these dramatic shots. but they won't be able to stay, with a curfew coming into force at 10pm local time. our north america correspondent john sudworth reports. the town of lahaina, home to 12,000 people, traced its history back centuries. all but wiped from existence in a few short hours. the intensity of the fire seen from this commercialjet. with daylight, the charred ruins were revealed. the wildfires, fanned by the winds from an offshore hurricane, have left thousands homeless. survivors absorbing the scale of the disaster.— of the disaster. people lost everything _ of the disaster. people lost everything - _ of the disaster. people lost everything - homes, - of the disaster. people lost everything - homes, jobs, | of the disaster. people lost - everything - homes, jobs, their everything — homes, jobs, their cars, some their pets. there's still people missing. there wasn't even time for, like. — there wasn't even time for, like, officials to come around and _ like, officials to come around and tell— like, officials to come around and tell you to evacuate. nobody _ and tell you to evacuate. nobody came into our complex until_ nobody came into our complex until the — nobody came into our complex until the flames were here and we were — until the flames were here and we were getting out, and then a fire truck— we were getting out, and then a fire truck was coming in. this was lahaina's _ fire truck was coming in. this was lahaina's historic- was la haina's historic seafront, was lahaina's historic seafront, now reduced to ashes. bustling streets and shops all razed to the ground. this man and his family were on holiday from california. caught by the flames, they almost lost their lives. ~ ., . ~ lives. we left our vehicle. and m self lives. we left our vehicle. and myself and — lives. we left our vehicle. and myself and my _ lives. we left our vehicle. and myself and my wife _ lives. we left our vehicle. and myself and my wife and - lives. we left our vehicle. and myself and my wife and our. lives. we left our vehicle. and | myself and my wife and our five kids, we all got in the ocean. we found a floating board that we hung onto. we were out there floating and this is so surreal and everything was burning around, explosions, cars blowing up. helicopter pilots of the us army and national guard were brought in to douse the flames. with the authorities warning the number of dead could rise further still. the number of dead could rise furtherstill. behind me, the number of dead could rise further still. behind me, you can see the devastation here in la hain �* , can see the devastation here in lahain �*, ., , la hain it's extraordinary. it is tragically _ la hain it's extraordinary. it is tragically gone. - la hain it's extraordinary. it is tragically gone. we - la hain it's extraordinary. it is tragically gone. we knowi is tragically gone. we know that many people are suffering. the fatality numbers will climb. ., , , ., climb. the homeless and tourists _ climb. the homeless and tourists have _ climb. the homeless and tourists have been - climb. the homeless and l tourists have been flooding makeshift evacuation centres. even the world's wealthiest are affected. 0prah even the world's wealthiest are affected. oprah winfrey has a home on maui, some distance from the town of lahaina, and she's here to help. 50 from the town of lahaina, and she's here to help.— she's here to help. so i came earlier, she's here to help. so i came earlier. just _ she's here to help. so i came earlier, just to _ she's here to help. so i came earlier, just to see _ she's here to help. so i came earlier, just to see what - earlier, just to see what people needed. and then i went shopping, because often, you know, you make donations of clothes or whatever and it's not really what people need. many must be wondering if they'll ever be able to return to the lives they've left behind in the rubble. the causes of any single weather event are complex, but hawaii's wildfires are becoming more frequent. scientists warn that climate change is bringing less rainfall and longer periods of drought. the government is advising against anything other than essential travel to the island. even with the rest of hawaii relatively unaffected, the scale of the task ahead is huge. a climate disaster stretching one of the wealthiest states in one of the world's wealthiest countries to the limit. the bbc�*s max mazta has the latest from maui. there's still thousands of people seeking shelter in the emergency shelters. some are still living in their cars. hotels are mostly full. some people are sleeping outside. but there's lots of people in need and very few have actually been able to go back to lahaina. they have no idea when that might be possible. and it's worth noting that even though some residents are being allowed back, many people lost absolutely everything they own, including identification documents that prove they're their residence, which is required to get back into town. they're starting to hear rumours of who is the dead. they haven't been identified yet officially so it really is just