08/09/2017 BBC News at One

Hurricane Irma continues to cut a trail of destruction

The massive storm caused major damage in the British Virgin Islands

overnight where a state of emergency has been declared.

All of us have been affected by Irma, some more than others.

Apart from the structural damage, there have been reports

The Prime Minister prepares to chair a Cobra meeting as RAF flights

are loaded to deliver water, rations and troops.

We'll have the latest on the British aid effort

and from our correspondents in the region.

A review of the criminal justice system in England and Wales has

found bias and discrimination in its treatment of people

from black and minority ethnic backgrounds.

Deal with the drugs, deal with the family background,

deal with the education, the anger management.

Intervene and save the system money, save the victims going

A powerful earthquake has struck the southern coast of Mexico,

The 13-year-old girl whose organs were donated after her death has

transformed more lives than any other organ

Can Chris Froome add the Vuelta Espana title to his Tour

Coming up in the sport on BBC News: England lost Dawid Malan by the time

rain stopped play on the second day of the deciding Test

Good afternoon and welcome to the BBC News at One.

At least 14 people have been killed and more than a million people have

been affected by the destruction wrought by Hurricane Irma as it

Millions of people are still under threat.

The massive storm - one of the most powerful Atlantic

hurricanes ever recorded - was over Haiti yesterday and caused

widespread damage in the British Virgin Islands overnight.

Cuba is the next major country in its path -

it's due to hit the island later today.

Irma is then expected to make landfall in

In our first report, Jon Donnison has the latest

on the destruction across the region.

Hurricane Irma is proving to be relentless.

The British territory of the Turks and Caicos Islands among the latest

The wind has dropped but only slightly, still

This was the moment Irma passed over the British Virgin Islands.

And this is what is left in its wake.

The major warning was when a skylight was blown off of our roof.

You could hear the winds blasting through the upstairs

of our house and at that moment, you thought the roof might go.

That was the warning to get the hell downstairs into the basement,

the most secure part of the building.

A state of emergency has now been declared.

All of us have been affected by Irma, some more than others.

Alongside the damage, there have sadly been reports

My thoughts and prayers are with each and every one of you.

Viewed from space, Irma looks almost serene but at 400 miles wide,

it's massive and it is now heading west to Cuba.

There, people are doing what they can to secure their homes

TRANSLATION: Look at the state of the houses that people have here

and you will realise the magnitude of the hurricane.

What really worries me is that it will take the whole roof away.

Just north in the Bahamas they have also been getting ready

People have been stockpiling fuel and food.

Hurricane Irma has already left a trail of destruction

The island of St Martin is one of the worst affected areas. Dutch

troops are on the streets to try to maintain

order:. The Red Cross says 1.2 million

people have already been affected and that that figure could rise

to 29 million by the end of the weekend when the storm's

due to hit Florida. There, 7,000 National Guard have

been brought in to help, with the National Weather Service

warning large parts of the state could be left uninhabitable

for weeks or even months. With a storm surge of up to three

metres expected, half a million people have taken to the roads after

being ordered to leave their homes. Two days after Hurricane Irma first

hit land, the worst could still be to come. And another storm, Jose, is

sweeping in from the Atlantic. The fringes of the storm have

already begun to hit Cuba. The sense seems to be it will get

worse where you are later in the day. That's right, Jane. It's been

another anxious 24 hours for Cubans, they've had to watch this storm

gradually get closer and see the destruction that it's wrought across

the Caribbean in its path towards them, it's been an unsettling time

here on the island. We have seen the authorities here evacuate large

parts of the east of the island and the northern coastline, that's

obviously where a lot of tourists are based too, because of course

people are heading to the low-lying coastal zones, that's where resorts

are and so on. There has been an effort to bring them here to other

bigger cities. At this stage it's beginning to turn into a crossing

your fingers and praying situation. People are getting together with

families, schools have obviously been cancelled for the day. We have

just heard as well that flights out of Cuba have been cancelled with the

state-run aviation companies. A precarious situation here in Cuba

and people waiting and watching. Thank you very much. Let's hear more

about the situation in the Bahamas. Our correspondent Nick Bryant

reports from the Bahamas Overnight this monster storm hit the

Turks and Caicos and now it is starting to hit the Bahamas as well.

