Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Live At Daybreak

New Tsunami Warning Goes Out

Aired December 30, 2004 - 05:00   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: Straight ahead on DAYBREAK, a new tsunami warning goes out and panic spreads like an aftershock. Communication lines ripped out, people's lives ripped up -- how ham radio operators are now filling a void words cannot express.
And it's out there, a new threat. Can the people who survived the tsunami survive another disaster in the making?

It is Thursday, December 30.

This is DAYBREAK.

Good morning to you.

From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.

Now in the news, India has issued a tsunami warning and ordered residents of some coastal areas to head to higher ground. The announcement caused panic among many still reeling from the first waves. But scientists say no major seismic events have occurred recently that would cause a tsunami to hit India. In other words, it was a false alarm.

The woman accused of killing a pregnant mother and stealing the baby from her womb is heading back to court today. A Missouri judge will decide if Lisa Montgomery can be freed on bond. Today's hearing will also decide if the case heads to a grand jury.

Apparently al Qaeda has been conducting surveillance activities in the United States. That's according to an FBI and Department of Homeland Security bulletin to local and state police. But the memo also says there is no evidence that an attack is imminent.

To the forecast center and Chad.

And, you know, this false tsunami warning in India, how does that happen?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: You know, I'm not sure, because I just -- as soon as you said that, I went over there and looked at all the real time earthquake activity. And I'm going to walk over here right now and read them to you. Just in the past, let's say, six, seven, let's say 10 hours here, there was a 5.3, a 5.7, a 5.6, a 5.0 and a 5.6 aftershock. Now, those are significant earthquakes in them, you know, all by themselves. But that's not enough. That is not the 9.0 that caused, obviously, the tsunami in the first place. And there was even a 7.3 aftershock directly after that, and that did not really cause a significant rise in the ocean level.

So, you know, to put those people in a panic like that, I'm not sure, actually, how that happened. So we'll have to...

COSTELLO: We'll have a geologist and a seismologist on later.

MYERS: Oh, good.

COSTELLO: And, of course, you'll join in on that discussion, because you know much more than I do about these things.

MYERS: What's that? It's like 5:45 or 5:40, something like that, that we'll have them on?

COSTELLO: Exactly.

MYERS: Good.

OK.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: All right, let's get you caught up with the latest on the tsunami's aftermath. More than 80,000 people now reported dead, but one official says -- in Indonesia says there are so many bodies that they have just stopped counting.

Relief aid is streaming in from all over the globe. So far, $220 million has been donated from countries, corporations and from communities.

The spread of disease may become an even greater danger for the survivors. The World Health Organization says conditions could cause the death toll to double in the next few weeks.

India's home ministry issued that new tsunami warning we've been talking about early this morning, 1:00 a.m. Eastern our time. People were told to move away from the coastlines. The warning was for the southern state of Tamil Nadu. No major seismic activity has been reported in the area. You heard Chad say that. But that did not stop people who have already been through one horrific event from reacting in panic.

CNN correspondent Ram Ramgopal is there.

He joins us now to clarify what's going on there -- good morning.

RAM RAMGOPAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol.

Indeed, there was a great deal of confusion on the ground here. I'm actually very close to the sea at the moment, in the city of Nagappattinam in the southern Tamil Nadu state. And earlier this afternoon, police went around in vans advising people to leave immediately and head for higher land. So we were also evacuated very quickly. Then it appears that the Indian authorities clarified that statement. That's to say that they were issuing a possible tsunami warning, that they were advising officials and residents to be extra careful, that it was not necessarily meant to evacuate people. But certainly the police on the ground were not taking any chances.

So there was a great deal of confusion. But right now, even though the warning has not been withdrawn, people are coming back to the shores on the eastern coast. But at the point of the warning, as you can imagine, there was a great deal of confusion and alarm -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Well, you know, I'm curious about something, because we've heard there really is no warning system out there.

So where did this come from?

RAMGOPAL: Well, the Indian authorities say they got their word from a foreign government, supposedly, you know, somewhere that they had heard of some tectonic activity in the Australian area. The weather officials had warned about that. And at that point, they acted quickly. Part of it is also that there's been criticism in some quarters, especially the newspapers here, saying that maybe more could have been done in this first instance on last Sunday, when the tsunamis first struck, that more could have been done to prevent people from being close to the shore.

So this time around I think they did not want to take any chances at all and perhaps may have issued that warning, which caused authorities to act rather quickly.

COSTELLO: Ram Ramgopal, thank you for that report, reporting live this morning.

Indonesia may have been the hardest hit by the disaster. Relief workers say that in parts of Aceh Province, one out of every four people is dead.

For the latest there, let's head out to capital of Banda Aceh, where CNN's senior Asia correspondent Mike Chinoy is live -- hello, Mike.

MIKE CHINOY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

Well, the latest from Indonesian authorities here is an update on the official death toll, which they put at a little over 43,000. But that is almost certain to rise because it does not include any detailed figures for the stricken areas along the western coastline. That's the part of Sumatra that was most badly affected and we have had pictures made available today, taken in the last day or two, that shows whole towns completely flattened, in some cases not a single building standing, towns of 10,000, 12,000, 15,000 people with no sign of life.

