Transcripts For BBCNEWS BBC News 20170911

Hurricane irma has slammed into the us state of florida and is moving up its west coast bringing widespread coastal flooding, torrential rain, and winds of about 120 miles an hour. Power supplies have been cut to more than three million homes and businesses. Several cities in the state have declared overnight cu rfews to prevent looting. The storm has been downgraded to a category two, but officials are warning of life threatening storm surges. The streets of miamis Business District have been swamped by a up to three feet of water brought by a storm surge. 0ur correspondent, aleem maqbool, is there. They warned miami would flood, and it has. Irmas massive downpours and ocean surges combined to inundate the citys financial district. As thousands from the city hunkered down in hurricane shelters, others captured dramatic footage of the storm coming through. Its probably the hardest its been all day. Of power lines being torn down. Oh my god . Of lethal tornadoes being unleashed. Of a roof being torn off a home, of a smashed crane, and of water surging into town. More than a million homes and businesses are already without power. Well, there is barely a soul on the streets anywhere in southern florida, and that is because of the risk of flying debris, the risk of power lines or trees coming down. The Emergency Services say that even for them in the coming hours, it is going to be near impossible to operate. The hurricane first hit florida in the islands of its keys. That right here is the road in front of our house. This surge, im going to go with seven feet. Brian is one of those who defied the orders to leave his home and was live on social media as the eye of the hurricane approached. We are in the eye wall. Im not sure what category it is. Maybe you can tell us what it is now. The massive coastal surges were preceded by this extraordinary sight, the tide being sucked away by the hurricane, building up the energy to be smashed back against the shore with full force. There is a serious threat of storm surge flooding along the entire west coast of florida. And this has increased to 15 feet of impact above ground level in south west florida. We are hearing a lot of mixed reports right now. Alix perez escaped the keys to shelter in a hurricane proof building in miami. Hes anxious, keeping in touch with those left behind. A bunch of different areas have Different Levels of housing, some higher and some lower. Some places have floodwaters up to peoples waists, some up to peoples roofs. That is up and down the coast. Up to peoples roofs yeah, very severe flooding. And up the florida coast, more are preparing, warned that Hurricane Irma could make further direct hits. President trump has been meeting with his cabinet to get briefed on the latest. Every group has coordinated really well. I mean, the bad news is that this is some big monster, but i think we are very well coordinated. And after causing so much destruction in the caribbean, its here, and the most densely populated city in its path so far, were so many are still sheltering. Frank fernandez is director of Public Safety for the city of coral gables. I know you have already provided us with some footage from outside your office and the local district. What is it like outside . It is ok now, but earlier today we had Hurricane Force winds. 70 of residents were without power. There area residents were without power. There are a lot of downed power lines. 3 Million People across the state have no power. It will take some time to restore power to the community. The danger tomorrow morning is people going outside after being in their homes for three days who have run out of food. But there is danger from downed trees and power lines. We did not take the bunt of the hurricane. 0urfriends we did not take the bunt of the hurricane. Our friends on the coast to get head on hit. We are lucky. Mother nature is very powerful. We are hopeful we dont see the bad side of it as humans. We were the last ones to leave the community and the first ones back in. We are hopeful people will see the good in others and help with the restoration. What about communications between various authorities, like police and everything. If everyone is stuck in there houses, is the power back . 70 are without power and many phone lines are down, including mobile phones. We are communicating significantly through social media. We need to communicate safety methods. 0k. Thank you so much. Frank from the city of coral gables. In the caribbean, at least 25 people were killed by Hurricane Irma, five of them in the British Virgin islands, where a relief effort is under way. Homes and boats have been destroyed, and a state of emergency declared. Britains foreign secretary, boris johnson, has defended the governments response, saying it would be helping in the long term. The largest of the islands is tortola, from where our correspondent, laura bicker, reports. The British Virgin islands look like they have been hit by the blast wave of a bomb. 0n the biggest island of tortola, houses have been ripped apart and contents scattered for miles. An over 20 foot wave surge crushed boats, beaching them among the rubble. Arron glasgow was at home as irma hit. This section of my mums room, the roof came off. Then my bedroom came off. We ran to the living room. Glass everywhere. We had all this boarded up. Youve lost everything . Everything. People talk about the winds that came through here as if they were alive, as if it had come from another world. And