rumour at this point. and i would say that many people believe the death toll is going to continue to climb for quite a while. it might even take months to find some of these bodies, according to people, to find them in the water or under the rubble in cars. so it's unofficial, of course. it's not known what we'll wind up at, but i think most people think that death toll is going to climb at least over 100. i spoke to one tourist from oregon in the us, who said that that has been the most upsetting part about all of this for her, is that there was no warning. the winds came in, knocked power out, and there was no communication, so people didn't know the fires were coming into town. another resident i spoke to who was staying in a shelter told me that once a month they sound that once a month they sound that siren just to test and prove that it works, and yet it didn't sound when they needed it. so people want to know what went wrong, what started the fire, but at this point, people do want to know who has died. that's probably the biggest source of frustration is the fact that it's still unknown who is them.— fact that it's still unknown who is them. fact that it's still unknown whoisthem. . ., who is them. that was max matza there. us attorney—general merrick garland named a special prosecutor in the investigation of presidentjoe biden's son, hunter biden. mr garland named david weiss — a trump—appointed us attorney for delaware — who has been leading the inquiry into hunter biden's business dealings. upon considering his request, as well as the extraordinary circumstances relating to this matter, i have concluded that it is in the public interest to appoint him as special counsel. this appointment confirms my commitment to provide mr weiss all the resources he requests. it also reaffirms that mr weiss has the authority he needs to conduct a thorough investigation and to continue to take the steps he deems appropriate independently, based only on the facts and the law. 0ur north america correspondent nomia iqbal gave us the background to the investigation. the hunter biden saga is probably quite confusing in terms of where we're at. you know, it's worth mentioning that hunter biden's at the centre of a political storm that i don't think we've ever seen — the offspring of a president go through. now, he has worked — just to remind people — as a lobbyist, a lawyer, a consultant. in his personal life, he has struggled with a drug addiction, with an alcohol addiction. with a drug addiction, with an alcoholaddiction. forthe republicans, however, he's been a huge target for some time now. they have accused him of corruption in mist his business dealings, particularly in ukraine and china. and they think that this somehow implicates president biden, and they targeted hunter biden whilst mr biden, his father, was on the campaign trail. now, donald trump appointed david weiss, the man you heard the attorney—general mention there, when trump was president. he appointed weiss to look into hunter biden. and when president biden became president, he didn't stand in the way, so he allowed that investigation to continue. and basically, last month, we saw sort of a kind of a, a part conclusion of that investigation, where hunter biden appeared in court and it was because david weiss had looked into him and they'd got him on these charges over evading tax and unlawfully owning a gun. now, he was going to enter a plea deal, but that fell apart, and now we're at this stage, where this special counsel, which is david weiss, has been appointed basically. —— appointed. basically, it gives mr weiss more powers, more authority to continue his investigation into president biden's son. it's worth mentioning that the white house never comments on this. all they ever say is that the president and his wife want their son to continue rebuilding his life. president biden gets asked about it a lot. he was asked about it recently in a trip to utah and he dismisses any allegations of any wrongdoing and hunter biden himself denies all these charges. butjust to recap, we are at a stage where there is now a special counsel that is going to investigate hunter biden and you can expect to see the republican party really, you know, continue to bring this up because, as i mentioned, it's been a huge focus for them and it will continue to be so as we head towards the election campaign of 20 let's get some of the day's other news now. campaign of 20 the former billionaire sam bankman—fried has been ordered to stay in jail in the us until his trial later this year on fraud charges. his bail was revoked by a court in new york, which ruled that he'd probably attempted to tamper with witnesses. mr bankman—fried founded the cryptocurrency exchange ftx, which collapsed last year. the us says it's investing more than $1 billion in technology that sucks carbon from the atmosphere. direct air capture aims to reverse the impact of climate change. two commercial—scale plants will be built in texas and louisiana. votes are being cast in regional polls in malaysia, which provide the first electoral test for the