01/03/2018 London News

Welcome to BBC London News.

I'm Sara Orchard.

It's been another difficult day

for commuters due to the weather.

Transport for London has

said passenger numbers

are down 20% on usual,

due to the weather

as many stayed at home.

Paddington Station

was also shut this morning.

Here's our transport

correspondent Tom Edwards.

Day three and at Paddington, the

station had to be shut this morning

for two hours. Snow came through a

gap in the roof causing icy

platforms. Frustration for

passengers like Kelly and Stacey, in

London for morning meeting that got

cancelled.

A little bit shocked that

the country has fallen apart at a

bit of snow.

A bit of a nightmare. A

waste of a day to be honest. I can't

believe there isn't better things in

place.

When trains were announced, a

mad dash from commuters. Stephanie

from Southend was trying to be

philosophical.

There's no point

stressing about it. It's happened.

Can you move down, please?

Reduced

services meant packed trains. Others

found less passengers. The tube

suffered with delays and while many

stayed at home, at King's Cross, for

example, they shut access due to

overcrowding. Commuters seem to be

adapting. What are you going to do?

We'll try and go on the Thames Link.

That will be working, we hope.

There

are technical reasons why some

operators are more susceptible to

snow and ice. Here at King's Cross,

they use overhead power lines to

power the trains. About a third of

the network still use a third rail.

How are coming through a rail on the

track. That means it's much more

susceptible to snow and ice. 60

miles of canals in London are frozen

over. Some pavements are being

gritted. This was Downing Street.

Many are not. The authorities fight

to keep them moving.

We've done OK.

We are never complacent. Looking at

the figures this morning, the taps

in and out on the Tube network are

20% down on a normal weekday.

The

roads are moving but it has been

slowed going. As the snow turns to

fix lunch, more disruption is

expected.

A man in his 60s died yesterday

after being pulled from a freezing

lake in a park in south east London.

Emergency services

were unable to save him.

Victoria Hollins sent this

report from Danson Park.

Conditions in Danson

Park Bexleyheath today,

very much as they were yesterday.

Very cold, very icy.

Now, this pond is used

in the summer for boating

and at this time of year,

I'm told, is often

used by bird-watchers.

Now, London Ambulance Service

and the fire brigade were called

here just before 4pm yesterday

afternoon after reports that

a man had fallen into the water.

Now, initially it was believed he'd

been chasing after a dog but it

seems now that wasn't the case.

He simply fell in.

He was actually rescued

by a member of the public,

another park user before

the emergency services had arrived.

London air ambulance came also.

The man was taken to hospital.

He is believed to be in his 60s.

But he died a short time later.

Police say they are treating

this as an unexplained death.

They do know who this man is,

his next of kin have been informed

but his identity hasn't

yet been released.

Let's have a look

at the current travel situation...

On the tubes there are severe

delays on the Metropolitan

and Piccadilly lines,

there are minor delays

on the Distrtict line

while London Overground

is part suspended.

On the trains, a majority

of services in and out of London

are impacted due to the weather

with delays and cancellations,

the advice is to check

before you travel.

A similar situtaion at airports

in the south-east with warnings

of cancellations to flights

between the UK and Europe

to free up congestion.

Meanwhile, on the roads,

most major routes are moving well.

Two lanes are currently out

in the Dartford Tunnel

on the M25 anticlockwise in Kent

because of ceiling icicles.

This is the current picture

approaching the area

which is so far unaffected.

A woman who bludgeoned her husband

to death has won a bid

to challenge her conviction

at the Court of Appeal.

Sally Challen is serving

an 18-year prison sentence

after killing her husband

with a hammer.

Her lawyers say she was the victim

of "coercive control".

She came to me and my brother

separately and said, "You know what,

he was making me question the facts

I had on paper, my sanity."

"I thought I was losing it."

Which is the first part,

I thought this was not right.

He's starting to really

wage a war on her.

A man died this morning

in a house fire in Coulsden.

Six fire engines and 35 firefighters

were called to the fire

in Downland Close.

The man was confirmed

dead at the scene.

Most of the first floor

and around half the ground floor

plus the roof were damaged.

The cause of the fire

is under investigation.

Kensington and Chelsea

Council have axed

public meetings about the aftermath

of the Grenfell Tower disaster

in favour of drop-in

sessions for residents.

The decision was taken

following repeated disruption.

There were concerns

that the meetings at

Notting Hill Methodist Church

were not giving residents

what they needed and too often

ended in shouting matches.

The former Mayor of London,

Boris Johnson, will appear before

the London Assembly this afternoon

to answer questions

about the Garden Bridge project.

The proposal was abandoned

by Sadiq Khan, in August last year,

but not before tens of millions

of pounds of public money

had already been spent.

Mr Johnson will be asked who is

accountable for the expenditure.

A missing Nigerian masterpiece

found in a north London

flat has been sold at auction

for a staggering

£1.2 million pounds.

The painting -

called Tutu by Ben Enwonwu

was expected to sell

for around £300,000.

But it smashed the guide price

making it the most expensive piece

of modern Nigerian art

sold at auction.

Before we check in on the weather,

there are many who are

enjoying the snowy weather.

It includes this West London family

who have improvised how

they normally do the school-run.

Do keep your pictures coming

in to us at [email protected]

or on our Facebook page.

So let's see how long

the cold will continue-

Elizabeth Rizzini has

the weather for us.

Up until the weekend and then it

will start

Up until the weekend and then it

will start to get less cold. Lots of

snowy pictures coming into our

weather Watchers page. The big

difference between yesterday and

today is that there is very little

sunshine today. It's been very

windy. Italy cold. More snowfall

this morning. This afternoon,

lighter snow flurries, particularly

towards the east. There will be more

snow towards the West. Generally, a

dry picture this afternoon. Very

windy as well. We have a warning for

the snow and wind with gusts up to

30 mph. That is making it feel extra

chilli. This snowfall is really out

towards the West. Perhaps edging

into central areas. Dry further east

but not too much sunshine. These

have been the highest temperatures.

It will feel a lot colder. -8 or

nine with the wind chill. As you can

see, the snow to the West has

cleared and it's looking mostly dry.

Generally a dry picture. These will

be the lows but where we have got

lying snow, we are looking at -5

tomorrow morning. Still windy, as

well. A Met Office weather warning

for snow and ice tomorrow. Slippery

surfaces. Expect disruption. Later

on in the day, we'll see more heavy

snowfall. If you liked flurries in

the morning. Very little sunshine.

Then the second system as we head

through the afternoon into the

evening rush hour. 5-8 centimetres

of snowfall expected. Possibly

disruption through the rush hour.

Over the course of the weekend, it

could be mostly dry. There will be

lots of ice. That's what we are most

concerned about.

lots of ice. That's what we are most

concerned about.

That's about it from me.

Louisa Preston will be here

with our 6:30 evening programme.

But for now, from us all,

a very good afternoon.

Stay warm.