28/10/2013 Look East - West

power cuts to thousands of homes. Now we can join the

Hello and welcome to Look East. In the programme tonight: The storm has

passed but the disruption continues ` train lines to London are

suspended with commuters told not to travel till tomorrow. With the

latest on the storm damage and the rest of the stories, here's Amanda

Goodman. Thousands of homes are without power

after a morning of flash floods and fallen tress. The region recorded

wind speeds of almost 80 miles an hour. I'll be here with the full

details of how the storm affected us and what we can expect in the next

24 hours. And Red Bull do it again ` winning

their fourth Formula One double title in a row.

First tonight, the aftermath of the storm. The region's mainline rail

services have been paralysed all day causing chaos for thousands of

commuters. All trains to and from London were cancelled because of

damage to track and lines. Elsewhere in the region there's been flash

flooding and at one point 100,0 0 homes in the East had no

electricity. But first let's cross live to Neil Bradford at Luton

Parkway station. Usually at this time of night there

would be commuters passing through this station every few minutes. But

it is quiet, as it has been all day across the entire rail network.

There are still no trains to and from Luton from London on this line.

And that has been the case at almost every station across the region It

was a familiar story at almost every station in the East. Services to and

from London, suspended. In Cambridge, passengers were forced to

rethink their plans. We were supposed to go to Cardiff, but

because of the storm we are staying here. It has gone nine o'clock, no

trains are not a lot of information. Most of the region may

have escaped the worst of the storm, but further south the damage had

been done. This tree blocked part of the line near Saint Albans.

Elsewhere they took out overhead power cables. It was a miserable

start for those using the East Coast mainline in Stevenage. Tried to get

the train at 6am, but they said nothing until 9am. I have just come

down now and they said there will be nothing all day. I am stuck, I have

got to come back into ours. We have had trains cancelled and there has

been flooding. Passengers, don't travel if you are attempting to

travel to London. Every commuter line in our region

was affected. With trains to and from London cancelled for much of

the day. Network Rail says it was overwhelmed by the number of fallen

trees. On the West Coast Main Line, any hope of running a normal service

was soon dashed. Services from Northampton and Milton Keynes ground

to a halt. I was looking to get from Leighton Keynes to London but

Leighton buzzard was as far as I got. I will try again after lunch.

We were hoping to get to Euston station, I have been here since

eight o'clock. They are saying they are delayed or suspended because

trees are down and they are trying to clear it. For many, a taxi was

the only option today. Commuters across the region are hoping for a

better day tomorrow. That is a hope shared by network rail and of course

the rail operator, first capital connect in Luton. They say engineers

will be working through the night to clear the line of debris and repair

the overhead power cables. Services here and in many places should be

back to normal by the morning. Network Rail is responsible for all

our the track and overhead lines, but when I spoke to them earlier

they admit they didn't expect the storm damage to be quite so bad I

have been doing this job for several years. I cannot remember a day of

damage since what we called the great storm of 1987. We have seen

extensive tree damage across the network, level crossing barriers

blown off, overhead line damage It has been a challenging day for

everybody. You knew for several days the storm was coming, couldn't you

have done more to stop the entire region's mainline services being

paralysed? If we could dig where it is, we would be in a better place,.

It was the random nature of the tree damage on the overheads which has

caused these problems this afternoon that is more prevalent in East

Anglia area. Commuters were given conflicting information. 9am, you

said services would resume at some point, then it was 10am, 11am, it

has been a day of confusion? We did say yesterday to the travelling

public we would look to resume services at nine o'clock. We were

making that assessment on what we thought would be the likely damage.

