03/01/2014 Spotlight

One of the worst spells of whether for 20 years. `` weather. I've lived

here all my life and I've never seen anything like that before. Good

evening. Welcome to Spotlight. It's not over yet ` conditions have been

easing but weather warnings remain in place as well as severe flood

warnings in Dorset. In Cornwall this afternoon, volunteers have answered

a call to pack sandbags on Perranporth beach. Tonight we'll be

reporting live on the latest situation as the tide reaches its

highest point along with the gale force winds. We'll be at Instow in

North Devon where earlier sea defences were breached by huge

waves. And we'll be in Perranporth in Cornwall where locals have spent

the day filling sandbags to guard against the next tidal surge.

Parts of the South West have taken an extreme battering as strong winds

whipped up a high spring tide and sent huge waves crashing over

seafronts. Some homes and businesses have been inundated. Virtually the

entire coastline was put on the most severe level of alert but the damage

was limited. Today gusts of 70 miles an hour were recorded and some

weather warnings remain in place as another high tide arrives soon. So

what's been the impact so far? Well in Looe, some of the main streets

where the shops are were flooded. On the north coast at Newqauy there

were dramatic scenes as the sea arrived in the town. The north Devon

coast was one of the worst affected areas. Lynmouth was hit hard and in

Instow defences were breached. We'll hear from all these places tonight.

Andrea Ormsby has our first report on the damage in North Devon. 7am

this morning. This is Lynmouth at high tide. Many of the properties

along the seafront here are flooded. This woman has just seen the state

of her shop and is close to tears. It's flooded lots of them. Not just

mine. They're all flooded. How does it feel? Horrific. Really bad. I've

never seen it this high and I was born here. It's just awful. Lynmouth

was flooded last year too, so today's scenes are depressing.

Devastated. I've been down here since 5am seeing it come in. I

thought we were OK but then the surges came in and devastated the

shops. Along the coast, this is Instow. You can see the damage. This

is a sea defence wall and it's been thoroughly breached. You can see the

rubble on the ground. Why this stretch? It's thought a boat was

being rammed up against the wall by the waves and the power of the wind.

This is the result. Temporary fixes will be in place for tonight's high

tide. It's hoped these flood gates will do their job again. Gates will

remain shut. We're taking every precaution. All the resources are

being deployed. We'll see what tonight brings. It's already

bringing fear for this woman. Her butcher shop has been closed since

floods destroyed it this time last year. Sandbags did their job this

morning... But only just. I'm very apprehensive and concerned. The

wind... The rain... The tides... If they all come together, what can you

do? We're prepared but we're very, very worried. It's not going to be a

relaxing night for anyone along the coast.

There are still concerns about the wind and the rain over the coming

hours not to mention the next high tide. As well as The Met Office

issuing weather warnings ` the Environment Agency has severe flood

warnings in place for Preston Beach and Chiswell in Dorset. Let's go

back to the North Devon coast now and speak to Spotlight's John Ayres

who's there for us. John. High tide there is going to be in around half

an hour or so. People are bracing themselves. The water this morning

was coming over the sea defences and the sea furniture was being tossed

two were we are just now. `` to where we are. An eight metre hole

has been punched into the sea wall. The floodgates have been closed all

day. They are expected to remain that way throughout the weekend. The

Environment Agency said that the dead the job. `` did their job. The

water came almost all the way up to the top. It will be interesting to

see what happens. The wind will be a key factor. We are going to wait and

see. The first places the storm hit this

morning were the Isles of Scilly and Cornwall. Many coastal towns were

flooded by the tidal surge. One man had a lucky escape after his car was

swept into the sea. Lightning strikes set fire to two properties,

and there's been disruption on the roads and railways. Rebecca Wills

reports. The thundering waves which hit Cornwall this morning left a

trail of damage and despair. This was fast light. Around 20 businesses

were sweeping out the flood water. This restaurant owner feels it is an

all too familiar story. This is the third time has probably has been

under water in the last seven years. I thought I could stop it but you

can't. It was a sentiment which was echoed on the opposite side. Coming

through the door... That is not much you can do about it. `` there is not

much. We are defenceless. Places felt the full force of the storm.

