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Fireworks Killings; Extreme Weather; London Train Derailment; Prescription Drug Abuse; U.S. Troops In Germany

Aired July 05, 2007 - 10:00   ET

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

JOY BENEDICT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Now you can see that appears this scene happened right here in front of this lawn on this green house. And you can see signs have already been place up in remembrance of these young people who lost their lives.
Now Police tell us that a young man, Jake Fightner (ph), who lived at this home, a college student, was here at his father's house. He was shooting off fireworks with a group of friends, neighbors, folks he grew up with. They've been here every year to sort of celebrate the Fourth of July.

And that's when the neighbor to the right, in the beige house, came outside and just opened fire. He shot and killed Jake. He shot and killed two of his friends. He also shot and injured two more friends.

Now one of their mothers tells me that the gunman pointed the gun at her son's girlfriend. Her son, Donny (ph), then jumped in front of his girlfriend and he was hit in the elbow. It went through his elbow, the bullet did, and then struck his girlfriend in the hand. Both of them are OK. They were treated and released from the hospital. And, actually, it's Donny that came here earlier to put up these signs in remembrance and for respect of Jake's family.

As we said, what's even more upsetting to this community is that this neighbor, the man that the police have in custody, is a Cleveland firefighters. A 35-year-old. A father. A husband. And it's not clear yet -- police don't know what, if any, motive he had in this shooting. But it appears all of this may be have sparked by too much noise. He was upset that the noise that the fireworks were making just after midnight.

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Joy, wait a minute. Hold on a second. There's got to be more to this than just fireworks, which you would expect, and the noise associated with the fire works on the Fourth of July. Any history of past problems between these neighbors?

BENEDICT: You know, one neighbor said they may have had some sort of a feud, but Jake's family has lived here as long as Jake's been alive. He's 24 years old. The firefighter moved in about three years ago with his family. He has two young children.

A neighbor had told us that he was upset because his kids were sleeping, all under the age of four, and he wanted the fire works to stop. But neighbors say they didn't see any exchange as far as, you know, please stop shooting off fire works. And it's not like Jake was the only person out here shooting off fireworks. There were several neighbors that were enjoying the Fourth of July and celebrating in that sort of way just after midnight.

So, I mean, you would hope that there was another reason for these three young people to lose their lives. But right now it's just certainly sadness here in this community that's just sort of got to try and move on.

HARRIS: And I know that area pretty well, Joy. Where exactly -- what neighborhood are we talking about there in Cleveland?

BENEDICT: It's Cleveland's southwest side. It's just south of downtown, off of Skylane Drive. That's where it is. This is actually a neighborhood where a lot of police officers and firefighters live in. So, I mean, this is a nice neighborhood. This is where a lot of our men and women who serve our community come and choose to set up and live.

And, actually, I heard from another neighbor that it was actually a police officer who lived maybe four or five houses down that ran over and got the gun out of the accused's hands.

HARRIS: Call the cops. Call the cops. All right, Joy, thanks for your time this morning. Appreciate it. Horrible story.

MELISSA LONG, CNN ANCHOR: A child is in critical condition this morning. A mother and two children dead. It happened during a Fourth of July barbecue. A van plunged into a pond. Police in Bridgeport, Connecticut, says Michelle Macintosh had gotten out of the minivan, noticed it was rolling away, managed to jump back in just before the van sank. The woman was killed, along with two children. She was the mother of at least one of those youngsters. Authorities are trying to determine what caused the vehicle to start rolling.

HARRIS: Investigating Fourth of July boating deaths this morning. Two children drowned when a small boat overturned on the lake in Memphis, Tennessee. Police say they're not sure if everyone was wearing a life jacket and they say the boat may have been overloaded with four children and two adults onboard.

LONG: Summertime sizzle. This day after the Fourth of July, many Americans are wake up to extreme and dangerous weather. A real scorcher in the west. Temperatures well into the triple digits. Excessive heat warnings are in effect. And elsewhere people are cleaning up from flooding and facing new storms in the southern plains. CNN's Chris Lawrence is in Las Vegas where this could go down as the hottest day ever, ever recorded. But first, meteorologist Rob Marciano is keeping an eye on the temperatures in the CNN Weather Center.