So the death toll seems certain to rise -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Mike Chinoy reporting live this morning.

The disaster may be a world away, but it's certainly on the minds of many here in the United States. People have been standing in line to sign a condolence book at the Indonesian embassy in Washington, D.C. Many of the messages are profound. All are heartfelt. For example, one schoolteacher wrote: "This is a global theater. We're all in this together and what happens to you happens to us. We all pitch in one way or the other."

Countries all over the world are pledged millions of dollars to help with the disaster relief effort. Spain tops the list, offering a $68 million line of credit. That country's cabinet is expected to formally approve that today. President Bush says the $35 million the U.S. is donating is just for starters, but some claim it's too little too late.

Here's CNN's Jamie McIntyre.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A U.S. C-130 cargo plane lands at the Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, Japan, where Air Force personnel load it with critically needed supplies. While it was almost four days after the tsunami hit that the first of these supplies made it to Thailand, U.S. officials reject any suggestion they were slow to react.

ANDREW NATSIOS, USAID ADMINISTRATOR: The Pentagon was informed. They began planning on Sunday to do this. You don't just send people out in two hours. You begin mobilizing, you start the planning and you start sending. We did that on Sunday.

MCINTYRE: The U.S. has already begun setting up disaster relief headquarters at Thailand's Utapao Naval Air Base. And U.S. assessment teams that have just arrived are fanning out to Sri Lanka and Indonesia.

LT. GEN. JAMES CONWAY, JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF: Their task, of course, will be to make immediate assessment as to the nature and the scope of the impact of the disaster.

MCINTYRE: The U.S. is dispatching more than a dozen warships equipped with medical facilities, rescue and earth-moving equipment and helicopters. But it will be days before they arrive. The aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and its four escort ships were the closest, in Hong Kong, and assuming the Strait of Malacca is clear, could be off the coast of Sumatra by this weekend. The amphibious assault ship Bonhomme Richard was in Guam, between seven and 11 days away from its destination, Sri Lanka. Its seven ship task force includes some 2,100 Marines who could be deployed if needed. The U.S. is also sending ships from Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean, which could arrive in four or five days with equipment capable of producing 90,000 gallons of fresh water a day.

(on camera): While the disaster relief may seem slow in coming, U.S. officials say while it's important to get aid there quickly, it's often the long-term commitment to reconstruction that ends up being the most valuable assistance.

Jamie McIntyre, CNN, the Pentagon.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

COSTELLO: That brings us to our DAYBREAK E-Mail Question of the Day. Tsunami relief -- is the United States doing enough? We want to know what you think. Daybreak@cnn.com. You know, they asked this same question on "AMERICAN MORNING" yesterday and I was so fascinated by all of the responses they were getting, I wondered if our audience on DAYBREAK felt the same way, because some people were saying that, you know, we have our own problems, why send so much money to help victims over there when we have victims here and when we're spending so much, you know, on the war in Iraq and such?

So what do you think? Do you think the U.S. is doing enough? Do you think we should do all that we can? Daybreak@cnn.com.

Families of tsunami victims here in the United States are eager to help their loved ones to safety. This young woman is a student at Stanford University who was traveling abroad in Thailand. When her parents in California found out she was injured in the tsunami, they spent $10,000 to hire a helicopter to fly her to a hospital for treatment. They got her out of there.

Each tsunami survivor has an amazing story of their brush with death. For one lucky couple, it was scuba diving directly in the path of the killer waves. Remember this story from yesterday? Faye Linda Wachs and her husband Gene Kim are back in the States now. They were exploring a shipwreck off of Thailand's Phi Phi Islands when the tsunami swept past them. In other words, they were scuba diving, they came to the surface and they saw the devastation. They had no idea that the tsunami had struck.

Here's more of what they had to say in beyond the sound bite.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GENE KIM, TSUNAMI SURVIVOR: I consider myself a novice to intermediate diver. This is the first time I had to do an emergency ascent...

FAYE WACHS, TSUNAMI SURVIVOR: Yes.

KIM: ... under unusual and harsh circumstances. So it was terrifying.

I bumped up a couple times against the wreck itself and swam up as hard as I could, looked at my gauge and I was still dropping.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: As I said, they didn't realize it was a tsunami until they reached land. Once there, the couple helped rescue and care for the injured. Another amazing survivor's story. This little Swedish toddler is back in his father's loving arms where he belongs. We've been telling you about this little boy. He was found wrapped up in blankets and covered in scratches after the tsunamis hit Thailand. American tourists took him to a hospital, where he was identified and first reunited with his grandmother, and then, as you can see, with his dad. His grandfather has also been found, but, sadly, still no sign of the child's mother.

For every story with a happy ending, there are thousands that end sadly. Kelly Hillgrove was a Colorado woman vacationing with her fiance in Sri Lanka when the tsunami hit. He survived. Kelly did not.

Let's go beyond the sound bite now.

