2a people are confirmed dead, more than 500 are missing, thousands have been left homeless in a series of blazes described as unprecedented in the region. They are now burning an area larger than chicago. And there are worries the changing weather will bring new outbreaks. This report from peter bowes. Entire communities completely wiped out. In some areas, the Deadly Wildfires have left nothing but charred rubble and brick chimneys in their wake. Their destructive path sweeping through northern californias wine country and still burning out of control. This is what the firefighters are facing, one of more than 20 fires burning across several counties. Devastation on this scale has never been seen before in this region. More than 3,000 homes and businesses have been destroyed. Fire Officials Say theres more to come, with high winds and tinder dry vegetation expected to hamper efforts to quell the flames. There are fears new fires could start at any time. These fires are just literally burning faster than firefighters can run in some cases. So imagine being out there in difficult terrain with miles and miles of fire line, and to try to catch up to that and put in hand line and lay hose, very challenging. And fires are spotting thousands of feet, miles in some cases, ahead. So its just very difficult to get any kind of containment. The advice to residents is clear and blunt. I cant emphasise it enough to people, if you look at how fast this fire burned and how fast it went through places, i think people underestimate how powerful and dangerous it can be. Thats why say if youre in an advisory or have a place to go, go. You dont need to be here. People living in sonoma county, which is one of the hardest hit, dont need to be told about the destructive power of this inferno. Theyve seen it first hand. This is, like, apocalyptic it seems. This is so out of the norm. Like, im from Southern California and everythings dry out there and im used to fires, but ive never seen anything like this in an urban area. All of our pictures are gone. Everythings gone. We got a fire pit. Its pretty awful. But were all healthy and safe and we have to just try and be grateful for that. But its pretty awful. The cost of the fires will run into tens of billions of dollars, and with the death toll continuing to rise and hundreds of people missing, theres no end in sight to this unfolding catastrophe. Peter bowes, bbc news. Jay goldbergs father lost his house in santa rosa in the wildfires, he joins me live from Castro Valley outside San Francisco now. Good to see your dad sitting behind you. As i understand it, if he hadnt been staying with you that night he might not be there . Thats correct, absolutely, he was here with us for the weekend and we got a call with us for the weekend and we got a ca ll early with us for the weekend and we got a call early in the morning that the entire area where he was at was on fire and it was devastated, there was nothing left and he lost his house. Youve been back to the house, you sent us some pictures, how is it going to work . Are the areas hit by the fire gone or are people going to be able to rebuild, people going to be able to rebuild, people like your dad . People going to be able to rebuild, people like your dad . |j people going to be able to rebuild, people like your dad . I think eventually people will be able to rebuild but right now, we were there yesterday, there is still fire burning and smouldering in the area. You know, youre going to have to have the gas company, electric company, water companies, the entire infrastructure is going to have to be rebuilt because theres no way of connecting anything. It could be yea rs before connecting anything. It could be years before the area is totally rebuilt. At this point i dont think hes going to rebuild. You heard the reports im sure that these are fires that are moving faster than a physically fit very well trained firefighter kamran, from here thousands of miles away they looked terrifying, how is it to be in an area where they are so close . Dashcam run. It is frightening and its really upsetting. Can run. I grew up in santa rosa, a lot of my friends and my best man lost his house, they lived down the road from my father. 0ne house, they lived down the road from my father. One of my clients lost their home i learned today. Its really going to be devastating. Coffee park has been on the news a lot, a terrible situation, lots of people have lost their homes there, across the freeway, and on top of the hills its gone, theres nothing left, it literally looks like a nuclear bomb went off. Theres nothing left, we saw three homes in the entire subdivision standing, Everything Else is six inches of ashes. We walked the property and theres nothing to recover, theres absolutely nothing there but ashes. We were hearing the winds were dropping, which is obviously good news, now i gather they are picking up news, now i gather they are picking up and the humidity is going down. Thats bad