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CNN Live Sunday

Truck in Wisconsin Collides with School Bus

Aired October 16, 2005 - 17:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR, CNN LIVE SUNDAY: Apparently our affiliate there is reporting that firefighters are up against a challenge right now trying to get to that warehouse to help put out this fire. When we get more details on it, we'll be bringing that to you as soon as we get it.
Iraqis count the ballots in the up or down vote on a draft constitution. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says the new governing document is likely to pass, but cautions that she doesn't know the outcome exactly. President Bush says more Iraqis appear to have voted yesterday than in the parliamentary election last January.

China, can chalk up another milestone in its fledgling space program. A Chinese spacecraft with two tokonauts (ph) safely touched down a short time ago in the Gobi desert. They had been in orbit for five days. This was China's second manned space flight.

The chief of police in Toledo, Ohio, says his officers were ready for trouble going into a planned rally by neo-Nazis but Chief Mike Navarre says reaction to the event was more intense than expected which resulted in more than 100 arrests. We'll speak with him later on CNN LIVE SUNDAY.

At last report, police in Wisconsin are questioning the driver of an 18-wheeler involved in a fatal wreck with a bus carrying a high school marching band. One official says the driver has issues, but he won't say what they are. The truck veered off an interstate and crashed. Then the bus carrying the school kids hit the truck head-on. Five people were killed and 30 injured. We have the latest on the story from Allen Constantini. He's with our affiliate KARE.

ALLEN CONSTANTINI, CHIPPEWA, WISCONSIN: Well, Fredricka, what we know so far here is that aside from the details you've just reported, that driver of the truck was not seriously injured. So police do believe that at some point, they're going to be able to clarify his story. All we know so far is that when the state troopers were first on the scene and the scene, by the way, is about four miles east or actually west, I apologize, west of Osseo, Wisconsin on interstate 94, when they were first on the scene, he what they were said, what they called excited utterances but they won't tell us what he said exactly.

There were curiosity about whether or not he had fallen asleep or what had happened. We know his bus went off the right shoulder. As he tried to get back on the highway, he overcompensated apparently. The bus flipped or not the bus, the truck flipped. The bus which was coming down the road from a band concert a long ways away in southern Wisconsin barreling on 94 at 2:00 in the morning ran right into the undercarriage of the truck and then through it as I think you've probably seen in the video.

All of the dead were on the bus, not on the truck. So that is the bus driver, a 78-year-old Paul Rasmus of Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin and two men, a woman, and an 11-year-old girl. None of the high school band players apparently were fatally injured, although many did have injuries. Thirty people were moved to hospitals. Seven air ambulances were used to medevac them to at least five hospitals in both Wisconsin and in the twin cities of Minnesota, which is about 100 miles to the west of here.

WHITFIELD: And now, Allen, how does I-94 look?

CONSTANTINI: Well, I-94 has finally, as we understand it, reopened. Certainly the eastbound lanes have reopened. They were closed for hours as you can imagine as state troopers tried to recreate what had happened in the accident. It took awhile to figure out. There were a lot of reports initially that were incorrect. We know we've talked to a student who was on that bus that collided. She was in the back of the bus, suffered a broken arm. But other than that, is not seriously injured. She said that they had to climb out windows down ladders and then try to keep their shoes on because of all the diesel fuel and broken glass and then wait for some time before they could be moved back to the school. The students -- remember, the accident happened at 2:00 this morning. The students didn't get back to Chippewa Falls High School here until about 6:00 in the morning where their families were anxiously waiting because they hadn't learned who exactly had been the most seriously injured, although of course many of the students in this day and age undoubtedly had cell phones and were calling.

WHITFIELD: Allen Constantini, thank you so much for that report. Joining us now for more on this story, spokesman Brent Pickard of the Wisconsin state patrol. He comes to us by telephone from Eau Claire. Thanks so much for being with us Mr. Piccard. What's your understanding about how much time elapsed between that semi truck overturning and the impact involving this bus taking place?

BRENT PICKARD, WISCONSIN STATE PATROL: It sounds like it was a very small amount of time. The initial reports sound like there was very little opportunity for any sort of evasive action.

WHITFIELD: And this is a very dark road, I understand. There aren't any street lights. It's happening in the middle of the night. Describe for us the challenges that took place here for this semi to have an accident there and then the ongoing traffic there running into this mess.