Anderson Cooper talked with her brother and cousin about what happened and about what kind of person Kelly Hillgrove was.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They were in a cabana in Galle, about 30 feet off the beach, the shoreline. And some water came in the kitchen. And they just basically looked at each other. They were kind of mystified as to what was going on. He didn't mention any outside warning or anything. And he said less than two minutes later a waist high wave came in. And at that point, they both had to get out of the cabana. I guess it was just chaos at that point. He said he saw my sister running up the beach, away and so he got out. And then a wave, as he says, three times his height, 18, 20 feet high, came in, and at that point...

TRACY WANGAARD, VICTIM'S COUSIN: He didn't see her anymore.

HILLGROVE: Yes.

COOPER: Tracy, you heard Kelly was found actually holding a child's hand.

What do you think she was trying to do?

WANGAARD: I think Kelly was being Kelly. She always wants to help people. And I think she probably saw that child and wanted to comfort that child in both of their last moments.

COOPER: That's the kind of person she was?

WANGAARD: That's absolutely what kind of person Kelly was. She believed in people and inspired them to be the best person they could be.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

COSTELLO: Kelly's family is desperately trying to get the State Department to help them bring Kelly's fiance home in time for her upcoming funeral. We can only begin to guess at the long-term impacts of what may likely be the Earth's biggest disaster. We'll start at 28 past the hour with a look at how the industry that supported much of Southern Asia will be affected.

And how does the massive shift of a chunk of Earth change the world's physical makeup? We'll look at the science behind a tsunami.

And the survivors who have already faced a nightmare have much more ahead. At 52 minutes past, we'll get a health update from Dr. Sanjay Gupta, who's in Sri Lanka this morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.

It's 5:15 Eastern.

Here's what's all new this morning.

India has issued a tsunami warning. They issued it at about 1:00 a.m. Eastern and ordered residents in one hard hit region to head for higher ground. But U.S. seismologists say there is no measured activity in the area that could spawn another tsunami.

Several people were injured during two explosions in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. One blast occurred when a militant tried to break through a checkpoint near the interior ministry. At least three militants were killed in the explosions.

In money news, a new policy will once again allow cows to come into the United States from Canada. The borders were closed to Canadian cattle more than 19 months ago after a case of mad cow was discovered. The policy takes effect in March.

In culture, actor Jerry Orbach is dead after a lengthy battle with prostate cancer. Orbach may be best known for his 12-year run on the TV show "Law and Order." He was 69 years old.

In sports, Ohio came out on top in the battle of the O states. Ohio State, playing without its starting quarterback, easily beat Oklahoma State 33-7 in the Alamo Bowl. Troy Smith was suspended after taking an unspecified but improper gift from a team booster. Of course, that's the quarterback we're talking about.

MYERS: Oh, all right.

COSTELLO: Not out due to an injury -- Chad.

MYERS: Right. Yes, I was watching the Colorado Buffalos last night. They were really -- they played UTEP, the University of Texas, El Paso. What a good football team they have turned into with the coach that came over from Alabama. So, but congratulations to Colorado. They did win the EV1.Net Bowl, or whatever the heck that was. I'm not sure. The Houston Bowl is what it should have been.

(WEATHER REPORT)

MYERS: Fifty-five in Cincinnati, melting that snow rather quickly. The only problem with all the melting during the day, Carol -- and as you know, because you've lived in the Midwest -- it freezes at night. So you get the water and then all of a sudden at night, although currently temperatures in Chicago are 34, plenty of areas in valleys get below 32 and then you get refreezing. Then you get icy spots in the morning, so watch out. It happened last night. They'll be icy spots again today.

Carol -- back to you.

COSTELLO: You know what you do, Chad? I remember in college I used to sit in the student center and look out the window.

MYERS: Yes?

COSTELLO: To see all the people slipping on the ice and falling. It was like a sport.

MYERS: Really?

COSTELLO: That sounds so cruel. They didn't get hurt.

MYERS: It does, Carol. That's not, that's not endearing to you.

COSTELLO: I know.

MYERS: Don't tell that story again.

COSTELLO: I know. Oh, the people were young. They just jumped right back up and then slipped again.

MYERS: Oh, OK. Yes, that's much better now.

COSTELLO: Yes, I thought so.

MYERS: OK.

COSTELLO: Hey, thanks, Chad.

MYERS: All right, bye.

COSTELLO: We're going to be back in a minute.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Many of the areas -- are we going to talk about our correspondents now? We are. We are not. All right.

Many of the areas wiped out by the tsunamis were absolute paradise, prime tourist destinations. So in addition to the unspeakable human toll, the tsunamis will also have an enormous effect on tourism in the region. So let's head live to Hong Kong and Jon Stonham, who is CEO of Asiahotels.com.

Hello, Jon.

JON STONHAM, CEO, ASIAHOTELS.COM: Hi there, Carol.

COSTELLO: Let's start with Sri Lanka, because devastating damage there.

Can it ever recover?

