23/12/2017 BBC Weekend News

More than 180 people

are killed as a tropical storm

batters the Philippines.

Flash floods bring devastation

to the south of the country.

Tens of thousands are forced

to leave their homes.

A man appears in court accused

of murdering a worker at an Aldi

supermarket in front of shoppers.

And California's deadly

wildfires, now the biggest

in the state's history.

Good evening.

The authorities in the Philippines

say more than one hundred and eighty

people have been killed in floods

and landslides triggered

by a major tropical storm.

Scores of people are missing

and tens of thousands have been

forced to leave their homes.

The country's second

largest island - Mindanao -

was worst affected.

Local officials say many residents

had ignored warnings to leave

vulnerable coastal areas.

Our correspondent Andy

Moore has the latest.

Clinging to the neck of his rescuer,

a young boy is carried

across the floodwaters.

There was little sign

of official help here,

just villagers doing their best

to rescue each other

with fragile ropes.

In a country used to devastating

storms, this took many by surprise.

The authorities said too many people

had ignored warnings to leave

coastal areas and river banks.

Many of the casualties were on the

main southern island, Mindanao.

This man said houses were getting

flooded but people couldn't escape,

so they got caught in the strong

currents and swept away.

Many places were hit by landslides.

Flimsy houses were buried

beneath tonnes of debris.

The Red Cross is helping

coordinate the relief effort.

We have already provided water

and food, and we have been

distributing non-food items,

blankets, mosquito nets

and hygiene kits for those

who are in the evacuation centres

to alleviate the suffering

of many of the folks there.

The Philippines is battered

by about 20 typhoons every year.

This particular storm

is not over yet.

It's now heading towards the popular

tourist island of Palawan.

As it passes over warm,

tropical waters, its winds are set

to grow again in strength.

Andy Moore, BBC News.

A man has appeared in court charged

with the murder of a woman working

at an Aldi supermarket in North

Yorkshire.

Neville Hord, who's 44,

was remanded in custody

by magistrates in York.

Jodie Willsher was stabbed to death

in Skipton on Thursday.

Our correspondent Sarah

Walton sent this report.

Arriving at York Magistrates' Court,

44-year-old Neville Hord appeared

in the dock charged with murder.

He is accused of attacking

30-year-old Jodie Willsher

at the Aldi store in Skipton

where she was working

on Thursday afternoon.

She suffered serious injuries

and died in the store.

There were no relatives in court

this morning, and Mr Hord,

dressed in a blue T-shirt and grey

shorts, spoke only to confirm his

name, age and address.

He didn't enter a plea

and was remanded in custody.

In a statement, Mrs Willsher's

husband Malcolm said his wife always

had an amazing smile on her face

and was a doting mother

and loving wife.

At the store where Mrs Willsher

worked, colleagues have

described her as much

loved and popular.

Staff returned to the store tonight,

but the store remains closed.

People have been arriving to leave

flowers and messages

for Mrs Willsher, a popular

member of staff.

One regular shopper delivered

a card for the workers

who lost a loved colleague.

People who shop here shop regularly,

and they know the staff.

The staff are so good.

The manager is always so helpful.

It just hurts people.

Mr Hord will next appear

at Leeds Crown Court

on the 28th of December.

Sarah Walton, BBC News, York.

London Zoo has been closed today

after a fire in the early

hours of the morning.

A number of staff were treated

at the scene for smoke

inhalation and shock,

as the blaze was brought under

control by 70 firefighters.

Adina Campbell reports.

Rising flames and large plumes

of smoke were captured on social

media just before dawn.

The fire started in the Animal

Adventure cafe and then

spread to a nearby shop.

At its height, more than 70

firefighters dealt with the fire

and brought it under control

just after 9am.

One person was taken to hospital

and eight others were treated

at the scene for smoke inhalation

and minor injuries.

This is quite a complex site,

and we've had to put certain cordons

in place for people's safety,

because the building has been

so seriously damaged.

Vets at the zoo confirmed that

a nine-year-old aardvark called

Misha died in the fire.

Four missing meerkats are also

thought to have been killed.

