07/09/2011 Spotlight

Drunk, uninsured and driving the wrong way on a major motorway. The

Somerset woman jailed for nine months. The message I would say is,

if you drink and drive, you are putting yourself and other people

in danger. Good evening and welcome to Spotlight on Wednesday 7th

September. Also on the programme tonight, a

fresh attempt to save a vital island link.

The Isles of Scilly helicopter service hoping to relocate from its

Penzance base. And we report on the last minute

preparations as the 34th America's Cup prepares for a week of world

Police have condemned the actions of a woman who drove the wrong way

up the M5 in Somerset, saying she played Russian roulette with other

drivers' lives. Deborah Hunt drove 23 miles up the southbound

carriageway while twice over the drink drive limit and only stopped

after she ran out of petrol. The judge at Bristol Crown Court said

it was a miracle that nobody had been killed during the incident in

July. Mrs Hunt wept in the dock as Judge Mark Horton handed down a

nine month sentence. Steve Brodie reports.

Experienced police officers say they are astonished that the

actions of Deborah Hunt on that July evening did not end in

catastrophe here on the M5. I think anybody driving the wrong way down

the motorway it is playing Russian roulette. And the only way to take

the bullet out of the gun is not to drink and drive. The message, I

would say, is that if you drink and drive you are putting yourself and

other people in danger. Mrs Hunter joined the motorway at junction 24

at Bridgwater. But to the terror of other motorists, she was driving

the other way, heading out 60 miles an hour directly towards oncoming

traffic. She kept going like this for 23 miles. Further up the M5 at

Burnham on Sea, a police car had to swerve on to the hard shoulder to

avoid a head-on collision. When Deborah Hunt eventually ran out of

petrol, going off on the southbound carriageway on the M5, police

officers put their own lives at risk by jumping over the central

reservation to finally arrest her. She ran out of petrol. The officers

travelling north in the correct direction, they stopped, crossed

the carriageway, over the central barrier, ran up to her, stop,

realised that she was smelling of intoxicating liquor, and she was

arrested. In court, her barrister admitted that the mother of three

had a serious drink problem and was suffering from stress. She had

recently been made redundant and what in the middle of a custody

battle. 43 year-old Mrs Hunt, from Somerset, pleaded guilty to

dangerous driving, driving with excess alcohol and without

insurance. As she was sentenced, she wept and controllable in the

dock. Jailing hunt for nine months, the judge told her, it is

unbelievably fortunate that you did not kill or injure anyone. You

caused terror to members of the public. I would be failing in my

duty if you did not get a custodial sentence. She was also disqualified

from driving for 15 months and has to prove that she no longer has a

drink problem if she ever applies drink problem if she ever applies

for a licence again. $$$NEWLINE The Prime Minister David Cameron has

paid tribute to South West troops killed in Afghanistan during Prime

Plymouth-born Corporal Mark Palin of 1st Battalion The Rifles was

killed by an improvised explosive device in Helmand Province. While

Marine James Wright, from Weymouth, died while on patrol with 42

Commando. Mr Cameron also paid tribute to Lieutenant Daniel Clack

of First Battalion the Rifles and Sergeant Barry Weston from 42

Commando, who also died in action. I pay tribute to their outstanding

courage and selfishness, -- selflessness, they have made our

world more secure. Our deepest sympathy should be the best family,

friends and colleagues. A woman from Taunton has been

released on bail in connection with the death of a schoolgirl. Amy

Hofmeister was killed when she was knocked off her bike on Blackbrook

Way in June. A local man has already pleaded guilty to causing

her death by dangerous driving. This morning Leanne Burnell, on the

left, who was driving a separate car, appeared in court. She's

charged jointly with causing Amy's death and will reappear in November.

There could be a reprieve for Cornwall's threatened bus network.

Councillors have voted to delay any cuts to concessionary fare

subsidies until next April. They've also stressed funding for buses

should be a priority in the next budget. Their recommendations will

go to cabinet for approval next week.

One of the founders of Cornwall's Eden Project has become an honorary

Knight for his work in engaging the public with science. Tim Smit, who

was awarded a CBE in 2002, was presented with his KBE at a special

ceremony in the county. The Eden project has attracted more than 13

million visitors since it first opened nine years ago.

The Royal Cornwall Hospitals Trust has changed its procedures for

carrying out lung biopsies after the death of a patient. An inquest

in Truro has heard how 60-year-old Philip Thomas died from a cardiac

arrest, after a doctor failed to re-inflate a collapsed lung.