STONHAM: I think it can, but it's going to take a long time. Sri Lanka is one of my favorite destinations and it's been, I guess the hot destination in Asia for about the last two years now. And what's a shame is it's been really recovering as a result of the cease-fire which started in 2002, and you've been seeing hard currency coming into the country and a real economic success there.

Unfortunately, though, the infrastructure has been really badly damaged. We've spoken to a lot of the hotels in Sri Lanka over the last couple of days to see how they are and most of the hotels are telling us they're in pretty good shape. The problem is that people can't get to them and the infrastructure to them has been really, really affected, such that the tourism industry has been taken -- taken back at least a year.

COSTELLO: And by that you mean they can't get to them because the roads have been washed out?

STONHAM: Yes, I think the key area for tourism in Sri Lanka is obviously going to be the southwest coast, from Colombo down to Galle. That's supported by one road, which unfortunately has been badly damaged, and a railway line. And I think on CNN they've showed some fairly graphic photographs of the damage done to the railway line and the railway carriages.

So there is no infrastructure. I mean if you look at, say, the Lighthouse Hotel, which is a stunning hotel on the south coast, you know, it suffered relatively little damage. But it's not taking any bookings or any people because no one can get there. And I think the problem becomes is before they can even repair the infrastructure, the human cost in terms of getting relief to, in terms of water, in terms of medication, etc., is the first priority. And that's before even the infrastructure can be repaired.

So I think Sri Lanka has some real problems.

COSTELLO: You know, we always hear so much, too, about how lovely the people are in Sri Lanka, how kind they are. Tourists love to go there and interact with them.

STONHAM: I know. That's true. And it seems a shame. I mean they are a stunning people. They've very friendly. They have a wonderful culture. And Sri Lanka has so much to offer. It has its wonderful beaches, it has a huge cultural center in the middle of the island that's ancient cities and some wonderful hill stations. And the people are absolutely stunning and very welcoming. And to have this knocked down again is a real shame, because I was there in November and I saw real enthusiasm and real confidence in the nation for the first time I've seen in a couple of years, where, you know, the hard currency was getting down to the grassroots level and people were really benefiting from the tourism industry.

And so I think it's knocked them back a little bit. And unfortunately their season sort of finishes in April and won't start again until September. So they've really had the sort of core of their season knocked away, which is a shame.

COSTELLO: Well, it is a shame.

Relief efforts are starting to come in, but it'll take so long to rebuild there.

Jon Stonham, CEO of Asiahotels.com.

Thank you for joining DAYBREAK this morning.

Headed to a break?

All right, we're going to head to a break.

We'll be right back with much more on DAYBREAK.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: If you've been watching our coverage of the tsunami disaster, we know you know we have crews all over the place. We have at least 10 correspondents in various locations and countries, and there are at least that many production teams coordinating things behind-the-scenes. They're used to being in harm's way, but we never get used to putting them there.

Our senior international editor David Clinch joins us now live from Atlanta with what our crews are doing to protect themselves against the threat of cholera, malaria and so many other diseases, and still manage to get the news to all of you -- good morning, David.

DAVID CLINCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL EDITOR: Good morning, Carol.

This has been one of the most challenging stories for us at CNN to cover in many, many years. I mean the initial 24 hours we had a couple of people who were on holidays in areas where the waves hit. They got their families to safety then called us and said we're ready to work. So, first of all, we had that immediate reaction in the first 24 hours.

Then launching a massive operation, getting a dozen or more reporters, dozens of people, satellite dishes, to some of the more remote areas of these countries. We're still in the process of increasing our coverage in places like Indonesia and Sri Lanka, which are just very difficult places to operate in, even in the best of circumstances. And then, as you point out, the challenges that we faced. First of all, on the safety issues, we've got the prospect of disease. You saw Mike Chinoy yesterday walking through the streets of a city with bodies littered everywhere. We have been training our reporters for years in how to operate in difficult circumstances, in war zones. And disease and medical issues have always been part of that training. That training is really coming into play now.

But in some areas, it's almost impossible to train people --

COSTELLO: Wait a minute. Stop right there. Stop right there. Yes, stop right there.

I mean how can you protect yourself against water borne diseases?

CLINCH: Right. Well, that's the thing, you can know everything, you can read the book, but basically if you go into these areas and you're walking in areas where dead people are lying around in the streets, there is a risk. So we are taking precautions. We're getting as close to the story as we possibly can without taking unnecessary risks. But even then, I mean today, we have these warnings of new tsunamis coming. Half of our correspondents were walking around in coastal areas covering the story. We're on the phone calling them saying there may be another tsunami on the way.

So not only the threat of disease, you have the threat of perhaps more earthquakes, more tsunamis. And then, of course, the editorial issues. You want to try and bring as much of the story as you can, both the tragic and these small but significant rays of hope whenever we can find them. And that's really our challenge going forward. Just the breadth of this story is enormous.

COSTELLO: Oh, it certainly is.

David Clinch, thanks for enlightening us and good luck to all of our correspondents over there.

CLINCH: Thanks, Carol.

COSTELLO: Thank you.

