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narrator: pediatric surgeon. volunteer. topiary artist. a raymond james financial advisor tailors advice to help you live your life. life well planned. narrator: funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. and by judy and peter blum kovler foundation; pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. announcer: and now, "bbc news". >> i am sunni so misn washington. this is "bbc world news america." hurricane idalia is set to make landfall on florida's coast. they are bracing for impact on their homes and businesses. the u.s. commerce secretary's in beijing will take a look at what her visit means for u.s.-china relations. traumatic rise in the number of

ukrainian deaths in the war according to estimates by u.s. officials. ♪ >> welcome to world news america. we are following hurricane idalia as it is shaping up to be a life-threatening storm with dangerous winds taking aim at the u.s. state of florida. this is the expected path of the storm. the national hurricane center could reach category three force when it makes landfall early wednesday. forecasters predict the u.s. states of georgia, north carolina, and south carolina will see heavy rainfall. so far, florida, georgia, and south carolina have all issued a state of emergency declarations. the national oceanic and atmospheric administration released these satellite images where you can see the massive nature of hurricane idalia as it gets closer to florida, as well as hurricane franklin, which is further out in the atlantic.

on the ground in florida, these are pictures out of fort myers. idalia could bring up to seven feet or two meters of storm surge to the densely popular you -- densely populated tampa bay area. wind speeds are expected to reach on hundred 25 miles per hour or 200 kilometers per hour. 49 of the state's 67 counties are already under some form of evacuation orders. prior to evacuating, residents placed sandbags around structures to protect homes and businesses from flooding and storm surges. ron desantis said in preparation, 1.1 million gallons of fuel are on standby, as well as 5500 national guardsmen and 250 starlike internet devices. . 40,000 workers are ready to's -- ready to restore power. damages inevitable so evacuation is essential, said ron desantis. >> you have time, particularly in the northern part of the state, you have time to

evacuate. you don't need to outrun the storm. cat to higher ground, get into a safe structure, ride out the storm. then you can go back to your place. in some of these areas like cedar key, some of these others along the big bend, you are talking about really significant storm surge potential. this is similar, 10, 12 plus feet of storm surge could happen in those areas. the storm surge is not something -- you will not win that battle if you decide to stay behind for that. >> on its way to the u.s., hurricane idalia swiped by the western shore of cuba. these were the images from yesterday as heavy rainfall slam to the island where tens of thousands of people were evacuated. this is today in the island's capital where rainfall, heavy winds and flooding continue despite the hurricane having passed by. as idalia moves north, all eyes are on florida and its storm preparedness. let's go to florida, our

correspondent is standing by for us in tampa. we can see it is very wet and windy where you are. tell us what has been happening. john: the wind in the rain in the city of tampa have begun to pick up just in the last hour or so. although the storm is still well over 100 miles off in the gulf of mexico, so this really is just the first bands of rain starting to move through. i'm standing right in the center of downtown tampa. as you can see, the streets on a tuesday evening, really deserted. a lot of people beginning to shelter indoors. the traffic that is on the roads, people making their way home. we are still 12 hours or so away from the moment that this hurricane is predicted to make landfall. someway north of where i am at the moment. the real concern from the

authorities, that concern over loss of life, is not just because of the strength of the winds with the hurricane expected to pick up speed, with warming waters as it reaches landfall. winds expected well over 120 miles an hour. but also of course, because of the predictive storm surge. those winds pushing the water from the gulf of mexico northwards along the gulf coast of florida, and threatening those communities north of here. the authorities making it clear that anybody who has not done so who can get out of the way of the storm, ought to do so as a matter of urgency. >> what our local authorities in tampa doing to prepare? john: we have been to the emergency shelters today. the advice over the past 24 hours or so, for people in the evacuation areas, is that they should first on foremost seek shelter with friends and

relatives. for those unable to do that, the emergency shelters are there. they are pretty basic. people are given a small space on the floor of, for example, a school sports hall. but there are hot meals there for them, three meals a day, and they are able to stay there until the storm passes. in fact, if there is damage to their homes, possibly a little longer as well. beyond that, across the state of florida, there is a lot being done. some 5000 national guards, personnel brought in, ready to respond to the aftermath. and almost 40,000 line workers on standby, ready to deal with those fallen cables. because of course, the biggest expectation is that there will be major loss of power across large parts of the state. and they will be working as quick as possible to restore power. because that will be a very important part of the emergency response in the days that

