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CNN Live Sunday

New Supreme Court Session Begins Tomorrow; Boat Capsizes on Lake George, Killing Passengers

Aired October 02, 2005 - 16:00   ET

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

GERRI WILLIS, CNN ANCHOR: We have new information about the deadly suicide bombings in Bali.
And then, the overwhelming task of rebuilding New Orleans. Where does the city even begin.

Plus, the show must go on. Saying I do, with an interesting backdrop: the California wildfires.

Hello and welcome to CNN LIVE SUNDAY. I'm Gerri Willis. All that and more after this check of the headlines.

Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas spoke by phone today for the first time in more than five weeks. They agreed to meet soon. Their meating scheduled for today was canceled by a recent surge in violence.

And a powerful typhoon batters the Chinese mainland after slamming into Taiwan earlier today. Officials in Taiwan say one person was killed when his house collapsed on him and one woman is reported missing after being washed into a raging river. Dozens were injured and several homes destroyed.

And a scary situation in Northeast Kansas. A storm dumped up to a foot of rain on several towns overnight, putting entire neighborhoods under water, as you can see here. Emergency crews rescued people who were stranded in high water. So far there are no reports of any deaths or serious injuries.

Recovering from deadly bombings, but bracing for more possible attacks, Indonesia is in mourning and on alert a day after three suicide bombers killed 19 people on the resort island of Bali. Police say this amateur video shows one of the suspected attackers wearing a backpack and entering a restaurant just before the blast. What happens next is chilling. Paul Kadik from Australia's Channel 7 reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAUL KADIK, AUSTRALIAN CHANNEL 7 (voice-over): An Australian family in Kuta videoing their holiday.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was coming out of KFC (INAUDIBLE) bombs.

KADIK: Seconds later, their lives and so many others are changed forever. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm actually (INAUDIBLE).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mom, Andrew's here. Hurry up!

KADIK: Brothers Andrew and Daniel were thrown into the air and feared the worst.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I thought he was dead. I was like -- I just got up.

KADIK: They all made it out alive, but bear the scars.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I looked inside. It's just bodies all over the ground...

KADIK: The explosion tore apart the Raja Restaurant in Kuta's busy shopping district, and rocked neighboring businesses. Glass shattered, spraying everywhere.

A minute later a second bomb exploded Jim Baran Beach, then another. Mobile phone cameras captured panic tourists running for their lives.

Two sea food restaurants packed with tourists were targeted. All around lay the dead and injured. Those who could were desperate to help.

It's believed the suicide bombers sets off the devices packed with ball bearings and shrapnel, designed for maximum carnage. Hospital staff struggleled to cope with the wounded, who included young children, tourists from Australia, the UK, Korea and United States, as well as local people. Tony Bacchus (ph) was among the Australians brought in with horrific burns. Chappelle Corby sister Mercedes spent all night helping the injured and searching for survivers.

UNIDNETIFIED FEMALE: Two Australians, Eric Tiller and Jennifer Tiller (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) Where they belonging to (INAUDIBLE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yeah. Where are they?

KADIK: Hospitals list Australians killed, including 16-year-old Brendan Fitzgerald from Bustleton (ph), Western Australia.

MARK WARREN, UNCLE OF BOMBING VICTIM: He was a beautiful boy. And he's 16. He was gentle, caring, loving, intelligent.

KADIK: Jenny Williamson died from horrific injuries. The Newcastle mother and her husband Bruce were part of the group of friends who holiday together.

Australian photographer, Jason Childs, who lives near Jim Baran Beach (ph) had run to help the Williamsons. JASON CHILDS, AUSTRALIAN PHOTOGRAPHER: He couldn't see. He was blinded by the bombing. She had a massive wound to her leg.

KADIK: The bomb sites are now sealed off with Indonesian forensic police searching for evidence. The finger of blame is already pointing to Jama Islamia, responsible for the 2002 bombings.

The Australian home video of the blas will be examined for clues. It appears to show a man carrying a backpack walking into the Kuta restaurant just moments before the bomb was detonated.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILLIS: That was Paul Kadik from Austarlia's channel 7. And as we mentioned, Indonesian police now say the man in the video wearing the backpack is one of the free suspected suicide bombers.

Back in this country, concerns over another explosion, the FBI is investigating the death of a person in a blast near the university of Oklahoma football stadium in Norman on Saturday. Now, 84,000 people were inside at the time watching a game. The university's president says no one at the stadium was ever in danger. Four campus buildings, though, were evacuated today and searched. Officials suspect the blast may have been a suicide.

