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CNN Live At Daybreak
The Wounded; President Reacts; Tanker Fire; Winter Storm
Aired December 22, 2004 - 05:30 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.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning to you, welcome to the second half-hour of DAYBREAK. From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.
Now in the News.
A day after an insurgent rocket attack in northern Iraq, the bodies of fallen U.S. soldiers are starting their journey home. Fourteen U.S. soldiers are among the 22 people who were killed.
Britain moves forward with Mid East peace efforts. Just about an hour ago on a trip to Israel, Prime Minister Tony Blair said London plans to host an international meeting next year. The topic: Palestinian reforms.
To count or not to count that is the question before Washington State's Supreme Court today, it considers whether some 730 disputed ballots should be counted in the state's still unsettled governor's race.
President Bush has upped his pardon count a bit, he's granted 4 more, bringing to 31 the total number of clemencies he's issued so far. That's below the pace of most other modern presidents.
To the Forecast Center.
Good morning -- Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Carol.
I just got an e-mail about somebody asking me what's the difference between sleet and freezing rain, because I'm using those terms and they're not interchangeable. Sleet actually is a frozen ice pellet. It's a raindrop that's already frozen by the time it hits you. You'll hear it on your roof or on your skylight or on your chimney, dink, dink, dink, dink, dink.
And freezing rain actually comes down as liquid and freezes on contact with the surface. Freezing rain is significantly worse to drive on than sleet, not that sleet is any good picnic, but sleet gives you a little traction, freezing rain gives you none.
So there you go, those are the terms. And you're going to hear those terms all day today so remember them.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Thank you, Chad.
We begin this half-hour with that deadly rocket attack on a U.S. base near Mosul that left 14 soldiers dead, 51 wounded. Doctors have been treating wounds suffered when a rocket sliced through the mess hall and exploded.
Karl Penhaul is following the story from Baghdad. He joins us now with the latest.
Hello -- Karl.
KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Carol.
First of all, to bring you up to the casualty figures, there's 14 U.S. soldiers are confirmed dead, 4 U.S. civilian contractors are among the dead and 4 of them are Iraqi security force members. Seventy-two others wounded, 51 of those U.S. soldiers, the other a mixture Iraqi security forces and civilians.
Now as far as the cause is, this is the big subject of investigation today. In the last few moments, we've been talking to Lt. Col. Hastings (ph). He is the spokesman for Task Force Olympia based up in Mosul, and he said there is no evaluation of exactly what caused the blast at this stage.
Yes, we have seen those reports coming out of the Pentagon that this was a rocket strike. But on the ground there an FBI team is now in place. A team of FBI experts, in fact, flew up to the base in Mosul at 2:00 a.m. our time this morning and they are now looking at what may have caused the blast.
But Lt. Col. Hastings has said it could have been a rocket, it could have been a mortar. But also, he says, it could have been a placed explosive. If it's a placed explosive, that effectively means somebody could have walked in and put that bomb in that dining hall. He says that there are some tell-tell indications there, one of which is that perforations, shrapnel perforations around the dining hall are symmetrical as if they were caused by ball bearings or BBs (ph) -- Carol.
COSTELLO: That would be more disturbing, wouldn't it, Karl, that someone would be able to just walk into that mess tent and plant a bomb?
PENHAUL: It certainly would. But again, Lt. Col. Hastings is saying that although they are not ruling any of these theories out just yet, neither do they want to jump to conclusions, they are very confident in the capabilities of the FBI team that are there on the ground. They have given no timeline for how long this investigation will take, but they say they will take the time needed to get a full answer because this is a very serious question -- Carol.
COSTELLO: And, Karl, we've heard of this being referred to as a soft target. What do people mean by that and was it really a soft target? PENHAUL: It depends on your definition of soft target. This target was soft in the sense that this is a soft skinned building. As we've seen from those photographs taken by imbedded reporters at the scene, the dining hall was a canvas construction. And across the U.S. military camps in Iraq most of these dining facilities do tend to be either built of canvas or of thin metal. They are certainly not bomb proof or missile proof.
But obviously this wasn't a soft target as we typically mean. And a civilian target is what is typically meant by a soft target. Because this dining hall was in the middle of a U.S. military base and the U.S. military there are in the middle of an offensive against the insurgents -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Karl Penhaul, live in Baghdad this morning, thank you.
So a sea of wounded and dead, that's how one witness describes that horrific rocket attack on the American troops in Mosul. Pictures taken immediately after the dining tent was hit, well, they tell it all, the sunlight streaming in through gapping holes in the tent and soldiers helping their fallen comrades.
