29/03/2012 South Today

Hello, I'm Sally Taylor. Welcome to South Today. In tonight's

programme: To fill, or not to fill, that is the question, as the queues

get longer, and forecourts close. A suppose I am panicking when

everyone else. I needed fuel. There is no panic. People are panic-

buying at the moment. Feeling left out. People with

disabilities warn that some towns are becoming a no-go area for them.

Midway through her makeover, the �2 million restoration of the Brighton

Belle. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to

the Titanic, the shape of dreams. Join us later for our Titanic tea

The government says, don't panic, but are motorists listening? Many

parts of the south have again seen long queues, and some petrol

stations closed, as drivers try to fill up amid the uncertainty of

whether there will be a tanker drivers strike, and initial

confusion over ministers urging the use of jerry cans. Dorset Police

have been closing forecourts in Christchurch, because of dangerous

levels of traffic congestion. Let's cross to Rachael Canter who's in

the town. What are things like now? It is looking busy behind you?

Absolutely. There has been a continuous flow of traffic all day.

Staff are monitoring the cars. They are closing the forecourt once it

fills up, to prevent cars spilling out and queues forming in the road.

It is a similar picture across the county.

Fears that something we take for granted might run out, and in some

cases it has. Where there isn't a queue, it only means one thing. The

message is, don't panic. But, for some, it is easier said than done.

I live in London. I've only just got my caravan down here and I

haven't got enough to get back to London. I have been to Sainsbury's

to get some lunch and the Duke is enormous. I need fuel. I am not

rushing. I have seen all the other garages and they're panic-buying.

am panicking like everyone else. Police asked five forecourts in

Dorset to temporarily closed because queues were bickering

dangers. Emergency services have their own petrol and diesel pumps

at stations, with enough fuel to last 30 days. Our police officers

are busy people and they haven't time to wait to get on to the fuel

court. At this moment, we are saying to police officers return to

the station and use stocks there. Leas have issued a warning.

Stockpiling petrol is dangerous. Carrying petrol cans in your car is

dangerous, it's not the liquid but of a pub. In the rush, no one was

going anywhere fast. Absolute chaos. We are only a small company. 20

minutes extra journey to get to people to pick them up. Ladies had

to go to dentists and doctors. The panic for them was quite dramatic.

Motorists here have been waiting for 20 minutes. Elsewhere, we have

had reports of people queuing for up to one hour. It seems people are

prepared to stick it out for fear of running out.

There have been reports of some modest queues in Sussex, while in

the Thames Valley, shortages were having an effect on some people

trying to get to work. Ben Moore reports.

The M4 corridor as its name suggest, is built around the car. But

forecourts in Lower Earley were deserted today, as the two main

petrol stations ran dry. I was told it was absolutely manic in their

yesterday, and it continued right up until today basically. What a

people's attitudes like on the forecourt? Most of them are all

right. Some are getting abrupt. They have no fuel. They can't get

to work. It is easy to see why the BP garage and the ASDA garage here

have run dry. This is prime commuter-belt for the M4 corridor,

and everyone who lives here really relies on their cars. Plus, the

next nearest garage is three miles away. That had the long queues

Plaidy most forecourts across the region. It is all leaving some of

our vital services struggling to where they are needed. I am a

police officer in London, I need my bike to get to work. I don't have

enough fuel to get to work. The fuel light is on. There's nothing

in the local area. I can't get my hands on �5 worth of fuel. It's not

just fuel running low, over the weekend, fuel cans were in great

demand. Halfords say sales are up 225%. But there's no tanker driver

strike just yet. Much needed replenishment arrived just after

lunch. A tanker like this carries about 30,000 litres of petrol. How

long it will last is anyone's guess. We have Britain's biggest oil

refinery at Fawley on Southampton Water. It supplies one car in six

on Britain's roads. But that won't help if there are no tanker drivers

to deliver it. Our transport correspondent Paul Clifton is here

to make sense of it all. It's the same everywhere. Driving

through Wiltshire, I saw queues at many petrol stations. And yet we

don't even know whether a strike will happen. If it does, the Unite

union has to give at least seven days' notice. Hampshire Police even

had to warn its own staff today that there is no need to panic buy.

