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Six Miners Trapped in Utah Mine Collapse; FBI, Navy Divers Called in to Help with Bridge Collapse Recovery; Broward County Sheriff's Deputy Shot; Middle Eastern Students Arrested for Incendiary Devices in Car

Aired August 06, 2007 - 13:00   ET

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

DON LEMON, CO-HOST: Hello. I'm Don Lemon, live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.
ELIZABETH COHEN, CO-HOST: I'm Elizabeth Cohen in today for Kyra Phillips. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

LEMON: Our top story is breaking in remote central Utah where a half dozen coal miners are trapped in a cave-in.

The Crandall Canyon Mine west of town of the town of Huntington gave way about an hour after a magnitude four earthquake early this morning. I spoke with Steve Carlson from KDYL radio. He says reports appear now that it's just six miners trapped. No other injuries besides that.

Even close to the mine, folks are reporting not feeling a rumble but it's still early on now. And those are initial reports.

We're going to turn now to our Chad Myers, who's going to join us with more on that earthquake that caused this mine collapse.

And Chad, what can you tell us about that?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: It's the Wasatch Plateau. It was in the Huntington Canyon. And in that part where the canyon goes up out of Huntington, it is actually called the Crandall Canyon. And this is where this was.

And early reports said that the earthquake was initially about less than 20 miles from the mine. Well, yes, in fact, less than five. Right there along that fault line and, obviously, this is a geologic hot bed of activity; there are plates colliding here. Obviously, in the old times, there was something else going on here, too, in geologic activity, or there wouldn't be coal mines here.

So we do know that this was in the Hiawatha Mine. It was right off -- if you take from Huntington and you go north into the canyon, into Huntington Canyon, you will find the location of the mine, the general Crandall Canyon mine.

You know, Emery County in Utah has had a number of disasters here, not the least of this is the first one. 2000, two men died during an explosion at the Willow Creek mine. In 1984, a fire in the Wilberg Mine killed 27. In 1924, an explosion killed 172 at the Castle Gate Mine. And then the Scofield Mine disaster of 1900 claimed 200 men.

So yes, an area that has coal mines, and my grandfather, both of them actually, were coal miners Pennsylvania. It's a dangerous job.

This mine opened a very long time ago, back in the '20s. It closed in the '50s. And it was reopened again with much better equipment. They're getting almost three million pounds of -- or tons of coal out of this mine. So clearly, active. Clearly, still digging. And a disaster going on there if we can't get a hold of them. From what I can tell, there has been no reports of any communication from the lost miners to the men that are trying to get to them.

LEMON: Yes, and you know, I'm just getting more information, because this is developing. We're hearing -- this is through reports from the sheriff's office there. These men were about -- and also from KSL, one of the news radio stations there -- 2,000 and 3,000 feet down...

MYERS: Yes.

LEMON: ... in that. And just to give you an idea of the difference there, you remember the Sago Mine. Of course, we all remember that: 11,000 to 13,000 feet down.

We're going to get more on that as we are speaking to people who are -- have much more expertise.

MYERS: Well, down is a relative term, because this is such a topographically sensitive area. If they were down, literally down a shaft, it could be less than that. If they were under a mountain range or under a valley, obviously, that's going to change.

Also, you know, it's the translation. Are they 2,500 feet in? Is that what they mean by down? Are they down the mine 2,500 feet? Which would be a whole lot better than being 2,500 being under solid rock.

LEMON: All right. Chad Myers, we'll be checking in with you.

We also want to tell our viewers that our Brian Todd is in Washington working the story with all of his sources and has gotten some new information. As soon as we get that information, we're going to bring that to you.

Also, another developing story here in the CNN NEWSROOM that we're following, this one from Broward County, Florida. It's in Pembroke Park. Broward County sheriff's deputy -- it's believed to be a sheriff's deputy -- was shot. Not exactly sure how this incident happened. But you're looking at pictures now. You see the officer presence on the scene.

We are being told, according to the Associated Press, that the officer was not in uniform. And the officer has been transported to the hospital. The gunman is now in custody. Neither of them have been identified.

You can see they sent nearly a dozen officers and rescue workers helped to load that officer into a stretcher where he was transported to Memorial Regional Hospital. His condition is not known.

Again, a man believed to be a Broward County sheriff's deputy, off duty, not in uniform. Not sure if he was off duty, but not in uniform. Believed to be shot in Florida.

We're going to continue to update you with this, as well as the mine collapse.

