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American Morning

Initial Tests Found Traces of Sarin in Roadside Bomb; Rip Current Rescue, Three Children Saved in South Florida

Aired May 18, 2004 - 07:30   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.


BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and current New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg will testify. A special focus. An apparent breakdown in communication among the police and fire commanders.
The U.S. reportedly stopped monthly payments to the Iraqi National Congress run by Ahmed Chalabi. Mr. Chalabi is a member of the IGC. According to the paper, the Iraqi National Congress was getting $335,000 a month from the United States. Chalabi, who played a crucial role in persuading the White House to remove Saddam Hussein from power has apparently been losing favor with some members of the Bush administration.

A big birthday is being celebrated today at the Vatican. Pope John Paul II turns 84 today. Pope John Paul is the longest serving pope in history -- one of them anyway. His health has been a huge concern lately. Still, the celebrates mass and makes many public appearances as he did again today.

From Arizona in this country, a wildfire raging in the Tonto National Forest. That fire has churned up about 1,000 acres of land. The fire department says the small town of Sunflower is not at risk, and the fire is now about 65 percent contained. Firefighters attacked the flames from the ground and from the air using helicopters that dumped thousands of gallons of water on the hot spots. They're going to need a lot of that based on the weather reports we're getting. Very dry in the American west.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: NO question about that.

(WEATHER BREAK)

O'BRIEN: U.S. officials say more tests are needed to determine if a roadside bomb in Iraq contained the deadly nerve gas, sarin. Initial tests showed traces of the nerve agent in an artillery shell, which partially exploded as members of a U.S. convoy tried to diffuse it.

Barbara Starr live at the Pentagon for us this morning with more on this.

Barbara -- good morning.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Soledad. Well, as you say, additional testing is going on. The first test said yes, that it was sarin, but they are doing additional testing to try and confirm exactly what they are dealing with.

One of the key things they will be looking for is the purity of the substance, whatever it may be. If it was sarin and it is high- test, if you will, that would indicate something much more recent. If it's fairly degraded, that may indicate that it's a relatively old shell.

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld yesterday being very cautious about all of this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD RUMSFELD, DEFENSE SECRETARY: My personal view is the way we ought to handle it, although it's not for me to decide, is to recognize that what you cited, I believe, was a field test, which is not perfect. And what we ought to do is to get the samples someplace where they can be tested very carefully before coming to a conclusion as to precisely what it was.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STARR: Again, so this testing, the additional testing going on to see exactly what they are dealing with.

Now, officials are saying, you're not likely to see soldiers back in those gas masks and heavy protective suits anytime soon in Iraq. It's very hot over there, very difficult to move around, lots of attacks. But unless there's really a specific threat out there, not likely to really change the way soldiers operate -- Soledad.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Barbara, a quick question for you. As court-martial proceedings get under way in Iraq at the same time, there are some military officials who are actually going before Congress. Give us a sense of what's happening there and who is Congress going to hear from?

STARR: Exactly, Soledad. Late last night the Senate Armed Services Committee announced that tomorrow, the same day as the court- martials, they will have a hearing. General John Abizaid, head of the U.S. Central Command, General Ricardo Sanchez, the head of U.S. forces in Iraq, and General Geoffrey Miller, the new head of detainee operations. They are likely to ask all three men many questions, but two key points. They want to know how those coercive interrogation practices that were partially approved came to be, and they want to know what the military did about some of the complaints that were made early on by groups such as the International Committee of the Red Cross -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Barbara Starr at the Pentagon for us. As always, Barbara, thanks.

HEMMER: About 25 minutes now before the hour. Rip tides are as dangerous as they sound. Powerful ocean currents have been blamed for at least four deaths in south Florida over the past couple of weeks. And just this past Sunday, three children swimming at a beach in Fort Lauderdale were swept away and nearly drowned.

They are with us this morning -- 11-year-old Katherine Garibello, 9-year-old Christian Garibello, and their 10-year-old cousin, Andres Cordoba (ph).

And good morning to you, and what a great week this must be.

And, Katherine, I want to start with you. Because you're the oldest, I'll direct most of my questions to you, if that's OK. Take us back to early Sunday morning. What do you remember when you were being swept out to sea?

KATHERINE GARIBELLO, RIP CURRENT SURVIVOR: I remember that there was no turning back, that there was no way to come in from -- to come into the shore.

HEMMER: Give us an idea, Katherine, of what you were feeling as the ocean was pushing your body out.

GARIBELLO: As the body was pushing -- the feeling that you couldn't come back as much as you tried, and the waves, the waves kept hitting us on the back, and after awhile we got really tired.

HEMMER: Yes, I read that you got tired. At one point you were thinking about giving up. Was that the case, Katherine?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You can't hear?

GARIBELLO: I can hear him. Yes...

HEMMER: Katherine, if you're still with me, go ahead. Were you tired and thinking about quitting at some point?

GARIBELLO: Yes, one time I just put my hands down.

HEMMER: Was there a point when you didn't think you'd be rescued then?