Here's what's all new in the next half hour of DAYBREAK.

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 December 30, 2004 - 05:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Straight ahead on DAYBREAK, a new tsunami warning goes out and panic spreads like an aftershock. Communication lines ripped out, people's lives ripped up -- how ham radio operators are now filling a void words cannot express.
And it's out there, a new threat. Can the people who survived the tsunami survive another disaster in the making?

It is Thursday, December 30.

This is DAYBREAK.

Good morning to you.

From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.

Now in the news, India has issued a tsunami warning and ordered residents of some coastal areas to head to higher ground. The announcement caused panic among many still reeling from the first waves. But scientists say no major seismic events have occurred recently that would cause a tsunami to hit India. In other words, it was a false alarm.

The woman accused of killing a pregnant mother and stealing the baby from her womb is heading back to court today. A Missouri judge will decide if Lisa Montgomery can be freed on bond. Today's hearing will also decide if the case heads to a grand jury.

Apparently al Qaeda has been conducting surveillance activities in the United States. That's according to an FBI and Department of Homeland Security bulletin to local and state police. But the memo also says there is no evidence that an attack is imminent.

To the forecast center and Chad.

And, you know, this false tsunami warning in India, how does that happen?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: You know, I'm not sure, because I just -- as soon as you said that, I went over there and looked at all the real time earthquake activity. And I'm going to walk over here right now and read them to you. Just in the past, let's say, six, seven, let's say 10 hours here, there was a 5.3, a 5.7, a 5.6, a 5.0 and a 5.6 aftershock. Now, those are significant earthquakes in them, you know, all by themselves. But that's not enough. That is not the 9.0 that caused, obviously, the tsunami in the first place. And there was even a 7.3 aftershock directly after that, and that did not really cause a significant rise in the ocean level.

So, you know, to put those people in a panic like that, I'm not sure, actually, how that happened. So we'll have to...

COSTELLO: We'll have a geologist and a seismologist on later.

MYERS: Oh, good.

COSTELLO: And, of course, you'll join in on that discussion, because you know much more than I do about these things.

MYERS: What's that? It's like 5:45 or 5:40, something like that, that we'll have them on?

COSTELLO: Exactly.

MYERS: Good.

OK.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: All right, let's get you caught up with the latest on the tsunami's aftermath. More than 80,000 people now reported dead, but one official says -- in Indonesia says there are so many bodies that they have just stopped counting.

Relief aid is streaming in from all over the globe. So far, $220 million has been donated from countries, corporations and from communities.

The spread of disease may become an even greater danger for the survivors. The World Health Organization says conditions could cause the death toll to double in the next few weeks.

India's home ministry issued that new tsunami warning we've been talking about early this morning, 1:00 a.m. Eastern our time. People were told to move away from the coastlines. The warning was for the southern state of Tamil Nadu. No major seismic activity has been reported in the area. You heard Chad say that. But that did not stop people who have already been through one horrific event from reacting in panic.

CNN correspondent Ram Ramgopal is there.

He joins us now to clarify what's going on there -- good morning.

RAM RAMGOPAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol.

Indeed, there was a great deal of confusion on the ground here. I'm actually very close to the sea at the moment, in the city of Nagappattinam in the southern Tamil Nadu state. And earlier this afternoon, police went around in vans advising people to leave immediately and head for higher land. So we were also evacuated very quickly. Then it appears that the Indian authorities clarified that statement. That's to say that they were issuing a possible tsunami warning, that they were advising officials and residents to be extra careful, that it was not necessarily meant to evacuate people. But certainly the police on the ground were not taking any chances.

So there was a great deal of confusion. But right now, even though the warning has not been withdrawn, people are coming back to the shores on the eastern coast. But at the point of the warning, as you can imagine, there was a great deal of confusion and alarm -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Well, you know, I'm curious about something, because we've heard there really is no warning system out there.

So where did this come from?

RAMGOPAL: Well, the Indian authorities say they got their word from a foreign government, supposedly, you know, somewhere that they had heard of some tectonic activity in the Australian area. The weather officials had warned about that. And at that point, they acted quickly. Part of it is also that there's been criticism in some quarters, especially the newspapers here, saying that maybe more could have been done in this first instance on last Sunday, when the tsunamis first struck, that more could have been done to prevent people from being close to the shore.

So this time around I think they did not want to take any chances at all and perhaps may have issued that warning, which caused authorities to act rather quickly.

COSTELLO: Ram Ramgopal, thank you for that report, reporting live this morning.

Indonesia may have been the hardest hit by the disaster. Relief workers say that in parts of Aceh Province, one out of every four people is dead.

For the latest there, let's head out to capital of Banda Aceh, where CNN's senior Asia correspondent Mike Chinoy is live -- hello, Mike.

MIKE CHINOY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

Well, the latest from Indonesian authorities here is an update on the official death toll, which they put at a little over 43,000. But that is almost certain to rise because it does not include any detailed figures for the stricken areas along the western coastline. That's the part of Sumatra that was most badly affected and we have had pictures made available today, taken in the last day or two, that shows whole towns completely flattened, in some cases not a single building standing, towns of 10,000, 12,000, 15,000 people with no sign of life.