COHEN: From the air, in the water, on the ground, more manpower, more equipment, more urgency at the site of the Minneapolis bridge collapse. Here's what's happening now in the search for bodies and for clues.

Navy and FBI divers are joining in the search for more victims. At least eight people are still reported missing. Another five are confirmed dead.

Also, federal investigators are questioning bridge construction workers. Some of them reported unusual wobbling -- those were their words -- in the days before the collapse.

Heavy cranes are being moved in to begin removing tons of debris from the Mississippi River and its banks. Every chunk of concrete, every piece of metal could hold the vital clue to what happened, what made that bridge collapse.

Let's go straight to the I-35W bridge and CNN's Susan Roesgen -- Susan.

SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Elizabeth, you know the divers that are being brought in today from the FBI and from the Navy are specialists in body retrieval. And the sheriff here told me that he has asked for them to come in, because he believes that the sheriff's department divers have really done all that they can now to search the submerged cars that they could get to.

You know, we talked about what a difficult search it is for the divers in very muddy water, water that they can barely see through. They had to sort of grope their way along under the waters of the Mississippi. They've managed to check out the cars that they can check out.

Now the sheriff says he needs these specially trained divers from the FBI and the Navy to come in at the same time as the big equipment is coming in from the Department of Transportation to start moving those chunks of concrete in the middle.

That way if there are any bodies pinned under that heavy wreckage or perhaps in a crushed car, those divers from the FBI and Navy will be able to retrieve them. That really is still the big push here, Elizabeth, is to try to find the eight missing people. That's what everybody wants to know, is what happened to them, to give the families some closure and also to wrap up things here in terms of recovery so that they can start rebuilding the bridge -- Elizabeth.

COHEN: Thank you, Susan Roesgen in Minneapolis.

LEMON: All right. Now back to our developing story, Elizabeth. We want to go back to Utah and update our viewers. There's been a mine collapse, and six miners are believed to be trapped.

Joining us now on the phone is Steve Eskelsen. He's with the Rocky Mountain Power. They were the first group to discover these workers had been trapped and called authorities.

Also I understand, sir, that you have sent a rescue team and heavy equipment to help out here.

STEVE ESKELSEN, ROCKY MOUNTAIN POWER: That's right. Actually, we were notified by the mine originally. We weren't the first to discover it.

But most mines maintain a mine rescue team. And we've offered our team members as a backup. They're standing by if they're needed.

LEMON: Have they given specifics about this -- this collapse or cave-in that you could share with us that may help our viewers understand what's going on?

ESKELSEN: I have no specifics on the details of the incident. The only thing I know is that in any mine emergency, adjacent companies help each other. And so we've offered our mine rescue personnel. They're standing by. We have some heavy equipment that we can loan out if that becomes necessary.

Right now we're just standing by, and we want to be helpful if we can.

LEMON: Do you know, sir, if you're -- you sent a rescue team. Are they in communication with these miners?

ESKELSEN: I have no information on that.

LEMON: You have no information. OK. We do know that the utility -- you're with the utility power plant, Rocky Mountain Power. Rescue team, heavy equipment team, sent. Do you know if you're the only one asked to send a team out?

ESKELSEN: I don't know whether others have been asked. I mean, there are other mining operations in the area. In times like this, neighbors tend to offer quite a bit of help. SO We might not be the only ones.

LEMON: If you can real quickly tell me, if you're in this area, I'm sure you're used to dealing with these situations. In recent memory, do you remember any mining collapse that you helped out with that you can recall for us?

ESKELSEN: There have been a couple of other incidents that the company has been involved in, in its own mining operations and other adjacent mining operations.

I think the most important thing to note is that -- is that mine rescue teams train year-round for these kinds of emergencies. And while they're very difficult to deal with and there's an agonizing period of time between the incident and when a rescue effort becomes necessary, that's because the first priority is the safety of the rescuers.

LEMON: Right.

ESKELSEN: There's no sense in sending somebody in prematurely and creating more victims.

LEMON: No sense in compounding the tragedy. Dave Eskelsen from Rocky Mountain Power, thank you for joining us today in the CNN NEWSROOM -- Elizabeth.

ESKELSEN: You're welcome.

COHEN: CNN's Brian Todd is in our Washington bureau. He just spoke with officials from the Mine Safety Health Administration. That's a federal office.

Brian, tell us what you know.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Elizabeth, yes, we just got off the phone with the agency also known as MSHA. That's just the shorthand for that agency. Just a moment ago. Here's what we know.

