meanwhile people are missing. meanwhile firefighters _ people are missing. meanwhile firefighters here _ people are missing. meanwhile firefighters here are _ people are missing. meanwhile firefighters here are bracing - firefighters here are bracing for more how whence come force in places, as early as later today. in places, as early as later toda . h, in places, as early as later toda . ,., , today. the government will set out its artificial _ today. the government will set out its artificial intelligence - out its artificial intelligence action plan to spread its use across the country. a bbc investigation finds people in china making clothes for the past fashion giant are working for more than 75 hours a week in breach of labour laws. jeff bezos blue origin calls of the debut launch of its rocket after examining a few anomalies during mission countdown. hello, i'm kylie pentelow. the number of people known to have died in the los angeles wildfires has risen to 24. with high winds forecast over the coming days, fire crews are now facing a race against time to avert

further destruction. but from the ashes, many remarkable stories are rising — as people battle to stop their neighbourhoods from burning down. our correspondent helena humphrey reports. oh, my house! for 36 years, fighting fires was rich snyder's profession. now retired, when flames tore through his community in pasadena, it was personal. armed with a hose, and with his bare hands, suddenly, he wasn't just saving strangers. he was saving his neighbours and their homes. lord help us. lord, with your hands. whether it was divine intervention, or rich's sheer determination, their lives were saved. among them, a neighbour with additional needs, confused amid the chaos. no, no! greg, your house is on fire. your house is... greg, greg! you have to come with me.

i've still got to process it. yeah, my neighbour needed, needs assistance, and we told him early on to leave, and he said, no, i'll stay. and i grabbed him and i was pulling on him, and he was fighting me, because he was going to go back in his burning house and lock the door. you know, we got him out and we looked back in his house was fully engulfed. across la county, some 60 square miles of land now scorched earth. firefighters have gained ground against the two largest blazes, the palisades and eaton fires. but the devastation left behind is staggering. this is malibu. normally, you wouldn't be able to see the pacific ocean from here. but all of those multi—million dollar mansions are gone. it is destruction as far as the eye can see, and the road to recovery will be long. and with forecasters warning that the fierce santa ana winds could return, the battle is far from over. residents in the fires' path

face a cruel waiting game, fearing that the nightmare will strike again. i am terrified because if it does change, i actually don't know where i would go, to be honest. like, i don't have family here. i have friends, but they're all affected. so i don't have a set plan in mind and it's terrifying. amid the terror, a political storm brews. president—elect donald trump has criticised what he calls incompetent california politicians for the crisis. injust over a week, it will be one he inherits. is the incoming president expected to come here? i believe so. what awaits donald trump, if he comes, may reveal an even bleaker reality than what is known so far, as the number of missing continues to grow. helena humphrey, bbc news, los angeles. former california legislator and la resident mike gatto told us anger is mounting at how

the authorities have reacted. there is a lot of anger here, i'm not going to lie to you. you know, i am a democrat, california is a state that is run by democrats. there's a lot of voters here who are democrats. but more and more i am hearing quite a bit of rage from people who live in los angeles at our democratic elected officials. the common phrase that's going around was that this was 50% weather and 50% incompetence. it's things like the response time, the preparation, did we heed the warnings? i mean, angelenos, to give you a sense of things, the other day we all got a frantic notice on our cell phones that said you need to evacuate. just about everybody in this county of 10 million thought that their house was on fire or their street was on fire. it turned out to be a false alarm. they announced it was a false alarm. and then a few hours later we got another evacuation notice that was another false alarm. and so, you know, it's just things like that don't really impart much of trust with authorities. if you can't listen to the evacuation notices and it becomes the boy who cried wolf, people

are going to die because they are going to ignore the next one. kj matthews — a journalist in la — told us what she's been doing to help her neighbours, as thousands have lost their belongings and homes. i'll be honest with you, i was born and raised in los angeles, and so this is scary, this is my home town. this is the town that raised me. and to see all the people, many that i know, that have been displaced, either they have lost their home completely and they are homeless, or there has been damage to their home and their area has been evacuated, and it's just untenable, they can't move right back in until repairs are made. so to see that, and then every day you are waking up and you're hoping that today's the day that all of the fires will be put out, and that's not the case. and the winds either die down or they pick back up, you know? over this weekend i was lucky enough to have the winds die down a bit so i could get out and donate. i've always wanted to donate the last couple of days but i was a little bit afraid

because they had more evacuations going on, particularly in the san fernando valley. and so i didn't want to drive in that area, i didn't want to be an impediment to the hard—working firefighters that were trying to put out fires. so i waited until the weekend. i was able to donate to a lot of teenage girls that live in the eaton area, where the altadena and pasadena fires have been happening. and was just able to get out there and to deliver, you know, shoes, socks and clothing and toothpaste and toothbrushes, just things that they need. because many of them that left their homes, they thought they would be back in like three days, and then they came back and they had nothing. david willis is in brentwood in early for us. we have been hearing the news of the further winds that could hamper the firefighters' tasks. can you tell is a bit more about that?