Unite represents more than 2,000 tanker drivers who work for seven

big distribution firms. They supply fuel to 90% of the country's

forecourts. Some smaller firms, like Wessex Petroleum, aren't

involved. What about air travellers? Gatwick

Airport is supplied by pipeline. But smaller airports, like

Southampton and Bournemouth, are not. Most trains in our region are

electric. But those that run on diesel could be at risk. First

Great Western says half its fuel is delivered by rail, but the rest

comes by lorry. The amount of petrol sold today is 8% higher than

normal. And here's a thought. The AA in Basingtoke says the panic

buying is handing the government �34 million in extra tax today

alone. What a change. In the last five years, the amount of fuel sold

at the pumps has collapsed by a fifth. Until today, we've all been

cutting back to save money. We'd love to hear if you're facing

any disruption as a result of the fuel situation. Are you having

problems getting to work or changing your plans? You can find

us on Twitter. We're at BBC South News. On Facebook, search for BBC

South Today. And you can email us, the address is

[email protected]. The body of a Royal Marine from

Dorset has been returned to the UK this afternoon. Sergeant Luke

Taylor from Bournemouth died on Monday. He'd been on deployment for

just four weeks. Laura Trant is in our newsroom. Remind us of what

happened. Sergeant Luke Taylor died along

with a Lance Corporal Michael Foley, at the entrance to the UK

headquarters in Helmand on Monday. They were both shot dead by a rogue

Afghan soldier. They were repatriated, along with a 24 year

old soldier killed by a bomb blast on the 21st of March. This shooting

at the base in Lashkar Gah is the latest in a string of so called

"green on blue" attacks, where members of the Afghan security

forces have opened fire on international allies.

What do we know about Luke Taylor? Sergeant Taylor was 33. He joined

the Royal Marines in 1997. He had only been deployed in Afghanistan

for four weeks. It's thought he worked in intelligence, and may

have been part of the SBS. That may explain why many of the tributes

come from unnamed colleagues. His commanding officer said: Sergeant

Taylor epitomised everything positive about the military. He was

also described as a natural leader, with inspirational flair, and he

was devoted to his family. Sergeant Taylor leaves behind his wife

Nicola and their son Roan. So far, 407 British Forces personnel have

Europe's biggest train operators are in the running to take over two

of the region's biggest rail franchises. First Group, which runs

Great Western, faces competition for services throughout the Thames

Valley, from Stagecoach, National Express and Arriva. First is also

in the running for the giant Thameslink contract, against

Stagecoach, Hong Kong-based MTR, and Govia, which runs Southern

Railway. This will become Britain's biggest rail franchise, absorbing

the whole of the current Southern and Thameslink areas. Both

franchises will start next year. Still to come in this evening's

South Today: We're saddling up with The Brighton Belle, one of the

world's best known trains, is being restored. It's 80 year old

carriages should return as a Sussex charter service next year. But the

Brighton Belle will have to run at 95 miles an hour, to fit in between

the modern trains. And the train has never been that fast in its

life. Our transport correspondent Paul Clifton reports, from the

workshop in Derbyshire where the repairs are being done.

Of Brighton Belle was the first InterCity electric train. And art-

deco icon, Stuart -- stripped back to bare metal. At a �2 million,

Britain's biggest train restoration project. We are doing a for all

stripped out to eliminate or corrosion, all elements of damage,

the scars of life the chain has been through. -- train. The

Brighton Belle run for 40 years. For many years, the conductor was a

man called Buster. We have had the Royal Family who have used the

train. Quite something. When British Rail decided to drop

kippers from the breakfast menu, the actor Laurence Olivier led a

campaign to have them restored. He won. It is important in its way as

the Flying Scotsman is important, the Orient Express. I am very happy

the Brighton Belle will continue to be one of the finest trains in the

world. But, two years later, it was retired. This was its final day,

almost 40 years ago. Silver service and the Age of elegance, replaced

by plastic cups and packets of sandwiches. Now, five of the

carriages are being restored. First-class carriages had names.

The third class, just had numbers. Car number 91 was damaged by a bomb

at Victoria Station in 1941. Emergency repairs are carried out

70 years ago are only now been corrected. It was originally

designed to run at 75 mph which is no longer fast enough for today's

network. It has to run at 95 mph of which means a lot of intricate re-

engineering. This is probably the most complex re-engineering project

on the railway system. If the work goes according to plan, the aim is

for this train to run on the Brighton main line by the end of

next year. We look forward to seeing that.

Many parts of Brighton and Hove are inaccessible for disabled people.