GARIBELLO: Yes. Yes, because nobody was coming. They were helping, but nobody really was saving us.

HEMMER: Tell me how you were saved ultimately, Katherine, and the others.

GARIBELLO: Well, first there was a guy. He was just a bystander. He went in the water to help us. But after awhile, he got really tired. And then that was when the fire rescue crew came, and then there were two guys who helped me after the guy turned back.

HEMMER: Now that you've had a few days to think about this, are you going to go swimming in the ocean again, Katherine? GARIBELLO: I don't think so for a very long time.

HEMMER: Wow! I can understand your apprehension. Listen, thanks to you and your brother, Christian, and Andres Cordoba (ph), your cousin as well, down there in Fort Lauderdale.

I want to talk a little bit more about this with a lifeguard involved in that rescue effort. Bill Evans is a member of the Fort Lauderdale Ocean Rescue Squad. He helped pull the three children from the water after they were caught in that current. Bill is with us now as well.

And good morning to you, Bill. How were you able to pull this off on Sunday?

BILL EVANS, FORT LAUDERDALE OCEAN RESCUE: Actually, the was kind of a worse-case scenario for us, because the lifeguards were not on duty yet. This rescue occurred in the morning prior to us coming out on the beach. A perfect scenario is the lifeguards are on duty, people are swimming in front of a lifeguard tower, and we just actuate the rescue.

You know, this would have been actually no big deal. I wouldn't be on CNN, and nobody would have heard of this was it during the middle of the day. During the course of that same day, we made 13 rescues and 700 some-odd preventions and assists. The reason that you are hearing about this rescue is that it occurred with no lifeguards on duty. Therefore, bystanders went in the water to actuate the rescue. People dialed 911. We had fire rescue show up, and we also had the police show up.

So this, for us as ocean rescue lifeguards is how not to perform a rescue. We really prefer that it be us and it occur during our duty.

HEMMER: And what you're saying, though this could have been prevented, though. Maybe better signs on the beach, maybe more notification for the people there?

EVANS: You know, in my experience, you can put signs so close together that people have to turn sideways and squeeze through them, and it still won't make a difference. What you need is to have ocean rescue lifeguards on the scene, and people need to realize that they need to stay on shore until there are lifeguards on scene or -- and only swim on guarded beaches.

HEMMER: Listen, Bill, we're going to use you as our expert this morning, because this is what you do for a living. This statistic is amazing. The U.S. Life-Saving Association says 80 percent of the nation's surf-related rescues are attributed to rip currents. So, with that as a backdrop, the tips that you offer, don't panic. Explain that.

EVANS: That's probably the most important tip that we can give people. The rip current is not going to pull you under water and drown you. What will drown you is panic and exhaustion. If the person that's in the rip current can relax, ride the rip current out, or better yet, swim parallel to shore, you'll exit the rip current and be able to swim back in, and the waves will push you back in.

What kills people is that they panic. They start fighting the rip current. They try to desperately swim toward shore, and this doesn't work. A very strong swimmer can fight a rip current, but that's a very small percentage of the population. Most people end up exhausting themselves, and they drown due to their exhaustion. When you panic, the whole series of events happens. The adrenaline kicks in. You swim harder. You exhaust yourself faster. You exhaust your oxygen supply. What happens is people wear themselves out and simply drown from exhaustion. So, we suggest...

HEMMER: Well, Bill, if I could here...

EVANS: I'm sorry.

HEMMER: I just want to interject, because while you were talking we had five tips on the screen that you gave us. No. 4 I thought was pretty interesting. You say give the guard a signal. What's the signal you need to offer if you are swimming and you are in trouble?

EVANS: I'll tell you what, if you are swimming in front of a lifeguard tower, probably the last thing you'll be worrying about is giving the lifeguard a signal. You'll be worrying about saving your neck. And to be honest with you, if there are lifeguards on the beach, trained ocean rescue ocean lifeguards, you're not going to have to give a signal. But you can always give a wave or a yell. It doesn't hurt.

We do about 90 to 95 percent of our actions are preventative. You know, the old saying, "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." Most lifeguards spend their day going up and down the beach keeping people out of danger spots. If we have a make a rescue, that's a last-ditch effort. That's why we have so few rescues here in Fort Lauderdale. We do tens of thousands of preventions for every several rescue.

HEMMER: Well, listen, good luck to you.

EVANS: So chances are you won't have to signal.

HEMMER: Yes, you're coming into the heavy season. So, thanks for talking with us, and we're happy this story ended in a positive way, too, certainly. Bill Evans, thanks.

EVANS: So were we.

HEMMER: And give our best to the young girls and boys there as well we were talking to earlier. Thanks, Bill. Enjoy your summer.

EVANS: All right, nice talking to you.

HEMMER: Soledad.

