09/01/2014 BBC Oxford News

George. Thank you. That's all so it's goodbye from me and on BBC One

The Hello and welcome to South Today from Oxford. In tonight's

programme: Forced out of their homes by flooding. The people who have

chosen to leave rather than face rising water levels. Meanwhile,

other residents are stuck in their houses. Their village has been cut

off by the floods with no way in or out, without a boat. Also tonight:

Defying expectations over rare debilitating condition. The woman

told she would be housebound and in a wheelchair but who is now at

university, hoping to become a doctor. And later on: Berries, close

and even red sky at night. Are they just old wives' tales, or reliable

indicators of the weather? `` cows. Good evening. 20 people have now

moved out of their homes in Oxford and into emergency accommodation

because of flooding. And tonight, hundreds of households have been

advised to make plans to evacuate their properties in the next 24

hours. There are still 17 flood warnings in place on rivers in

Oxfordshire and water levels are still rising. These pictures have

been filmed from the microlight flying over Oxford, there is

Christchurch College in the city centre. More than one dozen major

and minor roads have been closed, including two main routes into the

city, the Abingdon Road and the Botley Road. That has caused delays

on the A34 for commuters. In a moment, we'll be talking to the

Environment Agency. First, Tom Turrell has spent the day in Oxford.

The only way in and the only way out is said to be by boat or tractor.

This village is cut off by flood water, only locals with the means

can fetch supplies. Everybody wants to feel useful. I do not happen to

own a tractor but I do have a passion for being on the water so

that is one way I can help my neighbours. The people here live

less and one mile from the city but it does not feel that way. I cannot

get my car out. It is too deep now to even weed. We have got sand bags

but they are not 100% effective. It is really a matter of sitting it out

and waiting. People were evacuated from this blog of flats as the water

level rose and power failed. Many were brought here to this leisure

centre for temporary accommodation. Meanwhile, the man who lost his life

on Saturday when he fell into the Thames on his mobility scooter has

been named. This boat has been bringing medical supplies. We have

been bringing prescriptions to people in the village who cannot

walk. We have been trying to get a footpath specifically for this

situation. Almost 10,000 sandbags have already been dispatched in the

county. If water levels remained stubbornly high like they are at the

moment, immunities like this will remain cut off from the outside

world for some time yet. Earlier, I spoke to Barry Russell from the

Environment Agency and asked when water levels were expected to peak

in Oxfordshire. By tomorrow morning we think we will see the maximum

levels reached. All that water will make its way into the others, it

seems like a lot of water, along well that take? It will be a few

days until it has drained off. It is a natural flood plain. Comparisons

are being drawn between these floods and the ones in 2003, people might

be wondering why more has not been done in the intervening ten years.

The big event was in 2007 with 300 properties were flooded. Since then

we have spent ?3.5 million on measures to reduce the risk of

flooding. But homes are still flooding, what more needs to be

done? We have plans for a bypass channel to go round the western side

of Oxford. The need to be a lot of contributions to make that scheme

work but there are elements that can be brought forward and done

earlier. Two people have died in flood water, it has the ability to

look relatively shallow but it can be dangerous? 15 centimetres of

flowing flood water can knock you off your feet, you do not know what

is under the, mammals could have been lifted. Stay safe. `` manholes

could have been lifted. We asked you to send us photos of any flooding

near you. Adrian Olsen emailed us this sunset, as the River Cherwell

overflowed into a very flooded Christ Church Meadow. Dennis Jackson

in Abingdon wrote in saying the road and river are one outside The Old

Anchor pub. Chris Bishop sent us this picture of The Thames path,

heavily underwater, at Dorchester on Thames. William Mankelow emailed us

the scene at Redbridge ` showing why rail services are disrupted. And

finally, a reminder of just how dangerous the floods can be, this

van is at Shillingford Bridge. Thank you if you took the time to send us

some pictures. It really does help paint a picture of the flooding. And

if you have pictures of flooding where you are, you can send them to

us at [email protected]. We'd like to see either your photos or any video.

That's [email protected]. You can see more pictures at bbc.co.uk/oxford.

Supermarket bosses who want to turn a former pub in South Oxfordshire

into a Tesco Express have faced questions from local people.

Hundreds of residents of Goring`on`Thames turned up to a

meeting held last night over plans for the store. Tesco says it would

bring benefits to the village. But more than 1,000 people have signed a

petition opposing the plans. I think it will mean the death of our high

Street. It is not anti`Tesco but there is a shot being opened in that

locality. We feel we can add to the town centre. Lots of people

currently do their shopping away from the village and we would like

them back here. When a rare illness lead to an Oxfordshire teenager

becoming bed bound, she was told her life was going to be very different

to that of a normal young woman. Annalize Brooks was likely to be in

a wheelchair for the rest of her life and told she would be unable to

go to university. But the 19`year`old from Chalgrove is

defying all odds and fulfilling her rain of becoming a doctor. `` dream

Jessica Cooper reports. Playing sport seemed a thing of the past.