that is right. just to bring you up to speed it is just after one o'clock in the morning here and as you can see behind me a curfew is in place on this, at the outskirts of brentwood, the latest upmarket on clive to find itself in the cross hairs of the worst disaster in california history. the evacuation orders are in place around here and the power is out all around us in this part of sunset boulevard up over the weekend. and those winds are expected to gain in strength over the next three days to hurricane force and that has prompted officials here to declare the evacuation orders will remain in place until thursday morning at the earliest before they are lifted, to do so green of many

people who have been displaced from their homes under this act is anxious to see what if anything remains of their homes and their belongings. little earlier on it was revealed cadaver dogs have been brought in to help with the search for human remains in the worst affected areas of the spires. the la coroner's office has revealed 2a people are now known to have died in these fires with 16 people still missing. that death toll is almost certain to rise. you mentioned _ almost certain to rise. you mentioned those - almost certain to rise. you mentioned those displaced people, where are the and are they getting the food and shelter and help they need at this time?— shelter and help they need at this time? ., ., this time? there are about nine se arate this time? there are about nine separate evacuation _ this time? there are about nine separate evacuation centres - separate evacuation centres that have been set up around los angeles. funded by church groups and other community organisations. some people have

gone there. others have housed themselves in hotels, our b&b is offering some sort of dispensation to people who can't afford their normal prices. and there are those who have moved out of town completely, some to relatives in other states, some perhaps to seek a new life away from the sort of correct these fires can pose. it will be a massive rebuilding operation and i think there are quite a few people who don't have the stomach for it.— people who don't have the stomach for it. can you explain wh the stomach for it. can you explain why the curfew _ stomach for it. can you explain why the curfew is _ stomach for it. can you explain why the curfew is in _ stomach for it. can you explain why the curfew is in place? - stomach for it. can you explain why the curfew is in place? it l why the curfew is in place? it is basically to prevent people who may want to come back into the evacuation zones, possibly to steal or loot and being able to steal or loot and being able to do so. there were reports of

looting in the first few days of this disaster and as a result the national guard officers who you may see behind me have been drafted in, hundreds of them, to help the police secure these areas and make sure people who have gone through one tragedy don't have to endure a second such tragedy. to endure a second such tragedy-— in a blow to amazon founder jeff bezos, the launch of a reusable space rocket by his company blue origin, has been called off. blue origin�*s engineers blue origin�*s engineers were unable to resolve issues were unable to resolve issues plaguing the rocket so flight plaguing the rocket so flight controllers stood down the take controllers stood down the take off from cape canaveral. off from cape canaveral. after several earlier delays after several earlier delays the rocket�*s now being drained the rocket�*s now being drained of fuel and there's no word "a vehicle subsystem issue". of fuel and there's no word on when the next launch on when the next launch opportunity will be. opportunity will be. in a statement, blue in a statement, blue origin said it would be origin said it would be troubleshooting what it called troubleshooting what it called "a vehicle subsystem issue".

the new glenn has been touted as a serious rival to elon musk�*s spacex rockets. with me is our science correspondent pallab ghosh. iam i am guessing this is a big blow to mr bizos. aha, i am guessing this is a big blow to mr bizos.- i am guessing this is a big blow to mr bizos. a little bit of a blow — blow to mr bizos. a little bit of a blow but _ blow to mr bizos. a little bit of a blow but it _ blow to mr bizos. a little bit of a blow but it is _ blow to mr bizos. a little bit of a blow but it is normal. . of a blow but it is normal. this is the first time he is trying out this rocket, new glenn. a gigantic rocket, 98 metres tall. it

not they would either be a delay or some little bit wouldn't go right. this is normal and part of the development process but the billionaires will be competing with each other in space very soon. the question is when new glenn will be ready for launch. it probably won't be in the next few days because they are draining it of fuel and they will have to put fuel back into it which is time—consuming and they will have to resolve whatever issue it was and the launch window closes on the 16th of january so there is too much to do i think to do it in that time. if i were to guess, i might be wrong, but it will probably be in a few days they will have another go. it is probably be in a few days they will have another go.- will have another go. it is a aood will have another go. it is a good job. _ will have another go. it is a good job. they _ will have another go. it is a good job, they are - good job, they are billionaires, because i am guessing it is costly. they bring a vehicle subsystem failure and do we know what went wrong. you'll something in the rocket wasn't working properly is the transition. 50

properly is the transition. so man properly is the transition. sr many things properly is the transition. 5r many things in a rocket have to go right, hundreds of things. before each launch, notjust for a test flight like this, they run through the checklist and if there is something quite right to call the lunch off. they try and fix it and have another go. this is the norm but for the first maiden test flight, they are especially careful. ., ~ flight, they are especially careful. . ~ ., , careful. talked about this window and _ careful. talked about this window and that - careful. talked about this window and that it - careful. talked about this | window and that it finishes careful. talked about this - window and that it finishes on the 20th of january, why is that? ., ., , ., that? there are lots of launches _ that? there are lots of launches happening. l that? there are lots of- launches happening. once upon that? there are lots of— launches happening. once upon a time you would have a lunch every now and again but there are launches every day so it is are launches every day so it is a question of air traffic. they have put these slots and that they miss them they have to rebook and convince the federal aviation authority that everything is good to go so we will have to wait and see but onceit will have to wait and see but once it does launch we are in store for a really exciting battle between the billionaires because elon musk has achieved great things with starship and

his falcon rockets. he has flown 400 times into orbit. jeff bezos hasn't flown a single time it so he has a lot of catching up to do but he plans to make up for lost time. we might be back here in a few days. thank you. around the world and across the uk this is bbc news.