Joining me now is Jay Beauchamp by telephone, a photographer for our affiliate KOCO.

Welcome, Jay. Tell us what you saw, because you were actually, I understand, at the game.

JAY BEAUCAMP, KOCO PHOTOGRAPHER: Yes, ma'am. It was in the second quarter, down on the sideline, enjoying a nice Sooner football game, and all of a sudden we heard a loud bang. Something like, you konw, somebody hit a big bass drum. You know, and it was pretty much near by. We had some storms earlier the last couple of days so people kind of thought it was that.

WILLIS: So, people didn't know it was an explosion right away?

BEAUCAMP: No. Actually, most people inside the stands did not know what was going on outside until about in the fourth quarter, when they kind of were giving over the loud speakers on how they needed people to go ahead and to leave and to stay away from the west side of the stands.

WILLIS: Any panic? Did anybody get nervous?

BEAUCAMP: No. It was amazingly calm last night. Really, the only bit of panic that happened was about ten minutes afterwards. Just outside the west side of the stadium, security was trying to get everybody back inside because they still were still unsure about what they had outside. And if there were any other areas of concern. They just wanted to get everybody back inside. But other than that, it was very calm around the stadium. WILLIS: It's interesting that the FBI is actually investigating this. Do you have a sense of how far from the stadium this blast actually was?

BEAUCAMP: I actually -- they just released the scene about 15 minutes ago, so I was over there by where it actually happened. And it was about 100 yards just west of the stadium around an oval. It actually happened on a park bench. And there were three buses that were parked out there that were awaiting, you know, to take people back to their cars or back to their areas where they were parked and everything that were -- one of them was minorly damaged. I was just able to get back there and get our first look at where it actually happened.

WILLIS: Well, Jay Beauchamp, thanks for that report. Jay is with our affiliate KOCO.

And in Iraq, U.S. troops are pressing on with their mission to tame the country's wild west. It's the second day of Operation Iron Fist in the vast and dangerous Anwar province. The target: insurgents and foreign fighters operating in the region.

Today, U.S. trops focused on Karabila, another town near the Syrian border. They bombed a compound suspected to be an insurgent stronghold and fired missiles into suspected militant hideouts.

U.S. troops taking part in Operation Iron Fist are fighting without a significant number of Iraqi forces, but the top U.S. commander in Iraq says the goal is to put Iraqi troops in the lead during such counterinsurgency misions. General George Casey spoke with Wolf Blitzer earlier today on CNN's "LATE EDITION."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEN. GEORGE CASEY, CMDR, MULTINATIONAL FORCES IN IRAQ: The progress that we're making with the Iraqi security forces is significant. And the transition teams that we have placed with the Iraqi army and special police battalions are having a great impact, one, on our insights into their readiness and, two, on their capabilities of operating with us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIS: Casey is also playing down concerns that Iraq is headed for civil war. He says he doesn't see that happening.

CNN has just received some new video of a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter dropping sands in PlaquemineS Parish, Louisiana. Now, the area was dealt a one-two punch from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. About half of the paishish's residents remain displaced. And you see the pictures right here.

Tens of thousands of people are pouring into New Orleans this weekend. They're coming back to a city still mostly without power and still flooded in some places more than a month after Hurricane Katrina struck. Many are seeing the devastation for the first time in neighborhoods just reopened by Mayor Ray Nagin. CNN's Chris Lawrence joins us now from New Orleans -- Chris.

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Gerry, when you talk about tens of thousands of people coming back to the city this weekend, it really, in a lot of ways, is starting to feel like a city again. A lot of those folks are coming back to take a look at their homes and businesses. And for the most part, they're seeing a lot of scenes somewhat similar to this here in the French Quarter, in that the ground is in a lot of places, completely dried.

Except for the lower Ninth Ward, the Army Corps of Engineers is just about finished pumping all the water out of the city. But there is mold everywhere. There is no clean drinking water. And less than 30 percent of the city still has power.

A lot of the folks have lost what was normal in their lives. But they got a little bit of that back today when St. Louis Cathedral opened its doors for the first mass since the storm. Archbishop Alfred Hughes told the congregation the structure that harbors the soul of our city has come back to life.

He talked about how the people there lost jobs, they've lost homes, many have lost lives. And he asked them to reflect not only on what's happening, but what's going to happen in the days and months to come.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ARCHBISHOP ALFRED HUGHES, NEW ORLEANS: What good could ever be greater than the evil caused by Katrina and expanded by Rita? The full answer to that question will take time to unfold.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAWRENCE: We talked a about the about the physical reconstruction of New Orleans. Today may have been the first step in the city's spiritual rebirth -- Gerri.

