whole neighbourhoods raised to the ground — the devastation in los angeles after two days of wildfires, and they're still burning. two of the five fires around the city are still completely out of control, but the authorities say they are hopeful that the tide could be turning. almost 180,000 people have been ordered to leave their homes — thousands of buildings have been raised to the ground. to walk. this is crazy. there is a far ri . ht to walk. this is crazy. there is a far right outside _ to walk. this is crazy. there is a far right outside our _ to walk. this is crazy. there is a far right outside our car -- - to walk. this is crazy. there is a i far right outside our car -- without far right outside our car —— without having to work. there is a fire right outside our car. panic as residents abandon cars to escape the fast moving flames.

back the palisades rise in ruins. —— palisades is in ruins. also tonight... the government defends its plan for the uk's economy. also on the programme... and coming up on bbc news — all change at everton, as sean dyche is sacked as manager as sean dyche is sacked as manager ahead of their fa cup ahead of their fa cup third—round tie this evening. third—round tie this evening. government targets. but can it be done? —— 20 times more than they are government targets. but can it be done? —— 20 times more than they are good evening. completely destroyed. good evening. almost 180,000 people have been almost 180,000 people have been ordered to leave their homes around ordered to leave their homes around los angeles as five fires continue to burn — two of them completley uncontained. this is what the flames are leaving behind. entire neighbourhoods entire neighbourhoods

completely destroyed. everything down. the first fire to erupt was on tuesday in the pacific palisades neighbourhood — it's the largest fire and it is still out of control.

fire crews are now into a third day of fighting these fires on multiple fronts. the good news, the wind has dropped and the weather is calmer today so some of the fire growth has been slowed down. still the largest browsers might browsers have not been brought under control and we know large parts of the city will not overlook the same again —— still the largest roses had not been brought under control. hope that the scale of this disaster is clear to see.— disaster is clear to see. block after block. _ disaster is clear to see. block after block, a _ disaster is clear to see. block after block, a blanket - disaster is clear to see. block after block, a blanket of- after block, a blanket of disruption. more than 1000 buildings burned in this community alone. emergency services unable to save them. i'm still bowburn. the most catastrophic fires los angeles has

ever seen passionate and still bowburn. 0vernight the hollywood hills resembling a disaster movie, huge crescent of flowing engulfing a huge crescent of flowing engulfing a huge community —— iconic community of california. more than hundred thousand people have been told to evacuate their homes. here just one of many properties engulfed terms to a shell. fix, of many properties engulfed terms to a shell. �* ., ., , ., , ., a shell. a lot of the stories of heroic actions _ a shell. a lot of the stories of heroic actions by _ a shell. a lot of the stories of heroic actions by our - a shell. a lot of the stories of heroic actions by our deputy i heroic actions by our deputy sheriffs, police officers, fire officers, a lot were taking place with people who did not choose to evacuate and put their own lives at risk. please if you are asked to evacuate evacuate because it is not only your life you are putting in danger. fist only your life you are putting in dancer. �* . , only your life you are putting in dancer. �* ., ., ., , danger. at least five ma'or fires have been * danger. at least five ma'or fires have been burning _ danger. at least five major fires have been burning across - danger. at least five major fires have been burning across los i danger. at least five major fires - have been burning across los angeles county. this girl and spread has stretched firefighting crews. —— the scholar and the spread. 0n the ground and in the air. 16,000 acres

and counting consumed by the inferno. 0ne and counting consumed by the inferno. one student confirmed by a local resident, moments before he left —— this is one straight. the trying to be able to get some extra stuff and have come to see the whole street is stuff and have come to see the whole streen , , stuff and have come to see the whole stree. , , ., ~ ., ., street is 'ust gone. like a war zone. street isjust gone. like a war zone- we _ street isjust gone. like a war zone. we will _ street isjust gone. like a war zone. we will have _ street isjust gone. like a war zone. we will have so - street isjust gone. like a war zone. we will have so many l street isjust gone. like a war- zone. we will have so many memories were that cannot be replaced. i had great old pictures of both grandfathers, from world war ii, i was going to get them framed. now they are gone and lost. so many things are lost forever. i know that we are safe. but i don't understand. fuelled by hurricane force winds these hurricanes have struck at a vulnerable time, with city not seen any significant length of months.