news for the fires already burning and it could mean more of them . It could be. Ive been trying to listen to the calfire updates and the winds werent too bad as of an hour ago, but the National Weather service, which are monitoring, as well as the local meteorologists, they are saying at around 10pm or iipm tonight it will be picking up, especially between 3am and 6am. I know the Fire Department is doing itsjob lane lines and i can hear them on the radio working as hard as they can, i really hope they get a foothold on this because if the winds pick up its going to mean more fuel for the fire. Thanks so much for talking to us fire. Thanks so much for talking to us at such a difficult time. All the best to all of you thank you. The wife of hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein has announced shes leaving him amid a growing storm of allegations of Sexual Harassment and rape. She described her husbands behaviour as unforgivable. In los angeles the organisation that oversees the oscars is to hold an emergency meeting to consider its response. And there are new moves from police and prosecutors in new york. He has claimed some of the allegations are patently false. Nick bryant reports. This time last week, Harvey Weinstein was at the centre of hollywoods in crowd. But now, he is a virtual outcast, known not for the magnetism of his personality, but what accusers have described as the menace. A list actresses, to women who just wanted to break into the movie and tv industry, all saying he sexually abused or harassed them, claims he denies. But now, his wife of ten years has decided to leave him, horrified by what she has been hearing. The British FashionDesigner Georgina Chapman described her husbands actions as unforgiveable and said, my heart breaks for all the women who suffered tremendous pain. The new zealand model zoe brock claims the producer harassed her at the Cannes Film Festival in the late 1990s. Harvey walked out of the room, and came back in naked. He came back naked . Naked. What did you say . And he said that he wanted a massage, could i give him a massage . And i said no. Weinstein claims many sexual encounters were consensual. Not according to zoe brock. I hope hes watching. Say that to my face, harvey. I would happily stand in a courtroom and testify. Happily. Tonight, the british model and actress Cara Delevingne claimed he harassed her in a hotel room. Some of hollywoods leading men have also distanced themselves from a friend who gave them their big breaks. George clooney described weinsteins behaviour as indefensible. So hows your lady . Ben affleck, who made his name in the weinstein movie good will hunting, said he was angry. His co star matt damon said he was sick to his stomach, and said he had never seen this kind of behaviour, or been part of an attempt to suppress stories about it in the past. This is the new york headquarters of the weinstein company, which sacked its co founder on sunday. Its said to be considering a name change. The Company Faces the same questions as the industry as a whole. Did it protect him . Did it enable him . Was this an open secret, that friends and colleagues simply chose to ignore . Those who worked with him speak of his immense power, and ca reer breaking influence. If you had been an actress who lets say harvey had groped your breasts while you were supposed to be auditioning for him, what are you going to do . Youre not going to go to the police. Theyre not going to take that seriously. Youre not going to call a journalist, because at that point harvey had the whole media world in his pocket, and no one was going to go up against Harvey Weinstein. There is only a downside to reporting it, ie, harveys going to destroy your career. Theres no upside to doing that. Why is anyone going to do that . Bafta has suspended weinstein from its membership. The hosts of the oscars are now considering taking action. His beloved red carpet, the place where he used to parade his power, for now at least seems out of bounds. Nick bryant, bbc news, new york. Lets take a look at some of the other stories making the news. President trump has now said he can envisage a new trade pact with canada that might exclude mexico. At the white house with canadas prime minister, justin trudeau, mr trump said American Workers had to be protected. Mexico has warned such a deal would damage cross border relations, including cooperation in the war on drugs. The United Nations has accused the Burmese Security forces of a systematic policy of brutal expulsion of the Muslim Rohingya minority. It says attacks against the rohingya, destruction of their homes, crops and livestock, mean any return for the refugees to normal life in Rakhine State is almost impossible. A study of two vaccines for the ebola virus has found they can both protect against the fever for at least a year. The research, in the new england journal of medicine, found at least 60 of 1,500 patients developed antibodies. Ebola killed more than 11,000 people in an outbreak in west africa in 2014. Pope francis says Roman Catholic teaching must contain a prohibition on the death penalty. 