The wife of one U.S. soldier there describes the call she got from her husband.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRISH OTTO, WIFE OF U.S. SOLDIER IN MOSUL: When I got the phone call this morning, he said honey, I just want you to know that I'm OK and that I love you and I'm fine. Everything is OK, but something bad has happened. I know deep inside it's breaking his heart because he loves his soldiers. He'd do anything, give his life for any of them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: The wife of another soldier lucky to be alive describes her mixed emotions.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MELISSA DOSS, WIFE OF U.S. SOLDIER IN MOSUL: I'm happy that I know, but I feel guilty. I have that guilt that I know that my husband is OK and I know there's other families that know that their soldier is OK, but there's a lot that don't. And I feel guilty that I know and they don't.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: President Bush says he grieves with the families of those who lost loved ones in Mosul. The president is at Camp David today for the Christmas holiday. But before he left, he offered his condolences.
Our senior White House correspondent John King has more on that for you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN KING, SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The president offered his condolences after a holiday season visit with wounded troops and their families at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This time of year particularly sorrowful for the families as we head into the Christmas season. We pray for them. We send our heartfelt condolences to the loved ones who've suffered today.
KING: As he has so many times before, Mr. Bush defended the mission and vowed the deaths would not be in vain.
BUSH: This is a very important and vital mission. Confident democracy will prevail in Iraq. I know a free Iraq will lead to a more peaceful world. And so we ask for God's blessings on all who were involved in that vital mission.
KING: The White House tied the attack to opponents of Iraqi democracy and said it is critical to press ahead with next month's planned elections.
SCOTT MCCLELLAN, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The terrorists and Saddam loyalists want to turn back to the past of oppression and brutality. That will not happen.
KING: But the strike on a presumably secure military base in Mosul raised new questions about the ability of U.S. and Iraqi forces to provide security for election polling places.
KEN POLLACK, ANALYST: We don't have the troops to make the country safe. That's hurting the chances for good elections. That also hurts us in every aspect because it is killing Iraqis in a very literal sense. And the Iraqis see this and they are deeply dismayed by the fact that they simply don't feel safe in their homes and their streets.
KING: Lawmakers just back from Iraq also question whether there are enough troops. And other complaints about administration policy include shortages of armored vehicles.
(on camera): The administration hopes the situation on the ground in Iraq improves by the time Congress comes back to work full time in early February. Yet at the same time as the warning, the violence is likely to continue and perhaps intensify in the five weeks between now and the planned elections.
John King, CNN, the White House.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: All of this brings us to our e-mail Question of the Morning, we want to hear from you this morning how does the Mosul attack affect your opinion of the war? We want to know. E-mail us your comments DAYBREAK@CNN.com. That's DAYBREAK@CNN.com. There is a developing story going on near the Pentagon just outside of Washington, D.C. this morning. A tanker truck has crashed and has literally exploded on Interstate 395. It has shut down traffic in both directions.
Reporter Sarah Lee of CNN affiliate WUSA is there. She joins us with more on this ongoing story.
Sarah, bring us up to date.
SARAH LEE, WJLA-TV REPORTER: Well, Carol, first of all I want to make clear that the Arlington Fire and Rescue out here in Arlington, Virginia, have deemed this an accident. As a point of reference, yes, we are nearby the Pentagon on Interstate 395, but they have deemed this an accident.
And at this time they have confirmed there is one person dead. Unclear whether or not that was the driver of the tanker truck because there is so much fire out here right now. It's still uncertain to us if there was even a second car involved in this.
Let's go straight to some of these incredible pictures that we're seeing from out here in Arlington, Virginia. You can see there is still a fireball that is burning off. And this could go on for several hours as Arlington Fire and Rescue are hoping to have this tanker truck just burn itself out because there are some 8,000 gallons of fuel that are spilled out and burning at this time.
There is an enormous black column of smoke in the sky that as the sun comes up we will be able to show you a better picture of that, but that is billowing up into the sky. And there's a light breeze out there, so there is now just a heavy haze of fog that is hanging in the air of this just putrid smoke that is spewing out at this time.
Now joining me live is Joan Sanlwin who lives just beside where the explosion took place.
And, Joan, you happened to be awake when this took place. Tell me what you heard, tell me what you saw.
JOAN SANLWIN, WITNESS: Well, first there was a crash like something had hit something hard. And then these muffled boom, boom, booms. And there was a series of those. That's what woke my husband up.
And we came on down here and we saw one very large fire off to the left. And there was another distinct fire, smaller, 30 feet away. I'm not very good on distance. So we weren't sure if that was a second car. But that's what made us think it was an accident that a car had -- two cars had collided and one's careened down the road.
LEE: One thing that you said that struck you was that this happened shortly before 4:00 this morning, yet you were still hearing explosions minutes later.
SANLWIN: Right, not all the way through, but about quarter of 4:00, even before that, 3:40 is when I heard the first booms. And then we came down here and there was a number of booms as we were watching the fire and the Arlington police responded and all the emergency responded right away, which always gives you a safe feeling here in Arlington.