this fire is very dynamic and fast-moving _ this fire is very dynamic and fast—moving bushfire. - this fire is very dynamic and fast—moving bushfire. the l this fire is very dynamic and i fast—moving bushfire. the wind gusts. — fast—moving bushfire. the wind gusts. looking— fast—moving bushfire. the wind gusts, looking out— fast—moving bushfire. the wind gusts, looking out the - fast—moving bushfire. the wind gusts, looking out the window, | fast—moving bushfire. the wind - gusts, looking out the window, 50—70 mph. _ gusts, looking out the window, 50—70 mph. headed — gusts, looking out the window, 50—70 mph. headed for— gusts, looking out the window, 50—70 mph, headed for the _ gusts, looking out the window, 50—70 mph, headed for the ocean, _ gusts, looking out the window, 50—70 mph, headed for the ocean, turn - gusts, looking out the window, 50—70 mph, headed for the ocean, turn backj mph, headed for the ocean, turn back round _ mph, headed for the ocean, turn back round and _ mph, headed for the ocean, turn back round and bite — mph, headed for the ocean, turn back round and bite at _ mph, headed for the ocean, turn back round and bite at the _ mph, headed for the ocean, turn back round and bite at the canyon. - mph, headed for the ocean, turn back round and bite at the canyon. 1.5- mph, headed for the ocean, turn back round and bite at the canyon. 1.5 — . round and bite at the canyon. 1.5 — two miles— round and bite at the canyon. 1.5 — two miles ahead _ round and bite at the canyon. 1.5 — two miles ahead of _ round and bite at the canyon. 1.5 — two miles ahead of the _ round and bite at the canyon. 1.5 — two miles ahead of the fire - round and bite at the canyon. 1.5 — two miles ahead of the fire with i round and bite at the canyon. 1.5 — l two miles ahead of the fire with 70% chance _ two miles ahead of the fire with 70% chance of— two miles ahead of the fire with 70% chance of igniting _ two miles ahead of the fire with 70% chance of igniting a _ two miles ahead of the fire with 70% chance of igniting a new— two miles ahead of the fire with 70% chance of igniting a new fire - two miles ahead of the fire with 70% chance of igniting a new fire so - chance of igniting a new fire so they— chance of igniting a new fire so they were _ chance of igniting a new fire so they were caught _ chance of igniting a new fire so they were caught in _ chance of igniting a new fire so they were caught in a - chance of igniting a new fire so they were caught in a very - chance of igniting a new fire so . they were caught in a very difficult situation — they were caught in a very difficult situation dra— they were caught in a very difficult situation. �* , . they were caught in a very difficult situation. . , ., .., situation. as dawn came in the palisades _ situation. as dawn came in the palisades it — situation. as dawn came in the palisades it revealed _ situation. as dawn came in the palisades it revealed the - situation. as dawn came in the palisades it revealed the grim | palisades it revealed the grim reality of what the fire has left behind. miles and miles of streets like this, in utter shock at the devastation here. communitiesjust devastation here. communities just vanished devastation here. communitiesjust vanished and now ghost towns and 1's dream homes turned to dust. no one is immune. mansions now ash. the homes ofjennifer aniston, adam sandler, rihanna and paris hilton among those evacuated. the scale of

disruption has upended live in los angeles and this ravaged city is braced for more. that was emma vardy. we will be speaking to her aloud later in the programme. —— speaking to her live. the pacific palisades on the west side of the city is where the blaze started. thousands of buildings have been destroyed in the hills between santa monica and malibu. john sudworth is there and he's been speaking to those affected. late into the night, we watch one of america's wealthiest neighbourhoods burn. the flames so intense the fire crews are powerless to stop them. so if i very quickly take my mask off, the air is absolutely thick with smoke. the fire crews here tell us they have a shortage of water. and in many instances they're having to stand and watch these properties burn. it is a losing battle. they're using what little they have sparingly,

trying to contain the spread. defying the evacuation orders, some residents are defending their own homes. with all the surrounding properties burning, i helped tony and his neighbours, scooping water out of the swimming pool and dousing the flames at their boundary. since 1993 i've seen a couple of fires, but nothing like this. i wouldn't see this in my nightmare. i never thought i would come through here. david was hoping his home might have survived, but the whole neighbourhood has gone. and with it, his house too. i would have thought i'd be seeing more planes flying over with water. i mean, there appears to have beenjust two.

