07/02/2014 BBC London News

set to take part. Another 700 will compete in the Paralympic Games

set to take part. Another 700 will from me, and a BBC One we can now

join the news teams where you are. Tonight on BBC London: The worst

flooding for more than a decade It has been difficult and it is

going to be difficult again. Residents have been warned there is

worst come. Also, talks are held to avert

another Tube strike. A drastic shortage of paramedics `

London's Ambulance Service says it'll recruit from abroad to fill

their vacancies. Plus:

Revealed, the artwork given the thumbs up to appear on Trafalgar

Square's Fourth Plinth. Good evening. Residents in the flood

hit areas of the south`east have been warned to prepare for further

flooding. The worst hit areas are across Surrey and Berkshire, and

with more heavy rain expected, the Environment Agency has issued

warnings over rise in water levels. Sarah Harris is in old Windsor,

where people have been badly affected.

There has been more heavy rain tonight, just what people did not

want. The road behind me has been closed for several weeks. Some

people are chancing it and driving through, but that has been the case

on ham Island, where they have been living with floods for the best part

of a month. Many of them, their toilets are not working, and I

cannot tell you the smell. You would not wish it on your worst enemy

For weeks now contractors have been pumping out flood water and sewage,

and emptying it several miles away back into a working system. But the

flood warden here says they are fighting a losing battle. I was

wondering if you could let me know what time to expect the portaloos.

The situation according to villagers a few miles downstream is getting

worse. We have had to ask people to keep hearths, showers to a minimum,

washing, dishwashers to an absolute minimum, so we can conserve what we

have here. It has been an extremely difficult situation and

unfortunately it is getting to the stage where it is going to be

extremely difficult again. With water levels rising and the smell

getting worse, villagers are organising food runs for their most

vulnerable neighbours, and boats for children, so they are not wading

through contaminated water. It is quite horrid, actually. Do you think

it is a health risk? I think it is going to be. It is sewage, so it

will be a health risk. The sense of community is very strong but after

many weeks of coping, some are getting to the end of their tether.

In a statement, Thames Water said they were trying hard to manage

sewer levels, and that teams of staff were working round the clock.

They said they were doing their best in extremely difficult

circumstances. Finally, the portaloos arrived, and the water

levels continue to rise. It is a similar story in communities across

the south`east. Many believe with more heavy rain on the way it is

only a matter of time before they are advised to leave.

Let's get the latest update from the Environment Agency tonight. Across

Greater London there are flood warnings in place. If you follow the

river from Redding all the way down to Kingston, over 20 flood warnings

in place this evening. The worst affected areas, Surrey and

Berkshire. Hertfordshire police have asked us to ask you not to call 999

for weather`related problems. They say they have been inundated today.

In Radlett, the river has burst its banks for the first time `` the

first time in 25 years. The station car park has been flooded. Further

north, near Hatfield, there is a care home where residents have had

to be evacuated. Very distressing for them. The scale of the flooding

is nowhere near as bad as it has been in the West Country, as we have

seen, but if you are caught up in this and it is going on week after

week, and with worse weather coming, especially Monday and Tuesday, when

heavy rain is due, people are resigned to the fact that the worst

is certainly not over yet. That is the latest situation tonight

with rising water levels. But stay with us because there is more to

come. Injured during the Apollo Theatre

ceiling collapse, we hear from a family of theatre`goers pressing for

compensation. Next week's two`day Tube strike is

set to go ahead after fresh talks between transport bosses and union

officials failed to reach a compromise. Negotiations between

Transport for London, the RMT and TSSA unions will continue on Monday,

although it's unclear how close the sides are to an agreement. Here s

our political correspondent Karl Mercer.

Yesterday they were on strike. Today it was back to work. The job in

hand, negotiations to try to put an end to the Tube dispute. Just

minutes before the union delegations went in to the conciliation service,

the Transport for London team had arrived. Today was the ninth day

they've spent at ACAS. The previous eight didn't manage to get this

week's 48`hour strike called off. They emerged just after 5.30pm after

a full day of talks, London Underground encouraged by the

discussions. Yes, there was good progress made today, very

constructive talks. We will consider our position over the weekend with a

view to coming back on Monday to continue discussions. Are you

definitely coming back? Definitely coming back on Monday. The trade

unions are prepared to come back on Monday and I would like to think we

will make more progress. Does it look like the strikes will go ahead?