O'BRIEN: A list of cities vying to host the 2012 summer Olympic games just got a little bit shorter. Just minutes ago, the finalists were announced at a news conference in Switzerland.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. JACQUES ROGGE, IOC PRESIDENT: The Executive Board decided unanimously that the following cities are accepted as candidates to host the 2012 games: Paris, New York, Moscow, London and Madrid.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: All very nice cities. Confident organizers, though, in New York City had already unveiled their logo for the games in Times Square. There is also a line of merchandise that's emblazoned with that logo. That is confidence, isn't it? The 2012 winner will be announced next July.

In other Olympic news, transsexuals have been cleared to participate in the games for the firs time. The IOC's executive board yesterday approved a proposal to allow sex-change recipients to take part if their new gender has been legally recognized, and if the athlete has gone through a minimum two-year period of postoperative hormone therapy. The decision goes into effect at this summer's Athens games.

HEMMER: Eight years away, New York City gets the Olympics, imagine the traffic on the streets out here then, huh?

O'BRIEN: Oh, yes. But, you know, you could rent your apartment for a lot to people from out of town.

HEMMER: Yes, you probably could. Already do.

In a moment here on "AMERICAN MORNING," lots of people are losing weight on low-carb diets, but some doctors are saying just cutting carbs will not solve the obesity problem. Back in a moment here. We'll have a look at that after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Two new studies on low-carb dieting say the popular weight loss regiment can be a mixed blessing.

Medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen at the CNN center this morning for us with details.

Elizabeth -- good morning.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.

Soledad, everyone knows that a lot of people have a lot of faith in low-carb diets. They are the newest craze. But there's not a lot of science to back up that they work.

So, a team of researchers in Philadelphia decided to put these diets to the test. They took a group of overweight people, told half of them to go on a low-carb diet and told the other half to go on a traditional low-fat diet. Well, after one year what they found is that between those two groups, there wasn't that much of a difference. In other words, the low-carb diet was not superior.

Well, how could that be? Well, one researcher we talked to who wrote an editorial accompanying these studies said it's because people stayed low carb, which was a good thing for that particular diet, but they just ate too much. Their calories slowly crept up.

So, he had this list of advice for people who are going on diets. Pay attention to the amounts. Even if the diet book you are reading says eat all you want as long as it's low-carb, he said pay attention to amounts. Also, exercise. Diet alone often does not work. And concentrate on eating good carbs. Good carbs would be things like whole wheat breads, whole grain breads. And concentrate on eating good fats. Good fats would be things like fish and nuts and olive oil. And he said that -- this is Dr. Walter Willett (ph) from Harvard University who wrote the editorial. He said that if you follow those rather than necessarily the guidance of just a low-carb diet that then you'll have more success -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: All right, Elizabeth Cohen for us this morning. Elizabeth thanks.

COHEN: Thanks.

O'BRIEN: And we should mention that as hot as the low-carb craze seems to be, a report today's "Washington Post" says that, in fact, sales of some low-carb products are falling off at independent and health food stores. Some experts predict that low-carb will shift from a trend to a niche in the industry -- Bill.

HEMMER: About 13 minutes before the hour.

In a moment here, will the Massachusetts decision on same-sex marriage become a role model for the rest of America? We'll check that out in a moment when we continue after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HEMMER: A $3.5 million cello has been recovered. The instrument was stolen from the front porch of a L.A. musician about a month ago. It was made in 1684 by the master craftsman, Antonio Stratavari (ph). Police have a surveillance tape showing someone riding away with a cello on a bicycle. No arrests have been made. He's not going to get far with that.

O'BRIEN: Now, why would you leave your $3 million-plus cello on your front porch?

HEMMER: To answer the phone, get a beer.

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Maybe he had it insured for $3 million and wants to give up playing music.

HEMMER: Always an (UNINTELLIGIBLE). O'BRIEN: Now, where would you get that from? There is no evidence of that or indication of that. You are saying he tried to rip off the insurance company?

CAFFERTY: I just suggested it. Perhaps he wanted to convert the cello to $3 million in cash. A way to do it is to insure it and have it stolen.

O'BRIEN: Where do you get those from? All right, anyway, let's move on to the question of the day.

CAFFERTY: OK. Massachusetts became the first state to grant marriages to same-sex couples beginning yesterday. The ceremonies have left a lot of unanswered questions. For example, if same-sex couples marry in Massachusetts, should those marriages be recognized in other states? And should people from other states be able to go to Massachusetts, gay couples and get married there? And is it up to the state legislatures decide? Or should courts decide? Or should the issue be put to a vote? Or should there be a constitutional amendment? It just goes on and on until your teeth hurt and eyes glaze over.

The question is this: Who should decide the future of same-sex marriages?

Cy in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: "One of the most commonly known and quoted excerpts from the Declaration of Independence is "All men are created equal." And given our national social history of having to rely on the courts to ensure that it eventually gets done, the answer is clear. We must rely on the courts to adjudicate equality."

John in Lexington, Kentucky: "Conservatives oppose government interference in personal lives unless you are gay. Some black clergy champion civil rights, unless you're gay. The Constitution of the United States guarantees life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. This includes those citizens who are homosexual. You may hate us, that's your folly, but the law may not".