WILLIS: Chris lawrence, thank you for that report.

You've been seeing for weeks how Hurricane Katrina left so many homes and businesses destroyed. But some people will actually profit off the Gulf Coast losses, and we're going to tell you who. Plus, the rebuilding effort, where do you even begin? We'll ask a former city planner for New orleans.

And a new Supreme Court session starts tomorrow with a new chief justice at the helm. But the docket is already full of controversy. We'll take a look at some of those cases this hour on CNN LIVE SUNDAY.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WILLIS: Hurricane Katrina left many people along the storm- ravaged Gulf Coast in economic ruin, but a lot of people stand to benefit from the massive recovery that's to come. CNN's Tom Foreman takes a look at who stands to gain the most.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With 350,000 homes destroyed by Katrina alone, the building industry expects a windfall. By comparison, Hurricane Andrew was once considered a monster, and took only 28,000 homes.

JERRY HOWARD, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF HOME BUILDERS: We know another half a million homes in the area have significant enough damage that they're going to need major renovation, so it's pretty big. It's biggest thing we've ever seen.

FOREMAN: Automakers will likely benefit from replacing an estimated 200,000 sunken cars. The gambling industry is lobbying to move Gulf Coast casinos, previously kept on boats, onto shore, where they can be expanded. And the furniture business is expected to take in millions.

But with so much damage in low-income areas, Chinese furniture companies may benefit most.

ROBERT CONNOLLY, UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA, CHAPEL HILL: Especially in the lower or moderately priced furniture, they're in a position to benefit substantially. Most of the remaining U.S. manufacturers of sort of household furniture tend to be at the higher end.

FOREMAN: The soaring need of the Gulf Coast is so great, some American industry groups are arguing for lower trade barriers for Canadian lumber, Mexican cement, and Brazilian plywood. The cost of plywood in the U.S. has jumped more than 50 percent in the past few weeks.

(on camera): Still, people involved in all of these business say they honestly cannot figure out how much they're going to make off Katrina, because they can't figure out how much it's going to cost for labor, for transportation, for material, and insurance.

(voice-over): The American Insurance Association says all those estimates about how much insurance companies will pay, and how high premiums may rise, are pure fantasy until the damage is tallied, and the disputes are settled over what's covered.

JULIE ROCHMAN, AMERICAN INSURANCE ASSOCIATION: There'll be litigation. We don't know how that litigation will come out. Cost of rebuilding is unknown, so we really don't know what the cost ultimately to insurers will be.

FOREMAN: And consider this. These storms were so big, many of the Southern companies that may benefit from them were also victims, and balancing their books between profit and loss will take a long time.

Tom Foreman, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE) WILLIS: Mardi Gras just months away. The mayor of New Orleans has unveiled a new program to bring the city back to its former glory. Mayor Ray Nagin has created a 17-member commission to draft a rebuilding plan by year's end. So, what will it take to rebuild New Orleans? Christina Ford is a former New Orleans City planner. She joins me by phone from Eastbooth Bay, Maine. Welcome, Katrina.

CHRISTINA FORD, FRM. NEW ORLEANS CITY PLANNER (via telephone): It's Christina.

WILLIS: My apologies, Christina. Christina Ford, thanks for joining us.

FORD: Sure.

WILLIS: Let's talk about this for a second. Two hurricanes, incredible flooding, lots of devatation, people aren't even necessarily back to the city yet. They're just coming back. What is the first step you take?

FORD: Well, I think the first step that any planner would recommend is that we figure out what is left in the city. You can look at the aerial photographs and think that everything needs to be bulldozed, and that seems to me to be unlikely. So, I think where anybody would start is figuring out what is there, what is still usable, and I know they would start with the Port of New Orleans because that is such a national asset.

And then I think the second thing once -- and none of these have to occur serially. You can be determining what is there at the same time that you're trying to figure out what goals we are trying to reach as we rebuild.

WILLIS: What do you mean by that? What are the options on the table, do you think?

FORD: Well, I think there are several. Cities are complicated entities that one very simple-minded vision would be simply to get it back into commerce and to get the Port of New Orleans operational again and the tourism industry. I think that there are many other things that need to be looked at as well because a city is a living entity, it is not just one function or just one economic entity.

WILLIS: Let's talk about that. Let's talk about the Lower Ninth Ward, for example. What about the people, getting the people back? And should the Lower Ninth Ward come back with the kind of housing that people can afford? What can be done to make the city work in the way that it did before?

