:00:10. > :00:14.Good evening and welcome to BBC Points West. Our headlines tonight:
:00:14. > :00:18.We need the rain - fears for West Country crops as the region heads
:00:18. > :00:23.towards a drought. Drama and a serious incident at
:00:23. > :00:28.Cheltenham on the second day of the races.
:00:28. > :00:31.And a big royal presence to watch the Queen Mother Champion Chase.
:00:31. > :00:41.Also tonight, find out what happened when the Red Devils asked
:00:41. > :00:42.
:00:42. > :00:46.Good evening. The South West is heading towards drought conditions,
:00:46. > :00:49.according to the Environment Agency. They're worried that river levels
:00:49. > :00:54.are running so low, fish may die unless we get significant rain in
:00:54. > :00:58.the next few weeks. And farmers are worried they may be prevented from
:00:58. > :01:02.taking water from rivers to irrigate their fields. If that
:01:02. > :01:07.happens, they say there could be wholesale crop failures. Clinton
:01:07. > :01:12.Rogers has the story. The slow shallow waters of the
:01:12. > :01:18.River Tone in Somerset. Across the West Country, river levels are low
:01:18. > :01:20.and they're getting lower. And according to those who've spent a
:01:20. > :01:30.lifetime monitoring the weather, this is a problem that's been two
:01:30. > :01:33.
:01:33. > :01:40.years in the making. He 1010, 2011, the driest years I have recorded in
:01:40. > :01:44.50 years. -- 2010. We do not quite know what is going to happen. We
:01:44. > :01:48.could get a succession of wet months. At the moment it does not
:01:48. > :01:51.look very likely. While our reservoirs are healthier than
:01:51. > :01:53.elsewhere in the country - and water companies say there is no
:01:53. > :01:57.threat to domestic supplies - the exceptional dry conditions are
:01:57. > :02:00.worrying the Environment Agency. They say that if the water table
:02:00. > :02:10.continues to fall and rivers run much slower, the wildlife will
:02:10. > :02:11.
:02:11. > :02:16.suffer. We are concerned that those flows will continue to be low in
:02:16. > :02:23.spring and summer if we do not get significant rainfall. That will
:02:23. > :02:27.impact on the fish. It will reduce flow and possibly less oxygen. Fish
:02:27. > :02:37.could be in distress and die. Farmers and growers are equally
:02:37. > :02:38.
:02:38. > :02:43.concerned about their livelihood. Malcolm Bere is getting ready to
:02:43. > :02:46.plant 20 ton of potatoes. That crop will need rain in the weeks to come.
:02:46. > :02:53.And if it doesn't come, he's worried the Environment Agency may
:02:53. > :02:59.places restrictions on farmers irrigating their land.
:02:59. > :03:04.I am very worried they might say that we cannot irrigate them. That
:03:04. > :03:08.would have huge implications. We know -- we would not be able to
:03:08. > :03:11.meet our contracts. The agency say it's up to everyone - householders
:03:11. > :03:14.and farmers - to preserve water now, use it sparingly to head off
:03:14. > :03:24.problems. But without help from the skies above, that alone may not be
:03:24. > :03:30.enough. No one is pushing the panic button and just yet. But if we do
:03:30. > :03:35.not get rain soon, it might just be -- it will not be just the growers
:03:35. > :03:42.and farmers feeling the pain. The price of basic products like this
:03:42. > :03:47.will rise dramatically. Well, it's the second day of the
:03:47. > :03:51.national hunt festival at Cheltenham. 55,000 people came
:03:51. > :03:58.through the gates today and enjoyed another exciting day's racing. A
:03:58. > :04:07.day graced by royalty - and by high drama. Our sports editor, David
:04:07. > :04:11.Passmore, is there for us this evening.
