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CNN Live Today
Evacuee Searches for Son, 14; Baby Born to Evacuee in South Carolina; Hurricane Ophelia Downgraded to Tropical Storm; NBA Players Play Charity Game to Raise Money for Hurricane Victims
Aired September 12, 2005 - 10:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
TORANZETTE ANDREWS, EVACUEE: They were going to evacuate to Texas but I haven't heard anything. I don't know if he's out here or not. And I'm kind of getting worried as the days go by.
BETTY NGUYEN, CORRESPONDENT/ANCHOR: I imagine because you're lucky to even be here. You had to wade through waters, carry your children in buckets, pushing them through waters just to get here?
ANDREWS: Yes. We stood on the interstate and everything. Made it to the convention center, stayed there a couple of days and made it here.
NGUYEN: And you were missing another child as well.
ANDREWS: Yes, Tanaria (ph), my 3-year-old.
NGUYEN: And you found her?
ANDREWS: Yes, she was safe with her grandmother in Corpus Christi, Texas, at a shelter at the memorial college there.
NGUYEN: That was good news. But you're still looking for your 14-year-old son?
ANDREWS: And I'm worried. Yes.
NGUYEN: Well, if Curtis is watching or anyone who knows Curtis is indeed alive and well out there, what do you want to tell your son?
ANDREWS: Curtis, please call me. We're worried about you. The number is 832-851-8573. Please call me.
NGUYEN: And you've been going into the systems every day looking for your son?
ANDREWS: Every day looking for him. I spoke with a lady who's going to go through the school system and see if he's registered through any other school system or anything like that. The Red Cross has been helping me.
I go on the Internet. I registered him, I registered myself. I'm registered on the Internet, Curtis. I'm in the Reliant Center until Wednesday. Please call me. 832-851-8573.
NGUYEN: and even after Wednesday that's the number to reach you? ANDREWS: Yes.
NGUYEN: Hopefully, you will find him before Wednesday.
ANDREWS: I hope so.
NGUYEN: We hope and we pray. Thank you, Toranzette.
ANDREWS: I hope so.
NGUYEN: Obviously, parents out here do want to make sure that their families are out of these temporary shelters by the week's end, because no one wants to live on cots like this for the rest of their lives. Of course, they want to get into these new homes. At the same time they want to find families before they do so. So Tony, there's a desperate search that's still going on.
TONY HARRIS, HOST: Yes. Let's get Curtis home to his mom. Betty, thank you for that from Houston, Texas.
Amid the devastation and despair, stories of hope and joy like the one about the one about the baby born to an evacuee who was airlifted to South Carolina. Jack Kuenzie of affiliate WIS has that story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JACK KUENZIE, WIS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Shay Dixon Young is having a baby. She's been in labor for hours, husband William at her side. Shay knows his mom, Barbara Webber, is close by, too.
BARBARA WEBBER, MOTHER OF WILLIAM YOUNG: She's doing fine. She's doing fine. She has had extensive labor. She started labor this morning about 3.
KUENZIE: Shay also knows he's lucky to be at Providence Hospital Northeast in Columbia. Ten days ago the couple was on the run as Hurricane Katrina blew away their home on New Orleans' west side.
What Shay and William do not know is that her parents are alive. We found out from Red Cross workers in Columbia and gave that information to Webber.
WEBBER: How are you doing?
KUENZIE: Now, we're there as she tells her daughter-in-law.
WEBBER: We found Kat and Bruce.
SHAY DIXON YOUNG, MOTHER: No! Get away!
WEBBER: Yes.
YOUNG: Get away!
WEBBER: Yes. We found them. KUENZIE: There is little time to rejoice. Minutes later, Shay is wheeled to the delivery room for a C-section. More emotion as William waits for the couple's first child.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He's gorgeous.
KUENZIE: It doesn't take long. And then, a father meets his son, William Young V.
(on camera) And if all of this wasn't enough, there is more good news for William and Shay. Volunteers have already arranged for housing, furniture, a crib, even jobs.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think it's more than just a ray of light. I mean, I think that it shows that the Midlands people have compassion and that we are here and that if anyone needs any of one of us, we're there to help.
KUENZIE (voice-over): At 7 pounds 9 ounces, baby William is alert and healthy. And as near as anyone can tell, he has also made history, the first baby born to a Katrina evacuee in South Carolina. So, welcome, William. Everyone is happy you could join us.
Jack Kuenzie, WIS, News 10.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: For nearly two weeks now, CNN has been using its resources here and on the Gulf Coast to connect families and friends displaced by the storm, and we are still getting e-mail about the missing.
