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CNN Saturday Morning News
Two News Helicopters Collide in Phoenix; Vice President Cheney Undergoes Heart Procedure; Bottled Versus Tap
Aired July 28, 2007 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Well, from the CNN Center, this is CNN SATURDAY MORNING. It is July 28th. Hello to you all and hello to you. I'm T.J., remember me?
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Nice to see you, T.J. Hey everybody, it's so great to be back. I'm Betty Nguyen. We want to thank you for starting your day with us. Straight ahead though we have a lot of serious news to tell you about. Death in the sky.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I heard like a loud gunshot. And then about two seconds after that there's this really loud, like huge bang. And then just two helicopters coming straight down, falling in about three different areas, burst into flames and debris is all over the place.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Have you seen this yet? Take a look at two television news helicopters covering a police chase, collide in midair. We have the latest on the investigation into what went wrong.
HOLMES: Also, you should remember all that talk earlier this week about the terrorist dry runs at airports here in the U.S. Well, just kidding. It turns out it was all one big false alarm. We'll explain.
NGUYEN: And Aquafina coming clean as T.J. opens his bottle of water today. We're going to find out what the popular bottled water company is adding to its label.
We do want to start with that midair collision over Phoenix. NTSB inspectors are expected to arrive on the scene this morning. They're going to be looking into how the two local news helicopters collided while covering a high speed chase. We do get more now from CNN's Carol Costello.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: We're not sure which helicopters they were.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Thick black smoke in a Phoenix park as horrified witnesses watch two TV helicopters crash in midair and fall into flames on the mid ground.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was standing right inside the park when I seen two helicopters what looked like they were in midair. They crashed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I heard like a loud gunshot. And then about two seconds after that, there was this real loud, like huge bang and then just two helicopters coming straight down, falling about three different areas, bursting into flames and debris all over the place.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was devastated.
COSTELLO: According to local TV affiliates the news choppers were following a police chase on a Phoenix highway. Police say a suspect had stolen a city vehicle and at one point jumped out of that car and another vehicle on the highway. Police say it was at that point the helicopters collided. Our affiliate ABC 15 is reporting its pilot Craig Smith and its photographer Rick Krolak are dead. KTVK is reporting pilot Scott Bowerbank and photographer Jim Cox were killed.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Christopher Jones is the man arrested in that high speed chase. He may be held responsible for causing the deaths of the helicopter news crews. He's already facing charges of vehicle theft and resisting arrest. Both local news stations are allowing viewers to leave condolences for the families of the victims at ktvk.com and a special look at their crews, Scott Bowerbank and Jim Cox. There's a similar tribute set up for Craig Smith and Rick Krolak. For that you can go to knxv.com.
NGUYEN: Just a horrific story. We do want to give you a look at what people on the ground saw just after that crash. This I report video sent to us by Thomas Looper. Take a look. He was two blocks away when he started shooting the scene on his cell phone. You can see the smoke or at least you could there, a second ago at the right top portion of your screen there. Another witness offered this account.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICK GOTCHIE, WITNESSED CRASH: When they came down, it was like slow motion. As I was running and pieces were flying everywhere and hit the ground. The blue one hit first, then exploded. And there was fire and smoke and then the other one hit the ground. It was by the lake and it exploded. And I couldn't find anybody. I couldn't find anybody.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: The choppers came down in a park. There were no injuries on the ground.
HOLMES: Vice President Dick Cheney having surgery today. Doctors are replacing the device monitoring his heart rhythms. That procedure said to be quite routine. CNN White House correspondent Ed Henry joins us now from George Washington University Hospital. What's happening with the vice president? Good morning to you Ed.
ED HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning T.J.. No sign of the vice president's motorcade yet here at George Washington University hospital in Washington not far from the White House. Obviously it's a big deal any time the vice president in the line of succession for the presidency has any kind of surgery, especially this vice president, 66 years old, a history of heart trouble. But medical experts do back up the vice president's office in saying this is a short, relatively routine procedure. You will remember back in 2001, the vice president showed CNN's own John King a duplicate of the defibrillator he had implanted that first year of the Bush administration.
A routine exam this past June, his doctors found that the batteries needed to be replaced for this device that regulates the vice president's heartbeat. The doctors then decided that as long as they were going to go in for elective surgery, they might as well do more than replace the batteries, replace the entire device. Obviously in the last six years, technology has advanced to the point that this device now can be a lot better.
We spoke to a cardiologist here in the Washington area who noted that there will be sort of a moderate conscious sedation that the vice president will be under, very similar to what President Bush had last weekend during his colonoscopy, basically like a twilight sleep. But then the medication will actually increase near the end because the doctors actually have to induce cardiac arrest after the new device is in to make sure it's working. So once you have that new device in, they strengthen the medication to put you out a little bit more, induce cardiac arrest and to show you how serious this is, just to make sure that if God forbid that ever happened down the road, the device works, T.J..
HOLMES: They said this is awfully routine but you talk about twilight sleeping, inducing a cardiac arrest, that sounds awfully serious. Of course it is. But how long? You said a short procedure. How long are we talking about? Is he going to be led pretty much right out of the hospital when he's done?
HENRY: We've talked to cardiologists who say it can range from 30 minutes up to an hour. Our own Elizabeth Cohen, our medical correspondent, noting that it will be an hour depending on the patient, depending on how everything goes. But the key here is that doctors expect that the vice president will not even have to stay overnight at the hospital. So while it's serious, it is relatively routine, especially given modern medicine. They're not expecting the vice president to stay overnight. T.J.?
HOLMES: All right, Ed Henry for us. We'll be checking in with you a little later. Thanks so much Ed.
And of course, Vice President Cheney, speaking of him, he's going to be a guest on CNN's "Larry King Live" on Tuesday. You will hear what he has to say about the Iraq war, the war on terror, much more and maybe in even this twilight sleep he's about to have in a little while. You can catch that at 9:00 Eastern and that's on Tuesday night.
NGUYEN: Let's get you some news about your security this morning. Congress approves a bill that includes many of the recommendations from the 9/11 Commission And President Bush says he will sign it. The House passed the measure yesterday by a vote of 371-40. The Senate approved it Thursday. And among other things, it shifts more anti-terrorism money to high-risk cities and states and requires the screening of all cargo on passenger planes within three years. It also sets a five-year goal of scanning all container ships for nuclear devices.
HOLMES: NASA, not keeping a closer eye on its astronauts and it might have to include breathalyzers especially in the wake now of a troubling new report that we're seeing.
NGUYEN: We laugh but he's not kidding because allegations of astronauts flying drunk, not the kind of image NASA was aiming for. CNN's John Zarrella has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): If astronauts flew intoxicated, NASA officials say the agency didn't know then, but intends to get to the bottom of it now.
SHANA DALE, NASA DEPUTY ADMINISTRATOR: We will act immediately on the more troubling aspects of this report with respect to alcohol use and the anecdotal references of resistance by agency leadership to accepting advice or criticisms about the fitness and readiness of individuals for spaceflight.
