28/12/2016 BBC Newsline

A 12-year-old boy has been praised for helping save his younger brother

Their father tried to tackle the blaze which engulfed

their family home in Magilligan on Boxing Day, as BBC

Five people were trapped in this house when the fire broke out -

including two brothers, 12-year-old Ben and 9-year-old Rhys.

Today his father explained what happened.

We tried to get it out, to put it out, but when I

looked round I noticed the actual house was on fire so I said

to the eldest son, Ben, get Rhys out while I deal with the fire.

When I looked, the fire was too far gone.

Ben kept saying, we need to get up the stairs and out.

And then all of us got out onto the flat roof at the back.

I was able to climb down and then Ben

There were five lives there got out and no more.

Young Rhys suffered third degree burns.

He was in intensive care in hospital but his condition has now improved.

The Boxing Day fire destroyed the ground floor of the house

including most of the children's Christmas presents.

Two days after the fire there is still the smell of smoke

People in the area are shocked by what happened, but there

that the outcome could have been much worse.

A man's been rescued from the sea by lifeboat volunteers in Bangor.

He's now in a stable condition in hospital.

The alarm was raised by a council worker who heard faint shouts

from the water at about 8:00am this morning.

He called the Coastguard, and a lifeboat crew found the man

barely conscious about 200 metres off shore in Ballyholme Bay.

A colleague of mine drew me towards some shouting

Initially we thought somebody had maybe fallen on the beach.

When we came onto the beach we discovered

One of our crew entered the water to take hold

of him, to make sure he would not disappear from us.

We manoeuvred the boat alongside and got him out of

He was hypothermic and he was barely conscious, so getting

him out of the water safely is a difficult task because such

casualties are at risk of cardiac arrest.

A man's been arrested by police officers investigating a hit and run

incident in Crossmaglen early yesterday morning.

A man in his 20s was struck in Cardinal O Fiaich Square -

he's still in a critical condition in hospital.

A car believed to have been involved in the incident was later

The arrested man has been released on police bail.

A service which supports people who are appealing their benefits

decisions is losing its funding at the end of this week.

The Belfast Citywide Tribunal Service was set up three years ago

with money from the City Council and the Department

Its chair says the loss of the service will have a severe impact.

We're making an appeal for the Council and Department of

communities and the Department of June Justice and the Government in

general to recognise the value of this project and the severe value --

impact of its absence should it not be funded. We are talking about a

really extreme impact on a lot of people.

And you can hear more on that story on tomorrow's

Good Morning Ulster programme, on BBC Radio Ulster.

It's that time of the year when many people are taking in the traditional

In Londonderry, the Millennium Theatre has used its production

of Cinderella to undertake an outreach programme to work

Here's our north-west reporter Keiron Tourish.

It's an afternoon of nostalgia, and these

the cast of the Christmas panto who sing for people living with

Carers bring along their relatives, who can spend an hour or

two socialising and reminiscing about songs they've grown to love

Just want to make life better for people with dementia.

We want to support people with dementia and help them live

well with it because that we know they can.

Oh, we were dancing to such beautiful music...

The performances also pave the way forward is hoped will be a

stress-free trip to the pantomime in the theatre itself.

It has been proven that people suffering with

These sessions allow them to interact with pantomime.

It also allows them to be well aware of what is going to be happening

when they come into a dimension friendly performance. It can be

quite daunting for them to come into venue they are not used you for a

performance so this makes it easier for them.

For those living with dementia it has been an

I can't go outside, on my own, you know?

They don't treat you like you're some kind of...

For everyone involved it is hoped the project will increase

Hello it is a chilly night but many of us will avoid frosty conditions

as temperatures are likely to stay at about four or 5 degrees. In

countryside areas when the sky clears it will be chillier than

that. Tomorrow, there will be plenty of high pressure keeping the dry

weather going and the sunshine coming and going as well. To begin

with there will be a good bit of cloud but it won't take long before

that cloud begins to break up. If you are travelling first thing

tomorrow there will be dense pockets of fog across England and into Wales

which could cause problems in terms of travel. There is a dry stored and

start across Britain. Across Ireland tonnes of dry weather and some good

sunny gaps. In some places it will be lucky enough to reach double

figures. It will be a mild night into Friday. Friday will be a milder

day, 11 or 12 degrees in some places. But unsettled to. There will

be thicker cloud and it brings patchy light rain or drizzle. New

Year's Eve will stay drive -- dry but a band of rain will come later.

We don't know the exact time of it but we will keep an eye on things

over the next few days so stay tuned to the forecasts and will keep you

up-to-date. A mild end to 2016 however, as we get to Sunday, the

temperatures go way back to four or 5 degrees so keep your coat handy.