on a perpetrator that can't be removed. the coded liquid means police can instantly link criminals to a crime scene as shiona mccallum's been finding out. this can is filled with a forensic spray, which, for the first time, is being used to stop domestic violence. to show how it works, i volunteered to be sprayed with it. you can't see it with the naked eye, but switch on the uv lights... ..and you will see i have been marked. for years, this substance has been

used to protect property and deter thieves, but now, for the first time, it's been used to convict someone for harassment. a man in wakefield in west yorkshire has beenjailed for breaching his non—molestation order. he had been told to stay away from his ex—partner and her house, so when he turned up, she sprayed him with the solution. three police forces in england have been giving these canisters, filled with the smart water, to victims of domestic abuse, harassment and stalking and if it's sprayed on a person, then it can put exactly them at the scene of a crime. each batch of the liquid has a unique formulation. at this lab in telford they mix together different chemical elements... and there's more than a billion possible combinations. the technicians can analyse the tiniest of samples, so from just one drop of this stuff, they can tell exactly what bottle it came from.

well, i mean, i can't tell you the secret source of smart water, but what i can tell you is that it's made up of a combination of rare elements that would never be found naturally anywhere else in the world. each batch is unique. we know categorically that smart water was registered to that person and can be linked to the crime. what about cctv, would that not be good enough deterrant? cctv might not categorically identify a person if they were wearing something like a balaclava, suddently the element of doubt is there and you cannot categorically prove that, whereas there is no element of doubt in something like smart water. the idea has been around for a while. it was featured on the back bbc in 1996, but using it to deter domestic abuse is a new idea and police say it is working. this is what forensic marking is doing, what we are saying to the perpetrator is, if you go back to that address and breach these conditions and commit offences, you will be forensically marked. we will prove that as a police service and we will bring you tojustice. how pleased are you that you got

the conviction here in yorkshire? during that incident, the victim was able to safely deploy that canister during an incident at her home address and during the subsequent investigation, we could forensically see that the individual was marked with the spray. the following day, the perpetrator was convicted and received 24 weeks imprisonment for a breach of a non—molestation order, which we are really pleased about. it's sad the offence has taken place, because we want to deter it, a part of our objectives and priority is to prevent, but if it doesn't, we need to have the best possible evidence to bring perpetrators tojustice and this is what the initiative has done. over 200 women across the uk now have smart water in their homes. the majority of them are telling the police that they feel safer as a result of having a tool. they are also saying the perpetrators are not visiting them any more.

the victims say they can go out to work and just have peace of mind. currently, west yorkshire, south yorkshire and staffordshire police forces are using the tech as part of their domestic violence strategy, but it's thought forensic marking will be trialled by other forces across the country too, in the hope of securing more convictions and deterring more crimes. vladimir putin will oversee drills tomorrow including missile launches. ukraine's defence minister says about 150,000 russian troops are encircling the country despite russia's claimed that some have been pulled back. world leaders are meeting in munich today for a security conference which russia will not be attending for the first time since 1999.

russia's military exercises in belarus are almost over, designed to show off moscow's raw power in the most unambiguous way. 0ther drills, out in the black sea. rarely has russia displayed its military might in so many places at the same time. it's mesmerised and profoundly alarmed the west, and perhaps that's the point. some equipment is going back to bases close to ukraine. western officials say they want to see other units being moved much further away, before there can be any meaningful talk of de—escalation. although russia has announced that it is moving its forces back to garrison, we have yet to see that. in fact, we see more forces moving into that region, that border region. in eastern ukraine, a potentially dangerous escalation. ukrainian soldiers inspecting damage from yesterday's explosion at a kindergarten. exchanges of fire overnight,

some of the biggest in recent years. the front lines here have barely changed after long years of war. this is where a wider conflict could erupt. a mistake or a provocation might prove disastrous. the threat to this country remains very real. vladimir putin could invade ukraine at a moment's notice, but whatever he decides to do, the sheer theatricality of his muscle flexing in recent weeks has completely transformed the west's understanding of russia as a global power. even if war is averted, and it hasn't been yet, this crisis is not going to be forgotten for a long, long time. least of all, the politicians and leaders gathering for a security conference in munich. the west still scrambling to formulate its response to the challenge from moscow. at the kremlin, mr putin held talks with the leader of belarus, alexander lukashenko, the man playing host to the drills which finish on sunday.

translation: military exercises are active right now. _ tomorrow, we will even participate together in an important part of this whole complex of military cooperation. ukrainian soldiers, already involved in fighting, know that something much bigger could still be looming. russia insists it has no plans to attack. no—one here is relaxing their guard. paul adams, bbc news. several major health charities in england are calling for children's health services to be prioritised, as the country emerges from the pandemic. a report from the nuffield trust and the health foundation for england highlights growing waits for planned care, delays to cancer diagnoses, and a surge in demand for mental health services. more details from our health correspondent, katharine da costa. some days she couldn't walk. getting angry, she

was crying sometimes. the children caught up in delays and disruption caused by the covid pandemic. sometimes ijust see tears rolling down his face. gone from the child he was, to pretty much a recluse. he's more interested in your fingers. eight—year—old thomas from leeds was diagnosed with leukaemia three years ago. his fortnightly hospital appointments moved to monthly video calls during the pandemic. his mother says, without face—to—face checkups, problems with his bladder and liver weren't spotted. it's like, all this time in the back of my head, how long has this been going on? would it have been detected sooner, had he have been seen? as a mother, i want to take this pain away from him. i don't want to sit and watch him in this pain, but i can't do anything. i just feel completely helpless.

sorry. as well as disruption to some cancer care, there has been unprecedented demand for children's mental health services, and the waiting list for planned hospital treatment grew to more than 300,000 in november. 1,000 young people waiting over two years. remember, crutch first! every day has been a struggle for 13—year—old cerys from nottingham. she has a condition which means one leg is longer than the other. all right? last summer, she was put on a waiting list for an operation, but it was cancelled twice because of covid. there you go, sweetheart. i was really frustrated by the situation. ijust want to be able to be normal and that and not have any pains in my legs. cerys finally had the operation last month to fit a frame on her leg that

will help it to grow. it's a relief it's all over. the last—minute cancellations caused a huge amount of anxiety. the whole situation of this| re—booking and cancelling, it's not fair on cerys, - she was losing school days. i was losing work days, - which i wasn't getting paid for. in response to thomas's case, leeds teaching hospital trust told us it is committed to achieving timely and safe care for all patients. all four uk nations have said they will continue to prioritise children's care, with extra investment in both mental and physical health services. katharine da costa, bbc news. covid passes, for those entering cinemas, nightclubs and other large scale events in wales, are being dropped from today. under the change, venues will no longer be required by law to ask customers for proof of their vaccine status, or a recent negative test result, but may continue to do so, if they wish. coast guards now say 11 people

are missing after a ferry caught fire of the greek island of corfu. greek officials had earlier said all 280 passengers were transferred to rescue boats, and that there were no deaths or serious injuries. the italian—flagged euroferry olympia was travelling from greece to brindisi in italy. video shared on social media showed the whole vessel on fire. the cause of the blaze is unknown. dust off those three—piece suits and flat caps, because the long—awaited sixth and final series of peaky blinders is back on the bbc later this month. to mark the occasion, a 40—foot mural depicting gang leader tommy shelby, has been painted in birmingham, where the epic gangster drama is set. at over 12.7 metres high, the new mural is right in the heart of digbeth in birmingham, in the very place where the tv drama, peaky blinders, is set.

it features the main character, tommy shelby. since we are men of similar interests, distribution networks, i thought we might use our temporary settlements for our mutual benefit. i think it's brilliant. i mean, i don't know how they do it, because if it was me, i'd need to stand back like ten yards, 20 yards up. but theyjust do... i don't know, it's brilliant. it's been a worldwide success. and here today, the creator, birmingham—born steven knight, who based the series on stories he heard from his older relatives. my uncles, aunties, grandparents i all talked about the peaky blinders, and my dad's uncles _ were known as peaky blinders. i they had illegal betting shops, i and my mum was a bookies runner in small heath. so she was a kid, nine years old, used to take illegal bets - in baskets of washing. so i heard all these stories - about these incredible characters, and i always thought, "this is a drama." i and to me, as a kid, | it felt like a western. it felt like wild west, _ so that's how i wanted to write it. but sadly, the new series will be

missing helen mccrory. the loss of the character. is massively secondary, but we felt we had to carry on, in terms of the character. i although polly is gone, her strength and influence i and energy remains throughout the series. and also here today, the artist who said he had to focus a lot of attention on tommy's eyes. if you don't do the eyes correctly, you can mess up the likeness and if you mess up the likeness, everybody notices. so i wanted to make sure the likeness was right. but what can we expect? expect the unexpected. it's about tommy's redemption. will he or won't he be redeemed? there's lots of twists and turns. he's up against some very, very powerful enemies, i but his biggest enemy is himself. and although this will be the last series, there are plans for a film. kevin reide, bbc news birmingham. i want to bring you some statistics before the weather on the number of

flight cancellations because of storm eunice. these have come into us from the bbc, from an aviation analytics firm. they say that their data shows that a total of a36 flights have been cancelled across the uk so far today. one fifth of flight cancellations, 20%, where two and from heathrow airport, making it the hardest—hit uk airport for cancellations, second place was london city airport with 16% cancelled, followed by manchester, where 10% of cancelled, followed by manchester, where10% of flights have been cancelled. that data from this aviation analytics firm, saying that aviation analytics firm, saying that a total of a36 flights have been cancelled across the uk so far today because of storm eunice. much more of course at the top of the hour. now it's time for a look at the weather with nick. hello. we are in the midst

of an extremely dangerous storm moving across the uk. on the satellite picture a day ago, it was just a strip of cloud. but look how, in the past 2a hours, it's really taken shape. this swirl of cloud on the satellite picture, and it's now moving across the uk, with the strongest winds on the southern flank of this system, roaring through particularly wales and across much of england, and the strongest winds transferring eastwards all the while. and still, this met office red wind warning covering a large part of south—east england, a danger to life from these extreme winds, gusting 60—80 miles an hour. but that's part of a broader amber warning area that continues on into this evening, the strongest winds continuing to transfer eastwards. again, 60—80mph gusts bringing widespread damage and disruption. not all about the wind, too. we have wind warnings affecting northern parts of england, northern ireland and southern scotland, still 50—60 mile an hour gusts, but also a lot of snow falling in scotland, particularly to the higher ground, but quite a few centimetres to lower levels in places as well.

here's a view from aberdeenshire. so the snow causing some disruption into scotland, some of the higher parts of the pennines, as well. quite a range of temperatures from north to south across the uk. but it is these strong, damaging winds we're really concerned about. they will gradually ease from west to east as we go on into tonight, though, it still stays blustery, mind you, and there'll be further snow around, across parts of scotland and indeed northern england, especially into the higher ground. where you've seen some wet weather today, as temperatures drop away, icy patches too. further wet and windy weather over the weekend, more rain moving in, particularly into parts of wales and england, could see a bit of snow in the northern flank of that, north wales, midlands, into yorkshire, for example, before that moves away. another windy day. there'll be higher gusts than this towards south wales. the coast of southern england maybe 50—60 miles an hour, not as bad as today, but hampering clean—up efforts on a day where more places see temperatures in single figures. and another swathe of wet and windy weather coming our way during sunday.

concern about rain totals over and to the west of the pennines. and very gusty winds, particularly across parts of scotland, northern ireland and around some irish sea coasts. so further wet and windy weather coming over the weekend, though not quite as bad as we're seeing at the moment.

this is bbc news, i'm rebecca jones. the headlines. storm eunice is battering parts of the uk. forecasters say it could be one of the worst storms to hit the country in three decades. i don't know what the actual wind speed is but you can barely stand up in it. i'm literally at a a5—degree angle, it's crazy. amongst the damage, the dome of london's 02, shredded by the strong winds. a gust of 122mph has been recorded at the needles on the isle of wight — provisionally the highest gust ever recorded in england. you're being urged not to travel, with snow and ice warnings for northern parts of the uk. all trains in wales have been cancelled, with major cancellations and delays on rail lines across britain.

however very strong advice is not to travel unless it is absolutely necessary, but if people do need to travel they should first of all be prepared for very long delays and secondly check with their train operator that their train is running. airlines are urging passengers to check before heading to the airport, with hundreds of flight cancelled or delayed. vladimir putin is to oversee military exercises involving russia's nuclear and missile capabilities — as world leaders meet in munich to discuss security. a group representing nhs bosses calls for free covid testing to continue — three quarters of senior health service staff want self—isolation rules to remain, too. team gb's women's curling team are taking on defending champions sweden in the semi—finals at the winter olympics — with the chance of a medal at stake.