ZARRELLA: The allegations surfaced in a report the space agency commissioned in the aftermath of the Lisa Nowak love triangle incident. NASA wanted an evaluation of its mental and psychological screening processes for astronauts. The most damaging assertions in the study involve alcohol. The report found alcohol was freely used in crew quarters. In two incidents astronauts were so intoxicated they were deemed a risk to flight safety but cleared to fly anyway. Senior flight surgeons felt their medical advice was being disregarded. But at this point the U.S. space agency does not know the extent of the problem.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don't have enough data to call it alcohol abuse. We have no way of knowing if these are the only two incidents that have ever occurred in the history of the astronaut corps or if they are the tip of a very large iceberg.
ZARRELLA: The panel's report did not provide specific details of the two incidents because in order to get candid information, the panel had to guarantee anonymity. But it was revealed that one of the incidents took place in Russia before the launch of the Soyuz rocket. The other involved a space shuttle mission. The astronaut did not leave earth drunk because the mission was scrubbed and he flew back to Houston on a T-38 NASA jet that the astronauts use to fly back and forth between Houston and the Kennedy space center. John Zarrella, CNN, at the Kennedy space center in Florida.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: And we are going to have more on the astronaut scandal coming up later today in the CNN "Newsroom." Rick Sanchez will ask the question, does America still need NASA? You want to tune in for that debate. It's today at 5:00 Eastern right here in the "Newsroom."
HOLMES: It is a busy, busy day for the presidential contenders. Senator Hillary Clinton is talking to college Democrats in Columbia, South Carolina. At West Virginia State University yesterday Clinton talked about Iraq. She told supporters the Iraqi government needs to do more to get a grip on the violence. Meanwhile, Illinois Senator Barack Obama campaigns in the Midwest today. He speaks at a rally in Des Moines, Iowa meantime. Former Senator John Edwards is calling on Democrats to stop criticizing each other. You can imagine who he's talking about, Clinton and Obama. He's telling them to focus their fire on the Republicans.
And on the Republican side, contender John McCain will be pressing the flesh in South Carolina today if you will. McCain campaigns in Greenville and Spartanburg. Kansas Senator Sam Brownback is making campaign appearances in Iowa. Brownback will talk to supporters in Oscalusa (ph), ahead of a barbecue this afternoon in Holland (ph). Also, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, he's focusing on Florida. He's having a meet and greet this morning in Miami.
If you want to know what touched off that war words this week between Democratic contenders Clinton and Obama, you need to see the CNN/YouTube Democratic debate. Yes, if you missed it, you can catch it again in its entirety tonight as well as Sunday night at 9:00 p.m. Eastern. Now get your questions ready for the GOP presidential candidates because that is coming up as well. Watch the CNN/YouTube Republican debates. They will be live interactive on TV, online only on your home for politics. That is right here, CNN and that is happening September 17th in St. Petersburg, Florida.
NGUYEN: All right, T.J., I know you're a huge bottled water fan. Well, is it something pure or just pure hype? We're going to have the latest flap over bottled water or is it really water just from the straight old tap? Reynolds, you want to stay tuned for this.
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: No question, I'll be there. Speaking of water, we had plenty of water in the valley of the sun yesterday in Phoenix. Quite a bit of flooding and flood rescues. Now it's turning to Texas and other parts of the Gulf coast. Who may be dealing with the flood waters next? I'll have the answer coming up.
HOLMES: We've got a mixed bag here. Bottled water, water, floods and drugs now. Drug use and the stars. Lindsey Lohan, you've seen this picture by now. She's the latest to get busted. Is this just a celebrity thing or is she typical of her generation? We'll have a reality check with Josh Levs. That's coming up a little later this hour. Please stick around.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Have you seen this dramatic rescue video? Check it out. A news crew covering flooding around Phoenix was recording when a pickup truck hydroplaned and skidded off the road. That pick up truck rolled over and landed upside-down in a drainage ditch. Two teenagers and two toddlers were trapped inside. The witnesses jumped in that water after a terrifying few moments. Good news is, as you can see there, they got everybody out. Police say all four were wearing their seat belts and no one was seriously hurt. Just quite amazing considering the flood waters there.
HOLMES: Reynolds, I know you get sick of saying it.
WOLF: No, not at all.
HOLMES: We see these flood waters and we see people still driving like nobody's business sometimes on those roads, like they're dry roads.
WOLF: The only bit of a break I'm going to give the people in parts of Phoenix is this is the time of year when you have those big storms. They just pop up very quickly and dissipate very quickly. So you can be driving along. You just see what appears to be just a small puddle and then, boom, you have these kind of issues. Absolutely. However that is the number one flood-related killer, people inside of cars, trying to cross roadways and it's the scenario. It's a bad scenario. We had that in Texas yesterday. In fact, take a look at this video that we have compliments of one of our Houston affiliates, plenty of rainfall there. In fact, we take you back to last weekend that we had a foot of rainfall in San Antonio alone and the rain kept coming down. It's an easy equation. The rain falls and falls. The ground can only absorb so much. After then that you have the flooding and we had quite a bit of it and that may be in store for parts of Texas today.
Let's show you what we have right now on the old weather computer. Go to the weather computer. You're going to notice some scattered storms right now mainly to the north of Port Arthur, to northeast of Houston. They should start getting a break in parts of the Lone Star state. A flash flood watch remaining in effect just through the morning hours, but by the afternoon, we're expecting things to dry out just a little bit. Then more rain tomorrow.
Strong storms just to the south of Knoxville, not far at all from Chattanooga. All of this activity is going to roll eastward into the Carolinas. We could see some strong storms in extreme eastern Georgia and into North Carolina. Farther north we go with some storms that are popping up just to the west of Boston, north of New York at this hour, heavy rain forming. Some fear of thunderstorms certainly going to be a possibility through the mid morning hours. Right now though in New York, take a look at this live image that we have for you, looks pretty good so far and there's the live shot. If you don't mind a little bit of low clouds and a touch of fog, we've got it for you looking up the Hudson River, should be a better day for you with some sunshine. Still a chance of rain in the forecast as well. I'd say the chance of rain is going to be right around 60 percent. That's the latest on your forecast. We will have more coming up throughout the morning right here on CNN. Back to you.
NGUYEN: All right, thank you. HOLMES: Reynolds, thank you and Betty, thank you for being here. Haven't seen you in a while. We have missed our little Betty around here. We hate to see you go but really we have to commend you for this trip that you do take and the reason you've been gone. It's an absolute beautiful thing. If we have to give you up for something, we don't mind giving you up for that.
NGUYEN: I have been quite the world traveler lately. I flew back to my birth country, Vietnam. And what we do every year with Help the Hungry, which is a charity that my family founded as we go in and we provide humanitarian aid. We first fly into Ho Chi Minh City which used to be Saigon. And than we take, it was about an eight-hour trip overnight by bus, loaded with supplies to the Mekong delta. And when we're there, what we do is essentially try to reach the hardest- hit folks. Every year, the monsoons create just awful damage in the area. These are just really poor and destitute people.
We have some pictures that we're going to show you of some of the children that we were able to help. As you can see and a lot of them don't even have shoes and what we did was we loaded into boats hundreds of pounds of supplies, actually several tons, in fact. And we delivered this to local village there's. In fact, this year we were able to help an entire school which was so wonderful.
