welcome to bbc news, i'm monika plaha. our top stories: torrential rains continue in california, where storms have now killed 17 people. new climate data suggests 20.22 was the fifth—hottest year on record, with europe and the polar regions hardest hit by global warming. fierce fighting in the eastern ukrainian town of soledar. ukranian forces battle to keep the russian mercenary wagner group back. cardinal george pell, the australian former vatican treasurer who was found guilty of sexual abuse before his conviction was quashed, has died. and at the golden globes, an award—winning performance from colin farrell.

have you been round? i haven't been round- _ he takes best musical or comedy actor, as the awards try to shake off the controversy about racism. we will have the latest on the big night in hollywood. we start in california, where at least 17 people are now known to have died from heavy flooding in the state. nearly 50,000 people have been ordered to evacuate amid fears of landslides. all residents — that is 10,000 people — living in the coastal town of montesito, near santa barbara, have been ordered to leave. warnings of flooding and high winds are in place across much of california, with more

cyclones expected. jon donnison reports. not a river but a road. but in much of california, rather than a car, you'd be better off with a canoe. large parts of the state are already underwater following back—to—back storms, and there is more to come. in less than 12 hours, we've received more than eight inches of rain, with seven to eight inches still forecast to four. in other words, even more water. tens of thousands of homes have already had to be evacuated. hundreds of thousands more have been left without power. we worked hard the last week to make sure this didn't happen, and it wasjust... and in some areas, the extreme rain has brought other dangers too. in the town of montecito in santa barbara county, the whole community has

been told to leave. the area is home to the duke and duchess of sussex as well as a number of celebrities, including the tv star ellen degeneres. and not for the first time. this latest extreme weather in california comes on the back of severe forest fires in recent summers and record low temperatures just a few weeks ago. jon donnison, bbc news. scott safechuck, public information officer with santa barbara county, gave us an update on the situation in california. well, we're on the backside of the storm now. we received record amounts of rain within a 36—hour period,

where the hills above montecito and santa barbara here received as much as 15 inches within a 36—hour period. luckily the storm has passed for the next couple of days. we are expecting some rain through the weekend, but of a lighter condition. we experienced lots of flooding damage, isolated to different areas which were not like what was mimicked in 2018, when we had catastrophic mudslides through montecito with the death of over 23 people. and are you expecting the situation to get worse with the weather, and how is your team preparing? yeah, that's a good question. we feel we're on the backside of the storm now. we in the county had a lot of investment into our montecito area, which they did

a greatjob in the design in the catchment basins, and we were able to trap a lot of debris and rocks that came down from the hills. we are doing pretty good and unscathed in a lot of ways. we consider it a success that we didn't have any loss of life. yes, and no doubt rescue teams are working around the clock here to help. there are fears of a repeat of the 2018 mudslide, so is that the last time you have seen it this bad? we have never seen rain like this, weather that bad. i have been here for 22 years. to see such a downpour in a short period is unprecedented. i have to say, with the evacuation of people — and following those orders. i'm glad people followed those orders because of the mudslide

and soil saturation that we had. we were facing a real threat here in our community. but, you know, we responded to over 400 incidents. we had over 100 water rescues. 0ver100 vehicles were disabled because of the floods, and we had multiple helicopter rescues. and we had to deploy boats with rope systems to get to people that were trapped in their cars, so the fact that we didn't lose life during these operations and none of our personnel were injured — we really think it's a success that we have made it through the storm unscathed. and scott, briefly, what is the advice for the residents in those worst affected areas at the moment? well, the advice now that the evacuation order has been lifted as of this afternoon. we are excited to be able to repopulate those areas. there are some pockets where some homes are damaged and those people are going to be able to — they will have to wait to get back in there. but the fact that they have power, electricity, they have running water and they're able to flush the toilets —