Chest pains saw her taken by ambulance to hospital where she

stayed for three weeks. I was told I would probably be in bed for most of

the time because I had been unable to walk for so many weeks. I wanted

to get back on my feet and do things I had not done and prove the doctors

wrong. I did not want to be in bed underneath wheelchair. The scaly

thing is not knowing what is going on or what is happening. `` the

frightening thing. And dreams of going to university were starting to

look unrealistic. But she has been able to go and she studies medicine.

She was told she had a condition that often goes undiagnosed called

pots. The characteristic is that when they are upright they tend to

have a raised heart rate which can manifest as palpitations or a

thumping in the heart. Now doctors are unsure of what her illness is so

she will need to have more tests. Whatever the diagnosis, her outlook

on life has changed. Little things that everyone takes advantage `` for

granted, like being able to sit in bed, I needed people to watch me and

everything. It has made me think about everything. Campaigners

fighting to bring back the hound racing to the former Oxford Stadium

are claiming victory after plans to build 200 homes on the site were

rejected. People opposed to the plans had gathered a 2000 signature

petition asking councillors to reject the scheme, they would like

greyhound racing and speedway to return to the stadium. There will be

changes following complaints about the Westway scheme. Plans to reduce

the height of buildings and add a pay`as`you`go gem. There will be

more space to independent traders. I think in hindsight the building was

too tall. I think by altering that and making it a much more human

scale, really emphasising the local nature of important local retailers

is the way forward. Electric buses which can operate all be without

needing to be plugged in our going into service in the UK. Eight new

vehicles will operate on a busy route in Milton Keynes. The buses

will be charged wirelessly meaning they can run for 18 hours at a time.

Among the exhaust fumes and engine noise something different. Not much

more than a harm, one of eight new electronic buses. They are powered

by pads in the road. There are two charge plates like this either end

of the roots. As the bus arrives it connects with the played down here.

Within seconds, the receivers under the bus will drop down and the bus

will charge for ten minutes which is enough to power it for one hour. Not

all went to plan, an engineer was called after the boss got stuck at

its stop but this could change public transport for ever. This is

the first time we have put a complete fleet of electric buses on

the road and made them work against their diesel counterpart. We will

see if it works electronic clay and technologically. It is a world

first. The transport minister joined us for a trip. It is very

important, it will feedback the data which will show us whether we really

can run long`distance bus routes on timetable with electric vehicles.

They are already plans for driverless pods to ferry passengers

from the train station to the shops, now this. Milton Keynes is leading

the way nationally and internationally. The public

transport agenda is a massive priority for local authorities. If

it works, the plan is to replace diesel buses with these, not just

here, but everywhere. That is all from us for now. I will have the

headlines just before eight and the bulletin at ten 25. Here is Sally.

pupils on the island attends a good school. A number have been put in

special measures. Still to come in this evening's

South Today: Old wives' tales, or reliable sources for a weather

forecast? We examine berries, cows and that red sky at night.

He's one of Britain's best`loved artists, famous for his depiction of

English landscapes. Now a new exhibition of the work of John

Constable is opening at Petworth House in West Sussex. It features

paintings and drawings from the time Constable spent at the house in

1834. Sean Killick has been getting a preview.

It is a classic view of one of the most historic mansions in the South.

John Constable also thought so and painted the leak in 1834. Constable

is mainly known as a painter in oil but he also spent time with his

sketchbook and what colours, inspired by the surrounding

countryside. At this time he was quite cruelly. You get the

impression that this visit cheered him up. On one occasion he described

the landscape as the best landscape you could ever find for a picture.

Now a selection of watercolours never shown together is being

exhibited at Petworth House. This is of Chichester Cathedral

hinted in 1834. This is a Rundle Castle, drawn also

in 1834. The curator told me how his research

for the exhibition has added to the knowledge of Constable's work in an

unlikely way. It was clear that this represents a

view of the Surrey Hills. That is the view I get from my kitchen

window. The exhibition runs from Saturday

until March 14, costing ?12 for adults.

That is going to be some exhibition. Worth seeing.

On to sport. An inspiring story from last year. A

stellar cast list of top sailing names were in London for the

prestigious Yachting Journalists Association awards. Southampton's

round the world sailor Mike Golding received a special award while the

young sailor of the year went to an inspirational teenager who took on a

remarkable challenge in 2013. Joe Campbell was at Trinity House in

London for us. Natasha Lambert never thought her

cross`channel voyage would end here. She was here after being nominated

for the title of young sailor of the year. She crossed the English

Channel last summer in a boat adapted by her father.