i mean, in california, are there not, like, 20 or 30 of them, that they could have got you already? i would have thought the firemen would, like, take a stand on a certain area. maybe they did and i'm just not seeing it. but... wealth and privilege are no protection from this disaster. with the ordinary human defences rendered futile in the face of its devastating force. john sudworth, bbc news, pacific palisades. the fires have swept through neighbourhoods home to film, television and music stars. anthony hopkins has lost his multi—million dollar mansion. the actor billy crystal lost his home where he'd lived since 1979. some celebrities have been taking to social media to describe what has happened to them. sitting here and waiting to find out whether we're going to evacuated are not is... mummy! ..it�*s like the time

can't go by any slower. yes, baby, come here, bubba. so instead we decided to pass the time by putting together bags of clothes for our friends who have lost everything. i have never seen flames from my house like this, ever. this is insanity. i hope everyone is staying safe tonight. let's go back to emma vardy. sheet is in los angeles. the authorities have been saying today that the tide could be turning back the situation is still very perilous?—

the situation is still very erilous? ., �* , the situation is still very erilous? ., �*, .,, perilous? that's right, some hope but feel certainly _ perilous? that's right, some hope but feel certainly not _ perilous? that's right, some hope but feel certainly not out - perilous? that's right, some hope but feel certainly not out of- perilous? that's right, some hope but feel certainly not out of the i but feel certainly not out of the danger zone wet. so my that have had to be an issue arriving in the middle of this, please sow them criminals are going into abandoned neighbourhoods and letting homes that have not been so badly destroyed —— police are saying. stepped up patrols in affluent areas like this, malibu, where people have had to leave their homes and say they will be clamping down on those. another issue is price gouging, business has been warned not to put up business has been warned not to put up prices, hotel is being told not to spike rates. while there is a spike in demand in the middle of this crisis. this crisis is very much still being fought on the ground but already the political finger—pointing has already begun as well. questions over cuts to fire service budgets, questions over the way california has managed services to be prepared for a natural disaster like this. in due course thoughts will return to the recovery

process which is going to be a long one because so much of the city is very much changed forever but in terms of the danger we are not out of the woods yet.— terms of the danger we are not out of the woods yet. emma vardy, thank ou for of the woods yet. emma vardy, thank you for nova — of the woods yet. emma vardy, thank you for now. will— of the woods yet. emma vardy, thank you for now. will be _ of the woods yet. emma vardy, thank you for now. will be speaking - of the woods yet. emma vardy, thank you for now. will be speaking to - you for now. will be speaking to a blonde of the programme. just to say there is a bbc music special on the los angeles fire is at 7.30 tonight and you can watch the latest on bbc two, the bbc news channel and also on bbc iplayer —— there will be a bbc news special. in other news — there's fresh concern about the state of the economy after the pound dropped to its lowest level in more than a year, and government borrowing costs surged to a 16—year high. the former chancellor lord hammond has warned the economy is in a "fragile" state, but the treasury insists there is no need for an "emergency intervention". we'll speak to chris mason in a moment, but first dharshini david is here. sophie, thank you. no—one wants to start the new year thinking about debt but the government's being forced

to — and that may have consequences for us. it's because of this — the interest rates it faces to borrow on financial markets to fund its plans have been rising, at a time when e1 in every £12 the government spends already goes on its debt repayments. now, that increase partly reflects concerns from investors about the prospects of higher inflation and borrowing after rachel reeves�* 0ctober budget. but those have been amplified by concerns about inflation and debt in the us due to president trump's plans, for these are global investors operating in global markets. but that may have local consequences, maybe for public services from education to health which are meant to benefit from the chancellor's plans to spend an extra £70 billion a year. for if higher interest payments means she's unlikely to meet her own targets for borrowing, she may curb her spending ambitions. but that judgment won't come