that's a good thing to be able to get those people back in there and get on with our lives. the heavy rains in california come as europe and the polar regions were the areas hardest hit by severe temperature changes caused by climate change last year. according to new analysis, europe experienced its warmest summer on record, while some parts of greenland were up to eight degrees warmer than average in september. 0verall, 2022 was the fifth—warmest year on record, which means the last eight years in a row were each the warmest yet measured. here is our climate editorjustin rowlatt. france had a brutal summer. it recorded its hottest ever year and lowest levels of rainfall, the perfect conditions for the wildfires which swept the country, destroying crops and threatening homes. the gironde region in the south of the country was very badly hit. i think it's really

frightening, in terms of having things prepared for an escape if we need to, which again sounds totally crazy when i say it out loud. you know, we might need to escape from where we live. but it gives you some sense of security that you are preparing things and things are better ready to go it needs to be. it was a similar story across the continent, which experienced its worst drought for 500 years. some of europe's mightiest rivers hit record low water levels, including the danube, the rhine and the loire, as the uk, germany and spain also experienced record heatwaves. this shows average surface temperatures worldwide in 2022. blue areas are below average, but look at the hotter than average red areas. europe, particularly western europe, is especially hot, as is much

of northern asia. wales also recorded its highest ever temperature, during a year in which global temperatures were 1.2 degrees celsius above pre—industrial levels. now, governments have committed to trying to keep global temperature rise to within 1.5 degrees to avoid the worst of global warming. but scientists say time is rapidly running out. if we look at the current level of emissions and current level of warming, we will hit 1.5 degrees some time in the early 2030s. so we are already living on borrowed time, effectively, and borrowed emissions. the most dramatic warming of all is happening in the coldest places. temperatures over the centre of greenland were eight degrees higher than average in september. antarctica experienced a record period of intense warmth too. more evidence of how our world is changing. justin rowlatt, bbc news.

let's get some of the day's other news: the attorney general�*s office in peru has opened an investigation into the president and leading ministers following weeks of deadly clashes between anti—government protesters and security forces. there have been continuing bouts of violence since the jailing of peru's left—wing leader, pedro castillo, last month. 17 people were killed on monday in the southern city ofjuliaca. clashes are continuing there despite a curfew. the former chief financial officer of the trump 0rganisation, allen weiselberg, was sentenced to five months injail. he was found guilty of a 13—year tax fraud scheme at the trump 0rganisation after evading $1.76 million in unreported income. he pled guilty to all charges against him,

admitting that he and other executives received compensation to save money for the company. police in london are investigating after metal contaminated with uranium was found at heathrow airport last month. the metropolitan police say the amount of contaminated material found in a shipment of scrap metal was extremely small and posed no threat to the public. the bbc understands that one line of inquiry is that the presence of uranium was as a result of poor handling in the country of origin, pakistan. the french government is setting out plans to reform the pensions system, under which many workers still retire at the age of 62, much earlier than many other advanced economies. the proposal is for most workers to stay in the workplace for two or three years longer to qualify for a full pension. us presidentjoe biden has said he was surprised to learn that classified government documents

dating from his time as us vice president were found in his think—tank office. speaking at the end of his visit to mexico city, mr biden said his lawyers had immediately handed the papers over to the archives. i don't know what's in the documents. my lawyers have not suggested i asked what documents they were. i've turned over the boxes, they've turned over the boxes, they've turned over the boxes, they've turned over the boxes to the archives, and we are cooperating fully with the review, which i hope will be finished soon, and there will be more detail at that time. lets turn now to the latest on the conflict in ukraine, and fighting has been raging in the east of the country, as russia continues its attack on the donbas region. the uk's ministry of defence says it's likely that the ukrainian mining town of soledar, is now under russian control, after fighting intensified over the past four days. 0ur correspondentjames waterhouse has more from the capital kyiv.