hello and welcome to bbc news. storm eunice is battering much of the uk, causing widespread disruption and damage. forecasters say it could be one of the worst storms to hit the uk in three decades. the south—west bore the brunt of it this morning — with winds of an astonishing 122mph recorded at the needles on the isle of wight. a met office red warning for wind is in place for london and the south east of england, for the first time. it means a danger to life is likely, and people have been told to stay at home. amber warnings are in force across much of england and wales until 9pm, bringing the possibility of power cuts and falling trees. and there are yellow warning for snow in scotland and northern ireland. rail services, ferry journeys and flights

have been cancelled, schools are closed and thousands of homes are without power. our correspondent simonjones looks first at how eunice is affecting us so far. we were warned. as forecast, storm eunice swept in this morning, battering the coast of wales. and in cornwall — a red warning meaning a simple message, the storm is so severe, that lives are at risk. i don't know what the actual wind speed is, but you can barely stand up in it. i'm guessing it's 80, 90 mph on top of the cliff. it has caused power cuts, forced hundreds of schools to shut, ..forced hundreds of schools to shut, and businesses to close. red warnings are very rare. since we changed the warning system in 2011, we have only issued 16 red warnings. they don't come along very often

and to have two in place at the same time is exceptionally rare. oh, my gosh, oh, my gosh! it's falling over! 0h, it's falling over! oh, my gosh! gusts strong enough to bring down the street in gloucestershire. it's notjust the wind causing the worry — snow has been falling. it's lead to difficult driving conditions in county durham. yellow warnings are in place for much of northern england, scotland and northern ireland. at this traffic control centre in the west midlands, they have been monitoring the roads. it feels like we have less traffic than normal on friday so people are heeding the warnings but there will not be a good time to drive today with these horrible conditions so please do not get into a rush hour related accident, it is not safe. this flight into heathrow had a bit of a bumpy landing. many others have been cancelled. rail companies have been advising people not to travel. large parts of the network have been shut anyway.

if people do need to travel, they should first of all be prepared for very long delays and secondly check with their train operator that the train is running. in common with other agencies, our strong advice is not to travel. london and the south—east of england are facing an unprecedented situation. part of the o2 arena could not withstand the storm. in waterloo a man was injured by falling masonry. he has been taken to hospital. in buying it, this shed was no match for the winter. the mayor says it is an unprecedented situation. the met office don't issue a red weather warning as a matter of course. the first time ever in london. storm eunice is the worst storm we have faced in three decades in london. it is really important you err on the side of caution. weather warnings remain in place until tonight but even then that won't be the end of the story. i don't want to be the bringer

of gloom and doom but today, as serious as it is — and it is a serious, severe event today — but on the back of this, we have more rain coming so there could be possibilities of further flooding as the week pans out. let's get today out of the way first then let's make sure that all of our infrastructure, all of our defences, are still in good shape to be able to deal with whatever might come for the rest of the week. the battle with the elements is far from over. simon jones, bbc news. let's speak to our correspondentjohn ayres who's live in westward ho! in devon. it is on the north devon coast. how is it looking? it looks pretty blowy stuck in a very windy, not as bad as it was earlier and at around 11am was the peak, so that we could not have stood in this position. people

were trying to move along the road and having to cling on to lamp posts and having to cling on to lamp posts and lives to save themselves from being blown over. the worst are seen here today, there is a property in westward ho! where the top half has collapsed down, bricks are strewn over the row, the fire service and police have had to close that area because they are still worried about debris and there are also electricity cables down there, as well. nearthe electricity cables down there, as well. near the front we have seen signs down, tales of the buildings, a balcony behind me where part of it has collapsed in the wind. it really has collapsed in the wind. it really has been quite a day and people have been trying to clear up in what has been trying to clear up in what has been a very difficult day here at westward ho!. i mentioned the timings. this was supposed to happen earlier, around seven o'clock. everyone is really grateful that didn't happen because if it did it would have coincided with the high spring tides, and if that had

happened, the north devon coast would have suffered some severe coastal flooding, would have suffered some severe coastalflooding, so would have suffered some severe coastal flooding, so thankfully that didn't happen and it is often the case in this part of the world that we are looking out and the sea is out at the moment but it will be high tide later and it is still very windy so everyone will be watching out to see what happens. share windy so everyone will be watching out to see what happens. are people heedin: the out to see what happens. are people heeding the warnings _ out to see what happens. are people heeding the warnings to _ out to see what happens. are people heeding the warnings to stay - out to see what happens. are people heeding the warnings to stay at i out to see what happens. are people | heeding the warnings to stay at home or are they tempted out to take photographs, walk the dog? 0h... or are they tempted out to take photographs, walk the dog? oh... i think the wind... fist photographs, walk the dog? oh... i think the wind. . .— think the wind... at the peak i think the wind... at the peak i think most _ think the wind... at the peak i think most people _ think the wind... at the peak i think most people did - think the wind... at the peak i think most people did stay... | think the wind... at the peak i l think most people did stay... it think the wind... at the peak i i think most people did stay... it was very, very dangerous. i must admit, now the sun has come out and things are looking a bit better, it is still very windy but people are starting to venture out, but thankfully i have not witnessed any sea behaviour —— silly behaviour with people getting too close or stuff like that. we with people getting too close or stuff like that.— stuff like that. we will leave it there because _ stuff like that. we will leave it there because the _ stuff like that. we will leave it there because the wind i stuff like that. we will leave it there because the wind is i stuff like that. we will leave it i there because the wind is getting there because the wind is getting the better of your line but good to talk to you, john ayres. thank you.

the port of dover has closed, meaning no ferries can operate between dover and calais. our reporterjosie hannett is in dover. well, the port of dover is closed and ferry services between dover and calais have been cancelled until further notice for the safety of passengers and freight traffic. it really feels like we're being battered here in dover. incredibly the sun is just coming out but it's extremely windy — gusts of up to 66 mph. we have been seeing some amazing scenes of tugs pulling these ferries into safe spaces to make sure they're not battering against the port walls. and if ijust step back, you can see shakespeare beach — we have a number of people stood there watching the incredible waves batter against that harbour wall. of course, people being told to stay indoors — many people getting close to that, ijust guess being nosy and seeing how much this storm is affecting us. dover town, we have seen a couple of lorries in dover — they will not be going anywhere because ferry services are not running, and many of them travel

back to france on a thursday anyway. in terms of dog walkers — there's been a few people out, just seeing how bad the storm is here. is there going to be a knock—on impact? until we know when these ferry services are back up and running — and they have said until further notice, until that weather gets better — there could be delays that will impact for future services. josie, you said the port of dover is closed — how unusual is it for the whole port to be closed in this way? it is unusual, and there are reasons behind that. i talked about the tugs earlier, and they can work basically when winds are really strong. even though they are tiny, tiny boats, they really can work to get those ferries back into position. the port does not close very often so this is very severe and obviously it will only open when it is safe enough to do so.

disruption on ferries and seagrass to the air as well, where flights into heathrow and gatwick have had trouble landing due to the high winds. earlier i spoke with charlie rose at the airport. he is at the end of the runway at gatwick airport. this morning it looked like business as usual, but in the past couple of hours or so, the wind and gusts have really picked up and of course it makes things very difficult for pilots. we have captured some exclusive pictures of planes — dramatic footage of planes, two separate flights trying to land here at gatwick. and metres from the ground, they had to abort those landings and fly away simply because the conditions were just too treacherous. now, most flights appear to be taking off and landing successfully, but on the ground the inter—terminal rail shuttle — which normally ferries passengers between the north and south terminals here —

has been cancelled. many flights — several flights have been cancelled today, and there has been widespread disruption. people are still turning up with their fingers crossed, expecting to catch their flight out of gatwick today. they may well be lucky, but the advice is to check with your airline before heading to the airport here. those pictures really capture how treacherous it is. ijust wonder — given the number of cancellations you're talking about — is there any sense of the knock—on effect that this could have? it's clearly going to go on for a few days, isn't it? there will be a knock—on effect but at the moment the arrivals board, the departures board show some cancellations but most flights are taking off and landing successfully here today. but i imagine if you are a passenger on one of those flights, being a passenger is not for the faint—hearted.

one flight came from bordeaux to gatwick here and had two attempted landings at gatwick before the pilot took the view it was just too dangerous. that flight left gatwick, returned to bordeaux, and was cancelled. will we see some more of those? it's quite possible. we haven't seen the last of this storm yet, and lots of disruption still to take place, i imagine. what's it like on the roads? joining me now is rod dennis from the rac. what is the picture on the roads? actually, it is not a bad picture. there is some damage occurring trees fallen, a difficult situation out there, but from what we can tell at there, but from what we can tell at the rac a good number of drivers have followed the weather advice that has run throughout this week and decided not to travel today. i

will break down volume is in central and southern england are below where we would normally expect them for a half term friday, most of the volume, most of our patrols are particularly busy in the north of england where we have the snow, people getting stuck in snow, that sort of thing. there is a bit of that but in the south of england in particular, things are much quieter and that is a good sign that quite interesting because presumably for some people this is the first friday of half term so some people this is the first friday of half term— of half term so i would assume normally you — of half term so i would assume normally you would _ of half term so i would assume normally you would expect i of half term so i would assume normally you would expect it i of half term so i would assume| normally you would expect it to of half term so i would assume i normally you would expect it to be quite busy on this date. we normally you would expect it to be quite busy on this date.— quite busy on this date. we have resource for _ quite busy on this date. we have resource for that, _ quite busy on this date. we have resource for that, we _ quite busy on this date. we have resource for that, we were i quite busy on this date. we have i resource for that, we were expecting this to be a normal getaway friday but it has turned out to be anything but it has turned out to be anything but that, will be with a lot of families, the half term plans will be a bit messed up i would have thought as a result of storm eunice. people will be looking forward over the next few days, the storm is yet to completely run its course, as it moved to the east we are seeing greater impact there, but it looks like the very unsettled conditions will continue and for drivers over the next few days vigilance has to

be the watchword, there will be awfully gusty winds, some strong intense rainfall, in the north we have a to contend with, it is a really ugly cocktail of weather over the next few days which could catch out drivers if they are not careful. if that were may have to drivers, to be careful and vigilant rather than to not set out in the first place? i'm thinking about a lot of families who might have holidays booked here in the uk and may be weighing up, it isn't essential but actually we have been looking forward to this for months if not years because of the pandemic. months if not years because of the andemic. ~ , ,., , ., , months if not years because of the andemic. ~ ,,., , ., , ., pandemic. absolutely, what is one erson's pandemic. absolutely, what is one person's essential _ pandemic. absolutely, what is one person's essentialjourney - pandemic. absolutely, what is one person's essentialjourney is i pandemic. absolutely, what is one person's essentialjourney is not i person's essentialjourney is not necessarily somebody else's. certainly through today with the red weather warnings we shoot that advice that drivers should not travel. that warning expires in a few hours in the south—east of england and london. it looks to be replaced with other weather warnings over the next couple of days but not quite as severe, so given that, we

are still recommending people still travel —— people who are still travelling take particular care. if you're not a confident driver these are not ideal conditions but we do understand that the car is vital to many people, they are heavily dependent on it getting away over half term, carrying out their normal day—to—day business. taking extra care, slowing down, leaving plenty of space between your vehicle and the one in front so you can anticipate what is coming ahead, doing those things can go a long way to making sure people's trips are safe in the next couple of days. film; safe in the next couple of days. any secific safe in the next couple of days. any specific advice _ safe in the next couple of days. any specific advice for people in the northern part of the country, where snow is forecast about driving in snowy conditions?— snow is forecast about driving in snowy conditions? again, we don't tend to get — snowy conditions? again, we don't tend to get a _ snowy conditions? again, we don't tend to get a great _ snowy conditions? again, we don't tend to get a great deal _ snowy conditions? again, we don't tend to get a great deal of - snowy conditions? again, we don't tend to get a great deal of snow i snowy conditions? again, we don't tend to get a great deal of snow in j tend to get a great deal of snow in large quantities and it can take drivers unaware. it is about adopting a much smoother, more fluid driving style when there is snow on the ground, meaning for instance never driving, never accelerating or