until the official forecasts — due on the 26th march — and that will be determined by what's happening on markets next month. so we're not at that point yet, but the pounds fall — and that of major shares — also signals concerns over the uk's wider prospects after growth stagnated. the chancellor's credibility is under intense scrutiny and there may be a price tag attached. sophie. dharshini, thank you. 0ur political editor chris mason is at westminster. what is the government saying and what can it do?— what can it do? ministers say it is not the time _ what can it do? ministers say it is not the time to _ what can it do? ministers say it is not the time to panic _ what can it do? ministers say it is not the time to panic and - what can it do? ministers say it is not the time to panic and things l not the time to panic and things might edge up, and i might. in a row about who is to blame, conservatives saying the government is to blame for talking down the economy and the measures they have introduced budget and others pointing to the international picture. to an extent this matters less in the likely context of this info picture remains

stuck in the coming months. everything is pointing in the direction of spending cuts in that scenario because the government has a couple of options. it could cut spending, put taxes up further but says it doesn't want to do that. it could change the rules it sets itself around how much it can borrow and it says it doesn't want to change those rules so that could mean spending cuts. there is already a review of spending in various government departments going on and they will hopefully turn up some cuts there but not easy if that is what they are forced to do. if it is what they are forced to do. if it is what they are forced to do. if it is what they were forced to do. like my chris mason, thank you. it is quarter past six.— chris mason, thank you. it is quarter past six. chris mason, thank you. it is uuarter ast six. , ., , , quarter past six. our top story this evening- -- — whole neighbourhoods are razed to the ground — the devastation in los angeles after two days of wildfires, and they're still burning. coming up, a former army officer who survived a stroke has become the first person with a disability to ski solo and unsupported to the south pole.

coming up on bbc news — a big challenge, with big expectations. graham potter takes charge at west ham — his firstjob back in management for nearly two years. we'll be hearing from him, after his first press conference today. in an essex leg. it could be britain's biggest catfished. the pressure on nhs staff is reaching levels not seen since the height of the pandemic as the number of flu cases continues to spiral — according to the nhs�*s medical director. the latest figures for england show there were on average just over 5,400 patients in hospital every day with flu — and more 250 with the virus in critical care. that's nearly a thousand up on the week before. it's contributing to a shortage of beds — with longer waits in a&e and for ambulances. warwick is one of many hospitals where a �*critical incident�* was declared. hugh pym spent time there this week

witnessing a service that�*s struggling to cope with intense winter demand. minutes into his 12—hour shift, raj, a consultant, is updated. if i look at my screen now and look at the people all waiting for a bed, first ten people are over the age of 80. the situation looks dire. the challenge, finding beds. how are you feeling at the moment? percy has an underlying condition and suspected norovirus. we're just trying to find a space for you inside. it takes several hours to get him in, but at least percy does have a bed. yeah, and it�*s gradually getting worse? it's getting worse. we're just having a look at whether we canjuggle people around a little bit. what i was trying to do was see if anybody can be out of the cubicle so i can put a new patient in a cubicle. as the light fades outside, ambulances start queuing. a dash to free beds is on. by the time we get to about 9,

10:00, if they haven't left, they'll probably end up spending the night in a&e. morning. a new day and hope that some patients will be able to leave. i�*ve got five that i�*ve got down as potentials to go today. one of them might bejoan. how are you doing? she broke her leg just before christmas and now needs physio. and the swelling looks like it�*s going down a bit there. so there�*s some space at the community hospital. oh, that's good news. yeah. how are you doing for space in here? down in a&e, raj has handed over to david. we've managed to clear resus, but we filled it up again, so we've just got two alerts coming in. and bed wait times have risen to over 26 hours. some patients deemed fit to sit are given chairs for their treatment instead of a bed. they�*re warm and fed, but it isn�*t ideal, for anyone. alan had chest pains

overnight after waiting in an ambulance for several hours. he�*s now in a chair. and what�*s it like sitting in here? strange. it's strange. i can understand they're so busy with everything that's _ going on at the moment. but if that's what we've got to do, this is what we've got to do. - after spending a night in a&e, percy has deteriorated and is finally moving to a ward. there�*s hope another ward bed will come up soon whenjoan leaves. but there�*s been some bad news. the bay is closed now. the bay is closed? 0k. there might be a norovirus outbreak in her bay. though joan herself is well, if we move her to another area, there's a potential that she's going to take the infection with her. as flow through the hospital grinds to a halt, ambulances queue up outside for hours. senior managers are left with little option. what we discussed was the fact we will declare a critical incident within the south warwickshire area.