FORD: Well, I think that that's the great challenge for urban planning and for city government and for state government of this century. I think that the people -- we all know about the Ninth Ward now throughout the country, but there are equally devastated places throughout New Orleans. There's Holly Grove, and Carrolton, and so forth. But what made that city so wonderful was the jumble of races and economic groups and cultures. And that's why when someone would go to New Orleans, they might go there thinking they wanted to go to the French Quarter and walk down Bourbon Street, or they might want to go to Mardi Gras or they might want to go look at the beautiful architecture. But the thing that was exhilarating about New Orleans and kept people coming back was that they saw a culture which really was what this country is trying to achieve when we talk about goals of diversity.

Diversity can sound like a cold statistician's notion that if 10 percent of the population is Hispanic, then 10 percent of the entering class in a college should be Hispanic. But when you go to New Orleans, you saw that it was no cold statistician's idea, it was really a vibrant culture, and it was -- it represented, I think, what this country is trying to achieve. And I think for that, it's just crucial that we bring back the people.

WILLIS: Well, and Christina, we hope to see New Orleans re- established as a melting pot with different people, different groups. Thank you so much for being with us. Christina Ford.

Coming up next hour, "State of Emergency," a special edition of "ANDERSON COOPER 360." Tomorrow night will be five weeks since Hurricane Katrina hit. Anderson, who has benn there since the storm hit, takes a look back.

Then at 6:00 Eastern, the city councilwoman for the hardhit Ninth Ward will tell us what she thinks about rebuilding New Orleans. That's ahead at 6:00 Eastern on CNN LIVE SUNDAY.

As we focus on the recovery and rebuilding of New Orleans, CNN is asking what you think should be done with the city. Log onto CNN.com/stories to share your thoughts and ideas.

A new session of the Supreme Court starts tomorrow with a new chief justice presiding, but there's still one more justice to appoint. We'll make some predictions on the president's pick.

Plus, a powerful typhoon blow across Taiwan. How much damage did this storm cause? When CNN LIVE SUNDAY returns.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WILLIS: The U.S. Supreme Court begins a new term tomorrow with a new chief justice at the helm. Chief Justice John Roberts will be ceremoniously sworn in at 9:15 a.m. And then just 45 minutes later, he begins work. And the cases he and his fellow justices will review are filled with controversy.

CNN's Gary Nuremberg takes a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY NUREMBERG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Bush joins a new chief justice and fellow members of the court Sunday for the yearly red mass named for the historic color of judicial robes and performed just before a new term of the high court begins.

EDWARD LAZARUS, LEGAL ANALYST: He is going to walk into a real maelstrom up at the court.

NUREMBERG: Roberts jumps into one of the court's most controversial cases Wednesday: assisted suicide and whether the federal government can stop the state of Oregon from allowing doctors to prescribe medicines so patients can kill themselves.

LAZARUS: This is one of those hot botton issues that goes to the feelings of the Republican base. The issue of physician-assisted suicide is tied in to what President Bush frequently calls his culture of life.

CROWD: Row V. Wade has got to go.

NUREMBERG: As is abortion. The court will decide whether racketeering laws can be used against those who organize demonstrations outside clinics and could set a new standard for review of abortion cases when it decides whether a New Hampshire law requiring parental notification is too strict.

LAZARUS: It's one of the cases that could actually turn on John Roberts' vote.

NUREMBERG: The court will decide whether colleges can ban military recruiters from campus because of the military's policy of don't ask, don't tell for homosexuals. Whether a church can use a hallucenogenic tea as a sacrament. And we'll hear criminal cases about the rights of defendant's in death penalty cases and limits on police procedures.

LAZARUS: This is a situation where from the very moment the justices start back in October, they're going to be, first of all, very divided. It's going to be a lot of friction inside the building.

NUREMBERG (on camera): Critics of Roberts' performance in his confirmation hearings complained they ended with little sense of his judicial philosophy or how he would rule on controversial cases. With the cases on this year's docket, they'll have some answers by the time the court concludes its term next summer.

Gary Nuremberg, CNN, the Supreme Court.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WILLIS: As Gary just mentioned in his report, Chief Justice Roberts began the day attending a traditional religious service for the legal community. Now, this so-called red mass is always held the day before the Supreme Court opens its session, only a few reporters are allowed in. CNN Vatican analyst Delia Gallagher was one of them. And she's joining us live from Washington. Delia, good to see you.

DELIA GALLAGHER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Gerri.