So the death toll seems certain to rise -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Mike Chinoy reporting live this morning.

The disaster may be a world away, but it's certainly on the minds of many here in the United States. People have been standing in line to sign a condolence book at the Indonesian embassy in Washington, D.C. Many of the messages are profound. All are heartfelt. For example, one schoolteacher wrote: "This is a global theater. We're all in this together and what happens to you happens to us. We all pitch in one way or the other."

Countries all over the world are pledged millions of dollars to help with the disaster relief effort. Spain tops the list, offering a $68 million line of credit. That country's cabinet is expected to formally approve that today. President Bush says the $35 million the U.S. is donating is just for starters, but some claim it's too little too late.

Here's CNN's Jamie McIntyre.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A U.S. C-130 cargo plane lands at the Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, Japan, where Air Force personnel load it with critically needed supplies. While it was almost four days after the tsunami hit that the first of these supplies made it to Thailand, U.S. officials reject any suggestion they were slow to react.

ANDREW NATSIOS, USAID ADMINISTRATOR: The Pentagon was informed. They began planning on Sunday to do this. You don't just send people out in two hours. You begin mobilizing, you start the planning and you start sending. We did that on Sunday.

MCINTYRE: The U.S. has already begun setting up disaster relief headquarters at Thailand's Utapao Naval Air Base. And U.S. assessment teams that have just arrived are fanning out to Sri Lanka and Indonesia.

LT. GEN. JAMES CONWAY, JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF: Their task, of course, will be to make immediate assessment as to the nature and the scope of the impact of the disaster.

MCINTYRE: The U.S. is dispatching more than a dozen warships equipped with medical facilities, rescue and earth-moving equipment and helicopters. But it will be days before they arrive. The aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and its four escort ships were the closest, in Hong Kong, and assuming the Strait of Malacca is clear, could be off the coast of Sumatra by this weekend. The amphibious assault ship Bonhomme Richard was in Guam, between seven and 11 days away from its destination, Sri Lanka. Its seven ship task force includes some 2,100 Marines who could be deployed if needed. The U.S. is also sending ships from Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean, which could arrive in four or five days with equipment capable of producing 90,000 gallons of fresh water a day.

(on camera): While the disaster relief may seem slow in coming, U.S. officials say while it's important to get aid there quickly, it's often the long-term commitment to reconstruction that ends up being the most valuable assistance.

Jamie McIntyre, CNN, the Pentagon.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

COSTELLO: That brings us to our DAYBREAK E-Mail Question of the Day. Tsunami relief -- is the United States doing enough? We want to know what you think. Daybreak@cnn.com. You know, they asked this same question on "AMERICAN MORNING" yesterday and I was so fascinated by all of the responses they were getting, I wondered if our audience on DAYBREAK felt the same way, because some people were saying that, you know, we have our own problems, why send so much money to help victims over there when we have victims here and when we're spending so much, you know, on the war in Iraq and such?

So what do you think? Do you think the U.S. is doing enough? Do you think we should do all that we can? Daybreak@cnn.com.

Families of tsunami victims here in the United States are eager to help their loved ones to safety. This young woman is a student at Stanford University who was traveling abroad in Thailand. When her parents in California found out she was injured in the tsunami, they spent $10,000 to hire a helicopter to fly her to a hospital for treatment. They got her out of there.

Each tsunami survivor has an amazing story of their brush with death. For one lucky couple, it was scuba diving directly in the path of the killer waves. Remember this story from yesterday? Faye Linda Wachs and her husband Gene Kim are back in the States now. They were exploring a shipwreck off of Thailand's Phi Phi Islands when the tsunami swept past them. In other words, they were scuba diving, they came to the surface and they saw the devastation. They had no idea that the tsunami had struck.

Here's more of what they had to say in beyond the sound bite.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GENE KIM, TSUNAMI SURVIVOR: I consider myself a novice to intermediate diver. This is the first time I had to do an emergency ascent...

FAYE WACHS, TSUNAMI SURVIVOR: Yes.

KIM: ... under unusual and harsh circumstances. So it was terrifying.

I bumped up a couple times against the wreck itself and swam up as hard as I could, looked at my gauge and I was still dropping.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: As I said, they didn't realize it was a tsunami until they reached land. Once there, the couple helped rescue and care for the injured. Another amazing survivor's story. This little Swedish toddler is back in his father's loving arms where he belongs. We've been telling you about this little boy. He was found wrapped up in blankets and covered in scratches after the tsunamis hit Thailand. American tourists took him to a hospital, where he was identified and first reunited with his grandmother, and then, as you can see, with his dad. His grandfather has also been found, but, sadly, still no sign of the child's mother.

For every story with a happy ending, there are thousands that end sadly. Kelly Hillgrove was a Colorado woman vacationing with her fiance in Sri Lanka when the tsunami hit. He survived. Kelly did not.

Let's go beyond the sound bite now.