If we can move the pictures through. You can see them standing in line. We provided notebooks and backpacks and pens and paper and pencils. There's one of the schoolrooms. That's really all they had. You see the window in the back left-hand corner. There's no electricity inside this schoolroom. All the children filed in and we handed out these supplies. We also handed food. This is the rice, a lot of the rice that we provided. Food, clothing, hygienic supplies, medical supplies and it just means so much to people who have nothing. And it makes a difference in my life. It makes a difference in the lives of the hundreds that we were able to help. I'm just thankful to be able to do it. The organization is called Help the Hungry. We've been in existence for seven years now. This is our seventh trip back to the region and we hope to continue for many, many more years. And I just want to thank all of our donors out there and all of our volunteers. It's always a remarkable trip and this year was no different.
HOLMES: It's always good to hear about it. So good to see those pictures. Like I say, we hate to give you up for a little while. (INAUDIBLE) It's great.
NGUYEN: It's for a good cause.
HOLMES: And I remember when I first met you and you were telling me about that and that trip you do and what you do, I thought, wow, there's more to her. She's not just a pretty face.
HOLMES: You've got a big trip coming up and I'm sure we'll be sharing with you just a little bit later, on your birthday, too.
HOLMES: Yes.
NGUYEN: Just wait, folks. Stay tuned for that.
HOLMES: Again, welcome back, good to have you back. Stick around here. Homeowners need to listen to this because a lot of homeowners are under siege right about now.
NGUYEN: If you own a home or are thinking of buying one, these are some scary times. Ahead, the mortgage mess and we're not joking here. It could be get worse before it gets better.
HOLMES: Also, coming up a little later this hour, how to stay alive inside your house? Making your home less welcome to a home invader.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: No doubt it is a scary time for American homeowners because home values, they keep falling.
HOLMES: That ain't good. Sales are dropping, foreclosures are skyrocketing. Our Dan Lothian has been following the fate of a desolate neighborhood in Cleveland devastated by the mortgage mess.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Cleveland, Ohio, is drowning in a sea of bad loans and foreclosures. Audrey Sweet and other residents like her are fighting to keep their heads above water. Kind of at the peak of your problem, what were you facing?
AUDREY SWEET, CLEVELAND HOMEOWNER: We had no money left at the end of the month.
LOTHIAN: How close did you come to losing your home?
SWEET: Very close. Actually at one point we were sent the foreclosure papers.
LOTHIAN: Sweet told her story on Capitol Hill, how a lender over- stated her income in savings to profit from her home loan two years ago.
SWEET: They knew that I couldn't afford it but they made it appear that I could so they could approve it.
LOTHIAN: Shady lending practices that cost so many others in the Cleveland area their homes.
JAMES ROKAKIS, CUYAHOGA COUNTY TREASURER: We have 13,600 foreclosures last year in the county, which is about 10,000 more than we had 10 years earlier. We're going to do 17,000 this year.
LOTHIAN: We first reported on Cleveland's mortgage crisis earlier this year. Snow on the ground couldn't mask this ugly picture. Block after block of boarded up and abandoned homes. These are all foreclosures.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That would be correct (INAUDIBLE).
LOTHIAN: Predatory lending practices said Councilman Zach Reid (ph), a major factor. Lenders get borrowers into loans they can't afford. Homeowners default, properties are abandoned. Then thieves strip homes of anything valuable, like siding and copper, another blow to already battered communities.
Back on Capitol Hill, the joint economic committee looking into this mess also heard from Barbara Anderson whose neighborhood was hit hard and whose home of more than 25 years was nearly taken away.
BARBARA ANDERSON: Being a victim of predatory lending penetrates your very heart and soul.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sub-prime mess is leaving deep scars that threaten economic security nationwide.
LOTHIAN: It may be a crisis in Cleveland, but lawmakers say everyone should pay attention.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Cleveland, to be sure, is the canary in the coal mine.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is the beginning. It's going to get much worse.
LOTHIAN: Some say this problem was fuelled by, quote, unbridled greed, during a booming housing market. Now many parts of the country are in a slump. That means people who can no longer afford their mortgages will have trouble selling their homes as a way to get out. Dan Lothian, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Coming up at 9:00 this morning, going to talk to a consumer guru, our very own consumer guru, Gerri Willis, about the mortgage mess and what homeowners can do to hold onto their equity as well as their cash and then don't miss "Open House" coming your way at 9:30. She'll have much more on the housing market, again, 9:30 Eastern right here on CNN.
NGUYEN: All right. I typically drink tap water, which is why you see this. T.J., on the other hand, goes for the more expensive bottled water. So, T.J., I want you to listen very closely because, do you know where your bottled water is coming from?
HOLMES: The spring somewhere or the clouds or something.
NGUYEN: So you think.
HOLMES: You may want to check that label because, it might be coming from the same place as your tap water.
NGUYEN: Oh, yeah.
HOLMES: Pepsi-cola now saying it will change the label on its best-selling Aquafina brand to indicate it comes from a public water source. However, Pepsi does say it puts it through an extensive, Betty, an extensive purification process.
NGUYEN: I'm sure the local water department does the same. Aquafina sales topped $2 billion last year and the number two brand Dasani also comes from, you guessed it, a public water source.
HOLMES: Not the stuff I drink. It comes from really the clouds or something.
NGUYEN: The clouds?
HOLMES: Yes, it's interesting an story.
NGUYEN: Some rain forest somewhere, right? Sure.
HOLMES: Stay here, folks. You'll remember this story. Turns out it's the case of the false alarm.
NGUYEN: Yes, an elderly airline passenger trigger a terror alert and now we find out it was all a false alarm.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: T.J., can I get some of that cloud water sometime?
HOLMES: It's good stuff.
LEVS: Thanks. Today we're going to take a look at this, how many kids in this country are doing illegal drugs? Lindsey Lohan's arrest this week got us thinking about that. I have got some surprising numbers, folks. That's coming up on the "reality check" here on CNN, the most-trusted name in news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Well, good morning, everybody and welcome back.
Boy, it feels good to be here.
HOLMES: It's good to have you back, Betty. I hate to admit sometimes that I miss you, but I miss you.
NGUYEN: You did this time.
HOLMES: Yes.
NGUYEN: All right.
Well, next time I'm going to stay away a little bit longer so you'll miss me even more.
HOLMES: Don't do that.
NGUYEN: Hi, there, everybody.
I'm Betty Nguyen. HOLMES: And I'm T.J. Holmes.
So glad you could be with us here this morning.
NGUYEN: Well, we do want to start with stories that we have been keeping an eye on. Federal investigators are in Phoenix this morning to investigate this -- a midair collision of two news helicopters. All four people on board were killed.
HOLMES: Also, Vice President Dick Cheney undergoing surgery today to replace the device monitoring his heart rhythms. Doctors do call this procedure minor.
NGUYEN: And NFL star Michael Vick takes another hit in his dog fighting scandal. Nike has suspended its contract with him and Reebok stopped sales on his jerseys.
HOLMES: Well, you probably remember that security bulletin that surfaced this week, warning airports about suspicious incidents. The alert said the incidents may have been dry runs for terrorist attacks.
Well, well, well, officials now say it was all just a false alarm.