:04:11. > :04:15.Good evening. It is notoriously difficult to predict anything in
:04:15. > :04:20.racing. But nobody who saw the incident today has ever seen
:04:20. > :04:25.anything like it before. A horse crashing through railings after
:04:25. > :04:30.falling, injuring the jockey and a photographer. Tonight debate
:04:30. > :04:35.continues over how well the incident was dealt with. The horse
:04:35. > :04:42.trained by Philip Hobbs is OK. Another of his horses had to be
:04:42. > :04:51.destroyed. In a moment, the views of Clare Balding. First, this is
:04:51. > :04:58.how events unfolded on the second day.
:04:58. > :05:05.Wishful Thinking has gone! The big drama came in the big race as
:05:05. > :05:09.Wishful Thinking crashed out on the first lap. Richard Johnson was
:05:09. > :05:14.injured in the spectacular fall as well as a photographer. On the
:05:14. > :05:20.second lap, the leaders bypassed the fans. There was confusion.
:05:20. > :05:29.Officials defended the action they took. The incident overshadowed a
:05:29. > :05:35.thrilling finish and victory for Finian's Rainbow. Totti Black both
:05:35. > :05:45.fine. Richard will not ride again today. He has had a bad bang on his
:05:45. > :05:45.
:05:45. > :05:51.hip. The day had started with excitement of a different kind as
:05:51. > :05:56.crowds gathered to meet the Duchess of Cornwall. It was also Ladies Day.
:05:56. > :06:03.While it was business as normal for the hardened racegoers, for others,
:06:03. > :06:08.the chance to put on a show. must have accessories at this time
:06:08. > :06:18.of the year. The main thing for Cheltenham is comfortable shoes and
:06:18. > :06:21.
:06:21. > :06:28.keep warm. And lots of pockets to put the money M! -- in. Try it on
:06:28. > :06:33.about 50 dresses. Quite hard to get in because of all the photographers.
:06:34. > :06:43.No money everybody ignores us. royal theme continued in the
:06:44. > :06:44.
:06:44. > :06:51.paddock as the Princess Royal talk to her daughter. Any Wyness?
:06:51. > :06:56.Just enjoying the racing. husband was there, too. Welsh
:06:56. > :07:03.centre Jamie Roberts was enjoying the day. I always enjoy coming to
:07:03. > :07:08.Cheltenham. It is so special as an event. In some ways we are lucky
:07:08. > :07:12.that we do have had a game this weekend. For Traynor Nigel Twiston-
:07:12. > :07:18.Davies it was back to work after the death a corner for his horses
:07:18. > :07:27.in yesterday's race. It was very sad. He was one of the better
:07:27. > :07:32.horses. They are all our France. We love them all. It is very sad.
:07:32. > :07:40.David Pipe it was disappoint their as his best horse, could only
:07:40. > :07:45.finish 4th in the third race. Away from the drama, the crowds enjoyed
:07:45. > :07:50.a day bathed in San Symes -- sunshine. Many will be back for
:07:50. > :07:55.more tomorrow. We have plenty of sunshine and drama today. You were
:07:55. > :07:59.by the fence. What was your take on at? I have not seen anything more
:07:59. > :08:04.scary than that since I was the young girl. Wishful Thinking came
:08:04. > :08:11.crashing through the rail. The photographer had the camera smashed
:08:11. > :08:15.into his face. That first was fined. He was caught. Very quick thinking.
:08:15. > :08:20.Richard Johnson was on the ground screaming in agony. He will be OK.
:08:20. > :08:24.Amazingly he has not broken anything. They put the boards
:08:24. > :08:30.across the fence. They then moved them to the inside. They told me
:08:30. > :08:34.afterwards that was to stop a Liz horse moving to where de Pete
:08:34. > :08:38.Johnson was being treated. I thought it was confusing. Barry
:08:38. > :08:46.Geraghty thought he had to jump the fence. That could have been a real
:08:46. > :08:49.mess. It was pretty difficult to go around the fence. I do think
:08:50. > :08:55.jockeys are travelling that fast, you have got to make it clear. And
:08:55. > :09:01.it was not clear. Did it detract from the race? It it. You want to
:09:01. > :09:06.see them jump the last. There wasn't much between Finian's
:09:06. > :09:16.Rainbow and Sizing Europe at the end. It caused acute talking point.