coalition led by the prime minister, ibrahim anwar. the elections for state assemblies are taking place in half the country. mr anwar took office after an inconclusive general election in november. the number of weekly return flights between the united states and china is to double by the end of october, as covid pandemic limits are slowly lifted. each country will allow 2a flights. the total is still far lower than before the pandemic. a planned meeting called by the west african bloc of leaders, ecowas, to discuss the coup in niger has been postponed at short notice, with no reason given. it was due to take place on saturday. international partners have cut aid and some have imposed sanctions to try to convince the army to step down. but the coup—leaders appear to have popular support, because they oppose the influence of france, niger's former colonial ruler. some are calling for closer ties with russia instead. 0ur africa correspondent catherine byaru hanga sent this report. the fallout from niger's coup is starting to bite. sanctions have cut off imports, causing the prices of popular staples to go up. zara kadar owns a small business selling food in the capital niamey. translation: the price of rice has increased but also that - of cooking oil — an increase of us$4 in just one week. this causes us problems because if i prepare the rice, i can't sell it. no profit, only losses. niger's soldiers seized power two weeks ago. rallies like this one at the national stadium suggest they have widespread support. and look — some in the crowd are waving russian flags. moscow's propaganda promotes russia as a better partner for africa than the old colonial powers. ibrahim suleiman is a tailor and says he has been inundated with orders. translation: it was with | the advent of the coup that i started sewing flags, especially russian flags. people come to buy them a lot because they use them to support our soldiers who've taken power. people buy them because we are in conflict with france. for years, france has only caused us problems and the military wants to put an end to it. france sees its former colony niger as an important security partner but it's been accused of having too much influence in the country and the military takeover has unleashed anti—french sentiments. its embassy was attacked during demonstrations. niger is only the latest to experience this. six african countries have had coups since 2020. five of them are former french colonies. west african states have been pressuring the junta to restore the democratically elected president mohamed bazoum. they say they will use force if necessary. any time from now, the force could be deployed. and for operational reasons, we have to maintain the strategic ambiguity when we are going to deploy the force. the worry is that should another military takeover in africa succeed, it will encourage other ambitious soldiers. catherine byaruhanga, bbc news. football, and within a few hours we will know the full line—up for the semi—finals of the women's world cup. the last two quarter—finals take place today. first up, one of the host nations, australia, will be taking on france. and then a little later on england will face colombia. let's speak to our correspondent shaimaa khalil, who's outside a fan zone in sydney. hello. it is already busy there behind you. what will we be watching? colombia are the underdogs against india —— england? underdogs against india -- england?— underdogs against india -- encland? , ~ , ., england? yes. and they love that title- — england? yes. and they love that title. colombia - england? yes. and they love that title. colombia has - england? yes. and they love that title. colombia hasjust| that title. colombia hasjust served some of the best foot tall and mostjoyous moments of this world cup already. they have beaten the odds time and time again and playing against england and winning is another set of odds that they would love to surmount. they have already made history coming into the quarter—finals. they have had stellar performances with that win against jamaica but, really, they come in with nothing to lose and a lot to prove. england of course have a big absence in laurenjames who was sent off against nigeria after stamping on a opponent. this will be a huge absence. we already heard from the coach who said we have a plan in place for colombia, taking into consideration laurenjames's consideration lauren james's absence but consideration laurenjames's absence but i think her being the top scorer, she assisted in three goals, that cannot be understated in terms of what they are going to be missing today. also what is important in that game is that nothing can be taken for granted. remember, england other favourites, especially now with the absence of germany was ill and the united states, huge tournament favourites who were eliminated. they are european champions with a lot of confidence but if you watch their performance against nigeria there was a sense that the only survivor that game, yes, there was a great penalty shootout but, really, nigeria pushed them to the limit and