WILLIS: What did you see? GALLAGHER: Well, we saw for the first time actually at this annual mass, the presence of president, President Bush was there, with his wife, and, of course, the chief justice.

There were also four other justices present. The four Catholic justices, in addition to Roberts, Justices Kennedy, Thomas, Scalia. Justice Breyer was also will. It was a who's who of Washington. Condoleezza Rice, the secretary of State. Alberto gonzales as well, the attorney general.

So, this was the first time that in this annual mass, which of course, the Catholic church holds every year for the opening of the Supreme Court, we had the presence of both the president and this new Supreme Court chief justice.

WILLIS: Well, it sounds like an impressive roster. You have got to explain to me, though, why do they call it a red mass?

GALLAGHER: Well, it's a tradition which hails back to the middle ages, the opening of the judicial year at the Vatican. The Vatican also has a tribunal, so they open mass wearing these red vestments. The priests wear red vestments that symbolize fire, and the fire symbolizes the holy spirit.

So the mass is a sort of invocation of the holy spirit for wisdom on these justices as they begin their term. It's a mass which is celebrated, actually, around the world, also in Paris and in London, and has been celebrated here in Washington since 1928.

WILLIS: Delia, it's interesting, there are lots of moral, ethical issues that are going to be on the Supreme Court's docket coming up. Fascinating list of cases. Have you taken a look at them?

GALLAGHER: Well, yes. It's something we'll be watching closely, of course, to see how the new chief justice decides in these cases. First up for him will be this case of euthenasia, as you heard just before, they were talking about the Oregon case of assisted suicide. So, that's going to be one of the interesting cases that will be brought to them as early as this week.

Also, of course, parental notification for teenage abortions. We'll be watching that. And cases about the death penalty as well. A lot of kind of values and moral issues that are going to be brought to the Supreme Court. And everybody will be watching who the new nominee will be for Sandra Day O'Connor's place.

WILLIS: Delia, quickly, I know we were talking earlier about this meeting of the bishops in Rome. What's going on there and what are you hearing?

GALLAGHER: It's open today. It's called a Senate of Bishops. It is a meeting of all of the bishops of the world, as many as can attend, there's about 250 that are in attendance. It's important right now -- of course, it's the first time under Pope Benedict that the bishops will be coming to meet in Rome. Of course, one of the criticisms against this pope, when he was elected, is that perhaps he's not going to be a listener. So this is significant that he's having this senate. He has changed some of the procedures there so that the bishops will have an opportunity to speak a little bit more and a little bit more back and forth in this session. And so we'll be waiting to see in the next three weeks, the senate takes three weeks, what issues they bring up. It's a senate on the Ukris, which means that they'll be discussing some things such as receiving communion for politicians who don't support Catholic teaching, and divorce and remarry Catholics so it's an important issue and it is an important test of this pontific.

WILLIS: Delia Gallagher, thanks so much for being with us.

GALLAGHER: Thank you.

WILLIS: There's plenty of speculation within legal circles on who President Bush will to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. Attorney Christopher Murray is making some predictions and he's joining us from New York. Welcome.

E. CHRISTOPHER MURRAY, ATTORNEY: Thank you.

WILLIS: Let's talk a little bit about this. I think so much on this court's docket; it's going to be fascinating to see. How they handle these issues. I have to ask you, first of all, were you surprised to see Roberts approved, confirmed by the Senate?

MURRAY: Oh, no, not at all. You have to remember that in the circumstances they have a Republican-controlled Senate and a Republican White House. So there's an advantage right there. Plus given his credentials and his personality, and his performance before the Senate Judiciary Committee, I'm not surprised at all.

WILLIS: You know that the White House isn't tipping its hand right now about who's going to be nominated to replace Sandra Day O'Connor. Who do you think it's going to be?

MURRAY: I personal think it's going to be Alberto Gonzales. I think that President Bush has an opportunity to make an historic appointment to name the first Hispanic justice. He's been very loyal to the attorney general, and I believe that he'll be the choice. I also think he'll be easy to confirm in some ways. Because I think there will be a lot of Democrats that will vote for his confirmation.

WILLIS: Any chance that Justice Corrigan or another woman might be chosen? What would be her strong points? Does she have a chance?

MURRAY: I do. I think that's the name that you've been hearing a lot lately. She's a very accomplished lawyer so I think in some ways, like Roberts, it would be hard to question her credentials, but she's very conservative, she very conservative especially when it comes to federalism issues and strict construction of statutes. So I think if it's not Gonzales, I think she's a very likely candidate.