At about 5:40 a.m. Eastern Time, the Mine Safety and Health Administration was informed of what they call a seismic event or ground failure near the site of the mine in question.

They also say now, as we've been reporting, six miners are now unaccounted for. The first responders, according to this one official, have received no communication from the miners. This is, again, from the Mining Safety and Health Administration.

MSHA is coordinating rescue efforts with the mine owner. The mine owner is called "Jenwal" or Genwal Resources Incorporated. We have to get a pronouncer on that. But I'm sure we will soon.

Rescue teams are now in the mine. And this official says that these teams are now within about 2,500 feet of where they believe the miners were working. They also have two mine inspectors inside the mine right now.

The name of this mine in question is the Crandall Canyon Mine in Emery County, Utah.

The area where the miners are believed to have been working, according to this one official, is about four miles inside from the mine entrance. Now, four miles in, as we know from covering the Sago Mine disaster from last year, doesn't necessarily mean four miles down. It can be inside the mountain, and it can run essentially parallel to the surface of the ground and then down and then possibly parallel again. So four miles in does not necessarily mean four miles down.

MSHA also has a family liaison group en route to the scene.

That's what we know now.

I've spoken with an official of the United Mine Workers Association, which is one of the top unions representing miners. This union does not represent miners at this particular mine.

But this one official with the UMWA has talked to this union's safety people, who are out in that area and who are getting information.

We have to be careful with some of this. But what we're told by the UMWA is that these miners in this mine were doing what they call retreat mining, which means as you advance inside the mine you build pillars of coal to stabilize the ceiling of the mine. And then, as you retreat from the mine, you break down those pillars.

Now, whether that has anything to do with this occurrence, we just don't know at this point.

LEMON: Yes. We'll have to figure that out, Brian.

OK, CNN's Brian Todd, thank you so much for that report. We're going to get back to you. As you get new information, please check in with us.

Six miners missing in Utah. Their mine collapsed after an earthquake. We'll continue to follow this breaking news right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

COHEN. Plus, potentially dangerous condition on the earth's surface. Smog, heat and humidity are taking the great out of the great outdoors.

LEMON: Oh, yes. And there might be more than ink going under teens' skin when they get a tattoo. We'll explain that later.

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Sixteen -- almost 16 past the hour. Here are three of the stories we're working on for you, right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

An urgent rescue effort going on right now at a collapsed mine in central Utah. Six miners are reported missing in that collapse, which happened after an earthquake hit the area.

Officer down. Plenty of his colleagues at the scene. Our Florida affiliates report a Broward County sheriff's deputy shot -- has been shot. No word on his condition. The suspect is in custody in that one.

A grisly crime in Newark, New Jersey. Three young people were shot and killed execution style, an elementary school parking lot. Authorities say the killings appear random. They are looking for the suspects.

We want to get you now back to Pembroke Park, Florida, where a sheriff's deputy is believed to be shot and is taken to a hospital.

Our Glenna Milberg from our affiliate WPLG joins us now.

What can you tell us, Glenna?

GLENNA MILBERG, WPLG CORRESPONDENT: That officer is described in grave condition. Very serious.

And if you look behind me, right down the block where the little yellow buildings are, all this police presence. That is where he was shot. Probably about, I'd say, an hour and a half ago.

Let me take you through what happened here. This was meant to be what police will call a routine traffic stop. There was a Broward sheriff's deputy who was making this stop on a motorcycle. Don't know why. Don't know what the nature of the traffic stop is, but he stopped this motorcycle.

And as this motorcyclist got off of his motorcycle, started to walk or run away, according to Broward Sheriff's Department, turned around with a gun and shot at this deputy. One shot, deputy down.

That call went out, deputy down. And hundreds, literally hundreds of police officers from around the South Florida area converged on the scene you're looking at right now.

This major roadway, it's called Pembroke Road, actually splits jurisdictions. This Broward sheriff's deputy was on the Hollywood, Florida, side of the road, making this traffic stop. Working in the area on what is said to be some special operation, some special project. The Broward Sheriff's Department did not say what.

But in the course of this special operation, he stopped this motorcyclist and was shot.

What you see here are hundreds of officers from Hallandale Beach. Incidentally, Hallandale Beach jurisdiction, a police officer for that department is the brother of the Broward sheriff's deputy who was shot.

You also have Hollywood police officers, of course, Broward sheriff. A big crime scene and command post. Helicopters in the air.

