05/09/2011 BBC Wales Today

Welcome to Wales Today. Tonight's top story: The boy terrorised by

his neighbour's dog in a savage attack. His sister tells us what

happened. Of it grabbed my little brother's

right hand. And chased us around the house, upstairs. It took his

hand, pushed him into the corner and bit his face.

The man who drove this 4x4 up Snowdon tells us why he did it..

Out of a list of 50 things to do before you die, this was one of

them. This was at the top of the list. The other 49 will not be done

because I will be sued from kingdom come. And, a ticket to ride. Unions

say they might be more costly if plans to close 22 station offices

get the green light. In tonight's sport: Plenty to

ponder. There's mixed injury news for Gatland. But patriotic crowds

turn out in Wellington, to watch Wales train ahead of their first

match. It was amazing to see how many Welsh people were there.

this suit on the internet, it is special. So far, it has been

friendly and relaxed in this rugby- mad city. Tomorrow, Wales will

concentrate exclusively on the Good evening.

The father of a boy who was savaged by his neighbour's dog has called

for changes to the law. The attack on six-year-old Erfan Ali went on

for 15 minutes. He was bitten on the face and hands, and his family

say he's lucky to be alive. The dog, thought to have been a Rhodesian

Ridgeback, has been put down. Caroline Evans' report contains

pictures that some viewers may find upsetting.

Just home from hospital. Since the attack by next door's dog, Erfan

Ali has had to undergo four hours of surgery. He hasn't spoken much

since, but did say to his father, "I tried to stop it, but I

couldn't." The dog, named Tyson, is understood to have been a Rhodesian

Ridgeback. It's an animal originally bred in Africa for

hunting, and used to pursue lions. Erfan's sister, who with their

mother, tried to fend off the animal, says she thought he was

going to be killed. My mum was doing the washing here, getting the

clothes end. My brother was helping. The dog came here, knocking

everything down, breaking this. As you can see. It came through the

gap, circling and chasing. mother and brother tried to run

away into the house, but the dog followed them. My mum and brother

ran inside, tried to get it to go. The doggy but -- the dog went in,

chased him around. It went mad. Unable to stop him through their

back door, the dog pursued them through the kitchen, and into the

front hall. The family say the attack went on for 15 minutes. In

the end, it took two people to get the dog off Erfan. The dog followed

him into the landing, biting his right, left cheek, his hand. It was

horrifying. The Rhodesian Ridgeback is not one of the four breeds of

dog covered by the Dangerous Dogs Act. And Erfan's father Dilwah says

he now wants the law changed to bring back the dog licence, which

was abolished in 1987. My child, I don't want this to happen to other

families. Because, I am really horrified with this. I will urge

all local politicians and authorities to take this matter

seriously. If you're going to kick this type of dog you have to make

sure they are properly enclosed, exercised and well looked after.

Nothing can justify something like this. The attack is being

investigated by police. Meanwhile, Erfan faces years of medical

treatment. He'll will have to undergo extensive surgery and skin

grafts as he grows up. It's too early to tell if one side of his

face will be paralysed. Claire Hargrave is an animal

psychologist, and an expert in pet behaviour. This attack is reported

to have gone on for 15 minutes. How unusual is a persistent attack like

this? We needed to put canine aggression

into perspective. Humans have a tremendous repertoire of

communication and consequently we can avoid having to become

aggressive. If an animal is faced with a potential threat, it needs

to maintain a distance between itself and the threat. It does this

through subtle aggression, and later, a bite. The difference in

here is we have a sustained attack. This is most likely to be due to

the fact this is a hunting dog, and as a consequence, the repertoire of

his behaviour would have been initiated by movements associated

with the hunting procedure and it would have kept on. Research

suggests when natural behaviours are frustrated and prevented, when

an animal gets an opportunity to engage in those babies, it will do

so to excess. Is this familiar behaviour in this breed?

specifically within the range of domestic examples of this breed,

but this breed has evolved to hunt. When you have movements behind a

fence, shadowy movement, it is likely to engage this sequence of

reaction and it will difficult for the animal to turn it off once it

has been initiated. Hence, the difficulty the owners had in

stopping it. Are children more vulnerable to attack than adults?

It is unfortunate that children are far more unpredictable in the way

they move, they have high-pitched voices, and a lot of animal find

this extremely arousing in the way they move and also in some cases

they haven't been adequately prepared to deal with this and they

find it frightening. And they have to engage in aggression.

The An experienced climber has died after falling off a cliff into the

sea in Pembrokeshire. This footage from the RNLI shows the moment when

emergency services arrived at Stackpole Head yesterday. A man and

woman were airlifted to Withybush Hospital in Haverfordwest. The

woman died, and the man was treated for minor injuries.