WILLIS: Also mentioned Harriet Miers. What do you think of that name?

MURRAY: I don't think that's likely. I think she has the advantage of not having been a judge, so she does not have a written record to be criticized, but I don't think that's the way he's going to go.

WILLIS: We have some landmark cases coming up. What do you think is going to be the most interesting, the most compelling?

MURRAY: I think the first one coming up this week, especially with regard to Roberts is the assisted suicide. I think he's always been a strong advocate of the federalism issue and giving states' rights, but here you have assisted suicide, which the Republican bas obviously disagrees with. There's a conflict there and I think that's an interesting case right off the bat.

WILLIS: Christopher Murray, thanks for being with us.

MURRAY: Your welcome.

WILLIS: Tonight "CNN Presents" takes a hard look at the new Supreme Court as it prepares to tackle several hot button issues. How will the court's decisions affect our daily lives? What's at stake? An all-new "CNN Presents" airs tonight at 8:00 p.m. Eastern.

After being forced to step down as house majority leader, Tom Delay speaks out about his role in Congress. We go live to the White House for more when CNN LIVE SUNDAY returns.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WILLIS: This just in, you're looking at pictures of where a tour boat on Lake George, New York, typically moors. It's capsized. Now this tour boat called the Ethan Allen typically can hold about 50 people. It's capsized. Again we're getting this news from our affiliate Capital News 9. They're working on this story. You're looking again at where this ship -- this tour boat, actually, usually moors. We're hearing multiple fatalities at this time. It has capsized. As you can see, these are live pictures coming out of Lake George, New York. This was a tour boat that seniors typically take out called the Ethan Allen, and we're hearing again about multiple fatalities. We'll bring you more about this as we hear it. Again, Lake George, New York, you're looking at here.

Also, Tom Delay is vowing to take an active role in the Republican House Leadership, even though it's been indicted on conspiracy charges and forced to step down as majority leader. Today Delay had more to say about the case against him. We go to CNN's Elaine Quijano who's at the White House. Elaine.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good afternoon to you Gerri. And Tom Delay really has been essential in moving President Bush's agenda forward. Well today the embattled former house majority leader again strongly defended himself against the accusations that he improperly used corporate donations. Delay called the Texas indictment against him frivolous, and, quote, politics at its sleaziest. The man known as the hammer because of his forceful style, also said despite stepping down from his leadership position, he still intends to play an influential role in the house.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. TIM DELAY, (R) TEXAS: I get to continue my partnership with the speaker. I will advice the speaker and I'll work on the agenda. We have a very ambitious agenda that we need to get through in the next eight months.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

QUIJANO: Now Delay also said that he believes the legal process will move ahead quickly and he'll be able to return to his position as the house majority leader. But at least one moderate Republican, Congressman Christopher Shays of Connecticut doesn't seem to like that idea.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. CHRISTOPHER SHAYS, (R) CONNECTICUT: Tom's problem isn't just this. It's a continual acts that borders on and go sometimes beyond the ethical edge. They may not be illegal, but he always pushing that ethical edge to the limit.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

QUIJANO: And Congressman Shay's being asked if he would be comfortable with Tom Delay as his leader, Congressman Shay's responding no. Now as for the White House officials here say that Tom Delay is a good ally, an effective leader. Delay certainly has been able to push even reluctant Republicans to supporter President Bush's legislative goals that has been demonstrated a number of times, particularly with close votes on Capta and Medicare. Now administration officials say the president believes the legal process needs to proceed at the same time they believe that the president's agenda will not be affected. That Mr. Bush will continue to focus on his priorities.

The administration, of course, facing its own issues at this time. A number of challenges, among them continued high gas prices. Also trying to reverse and erase those negative perceptions over the response to hurricane Katrina. And that rising death toll in Iraq. Gerri.

WILLIS: Elaine, thank you for that report. That was Elaine Quijano.

A monster storm is wreaking havoc in Asia. The typhoon called Dragon King slammed into China's southeastern coastline today, some 300,000 people have fled the area. Before reaching the mainland though the typhoon whipped across Taiwan where it was accompanied by an earthquake. Dozens of people were injured; tens of thousands were left without electricity. The islands topography helped protect it from the worst of the storm though. Mountains rise up along the coastline offering natural protection from storm surge and flooding. On this side of the world, tropical storms and depressions are keeping forecasters busy. Where are they and where are they heading? CNN meteorologist Bonnie Schneider is tracking the turbulent weather.

