:00:09. > :00:19.In Look East tonight: After the snow, the floods. A million gallons
:00:19. > :00:19.
:00:19. > :00:24.of water. 40 homes hit. It came into the house, into the
:00:24. > :00:28.conservatory, flooded the garden. Everything was under water. Hello
:00:28. > :00:32.and welcome to the programme. Also tonight: What do empty shops on our
:00:32. > :00:35.High Streets say about the state of the economy in this region? I am in
:00:35. > :00:41.Dunstable, where the latest figures show more than 22% of stores are
:00:41. > :00:43.empty. But it is a very different story in Billericay, where fewer
:00:43. > :00:49.than 4% are currently vacant. Ipswich Hospital celebrates after
:00:49. > :00:59.winning �5 million for a new heart unit. And even though it is
:00:59. > :01:07.
:01:07. > :01:09.midwinter, Bill Bryson is looking First tonight, the snow might not
:01:09. > :01:15.have caused much damage or disruption today but the freeze
:01:15. > :01:20.certainly did. Our water companies say low temperatures below ground
:01:20. > :01:24.lead to a big increase in the number of burst water mains. By far
:01:24. > :01:26.the worst today, a 28 inch main at South Woodham Ferrers in Essex.
:01:27. > :01:36.Around a million gallons of near- freezing water poured out this
:01:37. > :01:40.
:01:40. > :01:44.morning and scores of homes were Behind me, under the floodlights,
:01:44. > :01:50.workmen are still struggling to repair the water main that burst.
:01:51. > :01:57.You can see from the size of the whole they have dug, how big it was.
:01:57. > :02:03.28 inches in diameter. The ground around it froze and shifted and
:02:03. > :02:08.cracked the water main. There was a cascade of water which were sent
:02:08. > :02:14.through neighbouring homes. This is when East Bridge road became a
:02:14. > :02:19.river. This footage was taken by disbelieving residents. A torrent
:02:19. > :02:25.of 2 million litres of freezing water. It got so high, so quickly.
:02:25. > :02:34.We could not stop Pep. It came through the has, through the
:02:34. > :02:39.conservatory, flooded the garden. - - at the house. You could surf down
:02:39. > :02:44.it. Within 15 minutes, the whole ground floor was flooding. The
:02:44. > :02:50.garden flooded. It was coming in through the conservatory and the
:02:50. > :02:54.back door. By 7 o'clock, we run under six inches of water. After
:02:54. > :03:02.the floods subsided, teams of yellow jacketed workers began
:03:02. > :03:08.clearing up. Inside, homeowners assessed the damage. Our floor is
:03:08. > :03:14.absolutely full of mad, silt. The carpet, everything downstairs is
:03:14. > :03:17.ruined. The furniture, tables, everything. It has all gone. In a
:03:17. > :03:23.neighbouring road, the main it cracked. It was 90 years old and
:03:23. > :03:27.broke because frozen ground had shifted. I'm very sorry for what
:03:27. > :03:34.happened. It is unusual and that does not help the residents. Will
:03:34. > :03:38.be trying to find alternative accommodation. As he tried to
:03:38. > :03:43.rescue his expensive Lamb and that floor, Alan Moore said he still
:03:43. > :03:52.could not quite believe what had happened. When we saw the water
:03:52. > :03:58.coming down the road, we thought the river bank had burst. A --
:03:58. > :04:02.sodden carpets were ripped out. Essex and Suffolk Water said it was
:04:03. > :04:08.liable for the damage. Work goes on and they're going to lift the
:04:08. > :04:14.broken water main out and drop a new one in. We are joined by Brian
:04:14. > :04:19.from Essex and Sussex will turf. There is a meeting going on. What
:04:19. > :04:23.is that about? We are going to work with them to do all we can to make
:04:23. > :04:29.their lives as comfortable as we possibly can while the clean-up
:04:29. > :04:34.operation is going on. Are you going to pay for the damages?