I don't know -- whenever there is a police call of an officer down, everyone in law enforcement in the area comes running. And that's what you see here. As I said, this officer is in grave condition at a hospital about four blocks from here. We're waiting for more about his condition.

LEMON: Yes. It's -- when you say deputy down or officer down, the police officers come running.

Just real quick. Yes or no, Glenna, did you say a routine traffic stop on a motorcycle?

MILBERG: Yes. The officer was actually in the area on some special operation having nothing to do with the traffic stop and for some reason, saw fit to make this stop on the motorcycle.

LEMON: All right.

MILBERG: Why, we don't know. But it was in the course of this traffic stop that he was shot.

LEMON: Glenna Milberg, thank you so much for your report from the scene.

COHEN: On the surface, it looked like a bombshell arrest in South Carolina Saturday. Two young men of Middle Eastern descent, allegedly with explosives in their car.

But since then the FBI has downplayed the case, saying the men have no apparent link to terrorism. State authorities, however, have filed charges against the pair.

CNN's Rusty Dornin joins us live from South Carolina with more.

Rusty, what have you got?

RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Elizabeth, there were conflicting reports initially. Local law enforcement was saying that a bomb was discovered inside the car belonging to these two men -- one man from Egypt, another from Kuwait -- who are here in the United States legally.

They have been charged with just possession of an incendiary device, which is, of course, a violation of South Carolina law.

What happened was Saturday night apparently, the two were pulled over for speeding. And when the officers came up to the car, they thought that they were exhibiting some kind of suspicious behavior, and the two actually admitted to having fireworks. And the officer asked to search the car. And let's listen to what they found.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHERIFF WAYNE DEWITT, BERKELEY COUNTY, SOUTH CAROLINA: Items in the vehicle were seized. Presently being explored at the FBI laboratories. So we don't know exactly what the elements were.

When the subjects were originally stopped, they admitted to having, as they termed to be, fireworks in the car. There again, based on the officer's judgment at hand and as to what he had seen, we thought it to be other than fireworks.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DORNIN: It created quite an incident here. They found some item in the car they thought was a bomb. They took it out, brought a robot in and exploded it. Apparently, shut down the highway for about ten hours.

The local officials are saying they don't believe it was a bomb. They're not sure what it was. The FBI is taking a look. They are going to take a look at, of course, these men's background.

Meantime, the University of South Florida, where both of them are students, is having a press conference in about a half-hour to talk about the case. And the two men will have a bond hearing here in Moncks Corner, South Carolina, at 4 p.m. Eastern -- Elizabeth.

COHEN: Rusty from South Carolina, thank you.

LEMON: We're going to continue to update you on our developing story happening here in the CNN NEWSROOM. This one out of Utah, in Huntington, Utah.

There's been a mine collapse, a cave-in. Six miners are believed to be trapped. We're going to keep you updated on this -- and throughout the day.

We're going to take a break. Back in a moment in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Well, Chrysler is once again an American automaker, but the company's new leader is far from the traditional choice. Actually, I think it's a very surprising choice and an interesting one at that.

Stephanie Elam at the New York Stock Exchange to explain that.

It is an interesting one, I would think.

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Don, you're right. It's both surprising and interesting.

Chrysler's new private owners are tapping an experienced leader, but he comes from outside the auto biz. Cerberus Capital Management has picked former Home Depot boss Bob Nardelli to lead the troubled automaker.

The selection puts him above Chrysler's president, Tom LaSorda, who of course, is an industry veteran.

Last fall, Ford also went outside the auto industry, naming former Boeing executive Alan Mulally as its top executive -- Don.

LEMON: OK. A bit controversial, this choice.

ELAM: Yes, it is. Because if you think his name sounds familiar, that's because back in January, Nardelli was forced out of his position at Home Depot following a torrent of criticism about his huge pay package and the company's lagging stock performances.

This time, however, Nardelli won't have to answer to shareholders. There aren't any, because it's a private company now. And he's expected to get a salary of only $1 a year. The rest of his compensation will be directly tied to the success of Chrysler's turnaround.

(STOCK REPORT)

ELAM: In the next hour of NEWSROOM, I'll tell you about the latest victim of the nation's mortgage meltdown. Until then, Don, back to you.

LEMON: All right, then, Stephanie Elam. We'll check back in with you. Thank you so much.

We want to update you now on our developing story about that coal mine collapse in Utah. This collapse is in Huntington, Utah, which is a remote section of central Utah. Six miners are believed to be trapped.