Ninety-one-year-old Marion Bernard suffers from Alzheimer's and she is unable to communicate. She was evacuated from the eighth floor of Toureau (ph) Hospital in New Orleans on September 1 after the storm hit. Her grandson, Bruce, says he has not heard any word of her since.
Bennie Jefferson has not been in touch with his family since before the storm hit. The 86-year-old is last believed to have been in his home in the lower Garden district of New Orleans.
This man is missing in Mississippi. Willard "Sonny" Ashburn lived in Gulfport. He drives a red '91 Nissan Centra. Anyone with any information should get in touch with his sister, Diana.
The CNN crews are also talking to as many people as they can on the ground. Here are some of the people we heard from from over the weekend.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RAYMOND SMITH, LOOKING FOR GRANDMOTHER: My name is Raymond Smith. I'm looking for my grandmother. Her name is Hilly Polk (ph). She's about 81 years old. She can't read or write, so holding up signs won't help. If anybody out there that knows us and knows her, and is watching, please, contact me at the arena center, the Reliant Center.
DONTRELLE, LOOKING FOR FAMILY: I'm Dontrelle. Mom, I'm looking for you. I'm in Houston, Texas. Me and the kids, Restrate and Reshad (ph) are now in school. Hopefully, I'll get my house tomorrow or sometime next week. I have my vouchers, and I'm just looking for you. And this is where I'm at. I'll find you as soon as I get a chance.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm looking for my cousin, William Silas (ph), from New Orleans, formerly lived on Galveston (ph), South Galveston (ph) Street, New Orleans. He's about 79 years old. I am his cousin, and I'm worried about him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: And we want to hear from you, as well. Whether your friends or family are lost or found or if you have a great story to tell, send it to our e-mail address at HurricaneVictims@CNN.com.
We also have a great list of resources for evacuees and for people who want to help on our web site. Find that at CNN.com/HelpCenter.
As thousands struggle to recover from Hurricane Katrina, they and countless others also struggle to make sense of the devastation and the loss. How could a benevolent God allow such suffering? Last night on CNN's "LARRY KING LIVE," we posed that question to two spiritual leaders, his holiness the Dalai Lama and American evangelical, Joel Osteen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOEL OSTEEN, EVANGELIST: God is in control. We don't understand why all these things happen. I think some of them are just natural disasters. And, you know, I think that when we come out of this, we know that God is right there with us, that he's the God to comfort us. And I don't think we can explain this.
DALAI LAMA, SPIRITUAL LEADER: My own experience is (AUDIO GAP) all painful experiences. If you lose our hope, real disaster, but without losing hope and determination, we cannot work on this problem, this suffering.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: And those clips were from last night's "LARRY KING LIVE."
We are watching the fits and starts of Hurricane Ophelia closely. Here's Chad Myers to tell us all about it.
Hi, Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: It has fitted and started so many times I don't even want to talk about it anymore.
Good morning. Tony, the entire storm now, I believe, losing a little intensity. We're waiting for the 11 a.m. advisory. Sometimes it comes out early but so far nothing yet.
The storm really has no inner core anymore. I'll zoom into the storm itself. This is the signature of a dying hurricane. And I think it's dying for one reason. And that's because there's been a lot of dry air that it's been gulping in from up here.
If you're waking up in Raleigh or back into Charlotte, or Atlanta, for that matter, it's really not very muggy. It's not summertime here anymore. Obviously, the calendar still says so, but that dry air got gulped into the storm and it lost some intensity yesterday and overnight.
Now it's getting back into the Gulf Stream, so it could gather more intensity, but we'll have to see. This thing has been right on the verge of a tropical storm, hurricane, back and forth, back and forth, I think three of four times over the weekend. Right now still a Category 1. This is still the 8 a.m. advisory. Give me 20 minutes and I'll get you the newest one.
Here it is. It makes a right-hand turn right through Morehead City, maybe Atlantic Beach. But look at the cone all the way from missing the United States altogether to possibly as far south as Charleston. So you kind of have to give me a little bit of time on this. It is still not moving very much.
It made a loop in the overnight areas. Waves have been crashing on shore. The beach erosion from Edisto Beach right up to Cape Lookout has been tremendous in the overnight hours. May be looking outside and saying what happened to the beach. Well, it's 100 yards offshore because the waves have just taken it out to the sandbars. The winds all of the way from Cape Hatteras right on down into Jacksonville.
Thunderstorms, some could be severe from Minneapolis back into Nebraska today. And a hot one in New York. A hot one in D.C. And look at Boston, 91 in Boston. The high should be 74.
HARRIS: Man.
MYERS: Phoenix, 99; San Francisco, 68. And winter is setting in in Salt Lake City, the high 64.
HARRIS: That's early.
MYERS: Yes.
HARRIS: Early anyway. Chad, thank you.