:04:34. > :04:39.we are. We're going to look up to the residents. Thank you for it
:04:39. > :04:49.joining us. The residents here know what a mini tidal wave it looks
:04:49. > :04:50.
:04:50. > :04:53.like. Courtesy of the main that is being repaired, they had won. --
:04:53. > :04:56.one. Meanwhile, forecasters are warning that tonight could see some
:04:56. > :04:59.of the lowest temperatures of the winter so far, which could mean
:04:59. > :05:04.tricky conditions for drivers. Mike Cartwright is on the A14 in
:05:04. > :05:09.Cambridgeshire. Drivers are being warned about icy conditions. They
:05:09. > :05:15.are being warned to watch out for black ice. The message is slowed
:05:16. > :05:25.down and take care, as temperatures plummet. In Essex they could reach
:05:26. > :05:26.
:05:26. > :05:35.around minus seven, perhaps minus 10. The cold air has come in.
:05:35. > :05:41.Freezing temperatures adding to the stress of the drive home. This was
:05:41. > :05:47.the A1 at rush-hour. It may be very RAC. Critters across our region
:05:47. > :05:52.have been on patrol for the last seven days. Tonight is no different.
:05:52. > :05:57.Earlier today shoppers in Cambridge had to find somewhere else to park.
:05:57. > :06:02.Staff at the Grafton Centre unable to clear the heavy snow left at the
:06:02. > :06:08.weekend. With the cold snap set to continue, what about tips to cope
:06:08. > :06:13.with the cold and your house? first top tip would be to turn the
:06:13. > :06:20.stopcock off and turn it back on in the morning. The second tip would
:06:20. > :06:26.be lifted the loft to enable heat to go into the roof. Met heating
:06:26. > :06:32.tick over. Turn the temperature down to at 16, 17, and that way you
:06:32. > :06:36.are less likely to have major problems. The newest operator which
:06:36. > :06:41.runs services from Norwich to London says the stuff are carrying
:06:41. > :06:45.out de-icing duties. We are working closely that Network Rail to
:06:45. > :06:50.provide the best service possible. They could have done with that at
:06:50. > :06:56.Stevenage Football Club. Tonight's match against Oldham is off. Having
:06:56. > :07:02.spoken at length with the groundsman, it will not thought out
:07:02. > :07:07.into among -- in time for tonight's game. With temperatures as low as
:07:07. > :07:16.minus seven and clear skies, a severe frost and ice will be the
:07:16. > :07:22.concern tomorrow. The RAC says it will put on extra patrols tomorrow.
:07:22. > :07:26.The biggest problem may have seen is how the cold affects car
:07:26. > :07:31.batteries. Their advice is, make sure everything else is switched
:07:31. > :07:36.off when you switch the Patrick on. These temperatures are expected to
:07:36. > :07:42.last until the weekend. This region could see some of the coldest
:07:42. > :07:46.temperatures in the country. Tune into a local BBC radio station.
:07:46. > :07:49.latest snapshot of our High Street shows that 12% of the shops in this
:07:49. > :07:52.region are standing empty. That compares with a national average of
:07:52. > :07:54.14%. But, as ever, the average hides a huge variation - from a
:07:54. > :08:01.high of 22% in Dunstable, with Letchworth and Harlow not far
:08:01. > :08:05.behind - to Billericay and Ely at about 4%. We will find out about
:08:05. > :08:12.Billericay in a moment. But first, Jo Black has been to the High
:08:12. > :08:17.Street in Dunstable. With figures claiming one and five shops on his
:08:17. > :08:22.highest it is empty, it is Dunstable now be dying town?