now, five days after the hurricane struck, they are in desperate need of food, of shelter, and clean water. Others are just simply desperate to leave. The shock of seeing this terrifying force of nature is overwhelming. Some are trying to fly home to relatives in the uk. The masson family made it to the shelter after neighbours with machetes hacked through debris to help them hike from their damaged home. We dont know what planes are going, or when theyre going. Literally this morning was the first time we had heard any news at all of what was happening. Some residents have criticised the uk governments response to this crisis as pathetic and slow. There are also reports of looting across the island, as many are desperate for basic supplies. There are large queues for food and for petrol. Help has now arrived. The British Military have brought aid, and are already re establishing order. They are working on a plan to try to restore power and water. One woman told me she wept with relief as she saw the plane land. Hurricane irmas trail of destruction is vast, and yet the caribbean spirit prevails. As our team walked the streets, so many people told us the same message. They are simply grateful to be alive. Bastiaan kroon runs a charter boat company. He is in road town, the capital of the British Virgin islands. It looks absolutely devastating. What has been your thoughts about the response . The response, umm, it is very, very, very slow. I am a dutchman. The dutch were there three days ago. I have not seen any boots on the ground yet. People are getting hungry and the situation is getting hungry and the situation is getting more and more grim. No troops, nor officials, helping out . I have only seen Armed Police Officers when they were emptying money at the banks right around the corner. I have money at the banks right around the corner. I have seen money at the banks right around the corner. I have seen aeroplanes and helicopters going over, but no boots on the ground. Right after the hurricane, there was looting just for duty frees, like iphones and ipads. For duty frees, like iphones and ipads. There was nobody doing anything. The British Government says they have been planning for this and have hundreds of troops there or on the way there. What are there or on the way there. What are the things people need to get on with . Food, clean water, are they the most essential . Definitely. Food and clean water are essential. We are sharing everything we have. There was such a devastation here in the harbour. Things flying. We are using canned food right now. We have not seen any supplies coming. Nothing is being handed out. You know, like, we arejust nothing is being handed out. You know, like, we are just sitting nothing is being handed out. You know, like, we arejust sitting here and, like, we are afraid because of the looting, and we dont know what we can expect. There should be a cruise boat docked with water. We have not taken a shower since the hurricane. We are living on canned food. We are sharing everything we can. From the British Virgin islands, thank you very much indeed. 0k, islands, thank you very much indeed. Ok, you are welcome. Coastal communities and tourist resorts in northern cuba have suffered widespread damage from the hurricane. Emergency officials in the capital, havana, rescued dozens of residents in neighbourhoods flooded by huge waves. 0ur correspondent, will grant, is in havana. The streets of havana resemble canals after the hurricanes brought the storm surge over the sea wall at the end of the street, halycon. It brought all of the stormwater right here, three or four blocks away from the sea wall. People are beginning to emerge from their houses to check on their neighbours and begin the clean up operation. People are coping as best as they can. People are thankful they avoided the loss of life seen in the caribbean. But the damage to property and livelihood has been huge. It hit the economy as hard as the coastline. She definitely hit it. For almost two days it crept up to the northern shore thrashing anything in its path from tiny fishing villages to five star resorts. Thousands of tourists remain trapped at beach towns. The chance of getting out quickly look ever more remote. The communist government of cuba is on emergency footing, mobilising all resources at disposal. From the army to locals, every bureaucrat and administrator has been drafted in. It is neighbours helping neighbours that will get them through the initial crisis. The long term cleanup, though, may be International Aid reliant. Stay with us on bbc news. Still to come. A swarm of tiny machines that could represent the future of robotics research. Freedom itself was attacked this morning, and freedom will be defended. The United States will hunt down and punish those responsible. Bishop tutu now becomes spiritual leader of 100,000 anglicans here of the blacks in soweto township, as well as the whites, in their rich suburbs. We say to you today, in a loud and a clear voice, enough of blood and tears enough translation the difficult decision we reached together was one that required great and exceptional courage. Its an exodus of up to 60,000 people, caused by the uneven pace of political change in eastern europe. Iam free this is bbc news. The latest headlines Hurricane Irma has slammed into floridas west coast, with strong winds and storm surges leaving at least three people dead. Millions of homes are without power, and parts of miami are underwater. Almost 200,000 people have fled to emergency shelters. Lets stay with that story. Major richard randers from the north miami police department, and hejoins us now. 0bviously police department, and hejoins us now. Obviously you must have an extremely easy time at the moment. Thank you forjoining us and taking the time out. What is the situation like outside at the moment . Are people going outside . We do have people going outside . We do have people venturing outside, and we are asking them to please stay inside. It is still dangerous outside, even though the storm has passed. We still have a lot of issues we are facing. What are those issues . What are the risks they face by going out . We have approximately 57 feet of standing water in some areas. 