soledar is more important to the russians than it is to the ukrainians, and i think there are two main reasons for that. firstly, as i think you were alluding to, it allows the russians to further encircle the significant city of bakhmut. there are deep salt mines there which the russians could well use to station troops and vehicles, and the fear certainly from here in kyiv is that they could use those tunnels to penetrate ukrainian—controlled territory. but the second reason it is significant is that the russians could effectively give ukraine a taste of its own medicine. until now the ukrainians have effectively isolated thousands of russian soldiers by taking out their supply lines with targeted missile strikes. now, should soledarfall,

ukrainians are saying nothing is falling at the moment, but should the town fall — it will take out a major ukrainian supply line to the city of bakhmut. now, for the russians, the gains are extremely costly and they are relatively small. but the reason they are throwing everything at it is that there is a big propaganda win here, because soledar would be a vital trophy for vladimir putin, russia's president, to present to critics back in russia. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: making public transport go for a song. we meet the singing bus driver who's proving a hit in england's west midlands. day one of operation desert storm to force the iraqis out of kuwait has seen the most intense air attacks since the second world war. tobacco is america's oldest industry, and it's one of its biggest.

but the industry is nervous of this report. this may tend to make people want to stop smoking cigarettes. there is not a street that is unaffected. l huge parts of kobe were simplyl demolished as buildings crashed into one another. this woman said she had been given no help and no advice i by the authorities. she stood outside the ruins of her business. j tens of thousands of black children in south africa have taken advantage of laws passed by the country's new multiracial government and enrolled at formerly white schools. tonight sees the 9,610th performance of her long—running play the mousetrap. when they heard of her death today, the management considered whether to cancel tonight's performance, but agatha christie would have been the last person to want such a thing. this is bbc news, the latest headlines: california is being affected by widespread flooding

and mudslides, following weeks of heavy rain. there have been 17 deaths and forecasters say more rain is expected. new climate data suggests 2022 was the fifth hottest year on record — with europe and the polar regions hardest hit by global warming. the controversial former vatican treasurer, cardinal george pell, has died in rome aged 81. he was convicted in australia in 2018 of sexually abusing two choir boys in melbourne more than two decades earlier, becoming the highest ranking roman catholic to be caught up in the scandal that has blighted the church in recent decades. but after serving 13 months in prison, his conviction was overturned on appeal. 0ur correspondent in sydney, shaimaa khalil has more. he is a controversial or was a controversial figure, he himself had conceded that. but he was also a towering figure of the catholic church, both here and abroad.

he was australia's highest—ranking catholic cleric and one of the pope's top advisers, and before becoming the vatican's treasurer, being in charge of its finances between 2014 and 2019, he served as the archbishop of both sydney and melbourne. in 2018 he was convicted of sexually abusing two young choirboys in the 1990s, in a case that shocked australia and of course hugely embarrassed the catholic church, before he was then acquitted and was freed from jail in april 2020. he has since returned to rome, but he was no longer employed by the vatican. and you mentioned that he was australia's highest—ranking catholic cleric and the most senior church figure ever jailed for such offences, so what has the reaction been to this in australia? well, he has always maintained his innocence. we heard from the archbishop

of sydney, who said that cardinal pell�*s death came as a great shock. we also heard from the archbishop of melbourne, who paid tribute to the cleric as a very significant and influential church leader, both in australia and internationally. but i will say, given how controversial he was, the reaction here will likely be mixed. remember, when he was acquitted in 2020, of course there was greatjoy among his supporters, many of whom we met during the hearings in the high court. but there was also a great deal of disappointment and anger at that decision, especially from activists who had been working with sexual abuse survivors who say that this result and this decision may actually silence many people who wouldn't come forward with their experiences. we also know that a civil lawsuit launched by the father of one of the choirboys who the prosecutors allege was sexually abused by the cardinal is still underway.