No longer category five, category four but it still packs winds of

over 150mph and brings the storm surges 20 feet high. Five low-lying

Islands here are particularly under threat which is why they've mounted

the biggest evacuation operation in its history, hundreds brought here

to the capital Nassau. It seems especially cruel that they are being

hit again, less than 12 months ago they were pulled by hurricane

Matthew. The Prime Minister will chair

an emergency Cobra meeting this afternoon to discuss the response

to Hurricane Irma. The Royal Navy delivered aid and

three flights took off this morning taking marines and engineers.

Another will leave RAF Brize Norton later

It comes amid criticism that the UK hasn't responded

Duncan Kennedy reports from RAF Brize Norton.

The loading operation at Brize Norton included tents, water and

medical supplies. 30 loads at first, with more to come. Everything from

ready made meals to an industrial fridge unit. Around 70 Royal Marines

are also on board with a range of skills and experience of working in

disaster areas. The base commander rejects claims Britain has been slow

to respond. It's very important that we understand the effects of the

hurricane, where is open to us, where we can get to safely and

that's what we have been doing the past 24 hours. Now we are ready to

make the right judgments about where they can deliver that aid and we

will do that as quickly as possible. The French have already established

a base and its operation seems more advanced. British Naval helicopters

have been in Anguilla working off a Navy auxiliary vessel but it's the

speed of Britain's input that's been criticised today. What we definitely

need to see is a sustainable, if not continued and permanent commitment

to support the development of Anguilla, at present, we have had

precious little support of significant quantities and we need

that now. Britain says it has responded as rapidly as possible.

And is now offering more than ?30 million of help. The fact is we had

a Royal Naval vessel in the region because we knew the hurricane was

coming. This is hurricane season. In fact, we are always prepared. This

is one of a number of RAF jets heading to the region. In all there

will be something like 300 Royal Marines on the ground over the space

of the next two or three days. Even when they arrive there, no one is

fully clear yet what their operational role is going to be and

where they can get to. The race to get help to the people

of the Caribbean now involves operations from more than a dozen

countries. The Government is also sending

longer term relief aid to the Caribbean from the UK Aid

disaster relief stockpile in Kemble in Gloucestershire

and Phil Mackie is there for us. What's happening there, Phil? It's

been very busy here, Jane. This vast hangar is filled with aid material,

you can see pallets ready to be loaded. I think that's the third

lorry load we have seen this morning. All kinds of stuff here,

from vehicles, even a mobile field hospital. This is what's going out

to the Caribbean. These pallets contain this sort of equipment, for

instance, portable lanterns that can be charged using this, it uses solar

power. But, you can use that to charge up your phone and probably

most importantly of all, this little water container. You power in the

water and it comes out clean, filtered and drinkable at the end.

This is run by Difod, you heard the Secretary of State talking in that

report about the effort going on, they've obviously been criticised.

They're saying originally this was going to go out to Gibraltar to be

loaded on to HMS Ocean which might mean it didn't reach the Caribbean

for at least a week or so. Now they've charter flights. Three lorry

loads will be getting to the Caribbean in the next couple of

days. They've said shelter kits have already arrived on Anguilla and are

about to be delivered to the British Virgin Islands and it's doubled its

presence and they've promised it's not short-term relief t will be

long-term relief planned for the British territories which have

suffered because of Hurricane Irma. Thank you.

The storm has already had a deadly impact across the Caribbean.

Matt Taylor from the BBC weather centre is here to talk us

through what the next few days have in store.

Yes, certainly not done yet. As you heard, the recent areas to feel the

wrath of Hurricane Irma have been low-lying areas of Turks and Caicos

and the southern Bahamas. These are low-lying areas, nothing to stop the

path of that raging storm as it goes across. Nothing to hinder its

progress. It has weakened a little to category four but still winds of

over 150mph. And they could still strengthen over the days. It's

continued to push west wards, it may clip the northern portion of Cuba.