And the winner is Natasha Lambert. It was such a lovely surprise and an

honour. You are determined when you make your mind up. But we did not

expect anything like this when we set out. It is something you wanted

to do and you did it. Also honoured was Mike Golding. He

is the only sailor in modern times to have rounded the hope on six

occasions under seal. This is the crowning point of our

fabulous 12 months. There is another challenge. At the

moment we cannot give any specific details. This year we will be doing

something bigger. The adventure has only just begun.

We will wait and see what that next challenge will be.

Dorset darts player Scott Mitchell is out of the BDO World

Championships at Frimley Green in Surrey. Mitchell, seeded 15th was up

against number two seed James Wilson. The Bransgore based player

fought back from two sets down to level the match before Wilson went

on to win 4`2. We are starting to see some

movements around our clubs. AFC Bournemouth defender Elliott

Ward has signed a two year extension to his contract. Ward signed from

Premier League Norwich in the summer and has impressed in the opening

months of his Cherries career. Meanwhile former Reading defender

Nicky Shorey has joined Portsmouth on a short term deal to the end of

the season. He's joined by free agent striker Jake Jervis while

front man Ryan Taylor is also set to sign after his release from Bristol

City. Meanwhile Portsmouth have thrown

their weight behind a campaign to trial safe standing in stadia. The

Football League asked their member clubs for their opinions on bringing

standing areas back into grounds. Pompey have become one of the first

clubs to publicly back the scheme. Standing is still permitted in

Leagues One and Two, but clubs with all seater stadiums cannot revert

back to standing. All Championship clubs currently must have seats

only. That is going to be quite a debate.

It stirs up a lot of emotions. It is something that the football league

have been looking at for a while. A lot of clubs feel it is a sensible

move. Let us talk about the weather now.

Long before television weather forecasters existed, people used to

let Mother Nature tell them what the weather was doing. The clouds, The

Sun, the moon, plants and animals all showed signs of change. Alexis

Green has been looking at some of those old wives' tales to see if any

of them are true. We all like to know if we will need

our umbrellas but I see the weather forecast becomes a much more serious

matter. What if it was not there? This sailor teaches techniques for

reading the signs that nature provide. I still teach how to

navigate with the stars. It brings you back to the environment you are

in. One of the simplest things would be the North Star. If you know how

high it is in the sky you can work out your latitude. If I look at the

horizon, that is roughly 20 degrees. By measuring the angle I would know

my latitude. The weather does not always do what you think it is going

to do. That is correct. The worst storm was in high pressure.

The waves are quite strong at the moment. These are wind driven waves.

These methods are based on science, but folklore provide some

forecasting methods which while well`known are less reliable. Cows

are said to lie down if there is rain on the way. But most of them

are outlining the same way close to a hedge it will rain.

The upturned clients are swept up because of the wind up there. They

are called messengers. It will rain in three days or 24 hours.

According to folklore there are more clues all around.

There are lots of areas on the tree it means we will have a long hard

winter. How about red skies?

When it comes to lambing time the weather is essential. I asked this

retired shepherd if there is truth in the old sayings. It is a clean

sheet. It is only an indication. It is only a warning.

It is interesting. We have got pine and seaweed.

I'm corns amidst the Open left the weather is dry.

This is dry. Rain is on the way. We have a picture of the pine cones.

This was when we had high pressure. Low pressure rise and the pine cones

closed. We hang the seaweed up on a wall.

The seaweed to stay dry when it was dry weather. But you could not

pocket when the rain arrived. A bit of seaweed over there and we

could just pop it. It is interesting. So many people

have so many bits of folklore. I always think about the berries.

We have some lovely pictures. Joanna Grierson captured the

glorious skies over Tichborne on a walk to Cheriton in Hampshire.

The Sun lit up the Hockley viaduct in Winchester. This picture was sent

in by Roy Venkatesh. And the "Nunney Castle" passing

Midgham in Berkshire, captured by David Canning.

There is the risk of the odd shower tonight. They will be few and far

between. Drying out to the early hours of the morning. Possibly down

to freezing in the countryside. A big risk of ice on and cheated

services. The Met office have issued a yellow weather warning for ice. I

cold Frosty start to the day tomorrow. Showers will run on land

during the afternoon. The best of any dry and bright conditions will

be further East. The winds are from the South West. The rain will move

into more evening. Nothing too significant but that will hinder the

drying out process. Clearing first thing on Saturday morning.

Temperatures falling away sharply under those clear skies. The risk

once again of ice. A cold start on Saturday. The best day of the week.

And the best day of the weekend. High pressure in charge of our

weather. Staying dry and settled. More cloud through the day on

Sunday. Rain will arrive. A little uncertainty as to how much rain, so

stay tuned to the forecast. In piecing cloud tomorrow afternoon. A

band of rain tomorrow night. I dry start to the AA on Saturday. A cold

start on Sunday. I will have a go at the weather

tomorrow. Take the seaweed. That is all for now. Goodbye.

TOM: # And if there's anybody left in here

# That doesn't want to be out there... #