80 of standing water in some areas. 80 of our city has no power, and we have downed power lines. We have trees that are on fire due to these powerlines. We have reports of routes that have been blown off homes. Roofs. We even had a young mother and her four month old child trapped in their home because of the water that was rising within the home. We were able to rescue both the child and the mother and safely get them to a shopper. We have been dispatched to calls of violence, we have had a couple of stabbings in the city. We are busy. Has there been looting . No. I can tell you that after the storm passed, we had teams of officers out of air. We have a unique vehicle that is driving around the city. We are taking the initiative to clear the streets, we are going house to house in some cases, we are going alleyway to alleyway, business to business, street to street. We arent leaving stones unturned. We are here to serve the public and we are doing just that. How are you and your offices and the team behind you co ordinating the rescue efforts . Officers. How are you getting buy . Well, we are tired. I wont sugarcoat it. I have not been home for three days, i havent seen my family for three days, i dont even know if i can get home. Most of the officers year had their families come and stay at the station, because they didnt feel safe at home. But the officers are strong men and women and they are out there and they know theirjob and their responsibility, when they put on that badge and that uniform, is to protect and serve, and that is what we are doing. Many people will never endure the sorts of weather conditions you are seeing there, and they will be stunned to hear of things like snakes and alligators coming into the edge of the city, class, with powerlines down, some of those areas of water are carrying live electricity . Yes, and that is the danger that we are concerned, especially after this storm. We are letting residents know, through social media, through any means necessary , social media, through any means necessary, not to come outside. Like isaid, we necessary, not to come outside. Like i said, we have about 25 teams of officers out there, identifying every single downed power line. We are calling into Florida Power and light, and letting people know that they have live powerlines down in their front yards and backyards, and they shouldnt come outside. They should follow directions to make sure it is safe before they come outside. Thank you and good luck. You are welcome. Thank you. There is much more coverage of the hurricane on our website. You can get the latest live updates about Hurricane Irmas haas, and hear more about those affected. Hurricane irmas path. That is all on our website. The first funerals have been held for those killed in a massive earthquake off southern mexico on thursday night. Rescuers continue to dig out the bodies of up to 90 people who were killed in oaxaca and chiapas states, which bore the brunt of the damage. At 8. 1 in magnitude, the earthquake was the strongest the country has seen in a century. Sarah corker reports. This town has been reduced to rubble. This area in southern mexico was hardest hit by thursdays monster earthquake. Churches, schools, homes, roads, have been torn apart, flattened. Through the maze of debris, the first funeral processions. The coffin of an 85 year old woman who died when her house collapsed is carried by mourners. Many houses have been destroyed, many people buried below the rubble. Rescuers say there is no hope of finding anybody else alive. Translation no, it is no longer a search for people. It is now support for the community. We are recuperating belongings, whatever can be retrieved, assessing the damage and helping the wounded. In daylight, people start to salvage whatever they can. At night, families sleep on the streets. Since the initial 8. 1 magnitude earthquake, there have been more than 700 after shocks. That isnt the only concern. We are here so people do not loot our houses, because various houses are open. And there have been after shocks, we want to be outside so we dont get hurt inside. Electricity and Water Supplies were cut off and emergency aid has now started to arrive. While mexico is prone to earthquakes, people here say that in their lifetimes, theyve never seen one so destructive and deadly. Lets look at some of the other stories in the news this hour. Health officials in nigeria say the number of suspected cholera cases in North Eastern borno state has more than doubled in the past five days. It now stands at nearly 1,300. 