0n the 25th anniversary of the catechism of the catholic church, the pope said Capital Punishment is inadmissible because it denies the possibility of redemption. Later this week, donald trump is expected to announce whether hell decertify the iran nuclear deal. Mr trump has described the agreement, internationally negotiated and in place for two years, as the worst deal ever. But catherine ashton, one of the original negotiators, says the agreement is doing what it set out to, limit irans stockpiles and nuclear ambitions. Shes urging washington to leave it intact. Its really important to, you know, that diplomacy work sometimes and is seen to work. And the agreement does what it says, and therefore should be allowed to continue. There are plenty of other issues which need the energy of the United States and other nations to really try and make us more safe and secure. Baroness ashton there, and her position was supported earlier this month by both mr trumps defence secretary and americas most senior military officer. There was also this, earlier today, from republican congressman ed royce, addressing the house of Representatives Foreign Affairs committee. As flawed as the deal is, i believe we must now enforce the hell out of it. Lets work with allies to make certain that International Inspectors have better access to possible nuclear sites, and we should address the fundamental sunset shortcoming, as our allies have recognised. Joining me from washington, dc is doctor kamran bokhari, a Senior Analyst at Intelligence Firm geopolitical futures. Welcome, thanks for your time. First of all, do you think the president will do this . Can he do it and what does it mean . Can he do it . I think he can. All he has to do is not certify on october the 15th and that opens up a different process. Does that mean the deal will be nullified . I dont think so. Itjust the deal will be nullified . I dont think so. It just starts the deal will be nullified . I dont think so. Itjust starts a new process where congress has 60 days to then review it and impose sanctions. So whatever trump does does not automatically lead to the shredding of the deal. If he does it, he makes a lot of his voters very happy, he made a great deal of this in the campaign, but he goes against, he overalls his secretary of defence and americas most senior military officer, the chair of the joint chiefs of staff, and there are major world powers that would have something to say about it . Of course. Again i think theres a misunderstanding in the general perception of what the president is trying to achieve here. I think the president , as you said earlier, is trying to appeal to his base at a time when his popularity is in the low 30s range. And hes also trying to ensure that iran does not take advantage of the sanctions respite it has received, especially at a time when the arab world and its chaos represent an opportunity to expand its regional ambitions. Theres a bit of foreign policy, a bit of domestic policy here, but its not the same as saying hes going to end the deal. I think that is not what is happening. Briefly if you dont mind, do you expect a response from iran . Of course, iran is not going to let this just go by and bea is not going to let this just go by and be a silent observer. Its the target of this move so iran, as you know, is already speaking very loudly. We had president rouhani and other officials speak out on this. So yes, they will respond. But they wa nt to so yes, they will respond. But they want to wait and see what actually happens. Saying that he wont certify it, again, is a path within the deal, a path that iran does not wa nt to the deal, a path that iran does not want to see happen but its not the nullification of the deal. So i think irans response will be measured and be proportionate to what actually happens. Sounds like we may be speaking against p thanks very much indeed. My pleasure. Stay with us on bbc news. Still to come lights, camera, action why have english novels set in cornwall been a hit tv series for decades in germany . Parts of San Francisco least affected by the earthquake are returning to life. But in the marina area, where most of the damage was done, theyre more conscious than ever of how much has been destroyed. In the 19 years since he was last here, hes gone from being a little known revolutionary to an experienced and successful diplomatic operator. It was a 20lb bomb that exploded on the fifth floor of the grand hotel, ripping a hole in the front of the building. This government will not weaken. Democracy will prevail. It fills me with humility and gratitude to know that i have been chosen as the recipient of this for foremost of earthly honours. This catholic nation held its breath for the men they call the 33. And then. Bells tolled nationwide to announce the first rescue and chile let