breaking quickly. for most people driving, if your car starts to skate in ice or snow, you should gently turn into the direction of the skid and hopefully your wheels will take grip once more but difficult conditions for people who are not used to them and it might be perhaps best policy if you don't need to go out, not to do so. if best policy if you don't need to go out, not to do so.— best policy if you don't need to go out, not to do so. if people do get in trouble on _ out, not to do so. if people do get in trouble on the _ out, not to do so. if people do get in trouble on the road, _ out, not to do so. if people do get in trouble on the road, what i out, not to do so. if people do get| in trouble on the road, what should they do? in trouble on the road, what should the do? �* a, , a, , a, they do? again, it is really vital that peeple _ they do? again, it is really vital that people have _ they do? again, it is really vital that people have emergencies. | they do? again, it is really vital. that people have emergencies. we would recommend that the rac, in wintry conditions, carry things like blankets, extra food, drink, that sort of thing, and a fully charged mobile phone as you will need to reach your breakdown service provider if you have one, you hopefully have breakdown cover, or insurers if it turns out to be something more dangerous such as a collision. ourteams something more dangerous such as a collision. our teams are working incredibly hard this afternoon, i would like to thank them for all of their work, would like to thank them for all of theirwork, roadside would like to thank them for all of their work, roadside workers have really difficult conditions over the next few days to contend with, we

are getting to customers as quickly as we can but it is a rapidly changing situation and not ideal conditions for anybody. rad changing situation and not ideal conditions for anybody. rod dennis from rac breakdown, _ conditions for anybody. rod dennis from rac breakdown, thank - conditions for anybody. rod dennis from rac breakdown, thank you i conditions for anybody. rod dennis | from rac breakdown, thank you for your time, from rac breakdown, thank you for yourtime, good from rac breakdown, thank you for your time, good to talk to you. in wales, storm eunice has brought strong winds and high waves. there are no trains running anywhere in wales — the first time that has happened — and people are being advised to stay at home. our correspondent tomos morgan is in porthcawl in south wales. as storm eunice crashes over porthcawl, the majority of cafes and businesses are shut in and around the south wales coastline, as it took the brunt of the weather this morning. gusts of over 90 mph have been clocked, as eunice sweeps up everthing in its path. i have lived in porthcawl many, many years and i have never experienced anything like this before. it has even taken my breath away, it is so windy. you could barely walk on the prom, could you? you can't. i am literally at a 45 degrees angle. it is crazy. stronger than we have seen for a long time.

the lack of rain is a big help, but i haven't seen a wind as strong as this for a while. the seafront here in porthcawl really bore the brunt of the weather here this morning, as within the hour of the red warning coming into force it coincided with high tide, meaning waves came crashing over the promenade here. although the met office's red warning has now ended, the whole of wales is now under an amber alert for winds until this evening. seas in holyhead disrupting ferry services across the irish sea. elsewhere on the transport front, eunice�*s impact on the road overturned a lorry on the m4. fallen trees damaged a car in swansea, with both severn bridges now closed. all trains have been postponed for the first time ever in wales. i have been on the railway 30 years in wales and i do not recall a storm of this magnitude where we have taken the decision of suspending the service in advance.

over 25,000 homes are now without power, and that number is steadily rising. most schools are closed — half term here starting a day earlier than planned. as eunice continues to create dramatic but dangerous scenery, the advice is to stay indoors and to only travel if absolutely necessary. tomos morgan, bbc news, porthcawl. i want to bring you some news just in to us from the london fire brigade, who have declared major incident in response to the volume of 999 calls that are having to take about incidents relating to storm eunice. london's firefighters and control officers are having an exceptionally busy day as the storm causes chaos across london, the south—east and south—west of the country, with winds we have been telling you up to 100 mph recorded in some areas. the release i am

reading from say is that firefighters are still meeting the needs of our communities but declaring a major incident allows us to focus our resources. so it is reiterating its advice for people to only call 999 if there is an emergency or an immediate risk to life. apparently control officers have taken a number of what they call "helpful calls", including about a tent which had been blown into a neighbour's garden and to a trampoline which has been blowing around in the garden next door. these are the kind of calls that firefighters are saying i'm not particularly helpful. crews will respond to genuine emergencies. they will not attend to some of these other more minor incidents. some of

the more genuine agent incidents that crews have attended this morning include a van which overturned on the m11, scaffolding which was in a precarious position in islington in north london, a balcony that collapsed in central london, a large container on top of a high—rise building in a precarious position on the isle of dogs in london, and a canvas roof was loose at the 02 in greenwich, we have been seeing the damage that the high winds did to the 02 in greenwich, shredding part of the reef. the message from the london fire brigade, they have had to declare a major incident in response to the volume of calls they have been receiving and please only dial 999 if it is a genuine emergency. the south west of england saw the worst of the weather this morning — a red met office warning was in place until midday, that is now an amber warning. there are flood warnings still

in place along the severn estuary, caused primarily by tidal surges following huge waves. 0ur correspondent andrew plant reports from maisemore in gloucestershire. this is the west coast and it is where the bristol channel is coming in off the sea and becomes the river severn and gets much narrower as it goes north. you can see it is high tide now, it is getting really choppy and really windy as eunice starts to hit, but it is up there in that direction, as it goes into gloucestershire, that is where they are worried it could start to cause flooding. along the river, homes and businesses have been blocking doors with sandbags, and everyone here keeping a close eye on the water after environment agency warnings that flooding was likely. further south, the high winds brought down trees. this crashing down this morning.

0n the coast at st ives in cornwall, the high winds brought big waves and a warning to keep away from the water. it is still very dangerous. the winds are still gusting away. we are up to hurricane force at the moment and it really is getting quite... i think we are now coming to the eye of it, to be fair. others had to leave their holiday caravans and take shelter inside. we don't know yet if our caravan is ok. it could still be there or it could be a pile of rubble. it is one or the other and we are not allowed back on site so i think it is going to be another night in the hotel. eunice arrived later than expected. many hope the threat of flooding may now be receding, but the storm has so far left a trail of destruction behind. andrew plant, bbc news, gloucester.

some breaking news. great britain has been stripped of their silver medal in the men's four by 100 metres relay at the tokyo olympics, the 2020 tokyo olympics. this is after the sprinter cj ujah was found to have committed an anti—doping rule violation by the court of arbitration for sport. i'm afraid i don't have any further details on this at the moment. this newsjust in that great britain have been stripped of their silver medal in the men's four by 100 metres at the tokyo olympics after the sprinter cj ujah was found to have committed an anti—doping rule violation by the court of arbitration for sport. hopefully more on that in our sports bulletin coming up in the next five minutes or so, so don't go away. in

the meantime, let's catch up with the meantime, let's catch up with the weather. an area of low pressure point before hitting the uk into this swell of cloud. there was a deepening area of low pressure which is now beginning to move out into the north sea and away from us, so although it is very windy, get on into the night and the west of the winds will be behind us. for now, still quite a large met office and beth warning area through wales and much of england, still the potential further damaging gusts of wind before they gradually ease into the night. plenty of disruption because of snow in scotland, as well, still a bit more of that to come and it could well turn icy in places, too, as we get on into the night with further outbreaks of rain, sleet and snow impacting parts of scotland and into the pennines, as well. a few showers elsewhere but many places will be dried with clear spells, though temperatures dipping away, frosty in places, icy

conditions and the wind using. more wet and windy weather, though not as bad, at times of the weekend. need to watch this weather system, rain, it may be some hill snow into northern ireland and maybe snow to lower levels on the northern flank of the system, impacting parts of north wales, the midlands and into yorkshire, for example. elsewhere an area of rainfall eastwards across wales and england, the sun of that rain until snow pushing on towards west and of scotland. these are average wind speeds, put the time along southwest, southern england, 50 to 60 mph, not as bad as they have been but so much clearing up and repair work to be done, that will hamper efforts and as we go into part two of the weekend, here is another area of low pressure. this weather front moves on through and it will bring more rain, pushing south—eastwards on sunday. behind that will be showers will turn increasingly wintry and more widely windy day again on sunday. some of

the wind gusts expected across parts of scotland, northern ireland, irish sea coasts, be in excess of 60 mph in some places so these winds could be disruptive. mild for a time before colder into sunday night and monday. forthe before colder into sunday night and monday. for the weekend, further spells of wind and rain, not as bad as it has been for some of us today but could hamper some of those repair efforts.

hello, this is bbc news. the headlines... storm eunice is battering parts of the uk, causing power cuts, school closures and disruption to travel across the country. amongst the damage, the dome of london's o2, shredded by the strong winds. a gust of i22mph has been recorded at the needles on the isle of wight, provisionally the highest gust ever recorded in england. you're being urged not to travel, with snow and ice warnings for northern parts of the uk. all trains in wales have been cancelled, with major cancellations and delays on rail

lines across britain. our very strong advice is not to travel unless it is absolutely necessary, but if people do need to travel, they should first of all be prepared for very long delays, and secondly check with their train operator that their train is running. airlines are urging passengers to check before heading to the airport, with hundreds of flights cancelled or delayed. vladimir putin is to oversee military exercises involving russia's nuclear and missile capabilities, as world leaders meet in munich to discuss security. a group representing nhs bosses calls for free covid testing to continue. three—quarters of senior health service staff want self—isolation rules to remain too. sport and for a full round up,

from the bbc sport centre. in the last few minutes, its been announced that great britain have been stripped of their silver medal in the men's lixioom relay at the 2020 tokyo olympics. the decision comes after sprinter cj ujah was found to have committed an anti—doping rule violation by the court of arbitration for sport. ujah has been provisionally suspended for the violation after testing positive for two banned substances. ujah says he... "accepts the decision... with sadness. "i would like to make it clear that i unknowingly consumed "a contaminated supplement and this was the reason why an anti—doping "rule violation occurred at the tokyo olympic games. "i sincerely regret that this has inadvertently led to the forfeiture

"of the men's [i x 100m relay team's olympic silver medals "at the tokyo olympic games." great britain are guaranteed another curling medal at the winter olympics. the women's team came through a tense semifinal to knock out the reigning champions sweden. eve muirhead's team were 8—7 down in the ninth end but the skip put them ii—8 up with this terrific final stone. sweden still managed to level the match in the 10th, so it went to an extra end, sudden death, crucially team gb, had the hammer, the final stone, but they didn't need it. sweden wayward with their last attempt. they go through i2—ii to sunday's final to face japan who beat switzerland. the men face sweden in theirfinal tomorrow. muirhead won a bronze medal in 2014 but this is herfirst final at her fourth games.

select i have lost two semifinals before and i was desperate for it because these moments and opportunities don't come around very often and i was really, really so—so proud of these often and i was really, really so—so proud of these nirls. often and i was really, really so—so proud of these nirls. it often and i was really, really so—so proud of these nirls. it is often and i was really, really so—so proud of these nirls. it is team proud of these girls. it is team game out there and all week, we have really dug so deep and not even just this event, the whole season from a squad of nine down to playing in the olympic qualifier, and yes, i am pretty speechless right now, but what a moment. it sounds amazing to say that we are in the olympic final. the ioc president thomas bach has criticised kamila valieva's coaching team in beijing for having no compassion towards the teenage figure skater. in response russia's deputy prime minister says it's, "inappropriate and wrong for bach to weave his own fictional narrative on the feelings of their athletes." the is—year—old figure skater, who has been allowed to compete for the russian olympic committee despite being investigated

for a failed drugs test in december, fell a number of times in yesterday's individual free skate routine and dropped from the gold medal position to fourth. her coach eteri tutberidze confronted her as she stepped off the ice, saying, "why did you let it go, why did you stop fighting?" when i afterwards saw how she was received by her closest entourage, with such...what appeared to be a tremendous coldness, you... it was chilling to see this. rather than giving her confidence, rather than to try to help her. manchester united boss ralf rangnik has played down any talk of a of a falling—out between captain harry maguire

and cristiano ronaldo. they take on leeds united on sunday, but rumours of a rift between the players have dominated the build up. this is absolutely nonsense. i have never spoken with any player at a possible change of captaincy and harry is fully aware of that and so is cristiano ronaldo and all the other players. this has never been an issue for me. it's me who decides who is the captain and there, for there is no reason for me to speak about that with any other person. harry is our captain and he will stay our captain until the end of the season. and there is nothing else to say or add onto that. great britain's women's curlers are

