14/02/2014 BBC Newsline

Devon, the storm brought 40 millimetres of rain in

Good evening. A popular restaurant has been destroyed by fire in

Coleraine. It broke out at the Yoko Noodle Bar at around teatime. A

nearby restautrant also had to be evacuated. No-one was injured. Live

now to our reporter, Kevin Sharkey, who is at the scene. Kevin, how did

it start? Valentine's night, one of the bus nights of the year for the

restaurant trade and popular night for couples everywhere. As you can

see behind me, the Yoko Restaurant now an emergency scene. The fire

broke out at 6. 6.30pm this evening. Party goers were sitting down and

the restaurant staff were preparing their meals, about to serve, when

the alarm went. At that stage everybody was evacuated. People were

evacuating from an adjourning Indian restaurant. I spoke to the manager

of the Indian restaurant. He spoke of the panic when the alarm went

off. I told my customers that everybody had to leave. The wind was

blowing this way. All the smoke was coming into my restaurant. It was

difficult to work in my restaurant. It happened so quickly, within

minutes because of the strong winds, all the smoke was coming this way.

What is the latest there from the scene? Well, as you can see, Tina,

the emergency situation is continuing. Now, the Fire Service

are scaling it down. There is still smoke billowing from the roof. A lot

of staff are standing around wondering what happened tonight. For

the owners of the Yoko Intole Bar, tomorrow morning they have to return

here and pick up the pieces. Kevin Sharkey, live from Coleraine, thank

you. A man from Newry says he is going through a "reoccurring

nightmare." His nephew has died after being hit by a car in San

Francisco. His son was killed in similar circumstances, also in the

United States. Paul Lambert, who was 35, was knocked down on Wednesday

morning. His cousin was killed by a hit-and-run driver eight months ago.

This from Nicola Weir. This is where Paul Lambert was knocked down. Hit

as he cross -- crossed the road with friends after buying a sandwich. A

pedestrian was left dead on the edge of Pacific Heights. Had been working

for a charity in ss -- is ofis of. He was due to return to his job in

Madrid next year. A speeding car came around the corner and struck

him. Threw him 30, 40 yards down the road. At the moment, it's kind of

unreal. It is. It's... We're really stunned. And, until we get Paul's

body home, it's, as I say, unreal. The second tragedy to hit the

family. Paul's cousin, Kevin Bell, was killed by a hit-and-run driver

outside his apartment in New York in June. Much the same as Paul. Kevin

was out on a night and returning home heaven was outside his

apartment. He got out of a taxi. Again, a speeding car hit him and

drove on. So, it's happened twice now. It's terrible. The cousins

attended the Abbey Christian Brother's Grammar School in Newry.

It's very difficult for the family. It's hard to believe. I'm sure they

are in shock, having gone through it once, they would have to go through

it a second time with someone so loved by them all. Paul Lambert's

body is expected to be brought home on Monday. Nicola Weir, BBC

Newsline, Newry. A woman has been hurt in a crash involving two cars

near Rasharkin in County Antrim. The collision was at Craigs Road this

afternoon. The Police say the woman's injuries are not

life-threatening. Driving conditions because of snow and rain have been

appalling today. Patricia Robie's report begins with that crash near

Rasharkin. A car and home were damaged as drivers struggled with

the weather. The police have been urging care and caution on the

roads. This crash happened after two cars collided. Elsewhere, one of the

high ground commuter routes in Northern Ireland today became a

high-risk route. Through the day, drivers have had to take their time

along the main Londonderry to Belfast road. The police have warned

motorists to drive with care. Then this evening conditions worsened.

Police closed the road for a time. The road is open again, it's only

passable with extreme care. There were Arctic conditions towards the

north coast, with the Limavady Coleraine Road posing problems for

drivers. In Belfast, more difficult conditions on the roads, rain the

problem here. Throughout the afternoon the constant downpour took

its toll. The end of the week rush-hour slower than usual, with

longtailbacks. Disruption wasn't confined to the roads. Ulster rugby

players had to wait to see if their Pro12 match against the Scarlets

would go-ahead. The rain just kept coming. In the end, under foot

conditions were too dangerous and the game was postponed. Patricia

Robie, BBC Newsline. A man from south Belfast has been jailed for

killing a pedestrian in the city two years ago. Steven McManus, who is 24

and from Breda Park, pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous

driving. His car struck 25-year-old Niall Harrigan on Cromac Street in

2012. The driver was sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison,

half of which he will spend on probation. He was disqualified from

driving for three years. When George Clooney's new movie, called The

Monuments Men, opened in Belfast tonight, in the cinema audience was

a man from the east of the city who played a part in this war story -

not in the film, but real-life events. BBC Newsline's Mervyn Jess

has been talking to the former US soldier from Belfast.

Teddy was born in New York, but brought up in Belfast. When America

entered the Second World War he joined the US army, fighting his way

through France, Germany and to Austria. It was here that he found

himself deep inside a saltmine, handling a Nazi treasure trove of

stolen artworks. These crates were stacked up in it. We were told they

were Goerings' treasures that he'd taken from different cities from

museums and one thing and another. Now, that little-known episode of

the war has been made into a movie, starring and directored by George

Clooney. We've been tasked with the finding and protecting of over five

million pieces of stolen after the artwork. There were art treasures

stolen from different places. But not on your shift? Not on our shift.

None stolen. They were watching us too closely. This mission was never

designed to succeed. If they were honest, they would tell us. They

would tell us with this many people dying, who cares about art. Millions

pounds worth of dollars of stuff, didn't know anything about it. It

must have been some monies worth in it. That was the only part I had

with the art treasures. Shifting them from the saltmines onto the

trucks and taking them back to the rightful owners. We always thought

of that though. The 94-year-old veteran will be casting a critical

eye over how Hollywood depicts what happened all those years ago in

Austria. The Now the weekend weather forecast now. Heavy rain, which led

to flooding, snow, particularly over the high ground, with strong winds,

blizzard conditions on high level roads too. It's warmed up enough so

that snow will not be a big problem tonight. The heavy rain warning is

in force right through until Saturday morning. Although it does

look as though the rain will be less intense tonight. Over the highest

roads, particularly in the Glenshane, there could be snow by

tomorrow morning. With temperatures falling low it could be icy here.

Otherwise, ice and frost will not be a problem tonight. Tomorrow, the

blustery wind will pick up, making it feel cool. There will be showers

around. There will be dry spells too. You can see good gaps between

those showers through the second-half of the morning. Sunshine

coming out across Northern Ireland too. Much better day also for the

Republic of Ireland, with a lot of dry and bright weather. Likewise,

for Scotland. Heavy rain to Wales and northern England which will move

into the Midland and southern England during the day. The strong

gusty winds over the south-east will edge away quite quickly too. It's a

better day for Northern Ireland. Not completely dry, yes, there will be

showers around, yes, it will be quite blustery. In between some

sunshine with temperatures fairly decent at around seven degrees. On

Sunday, there will be dry weather, particularly through the morning.

More cloud with some showers in the afternoon and on Sunday night,

unfortunately, more wet and windy weather returns for the new week.

That is it for now. Have a great weekend. Goodbye.