we have never done this though before. we've just declared a critical incident. it's helped the staff understand we know this is abnormal, what is happening. it isn't right, what is happening, and we're all trying to pull together. evening. how are you all? as raj comes back on shift, difficult decisions are coming down the line. what we�*re contemplating is somebody who�*s had a heart attack in the last two or three days, we might be putting him in the waiting room. but there is some good news. they�*ve given the all clear and there�*s no infection. so what do you think about that? 0h, fantastic news. hugh pym, bbc news, warwick hospital. and as part of "your voice, your bbc news", we want to hear your experience of the winter pressures on the nhs. head to the bbc news website to find out how to get in touch with your story. the state funeral of the former us presidentjimmy carter has been

held at washington�*s national cathedral. he died last month at the age of 100. all four living former presidents — clinton, bush, 0bama and trump — heard joe biden, a friend for half a century, say mr carter had led a good life, full of purpose and meaning. here�*s our north america editor sarah smith. this formal farewell came with military precision and the full grandeur of the american state on display asjimmy carter�*s coffin left the us capitol on this finaljourney. inside the national cathedral, all five living and former presidents. donald trump chatting amiably with barack 0bama as george w bush and bill clinton took their seats alongside them. joe biden, now in the dying days of his own presidency, has just 11 days left in the white house. carter�*s achievements in office were lauded — the peace deal between israel and egypt, and his humanitarian efforts afterwards, culminating

in a nobel peace prize. we�*ve all heard a lot lately about guinea worm disease. it�*s an ancient and debilitating disease of poverty. and that disease will have existed from the dawn of humanity untiljimmy carter. joe biden, a friend ofjimmy carter�*s for over 50 years, praised above all his predecessor�*s character. a white southern baptist who led on civil rights. a decorated navy veteran who brokered peace. a brilliant nuclear engineer who led on nuclear nonproliferation. a hard working farmer who championed conservation and clean energy. # imagine allthe people... jimmy carter, born one century ago in a house with neither electricity nor running water, who made it to the white house, is now on his way back to plains, georgia, where he will be laid

to rest alongside rosalynn, his wife of 77 years. sarah smith, bbc news, washington. temperatures in parts of the uk could fall below minus 16 degrees celsius tonight as cold air continues to sweep across the country. fresh weather warnings have been issued — with snow, ice and fog forecast across southern england, wales, northern ireland and northern scotland. danny savage reports from the yorkshire dales. it�*s taken a few days, but most of the snowbound roads have now been cleared, although you really don�*t want to meet anyone coming the other way. it�*s freezing in this part of the north. temperatures last night got down to their lowest in years. we�*re just outside the village of keld and an unofficial weather station here recorded a temperature of nearly —13 last night. and look what�*s happened. the river swale has frozen over and the waterfall is full of ice. last night it was pretty chilly.

generations of helen�*s family have lived here for 500 years. i have to say, the last couple of days, it does take your breath away when you walk out the front door, and you need to start thinking about de—icing your car a good 20 minutes before you need to actually go anywhere. further down the dale, this couple have just moved up from the midlands to run a farm. it�*s been a tough introduction. well, i checked my phone. it was about down to —12. i came out in the middle of the night, didn't i, to feed some pet lambs and, yeah, it's freezing. you can just feel it on your face as soon as you walked into the shed. do you want it to melt now? yeah. we've got to deal with it. nothing you can do about it. you can't fight the weather. elsewhere, special warm spaces like this one in stanley and county durham have opened so people don�*t have to sit at home in the cold if they�*re struggling. and it�*s notjust the north where the snow has been bad. this was dartmoor today. but especially across the snowfields of northern england and scotland, another bitterly cold night is expected. weather warnings are widespread. danny savage, bbc news, swaledale.

everton have sacked their manager sean dyche just hours before tonight�*s fa cup third round tie against peterborough. dyche had presided overjust one win in their last 11 premier league games — with the club hovering just above the relegation zone. captain seamus coleman and former player leighton baines will take temporary charge for tonight�*s match. while we�*ve been enduring a blast of arctic weather here — one british man has been making history somewhere that�*s even colder. former army officerjonny huntington survived a stroke, which at the time left him paralysed down one side. now he�*s become the first person with a disability to ski solo and unsupported to the south pole. he�*s been speaking — via video link — to danjohnson. after 46 days and for 566 miles, these are the last few steps of the longest, toughestjourney. i�*m extremely happy with the outcome.

