24/08/2016 BBC News at Six

More than 70 people are killed as a powerful earthquake

The tremor happened overnight as people were sleeping,

rescue teams are searching amid the destruction for survivors.

There's a rescue going on in the rubble there,

you can see right now they are bringing out

With the full extent of casualties still emerging,

we'll bring you the latest from the scene.

Three people have died after being pulled from the sea

Scientists make a new planetary discovery -

it could potentially have the right conditions to harbour life.

The row over Jeremy Corbyn's claims he couldn't find a train seat -

he says he needed two seats, for himself and his wife.

And the world's largest aircraft - the Airlander 10 is damaged after

England's first ODI against Pakistan is underway.

Azhar Ali made 82 before being caught off the

At least 73 people are feared dead after a powerful earthquake struck

A major rescue operation is still underway as the search

The epicentre was near the town of Norcia in Umbria,

The tremor was strong enough to be felt along the entire

Among the worst-hit places were the towns of Amatrice

and Accumoli, and the village of Pescara del Tronto,

said by the local mayor to no longer exist,

Our correspondent James Reynolds is in Amatrice.

Rita, this is one of the most idyllic places in Italy. At 3:36am

this morning, and that ended. Deep in the mountains, a piece of

Italy has been destroyed. The residents of amatory check, about to

celebrate a summer festival, where hitter as they slept. Through piles

of rubble, rescue workers tried to find survivors. We have made it to

the centre of Amatrice. There is a rescue going on in the rubble there.

You can see, right now they are bringing out someone on a stretcher.

Is she alive? It looks like she is, which will be a huge relief to the

workers here. The woman, is being escorted down to an ambulance

waiting for her there. We also saw rescuers carry away a number of dead

bodies, including that of a small child. Many survivors were barely

able to talk. It is hard to comprehend how your town can fall

down in just moments. TRANSLATION: There is nothing left

standing. I am so sorry for so many people that are under the rubble.

They are people I love. I am so sorry, I hope they are safe. Another

village was also hit. And here, an official talks to Warren who is

trapped. Can you breathe, he asks her? Only a little bit, she replies.

Stay calm commie he tells, we will come to get you.

In Amatrice, Sister Marianna told us she was pulled from the wreckage of

the convent. Some of her fellow sisters are still trapped. When I

realised what happened I tried to hide myself underneath the bed. Then

I went outside to ask for help. But no one heard me. This region is

vulnerable to earthquakes, but no one expected this. From above, the

devastation of Amatrice is clear. The town, barely stands. The injured

are treated outside. It is too dangerous to take them inside

Amatrice's damaged hospital. For those worst hit, what remains? Their

homes, their lives have collapsed around them.

Today's earthquake isn't the first to hit the region,

Italy has for decades been prone to similar devastating tremors.

It's vulnerable because of the collision between the African

and Eurasian tectonic plates, which are pushing into each other.

That process is ongoing, the plates continue to move

The sea which lies to the west of the country is opening up

and that's pulling apart the Apennines, the belt of mountains

that runs down through central Italy.

The region has seen a large number of deadly quakes -

L'Aquila in 2009, in which 300 people died.

In 1908, it is thought as many 70,000 were killed

when a 7.2-magnitude tremor flattened Messina in Sicily.

The main cause of death during earthquakes is falling buildings.

This was the main street in Amatrice before today.

We expect old buildings to fail, but after the 2009 quake,

the authorities were really concerned that many modern

They'll be looking to see whether reinforcements worked here.

Let's go back now to our correspondent

James, what is the latest? We have been asked to speak very quietly at

the moment because relief workers in that building behind me are calling

out to see if there are any survivors. The sister in the TV

piece we have just played suggests some people maybe still trapped and

they have asked us to be as quiet as possible. The priority is finding

those survivors. A fireman said they expect to be here for a week. People

can survive in basements after an earthquake for that amount of time.