But clearly in some areas that has not been possible. The damage in the

north part of the region exceeded what we thought on the forecast it

would be. We understand that, so let's concentrate on tomorrow. How

can you `` how soon can you get things up and running? I left a

conference this afternoon and we are confident we can restore the network

to full capabilities tomorrow morning. We have two sites that are

extremely complex and large with the damage that has been done, but we

will work hard to make sure they are available the tomorrow morning. That

is a to 6am tomorrow? I would like to say it is a guarantee. As it

stands at the moment we have enough resources and we are working hard to

make sure that happens, that the network will be available for

business tomorrow morning. Well it wasn't just the trains. The

stormy weather took its toll on the roads too, with flash flooding and

fallen trees. Louise Huball reports. A lorry not on the move, but on its

side on the M 11, blown over by the force of the wind. A painstaking

operation to write it. Elsewhere this morning, a painful commute In

Hertfordshire, cars were up against substantial obstacles. A story

repeated on the A5 near Luton. Standing water brought traffic

almost to a standstill on the A 4. While others manage to make slow

progress, this was the earls Barton Junction. Drivers negotiated nasty

conditions in Northampton. Water on the roads was the main cause for

Fire and rescue callouts. And earlier today, it seemed like there

was water everywhere, flash flooding in Northampton, Kettering and

Corby. A flood warning issued by the environment agency in Peter

borough. Residents are devised to take immediate action. We

unfortunately `` the storm passed through quickly. We did not have any

reports of flooding in the immediate Peter borough area. We are now in

the phase of clearing up, so we asked people if they see something

that is a flood risk, call the flood hotline. There was one ray of

sunshine for those on the move, no problems at the region's airports.

If you could get there. Well the situation is changing all

the time and Louise is here and joins me now. What's the latest

Yes, Amanda, here's the latest on how things are looking across the

region. Water levels around the Northern area of Peterborough have

receded this evening and a flood warning there has now been lifted.

But the Environment Agency says standing water across low`lying land

and roads across flood plains may remain for some time. There are also

nine flood alerts this evening across the region, including at

Wansford near Peterborough on the River Nene. An alert means you

should be prepared because flooding is possible. 100,000 people without

power, is that still the case? This evening we've learnt 92,00

homes are still without power. Of course engineers are continuing work

to restore supplies. We will have more on that later in

the programme. But do please check before you travel. You can also keep

up`to`date by tuning into your local radio station. And if you have any

photos from the storm, you can e`mail us at: Now, it's being

claimed that here in the East we have some of the best fertility

treatment for NHS patients. Bourn Hall Clinic is one of the only

a few places in England offering couples three chances of becoming

pregnant. It gives patients one of the best success rates in the

country. Ben Bland reports. Ian and Danielle, twins almost a

year old and the smile on their mother's face says it all. The

couple needed fertility treatment, and because they live in Cambridge,

they were entitled to three attempts funded by the NHS. I know we are

lucky, because not all around the country, people get that. There is a

lottery postcode which just gets one cycle funding. This was our last

chance. This is the laboratory where they literally create life. They

choose the eggs, and through here they select the best sperm. The eggs

are fertilised, put in an incubator like this for anything up to five

days, then the best are chosen to put back in the womb. The success

rate is higher than average, seven out of ten couples go on to have a

baby, in part thanks to the latest technology. We look at sperm under

high`power magnification to help men with poor sperm samples and also

imagery which takes a snapshot of the embryo every five minutes. It is

producing a wealth of information. Most of which we would never have

seen. Bourn Hall is well established, it was here they

created the first test`tube baby more than 35 years ago. Since then

12,500 babies have been born through this clinic alone. In many other

parts of the country, couples can only get one or two fertility cycles

funded by the NHS, rather than the three recommended by the guidelines.

If this region can do it, there is no reason why the rest of the

country cannot do it. The East of England ring marked a certain amount

of money for this purpose. I am sure of the region should be able to do

the same thing. Each cycle costs ?3500, at a time when the NHS to

must make savings. Sofa now, this postcode lottery remains, but it is

one people in this region seem to be winning. `` so for now.

Councillors have voted, by the narrowest of majorities, to approve

plans for an incinerator at Kings Lynn. They had been warned that to

reject the controversial scheme would leave Norfolk council open to

a claim for compensation which would bankrupt the authority. The council

leader has called for opponents to accept the result and move on. If

you have the facts and accept the evidence and stop saying somehow all

the evidence you get is bias and untrue. Accept the facts and then

there is only one conclusion, Norfolk cannot afford to walk away

from this contract. Vandals have been targeting Luton's

new Busway, leaving objects on the line and threatening passenger

safety. Drivers have reported rocks and bricks being left in the path of

the buses. One of the companies which run on the busway says there

have been a spate of worrying incidents. The Busway cost more than

?90 million. It has been opened only a month after years of planning and

building. It operates between Luton, Dunstable and Houghton Regis.