An update now from CNN's Brian Todd.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): July 5th, San Diego. Transportation Security Administration screeners find a bag with two ice packs covered in tape with clay inside them rather than blue gel. It's included in a TSA bulletin mentioning three other similar incidents, warning of dry runs for terrorist attacks.
This is the woman who carried those ice packs.
SARA WEISS, PASSENGER: I'm not a terrorist.
I'm a 66-year-old woman with a bad back. I was on vacation going to visit my son in San Diego.
TODD: Sara Weiss says the ice packs she carried, like these, had clay inside them because they were old and that's the way they were made.
Weiss was held for three hours, questioned by San Diego Harbor Police and two men who she said were in plain clothes and didn't identify themselves. She says one question from a San Diego Harbor Policeman shocked her.
WEISS: Do you know Osama bin Laden?
And my response was, first of all, I thought it was a very ridiculous and strange question because if I did know -- if I really did know Osama bin Laden and if I were a real terrorist, do you think I'd answer that question? TODD: Contacted by CNN, the San Diego Harbor Police chief said his officers are not briefed to ask that question.
Weiss says she also raised suspicion because she carried a report on a survey about Muslim-Americans.
WEISS: I work for a faith-based organization. Part of their responsibility is to provide interfaith cooperation and understanding.
TODD: Is she angry about the experience?
WEISS: No, I'm not bitter. I understand that they had to do their job. I think they totally overreacted.
TODD: In fact, a U.S. government official familiar with the investigation now says there were valid explanations for all four incidents in that bulletin and no charges will be brought in any of these cases.
(on camera): TSA officials first told us the incident with Sara Weiss got put on that bulletin because of a systems error. But they also say they were right to put all these incidents on that alert because whenever they find suspicious objects, they have to run them to ground and tell law enforcement officials to look out for items like that.
Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: Well, in Connecticut, first there was shock, now grief. A public memorial is being held this morning for a family killed in a home invasion this week.
Cheshire police say two men slipped into the family home, beat and bound Dr.
William Petit, Jr. then sexually assaulted Petit's wife and younger daughter and set the home on fire.
Autopsies show the mother was strangled. The girls died of smoke inhalation. And Dr. Petit, well, he is recovering.
Those two suspects, they face a series of charges, including murder, and prosecutors say they will seek the death penalty.
HOLMES: Experts say you can't prevent completely a home invasion, but you can make an intruder think twice before busting through your door.
CNN's Joe Johns reports.
JOE JOHNS, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As violent crimes go, it doesn't get much scarier than this. The home invasion robbery defined is when people try to con or force their way into a home, often knowing the victim is there for the purpose of taking money and property.
JOE MCCANN, FORMER HOMICIDE DETECTIVE: They're going to hit a home that looks like it's going to have some valuables to it, where the occupants are not going to put up much of a resistance.
JOHNS: It's a terrifying scenario and it's apparently increasing. Though there's no official crime category under the heading home invasion, in a recent report, the FBI says robberies in residences accounted for more than 14 percent of all robberies in 2005, up slightly from the year before.
To get a feel for this stuff, we asked two of D.C.'s top security consultants, former homicide detectives Joe McCann and Dwayne Stanton, to walk us through it at a nice corner lot house in the suburbs.
For starters, what kind of guys would want to do this sort of thing?
MCCANN: First of all, it's going to be a start criminal, probably a career criminal, and most likely a violent criminal.
JOHNS: Victims are selected because of the cars they drive, the jewelry they wear, or a repairman, say, a gardener, perhaps, has cased the house. Some victims get followed home. Or maybe they stake you out for a while.
MCCANN: If they're looking for a big score, a big hit, they're going to take their time.
DWAYNE STANTON, FORMER HOMICIDE DETECTIVE: And their own investigation, so, to speak. They also select neighborhoods, you know, well-to-do, affluent neighborhoods.
JOHNS: So what to do about it?
A lot of this stuff is common sense. First, have a plan to get your family out of the house, a window or peepholes in the doors to see who's out there. Don't let strangers in. Good locks and a good alarm help, too.
MCCANN: Have the alarm system or evidence of an alarm system visible from the outside.
JOHNS: Keep the shrubs cut.
MCCANN: Somebody could hide behind the shrubbery.
JOHNS: After that, the game is on. McCann suggests keeping copies of your car key, the one with the panic button, stashed around the house.
(on camera): You just hit that button?
MCCANN: Hit it.
JOHNS: Even if it's in your garage? MCCANN: Even if it's in your garage or in front of your house.
STANTON: You want to spook the person, there's no question about it.
MCCANN: They're going to run.
STANTON: And get the attention of your neighbors.
JOHNS (voice-over): And prevention is not all high-tech. Rover still works great.
MCCANN: Absolutely the number one deterrent. The bark will -- they just don't want it. The neighbors comes out. Everybody comes out when they hear your dog barking.
JOHNS: You can't anticipate or prevent a home invasion, but there are ways you can reduce the risk of one.
Joe Johns, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: Well, another week, another celebrity mug shot. And this week Lindsey Lohan posed for police cameras yet again. And this time police say they found cocaine. Lohan says it's not hers.
But the arrest got our Josh Levs wondering, how many young people dabble with drugs?
Hmmm, I'm almost afraid to ask.
Here he is with the latest in this reality check.
JOSHUA LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, you know when I hear something like this, like what happened with Lindsay this week, I start thinking oh, what can you (INAUDIBLE)...
NGUYEN: What, you're on a first name basis with her now?
LEVS: Lindsay and I -- well, she called me. But she didn't know about the rest in advance.
NGUYEN: (INAUDIBLE).
But it wasn't hers?
LEVS: I mean, right. No, of course. I mean that's what she is telling us.
But -- well, here's the deal. You know, I start to think, OK, what can we use this as an opportunity to learn about?
Here's a good one.
How many kids in this country actually are out there doing drugs? It turns out there's a really extensive report that found some surprising numbers here. And I'll tell you, it's probably more than you think.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
LEVS (voice-over): Lindsey Lohan says the cocaine authorities found in her possession did not belong to her. Whether that's true or not, it is a reminder of young people's access to drugs, which experts on drug abuse call one of the nation's most important challenges. A federal study in 2005 found the number of kids using drugs grows through the teen years. Among 16- and 17-year-olds, 17 percent said they are current users of illegal drugs. Eighteen- to 20-year-olds reported the highest rate of any age group -- 22 percent.
By far the most used drug, marijuana; following by prescription drug abuse; hallucinogens; and cocaine. Around 1 percent of teens and 2 percent of young adults said they had used cocaine in the past month. And the number of teens who have experimented with drugs is much higher. Last year, the National Institutes of Health found 42 percent of high school seniors have tried marijuana. 8.5 percent have tried cocaine.
Federal statistics also break down drug use among teens of different races and have found the highest rate among American Indians, at 19 percent; followed by 11 percent of blacks; 10 percent of whites; 9 percent of Latinos; and 3 percent of Asians.
Overall, the rate of drug use among youths has dropped a bit since 2002.