PICKARD: Well, it's a rural section of interstate highway, so it's a divided four-lane highway at that point, but it is rural there, no street lights out there certainly. Both vehicles were traveling in a westbound direction from -- I do not -- was not able to hear your entire report there but from what we know, the semi had left the roadway for several hundred feet and then came back onto the roadway at that point, jackknifed and rolled on to its side. So its underside was what you would be driving into, and as I indicated, it would appear there was very little time from the time the jackknifed, rolling and blocking those two lanes of traffic before there was impact.

WHITFIELD: The driver of that semi truck is being interviewed, correct? What do you know about the kind of information that he is sharing?

PICKARD: Well, I have not seen the report at this point. That's one element of the investigation. Any time you have a crash that's involving a semi and a bus, there are certain things that are going to happen. Certainly the eyewitness accounts are part of that. But a lot of it is just what the science is going to tell us. National Transportation Safety Board team will be in later tonight and this investigation, while it's been completed in the field, will continue for probably the next several days.

WHITFIELD: All right. Of the Wisconsin State Patrol, spokesman Brent Pickard, Thank you so much for joining us.

PICKARD: Certainly.

WHITFIELD: Now we're going to shift gears quite a bit so to speak and talk a little bit about weather. And we're talking about a potentially new named storm out there by the name of Wilma potentially. Dave Hennen has more on that.

DAVE HENNEN, CNN METEOROLOGIST: That's right Fredricka. We just have out the latest advisory from the National Hurricane Center. This is not a tropical storm yet, still a tropical depression. They had a hurricane hunter aircraft fly into the system and they weren't able to find any strong winds yet. We have noticed that the center, those are the clouds right there and see to blow up in the last couple of hours, but nothing too impressive yet. But we do expect that to change around as we head on over the next 24 hours.

Let me read you some of the latest stuff that we have. The center now located about 150 miles southeast of Grand Cayman island moving west northwest at only two miles per hour and tropical storm warnings and hurricane watch remain in effect for the Caymans. If this does become Wilma by the way, this will tie the record of 21 named storms that was set way back in 1933. So quite a record on the way as we watch through time, we do expect this to turn into a tropical storm, probably later on tonight, more likely during the day tomorrow. And then the water ahead of it is very warm and so it is likely to gain some strength. In fact, you'll notice the two. That is a category two hurricane and notice how slowly it's moving though. It's going to take most of the week to work its way through the Caribbean and then heading through the Yucatan channel and eventually into the Gulf of Mexico and by late next week, interest in anywhere in the Gulf of Mexico from Florida all the way over to Texas, we'll have to keep a close eye on the system because it is just far too early to tell you exactly where the storm is going to be headed.

The rain at least has moved out of the northeast, at least most of it, still some lingering showers parts of northern New England causing a messy travel afternoon. We are looking at quite a few delays. Those are the yellow dots here into the northeastern U.S. Let me show you a few specifics in case you are heading to catch a flight at this hour. LaGuardia, Newark and Boston, all delays over an hour, 15-30 minutes at JFK. So a slow go through the airports. We'll have more on the storm and keep you updated throughout the evening. Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, Dave Hennen, thank you so much.

The other big weather story this weekend is that floods across the northeast are finally receding giving residents a chance to begin cleaning up. Parts of New Jersey are much better today after more than a week of downpours inundating low-lying neighborhoods. For an update, let's check in with CNN's Jennifer Westhoven in Fairfield, New Jersey. Jennifer.

JENNIFER WESTHOVEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, thank you Fredricka. This is turned into the wettest October on record here in New Jersey. That, of course has brought a lot of damage with the flooding that we've seen about a foot of water was dumped on to this town Fairfield, New Jersey. Pardon me. It's getting a little bit windy out here. Behind me are about 100 homes that had to be evacuated during this flooding. Many people who live here have actually seen this kind of flooding before.

Many of them own their own canoes and little boats to get themselves out. Many of them own their own sets of waders so they can go back and get some of their possessions. But a lot of people live here despite this flooding. Now there is a program, a combination of state and Federal called green acres to encourage people who live here to move to higher ground. Many people though say they don't want their homes to be bought out. Some of them say they don't think they get enough money in the program. Others say they just love this neighborhood and they want to stay here.

For whatever reason, the residents who are here are now facing a big task of cleaning up. Now, they're already going back to their homes, trying to clean things up a little bit inside the homes, put their things back into the right places, get things that they really need if they're not staying at home. But town officials say that it's going to take about a week for the municipality to come in and start the official cleanup. That's because they want to wait for these waters to recede. Then it will be about a two-week process. So it's going to be into November before things here look like they're back to normal.

WHITFIELD: And Jennifer, a lot of people learned through this hurricane season all about the importance of flood insurance, what happens when you don't have it. What about the folks in this community? Do most of the people have flood insurance?