Wayne in New Jersey: "I think it's up to each individual state. I myself am against gay marriage, but I would rather have that than risk opening the Constitution to amendment. In this day of money, politics and selfish hidden motives, I shudder to think what people will try to sneak into it."

And Jim in Massachusetts: "Jack, I don't understand all the fuss over same-sex marriage. My wife and I have been married for over 35 years and the sex is still the same."

HEMMER: And we'll leave it at that.

CAFFERTY: It took a minute for that to work its way through the room.

O'BRIEN: Yes, it was ripple effect outward.

CAFFERTY: Yes, it starts slow and nothing.

HEMMER: Like a pebble on a pond.

CAFFERTY: Yes. Maybe the guy just wanted to get out of music.

O'BRIEN: Well, apparently, I guess this cello belonged to the L.A. Philharmonic. So, it wasn't even his cello. So, the money wouldn't have even gone to him.

CAFFERTY: This is entirely more than I want to know about some...

O'BRIEN: Yes, but I like the way you go right to crime. You know, the poor guys loses his cello. It's a good question, though. Why leave it on the porch? That seems odd. I'm through, Jack. I'm done. I won't torture you for the rest of the day.

CAFFERTY: It's all right. Remember, we all die alone, Soledad.

O'BRIEN: All right. Yesterday, Jack told us about that omelet Remember this? It costs 1,000 bucks. Well, today we're getting a look and a taste.

Jeanne Moos serves up the zillion dollar frittata.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's an egg dish that will cost you a nest egg. A thousand bucks for an omelet?

It's enough to make a chicken cluck. Enough to make the front page. Enough to make diners at the Parker Meridian Hotel restaurant say:

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We thought that was the calorie count when we saw 1,000.

MOOS: Take six eggs, a lobster tail and claw meat, pop in the oven, then cover with caviar, ten ounces of caviar. That's $500 to $600 worth of caviar alone.

SYLVESTER STALLONE, ACTOR: Does that come with a liver transplant? Because you're going to need it.

MOOS: We stumbled on Sylvester Stallone eating at the Parker Meridian. Here's a guy who had experience with eggs filming "Rocky."

(on camera): You're probably the only guy in here who could afford this omelet.

STALLONE: You feel like you're eating a generation of sturgeons there. I feel a little guilty.

MOOS (voice over): On the menu, the wife of the owner dares you to expense the $1,000 omelet. This guy did. He's a reporter for a London tabloid doing a story on what is technically a frittata. Since this was the first one sold, it got applause.

And though we couldn't expense one, our colleague gave us a bite.

(on camera): You know, I'm not crazy about caviar.

(voice-over): But our British friend said he loved it. Watch the eyebrows.

(on camera): You know, we could get about 200 omelets at a regular diner for this.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know.

(voice-over): There's also the bargain hunter's $100 version, with a mere ounce of caviar.

STALLONE: Can you wrap this, because Donald Trump is due for a snack.

MOOS: Jeanne Moos.

STALLONE: Hey, darling.

MOOS: CNN.

STALLONE: Love you.

MOOS: New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: I like the way Jeanne is sitting there tasting off that guy's plate.

CAFFERTY: CNN wouldn't buy her her own omelet, I guess.

O'BRIEN: Clearly, there was no way anyone was going to put that through.

CAFFERTY: Kick that right back from Atlanta.

O'BRIEN: She just had to taste somebody else's. I understand that.

CAFFERTY: Yes.

O'BRIEN: The Parker Meridian also offers a few budget breakfast items, but not a lot, including (UNINTELLIGIBLE) French toast, 28 bucks for that, and egg white frittata shrimp, and that's just $21. That is an expensive place to eat.

HEMMER: That's a lot of PR.

O'BRIEN: But worth everything, clearly.

HEMMER: Lot of publicity. Listen, we went over to our new building yesterday, the Time Warner center here, Soledad and I were over there.

CAFFERTY: How was it?

HEMMER: And Andy Serwer went with us. Jack did not go with us, by the way.

CAFFERTY: I was busy.

HEMMER: So, we -- since Jack is never going to walk in this building ever in the existence of his employ at CNN, we brought you back a little gift there, Jack.

CAFFERTY: Oh, isn't that nice?

HEMMER: Open that up. I know you drink tea in the morning. Show the fans here. See that? It's nice.

CAFFERTY: Where are you here?

HEMMER: But here's what I find intriguing. John Charles Cafferty, welcome to the Time Warner Center.

O'BRIEN: Oh.

CAFFERTY: That's somebody else.

HEMMER: You have your little name tag over there.

CAFFERTY: Yes, that's somebody else.

HEMMER: John Charles. It's not Jack after all.

CAFFERTY: Well, that's good.

O'BRIEN: We missed you.

CAFFERTY: Now I really don't have to go. I got the cup and the sign and I'm home free.

HEMMER: We brought it to you.

Let's get a break here. Back to Iraq in a moment. One of the major stories of that briefing yesterday as to what was inside this roadside bomb? Tests being done in Iraq. U.S. investigators want to know about a deadly nerve agent found in one exploded shell. They are doing more testing apparently today. We'll get to that and more at the top of the hour after this.

