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CNN Live At Daybreak

Hurricane Katrina: The Aftermath; Gas Supplies

Aired September 01, 2005 - 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.
Actually, let's go right to Chad. We've been showing these new pictures of these buses coming in to the Houston Astrodome. But you do the forecast first, and we'll get to that.

And, Chad, here it is.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, there they come.

COSTELLO: Here they come. You can see the bus is really packed -- Chad.

MYERS: Well of course. There's no one standing, which is what I was concerned about is they were actually going to try to fill that over to capacity, and at least they haven't done that. That's really good news, although, clearly, that makes more bus trips if you can't get 90 people in a bus,...

COSTELLO: Yes.

MYERS: ... if you're only going to get 45 or 55, depending on how many the bus holds. But there are a lot of buses. They really do have -- they have moved in so many buses from so many places maybe that will make this a little bit faster.

COSTELLO: Well seven or eight buses have arrived at the Houston Astrodome from New Orleans so far. About 1,000 people are now at the Houston Astrodome. And, what, they have 20,000 people who were staying at the Superdome...

MYERS: Sure.

COSTELLO: ... when all is said and done?

I want to show you this. Doug (ph), our cameraman, brought in an MRE. This is what they were serving to people in the Superdome.

MYERS: Right.

COSTELLO: A military meal. Meals Ready to Eat. This one is Thai Chicken. But apparently they're not so great. I guess one of the pluses in moving to the Houston Astrodome, if there is a plus, because you know it's still pretty terrible, at least they can get out of there...

MYERS: Yes.

COSTELLO: ... and go to a restaurant,...

MYERS: True.

COSTELLO: ... if they have any money, though.

MYERS: Right.

COSTELLO: See, there's just so many problems.

MYERS: Well it's air-conditioned, and you know what, the bathrooms are functioning.

COSTELLO: Yes.

MYERS: When the water stops flowing, that's the problem, you can't do anything with that bathroom. It's just going to sit there. So at least they have -- you know it's definitely an upgrade to where they were, no question about it. Is it great? No, but...

COSTELLO: Yes.

MYERS: Carol, I have an amazing picture that I want to show you that a NOAA plane actually flew over all the coast, all the way, basically, from Bay St. Louis all the way up here through Biloxi and even almost to Mobile.

Going to give you an idea of how this map is arranged. And I don't want you to think too much about this, but I just want you to know that this is the coastline itself.

Now I'm going to switch my sources to the NOAA picture. Here it is. Here's the NOAA picture. Here's the same beach.

As I zoom into the beach, you'll notice a few things. You'll notice this big gray spot there. That is just a foundation. The road still here, covered in sand. Zoom in a little bit farther, absolutely nothing left of this home. This is very close to Long Beach.

As I zoom you a little bit farther inland where the storm surge was still moving, more foundations of these condos. Now one more step farther to the west, this is where the storm surge stopped, right there. This is all the debris from all of the condos that were, well, too close to the ocean or in the storm surge wave.

Back out here you can begin to see some of the condos that survived. A little bit farther to the west, just over the road, all the houses across the street, absolutely fine, not hit by the storm surge wave at all and barely even a shingle missing on some of those houses on Long Beach -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Those were amazing and sad pictures, too.

All right, Chad, we'll get back to you later. Thank you.

MYERS: You're welcome.

COSTELLO: Mixed in with the rubble that used to be coastal Mississippi, the National Guard troops and loads of aid. But Mississippi's governor says people need to be patient.

CNN's Ted Rowlands is in Biloxi, Mississippi.

Ted, tell me about where you're standing and about that American flag behind you.

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well this used to be a business. And over to the left here used to be a couple of homes. And, as you can see, it's completely devastated. And as dramatic as it may look, it really is what everything looks like here in the area. You could literally drive down the street and find this played out house after house, lot after lot. There's cars everywhere. It's just utter devastation. And it's really hard to fathom that this is the situation all along the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

This flag was put up here by a couple of folks that weathered the storm. They found the flag in good condition. And they're calling it their symbol of hope.