At the moment, they are still on but we will do everything we can to

avert them. The unions, too, have promised to be

back on Monday. No agreement as such. Here is my colleague from the

TSSA. We have been in there all day, talking. The strike is still on but

we have agreed to come back on Monday to continue the discussion.

Neither progress nor not progress, just full and frank discussion

around the issues that affect both unions. As I say, industrial action

is still on and we are back on Monday.

The aim, of course, is to avoid a repeat of the scenes we saw on

Wednesday and Thursday. The Mayor, in an interview with the Sunday

Politics programme, today revealed how he wanted his team to conduct

the talks. I have told the negotiators and everybody there to

have the door open, not to be match, not to be confrontational, to

engage, to communicate about what we are doing, to sell the message about

how this the best possible package for the RMT and for Londoners.

On Monday we'll see if the unions agree with that. Both sides will be

back round the table, the day before the next planned 48`hour stoppage.

Talks are resuming on Monday. What the commuters want to know is

whether they need to plan for more strikes. I wish I had the answer.

The main thing to take from today is that at least both sides are still

talking. This is the ninth time they have been at ACAS over recent weeks.

The talks have broken down before but they will be back for around ten

on Monday. Some of the language coming out there, you heard London

Underground saying they were encouraged by the progress in the

talks today, so perhaps hints that a compromise may be possible. Also

interesting to hear the mayor saying that he had said to the negotiators

that he did not want them to be confrontational. Perhaps something

of a softening of the language coming from City Hall in the past

few days, and perhaps an indication that there might be a compromise

that could be reached. The key date will be Monday, because not only do

we have the talks at ACAS, but also the RMT executive committee meeting.

They will be the ones who decide if any deal that is reached at ACAS can

go ahead. That is when commuters will find out the answers. Many

commuters will be pleased they are talking. And cute.

For the full interview with Boris Johnson, watch the Sunday Politics

London programme on BBC One at 1am. A man who knocked down and killed a

police officer has been jailed for eight and a half years. Gary

Bromwich was sentenced after pleading guilty to causing death by

dangerous driving. He drove into traffic officer Andrew Duncan in

Sutton in September. PC Duncan was married with two children.

Police believe a body found close to Leicester Square is that of a

missing Irish teenager who disappeared on a night out. The

18`year`old was last seen around midnight on Wednesday. Detectives

have not yet formally identified the body and are not treating the death

as suspicious. The design of the London Olympic

called Ron has revealed he went against his brief to create the

award`winning structure. Receiving his CBE from Prince Charles today,

he was told the centrepiece should be on the stadium roof and not have

any moving parts, but he delivered a piece with over 200 rising petals

and placed it in the centre of the arena.

The London Ambulance Service has been granted permission to recruit

paramedics from abroad, in a bid to fill over 300 vacancies. The service

is looking to mainly recruit from Australia and New Zealand, as skills

and training their closely match those in the UK.

It is a 68`year`old male complaining of chest pain. Just one of the .7

million calls the London Ambulance Service receives each year. Once at

the scene, they have two assess the needs of the patient. Since the

doctor gave you the spray, has the pain changed at all? There is a

history of heart problems so they are taking no chances. They are

going to transfer the patient to hospital for further checks but it

shows the importance of having highly skilled paramedics on the

roads, ready to respond to emergencies. But there is a shortage

of paramedics across the UK so the recruitment net is being cast wider.

There are currently about 1800 paramedics working in London. Right

now, they also have 250 unfilled vacancies, so the UK border agency

has approved job adverts per 10 posts recruited from across the

world. We have nearly 4000 operational staff working across the

capital and a small number of vacancies, like any organisation. We

are recruiting actively to those vacancies, here in the UK, people

leaving the military, and a small number from overseas. Recruiting

from abroad has been done elsewhere in the NHS and the service is keen

to stress that they are coping with demand. The launch of the 111

non`emergency number, another tactic to help reduce pressure on the front

line. In east London, a 50`year`old man is in cardiac arrest. It used to

be more vocational, but modern paramedics have to be university

educated and can use more advanced drugs and procedures than ever

before. The first respondent identified that resuscitation would

have been futile and the patient was deceased. But soon, there are

injuries at a car crash in Hammersmith. Paramedics in the

capital never really pause for breath, and with demand growing

every year, more are urgently needed.

A mother of two who used broken glass to attack the daughter of BBC

ground Force presenter Tommy Walsh has been jailed for five years.