followed. >> john sudworth in a very windy and wet tampa. thinking to much for your reporting. we will let you go now. president biden says he is monitoring the storm along with fema director dian criswell. he told reporters he spoke to florida governor ron desantis and promised the state would have "everything they needed." let's get more with brian mcnulty, a senior research associate at the university of miami's rosenstiel school of marine, atmospheric, and earth science. you were tweeting the forecast for idalia had been consistent. what are you expecting to see on florida's gulf coast over the next 24 hours or so? brian: we have not seen a lot of huge changes in the track forecast. kind of been and -- then expected to intensify in the eastern kofi of mexico. if not a category two hurricane. what we are going to see most of

the west coast of the florida peninsula, and through big bend, and then tap into the eastern side of the panhandle, that is where we will see the stronger winds and certainly the higher storm surge. the big bend part of florida there where the peninsula and panhandle meet is very storm surge prone. >> can you explain what exactly a storm surge is? brian: sure. you can kind of picture the winds of a hurricane being able to push the ocean onto land. very strong winds, and the ocean has nowhere to go once it reaches the coastline, but on for the land. the more of wind field -- wind field a hurricane has come of the more of wind it can push. . if you have coastlines shaped the wrong way, like in a concave shape, like abbe, it is great at

trapping water and that increases the storm surge. >> we are talking about very serious impact and damage here? brian: yeah. it doesn't matter exactly how intense the hurricane gets at this point. we already have a strong hurricane. so it is in motion now, yeah. >> can you tell us what factors have made this hurricane in particular so strong, so intense, and so dangerous as florida authorities have said? brian: it is still intensifying. like i said, it just became a category two hurricane. the latest forecast from the national hurricane center rings it up -- brings it up crossing into a category three by the time it makes landfall tomorrow morning. it is certainly a plenty strong hurricane. it is not as strong as they get. but that does not matter.

category two or three hurricane is still plenty strong to create these storm surges we are talking about. >> you have written about how the fact that the waters are warmer than they have ever been on record have contributed to creating a strong hurricane. tell us about that. brian: this time of year, as we know, the ocean and gulf of mexico is very warm. even in an average year. but the water temperatures are warmer than average by a pretty good amount. when you are already at this warmest time of year, and you make it warmer still, it is a significant jump. and hurricanes love warm ocean water. the more warm the ocean gets the more they are prone to rapidly intensify. >> florida, as we know, has been battered by multiple hurricanes.

there is a regular hurricane season. how well-prepared do you think florida is for idalia? brian: i think as ready as it could be. we do get a lot of rehearsals, i guess you would say. i think the resources are there. i think the people, generally, respond well to these situations. they know what to do and what to listen to and when to leave. although it is unfortunate that it happened, a storm just a year ago or less than a year ago, hurricane ian at the end of september, certainly not good, but the good thing that comes from it is it is a very recent reminder to people of what hurricanes can do. >> parts of northwest florida have not seen a hurricane for several years. what do you think this will be like for them to experience? brian: this part of florida does

not often see strong hurricanes. i think there is perhaps a fear that they don't fully comprehend what 10 feet of storm surge is like where they are at. that is always a fear with these things that are relatively new to a certain location. it is human nature really to not be able to fully comprehend the worse that nature can throw at you. we always think it happens to someone else. until it happens to you. i guess that is the only fear going into it, that people may not fully appreciate what is about to happen, until it happens. >> brian mcnulty, very good to

speak with you. thank you for joining us on abc news today. brian: my pleasure. thank you for have -- for having me. christian: for updates on the storm, visit our website at bbc.com/news. you will get expert analysis as well as on the ground coverage as the storm approaches the florida coast. the u.s. commerce secretary is wrapping up a visit to china. she is the fourth biden administration official to visit the country in three months. it is part of an effort to stabilize ties between beijing and washington. they have sparred over taiwan, trade, and intellectual property. let's take a closer look at the biden administration's diplomatic push and the conflicts driving a wedge between these countries. first, u.s. commerce secretary visit. she met with china's premier on tuesday. dialogue with needed to find common ground and increase pop -- possible cooperation. the commerce secretary underlined the u.s. is not