And here you're looking at a map of where that area is. We're going to continue to update this story. This is our breaking news today in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COHEN: It was only a small earthquake. A 4.0 that rattled Utah overnight. But the tremors apparently set off a mine collapse nearby and six minors are missing. Rescue crews are on the scene at the Crandall Canyon Coal Mine near Huntington. It is located less than 20 miles from the epicenter of the quake, and area utility company has sent heavy equipment and a team to the mine to help with the search.

LEMON: And our Chad Myers has been covering the ground conditions and weather conditions when it happened -- these types of things happen. We are going to go to him now to get us a perspective on this.

What can you tell us, Chad?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, when we first heard about this earthquake and the mine collapse itself, it was appearing that the collapse and the quake were about 20 miles apart. OK. We can deal with that. The earth shakes, the mine collapses. That can happen, certainly.

But now what we are finding as the U.S. Geological Survey, they take all of their triangulation and they are finding out that this the earthquake was only a half a kilometer down below the surface. Well, guess what. What did they just tell us that was the depth of the miners? About 2,500 feet. So this very well -- and I hate to even think about this, but this collapse may have been the earthquake itself.

Probably not. It probably happened the other way around. But we are going to have to find out because the earthquake location is here. Less than three miles away is the mine entrance. Now, the mine goes for miles under the ground here. I mean, not -- we are not talking a just a couple of feet or straight down. So this very well could have been in the mine itself causing the earthquake.

That is just one piece of speculation because this earthquake was so shallow. Most earthquakes are not that shallow. We are talking 20 kilometers, 50 kilometers, 100 kilometers. So you know, 20, 50, 100 miles deep in the earth.

Let me show you the shaking map. This is actually one of the shake maps heloquarter (ph), it is not actually the machine itself, but this is what was shown at, well, a little before the Zulu time, it's a little bit after 8:45 Zulu time. So 3:00 in the morning or so Utah time. Here is the shaking that occurred.

Now this shaking happened for a very long time. Each one of these is a minute. So let's count the minutes, how much shaking going on. There is one minute, two minutes, three. And finally, after four minutes, the shaking finally stopped. We are going keep digging on this. Find out whether there have been other earthquakes at that depth. If there have never been any earthquakes that shallow before, that might tell us something of what that shaking actually was.

LEMON: Hey, Chad, real quick, because we are going to get someone -- another expert on this, but when you talk about a 4, what is that -- give me some perspective on -- an idea of what a 4 is on the scale.

MYERS: In California, you are going to shake the table, you are going to probably knock some dishes off a china cabinet, maybe some things off the wall. It also depends on the violent nature or the lack of violent nature of the shaking itself. As the waves move, the P and the sine waves, as they move, they can do different things.

But a 4, a moment 4 earthquake will do moderate damage. It will crack some foundations but not knock things down. This is not like a California -- the San Francisco quake. You remember, during the World Series. Nothing, nothing like that.

LEMON: OK. Chad Myers, thank you, as always.

We are going to turn now Davitt McAteer. He is a former assistant secretary for mine and safety and health administration. He's in Shepherdstown, West Virginia.

What can you tell us about this, sir, about these folks being trapped under the ground as someone who has worked on situations like this?

DAVITT MCATEER, FMR. ASST. SECY., MINE SAFETY & HEALTH DEPT.: Don, it is a very difficult time. Obviously, it looks like they are trapped between 2,500 and 3,000 feet under the ground. I mean -- in the mine.

The cover at this area is about 1,500 feet of cover over this mine. They were operating in a retreat mine fashion. And by that I mean when you advance in mining you take the red squares of the checker board and then you get to the end and then you pull back and take the black squares in retreat mine, you expect the earth to fall down.

The report by your colleague Chad there suggested that the earthquakes may in fact have been -- this may have in fact led to the registration of the earthquake. That's not an unusual circumstance. It has happened in the past.

Where this area of this country, this area -- this particular canyon, and the area had generally speaking had rock bursts and have earth movements. They are younger set of mountains, if you would, and they have had these, what are called, rock bursts. And that's where that geologic pressure will shift and force the coal or the seam to burst out and then a whole section of it to come down.

Now the fact that Chad registered four minutes, that's an awful big size event. But that could indeed have registered -- the event itself, that mine could have been what was registered on the registers for the earthquake and that may well have been the event that caused it. That's not unheard of in these circumstances and in particular, in that part of the world.