i think colombia will look at that and say how are we going to do that? how will we try and get physical and tactical and push england to the limit as well? it will be a very, very entertaining game and before that, of course, we have the hosts, the matilda's, against france. the matilda's have been riding on a wave of support, of momentum in thejoy riding on a wave of support, of momentum in the joy that they brought in that last game that they played against denmark with two goals and a huge cheer, a third huge cheer when sam kerr, the captain, made it on the pitch. the coach saying he was nervous about sam kerr taking to the pitch because he said it was risky but they wanted her to get a feel, mentally and physically. they play the french. here is a team that again has a lot to prove. a team of experience and talent. look at their performance against morocco. those two goals and then again, they have never won the women's world cup and with all of the drama that they had off the pitch, the coach came in and said he wanted to refresh the team. they look like they want to win, they look like a refreshed team and again, there is a lot of entertainment and excitement coming up. and the matilda madness will hit brisbane later.— matilda madness will hit brisbane later. ., . brisbane later. you have lined that u- brisbane later. you have lined that tip perfectly _ brisbane later. you have lined that up perfectly for _ brisbane later. you have lined that up perfectly for us. - brisbane later. you have linedi that up perfectly for us. thank you. let's speak tojen 0'neil, who's editor of she kicks magazine. she joins us live from sydney. to talk more about the matilda's and the tournament overall. lovely to have you with us. first off, can i get your feel of the tournament. how do you think it has gone so far? i how do you think it has gone so far? ., , , how do you think it has gone so far? . , , ., ,., far? i am still smiling about matilda madness. _ far? i am still smiling about matilda madness. it- far? i am still smiling about matilda madness. it is- far? i am still smiling about. matilda madness. it is reaching fever pitch here in sydney and brisbane earlier in the week. matilda's have not even got the quarter—final stage yet. i haven't been to new zealand but i saw it on television like everybody at home. they smashed it out of the park in the sense of atmosphere in the fan zones around the cities and in the stadiums and from an english perspective, other than australians, colombians other fans bringing the biggest numbers and biggest colour and noise so it is good to have two cracking games later today. the first match _ cracking games later today. the first match of _ cracking games later today. the first match of the day will be australia and france. i was reading earlier that, obviously, the two teams played each other a month ago. how did they do? each other a month ago. how did the do? ~ , ., ., , ., they do? the australians won that with a — they do? the australians won that with a goal _ they do? the australians won that with a goal from - they do? the australians won that with a goal from mary i that with a goal from mary fowler. there was a little niggle in that game because there was a challenge from hayley on the french fullback that ended with an injury that made her miss the first two games. but france were not long enough the plane and there is a big time difference here in australia for european and north american teams. so i don't think we can put much store in that. i hear england a favourites, i know they won the european championships last summer at home as a host nation but france arranged another four, england are three, sweden are ranked number two and they won their quarter—final yesterday. so this tournament is wide open and france who love to start fast, they will attack australia right from the outset and if they get an early goal it will be a nervy time for the matilda's. well done for the matilda's. well done for the matilda's. well done for the crowds they had and in brisbane it will be no different than it has been in melbourne and sydney. i think the host nation will be carried ljy the host nation will be carried by that fever of matilda madness.— by that fever of matilda madness. ~ ., madness. we will ended on matilda madness, - madness. we will ended on matilda madness, shall- madness. we will ended on i matilda madness, shall we. madness. we will ended on - matilda madness, shall we. jan, it has been wonderful speaking, thank you. premier league football is back, which means millions of people will be checking the results to see how it affects their fantasy league team. it's an online game, which is free to play, and popular with children, but gambling firms are increasingly targeting players, and creating their own monetised versions. tom grundy has the details. i have a captain i think. fancy premier league is becoming a national obsession. you premier league is becoming a national obsession.