We are all really upset by this

incident, because this is one

of our most loved animals

in the zoo, Misha and the meerkats

are also held in great affection

by all of us who work

here and by those

who love London Zoo.

For those who turned up today,

it wasn't the Christmas

visit they had hoped for.

We travelled down

from Nottingham today.

That must be disappointing.

It is a bit, but as long

as the animals are OK.

We are very disappointed,

we came from a long way,

from Brazil, to see it.

And it's closed.

And sad.

Poor animals.

Some of the staff who live on site

here were called to the scene

immediately and started moving

the animals to safety.

Today, the zoo has been closed.

It would normally have

been a very busy day,

being so close to Christmas.

Tonight, staff have confirmed

that the zoo will be open tomorrow.

Three quarters of the cafe and shop

has been affected by the fire,

as well as half the roof.

The cause is still unclear.

Adina Campbell, BBC News.

The government is considering

a new system of road charging

for heavy goods lorries.

Drivers would be charged per mile,

in a move that replaced

some existing taxes.

There are no plans for a similar

system for private cars.

California's deadly wildfire has

now become the largest

in the state's recorded history.

The blaze which has been burning

for more than two weeks has scorched

an area greater than New York City,

Brussels and Paris combined.

Among those tackling the flames

are thousands of prisoners,

some of whom have been given

a new sense of purpose by the work,

as our correspondent

James Cook reports.

It's pretty challenging.

Sometimes we're right there,

right next to the fire.

Compared to being in prison

and being here, it's

completely different.

Here you feel free.

You're out in the world.

The biggest change for me is mental,

because I've never pushed myself

as hard, ever in life.

California has 4,000 inmate

firefighters, men and women.

Cutting firebreaks is risky work,

two have died this year.

But there are rewards too in reduced

sentences and a sense of purpose.

After being in this programme,

I feel like I've been rehabilitated

and I feel like I can go out

there and achieve anything

I want to because I've done this.

This is so hard.

We were allowed inside this

prison camp in Malibu.

There are no walls or fences here.

Violent or volatile

prisoners are not allowed

to join the programme.

With a job like this, there is only

time to think about the work.

Latoya Najar is serving four years

for causing the death

of her seven-year-old son

in a drunken car crash.

The attraction for me

was because of my crime,

I could come out here

and do something positive.

It's challenging mentally

to get over something.

I'm never going to get over it,

but to try to ease my mind

and this has helped.

With California facing more frequent

and more destructive fires,

some critics call this slave labour.

But the project is voluntary,

it may reduce re-offending and it

provides some measure of redemption.

Everyone is like, "We love

you firefighters."

We all wave back and

we wave to the kids.

It's amazing, yes.

The work may be exhausting,

it may be dangerous,

but in the words of one prisoner,

"It's better than twiddling

your thumbs in jail."

James Cook, BBC News,

in Southern California.

The charity Crisis at Christmas

opened its centres to four

and a half thousand

homeless people today.

Crisis is warning that

that the number of what it describes

as 'hidden rough sleepers'

could increase by almost 50 per cent

over the next decade.

Our correspondent Anisa Kadri went

to meet some of those seeking help.

I would like to get my hat fixed if

possible.

It may look like like a trip

to the tailors, but this is a free

service for homeless people who need

to get clothing and

accessories fixed.

And it is part of Crisis

at Christmas, offering

people without a home,

warmth, company and support

over the festive period.

I have been sleeping rough and then

a Crisis guy got me into a night

shelter and the shelters are very

good, but it is more

Christmassy here.

It is a bigger wide open space,

there is more movement,

there are more people

and you have a bigger choice

of people to associate with.

All day, volunteers have been

here providing hot food and hot

drinks to the people who have been

coming to this centre

for Crisis at Christmas.

And over the next few days,

the charity expects more than 4000

people to walk through its doors

at centres like this

around the country.

It is a chance for staff to meet

people who have been sleeping rough

and give them support over

Christmas.

11,000 volunteers are taking

part over the next few

days as Crisis warns

of a growing homelessness problem.

I volunteer because I don't

celebrate Christmas myself,

so it's nice to do something

on a day when I wouldn't

be that busy anyway

and volunteering with Crisis.