Eleanor Parkinson reports. Today Philip Thomas's family heard

details of exactly how he died. He had gone into the Royal Cornwall

Hospital for what should have been an out-patient appointment. A

biopsy to test for lung cancer. Because he had other health

problems, a doctor was her present in case of complications. As in

Tester dated, there were problems. -- anticipated, there were problems.

Mr Thomas had a collapsed lung, and the doctor did not to insert the

drain into the role long. Mr Thomas suffered a cardiac arrest and later

died. -- into the role and lung. The doctor said she carried out a

biopsy would be patient lying on his front and mocked the left side

of his back. He then was turned over so her colleague would not

have been able to see the morgue. do not understand getting left and

right mix up. I cannot follow that. I am a builder, i it make mistakes,

I put doorways in the wrong place, that is easily put right. Something

like this is not easily put right. The trust says since Mr Thomas's

death, they have introduced a number of procedures. They say lung

biopsy patients will no longer be knocked on their back, but their

side, so it can be more readily seen. And safety checks will be

extended to the interventional clinical imaging surface. --

service. The family welcome the changes but wanted kept under

review. Anything it -- any benefit that can be gained from the death

is good, everyone would have preferred if he did not die, but if

some good can be helped to protect someone else or improved procedures,

that has to be a good thing. coroner recorded a narrative

verdict and it told the family that Mr Thomas died from a pneumothorax

following a necessary biopsy for lung cancer.

The Cornish businessman leading a bid to take Plymouth Argyle out of

administration has told Spotlight that Football League approval is

all that stands in the way of the deal being approved. The club is

the subject of a takeover as it looks to clear the debts that have

crippled it for the best part of a year. Brent Pilnick joins us from

Home Park with the latest. You have managed to talk to Kevin

Heaney, what did he tell you? has remained rather tight-lipped in

this process, but today he told me the money was still there to take

over the club and the Football League will discuss in a meeting

tomorrow whether or not to approve it. His consortium, Bishop

International, will pay �6 million for Home Park in Plymouth and land

surrounding it to buy the land and take away the debt from the club

and take it away from administration. That will allow the

acting chairman of the club, Peter Ridsdale, to buy the football side

of the business for a nominal fee. Mr Heaney also told me this morning

that there would be financial security for the club for the next

couple of years. This has been going on for a long time. Still

very uncertain times for Argyll? is. Only last week, the players

were not paid at all and threatened to go on strike. In the end, the

administrator paid than 40% of their wages. Even after scenes like

this 12 days ago, when Peter Ridsdale said the money was in

place, since then, there has been no takeover deal. The Football

League is the final stumbling block, they have to give back the right to

play League football to the new owners. Without that, there will be

no football here. Until that deal is sealed, Argyll are in trouble.

Are the other builders -- bidders still around? Yes, there is a

proposed deal on the table from James Brent, another businessman.

But Mr Heaney says that the end of the day, his is the only one which

is acceptable for anyone. And people should get behind his bid.

He also said the fans should get behind a blue -- club, the more

people who come and support the club, the more money they will make

an investor in the squad. That money needs to be invested in the

squad, they are bottom of the Football League and they have not

won all season. Ocean racing, a verdict on a new

seafront and the smell of a famous harbour coming up in a water filled

second half. Including the migrating seabirds getting a

helping hand trying to find their The company which runs the

helicopter service to the Isles of Scilly says the future of the

service depends on the sale of the Penzance heliport. British

International Helicopters has unveiled plans to build a new

runway at St Erth. It says it needs to buy new aircraft, and that will

only be possible if it sells its current site to a supermarket.

David George reports. Passengers have been balding

helicopters for the 20 minute flights to silly from the outskirts

of Penzance since the heliport Open here in 1964. It is the longest

running Scheduled commercial helicopter service in the world.

British International Helicopters says it needs to buy new aircraft

for the offshore oil side of its business, costing 16 to �20 million

each. The company claims the only way to raise the catch is to --

raise the cash is to sell the heliport and so it has done at deal

with Sainsbury's, and wants to build a new heliport in nearby St

Erth. The company says the site is ideal, next to a railway station, a

road and near a planned park-and- ride scheme. It is also close to

some houses. The taking off and landing, it is just behind my house.