out an almighty war. This is bbc world news. The latest headlines at least 2a people have died in wildfires in northern california, and hundreds more are reported to be missing. The Harvey Weinstein scandal intensifies. Now, new York Police Say they want to speak to one of his accusers. Only a few weeks ago, the media in china and india were full of talk of war, amidst a standoff at a disputed border area in the himalayan region. You may remember there was some eyeballing, jostling and trespassing, before both countries eventually decided to pull troops back. Butjust how tense are relations along the indian chinese border . Nitin srivastava has travelled to a remote village in indias north easternmost state of Arunachal Pradesh to find out. It is tortuous mountain terrain, with not a single soul in sight. You have to travel for over two days on a dirt track to read each one of indias last villages before the border with china. This is one ofjust 50 families who live in this remote hamlet. Farming is their only source of income. There is no internet or phone connection. The nearest place to buy Household Goods is five hours away. Popping across the border into china is the easy option. Translation there is a lot of development out there and unlike here they have roads and infrastructure. Their government has constructed homes for each Family Living on the border. Every second family in this village has a relative on the other side, which is china, and some get to meet them once in a while. But what is really usual for them is to see chinese troops at least once a year inside indian territory. This man, who lives nearby, has seen this with this own eyes. He works as a guide and translator. Translation i met chinese soldiers almost 100 metres inside the indian border, and they asked me how many troops were nearby. Isaid 300. They went back a few hours later. Archive with the outbreak of fighting, indian troops. India and china have a long standing border dispute and the countries even went to full scale war in 1962. The stand off was resolved peacefully, but only after two months of intense media hype. The reality on the ground is very different for these villages. China is not foreign to them, it is family. Girls will be allowed to join the boy scouts of america from next year. Families have campaigned for years to see girls admitted to an organisation, which has existed for 100 years. Some see it as an attempt to stop falling numbers in the us. Scout leaders say it is a step forward. I think today shows the world that the boy scouts of america is moving forward, and moving beyond some of the stereotypes that weve had in the past that we werent interested in moving on, nor trying to serve a family. Were interested in serving the youth of the families in this community, across northern virginia, dc, maryland, down to the virgin islands, where we have young people in our programme. Its a great day, that we will be able to serve more young people in what we do. Thats what we are all about. Thats what we want to do. They are quintessentially english romantic novels set in the rugged cornwall countryside, and for 20 years, they have been a fixture of sunday night viewing as a hit tv series in germany. And german fans of the cornish author Rosamunde Pilcher are coming in droves to see the locations in the series, adding tens of millions of pounds to the tourist industry, too. Here is jon kay. It is one of germanys biggest shows, an everyday tale of cornish folk. And here is the result. Every week, hundreds of fans turn up on a pilcher pilgrimage, to visit locations they have seen on tv. Prideaux place, near padstow, has featured in 20 of the films. Linda, her mother, and aunt come from dortmund. They love the romantic storylines and are feeling quite overwhelmed. We saw the scenes when someone was heartbreaking, and crying on the stairs, and then they fell in love together. So its incredible to be here. Last year, pilcher tourism brought £50 million into the economy. Here at prideaux place, 80 of the tour groups now come from germany. They put in lots of fake flowers. And the real life owner cant believe her luck. Its wonderful. Theyve booked in already for next year, and its helping keep the roof on the house. It makes that much of a difference . It does. What would your message be to Rosamunde Pilcher herself . Thank you, thank you, thank you just outside newquay they are shooting the 120th movie, and there is no sign of them stopping. As well as this one, there is another pilcher film being shot in cornwall at the moment, and a third about to start. The films are all made in german, by germans, for germans, but about cornwall. Every character, all of our names are english, and everything is english, but we speak german. What do you think british people will make of this . Because i think a lot of them dont realise its going on. They would think were nuts. Rosamunde pilcher is 93 and recovering from a fall. But she is said to be delighted her stories