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


Aired May 18, 2004 - 07:30   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and current New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg will testify. A special focus. An apparent breakdown in communication among the police and fire commanders.
The U.S. reportedly stopped monthly payments to the Iraqi National Congress run by Ahmed Chalabi. Mr. Chalabi is a member of the IGC. According to the paper, the Iraqi National Congress was getting $335,000 a month from the United States. Chalabi, who played a crucial role in persuading the White House to remove Saddam Hussein from power has apparently been losing favor with some members of the Bush administration.

A big birthday is being celebrated today at the Vatican. Pope John Paul II turns 84 today. Pope John Paul is the longest serving pope in history -- one of them anyway. His health has been a huge concern lately. Still, the celebrates mass and makes many public appearances as he did again today.

From Arizona in this country, a wildfire raging in the Tonto National Forest. That fire has churned up about 1,000 acres of land. The fire department says the small town of Sunflower is not at risk, and the fire is now about 65 percent contained. Firefighters attacked the flames from the ground and from the air using helicopters that dumped thousands of gallons of water on the hot spots. They're going to need a lot of that based on the weather reports we're getting. Very dry in the American west.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: NO question about that.

(WEATHER BREAK)

O'BRIEN: U.S. officials say more tests are needed to determine if a roadside bomb in Iraq contained the deadly nerve gas, sarin. Initial tests showed traces of the nerve agent in an artillery shell, which partially exploded as members of a U.S. convoy tried to diffuse it.

Barbara Starr live at the Pentagon for us this morning with more on this.

Barbara -- good morning.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Soledad. Well, as you say, additional testing is going on. The first test said yes, that it was sarin, but they are doing additional testing to try and confirm exactly what they are dealing with.

One of the key things they will be looking for is the purity of the substance, whatever it may be. If it was sarin and it is high- test, if you will, that would indicate something much more recent. If it's fairly degraded, that may indicate that it's a relatively old shell.

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld yesterday being very cautious about all of this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD RUMSFELD, DEFENSE SECRETARY: My personal view is the way we ought to handle it, although it's not for me to decide, is to recognize that what you cited, I believe, was a field test, which is not perfect. And what we ought to do is to get the samples someplace where they can be tested very carefully before coming to a conclusion as to precisely what it was.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STARR: Again, so this testing, the additional testing going on to see exactly what they are dealing with.

Now, officials are saying, you're not likely to see soldiers back in those gas masks and heavy protective suits anytime soon in Iraq. It's very hot over there, very difficult to move around, lots of attacks. But unless there's really a specific threat out there, not likely to really change the way soldiers operate -- Soledad.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Barbara, a quick question for you. As court-martial proceedings get under way in Iraq at the same time, there are some military officials who are actually going before Congress. Give us a sense of what's happening there and who is Congress going to hear from?

STARR: Exactly, Soledad. Late last night the Senate Armed Services Committee announced that tomorrow, the same day as the court- martials, they will have a hearing. General John Abizaid, head of the U.S. Central Command, General Ricardo Sanchez, the head of U.S. forces in Iraq, and General Geoffrey Miller, the new head of detainee operations. They are likely to ask all three men many questions, but two key points. They want to know how those coercive interrogation practices that were partially approved came to be, and they want to know what the military did about some of the complaints that were made early on by groups such as the International Committee of the Red Cross -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Barbara Starr at the Pentagon for us. As always, Barbara, thanks.

HEMMER: About 25 minutes now before the hour. Rip tides are as dangerous as they sound. Powerful ocean currents have been blamed for at least four deaths in south Florida over the past couple of weeks. And just this past Sunday, three children swimming at a beach in Fort Lauderdale were swept away and nearly drowned.

They are with us this morning -- 11-year-old Katherine Garibello, 9-year-old Christian Garibello, and their 10-year-old cousin, Andres Cordoba (ph).

And good morning to you, and what a great week this must be.

And, Katherine, I want to start with you. Because you're the oldest, I'll direct most of my questions to you, if that's OK. Take us back to early Sunday morning. What do you remember when you were being swept out to sea?

KATHERINE GARIBELLO, RIP CURRENT SURVIVOR: I remember that there was no turning back, that there was no way to come in from -- to come into the shore.

HEMMER: Give us an idea, Katherine, of what you were feeling as the ocean was pushing your body out.

GARIBELLO: As the body was pushing -- the feeling that you couldn't come back as much as you tried, and the waves, the waves kept hitting us on the back, and after awhile we got really tired.

HEMMER: Yes, I read that you got tired. At one point you were thinking about giving up. Was that the case, Katherine?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You can't hear?

GARIBELLO: I can hear him. Yes...

HEMMER: Katherine, if you're still with me, go ahead. Were you tired and thinking about quitting at some point?

GARIBELLO: Yes, one time I just put my hands down.

HEMMER: Was there a point when you didn't think you'd be rescued then?

GARIBELLO: Yes. Yes, because nobody was coming. They were helping, but nobody really was saving us.