The crucial thing could be where the eye of that storm is. The strongest

of the winds. If it remains over open waters it will maintain

strength. The water is key to keeping the ingredients there for

that storm to maintain its strength. We need temperatures over 27 degrees

for hurricanes to last. All the yellow colours where we have that,

notice in around Cuba and also Florida, the orange colours,

temperatures are above 30 at the moment. As it moves over that there

could be potentially further strengthening. Into the weekend it's

for the storm to take a sudden northern track, pushing in somewhere

between Key West and Miami and piling across the entire length of

Florida, perhaps dropping up to 350 millimetres of rain. The residents

of Florida are rightly concerned, the last category five storm to hit

was a devastating one. The strongest and most devastating storm in

Florida's history, hurricane Andrew, the warnings may have improved,

building methods may have improved but people fear devastation could be

on power - on par with that. Katia could push into Mexico through this

weekend and also the devastated island of Barbuda could get that as

well. Miami, all eyes are there in the Caribbean. Thank you very much.

To Miami now. As we've been hearing,

Florida is bracing itself for the storm's impact over

the weekend and more than half a million people have been ordered

to leave their homes in the state The head of the federal emergency

agency there has said the storm will devastate the United States.

CBS correspondent Meg Oliver is in Miami.

What's happening there, Meg? Jane, the director of Fema also said he

can guarantee that nobody in Florida has ever experienced anything like

Irma. As you can imagine, ominous words. People are doing their best

to prepare, this gas station is boarded up, it's still open and they

have some supplies but they have run out of gas along with the other gas

station across the street and several other stations throughout

the area. Meantime, people lucky enough to fill up with gas after

waiting in long lines yesterday are now trying to outrun this terrifying

storm. Miami's mayor called it a nuclear hurricane. Today, is the

final day, preparations need to be made and people need to evacuate if

they have been ordered to do so. They're also asking if you have

family or friends in Florida and you can go there to be safe, that's a

better option. They really are discouraging people from getting on

the highways any later than right now. We know that shelters have

started to open up and people are flooding those shelters. They're

asking them to bring three days' worth of food and water. This is

going to be a catastrophic, epic storm. We have no idea what the

aftermath is going to look like. They are going to need supplies.

Thank you very much. You can keep up-to-date with all the

elements surrounding Hurricane Irma. There is lots of background,

information and maps on the BBC website.

Now we'll take a look at the rest of the main stories this lunchtime.

A review of the criminal justice system in England and Wales has

found bias and discrimination in its treatment of people

from black and minoirty ethnic backgrounds.

The inquiry, commissioned by the government and led

by the Labour MP David Lammy, raises particular concerns

The report calls for some prosecutions to be dropped,

if suspects complete a drug or alcohol rehabilitation programme.

Noel Williams was 11 when he first got involved in gangs.

By the age of 13, he was in for robberies and drug

A lot of bullying goes on, and as we say,

a lack of prison staff, so they don't really pick

If they're not cutting their arm, they are trying to kill themselves.

He has now turned his life around but

believes race and ethnicity play a part in how you are treated and

punished within the criminal justice system.

And if you look at the sort of sentences that we

get, they are longer, harsher, and people are coming out not

Sometimes they're coming out and reoffending at a more

accelerated rate than their counterparts.

The Lammy Review makes a number of key

recommendations, which include allowing some prosecutions to be

deferred and possibly dropped if a treatment programme for issues

such as drug or alcohol problems is

Removing identifying information about

ethnicity when cases are passed from police to prosecutors so racial

bias doesn't influence charging decisions.

And not declaring criminal records for minor offences

I am very concerned about the youth justice

system, and that's the pipeline into our adult

very, very serious that the figures are quite as bad as they are.

I'm very worried about our prison system, where I do think there are

still prisons where it is clear that there is an overt discrimination

going on, and some of the treatment is just unacceptable.

The Government says it will look very carefully at

What struck me about the report too was the reality

that very large numbers of British people from our black and

ethnic minority communities lack confidence in the criminal justice

It's one of the largest reviews of its kind in highlights

that radical reform is urgently needed to bring fairness to the

Hurricane Irma continues to cut a trail of destruction

At least 14 people have been killed and a million affected.

And still to come: It's been a frustrating morning at Lord's,

but can England's cricketers recover from a bad start with the bat

Coming up in sport: Fifa are to investigate

Tottenham's Dele Alli after TV pictures showed he made an offensive

gesture during England's 2-1 win over Slovakia on Monday.

The midfielder said it was just a joke.

A 13-year-old girl who died from a brain aneurysm has helped

a record eight different people, including five children,

Jemima Layzell, from Somerset, who died in 2012, donated her heart,

pancreas, lungs, kidneys, small bowel and liver.