:08:22. > :08:28.level of traffic. It is a nightmare to get around. Everyone goes to
:08:28. > :08:33.Milton Keynes. There is nothing to do here. Sharon says Dunstable is
:08:33. > :08:40.bouncing back. Over the last three years since we have started the
:08:40. > :08:44.campaign, we have had 30 odd new shops open. We have had to in the
:08:44. > :08:49.last couple of weeks was that we are very disappointed with those
:08:49. > :08:54.figures. This is one of the businesses which has just opened in
:08:54. > :08:58.town. Four months down the line and business is good. There is always a
:08:58. > :09:03.risk. I would be lying if I said I was not nervous at will. It was a
:09:03. > :09:07.good opportunity for me to come into the town because there were so
:09:07. > :09:14.many empty shops. Their work incentives for people to take on
:09:14. > :09:21.the premises in the town. council says revamping Dunstable is
:09:21. > :09:29.the number one priority. The doom and gloom painted in the survey
:09:29. > :09:33.does not tell the whole story. �1.5 million will be invested in the
:09:33. > :09:38.Quadrant Centre in the town. will be able to do away with all
:09:38. > :09:46.less clutter, get rid of the traffic lights and a place that
:09:46. > :09:53.with the statute and put the roundabout back. It will make this
:09:53. > :09:57.and restore this to the nice market town it should be. These plans are
:09:57. > :10:01.all five years away. It is a step in the right direction. So that is
:10:01. > :10:09.the situation with Dunstable, where 22% of shops are empty. Now, Kim
:10:09. > :10:13.Riley from Billericay, where it is just 4%. On the surface, Billericay
:10:13. > :10:20.is a prosperous commuter town. Despite the recession and high
:10:20. > :10:27.street is long, full of variety and appears to be flourishing. There
:10:27. > :10:33.are so many different shops to come to. It is a shame to see the empty
:10:33. > :10:38.shops. There are a less here than in Basildon. It is very quaint,
:10:38. > :10:42.very traditional. It has most things you can need. Billericay
:10:42. > :10:48.baby boutique is one of the new as names in the High Street. Esther
:10:48. > :10:53.opened it in December. We did not have a baby boutique in Billericay.
:10:53. > :10:58.I felt we were crying out for that. The response I had, I think I have
:10:58. > :11:07.done OK Foster this is one of the older shops in the High Street.
:11:07. > :11:13.done OK. Shirley lodged a haberdashery business in 1974. The
:11:13. > :11:19.staff provide a good service but it has not been easy. It is hard.
:11:19. > :11:25.Trading does get tougher and tougher. We are doing OK, I can't
:11:25. > :11:35.complain. In nearby Basildon, there is no shortage of empty shops. The
:11:35. > :11:37.
:11:37. > :11:47.council is keen for others to learn lessons. We need to fill the High
:11:47. > :11:48.
:11:48. > :11:52.Street with evening and never uses. -- leisure uses. A variety of
:11:52. > :11:56.independent stores sit happily alongside the bigger names. On the
:11:56. > :11:59.High Street an empty shop remains around a site. Later in the
:11:59. > :12:04.programme, we've been inundated with your photos of the snow. We'll
:12:04. > :12:07.be showing some of the best later. And Alex will have the forecast.
:12:07. > :12:10.Yes, with temperatures expected to drop to minus eight or even lower
:12:10. > :12:20.tonight, a weather warning has been issued for ice. I'll be back with
:12:20. > :12:24.all the details after more news Campaigners have been celebrating
:12:24. > :12:28.over plans to build a new unit for heart patients at Ipswich Hospital.
:12:28. > :12:38.The Government is giving �5 million and the unit could be up and
:12:38. > :12:39.
:12:39. > :12:43.running within two years. It is a landmark day. Emergency patients
:12:43. > :12:48.still travel to one of three specialist heart centres outside
:12:48. > :12:53.the county for routine procedures, treatment will be much closer to
:12:53. > :12:58.hand. For people who need what is called angioplasty, a specialist
:12:58. > :13:02.cardiac procedure, they will now be able to get it locally at Ipswich
:13:03. > :13:06.Hospital instead of travelling 60 miles up the road to specialist
:13:06. > :13:10.hospitals. It is a great development for patient in the
:13:10. > :13:13.community and it is a greater demand for Ipswich Hospital.