That's according to a new report which shows many wheelchair and

mobility scooter users are avoiding certain parts of the city

altogether. The city council admits things need to improve, but says

they are studying the report and changes are planned. Danielle

Glavin has more. Chris Kift says it's hard to get

around the city. His dentist is in this road, but he can't get down

the kerrb and would have to bypass the pavement altogether.

I have got to take my chair onto the road way to get up to a very

accessible surgery once you're in it. But that is against the law to

use the road. How does it make you feel? It is dangerous. 50 people

were interviewed for the Countability report. Getting around

the city was a problem for many. Parts of Kemptown were seen as no-

go areas. This reports that -- looks at isolation, and healthcare.

Many disabled people said the service they got just wasn't good

Dr John hasty wrote the report. He says that it shows that not all

improvements work well. Often many disabled people are

willing to volunteer time to get involved and make sure that when

changes are made they are made correctly so that they don't waste

money making changes that don't suit disabled people. The city

council admits things need to improve. People are becoming more

independent, wanting to move around more and across the country we --

we have some old cities with old Emperor structure so I think we are

doing a reasonable job but I know we can do better. -- Infrastructure.

For those who rely on the Kurds, they can't come soon enough.

Nearly 70 animals, including 48 ponies, died on a forest roads last

year and some livestock owners want to see pinch points which force

drivers to slow in narrow sections but critics say they are a safety

risk. Fishermen in Sussex make their

living finding food for our plates but now they are being asked to

uncover the secrets of the past. A scheme is encouraging them to

report anything of historic interest. If successful the scheme

could be rolled out across the country.

Just occasionally the sea let slip one of its secrets. This statue was

dredged from Chichester harbour by a fisherman more than a decade ago.

Since then it has had a supporting role at home. To be honest my

father was using it as a doorstop but then when Sussex Fisheries said

that some people were interested in things that had been caught and I

took it along to a meeting and they have had it ever since. I am

interested in how excited people get about our doorstop. Since Gary

told archaeologists about the sculpture they have been examining

the find. Even without ahead it is telling them a lot. It is from the

Celtic fringe, Normandy or Brittany, and the dating could be anything

from Roman up to post medieval. We are thinking because of the

inscription that it could be 12th century. Of coarse fishermen have

found more than fish in the sea, they have found wreck sites are and

artifacts. Now a pilot scheme aims to get more fishermen on board in

its discovery our past. If the fishermen discovers anything they

can get in contact with an expert at Wessex University. It is ground-

breaking. Some of the things we are hearing about are changing our

understanding of the local area. The trial in Sussex just once it

easier for the fishing industry to report archaeological finds. If it

is successful the scheme may be adopted nationally. In an island

crowded with history it is no surprise its waters are us well. --

as well. Now on to the sport.

Many eventers at 56 might be thinking of retiring and hanging up

their spurs. But one man is doing exactly the opposite and lining up

for his country in this year's Olympics. He qualified for his

first Olympics in 1980 and Alexis Green went to meet him.

New Zealand rider Mark Todd, who is based in Berkshire, is one of the

most recognisable faces of eventing. He has won two Olympic golds. In --

after Sydney 2000 he retired but he has gone back to the sport.

decided in 2008 that I would have a go in this Olympics -- the last

Olympics. The plan was to retire after that but then I found that I

was really enjoying it. Today he is here, near Ringwood, competing on

very different horses. He is checking out the likely competition

for the Olympics. Market is no stranger to the biggest stage and

the Olympic course in Greenwich Park will be a challenge. It will

be a real ride as' course. It will be up and down, backwards and

forwards. -- riders' course. Dressage is a series of love to

judged movement. Then the show jumping. Them across country but

first mark takes a quick to legged check of the course. Them back to

four legs. -- then. He takes all of the fences in his stride. His

competitive spirit is as strong as ever.

When you qualify for the Moscow Olympics in 1980 - before I was

born! - how do you keep the momentum up? In my eight-year

sabbatical I got re-energised and came back as keen as ever. Whilst

we were filming it was hard not to notice the steady flow of people

walking behind the scenes to try to get a glimpse of their hero.

Crawley Town and Bradford City have been hit with an FA charge relating

to their players' conduct in Tuesday night's match, which ended

in a mass brawl. Five players were sent off, two from Crawley. In

addition today, Kyle McFadzean and Pablo Mills, who weren't sanctioned

on the night, have been charged with violent conduct after video

evidence was reviewed. Southampton Football Club is to

report losses of �11.5 million for the last financial year, but has

revealed that loans totalling more than �30 million have effectively

been written off by the estate of their late owner Markus Liebherr.