Later, Alex is here with the weather. First it's back to Stewart

in Norwich for the rest of the news and celebrations at Red

local government secretary will guard `` will grant planning

permission. If he doesn't, it's back to square one.

Still to come in the programme: Alex will be here with the details of how

the storm affected us and what to expect now.

And Red Bull make it four in a row. We'll be hearing from the man who

helped design the winning car. As you've been hearing tonight, the

storm has caused extensive damage to power lines across our region. Tens

of thousands of homes and businesses are still without electricity

tonight. We'll hear from UK Power Networks in a moment after this

report from Dawn Gerber. The storm has brought chaos to our

region and tens of thousands have been left without power. In Norfolk,

several trees collapsed onto a power line, threatening to fall onto the

road. In Suffolk, one woman woke up to find her tree Court in power

cables. What horrifies me more than anything is the fact people are

driving past! This tree is hanging onto threads at the moment and

people seem to think it's fine to drive underneath. The impact of the

severe weather also hit power supplies in nearby brand them. The

pub closed the day. In the west of the region, more businesses were

having to remain shut. Knebworth was without power from 7am. I have had

to send staff home. There is nothing they can do about it. I will make up

to them during the week. At its peak, 300,000 properties across East

Anglia were without electricity. This evening, 92,000 are still

waiting to have their power restored. Even with extra staff

working around the clock, UK power networks say it will take until

Wednesday before electricity supplies are back on.

This evening extra help is being brought in from Northern Ireland and

Scotland to help get the power back on across the region. Late this

afternoon I spoke to Matt Rudling from UK Power Networks who told me

how bad the situation had been. At its peak, we had 500,000

customers affected through the day, 350,000 of those in the East of

England. We have restored 250,000 of those already. We are now out there,

assessing the damage and trying to understand what we need to do to

restore the remainder. Why were so many people affected? It was the

sheer ferocity of the storm. But the wind speeds were particularly high.

The damage we saw reflected that. When do you expect the rest of those

people without power to be reconnected? We are working as hard

as we can we will continue to work through the night. We hope the vast

majority will be restored at the next 24`36 hours, but there may be a

few customers who we will supply for a few days after that. Our focus is

to get a big number of customers back. Is it trees coming down that

largely has brought cables down? No. Sometimes the wind has been

strong enough to impact our network directly. When you see wind speeds

like we have seen today, our network is exposed and is at risk from that

kind of thing. Some of it has been trees. We have seen the news

coverage. That has had an impact on us as well. There will because again

for power lines to be buried so that we don't have this problem. The cost

of doing so, it costs significantly more. These events are very rare,

fortunately, and hopefully, the response we have seen today shows we

are well equipped to deal with this kind of event.

Tonight at 7:30: Inside Out is looking at the single occupancy

charge. It wants people with spare bedrooms in council properties to

downsize or pay more. Those in favour say it will save millions.

But what critics call the Bedroom Tax is making life very difficult

for many people. The programme features a couple from Suffolk whose

home cost thousands of pounds to modify but are being asked to move

because they have too many bedrooms. Can't sleep at night. Getting

headaches. Not feeling well. In the long term, it would be better for

asked to move because it would be smaller. As long as it was adapted

for my wife's needs. You can see that full report on Inside Out at

7:30pm on BBC One. In football, the Norwich City

manager Chris Hughton says he understands mounting criticism from

fans. Despite a summer of record`breaking spending, his team

are still in the bottom three. So far this season, they have managed

just two wins in nine games. The atmosphere is getting edgy. Fans

starting to lose patience. Most left Saturday's draw with little to smile

about. The manager 's future the hot topic of discussion. He came in at a

difficult time and did a good job last season. He's quite negative,

especially at home. Should be more positive upfront. He needs more

time. He's very honest and a good manager. Unfortunately, at the

moment, I am seeing a lot of negativity. Nothing going forward. I

won him out. In truth, Norwich should not still be in the bottom

three. They outplayed Cardiff. 31 shots in 90 minutes, none found the

target. Only six league goals all season, and it is this approach that

has seen the manager come under scrutiny. You have two accepting

these criticisms or frustrations because we all have them. Do you

feel under pressure? The pressure you always feel is what you feel we

in, week out. There is always pressure with the modern game and

expectations that sometimes, you have to expect. He spent a record

?25 million in the summer but supporters have yet to see a return

on their investment. It's expected they would be doing a lot better

than this time around. But it's early days. Anybody watching the

recent games can see they are playing well. Mostly two camps. I

don't think he will be surprised he is under pressure because his team

are in the bottom three and staying in the Premier League is paramount.

