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CNN Live At Daybreak

President's Day Blizzard Turning Out to be Blessing for Many, Curse for Others

Aired February 18, 2003 - 05:17   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: OK, let's talk snow now. The President's Day blizzard is turning out to be a blessing for many people, cut certainly a curse for others.
As CNN's Allan Chernoff reports, it depends on how the dollars stack up.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In the city that never sleeps, it took a white blanket about 20 inches thick to give many businesses a rest. Auto dealers who advertised rugged sport utility vehicles were no match for Mother Nature. Neither were hundreds of retailers that had advertised President's Day specials.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We were here at 8:30 this morning.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: 8:30.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We bought the last three pairs.

CHERNOFF: Instead, it was a day for the truly rugged -- snow lovers.

JASON PELIGATTO, EASTERN MOUNTAIN SPORTS: It's a great day for business. You know, people are happy. People are really psyched at coming in. It's winter fever and they're loving it.

CHERNOFF: A day to sell to those trying to reclaim their driveways and their cars.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're ready for anything. We're going to the Berkshires.

KENNY KAHN, PACE AUTO PARTS: We've got windshield deicer, snow chains, snow brushes, lock deicer.

CHERNOFF: From empty shopping malls to snowed in airports, the storm of '03 will costs hundreds of millions of dollars. Bankrupt U.S. Air canceled about 1,300 flights. And shoveling away the carpet of white will put major cities further into the red.

New York City's budget deficit is $3.4 billion. It'll cost the city a million dollars to clean up every inch of snow.

No big deal, joked Michael Bloomberg. MAYOR MICHAEL BLOOMBERG, NEW YORK: But given the magnitude of our budgetary problems, the extra money to plow today isn't going to make a lot of difference.

CHERNOFF (on camera): Four thousand sanitation workers are on the job for New York, getting paid time and a half for working overtime. And it could easily take through the end of the week to clean the entire city. New York's big snowfall is certainly their windfall.

Allan Chernoff, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com




Many, Curse for Others>


Aired February 18, 2003 - 05:17   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: OK, let's talk snow now. The President's Day blizzard is turning out to be a blessing for many people, cut certainly a curse for others.
As CNN's Allan Chernoff reports, it depends on how the dollars stack up.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In the city that never sleeps, it took a white blanket about 20 inches thick to give many businesses a rest. Auto dealers who advertised rugged sport utility vehicles were no match for Mother Nature. Neither were hundreds of retailers that had advertised President's Day specials.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We were here at 8:30 this morning.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: 8:30.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We bought the last three pairs.

CHERNOFF: Instead, it was a day for the truly rugged -- snow lovers.

JASON PELIGATTO, EASTERN MOUNTAIN SPORTS: It's a great day for business. You know, people are happy. People are really psyched at coming in. It's winter fever and they're loving it.

CHERNOFF: A day to sell to those trying to reclaim their driveways and their cars.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're ready for anything. We're going to the Berkshires.

KENNY KAHN, PACE AUTO PARTS: We've got windshield deicer, snow chains, snow brushes, lock deicer.

CHERNOFF: From empty shopping malls to snowed in airports, the storm of '03 will costs hundreds of millions of dollars. Bankrupt U.S. Air canceled about 1,300 flights. And shoveling away the carpet of white will put major cities further into the red.

New York City's budget deficit is $3.4 billion. It'll cost the city a million dollars to clean up every inch of snow.

No big deal, joked Michael Bloomberg. MAYOR MICHAEL BLOOMBERG, NEW YORK: But given the magnitude of our budgetary problems, the extra money to plow today isn't going to make a lot of difference.

CHERNOFF (on camera): Four thousand sanitation workers are on the job for New York, getting paid time and a half for working overtime. And it could easily take through the end of the week to clean the entire city. New York's big snowfall is certainly their windfall.

Allan Chernoff, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com




Many, Curse for Others>