This harbour felt the damage and so did this car. Elsewhere there were

tales of lucky escapes. One man managed to scramble to safety as his

car was swept into the peninsular. `` sea. This family with young

children appear to have been fortunate not to be washed into the

sea themselves. The advice from the coastguard remains to stay well away

from the coastline. It wasn't just the sea which caused damage.

Lightning strikes caused damage to the rail networks and cause damage

to these homes. It has been blown to bits. Shattered. When it hit the

chimney, it blew the fireplace to bits as well. That is nothing left.

`` There is. Once the mopping up was over more work began. With another

extreme high tide expected this evening, and another in the morning,

many homes and businesses are still under threat. Jon Kay is in

Perranporth for the BBC tonight. Jon ` what have local people been doing

to protect their properties there? The call went out about lunch time

for people to come down to the beach and fill up bags with sand. They

need to protect properties. Last night, there was so much flooding

that some of those bags were washed away. They came down... About 100 of

them... The field so many bags. `` they filled. They are in front of

porches and doorways. The hope that this time it will be enough. High

tide is coming up very soon. `` They hope. If the waves crash this

week... `` this way... So far it has not been breached yet.

An air and sea search has been taking place for a teenager who's

gone missing in the South Hams. It's thought he went out to take

photographs of the bad weather. Emma Thomasson is in the newsroom. What

details do we have on this search? Harry Martin's family reported him

missing this lunchtime. He told his family that he was going to the

cliffs to take photographs but he has not been seen since. With the

horrendous weather conditions overnight there is real concern for

his safety. Who is involved in the search? Once the calls came in to

the police we have had a big response. Two helicopters ask our

reading the coastline. `` scouring the coastline. So far but has been

no sign of him. The search has been called off in the last few minutes.

It will resume in the morning. There were serious concerns about the

Somerset coast this morning, but as Clinton Rogers reports by this

evening its apparent many of the problems have been inland. They knew

it was coming ` a tidal force strong enough to lift drain covers. One of

the highest tides in the year is what's causing this. But bad though

it's been for some people, it could have been a whole lot worse had the

winds been stronger and in a different direction. When you have

an angry sea on one side of your house, and a raging river on the

other... The result was inevitable. When did the water come in? When the

ride rose this morning. I wasn't awake! They closed roads along the

Somerset coastline around 6:30am this morning ` about an hour before

high tide ` but some were still determined to get close enough for

that one picture. Inland, the picture was getting desperate for

one farmer, whose farm was quickly becoming an island. 50 cattle, three

horses and 30 sheep. I'm worried! The RSPCA were called in to help

rescue his animals, who were virtually marooned. As the flood

waters continued to rise, they needed a boat to take the pet dogs

to safe, dry land. I don't want to be separated from them. We didn't

expect it to happen again. It has. Nature was certainly showing it's

angry hand today. `` its angry hand. Hailstones the size of marbles! And

there's more rain on the way this weekend. Where will the water go?

As we've heard the weather is expected to continue to cause

problems not just over the next few hours but the next few days. Our

reporter John Henderson has been speaking to Helen Chivers at The Met

Office in Exeter. I'm here in The Met Office ` lots of computers and

lots of displays of the weather. I'm joined now by Helen. What's the

latest? What's going on? What's causing all this wet weather? A

series of Atlantic depressions that have been moving across from the

States since just before Christmas. We've had a really powerful jet

stream pushing them towards us, and because the jet stream is so

powerful, the storms have been as well. It looks like we're getting

towards the tail end of the worst of the storms. Some people are

concerned about what's coming... We've got another spell of wet and

windy weather coming on Sunday. It's perhaps the last really big storm

heading our way. It's a notch down on the storm we saw on the 1st of

January. Winds of 50, possibly 60 miles per hour. We'll also see

between ten and 30 millimetres of rain, so not quite as much as we've

seen in recent weeks, but because of all the stormy weather we've had

recently there's still the potential for disruption. There are Met Office

severe weather warnings out for the weekend. How does the wet weather

we've had rank in the grand scheme of things? It depends on how you

measure it. We've been looking back at spells of windy weather. If you

look back at certain thresholds of wind, this could well rank as the

stormiest period since January 1993. Thanks Helen. So it looks like we

might be getting through the last of this extremely wet weather! Holly

will be with us in just a few minutes with the latest forecast.

You can also keep up to date with weather warnings and information

about any disruption in a special programme on BBC Radio Cornwall

until 10pm tonight. There's also much more on your BBC website.