Good morning, Rob.

(WEATHER REPORT)

LONG: And as Rob just showed you, we do know exactly where Chris Lawrence is today in Las Vegas checking on the temperatures there. Let's check in with Chris.

Good morning, Chris.

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey. Good morning, Melissa.

You know, you know it's going to be an extremely dangerous day when at 7:00 in the morning our thermometer's already reading 91 degrees. You know, the all-time record here in Las Vegas is 117 degrees. The forecast today? 116.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LAWRENCE, (voice over): Nevada is sizzling under an extreme heat warning. And temperatures are still soaring.

JOHN MILLER, LAS VEGAS RESIDENT: This heat is oppressive. It will kill you. I mean there's people that die all the time in the heat.

LAWRENCE: Each year, about 175 people nationwide die from heat- related causes.

As hot as it is outside, it's that much worse inside of a car. Which is about the worst place you can leave kids or pets in this kind of heat. As we start our experiment, it's already about 114 degrees inside.

I've only been in the car about 10 minutes and it's already at 125 degrees. I'm sweating and it's definitely a lot harder to breathe.

OK. It's been 15 minutes and it's soaring past 135 degrees in here. I'm sweating from literally every pore in my body and it's unthinkable to think of a little child or a pet in a car for that long.

In this weather, heat exhaustion can quickly become heat stroke.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Once you start getting over 105, you can really start to feel it.

LAWRENCE: Doctors are urging people to stay inside, but that's not an option for a 16-year-old training for a college scholarship.

ASIA MUHAMMAD, TENNIS PLAYER: It's like a bunch of hot air just going in your face. So it makes you breathe harder.

LAWRENCE: Not everyone is exerting themselves. The Palms Casino Resort is used to being one of the hottest spots in Las Vegas. Just not quite so literally. Hundreds of people guzzled water, slapped on the sunscreen and packed the pool in bungalows to cool off any way they could.

Carly Mullins compared this heat to her hometown in Charlotte.

CARLY MULLINS, LAS VEGAS TOURIST: It's definitely a lot hotter. You can't even step down on the concrete. It's very, very hot.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LAWRENCE: Yes, and it's only going get hotter. Doctors are urging people to drink a lot of water, wear hats and long sleeve, light clothing, and especially to avoid alcohol which in Las Vegas is probably easier said than done.

Melissa.

LONG: Chris, what are some of the signs that people want to keep an eye out for? Signs of heat exhaustion?

LAWRENCE: The first thing is you start sweating profusely. I mean really intense sweat. And then you get very, very tired, almost disoriented. That's the key sign that you may be suffering from heat exhaustion. And it's important to keep an eye on that because the next step beyond that is heat stroke and that can kill you.

LONG: Chris Lawrence live from the strip in Las Vegas.

Chris, thank you.

HARRIS: So the weather story in extremes. It seems it's been this way for the last couple of weeks. Rob Marciano back in the weather center right now.

And, Rob, flooding in the plains and here we go again.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: Raw nerves in Great Britain. London police say an accident, not terrorism, caused today's subway derailment. Welcome news after the failed car bomb attacks. And it's not the only encouraging development today. CNN's Karl Penhaul is in London.

Karl, good to see you.

What can you tell us about the terror alert level?

KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Tony, British authorities have dropped that terror alert level from the critical to severe level. And basically what the home secretary, Jacqui Smith, has been saying about that, is that is because there is no intelligence to indicate that there are any further attacks that is imminent. She said that that intelligence was based on an assessment of the capability and the time scale of any information that was out there. In layman's terms, according to security sources that we've talked to, they say that the threat level has been dropped because essentially British police believe that they've rolled up most of this terror cell that was behind this plot.