And then after a few minutes, we went back into the house. And even then, about 4:15, we heard another boom. And somebody here, just one of the passersby said they thought it might have been tires going.
LEE: All right, thanks very much, Joan Sanlwin.
So again, we are just, as a point of reference, very close to the Pentagon. So people who live in this area of course assumed the worst as they immediately heard these explosions when they were waking up this morning. But again, deeming this an accident, a tanker truck explosion. But again, at this time, one confirmed dead.
Reporting live from Arlington, Virginia, Sarah Lee.
Back to you.
COSTELLO: You know it does strike you that you know on September 11 the Pentagon was hit, so I'm sure that was the first thing that popped into people's minds. How close is it to the Pentagon? Will federal workers be able to get in there today?
LEE: At this time all the roads around the area are shut down. And we are walking distance to the Pentagon, Carol. We are probably the equivalent of about three or four city blocks from that building. So at this time, Interstate 395, which is the main artery that leads from Virginia to the Pentagon, is shut down in both directions and also many of the side streets that access that area. So going to be a very difficult morning for people that need to get into the city today.
COSTELLO: Man, I can only imagine.
Sarah Lee, from CNN affiliate WJLA reporting live from Arlington, Virginia this morning near the Pentagon, thank you.
Some wintry weather is on the way. In five minutes, we'll take you live to Indiana and see how they are gearing up for their first real snow show.
Also, in 16 minutes, a daring bank heist in Belfast. You will not believe how much the crooks got away with.
And how does the Mosul attack affect your opinion of the war? DAYBREAK@CNN.com.
But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Wednesday morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: This desk is a mess. I just realized that. Sorry about that.
Your news, money, weather and sports. It is 5:44 Eastern. Here is what's all new this morning.
The U.S. military announces at least 14 soldiers were killed in yesterday's rocket attack on a base in Mosul. Four U.S. contractors and four Iraqis also died.
They'll be home for Christmas. Iraqi insurgents have freed two French journalists after four months of captivity. They are heading home this morning.
In money news, former "Cheers" actress Kirstie Alley plans to drop some excess baggage. Alley will begin appearing in ads for the Jenny Craig weight loss program in January.
In culture, she calls herself a diva, now she'll prove it. Female impersonator Dame Edna will show up at New York's Metropolitan Opera. She'll sing briefly during a New Year Eve's performance of the "Barber of Seville." I just wanted to hear her sing. OK, just a little bit of Dame Edna for you this morning.
In sports, remember when Vancouver Knucks forward Todd Bertuzzi slugged Colorado's Steve Moore? Well the National Hockey League banished him. Now the International Ice Hockey Federation says it too has banned Bertuzzi from the ice.
To the Forecast Center and Chad.
MYERS: Now that's a penalty.
COSTELLO: Exactly.
MYERS: That teaches somebody that you can go cook fries at McDonald's but you can't do stuff like this, you know.
COSTELLO: Yes, but the guy he hit will never play hockey again, he's still damaged from that attack.
MYERS: Obviously, there he is right there, remember, and he was in intensive care for a long time now.
Hey, good morning, Carol. Good morning, everybody.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: It's funny you should mention Indianapolis and Indiana, Chad, because it looks like, as you said, they're going to get a very white Christmas, the first big winter storm of the season now heading their way, as you said.
So let's head live to Indianapolis reporter Julie Pursley of CNN affiliate WRTV.
And, Chad, feel free to join in on this.
Good morning, Julie, how's the weather?
JULIE PURSLEY, WRTV-TV REPORTER: Good morning, Carol.
Well, you know the snow started just after 3:00, 3:30 here in downtown Indianapolis. And to give you an idea of how quickly it's been coming down, probably less than two hours and we've already had about this much. We're just showing you the top of a bridge over an interstate.
You're looking live at Interstate 65 and 70 where they meet up through downtown Indianapolis already snow covered and slushy. Police are very busy in this area because we've already had a report of about 20 accidents and the rush hour is just now starting.
Our meteorologists in this area have just upped the total. We are now expected to get anywhere from 6 to 10 inches in the metro area and much more to the south and east of us. If you're familiar with Bloomington, Indiana, where Indiana University is, they could see up to about a foot in that area.
So anyone who is expected to head north for Christmas, if you're coming up from Louisville anywhere north through Indiana, be prepared, you're going to face a lot of snow. But the good news is here in Indianapolis we're prepared for snow. They've had salt and sand crews out all night long and they prepare to keep them out until at least tomorrow morning when some of this slacks off.
MYERS: Carol, there's another issue going on here, too, as well. By Friday morning the morning low in Indianapolis is going to be five below zero. Salt doesn't work at that temperature. That's not a wind chill that's an air temperature. And I'm glad the meteorologists there are on the ball, because I've heard so many numbers like 3 to 6, 4 to 8, and I'm -- we're looking at the models here at CNN going what, it's going to be 12 to 18 in some spots. So, yes, you have your work cut out for you.