:09:16. > :09:21.Every runner did the same thing. Paul Nicholls is hoping with big
:09:21. > :09:26.box tomorrow that things calm down and return to normal tomorrow?
:09:26. > :09:34.he has only had one winner. Big box looking to extend this
:09:34. > :09:43.extraordinary run. -- big box. He is an amazing horse. He has got a
:09:43. > :09:49.lot to do. I hope he will win. It would be great. Thank you very much
:09:49. > :09:52.indeed. I will be back with more from the Cheltenham Festival later.
:09:52. > :09:57.A campaign's been launched to persuade people in Bristol to vote
:09:57. > :10:02.in favour of an elected mayor. Senior politicians from all parties
:10:02. > :10:08.joined business leaders who support the change. It's in preparation for
:10:08. > :10:11.a referendum on May 3. Here's Paul Barltrop.
:10:11. > :10:15.Two Government ministers - one present, one past - came to Bristol
:10:15. > :10:24.to kick off the Yes campaign. One's Conservative, the other Labour, but
:10:24. > :10:34.both think big cities need elected mayors. Almost all cities in the
:10:34. > :10:35.
:10:35. > :10:40.world have elected mayors. Bristol wants to fall London. -- fall
:10:40. > :10:43.London. And have a single elected politician in charge of the city.
:10:43. > :10:47.He's critical of the city council, which has seen leadership change
:10:47. > :10:55.frequently, partly because of the elections held almost yearly. They
:10:55. > :11:01.enthuse about a powerful figure in post for four years. There is
:11:01. > :11:07.nothing wrong with personality. Why shouldn't we have a personality
:11:07. > :11:11.herein Bristol? I think you want somebody who can have an
:11:11. > :11:14.international reputation. Someone everyone in the country knows about.
:11:14. > :11:19.Soon after, they were addressing a room full of big personalities. The
:11:19. > :11:24.event was arranged by business leaders who favour the change. Some
:11:24. > :11:29.of those watching are considering whether to stand. The mayor would
:11:29. > :11:34.take over many of the powers currently held by the Council.
:11:34. > :11:42.People will decide in a referendum in seven weeks. If they vote yes,
:11:42. > :11:45.the first elected mayor will be chosen in September. It is a big
:11:45. > :11:48.political issue we will be following closely and the next few
:11:48. > :11:52.weeks. The BBC has learned the Ministry of Defence is looking at
:11:52. > :11:54.an option to sell off a huge part of its site at Ashchurch for
:11:54. > :11:57.housing. The camp, near Tewkesbury, repairs and services military
:11:57. > :12:00.vehicles and employs over 600 people. The MOD is about to launch
:12:00. > :12:07.a consultation on plans drawn up with the local council. Business
:12:07. > :12:11.leaders say huge job losses would be regrettable.
:12:11. > :12:16.It would be a significant blow. I am sure it would have quite a big
:12:16. > :12:21.impact if the site were to close down and jobs were lost. I cannot
:12:22. > :12:25.really see how those would be easily replaced with that nature of
:12:25. > :12:28.work. A petition's been handed in against plans to remove a Christian
:12:28. > :12:31.cross from the window of a crematorium in Bath. The local
:12:31. > :12:35.council wants to make the venue more accessible to other religions.
:12:35. > :12:38.But 4,000 people have signed a petition against the plans. Bath
:12:38. > :12:43.and North East Somerset Council says it's an operational decision
:12:43. > :12:46.which would not normally go to public consultation.