Now in other developments, Tony, looking towards Baghdad, in fact, an Anglican, a British Anglican cleric based there, Canon Andrew White, said that he had been at a meeting in Jordan, in fact, back in April, and that meeting was involving Iraqi clerics and Iraqis. It was revolving around some ways of bringing peace to Iraq. And he said, the Canon said, that at that stage he met with an Iraqi or a gentleman that came in from Syria to Jordan. And in the course of conversation, he issued a warning saying that those who cure you will kill you.

Now, in hindsight, and in the events of what happened here on Friday and over the weekend, Canon Andrew White has now said that he believes that was a reference to the bomb plots here in London and in Glasgow. But, obviously, that a further strand of this investigation.

Tony.

HARRIS: Yes. In the meantime, Karl, what happened with the London subway system this morning?

PENHAUL: Well, certainly you know it's a little bit jangled here. But, in fact, on the central line, one of those subway trains derailed. The front six carriages came off. Eleven people were taken to hospital injured and essentially 350 people were trapped there for about two hours until the problem could be fixed. Authorities have come forward and said clearly that this is not a question of terrorism. They believe that there was something on the rail line that caused the train to derail.

Tony.

HARRIS: CNN's Karl Penhaul for us in London.

Karl, thank you.

LONG: Fireworks, misfires, explosions gone bad as the nation celebrates the Fourth of July.

HARRIS: Wildfire on the French Riviera. Tourists evacuated. Must-see pictures.

LONG: Al Gore's only son busted, booked and out on bail. He is facing drug charges. We're going to check into the alarming use and abuse of prescription drugs among young people.

HARRIS: A flag controversy put to rest at last. We will show you how a new law will help communities honor fallen service members. You're in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LONG: The son of former Vice President Al Gore is out on bond. Al Gore III accused of driving his Prius 100 miles an hour on a freeway in San Diego. He is charged with felony drug possession. Sheriffs deputies said they found marijuana and prescription drugs in his car. Here with more, CNN medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen.

And let's first talk about the prescription drugs that he had in his vehicle, allegedly had in his vehicle with him. They are more and more common among people. ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They are. I mean parents these days thing, oh, I'm worried about my kids smoking pot or doing cocaine, because that was the most popular when they were kids. And sure, of course, that's always a concern.

But parents really need to realize that nowadays the drugs of choice are often prescription drugs. That's what the kids are doing these days. And a lot of kids think, oh, well they must be relatively safe. I mean a doctor prescribes them and they come in a bottle. Well, of course, they can be deadly if used the wrong way.

So the young Mr. Gore was found with Valium, according to the police, Valium, Xanax, Vicodin and Adderall. Let's look at how popular these drugs are with young people today. There was a survey that looked at college students.

The percent of college students abusing drugs like Xanax and Valium went up 450 percent. Those are tranquilizers. Up 343 percent for opioids like Vicodin and OxyContin, and up 93 percent for stimulants like Adderall and Ritalin. And actually I was talking to some young people and they said they thought that 93 percent number was way to low. That Adderall is the drug of choice for many young people.

LONG: Ninety-three percent's a huge spike, but the others are amazing really.

COHEN: Right. Right.

LONG: OK. So Valium, Xanax, Vicodin, but Adderall? That's for ADD?

COHEN: Right. That's for ADD. It's a legitimate drug used to treat both adults and children with ADHD. And a lot of people haven't heard of Adderall as a drug of abuse. But again, it's very, very popular among young people.

One of the reasons is many young people have easy access. They've been prescribed it for ADHD and so they just share it or sell it to their friends. It's a stimulant. It will keep you up. You can study all night. You can party all night. The young people and the college counselors and those kind of people that I've talked to said Adderall, far and away, that is the prescription drug of abuse.

LONG: And pretty available, too, because of all the diagnosis.

COHEN: Right.

LONG: Now I think a lot of people are probably curious about the young Gore and his history. What do we know about substance abuse in his past?

COHEN: We know, unfortunately, this is not the first time that he's had a problem. This has been going on for years and his family says that he is now in treatment. He's actually been in and out of substance abuse programs for years. In 2003, he was arrested for marijuana possession. In 2002, the charge was DUI. So this has been going for a while.