I think that will be a lot of noise. They keep saying they are going to

fly at 10,000 ft, but I think they are flying at about 150 ft across,

behind my place, because they do not go straight up. The taking off

and landing is pretty awful. There were some supporters, but most

people were concerned about the noise. We hope to be able to do

things in terms of mitigating the noise, where we make it, and how we

manage it on site. We had to be able to persuade people that we

will be good neighbours. What happens if you do not persuade

people and you do not get planning permission for this scheme? We can

probably muddle Orme through next year, but I cannot see us being

able to continue the helicopter service but on the end of next year

if we cannot move to St Erth. So that will mean the end of British

International Helicopters. British International helicopters says it

did get is planning permission, it will have aircraft flying in and

out of next -- a this side by April next year. If it does not get it,

it claims the future for the company is gloomy.

They were en route to America but were blown off course, and today

hundreds of seabirds are recovering in a wildlife rescue centre in

Somerset. The birds, mainly Manx Shearwater, were rescued off the

Pembrokeshire coast. Staff at the RSPCA centre at West Hatch near

Taunton are now working to build up the birds strength to get them

flying fit again. Clinton Rogers reports.

It may look painful, but this is tough love for birds a hook, right

now, would have no tots of survival -- no chance of survival on their

own. Stormy seas in West Wales, an RSPCA volunteers are literally

pulling the birds from the water. They had attempted to their annual

migration to South America but were battered by unseasonably strong

winds, and in the end were too exhausted to five. Four we have got

18 in there. And so they were boxed up, nearly 250 of them, and sent to

the RSPCA wildlife rescue centre in Somerset. Today, they were all

being individually weighed and hand fed. They need to be fed by tube

because they do not feed in captivity. They are all tube fed,

and it is a fish soup we are fleeing the number swanning. What

are their chances of survival? should be very good, these are

strong birds. We have not found any with horrendous injuries or

anything. They should be OK. This is quite a logistical operation for

the RSPCA, but I know you have seen this before? We have. In 2007,

there were about 1000 guillemots that came into the centre. We had a

large number of sea birds. It is large numbers, but we are used to

it. It is now just a matter of building up the birds' strength

before they can be set free. Staff here are hopeful that all of these

birds can be released back into the wild within the next few days. The

plan is to take them to the West Somerset coastline, point them in

the direction of South America, and hope they find their way there.

Now, if you live in the countryside you probably expect the odd farm

smell to drift by once in a while. And if you live by the sea, perhaps

a whiff of fish from time to time. But one visitor to Ilfracombe has

taken exception to the stench of the harbour and has been kicking up

a stink! Our North Devon Reporter Andrea Ormsby has the story.

This man is a fisherman, the skipper of a passing boat and he

has been coming in and out of this harbour in Ilfracombe for 26 years.

Just recently, though, his bait has been causing a bit of a stink.

fish on board was bait that we used to catch well, it was not for human

consumption. It was not a problem. But one tourists took exception to

the smell and lodged a complaint with the harbour master. I received

a telephone call from a tourist who was here on the cove where we

Ofsted now, he had become distressed along with his children

about the site and smell of fish landed here. What did you say?

explain it was a working harder and these things happen. The trawlers

catch and land fish. I think it is pathetic. It is a fishing village.

What you'd expect? Fish and that that smell of fish! That is what

you come here for and you expect it. We do not like the smell, -- if you

do not like the smell, keep away. It is quite unusual to have a

working harbour with public access. Ilfracombe is a tourist on. We have

a lot of research as took what people like when they come here,

and one of the things that comes out is how much our tourists love

the harbour. The fact that is it fair working harbour, they can see

the workings and the fishermen doing what they do, they love it,

and they get a real crowd sometimes watching them do these things.

get a complaint has not gone down well. It is ludicrous. If he wants

to come to a working harbour, and bring your children, and not expect

to see dead fish and smell fish, do not bring them. It is a fishy tale

which has caused a stink, but for Dave, life and fishing will

continue unchanged. The e-mails will come flooding in!

It's one of the biggest sporting events to hit Plymouth, and the

start of the America's Cup is just three days away. The World Series

starts on Saturday with yachting teams from all over the globe

taking part in Plymouth Sound. The racing's expected to attract

thousands of spectators, and to cater for everyone the city's

waterfront has been transformed. It is all go here, the world's

media will be here soon, the tented village is a hive of activity. Men

and women hard at work. A bit hectic at the moment. It is, I am

glad we started early. I am thinking it will come together.

