Storm Bert: Father rescues son from sinking car as floods wreak havoc
Tragedy almost struck a family in West Yorkshire after a father had to suddenly rescue his 11-month-old son from their flooded car.
Andre Randles, 22, was driving with baby Luca from Hebden Bridge to his father’s home in Todmorden to watch a football match on Saturday afternoon.
He was diverted away from his main route when he hit a dip and went “straight into a puddle of water”.
Speaking to Sky’s Shingi Mararike, Mr Randles said he thought it was a shallow puddle that he could drive through but soon his car began to float.
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Andre Randles’ partner Paige Newsome said the incident was ‘really scary’
He called emergency services but soon “water started seeping in”.
“I thought I’m going to have to get out, I’m going to have to smash a window,” Mr Randles said.
He wound down his and his son’s windows, and climbed out before rescuing his son.
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‘Devastating’ flooding in Wales
“The water was chest high, I held him up as high as I could to keep him out of the water.”
“It wasn’t raining so heavily, I’ve driven in much worse rain,” he added.
Mr Randles, a self-employed roofer who relies on the car for work, said he remained calm during the ordeal and was helped by the fact that Luca was asleep during the rescue.
Mr Randles’ partner Paige Newsome – who was not in the car at the time – said the incident was “really scary”.
“To think I could have actually lost them both – I don’t know how I would’ve lived,” she said.
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Resident feels ‘abandoned’ in floods
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The road has been flooding for at least two decades, the couple said.
“What is it going to take for the council to sort it out? Does a fatal incident have to happen? It’s been going on for years,” Ms Newsome said.
The couple are worried about affording another car as well as Christmas celebrations.
But Mr Randles said: “I’m grateful that we got out safely and that we can spend his first birthday and Christmas as a family.”
Storm Bert has brought more than 80% of November’s average monthly rainfall in less than 48 hours to some parts, the Met Office said.
Around 300 flood warnings and alerts are in place in England, with another 100 in Wales and nine in Scotland, as heavy rain and thawing snow bring more disruption across the UK.
A major incident was declared by Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council in South Wales after homes and cars were submerged in water.
‘It is devastating’
Gareth Davies, who owns a garage in Pontypridd, a town in Rhondda Cynon Taf, told Sky’s Dan Whitehead that flooding has put his small business “back to square one”.
As the River Taff burst its banks, the majority of the vehicles in Mr Davis’s garage were so damaged he says they will have to be written off.
Mr Davies speaking to Sky’s Dan Whitehead in his flooded garage
“I am gutted,” he said, standing in his flooded garage, most of which is also covered in oil after a drum tipped over.
“How long is it going to take to sort out? I am going to lose money either way. I can’t work on people’s cars when I am trying to sort all of this out.
“It is devastating.”
Mr Davies said he has never had an issue with water coming into his garage until now.
Pointing to one car that had been hoisted into the air before water reached it, he said: “Lucky enough, I did come in this morning just to get that car up in the air.
“I don’t know what to say, I have been working flat out for two years to build this up and something like this happens, and it just squashes it all.
“This has put me back to square one.”
At least two to three hundred properties in South Wales have been affected by flooding, Councillor Andrew Morgan, leader of Rhondda Cynon Taf Borough Council, said on Sunday.
He said the affected buildings are a mixture of residential and commercial properties, after the weather turned out to be worse than what was forecast.
MPs have voted to decriminalise abortion in England and Wales.
The amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill, abolishing the prosecution of women for terminating their pregnancy at any stage, passed by 379 votes to 137.
It represents the biggest shake-up in reproductive rights for almost 60 years.
Labour MP Tonia Antoniazzi, who tabled the so-called “New Clause One” (NC1), said it would ensure women do not face investigation, arrest, prosecution or imprisonment in relation to any pregnancies.
She said the current “Victorian” laws had been used against vulnerable women, citing cases such as Nicola Packer, who was prosecuted on suspicion of having an illegal abortion. She was found not guilty in May.
“Nicola’s story is deplorable, but there are many others,” Ms Antoniazzi said.
Abortion in England and Wales is currently a criminal offence but is legal with an authorised provider for up to 24 weeks after conception. The procedure is allowed after this time in very limited circumstances.
It is also legal to take prescribed related medication at home if a woman is less than 10 weeks pregnant.