WESTHOVEN: Well, in this community, because it is low-lying and because it's designated an area likely to flood, these people are actually required to have flood insurance here. So they all have that. That's actually something that they're not worried about. They know they have a lot of paperwork to fill out and that will take awhile, but they're looking forward to that money.

WHITFIELD: At least they're protected there, Jennifer Westhoven, thanks so much.

The pain continues in quake-ravaged Pakistan. Straight ahead, a look at what's being done to provide relief to victims of that tragedy.

Also, as Iraqis wait on the outcome of yesterday's vote on the draft constitution, find out what Baghdad residents are saying about life in their city.

And what will Mardi Gras look like in New Orleans if it does indeed happen next year? Coming up, you'll hear what local enthusiasts are planning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: An update on this breaking story we're following out of Detroit, a warehouse is on fire. And our affiliates there are reporting that fire fighters are up against a serious challenge, having a difficult time getting to that warehouse in order to get that fire under control.

Now overseas. In northern Pakistan, Pakistani officials now put the death toll from last weekend's huge earthquake at 54,000. That's roughly the number of people who live in Santa Cruz, California. Compounding the misery is the deteriorating weather in the mountainous region. CNN Paula Hancocks is in Pakistan and filed this report a short time ago.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It has been a day of frustration for the relief operation here in Pakistan this Sunday. Torrential downpours have stopped helicopters from taking off and taking much needed food, water, blankets and tents to the areas that most need it in Pakistani-controlled Kashmir. I spoke to the spokesperson for the Pakistani military a little earlier and he said that up to 20 percent of the most remote areas in the Himalayan region could not be accessed at the moment and they haven't been reached yet. So these villages have not even got the first wave of basic aid. And there are fears, he said, that the death toll will rise.

He said currently, it is 40,000 or in excess of 40,000. About 62,000 injured and according to President Musharraf, about 2.5 million are left homeless. Now the weather has been deteriorating rapidly. There has also been snow falling on the mountains in this region and many of those villagers will have no shelter from the elements. Also, on Saturday, there was a helicopter crash, a Pakistani helicopter which had just come back from the (INAUDIBLE) district distributing aid relief to the area there, crashed into a mountain, killing all six military personnel on board. The spokesperson for the military said that the weather could have played a part in that. Now some cargo planes have still been landing here at the air base and bringing more international aid. The question now is how they are going to get it to the places it is needed most considering the harsh Himalayan winter is fast approaching. Paula Hancocks, CNN, Chaklala airport, Islamabad, Pakistan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Tokyo was hit by a moderate earthquake earlier today. The magnitude 5.0 quake shook skyscrapers and rattled nerves but not much else. Japan's bullet trains were also shut down briefly as a precaution. The quake was not large enough to trigger a tsunami warning, however.

They're still counting the ballots in Iraq. Today, President Bush had a message for those who voted on that country's constitution. You'll hear what he had to say straight ahead.

And one day after violence rocks Toledo, Ohio, I'll speak with the city's police chief what happened and what may be ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: It's going to be several days before we learn the results of Iraq's vote on a draft constitution. Workers are still counting ballots from yesterday's referendum. Turnout was said to be high, possibly more than 60 percent nationwide. Early today, the fortified area in Baghdad where the votes are being counted came under mortar fire. Smoke could be seen rising from the area known as the green zone, but the U.S. embassy says there were no injuries or major damage. Overall, there were few attacks on voters Saturday but the U.S. military says five American soldiers died when their vehicle struck a roadside bomb near Ramadi.

In a separate incident, a U.S. Marine was killed when his vehicle struck an explosive device northwest of Fallujah. President Bush says the referendum marked a positive step for Iraq and the rest of the world. Mr. Bush said the vote is a step in what he called progress toward peace in Iraq. He also thanked Iraqis for in his words doing what is right.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: On behalf of the American people, I'd like to congratulate people of Iraq for the successful completion of a vote on a draft constitution. By all indications, the turnout was greater than the turnout from the last January election, which is good news.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: President Bush also noted that participation of Sunni Arabs in yesterday's vote. Sunnis largely boycotted the January elections for an interim government. The U.S. ambassador to Iraq tells CNN that more Iraqis are gaining confidence in the democratic process.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ZALMAY KHALILZAD, U.S. AMB. TO IRAQ: Efforts were made to accommodate as many people as possible, but if it fails, there will be elections in December and a new assembly will be established and that assembly will take up the task of drafting a new constitution. And if it succeeds, that is also a path forward. So it's very important to focus now on the success that was achieved yesterday with the participation of the Sunnis. Now it is clear that the Sunnis have confidence in the process and that's demonstrated by their participation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So much of what we often see and hear from Baghdad has to do with bombings and other actions of violence. Ordinary people trying to live their lives are often overlooked. Two of CNN producers recently visited with some of those people. Here's what they found.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VOICE OF KIANNE SADEQ, CNN PRODUCER: What I really wanted to accomplish in this mission of ours was to kind of have middle class Baghdad families, you know living their life on a daily basis.