Leanne Broomfield slashed Natalie Walsh across her neck in the West

End last year. Many of you will have heard of Tommy

Walsh, the celebrity builder, from the BBC series, but it was his

daughter Natalie who made headlines last year in February after a night

out. As she was leaving a nightclub near Leicester Square she was

slashed across the neck with a piece of broken glass by 29`year`old

Leanne Broomfield from Colchester. We cannot show you the stills of the

injuries at the time, but we have a photograph of her injuries now,

following stitches and cosmetic surgery. Southwark Crown Court

pervert shortly after the attack, Leanne Broomfield textured her

friends saying, me and my sister did a number on her, she was in a heap,

and they did not catch me. They did, and she was sentenced to six years

in jail. That was reduced to five years to take into account her two

children, 85`year`old daughter and eight two `year`old son. `` a

five`year`old daughter. Tommy Walsh told reporters after the

verdict that it was really tough on the family but they got through it

because they are close`knit. But he did add that there are no winners.

Still to come before the end of the programme: The table`topping

football manager, who transferred from the City's trading floor to

Brentford's training ground. And the thumbs up for the next art

commissions to appear on Trafalgar Square's Fourth Plinth.

A family of six injured when the Apollo Theatre roof collapsed before

Christmas has announced a claim for conversation. The Edwards family

were among more than 70 people injured while watching the curious

incident of the dog in a night`time. It was supposed to be his early

Christmas present from the family. But Chris Edwards countenance of

lucky none of them was killed when the Apollo ceiling came crashing

down. His son suffered three fractured vertebrae and a broken

shoulder blade. In all, 74 were injured. London Fire Brigade said it

was a miracle more were not hurt. More than 700 people had packed the

Apollo on what was the Thursday before Christmas. Now, Chris Edwards

is suing the theatre's owners. I felt we were let down one way or

another. We felt we were in a safe place, or should have been. It is

not about personal gain. That is not the objective. The objective in my

mind is to be to keep this in the public domain. The Apollo has been

closed ever since the roof came crashing down. In that time, the

theatre's insurers and say they have been compensating members of the

audience. But they weren't saying how many or how much they have paid

out. I can remember going back into the auditorium and punching the

plaster because I was so angry. Chris Edwards spent 30 years

designing sets for film and TV and claims the plaster was not up to

scratch. You can see here this black line shows there is cracking there.

Westminster Council confirmed the Apollo's safety certificates were in

order and up`to`date. This has led to questions over just how rigorous

the inspections of older buildings really are. If the building was

properly surveyed and had all the development Stefan Gates, something

is wrong. That ceiling was in its original condition and it failed. It

fell on us. Investigators have not ruled out thunder and lightning on

the night as the cause. But it could still be found that rain played a

leading role in bringing down a part of this historic West End venue

As you may well know, the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics in

Sochi has being taking place. With more news on that and the rest of

the weekend sport, it's over to Chris.

Yes, the Winter Olympics in Sochi is now in full swing and Team GB has

high hopes of equalling its record medal haul of three, achieved way

back in 1936. A place on the podium is probably

beyond Surrey skier Shemmy Alcott, but simply being at the Games is an

achievement for her. She only returned to racing last month after

breaking her leg for the third time in her career. After today's

practise run she said she knew she'd skied well because she could feel

the 15`inch nail which holds her right leg together. "The better I

ski the more I feel the metal" she said. She'll be competing in the

downhill and the Super G. In action on Sunday is Bromley's

Aimee Fuller. She's made it into the semi finals of the women's snowboard

slopestyle. Dom Harington of Stoke Newington goes in the men's

snowboard half`pipe. His qualifying round is on Tuesday. Maidenhead`born

Penny Coomes' first event in figure skating is tomorrow in the ice dance

short dance. And Dominic Parsons has to wait until next Friday before

qualifying begins in the skeleton. Good luck to all. There has been

disappointment for Craig Pickering, who has had to withdraw because of a

slipped disc. Among his team`mates is Dean on the right. British

bobsleigh is it to name his replacement.