And when you think about it, I mean, the Gore family, they have the money, they have the connections to get their son the treatment they need and look how long this has gone on. Even when you have the money, even when you have the connections, these are extremely hard addictions to fight.

LONG: Medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen, thank you so much.

COHEN: Thank you.

LONG: And we could learn more tonight from young Gore's father. Former Vice President Al Gore is Larry King's guest this evening, 9 p.m. Eastern on CNN television.

HARRIS: U.S. troops, do they face a hidden danger lurking far from the battlefield? New concerns about the risk of terrorism in the heart of Europe.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LONG: Good morning to you. 10:21 on Wall Street. The markets have been open 51 minutes now. Taking a look. The Dow is down a little more than 20. The Nasdaq up two. Mixed bag this morning. We'll continue to follow the markets and you can do so on your desktop at cnnmoney.com.

HARRIS: On duty and in peril? The failed terror strikes in Great Britain drive new concerns about American troops in Germany. Here's CNN international security correspondent Paula Newton.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): It's the kind of incident that brings terror to your doorstep. The Glasgow Airport blast a reminder for people like Melanie Buckley, an American wife and mother living with her husband who is posted with the U.S. military in Germany. She says she's not paranoid about living in Europe, but . . .

MELANIE BUCKLEY, WIFE OF MILITARY OFFICER: Things like this. This vehicle that is a van that could be carrying anything.

NEWTON: Even before Britain's latest terror plot, Buckley gave CNN a guided tour of what she says are security soft spots at U.S. military facilities in Germany. For security reasons, we won't show you all of it, but her point is chillingly candid. She's afraid American families are sitting ducks here.

BUCKLEY: The extremists or the terrorists that would like to make a statement against Americans would, of course, like to get a hold of American children and American families.

NEWTON: Lieutenant Colonel Timothy Wulff is the garrison commander in Wiesbaden, in charge of security. His wife and five children all live here. What do you say to families here who feel the security just quite isn't what it should be?

LT. COL. TIMOTHY WULFF, GARRISON COMMANDER: We go and tell them the truth. From my perspective, be it something where there was a credible, specific threat directed against the U.S. military and its families.

NEWTON: And we're not at that point yet?

WULFF: No. No.

NEWTON: In fact, most of the U.S. installations here are heavily guarded. Not just the main bases, but barracks too. But there are still a few highly visible and very accessible U.S. facilities.

Earlier this year, the German media reported five suspects were questioned after allegedly casing U.S. living quarters in Germany. They were not charged.

WULFF: We trust the Germans are taking care of us. But it is a concern. So when we do talk to our soldiers and family members, we just asked them to practice some common sense stuff.

NEWTON: But keeping them safe is becoming more complicated. In recent weeks, the German government has admitted that the terror threat is as high as its ever been.

WOLFGANG SCHAEUBLE, GERMAN INTERIOR MINISTER, (through translator): The threat is real. We are part of a threatened region. The threat is serious and it must be taken seriously.

NEWTON: German officials describe it as similar to the lead-up to 9/11. Three of those hijackers planned their attacks from Germany. The so-called Hamburg Cell. And then last year security cameras identified two suspects easily planting suitcase bombs on trains. Luckily, they didn't work, but it was a very close call. They are now on trial.

Despite these threats, some of the American living quarters in Germany are still open to the public. Anyone, just as CNN did, can just drive on to the post where soldiers and their families live and go to school.

And some Americans just aren't comfortable with that, fearing security is too inconsistent, especially given the very different type of terror threat here in Europe.

BUCKLEY: I just think it leaves us vulnerable to any type of extremist that may have a grudge against America.

NEWTON: Security is a sensitive topic here. Many soldiers and their families say they don't want to live in an armed camp in the heart of Europe. One officer who's been in Germany for more than three years is more relaxed. MAJ. ROBERT HOWE, WIESBADEN GARRISON: Even with some of the increased threat levels that will ebb and flow in this area, honestly, I feel very safe here.

NEWTON: Under increasing threat, though, there seems no simple answer to keeping such a highly visible group of Americans safe overseas.

