Farewell to the queen: Emotional crowds line streets of London and Windsor - CNA

LONDON/WINDSOR: Vast crowds gathered in London and Windsor for Queen Elizabeth II's state funeral watched the grand procession in silence and awe on Monday, as some wept, others clutched one another for support, and some held up their children to view 'the making of history'.

In central London where the funeral began, tens of thousands lined the streets around Westminster Abbey, the Mall - the elegant avenue leading up to Buckingham Palace - and Hyde Park. Many had camped overnight or arrived in the chilly early hours.

At the first sight of the queen's coffin being borne to Westminster Abbey, a hush fell over the crowds, who followed the funeral service on large television screens or from a radio broadcast on loudspeakers.

Many said the scale and pageantry of the funeral captured how they felt and was a fitting goodbye to the queen, who died on Sep 8 aged 96. She had been on the throne for 70 years, and most Britons have known no other monarch.

"I find it hard to express in words what we just witnessed. This was really special and memorable," said Camilla Moore, 53, from Nottingham, after watching the funeral service in London. "It was terribly sad. So very, very sad. The end of an era."

Chloe Jesson, 59, had travelled south from Manchester and said she found the ceremony emotional.

"You felt the sadness for the country and her family. At the same time it was a celebration of her life ... I occasionally cried, but I was never sad, if that makes any sense," she said.

"The best thing was there were people from all walks of life, each race and religion and everyone came here to celebrate."

After the service, the queen's coffin was taken on a gun carriage, escorted by her family and thousands of soldiers dressed in ceremonial finery, past her Buckingham Palace home and on to Wellington Arch at Hyde Park Corner, to the strains of funeral marches.

From there, it was placed on a hearse and driven to Windsor Castle, west of London. The queen will be at the castle, in the King George VI Memorial Chapel.

Hundreds of thousands of well-wishers lined the route, throwing flowers, cheering and clapping as it passed from the city to the English countryside that she so loved much.

John Ellis, 56, an army veteran, came from Portsmouth to Windsor, and watched the services from Long Walk, the 3-mile-long avenue that sweeps to Windsor Castle through Windsor Great Park.

"It's been a moving day. I've been struck by the reverence of everybody throughout," he said.

"My own emotions were mixed, up and down... The most moving moment I think was when the hearse went past. I was really struck by the silence. Especially with all the bands there, I thought there was going to be lots of music and fanfare and there wasn't, there was just silence."

As the funeral procession drew close to the castle, even the queen's beloved pony and corgis were taken out to watch.

"A LOVING AND CARING PERSON"

Colin Sanders, 61, a retired soldier who had come to London from North Yorkshire to bid farewell to the queen, struggled to hold back tears listening to the ceremony on the Mall.

"It felt like we were there and part of it ... it was very moving," he said.

"I knew I'd well up ... She's like your grandma, a loving and caring person. She said she'd serve the country and that's what she did."

It was Britain's first state funeral since 1965, when World War II leader Winston Churchill was afforded the honour.

More than an hour before the funeral service began all viewing areas in central London were declared full. Authorities had said they expected up to a million people might travel to the capital.

Melanie Odey, 60, a teacher, had camped out in a tent with her daughters and grandchildren after arriving on Sunday afternoon.

"This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to be part of history, to pay your respects," she said.

Some in the crowds were silent and sombre, dressed in black. Others wore bright colours and said they wanted to celebrate the queen's life.

Anna Kathryn from Richmond, in southwest London, had never met or seen the queen. Yet she said her family felt they had a personal tie with her.

"It is like we have had a death in the family, we couldn't miss this," she said. "She was such a bright spot in everyone's lives and now it feels like that light has gone out."

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2022-09-19 19:13:39Z
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With pomp and sorrow, world bids final farewell to Queen Elizabeth II - CNA

The Lord Chamberlain, the most senior official in the royal household, then broke his "Wand of Office", signifying the end of his service to the sovereign, and placed it on the casket which then slowly descended into the royal vault.

As the congregation sang God Save the King, King Charles, who faces a huge challenge to maintain the appeal of the monarchy as economic hardship looms in Britain, appeared to be fighting back tears.

It was in the same vast building that the queen was photographed alone, mourning her husband of 73 years, Prince Philip, during the pandemic lockdown, reinforcing the sense of a monarch in sync with her people during testing times.

Later on Monday evening, in a private family service, the coffins of Elizabeth and Philip, who died last year aged 99, were moved from the vault to be buried together in the same chapel where her father, King George VI, mother, and sister, Princess Margaret, also rest.

"ABUNDANT LIFE"

At the state funeral, Welby told those present that the grief felt by so many across Britain and the wider world reflected the late monarch's "abundant life and loving service".