Now, in football, it's not only in the Premier League where a London

team tops the table. Right now, Brentford are the Arsenal of League

One. There was concern among many fans when manager Uwe Rosler quit in

December but, as Emma Jones reports, his replacement has kept them on

track for promotion. It is a tracksuit rather than a

tailored one for Mark Warburton these days. His current workplace is

a very different to the one he left behind. When he retired as a

non`league footballer, he took up a full`time career as City trader But

he always wanted to return to the sport he loved, even if it meant a

massive pay cut. It is a big step to take. It is not a big step if it is

a comparable wage packet. As in 90% wage cut, you have to explain the

logic to your wife. There was no logic. When Brentford's former

manager's good work meant a move to Wigan, Mark was the replacement He

hadn't lost a match yet as manager and has won every game played at

Griffin Park. So far, so good. Ten games and the boys have been

tremendous. At the training ground, the team are preparing to play host

to Crawley this weekend, no doubt hoping to maintain the good form

that has taken them to the top of league one. The players can't see

much of a difference between their manager's New World and his old one.

I can see similarities. It is a competitive business. People work as

a team and they work for goals. They try to reach the top. That is what

we are trying to do. In the City, Mark Allen to take a collegiate

risks for the British success. It seems that so far his latest gamble

is paying off. This is 1993 in Crystal Palace. Many

years, the world's greatest athletes have graced the track there. But the

stadium's future is in doubt after UK athletics confirm that for the

second summer in a row, the event will be held elsewhere, this time in

Glasgow. Last year it took place at the Olympic Stadium. While UK

athletics has it hasn't yet decided on a venue, few now expect it to

return to the palace. It has a lot of things going for it, but it can't

be the venue for major competition. I am sad about it. I have got some

great memories from there. It will always be in my heart but it is

logical that it should go. Crystal Palace can still be used as a

training venue. I hope the Prime Minister or the mayor can put some

money into it to find it refurbished.

Dave Bedford and Dalton Grant there on the challenges facing Crystal

Palace athletics track. A big blue cockerel standing in the

shadow of Nelson's column ruffled a few feathers when it took up

residence on the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square last summer. But

it's amazing how Londoners got used to the unusual sight so quickly

Well, the fourth plinth will soon be challenging us once again, and Wendy

Hurrell can unveil what's next. Models for the new fourth plinth

sculpture are unveiled to the snap of cameras. David Shrigley's really

good is a comic thumbs up. The real one will tower ten metres over

Trafalgar Square. I am trying to say something that is both perhaps

satirical or sarcastic but also quite sincere the same time. As an

artist, you have to believe that your work will make a difference.

You have to believe it is a positive intervention into the world. His

gesture goes on to the plinth in 2016. First comes another bronze,

the skeletal horse with a live feed of the London stock exchange tied as

a ribbon to its leg. This is a German artist's oblique tribute to

two 18th`century Englishman, and a good company for the other equines

on the square. For more than 10 and years `` 150 years, this was the

problem plinth. Since 1999, it has been a showcase for some

extraordinary works. They are works which are striking, that can survive

repeated looking at over the course of the 18 months they are in the

square. They give something back to London. The big sum is going to be

ten metres tall. Wow. A good way to cheer everybody up! The horse is

good but I'm not sure about the thumb. It looks like it is from the

Natural History Museum. I think the summit is better. `` the sum. The

horse will add to the well photographed heard next year.

Now the weather with Sara. Yet more rain is heading towards us. We're

worried. We have a Met Office warning for the rain out towards the

south and west of London. A yellow warning for the rest of us. It is no

wonder. Here is what the last seven days have brought. You can cease

world of crowd `` cloud across the UK. We have had plenty of heavy

rain, and don't we know all about it. Today we had this drier slot of

weather. This curl of cloud is an excellent `` storm system heading to

the UK. For those concerns about the flooding, in the south`east we have

got 70 flood warnings. We are concerned about the River Thames,

which is rising. By the middle of next week, it could be as high as

January, 2003. Through the next 24`hour was, more rain to come,

starting in the next couple of hours. `` 24 hours. Another 10` 5

millimetres by tomorrow morning It is not going to the detriment 's

amount to night, but it exacerbates the rain we have all the gut. `` a

tremendous amount. The showers will be blustery. They

are going to be pushed by some gusty winds. 50 miles an hour they could

be. They could be some hail mixed in. We keep the showers through

tomorrow night and into the start of things on Sunday, which is why the

yellow Met Office warning is in place until Sunday morning.

Gradually, as we go through Sunday, we see this show was becoming

further between. They started pushed to the North. `` the showers.

Tonight we have got or rain and some heavy showers for tomorrow

afternoon. `` more rain. That is it for now.

I will be back during the ten o'clock News. Join me then if you

can. For now, for everybody, good evening.