Next up, a trip to Manchester. United tomorrow, city on Saturday.

No place to hide. In motor racing, Red Bull have done

the double.. For the fourth season in a row. They've won both the

Drivers' and the Instructors' Championships. Sebastian Vettel's

victory yesterday means he's become only the fourth man in history to

win four titles. So what is the secret to their success? James

Burridge has been to the factory in Milton Keynes to meet the team's

chief designer. A doughnut of delight from the

dominant driver of 2013. Sebastien fettle and red Bull are one of sport

's most successful double acts. Winning isn't just a habit, it's

virtually expected. I love to give everything I have on a Sunday and

the whole weekend. Trying to give back what they give me, hours of

work, attention to detail. What are we here for? We are here to win!

While the bandwagon flies for the next round, 70% of the team in

Milton Keynes are working on next year 's car. Tell me what makes this

car so fast. The car is all about keeping the tires on the track. It

is about maximising grip and ability to accelerate round corners. Having

a suspension system that presents the tied to the road in the optimum

fashion is crucial. Winning, though, has come at a price:

Predictability. Some disgruntled fans have reacted by building in

Belgium. There is a bit of resentment fall is him. But the true

fans sit there, and even if they don't support a particular sports

man, they realise they are watching something special. In all your time

in Formula one, can you think of another driver like him? He's an

exceptional talent. There are great drivers out there. He's probably the

best. Critics will argue his successes down the quality of his

car in part. But this sport is a Batman as well as machine, a

partnership proving impossible to break.

Some of the strongest winds in our region were recorded inland due to a

sting jet. You can see where it developed from the shaded area on

the map. It's the sting in the tail of a storm, drawing down a powerful

jet of air from the stratosphere and can cause very strong winds, which

explains why the bus was blown over in Hadleigh. If we look in detail,

you can see quite strong gusts. But go a bit further south, you can see

places, 76 miles an hour, 79 miles an hour, and this is where there was

most damage. But the low pressure has now moved well away from us. It

is currently across Scandinavia where it has recorded even higher

gusts. Wind gusts of around 150 miles an hour there. Coming here but

still quite windy. Still the chance of further showers through this

evening, although on the whole, they will become isolated. Fairly decent

clear spells in quite a chilly night. Temperatures down into single

figures. But still quite a breeze. What prospect tomorrow? A calmer day

in all, but still quite breezy. Some isolated showers developing but most

places should see dry weather, and particularly through the morning,

sunshine. In the afternoon, it will tend to turn more cloudy. Quite

chilly through tomorrow. Ten or 11 Celsius. Still the risk of them

showers into the afternoon, evening, and looking ahead, Wednesday brings

us a pretty good day but we have this approaching weather front which

will bring rain but probably not until overnight Wednesday into

Thursday. Here is the next four days. A fairly good day of weather

on Wednesday with sunny spells. Quite a brisk breeze and eventually

clouding over from the West. Outbreaks of rain for Thursday. A

dry start to Friday with a chance of rain turning up later on, but

temperatures worth taking note. Chile by day and the risk of the

frost on Tuesday night. Before we go, a big thank you to

everybody sent us your pictures of the weather. We are always delighted

to see your pictures at any time to [email protected]. Or you can send

them in by Facebook or Twitter. Here are just a few of them. Goodnight.

This is Malcolm, who owns Iceland. He's the one

that's going to present us with the ten grand. When we win it.

You've just got to make it as bearable

Here we are in the PR nerve centre of Iceland

at the end of 96 hours of total hell.

But we haven't tested for dog or cat either.

Is this the warmest supermarket around?

Iceland Foods - Life in the Freezer Cabinet.