"Her late majesty famously declared on a 21st birthday broadcast that her whole life would be dedicated to serving the nation and Commonwealth. Rarely has such a promise been so well kept," Welby said.

Music that played at the queen's wedding in 1947 and her coronation six years later again rang out. The coffin entered to lines of scripture set to a score used at every state funeral since the early 18th century.

After the funeral, her flag-draped casket was pulled by sailors through London's streets on a gun carriage in one of the largest military processions seen in Britain, involving thousands of members of the armed forces dressed in ceremonial finery.

They walked in step to funeral music from marching bands, while in the background the city's famous Big Ben tolled each minute. Charles and other senior royals followed on foot.

The casket was taken from Westminster Abbey to Wellington Arch and transferred to a hearse to travel to Windsor, where more big crowds waited patiently.

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2022-09-19 16:53:00Z
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Queen Elizabeth's coffin starts journey to final resting place - CNA

"INVINCIBLE"

Elizabeth died on Sep 8 at her Scottish summer home, Balmoral Castle.

Her health had been in decline, and for months the monarch who had carried out hundreds of official engagements well into her 90s had withdrawn from public life.

However, in line with her sense of duty she was photographed just two days before she died, looking frail but smiling and holding a walking stick as she appointed Liz Truss as her 15th and final prime minister.

Such was her longevity and her inextricable link with Britain that even her own family found her passing a shock.

"We all thought she was invincible," Prince William told well-wishers.

The 40th sovereign in a line that traces its lineage back to 1066, Elizabeth came to the throne in 1952, Britain's first post-imperial monarch.

She oversaw her nation trying to carve out a new place in the world, and she was instrumental in the emergence of the Commonwealth of Nations, now a grouping comprising 56 countries.

When she succeeded her father George VI, Winston Churchill was her first prime minister and Josef Stalin led the Soviet Union. She met major figures from politics to entertainment and sport including Nelson Mandela, Pope John Paul II, the Beatles, Marilyn Monroe, Pele and Roger Federer.

Despite being reputedly 1.6m tall, she dominated rooms with her presence and became a towering global figure, praised in death from Paris and Washington to Moscow and Beijing. National mourning was observed in Brazil, Jordan and Cuba, countries with which she had little direct link.

"People of loving service are rare in any walk of life," Welby said during the funeral. "Leaders of loving service are still rarer. But in all cases, those who serve will be loved and remembered when those who cling to power and privileges are long forgotten."

The tenor bell of the Abbey - the site of coronations, weddings and burials of English and then British kings and queens for almost 1,000 years - was due to toll 96 times.

Among the hymns chosen for the service were The Lord's my Shepherd, sung at the wedding of the queen and her husband Prince Philip in the Abbey in 1947.

In addition to dignitaries, the congregation includes those awarded Britain's highest military and civilian medals for gallantry, representatives from charities supported by the queen, and those who made "extraordinary contributions" to dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic.

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2022-09-19 10:57:00Z
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Queen Elizabeth's funeral ends with 2-min silence, coffin makes way through London to Windsor - The Straits Times

The Lord Chamberlain, the most senior official in the royal household, will break his "Wand of Office", signifying the end of his service to the sovereign, and place it on the casket.

It will then be lowered into the royal vault as the Sovereign’s Piper plays a lament, slowly walking away until music in the chapel gradually fades.

Later in the evening, in a private family service, the coffin of Elizabeth and her husband of more than seven decades Prince Philip, who died last year aged 99, will be buried together at the King George VI Memorial Chapel, where her parents and sister, Princess Margaret, also rest.

“We’re so happy you’re back with Grandpa. Goodbye dear grannie, it has been the honour of our lives to have been your granddaughters and we’re so very proud of you,” grandchildren Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie said. AFP, REUTERS

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2022-09-19 09:28:39Z
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Aviation industry is recovering, but manpower is a problem: IATA's Philip Goh - CNA

SINGAPORE: In the past two years during the pandemic, many people have left the aviation industry - some laid off, some by their own volition - and they may not return.

This has made staffing the “biggest headwind” for the sector that is on the mend, regional vice president for Asia Pacific at the International Air Transport Association (IATA) Philip Goh, told CNA.

“A particular concern, of course, is skilled labour. It takes time to train people,” he said. In customer service, for instance, it takes time and experience to learn how to handle people, he said.

If resources like manpower cannot keep pace, airlines will have limitations as to how much capacity they can put back, he said.

“As long as capacity cannot revert to normal then you will continue to probably face high load factors, maybe high airfares,” he said.

“So hopefully, airlines … airports are able to find the resources they need to ramp up so that they can staff their operations adequately.”