It is a lot of fun and it feels

like I'm helping a lot of people.

I think the best of the volunteers.

I think they are doing a great job,

beautiful job, brilliant job,

thanks to them, there are nice

people around me, I'm very happy.

As long as I am not on the street,

I've got a roof, I've got nice food,

have got a nice dinner,

but it is not all about food

and sleep, you know.

It is all about the chance to be

myself and I hope that this

is going to be my last year and that

next year will be better.

But for now it is just about making

life a little bit easier

for homeless people over

the Christmas period.

Anisa Kadri, BBC News.

Leon Bernicoff, one of the stars

of the TV show Gogglebox has

died at the age of 83.

The retired teacher and his wife

June were one of the first couples

to join the Channel 4 programme,

when it launched in 2013.

The broadcaster said he died

in hospital after a short illness.

With all the sport -

here's Olly Foster at

the BBC Sport Centre.

Good evening, it's been a really

busy day in the Premier League,

nine games and 25 goals are coming

up on Match of the Day

after the news...

But I've got the results

for you now...

if you want them ...

Manchester City have

stretched their lead at the top

of the table to 13 points ,

their 4-nil win against

Bournemouth was their 17th

in a row in the League.

Sergio Aguero scored twice.

Second placed Manchester United

slipped up at Leicester.

It finished 2-all with

The Foxes Harry Maguire

equalising in the 94th minute.

In the other results,

Brighton beat Watford 1-0.

Spurs won 3-0 at Burnley thanks

to a Harry Kane hat-trick.

Everton-Chelsea was goalless.

Southampton drew 1-1

against Huddersfield.

There was a much needed win

for Stoke against West Brom.

Swansea are still bottom after a 1-1

draw against Palace and Newcastle

are out of the bottom three

after winning 3-2 at West Ham.

Celtic are eight points clear at

the top of the Scottish Premiership

after beating second placed

Aberdeen 3-0.

That gave Rangers the opportunity

to jump up to second

but they lost 2-1 to Kilmarnock.

One of their former

players, Kris Boyd, scored

both the Killie goals.

There were also wins

for Hibs and Partick.

The games at Motherwell

and St Johnstone were drawn.

The reigning Champions Exeter Chiefs

have opened up a big lead

in the Rugby Union Premiership.

They ran in four tries

against Northampton Saints.

Will Chudley with the first of them

at Franklin's Gardens.

The 35-14 bonus point win

see them move 11 clear

of Wasps who also won today,

as did Sale and Newcastle.

Glasgow have lost for the first time

in the Pro14 this season.

Fourteen man Edinburgh

came from behind to win

18-17 with a Chris Dean

try

in the final minute at Murrayfield.

Elsewhere, Connacht had a big

win against Ulster.

Horse racing now has a mini-break,

but will return with eight meetings

up and down the country on Boxing

Day.

Not that the work stops,

especially for the grooms.

Here's our Sports

Correspondent Joe Wilson.

The unsung human heroes of Christmas

board.

For thousands of grooms

like Jacob and Lily,

Christmas Day will always be

another working day.

Start off anywhere

between 5:00 and 6:30.

I muck out five horses.

We love the animals and myself and

Lily we have a goal of eventually

one day riding.

My dream would be to

be a professional jockey.

Boxing Day

is very important for British horse

racing because there are eight

meetings around the country. In

total in Britain there are 14,000

racehorses in training and all of

them need that day care and

attention from a professional. It is

what Ken Dooley did. He died in

October looking after a horse at

Kempton race course. The fundraising

paid in his honour reflected the

shock at his death and respect for

his life. Racing relies on the

greens, the greens, the boss at this

yard knows it.

It is cold weather. I

did it myself for years and I know

what it is like. It is where I

started as a lad and it is hard work

for not a lot of money.

This is the

reward, on an icy hillsides, grooms

riding out, exercising the horses

and imagining winners that may come

their way on this and future Boxing

days. Joe Wilson, BBC News,

Gloucestershire.

Don't forget the BBC Sport website

with much more on all those stories

but that's all your sport for now.

You can see more on all of today's

stories on the BBC News Channel.

That's all from me.

Goodnight.