trying to stifle china's economy. >> the relationship between the united states and china is one of the most significant in the world. over $700 billion in trade. i concur with you that it is profoundly important that we have a stable economic relationship, to the benefit of both of our countries. >> she added the u.s. does not want to suffer the links between the two economies, especially with hundreds of billions of dollars at stake for both countries. but they remain far apart on key economic issues. she says he was companies teller china is on investable because of raids on businesses and a new counterespionage law that broadens the definition of spine. washington warns it could you -- could be used to penalize any business activities. china was to see the u.s. reduce export controls on sensitive technologies and scrap a new executive order that bands u.s.

conventions. this is especially important to china now. growth in the world's's second-largest economy is slumping. beijing is battling a real estate crisis, exports are dropping, youth unemployment is rising, and china is a driver of global economic growth. economies are on the world are worried, including the u.s. come at the u.s. climate envoy headed to beijing with the aim of restarting the u.s.-china climate dialogue. it is seen us a few areas where countries can work together. he left without any concrete breakthroughs. in july, treasury secretary janet yellen traveled to beijing in what was called a stakes -- a high-stakes visit. she said her goal was to make sure beijing and washington don't engage in escalatory actions that would harm their economic relationship. before that, u.s. secretary of state antony blinken traveled to china and met with xi jinping, and said he was able to make clear the areas of this agreement and possible -- of

disagreement and possible cooperation. seated around the table with xi alone at the head. critics said that made the u.s. look weak, including former assistant secretary of state for the bureau of east asian and pacific affairs under president trump, who spoke to us after that trip. >> weakness breeds aggression. what we should be sending is a strong message, which would have been getting up and walking out of that setting. no one has ever seen a diplomatic arrangement like that. it is completely nonstandard. >> what is the take away after all of these trips? tensions remain very high between the u.s. and china. efforts to put guard rails on the relations that seem to have papered over conflicts on the surface. the intense rivalry between the world's two top economies continues to brew below. the meetings the ground for what could be another meeting between president biden and xi at the sidelines of the g 20 summit in september, less than a year after their first in person meeting at last year's g 20

summit. the u.s. has announced a new package of military aid for ukraine tuesday, valued at $250 million, according to a state department press release. it includes weapons and equipment such as air defense missiles and artillery any munition -- artillery ammunition, and transportation among other capabilities. the announcement comes as ukraine marks remembrance day. president volodymyr zelenskyy paid tribute to the fallen men and women who died defending ukraine. the ukrainians have been testing and probing russian offenses, but at a severe cost. u.s. officials say the death toll has been mounting in recent weeks. our special correspondent send this report from the front lines. husband she mourns.it is her- for five years, they were together. and the grief is still raw.

pablo was a fitness champion who volunteered to fight. a russian airstrike destroyed his convoy last november. >> honestly, it is still very hard to accept he is gone. it is only when i'm here that it sinks in. i feel he is still here somewhere. that he is still alive and on a mission. doing his job. reporter: in marriage, she made a pact with her husband that she would join up if he was killed in action. she is still getting used to army life and the dangers that come with it.

this road is regularly shelled. here outside buck mood, they head out and immediately take coverage in nearby woods. this position is in range of russian guns. like thousands of other ukrainians, oksana has very little time to mourn. instead, she chose to fight. what we hear from a lot of soldiers on the front line is the time to grieve will come when the war is over. >> quentin sommerville reporting there. russian mercenary chief yevgeny prigozhin was quietly buried in the outskirts of st. petersburg, russia on tuesday. is heavily guarded and private burial comes six days after he was killed in a plane crash the kremlin denies any involvement