There will be another priority, and that is finding somewhere to live

the people who are not just homeless, but don't have a town any

more. Then there will be serious questions why some buildings here

stayed up and buy some went down. Did everything obey the building

code. But the moment, as you can see, the priority is finding

survivors. James, thank you. Three men have died

after being pulled from the sea at Camber Sands Emergency teams

were called to the East Sussex beach where the three were pulled

from the water in the space Coastguard helicopters, a lifeboat,

rescue teams and an air ambulance were sent to the scene after reports

the three were in need As you may have seen, this is one of

the most popular beaches on the south coast on one of the hottest

days of the year so far. The emergency services got a call just

after two o'clock that three people were in trouble. There was a big

response by the coastguard and they sent two surge rescue helicopters,

an air ambulance and two lifeboats. Police went up and down the beach

with loudspeakers telling people to get out of the water. Last month

there was a similar incident on the same beach. Again, three men were

rescued and a 19-year-old Brazilian man later died in hospital. At the

time, the police blamed changing tides. That is the problem, it is

shelving and a sandy beach and appears very inviting, but local

people say you can get in trouble with riptides. After the last death,

there was a petition and hundreds of people signed it saying there should

be lifeguards on this beach. Thank you.

A 21 year-old British woman has been stabbed to death at a backpackers'

She's been named as Mia Ayliffe-Chung,

An unnamed 30 year-old British man was severely injured in the attack

Police say the suspect, who's 29 and from France,

shouted "Allahu Akbar" meaning God is Greatest during the attack

This is Mia just a few days ago on her way to work

She was the girl who was always smiling and full of life.

One friend said, the bubbliest and most caring girl she knew.

She was spending a year backpacking in Australia.

It was at the hostel where she was staying where her life

Another Briton, 30-year-old Thomas Jackson from Cheshire,

was also seriously injured, and a dog was killed.

A 29-year-old French national has been arrested.

Police say they are investigating an act of individual criminal

behaviour that is unrelated to race or religion,

It is alleged that the suspect used the phrase "Allahu Akbar"

during the attack and when arrested by police.

Whilst this information will be factored into the investigation,

were not ruling out any motivations at this early stage, whether they be

Mia Ayliffe-Chung grew up here in Derbyshire.

One of her best friends told us they used to cry with laughter.

She was very exciting to be around, there was never a dull

She thought about things very deeply and we would talk for hours

And really over-analysing, but she used to make me laugh.

Tomorrow pupils will come here to get their results,

Their thoughts with the family of a former pupil.

One teacher I spoke to said Mia was loved by both staff and students

and that she left here with a very strong group of friends.

She was a bubbly student, I think it's fair to say.

And she was energetic and caring and she involved herself

in all activities that the school provided.

And she enriched the environment that she took part in.

Our thoughts are with her family and friends at what can only be

described as the most difficult of times.

Mia's Australian ex-boyfriend remembered her as a beautiful soul

who had fallen in love with his country, and its people.

Sophie Long, BBC News, Wirksworth in Derbyshire.

A serving member of the British armed forces has been arrested

on suspicion of terrorism linked to Northern Ireland.

The 30-year-old was held in Somerset today -

and police said a house in South Devon, and a wooded area

In Northern Ireland police have also been searching a number

Our correspondent Chris Buckler is there for us now.

What or are the police telling you? This investigation is taking place

on both sides. But detectives say it is linked to the discovery of

weapons here in Larne. On the outskirts of the town be found

bomb-making material and two months later in a forest, they found a

number of weapons, in what police described at the time as one of the

most significant arms find in years. There were, piercing rockets. Police

have been searching some of the homes behind me and they have taken

a number of items away. They have been searching in South Devon. They

have searched a house as well as a wooded area. It follows the arrest

of a 30-year-old man at lunchtime today. The BBC understands he is

from this town and is serving as a Royal Marine in the West Country.

But there has been a short statement from the Ministry of Defence. They

say they are aware of a police investigation and the arrest of a

member of the Armed Forces and they know it is understood he is being

questioned on suspicion four axle preparation for terrorism.

The Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has defended himself after Virgin Trains

questioned his claim that he couldn't find

a seat on a service from London to Newcastle.

Mr Corbyn had said he was forced to sit on the floor,

after which Virgin released video appearing to show him

Mr Corbyn said today he'd needed two seats, for himself and his wife.

Our political correspondent Ben Wright reports.

He claimed it was a ram-packed train after walking through a carriage

So why didn't Jeremy Corbyn sit down after first boarding the 11am

Today at the launch of his NHS policy unwanted questions

I'm very well aware we live in a free country, I'm very proud

to live in a free country, as are you.

To his obvious irritation Mr Corbyn was quizzed about his

Yes, I did look for two empty seats together so I could sit down

This is what riled Virgin Trains and kicked off the row.