Do you have your snow boots on I hope?
PURSLEY: You know I'm always prepared. I look like I'm going skiing.
MYERS: Awesome!
PURSLEY: Throughout the summer last year, my boss asked me when I was going to take them off. I said when you stop sending me out in the snow.
And you know the cold temperature that's something to keep in mind because it will be very treacherous on the roadways throughout the next couple of days.
Something else our meteorologists in this area are warning people about, after the snow stops falling, the wind is going to pick up, which means that will just increase the workload for all of the Department of Transportation folks out there. So keep that in mind, especially if you're going to be driving on Interstate 65 throughout the Midwest. That will be a big problem because we have a lot of flat farmland around this area. And when you get on 65, especially in some of the more rural areas, it is just very easy for that to become snow covered with blowing and drifting snow.
COSTELLO: Julie Pursley, excellent report, from CNN affiliate WRTV, and happy holidays to you.
MYERS: Happy white Christmas.
PURSLEY: Happy holidays to you.
COSTELLO: Thanks.
Well she is at the center of attention. Coming up next, a bouncing baby girl sets a record. I don't think she's big enough to bounce. We'll have details of this remarkable story ahead.
You are watching DAYBREAK for a Wednesday morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: You know compared to this baby, Chad, baby Grant was humongous. Almost eight pounds, right. Guess how much Ramasa (ph) weighs?
MYERS: I think you said like two pounds some ounces, right?
COSTELLO: Two pounds. How did you know that?
MYERS: You said it in the tease 30 minutes ago. I'm listening, Carol. I'm keeping you up.
COSTELLO: Man, you are something else. Well she's believed to be the world's smallest baby. She did indeed weigh in just over a half a pound when she was born three months ago.
MYERS: Wow!
COSTELLO: But now, Chad, she's up to 2 pounds 10 ounces. Both her and her twin sister were born three months premature. Doctors at Loyola Medical Center near Chicago say the pair will go home as normal as any other baby.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. JONATHAN MURASKAS, LOYOLA UNIV. MEDICAL CENTER: The nice thing about this whole story, I think it's a wonderful story, I think that -- I think God works through a lot of people here at Loyola. You know we do treat the human spirit. And it's just -- I mean when you have the nine ounce and an eight ounce baby survive, it's not us, Dr. McMillan (ph) and I, it's some higher power that's working and we're just honored and humble to really be here without even sounding plasais (ph). I really think that it's an amazing story.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: That's a big merry Christmas, isn't it. Doctors say the twins could both be home by the end of the first week of January.
Bottoms up, but be careful. Coming up in our next hour, Lisa Drayer will tell us how too much holiday cheer could ring in the weight. Yes, that glass of wine has a lot of calories.
And reality versus virtual reality, we'll explore the ongoing debate about video game violence and its controversial real life role.
You stay tuned.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: All right, let's talk about that attack in Mosul, because we've been searching out your opinions on that attack and how they affected your opinion on the war in Iraq. We want to get right to our e-mails because we've received so many, frankly, almost 600 so far this morning.
Chad, I know you have a couple too, so take it away.
MYERS: I do.
One from Dan in Los Angeles. This is exactly what was going down in '64 and '65. Carol, you may be too young to remember, but it's sad to say it's going to take a 300 kill like the Beirut bombings -- the Beirut bombing barracks so that we can declare victory and finally leave. This is a nightmare, what a mess, a horrible era for our kids to be growing up in.
COSTELLO: This is from Dave from Maryland. He says in spite of the horror and death caused by the rocket attack, I still strongly support the war. We need to keep our eyes on the big picture, why we are there in the first place. We also need to remember the devastation of 9/11.
MYERS: Fred thinks this the war is going to go down in history as the biggest mistake ever made by this country. Nothing has been gained and nothing will be gained and everything has been lost, including the sanity of this nation.
COSTELLO: This is from J.A. (ph) from Cleveland, Ohio. As a grandmother waiting for word from a grandson in the service of this country who is awaiting orders to leave the USA destination Iraq, I'm totally frustrated with our country and our leaders. How many more of our young must be sacrificed on a daily basis before the timid American public cries out enough is enough?
MYERS: It must be devastating as a mom or a dad or a husband or a wife to know that a bomb happened in the city and that's where your loved one is. And it takes so long to get communications back and forth to know whether it was yours or somebody else.
COSTELLO: Can't even imagine. This last one, this is from Peter. He says this is a horribly cowardly act of cold murder to commit on anyone. These cowards hit and then they run. This is an opportune time for everyone to stand resolute, strong and shout no way, we are going to win. This is a tribute to the courageous fallen coalition soldiers. God bless America.
Much more on Mosul in the hour to come. The next hour of DAYBREAK begins right now.