JOHN WALTERS, OFFICE OF NATIONAL DRUG CONTROL POLICY: Rejecting a life of drug abuse has become a nationwide movement among young people, just as unhealthy behavior with regard to substance abuse became a kind of movement almost three decades ago.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
LEVS: This also does show that some of those figures have gone up, such as cocaine use among young adults. And authorities say the rise of the Internet now has actually introduced some new challenges, Betty, because it's making it easier for some young people out there to order especially prescription drugs. They just type a few keys and they show up at their house.
NGUYEN: You know, which leads to my question, because, is there a difference depending on where these young people live, say, suburban or rural areas?
LEVS: Yes, you know, a lot of people think it's far worse in the urban areas and it's not necessarily. There are some interesting figures here. In overall drug use and also in certain -- like cocaine, some of the more illicit drugs, in that sense, you do find more in urban areas.
But when you look at the use of prescription drugs, for example, it's actually just as bad in the suburbs and in the most rural parts of America as it is in the big cities.
NGUYEN: Really?
LEVS: Yes, yes.
NGUYEN: That is fascinating.
LEVS: (INAUDIBLE).
NGUYEN: All right, thank you, Josh.
We appreciate that.
LEVS: Thank you.
Thanks a lot.
It's good to have you back.
NGUYEN: It's great to be back.
LEVS: Yes.
NGUYEN: It really is.
Thank you.
HOLMES: All right, we're going to turn now to talking about shoes and dogs. And, yes that leads us to Michael Vick.
Well, just how bad will Vick's latest controversy hurt his bottom line?
CNN's sports analyst Rick Horrow here this morning with the latest on Vick's sport shoe and other endorsement troubles.
NGUYEN: And the kitty who knows death when it sees it?
Yes, you may think you've seen this story. But now you have to see it only as our Jeanne Moos can tell it.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I'm Reynolds Wolf with a look at today's Allergy Report.
And any spot on the map where you happen to see orange or yellow would indicate a great deal of pollen, dust, ragweed, oak. Those spots would include parts of the Central Rockies, Central Plains and the Pacific Northwest.
However, on the other side of the coin, where you see blues and greens, that would indicate clear air -- in Northern California, the Northern Plains and for much of the Eastern Seaboard.
Enjoy your weekend. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: One down, one to go. San Francisco slugger Barry Bonds hit his 754th career home run last night in a 12-10 win over the Florida Marlins. There you go. And that puts Bonds just one away from tying Hank Aaron's all time Major League record of 755 homers. Now, Bonds could tie or even break the record tonight when they face -- the Giants and the Marlins in San Francisco.
HOLMES: Well, pulling the plug on Michael Vick. Nike suspending the embattled quarterback endorsement deal. Nike and Reebok also pulling all of their Vick merchandise off the shelves.
The moves come a day after Vick appeared in court for the first time to face federal dog fighting charges. He's pleading not guilty.
For more on the fallout, we'll bring in sports business analyst, Rick Horrow. Tricky Ricky is what they call him.
He's joining us now from Davie, Florida -- Rick, good morning to you.
Sir, is this fair?
Come on, the guy just went into court and said not guilty and they're pulling the plug on his merchandise, his endorsement deals.
Is that fair to do to him right now?
RICK HORROW, SPORTS BUSINESS ANALYST:
HORROW: We're dealing with media and perception, and fairness may be on the other end of the spectrum, my friend.
Good to see you, by the way.
HOLMES: Oh, it's good to see you, man.
HORROW: Yes, well, here's the thing. You know, they're worried about the perception and dollars and marketing. And so fairness is a mathematical equation based on how people like or don't like a particular product.
And, by the way, it's not just Nike, but it's E.A. And Hasbro and Coke and Kraft. And when Nike decided that they haven't terminated him, but yet there's nothing on the Web site, they decided to suspend the shoe, why not?
Because he used to be second in jersey sales in the entire NFL.
Guess what?
He's now 33rd and heading south.
HOLMES: All right. So all of these companies are not making moral judgments at all. They're making bottom line business, money decisions to separate themselves from Michael Vick?
HORROW: After Simpson, after Bryant and after all of that, the contracts have shorter and smaller and easier to terminate. And everybody in this play, this tragic play, is doing exactly what they should be doing, in my estimation, to protect their position.
You know, Roger Goodell, the commissioner, hasn't formally suspended, but said don't go to camp. We need to investigate it a little more under our best interests of the game clause, which gives them some power.
Arthur Blank, the Atlanta Falcons owner, the Home Depot guy, is saying well, I've already paid the guy $37 million, so let's just hold off until we see what the rest of the contract is like.
Michael Vick pleads not guilty.
The Humane Society even doing what they do, which is stir up a worthy cause -- 130,000 petition signatures and e-mail blasts to the commissioner last week.
HOLMES: Well, who does he have left, as far as endorsements go, for one thing, or just anybody in general?
Is anybody left standing by Michael Vick right now?
HORROW: Probably his mom.
HOLMES: Is that it?
HORROW: Probably his brother, who also played, as you know.
Hey, the bottom line is -- and we know from the Duke case, it's not meant to say the facts are the same, but it's a very difficult quandary, by the way, because we know in this country we're innocent until proven guilty.
On the other hand, this is also the court of public opinion and it's incredibly difficult to reconcile the two.
HOLMES: And is it just about these charges?
People love their animals and can't stand the idea of somebody possibly being brutal to a helpless animal.
So, I mean, we've seen guys on trial for murder and rape and all kinds of other horrible things that get treated better than he has been treated, I guess, in the court of public opinion about dog fighting.
So is it just the nature of the charges that are really making it tough for him?
HORROW: Well, cruelty to one animal -- but how about 135, according to the indictment, or more? And, of course, you know, the court of public opinion, as we said, is very hard to figure out what it is and what it's not. Some of it's media driven. And I will tell you, after getting back from Scotland last week covering the Open, I've heard more animosity and more negative publicity about this particular incident than I will tell you I have in a long time about anything.
HOLMES: All right. Rick -- oh, real quick, is he going to play football this year?
HORROW: Probably not.
HOLMES: Probably not.
HORROW: But, you know, ask me in December.
HOLMES: Yes, I'll ask you in December.
All right. Rick Horrow, good to see you.
And Betty says hi and she misses you.
NGUYEN: (INAUDIBLE) Rick.
HORROW: Yes. Oh, I get you on tape.
Thanks.
I miss you, too.
NGUYEN: I'm not on tape. You're live. I'm live. We're here to go. And glad to see you, Rick.
HORROW: Glad to see you, too.
HOLMES: Rick, thanks so much.
We'll see you again soon, buddy.
NGUYEN: Well, from Denver to Texas, rain is just coming down and the waters are rising. Reynolds Wolf is up next with a look at who should watch out for flooding.
Plus, "HOUSE CALL" with Dr. Sanjay Gupta, that is up just a little bit later. He's going to take a look at summer safety.
Can those flip flops cause injuries?
This morning at 8:30 Eastern.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Well, in Texas emergency crews are bracing for a busy weekend. Heavy rain expected today and tomorrow for the waterlogged state. Central and South Texas have already been soaked. Search and rescue teams among the responders now placed on stand-by. Well, anybody else who's going to get some wet weather this weekend?
NGUYEN: Well, I know the folks in Texas are saying, please, not me.
