:00:17. > :00:20.It was the moment he thought he was going to die. Paul Stephenson, the
:00:21. > :00:22.double`decker driver left trapped in the wreckage of the Stanley
:00:23. > :00:25.school bus crash, has been re`living what happened for Look North.
:00:26. > :00:28.Paul, who's 54, is just out of hospital.
:00:29. > :00:31.He's been praised for putting the safety of his passengers first,
:00:32. > :00:34.even though he was inches from being killed in Tuesday's crash
:00:35. > :00:38.Paul's been talking to our Chief Reporter Chris Stewart.
:00:39. > :00:41.I've got a big cut on my right knee because I had
:00:42. > :00:49.I've got fracture ribs, grazes on my hands and elbows.
:00:50. > :00:54.On the top of my head, I've got stitches where a big gash w`s.
:00:55. > :00:57.And it could, perhaps should, have been much worse.
:00:58. > :01:05.I thought, I'm lucky to be `live, basically.
:01:06. > :01:08.I shouted out to the kids, we're going to hit something,
:01:09. > :01:13.The bus was coming through the screen, everything shattered,
:01:14. > :01:19.I was leaning back, but obvhously I was trapped in the cab.
:01:20. > :01:27.Then it stopped and it was, like, six inches off my face,
:01:28. > :01:35.Then there was an eerie sildnce and the kids just went, "Aaaaaa`argh!"
:01:36. > :01:39.They all came rushing to thd front, but they couldn't get off
:01:40. > :01:44.the front, so I had to tell them, you need to go up the back of the
:01:45. > :01:50.bus and get off the back of the bus as quickly and safely as yot can.
:01:51. > :01:53.I was covered in blood becatse of the cut on my head.
:01:54. > :02:01.And this young lassie came `nd looked at me and she just started
:02:02. > :02:09.The first night I was in thd hospital I had the vision of the bus
:02:10. > :02:17.You've got to think positivd about things.
:02:18. > :02:20.And odd twist is that the children on your bus were
:02:21. > :02:23.from St Bede's of Lanchester, which is your old school.
:02:24. > :02:33.30 victims altogether and a 12`year`old boy still in hospital.
:02:34. > :02:35.The investigation by Durham police into just what went
:02:36. > :02:45.Two people were treated in hospital after
:02:46. > :02:50.It happened at a recycling plant on McMullen Road.
:02:51. > :02:54.They went to the town's Memorial Hospital suffering skin irrhtation
:02:55. > :02:59.The hospital was closed to `ll but emergency cases while
:03:00. > :03:03.It's thought they'd spilt the substance on themselves.
:03:04. > :03:09.The injuries were not seriots and the hospital has now reopened.
:03:10. > :03:13.It was the highest tide Teesside had seen in 150 years
:03:14. > :03:18.Six months ago today the cldar up operation was beginning in Port
:03:19. > :03:21.Clarence after hundreds of people were forced to leave their homes.
:03:22. > :03:23.The Environment Agency is now working on
:03:24. > :03:26.a ?9 million flood defence scheme for the area and 50 residents
:03:27. > :03:30.and businesses are being helped to apply for government grants.
:03:31. > :03:36.This was Port Clarence last December.
:03:37. > :03:38.Record flooding, hundreds forced to leave their homes.
:03:39. > :03:51.It's awful. The smell is disgusting. It's not nice. I feel like crying.
:03:52. > :03:58.Stephen showed up his mums shaking floor.
:03:59. > :04:01.You're walking across it and it just breaks. You're falling throtgh the
:04:02. > :04:04.floorboards. We spoke to Billy six months ago
:04:05. > :04:07.as he trudged back to Today his property and garddns have
:04:08. > :04:12.been repaired, but he's now nervous when he hears there's going to be
:04:13. > :04:28.a another high tide. You just keep praying and hope not
:04:29. > :04:31.going to happen. I couldn't handle that again.
:04:32. > :04:34.Around 50 families and businesses are now being helped to apply
:04:35. > :04:39.for a ?5,000 government grant to protect them from future flooding.
:04:40. > :04:54.It's flooding of both floorboards level. They might not be able to
:04:55. > :05:07.claim under the screen. It hs very restricted. The environment agency
:05:08. > :05:12.is developing a new scheme here and work is expected to start in March.
:05:13. > :05:17.Some people are sceptical. They say they have heard this before. They
:05:18. > :05:18.say they will only believe ht's going to happen when the work
:05:19. > :05:22.actually starts. A veteran of the D` Day landings who
:05:23. > :05:26.should have been in Normandx today was guest of honour at a melorial
:05:27. > :05:30.event in County Durham this morning. Jim Peakes couldn't join
:05:31. > :05:33.his former comrades at the commemoration servicd in
:05:34. > :05:36.France because his name was misspelt However, the
:05:37. > :05:42.Sedgefield Village Veterans stepped in to make Jim welcome at their own,
:05:43. > :05:54.somewhat smaller, celebrations. The Theatre Royal in Newcastle
:05:55. > :05:57.staged one of its most romantic 180 friends
:05:58. > :06:02.and relatives packed the st`lls to see Louise and Darren, the new Mr
:06:03. > :06:05.and Mrs Kempson, tie the knot. Louise said she chose the Theatre
:06:06. > :06:08.Royal after performing therd herself as an amateur actress and it was the
:06:09. > :06:15.place where Darren had proposed Newcastle United have made
:06:16. > :06:17.their first signing of the summer. Ayoze Perez has completed
:06:18. > :06:20.a long term deal from Tenerhfe. The 20`year`old striker plaxed
:06:21. > :06:41.in Spain's second tier last season Now it's time for the weathdr. It is
:06:42. > :06:49.mostly dry this evening. Ovdrnight, clear spells. The cloud will
:06:50. > :06:54.increase in the West later. It starts up mostly dry tomorrow
:06:55. > :07:01.sunshine in the east. The thicker cloud in the West will spre`d
:07:02. > :07:06.outbreaks of rain in the West. The bright greens and yellow here
:07:07. > :07:11.indicate the risk of some rdally heavy downpours. There could be
:07:12. > :07:16.hail, some thunder and some lightning. It will be hot and humid.
:07:17. > :07:21.Temperatures will be up to 20 Celsius.
:07:22. > :07:31.There is a warning from the Met office. On Sunday, sunny spdlls and
:07:32. > :07:31.scattered shells scattered showers `` scattered
:07:32. > :07:33.improve to some extent. The showers move away and a fresh appeal to
:07:34. > :07:42.things. Good evening. The good news is,
:07:43. > :07:45.there will be some decent dry on a sunny moment to come through the
:07:46. > :07:49.weekend. But over the next 24 hours, the threat of thunderstorms
:07:50. > :07:53.looms large. The ingredients have been coming together today - warm
:07:54. > :07:57.air pushing northwards out of Iberia, cooler air from the Atlantic
:07:58. > :08:01.trying to pushed away. In between the cloud has been building with a
:08:02. > :08:04.lot of energy in the atmosphere sparking off some nasty
:08:05. > :08:07.thunderstorms across parts of northern Spain and south-west
:08:08. > :08:13.France. They will produce most of the rainfall tomorrow. Ahead of it,
:08:14. > :08:17.the cloud is starting to produce thunderstorms itself. We've seen in
:08:18. > :08:20.Cornwall. A few sporadic thunderstorms across central and
:08:21. > :08:21.southern areas and towards Northern Ireland through the