HEMMER: Tell me how you were saved ultimately, Katherine, and the others.

GARIBELLO: Well, first there was a guy. He was just a bystander. He went in the water to help us. But after awhile, he got really tired. And then that was when the fire rescue crew came, and then there were two guys who helped me after the guy turned back.

HEMMER: Now that you've had a few days to think about this, are you going to go swimming in the ocean again, Katherine? GARIBELLO: I don't think so for a very long time.

HEMMER: Wow! I can understand your apprehension. Listen, thanks to you and your brother, Christian, and Andres Cordoba (ph), your cousin as well, down there in Fort Lauderdale.

I want to talk a little bit more about this with a lifeguard involved in that rescue effort. Bill Evans is a member of the Fort Lauderdale Ocean Rescue Squad. He helped pull the three children from the water after they were caught in that current. Bill is with us now as well.

And good morning to you, Bill. How were you able to pull this off on Sunday?

BILL EVANS, FORT LAUDERDALE OCEAN RESCUE: Actually, the was kind of a worse-case scenario for us, because the lifeguards were not on duty yet. This rescue occurred in the morning prior to us coming out on the beach. A perfect scenario is the lifeguards are on duty, people are swimming in front of a lifeguard tower, and we just actuate the rescue.

You know, this would have been actually no big deal. I wouldn't be on CNN, and nobody would have heard of this was it during the middle of the day. During the course of that same day, we made 13 rescues and 700 some-odd preventions and assists. The reason that you are hearing about this rescue is that it occurred with no lifeguards on duty. Therefore, bystanders went in the water to actuate the rescue. People dialed 911. We had fire rescue show up, and we also had the police show up.

So this, for us as ocean rescue lifeguards is how not to perform a rescue. We really prefer that it be us and it occur during our duty.

HEMMER: And what you're saying, though this could have been prevented, though. Maybe better signs on the beach, maybe more notification for the people there?

EVANS: You know, in my experience, you can put signs so close together that people have to turn sideways and squeeze through them, and it still won't make a difference. What you need is to have ocean rescue lifeguards on the scene, and people need to realize that they need to stay on shore until there are lifeguards on scene or -- and only swim on guarded beaches.

HEMMER: Listen, Bill, we're going to use you as our expert this morning, because this is what you do for a living. This statistic is amazing. The U.S. Life-Saving Association says 80 percent of the nation's surf-related rescues are attributed to rip currents. So, with that as a backdrop, the tips that you offer, don't panic. Explain that.

EVANS: That's probably the most important tip that we can give people. The rip current is not going to pull you under water and drown you. What will drown you is panic and exhaustion. If the person that's in the rip current can relax, ride the rip current out, or better yet, swim parallel to shore, you'll exit the rip current and be able to swim back in, and the waves will push you back in.

What kills people is that they panic. They start fighting the rip current. They try to desperately swim toward shore, and this doesn't work. A very strong swimmer can fight a rip current, but that's a very small percentage of the population. Most people end up exhausting themselves, and they drown due to their exhaustion. When you panic, the whole series of events happens. The adrenaline kicks in. You swim harder. You exhaust yourself faster. You exhaust your oxygen supply. What happens is people wear themselves out and simply drown from exhaustion. So, we suggest...

HEMMER: Well, Bill, if I could here...

EVANS: I'm sorry.

HEMMER: I just want to interject, because while you were talking we had five tips on the screen that you gave us. No. 4 I thought was pretty interesting. You say give the guard a signal. What's the signal you need to offer if you are swimming and you are in trouble?

EVANS: I'll tell you what, if you are swimming in front of a lifeguard tower, probably the last thing you'll be worrying about is giving the lifeguard a signal. You'll be worrying about saving your neck. And to be honest with you, if there are lifeguards on the beach, trained ocean rescue ocean lifeguards, you're not going to have to give a signal. But you can always give a wave or a yell. It doesn't hurt.

We do about 90 to 95 percent of our actions are preventative. You know, the old saying, "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." Most lifeguards spend their day going up and down the beach keeping people out of danger spots. If we have a make a rescue, that's a last-ditch effort. That's why we have so few rescues here in Fort Lauderdale. We do tens of thousands of preventions for every several rescue.

HEMMER: Well, listen, good luck to you.

EVANS: So chances are you won't have to signal.

HEMMER: Yes, you're coming into the heavy season. So, thanks for talking with us, and we're happy this story ended in a positive way, too, certainly. Bill Evans, thanks.

EVANS: So were we.

HEMMER: And give our best to the young girls and boys there as well we were talking to earlier. Thanks, Bill. Enjoy your summer.

EVANS: All right, nice talking to you.

HEMMER: Soledad.

O'BRIEN: A list of cities vying to host the 2012 summer Olympic games just got a little bit shorter. Just minutes ago, the finalists were announced at a news conference in Switzerland.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. JACQUES ROGGE, IOC PRESIDENT: The Executive Board decided unanimously that the following cities are accepted as candidates to host the 2012 games: Paris, New York, Moscow, London and Madrid.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: All very nice cities. Confident organizers, though, in New York City had already unveiled their logo for the games in Times Square. There is also a line of merchandise that's emblazoned with that logo. That is confidence, isn't it? The 2012 winner will be announced next July.