And there is a reason to be hopeful this morning, the National Guard has arrived in force in this area. And their presence is now very well established, giving the local police a break, who have been trying to patrol these areas. They have lost their homes, as well, and they have been out working long, long hours. They're getting some much-needed help from the National Guard. They're also getting some medical assistance from FEMA. Their presence has helped as well.

As far as the search and rescue, specialized teams have been combing through this wreckage looking for survivors. They have found people that survived the storm, but they have also found a lot of bodies. And dealing with the grim reality of that, processing those bodies. And at some point or sometimes leaving them and coming back later, because they don't have time or resources to process those bodies. This is going to be a long, long haul.

There are a lot of people that survived this storm that have now been going three days without a place to stay, no electricity and very little in terms of resources, food and water. Help is arriving slowly but surely. This will be a major problem, though, if people do not get food and water in the next few days. The hope is is that the help will be here, that the people can get the help. It's just spread out across such a huge amount of area.

When you look at this destruction and you extrapolate it across the coast, it's you could imagine, you know, how difficult this is logistically to get the help to the people that need it. And they're working as hard as they can. I could tell you, you could really feel the change this morning in terms of the presence from the federal government. It's here and it's just a matter of getting established.

COSTELLO: Yes, a couple of problems. I was talking to Lt. Mike Stone from Fairfax County. He's with one of those rescue teams that are headed down to Biloxi, Mississippi. He says that people can survive that long in those crumbled buildings, because it's been since Monday. If anyone is trapped, they've been trapped there since Monday. What are you hearing about the survival prospects for people trapped that long? He says it is possible.

ROWLANDS: Sure, yes. You know it's -- you always hear, you know, the stories that people survived for days and days. And that's what they go on is the possibility that that is the case.

The reality is that most people, as time goes on, the chance of survival goes down dramatically. And you get into day three and now you're starting to talk about long odds. But by no means have they stopped the search and rescue effort. And they're still hoping to find signs of life and hoping that they can go in and find some people alive.

COSTELLO: We hope so.

Ted Rowlands reporting live from Biloxi, Mississippi.

In Alabama, people waited in long lines for aid. But for many, they were told to come back after supplies of food and water simply ran out.

CNN Radio's Ed McCarthy joins us from Mobile, Alabama.

Tell us about this -- Ed.

ED MCCARTHY, CNN RADIO: Well, good morning, Carol.

That is the situation, people are going to be lined up again today hoping that more supplies arrive. In addition to water and ice, the main necessities that people need, and food, they are hoping that they can get gasoline.

Now that is a very big problem here, gas supplies are dwindling. Motorists are being urged to conserve fuel. And I've been told that more gas will be coming to Mobile, but also there will be a limit on how much we'll be able to purchase here. So we will be told that there will be a limit.

And I've also been told that it could be a while before more gas arrives after that when it runs out. So we are wondering what's going to happen in the future here, just hoping to go on day by day and see if we can cope with it.

COSTELLO: You know you talk about gas being in short supply, that is spreading, you know, over much of the southeast. In Atlanta there were lines at the gas stations and gas prices have gone way up. What's the price of a gallon of gas where you are?

MCCARTHY: It is still under $3 a gallon. That's going to go higher, I've been told, and it's going to go higher across the country. We know about Atlanta now. And yesterday in Arkansas, people were fleeing to Arkansas trying to get gas, and gas stations were running out of fuel there. It's been a very, very difficult situation, but we're also wondering about the bare essentials here.

We've had some other problems, Carol, too, carbon monoxide poisoning. Twenty people had to go to the hospital here in Mobile overnight because they were trying to power up generators and they were overcome by that carbon monoxide. So that's a very big danger that you have to worry about.

And people standing in line, also, for food at one restaurant we saw open last evening. And they were waiting for take out. And then, suddenly you're next in line and the power goes out. It's very, very frustrating for people.