AYMAN MOHYELDIN, CNN PRODUCER: When we set out that day, we knew what direction we wanted to go to, but we had no idea of what specific place we were going to go to. And we never expected that we were going to get to a coffee shop. We were going to meet a poet and a doctor and people that were such close friends who have known each other for decades. There was no differences. It seemed like there was no class difference. There was no religious differences. There was no ethnic differences. Everybody in there was there because they loved the atmosphere.

SADEQ: We went to one of the capital's gas stations where fuel lines can last hours and sometimes even days.

TRANSLATOR: There is no future at all. We've given up. We have depression now. There's no water, no electricity, no kerosene, no propane, no benzene, no security. So what's going on? What have we gotten from this government?

MOHYELDIN: In the two years since the war, my impression has been that Iraqis are living their lives somewhere in between, in between freedom and occupation, in between hope and fear, in between destruction and development and really in between life and death.

TRANSLATOR: It's true that we are out to have a good time, but we are scared at the same time. When we walk or we sit here, our hand is on our heart with fear of a car bomb or a mortar, God forbid.

MOHYELDIN: With all the stuff that's happening in Iraq on a daily basis, I was still surprised to see that people can escape that and go to the horse races and enjoy life.

INAD AYAD, JOCKEY: We have gotten used to the situation. It doesn't really matter. Whatever God wills will happen. We had a horse not too long ago that was racing on the track and all of a sudden, a gun fight broke out with some insurgents nearby and a stray bullet hit him in the chest in the middle of the race.

MOHYELDIN: The equestrian club is the only one in Baghdad and in the aftermath of the war, it was ravaged by looters. We had a chance to meet the president of the club, Mr. Saadi and he was determined to keep the club open at any cost.

LUAY SAADI, EQUESTRIAN CLUB PRESIDENT: You know, in Iraq now, you don't have many places to go. You don't have things to do as usual because of the general situation. So our aim, our goal, what you call it in English is keeping this race, the horses, you cannot replace it.

MOHYELDIN: His family was incredible. When I met them for the first time, we walked into their house they were very welcoming. This family embraced us as if we had known them for years. I was surprised to learn that they were actually a mixed family. The father was Sunni, the mother was Shiite. They had a great sense of pride in being a mixed Iraqi family. They don't see the divisions that we hear about on a regular basis. They live in the intersection of two very dangerous neighborhoods.

Do you regret not taking any of those decisions to leave?

SAADI: Sometimes for a very short little time or moments, if -- if that's all. But really in my inside me, I'm happy with what I have done.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, I don't leave.

SADEQ: Why?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Because you have to build this country. We should stop saying we hope, we hope because hoping is not going to change this problems and the situation. So we must try to do something to change it.

MOHYELDIN: The father seemed adamant about what he saw as America's failure in trying to get it right.

SAADI: As Mr. Rumsfeld said, 100,000 soldiers aren't enough. Let him take the soldiers (INAUDIBLE) Let him say how long it will stay. He can't. Let him say that he can keep security. He can't.

MOHYELDIN: Every Iraqi that I spoke to, not a single person came out and said the situation was good. The situation was on the right track or that the situation in Iraq was getting better.

SADEQ: I don't think the Iraqis want the Americans to pull out. I think the Iraqis want the Americans to be invisible. I think the Iraqis are afraid to be alone right now. But at the same time, they're hurt to see them around because they don't feel like they're in control of their own country.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: A quick reminder tonight at 7:00 Eastern on "CNN Presents," progress report two, an update on what's going right and what's going wrong in Iraq. And premiering at 8:00 eastern, CNN's John King talks to ordinary Americans about Iraq on voices from the home front.

Straight ahead, you'll hear what Toledo's police chief has to say about yesterday's violence in his city when he joins me for a live interview. You're looking at live pictures right now, right there, of a warehouse fire in Detroit. We'll get the latest on efforts to bring it under control coming up. And in New Orleans, will the beads be flying for Mardi Gras next year? We'll get some answers straight ahead on CNN LIVE SUNDAY.

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