i have a suspicion it�*ll take me weeks, if not months, to fully sort of get my head around it. only 52 people have done this on their own. jonny is the first with a disability. skiing and dragging a heavy weight presented a very significant physical challenge for the bits of me that do work properly, and the bits of me that don�*t have basically had to do their best and sort of follow on behind. we�*ve got snow in parts of devon, so what�*s it like where you are? we�*ve had unseasonably hot weather here. like, the inside of my tent was getting up to plus 25 degrees. there was no crust on the snow at all. it was all quite sort of sticky powder. just brutally soul—destroying hard work. what�*s been your motivation? why did you want to do this? i really, really hope that someone sees me doing this and takes from it the encouragement to pursue a big ambition of their own. you know, go after a south pole of their own, regardless of what it actually be.

dan johnson, bbc news. back to our main story — the fires that are still burning out of control in los angeles. let�*s hear from some who�*ve had to leave everything behind. coughing there was no oxygen. i couldn�*t breathe. i barely even made it to my car. we have evacuated from our home with many possessions. we're scared. the sun is red, there's smoke in the air. there's smoke in our lungs. 0ur heart goes out to the first responders and firemen trying to contain the fire and anyone who has lost anything. we�*ve just been evacuated. we�*ve just been evacuated from this good samaritan�*s car. you got it, dad. we�*re having to walk. this is crazy. there�*s a fire right — right outside our car. we got it... no, not that way. dad, dad! my father in law has parkinson�*s.

he can barely move. this was a heroic effort on his part. very wobbly. here, let me try to get you home. which way do i go? this way. dad! to the sidewalk. let me... i went outside, i saw smoke and fire near my father in law�*s house and realised we need to go. the problem is we didn�*t have a car. by circumstance, we had no car in the house. iran up and down the street where he was, glen haven, finally found a neighbour who was willing to swing by and pick us up. most people had already gone at that point, and at that point i grabbed his medicine — that�*s the only thing i could think to grab. turn around. dad, we got this. and at that point, wejumped in his car. this guy, jeff, a neighbour, we�*d never met before, but, you know, salt of the earth, saved our lives. as we�*re driving down, there�*s fires on both sides of the car. we�*re driving, we�*re suddenly seeing fires. you can feel the heat. and then the fires were getting closer and closer. and at that point, just being stuck there, surrounded by fire, these policemen started running up the street. "get out of the car, get out of the car!",

and started screaming. you don�*t really realise how serious it is. you don�*t think this is a life—threatening situation. oh, my god, oh, my god. we actually spent the night here and we saw the neighbour's house catch on fire. so we started wetting our house with water and we just put water all over this grassy area right here, anywhere we could. and once we saw the front neighbour's house catch on fire, that's when we decided to leave. and putting water on the house actually worked because only the garage burned down. so we're, right now, we're just trying to put the the small amount of fire that's left. but, yeah, it was pretty bad in the morning. let�*s go back to emma vardy in la. so many people have lost everything. where are they going? lats so many people have lost everything. where are they going?— so many people have lost everything. where are they going? lots have been taken to evacuation _ where are they going? lots have been taken to evacuation centres. _ where are they going? lots have been taken to evacuation centres. others i taken to evacuation centres. others who have the money are in hotels like in downtown la or have gone to

other properties or who are staying with family. but such is the scale of this that the number of people evacuated across the county has now risen to 180,000. but with the wind is a little, today, i was the time emergency services finally have their best chance of starting to get control of this. we are just hearing president biden is due to make an announcement about the crisis to this, the response in sutterlin, the third day of an unprecedented disaster for this city.— third day of an unprecedented disaster for this city. let�*s get the latest weather with louise lear. it is a more calm story in the uk but still bitterly cold. this was higher in scotland earlier today where temperatures cauid today where temperatures could follow as low _ today where temperatures could follow as low as _ today where temperatures could follow as low as -16. _ today where temperatures could follow as low as -16. may - today where temperatures could follow as low as -16. may be - today where temperatures cmic follow as low as —16. may be lower in rural scotland or even a bit lower. a few scattered showers here and the north—east. a weather front brings more cloud and some showery outbreaks of rain, sleet and snow in the south. here temperatures will stay above freezing perhaps but in

rural parts it will be a bitterly