Jemima's parents said she was clever, compassionate

and creative, and would have been very proud of her legacy.

This is Jemima, the 13-year-old who, after she died, transformed more

In 2012, she collapsed while preparing for

Four days later, Jemima died from a brain

It was only recently that staff at NHS Blood and Transplant

Her organs were donated into eight different people.

No one else in the UK has helped that many through organ

Jemima's parents say they are extremely proud of their

She has saved the lives of eight others, but she's also helping other

families with brain injury through her charity.

I think she'd be completely overwhelmed.

She would think it was extraordinary, and I

don't think she could quite believe it.

She was quite a modest person, and to think that everyone was

talking about her, she'd be a real mix

of embarrassed and proud at the

Last year, 456 people died waiting for a transplant,

There are currently 6414 people on the

There are thousands of people waiting for a

If you would be willing to accept an organ, you should be

willing to donate, and that's what we're

asking people to consider and

then make that decision that they will support organ donation.

Jemima's parents say their sure she would be proud of her legacy.

They hope other families will be encouraged to talk about organ

donation and sign up to the register.

At least 20 people have been killed after an earthquake with a magnitude

The quake, which the president described as the strongest to hit

the country in the past 100 years, struck just off the Pacific coast,

shaking buildings in the capital, Mexico City, hundreds of miles away.

The tremor is reported to have lasted about a minute.

Mexico is a country used to earthquakes, but not of this

This was a bowling alley in the southern state of Chiapas.

600 miles away, in Mexico City, the tremors lasted

Some people left buildings, preferring to stay outside on the

Many could still remember the last massive earthquake in 1985,

I was a child when this earthquake in 1985 happened,

and this was the biggest one, and it was pretty violent.

A lot of panic scenes on the street, and in my

building also, so really, this earthquake was something huge.

As pictures start to emerge from the worst hit areas, the death

The fear is there may be more to come.

TRANSLATION: So far, there have been 65

However, it's possible that over the next 24 hours

we could see a shock that is as strong as the earthquake.

The epicentre was 40 miles down, just

Tsunami warnings have been issued to surrounding countries.

In Mexico itself, as daylight arrived, the

extent of the damage will become all too clear.

The UN has called for urgent action to end the recent surge

The Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai says her fellow peace prize winner

Aung San Suu Kyi should do more to protect the Rohingya Muslims

fleeing the ethnic violence in the region.

The UNHCR estimates that more than a quarter of a million people

have sought refuge in neighbouring Bangladesh in the past two weeks.

The population of two refugee camps at Cox's Bazar,

near the border with Bangladesh, has more than doubled

in a fortnight, with 70,000 people setting up camp there.

Sanjoy Majumder is there and sent us this update.

Those are relief trucks bringing in aid for the Rohingya refugees,

mostly local volunteers, but some international groups as well -

food, medicines, some have been distributing clothes.

And it is for those people here, the latest batch

Because there is no space anymore left in

the camps, they're just sitting by the side of the road.

If you come over here, you can see that they're

even cooking a meal just here in this temporary kitchen

Now, it's been raining overnight, so conditions are really,

There's so much mud and water everywhere, and you

can see women and children just sitting here, absolutely no

protection, just by the side of this busy road.

Now, over the last 24 hours, 18,000 new refugees have come

in, and the situation is becoming close to a crisis point.

I've been travelling up and down this road for

the past seven days, and I've never seen it so crowded.

It's getting to a point where Bangladesh's prime

minister said yesterday, she wants pressure

take all these people back home, back to where they belong.

Sanjoy Majumder on the Myanmar-Bangladesh border.

The Democratic Unionist Party says one of its MPs, Ian Paisley,

has 'rightly' referred himself to the Parliamentary

The Daily Telegraph claims he failed to declare tens of thousands

of pounds in hospitality from the Sri Lankan Government.

Ian Paisley said the article was 'devoid of fact or logic'.

BBC Northern Ireland's political editor Mark Devenport is in Belfast.