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Aired December 22, 2004 - 05:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning to you, welcome to the second half-hour of DAYBREAK. From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.
Now in the News.
A day after an insurgent rocket attack in northern Iraq, the bodies of fallen U.S. soldiers are starting their journey home. Fourteen U.S. soldiers are among the 22 people who were killed.
Britain moves forward with Mid East peace efforts. Just about an hour ago on a trip to Israel, Prime Minister Tony Blair said London plans to host an international meeting next year. The topic: Palestinian reforms.
To count or not to count that is the question before Washington State's Supreme Court today, it considers whether some 730 disputed ballots should be counted in the state's still unsettled governor's race.
President Bush has upped his pardon count a bit, he's granted 4 more, bringing to 31 the total number of clemencies he's issued so far. That's below the pace of most other modern presidents.
To the Forecast Center.
Good morning -- Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Carol.
I just got an e-mail about somebody asking me what's the difference between sleet and freezing rain, because I'm using those terms and they're not interchangeable. Sleet actually is a frozen ice pellet. It's a raindrop that's already frozen by the time it hits you. You'll hear it on your roof or on your skylight or on your chimney, dink, dink, dink, dink, dink.
And freezing rain actually comes down as liquid and freezes on contact with the surface. Freezing rain is significantly worse to drive on than sleet, not that sleet is any good picnic, but sleet gives you a little traction, freezing rain gives you none.
So there you go, those are the terms. And you're going to hear those terms all day today so remember them.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Thank you, Chad.
We begin this half-hour with that deadly rocket attack on a U.S. base near Mosul that left 14 soldiers dead, 51 wounded. Doctors have been treating wounds suffered when a rocket sliced through the mess hall and exploded.
Karl Penhaul is following the story from Baghdad. He joins us now with the latest.
Hello -- Karl.
KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Carol.
First of all, to bring you up to the casualty figures, there's 14 U.S. soldiers are confirmed dead, 4 U.S. civilian contractors are among the dead and 4 of them are Iraqi security force members. Seventy-two others wounded, 51 of those U.S. soldiers, the other a mixture Iraqi security forces and civilians.
Now as far as the cause is, this is the big subject of investigation today. In the last few moments, we've been talking to Lt. Col. Hastings (ph). He is the spokesman for Task Force Olympia based up in Mosul, and he said there is no evaluation of exactly what caused the blast at this stage.
Yes, we have seen those reports coming out of the Pentagon that this was a rocket strike. But on the ground there an FBI team is now in place. A team of FBI experts, in fact, flew up to the base in Mosul at 2:00 a.m. our time this morning and they are now looking at what may have caused the blast.
But Lt. Col. Hastings has said it could have been a rocket, it could have been a mortar. But also, he says, it could have been a placed explosive. If it's a placed explosive, that effectively means somebody could have walked in and put that bomb in that dining hall. He says that there are some tell-tell indications there, one of which is that perforations, shrapnel perforations around the dining hall are symmetrical as if they were caused by ball bearings or BBs (ph) -- Carol.
COSTELLO: That would be more disturbing, wouldn't it, Karl, that someone would be able to just walk into that mess tent and plant a bomb?
PENHAUL: It certainly would. But again, Lt. Col. Hastings is saying that although they are not ruling any of these theories out just yet, neither do they want to jump to conclusions, they are very confident in the capabilities of the FBI team that are there on the ground. They have given no timeline for how long this investigation will take, but they say they will take the time needed to get a full answer because this is a very serious question -- Carol.
COSTELLO: And, Karl, we've heard of this being referred to as a soft target. What do people mean by that and was it really a soft target? PENHAUL: It depends on your definition of soft target. This target was soft in the sense that this is a soft skinned building. As we've seen from those photographs taken by imbedded reporters at the scene, the dining hall was a canvas construction. And across the U.S. military camps in Iraq most of these dining facilities do tend to be either built of canvas or of thin metal. They are certainly not bomb proof or missile proof.
But obviously this wasn't a soft target as we typically mean. And a civilian target is what is typically meant by a soft target. Because this dining hall was in the middle of a U.S. military base and the U.S. military there are in the middle of an offensive against the insurgents -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Karl Penhaul, live in Baghdad this morning, thank you.
So a sea of wounded and dead, that's how one witness describes that horrific rocket attack on the American troops in Mosul. Pictures taken immediately after the dining tent was hit, well, they tell it all, the sunlight streaming in through gapping holes in the tent and soldiers helping their fallen comrades.