into the final. sunday's final of the winter olympic, guaranteed a gold or silver. as uncertainty about the crisis in ukraine continues, russia's president vladimir putin is to oversee further military drills tomorrow, involving ballistic missiles and cruise missile launches. it comes as ukraine's defence minister says about 150,000 russian troops are now encircling the country, despite russia's claims that some have been pulled back. world leaders are meeting in munich today, for a security conference which russia won't be attending for the first time since 1999. our diplomatic correspondent paul adams reports. russia's military exercises in belarus are almost over, designed to show off moscow's raw power in the most unambiguous way. other drills, out in the black sea. rarely has russia displayed its military might in so many places at the same time. it's mesmerised and profoundly

alarmed the west, and perhaps that's the point. some equipment is going back to bases close to ukraine. western officials say they want to see other units being moved much further away before there can be any meaningful talk of de—escalation. although russia has announced that it is moving its forces back to garrison, we have yet to see that. in fact, we see more forces moving into that region, that border region. in eastern ukraine, a potentially dangerous escalation. ukrainian soldiers inspecting damage from yesterday's explosion at a kindergarten. exchanges of fire overnight, some of the biggest in recent years. the front lines here have barely changed after long years of war. this is where a wider conflict could erupt. a mistake, or a provocation, might prove disastrous. the threat to this country remains very real. vladimir putin could invade ukraine at a moment's notice,

but whatever he decides to do, the sheer theatricality of his muscle flexing in recent weeks has completely transformed the west's understanding of russia as a global power. even if war is averted, and it hasn't been yet, this crisis is not going to be forgotten for a long, long time. least of all, the politicians and leaders gathering for a security conference in munich. the west still scrambling to formulate its response to the challenge from moscow. at the kremlin, mr putin held talks with the leader of belarus, alexander lukashenko, the man playing host to the drills which finish on sunday. translation: military exercises are active right now. _ tomorrow, we will even participate together in an important part of this whole complex of military cooperation. ukrainian soldiers, already involved in fighting, know that something much bigger could still be looming. russia insists it has

no plans to attack. no—one here is relaxing their guard. paul adams, bbc news. our chief international correspondent, lyse doucet, is at the munich security conference, where the ukraine crisis is top of the agenda. she's been speaking to the nato secretary general, jens stoltenberg. yes, and you can feel that heightened international tensions here in munich. the grand hotel behind me that has been doing real—time diplomacy for more than 50 years. this time, yet again, it is confronting a crisis. but one it is struggling to find a way forward. the russian foreign minister lavrov is not here this year. not a good sign when this forum wants to find a diplomatic way out. is it still possible? we are joined by the secretary general of nato, jens stoltenberg. right at the eye of this storm. two days ago, you spoke about cautious optimism and diplomacy. and now?

well, what we saw a few days ago was that russia expressed renewed willingness to sit down and engage in diplomatic efforts. but have not seen any follow—up on that on the ground. so we are not seeing the de—escalation that of foces it has been announced. and of course, we continue to call on russia to withdraw forces and sit down with nato and nato allies and engage in good faith and find a political solution. you are looking at all the intelligence. so is president biden. he says it is going to happen tomorrow. there is no certainty about the intentions of russia. but a high probability there could be something tomorrow, given what you have seen in the intelligence? but what i think is very important is just to describe the facts, and the fact is, we have russian armed forces amassed on the border of ukraine that are ready to invade

without any warning time, and that is a very dangerous situation, and especially combined with a very threatening rhetoric, where russia puts forward demands they know we cannot accept that, which are violating core principles for european security. if you combine that with a track record of russia that has used force against ukraine before, of course we have to take this very seriously. there is a real risk. but i don't want speculate or say anything with certainty about when and how they will act. in london, british officials say they believe president putin has made the decision to invade ukraine. do you agree? what we see is that he has in place forces that can invade ukraine without any warning. so this can happen when they make the final decision. in britain, they say he has made the decision. do you agree with the british assessment? i will not go into details about what we believe.

i will not go into details about what we believe he has decided, what i can say, we can see through our intelligence but also through open sources, social media, commercial satellites, that there is the biggest concentration of combat—ready troops in europe since the cold war concentrated on the borders of ukraine. and then we have seen the rhetoric from russia, that if we do not meet their demands there will be "what they call military technical consequences." therefore we take it very seriously. that is why we call on russia, it is never too late to step back and engage in diplomatic efforts. we call on them to do exactly that. president putin has again said the waste and that includes nato, is not paying attention to his security concerns. can you, will you, do more? we are ready and we have also sent

a written proposal to address a wide range of issues which are important for the security of nato allies. but also for russia. arms control, transparency on military activity, missiles, nuclear issues. all of this is important for both russia and nato. but we cannot compromise on core principles for european security. we cannot give up the right for every nation to choose its own paths, or the right of nato allies to protect each other. they want us to unilaterally agree that we should remove all nato allies and all infrastructures from all allies that joined after 1997. that's almost half of nato allies. that can't happen. there are reports know that the people of donetsk are being told to move to russia. you have expressed concern that russia would create what is called a false flag incident. as we speak, are you growing more concerned that that is a possibility? we have been concerned for that for a long time. more concerned now? i will not graduate the concern.

i am and we are concerned, that was expressed clearly by nato defence ministers yesterday. nato allies stand behind expressing both our concern, but also the call for russia to step back, and to remove forces, and then to engage, sit down and address the topics that we have proposed to them, invited them for a meeting in nato—russia council, the nato allise have all reached out to russia, so there are now many efforts to try to prevent russia from using force against ukraine. what is the purpose of the munich security forum, when it comes to ukraine? mr lavrov isn't here, what more can you do than talk? it's important in a situation like this to coordinate and to consult. that is exactly what we do at the meeting place like this. we had all the nato ministers in brussels for two days this week. many of them are here, but also other decision—makers,

and i strongly believe that everything we can do to be coordinated, to be united, is important. is this a defining moment, as we say, in russia's relations with the west? a no—turning—back moment? i think what we are seeing now is creating a new normal in europe. because we have seen that russia has openly challenged, contested core values for our security. and they have amassed troops and forces and threatened to use them to get their will. this is something which is very serious, and which nato has to respond to. i regret that, but that is the reality and therefore we need to respond to russia, which is more openly demanding nato to give up on core values. that is creating a new normal in european security. how long can this high—wire act,

this really intense tension, go on, before there is some kind of an accident that pushes the two sides towards even greater contention? the two sides towards even greater tension? we are monitoring what is going on very closely, also to avoid miscalculation and misunderstandings. but there is a real risk of it? again, i don't think my task is to speculate, my task is to describe the facts on the ground, the forces that we see, the combat readiness, moving closer to the border of ukraine, and this threatening rhetoric. they repeated that again. and nuclear exercises tomorrow. is that testing nuclear and ballistic missiles? well, every nation has the right to exercise its forces. this is a regular exercise. but it should have taken place last fall. now it takes place at the same time as we have this big concentration of forces in and around ukraine. again, just an argument for scaling down, stepping back,

and to engage in political efforts and dialogue with nato. you look exhausted. how much time is left? how many days? i will not go into any details about that, because the reality is that there is no certainty about the russian intentions. but what we do know is that a significant, massive military build—up, and the threatening rhetoric, and that combination is dangerous. 50—50 now? again, i will not speculate about those probabilities. we are ready and work hard for the best solution, a peaceful outcome, diplomatic outcome, but of course, we also are prepared for the worst, if russia once again violates the integrity and territorial integrity of ukraine. jens stoltenberg, nato secretary general, thank you very much forjoining us. it hardly needs underlining how crucial this moment is, hanging in the balance between increasing war in ukraine. ukrainians have lived with it for eight years. there is a possibility it could tip

over into greater violence. but what is happening here is another effort to give diplomacy a chance. how big a chance? we just don't know, but we'll keep watching. let's head back to our top stoday, storm eunice. as we've heard, large parts of the uk have been affected by the strong winds, which has caused transport chaos for many in the south of england. passengers hoping to travel out of one of london's main stations, paddington, have arrived to find many services cancelled. our correspondent sanchia berg is on the station's concourse. the boards here at paddington station, as elsewhere, really tell the story of this storm's approach. so, when i arrived this morning, there were no trains to wales. trains to the west of england were delayed, as they were cancelled as the day continued, and currently, those boards are completely empty. tannoy announcement and as you can hear, we're getting announcements all the time. there are going to be no trains out of paddington for the next four hours,

because lines have come down and that level of disruption is repeated as other mainline stations, south eastern services being suspended. southwestern, as well, and many other forms of transport, air travel is disrupted, other forms of travel with, there are warnings out there. so this is the effect, as the storm hits the capital. there is an awful lot of disruption, and travel, certainly here from paddington, is unlikely to get back to normal for quite some time. we hope to be talking to network rail in the next half an hour or so for the very latest situation on the railways. meanwhile, apart from the strong wind, storm eunice has also brought snow to large parts of northern england and scotland. danjohnson is near stainmore summit in the pennines in north yorkshire, where snow is more the issue.

there are warnings out for ice and the really strong winds which are really starting to build now. this road, the a66 across the pennines between cumbria and county durham was closed this morning, but it has reopened, although lorries, high sided vehicles, are being warned to avoid it because of the risk of them being blown over in the wind. the humber bridge has also closed this afternoon and that bridge has only been closed a handful of times in its 40 been closed a handful of times in its a0 years, because of the weather. so it gives you some sense of the conditions out on the roads across the north of england this afternoon. and into this evening as well. we have seen greeting teens out, laying salt on the roads, trying to keep the roads open but the message is, if you can, only go out if you really have to, drivers are being urged to take care, to

slow down, to watch out, because the conditions really are tricky. they are expecting more trees to topple, bringing more power lines down, that will mean more power cuts and there are people still recovering from the storm that hit earlier this week, around 20,000 people without power as a result of storm dudley. they were all reconnected by the end of yesterday, but the power companies across the north are braced for more of that impact, formal problems, and it looks like the disruption could continue notjust into this evening and through the night, but perhaps tomorrow as well. to get more on the weather situation where you live, do please tune in to your bbc local radio station and you can find details of your nearest station at... and on our website you can also find some guidance on how to stay safe before

and during the storm. coast guards now say 11 people are missing after a ferry caught fire off the greek island of corfu. greek officials had earlier said all 288 passengers were transferred to rescue boats and that there were no deaths or serious injuries. the italian flagged euroferry olympia was travelling from greece to brindisi in italy. video shared on social media showed the whole vessel on fire. the cause of the blaze is unknown. a product which was designed to deter burglars and protect property is now being used to help victims of domestic abuse. smartwater, when sprayed, makes an invisible mark on a perpetrator that can't be removed. the coded liquid means police can instantly link criminals to a crime scene, as shiona mccallum's been finding out.

this can is filled with a forensic spray, which, for the first time, is being used to stop domestic violence. to show how it works, i volunteered to be sprayed with it. you can't see it with the naked eye, but switch on the uv lights... ..and you will see i have been marked. for years, this substance has been used to protect property and deter thieves, but now, for the first time, it's been used to convict someone for harassment. a man in wakefield in west yorkshire has beenjailed for breaching his non—molestation order. he had been told to stay away from his ex—partner and her house, so when he turned up, she sprayed him with the solution. three police forces in england have been giving these canisters, filled with the smartwater, to victims of domestic abuse, harassment and stalking and if it's sprayed on a person, then it can put exactly them at the scene of a crime.