In other Olympic news, transsexuals have been cleared to participate in the games for the firs time. The IOC's executive board yesterday approved a proposal to allow sex-change recipients to take part if their new gender has been legally recognized, and if the athlete has gone through a minimum two-year period of postoperative hormone therapy. The decision goes into effect at this summer's Athens games.

HEMMER: Eight years away, New York City gets the Olympics, imagine the traffic on the streets out here then, huh?

O'BRIEN: Oh, yes. But, you know, you could rent your apartment for a lot to people from out of town.

HEMMER: Yes, you probably could. Already do.

In a moment here on "AMERICAN MORNING," lots of people are losing weight on low-carb diets, but some doctors are saying just cutting carbs will not solve the obesity problem. Back in a moment here. We'll have a look at that after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Two new studies on low-carb dieting say the popular weight loss regiment can be a mixed blessing.

Medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen at the CNN center this morning for us with details.

Elizabeth -- good morning.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.

Soledad, everyone knows that a lot of people have a lot of faith in low-carb diets. They are the newest craze. But there's not a lot of science to back up that they work.

So, a team of researchers in Philadelphia decided to put these diets to the test. They took a group of overweight people, told half of them to go on a low-carb diet and told the other half to go on a traditional low-fat diet. Well, after one year what they found is that between those two groups, there wasn't that much of a difference. In other words, the low-carb diet was not superior.

Well, how could that be? Well, one researcher we talked to who wrote an editorial accompanying these studies said it's because people stayed low carb, which was a good thing for that particular diet, but they just ate too much. Their calories slowly crept up.

So, he had this list of advice for people who are going on diets. Pay attention to the amounts. Even if the diet book you are reading says eat all you want as long as it's low-carb, he said pay attention to amounts. Also, exercise. Diet alone often does not work. And concentrate on eating good carbs. Good carbs would be things like whole wheat breads, whole grain breads. And concentrate on eating good fats. Good fats would be things like fish and nuts and olive oil. And he said that -- this is Dr. Walter Willett (ph) from Harvard University who wrote the editorial. He said that if you follow those rather than necessarily the guidance of just a low-carb diet that then you'll have more success -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: All right, Elizabeth Cohen for us this morning. Elizabeth thanks.

COHEN: Thanks.

O'BRIEN: And we should mention that as hot as the low-carb craze seems to be, a report today's "Washington Post" says that, in fact, sales of some low-carb products are falling off at independent and health food stores. Some experts predict that low-carb will shift from a trend to a niche in the industry -- Bill.

HEMMER: About 13 minutes before the hour.

In a moment here, will the Massachusetts decision on same-sex marriage become a role model for the rest of America? We'll check that out in a moment when we continue after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HEMMER: A $3.5 million cello has been recovered. The instrument was stolen from the front porch of a L.A. musician about a month ago. It was made in 1684 by the master craftsman, Antonio Stratavari (ph). Police have a surveillance tape showing someone riding away with a cello on a bicycle. No arrests have been made. He's not going to get far with that.

O'BRIEN: Now, why would you leave your $3 million-plus cello on your front porch?

HEMMER: To answer the phone, get a beer.

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Maybe he had it insured for $3 million and wants to give up playing music.

HEMMER: Always an (UNINTELLIGIBLE). O'BRIEN: Now, where would you get that from? There is no evidence of that or indication of that. You are saying he tried to rip off the insurance company?

CAFFERTY: I just suggested it. Perhaps he wanted to convert the cello to $3 million in cash. A way to do it is to insure it and have it stolen.

O'BRIEN: Where do you get those from? All right, anyway, let's move on to the question of the day.

CAFFERTY: OK. Massachusetts became the first state to grant marriages to same-sex couples beginning yesterday. The ceremonies have left a lot of unanswered questions. For example, if same-sex couples marry in Massachusetts, should those marriages be recognized in other states? And should people from other states be able to go to Massachusetts, gay couples and get married there? And is it up to the state legislatures decide? Or should courts decide? Or should the issue be put to a vote? Or should there be a constitutional amendment? It just goes on and on until your teeth hurt and eyes glaze over.

The question is this: Who should decide the future of same-sex marriages?

Cy in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: "One of the most commonly known and quoted excerpts from the Declaration of Independence is "All men are created equal." And given our national social history of having to rely on the courts to ensure that it eventually gets done, the answer is clear. We must rely on the courts to adjudicate equality."

John in Lexington, Kentucky: "Conservatives oppose government interference in personal lives unless you are gay. Some black clergy champion civil rights, unless you're gay. The Constitution of the United States guarantees life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. This includes those citizens who are homosexual. You may hate us, that's your folly, but the law may not".

Wayne in New Jersey: "I think it's up to each individual state. I myself am against gay marriage, but I would rather have that than risk opening the Constitution to amendment. In this day of money, politics and selfish hidden motives, I shudder to think what people will try to sneak into it."