Paula Newton, CNN, Wiesbaden, Germany.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LONG: A British hostage freed. A militant group praised? A PR battle in a war-torn region.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: And coming up on the bottom of the hour. Good morning.

LONG: Good morning.

HARRIS: Hey, Melissa.

Welcome back, everyone, to the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Tony Harris.

LONG: I'm Melissa Long, in today for Heidi Collins.

Perhaps she's wondering as well, we're all wondering how high will the temperatures climb today. That's really the latest bet in place in Vegas, which has been hit by extreme heat. The record there, 117 degrees. It could get close to that again today. Officials are urging people throughout Nevada, stay inside as much as possible. And this is the mom role you play, the mom and dad role, right, wear light clothing. What else?

HARRIS: Yes, absolutely. Beautiful. Light clothing, stay indoors, OK, really. Let's just be sensible about this. Stay indoors where it's cooler. If you must go out, lots and lots and lots -- can I say it again? Lots of water, please. There you go.

LONG: Stay cooling centers are being opened in California as well. And, no surprise, utilities are asking people please conserve the power.

HARRIS: How hot is hot? Let's check in now, Rob Marciano, in the Severe Weather Center.

Good to see you, Rob.

(WEATHER REPORT)

LONG: Continue to talk about the holiday and holiday fireworks gone awry. One woman dead in Michigan, at least two dozen people injured in numerous other states. Explosion, this fireworks tent north of Tampa, Florida, lit up the night sky. Police say one woman fell, and sprained her leg trying to flee the flames. The woman says her son suffered minor burns and there is a report of an arrest on arson charges.

In Washington, three workers were hurt after a fireworks left over from a spectacular National Mall display exploded and then to Omaha, Nebraska, a little 5-year-old girl was critically burned when fireworks hit her during a Fourth of July block party.

HARRIS: Hamas seized gaza in a bloody takeover, but can the militant group also help broker peace in the Middle East? The question looms large now that Hamas is credited with helping to free a British correspondent taken hostage.

CNN's Kyle Perry takes a closer look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KYLE PERRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A military takeover June 14th by Hamas. Gunmen ushered in a new era for Gaza and provided Hamas with a great photo opportunity, posing for pictures inside the Fatah presidential compound. The green flags of Hamas waved with pride.

Hamas promised law and order and vowed to resolve the Alan Johnston situation. The BBC reporter kidnapped by Palestinian militants believed to be members of a little-known terror group, Army of Islam.

On Wednesday Hamas made good on its promise, forcing Johnston's release and parading him in front of the cameras, creating yet another photo opportunity. Even Johnston himself was quick to credit the Hamas takeover for his freedom.

PAUL JOHNSTON, BBC CORRESPONDENT: The change in Gaza when Hamas took control, maybe that changed the atmosphere completely. They -- Hamas has a huge law and order agenda and they wanted to stop the kidnapping and the kidnappers were nervous from that point onwards. It was at that point that they began to -- that they made me make the video in which I was put on this explosive vest.

PERRY: Of course, Palestinian sossity is in the midst of a power struggle. Politics is everything and the Fatah party which is at odds with Hamas was quick to question their motives.

RIYAD AL-MALIKI, PALESTINIAN JUSTICE MINISTER: It is very clear that we do believe that Hamas stands behind his abduction and his release. Hamas used its own proxies to abduct him and to use his -- him as a bargaining card to gain political gains.

PERRY: Hamas has another potential bargaining card. Gilad Shalit, the Israeli soldier kidnapped over a year ago.

GHAZI HAMAD, PALESTINIAN GOVT. SPOKESMAN: We are interested in releasing Gilad Shalit but also we want to release our Palestinian prisoners because we have 10,000 Palestinians in the Israeli jail.

MARK REGEV, ISRAELI FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESMAN: Israelis understand the pain of having a hostage, one of our own servicemen has been held hostage by Hamas for more than a year. And just as we hoped for Alan Johnston's safe release, we hope now that our own serviceman, held now for over a year, will be released shortly, safely back to his family and friends.