HOLMES: No.
NGUYEN: Meteorologist Reynolds Wolf joins us now in the Weather Center with the latest on that -- hi, Reynolds.
(WEATHER REPORT)
NGUYEN: We do want to talk about this, though, tragedy in the sky over Phoenix. This morning, the latest pictures and eyewitness accounts of those two choppers that crashed.
What we know now, plus more on those victims.
HOLMES: Also coming up, you can you close the door, but the grim kitty's not going away.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARY MIRANDA, NURSE, STEERE HOUSE: We've told them, just close the door. He will pace outside that room.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Stick around for the story of the cat who knows when death is around the corner.
That's coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: All right, from a dog to a cat -- but this is one feline that you don't want curling up next to you.
HOLMES: CNN's Jeanne Moos explains the story of the grim Kitty.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Talk about a feline fatal attraction.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Every time this cat shows up, somebody dies.
MOOS: But don't die laughing because this is no joke. Two-year- old Oscar lives on the advanced dementia floor here at the Steer House Nursing Center in Providence, Rhode Island.
According to an essay in the respected "New England Journal of Medicine," Oscar has an uncanny ability to predict when a patient is about to die.
DR. DAVID DOSA, ESSAY AUTHOR: He does a much better job than any of us.
MARY MIRANDA, NURSE, STEERE HOUSE: It's been about 25 times in the two years.
MOOS: About 25 times that Oscar has walked into a room, sniffed around and settled in just two to four hours before the patient passed away.
STEVE FARROW, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, STEERE HOUSE: Oscar stays, curls up on the bed and stays there until death.
MOOS: In the words of one Internet poster, isn't that Dr. Kevorkian's cat?
Now, we've covered plenty of weird cat stories, from the cat with two tongues to the cat who dialed 911 by pressing speed dial.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: 911.
MOOS: Dogs have likewise helped their owners.
911 DISPATCHER: 911. Hello?
MOOS: But getting help is one thing, predicting death another.
MIRANDA: It's one of these things where you just go, you know, go hmm ...
MOOS: Animal behaviorist Dr. Nicholas Dodman has two theories. He notes that, "Cats can read body language like we read books," so Oscar may be picking up cues from the staff. And, "Cats can smell things we can't imagine."
As we die, there are biochemical changes that could change our scent. Maybe you've seen how dogs can be trained to sniff out cancer from breath samples.
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Six times out of six attempts, Kobe (ph) gets it right.
MOOS: And there are anecdotal stories of cats repeatedly pawing at their owner and cancer being diagnosed at that exact spot, leading to jokes about "Mom's cat scan."
Nurses say most relatives of dying patients seem comforted by Oscar, while the patients themselves are generally unaware. And if relatives object to his presence ...
MIRANDA: We've told them just close the door. He will pace outside that room.
MOOS: Oscar's even received an award from a hospice association. Move over Morris. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Where were you?
I was so worried.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good, always keep owners guessing.
MOOS: But there's no second-guessing at this nursing home when the grim kitty shows up.
Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: Well, good morning, everybody. From the CNN Center here in Atlanta, this is CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
I'm Betty Nguyen.
HOLMES: And I'm T.J. Holmes.
So glad you could be with us this morning.
NGUYEN: What started as a high speed police chase ends in a deadly midair collision for two television news copters. That story is straight ahead.
HOLMES: Also, caught on camera -- a man watches a burglar break into his house from his Web cam. We'll learn if the high tech security helps him catch the crooks.
NGUYEN: Well, inspectors are on the scene. Teams from the FAA and NTSB looking into the crash of two Phoenix news helicopters. They're trying to determine how those helicopters collided while covering a police chase.
HOLMES: And all four people on board those helicopters killed in the fiery crash.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Saw a couple of helicopters hovering above and then heard the bang.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was in the air and then just, boom, it was dust falling to the ground.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You saw two helicopters that were on fire plummeting to the ground in a trail of smoke, that's all I saw and just the explosion. I can't believe it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Two helicopters from different TV news stations in Phoenix collided on Friday. There was smoke and flames in the downtown park where the choppers hit the ground. The two helicopters had been following a police chase of a stolen vehicle. Authorities say the suspects will probably face charges for the deaths in the crash. Killed in the collision, a photographer and pilot on both KNXV and KTVK TV helicopters.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR PHIL GORDON, PHOENIX: In terms of the family members that have lost loved ones and to the media family that have lost colleagues and loved ones, our hearts, our prayers go out to everyone and the tragedy that we face as a community is particularly strong and painful today.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Both Phoenix news stations are allowing viewers to leave their condolences for the families of those victims. KTVK.com has a special look at their crew, Scott Bowerbank and Jim Cox. There's a similar tribute set up for Craig Smith and Rick Krolak. For that you can go to knxv,com.
Take a look at this video as well. This was sent to us from I- reporter and Thomas Looper shot this just after the two choppers crashed in Phoenix. You can see some smoke about two blocks away from that crash site.
NGUYEN: This just in, Vice President Dick Cheney has just arrived at the hospital for surgery today and is described as routine. Doctors are replacing a device that monitors his heart rhythm. We want to get more now from CNN's Ed Henry, who is at George Washington University hospital. Again Ed, we understand that Cheney has arrived and talk just a little bit about this procedure because we learned yesterday that it was simply a case of the batteries running low on this implanted defibrillator.
ED HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Betty, just in the last 60 seconds, the vice president arrived with his wife Lynn. They just got out of the vice presidential limousine and walked in. I tried to shouted and ask how he felt? I didn't get a response. He was a little bit far away, but he looked his normal self. As you noted, it is a big deal any time a vice president has surgery of any kind, especially Mr. Cheney. He is 66 years old. He's had a history of heart trouble.
And as you noted, back in 2001, he had a defibrillator implanted to regulate his heartbeat. At the time, he did an interview with CNN's John King and showed a duplicate of that device. Now just last month, though, the vice president's doctors found he does need new batteries, as you noted, but they decided, rather than opening up his chest and replacing the batteries, it makes sense to replace the entire device because obviously in the last six years, there has been a lot of technological advances. They can put in a device that will be much better for the vice president's health long term and medical experts do back up the vice president's office in saying this is a relatively routine procedure. Listen very closely to what this cardiologist told us, about how serious, while relatively routine, how serious this procedure is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. RAMIN OSKOUI, CARDIOLOGIST, WASHINGTON HOSPITAL CTR: The device is located about a quarter inch below the skin above the muscle in the chest wall, about an inch below his shoulder blade in the front. What they essentially do, is we make about a two-inch incision on top of the device and then carefully with electrical cautering, cut down to the device. We remove the device, which has been disabled, put on a new device in the pocket and then actually more deeply sedate him and then induce cardiac arrest to be certain the new device will work.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HENRY: You heard that and that's how serious this is, that at the end of the procedure, they induce cardiac arrest to make sure this new device work if God forbid there were going to be cardiac arrest down the road. So that gives you an idea of how serious it is, but still, medical experts stress they expect this to be relatively short and they do not expect the vice president to even have to stay overnight at George Washington University hospital here, Betty.
NGUYEN: So this is the procedure. He's going to go in for what, an hour, half an hour, and then shortly after that this afternoon head back home?