each batch of the liquid has a unique formulation. at this lab in telford they mix together different chemical elements... ..and there's more than a billion possible combinations. the technicians can analyse the tiniest of samples, so from just one drop of this stuff, they can tell exactly what bottle it came from. well, i mean, i can't tell you the secret source to smartwater, but what i can tell you is that it's made up of a combination of rare elements that would never be found naturally anywhere else in the world. each batch is unique. we know categorically that smartwater was registered to that person and can be linked back to the scene to the crime. what about cctv, would that not be good enough deterrant? cctv might not identify categorically that particularly if they were wearing something like a balaclava, suddently the element of doubt is there and you cannot categorically prove that, whereas there is no element of doubt

in something like smartwater. the idea has been around for a while. it was featured on the back bbc in 1996, but using it to deter domestic abuse is a new idea and police say it is working. this is what forensic marking is doing, what we are saying to the perpetrator is, if you go back to that address and you breach these conditions, if you commit offences, you will be forensically marked. we will be able to prove that as a police service and we will bring you tojustice. how pleased are you that you got the conviction here in yorkshire? during that incident, the victim was able to safely deploy that canister during an incident at her home address and during the subsequent investigation, we could forensically see that the individual was marked with the spray. the following day, the perpetrator was convicted and received 24 weeks imprisonment for a breach of a non—molestation order, which we are really pleased about. it's sad the offence has taken place, because we want to deter it, a part of our objectives and priority is to prevent,

but if it doesn't, we need to have the best possible evidence we have got to bring perpetrators to justice and this is what the initiative has done. over 200 women across the uk now have smartwater in their homes. the majority of them are telling the police that they feel safer as a result of having a tool. they are also saying the perpetrators are not visiting them any more. the victims say they can go out to work and just have peace of mind. currently, west yorkshire, south yorkshire and staffordshire police forces are using the tech as part of their domestic violence strategy, but it's thought forensic marking will be trialled by other forces across the country too, in the hope of securing more convictions and deterring more crimes. now it's time for a look at the weather with nick miller. hello. the red wind warnings may have

expired but it remains very windy for several more hours to come. an area whichjust formed for several more hours to come. an area which just formed before hitting the uk into a swirl of cloud, there was a deepening area of low pressure which is now beginning to move out to the north sea and away from us. although still very windy, into the night, the worst of the winds are going to be behind us. for now, still, quite a large met office amber warning through wales and much of england, still the potential for further damaging gusts of wind before they gradually ease into the night. plenty of disruption because of snow in scotland. still more of that to come at it could turn icy in places as we get into the night. further outbreaks of rain, sleet and snow impacting part of scotland and the pennines. showers elsewhere but many places will be dry with clear spells, frosty in places, icy conditions as well and the winds easing. more wet and windy weather though not as bad at times over the weekend, need to

watch this weather system, some rain and hill snow to northern ireland, snow to low levels of this impacting parts of north wales, the midlands and yorkshire. elsewhere, it takes and yorkshire. elsewhere, it takes an area of rainfall eastwards across wales and england, some of that rain and hill snow pushing towards the west and south—west of scotland. average wind speeds, gusts for a time, 50—60 mph, not as bad as they have been but that is so much clearing up and repair work to be done, that will hamper efforts and as we go into part two of that weekend, here is another area of low pressure. this weather front moves through, that will bring more rain, pushing south—east on sunday, behind that, showers and the colder air, some of these turning increasingly wintry and a more widely windy day again on sunday. these are some of the wind gusts expected, particularly across parts of scotland, northern ireland, could be in excess of 60 in some places,

these winds could be disruptive. mild for a time but turns colder sunday night into monday. for the weekend, further spells of wind and rain, not as bad as it has been for some of us today but it may hamper those repair efforts.

this is bbc news. the headlines. storm eunice is battering parts of the uk — forecasters say it could be one of the worst storms in three decades. amongst the damage — the dome of london's o2, shredded by the strong winds. london fire brigade has declared a major incident, after fielding hundreds of calls. and south central ambulance service has declared a critical incident, with road disruption affecting response times. you're being urged not to travel, with snow and ice warnings for northern parts of the uk. all trains in wales have been cancelled, with major cancellations and delays on rail lines across britain. our very strong advice is not to travel unless it is absolutely necessary. but if people do need to travel, they should first of all be prepared

for very long delays and secondly check with their train operator that the train is running. airlines are urging passengers to check before heading to the airport, with hundreds of flights cancelled or delayed. vladimir putin is to oversee military exercises involving russia's nuclear and missile capabilities — as world leaders meet in munich to discuss security. great britain have been stripped of their silver medal in the four by 100 metre relay at last summer's tokyo olympics, after team member cj ujah was found to have committed a doping violation. but at the winter olympics, great britain is guaranteed at least a silver medal — as the women's curling team beat defending champions sweden to make it to the final.

hello and welcome to bbc news. storm eunice has been battering much of the uk, causing widespread disruption and damage. the south—west bore the brunt of it this morning — with winds of an astonishing i22mph recorded at the needles on the isle of wight. at least two people have been injured and a man in ireland has died after being hit by a falling tree. a met office red warning for wind has now expired in london and the south east of england. but amber warnings are in force across much of england and wales until 9pm, bringing the possibility of power cuts and falling trees. and there are yellow warning for snow in scotland and northern ireland. rail services, ferry journeys and many flights across the country have been cancelled. the london fire brigade has declared a major incident in response to the volume

of 999 calls taken. and the london ambulance service has also said it is "responding to a high volume of calls", and asked people to only call in the event of a serious medical emergency. our correspondent simonjones looks first at how eunice is affecting us so far. we were warned. as forecast, storm eunice swept in this morning, battering the coast of wales. and in cornwall, a red warning meaning a simple message — the storm is so severe, that lives are at risk. i don't know what the actual wind speed is, but you can barely stand up in it. i'm guessing it's 80, 90 mph on top of the cliff. it has caused power cuts... 0h! ..forced hundreds of schools to shut, and businesses to close. red warnings are very rare. since we changed the warning system to makeit more impact—based in 2011, we have only issued 16 red warnings.

they don't come along very often and to have two in place at the same time is exceptionally rare. oh, my gosh, oh, my gosh! it's falling over! oh, my gosh! whoa! oh, my gosh! gusts strong enough to bring down the street in gloucestershire. it's notjust the wind causing the worry — snow has been falling. it's lead to difficult driving conditions in county durham. it's led to difficult driving conditions in county durham. yellow warnings are in place for much of northern england, scotland and northern ireland. at this traffic control centre in the west midlands, they have been monitoring the roads. it feels like we have less traffic than normal on friday so people it feels like we have less breakdowns than normal on friday so people are heeding the warnings but there will not be a good time to drive today with these horrible conditions so please do not get into a rush hour related accident, it is not safe. this flight into heathrow had a bit of a bumpy landing. many others have been cancelled. rail companies have been advising people not to travel,

and large parts of the network have been shut anyway. if people do need to travel, they should first of all be prepared for very long delays and secondly check with their train operator that the train is running. but in common with other agencies, our strong advice is not to travel. london and the south—east of england are now facing the worst of the weather. part of the o2 arena couldn't withstand the storm. in waterloo a man was injured by falling masonry — he's been taken to hospital. in barnet, this shed was no match for the wind. the mayor says it's an unprecedented situation. the met office don't issue a red weather warning as a matter of course. the first time ever in london. storm eunice is the worst storm we have faced in three decades in london. it is really important you err on the side of caution. weather warnings remain in place until tonight but even then that won't be the end of the story.

i don't want to be the bringer of gloom and doom but today, as serious as it is — and it is a serious, severe event today — but on the back of this, we have more rain coming so there could be possibilities of further flooding as the week pans out. so let's get today out of the way first then let's make sure that all of our infrastructure, all of our defences, are still in good shape to be able to deal with whatever might come for the rest of the week. the battle with the elements is far from over. simon jones, bbc news. the south west of england saw the worst of the weather this morning — a red met office warning was in place until midday, that is now amber. there are flood warnings still in place along the severn estuary, caused primarily by tidal surges following huge waves. our correspondent andrew plant reports from maisemore in gloucestershire.

this is sharpness, on the west coast, and it's basically where the bristol channel coming in off the sea becomes the river severn and gets much narrower as it goes north. you can see it is high tide now, it is getting really choppy and really windy as eunice starts to hit, but it is up there in that direction, as it goes into gloucestershire, that is where they are worried it could start to cause flooding. along the river, homes and businesses have been blocking doors with sandbags, and everyone here keeping a close eye on the water after environment agency warnings that flooding was likely. further south, the high winds brought down trees. this crashing down this morning. on the coast at st ives in cornwall, the high winds brought big waves and a warning to keep away from the water.

it is still very dangerous. the winds are still gusting away. we are up to hurricane force at the moment and it really is getting quite... i think we are now coming to the eye of it, to be fair. others had to leave their holiday caravans and take shelter inside. we don't know yet if our caravan is ok. it could still be there or it could be a pile of rubble. it is one or the other and we are not allowed back on site so i think it is going to be another night in the hotel. eunice arrived later than expected. many hope the threat of flooding may now be receding, but the storm has so far left a trail of destruction behind. andrew plant, bbc news, gloucester. widespread damage has been caused by storm eunice across the south west with wind speeds of more than 80mph. several roofs have been

ripped off buildings, with multiple trees falling across roads and some onto vehicles. let's talk to gavin ellis, assistant chief fire officer for devon and somerset fire and rescue service. very and rescue service. good to have you with us. we have very good to have you with us. we have been reporting that the london fire brigade has the cloud a major incident in response to the huge volume of 999 calls they have been receiving. have you been receiving more at 999 calls unusual? goad more at 999 calls unusual? good afternoon- _ more at 999 calls unusual? good afternoon. certainly _ more at 999 calls unusual? good afternoon. certainly we _ more at 999 calls unusual? good afternoon. certainly we have - more at 999 calls unusual? (emf. afternoon. certainly we have also beenin afternoon. certainly we have also been in a state of major emergency with our two police forces, devon and cornwall police and somerset police. they the cloud major incidents earlier this morning. as you mentioned, the wind we expected to come through elliott this morning, at lunchtime, that was experienced later than expected. since about 9am we have dealt with

over 200 incidents so far. fortunately we have not seen any significant injuries or fatalities so far. significant in'uries or fatalities so far. ~ ., ., significant in'uries or fatalities sofar. ., ., . , ., so far. what sort of incidents have ou been so far. what sort of incidents have you been having — so far. what sort of incidents have you been having to _ so far. what sort of incidents have you been having to deal— so far. what sort of incidents have you been having to dealwith? - so far. what sort of incidents have you been having to dealwith? we| you been having to deal with? we have you been having to deal with? , have dealt with a range of incidents, ranging from lorries being dipped over on the motorway, through to water overtopping some of our estuaries and also our coastal towns, but mainly around dangerous structures, roofs being ripped off with commercial buildings, but also garden furniture such as trampolines, sheds, things like that is being blown around. we have had some significant incidents with that, one of the ones that stands out most prominently is the steeple being blown off at the church within the cathedral city this afternoon. oh, my goodness, tell me more stock certainly. there are pictures circulating on social media, so the

very top of church has been blown off quite dramatically. fortunately the steeple landed within the grounds of the chase but it is a timely reminder. we are still in ambit warnings at the moment and it poses a danger it so reduce your travel, only travel when it necessarily but remain indoors when you can. fix. necessarily but remain indoors when ou can. �* , , necessarily but remain indoors when ou can. ~ , , ., necessarily but remain indoors when oucan. m , ., ., you can. a sense that most are heedin: you can. a sense that most are heeding the — you can. a sense that most are heeding the advice? _ you can. a sense that most are heeding the advice? certainly, | you can. a sense that most are i heeding the advice? certainly, as you can. a sense that most are - heeding the advice? certainly, as i travelled in — heeding the advice? certainly, as i travelled in this _ heeding the advice? certainly, as i travelled in this morning _ heeding the advice? certainly, as i travelled in this morning to - heeding the advice? certainly, as i travelled in this morning to our- travelled in this morning to our headquarters, the roads are very quiet, we have seen reduced numbers of vehicles on the road, although we have seen lorries being toppled over which is very dangerous but also can cause significant disruption to the roads. we haven't had the volume of incidents related to road traffic collisions that we might normally see on a day like today, so it does

look like most people are listening. there i ask, have you received any unhelpful calls, that it might have been better not to have received during this period?— been better not to have received during this period? certainly. we have ut during this period? certainly. we have put out— during this period? certainly. we have put out a — during this period? certainly. we have put out a number— during this period? certainly. we have put out a number of- during this period? certainly. we have put out a number of twitterj have put out a number of twitter messages on our social media to advise people to only cold 999 where absolutely necessary, notjust for fire and rescue but also for our blue light partners, the police and ambulance. we do really need to prioritise the risk to life and where we are receiving calls where it may be that a bike is wrapped around an aerial or they could be an aerial hanging down, —— bag is wrapped around an aerial, we are unlikely to respond to those incidents during this time, we will really focus on any incidents where we feel there could be a risk to life. , ., i. life. gavin ellis, have you ever seen conditions _ life. gavin ellis, have you ever seen conditions like _ life. gavin ellis, have you ever seen conditions like this - life. gavin ellis, have you ever i seen conditions like this before? life. gavin ellis, have you ever - seen conditions like this before? i have dealt with a number of

incidents where we have had major incidents where we have had major incidents to do with this type of weather, so high winds and also flooding, but particularly to see two red warnings across the country at the same time is something i have not seen or dealt with in my career to day but certainly we have been coping, it has been busy but, as i said, we really need to ensure that people do stay inside. another piece of advice is that we have had over 100,000 properties lose power this afternoon and as the nights draw in we would recommend that people use torchlight rather than candlelight or naked flames to reduce that risk even further. or naked flames to reduce that risk even further-— even further. you heavier hands full, gavin _ even further. you heavier hands full, gavin ellis. _ even further. you heavier hands full, gavin ellis. we _ even further. you heavier hands full, gavin ellis. we are - even further. you heavier hands full, gavin ellis. we are very - full, gavin ellis. we are very grateful you have been able to break off to talk to us. gavin ellis, assistant chief officer for devon and somerset fire service. many thanks to you. and somerset fire service. many thanks to yon-— let's go to the south—east now. our reporterjosie hannett is at the coastal town of dover, where the port has closed.