RECOVERY ON TRACK ALTHOUGH ASIA PACIFIC LAGGING

Recovery of the global aviation industry is “on track”, Mr Goh said.

This is despite the projection that the global aviation industry will lose about US$9.7 billion this year. In Asia Pacific, this figure is expected to be about US$8.9 billion, Mr Goh said.

“As of July, we are seeing air traffic already at about 75 per cent of 2019 levels. This is of course driven a lot by the domestic recovery,” he said.

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2022-09-19 02:36:00Z
CBMiWWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmNoYW5uZWxuZXdzYXNpYS5jb20vYnVzaW5lc3MvYXZpYXRpb24tcmVjb3ZlcnktdHJhY2stbWFucG93ZXItcHJvYmxlbS0yOTQ4MDcx0gEA

Queen Elizabeth's funeral today at 6pm: Britain and the world prepare to say last farewell - The Straits Times

LONDON - Britain, world leaders and royalty from across the globe will on Monday bid a final farewell to Queen Elizabeth, the last towering figure of her era, at a state funeral of inimitable pageantry.

At 6.30am (1.30pm in Singapore), an official lying-in-state period ends after four days in which hundreds of thousands have queued to file past the casket of Britain's longest-reigning monarch at London's historic Westminster Hall.

They, like many across the globe, including US President Joe Biden, paid tribute to the 96-year-old who spent seven decades on the British throne.

"You were fortunate to have had her for 70 years," Mr Biden said. "We all were."

Shortly before 11am, the oak coffin, covered in the Royal Standard flag with the Imperial State Crown on top, will be placed on a gun carriage and pulled by naval personnel to Westminster Abbey for her funeral.

Among the 2,000 in the congregation will be some 500 world leaders, including Mr Biden, Emperor Naruhito of Japan, China's Vice-President Wang Qishan and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.

The Queen's great-grandchildren, Prince George, nine, and Princess Charlotte, seven, the two eldest children of now heir to the throne Prince William, will also be attending.

"Over the last 10 days, my wife and I have been so deeply touched by the many messages of condolence and support we have received from this country and across the world," King Charles, Elizabeth's son and the new king, said in a statement. "As we all prepare to say our last farewell, I wanted simply to take this opportunity to say thank you to all those countless people who have been such a support and comfort to my family and myself in this time of grief."

Queen Elizabeth died aged 96 on Sept 8 at her Scottish summer home, Balmoral Castle.

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2022-09-18 22:29:44Z
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Strong earthquake hits southeastern Taiwan, building collapses - Reuters

• Summary
• Companies

• Train carriages derailed, four rescued from collapsed building
• Tsunami warnings cancelled, chip foundries unaffected
• More than 600 trapped by blocked mountain roads
• Quake follows 6.4 magnitude tremor on Saturday

TAIPEI, Sept 18 (Reuters) - A 6.8 magnitude earthquake hit the sparsely populated southeastern part of Taiwan on Sunday, the island's weather bureau said, derailing train carriages, causing a convenience store to collapse and trapping hundreds on mountain roads.

The weather bureau said the epicentre was in Taitung county, and followed a 6.4 magnitude temblor on Saturday evening in the same area, which caused no casualties. read more

The U.S. Geological Survey measured Sunday's quake at a magnitude 7.2 and at a depth of 10 km (six miles).

Taiwan's fire department said all four people were rescued from a building housing a convenience store that collapsed in Yuli, while three people whose vehicle fell off a damaged bridge were rescued and taken to hospital.

The Taiwan Railways Administration said six carriages came off the rails at Dongli station in eastern Taiwan after part of the platform canopy collapsed, but the fire department said there were no injuries.

More than 600 people are trapped on the scenic Chike and Liushishi mountain areas by blocked roads, though there were no injuries and rescuers were working to reopen the roads, the department said.

The U.S. Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued a warning for Taiwan after the tremor but later lifted the alert. Japan's weather agency lifted a tsunami warning for part of Okinawa prefecture.

The quake could be felt across Taiwan, the weather bureau said. Buildings shook briefly in the capital Taipei, and aftershocks have continued to jolt the island.

Science parks in the southern cities of Tainan and Kaohsiung, home to major semiconductor factories, said there was no impact on operations.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) (2330.TW), , the world's largest contract chipmaker, said there was "no known significant impact for now".

Taiwan lies near the junction of two tectonic plates and is prone to earthquakes.

More than 100 people were killed in a quake in southern Taiwan in 2016, while a 7.3 magnitude quake killed more than 2,000 people in 1999.

Reporting by Ben Blanchard and Yimou Lee; Additional reporting by Martin Quin Pollard, Sam Nussey and Anirudh Saligrama; Editing by Lincoln Feast and Christian Schmollinger

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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2022-09-18 10:09:00Z
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