BONNIE SCHNEIDER, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Lots of activity in the tropics today. First off tropical storm Otis bearing down on the Baja peninsula. We are expecting quite a bit of rain with this storm as it travels to north. It will affect the U.S., especially in Arizona where heavy rainfall is expected this week. Some areas will benefit from the rain but it may cause some flash flooding as a lot of that moisture comes in at a quick pace.

Else where we also have in the Caribbean Sea, we are watching another tropical storm this one is named Sam. It's bearing down on the Yucatan Peninsula and this is going to bring substantial rain between 5 to 10 inches, possibly even 15 inches in some spots as it crosses the Utica tan and reemerges in the Gulf of Mexico. The National Hurricane Center is forecasting this storm to be a category 1 hurricane before it makes landfall later this week for the second time, and that will be along the Mexican coastline, well south of the U.S./Mexico border.

Else where in the tropics there's one other storm tropical depression number 19. This one is way out in eastern Atlantic, and it's not threatening land at this time and actually is dissipating in intensity.

Checking the lower 48 we have got some summer-like weather even though it's early October throughout much of the country. Warm conditions for Kansas City. The cool spot on the map here, Seattle, high temperatures will only be in the 50s and we're looking for on and off rain showers. Some of that cooler air is working its way from west to east, and a lot of the country will be affected as this front passes along.

Here's that influence from tropical storm Otis to the south. And nice weather for the northeast, especially New England, looking cool, crisp, and comfortable, high temperatures there in the 70s. Else where across the country we are looking for highs in Denver right at 88, another hot one for Texas with high temperatures right in the 90s.

WILLIS: While the California wildfires rage, life goes on. The fiery backdrop some couples faced on their special day.

Plus, he was a Katrina evacuee who was faced with another evacuation when Rita hit, but finally Gerald Montgomery found a home and a family.

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WILLIS: Fire crews are optimistic they'll have a massive wildfire northwest of Los Angeles fully contained sometime tomorrow. The blaze in Topanga Canyon area charred more than 24,000 acres. Seven firefighters have been injured battling the flames.

Meanwhile, a fire threatening dozens of homes in nearby Burbank continues to spread. Most residents, but not all, have followed mandatory evacuation orders affecting about 60 homes.

Wildfires made an unforgettable backdrop for couples tying the knot this weekend. The flames, noisy helicopters, and the constant possibility of evacuation could not dampen spirits. As brides walked down the isle. Our Rusty Dornin spoke with some of them.

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RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): As flames roared across the ridge above Burbank and people evacuated their homes in a nearby canyon, it was here comes the bride, the fire fighters and the helicopters at Peter and Kelly's Folics (ph) wedding. Uninvited, but rather exciting guests.

PETER FOLIC (ph): As you can see here, smoke everywhere, fire everywhere. Cameras in our faces. We didn't think it would be this much of a production.

KELLY FOLIC (ph): We didn't know we were celebrities, just getting married. This is awesome.

DORNIN: An awesome backdrop of the Castaway's Restaurant, a place known for multiple weekend weddings. The wedding parties were warned about the noise and the hassle, but no one says, I don't.

CAPT. RON BELL, BURBANK FIRE DEPARTMENT: The Castaway's Restaurant and its banquet facilities have been allowed to remain open because they are not in jeopardy from the fire.

DORNIN: And that decision could change if the wind shifted or something like that?

BELL: Yes. But we have a golf course between the fire and the restaurant.

DORNIN: It would have taken more than a California wildfire to stop Sara and Jason Kendin (ph) from saying their vows. The problem was, the guests could barely hear them. The bride was very unhappy, but the guests took it in stride.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Actually, it's exciting, living on the edge.

DORNIN: Were you frightened at all?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, no.

DORNIN: The fires here are nearly an annual event, and after all, this is southern California. And sometimes the show must go on. That's the way Cynthia and Eric Martinez felt. They were married nearby but came here for the reception. Worried? No. Noise? So what?

ERIC MARTINEZ, GROOM: Noise? We're going to be inside. The music will be so loud, we won't even notice once we're inside.

DORNIN: Vows taken by firefighters to extinguish this fire. Some unforgettable ones for couples caught in the heat of the moment.

Rusty Dornin, CNN, Burbank, California.

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WILLIS: Carol Lin is here with a preview of what's ahead. Carol, what's on top for your 6:00 p.m. show?

CAROL LIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Gerri it's looking like we might have a new lead to our program. Some breaking news out of Lake George, New York, as a dinner boat filled with seniors has overturned. There are rescue operations under way right now. We're going to bring you the very latest on that breaking news story.