he is suing for damages for mental injury. so a towering figure, an influential and powerful figure he was, but he leaves behind a very complicated legacy. hollywood giants from steven spielberg to james cameron have flocked back to the golden globe awards which is underway with a star—packed gala despite its scandals. the globes have not had their usual glitz for the past two years, due to the pandemic and revelations about their organizers�* lack of diversity among others. american broadcaster nbc decided not to air the show last year, but brought it back on a one—off basis after the organizers introduced reforms. i am joined now by sandro monetti, who is editor in chief of the hollywood international filmmaker magazine. hejoins us now from los angeles. thank you very much for speaking to me here on bbc news. can you give us a

round—up of what is happening so far, who are the big winners and are there any surprises? yes, let's leave the controversy aside for a moment, and there's lots of it, and go with the main award winners. austin butler as elvis winning best actor stop everyone in the world does an elvis impersonation so the buyer was set pretty high for austin butler. he rose above it, best elvis on—screen ever so he has won best at. cate blanchette for another music themed movie, tar, winning best actress and the award best picture and best direct still to be given out. hollywood awards are back! so far have there been any shocking revelations, any surprises, do you think? yes! a shockin: surprises, do you think? yes! a shocking revelation _ surprises, do you think? yes! a shocking revelation from - surprises, do you think? yes! a shocking revelation from the i shocking revelation from the host jaden shocking revelation from the hostjaden carmichael shocking revelation from the host jaden carmichael who opened the show by saying how much he was getting paid, half $1 million. if that's true it's the highest money ever paid to an awards host. it is a really

uncomfortable atmosphere at this awards show, as referenced in the intro, the hollywood foreign inputs on the golden globes has got a quite wrinkly shameful record on diversity, questions of corruption in the organisation. for many in hollywood they haven't put their house back in order sufficiently. they are very much on trial tonight, nbcjust giving them a one and done tv contracts arejust as giving them a one and done tv contracts are just as people are sweating over the awards, they are sweating over the future of the entire ceremony. and let's speak about the controversy now. since it, especially over diversity in particular, what efforts do you think have been made to rebuild the awards' reputation? hat the awards' reputation? not enou . h. the awards' reputation? not enough- they _ the awards' reputation? not enough. they had _ the awards' reputation? iirrt enough. they had zero black voting members, now they have six. a lot of us and hollywood think that that is maybe not really enough and it is very interesting, they continue to be bashed by a lot of hollywood

stars including brendan fraser, a best actor nominee who boycotted the ceremony because of his past problems with this organisation and they have not welcomed a bunch of press who have been critical of them in the press room tonight so it is a real challenge for the golden globes, it is the 80th. will there be an 81st? i am not so sure. this too any awards shows in hollywood, we could do with losing one but as with everything the tv ratings will be the judge and it will be interesting to see when they come in tomorrow if audiences really want to see the golden globes back again. find really want to see the golden globes back again.— globes back again. and 'ust briefl , globes back again. and 'ust briefly, what i globes back again. and 'ust briefly, what has i globes back again. and 'ust briefly, what has the h globes back again. and just | briefly, what has the turnout been to the awards after all of the controversy?— the controversy? yes, surprisingly _ the controversy? yes, surprisingly strong! i the controversy? yes, - surprisingly strong! there was a lot of debate about who will show up and who wouldn't but a list stars, brad pitt, margot robbie, top direct is comet quentin tarantino, so the big names are there so maybe there is still hope for this

ceremony.- is still hope for this ceremony. is still hope for this ceremon . , ., ., ~ is still hope for this ceremon. , ., ., ~ ., ceremony. very good to talk to ou. ceremony. very good to talk to yom hurray — ceremony. very good to talk to you. hurray for _ ceremony. very good to talk to you. hurray for hollywood. - and finally, he's driven buses in the west midlands area of the uk for more than a decade. and he loves singing. which is why ranjit singh decided to make a music video about hisjob. it's not just to show friends and family in india, but is also a celebration of all the people he works with. navtej johal reports. (music) meet mr singh, the singing sensation. there probably aren't many bus drivers who would choose to write an ode to theirjob and then hire a video production company to turn into this slick music video. but, as you're going to learn, ranjit singh really loves driving buses — so what better location to chat to him than in his happy place? the 59—year—old grandfather from west bromwich is more