in. our russia editor steve rosenberg was there. steve: all day, saint petersburg have been buzzing with rumors and counter rumors and speculation about where exactly yevgeny prigozhin would be buried. on social media, four different cemeteries were being talked about as possibilities. in the end, it was none of them. at the end of the day, mr. prigozhin's representatives revealed he had been buried in the cemetery behind me. no military honors for the head of the wagner paramilitary group, and reportedly, only a few people attended. we have been told by police that the cemetery is officially closed for the day. we can't go inside. to make sure the media that is gathered here does not try to get inside, the place is under lockdown. lots of police here on will -- along the perimeter and inside the cemetery. ceremony itself was low-key, the security. you can understand why. because the mutiny mr. prigozhin

organized was seen by the kremlin as treachery, as far as russian authorities are concerned, the less attention, the better. >> mentioned the kremlin has vehemently denied speculation that it was to blame for the crash. the white house cast doubt on those denials. in a briefing, karine jean-pierre said "we all know the kremlin has a long history of killing opponents." a 20-year-old man is the first ugandan to face the death penalty after being charged with the country's controversial anti-lgbtq legislation passed in may. the man was charged on august 18 with "aggravated homosexuality" after he was alleged to have relations with a 41-year-old man. the 20-year-old's lawyer says he will remain in custody until his case is heard by the high court. the law states aggravated homosexuality involves sex with children and vulnerable people. it can also deemed aggravated if someone is forced to have same-sex relations, is infected with a lifelong illness

including hiv, or in cases of serial offenders. legislation has drawn criticism inside the country, including in the u.s. which imposed visa restrictions on some ugandan officials. president biden ordered a review of u.s. aid to uganda. former pakistan prime minister imran khan's three year sentence for corruption was suspended tuesday. he will remain in jail after a judge ordered his detention in another case. he has been imprisoned since he was sentenced to three years on charges of -- as a result of the conviction, he was barred for five years from contesting elections. our pakistan correspondent carolyn davis sent this response -- sent this report. reporter: the islamabad accord has given imran khan a fail in the case he was found guilty over the beginning of the month. this is the case where he was found guilty of having not declared the money he earned from selling state gifts. imran khan has been imprisoned

since the fifth of august. this does not necessarily mean he will be taken out of jail at this moment. that is because there are multiple other cases currently out against imran khan. many of them have arrest warrants for him too. if lawyers have said they will go to the supreme court and here at the high court to get him bail across these other cases. they have said that they think it will be difficult to secure that. one of them gave odds of 30% charges that he will be released. at the moment, it looks like can to for imran khan, and those entity at all that he will be out of jail anytime soon. let's get a look at other headlines. the number two republican in the house of representatives, steve cody's, says he has been diagnosed with a form of blood can let -- blood cancer. he said his cancer was detected early and is treatable. he was also injured in a 2017 shooting when a gunman attacked a congressional baseball game.

president joe biden and announced 10 drugs will be targeted in government price negotiations to make them more affordable for the elderly. mr. biden's inflation reduction act gave medicare, for government health care program for people over 65, the power to negotiate drug prices for manufacturers for the first time. the negotiations mean older americans could see cheaper drug costs by 26. the 10 drugs include expense of diabetes, cancer, and heart occasions. in the u.k., the civil aviation authority is carrying it an investigation into a technical failure that brought flights to a halt monday morning. the error was fixed within several hours, but by the time the automated processing had been restored, hundreds ofm aircraft and their crews were in the wrong state. hundreds of flights in and set -- in and out of the u.k. were canceled again. before we go, let's look satellite images of hurricane idalia as it hurtles toward florida's gulf coast. these images show lightning strikes surrounding idalia as it

was nearing cuba. evacuations are underway. florida governor ron desantis is urging people in the path to leave quickly as possible, working time is running out. forecast mourn idalia could trigger storm surge in some coastal areas and will bring winds and flooding. president biden has approved an emergency declaration for florida. we have a live page on our website with the latest developments. be sure to check that out. thank you for watching "world news america." narrator: funding for this presentation of this program is provided by... narrator: financial services firm, raymond james. narrator: funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. and by judy and peter blum kovler foundation; pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. ♪ ♪

♪ amna: good evening. i'm amna nawaz. geoff: and i'm geoff bennett. on the "newshour" tonight -- mayor welch: we need everyone to take this storm seriously. geoff: floridians brace for hurricane idalia, rapidly advancing toward the state's gulf coast. amna: the biden administration takes aim at drug prices, nami