— premier league is becoming a national obsession. you do your research and _ national obsession. you do your research and then _ national obsession. you do your research and then just - national obsession. you do your research and then just the - research and then just the vibes. research and then 'ust the vibes. �* ., ., ., vibes. an online team of footballers _ vibes. an online team of footballers and - vibes. an online team of footballers and hope - vibes. an online team of footballers and hope to l vibes. an online team of - footballers and hope to claim the leaderboard based on their real—world performance. but we found evidence that the gambling industry is targeting the fpl community. i gambling industry is targeting the fpl community.— the fpl community. i cannot think of many _ the fpl community. i cannot think of many major- the fpl community. i cannot think of many major fancy i think of many major fancy premier league websites that do not advertise gambling. this premier league websites that do not advertise gambling.- not advertise gambling. this is fantasy football _ not advertise gambling. this is fantasy football scout, - not advertise gambling. this is fantasy football scout, one - not advertise gambling. this is fantasy football scout, one ofl fantasy football scout, one of the biggest independent fpl websites promoting bet 365. and here, fpl wire, one of the biggest podcasts, advertising fairplay exchange. we spoke to recovering gambling addicts who play fancy premier league. one said that since 2018 they have had less urges to bed and fpl is a big part of filling the void. 0ne content provider offered free entry to a gambling firm. it is a good thing these games are covered ljy thing these games are covered by game stop so i was not able to signup. another route i cannot avoid seeing things on twitter involving gambling. i think the big accounts involving fpl and gambling should take look at themselves. we were doing an offer... . should take look at themselves. we were doing an offer. . .- we were doing an offer... . one company _ we were doing an offer... . one company that — we were doing an offer... . one company that no _ we were doing an offer... . one company that no longer - we were doing an offer... . one company that no longer runs - company that no longer runs gambling ads told us how these deals can work. users could pay say that my place a £5 bit with their betting partner in exchange for access to premium content from the site. for each customer referred they received £90. it took all of our findings to the charity gambling with lives. that is shockina gambling with lives. that is shocking but _ gambling with lives. that is shocking but i _ gambling with lives. that is shocking but i am - gambling with lives. that is shocking but i am not - shocking but i am not surprised, knowing the gambling industry like i do, you can sign up at 13 with a rental permission by paying influences and getting into that market giving them access to the next market of customers and essentially addicts. peter set u . essentially addicts. peter set u- fpl essentially addicts. peter set op fpl team _ essentially addicts. peter set up fpl team at _ essentially addicts. peter set up fpl team at home. - essentially addicts. peter set up fpl team at home. his i essentially addicts. peter set | up fpl team at home. his site offers tools to help players and hits a million hits a week. last week i decided to block all gambling ads and sport bit ads on the website. there are other ways to get people to view your content or to increase the number of people who are seeing your content or go to your website without having to mess with the lives of gamblers. having to mess with the lives of gamblers-— having to mess with the lives of ramblers. ., of gamblers. the premier league sa the of gamblers. the premier league say they take _ of gamblers. the premier league say they take appropriate - say they take appropriate action against any infringement of the rules. but the risk for some is that the enjoyment of playing fantasy could lead to gambling problems in reality. for decades they were a visual symbol of hong kong — the neon signs that lit up the city's night sky. in recent years many of them have disappeared, thanks in part to safety concerns and worries about the environment. now a new exhibition is showcasing them in all their glory. tim allman reports. they speak of another time and another place. a stunning combination of pure commercialism and the kind of ageless beauty. these signs represented all that was unique and magical about hong kong. literally illuminated, inspiring and iconic. they are inspiring and iconic. they are in increasingly rare species these days that there are still people who want to show them off. it people who want to show them off. , ., ., ,~ off. it is not only about the appreciation _ off. it is not only about the appreciation of _ off. it is not only about the appreciation of the - off. it is not only about the appreciation of the beauty| off. it is not only about the i appreciation of the beauty of the signs up close. it is also about appreciating and understanding the scale of the work that goes into each of these signs.