:13:13. > :13:17.national director for heart disease recommended the hospital should
:13:17. > :13:23.have its own facilities. It followed months of intense lobbying
:13:23. > :13:27.by campaigners. It shows you can win the local battles and shows the
:13:27. > :13:32.Government is listening. Local campaigners can get results.
:13:32. > :13:36.was at the forefront of the campaign. Having a unit on the
:13:36. > :13:41.doorstep will cut travel times and the stress that goes with them.
:13:41. > :13:46.patient knows it is being done at Ipswich and the carer or family,
:13:46. > :13:54.their particular worries about going 70 miles away, perhaps they
:13:54. > :14:02.cannot drive and that sort of thing. You know, for us, it is a wonderful
:14:02. > :14:09.answer. Hopefully we can develop the surface -- service. At the
:14:09. > :14:13.moment, let's get this up and running. Regional health officials
:14:13. > :14:18.made to rubber-stamp the plan. Once that happens the hospital can start
:14:18. > :14:20.looking for someone to design, build and equip the unit. Funding
:14:20. > :14:23.cuts to a theatre in Felixstowe, which is threatened with closure,
:14:23. > :14:25.will be re-considered tonight. Last year, Suffolk Coastal Council
:14:26. > :14:35.announced it was ending its subsidy to the Spa Pavilion. Campaigners
:14:35. > :14:40.say not enough time has been given to find ways to keep it open. It
:14:40. > :14:48.has been announced the last World War One veteran has died at the age
:14:48. > :14:57.of 110. Plods Queen served as a waitress in the air force at bases
:14:57. > :15:07.including RAF Marham. -- Florence Green. Two Ipswich Town Football us
:15:07. > :15:12.
:15:12. > :15:14.what the training ground for the castle. -- Two Ipswich Town
:15:14. > :15:17.footballers swapped the training ground for the classroom today.
:15:17. > :15:20.Captain Ibrahima Sonko was teaching French and Jay Emmanuel Thomas was
:15:20. > :15:26.helping out at the Thomas Wolsey School in Ipswich - a school for
:15:27. > :15:34.children with special needs. are better than my sat nav. Ibrahim
:15:34. > :15:41.or some coke's first language is French. We are bonding a bit better.
:15:41. > :15:48.They learn the right words. The words we use every day. We just
:15:48. > :15:56.need to carry on and keep practising. It is not all serious -
:15:56. > :16:02.fun and games as well. They lend a hand at Thomas Wolsey once a month.
:16:02. > :16:08.It is start of Ipswich Town schools programme. They're working with 10
:16:08. > :16:14.schools, the players taking on an ambassadorial role. Are you hungry?
:16:15. > :16:21.Eat your pizza. Thank you. It is mine now. You're making a real
:16:21. > :16:26.contribution to school life. They are having a whale of a time.
:16:26. > :16:34.making school education fun and easy for kids to learn. Hopefully
:16:34. > :16:39.it will be good to them. We have had an ongoing link with the
:16:39. > :16:47.football club for about 10 years for stabbing it has been fantastic.
:16:47. > :16:51.Let's have a picture! One for the photo album, great memories to take
:16:51. > :16:54.home. They are already looking forward to next time. More than �1
:16:54. > :16:57.million is being spent at Cromer pier to make it stronger. The
:16:57. > :17:01.council says it's not dangerous but it wants to make sure it remains
:17:01. > :17:04.safe for the next 20 years. Work will start in June. The last time
:17:04. > :17:11.structural work was carried out was 19 years ago, when a barge crashed
:17:11. > :17:14.into it, and cut it in two. A basketball player from Essex has
:17:14. > :17:19.described how the sport has helped him turn his life around. Laurence
:17:19. > :17:25.Watsham is just 15. But he's already almost seven foot tall.