Also at 6:00 I'll be talking with our Carlos Watson. Now we've all been focused on the Supreme Court nominations of late, but he says that nomination may not be the key one when it comes to our pocketbook. He's going to talk about what's going to be happening at the Federal Reserve level, which is going to affect all kinds of personal decisions on our part. At 10:00 we have Carlos back here in Atlanta to talk about Tom Delay, he is under indictment and he has resigned his post. What does this mean to the Republican Party? And our rap sheet girls are going to be talking about the tenth anniversary of O.J. Simpson's sentencing, the verdict in that case, and a whole lot more coming up on the Supreme Court.

So Gerri, a busy night.

WILLIS: Sounds busy, indeed. Thank you, Carol.

You're now going to be looking at pictures of Lake George, where a tour boat has overturned. Now, this tour boat typically carries as many as 50 people, usually seniors, touring the area. It's overturned. There is a rescue operation going on. We now have a report from Brian Pastiglione who is a WXXA reporter. Brian, what do you know?

BRIAN PASTIGLIONE, WXXA REPORTER: Hi Gerri. The scene up here is both chaotic and heartbreaking right now. We know that just after 3:00 this afternoon an Ethan Allen tour boat with Shore Line Cruises capsized like I said just before 3:00 this afternoon. Now, from what we're being told, at least 50 people were on board. The scene -- right now there's numerous rescue personnel here, both from Lake George, there is Warren County scuba units being brought in. We don't have an official word on how many confirmed deaths there are, but from what I've counted, there are at least 15 deceased people and they're still pulling more people out of the water. Like I said rescue personnel are in and out. I've seen at least eight or nine rescue helicopters landing, taking off, and bringing the ones that are alive into the village to be treated.

Gerri.

WILLIS: Brian Pastiglione thank you for that report. A heartbreaking story. We'll be right back after this.

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WILLIS: You're looking at pictures of Lake George, New York, where a tour boat has capsized, carrying as many as 50 people. We will really don't know yet. There are multiple fatalities. We were speaking with Brian Pastiglione who is back with us, to report more on this. Brian, tell us, do we have a number of fatalities at this time?

PASTIGLIONE: Gerri, there's still no official word. A press conference we're being told it's going to be held in a half hour. From what I've seen, I was just over being at the shoreline, and I counted at least 15 fatalities. Just to bring you up to speed, just before 3:00, a shoreline boat, Ethan Allen tour boat capsized just after 3:00. Like I said, there's numerous rescue personnel from all over the area, helicopters in and out of the area, taking the people that had been rescued into the village to be treated. That is really all we know so for. Like I said a press conference is supposed to be held in about a half hour. We can hopefully bring you more information around then.

WILLIS: Brian, do we have any idea why the tour ship capsized? Was there a problem, it looks like a beautiful day there. It clearly wasn't weather-related.

PASTIGLIONE: No, I mean it's absolutely beautiful day up here. There's numerous boats on the water. We have no idea why this boat might have capsized, if there was a mechanical failure or something that happened on the boat itself. What we do know is that most of the activity -- this tour boat takes one-hour tours with people. Normally about 50 people on board this boat. All the activities happening just along the shoreline. It's not in the middle of the lake. It's along the shoreline. So thankfully it's easily accessible for the rescue personnel. They're still having a hard time getting people out of the water.

WILLIS: Do you have any idea, Brian, of the track record for safety for these boats that operate in that area? Is there typically problems, or is this very unusual?

PASTIGLIONE: To be honest with you, I'm not 100 percent sure. I've lived in this area my entire life and I've never seen or heard of any type of accident like this on Lake George or any of the surrounding areas, with a huge tour boat like this. Hopefully we'll get more answers at the pres conference.

WILLIS: Brian, quickly these probably a lot of seniors on this boat, is that correct?

PASTIGLIONE: That's what we're being told. I can't confirm that for sure. We're being told that it was a boat filled with senior citizens, yes.

WILLIS: A very sad story, indeed. Brian Pastiglione thanks for your help.

PASTIGLIONE: Thanks.

WILLIS: Ahead, state of emergency, a special edition of "Anderson Cooper 360." And then at 6:00 Eastern we continue our look at rebuilding New Orleans after hurricane Katrina. Carol Lin examines how the Ninth Ward should be rebuilt.

And at 7:00 Eastern, "CNN Presents" follows the forecasters, emergency officials and plain old ordinary citizens who worked frantically as hurricane Rita roared toward the coast. "Monster Tracking the Storm" that's tonight at 7:00 Eastern.

I'll be back with the headlines after this.

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