:12:46. > :12:51.Thousands of students across the West will be taking part in the
:12:51. > :12:55.BBC's School Report day tomorrow. Many of them have been affected by
:12:55. > :12:58.the Government's drive to convert schools to academies. But how do
:12:58. > :13:01.students themselves feel about it all? Culverhay School in Bath is a
:13:01. > :13:07.boys' school which has faced the threat of closure for two years,
:13:07. > :13:17.but is becoming a sponsored academy in September. Here are School
:13:17. > :13:19.Culverhay is a true local school. Most of us walk to school, which is
:13:19. > :13:24.really unusual for a secondary school, and generations of our
:13:24. > :13:28.families came here. Our school's been under the threat of closure
:13:28. > :13:32.for over two years, but now we are to become a sponsored academy. But
:13:32. > :13:40.is there a danger we might lose our identity as a local school? What
:13:40. > :13:45.exactly is an academy? We asked some of our friends. I'm not at
:13:45. > :13:49.that Cher. It is better than that closing. Actually it's all about
:13:49. > :13:53.funding - at the moment the money comes from here. But soon it will
:13:53. > :13:57.be direct from here. We will now be part of a group of schools led by
:13:57. > :14:01.this man. This is about a school for the community it serves. When I
:14:01. > :14:08.talked to you about respecting the tradition of the past, it was very
:14:08. > :14:13.much with that in mind. The fathers, grandfathers, brothers, uncles have
:14:13. > :14:16.a vested interest in school. They have been a successful product.
:14:17. > :14:19.That's his promise, but we don't have to take his word for it - what
:14:20. > :14:22.about the schools that have already made the change? Kings Oak School,
:14:22. > :14:25.just down the road, became an academy just last September.
:14:25. > :14:32.Obviously it has been hard to adjust. But I think it has been for
:14:32. > :14:35.the better. I cannot think of any bad things about an academy.
:14:35. > :14:39.back to how it might affect us at Culverhay. Our name will change.
:14:39. > :14:49.Our uniform will change, and we'll have girls. But there are more
:14:49. > :14:51.
:14:51. > :14:55.serious concerns. The opportunities will probably be lower. The new
:14:55. > :15:04.head will find himself in trouble if he does not realise that a call
:15:04. > :15:07.that a a community school. -- corner Hay. We are becoming an
:15:07. > :15:10.academy in September. We've heard from both sides. What we can say
:15:10. > :15:13.for sure is that come September things are going to be different
:15:13. > :15:16.around here. This is Sam, Luke and Tom, in Bath, reporting for BBC
:15:16. > :15:25.News School Report at Culverhay School. That could be the last time
:15:25. > :15:28.we say that! Good luck to the other young reporters taking part
:15:28. > :15:32.tomorrow. Now the inventor of a very special device was in Bristol
:15:32. > :15:34.today to show off his new product. The wasabi fire alarm has already
:15:34. > :15:38.won the Ig Nobel Prize, which celebrates inventions which cause
:15:38. > :15:41.you to laugh and think. The alarm, designed for the deaf, emits a
:15:41. > :15:45.spray of Japanese Horseradish and is designed to create an eye
:15:45. > :15:50.watering wake up call. Sabet Choudhury went along to meet the
:15:50. > :15:53.inventor. It's the perfect partner to Sushi.
:15:53. > :16:00.The green paste made from Japanese horseradish packing a strong
:16:00. > :16:04.mustard-like punch. And in spray form, it's now the main component
:16:04. > :16:14.of this new invention. A fire alarm designed for the deaf. Its inventor
:16:14. > :16:24.
:16:24. > :16:34.is Dr Magato Imai. If the detector senses the smoke,... Ahead of the
:16:34. > :16:37.
:16:37. > :16:42.can is pressed. -- the head. It emits the older. -- the older.
:16:42. > :16:52.would not be much of a reporter if I did not try and this spray. Give
:16:52. > :17:04.
:17:04. > :17:14.That is pretty strong. So with my eyes dried, I decided to take
:17:14. > :17:15.
:17:15. > :17:25.wasabi spray to the people it was designed for. Try that. That is
:17:25. > :17:28.