Jeremy Corbyn was filmed sitting on the floor because he said there

wasn't an empty seat. After 45 minutes, Mr Corbyn's party were

treated by trained staff. His campaign manager insisted they had

played it straight. He is a man of integrity and principle. But he has

conceded himself, he could have had a seat immediately on the train if

he had wanted one for himself. If there had been seat available, he

would have gone and sat in those seats. He walked through, didn't

think there were any seats available. He wanted to sit with his

wife. The train crew apologised for the fact there weren't any seats. On

today's 11 o'clock departure from King's Cross to Newcastle, there

were plenty of unreserved seats free and some support for Mr Corbyn.

There are many times this train is jam-packed and no place to sit. It

has been like that in the evening, but never during the day. There are

so many bigger things going on in the world. But the leadership rivals

was clear to stare the row. What is clear he had a seat on the train, he

chose to sit on the floor for the purposes of the video. This argument

may have caused Mr Corbyn some discomfort, but a bust up with a

private train company may fire up his supporters.

Our top story this evening: More than 70 people have been killed

and many more are missing, after a powerful earthquake

And still to come: How the world's largest flying machine has ended up

crashing on its second UK test flight.

Coming up in Sportsday on BBC News: Joe Hart could start

at the Etihad tonight, as Manchester City look

to seal their place in the Champions League group stages.

They play Steaua Bucharest, leading 5-0 from the first leg.

Scientists are hailing a major discovery, a new planet

At just four light years away, it's relatively close to us.

It's roughly the same size as Earth, and because it is just the right

distance away from its star, it could be the right temperature

to have liquid water and possibly life.

Our Science Editor David Shukman has the details.

In the dazzling beauty of the skies above Chile,

telescopes have focused on the pinprick of light coming

And they've made a stunning discovery.

They found an alien world orbiting around it.

No one has seen the planet directly, but researchers know

it is there because of tiny movements in the star.

It is a huge moment in the exploration of space.

This is the nearest planet that potentially can have life.

And can be in a sense similar to our own planet.

There are hundreds of planets being discovered now every month.

This happened once, it will not happen again.

It is hard to grasp distance in space and where this newly found

But gaze beyond our solar system to the next nearest star,

Proxima Centauri, and that is 24 trillion miles away.

It sounds a lot, but in space terms, it is our neighbour.

That is where a planet has been discovered orbiting around it.

And the reason scientists are so excited is that this alien

world is the closest there is outside our own solar system.

And although its star is much cooler than our sun,

the planet is in just the right zone for liquid water

And that means that in theory, it could support life.

Telescopes around the world will now be deployed to find out more.

This really changes, I think, our perception of how many habitable

And it means that the prospect for alien life elsewhere

in the galaxy look a lot more rosy than they did last week.

Reaching the planet with the spacecraft we have

now would take tens of thousands of years.

There is a plan, backed by Stephen Hawking, for far more

And that project now has a tangible goal to aim for.

In the meantime, it will be astronomers who hunt

for clues about our nearest neighbour in deep space.

New figures show that Scotland's deficit was almost ?15 billion

That's half a billion higher than the previous year.

Our Scotland Editor Sarah Smith is in Glasgow for us.

What do these figures tell us? Well, they tell us what a dramatic effect

of the fork in the oil price has had on the public purse. Revenue raised

from the North Sea is down by 97% and last year 's got on's share of

that revenue was ?60 million. That has been offset by earnings

elsewhere, but it still leaves Scotland's spending substantially

more public money than it raises in taxes. Scotland is running a

notional deficit of 9.5% of GDP which is high when you compare it to

the UK total which is 4%. This does not mean the Scottish government has

to slash public spending. Their budget is not determined by how much

taxes raised. It allows their political opponents to seize on

these figures and say, this shows a Scotland benefit economically from

being part of the UK and if Scotland were to become independent, it would

be struggling with a large deficit. That matters at the moment because

the first Minister Nicola Sturgeon said she is considering whether to

call a second referendum on independence. She responded saying

it was not independent that was a threat to the economy, it was

Brexit. She produced statistics that show Brexit could cost the economy

up to ?11 million a year and she says that is what is damaging, not

the prospect of an independent Scotland.

Turkish tanks have crossed into Syria, and have been attacking

forces of self-styled Islamic State, helped by aircraft from

Turkey says it wants to drive IS from the border region,

but it also admits its forces are attacking Kurdish militants

Pictures have emerged of French police appearing to force a Muslim

woman to remove clothes on a beach in Nice.

They're fuelling an ongoing debate about the controversial ban on full

Rights groups have called the ban divisive.

The highest court in France is due to rule on it tomorrow.

