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CNN Live At Daybreak

Returning New Orleans Residents Find Changes; Atlanta Group Confronts Poverty, Homelessness Among Evacuees; Oil, Gas Prices Coming Down

Aired September 19, 2005 - 06:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

KELLY WALLACE, CNN ANCHOR: It is Monday, September 19. The question this morning: to return home or not. New Orleans residents are getting mixed messages from different government officials.
Also, gay rights advocates are protesting a new initiative from the Vatican. And even after it is off the air, "Everybody Loves Raymond." Everybody.

From the Time Warner Center in New York, this is DAYBREAK. I'm Kelly Wallace, in today for Carol Costello, who is on assignment in New Orleans this morning. Thanks so much for waking up with us. We will hear from Carol is just a moment.

Also, we want to call attention to the left side of your screen. CNN has teamed up with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to bring you the faces of the missing in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Since our effort began on Saturday morning, calls to the center have tripled. And with your help, more displaced parents and children can be reunited throughout the day.

Now, though, a look at these stories now in the news.

A major dispute over the return of residents to New Orleans. Mayor Ray Nagin is calling for thousands of people to start coming back today, but Admiral Thad Allen, the federal official leading Katrina relief efforts, says not so fast.

North Korea is promising to give up its nuclear weapons program. That news came just hours ago in a joint statement at the six nation talks in Beijing.

An explosion to tell you about, this taking place this morning at the British embassy in Croatia. British officials say one person was wounded when an explosive device blew up in a mailroom. Authorities are now investigating.

Let's say good morning to Chad Myers in the forecast center, who is going to have a busy week indeed, because we're talking about Rita.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Rita and then Philippe that developed over the weekend. There is a "Q" storm, so there is no "Q" name. But there is Philippe, the "P-H-I-L" Philippe. There he is, or it is, moving up to the north, to the east of Bermuda. And this right here is Rita, the next storm that's going to affect the Florida Keys all the way from Miami Beach right on back down to Key West, including Havana, due to the south of there.

The storm now just coming on the picture, and you can see how much bigger it's been just in the past couple of hours. The storm does travel through the Florida Straits just to the south of Key West. And the approach, the closest approach, so when the weather gets worse in Key West, the worst will be at 2 p.m. tomorrow afternoon. But it will certainly start going downhill quickly, and because these circles are now filled in, and not hollow like that one, it will be a hurricane at that point.

Winds are 60 miles per hour. Hurricane warnings all the way, really, from Key Largo right on down to Key West and the dry Tartugas, including parts of the Bahamas, as well -- Kelly.

WALLACE: All right, Chad. We'll check back in with you in a few minutes.

MYERS: OK.

WALLACE: And we're continuing our coverage of the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. We'll have more in a moment on the question of repopulating New Orleans. But first, as part of our coverage of the return and the rebuilding, we'll show you what's happening from ZIP code to ZIP code.

Today we are watching ZIP code 70114. That's the Algiers neighborhood of New Orleans, just across the winding Mississippi from the French Quarter. It is a favorite staging and storage area for those colorful Mardi Gras floats. And that is where we find our very own Carol Costello this morning.

Carol, good morning to you. Great to see you. It is early, of course, there, an hour earlier than it is on the East Coast. Anyone coming back this early this morning?

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT/HOST: No. No one's coming back yet. A lot of people actually came back over the weekend, but not too many. We'll see the influx today.

Where I'm standing, I'm standing where they make the Mardi Gras floats. Their big warehouse is here. But on the ground, this is the distribution center. And take a look. You can get your honey buns here. You can get all sorts of food and paper products. In the back, you can also get medicine.

If you think that this was set up by FEMA or the Red Cross, you would be wrong. In fact, the residents have taken it upon themselves to set up this distribution center, because they're not getting that kind of help from FEMA or the Red Cross.

And I think, Kelly, that food and getting it and getting supplies and getting gasoline and going to a bank, because the banks aren't open yet, those are going to be the main problems for people coming back today. They will be surprised.

Their homes have been damaged by wind. There are holes in the roof. At least two homes that I saw in the neighborhood of Algiers have been knocked down. But other than that, you can just see shutters blown off, trees blown down. There is garbage pickup here, some police services, not all. Can't call 911 yet. There's a special number that you use to call police and fire. So those things are going to continue to be a problem.

As for the psychological aspects, they are great. In fact, people are right now -- not right now but today, later in the afternoon, as they did yesterday, they're gathering at the local coffee shop.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO (voice-over): It all looks so normal.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hey, Cathy (ph), did you get it to work?

