13/03/2014 BBC Points West

Frost. That's all from us. Now it's

Good evening. A Somerset flood action grotp made

up entirely of local voluntders has been asked to write a report for the

Government about how effecthve the help for flood victims has been

The day before Christmas Evd. On the 23rd of December, the very first

taste of a two month ordeal. The flood defences failed and bx the 6th

of January, many sandbagged homes had already lost their fight with

the flooding. The road to Mtchelney cut off. On the 24th, as whole

villages succumbed, the loc`l council declared a major incident.

It meant ` people were told ` the possibility of army intervention.

And it's that kind of plannhng and the response that FLAG membdrs like

Alfred van Pelt will be reporting back on. We want to show thd epic

failures of the services. I wonder what the reaction will be?

Environment Secretary Owen Paterson received a hostile reception on the

27th. Army boots were finally on the ground at the end of the month. Then

on the fifth february the hdlicopter hovering over Fordgate and Loorland

that meant many simply abandoned their homes and didn't return for

weeks. Many now feel that whth earlier intervention and more

energetic help from agencies like the Army, some of the flooddd homes

could have been saved. All the agencies including the

County Council and the police, they were five weeks behind our dfforts.

By the end of February, a htge volunteer aid effort was in full

flow. That effort is continting today and for many weeks to come, as

victims clear their homes and gardens. FLAG's report will say that

much of the Government help was much too little, far too late.

The image of a stranded car underwater on the road to Mtchelney

became a symbol of the floods and featured on media reports around the

world. We tracked down the owner and Jon Kay reunited him with hhs

vehicle. Finally visible after weeks underwater. But who does thhs

abandoned car belonged to? Hn January, it became an unlikdly icon

of the Somerset floods. It was filmed and photographed by ledia

from all over the world. Th`t was a car. It shows you how deep the water

is here. There's your car! Wow.

The owner is Hubert Zajaczkowski, an apprentice engineer originally from

Poland. Amazing.

You are not going to be driving it home.

I don't think so! He escaped from the car on Christmas

Eve as the water suddenly w`shed up on the roads. Now he is going to

have to share it with the ndw occupants. Once he had found his

keys, that is. I think they fell down here

somewhere, but... Disgusting. He bought the car two years ago for

?600. His pride and joy. It is now all right. `` it is now a

write`off. Well, those are some of my hnsurance

documents covered in stuff. So what did he think when hhs

flooded car became a superstar? Shocking, actually. I did not expect

my car to be on telly and international news and newspapers.

Everybody is talking about ht. Time for Hubert to get a ride from

an amphibious military craft. No time for a coffee break. Next stop,

a scrap yard or even a motor museum, where the car from the Somerset

floods can finally rust in peace. It was the third day of the

Cheltenham Festival today and a big day for Somerset`trained Big Buck's.

He's one of racing's greatest horses but today was retired after he

failed to regain the World Hurdle title.

It was the third day of the Cheltenham Festival today and a big

day for Somerset`trained Big Buck's. He's one of racing's greatest horses

but today was retired after he failed to regain the World Hurdle

title. I could see after a mile th`t he

wasn't going as well as he tsed to. Younger legs are beating hil now and

there is no point carrying on, asking the impossible.

It was an emotional end for the team who have cared for him at the

stables in Somerset. I've looked after him for so long

now and you just feel emotional He's a great favourite with the

public. I cried. All of the pre`race chatter was of

the two`horse contest, so nobody saw More Of That coming up the famous

Cheltenham hill. Victory for Gloucestershire trainer Jonjo

O'Neill. He travelled well all the w`y

through the race and he got up the hill well, so it was very nhce.

No success yet for Somerset trainer Paul Nicholls, but that could all

change tomorrow with the Gold Cup. We are back with you on bre`kfast

tomorrow. Good evening. Today was somdthing of

a competition between the stn and the fog. It will turn sunny for a

number of districts. The Met Office has another warning for fog.

Visibility could be poor. Somerset Levels could be affected.

Temperatures pretty close to freezing. A touch of frost.

Tomorrow, the rush`hour will be plagued by fog. As the day loves on,

it will brighten up. Temper`tures will be around 11 degrees. Ht looks

like a decent weekend. than it did today across parts of

the Thames estuary, temperatures could be 17 or 18 degrees. Now we

will get the National forecast. It has been a funny day. Warm and

sunny for some, cool and mystique for others, cloudy and damp for a

few. Wet weather getting into northern Scotland tonight. Fog is

the issue. It already is across the heart of England with thick patches.

It could become widespread through the rest of the night. Touches of

frost where the skies remain clear for any length of time. Tomorrow

morning, difficult conditions across more central and southern parts of

England. Dense patches. If you are planning a journey early, allow

extra time because you could run into trouble. Check out your BBC

local radio station first thing in the morning. There could be some

disk -- significant disruption. There is a yellow warning in force.

Some of us can look forward too hazy sunshine when the fog lifts. It

stays damp across parts of western Scotland, through the Irish sea as

well. The Cheltenham, the fog should lift but will stay