well, the port of dover is closed and ferry services between dover and calais have been cancelled until further notice for the safety of passengers and freight traffic. it really feels like we're being battered here in dover. incredibly the sun is just coming out but it's extremely windy — gusts of up to 66 mph. we have been seeing some amazing scenes of tugs pulling these ferries into safe spaces to make sure they're not battering against the port walls. and if ijust step back, you can see shakespeare beach — we have a number of people stood there watching the incredible waves batter against that harbour wall. of course, people being told to stay indoors — many people getting close to that, ijust guess being nosy and seeing how much this storm is affecting us. dover town, we have seen a couple of lorries in dover — they will not be going anywhere because ferry services are not running, and many of them travel back to france on a thursday anyway. in terms of dog walkers — there's been a few people out, just

seeing how bad the storm is here. is there going to be a knock—on impact? until we know when these ferry services are back up and running — and they have said until further notice, until that weather gets better — there could be delays that will impact for future services. josie, you said the port of dover is closed — how unusual is it for the whole port to be closed in this way? it is unusual, and there are reasons behind that. i talked about the tugs earlier, and they can work basically when winds are really strong. even though they are tiny, tiny boats, they really can work to get those ferries back into position. the port does not close very often, so this is very severe and obviously it will only open when it is safe enough to do so. there's major disruption on the railways. joining me now is jake kelly, the group director and system operator at network rail.

good to have you with us, i know you are talking to is earlier in the morning so what is a picture on the rail network now?— rail network now? unfortunately as we exnected. _ rail network now? unfortunately as we exnected. the _ rail network now? unfortunately as we expected, the railway _ rail network now? unfortunately as we expected, the railway is - rail network now? unfortunately as we expected, the railway is now. we expected, the railway is now enormously disrupted across england and wales, despite our best efforts of thousands of colleagues doing their best to keep it open. in what way disrunted? — their best to keep it open. in what way disrupted? lines _ their best to keep it open. in what way disrupted? lines closed - their best to keep it open. in what way disrupted? lines closed or- their best to keep it open. in what| way disrupted? lines closed orjust a delay is? aha, way disrupted? lines closed or 'ust a dela is? �* , ., , way disrupted? lines closed or 'ust adela is? �* , ., , ., a delay is? a number of lines are closed as we _ a delay is? a number of lines are closed as we clear _ a delay is? a number of lines are closed as we clear trees, - closed as we clear trees, trampolines in some cases, the breeze, and in other places they are running but with severe disruption to our advice continues to be running but with severe disruption to our advice continues to he do not travel unless absolutely necessary. all trains are still cancelled in wales? . �* , ~ all trains are still cancelled in wales? . �*, . , . wales? that's right. we expect trains in wales _ wales? that's right. we expect trains in wales to _ wales? that's right. we expect trains in wales to be _ wales? that's right. we expect trains in wales to be cancelled | wales? that's right. we expect i trains in wales to be cancelled for the rest of the day and colleagues are working extremely hard to get the railway opened tomorrow morning. are trains now running in and out of paddington in london?— paddington in london? some trains are but it remains _

paddington in london? some trains are but it remains extremely - are but it remains extremely disrupted and i expect it will be disrupted and i expect it will be disrupted sadly for the rest of the day, despite huge efforts to clear at the the breeze that has blown over the railway. i5 at the the breeze that has blown over the railway. is it at the the breeze that has blown over the railway.— at the the breeze that has blown over the railway. is it possible to ut a over the railway. is it possible to put a number — over the railway. is it possible to put a number at _ over the railway. is it possible to put a number at the _ over the railway. is it possible to put a number at the moment? . over the railway. is it possible to l put a number at the moment? not over the railway. is it possible to - put a number at the moment? not yet, unfortunately. — put a number at the moment? not yet, unfortunately, but _ put a number at the moment? not yet, unfortunately, but as _ put a number at the moment? not yet, unfortunately, but as we _ put a number at the moment? not yet, unfortunately, but as we expected, - unfortunately, but as we expected, it is significant, we urge people not to travel. train operator colleagues have made it possible for passengers who could not travel today to travel over the weekend and on monday, i get refunds. we want to do our absolute best by passengers in these difficult times. if do our absolute best by passengers in these difficult times.— in these difficult times. if people want a refund, _ in these difficult times. if people want a refund, how _ in these difficult times. if people want a refund, how do _ in these difficult times. if people want a refund, how do they - in these difficult times. if people want a refund, how do they go i in these difficult times. if people - want a refund, how do they go about doing that? want a refund, how do they go about doinu that? , , , , want a refund, how do they go about dointhat? , ,, want a refund, how do they go about doin that? i, , i. ..y ., doing that? typically they apply to the train operator _ doing that? typically they apply to the train operator who _ doing that? typically they apply to the train operator who sold - doing that? typically they apply to the train operator who sold them l doing that? typically they apply to i the train operator who sold them the ticket and they will do their absolute best to get them their refund as quick as they can. for --eole refund as quick as they can. for people who _ refund as quick as they can. for people who have had to travel today, what is the experience like? i expect they may be speed restrictions because of high winds. that is right. we put speed restrictions on trains right across

england and wales to make sure that passengers are safe, which is our priority, but that meant the trains were much lower than normal and that was part of the cause of disruption. i am assuming you have engineers out and about across the network ready to react to problems. is this all done with humid beings, so to speak, or do you check some of the lines electronically? we or do you check some of the lines electronically?— or do you check some of the lines electronically? or do you check some of the lines electronicall ? ~ ., ., , ., electronically? we have thousands of --eole out electronically? we have thousands of people out with _ electronically? we have thousands of people out with chainsaws _ electronically? we have thousands of people out with chainsaws and - people out with chainsaws and specialist kit and they will be working throughout the evening and overnight to get the railway opened. we have all sorts of other specialist kits, ranging from airborne kit so we can remotely check the railway to other specialist kit to do our absolute best. ., . , ., .., specialist kit to do our absolute best. ., . , ., .. ,., specialist kit to do our absolute best. ., . , ., y., ., best. how much planning can you do in advance to — best. how much planning can you do in advance to prepare _ best. how much planning can you do in advance to prepare for— best. how much planning can you do in advance to prepare for a _ best. how much planning can you do in advance to prepare for a storm - in advance to prepare for a storm like this? i am thinking we had a storm at malik, storm are when, we are rather getting used to this. sadly this is becoming a fairly

common event. we were very clear that this was coming, of course, thanks to a much better forecasts, and we were able to one passengers yesterday of the difficulty today. and then i think making sure last night, today, overnight, that our people and all of their kit are in place ready to respond when the inevitable happened.— place ready to respond when the inevitable happened. finally, can ou rive inevitable happened. finally, can you give us— inevitable happened. finally, can you give us or— inevitable happened. finally, can you give us or offer _ inevitable happened. finally, can you give us or offer any - inevitable happened. finally, can| you give us or offer any indication of when things will get back to normality? we of when things will get back to normality?— of when things will get back to normali ? ~ ., ~ ., , ., normality? we will work really hard overniaht normality? we will work really hard overnight to — normality? we will work really hard overnight to get — normality? we will work really hard overnight to get the _ normality? we will work really hard overnight to get the railway - normality? we will work really hard overnight to get the railway back i overnight to get the railway back working again tomorrow for customers but i would advise people to absolutely check before they travel, to kill if they are expecting to travel early tomorrow morning. jake elliott from network rail, thank you for that update. —— jake kelly. from disruption to ferries and sea crafts to the air — flights into heathrow and gatwick have had trouble landing due to high winds. earlier i spoke to our reporter

charlie rose who's at the end of the runway at gatwick airport near crawley in west sussex. this morning it looked like business as usual, but in the past couple of hours or so, the wind and gusts have really picked up and of course it makes things very difficult for pilots. we have captured some exclusive pictures of planes — dramatic footage of planes, two separate flights trying to [and here at gatwick. and metres from the ground, they had to abort those landings and fly away simply because the conditions were just too treacherous. now, most flights appear to be taking off and landing successfully, but on the ground the inter—terminal rail shuttle — which normally ferries passengers between the north and south terminals here — has been cancelled. many flights — several flights have been cancelled today, and there has been widespread disruption.

people are still turning up with their fingers crossed, expecting to catch their flight out of gatwick today. they may well be lucky, but the advice is to check with your airline before heading to the airport here. those pictures really capture how treacherous it is. ijust wonder — given the number of cancellations you're talking about — is there any sense of the knock—on effect that this could have? it's clearly going to go on for a few days, isn't it? there will be a knock—on effect but at the moment the arrivals board, the departures board show some cancellations but most flights are taking off and landing successfully here today. but i imagine if you are a passenger on one of those flights, being a passenger is not for the faint—hearted. one flight came from bordeaux to gatwick here and had two attempted landings at gatwick before the pilot took the view

it was just too dangerous. that flight left gatwick, returned to bordeaux, and was cancelled. will we see some more of those? it's quite possible. we haven't seen the last of this storm yet, and lots of disruption still to take place, i imagine. that was charlie rose talking to me earlier. let's talk to our weather presenter nick miller. phew! it is not over yet. can you give an overview of where we are and what is happening —— macro white is happening? we what is happening -- macro white is ha eninu? . what is happening -- macro white is hauenina? . ., ~ what is happening -- macro white is happening?— happening? we have talked nonstop about the impact _ happening? we have talked nonstop about the impact and _ happening? we have talked nonstop about the impact and disruption - happening? we have talked nonstop| about the impact and disruption from this which is not a once a year weather system, this is really quite unusual in the what has happened with storm eunice. satellite picture, this was 20 hours ago, it had barely formed to the south—west of the uk. it was just getting its act together and then you can see,

as we got into today, that swell taking shape in the satellite picture is the system moved right across the uk. it is sitting out in the north sea and it is on the southern flank of that system that we have seen strongest and most damaging winds. that started off this morning wales and the south—west and moved further east across wales and the southern half of england as we have gone through the day and that his wife increasingly this afternoon we have heard about impacts in south—east england and the london area, which has never had a red wind warning and i though that has now expired. we have seen winds some of the strongest in some of these weather stations, in 15 to 20 years, a couple of decades. and indeed a provisionalfigure of couple of decades. and indeed a provisional figure of 122 miles an hour on the very exposed weather station on the isle of wight which could turn out to be england's wind gust on record. could turn out to be england's wind gust on record-— gust on record. what is the picture likel to gust on record. what is the picture likely to at — gust on record. what is the picture likely to at the _ gust on record. what is the picture likely to at the day _ gust on record. what is the picture likely to at the day continues - gust on record. what is the picture likely to at the day continues and l likely to at the day continues and on into the evening? the likely to at the day continues and on into the evening?— on into the evening? the highest level of warning, _

on into the evening? the highest level of warning, the _ on into the evening? the highest level of warning, the red - on into the evening? the highest level of warning, the red wind i level of warning, the red wind warnings, have now expired but we are still in that situation where we have this large amber warning area out from the met office until this is for wind gusts within this area of 60 to 80 mph. —— until 9pm. i have checked the observations, still gusting up to around 70 exposed coastal areas of wales and we have had a wind gust of 73 mph under the north norfolk coast, from west to east, right across that area. inland gusting near 60 mph in places, so we are not out of the woods by any stretch of the imagination but i showed you that picture of the storm to the north sea. the further that moves away and that continues tonight, the winds will begin to ease down so that weather warning will end at 9pm and after that the winds turn lighter as the night goes on. in after that the winds turn lighter as the night goes on.— after that the winds turn lighter as the night goes on. in the meantime, what is the — the night goes on. in the meantime, what is the potential— the night goes on. in the meantime, what is the potential impact - the night goes on. in the meantime, what is the potential impact of - what is the potential impact of winds at 60 to 80 mph?- what is the potential impact of winds at 60 to 80 mph? every chance we could continue _ winds at 60 to 80 mph? every chance we could continue to _ winds at 60 to 80 mph? every chance we could continue to have _ winds at 60 to 80 mph? every chance we could continue to have the - winds at 60 to 80 mph? every chance we could continue to have the things| we could continue to have the things which have been happening already