COSTELLO: Neighbors gathering at the local coffee shop to trade stories.

JILL MARSHALL, COFFEE SHOP OWNER: Centrally located in this neighborhood.

COSTELLO: Jill, the shop owner, just returned, but it's different now. The coffee, ice and water are free, and Jill has become more than the coffee lady. She's become a conduit.

MARSHALL: This is where we put bulletins up: where is a place to rent, where can I find a babysitter? So forth, so on.

COSTELLO: But it's more than that.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) has been working, but now...

COSTELLO: It's become the place to vent. Angela Doyle says her landlord is selling her home. To make matters worse, her kids don't want to come back, she's broke and afraid...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They can't come back. This is -- this is (UNINTELLIGIBLE) in the big city.

COSTELLO: For now, all Doyle can do is vent. But the coffee is free and so is the comfort.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It will be OK.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: And there will be so much of that later today.

A note about the real estate in Algiers. It's going to skyrocket in price, because this area is on a higher ground. Angela's story was quite unusual. In fact, they think that the housing crisis will go up (ph) drastically, because this is the place to be, Kelly, because it did not flood. WALLACE: And Carol, it is so heart breaking to watch, because you know, we're going to see those stories over and over again as people come back to their homes and hope that's all that they have to deal with.

Carol, we're going to talk with you at the bottom of the hour. Thanks so much. Carol reporting from Algiers just outside New Orleans.

And we want to tell you that Vice Admiral Thad Allen will join us later this morning. He will be on CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING." That's just a little more than an hour and a half from now.

Now for some other news coming from the disaster zone. Louisiana officials raised their death toll from Hurricane Katrina to 646 people. In all, more than 850 people died in five states as a result of the hurricane.

New Orleans is in danger of flooding again. That is right. An Army Corps of Engineers commander says that's because of the extensive damage to the city's levees. He says some of the areas being drained now will be at extreme risk if there is another storm. The corps hopes to have the levee system completely fixed to pre-Katrina form by June of next year.

At least one prominent Republican is calling for spending cuts in order to pay for the Gulf Coast reconstruction. South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham suggests taking a closer look at the pork included in the transportation and energy bills. President Bush says he will not increase taxes to pay for the rebuilding.

The president also said the goal was to get people out of all the shelters by mid-October, but Louisiana's homeland security chief says it's impractical to think that they will have temporary housing in place for the more than 100,000 still in shelters there. In Mississippi, about 150 people moved out of shelters and onto a cruise ship. It is one of three ships being leased for the next six months.

Well, still to come on a very busy Monday morning, the Katrina aftermath is highlighting the age-old problem of poverty. A closer look at the renewed focus after a break.

And what exactly is in that New Orleans floodwater? It may not be as toxic as feared.

Plus, television's heavy hitters honor the year's best. Highlights from the Emmys in about 15 minutes.

But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Monday morning, September 19.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: On this edition of "Fortune First," Dub Hay is not just your ordinary bean counter.

DUB HAY, SVP OF COFFEE, STARBUCKS: I'm senior vice president of coffee for Starbucks Coffee Company. My group is responsible for all the coffee buying. We spend about 400 days a year on farms. The vast majority of what we do is relationships with farmers, which means a lot of travel. We travel all over the world to many of the coffee producing companies. We spend time with the farmers, talking about their crop and the quality and how we can improve it.

We go to places like Papua New Guinea, islands of Indonesia. We go to Rwanda, Burundi, Ethiopia. You can find these little places that create wonderful coffee, and you'd think you'd know about it by now, but you don't.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: And welcome back to DAYBREAK.

When Hurricane Katrina blew through the Gulf Coast, it left the problem of poverty in the United States fully exposed. And President Bush is vowing to fix it, along with the rest of the reconstruction effort.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: As all of us saw on television, there's also some deep, persistent poverty in this region, as well. That poverty has roots in a history of racial discrimination, which cut off generations from the opportunity of America. We have a duty to confront this poverty with bold action.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: But here's the question. Is the government just throwing money at the poverty problem and not really addressing the deeper issues?

Joining us live from Atlanta to talk about all of this is Vince Smith, director of the 24/7 Gateway Center, which has helped more than 200 of the hurricane evacuees.

Mr. Smith, thank you so much for being with us today. We appreciate it.