PERRY: By engineering Johnston's release, Hamas demonstrates its control of Gaza, unknown as yet whether it will use this control to offer Israel a deal for Gilad Shalit's freedom. Kyle Perry, CNN Jerusalem.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: And here to assess the clout and the future role of Hamas, a veteran reporter, Jim Clancy. Jim, a lot of miles in the Middle East. You log a lot of miles over there. You know the story very well. You see Jim at noon, right here, Eastern time on YOUR WORLD TODAY. Good to see you, my friend.

JIM CLANCY, CNN ANCHOR: Good to see you.

HARRIS: Alan Johnston yesterday. Gilad Shalit perhaps tomorrow. Can Hamas effect this release or are we talking about a negotiation here?

CLANCY: Well, we're obviously talking about the price is right and the right price is going to be a prisoner release. Now, you see that you've got Hamas, they are holding Shalit. He is in their basement chained to their radiator, if the price is right they will release him and that will elevate their position.

Hamas is trying to be the party of security right now there in the territories. It wants to be the address that you have to come to if you want the rockets to stop, if you want the prisoners released. They are in the abduction trade.

Today they used gunfire to prevent municipal workers from reporting to jobs because they have set a different workweek than has Fatah.

HARRIS: Yes.

CLANCY: Also today you saw that the tunnels, they had a shootout with the Israelis over some tunnel work that the Israelis were trying to do.

HARRIS: Right. What happens -- you just mentioned that Hamas is trying to be viewed as bringing security to what's been described as Gaza, the lawless. What happens if they're able to do that? by all accounts it's pretty quiet in Gaza right now.

CLANCY: It's pretty clear that they're going to be able to bring order there. What's not clear is what kind of order will it be? Some believe that it may be an Islamic state where people are told what to think, they're told what to wear, they're told when to go where.

HARRIS: Yes, so, if you're able to bring some law and order, however it looks and whatever it means and you're able to effect the release of two high-profile hostages, does it then change the dynamics there? Does the West now have to begin to force Fatah to, perhaps, look at starting talks again at forming another unit. We're talking a million five people in Gaza.

CLANCY: You're talking about a situation her that's much larger than Gaza itself because what it's saying is abductions work, that the rule of the gun will work. They will effect a release of Gilad Shalit if, as I said, the price is right and they get the Palestinian prisoners that they want released from Israeli jails and if that happens what will Mahmoud Abbas have to show? He had negotiations. He's the party of politics in this while Hamas is really the party of security.

HARRIS: Yes.

CLANCY: And he has nothing to show for any of the negotiations that he's done.

HARRIS: Beautiful. So, what is the role of Abbas and what is that the West is pushing him to do? Is it simply enough for Abbas to be able to say, look, I am the king of the West Bank and Hamas is a militant group and not work to bring some kind of unity for all of the Palestinian territories?

CLANCY: Well, unity, perhaps, next, but right now what he's looking at is a real dilemma here. Number one, Fatah has to address the corruption problem. This is what lost them the election to Hamas in the first place. Second of all, he's got to be able to disarm, first his own militia, the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades and he's got to disarm them and then convince Hamas to give up its guns. He's trying to do that today.

You saw the Prime Minister coming out basically begging the Israelis to stop the raids in the West Bank so they can move ahead because the excuse of the militants on the West Bank is we can't give up our guns, the Israelis are still pursuing us.

HARRIS: A big PR moment for Hamas yesterday with the words from Alan Johnston?

CLANCY: Some what, I don't think that's going to persuade the West in any way, shape or form to suddenly embrace Hamas. That's not going to happen.

HARRIS: Absolutely right.

Jim Clancy, good to see you. "YOUR WORLD TODAY" at noon.

CLANCY: "YOUR WORLD TODAY" coming up at noon, we're going to be looking at what's going on in Pakistan, what's going on in gaza. A lot of other stories.

HARRIS: Good to see you.