LEMON: So you gave some very, very interesting information that I don't think I have heard. If can you just repeat that again concisely for me. You were talking about the dominos, red, black. Talk to me about that again?

MCATEER: It is a checker system. If you look at the -- if you look at a mine like a checker board and you drive from one side to the other and you take all the red squares and leave the black squares, that's your advance. When you retreat mine, you take all the black squares and pull backwards and you in fact expect and hope that the roof falls because that takes the geologic pressure off.

When it doesn't fall, when it stays up, then you get the geologic pressure sometimes behind you and it causes this enormous pressure on the walls you are trying to mine at the time, the blocks you are trying to take out.

LEMON: Mr. McAteer, what might rescuers be doing right now? Take us inside of this effort and tell us what's going on as far as rescue workers and the people who are on the ground.

MCATEER: Well, there's no explosion as was been reported so far. There has been a K (ph) order, a special order has been issued by the federal government. There are two inspection teams there. And as I understand it, there are more inspection teams on the way -- rescue teams are on the way. Now what would happen is that the teams would begin to sort of look at and take readings and try to understand what the facts are underground and whether or not there are explosions, danger or whether there is another danger of a roof fall.

As they would do that, they would try to move forward toward the area where they anticipate that the miners would be using the maps the company provides them, then try to get down the shafts or the slopes or whatever and try to get into the location as near as possible.

Also, watching for the pressures and watching for the geologic movements of any kind.

LEMON: Yes. And Mr. McAteer, this is the best information we have gotten here today. We hope you are around all day to talk to us, because I'm sure we would like to have you back to tell us about what's going on with these workers. So stay by the phone for CNN if you will. Thank you very much for joining us.

I just want to wrap this up by telling you that Utah Governor Jon Huntsman is going to visit the site today and if we can get pictures in, it is in a remote area of Utah, we will bring it to you live right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

COHEN: Well, you may not have noticed, but the U.S. attorney general and director of national intelligence now have the legal authority to eavesdrop on terror suspects overseas without warrants. President Bush says the stopgap measure that Congress passed and he signed over the weekend filled some critical gaps in U.S. intelligence.

Critics say it is a flawed law that gives the administration way too much power with minimal oversight. The revisions are good for six months, but the president wants deeper permanent changes when Congress returns from summer recess.

Azzam the American at it again. A new al Qaeda video feature the American jihadist, also known as Adam Gadahn, threatening U.S. embassies and other interests abroad and at home. The FBI hopes the video might give away his whereabouts. Now CNN's Brianna Keilar joins us from Washington with more -- Brianna.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Elizabeth. Yes, the FBI is looking at this video for any clues as to the location of this man, Adam Gadahn, as you said, also known as "Azzam the American." He has appeared in several al Qaeda videos over the last few years. And he's sort of notable because he comes from Southern California.

He was there in Southern California in the '90s where he really embraced Islam and then eventually he went to Pakistan, he got involved with al Qaeda. And in this particular video he says that al Qaeda will target the U.S., both at home and abroad and he singles out U.S. embassies and consulates.

But actually authorities here in Washington, they aren't really worried that this is a harbinger of a specific attack. The State Department has acknowledged this videotape but they say it is not particularly significant. And that's an assessment that CNN terrorism expert Peter Bergen agrees with.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETER BERGEN, CNN TERRORISM ANALYST: I don't take it particularly seriously. It's not news that al Qaeda plans to attack the United States or plans to attack American embassies, as Adam Gadahn threatens in this tape. U.S. embassies have been targeted by al Qaeda beginning in '93 when they cased the U.S. embassy in Nairobi, which they eventually blew up in '98.

So to me there is very little new news on this tape. More of the same. We have seen this guy several times in the past making these kinds of threats.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Bergen also points out that since those attacks in the '90s, it has become increasingly difficult for terrorists to attack U.S. embassies and consulates -- Elizabeth.

COHEN: Now Brianna, we have seen al Qaeda tapes before. And we will see them again probably. Is there any heightened concern about this tape because it is from an American al Qaeda member?

KEILAR: You know, there really doesn't seem to be. Terrorism experts say that Gadahn is a propagandist. He is not so much a planner for al Qaeda. And they also point out that his previous tapes, there is no known link between them and specific terrorist attacks. So they are really downplaying this -- Elizabeth.

COHEN: Well, Brianna Keilar, thank you.

LEMON: A potentially deadly disease is being transmitted in alarming numbers by teenagers. Is your tattoo to blame? That's a good question. Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta with some answers after this. Make sure you stay with us.