VINCE SMITH, 24/7 GATEWAY CENTER: Thank you. Good morning.

WALLACE: So here's that question: money going to the poverty problem, is that a bad thing?

SMITH: Absolutely not. But what's important is that goals and accountability be a part of that financial support. At 24/7 Gateway Center, we're focused on helping individuals change lives, find new direction and support for the future.

WALLACE: You say, of course, issuing blank checks is not the way to go. You want to make sure that money is targeted in the right way and targeting to address specific needs. Is that right?

SMITH: Absolutely. We have an opportunity as a nation and a nation of communities to collaborate and work together, as we have here in Atlanta, through public-private partnerships, to really begin addressing both systemic and personal needs related to men, women and families in poverty.

WALLACE: Something interesting you were telling our producers. You say that often after a traumatic event, a person is not really able psychologically to handle these tough decisions when it comes to money or other financial matters. In essence, if you give somebody, you know, $5,000 to use to start up with job training or buying a home, that they might not be fully capable to sort of make the right decisions. What do you mean by that?

SMITH: Well, it seems as though that oftentimes, the people that we meet at the 24/7 Gateway Center, is they have come to Atlanta, victimized by this horrific storm, have lost hope. And we have an opportunity to demonstrate, as a community, that hope is stronger than a hurricane. And to help people move their life forward and to address the issues that they see on this day.

Oftentimes, it is grief or it is sorrow. It is -- it is a deep sense of hurt. For some of the individuals who have come to us, they are simply tired and exhausted. And so we have been able to provide food and clothing and other life necessities and arms that lift them up and encourage them and then help them to move forward.

And for some of those individuals, they have begun that journey and are doing it in a supportive, collaborative fashion here in Atlanta. Our mayor encouraged the business community to help to address the issue of chronic homelessness. And the newest homeless that have come to our city, victims of Hurricane Katrina, have had that opportunity to move their life forward in a positive way.

WALLACE: Well, you are doing very important work. We wish we had more time to talk with you. Vince Smith, director of the 24/7 Gateway Center in Atlanta. Thanks so much for taking time to share your thoughts with us today.

SMITH: Thank you.

WALLACE: Many of you have already given generously, but if you'd like also to contribute to the 24/7 Gateway Center's Katrina relief, you can call 404-215-6601, that number on your screen.

Still to come on DAYBREAK, gay rights advocates are criticizing a plan that has the Vatican closely watching Catholic seminaries. We'll explain what has so many people so upset.

And it was a big night for television's best at Hollywood's Emmy Awards. We'll have highlights for those of you who are early to bed, early to rise.

But first, we want to say good morning to Boston. Good morning to Boston, courtesy of WTVB-TV. DAYBREAK will be right back. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: And welcome back.

Another reported scam involving Hurricane Katrina relief efforts to tell you about. Two people have been arrested in Burbank, California. Prosecutors say the two posed as Red Cross volunteers and collected as much as $2,000 in donations outside an electronics store.

Well, oil is in the spotlight on Wall Street. Carrie Lee is joining us with a look at the reasons why. And Carrie, some information passing through, AAA reporting another dip in oil prices. The average price for self serve unleaded down eight cents from Friday to $2.81 a gallon.

CARRIE LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right. We're seeing gas prices come down a bit. Oil prices have been coming down, as well. Both saw big spikes right after Hurricane Katrina. But the bottom line, if you look at the longer term, you know, oil and gas prices have been on the rise.

And that's what OPEC is facing. OPEC is meeting in Vienna today, and it's facing intense pressure to raise output levels to cool oil prices around the world.

Now there are mixed opinions on what OPEC will actually decide to do. Most analysts had expected OPEC to raise output by half a million barrels a day. That's about two percent. But some analysts are now saying OPEC could hold steady. The meeting concludes tomorrow. Any increase would be mostly symbolic, like the extra crude, probably isn't even going to be used, due to refinery bottlenecks.

So this all means that high gas prices and heating oil prices are likely to stick around in the cooler months.

Meanwhile, oil prices are up about 50 percent from a year ago, although as we were saying, they have come down in recent weeks following Katrina. Oil this morning, though, Kelly, oil up about 75 cents per barrel to $63.75. Still, off that high of $71 we saw a few months back.

WALLACE: I know somewhat speculation here, but if we're looking at another potential hurricane, potentially Hurricane Rita. Potentially I keep using, in the Gulf. Likely to sort of cause an increase in activity?