and it can put every effort to get things moving again which have now stopped. you talk about the impact to travel, particularly to rail services and things like that. there are many people out there now trying to create trees front lines and trees from rose and things like that. if you still have the winds are gusting that strong, they may have been something which is loosened a little earlier on, waiting to come down with an extra push and when that happens you get a new set of problems. as long as we still see winds gusting that high, it not as high we will see issues continuing as we go into this evening again, easing overnight but there is a lot of work to be done to clear things up, even once those winds ease down.— clear things up, even once those winds ease down. using overnight but what is the picture _ winds ease down. using overnight but what is the picture over _ winds ease down. using overnight but what is the picture over the _ what is the picture over the weekend?— what is the picture over the weekend? , ., , weekend? sadly it will not become and there are _ weekend? sadly it will not become and there are work _ weekend? sadly it will not become and there are work by _ weekend? sadly it will not become and there are work by for - weekend? sadly it will not become and there are work by for the - and there are work by for the weekend. at the moment we are at the yellow level, so not as extreme as we have seen, but there will be further spells of wet and windy

weather occurring across the uk this weekend and again it is going to hamper these efforts to try to tidy up hamper these efforts to try to tidy up after it today's a very unusually strong storm. up after it today's a very unusually strong storm-— strong storm. nick miller, really aood to strong storm. nick miller, really good to have — strong storm. nick miller, really good to have you _ strong storm. nick miller, really good to have you with _ strong storm. nick miller, really good to have you with us - strong storm. nick miller, really good to have you with us in - strong storm. nick miller, really good to have you with us in the l good to have you with us in the studio, thank you. in wales, storm eunice has brought strong winds and high waves. there are no trains running anywhere in the country — the first time that has happened, and people are being advised to stay at home. our correspondent tomos morgan is in porthcawl in south wales. as storm eunice crashes over porthcawl, the majority of cafes and businesses are shut in and around the south wales coastline, as it took the brunt of the weather this morning. gusts of over 90 mph have been clocked, as eunice sweeps up everthing in its path. i have lived in porthcawl many, many years and i have never experienced anything like this before. it has even taken my breath away, it is so windy. you could barely walk on the prom, could you? you can't. i am literally at a 45 degrees angle.

it is crazy. stronger than we have seen for a long time. the lack of rain is a big help, but i haven't seen a wind as strong as this for a while. the seafront here in porthcawl really bore the brunt of the weather here this morning, as within the hour of the red warning coming into force it coincided with high tide, meaning waves came crashing over the promenade here. although the met office's red warning has now ended, the whole of wales is now under an amber alert for winds until this evening. seas in holyhead disrupting ferry services across the irish sea. elsewhere on the transport front, eunice's impact on the road overturned a lorry on the m4. fallen trees damaged a car in swansea, with both severn bridges now closed. all trains have been postponed for the first time ever in wales. i have been on the railway 30 years in wales and i do not recall a storm of this magnitude where we have taken the decision of suspending the service in advance.

over 25,000 homes are now without power, and that number is steadily rising. most schools are closed — half term here starting a day earlier than planned. as eunice continues to create dramatic but dangerous scenery, the advice is to stay indoors and to only travel if absolutely necessary. tomos morgan, bbc news, porthcawl. let's talk tojim mcmahon, labour's shadow secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs. good to have you with us and i think you are in old and, if i'm right. i wondered if you could give us a sense of what the impact of storm eunice has been there. it is sense of what the impact of storm eunice has been there.— eunice has been there. it is very clear that _ eunice has been there. it is very clear that these _ eunice has been there. it is very clear that these are _ eunice has been there. it is very clear that these are quite - eunice has been there. it is very clear that these are quite scaryl eunice has been there. it is very i clear that these are quite scary and worrying times people across the country and we are seeing right across the uk the very real impact it has had. i think the government

advice needs to be heeded, which is please do not go out unless absolutely necessary. but also people deliver because of people have no choice but to go out because they are keeping us safe and helping with the response, those front line workers. they really are the best of us and thank you for all the work they are doing. this us and thank you for all the work they are doing-— they are doing. as you say, the storm was _ they are doing. as you say, the storm was well _ they are doing. as you say, the storm was well forecast - they are doing. as you say, the storm was well forecast and . they are doing. as you say, the storm was well forecast and a i they are doing. as you say, the i storm was well forecast and a lot they are doing. as you say, the - storm was well forecast and a lot of people have heeded the advice to stay indoors and the environment secretary at george eustice has said of the good news is that high winds had not collided with high tides, causing floods. and that is a cause for optimism, isn't it?— for optimism, isn't it? well, i think we _ for optimism, isn't it? well, i think we are _ for optimism, isn't it? well, i think we are lucky, _ for optimism, isn't it? well, i think we are lucky, frankly, i for optimism, isn't it? well, i - think we are lucky, frankly, given how may properties are exposed to flooding here in the uk. there are over 5 million homes exposed to flooding. we have not seen the investment in flood defences that were needed. i take little comfort in the government response to this because it stands in stark contrast to the storms that hit the north of england in the north of england when

arwen took out 20,000 properties from the grid. the government were nowhere to be seen, the army took two weeks to be drafted in. i think what we are seeing hopeful is that the government are beginning to learn lessons from what happened in november to make sure we don't find ourselves in that situation again. we also need to make sure we do better at planning ahead. we are calling for the government to bring together flood task force to bring together flood task force to bring together government departments and agencies, emergency services and also local government to make sure there is cross departmental response to this and that we plan ahead or storms. the government has convened two cobra meeting today to discuss the storm. it says there is planning going on, the route the resilience section of the cabinet office website says the government has programmes in place for delivery and maintaining preparedness in mitigating risk. you must welcome

that? we mitigating risk. you must welcome that? ~ . ., .,. that? we welcome the fact the government — that? we welcome the fact the government are _ that? we welcome the fact the government are talking - that? we welcome the fact the government are talking about | that? we welcome the fact the i government are talking about this because it's very important but we also need to follow the evidence and that says we are not investing anywhere near enough on climate change, decarbonisation and the future investment required to make sure we reduce the risk of extreme weather events happening in the first place. we are seeing the investment in flood defence to make sure communities are protected if a flood takes place and we don't see any investment in local public services to reduce the risk of flood taking place. local government has seen the budget slashed by £15 billion reducing maintenance and the ability to respond and that has a direct impact on local communities but it's notjust me saying that. the environment agency says if money is not put into front—line prevention and resilience, planning and intervention, that will have an impact on peoples livelihoods, households and local communities. now it's time for a look at the weather with nick miller. hello. further spells of wind and rain

on the way at the weekend, though thankfully it's not going to be as bad as it's been today. we still have the potential for further damaging gusts of wind before things gradually improve as we get deeper into tonight, as storm eunice moves away. we're still left, though, with some rain, sleet and snow impacting parts of scotland and northern england. it'll turn icy, it'll be frosty in places, too, because many places will have clear skies for a time, allowing temperatures to dip away. there's another system moving in on saturday — that's going to bring some rain, may be some hill snow into northern ireland. it'll take some wet weather across much of wales and england and on towards the west and south—west of scotland. the northern flank of this system in wales could produce some snow, and into yorkshire and parts of the midlands to quite low levels, so don't be surprised by that. and the winds pick up again for a time towards south wales and along the south coast of england, maybe gusting 50 to 60 mph. again, not as bad as it's been today, and further wet and windy weather on the way on sunday.

hello, this is bbc news with rebecca jones. the headlines... storm eunice is battering parts of the uk. forecasters say it could be one of the worst storms in three decades. amongst the damage, the dome of london's o2, shredded by the strong winds. london fire brigade has declared a major incident, after fielding hundreds of calls;and south central ambulance service has declared a critical incident, with road disruption affecting response times. you're being urged not to travel, with snow and ice warnings for northern parts of the uk. all trains in wales have been cancelled, with major cancellations and delays on rail lines across britain. our very strong advice is not to travel unless it is absolutely necessary. but if people do need to travel, they should first of all be prepared for very long delays and secondly check with their train operator that the train is running. vladimir putin is to oversee

military exercises involving russia's nuclear and missile capabilities, as world leaders meet in munich to discuss security. great britain have been stripped of their silver medal in the 4x100 metre relay at last summer's tokyo olympics, after team member cj ujah was found to have committed a doping violation. but at the winter olympics, great britain is guaranteed at least a silver medal, as the women's curling team beat defending champions sweden to make it to the final. sport and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre, here's olly. great britain are guaranteed another curling medal at the winter olympics. the women's team came through a tense semifinal to knock out the reigning champions sweden. eve muirhead's team were 8—7 down in the ninth end but the skip put

them 11—8 up with this terrific final stone. sweden still managed to level the match in the 10th, so it went to an extra end, sudden death, crucially team gb, had the hammer, the final stone, but they didn't need it. sweden were wayward with their last attempt. they go through 12—11 to sunday's final to face japan who beat switzerland. the men face sweden in theirfinal tomorrow. muirhead won a bronze medal in 2014 but this is herfirst i have lost two semifinals before and i was desperate for it, because these moments and opportunities don't come around very often and i really, really was so, so proud of these girls. it is such team game out there and all week, we have really dug

so deep and not even just this event, i think the whole season, from a squad of nine down to playing in the olympic qualifier, and yeah, i am pretty speechless right now, but what a moment. it sounds amazing to say that we are in the olympic final. great britain have been officially stripped of the silver medal they won in the men's 4x100m relay at last year's tokyo summer olympics. cj ujah who ran the first leg in the final, tested positive for two banned substances after the race. the case was then referred to the court of arbitration for sport who have ruled that the relay team is stripped of their medals because of a doping violation. ujah never challenged the finding, but argued that a contaminated suppplememt was the cause. zharnel hughes, richard kitty and nethaneel mitchell—blake will lose their medals as well. ujah will now go through world athletics disciplinary proceedings to find out the length of any ban.

up to four years. "with sadness" and says... lewis hamilton says there was a moment when he lost his faith in formula one, but he's ready to go again when the new season starts next month. speaking at the launch of the mercedes car, alongside his new teamate george russell, the seven—time champion admitted that he had a difficult time coming to terms with last season's title climax, when he was pipped to the world championship by max verstappen on the final lap of the abu dhabi grand prix. the race director, michael masi, who was removed from his position yesterday, failed to apply the safety car rules correctly.

it was obviously a difficult time for me, and it was where i really needed to take a step back, focus on being present, had my family all around me, creating great moments. and eventually got to a point where i decided i was going to be attacking again, coming into another season and working with toto and george. it is exciting seeing george come in and bring his energy, i can already feel that throughout the team and i think it is going to be an exciting season. before i go, just to let you know tonights championship match between bournemouth and nottingham forest is off, bournemouth's stadium has been damaged by storm eunice and has been deemed unsafe. that's all the sport for now. as uncertainty about the crisis in ukraine continues, russia's president vladimir putin is to oversee further military drills tomorrow, involving ballistic missiles and cruise missile launches. it comes as ukraine's defence minister says about 150,000 russian troops are now encircling the country, despite russia's claims that some have been pulled back.

world leaders are meeting in munich today for a security conference, which russia won't be attending for the first time since 1999. our diplomatic correspondent paul adams reports. russia's military exercises in belarus are almost over, designed to show off moscow's raw power in the most unambiguous way. other drills, out in the black sea. rarely has russia displayed its military might in so many places at the same time. it's mesmerised and profoundly alarmed the west, and perhaps that's the point. some equipment is going back to bases close to ukraine. western officials say they want to see other units being moved much further away before there can be any meaningful talk of de—escalation. although russia has announced

that it is moving its forces back to garrison, we have yet to see that. in fact, we see more forces moving into that region, that border region. in eastern ukraine, a potentially dangerous escalation. ukrainian soldiers inspecting damage from yesterday's explosion at a kindergarten. exchanges of fire overnight, some of the biggest in recent years. the front lines here have barely changed after long years of war. this is where a wider conflict could erupt. a mistake, or a provocation, might prove disastrous. the threat to this country remains very real. vladimir putin could invade ukraine at a moment's notice, but whatever he decides to do, the sheer theatricality of his muscle flexing in recent weeks has completely transformed the west's understanding of russia as a global power. even if war is averted, and it hasn't been yet, this crisis is not going to be forgotten for a long, long time. least of all, the politicians and leaders gathering for a security

conference in munich. the west still scrambling to formulate its response to the challenge from moscow. at the kremlin, mr putin held talks with the leader of belarus, alexander lukashenko, the man playing host to the drills which finish on sunday. translation: military exercises are active right now. _ tomorrow, we will even participate together in an important part of this whole complex of military cooperation. ukrainian soldiers, already involved in fighting, know that something much bigger could still be looming. russia insists it has no plans to attack. no—one here is relaxing their guard. paul adams, bbc news. our chief international correspondent lyse doucet is at the munich security conference where the ukraine crisis is top of the agenda. she's been speaking to the nato secretary general, jens stoltenberg.