:17:25. > :17:30.Meets Lawrence, at six foot 10, he is taller than your average 15-
:17:30. > :17:35.year-old. Two years ago he joined the basketball team at this school
:17:35. > :17:39.in Langham for young people with emotional and behavioural
:17:39. > :17:45.difficulties. He said it has changed his life. I did not really
:17:45. > :17:50.feel happy anywhere. As soon as I started playing basketball, it was
:17:50. > :17:55.just like I had friends, sort of thing. I never used to go out. As
:17:55. > :17:59.soon as I started playing basketball, people wanted me there.
:17:59. > :18:05.Lawrence is by far the tallest in his school team and he has not
:18:05. > :18:11.finished growing. His predicted tide is over seven fruit. His coach
:18:11. > :18:15.has already had to make a few allowances. The basketball hoops
:18:15. > :18:22.should be 10 feet from the floor but we have had to raise it another
:18:22. > :18:26.food. He was dunking it all the time. He can dunk it now on 11 feet.
:18:26. > :18:33.We can do no more than that for delivery raise it more, every runs
:18:33. > :18:40.shops will be off. He has a much better chance of blocking shorter
:18:40. > :18:45.people's shops. He has become so good he is playing for the England
:18:45. > :18:51.Under 16 squad. When he leaves school he is hoping that basketball
:18:51. > :18:57.will be his career. I want to get as far as I can. Maybe go and play
:18:57. > :19:07.in Spain or America. Go as far as I possibly can. With skills like this
:19:07. > :19:14.
:19:14. > :19:18.it looks as though Lawrence has the First of all, we have to say, keep
:19:18. > :19:22.your eyes on the road. If you drive along the M1, between junctions 11
:19:22. > :19:24.and 12, you can't miss a huge grey warehouse. It's on the southbound
:19:25. > :19:27.side and it is the car parts distribution centre for Vauxhall.
:19:27. > :19:30.Stand by for some impressive facts. The warehouse covers more than a
:19:30. > :19:40.million square feet and it stocks more than 40,000 different spare
:19:40. > :19:41.
:19:41. > :19:46.parts. Vauxhall says it is vital to the company's future success. So
:19:46. > :19:53.big you need a bike to get around. Enough to house seven Concordes,
:19:53. > :19:58.every part but every Chevrolet and Vauxhall model still on the road.
:19:58. > :20:03.The parts that are around us are small. They are the same type and
:20:03. > :20:10.same size. Up until the last year it also those parts would have been
:20:10. > :20:15.in any part of that warehouse. We have condensed the lighter parts
:20:15. > :20:25.into a really small proportion of the warehouse. That is 55% of the
:20:25. > :20:33.day's business. �55 million worth. Dispatched in a matter of hours.
:20:33. > :20:39.This seat pad is one of 74,000 parts stopped in the warehouse.
:20:39. > :20:43.This has made a journey of two hours. Only about 10% of the parts
:20:43. > :20:49.stopped here are manufactured in the UK. The company wants to
:20:49. > :20:53.increase that. In the 90s automation are seen as the way
:20:53. > :21:01.forward. They favoured the hands on approach. Increased efficiency
:21:01. > :21:07.means fewer people. Managers say new business will fill the empty
:21:07. > :21:13.spaces. 160,000, 200,000 units a year. They will be brought back in
:21:13. > :21:20.here. They need the equipment to direct. They have Investment NPower
:21:20. > :21:30.2012. We will be seen that work back in here. -- for 2012. A few
:21:30. > :21:32.
:21:32. > :21:42.years ago the future of General Before this note my aconites were
:21:42. > :21:47.out in the garden. -- the snow. I have no aconites. Our garden is not
:21:47. > :21:51.one people would come to pay to say. We opened it once to the public
:21:51. > :21:56.many years ago and it was exhausting trying to get it ready.