The insurance company Admiral is to create 200 new jobs at their

offices in Swansea. The company already employs 1,600 people in the

city. It wants to expand its operations, and will be leasing

offices at Swansea Vale from the Welsh Government.

A man who drove his car up Snowdon, and left it parked close to the

summit, has spoken exclusively to Wales Today, and said it was on his

list of things to do before he dies. Craig Williams, from Cheltenham,

has been charged with driving a vehicle on unauthorised land. The

authorities are now trying to work out how to bring it back down the

mountain. Roger Pinney is at the foot of Snowdon.

The reason I'm not at the top is technical. This 4x4 is in a

particularly windswept spot. We simply weren't able to get a live

link from there this evening. But I went up the mountain earlier today.

We got some exclusive pictures. And I spoke to the man who took it

there. It seemed like a good idea at the

time but has left an enormous headache and an unanswered question,

how to get it down. We found the driver at the bottom of the

mountain pondering his options. He told me it took him nine hours to

get his 4x4, up Snowdon. Why? of a list of 50 thing to do before

you die, this is one of them. If you can consider it is on the top

of the list, the other 49 are not going to be able to be done,

because my backside will be sued from kingdom come. Was it a pub is

decent -- publicity stunt? It was done as an impulsive spur-of-the-

moment act. People are saying you have been irresponsible. I do

appreciate that. They say it is a selfish act. I can relate to that

as well. And no other people have been saying, you need to be in a

mental institution, you are crazy. Others are saying, palms up, fair

play. -- thumbs up. Since 1904, there had been several attempts to

get up the mountain bike car. This one was captured travelling up

the railway track in 1917. The idea of was a panic to get up and down

the mountain in one night. Photos with have been the only evidence.

The plan went astray because the climb took longer than expected.

The best that can be said is it is neatly parked and it gives walkers

something to look at when the clouds are down low. Getting it up

he was a challenge, getting it down again will be a challenge as well.

Some mixed reactions. I was surprised, and thought it was a

taxi! It is freezing. It is a bit odd to see this for so far up.

would like to leave the mountain as we found it. Leaving Iraq appeared

is far from doing that. That's the point, it can't stay there. Options

include driving it away, flying it out or bring it down on the railway.

There are problems with all of them. In terms of where the vehicle is

and where it needs to get to, somebody will have to get behind

the wheel. I cannot indemnify my staff. Craig Williams says, give

him his keys and he will drive it. He is facing prosecution for taking

his 4x4 and abandoning it. So for now it is not going anywhere, at

least until the weather changes and someone comes up with a plan.

There have been concerns calls between the mountain railway,

national park and police, trying to figure out where to go next.

They're still looking at flying it out by Chinook helicopter come up

or chopping it up into bits and brilliant down on the train. Craig

Williams who owns the vehicle says he is keen to get it back because

he needs it to drive back to his home in Cheltenham. There is one

unanswered question. This vehicle is part just below the summit. I

asked the owner if he actually got to the top. He wouldn't answer.

The Environment Agency says it has found the source of red diesel in

the water in Aberystwyth harbour over the weekend. An investigation

has traced the oil to a local company. The spill has left an

unpleasant smell, but public health officials say it isn't harmful.

People living nearby have been asked to keep their windows closed.

That sort of spillage is not a problem, it is more a nuisance

factor, though it's Mull. Diesel all over your hands. And for the

commercial boats, the ladders are coated. It is not very pleasant at

all. Join me in a few minutes. Welsh support in Wellington. Fans

turn up to watch them train, ahead of their opening World Cup match.

And, the side to play South Africa is named on Friday, as Warren

Gatland ponders his starting 15. All the latest injury news from the

Ticket stations at 22 platforms across the country could close, as

part of plans to cut costs. That's the warning from one transport

union which claims it's not only bad news for staff, but for

passengers as well, who could end up paying more for tickets. 12

stations in the south could be affected, with a further ten across

West, Mid and North Wales, from They are a familiar sight at most

stations: Ticket offices or booths where passengers can get advice and

information on travel plans. A union representing rail workers

says one in four are under threat across the UK if recommendations

and a new report are followed. There are crucial. In many ways,

they do other duties other than selling tickets such as giving

advice about travel arrangements and the right type of tickets. Many

people pay excessive amounts for tickets. They also do other duties

on the platform. It is too simplistic in many cases simply to

say they are not selling enough tickets. They provide a service to

a community. The Association of Train Operating Companies says the

industry needs to cut costs and provide better value for money for

the taxpayer. They say there has been a fundamental shift in the way

people buy tickets over the last five years. The number sold through

the internet has more than trebled, with the number of automated

tickets almost doubling. The number of passengers buying from station

staff has fallen, and now accounts for just over a third of all

tickets bought. Passengers are also bracing themselves for an 8 percent

increase in fares next year. With the news last week that stern line

would be cutting down its high- speed set -- a ferry service

between Holyhead and Ireland, rail passengers feel this is another

potential jobs blow to the vital trust what -- Transport had locally.