LEE: Absolutely. I think this is on people's radar screens very, very high and center right now. People are really hedging their bets, probably. So futures for stocks right now looking lower on the higher prices we're seeing for oil this morning. Remember, the Federal Reserve meets tomorrow. We'll see if these high gas and oil prices influence their interest rate decision at all.

WALLACE: Yes. A lot of people are watching that.

LEE: Yes. WALLACE: Carrie Lee, always great to see you.

LEE: You, too. Thanks.

WALLACE: Thanks so much.

Turning now from business to entertainment. Post-Emmy Awards parties are probably starting to wrap up just about now so the winners can take the new hardware home to their fireplace mantles. CNN Radio's Jim Roope is live in Los Angeles with all the goings on when it comes to the Emmys.

Jim, great to talk to you this morning. So any big surprises last night?

JIM ROOPE, CNN RADIO: Hello, Kelly. Good morning.

Yes, I think there are three big surprises. First of all, the winning of Felicity Huffman of best actress in a comedy series, beating out her two "Housewives" counterparts in that category, Terri Hatcher and Marcia Cross. Most of the experts, if you will, thought it was sort of a race between those two and Felicity Huffman comes in and runs away with it. Most people thought she'd be an also-ran.

Also, Patricia Arquette picking us best actor -- actress in a drama series for her role in "Medium." Most people thought Glenn Close or Mariska Hargitay was going to take that category.

Then "Everybody Loves Raymond," including the TV academy, apparently, because here comes Raymond, already seasons -- already gone. They come back to win best comedy series. Only two other shows in Emmy history have been able to win the best comedy series Emmy in their final season or after their final season. That was "Barney Miller" and "Mary Tyler Moore." So that's how difficult a win in that category is.

WALLACE: Wow. And obviously, putting in -- that category with those other sit-coms, how people feel about that show.

Want to ask you, because watching our Sibila Vargas' report in the last hour, about Katrina, Hurricane Katrina, the aftermath, was a subject on the minds of people, both on stage and on the red carpet, it seems.

ROOPE: It really was, and backstage most of the actors who came backdoors for us (ph) included James Spader, all talked about their role in the Katrina effort, if you will. And they're pretty much -- because actors sometimes get a little criticism in putting their face out there or getting out there with causes. Sean Penn took a little heat from what he did, so on and so forth.

But they said, look, if there is anything we can do to help and if our face helps raise money, then so be it. Let us go raise money. It's not that they're saying every celebrity should do that, but they're saying it's -- because it's every human being's responsibility to help human beings. But they're just saying, "If my face can help, then I'm going to be there." In fact, Doris Roberts is going down to Mississippi next week, I think, to -- to put on a benefit to raise money for hurricane victims there.

So Hollywood's very much in the Katrina efforts.

WALLACE: Does it appear to strike the right note? You know, sometimes, as you're mentioning, criticized for going overboard for taking an event and casting sort of a dark shadow on the event. Did it sort of strike the right note, you think?

ROOPE: I think so. Yes, I think so, Kelly, only because Ellen DeGeneres did a good job of weaving the elements together and not -- put it, sort of subtly encouraging everyone to do their part. They all wore the magnolias last night, most of them anyway. She was very good. Because a host of a TV show like that -- and she was the go-to gal for 9/11. After 9/11, she -- she hosted the Emmys after that, did a great job. Rave reviews. It wasn't the plan that she was going to host the Emmys post arguably the biggest disaster in American history, but she did a fine job.

Because a host sort of has to weave the -- the elements together to build the tapestry. They're the needle and thread that puts the tapestry together. She did a great job of that. And that helped the celebrities do their part in encouraging help for Katrina victims, too, especially backstage.

WALLACE: All right, Jim. Well, long night for you. Thanks so much for waking up with us. Jim Roope from CNN Radio, talking to us live from Los Angeles, California.

Still to come on this edition of DAYBREAK, mixed signals from New Orleans residents anxious to see what is left of their homes. And what exactly is lurking in that flood water? You may be surprised. A closer look as DAYBREAK continues on this Monday. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Kelly Wallace, in today for Carol Costello, who's on assignment in New Orleans. Good morning everyone, and thanks so much for starting your day with us. We will hear from Carol in just a moment.

But first, we want to call your attention to the left side of your screen. CNN has teamed up with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to bring you the faces of the missing in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Since our effort began on Saturday morning, calls to the center have tripled. And with your help, more displaced parents and children can be reunited throughout the day.

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