Nigel Farage is to speak at a rally in Mississippi later with the US

presidential candidate Donald Trump. Sources close to him say he is not

endorsing the controversial Republican nominee, but he plans to

tell supporters at the antiestablishment candidate can beat

the establishment, following his long-term campaign victory to leave

long-term campaign victory to leave the European Union.

An 87-year-old man who shot his wife at a care home has been

sentenced to six years in a secure psychiatric hospital.

Ronald King was cleared of murder after the judge directed the jury

to accept a plea of manslaughter by diminished responsibility.

His wife Rita King was shot at De La Mer House care home

Our correspondent Ellie Price reports.

They'd been married for more than 50 years, but in December last year,

Ronald King decided his 81-year-old wife Rita, who had dementia,

He decided to move into this care home over Christmas so that he could

Then, a couple of days after Boxing Day, he shot her.

I could see Ron with a gun in his hand, but he still had his

And I managed to get my hand on top of the gun

And I just said, "Please, Ron, please, please, let go of this gun.

Ronald King used this gun - a World War II revolver that had

The court heard the couple had breakfast together in the care

home's dining room before he took her into the lounge area.

In front of two other elderly residents, he shot her once

He then kissed her on the lips and said goodbye.

He says that is when he knew she was at peace. Then he said he planned to

turn the gun on himself but could not do it.

You know, unbelieving, really, that something like that

And how could a man shoot his own wife?

Ronald died in reaching his responsibility for the killing, but

not entirely. The judge made it clear in his summing up today that

he understood what his acts involved and he knew that he had killed her.

It will come to that responsibility. The judge accepted Ronald King had

been a devoted husband, but insisted this was not a mercy killing. He

will start his six-year sentence in hospital and then be moved to prison

if his health improves. The world's largest aircraft has

crashed on its second test flight in the UK.

Airlander 10, which is 302 feet long, is part plane,

It was damaged at its base at Cardington Airfield,

Our transport correspondent Richard Westcott reports.

The world's largest aircraft takes a long time to crash.

Almost in slow motion, the pilot can't stop it

The cockpit with the crew up front is clearly smashed up.

For Angela, an enthusiast who shot this footage,

Because you know, well you don't know if the people in there have

If the ground crew are OK, just didn't know.

Very shaken afterwards, I mean, I did shake when I was holding

the camera trying to get the pictures of them,

And I did say if anyone can hold it steadier than me,

It went very quiet, the other people stood here went very quiet.

Eyewitnesses here told me they saw sparks coming from the mooring rope

But I understand that's not connected to the crash.

There was no chance of a fireball because the Airlander is full

of inert helium gas, not the explosive hydrogen gas

of the famous old airships like the Hindenburg.

You might think airships are old technology, but many believe

Using a third less fuel than a normal aeroplane, and able

to stay in the air for days, they can carry huge cargoes

This accident is an embarrassing setback on just its second test

flight but the company says Airlander should fly again soon.

There it is sitting forlornly on the airfield. You can see they have

covered up the cockpit and there are British and on the skin of the

aircraft. It is actually nearly three times longer than the very

first flight by the Wright brothers. Now the work begins to find out why

it crashed and to get it back up in the air again.

It has been the hottest day of the year so far.

Yes, very hot, but not for all. In Suffolk and can we got up to 34

Celsius, making it the hottest day so far. Across Northern Ireland

there was plenty of sunshine, as there was in Scotland. For many of

us it was much more comfortable at 19. We have got the fresh air in the

West and the hot air in the east and in between a weather front and

recently cloud has got sicker. It is moving steadily northwards overnight

and you might get woken up by a flash of lightning or hear a rumble

of thunder. It is another warm and humid night. Tomorrow we will be

chasing around the thunderstorms and the heat from recent days is

providing the energy for potentially some lively downpours. We could see

more persistent rain developing in northern England with thunderstorms

thrown in. Under that band of rain temperature struggled to get up to

14 or 15. It is a fine day for Scotland and Northern Ireland, still

some warmth in the South East, but not as hot as today. Still warm in

the south-east corner on Friday with maybe some showers and there will be

showers in the West, but for most Friday is a very pleasant day and we

have lost the humidity. Will it last into the weekend? It is a bank

holiday except in Scotland. Not exactly. There will be heavy rain

around, but not all of us will see it. There will be some warmth before

things turn drier but cooler on Monday. Our main story: At least 120

people have been killed and many more are missing in an earthquake

that hit a mountainous area of central Italy.

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