We are also following developing news here. A mine collapse in Utah. Six workers believed to be trapped in that, possibly caused by an earthquake. It could be the earthquake itself. We are going to continue to update you on this. But we want you to send us your pictures and your videos while we have a crew on the way to the scene, it's a remote area...

(SOUND EFFECT)

LEMON: ... the scene, send it to cnn.com/ireport. NEWSROOM continues after a break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COHEN: Some doctors are calling it a silent epidemic. More than 4 million Americans infected with hepatitis C. Many of them young people who may not even realize that they have it. And CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta reports what they don't know can hurt them.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Mary Skokan was 19 when she started injecting heroin. Two years later, she got devastating news. She had hepatitis C.

MARY SKOKAN, HEPATITIS C PATIENT: I have known a lot of people close to me who have the disease. I knew how I would -- how it was contracted. And I knew a lot about it. And still I didn't protect myself.

GUPTA: Hepatitis C used to commonly transmitted by transfusion or experimental IV drug use in the freewheeling '60s and '70s. Today that's changing. Overall, the number of cases are down. But in some places, where injection drug use is up among teens and young adults, hep C is also on the rise.

DR. ZOBAIR YOUNOSSI, INOVA FAIRFAX HOSPITAL: I actually think that this is a silent epidemic that has been going on for quite a while.

GUPTA: Some health officials say dirty needles used for tattooing and body piercing could be a factor. The virus can be transmitted sexually. But that risk is low. Hep C is the leading cause of liver cancer and the number one reason for liver transplants. The problem is most of those infected show no symptoms in the early stages. So health officials say getting message out to young people is critical.

YOUNOSSI: The rate of infection after using IV drugs and sharing IV drugs with other people, within a year could be as high as 90 percent.

GUPTA: But it can be treated. Six months to a year of weekly injections of the drug interferon, which helps the immune system fight viruses, combined with a daily pill called ribavirin, has doctors claiming success rates as high as 99 percent.

YOUNOSSI: If you can actually eradicate the virus and then sustain that eradication for another six months, then you pretty much cure the patients.

GUPTA: And that, of course, is encouraging news for patients like Mary.

SKOKAN: I have zero viral count. I'm pretty much in the clear.

GUPTA: But virus-free does not mean you are free from liver disease or risk of other complications. So doctors stress that kids understand that one bad injection can give them a potentially deadly disease.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE) LEMON: A developing story we are following here in the CNN NEWSROOM today. Two students from the Middle East arrested over the week in South Carolina, charged with possessing explosives. They attend the University of South Florida in Tampa. And just moments ago, there was a press conference held. The president of that university -- the spokesperson, I should say at least of the university, talked about these two students.

Let's take a listen.

KEN GULLETTE, UNIV. OF S. FLORIDA SPOKESMAN: We don't really know what happened here. We don't know how serious this situation is at this point from a security -- homeland security standpoint. And, you know, it is our mission, as a university, to educate students who come here, students get a very good education here and we have no reason to believe that there is any link whatsoever between these students and any previous incidents.

QUESTION: Are these students going to be suspended or removed from campus at all? Are they welcome to come back as soon as...

LEMON: All right. That was Ken Gullette, who is at the University of South Florida at Tampa, the spokesperson there. Ahmed Mohamed, one of the men arrested, Yousef Megahed, another man arrested. They were two college students from the Middle East, believed to be possessing explosives material.

They were stopped by South Carolina authorities this weekend and charged with that. They were speeding. There were earlier reports that a bomb was found. But that was backed off on from police and authorities there. But the men are students at the University of South Florida in Tampa. And moments ago that was the press conference you were listening to.

We will continue to update you on this story throughout the day in the NEWSROOM -- Elizabeth.

COHEN: Four college students, one an ordained minister, shot in a school yard in New Jersey. The deadly details ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Very busy day here in the CNN NEWSROOM. We are going to get you live now, that's Hennepin County, Minneapolis, Minnesota. That's where a press conference is expected to happen just moments from now to update reporters on the very tragic story that happened we know last week there when the bridge collapsed. That major artery collapsed.

At last count, five dead, eight still missing, and over 100 injuries. We are going to see if there's new developments in this as soon as this news conference gets under way -- Elizabeth.

COHEN: Well, what happened to the money that could have been used to fix the nation's riches? Two words, pork barrel. CNN's Jim Acosta investigated.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): If you are wondering why America doesn't have enough money to fix its crumbling bridges, critics of government waste say, hold on to your hats. Take a drive down Interstate 99 through central Pennsylvania.