HENRY: That's right. Cardiologists say that it will vary between 30 to 60 minutes, depending on the patient, depending on the circumstances once they deal with the actual surgery, but yes they expect that the vice president, as long as everything goes well, will be released today and head back home.
NGUYEN: All right, CNN's Ed Henry joining us live this morning. Thank you, Ed.
We do want to let you know that Vice President Dick Cheney will be a guest on CNN's "Larry King Live" on Tuesday. Hear what he has to say about the Iraq war, the war on terror and much, much more, probably including what is occurring today, the procedure with his (INAUDIBLE) defibrillator. You can catch that at 9:00 p.m. Eastern.
HOLMES: No more Michael Vick, for now at least. Nike and Reebok making major moves in the wake of Vick's court appearance on Federal dog fighting charges. Nike suspending its endorsement deal with the Atlanta Falcons quarterback. Also pulling Vick's merchandise out of their stores. Reebok, the official outfitter of the NFL, no longer selling Vick's number 7 jersey in their stores or online.
We move from a controversial guy in football now to maybe baseball's most controversial man. He's now one swing away from history. Barry Bonds homer last night inches him closer to one of the most sacred record, maybe the most sacred record in sports. CNN's Dan Simon is in San Francisco.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Barry Bonds on the verge of making history. He hit a home run Friday night and now is just two home runs shy of breaking Hank Aaron's record. The magic number is 756. Bonds now has 754 home runs. Giants fans of course going crazy. They want to see Barry Bonds break the record and they want to see him do it here at AT&T ballpark. There is something you simply can't ignore here and that, of course, the allegations that Barry Bonds has used performance-enhancing drugs. Bonds of course has denied ever using steroids or taking performance-enhancing drugs. But many sports commentators and sports fans believe otherwise and think there should be an asterisk next to Barry Bonds' name in the record books. But sports fans here at AT&T ballpark, Giants fans trying to put all that aside. They want to see Barry Bonds make history and they want to see him do it here on his home turf. Still, two more games this weekend and the Giants are on the road. Dan Simon, CNN, San Francisco.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: In other news, take a look at this. Search and rescue teams told to stand by in Texas this weekend. People there worried about flash floods. Our Reynolds Wolf is standing by as well. Good morning Reynolds.
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning. What a mess we' had in the Lone-Star state. Still, the rain continues. Much of it well north of Houston, north of Beaumont. I'll tell you how long it's going to last and where it may be heading next. That's coming up in just a few moments.
HOLMES: Also, a soap star's real life drama. You may know her as Drew from "The Young and the Restless." It's what you don't know that will inspire you. We're going to talk with actress Victoria Roll (ph) coming up a little later this hour.
NGUYEN: And also, Dr. Sanjay Gupta is here with "House Call." You don't want to miss that. That it's coming up.
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Just ahead on "House Call," we're helping you stave off back pain in your 30s and beyond, one of the biggest reasons for visits to the doctor. Plus, we got what you need to know for the summer before you head to the beach, pool, or just out in the sun. All that, medical headlines and a look at teaming up while biking. It helps your body, could help your relationship as well. That's on "House Call" at 8:30.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Search and rescue teams on stand by this morning in Texas. Central and southern parts of the state waterlogged. Much more rain is expected this weekend. High water has already closed a number of roads. The governor says local officials will get whatever help they need.
NGUYEN: It's usually the time of year, Reynolds, when in Texas they are dealing with water restrictions, because it's so dry but not this year. They just can't seem to get a break from this rain.
WOLF: Oh, absolutely and you look at places like Mobile, Alabama, which really is not that far away from Houston, Texas and they've had a huge deficit of rainfall. They're desperate for rain. So it's really been a tale of the haves and the have nots. How would you like to have a waterspout? See one on video.
NGUYEN: How about on video?
WOLF: Let's do that, your very own personal one.
NGUYEN: I don't want one over my house.
WOLF: One for T.J. and one for Betty.
NGUYEN: You're so generous.
WOLF: We do what we can here. We flip all the switches. This is in Manalapan (ph), Florida and basically when you have a water spout, that basically is a tornado over water. A couple of these were cited, not uncommon to see these off the Florida coastline, but you're pretty lucky if you're able to get one on video, on camera rather and that's what we have here this morning. We could see that scene repeated off the Texas coastline today and maybe across parts of Florida. But the heavy rain we're going to see is actually moving out of Texas and into parts of Louisiana.
In fact, let's go to the weather computer as we do so in Jasper, Texas, under the gun as we speak this morning. If you are tuning in from Jasper, you can hear the thunder. You certainly heard plenty of the rain drumming on the rooftops. That sound moving into Louisiana, but still we're going to have flash-flood watches this morning for parts of southeast Texas at least through midmorning. Some of those have been extended until 4:00, into the afternoon.
Meanwhile, north Georgia and into extreme southeastern Tennessee, Chattanooga, into Dalton, Georgia, heavy storms there as well, not severe, but certainly some heavy rainmakers. We have those low-lying areas. You may be dealing with some flash flooding. So be advised, be careful in that part of the world.
North of New York and up towards Hartford, Connecticut, Springfield, Pittsfield, even just the west of Manchester, we're having a few scattered showers and storms. But that's not an issue back in Detroit as we make our way farther back out to the west. In fact take a look at this live shot we have from WDIV in Detroit. Not a bad morning, kind of hazy, a little cloud cover here and there. In fact, you can't even see the top of the Renaissance Center, which is in the far right-hand side of the screen and the Joe Lewis arena as well as the Penobscot building. You can see that right along the waterfront. Interesting thing about this, it's actually -- the camera is in Windsor, Canada, looking northward. That's right, part of Canada is actually south of the United States. part of it looking north into downtown Detroit. What a shot this morning, but should be beautiful, Detroit later on with a mix of sunshine and clouds, maybe a few scattered showers. That's a look at your forecast across the nation. Let's get back to you at the news desk.
NGUYEN: All right, Reynolds, we do appreciate it. WOLF: Any time.
Police in orange County, Florida, they are looking for a burglar who ransacked a home and made off with about $2,000 in loot. Authorities know what the burglar looks like because the homeowner caught him on camera. Jeff Deal (ph) of our Orlando affiliate WFTV reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEFF DEAL, WFTV CORRESPONDENT: These pictures show the man who used a hammer to break a window and burglarize this east Orange County home.
THOMAS ARLINE, BURGLARY VICTIM: There is he with the (INAUDIBLE) in his hand and (INAUDIBLE).
DEAL: Thomas Arline knows because he watched it when it happened earlier this month through his new sophisticated surveillance system.
ARLINE: I seen him outside, then I made the decision, I called 9/11.
DEAL: But Thomas wasn't in the next room watching the burglary on closed circuit TV.
ARLINE: I watched from across the Internet on my camera system.
DEAL: That's right. He was miles away in his downtown Orlando office. The cameras in his house sent the images out to his own Web site. The computer network engineer got an e-mail alert from the motion sensor cameras and he logged in and watched.