Anderson Cooper talked with her brother and cousin about what happened and about what kind of person Kelly Hillgrove was.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They were in a cabana in Galle, about 30 feet off the beach, the shoreline. And some water came in the kitchen. And they just basically looked at each other. They were kind of mystified as to what was going on. He didn't mention any outside warning or anything. And he said less than two minutes later a waist high wave came in. And at that point, they both had to get out of the cabana. I guess it was just chaos at that point. He said he saw my sister running up the beach, away and so he got out. And then a wave, as he says, three times his height, 18, 20 feet high, came in, and at that point...

TRACY WANGAARD, VICTIM'S COUSIN: He didn't see her anymore.

HILLGROVE: Yes.

COOPER: Tracy, you heard Kelly was found actually holding a child's hand.

What do you think she was trying to do?

WANGAARD: I think Kelly was being Kelly. She always wants to help people. And I think she probably saw that child and wanted to comfort that child in both of their last moments.

COOPER: That's the kind of person she was?

WANGAARD: That's absolutely what kind of person Kelly was. She believed in people and inspired them to be the best person they could be.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

COSTELLO: Kelly's family is desperately trying to get the State Department to help them bring Kelly's fiance home in time for her upcoming funeral. We can only begin to guess at the long-term impacts of what may likely be the Earth's biggest disaster. We'll start at 28 past the hour with a look at how the industry that supported much of Southern Asia will be affected.

And how does the massive shift of a chunk of Earth change the world's physical makeup? We'll look at the science behind a tsunami.

And the survivors who have already faced a nightmare have much more ahead. At 52 minutes past, we'll get a health update from Dr. Sanjay Gupta, who's in Sri Lanka this morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.

It's 5:15 Eastern.

Here's what's all new this morning.

India has issued a tsunami warning. They issued it at about 1:00 a.m. Eastern and ordered residents in one hard hit region to head for higher ground. But U.S. seismologists say there is no measured activity in the area that could spawn another tsunami.

Several people were injured during two explosions in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. One blast occurred when a militant tried to break through a checkpoint near the interior ministry. At least three militants were killed in the explosions.

In money news, a new policy will once again allow cows to come into the United States from Canada. The borders were closed to Canadian cattle more than 19 months ago after a case of mad cow was discovered. The policy takes effect in March.

In culture, actor Jerry Orbach is dead after a lengthy battle with prostate cancer. Orbach may be best known for his 12-year run on the TV show "Law and Order." He was 69 years old.

In sports, Ohio came out on top in the battle of the O states. Ohio State, playing without its starting quarterback, easily beat Oklahoma State 33-7 in the Alamo Bowl. Troy Smith was suspended after taking an unspecified but improper gift from a team booster. Of course, that's the quarterback we're talking about.

MYERS: Oh, all right.

COSTELLO: Not out due to an injury -- Chad.

MYERS: Right. Yes, I was watching the Colorado Buffalos last night. They were really -- they played UTEP, the University of Texas, El Paso. What a good football team they have turned into with the coach that came over from Alabama. So, but congratulations to Colorado. They did win the EV1.Net Bowl, or whatever the heck that was. I'm not sure. The Houston Bowl is what it should have been.

(WEATHER REPORT)

MYERS: Fifty-five in Cincinnati, melting that snow rather quickly. The only problem with all the melting during the day, Carol -- and as you know, because you've lived in the Midwest -- it freezes at night. So you get the water and then all of a sudden at night, although currently temperatures in Chicago are 34, plenty of areas in valleys get below 32 and then you get refreezing. Then you get icy spots in the morning, so watch out. It happened last night. They'll be icy spots again today.

Carol -- back to you.

COSTELLO: You know what you do, Chad? I remember in college I used to sit in the student center and look out the window.

MYERS: Yes?

COSTELLO: To see all the people slipping on the ice and falling. It was like a sport.

MYERS: Really?

COSTELLO: That sounds so cruel. They didn't get hurt.

MYERS: It does, Carol. That's not, that's not endearing to you.

COSTELLO: I know.

MYERS: Don't tell that story again.

COSTELLO: I know. Oh, the people were young. They just jumped right back up and then slipped again.

MYERS: Oh, OK. Yes, that's much better now.

COSTELLO: Yes, I thought so.

MYERS: OK.

COSTELLO: Hey, thanks, Chad.

MYERS: All right, bye.

COSTELLO: We're going to be back in a minute.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Many of the areas -- are we going to talk about our correspondents now? We are. We are not. All right.

Many of the areas wiped out by the tsunamis were absolute paradise, prime tourist destinations. So in addition to the unspeakable human toll, the tsunamis will also have an enormous effect on tourism in the region. So let's head live to Hong Kong and Jon Stonham, who is CEO of Asiahotels.com.

Hello, Jon.

JON STONHAM, CEO, ASIAHOTELS.COM: Hi there, Carol.

COSTELLO: Let's start with Sri Lanka, because devastating damage there.

Can it ever recover?