Others feel prices are going up and customer-service is dropping. --

transport hub. Holyhead is one of 22 stations in Wales including

Newtown and Llandaff where the office could be replaced by a

machine. It is orders transferring to ticket machines, and they have

flexibility because they are the 24 hours a day. But it doesn't help

people who are made redundant because of that. You can buy a lot

of things online and now, but having somebody face-to-face is a

much better idea than having a faceless, automated machine. There

is one in Queen Street and this is a queue of 10 people. If you were -

- are in a hurry, you won't do it. They are inconvenient, there is no

doubt about it. We came from town this way and we always get at

tickets from here because you cannot go out of the station

without getting a ticket. There is every conductor here either. It is

stupid. We are angry because many people say they're people who run

the ticket office get good deals. You can purchase them on the day

and get the advice. The Department for Transport says it is

considering the report's findings and will review the changes to

fares or ticketing. Arriva Trains Wales says it has no plans to close

any ticket offices. Plans for a �500 million rail

scheme linking Wales to Heathrow Airport have been considered by the

UK government. A proposed new spur from the Great Western main line

would mean passengers would no longer need to travel into London

to get to the airport. The Department for Transport says it

could halve the journey time to the airport.

He is clear with all tonight's sport. -- Clare.

Wales are beginning a good week of preparation ahead of their Rugby

World Cup opening match on Sunday. Warren Gatland will name his side

to face South Africa on Friday and is still weighing up the fitness of

Stephen Jones and Ryan Jones. Gareth Lewis reports from

Wellington. Dawn has broken on Wales's first

venue. It has been quite a welcome in Wellington.

To which Wales have responded in style.

New Zealand's capital has become a home from home with hundreds of

Welsh fans attending just training. You are looking sharp. I didn't

realise they were so big. They are good boys and I'm looking forward

to the future of Welsh rugby. amazing. We went to see them at the

airport as well. It was amazing to see so many Welsh people. Explain

the suit. I saw it on the internet and thought, it has got to happen

with the World Cup coming! There is mixed injury use, Ryan Jones is one

step closer to overcoming his calf problem but Stephen Jones knows it

is probably a step too far for his calf to recover in time to face the

Springboks, and a decision is expected in next few days. Wales's

warm-up went well, but the World Cup record is not so encouraging.

Wales have only made it out of the poor in three of the previous six

tournaments, and the oldest player is determined they will be no

repeat of 2007 when they lost in the final pool game to Fiji. Were

don't want that happening again. That was one of the worst days of

my rugby career, to be honest. With the World Cup, one mistake and you

can be out. We are playing South Africa first, and the last three

times we have paid then we have come very close. We are fed up of

coming close, though, and hopefully this is the stage to beat them for

once. As preparations intensified, Wales are confident that this time

round, there is a harder edge. group, now, with winning, they

believe in themselves. The coaches telling them they will win, and you

start to believe it. So far it has all been very friendly and relaxed

in this rugby-mad city, but tomorrow the switch will flick and

Wales will start to concentrate exclusively on the daunting task in

hand: Meeting reigning world champion South Africa in their

opening pool game. Win that and they put themselves in a great

position to win a horribly difficult Paul. -- difficult Paul.