are benefiting her beloved cornwall. This is what she is so proud of, that shes putting back some sort of money back into the place that she was born. Pilchers writing may have been underrated sometimes, but there is no underestimating its value now. Space researchers say an asteroid the size of a house will have a close miss with earth later on. It will hurtle past at a distance of about 26,000 miles, and travel within the moons orbit, about the height of many satellites. Scientists from nasa say, although there is no risk to earth this time, it is a chance to test asteroid warning systems. It is similar in scale to the space rock that exploded over russia in 2013, which damaged buildings and injured more than 1,000 people. Scientists are trying to work out what they might be able to do if an asteroid was spotted on a collision course. In our main news, the national guard, thousands of firefighters, dozens guard, thousands of firefighters, d oze ns of guard, thousands of firefighters, dozens of search and rescue teams and helicopters are now fighting 22 large wildfires in california. 2a people are concerned dead. More than 500 are missing. Thousands have been left homeless, in a series of blazes described as unprecedented in this region. That is it for now. Thank you so much for watching. Hello, good morning. The weather is much, much quieter now. It is actually turning chilly out there under the clear skies. But, for a while on wednesday, we had Severe Weather in cumbria. Heavy cloud, low cloud as well, producing a lot of rain, feeding into the rivers as the water drained down from higher ground. And it was in the highest ground that we had some of the heaviest rain. Honister, for example, over 200mm of rain falling in 2a hours. The rain was quite localised, but heavy for a while on a thick a more active weather front. But, as that swept south eastwards, so the cloud thinned and narrowed, and the front weakened. Were into a bit of a flat ridge, if you like, for today as this deepening low pressure is waiting in the wings by the end of the week. But a quieter day on thursday. A little bit chilly out there in the morning, one or two mist patches in the south. A lot of dry weather, and some sunshine too. As you had further north, though, the winds are that bit stronger in scotland and Northern Ireland in particular. There will be more cloud here from the word go and a few showers, mainly around the highlands and islands. The heaviest showers for the northern isles. Now, the winds are going to be quite gusty and scotland, picking up in Northern Ireland, too. A bit more cloud around here from time to time. The threat of rain in the far north west, perhaps. Some patchy cloud developing in england and wales, but more sunshine than we had yesterday. Slightly fresher air, but temperatures will be very similar to what we had on wednesday, and it should be a decent day for most of us. Those weather systems arrive in the north west overnight, thickening cloud, bringing out rain and the winds will be picking up as well. Wettest weather over the hills. More rain over western scotland pushing into cumbria, perhaps north wales. Further south and east gets some sunshine, and those temperatures are going to be close to 20 degrees. Quite warm air across much of the uk, and as we head into the weekend, were going to draw up some warmer air from iberia, from biscay, into the central and southern parts of the uk. Quite a difference in temperature, as you can see. Either side of the weather front which, which having moved southwards, is going to start to move northwards again on saturday, and initially, not much rain on that at all. A band of cloud, drizzly rain over the hills it may turn wet in the north west later in the day. But warming up to the south, and those temperatures getting up to 19, 20 degrees. Some heavy rain continues, though, in the north west of the uk, Northern Ireland, and over the hills of western scotland. Not quite as warm here, but further south, get some sunshine, and particularly in the south east, and it could be 22 or 23. This is bbc news, the headlines more than 200 fire engines and firefighting crews from across america are being rushed to california, to help contain 22 wildfires raging over an area larger than the city of chicago. Fire Officials Say the death toll has climbed to 2a, but hundreds of people are missing. The organisation which runs the oscars says it will meet this weekend to decide what action to take on what its described as repugna nt allegations against the film producer, Harvey Weinstein. Hes facing a growing number of accusations that he harassed and sexually assaulted a number of women. Donald trump is due to announce whether hell decertify the iran nuclear deal. Hes described the agreement, in place for two years, as the worst deal ever. His own defence secretary, along with americas most senior military officer, have both said the deal is limiting Irans Nuclear ambitions, as intended. Now on bbc news, its hardtalk