MYERS: You're welcome.
ANNOUNCER: Keep watching CNN, your hurricane headquarters.
HARRIS: Now in the news, history unfolds in the Middle East. Earlier today, Israel withdrew its final troops from Gaza and ended a 38-year presence. Palestinians rushed into the abandoned settlements, some firing guns and setting fire to empty synagogues. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said the next goal will be ending the Israeli occupation in the West Bank.
Along the Pakistan/India border, the two countries have begun an exchange of prisoners. Leaders in New Delhi and Islamabad reportedly have agreed to release nearly 600 prisoners. Many of them are fishermen and others who had accidentally wandered across the border. The prisoner release is the latest step in a peace process that has recently gathered steam.
Less than two hours from now Supreme Court nominee John Roberts appears on Capitol Hill before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Barring any surprises, Roberts is expected to clear the hearings and win confirmation from the full Senate by the end of the month. He's nominated to succeed Chief Justice William Rehnquist, who died earlier this month. CNN's Bob Franken will have a live report coming up.
Mickey Mouse crosses yet another international border with today's official opening of a theme park in China. The Hong Kong Disneyland is designed to not only draw visitors but also create millions of new customers for the company's many products. Disney sold about 15,000 tickets to the premier events.
An all-star NBA lineup comes off the bench to help those hit hardest by Hurricane Katrina. How the basketball players lend a hand and what the athletes say the experience meant to them.
Plus, reports that Delta Airlines is close to filing for bankruptcy protection. We'll update you on the company's plans to keep its planes in the air.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Let's get a check of business news now. Susan Lisovicz is at the New York Stock Exchange for us.
Susan, good morning.
(STOCK REPORT)
HARRIS: Susan, thank you.
Just a moment ago Chad Myers promised us the latest information on Hurricane Ophelia. Chad has that latest information -- Chad.
MYERS: I promised you that it would be a tropical storm again, too, and it is. It's downgraded now to a 70 mile per hour storm.
Hurricane hunters have been in the storm. Notice how undeveloped it is. The middle is missing. The entire core of the storm got eroded overnight because it gulped in so much dry air. Down to 70 miles per hour. Moving to the north east at two miles per hour. But every six hours the hurricane center upgrades and updates the track.
And let me tell you it didn't change very much. Very, very close to Wilmington and then right over Atlantic Beach and then out to and just to the south of, let's say, Nag's Head. That's the line. Remember the cone? The cone goes all of the way from Myrtle Beach all of the way, missing North Carolina altogether.
But that is the very, very latest. If you're keeping track at home, those are the latest numbers as well, 31.6 and 76.8.
HARRIS: OK, Chad. Thank you.
MYERS: You're welcome.
ANNOUNCER: Keep watching CNN, your hurricane headquarters.
HARRIS: NBA superstars have rallied in support of hurricane victims. Some of the league's top players took to the court yesterday at Houston's Toyota Center, playing to a packed house to help raise money for hurricane relief.
As CNN's Thelma Gutierrez reports, before the game some evacuees got the chance to go one-on-one with some of their favorite sports heroes.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
THELMA GUTIERREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Houston, Texas. NBA superstars roll into town on a mission. Three-time world champion Kobe Bryant.
KOBE BRYANT, LOS ANGELES LAKERS: Beautiful baby.
GUTIERREZ: Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade. New York Knicks guard Stephon Marbury, and two-time NBA champion Sam Cassell. Here just for these families.
KENNY SMITH, TNT NBA ANALYST: We have to show that they're not on the island by themselves, that people care.
GUTIERREZ: Retired NBA world champion Kenny Smith spearheaded a massive relief effort.
SMITH: It's a lot of phone calls. My phone bill will be expensive, but it was well worth it.
GUTIERREZ: Smith called on an all-star lineup of friends to donate cash, and he brought them to Houston for a hurricane relief game to raise money for the Red Cross. But there was one gift he delivered that can't be measured in dollars.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hug?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
What's up, man?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dawg.
DWAYNE WADE, MIAMI HEAT: When we was outside walking in, I mean, that's when it kind of touched me. Once you get in here, I mean, you see everything. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I feel you.
BRYANT: I feel like it's important for everybody here to know that they're not alone. We're here. We're here.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yay!
GUTIERREZ: With their sports heroes at the shelter, these kids get a break, if only for a moment.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Heavenly father we thank you for bringing...
GUTIERREZ: But it was the players who told me just how much they're getting out of being here.
STEPHON MARBURY, NEW YORK KNICKS: We come here and the kids see you, and you can see that they're fine. It gives you -- it gives you a peace inside of your heart, because I know my heart has been in pain.
