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The Situation Room

Toxic Spill In China Causing Problems; Volcano To Erupt In Colombia; President Bush's Thanksgiving; Injured U.S. Troops Take Part In Paralympics

Aired November 24, 2005 - 17:30   ET

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

VELSHI: Well, coming up, an environmental nightmare, millions of people left dry when a toxic slick contaminates their drinking water.
Also, we'll get a live update from Colombia where an erupting volcano is spreading ash for miles.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELSHI: Here's a look at some of the Thanksgiving hot shots coming in from the Associated Press.

In Colombia, residents huddle around a radio listening to the latest news and bulletins. The country's on high alert after a 14,000-foot volcano became active at dawn. We'll get an update from Karl Penhaul in Bogota in just a few moments.

Now onto Ft. Riley. Friends and family of the Kansas National Guard have much to be thankful for. The 778 Transportation Company, a unit deployed for 16 months, returned home today.

In Times Square, Thanksgiving's most popular unmashed Potatohead himself takes part in the Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Here in Washington, police officer Antonio Atkins takes a bite of a human turkey outside the Four Seasons Hotel. The hotel helped serve up 300 Thanksgiving meals for first responders on duty this Thanksgiving.

And that's our Thanksgiving addition of hot shots, pictures worth 1,000 words each.

Well, it could be a environmental disaster. It's already a public relations nightmare. In China, an explosion at a chemical plant spews poisonous chemicals into a river. Now, the toxic slick is headed towards Russia. CNN Beijing bureau chief, Jamie Florcruz is with us now. He has details. Jamie, why is this standing out as such an exception in terms of a toxic spill into a river?

JAMIE FLORCRUZ, CNN BEIJING BUREAU CHIEF: Well, it's an exception because of the flat-footed response of local officials. I mean, the slick is caused by this explosion two weeks ago. But it was only about five days ago when the government officials told the public about this impending disaster.

So, now, the nine million residents of Harbin are facing at least four days without running water and a long-term environmental mess. The officials seem to think that this slick of benzene will pass the city in about three days. But many residents are worried about the long-term impact of this economic disaster -- Ali.

VELSHI: Harbin is not a country we all -- that comes to find if someone says name a city in China. Harbin has over four million people right in the city, nine million people, you said, around the area. Is this where they get all their water?

FLORCRUZ: That's correct. No. But the Songhua River, which crosses Harbin and many other cities and empties out of Russia, is Harbin's main source of water supply. And therefore, the city relies on it for industrial needs, as well as the daily needs of the residents.

And so farmers also rely on water. And so this is bound the disrupt the daily lives of the people, but also the city's industrial and other commerce and production. So, this flat-footed response of this government officials has a hint of Katrina and FEMA -- Ali.

VELSHI: And now, and as we're looking at the map on-screen of where this river goes, it goes well into Russia. I don't know enough about how these slicks do or don't dissipate, but it's, you know, going to take a long time to get through Harbin. Is it going to be as damaging all the way into Russia? Is there some better response from the Russian to be expected?

FLORCRUZ: Well, the Chinese say that they're trying to put together some more like carbon and others to absorb this toxic waste. But also, they have warned the cities upstream, including the Russian city, that this slick is coming.

It's expected to take about 20 days to reach the Russian border. But that is not much time to think of this stretch of about 50 miles of a slick of benzene that they are now expecting there.

VELSHI: Miles and miles of a heavily polluted river. Jamie, thanks very much for joining us. Jamie Florcruz in Beijing.

From toxins in the river to fire in the mountain. In Colombia, a volcano that was long thought to be sleeping has awakened, shooting smoke and lava into the sky. CNN's Karl Penhaul is on the phone now from Bogota. Karl, what's the situation in Colombia right now?

KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, 2:46 in the morning, Ali, at local time, that volcano -- the Galeras volcano -- came to life. And it spewed huge piles of dust and ash onto surrounding villages, and also a major city just about seven miles away. That's the city of Pasto and home to almost half a million people.

So when that eruption occurred, along with some significant earth tremors, the authorities went onto high alert, red alert. They said that the volcano is now on alert level one, which effectively means that a major eruption is eminent or could even be underway.

And that's also triggered a response from emergency services, as we speak. They're working to evacuate 5,000 people from some of the villages in the skirts of that volcano, Ali.

VELSHI: Karl, evacuating because they're expecting more? But with volcanoes we never know when that's going to happen. What's the contingency? Where do the 5,000 people and perhaps more, because of the number of people in the region -- where would they go? What is around for them as they wait this out?

PENHAUL: At least 11 hostels and temporary shelters have been set up, in some cases in the rural areas host a little more than 10 cities. And then as you move into the main city of Pasto, then there are solid shelters there.

Also, some of the people from the outlying villages are likely to have relatives in Pasto. But even one of the important neighbors of the major city itself has been evacuated, those citizens being boarded everywhere else. But, of course, as you say, very difficult to predict.

Even the experts have difficult predicting as to whether today's event means that there's another major eruption on the way. They suspect there is. And for that reason, they're trying to get the people out. Because once another eruption is underway, it's going to be way too late then, Ali.

VELSHI: Karl, we have the images of Pakistan and the people who are stuck in the mountain there's after the earthquake. This is a 14,000-foot mountain, a 14,000-foot volcano. Those are among the biggest in the world. What is it -- what are the living conditions in and around that area? And what's the weather like? It must be quite cold at this point.

PENHAUL: Certainly quite cold at this point. At that altitude -- we're talking, as you say, 14,000 feet to the peak of the volcano. There's about seven village in the skirts of that volcano, home to about 10,000 people.

And then, seven miles away, we've got the city of Pasto, home to half a million people. Now, there was a lot of ash and these dust clouds falling on the city of Pasto in the course of the day. The big problem is, if they can't get these people to evacuate voluntarily from these villages right now, if there is another eruption, then by then it will be too late. And then, there could be major disaster then, Ali.

VELSHI: Karl Penhaul, reporting from Bogota, Colombia. Thank you for joining us. For another look at the volcano that's erupting in Colombia, let's take it over to Abbi Tatton for the situation online -- Abbi.

ABBI TATTON, CNN INTERNET REPORTER: Ali, this is the site of the Colombian Institute of Geology. They have pictures, aerials from the last few days from this volcano. And they also have the advisory that was posted early this morning when the new activity started.

But what's interesting is from the observatory at Pasto, that city just seven miles way, they have a webcam trained on the volcano. So you can go online at home and have a look at what's going on there. And you can also see how close it is, that volcano there, looming over the buildings in the foreground, Ali.

VELSHI: All right, Abbi Tatton. Thanks so much.

Still to come, President Bush has been at his Texas ranch since Tuesday. We're going to tell you how he's spending the Thanksgiving holiday and the connection that he's making with some U.S. troops.

Also, how badly do shoppers want to get hold of the new Xbox 360 from Microsoft? See for yourself. We'll have the story ahead in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELSHI: President Bush -- this is one of the mainstays of our industry. We get to get the menu of what the president is eating at Thanksgiving. I'm not sure what we're all meant to do with that information. But in case you're wondering, the meal today was free- range turkey and cornbread dressing.

And then he picked up the phone, the president, to chat with U.S. service members. Outside of his Texas ranch, however, protesters were having a Thanksgiving meal of their own. Our own -- CNN's Elaine Quijano is around there. I don't know whether she got to partake of either of those meals, but she'll tell us what's going on. Elaine, good to see you.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, good to see you too, Ali. I can tell you I didn't partake in any of those meals. But as for the president, on the serious side, you mentioned the president making phone calls to service members, 10 U.S. service members in all, from all branches of the military. Among them, a person serving in Afghanistan, several serving in Iraq and one on a ship at sea.

Now, the president, the commander in chief, calling them patriots, thanking them. And he asked them to pass along his wishes to other service members. Now, as for the rest of the president's day, we understand that he went on a bike ride with his chief of staff, Andy Card, and is spending the rest of this Thanksgiving day with his family, of course, his wife, his daughters, his parents and his mother-in-law.

Meantime, down the road from the president's ranch, demonstrators gathered, several dozen demonstrators. Perhaps 40 or 50, perhaps more as the evening wears on, but they gather for what they called an Iraqi-style -- or an Iraqi meal of rice and lentils. Now, these demonstrators also saying prayers, in order to mark this Thanksgiving holiday.

Unlike yesterday, though, Ali, no arrests this time. These demonstrators gathering on a piece of private property, where they were allowed to be. Well, tonight, the numbers could certainly swell. Anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan is expected to arrive here in Texas. And some more demonstrations are planned in the days to come -- Ali. VELSHI: Elaine, what are we meant to read into fewer protesters? I mean, do people get in there? Isn't there sort of a plan to when they're going to protest and when they get there, and it's not sort of random people who show up, right?

QUIJANO: Well, yes, and no. Actually, one of the big differences, as you're, I think, alluding to, is that this time around, they're not really being managed, if you will, by a public relations firm unlike in August, when you remember there were those throngs of people.

It started off as a sort of a smaller, grassroots kind of movement, but then, as it gained momentum, they actually had a PR firm from Washington come in and help them with some of the media management, if you will, with Cindy's appearances and also helping to organize some of their efforts.

This time, though, we found out that's not the case. It's really being organized in large part by Cindy Sheehan, her sister, DeeDee Miller. And at this point, we understand that there aren't any plans for the communications firm to take over, at least not in the near future -- Ali.

VELSHI: All right. You'll be on top of anything going on over there. Good to talk to you again, Elaine. Elaine Quijano in Crawford, Texas.

Let's get a check of the weather right now. CNN's Bonnie Schneider keeping us on top of that in at the CNN Center in Atlanta. Bonnie, what's going on?

(WEATHER REPORT)

VELSHI: All right, Bonnie. Thanks for keeping us posted. Bonnie Schneider, at the CNN Center in Atlanta.

Up next, tomorrow if you are looking for Microsoft's Xbox, take a pair of brass knuckles with you. Some shoppers are literally fighting to have this must-have holiday item. And they're already sold out in stores. We'll tell you the reasons behind the hype.

And it's no ordinary sporting event, some disabled athletes with extraordinary abilities. We're going to tell you about them, who they are and why the games mean so much.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELSHI: All right. With a dose of turkey and 14 news reports an hour, Zain Verjee, as soon as she gets off her shift is going to -- she's not going to make it home. You're just going to crawl under that desk and snooze for a while.

ZAIN VERJEE, CNN ANCHOR: Aren't you tired of me yet? Don't you get fed up?

VELSHI: No. We're loving having you here. VERJEE: Right. All right. Then I suppose I should do this again.

VELSHI: Please, do.

VERJEE: All right. Thank you. Thank you very much.

It looks like Saddam Hussein's trial will go forward on Monday in Baghdad. Attorneys for the ousted Iraqi president say they've ended their boycott of the trial, but they say they're still worried about their safety.

Two members of Saddam Hussein's defense team were killed shortly after the trial began last month. The remaining attorneys have been negotiating their security concerns with U.S. officials.

In Pakistan, aid workers are racing against time to reach remaining survivors of last month's deadly earthquake. U.N. officials say relief workers have reached about 95 percent of the survivors.

At least 73,000 people were killed, but U.N. officials are saying they are still trying to get to other survivors who lived in the remote mountainous regions before the arrival of what could be an extremely harsh winter. The head of the U.N. Refugee Agency says that he's concerned about their fate.

One of the holiday season's hottest items triggered a free-for- all. Three hundred people were waiting outside a Maryland Wal-Mart on Monday for Microsoft's new Xbox 360 video game player. Some had been there for 12 hours.

But then, a store manager said that the Xboxes will be given out first come, first serve. They're not on a numbered system. And that triggered a huge melee and police had to break it up. And in the end, Wal-Mart canceled the sale, Ali.

VELSHI: Zain, if I thought I was getting you an Xbox for Christmas, and it was sold out, I would get you a lovely card and say sometime in January, you're going to get yourself an Xbox. Getting into a fight for an Xbox?

VERJEE: I don't want an Xbox. I want new Prada shoes that I saw in Nordstrom. Thanks.

VELSHI: Thanks for -- it's always good to let people know. However, while Zain wants her Prada shoes, apparently lots of people do actually want the Xbox 360. You might try getting one online. They are available there. Internet reporter Abbi Tatton has the latest on that -- Abbi.

ABBI TATTON, CNN INTERNET REPORTER: Well, Ali, I've been tracking it all day online. If you go to some of the sites -- bestbuy.com, Circuit City, you see lots of coming soon, not available right now. But people are going to eBay to try and get ahold of them.

Now, the basic model is selling for about $300 -- not on eBay, generally -- and the premium for about $400. But on eBay, it's selling for more like around $700, $800. Here's a typical one that went for about $830. This person said he cued up for eight hours and then, his wife made him sell it.

Look at what people are doing, like this woman. They're proving that look, I have this in my possession. I will ship it to you.

VELSHI: Can you just take a picture of me? Can we look at this for a second?

TATTON: Oh, you've got one as well over there.

VELSHI: Well, I have got a box. I can take a picture of this box and put it on TV and tell you I have an Xbox in it, and then you can pay me the money. No clue whether there's an Xbox in here or not.

TATTON: Is there an Xbox in there, Ali?

VELSHI: There, in fact, is because unless -- either that, or else somebody put something very heavy in there. We do have an Xbox. I wouldn't know what to do with it, but be careful. Buyer beware. Picture doesn't tell you anything.

TATTON: Absolutely. But we trust you, Ali.

VELSHI: Thanks, Abbi. I trust you, too.

Up next, the rush of the competition, the thrill of winning. Ordinary highs for intense athletes, except they are not ordinary competitors. Stay with us; we'll show you why.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELSHI: Some wounded U.S. servicemen and women are confronting new challenges back at home. Zain Verjee has got that story -- Zain.

VERJEE: Ali, the adjustment for thousands of veterans with new disabilities can be tough. But some of them have found the perfect opportunity.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VERJEE (voice-over): Tim and Janice Gustafson used to run together all the time. They still to.

SGT. TIM GUSTAFSON, U.S. ARMY: My initial thought process was, you know, my wife's not going to want to stay with me. I'm not going to be able to walk again, run again.

VERJEE: Gustafson lost the bottom of his right leg when his Humvee drove over an anti-mine in January, in eastern Iraq. Faced with that life-altering challenge, Gustafson recently attended the U.S. Paralympic Military Summit, seeking even more challenges.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Seventy-five percent of power because you don't have a calf on the other side, has to come from this hip. T. GUSTAFSON: It's an opportunity to kind of stare injury and defeat and even the insurgents right in the face and say, no, you're going stopping me, not today, not tomorrow, not ever.

VERJEE: Dozens of soldiers injured in Iraq and Afghanistan learned how to compete in swimming, archery, cycling, sailing and track and field. The summit was organized by the United States Olympic Committee, partly to find more paralympic athletes, but mostly to help the wounded find themselves again.

JOHN REGISTER, PARALYMPIC ACADEMY: The first challenge is not really so much sport. It's the identity. You know, who am I now? Am I still a father? Am I still a husband to, you know, my wife or -- a wife to my husband? I don't know who I am right now.

JANICE GUSTAFSON, TIM'S WIFE: It makes me feel proud and happy and also very excited for the future. What's more? This is ten months out. What's next? What's the next thing he wants to tackle?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Looking good. You never threw before?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No sir.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're recruiting.

REGISTER: They say hey, I never even knew this was out here for myself, and let alone my other buddies that I can go back to Walter Reed or I can back to Brooklyn Medical Center or Balboa and they have a hospital, and say, there are still some sports out there that we can really participate in. And you know what? We can be pretty good at it too.

T. GUSTAFSON: It's very clear to me now that really the only limitation we have is the limitation we place on ourselves. And that's not something special to the amputee; that's something special to the spirit of human beings.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VERJEE: The paralympics have been an official part of the U.S. Olympic Committee since 2001, Ali.

VELSHI: Zain, we'll see you at 7:00. We're back on THE SITUATION ROOM at 7:00. Now, to "LOU DOBBS TONIGHT" with Kitty Pilgrim in New York.

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