CLANCY: Good to see you too, Tony. LONG: I also want to keep you up-to-date on a developing story out of Cincinnati, 10:39 there. Live pictures from our affiliate, WLWT, of what was a tractor trailer. You can see it smashed into that bridge abutment. This is on I-75 northbound. A major accident. Coming from a chopper.

That's why you're seeing kind of sketchy video at this time, sketchy live pictures. That is watermelon that is now strewn across the grass, the knoll there and also the roadway. A major part of I-75 affected this morning. Good thing it's after the morning commute, but unknown injuries and it looks like it was a nasty crash.

HARRIS: Yes, sure does.

LONG: Just looking at the back of that truck, it has just crumpled, very little left of the back of that semi.

We'll keep you posted, again, that is watermelon that is now strewn all over I-75. Local reports now, we're just learning -- local reports from our affiliate there indicating that one person is dead.

HARRIS: Yes.

LONG: Looks like it was a pretty bad crash this morning.

HARRIS: Yes, we will try to match that here, that information of a fatality here at CNN. We will try to match that information.

But still to come this morning in the NEWSROOM, he is 105-years- old, a brand, spanking new American and quite a character.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He has a little motor scooter, you know, a little motorized wheelchair and he goes up and down the neighborhood and visits everyone. He comes to our house every day for happy hour.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: So, I'm told he likes a little whiskey, too.

LONG: Keeps him young.

HARRIS: Oh yes!

U.S. citizenship, a good reason to celebrate right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Stephanie Elam at the New York Stock Exchange. Remember that old slogan, things go better with Coke? Well, it seems Coca-Cola thinks something other than soda goes well with it, too. That story coming up in the NEWSROOM.

You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HARRIS: How about this? Russia rejoicing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ...second Olympic Winter Games in 2014 awarded to the city of Sochi.

(CHEERING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Sochi, huh? With that announcement, Russia begins preparing to host the 2014 Winter Olympic Games. Sochi, if you're not familiar, is a resort in the Black Sea. Russia's bid boosted by the personal intervention of President Vladimir Putin.

LONG: Coca-Cola already the world's largest soft drink company, but it looks like it wants to be even bigger.

Stephanie Elam is at the New York Stock Exchange with details about Coke's latest target.

Good morning, Stephanie.

(BUSINESS HEADLINES)

HARRIS: L.A.'s mayor, his personal life ignites a public scandal. What does it mean for his political future?

CNN's Jason Carroll reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): She is Mirthala Salinas, a journalist for a Spanish-language TV station, who at one point covered politics in Los Angeles, and he is Antonio Villaraigosa, L.A.'s mayor. They're the characters in the story of an affair, no longer being kept secret.

MAYOR ANTONIO VILLARAIGOSA, LOS ANGELES: It's true. I have a relationship with Miss Salinas and I take full responsibility for my actions.

CARROLL: The media began raising questions about Villaraigosa's marriage in January when he stopped wearing his wedding ring. Then, last month, he announced he and his wife Corina were breaking up, and this week, both the mayor and Salinas acknowledged they were having a relationship.

Salinas told the Associated Press, "While we are both public figures, I hope that everyone can understand and respect my desire to maintain my privacy."

Salinas works for Telemundo, a network spokesman says they won't comment on personal matters. MANUEL ABUD, TELEMUNDO: There's only one thing that matters to us and that's our credibility, our connection with our audience. Our credibility is our most important asset.

CARROLL: Villaraigosa doesn't believe this personal matter will affect his ability to be mayor.

VILLARAIGOSA: I don't believe that the details of my personal life are relevant to my job as mayor.

CARROLL: A number of political figures have had affairs and have gone on to successes. New York's former mayor, Rudolph Giuliani, for example, now presidential candidate.

BILL SCHNEIDER, SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Will it be politically wounding? Will there be repercussions? I'm not sure. I doubt it because, first of all, he's not up for re-election until 2009, which is two years away. Second of all, if he runs for governor, that would be in 2010, that's a lot of time between now and then.