Also I spoke with a woman who is a fire captain for Mobile Fire Rescue. And she's telling me they've been working long hours, 24-hour shifts since Sunday. This is going to be her first day off today. So they have been just doing a great job. And locally here, the local officials, really, hats off to them.

COSTELLO: I know, kudos to them, because they must be exhausted.

Ed McCarthy from CNN Radio, thanks for joining us this morning.

Let's talk more about different ways schools in the south are helping out the hurricane victims. Tennessee's governor is reaching out to students whose plans to attend college in the Gulf Coast areas are now uncertain at best.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. PHIL BREDESEN, TENNESSEE: We are going to open the doors of Tennessee's colleges to those persons who are -- who have been attending school along the coast down there and have been displaced on the basis of if you were registered. It's open to anyone, not just Tennesseans. If you were registered in school down there and you are not able to go to school there, we will open our doors to you here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: President of the American Council on Education says dozens of colleges and universities in the Gulf Coast region may have sustained intensive damage.

Nearly 300 students from Tulane University, as a matter of fact, have been evacuated and are now at Georgia Tech in Atlanta. They were first bused to Jackson State University in Mississippi, but then the power went out and the bathrooms quit working. Other Tulane students were sent to Dallas.

In Texas, the governor is opening up the schoolhouse doors for children in states devastated by Katrina. As busloads of refugees arrive, Texas Governor Rick Perry says public schools will accept children whose families fled Louisiana, Mississippi or Alabama.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. RICK PERRY (R), TEXAS: I want those stranded families to know that the doors of Texas public schools are going to be immediately open to their school-aged children. Under federal law, these children are entitled to enroll in school districts where they temporarily reside.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Governor says he knows it will be a strain but promises help with textbooks and transportation.

Across the southeast, chances are good you're finding yourself waiting in line to buy gas. Just ahead, we'll tell you why the lines are so long and just exactly how much it's going to cost you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Some of you know this already, gas prices across the country have shot up since Hurricane Katrina slammed into the Gulf Coast. That's because key refineries and pipelines are out of service. The EPA is taking action that could help boost production and maybe ease prices.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The Environmental Protection Agency has granted a nationwide waiver for fuel blends to make more gasoline and diesel fuel available throughout the country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: And I bet some of you are feeling the pain at the pump. Gas prices, as I said, have jumped to well over $3 a gallon around the country amid fears of short supplies. Take, for example, Atlanta. Few stations were charging more than $5 a gallon for gas. Look at that, $5.57 a gallon. This, after some stations simply ran out of fuel and reports circulated that two pipelines that bring gas to the region are down due to Hurricane Katrina.

Joining us to talk more about gas prices and supplies is Gregg Laskoski, Managing Director of AAA Auto Club South.

Good morning.

We just lost him. That's so frustrating, because this is something I really wanted to talk about.

The two pipelines, Plantation and Colonial, are down because there's no electricity in the south where they're located and that is making supplies run low. Most gas stations have a 10-day supply, and so prices are going up as a result. In fact, in some parts of Atlanta -- that was the only gas station, by the way, in Atlanta where you saw $5.57 a gallon.

MYERS: Hey -- Carol.

COSTELLO: And, Chad, there are so many stories. In fact, Brian (ph), our E.P., just told me...

MYERS: Yes.

COSTELLO: That would be executive producer.

MYERS: Right. Right.

COSTELLO: That he went home yesterday and gas was $2.49 a gallon at Chevron. And when he went to work this morning, it was $3.79.

MYERS: Yes, you're going to find that a lot, and not only in Atlanta, and around the area here. But my producer, Dave Hennen, woke up this morning with an eighth of a tank and said I better gas up before I get to work. He drove by 15 gas stations with signs out that says out of gas before he finally found one gas station at $3.30 a gallon.

COSTELLO: You know talk about panic.

MYERS: Yes.

COSTELLO: Because what do you do, do you go stock up on gas?