The figures will show that wages account for 93% of turnover at the

Championship leaders. The Liebherr estate has converted �32 million in

loans into share capital. Executive chairman Nicola Cortese says the

long-term ambition is to make the club self-sustaining.

The former Portsmouth chief executive Peter Storrie has

admitted he would like to return to the club. Storrie was the key

executive at Portsmouth for eight years, helping the club to its most

successful period for half a century, but he also presided over

the club as a string of owners came and went and Portsmouth dropped out

of the league, with debts of well over �100 million. He was cleared

of tax evasion charges last year stemming from his time at the club.

And a big hour of debate coming up tomorrow on BBC Radio Solent. The

Portsmouth administrator Trevor Birch is joining Julian Clegg's

breakfast show, where he will be in the hot seat for an hour between 9

and 10 tomorrow morning. He will take calls and update us on the

latest attempts to save the club. I will be joining Trevor and Julian

for that. Guildford Flames have secured a

season's double after winning the ice hockey knockout cup competition

last night. They beat the Sheffield Steeldogs 6-2 in the second leg of

the final - that's 12-5 on aggregate. The Flames had already

secured the Premier League title this season. Well done, Guildford

Flames. With the Titanic centenary almost

upon us, many schools have been doing special projects on the ship.

But how do you get the children of today to understand a bygone age of

steam, luxury travel and class differences?

Well, for the year 6 pupils at Kanes Hill Primary School in

Southampton the answer was to hold a Titanic tea dance.

10 year-old Hannah Bowen invited us along but, as Dani Sinha discovered,

they have been studying more than their dance moves.

The Titanic weighs 46,000 tonnes. It is 882 feet from the bow to

stern. Somebody has been doing their homework. Preparation is

everything when you are getting ready to welcome first class

passengers on board the Titanic. For the past few months these

children have lived and breathed the vessel, reading diaries and

newspapers, part of their journey to re-enact life on board the ship.

Getting into character has not been a problem. Ladies and gentlemen,

welcome aboard the Titanic, the ship of dreams. Tonight we will

make history. But some crew members have mixed feelings about whether

they would have liked to have lived in that era. I would have liked to

have been there but I would not have liked to have been in steerage

and first class was a bit snooty. I'm not sure because I think it

would have liked to have been on the Titanic but the sinking part

but smear of! Parents posed as first class passengers and were

treated to some top entertainment. Many were impressed with the

service. I am with my grandson, Matthew, and it is a lovely ship

and we are enjoying the crews. has been wonderful, it is such an

amazing ship and such great service. He has shown me to my seat and

being very polite and courteous. I wish it was like that at home.

staff are excellent and the food is delicious. It has been a great

getting involved. It is nice to see the look on the children space is.

For these pupils today's voyage had a happy ending.

Well done a year six at Kanes Hill Primary School. I like the fact

that all the parents were A significant change on the way but

let's focus on the pictures. Sarah Johns sent us this unusual

view at Hayling Island beach this morning.

A sunny view at Sir Harold Hillier Gardens, taken by Robert Stidworthy.

Sue Cheney sent us this of Thorness Bay with Ralph the beagle enjoying

his walk. It has been probably the last of

the really warmest days so I have brought you some interesting

information. It is a record today. 22 Celsius. Previously in 1999 we

recorded 19 Celsius. This Monday just gone we had high is a 20

Celsius. Tonight, not as cold as the previous two nights. That is

because there is a bit of cloud about. The cloud coming in from the

north and east, temperatures still on the cooler side and the risk of

ground frost in rural locations. We are looking at a minimum of four

Celsius. More low cloud by the end of the night. It might be slow to

clear at first but once it does disburse it will be a beautifully

sunny day, a fair deal of sunshine and still warm. We are losing a few

degrees so for many of us it will be 14-19 Celsius. Into the evening

we are looking at a mix of cloud and clear spells. Temperatures are

around five or six Celsius. There might be some patchy fog into

Saturday. The High has drifted west and behind that we might have a

weakening cold front sneaking in. It is not really bringing anything

except cloud and a massive impact on temperatures. On Saturday, the

best of the sunshine is to the south-west. The rain is to faraway

full us. For many of us it will be a very cloudy scene. -- the rain is

too far away for us. Enjoy Friday, it is still warm. Saturday not too