They are all catching up on sleep in New Zealand but I spoke to

Gareth earlier and asked him what the latest was on the injuries, and

if Gethin Jenkins was any closer to making a return. I think Gethin

Jenkins is almost certainly out. They are delaying the inevitable

with Gethin, I'm afraid. Ryan Jones and Stephen Jones, Ryan Jones is up

and running again despite his calf injury. I don't think the news is

so good on Stephen Jones. It is all cards, his recovery from his calf

injury is very slow indeed. Stephen Jones, it may be only a matter of

time until he is ruled out. A big, physical player and no guarantee of

a start again sat have a go. It is style of play Wales would have

loved to have their -- at their disposal. This week, key to their

preparation, you have been following the squad since they

arrived. What is the mood like in camp, are they happy? We saw

pictures yesterday when they met the Welsh fans. They were bowled

over by how many people turned up, not just ex pats but travelling

fans as well. We have seen the players out and about this evening

having a coffee and enjoying taking in the surroundings. It is a

beautiful city. The night-time skyline doesn't do it justice. It

is a cracking pace, but tomorrow is the day when they start to switch

on. They begin to focus on what is a daunting prospect, tackling the

South Africans and trying to win the game and give themselves an

extra jobs of getting out the pool -- out of the pool on top. You are

on New Zealand soil, is there a feeling among home fans but this

can be their World Cup? They have waited a long time, 24 years, the

same amount of time to win the trophy, but they always seem to

mess it up in World Cup year, don't they? I have picked upon nerves

that New Zealand fans have, but since we have been there -- here,

the macro club -- four days, the fans are keeping a high public

profile. They have an in-flight safety videos starring the All

I don't know about you, you know Graham Henry, I can't get used to

him doing humour! They are putting themselves out there, they are a

higher profile. I guess the problem is that if the hoodoo strikes again,

it will be harder bump than usual. It is a frightening thought, Graham

Henry flying a plane! Stay warm, it looks freezing! Thank you very much.

More from Gareth in your Zealand all this week.

In football England manager Fabio Capello has highlighted Gareth Bale

as the way it -- main threat against England tomorrow. Capello

says Wales will be a threat. Tomorrow will be a tough game

because Wales are playing really well. When you watch the game

against Montenegro... They created a lot of chances to score goals and

made many counter-attack. It will be a dangerous game. It will be

tough. We had a fantastic team and a great result against Bulgaria. We

have players who can cause anyone problems. We are confident and we

believe in the way we play and what we have to do. You never know, we

might do well. He is Ashleigh Crowter ahead of kick-off. Wales

have chosen this former stately home outside London as the place to

prepare, but after that fantastic victory against Montenegro on

Friday, they are hopeful of bringing England's footballing

aristocrats down a peg or two. I have all the build-up live from

tomorrow here on BBC Wales Today. Join us for that.

Some good news about Paralympic cycling champion from Porthcawl who

has been injured in a hit and run crash but is recovering. He is now

out of intensive care and coming round after three weeks of sedation.

Great news for him. It is officially Spring in New

Zealand despite the cold, but it seems Autumn has well and truly

arrived here. You will say there is more rain on

the way. I am going to! Down under in New Zealand there is

high pressure at the moment, but in Wales it is a different story. A

roller-coaster ride this week, low- pressure bringing spells of wet and

windy weather in from the Atlantic. That goes for tonight. The wind

could be strong enough to bring down some branches and blow over

your pin. Tonight, a dose of wet and windy weather, heaviest on the

Cambrian mountains and Snowdonia. We are looking at 50-75 millilitres

of rain, two or three inches. Not cold tonight but windy, gales on

exposed coast in the Bristol top, the Irish Sea and high ground. The

win strongest in the early hours. - - in the Bristol Channel. The

reason for the disturbed area is this low pressure pushing a cold

from south-east across Britain. Tomorrow morning, wet and windy

first thing for much of Palace and the South. Strong wind as well and

unpleasant on the roads. Further west the rain should have cleared

from Pembrokeshire and Kerrigan and the north-west dryer, and the north

coast, but still windy with a few showers. During the morning, the

rain further south will clear and the whole country turns dry and

brighter, but still with a few showers, one or two on the shop

side. Top temperatures around 17 Celsius and feeling called in the

gusty winds. -- shop side. -- call. Some dry weather, temperatures in

Connah's Quay reaching 17 Celsius. High water in Paris 1:23am and to a

7pm, watch out for rough seas. The outlook is changeable and windier

times. Showers on Wednesday and more rain at times by the look of

it on Thursday and Friday. Not the best weather this week but a hint

of high pressure and dry weather later in the month. Our picture

tonight is from Liz Prince, water spouts over Cardigan Bay. They are

fairly common and they occur when cold macro unstable air moves over

the relatively warm sea. You can see more about that on my blog.

's The top stories: A rounder -- a change to the way children in Wales

are taught. The first three schools have been defended by the Deputy

Prime Minister Nick Clegg. -- Free Schools.

The father of a boy from Cardiff savaged by his neighbours dog has

called for changes to the law. The attack on six year-old Erfan Ali

went on for 60 minutes -- 15 minutes and he was bitten on the

face and hands. His family say he is lucky to be alive. The dog was

destroyed. A man who drove his car up Snowdon and part close to the

summit has said it was on his list of 50 things to do before he died.

-- Park. Craig Williams from Cheltenham has been charged with

driving a vehicle on unauthorised land and the authorities are trying