yes, and you can feel that heightened international tensions here in munich. the grand hotel behind me that has been doing real—time diplomacy for more than 50 years. this time, yet again, it is confronting a crisis. but one it is struggling to find a way forward. the russian foreign minister sergei lavrov is not here this year. not a good sign when this forum wants to find a diplomatic way out. is it still possible? we are joined by the secretary general of nato, jens stoltenberg. right at the eye of this storm. two days ago, you spoke about cautious optimism and diplomacy. and now? well, what we saw a few days ago was that russia expressed renewed willingness to sit down and engage in diplomatic efforts. but have not seen any follow—up on that on the ground. so we are not seeing the de—escalation that of foces it has been announced.

and of course, we continue to call on russia to withdraw forces and sit down with nato and nato allies and engage in good faith and find a political solution. you are looking at all the intelligence. so is president biden. he says it is going to happen tomorrow. there is no certainty about the intentions of russia. but a high probability there could be something tomorrow, given what you have seen in the intelligence? but what i think is very important is just to describe the facts, and the fact is, we have russian armed forces amassed on the border of ukraine that are ready to invade without any warning time, and that is a very dangerous situation, and especially combined with a very threatening rhetoric, where russia puts forward demands they know we cannot accept that, which are violating core principles for european security. if you combine that with a track record of russia that has used force against ukraine before, of course we have to take this very seriously. there is a real risk. but i don't want speculate or say anything with certainty about when and how they will act.

in london, british officials say they believe president putin has made the decision to invade ukraine. do you agree? what we see is that he has in place forces that can invade ukraine without any warning. so this can happen when they make the final decision. in britain, they say he has made the decision. do you agree with the british assessment? i will not go into details about what we believe he has decided, what i can say, we can see through our intelligence but also through open sources, social media, commercial satellites, that there is the biggest concentration of combat—ready troops in europe since the cold war concentrated on the borders of ukraine. and then we have seen the rhetoric from russia, that if we do not meet their demands there will be "what they call military technical consequences." therefore we take it very seriously.

that is why we call on russia, it is never too late to step back and engage in diplomatic efforts. we call on them to do exactly that. president putin has again said the waste and that includes nato, is not paying attention to his security concerns. can you, will you, do more? we are ready and we have also sent a written proposal to address a wide range of issues which are important for the security of nato allies. but also for russia. arms control, transparency on military activity, missiles, nuclear issues. all of this is important for both russia and nato. but we cannot compromise on core principles for european security. we cannot give up the right for every nation to choose its own paths, or the right of nato allies to protect each other. they want us to unilaterally agree

that we should remove all nato allies and all infrastructures from all allies that joined after 1997. that's almost half of nato allies. that can't happen. there are reports know that the people of donetsk are being told to move to russia. you have expressed concern that russia would create what is called a false flag incident. as we speak, are you growing more concerned that that is a possibility? we have been concerned for that for a long time. more concerned now? i will not graduate the concern. i am and we are concerned, that was expressed clearly by nato defence ministers yesterday. nato allies stand behind expressing both our concern, but also the call for russia to step back, and to remove forces,

and then to engage, sit down and address the topics that we have proposed to them, invited them for a meeting in nato—russia council, the nato allise have all reached out to russia, so there are now many efforts to try to prevent russia from using force against ukraine. what is the purpose of the munich security forum, when it comes to ukraine? mr lavrov isn't here, what more can you do than talk? it's important in a situation like this to coordinate and to consult. that is exactly what we do at the meeting place like this. we had all the nato ministers in brussels for two days this week. many of them are here, but also other decision—makers, and i strongly believe that everything we can do to be coordinated, to be united, is important. is this a defining moment, as we say, in russia's relations with the west? a no—turning—back moment? i think what we are seeing now is creating a new normal in europe. because we have seen that russia has openly challenged, contested core values for our security.

and they have amassed troops and forces and threatened to use them to get their will. this is something which is very serious, and which nato has to respond to. i regret that, but that is the reality and therefore we need to respond to russia, which is more openly demanding nato to give up on core values. that is creating a new normal in european security. how long can this high—wire act, this really intense tension, go on, before there is some kind of an accident that pushes the two sides towards even greater tension? we are monitoring what is going on very closely, also to avoid miscalculation and misunderstandings. but there is a real risk of it? again, i don't think my task is to speculate, my task is to describe the facts

on the ground, the forces that we see, the combat readiness, moving closer to the border of ukraine, and this threatening rhetoric. they repeated that again. and nuclear exercises tomorrow. is that testing nuclear and ballistic missiles? well, every nation has the right to exercise its forces. this is a regular exercise. but it should have taken place last fall. now it takes place at the same time as we have this big concentration of forces in and around ukraine. again, just an argument for scaling down, stepping back, and to engage in political efforts and dialogue with nato. you look exhausted. how much time is left? how many days? i will not go into any details about that, because the reality is that there is no certainty about the russian intentions. but what we do know is that a significant, massive military build—up, and the threatening rhetoric, and that combination is dangerous.

50—50 now? again, i will not speculate about those probabilities. we are ready and work hard for the best solution, a peaceful outcome, diplomatic outcome, but of course, we also are prepared for the worst, if russia once again violates the integrity and territorial integrity of ukraine. jens stoltenberg, nato secretary general, thank you very much forjoining us. it hardly needs underlining how crucial this moment is, hanging in the balance between increasing war in ukraine. ukrainians have lived with it for eight years. there is a possibility it could tip over into greater violence. but what is happening here is another effort to give diplomacy a chance. how big a chance? we just don't know, but we'll keep watching. storm eunice has been battering much of the uk, causing widespread disruption and damage.

three people have been cooled by falling trees in the netherlands. that is according to the fire brigade. the storm caused a tree to fall on a car, killing the person, another person was hit by a falling tree and then a tree fell on a cyclist in amsterdam, killing the cyclist. the bad weather notjust confined to the uk but storm eunice has of course been battering much of the country here, causing widespread damage and disruption. let's talk to alex from the met office. those rare red warnings of a serious risk to life have now elapsed. that does not mean we are through the worst of it, does it? no, we will still see potentially damaging gusts of wind. the storm system is on the backside of the

storm, seeing some of the strongest storm, seeing some of the strongest storm to come. we still have an amber weather warning in place until 9pm, particularly northern and eastern england still at risk from damaging gusts for the next few hours, particularly the trans— routes, particular treacherous through this evening but a very strong gusts of wind across ex essex. across the eastern side of england, across the north, the potential for further damage and further disruption, that amber warning is still in place until 9pm. is this one of the things that makes storm eunice so perilous, that it is spread across the country and it's also bringing with it snow, high wind and also potential flooding? the snow is also significant across eastern scotland because it's not just snow, we have seen blizzards from that, it is the intensity of storm eunice. it has been

widespread, warnings out from north—east scotland to the south—west of england but actually parts of the outer hebrides have a pretty good day. it's pretty widespread, it really is the intensity, the strength of the wind, to see these strong winds and across the south where we just don't see them that often, that has been one of the biggest factors. the speed it has actually move through, pretty smartly, but all storms are different and offer different things, this one particularly intense, red warnings aria, to have two the same day is exceptional. where is it heading now? the storm centre is already _ where is it heading now? the storm centre is already cleared _ where is it heading now? the storm centre is already cleared from i where is it heading now? the storm centre is already cleared from the i centre is already cleared from the uk, heading across denmark, the strongest wind on its southern flanks, still strong wind across the uk, but that storm is heading away but it is now feeling, less intense, it reached its peak intensity this morning when you are most likely to

get the strongest winds, hence the red warning across the south—west. it is easing but we will still see incredibly strong gusts of wind across the northern europe, travelling from belgium into europe for a time but it will not be as bad as this afternoon because the storm is starting to ease off. we as this afternoon because the storm is starting to ease off.— is starting to ease off. we had back-to-back _ is starting to ease off. we had back-to-back storms - is starting to ease off. we had i back-to-back storms essentially, back—to—back storms essentially, storm dudley and then storm eunice. there is not another one round the corner, is there?— corner, is there? pretty unprecedented - corner, is there? pretty unprecedented day i corner, is there? pretty| unprecedented day here corner, is there? pretty i unprecedented day here on corner, is there? pretty _ unprecedented day here on monday when we named two storms on the same take, we have never done that before. it's not unusual to see storms follow on from one another. we can have this set up in the weather where you are more likely to generate these storms, it's very unusual to name two on the same day, that was exceptional but getting the names out on monday was important so we flagged the storm is coming and gave people time to prepare, that's the point, that's why the met office these storms. in terms of a third

strong, i would not speculate but suffice to say the jet stream is pretty lively and we expect more wet and windy weather. the weekend looks like being two notches down, not stormy but potentially strong winds and units has been through and potentially weakened things, structures and trees, even if the wind won't be as strong on saturday, branches could come down which could cause disruption as well. no third named storm at the moment. we 24-7, 24—7, we are here 24 seven —— we monitor 24 seven, 306 to five days a year, the chief meteorologist will be looking. at the moment, more wet and windy weather coming through the weekend and probably beyond. goad and windy weather coming through the weekend and probably beyond. good to talk, weekend and probably beyond. good to talk. thanks- — to get more on the situation where you live, do tune in to your bbc local radio station — and you can find details of your nearest station at bbc.co.uk/sounds.

and for the picture across the country head to bbc.co.uk/news. and on our website you can also find some guidance on how to stay safe before and during the storm. other news, and coast guards now say 11 people are missing after a ferry caught fire off the greek island of corfu. greek officials had earlier said all 288 passengers were transferred to rescue boats and that there were no deaths or serious injuries. the italian—flagged euroferry olympia was travelling from greece to brindisi in italy. video shared on social media showed the whole vessel on fire. the cause of the blaze is unknown. now it's time for a look at the weather with nick.

as we have been hearing, storm eunice, in and out, haven't yet finished with these very strong destructive winds. here is how it formed on the satellite picture, the swirl of the cloud in the atmosphere is the storm which is now away from the uk. the centre of it anyway feeling the impact. deeper into tonight, they will slowly be using. concerns within this amber warning area from the met office about 60—80 miles per gusts, still in place, very difficult out there, plenty of disruption, a lot of snow in parts of scotland causing its own problems, notjust in the hills but lower levels, very wintry day and still some patchy rain here in northern parts of england into tonight. for many places, turning calm, frost setting in and i sleep at around going into the morning

where you have seen wet weather today. the next weather system coming in will bring rain, snow possible on the northern flank, wet weather pushing through northern ireland into southern and western scotland and we may see towards the south coast of wales and southern england these average wind speeds, still gusts, 50—64 a time. they may well cause further problems, not on the scale of the wind we have seen, but a lot of cleaning up to do. that will hamper that effort. into sunday, more wet weather, another following behind moving south, in wet weather. quite tricky in terms of how much rain, we will see. more widely windy on sunday. scotland, northern ireland, not seacoast, irish sea coast, could see gusts.

they could be disruptive still. mild for a time but as this turn cold and into monday looking quite windy. wet and windy weather on the way. not as bad as the weekend but could be impacts. weather warnings for the weekend from the met office. absolutely keep across those if you have got outdoor and travel plans.

today at 5pm — storm eunice is battering parts of the uk. forecasters say it could be one of the worst storms in three decades. amongst the damage — the dome of london's o2, shredded by the strong winds. london fire brigade and south central ambulance service have both declared major incidents. poeple are being urged not to travel, with snow and ice warnings for northern parts of the uk. no trains at all are running in wales with cancellations and delays on lines across britain. our very strong advice is not to travel unless it is absolutely necessary and if people do need to travel, they should be prepared for very long delays, and secondly check

with their train operator that their train is running.