:21:56. > :22:00.That was to raise money for the local church. Normally we do not. I
:22:00. > :22:03.think it is a great idea. The National Gardens Scheme has been
:22:03. > :22:06.going for 85 years. And today, in Norfolk, the annual guidebook for
:22:06. > :22:16.the county was launched by the author and countryside campaigner
:22:16. > :22:19.
:22:19. > :22:25.Bracknell Hall in Norfolk, the setting for author Bill Bryson to
:22:26. > :22:32.launch the county's National Gardens Scheme guide book.
:22:32. > :22:37.Everybody knows that people in Britain are mad gardeners. The idea
:22:37. > :22:42.of opening up your garden and having strangers walk around is
:22:42. > :22:48.something... If the British are not the only people to do it, they will
:22:48. > :22:52.supply do it better than anyone else. For the past 17 years, the
:22:52. > :22:58.gardens at this hall have been part of the scheme. The Open in April
:22:58. > :23:04.for the daffodils, in July for the Roses and the arboretum in
:23:04. > :23:08.September. My parents in law decided to set a dream and they set
:23:08. > :23:16.about the parameters, putting in the new hedges and the wind breaks.
:23:16. > :23:23.They garden 365 days ear for two years. The garden was set up in
:23:23. > :23:30.1997. It helped nurses. It charged people a shilling and raised over
:23:31. > :23:35.�8,000 in its first year. 2012 is the 85th anniversary. There is an
:23:35. > :23:41.element of the snoop factor. People love going to see how other people
:23:41. > :23:46.live, how they garden. The majority of gardens are private. Gardens of
:23:46. > :23:56.all sizes will be opened to the public from now until the autumn.
:23:56. > :24:00.
:24:00. > :24:05.It seems to be a thing which is How is your arboretum? It is
:24:05. > :24:15.looking great. I think the chickens are the problem. They wrecked
:24:15. > :24:17.
:24:17. > :24:23.Temperatures have fallen sharply this afternoon. Widely down to Mark
:24:23. > :24:29.minus three, minus four. The Met Office has issued a weather warning
:24:29. > :24:36.for ice. The reason for the cold temperatures is the position of the
:24:36. > :24:42.high pressure. It has brought cold and dry air across asked. We have
:24:42. > :24:47.seen some sunshine across the region. We are in for a pretty
:24:47. > :24:52.severe frost tonight. Just to mention the icy roads are a real
:24:52. > :24:58.risk for tonight. As we get more cloud coverage we could get
:24:58. > :25:03.isolated snow flurries. Mostly clear skies to start the night. In
:25:03. > :25:10.the bar West it will get cold just the start temperatures could get
:25:10. > :25:16.down as low as minus eight Celsius. As for the winter, it is breezier
:25:16. > :25:19.around the Norfolk and Suffolk coastline but generally the light
:25:19. > :25:24.north-easterly. There could be odd snow flurries. They will mainly
:25:24. > :25:30.affect parts of the north and east of the region. First thing tomorrow
:25:30. > :25:36.morning it will be very cold indeed. There will be more cloud around.
:25:36. > :25:43.Such a thing and break allowing brightness and sunshine. -- that
:25:43. > :25:49.should think and break. The suspected high will be one Celsius.
:25:49. > :25:55.The winds will freshen up a bit. If you factor in the wind chill, it
:25:55. > :26:01.could feel as cold as minus 6 in some locations tomorrow. During the
:26:01. > :26:07.afternoon it should be mostly dry with a fair covering of cloud of.
:26:07. > :26:12.Another cold night once more. The next five days, we have a fairly
:26:12. > :26:18.similar conditions. We are up in a settled pattern of weather where it
:26:18. > :26:23.will stay mostly drier. Varying amounts of cloud. There is
:26:23. > :26:28.uncertainty into the weekend with a bit more cloud developing which
:26:28. > :26:34.might bring some sleet and snow. Tonight will be exceptionally cold
:26:34. > :26:41.but there will be other nights where it will get down to minus 5,
:26:41. > :26:46.even minus 6. I feel cold looking at that. Thanks again for all the