The wife of one U.S. soldier there describes the call she got from her husband.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRISH OTTO, WIFE OF U.S. SOLDIER IN MOSUL: When I got the phone call this morning, he said honey, I just want you to know that I'm OK and that I love you and I'm fine. Everything is OK, but something bad has happened. I know deep inside it's breaking his heart because he loves his soldiers. He'd do anything, give his life for any of them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: The wife of another soldier lucky to be alive describes her mixed emotions.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MELISSA DOSS, WIFE OF U.S. SOLDIER IN MOSUL: I'm happy that I know, but I feel guilty. I have that guilt that I know that my husband is OK and I know there's other families that know that their soldier is OK, but there's a lot that don't. And I feel guilty that I know and they don't.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: President Bush says he grieves with the families of those who lost loved ones in Mosul. The president is at Camp David today for the Christmas holiday. But before he left, he offered his condolences.
Our senior White House correspondent John King has more on that for you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN KING, SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The president offered his condolences after a holiday season visit with wounded troops and their families at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This time of year particularly sorrowful for the families as we head into the Christmas season. We pray for them. We send our heartfelt condolences to the loved ones who've suffered today.
KING: As he has so many times before, Mr. Bush defended the mission and vowed the deaths would not be in vain.
BUSH: This is a very important and vital mission. Confident democracy will prevail in Iraq. I know a free Iraq will lead to a more peaceful world. And so we ask for God's blessings on all who were involved in that vital mission.
KING: The White House tied the attack to opponents of Iraqi democracy and said it is critical to press ahead with next month's planned elections.
SCOTT MCCLELLAN, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The terrorists and Saddam loyalists want to turn back to the past of oppression and brutality. That will not happen.
KING: But the strike on a presumably secure military base in Mosul raised new questions about the ability of U.S. and Iraqi forces to provide security for election polling places.
KEN POLLACK, ANALYST: We don't have the troops to make the country safe. That's hurting the chances for good elections. That also hurts us in every aspect because it is killing Iraqis in a very literal sense. And the Iraqis see this and they are deeply dismayed by the fact that they simply don't feel safe in their homes and their streets.
KING: Lawmakers just back from Iraq also question whether there are enough troops. And other complaints about administration policy include shortages of armored vehicles.
(on camera): The administration hopes the situation on the ground in Iraq improves by the time Congress comes back to work full time in early February. Yet at the same time as the warning, the violence is likely to continue and perhaps intensify in the five weeks between now and the planned elections.
John King, CNN, the White House.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: All of this brings us to our e-mail Question of the Morning, we want to hear from you this morning how does the Mosul attack affect your opinion of the war? We want to know. E-mail us your comments DAYBREAK@CNN.com. That's DAYBREAK@CNN.com. There is a developing story going on near the Pentagon just outside of Washington, D.C. this morning. A tanker truck has crashed and has literally exploded on Interstate 395. It has shut down traffic in both directions.
Reporter Sarah Lee of CNN affiliate WUSA is there. She joins us with more on this ongoing story.
Sarah, bring us up to date.
SARAH LEE, WJLA-TV REPORTER: Well, Carol, first of all I want to make clear that the Arlington Fire and Rescue out here in Arlington, Virginia, have deemed this an accident. As a point of reference, yes, we are nearby the Pentagon on Interstate 395, but they have deemed this an accident.
And at this time they have confirmed there is one person dead. Unclear whether or not that was the driver of the tanker truck because there is so much fire out here right now. It's still uncertain to us if there was even a second car involved in this.
Let's go straight to some of these incredible pictures that we're seeing from out here in Arlington, Virginia. You can see there is still a fireball that is burning off. And this could go on for several hours as Arlington Fire and Rescue are hoping to have this tanker truck just burn itself out because there are some 8,000 gallons of fuel that are spilled out and burning at this time.
There is an enormous black column of smoke in the sky that as the sun comes up we will be able to show you a better picture of that, but that is billowing up into the sky. And there's a light breeze out there, so there is now just a heavy haze of fog that is hanging in the air of this just putrid smoke that is spewing out at this time.
Now joining me live is Joan Sanlwin who lives just beside where the explosion took place.
And, Joan, you happened to be awake when this took place. Tell me what you heard, tell me what you saw.
JOAN SANLWIN, WITNESS: Well, first there was a crash like something had hit something hard. And then these muffled boom, boom, booms. And there was a series of those. That's what woke my husband up.
And we came on down here and we saw one very large fire off to the left. And there was another distinct fire, smaller, 30 feet away. I'm not very good on distance. So we weren't sure if that was a second car. But that's what made us think it was an accident that a car had -- two cars had collided and one's careened down the road.
LEE: One thing that you said that struck you was that this happened shortly before 4:00 this morning, yet you were still hearing explosions minutes later.
SANLWIN: Right, not all the way through, but about quarter of 4:00, even before that, 3:40 is when I heard the first booms. And then we came down here and there was a number of booms as we were watching the fire and the Arlington police responded and all the emergency responded right away, which always gives you a safe feeling here in Arlington.
And then after a few minutes, we went back into the house. And even then, about 4:15, we heard another boom. And somebody here, just one of the passersby said they thought it might have been tires going.