It's emerged that jobs at the Somerset helicopter maker Agusta

Westland could be under threat after the Indian government said it wanted

to cancel ?500 million contract with the company. The order for 12 luxury

aircraft has been in the balance since allegations surfaced last year

that it may have been won through bribery. The two sides are due to

meet to try and resolve the issue. Will Glennon reports from Yeovil

workers are back at Agusta Westland after Christmas. We have heard it

may not be such a happy New Year. They built these helicopters for the

Indian government. They have already been delivered and nine are ready to

go. `` Three. The total cost is almost half ?1 billion. But now the

Indians want out. It is disappointing. We won the contract.

We did the work on budget. This has come out of the blue. That is

nothing more we could have done. `` There. The deal has been in question

since last February. The Chief Executive of Agusta Westland's

Italian company was arrested over suggestions that over 30 million

euros had been made to the Indian Defence Ministry. Allegations that

have always been denied. Agusta Westland has issued a statement

saying that it does not believe the Indian government has any basis to

cancel the contract. It says it will take part in an arbitration process.

That is a mitigation plan in place if the contract should be cancelled.

Executives will now meet with Indian officials and lawyers to try to sort

out the deal. Meanwhile, Yeovil has to get on with the ?1 billion order

secured just before Christmas. 16 helicopters for Norway.

A message to Cornwall Council housing tenants to "pay your rent

before it's spent" has been branded "offensive". The housing newsletter

was sent out just before Christmas warning tenants about evictions and

not to become "one of those cases". The council says it was not meant to

be patronising but intended to remind people of the importance of

keeping on top of payments. Tamsin Melville reports. It was Christmas

Eve when this family's Cornwall Housing newsletter arrived at their

home. They weren't happy with what they read. I don't think debt is

necessarily related to overspending on unnecessary goods. With the

recent changes in benefits and bedroom tax... As well as the

difficulty for people to find work... I think it's a combination

of different factors that are causing people to get into rent

arrears ` not necessarily spending on items that aren't of necessity.

The article says it's important to budget over Christmas. It warns

about evictions and says welfare reform is not an acceptable reason

for getting into arrears. For that to go to all tenants, with an

assumption that people are struggling, that they are managing

their finances badly ` it's unfair. People on low incomes often do a

fantastic job, sometimes a far better one than the millionaires we

have, at managing their finances. Every penny counts. I think the

timing is particularly bad. Cornwall Housing is owned by the council,

which says the article contained important advice about changes to

rent payments and arrears. It certainly wasn't intended to be

patronising. I would apologise if anybody felt it was. But there were

significant messages in there that we needed to get out. People have to

be careful at this time of year, about managing their money. It's

been proven that this is the most likely time people can get into

financial difficulty, especially with the bills coming in through

January. The council also says anyone in Cornwall struggling to pay

their rent should contact them for advice.