And Jim in Massachusetts: "Jack, I don't understand all the fuss over same-sex marriage. My wife and I have been married for over 35 years and the sex is still the same."

HEMMER: And we'll leave it at that.

CAFFERTY: It took a minute for that to work its way through the room.

O'BRIEN: Yes, it was ripple effect outward.

CAFFERTY: Yes, it starts slow and nothing.

HEMMER: Like a pebble on a pond.

CAFFERTY: Yes. Maybe the guy just wanted to get out of music.

O'BRIEN: Well, apparently, I guess this cello belonged to the L.A. Philharmonic. So, it wasn't even his cello. So, the money wouldn't have even gone to him.

CAFFERTY: This is entirely more than I want to know about some...

O'BRIEN: Yes, but I like the way you go right to crime. You know, the poor guys loses his cello. It's a good question, though. Why leave it on the porch? That seems odd. I'm through, Jack. I'm done. I won't torture you for the rest of the day.

CAFFERTY: It's all right. Remember, we all die alone, Soledad.

O'BRIEN: All right. Yesterday, Jack told us about that omelet Remember this? It costs 1,000 bucks. Well, today we're getting a look and a taste.

Jeanne Moos serves up the zillion dollar frittata.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's an egg dish that will cost you a nest egg. A thousand bucks for an omelet?

It's enough to make a chicken cluck. Enough to make the front page. Enough to make diners at the Parker Meridian Hotel restaurant say:

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We thought that was the calorie count when we saw 1,000.

MOOS: Take six eggs, a lobster tail and claw meat, pop in the oven, then cover with caviar, ten ounces of caviar. That's $500 to $600 worth of caviar alone.

SYLVESTER STALLONE, ACTOR: Does that come with a liver transplant? Because you're going to need it.

MOOS: We stumbled on Sylvester Stallone eating at the Parker Meridian. Here's a guy who had experience with eggs filming "Rocky."

(on camera): You're probably the only guy in here who could afford this omelet.

STALLONE: You feel like you're eating a generation of sturgeons there. I feel a little guilty.

MOOS (voice over): On the menu, the wife of the owner dares you to expense the $1,000 omelet. This guy did. He's a reporter for a London tabloid doing a story on what is technically a frittata. Since this was the first one sold, it got applause.

And though we couldn't expense one, our colleague gave us a bite.

(on camera): You know, I'm not crazy about caviar.

(voice-over): But our British friend said he loved it. Watch the eyebrows.

(on camera): You know, we could get about 200 omelets at a regular diner for this.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know.

(voice-over): There's also the bargain hunter's $100 version, with a mere ounce of caviar.

STALLONE: Can you wrap this, because Donald Trump is due for a snack.

MOOS: Jeanne Moos.

STALLONE: Hey, darling.

MOOS: CNN.

STALLONE: Love you.

MOOS: New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: I like the way Jeanne is sitting there tasting off that guy's plate.

CAFFERTY: CNN wouldn't buy her her own omelet, I guess.

O'BRIEN: Clearly, there was no way anyone was going to put that through.

CAFFERTY: Kick that right back from Atlanta.

O'BRIEN: She just had to taste somebody else's. I understand that.

CAFFERTY: Yes.

O'BRIEN: The Parker Meridian also offers a few budget breakfast items, but not a lot, including (UNINTELLIGIBLE) French toast, 28 bucks for that, and egg white frittata shrimp, and that's just $21. That is an expensive place to eat.

HEMMER: That's a lot of PR.

O'BRIEN: But worth everything, clearly.

HEMMER: Lot of publicity. Listen, we went over to our new building yesterday, the Time Warner center here, Soledad and I were over there.

CAFFERTY: How was it?

HEMMER: And Andy Serwer went with us. Jack did not go with us, by the way.

CAFFERTY: I was busy.

HEMMER: So, we -- since Jack is never going to walk in this building ever in the existence of his employ at CNN, we brought you back a little gift there, Jack.

CAFFERTY: Oh, isn't that nice?

HEMMER: Open that up. I know you drink tea in the morning. Show the fans here. See that? It's nice.

CAFFERTY: Where are you here?

HEMMER: But here's what I find intriguing. John Charles Cafferty, welcome to the Time Warner Center.

O'BRIEN: Oh.

CAFFERTY: That's somebody else.

HEMMER: You have your little name tag over there.

CAFFERTY: Yes, that's somebody else.

HEMMER: John Charles. It's not Jack after all.

CAFFERTY: Well, that's good.

O'BRIEN: We missed you.

CAFFERTY: Now I really don't have to go. I got the cup and the sign and I'm home free.

HEMMER: We brought it to you.

Let's get a break here. Back to Iraq in a moment. One of the major stories of that briefing yesterday as to what was inside this roadside bomb? Tests being done in Iraq. U.S. investigators want to know about a deadly nerve agent found in one exploded shell. They are doing more testing apparently today. We'll get to that and more at the top of the hour after this.

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