MYERS: Well I have a five-gallon can in my garage that I filled up, but that was usually what I used for my, you know, lawn mower and so -- or my chainsaw or whatever. So I put the two-cycle oil in it. Well am I going to run that through my car? I guess if I have to.

COSTELLO: Well I don't know.

Well we have the AAA guy back.

Gregg Laskoski, hello.

GREGG LASKOSKI, AAA AUTO CLUB SOUTH: Hi.

COSTELLO: Are you there?

LASKOSKI: Yes, I am.

COSTELLO: We have so many questions for you. So this one gas station charging $5.79 a gallon. What is that about?

LASKOSKI: Well certainly that could be a sign of opportunistic pricing. What we would have to say, though, is that not knowing exactly what the wholesale price is that those retailers are being asked to pay, we could not say one way or the other whether it's something that's completely out of line or of it's something that is, actually, simply a reflection of those wholesale prices.

COSTELLO: Well we know that these pipelines are not up and running, the Plantation and the Colonial pipelines. And it's not because they're broken in any way, right?

LASKOSKI: Well I don't know what the assessment is. I think it's more of an electrical problem right now. COSTELLO: We're seeing now these long lines at gas stations throughout the southeast and we're talking about long lines in North Carolina and in many parts of Georgia. Is the supply really that low to justify this?

LASKOSKI: Well don't forget we were looking at lower fuel inventories before Katrina even struck, and that was part of what has been driving prices up, along with speculation on the oil futures market. So definitely when you're talking about the crude oil represented in the Gulf of Mexico, approximately a quarter of the domestic output, it's definitely a significant amount.

COSTELLO: But everybody thought, great, the president is going to open the oil reserves and everything will be fine. But it really isn't turning out that way in the short term, is it?

LASKOSKI: Well don't forget in the short term we're still talking about freeing up -- that's crude oil that's coming out of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve that still has to be refined. So we're still in a situation where we need to identify refining capacity, get the product there and eventually get that shipped to the end user.

COSTELLO: We have a map now of where these pipelines are, the Plantation and the Colonial. And I guess electricity is the problem, because, you know electric service is out in many parts of where you're seeing on that map. There are so many rumors circulating. And I want to like calm people's fears, because even here in the New York area, people were thinking that the gas supply would run out like in three days.

LASKOSKI: We don't believe that's the case. We know that there are certainly going to be some spot shortages. And if consumers aren't responsible, they can create even more problems for themselves than they need to face. What would make a lot more sense is simply for people to realize if they're not planning to travel and they don't have to travel, there's no reason to fill up that car so it can sit in your driveway or in your garage.

COSTELLO: Now, see, that's kind of freaking me out. You said conserve, which makes me think that this could be a longer-term thing.

LASKOSKI: Well right now we have to get through the next few days. And we believe that the electrical problems, once they're corrected, that will help accelerate the refinery situation. And we believe that the gasoline is there. There's gasoline in most areas to meet, you know, most people's needs.

COSTELLO: OK, so Chad said he went out and he filled up his five-gallon can of gas. Is that a good idea to do? Should we fill...

LASKOSKI: I don't believe it is. I think that's an unnecessary step to take right now. We would ask people to simply conserve fuel by making sure that they're doing simple things, like maintaining their vehicles, making sure that their tire pressure is correct, just that alone. If your tires are underinflated by a pound of pressure, that's 2 percent of your fuel economy. So think about it, if you're down five pounds in each tire, you're loosing 10 percent of your gasoline economy right there.

COSTELLO: We will take your advice.

Gregg Laskoski, Managing Director of AAA Auto Club South, thank you for joining us. We're sure glad we got you back on the phone.

LASKOSKI: Thank you very much.

COSTELLO: The Georgia governor, Sunny Purdue, is taking action to prevent price gouging at the pump. He did sign an executive order authorizing sanctions against gas retailers who gouge consumers. To report price gouging at the pump in Georgia, people are urged to call the Georgia Office of Consumer Affairs at 404-651-8600.