:17:28. > :17:36.strong. Horrible smell. At the moment the wasabi fire alarm is
:17:36. > :17:40.only available in Japan and costs almost an eye-watering �400,000. --
:17:40. > :17:47.�400. But its inventor says the prices will drop sharply when it
:17:47. > :17:52.goes into mass production. Not being funny, but he did stink
:17:52. > :17:55.when he came back from that! He was very brave. Football, and Yeovil
:17:55. > :17:59.Town's winning run was halted last night, but you could excuse the
:17:59. > :18:02.fans for not knowing the final score. Much of last night's 2-2
:18:02. > :18:08.draw with Scunthorpe was played in thick fog at Huish Park, making
:18:08. > :18:11.life difficult for the players, officials and the cameraman.
:18:11. > :18:16.Do not adjust your sets - this is how Huish Park looked at kick-off
:18:16. > :18:25.last night. The referee had decided an hour earlier the game could go
:18:25. > :18:28.ahead. He might have felt differently half an hour in. This
:18:28. > :18:38.is what most fans saw of Yeovil's first goal, scored by Gavin
:18:38. > :18:39.
:18:39. > :18:41.Williams. Not a lot, unfortunately. But with the magic of television,
:18:42. > :18:45.this is what actually happened. The spot the ball competition continued
:18:45. > :18:47.for Scunthorpe's equaliser - at six foot four and 13 and a half stone,
:18:48. > :18:50.John Parkin isn't normally this hard to find. Thankfully the
:18:50. > :18:53.weather improved - Jonathan Grounds crossed for Jonathan Franks to put
:18:54. > :18:57.Yeovil in the lead again. But they missed chances to go further in
:18:57. > :19:05.front, and their hopes of a sixth win in seven games were dashed by
:19:05. > :19:09.Parkin three minutes into stoppage time. If it wasn't for the fog, you
:19:09. > :19:13.would have seen it two or unbelievable saves by their
:19:13. > :19:16.goalkeeper. There was a lot of goalmouth incident. It was a good
:19:16. > :19:19.match. Yeovil are up 13th - their highest position since August.
:19:19. > :19:28.Unlike the weather, the improvement under Gary Johnson has been crystal
:19:28. > :19:36.clear. A little bit murky down there. It
:19:36. > :19:41.was at Cheltenham yesterday. Let's pop back there to David. He won �55
:19:41. > :19:46.yesterday compared to my nothing in our little experiment. Any winnings
:19:46. > :19:55.today? Modesty will prevent me from
:19:55. > :20:00.boasting about it. Let's move on to some racing. Jockeys are
:20:00. > :20:05.legendarily tough. Anyone who saw Richard Johns and's fall earlier
:20:05. > :20:14.would be staggered to know that he will be riding again soon. --
:20:14. > :20:17.Richard Johnson. It looked an absolutely horrible falls. -- fall.
:20:17. > :20:19.Well amongst the hundreds of competitors here, there are some
:20:19. > :20:22.remarkable individual stories. Jessica Westwood's from Somerset is
:20:22. > :20:26.one of them. She was just 15 when she fell off her horse and suffered
:20:26. > :20:29.a life-changing head injury. But now, she's not only back in the
:20:29. > :20:39.saddle, but this week she'll compete in the Foxhunter Chase.
:20:39. > :20:42.
:20:42. > :20:46.Luke Hanrahan reports. Today, Jessica at is that the
:20:46. > :20:51.unglamorous end of Horseracing. She is pleased to be here. She is two
:20:51. > :20:55.days away from the race of her life, which marks a remarkable comeback
:20:56. > :21:02.from an accident that almost killed her. Serious concussion, brain
:21:02. > :21:08.swelling. It gradually got worse. Burst my eardrums. I had to have a
:21:08. > :21:13.year of school. I was not allowed to read, watch telly. For her
:21:14. > :21:22.family, life suddenly took a very different tack. The fear was
:21:22. > :21:29.permanent brain damage. The horse went crazy. She fell off onto the
:21:29. > :21:34.road on her head. Then the horse cater. Now 20, Jessica has defied
:21:34. > :21:37.the odds. This week she will be racing and the Foxhunter Chase at
:21:37. > :21:44.Cheltenham, something that would have seemed impossible five years
:21:44. > :21:49.ago. We did not think she would ever get to this level. She has
:21:49. > :21:55.done it by determination and hard work. Jessica and her horse,
:21:55. > :22:02.Monkerty Tunkerty, will be up against it on Friday. They are
:22:02. > :22:08.racing against horses on by the Queen and J P McManus. D dream
:22:08. > :22:16.about what may happen on Friday? Dream. We would throw a massive
:22:16. > :22:20.party and the village would come. You must never get too excited. You
:22:21. > :22:24.could get disappointed. If we come back in one piece, we will be happy.