Since the 1970s the idea of offenders being brought face to face

with their victims to apologise and to try to make amends has been

gaining prominence around the world. Here the government has recently

announced millions of pounds of extra investment in what's known as

restorative justice. But in some cases victims don't want to actually

meet offenders so in Dorset a scheme has been running where the two are

still connected as I've been finding out. This may sound like a woodwork

lesson at school, and it may look like a woodwork lesson at school,

but school is a place where many offenders in their mid`teens have

failed. Here, they're succeeding. I was a bit young. Naive and stupid. I

took the wrong choices and wrong decisions. I got in a lot of

trouble. But are they simply returning to the classrooms they

once left behind? It's nothing like going back to school. What was

different? It was more enjoyable and good to see what you've achieved. I

enjoyed putting smiles on people's faces. That idea of putting a smile

on a face is crucial to those who run this programme. They say young

people see they can do something positive, and that feeling might

help them find an alternative to committing crime. In Dorset, we're

seeing a steady, year`on`year reduction in the rate of

re`offending, in terms of the people we work with. That's the name of the

game. But isn't the name of the game also offenders meeting the people

they've wronged? Where are those people? Some want the meeting, in

order to repair damage ` sometimes literally ` but others prefer to be

kept at arm's length. In their latest project, offenders have been

making gifts to sell, but the money made will go to charities chosen by

the victims. Every element, every piece of work, has to have some form

of restorative justice. That can come in many forms. What the

essential part is that young people make some kind of restitution to

their victims. After this Christmas offering, birdboxes might be next

off the production line in a new year ` and hopefully new beginning `

for some young people. Time for the sport now and the

weather affected some fixtures earlier this week. Dave's here with

news about this weekend. The search has begun today for

Torquay United's new manager after the dismissal of Alan Knill. The

Gulls are in serious trouble lying next`to`the`bottom of the Football

League. The early contenders are former United skipper Chris

Hargreaves, currently first`team coach at Championship club

Bournemouth. But he's had talks with Northampton about becoming their new

boss. Also in the running is ex`Plymouth Argyle manager Paul

Sturrock, seen here on the right, who was sacked by Southend last

March. The third round of the FA Cup heads

the weekend's sport. Yeovil Town's tie against League One high flyers

Leyton Orient is on. Covers have been put on the Huish Park surface

and the dug outs, which were flooded on New Years Day, have dried out. It

sees the return of Russell Slade to Yeovil where he spent three years in

charge, including a League One play`off final appearance. Also on

at the moment is Plymouth Argyle's cup`tie at Port Vale on Sunday,

where the Pilgrims' loanee Keelan Lavvery misses out. Parent club

Sheffield Wednesday don't want him cup`tied. The League Two games for

Exeter City at home to Mansfield and Torquay against Morecambe are both

still on. There's a new half`back pairing for

Exeter Chiefs on Sunday at London Wasps. Dave Lewis and Henry Slade

come in for Haydn Thomas and Gareth Steenson, the latter dropping to the

bench. Chris Whitehead comes in at hooker for Jack Yeandle and James

Hanks replaces Damian Welch at lock. Tomorrow, the Cornish Pirates, sixth

in the Championship, have a real test at third`placed Rotherham

Titans, whilst Plymouth Albion also have their hands full at the

Brickfields against fourth`in`the`table Leeds.

There's been more recognition for Plymouth College Director of

Swimming and Plymouth Leander head coach Jon Rudd. He's been named the

2013 International Coach of the Year, the European Coach of the Year

and the World Coach of the Year for Junior athletes. Rudd guided

Plymouth College's Ruta Meilityte to an Olympic gold medal and the World

title last year in the 100 metre breaststroke.

Of course, the weather could have the final say in what's on and

what's off tomorrow. So my tip is to stay tuned to your BBC local radio

station and the BBC sport website. Let's hope they're all on.

Back to the story which is dominating our coverage not just

tonight but over the last few weeks ` the weather. The winds didn't

quite stir up the sea as much as first thought and conditions are

calmer but they're by no means perfect. Let's go back to John Ayres

now who's in Instow for us tonight ` how's the tide looking John? It is

almost high tide. As you can probably see, the waves are starting

to bash the sea wall. The key thing is that the floodgates hold out and

that the water doesn't rise high enough. Earlier today it did stop

that part from flooding. We will just have too weak and see what

happens. `` to wait. Don't forget you can keep up to date on the

latest weather story on your BBC website and bbc local radio.

Time for the weather. We will see some risk of coastal flooding. We

have Environment Agency flood warnings in place. If you are

concerned here is the phone number. This is the low pressure

responsible. To the south we have hefty lumps of cloud. That is what

we have seen today. You can see that this indicates the strong winds. As

we head into tomorrow, we have still got some showers on the way but the

winds are tending to these down a little. Come Sunday, we have another

low pressure system coming in. It is going to cause wet and windy

conditions. But not quite to the extent of what we have seen. These

are the showers we saw earlier today. Some rumbles of thunder and

some lightning. As we continue through this evening, there will be

gusts of up to 60 or 70 mph. It could lead to the risk of flooding.

Through the early hours the showers become organised. Quite persistent

spells of rain. Most in eight of five to seven Celsius. `` Lows

tonight. The winds are still strong for tomorrow but there will still be

some bright spells tomorrow. In the evening we will see the showers

become quite slow`moving and give us some heavy downpours. Top

temperatures of seven and eight degrees. There will be heavy showers

on the Isles of Scilly. Not quite as windy as we have seen before. Here

are the times for high water. For our surfers...

That's it. Here is the outlook. Heavy showers.

Come Sunday we have low pressure coming in. We have a mate oarfish

yellow warning in place. `` Met Office. We say it every night at the

moment but please do take care especially this weekend ` as we've

been hearing it's still looking