That's where the federal government has spent $690 million to build Interstate 99, the largest city it will ever serve is Altoona with a population of roughly 50,000 people. The project was spearheaded by former presence Congressman Bud Shuster when he was the chairman of the House Transportation Committee. The state later named it the Bud Shuster Highway.

(on camera): I-99 technically is not an interstate because it never really leaves the state of Pennsylvania. It's actually more of an intrastate, or as one critic described it intra-Bud Shuster's Congressional district.

STEVE ELLIS, TAXPAYERS FOR COMMON SENSE: Essentially, we're deciding what is going to get funded in our infrastructure not on basis of need, but on basis of political muscle.

ACOSTA (voice-over): Steve Ellis is a critic of congressional pet projects known as "earmarks" that are written into transportation bills. He says the Bud Shuster Highway is no different than the so- called bridges to nowhere in Alaska which, if they're ever built, would cost taxpayers close to a half billion dollars. Ellis slams them all as Congressional pork.

ELLIS: There are projects not getting funded that are critically important.

ACOSTA: Today, Pennsylvania has some 5,900 bridges deemed structurally deficient, more than any other state in the country; spans like this one near Scranton are patched time and again.

The state's governor, Ed Rendell, is looking to Washington for help.

GOV. EDWARD RENDELL (D), PENNSYLVANIA: The American infrastructure is crumbling.

ACOSTA: While Rendell says Congress should eliminate wasteful earmarks, he admits his state has its fair share of Potomac pork.

RENDELL: I'm not a hypocrite, we benefited by having Bud Shuster as the chairman of Transportation and he was awesome in what he did for us, but for the overall country, was that good or right or fair or appropriate? No.

ACOSTA: As we drove down the Bud Shuster Highway, we found it ends just miles from the Bud Shuster By Way, which takes you to the town of Everett, hometown of, you guessed it, Bud Shuster.

That's where we caught up with the retired Congressman.

BUD SHUSTER (R), FMR U.S. REPRESENTATIVE: You talk to any of the people here in central Pennsylvania, and they'll tell that you this highway was needed.

ACOSTA: Shuster insists the highway has brought economic development.

(on camera): Wouldn't we have money for the bridges in this state if we didn't have the Bud Shuster Highway?

SHUSTER: Oh, that's ridiculous. That's ridiculous. First of all, you're talking about billions of dollars that are need here and the way you get that billions of dollars is you have to decide that you're going to dedicate more money. And to look at one highway is very simplistic. You ought to be ashamed of yourself.

ELLIS: This sort of thing is -- unfortunately, will continue to repeat itself until we actually prioritize our funding to where it's actually the most essential.

ACOSTA (voice-over): Essential may be in the eye of the beholder or in Washington, in the holder of power.

Jim Acosta, CNN, Everett, Pennsylvania.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: New video now just in to CNN. Take a look at this. You're looking at aerials from our affiliate KSL of that mine collapse. This is over that mine, the Genwal mine -- the Genwal Crandall mine, I should call it, in Utah. This is where six miners are believed to be trapped somewhat -- 2,000 to 3,000 feet inside of that mine.

It happened this morning local time, about 4:30 local time. We are told that this is either an earthquake itself that has been registering here or an earthquake caused this mine to cave in.

Again, six miners believed to be trapped in that. You can see all of the equipment, that is a command center van there going there. And the heavy equipment that they have coming in here to this site.

Chad, fill us in on the ground conditions and tell us about -- this is right on the fault.

MYERS: It is very near a fault. The Wasatch Fault, probably 20, 30 miles to the west of here. And you can get -- because of the way subsidence and all of that, and subduction happens, you can get a fault to be much deeper and away from where you believe the top fault is up on the crust. And that can happen, but that would also make the earthquake very deep, hundreds of miles deep. And it is not hundreds of miles deep, Don. This is only about 2,000 feet down -- Don.

LEMON: All right. Thank you very much for that, Chad. As you said, the Wasatch Plateau Coal Field, I think that is part of (INAUDIBLE) -- the Wasatch Fault. You would be correct in that. We want to tell our viewers, send in your I-Reports. Your pictures and your videos if you have them. Also want to tell you that the governor of Utah, Jon Huntsmen, visiting the scene near the Crandall Canyon mine. Also for those I-Reports, ireport@cnn -- or cnn.com/ireport. We are back in a moment.

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