:22:24. > :22:32.No matter where they finish, this is a story that has already ended
:22:32. > :22:39.in glory. Good luck t Jessica. Who should we
:22:39. > :22:45.be looking out for tomorrow? Everyone is talking about big box
:22:45. > :22:49.and whether the Paul Nicholls trained horse can win the hurdle
:22:49. > :22:55.again. As David knows only too well, the favourite have not been doing
:22:55. > :23:00.too well. I do not want -- I do not want to mention Harry Kane fly
:23:00. > :23:06.again. He was a clear favourite and he did not win. Paul Nicholls must
:23:06. > :23:14.be hoping that normal service is resumed tomorrow and the favourites
:23:14. > :23:24.come home. But you just cannot tell. We shall have to wait and see. I
:23:24. > :23:24.
:23:24. > :23:27.lost my shirt yesterday. Well, 20 quid Annie where! -- anyway.
:23:28. > :23:37.Now it's just over a week until this year's Sport Relief campaign.
:23:38. > :23:40.
:23:40. > :23:44.People from across the region will be running a mile for the charity.
:23:44. > :23:50.Here is Ben Prater to tell us about his challenge.
:23:50. > :23:55.Join me taking on the sport Relief challenge. I would do 24 different
:23:55. > :24:02.sports in 24 hours. I will be joined by Dai Greene, the Olympic
:24:02. > :24:07.hurdler. I will play netball. Take part in a Bristol Rovers training
:24:07. > :24:17.session. And I will be at Gloucestershire Cricket Club. I
:24:17. > :24:26.will also be dropping in to leisure centres elsewhere in the county.
:24:26. > :24:30.All you have to do to support me his text me. Sport Relief get �1 to
:24:30. > :24:39.transform the lives of vulnerable people in the UK and across the
:24:39. > :24:47.world's poorest countries. Every penny goes to sport Relief. You
:24:47. > :24:57.must be 16 or over and to ask for the permission of the dale pair.
:24:57. > :24:58.
:24:59. > :25:08.Get on line for more information. - He is in good form. Excellent. A
:25:09. > :25:17.
:25:17. > :25:22.Now let's move on to the weather. It was freezing in Cheltenham last
:25:22. > :25:32.night. What about today? It was quite chilly. It will be
:25:32. > :25:36.
:25:36. > :25:40.colder tonight. Let's talk about the rainfall. Patchy on Friday.
:25:40. > :25:48.Turning heavier overnight into Saturday morning. On Saturday, some
:25:48. > :25:58.further spells of rain. It will clear on Sunday. Next week looks
:25:58. > :26:00.
:26:00. > :26:05.effectively dry. Getting warmer. When the plants come into leave,
:26:05. > :26:15.that evaporates the side even quicker. John Sparks took this
:26:15. > :26:22.microlight above the cloud deck this morning. 2000 ft up and he was
:26:22. > :26:26.into beautiful sunshine. Gradually we started to whittle away the
:26:26. > :26:36.cloud. It brightened quite considerably. I'm expecting a
:26:36. > :26:36.
:26:36. > :26:40.similar story tomorrow. Some of you will see scenes more akin to this.
:26:40. > :26:49.Every chance it could be a good deal warmer than this afternoon.
:26:50. > :26:55.High-pressure slipping away towards the near Continent. Change taking
:26:55. > :27:05.place on Friday. Tomorrow is another dry day. Tonight it is
:27:05. > :27:13.going to be fog that grabs our attention once again. Somerset,
:27:13. > :27:21.Wiltshire, the M four, they could be visibility of only 50 metres or