— work that goes into each of these signs. this exhibition shines a light _ these signs. this exhibition shines a light on _ these signs. this exhibition shines a light on hong - these signs. this exhibition l shines a light on hong kong's cultural history. an opportunity for some to see a world they never knew and for some to relive the past. translation: it some to relive the past. tuna/mom- some to relive the past. translation: , ., , ., translation: it is really worth recommending _ translation: it is really worth recommending to _ translation: it is really worth recommending to others - translation: it is really worth recommending to others said i recommending to others said this visitor. it recommending to others said this visitor.— this visitor. it is conserving the history _ this visitor. it is conserving the history of— this visitor. it is conserving the history of hong - this visitor. it is conserving the history of hong kong. | this visitor. it is conserving i the history of hong kong. we saw these signs when we were young but as time goes by many of them disappear. you can say that again. not so far away, another neon sign is taken down. this one advertising a kowloon restaurant had been in place for nearly 60 years. the owners say they asked for permission to a new smaller sign. but it is closing for hong kong in so many ways the lights are going out. stay with us here on bbc news. there is plenty more coming up. hello. it is shaping up to be yet another unsettled weekend of weather but that doesn't mean it's going to be raining all the time — far from it. while it will be showery and quite breezy, there'll be some drier spells, too. in fact, parts of the south and the east are going to see the driest of the weather, furthest away from the centre of this area of low pressure — that is what will be driving the showers over the weekend. and see all the white lines, the isobars squeezing together? that shows that we are going to have some quite brisk winds, particularly around western coasts. a band of rain through the morning pushing its way northwards and eastwards across scotland. northern england seeing some of that, maybe parts of wales. behind that, sunny spells and showers, some of them heavy and thundery. a few showers breaking out down towards the south—east corner but actually, a decent amount of dry weather to be had here. so, there's confirmation of what will be a breezy, indeed quite windy day around some western coasts. temperatures a little down on where they have been. the warmest weather in eastern england at 2a degrees, more generally around 16—22. operational will be reviewed and then, as we head through saturday evening, we'll continue to see some showers, particularly across the north and the west of the uk. some areas of cloud, some clear spells, too, and another relatively warm night — 12—15 degrees. so, for sunday, our area of low pressure just continues to swirl, centred close to the north—west of scotland, so that will be driving the showers. this frontal system here to the south—west, that'll be running in later in the day. so, some spells of sunshine to be had but also some showers, maybe some longer spells of rain at times for northern ireland and western parts of scotland. and then, late in the day, some cloud and perhaps some rain into the far south—west of england, maybe the far south—west of wales. temperatures between 18 and 23 degrees. breezy again — perhaps not quite as windy as on saturday. now, through the coming week, low pressure will be with us initially but then, it looks like high pressure will build for a time and, actually, as that high shifts eastwards, it may be that we start to pick up a feed of slightly warmer air from the near continent. the big question mark is about how quickly this area of low pressure then swirls in from the west to turn things unsettled once again. but signs are that as we head through the coming week, there will at least be some drier and warmer weather on the way for many of us. this is bbc news. the headlines: the hawaii wildfires have reached a grim milestone as the death toll rises to 67, making it the deadliest natural disaster in the state's history. hundreds more have been reported missing, and the toll may still rise. the authorities in the us state say the fire hasn't yet been contained. sam bankman—fried, the former boss of the collapsed cryptocurrency exchange ftx, has been ordered to stay injail in the us until his trial on alleged fraud in october. a court in new york revoked his bail, after ruling that he'd probably attempted to tamper with witnesses. 24. in the united states, the attorney-general _ 24. in the united states, the attorney-general has - 24. in the united states, the - attorney-general has announced attorney—general has announced joe biden's son hunter will now be investigated by a special counsel with additional powers. he's been charged with two misdemeanour tax offences for allegedly not paying income tax in 2017 and 2018. now on bbc news, the travel show. good girl. wow, molly. straight on. my name is lucy edwards, and nine years ago, i lost my eyesight completely.