ARLINE: During this whole thing, there's a little crowd behind me of guys in the office. Wow, yeah he does look like -- he's got --
DEAL: The suspect shown in the video was still able to get away with $2,000 worth of personal belongings before sheriff's deputies arrived. Thomas says at least now he'll always know when someone is breaking in, and maybe next time they won't get away so quickly.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: Well so far, no one has identified the burglar.
HOLMES: Taken at birth to foster care. A soap opera star talks about the love and wisdom she found with the strangers who took her in. You know that face. There she is sitting next to us here. We're going to be talking to actress Victoria Rowell right after our break.
NGUYEN: Looking forward to that and there is something that you know about flip flops before you end up at the doctor's office. (INAUDIBLE) Dr. Sanjay Gupta explains, ahead, on "House Call."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HOLMES: Millions of soap opera fans know her as Drew on "The Young and the Restless." This morning, we're speaking with actress Victoria Rowell. She has written a new book, a memoir paying tribute to the women who raised her, women, plural, yes. The successful actor was born a ward of the state of Maine and raised by a series of foster moms and she is here with us this morning. Victoria Rowell, thank you for being here. Victoria, or case number 19267C.
VICTORIA ROWELL, "THE WOMEN WHO RAISED ME": That is true.
HOLMES: A ward of the state. Good to see you again. Thank you for being here. People hear foster care, they often hear kids, they think about those horrible stories, kids falling through the cracks. What is it in your story? What made you a success story? Because would you certainly say are you an exception to the foster care system?
ROWELL: I would like to think that I'm not. I would like to think that there are many, many children that received exemplary care in foster care. My story is a story of success. Because collectively a social worker, foster mothers came together, my ballet teachers, my academic teachers. They came together and decided to provide wrap around services and this was not an accident. This was a willingness.
HOLMES: Most kids may not get that though in the foster care system.
ROWELL: We don't hear about it in the media. That's why I'm so grateful to be here today. We don't hear about it. It's not on the front page of the newspapers unfortunately. But there are millions of people and as a national spokesperson with the Annie E. (ph) Casey Foundation, Casey family services, I can tell you, I can attest to that there are thousands upon thousands of foster parents that do the job very well every day. But they go unheralded unfortunately.
HOLMES: Now certainly, you know, given where you are and the success you have had, there is certainly nothing you want to take away from your background and what you had, and people will often say that the best for the child is the traditional household, the mom, the dad, the kids, everybody under one roof and everybody's happy (INAUDIBLE). But do you ever wonder what would have happened to you if you were in that kind of situation and instead you got -- look at where you are now, given the foster care system and the moms you had? Do you ever think just about that a little bit and try to compare, maybe foster care was best for you?
ROWELL: I believe foster care was the best scenario. I mean, I can't speculate. Obviously, I've wondered. But I can't speculate if my life would have been better. I simply look at the fact that foster care has become the cornerstone of my strength. It's my inheritance if you will of what all of these foster parents and social workers poured into me. That is my legacy. I mean typical foster children don't get a tangible inheritance. But mine is one of humor and wisdom that all of these people put into me and I don't think it's an accident that I ended up on the television shows and in the films that I have been on, and I have been able to imbue the scripts if you will with foster care and adoption story lines. I think another thing that I've been able to do through my book, "The Women Who Raised Me" is bring attention to national adoption day which is in November, where we collectively execute adoptions across the country in one day, so I have been given a platform theatrically to really talk about what's important in my life which is foster care.
HOLMES: Where are all these women now? Over the years, how have they - I guess just been giddy probably to watch your success and watch you grow and that now the book...
ROWELL: They can't believe they have been on "The New York Times" best-seller list. They're like, oh my God, many of them, I speak of posthumously. I have a page dedicated to them in memorial (INAUDIBLE) . But I have created a documentary which has been in film festivals, certainly here with the national black arts festival and across the country. It's called "The Mentor," And it brings some of my mothers to life. They speak to the camera. They speak to the audience and they speak on behalf of so many people who courageously do extraordinary things by raising other people's children.
HOLMES: It is a fascinating book here. I know I got to talk to you a bit it in New Orleans when it first came to my attention. You are here now.
ROWELL: At this vest festival.
HOLMES: At the festival. We had a good time down there. "The Women Who Raised Me." Of course you're in Atlanta here. You're going to be signing some books and going to be around town. So mostly look for you there and I have to ask you, because everybody's furious (ph) about what's next for you. I didn't watch "The Young and the Restless" that much, forgive me because I'm working, so much.
ROWELL: It's OK, I forgive me. So tell me.
HOLMES: I understand that Drew fell off a cliff or something.
ROWELL: She slipped off the cliff so that see could be at she Woodruff Arts Center on Sunday at 12:30 to sign books.
NGUYEN: And they didn't find her Drew's body, I understand.
ROWELL: She could still be alive.
HOLMES: So she might be OK.
ROWELL: She could still be alive.
HOLMES: I'm glad we got that cleared up.
NGUYEN: I have it on a good source that she's still alive and well, right?
ROWELL: Yes, yes, yes. Thank you so much.
HOLMES: It's so good to see you again. Thank you, good luck with the book, "The Women Who Raised Me." So hope to see you again soon. NGUYEN: It is a remarkable story and it's a great thing that you are doing. We do applaud you. Thank you so much.
Coming up, Tom Cruise and the blundering black mailer. No, it's not Cruise's latest movie. It's an alleged blackmail case that ended in an arrest this week. Plot details. That's next.
And if you're counting calories, look around and check who you count as friends. Listen up, because if online your friends may actually be to blame for your waistline. We'll explain. .
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: We do have some new video into CNN. Take a look, Vice President Dick Cheney is at George Washington University hospital right now. He arrived just a few minutes ago. Cheney is there to undergo surgery. Doctors will replace the device monitoring his heart rhythms. The vice president has a history, as you know, of heart problems. But doctors call this procedure minor.
In other news, Tom Cruise photographed and extortion.
HOLMES: Two men now charged with trying to extort more than $1 million from Tom Cruise and his wife Katie Holmes. The plot according to the Federal officials, selling the couple their stolen wedding photos.
NGUYEN: One of the suspects is well known for brokering deals on compromising celebrity photos and videos. The other is accused of stealing the images when he repaired the computer of the wedding's official photographer.
HOLMES: Moving on here to obesity. Is it actually contagious?
NGUYEN: That's a good question because a new study says if your friends are fat -- you're all right, I think I'm good to go - the chances are that you'll pack on the pounds as well.
HOLMES: Our Mary Snow now, she has the skinny.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A new study says obesity is socially contagious. Researchers say if your friend becomes obese it increases your risk of becoming obese by 57 percent.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We know for example that your genes have an impact on whether or not you are obese, but this really suggests that your social environment might matter even more.
SNOW: Researchers looked at data from more than 12,000 people and published their findings in the "New England Journal of Medicine." Doctors say behaviors like overeating can spread among friends, but friends can also affect your view of being fat.
DR. NICHOLAS CHRISTAKIS, HARVARD MEDICAL SCHOOL: So what happens is, you look around you at the people to whom you are connected and you see that they are gaining weight. And so you start changing your ideas about what is an acceptable body size.
SNOW: But it's not just your friends who may affect your perceived body image. If your sibling is obese, your chances of being obese go up 40 percent.
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