There are about 2000 people here involved in making the America's

Cup world series happen, from delivery drivers to the man who

gets the catamarans capable of 20 knots on the Water. It is a bit

like when you are rock-climbing. If you think about it, you make a

mistake. If you do not worry, and just do your job, it is easy.

is what it is all about. Thrills and spills on the high seas. In

Plymouth, there will be three helicopters capturing all of the

action, together with various cameras on board the yacht. Inside

a huge metal containers is the complex TV Centre, with operators

monitoring pictures and marking up graphics. Showcasing Plymouth in

all its glory. We will not get a better and the theatre, abetted you

love this, anywhere in the world. - - a better view than this, anywhere

in the world. San Francisco, it has similar views, but they do not have

the rate element we have here. This is going to be one of the best

views in the next few years. Over 700 Plymouth hotel rooms have been

booked by those competing or working in the America's Cup world

series. The event is a huge boost to the city the drama and

excitement guaranteed. Even if you're not into sailing, it

will be an amazing event. You are going to have a look at the vantage

point around Plymouth to see where the best places to look are? Yes,

on Friday's programme. In less than a year's time billions

of people around the world will be focussing on the Olympic sailing in

Dorset and the venue in Portland is already reaching a global audience.

Another group of international writers has just completed a 24-

hour stop over, and an increasing number of foreign journalists are

now visiting. So what's the verdict of the Dorset coast? I followed

their tour of Weymouth and Portland. Hello, welcome to Weymouth. It is a

few hours from London, Windsor and Stratford, but these American and

Canadian travel writers could persuade international visitors

Dorset is a journey worth making. The eyes of the world are about to

focus on Weymouth and Portland. This seaside resort can capitalise

in column inches. Since the Olympic announcement, not only have we seen

the increase in our national journalists showing an interest,

but a huge amount of international journalists from America, Canada,

Holland, Germany, South Africa, across the globe. -- across the

globe. Long before this press pack, it was George the Third who

inspired generations to holiday here. Tourists still come today as

age all traditions live on. Including the weather, which turns

as night falls. By the morning, the rain is gone, but the wind is

picking up. Embracing the great outdoors, whatever the weather, is

almost the new slogan. The group is taken out on to the Olympic sailing

close. A wave from the bucket and spades, this is the other side of

the Dorset coast. We are out on the water, adventure, that is what the

local council is trying to sell to tourists around the world as we

head towards the Olympics. Kristen is from Weymouth, Massachusetts.

loved it, there is just so much to do here. I cannot get wait -- I

cannot wait to go back home and recommend this to people at the

wonderful destination before the Olympics. It is to world. Tradition,

the Georgian buildings, but you are coming into the 21st century with a

lot of the modern technology that you were using for the Olympic

Games. Is there any downside? downside to coming here? You could

look in the sky and sea mist coming in with the wind, but it is not

Southern California weather. You have got to get used to the

vagaries of English weather. Remarketing of Weymouth and

Portland, a blend of past and present, is being catapulted

forward by 2012. You wonder what they are writing

about us around the world. I cannot believe what -- that we found some

The winds are going to be quite strong, and we have also got rain

coming our way. Not much overnight, but there is a great train of cloud

on satellite pictures. We are between it lumps of cloud at the

moment, some dry weather here, but more wet weather at here. A new

area of low pressure across the Atlantic will Breen that windy

weather and wet weather. Some outbreaks of rain by the morning,

those weather systems do not move away by lunchtime. Perhaps on

Friday, despite a lot of low cloud, mist, and Hill and coastal fog, a

little bit drier and it suddenly -- southerly winds. Cloud coming in

overnight, there is patchy rain in South Wales along the north Devon

coast. Earlier, we were in a Ilfracombe, let's go there, there

has been some reasonable weather here despite the stories about the

fishy smells. The wind and the breeze from the South West means

that Ilfracombe is sheltered. A lot of yachts, boats and wildlife

sheltering from the breeze. This evening and tonight, that will sink

southwards, covering north Devon and drift southwards. Drizzle is

possible anywhere overnight. Quite a mild night. Tomorrow is rather

cloudy with outbreaks of rain. Some of it will peter out in the middle

of the day, and with South West winds, of the to shelter in

Dartmoor, north-east Dorset and Somerset might be tightening up.

More cloud coming in from the West, ring bearing cloud and it

introduced some moisture or. So fog will become widespread. Afternoon

temperatures tomorrow, up to 18 possibly 19 or 24th of Brisk,

The high-water times. The surf is likely to pick up over the next few

days. It is a bit less than it has been today. It builds towards the

end of the week and into the There is a risk of sea fort into

the evening. Challenging conditions for the Challenge Cup -- Americas

Cup, very windy on Saturday and Sunday. Rain early on Saturday will

be replaced on Sunday with showers. Possibly gale-force winds as we

move from Sunday into Monday. But is the forecast for the America's

The top stories. Or woman who drove the wrong way down the M 5420

through miles is jailed for nine months. A hospital changes its

surgical procedures following the death of a patient in Cornwall