35 people have died. The outbreak is concentrated in camps for people displaced by the conflict with islamist militants from the boko haram group. The ex president of georgia, mikheil saakashvili, has successfully crossed from poland into ukraine after two failed attempts earlier in the day. Ukraine is mr saakashvilis adopted homeland but he was stripped of citizenship after accusing president Petro Poroshenko of blocking efforts to fight corruption. The chief minister of the indian capital, delhi, has ordered an inquiry into the alleged rape of a five Year Old Girl at school. Arvind kejriwal made the announcement during a second day of protests about the authorities handling of a separate case in which a seven year old boy was murdered at school. He was killed apparently after an attempted Sexual Assault by a bus conductor. Italy is also experiencing flooding at least six people have been killed in flooding and landslides caused by a torrential downpour in the italian city of livorno, including four members of one family when their basement home was flooded. Pictures of the citys streets show debris and wrecked cars lifted and dumped by the force of the floods. Experimenting with robotics can be expensive and because of this some of the latest technology is only available to those with lots of resources. But one Research Team in georgia is hoping to solve that problem by offering access to their swarm of small robots to anyone with a good idea. Robotics research is a little strange because it takes so much resources. Strange because it takes so much resources. Eight a few years ago i got more and more irritated that the best la bs got more and more irritated that the best labs in the world, mine included, were those that had the most money, not the best ideas. So i thought, you know what . Im going to solve that. You have to allow users to upload that, that doesnt work, that robots do stupid things. If you only had correct code being uploaded it wouldnt be research. What we cant accept is stuff that makes the robots collide, that rake our stuff, or robots that get angry and attacked my graduate students. 0ne thing that im really hoping is that some smart group in germany, working together with girl scout crew troops in georgia, working together with a Research Trip injapan, together they accelerate the information. Im hoping that not only people use it, but it will be an accelerator for robotics research. Plenty more, of course, on our website. Stay with us for the headlines. This is bbc news. Hello. As irma continues north across the state of florida, we here in the British Isles have experienced quite an unsettled weekend. And that theme continues on into the forthcoming week. For a time, well see cool and at times windy weather and some pretty heavy downpours to boot. The concerns start as early as monday morning, especially so across wales and the south west, where some of the gusts of wind could easily be up at around 50, if not 60mph. At the same time, those conditions could be exacerbated by some squally showers indeed. Elsewhere across the British Isles, how do we start the new week . Ina similarvein. The wind not a concern as in wales and the south west. But the wind will be ever present for many parts of western scotland and Northern Ireland and a good part of england and wales. And there will be plenty of showers to go around as well. At times, some of those showers will merge to give the odd longer spell of rain. Perhaps nowhere more so than this North Eastern quarter of scotland. Quite close to an area of low pressure there. Showers, quite sharp, they will have hail and thunder. If you see too many, you are not going to be in the mid to upper teens, closer to 10 11. Out of monday and into tuesday, a little ridge of High Pressure working across the British Isles, tending to settle things down. This is one of the quieter days of the week, at least to start with. It will feel pleasant with less wind. 16 19, Something Like that. Later in the day overnight into wednesday, we could see the emergence from the atlantic of a very vigorous area of low pressure gradually churning its way right across the heart of the British Isles. There are already warnings from the met office about the intensity of that rain for the northern parts of england and wales and the strength of the wind. The system has the good grace to move on into the north sea, leaving behind, for the bulk of us, wednesday as another really showery day. And do you know what, we continue that theme on into thursday. The wind from the north west still quite a noticeable feature of the day. In the midst of all of this there will be sunny spells but it really wont do much for the temperatures, never better than about 12 or 13 in the north, around 17 or 18 in the south. Thursday and friday, a tantalising and teasing prospect of some High Pressurejust beginning to work into the west, but it probably wont keep those fronts at bay for the northern parts of britain. This is bbc news. The headlines Hurricane Irma has slammed into floridas west coast, with strong winds and storm surges leaving at least three people dead. Millions of homes are without power and parts of miami are underwater. Almost 200,000 people have fled to emergency shelters. At least 25 people were killed by Hurricane Irma in the caribbean, five of them in the British Virgin islands, where a relief effort is under way. Homes and boats have been destroyed, and a state of emergency declared. Damage to housing and infrastructure could total 10 billion. The first funerals have been held for those killed in a massive earthquake off southern mexico on thursday night. 90 people are now thought to have died in what was the countrys strongest quake for a century. The fear of aftershocks is forcing many to camp in the streets. Now on bbc news, dateline london