STONHAM: I think it can, but it's going to take a long time. Sri Lanka is one of my favorite destinations and it's been, I guess the hot destination in Asia for about the last two years now. And what's a shame is it's been really recovering as a result of the cease-fire which started in 2002, and you've been seeing hard currency coming into the country and a real economic success there.

Unfortunately, though, the infrastructure has been really badly damaged. We've spoken to a lot of the hotels in Sri Lanka over the last couple of days to see how they are and most of the hotels are telling us they're in pretty good shape. The problem is that people can't get to them and the infrastructure to them has been really, really affected, such that the tourism industry has been taken -- taken back at least a year.

COSTELLO: And by that you mean they can't get to them because the roads have been washed out?

STONHAM: Yes, I think the key area for tourism in Sri Lanka is obviously going to be the southwest coast, from Colombo down to Galle. That's supported by one road, which unfortunately has been badly damaged, and a railway line. And I think on CNN they've showed some fairly graphic photographs of the damage done to the railway line and the railway carriages.

So there is no infrastructure. I mean if you look at, say, the Lighthouse Hotel, which is a stunning hotel on the south coast, you know, it suffered relatively little damage. But it's not taking any bookings or any people because no one can get there. And I think the problem becomes is before they can even repair the infrastructure, the human cost in terms of getting relief to, in terms of water, in terms of medication, etc., is the first priority. And that's before even the infrastructure can be repaired.

So I think Sri Lanka has some real problems.

COSTELLO: You know, we always hear so much, too, about how lovely the people are in Sri Lanka, how kind they are. Tourists love to go there and interact with them.

STONHAM: I know. That's true. And it seems a shame. I mean they are a stunning people. They've very friendly. They have a wonderful culture. And Sri Lanka has so much to offer. It has its wonderful beaches, it has a huge cultural center in the middle of the island that's ancient cities and some wonderful hill stations. And the people are absolutely stunning and very welcoming. And to have this knocked down again is a real shame, because I was there in November and I saw real enthusiasm and real confidence in the nation for the first time I've seen in a couple of years, where, you know, the hard currency was getting down to the grassroots level and people were really benefiting from the tourism industry.

And so I think it's knocked them back a little bit. And unfortunately their season sort of finishes in April and won't start again until September. So they've really had the sort of core of their season knocked away, which is a shame.

COSTELLO: Well, it is a shame.

Relief efforts are starting to come in, but it'll take so long to rebuild there.

Jon Stonham, CEO of Asiahotels.com.

Thank you for joining DAYBREAK this morning.

Headed to a break?

All right, we're going to head to a break.

We'll be right back with much more on DAYBREAK.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: If you've been watching our coverage of the tsunami disaster, we know you know we have crews all over the place. We have at least 10 correspondents in various locations and countries, and there are at least that many production teams coordinating things behind-the-scenes. They're used to being in harm's way, but we never get used to putting them there.

Our senior international editor David Clinch joins us now live from Atlanta with what our crews are doing to protect themselves against the threat of cholera, malaria and so many other diseases, and still manage to get the news to all of you -- good morning, David.

DAVID CLINCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL EDITOR: Good morning, Carol.

This has been one of the most challenging stories for us at CNN to cover in many, many years. I mean the initial 24 hours we had a couple of people who were on holidays in areas where the waves hit. They got their families to safety then called us and said we're ready to work. So, first of all, we had that immediate reaction in the first 24 hours.

Then launching a massive operation, getting a dozen or more reporters, dozens of people, satellite dishes, to some of the more remote areas of these countries. We're still in the process of increasing our coverage in places like Indonesia and Sri Lanka, which are just very difficult places to operate in, even in the best of circumstances. And then, as you point out, the challenges that we faced. First of all, on the safety issues, we've got the prospect of disease. You saw Mike Chinoy yesterday walking through the streets of a city with bodies littered everywhere. We have been training our reporters for years in how to operate in difficult circumstances, in war zones. And disease and medical issues have always been part of that training. That training is really coming into play now.

But in some areas, it's almost impossible to train people --

COSTELLO: Wait a minute. Stop right there. Stop right there. Yes, stop right there.

I mean how can you protect yourself against water borne diseases?

CLINCH: Right. Well, that's the thing, you can know everything, you can read the book, but basically if you go into these areas and you're walking in areas where dead people are lying around in the streets, there is a risk. So we are taking precautions. We're getting as close to the story as we possibly can without taking unnecessary risks. But even then, I mean today, we have these warnings of new tsunamis coming. Half of our correspondents were walking around in coastal areas covering the story. We're on the phone calling them saying there may be another tsunami on the way.

So not only the threat of disease, you have the threat of perhaps more earthquakes, more tsunamis. And then, of course, the editorial issues. You want to try and bring as much of the story as you can, both the tragic and these small but significant rays of hope whenever we can find them. And that's really our challenge going forward. Just the breadth of this story is enormous.

COSTELLO: Oh, it certainly is.

David Clinch, thanks for enlightening us and good luck to all of our correspondents over there.

CLINCH: Thanks, Carol.

COSTELLO: Thank you.

Here's what's all new in the next half hour of DAYBREAK.

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