CARROLL: In the city where the private lives of public figures often become tabloid news, Angelinos have mixed views.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't think it's anybody's business, really. You know, that's his private life and it should remain private.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's an image to the public. So, I mean, doing what he shouldn't be doing, doing those things, it just doesn't look right.

CARROLL (on camera): Telemundo says Salinas stopped covering politics back in August. Telemundo also says that Salinas will continue to work there as a correspondent, but will not cover City Hall.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LONG: Wildfire invades a rogue vacation spot. Crews in the French Riviera struggling with a massive inferno. We'll have more of these amazing pictures coming up for you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Everyone's a little bit concerned about me today, everyone at home, because I've gotten too much sleep in the last couple of days and I'm just bouncing like crazy. I'm just bouncing off the walls today.

Hey, look we are podcasting, putting it together right now for you. It's going to be a great podcast today. You know to catch us weekday morning, and we appreciate that, 9:00 to noon Eastern right here in the CNN NEWSROOM. But you can take us anywhere. Summer plans, what are you doing today? Take us with you. If you want to get a check of the headlines, just download the CNN daily podcast, available to you 24/7 right there on your iPod, and I will tell you what, you have to go to CNN.com to download the podcast, and the reviews are in on the new CNN.com. And, Melissa, people love it.

LONG: Yes. Absolutely. The team has worked tirelessly to relaunch the Web site, CNN.com. It was already spectacular, but now it's even better, streamlined, one-stop shopping for all the news you need, but you know what, if you're in a hurry, you can get a quick little update, a quick little headline, you want in-depth information, you can find that as well.

HARRIS: How about this player?

LONG: This is the new player. Never mind Pipeline. Pipeline, the name has gone away. It's at CNN.com. You can find live video. We are always streaming all the live events happening all around the world. Stay in the know when you're not near your television by logging into CNN.com.

HARRIS: And you have these special tabs. What we're going to do right now is we're going to click on one of the breaking news tabs and see what you're covering there.

Oh! Oh, there is the breaking news! Turn the music up a little bit, would you please?

LONG: Thank you!

HARRIS: Pretty good, huh?

LONG: It is.

HARRIS: Thank you!

LONG: Are we having the pool party today now?

HARRIS: Why not? why not?

LONG: Rob talked about it yesterday. You didn't invite me yesterday.

HARRIS: No party, but happy birthday.

LONG: Thank you. Very kind.

OK, it has taken a while, but at the age of 105 -- not me -- the man from Cuba is now a U.S. citizen, the man you're about to meet.

Michael Putney of our CNN affiliate WPLG in Florida reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAEL PUTNEY, WPLG REPORTER (voice-over): Wearing a straw hat and a white guayabera shirt with a big American flag on it, Jose Temprana made a grand entrance at his swearing-in ceremony to become a U.S. citizen. He says it has been a dream of his for years to become a U.S. citizen, and now at age 105 he is living that dream.

Marguerette Ramos is Temprana's neighbor and very good friend. MARGURETTE RAMOS, TEMPRANA'S FRIEND: He's a very, very loved neighbor in our neighborhood. He has a little motor scooter, you know, a little motorized wheelchair, and he goes up and down the neighborhood and visits everyone. He comes to our house every day for happy hour, and he's definitely a charming man.

PUTNEY (on camera): Well at 105 I'm tempted to ask what does he like at happy hour?

RAMOS: He likes a shot of whisky and sometimes two. He drinks red wine with every one of his meals.

PUTNEY: Temprana's command of English is not the best. He lagged behind the others as he recited the oath, but his love of the U.S. is large, and he positively beamed when the district director of citizenship personally handed him his certificate.

RAMOS: He's wanted to be an American since he came here, since he stepped foot here. He said I want to die an American. And so it's wonderful to be able to be here with him today.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PUTNEY: That gentleman has found the fountain of youth, that's for sure. Jose Temprana reportedly spent 30 years in a Cuban prison. He was accused of smuggling weapons for an insurrection against the Castro regime.

HARRIS: And still to come this morning in the NEWSROOM, fireworks gone wrong. Wow! This incident, one of several around the country that killed or injured Fourth of July revelers.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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