comfortable speaking punjabi, his mother tongue. i started by asking him why he wanted to make the video. translation: it's always - been my dream to make a music video about myjob so that when i retire, i can watch it back as a memento and reflect on how me and my colleagues all used to drive buses together. the music video, performed in punjabi and featuring his colleagues, took a week to film and has received plenty of attention on social media and in his home village in india. translation: it's made me very happy and proud, - and it has made everyone really proud and everyone really likes it. i've been getting messages from my friends saying your father—in—law is on tv, on tiktok. i was like, whoa! i don't have tiktok. seeing your father—in—law singing about buses — yeah, that's him, he's doing his thing. the song celebrates the diversity of his colleagues, his passion

for the job and the importance of health and safety. translation: if you put your heart into your work then - you can achieve great happiness. there is a lot ofjoy in thisjob. his enthusiasm is so infectious that in just a few minutes he was able to gather a group of colleagues to give our report a suitable musical ending. navteonhal, bbc news, west bromwich. and just a quick update on the golden globes now and steven spielberg won the golden globe for best direct and that was for best direct and that was for the feeblemans. a reminder of our top story, more rain has fallen on the american state of california with 17 people have already lost their lives recent storms. 0fficials

already lost their lives recent storms. officials say 33 million people are threatened by tuesday's severe weather. you are watching bbc news. you can reach me on twitter, i'm @monikaplaha. hello. 0ur wet and windy week of weather continues on wednesday with the low pressure still very much driving our weather. there's going to be heavy downpours for some of us through the day, and actually over the next few days. 0ften we're going to see rain, strengthening winds. mainly still quite mild for the time of year. but gales developing, overnight rain sweeping its way eastwards. so by the time we get to about 6:00 on wednesday morning, most of us generally frost—free, but some heavy showers from the word go pushing in from the north and the west. and low pressure is going to sit to the north of the uk through the day. you can see the proximity of all these isobars on the chart. that's showing us that it is going to be a blustery

sort of day. plenty of showers driven in from the atlantic, so the heaviest of the downpours will be in the west during this morning — parts of scotland, northern ireland, and also then pushing into wales and western england too. gales around coastal parts of the english channel, through the irish sea coasts, up towards the western isles for instance, so 60mph gusts possible there. but even further inland, we're looking at 30, possibly 40mph gusts of wind through the day on wednesday, so a blustery day. heavy downpours reaching eastern areas during the afternoon after a fairly bright morning here, and temperatures a little cooler than recent days — about 7—11 degrees, feeling colder if you're exposed to the brisk wind and those heavy showers that many of us will see. some snow for a time over the higher ground of scotland too. 0vernight showers ease in the north, but the next batch of heavy rain sweeps eastwards across much of england and wales. so it's going to be a really quite damp start to thursday morning, i think. could be a touch of frost for some sheltered glens of scotland, but still mild to start the day towards the south on thursday. and thursday's weather driven by yet another low—pressure system, this time just moving in towards the north—west. this occluded front

bringing some heavy showers. but down towards the south, we've also got more heavy rain across southern parts of england, lingering on that frontal system, combined with gales that are once again going to develop through the english channel around some of these irish sea coasts, and turning windy later in the day across the northwest too. so the next band of rain crosses from west to east, followed by sunny spells and scattered heavy downpours moving in from the northwest. temperatures still about 7—9 in the north, but up to about 13, possibly 1a, down towards the southeast. so it stays mild. a hint that through the weekend things turn a little less unsettled, and those temperatures are going to drop a little bit by the time we get to sunday. bye— bye.

this is bbc news. the headlines: officials in california say 17 people are now known to have died following weeks of torrential rain. there has been widespread flooding and landslides. weather experts predict more rain in the coming days. severe weather warnings are in place, potentially affecting millions of people. new climate data suggests 2022 was the fifth—hottest year on record, with europe and the polar regions hardest hit by global warming. the measurements confirm that the last eight years have been the warmest ever recorded. australia's cardinal george pell, the former treasurer of the vatican who was acquitted of sexual abuse charges, has died aged 81. he spent more than a year in prison after a jury

found him guilty, but the verdict was quashed on appeal.