LEE: All right, thanks very much, Joan Sanlwin.
So again, we are just, as a point of reference, very close to the Pentagon. So people who live in this area of course assumed the worst as they immediately heard these explosions when they were waking up this morning. But again, deeming this an accident, a tanker truck explosion. But again, at this time, one confirmed dead.
Reporting live from Arlington, Virginia, Sarah Lee.
Back to you.
COSTELLO: You know it does strike you that you know on September 11 the Pentagon was hit, so I'm sure that was the first thing that popped into people's minds. How close is it to the Pentagon? Will federal workers be able to get in there today?
LEE: At this time all the roads around the area are shut down. And we are walking distance to the Pentagon, Carol. We are probably the equivalent of about three or four city blocks from that building. So at this time, Interstate 395, which is the main artery that leads from Virginia to the Pentagon, is shut down in both directions and also many of the side streets that access that area. So going to be a very difficult morning for people that need to get into the city today.
COSTELLO: Man, I can only imagine.
Sarah Lee, from CNN affiliate WJLA reporting live from Arlington, Virginia this morning near the Pentagon, thank you.
Some wintry weather is on the way. In five minutes, we'll take you live to Indiana and see how they are gearing up for their first real snow show.
Also, in 16 minutes, a daring bank heist in Belfast. You will not believe how much the crooks got away with.
And how does the Mosul attack affect your opinion of the war? DAYBREAK@CNN.com.
But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Wednesday morning.
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COSTELLO: This desk is a mess. I just realized that. Sorry about that.
Your news, money, weather and sports. It is 5:44 Eastern. Here is what's all new this morning.
The U.S. military announces at least 14 soldiers were killed in yesterday's rocket attack on a base in Mosul. Four U.S. contractors and four Iraqis also died.
They'll be home for Christmas. Iraqi insurgents have freed two French journalists after four months of captivity. They are heading home this morning.
In money news, former "Cheers" actress Kirstie Alley plans to drop some excess baggage. Alley will begin appearing in ads for the Jenny Craig weight loss program in January.
In culture, she calls herself a diva, now she'll prove it. Female impersonator Dame Edna will show up at New York's Metropolitan Opera. She'll sing briefly during a New Year Eve's performance of the "Barber of Seville." I just wanted to hear her sing. OK, just a little bit of Dame Edna for you this morning.
In sports, remember when Vancouver Knucks forward Todd Bertuzzi slugged Colorado's Steve Moore? Well the National Hockey League banished him. Now the International Ice Hockey Federation says it too has banned Bertuzzi from the ice.
To the Forecast Center and Chad.
MYERS: Now that's a penalty.
COSTELLO: Exactly.
MYERS: That teaches somebody that you can go cook fries at McDonald's but you can't do stuff like this, you know.
COSTELLO: Yes, but the guy he hit will never play hockey again, he's still damaged from that attack.
MYERS: Obviously, there he is right there, remember, and he was in intensive care for a long time now.
Hey, good morning, Carol. Good morning, everybody.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: It's funny you should mention Indianapolis and Indiana, Chad, because it looks like, as you said, they're going to get a very white Christmas, the first big winter storm of the season now heading their way, as you said.
So let's head live to Indianapolis reporter Julie Pursley of CNN affiliate WRTV.
And, Chad, feel free to join in on this.
Good morning, Julie, how's the weather?
JULIE PURSLEY, WRTV-TV REPORTER: Good morning, Carol.
Well, you know the snow started just after 3:00, 3:30 here in downtown Indianapolis. And to give you an idea of how quickly it's been coming down, probably less than two hours and we've already had about this much. We're just showing you the top of a bridge over an interstate.
You're looking live at Interstate 65 and 70 where they meet up through downtown Indianapolis already snow covered and slushy. Police are very busy in this area because we've already had a report of about 20 accidents and the rush hour is just now starting.
Our meteorologists in this area have just upped the total. We are now expected to get anywhere from 6 to 10 inches in the metro area and much more to the south and east of us. If you're familiar with Bloomington, Indiana, where Indiana University is, they could see up to about a foot in that area.
So anyone who is expected to head north for Christmas, if you're coming up from Louisville anywhere north through Indiana, be prepared, you're going to face a lot of snow. But the good news is here in Indianapolis we're prepared for snow. They've had salt and sand crews out all night long and they prepare to keep them out until at least tomorrow morning when some of this slacks off.
MYERS: Carol, there's another issue going on here, too, as well. By Friday morning the morning low in Indianapolis is going to be five below zero. Salt doesn't work at that temperature. That's not a wind chill that's an air temperature. And I'm glad the meteorologists there are on the ball, because I've heard so many numbers like 3 to 6, 4 to 8, and I'm -- we're looking at the models here at CNN going what, it's going to be 12 to 18 in some spots. So, yes, you have your work cut out for you.