And I know there's a federal number to call, too, and you can probably find that online.

So if you notice anybody gouging you in gas prices, please call and report them.

Just ahead on CNN DAYBREAK, we'll see how some smaller communities are dealing with the blow dealt by Hurricane Katrina. And if you want to help flood victims with a donation, we will tell you how.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: The heartache of loss just beginning to sink in for many storm victims. The full extent of the devastation is yet to be realized.

CNN's Gary Tuchman visited the wreckage of one family's home.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Market Street in Waveland, Mississippi, no longer looks anything like a street. Every home anywhere near here has been destroyed.

We walk with 17-year-old Rebecca McIntosh across what were the tops of homes.

(on camera): Do you know who used to live in this house we're standing in?

REBECCA MCINTOSH, SURVIVOR: I think this is the roof to the house that was right there, that an old friend of mine used to live in.

TUCHMAN: I mean, this doesn't look like a neighborhood. Be careful. Watch your step.

MCINTOSH: No. It really doesn't.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): From the roof, we see the house Rebecca and her grandmother evacuated, a home that she saw from afar after the hurricane, but hasn't yet seen close up. Her grandmother couldn't come with us because the walk was too strenuous.

(on camera): So these are your neighbors?

MCINTOSH: This is my neighbors'.

TUCHMAN: I sure hope they weren't inside there.

MCINTOSH: Yes, me too. I'm not sure if they evacuated or not.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): And then we see Rebecca's house.

(on camera): Is that black thing over there, was that your roof?

MCINTOSH: That was our roof.

TUCHMAN: And it blew all the way down there.

(voice-over): The only part of the home that isn't destroyed is the mailbox.

(on camera): Is there anything that you left behind that's important to you that maybe we can look for right now?

MCINTOSH: I had a lot of collectibles I had to leave behind and a lot of things that meant a lot to me, but there was just no room to bring them.

TUCHMAN: Like what did you leave behind that meant a lot to you?

MCINTOSH: Like, a lot of porcelain dolls that can't be replaced.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): As we look inside the house that was the center of this teenager's life, we find some of her keepsakes.

(on camera): Is that one of them?

MCINTOSH: Yes, this is one of my Barbie dolls that I collected, the Millennium Edition.

TUCHMAN: Here's your guitar and here is -- what's this?

MCINTOSH: It's actually a Mardi Gras doll that I got when I was, like, seven.

TUCHMAN: I don't know if this has any sentimental value to it.

MCINTOSH: Not as much as the other stuff, but, hey.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): We leave the house and trek back to Rebecca's grandmother. Our producer shows her the box of keepsakes we brought back.

CATHY EVERARD, SURVIVOR: God bless you hope (ph).

TUCHMAN (on camera): That's fine. It's OK, I'll take it. EVERARD: I know there's other people unappreciated. You guys are so blessed. Oh, God. I don't know what this world would do without people like you. I don't know.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): But there is a lot more heartache. Cathy Everard can't find two of her sons.

EVERARD: I am so worried. I just buried my sister last week. And I've already lost my daughter. And now I don't know where my sons are or how they're faring, or what they're doing, or nothing. Help. I wish they would contact me.

TUCHMAN (on camera): Tell us their names.

EVERARD: Kevin McIntosh. He lives in Kiln, Mississippi. And Brian McIntosh lives here in Waveland. But I haven't been able to find either one of them.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): In this neighborhood, there is no shortage of anguish.

Gary Tuchman, CNN, Waveland, Mississippi.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: And the next hour of DAYBREAK starts right now.

It is Thursday, September 1.

Some of Katrina's victims are now far from home, and the hurricane's impact is being felt on a national level this morning. Loaded buses arrive in Texas. Weary storm refugees take a long trip to safety.

Hurricane Katrina also stirs up rising numbers at the gas pump. Take a look at the price of that gas.

And efforts to help storm victims are getting organized. We'll tell you who's on tap to help.

And good morning to you.

Also ahead this hour, the miracle of birth.

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