the government will set out its plan later today to use artificial intelligence across the uk to try to boost growth and deliver public services more efficiently. the a! action plan will be backed by leading tech firms, and includes so—called growth zones where development will be focused. but running such advanced technology is an energy—hungry affair, as our ai correspondent marc cieslak reports. ahead of the government's a! strategy launch, science and technology secretary peter kyle was shown the latest research

into nuclear fusion at the uk atomic energy authority at culham in oxfordshire. scientists predict fusion could one day produce near limitless supplies of clean energy. it's still in development, but ideal for energy—hungry data centres, necessary to power a world filled with al. last summer, the government tasked ai adviser matt clifford with creating a uk a! action plan. the plan includes 50 recommendations, all of which are now being implemented. some of the standouts include an energy council, led by peter kyle and energy secretary ed miliband, to address costs and solutions. a national data library, with the promise of secure access to public sector data. and support for uk—based ai companies and improved computing capabilities. and this empty field in the atomic energy authority site is part of a plan to partner with a private firm to build a data centre here, a pilot scheme for al growth zones across the uk —

these zones offering enhanced power access and streamline planning permissions. the power—hungry demands of a! are just one thing on a long list of challenges facing the technology. and when we consider that some of the biggest players in al are based in the united states, how does the uk ensure it has a significant voice when it comes to the development of the technology, a voice which isn't drowned out by political, regulatory or commercial concerns across the atlantic? now, at the moment, we don't have any cutting edge companies that are british—owned. we have deepmind, which started in britain, but is now american—owned. now, we want to keep all of those ingredients that enable that kind of scale of innovation and investment to exist in britain. mark zuckerberg, ceo of meta, which of course owns facebook, whatsapp, instagram, he said recently, meta would work with president trump

to push back on governments around the world that are going after american companies, and pushing to censor more. how can the uk effectively regulate the development of ai, and also the wider tech industry, against companies that are taking that kind of a stance? now, we have the online safety act. that has obligations on companies that want to come to britain and offer services to british citizens to keep people safe and make sure that safety is baked into products. if meta falls foul of the online safety act, what will happen? every company that operates within britain must adapt and adhere to the law. every company. not negotiable. research into fusion energy here at culham continues, demonstrating uk innovation. but will the government's ai action plan result in a home—grown company that can challenge the global a! power players? marc cieslak, bbc news.

let's speak to our chief political correspondent henry zeffman. so the ai action plan being announced later today. what are we expecting to hear, the prime minister resetting it isn't that in itself is striking because there are cabinet minister because there are cabinet ministe ., .., because there are cabinet ministe ., ., ., . minister who could announce this. minister who could announce this- the _ minister who could announce this. the prime _ minister who could announce this. the prime minister - minister who could announce this. the prime minister i - this. the prime minister i think is throwing his personal authority behind this and is trying to demonstrate the message that the action plan expresses which is the uk wants to be a hospitable home for the ai sector and for al companies. i am really struck by the optimistic rhetoric that we have heard overnight and we will hear more on the prime minister on artificial intelligence because previous governments have flitted between stressing caution about the potential dangers of ai and optimism about the potential

upsides. keir starmer enters government appear to have definitively landed on the side of the upsides and i think that is what we are getting in this speech and announcement and action plan today. do speech and announcement and action plan today.— speech and announcement and action plan today. do you think he will talk _ action plan today. do you think he will talk about _ action plan today. do you think he will talk about the - he will talk about the practical use because when you mention ai practical use because when you mention al to the normal person they will be thinking how can this improve and affect our lives? this improve and affect our fives? this improve and affect our lives? ,., , , lives? the government is trying to stress the _ lives? the government is trying to stress the ways _ lives? the government is trying to stress the ways in _ lives? the government is trying to stress the ways in which - lives? the government is trying to stress the ways in which ai . to stress the ways in which a! could be used to improve what they do, the public sector, so you have had them talking about ways in which they could use a! analysis of scans in the nhs, so that a doctor is not looking at the scans and the doctor is freed up to do clinical work but also some evidence the government says is that actually having a computer programme analysing scans mean they might be able to detect disease, cancerfor they might be able to detect disease, cancer for example, better than the human eye can. similar applications in terms of freeing up teachers in the

education sector to teach and using ai education sector to teach and using al to do some of the more mundane tasks they face, the 1535 00: