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Iran's Captives; Pet Food Recall Update; Showdown Over Iraq
Aired March 30, 2007 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, everyone. You're with CNN. You're informed.
I'm Tony Harris.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Heidi Collins.
Developments keep coming in to the NEWSROOM on Friday, March 30th.
Here's what's on the rundown.
Iran putting out a new video of captive Britons. One serviceman apologizes for entering Iranian waters. Briton, though, outraged over the video. We hear from one captive's brother this hour.
HARRIS: Pet food recall. Just last hour, the FDA releasing early results of its investigation. The food tainted with a chemical used to make plastics and fertilizer.
COLLINS: Tornadoes whipping up trouble across the Plains. More could hit today, particularly in Texas.
Eye on the storm, in the NEWSROOM.
HARRIS: Heidi, what do you say we get everyone to the severe weather center? Chad Myers is standing by as the watches and warnings start to roll in.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COLLINS: Held captive in Iran and sending a message to the world. New development in the capture of those British service members.
A short time ago, Iran released a third letter purportedly from the only woman among the British captives. CNN cannot verify the authenticity of the handwritten note. Apparently, though, it calls for the withdrawal of British forces from Iraq.
Also this morning, Iran releasing video of another detainee. The serviceman apologizing for entering Iran's waters. Britain, though, denies that ever happened.
Alphonso Van Marsh is in the serviceman's hometown of Hayle, England. He spoke with the man's brother -- Alphonso. ALPHONSO VAN MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, we're here in Hayle. That is the seaside community that is the home of Nathan Thomas Summers.
A very, very interesting developments here, as you've been telling viewers. People very, very concerned in this country about those 15 British service members.
CNN had the chance to spend a few moments with the brother of one of those service members. We sat down with Nick Summers, also serving in the Royal Navy. He said he had a gut feeling when that news broke last Friday that those 15 service British members were, indeed, being held by the Iranians, that one of them was, indeed, his brother. It turns out he was right.
A few moments ago, I sat down and asked him what did he think when he was able to get that confirmation? What happened when he got the news that his brother was indeed being held in Tehran.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NICHOLAS SUMMERS, BROTHER OF BRITISH CAPTIVE: Mostly the government are doing all they can without, you know, escalating the situation into a -- well, I wouldn't say a military phase, but that's obviously -- nobody wants that, nobody. But hopefully the way the government's going about it, it should be -- I assume.
Shock, because obviously you see the things that's in the news day in, day out. But until it actually, you know, hits home, you know, it's just a big shock, basically. I wouldn't -- well -- it just doesn't feel real. I just don't really know how to put it into words basically, but, yes, just a big shock basically.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAN MARSH: Now, Heidi, what's interesting, you may have noticed that very, very calm demeanor, especially given these very trying, trying circumstances. I asked Nick about his brother Nathan, saying, "Is there anything that seemed unusual in that video?" He said his brother is just a very laid-back kind of person, somebody who seemed at ease.
Again, given the stressful circumstances, he said that his brother -- it would be very, very typical for him to kind of be that way, not to be too excited, not to be too nervous. And that if he had a message for his brother Nathan being held in Tehran, it's just to stay the course and that people here are doing everything they can to bring his brother and those other British service members home soon -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Boy, it's got to be a really tough thing to watch, that's for sure, for any family member.
Alphonso Van Marsh, thanks so much.
HARRIS: British military forces not ignoring this latest act of defiance from Iran.
Here with the latest, CNN Pentagon Correspondent Barbara starr.
Barbara, great to see you this morning.
Are the British making moves to perhaps beef up patrols in that region?
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Tony, both British and U.S. forces very aware of, obviously, the growing tensions in the Persian Gulf region. And everyone watching both of those naval forces, the British and the U.S., to see what they are doing.
What we do know is that as of today, the HMS Cornwall, the ship that these British troops were operating out of, has received replenishment replacement forces, if you will. A small platoon of Royal Marines going aboard the Cornwall earlier today. They are called replacement forces for the troops being held in Iran.
Over the next day or so, we also will see, we are told, replacement equipment, more of those Zodiac-type boats going to the Cornwall for the British to use so they can continue their maritime patrol operations. It's all replacement forces at this point. But the U.S. is starting to talk about all of this.
Just a little while ago, during a regularly scheduled news briefing here at the Pentagon, a top U.S. military official characterized the current situation in Iran this way, all of this, saying it is, quote, ".. a delicate situation at a critical stage."
So that's some of the first words now that we are officially hearing from U.S. military officials -- Tony.
HARRIS: Let's stay on that point, the U.S. military. Any moves, say, with aircraft carriers in the region that you can tell us about?
STARR: You know, that's the thing that everybody always watches for when these crises erupt, where are the U.S. Navy aircraft carriers? Well, we also know is that the USS Nimitz will depart from the West Coast of the United States in the next 24 hours or so. It will go to the Persian Gulf.
But again, at this point, it's being called a replacement carrier for the Eisenhower, which is scheduled to leave the area. But at minimum, it does now appear that the U.S. Navy will keep at least two aircraft carriers in the Persian Gulf region for sometime to come. The Nimitz will replace the Eisenhower and the Stennis, that -- the additional -- that other carrier, will remain on station -- Tony.
HARRIS: CNN Pentagon Correspondent Barbara Starr for us.
Barbara, thank you.
COLLINS: New information this hour about that massive pet food recall. Just a short time ago, the Food & Drug Administration updated its investigation. CNN Senior Correspondent Allan chernoff joining us now from New York with the latest.
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SR. CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Heidi.
A toxic chemical that is used as a fertilizer in China has been identified as being in some of this pet food that caused cats and dogs to actually die. This chemical, melamine, was found in the urine and kidneys of some cats that ate food manufactured by the company, Menu Foods. And, of course, you'll recall this is wet pet food.
Now, this chemical, toxic, melamine, is actually used not only as a fertilizer, but it's also used in the manufacture of plastic utensils and plates. Now, the chemical has been traced to wheat gluten that was imported from China. And the FDA actually says that there may be some of this chemical in some dry pet food that is still on the market.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. STEPHEN SUNDLOF, DIRECTOR, FDA CENTER FOR VETERINARY MEDICINE: We believe there is one company that we are aware of that may have gotten a shipment of that wheat gluten, and this is a company that does produce dry food.
We are working with that company. We have notified them. We are trying to determine at this time whether or not they did use that particular product in the manufacture of a dry dog food.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHERNOFF: The FDA is not yet identifying which company actually manufactured that food. They say they have investigators at the factory right now and they're trying to make the determination. As soon as they do, they say they will announce this to the public.
But obviously, this is not calming pet owners at all. To the contrary, it's really raising alarms. A lot of people very concerned that their pets may be exposed to poisonous food right here.
The FDA also says it is now going to be sampling all wheat gluten coming in from China. So they are on the case, but they are not yet giving the all-clear to the pet food that is on the market right now. So certainly, a very concerning situation for pet owners.
COLLINS: Yes, no question about that. It sounds like there's still so many questions to be answered.
I know that the FDA has gotten so many complaints, too, about this dry food.
CHERNOFF: They say they've gotten more than 8,000, approaching 9,000 complaints on this issue. And that's only the people who have actually gone to the trouble of picking up the phone. You can imagine, veterinarians, just a lot of people just getting deluged here. And the FDA says it has 400 employees working on this case right now, 20 offices. This is really a top-priority case for the FDA. So the investigation continues, but today's announcement really does absolutely nothing to calm public anxiety.
COLLINS: No, it certainly doesn't. And those 7,000 -- or nearly 9,000 complaints are just about the dry food. I can only imagine about those who are very concerned that they may have had their pets consuming any of the wet food.
All right, Allan. A lot more to be answered here. We know you'll follow it.
Thank you.
HARRIS: Still to come in the NEWSROOM this morning, a drug used to help calm the tremors in patients with Parkinson's off the market. What the FDA is doing and why.
That story coming up in the NEWSROOM.
COLLINS: Defiant Democrats, a veto threat from the president. The stage is set for a showdown over pulling U.S. troops out of Iraq.
Find out what happens next in the NEWSROOM.
HARRIS: It starts with a sneeze.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The stuffy head, get a headache, the runny nose, the itchy eyes -- you just swell up.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: We all know the symptoms, so what can you do about spring allergies?
Answers ahead in the NEWSROOM.
COLLINS: A plastic bottle, chemicals, and the Internet, it all adds up to a very tough lesson. One teenager learned it the hard way -- ahead in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(WEATHER REPORT)
COLLINS: Want to get this news to you now that we are learning. According to The Associated Press, David Hicks, a 31-year-old Australian, apparently a U.S. military tribunal at Guantanamo Bay has now formally convicted him of providing material support for terrorism.
Interesting, because he has been held there for five years, basically without a charge until now. The tribunal judge, though, accepted Hicks' guilty plea, which happened on Monday, as part of an agreement that will limit his sentence to seven years in prison. Again, on top of the five years he's already been held at Guantanamo.
We'll continue to follow this story once again on David Hicks and the conviction today of providing material support for terrorism.
HARRIS: A defiant Democrat-controlled Congress, a president poised for a veto. Two sides poised on a collision course over Iraq. The Senate has passed a war spending bill calling for the withdrawal of U.S. troops. The president says he won't accept timetables.
Congressional Correspondent Dana Bash joins us from Capitol Hill.
Dana, good morning to you.
Let's start by listening to a little of what the president had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If Congress fails to pass a bill to fund our troops on the front lines, the American people will know who to hold responsible.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: OK, Dana, we've heard a lot of warnings about how crucial the money is. Sort that out, fact, fiction, for us, if you would, please.
DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, what you just heard from the president, that is where the rhetorical fight is right now when it comes to the president versus Democrats in Congress. And even the Pentagon, for that matter.
What we saw here yesterday was very interesting. We saw that most -- the highest-ranking military man in the country, General Peter Pace, making clear before a House committee that if -- he thinks that if they don't get this emergency war funding bill soon, that the money is going to start to run out. And that essentially what he's saying is that troops who are in the field are going to be in trouble.
And that is -- that's a real threat in terms of reality, and also in terms of the political debate here. And that is something that Democrats say, look, first of all, they're pushing back on it, first of all.
HARRIS: Yes.
BASH: They say, you know, that that's not really going to happen. They say that the Pentagon has alternate resources that they can shift around while this -- this debate about just how to use funding to push the policy in Iraq goes forward.
But this is something that you are going to hear more and more often, Tony, from the president and the Pentagon, as the date sort of creeps up. You know, what Democrats say is they think probably by mid-May, the military will be in some real financial straits and they're going to have to probably come to some compromise, at least, on how to deal with this war funding by then.
HARRIS: Timetables and pressure here. Even before this thing gets to the president for that threatened veto, isn't it true the Democrats still have a lot of work to do to sort of keep its side unified?
BASH: That's right. You know, we have been talking, of course, a lot about the fight up and down Pennsylvania Avenue, the veto threat and what Congress will do. But what we have seen over the past couple of weeks is the House Democrats passed one timetable, the Senate passed another.
I won't get into the weeds too much on the differences, but there are significant differences. And here's why it matters -- because both of the Democratic leaders took pains to write their particular timetables.
For example, in the Senate, it's a goal that U.S. troops should be home by this time next year. In the House, it's different. It's hard and fast. And they're going to have to come together before they can even send this war funding bill with the timetable to the president. That may not be as easy as we think.
HARRIS: CNN Congressional Correspondent Dana Bash for us.
Dana, thank you.
BASH: Thank you.
COLLINS: A hospital that treats wounded warriors in critical condition, but on the mend. This morning, the hospital and patients get a visit from the president.
President Bush heads to Walter Reed Army Medical Center this hour. It's his first visit since reports surfaced about shoddy conditions in outpatient housing.
The president will meet with soldiers who were housed in building 18. That's where mold, rodent infestations and other problems were exposed. Three high-level Pentagon officials were forced to step down because of the revelations.
HARRIS: The pet food recall and a government investigation. We will hear the latest from the FDA. That is coming up in the NEWSROOM.
COLLINS: Spring tornadoes rip into the Plains states again, and more storms could bubble up today. We've got an eye on the radar. So does Chad Myers, of course, coming up in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: A setback in the fight against Parkinson's Disease. The FDA pulling the drug Pergolide, sold under the trade name Permax. It's been linked to heart valve problems for years, and recent reports making that link even stronger.
Many doctors had already taken their patients off the medication, but as many as 25,000 people still take it.
HARRIS: Allergy season is definitely here. Let's see these pictures. You know, you get to the place in Atlanta where you have to wear a hazmat suit just to walk around downtown Atlanta. Crazy.
COLLINS: I saw a guy in a mask the other day.
HARRIS: Did you? Yes, it's crazy down here.
What can you do to fight the symptoms? Advice now from CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The stuffy head, get a headache, the runny nose, the itchy eyes -- you just swell up.
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Spring is in the air, quite literally, and that means pollen winds up in our sinuses.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The scratchy throat, cough a little bit, you know, runny eyes.
GUPTA: Allergy experts say this could be a particularly rough year.
DR. ALPEN PATEL, ENT/ALLERGIST: The trend is with global warming and shorter winters that our allergy season is becoming longer.
GUPTA: So how do you know if it's allergies or just a spring cold? A good rule of thumb, colds produce a runny nose that's yellowish, along with a low-grade fever. Allergies are usually colorless. There's not accompanying fever, and itchy eyes, nose and throat. If it's allergies, how do you treat them?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I take Nasacor. I have to take that. I have to take Allegra, Sudafed, you name it.
GUPTA: Sorting out the various prescription and over-the-counter antihistamines, decongestants and nose sprays can be overwhelming.
PATEL: The best home remedy is using salt water spray and just irrigating and cleaning out the nose.
GUPTA: Prescription and over-the-counter medications can help relieve symptoms, but they're no cure. Regardless of where you live, some people are simply predisposed to having bad allergies because of heredity.
PATEL: If you have one parent who suffers from allergies, the chance of an offspring suffering from allergies is nearly 33 to 50 percent. If you have two parents that suffer from allergies, it can be 50 to 65 percent.
GUPTA: Of course living in a high-pollen area can make your allergies worse. To check on the local pollen count, go to the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunologies Web site at aaaai.org, and don't forget the tissues.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: And to get your "Daily Dose" of health news online, log on to our Web site. You will find the latest medical news, a health library, and information on diet and fitness. It's all there. The address, cnn.com/health.
COLLINS: A plastic bottle, chemicals and the Internet. It all adds up to a tough lesson. One teenager learned it the hard way.
We'll tell you the story in the NEWSROOM.
HARRIS: A British detainee on tape. Iran calls it an apology. London calls it outrageous.
Judge for yourself in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: New video, a new letter, no compromise. Iran this morning releasing video of a British detainee. The serviceman apologizing for entering Iran's waters. Britain denies that ever happened. It's voicing outrage over an incident that's stirring concerns around the world.
Let's get the latest now from London and Robin Oakley. He's our European political editor.
Robin, as this propaganda war seems to continue here, what's the British government saying about the standoff?
ROBIN OAKLEY, EUROPEAN POLITICAL EDITOR: Well, they're pretty furious in every way, Heidi. The latest appearance on television of a British sailor, Nathan Thomas Summers, apparently apologizing for entering Iranian waters, and admitting that this had happened before, and that the British government had given assurances it wouldn't happen again. It has infuriated the British government. And we've heard from Tony Blair, saying that it is disgusting for captives to be paraded and manipulated in this way. And basically, he is saying that it isn't doing anything to help Iran's cause.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TONY BLAIR, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: I really don't know why the Iranian regime keep doing this. All it does is enhance people's disgust at captured personnel being paraded and manipulated in this way. It doesn't fool anyone. And what the Iranians have to realize is that if they continue in this way, they will face increasing isolation.
The United Nations yesterday, the European Union today. We'll be talking to other allies over the weekend. And we're just got to pursue this with the necessary firmness and determination, but also patience, because there is only one possible conclusion to this, and that is that our personnel are released safe and sound.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
OAKLEY: Now Tony Blair was speaking before the Iranians released another letter from Faye Turney, the one woman among the 15 captives. And in that, she's kind of ratcheting up, or at least in the words perhaps being given to her by her captor, she's ratcheting up the political side of all this. Because the new letter talks about her and her fellows in the British services being sacrificed to the intervening policies of Bush and Blair. It says she's deeply sorry for entering Iranian waters. And it contrasts her good treatment, which she pays tribute to the Iranians for, with the treatment which she says has been given by American and British authorities in Abu Ghraib and in other jails in Iraq.
And she finishes this letter in her own handwriting, purportedly, by saying, "It is now time to ask our government to make a change to its oppressive behavior towards other people." So the propaganda war is certainly going at full strength -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Yes, I was also interested, too, Robin, because it just seems like it really didn't take very long at all for the issue of Iraq to be played in all of this. There's another line in there that I'm sure you saw as well. It says, "We need to start withdrawing our forces from Iraq and leave the people of Iraq to start rebuilding their lives." What does that have to do with this particular situation at all?
OAKLEY: Yes. Well, it has very little to do with this particular situation. And interestingly, Iranian authorities in previous negotiations with the British authorities have said there was no linkage between this incident, the alleged trespassing in Iranian waters, and any other matters. So they weren't linking it either with the Iraq war or with the taking of five Iranians by the U.S. authorities in Iraq. It's a little bit puzzling that that linkage has been made. But there is a problem now for the British government, which basically their tactics are to isolate Iran, to get more and more international pressure on Iran to release the captives. But Iran is saying, look, for example, bringing in the U.N. Security Council, it's nothing to do with them, says Iran. This is a bilateral matter to be settled between the two countries. And there are technical, and military, and legal and security issues here, which can really only be sorted out by the two countries themselves -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Quickly, any indication that the U.N. Security Council will help step up the pressure?
OAKLEY: No, I think we may get some more news from the European Union today. Foreign ministers meeting in Bremen (ph), in Germany, and they're likely to express further solidarity with Britain and call for the release of the captives -- Heidi.
COLLINS: All right, very good. Robin Oakley, live for us today. Thank you, Robin.
(WEATHER REPORT)
(NEWSBREAK)
HARRIS: All right. It's our favorite story of the day. How about that joy? The big guy's home from war. I love you, daddy, man. It's a teary father and son reunion, coming up for you in the NEWSROOM.
COLLINS: She traded her wedding veil for an Afghan. Now the story of the runaway bride, -- not a new one; it's the same one -- helps the police recruiting drive, believe it or not. Ad campaign unveiled, in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(WEATHER REPORT)
HARRIS: New images, new letters of Iran. This morning Iran aired this video of a British service member. He is among 15 sailors and Marines detained one week ago. On the tape, he apologizes for entering Iran's waters. Earlier today, British Prime Minister Tony Blair called the video outrageous and dismissed it as propaganda.
And just a short time ago, we heard from a brother of Nathan Summers, the man in the videotape.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NICHOLAS SUMMERS, BROTHER OF BRITISH CAPTIVE: I was shocked, because obviously you see the things like this in the news day in, day out. But until actually it hits home, it's just a big shot basically. I wouldn't -- well -- it's just -- it doesn't feel real if you -- I just don't really know how to put it to words basically. But it's just a big shock basically.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Also this morning, Iran released a third letter purportedly from the only woman among the British captives. CNN can't verify whether Faye Turney actually wrote the letter, nor the conditions under which it was written. The handwritten note calls for the withdrawal of British forces from Iraq.
COLLINS: And I'm willing to bet the folks at "YOUR WORLD TODAY," coming up in about 15 minutes or so, alongside Hala Gorani there, will be talking about the same issue -- Hala.
HALA GORANI, CNN ANCHOR: Absolutely, Tony and Heidi, we will be. And it's been a week now that those 15 British Royal Marines and sailors have been captured. You see them there on new video that has aired on Iranian State Television. Well, we are going to be talking to the family of some of those captives.
Also, do you believe in miracles? One French nun says she does, and she says she has late pope John Paul II to thank for a miraculous medical recovery. We will be covering that story. A live report from Paris.
And Middle East idol. We're in the midst of the "American Idol" finals now. Well, this is the Middle Eastern version everyone. It's called "Star Academy." And it's not often that Iraqis have something to celebrate and feel proud of being Iraqi for. Well, the finalist of Middle East Idol is Iraqi. She's making front-page news in Iraq, you guys. You know, side by side, sadly with stories of bombings and sectarian violence. There you have this Iraqi finalist. She moved from Iraq when she was a child. But still, they're claiming her as their own. It's something to celebrate for them. So we're happy for them. And the final is tonight. We'll have a live report from Beirut, and as well from Baghdad.
All right, Hala, appreciate. Thank you. See you at the top of the hour.
HARRIS: Imitation not always so flattering. In fact, sometimes it can be downright dangerous. A Massachusetts teenager tried to imitate a stunt he saw on the Internet, seriously injured, instead.
Here's Victoria Block from our affiliate WHDH.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VICTORIA BLOCK, WHDH REPORTER (voice-over): Jared Richard is at home recovering from a prank that almost took his eyes out.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Feels like there was a bunch of pebbles behind my eyelids.
BLOCK: Could you see anything at the time?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, it was all, like, white and shadowy.
BLOCK (voice-over): He and his friends filled a plastic bottle like this one with a dangerous mix of chemicals, when it exploded in his face in the driveway where they were playing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We put the cap on, shook it up. And then nothing happened. The next time we looked at it, it, like, turned yellow in like a second and just blew up.
BLOCK: They got the idea to build a bomb in a bottle off the Internet, but had no idea it would end like this, with a burned hand and face peeling from the explosion. It could have been a lot worse, had he not been wearing this thick sweatshirt that bleached out from the chemical.
DIANNE RICHARD, MOTHER: It penetrated. You can see the holes that have gone -- the plastic kind of just shattered. It went right through.
BLOCK: The online sites showing kids making bombs is a growing problem for police.
DET. SGT. TIM CASSIDY, SWAMPSCOTT POLICE: That's the problem with these things, they're very volatile. Sometimes they go off within a couple seconds, and sometimes it can take a couple minutes to a day.
BLOCK: It's going to take a good six months before this teenager has his eyesight back. But it's taken this experience for him to see the light.
(on camera): What's the lesson you've learned?
CASSIDY: Just don't do stupid stuff.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: And this, police say they have not ruled out filing charges.
COLLINS: A 6-year-old little boy gets a surprise visit from his dad. Just coming home from Iraq.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's great to be home. Seven months over there. It's nice to see my kids, my wife.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am so ecstatic to have my husband home. I'm so proud of him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Just one of the stories for one of the families involved in the war, and a truly unforgettable one. It's coming up in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: All right. We're going to try to get through this one, one more time. You should grab your tissues though because you will likely need them for this next story.
A U.S. sailor comes home from Iraq and heads straight to his little boy's school for a surprise reunion.
Reporting from western Washington state, Elisa Hann from CNN affiliate KING.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ELISA HAHN, KING REPORTER (voice-over): For the last seven months, Ensign Bill Hawes has been in Iraq, an eternity for his family, especially his 6-year-old son who had no idea his dad was coming home and was surprising him in class.
ENSIGN BILL HAWES, U.S. NAVY: I missed you.
JOHN HAWES: I missed you, too, daddy.
HAHN: All year, the Sedro-Woolley 6-year-old had written letters to his dad. And his kindergarten class at Central Elementary joined in, sending the sailor care packages. A tearful John got to introduce his father to all his pen pals.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What's his name?
J. HAWES: Bill.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is Bill.
B. HAWES: It's great to be home. Seven months over there. Nice to see my kids again, and my wife.
JULIE HAWES, WIFE: I am so ecstatic. I'm so proud of him.
HAHN: The Hawes family was happy to share their joy with the whole class, who all took part in the welcome home party. Sweetest homecoming for a sailor who had been gone too long and for a little boy who dreamed of this day with his dad.
In Sedro-Woolley, Elisa Hahn, KING 5 News.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: You all right?
COLLINS: We're all a mess.
HARRIS: Where's Susan? Can we bring Susan up? Is she OK?
COLLINS: I told them to tell you not to watch Susan because -- I mean, it's a great story but it's just so incredibly sad.
SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That is a beautiful story. You know, frankly, I mean, we can get through that. If that little boy can get through, we can, right?
HARRIS: Yes.
COLLINS: Yes, absolutely.
HARRIS: All right, let's turn our attention to business news right now. I know I'm supposed to say something to lead you into this segment but after that, I can't think of what the heck it is anymore, sorry Susan.
LISOVICZ: Well, now our viewers are going to cry bitter tears because I have some bad news actually.
(BUSINESS HEADLINES) LISOVICZ: Heidi and Tony, back to you, have a great weekend.
HARRIS: Hey, you too, you too Susan.
COLLINS: Thanks, Susan, you too.
Robbery caught on tape. It was captured by one of our i- Reporters. Stick around for this hair-raising story. You will be glad you did. Right here in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Had to show you this before we go. CNN i-Reporter Eddy Haynes caught this little birdie picking the hair from his sleeping collie Apollo. Doesn't seem bothered. Hanes said the bird is using his collie's hair for what else, to build a nest.
HARRIS: OK, and apparently the bird is a what, Heidi, a tufted --
COLLINS: A tufted titmouse.
HARRIS: All right. And Apollo is a dead ringer for Lassie there. Enjoy, all right.
COLLINS: Love it.
Hey, I'm off next week. But Tony will be here. We hope you have a great weekend. Up next, "YOUR WORLD TODAY." Bye, everybody.
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