Explain more about this, Mark. The front page story on the daily

Telegraph today was about Ian Paisley, North Antrim MP and son of

the late founder of the Democratic Unionist Party. It is said he took

himself and his family to Sri Lanka on two separate holidays in 2013,

all expenses paid by the Sri Lankan Government. When you added the

business lights, helicopter flights and hotels together, it came to

around ?100,000 in hospitality which had not been declared in the MPs'

register of interest. Ian Paisley responded first by social media and

then via a letter from his lawyer, saying this story was devoid of

logic and fact and he would be referring himself to the

Parliamentary Commissioner for standards. The DUP, who play a vital

role in Westminster at the moment, propping up the Conservative

Government, saying they think he has made the right move and they are

looking forward to the outcome of the investigation by the standards

Commissioner. Mark Devonport, thank you.

After cycling more than 2000 miles in three weeks,

Britain's Chris Froome is on course to become only the third man

to complete the Vuelta a Espana and Tour de France double

The four-time Tour winner leads the race by a minute and 37 seconds

with two competitive stages to go ahead of Sunday's

Thed behind the handlebars - Chris Froome within touching distance of a

remarkable double. Not for nearly 40 years has a cyclist won the tours of

France and Spain in one summer, a total of 4200 miles in barely two

months, perhaps the ultimate feat of endurance. Wearing the leader's red

jersey, Froome is on the road to glory. He began yesterday's stayed

with a lead of one minute, supported by a phalanx of Team Sky riders

coming he set about extending it. He had struggled earlier in the week,

but this time he found another gear, powering across the line with his

nearest rival trailing behind him. It means Froome now has a commanding

lead, and he says the help of his team-mates has been crucial. They

have been amazing the last three weeks, and they have always been

there for me when I have a tough days, and on better days like today,

they were there to increase the pace. Nice to increase my lead by 21

seconds. That quite significant and I might need every second I can get.

If Froome can hold on, he will join a highly select group. Only two men

have ever won the tours of France and Spain in one year. For Froome,

it would cement his status among the true greats of his sport. Two tours,

two titles, one extraordinary athlete. Andy Swiss, BBC News.

It's been a frustrating morning at Lord's, with rain delaying much

of the morning's play in the decisive third Test match

There was just enough play for England to lose a wicket,

Our sports correspondent Joe Wilson is at Lord's for us

There is a reason why cricket isn't played in the autumn. This Test

match is stretching the season. But the play we see is fascinating -

England batting, trying to seize any moments they had vital time for the

aspiring Dawid Malan. Yes, I can do this. At the crease here, maybe the

world's best all-round cricketer. Ben Stokes batting. And perhaps it

was his growing stature that drew the Prime Minister to laws. Stay

prepared for anything. Suddenly, Malan's innings was over. England

were five wickets down, and the drizzle turned heavy. Even if the

West Indies captain would try to ignore it, where I YouGov in?

England's batsmen sought the chance to leave before any more damage was

done. Remember, West Indies only scored 423 in their first innings,

but with England 50 runs behind, every run will be crucial when the

rain relents. Joe Wilson, BBC News, at Lord's.

Let's find out about that. Matt has rejoined me.

Low pressure is nearby, so expect to see more scenes like this. There are

some gaps between the clouds. The cloud across the South is bringing

longer spells of rain this afternoon. Heavy rain, too. North

and west of that, some sunshine between the showers. Always a bit

more cloud in Northern Ireland and southern Scotland. Temperature wise,

disappointing for an early September. Barely getting into the

high teens. The rain in the south-east corner cleared away

tonight. Showers continue in western areas tonight, with the breeze.

Central parts drier, but also cooler, temperatures down into

single figures. You might get to see scenes like this across the northern

half of the UK. Into the weekend, it starts on a cool note. Showers and

rain at times, and it will turn increasingly windy as well. A

weekend to choose your plans carefully. Saturday will bring a

story of sunshine and showers. The showers are most prevalent across

parts of England and Wales. Slow-moving showers in northern

England and parts of the Midland, so lengthy downpours for people there.

Scotland and Northern Ireland, a slightly better day tomorrow than

today. A brief ridge of high pressure to get us through Saturday

night into a chilly start on Sunday. More weather fronts gathering.

Outbreaks of rain will spread from west to east. Feeling cool once

again. By the end of the day, we could see gales across the West as

we finish Sunday, potentially severe gales to start the week on Monday.

That's all from the BBC News at One, so it's goodbye from me.