Ms Antoniazzi said NC1 was “a narrow, targeted measure” that would not change how abortion services were provided or the rules under the 1967 Abortion Act.
Pro-choice campaigners demonstrating for decriminalising abortion in the UK
She said: “The 24 [week] limit remains. Abortions still require the approval of signatures of two doctors, and women would still have to meet the grounds laid out in the Act.”
The MP said that meant healthcare professionals “acting outside the law and abusive partners using violence or poisoning to end a pregnancy would still be criminalised, as they are now.”
She added: “This piece of legislation will only take women out of the criminal justice system because they are vulnerable and they need our help.
“As I have said before, and I will say it again, just what public interest is this serving? This is not justice, it is cruelty and it has got to end.”
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Should abortion be decriminalised?
The change will not come into effect immediately as the Crime and Policing Bill is still making its way through Parliament.
A separate amendment, put forward by Labour MP Stella Creasy, went further with a measure to “lock in” the right of a person to have an abortion while protecting those who help them.
However, her amendment was not voted on because Ms Antoniazzi’s passed, as expected.
Conservative MP Sir Edward Leigh, speaking against both amendments, described them as “not pro-woman” and argued they “would introduce sex-selective abortion”.
How did MPs vote?
MPs were given a free vote on the amendment, as is typically the case with so-called matters of conscience.
A breakdown of the vote showed it was passed overwhelmingly by Labour and Lib Dem MPs.
Read more:
Sky poll reveals public’s view on decriminalisation
Just eight Conservative MPs voted in favour, while all Reform UK MPs opposed the amendment, with the exception of the party’s leader Nigel Farage, who abstained.
Sir Keir Starmer was not present for the vote as he is currently in Canada for the G7 summit, but said earlier that his “longstanding in-principle position is that women have the right to a safe and legal abortion”.
The issue of women investigated by police over suspected illegal abortions has been in the spotlight due to several recent high-profile cases.
Ms Packer was cleared by a jury last month after taking prescribed abortion medicine at home when she was around 26 weeks pregnant, beyond the legal limit of 10 weeks.
In the Commons, Ms Antoniazzi cited another case of a young mother who was jailed for two years after she was forced to take illegal abortion medication by her abusive partner. He was never investigated.
The UK-US trade deal has been signed and is “done”, US President Donald Trump has said as he met Sir Keir Starmer at the G7 summit.
The US president told reporters in Canada: “We signed it, and it’s done. It’s a fair deal for both. It’ll produce a lot of jobs, a lot of income.”
Sir Keir said the document “implements” the deal to cut tariffs on cars and aerospace, describing it as a “really important agreement”.
“So this is a very good day for both of our countries – a real sign of strength,” the prime minister added.
Mr Trump added that the UK was “very well protected” against any future tariffs, saying: “You know why? Because I like them”.
However, he did not say whether levies on British steel exports to the US would be set to 0%, saying “we’re gonna let you have that information in a little while”.
Mr Trump also praised Sir Keir as a “great” prime minister, adding: “We’ve been talking about this deal for six years, and he’s done what they haven’t been able to do.”
He added: “We’re very longtime partners and allies and friends and we’ve become friends in a short period of time.
“He’s slightly more liberal than me to put it mildly… but we get along.”
Sir Keir added that “we make it work”.
As the pair exited a mountain lodge in the Canadian Rockies where the summit is being held, Mr Trump held up a physical copy of the trade agreement to show reporters.
Several leaves of paper fell from the binding, and Sir Keir quickly stooped to pick them up, saying: “A very important document.”
Sir Keir Starmer picks up paper from the UK-US trade deal after Donald Trump dropped it at the G7 summit. Pic: Reuters
The US president also appeared to mistakenly refer to a “trade agreement with the European Union” at one point as he stood alongside the British prime minister.
Mr Trump announced his “Liberation Day” tariffs on countries in April. At the time, he announced 10% “reciprocal” rates on all UK exports – as well as separately announced 25% levies on cars and steel.
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In a joint televised phone call in May, Sir Keir and Mr Trump announced the UK and US had agreed on a trade deal – but added the details were being finalised.
Ahead of the G7 summit, the prime minister said he would meet Mr Trump for “one-on-one” talks, and added the agreement “really matters for the vital sectors that are safeguarded under our deal, and we’ve got to implement that”.
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