Do you have your snow boots on I hope?
PURSLEY: You know I'm always prepared. I look like I'm going skiing.
MYERS: Awesome!
PURSLEY: Throughout the summer last year, my boss asked me when I was going to take them off. I said when you stop sending me out in the snow.
And you know the cold temperature that's something to keep in mind because it will be very treacherous on the roadways throughout the next couple of days.
Something else our meteorologists in this area are warning people about, after the snow stops falling, the wind is going to pick up, which means that will just increase the workload for all of the Department of Transportation folks out there. So keep that in mind, especially if you're going to be driving on Interstate 65 throughout the Midwest. That will be a big problem because we have a lot of flat farmland around this area. And when you get on 65, especially in some of the more rural areas, it is just very easy for that to become snow covered with blowing and drifting snow.
COSTELLO: Julie Pursley, excellent report, from CNN affiliate WRTV, and happy holidays to you.
MYERS: Happy white Christmas.
PURSLEY: Happy holidays to you.
COSTELLO: Thanks.
Well she is at the center of attention. Coming up next, a bouncing baby girl sets a record. I don't think she's big enough to bounce. We'll have details of this remarkable story ahead.
You are watching DAYBREAK for a Wednesday morning.
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COSTELLO: You know compared to this baby, Chad, baby Grant was humongous. Almost eight pounds, right. Guess how much Ramasa (ph) weighs?
MYERS: I think you said like two pounds some ounces, right?
COSTELLO: Two pounds. How did you know that?
MYERS: You said it in the tease 30 minutes ago. I'm listening, Carol. I'm keeping you up.
COSTELLO: Man, you are something else. Well she's believed to be the world's smallest baby. She did indeed weigh in just over a half a pound when she was born three months ago.
MYERS: Wow!
COSTELLO: But now, Chad, she's up to 2 pounds 10 ounces. Both her and her twin sister were born three months premature. Doctors at Loyola Medical Center near Chicago say the pair will go home as normal as any other baby.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. JONATHAN MURASKAS, LOYOLA UNIV. MEDICAL CENTER: The nice thing about this whole story, I think it's a wonderful story, I think that -- I think God works through a lot of people here at Loyola. You know we do treat the human spirit. And it's just -- I mean when you have the nine ounce and an eight ounce baby survive, it's not us, Dr. McMillan (ph) and I, it's some higher power that's working and we're just honored and humble to really be here without even sounding plasais (ph). I really think that it's an amazing story.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: That's a big merry Christmas, isn't it. Doctors say the twins could both be home by the end of the first week of January.
Bottoms up, but be careful. Coming up in our next hour, Lisa Drayer will tell us how too much holiday cheer could ring in the weight. Yes, that glass of wine has a lot of calories.
And reality versus virtual reality, we'll explore the ongoing debate about video game violence and its controversial real life role.
You stay tuned.
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COSTELLO: All right, let's talk about that attack in Mosul, because we've been searching out your opinions on that attack and how they affected your opinion on the war in Iraq. We want to get right to our e-mails because we've received so many, frankly, almost 600 so far this morning.
Chad, I know you have a couple too, so take it away.
MYERS: I do.
One from Dan in Los Angeles. This is exactly what was going down in '64 and '65. Carol, you may be too young to remember, but it's sad to say it's going to take a 300 kill like the Beirut bombings -- the Beirut bombing barracks so that we can declare victory and finally leave. This is a nightmare, what a mess, a horrible era for our kids to be growing up in.
COSTELLO: This is from Dave from Maryland. He says in spite of the horror and death caused by the rocket attack, I still strongly support the war. We need to keep our eyes on the big picture, why we are there in the first place. We also need to remember the devastation of 9/11.
MYERS: Fred thinks this the war is going to go down in history as the biggest mistake ever made by this country. Nothing has been gained and nothing will be gained and everything has been lost, including the sanity of this nation.
COSTELLO: This is from J.A. (ph) from Cleveland, Ohio. As a grandmother waiting for word from a grandson in the service of this country who is awaiting orders to leave the USA destination Iraq, I'm totally frustrated with our country and our leaders. How many more of our young must be sacrificed on a daily basis before the timid American public cries out enough is enough?
MYERS: It must be devastating as a mom or a dad or a husband or a wife to know that a bomb happened in the city and that's where your loved one is. And it takes so long to get communications back and forth to know whether it was yours or somebody else.
COSTELLO: Can't even imagine. This last one, this is from Peter. He says this is a horribly cowardly act of cold murder to commit on anyone. These cowards hit and then they run. This is an opportune time for everyone to stand resolute, strong and shout no way, we are going to win. This is a tribute to the courageous fallen coalition soldiers. God bless America.
Much more on Mosul in the hour to come. The next hour of DAYBREAK begins right now.
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