CARLOS ROGERS, FORMER NBA PLAYER: If you wake up another day is hope. That's what they face is hope.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ready?
GUTIERREZ: Smith says that's what it's all about, saying it was his father. Bill, who inspired him to do it.
SMITH: I think this is the biggest basketball game I've ever played ever played, ever played.
GUTIERREZ (on camera): Why?
SMITH: It's more than just jumping. It's about helping people at this time that can't help themselves. There's never been a game this big, ever.
GUTIERREZ (voice-over): Thelma Gutierrez, CNN, Houston.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Well, it's not just students who are relocating in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Up next a family of teachers that now calls a new school system home. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Hurricane Katrina struck just as students began returning to fall classes. An estimated 170,000 public school students in Louisiana and in Mississippi were displaced.
And in Louisiana alone, more than 12,000 public schoolteachers fled the storm. The state is advertising for them to return or for new ones to take their place.
But CNN's Peter Viles reports, other states are actively recruiting those teachers, too.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PETER VILES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): If you walk past this California house on Friday, you heard something odd.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (singing): At the twilight's last gleaming...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (singing): At the twilight's last gleaming...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (singing): At the twilight's last gleaming...
VILES: Odd because this is a family that' lost almost everything. The Robertson are New Orleans school teachers. Their homes and schools are underwater, and they fear that some of their students did not survive.
GEORGE ROBERTSON, NEW ORLEANS TEACHER: The ones I spoke with, they told me that they were concerned about some people's lives. They felt that a couple of the kids had died. And I haven't had that verified for me, but that is what I've been told.
VILES: The other students spread across the country.
JALONDA ROBERTSON, NEW ORLEANS TEACHER: They're all over. Texas, Mississippi, Atlanta, Baton Rouge, Memphis. They're everywhere.
VILES: The Robertsons got out before the storm and came west to stay with Aunt Odelle (ph) in Los Angeles. Here's the lucky part: the L.A. school system has a chronic teacher shortage and is cutting red tape to find jobs for all three Robertsons.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know when you write a check you never really know where your money ends up, but when George goes to work on his first day in the classroom, we're going to be able to say we helped an individual begin to rebuild his life.
VILES: George teaches chemistry. Jalonda teaches music. And Marla, pre-kindergarten
MARLA ROBERTSON, NEW ORLEANS TEACHER: I just knew that I wanted to impact lives. And I specifically wanted pre-kindergarten or kindergarten, because I wanted to build that firm foundation that's so important.
VILES: It's an emotional time, trying to settle in California while voices are already calling them back home.
J. ROBERTSON: The kids are asking already, yes, are you coming back? They want to know if, when they get home, will I be there?
G. ROBERTSON: I know I can hear my principal, Jacqueline Mahatha (ph) saying, "Mr. Robertson, you need to come back." I can hear that. I know that's what she's going to be saying.
VILES: This is a proud family of educators. George Senior, his wife, Melba, and Odelle (ph), cousin Wilma, together the Robertsons have 178 years of teaching experience. And for all they've lost, they wanted America to know something: that they have a lot more to give.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (singing): And the home of the brave.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (singing): And the home of the brave.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (singing): And the home of the brave.
VILES: Peter Viles, CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: And still ahead in our next hour of CNN LIVE TODAY, an in-depth look at how government officials handled Hurricane Katrina. We'll talk about the controversies surrounding when and how Louisiana's governor asked for federal troops.
Plus, more on the nominee for chief justice of the United States. What to expect when John Roberts' confirmation hearings get under way as the second hour of CNN LIVE TODAY begins right after a quick break.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CAROL LIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT/ANCHOR (voice-over): Not the first day of school but starting over in a new school far from home. Elementary, middle and high schools across the country are welcoming some of the estimated 300,000 school kids displaced by Hurricane Katrina.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm really excited. I want to meet some new friends and have fun.
LIN: Kids have registered for class necessary many states, including Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, and as far away as Washington, Chicago and Utah. Back to school and back to some sense of just being a kid.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: And two stories dominate this hour of news on CNN. President Bush sees New Orleans up close two weeks after Hurricane Katrina came calling. The Central Gulf Coast struggles to get its footing.
And a man the president wants to be the next chief justice of the United States is ready for his close up. Confirmation hearings for Judge John Roberts are just an hour away. We'll get a live preview.
And good morning, everyone, I'm Tony Harris in the CNN Center in Atlanta, in for Daryn Kagan today. First to this hour's "Mission Critical," an update on urgent issues in the Hurricane Katrina disaster zone.
New Orleans police say they are able to respond to calls now with help from outside law enforcement agencies. The security situation is so improved business owners are being allowed into deserted downtown office buildings today. They can retrieve essential papers but must leave immediately.
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