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Utah Miners Trapped; More on Bridge Collapse; Michelle Pfeiffer Receives Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame, Chris Rock Paternity Tests Shows He's Not the Father
Aired August 07, 2007 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR, CNN NEWSROOM: Digging in, in Utah. Men and machines are pushing inch by inch into the Crandall Canyon coal mine, but it's a long haul, and I don't mean just distance.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR CNN NEWSROOM: The mine boss warns it will take three days to reach a half dozen miners who have already been trapped almost a day and a half.
Hello, everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips at CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta.
LEMON: And I'm Don Lemon. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.
It is the top of the hour. We're going to take you straight to Minneapolis, Minnesota. That picture there courtesy of our affiliate KARE. We're awaiting a press conference from the Hennepin County sheriff, Sheriff Rick Stanek. He's gonna talk to us about the Navy divers who have been brought in on this recovery effort, as well as the rest of the update on this effort in Minneapolis, Minnesota to recover cars and bodies, from there.
PHILLIPS: Three days it seems like an eternity, at a collapsed coal mine in central Utah. But that's how long it could take to reach six trapped miners, and that's being optimistic. Let's get straight the Emery County Utah to CNN's Dan Simon -- Dan.
DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well hi, Kyra. Just a short while ago, Robert Murray, the owner of the mining company here, took to the microphones, gave a very spirited defense of his company and what may have ultimately led to the collapse. We'll talk about that in a second, but first, where things stand.
As you said, looks like it's going to take as many as three days to reach these miners. The good news, Mr. Murray says he has an adequate amount of resources in place, 134 rescuers, working around the clock, working in various shifts. He also says he has brought in 30 pieces of equipment, including a helicopter, a drilling rig. But it's going to take quite a bit of time. At this point, we don't really have a sense as to how these miners are doing, or when exactly they'll be found. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BOB MURRAY, PRE./CEO, MURRAY ENERGY CORP.: Well, our efforts have been exhaustive and have involved everything humanly possible, to access these trapped miners. They have been disappointingly too slow, too slow. We're focused at remaining at the Crandall Canyon site until these miners are recovered that are alive.
As I have said before, if the percussion and the shocks of the earthquake did not kill them, we have a very good chance of getting out alive.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SIMON: As far as the cause of the collapse, this is where Murray became quite adamant. He believes that an earthquake caused the collapse, but seismologists seem to think that the activity they saw was a result of the collapse. What Murray appears to be doing is trying to deflect any possible blame that may come his way. Again, at this point, very unclear what caused the collapse.
But Kyra, here we are. It's been a little bit more than 34 hours since accident happened. These miners in very dark conditions, all they have are their flashlights. They have to conserve the batteries. Mr. Murray seems to think that they have enough air and water to last for several days. But again, we're looking at 72 hours before these miners are reached.
PHILLIPS: And also, when I interviewed the governor, Dan, he was saying that the air quality was methane free. Is that what you're hearing, as well, from Murray and those there on the scene?
SIMON: Well, what we're hearing is that there is air inside the coal mine, which is very good news. It's a porous coal mine, meaning air is allowed to get in there. So, if, in fact, that is the case that bodes very well for these miners. But of course, nobody really knows at this point -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Just waiting for signs of life. Dan Simon, appreciate it.
LEMON: At this point we're going to show you familiar to most of you (sic) we've been getting updates from this podium from Minneapolis for almost a week now since that bridge collapsed on Wednesday in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
We're waiting a press conference that's supposed to happen at the top of the hour. We're about four minutes in. They haven't showed up yet. We'll go to Susan Roesgen who is standing by now with the very latest on this situation.
Susan, I understand the FBI and Navy divers are now part of the search for bodies?
SUAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You bet. These are the super specially trained divers who know how to get in and cut through the heaviest debris and possibly start retrieving bodies very quickly.
Don, I want to show you behind me, that curve that you see in the bridge, that wasn't there before. That is part of the collapse. People have come out here to take a look at that and to see the cars that were able to just stop just shy of going over the edge. And you have to really picture this, Don.
There's a woman on the phone last Wednesday evening about suppertime. She hears on the radio there's been a bridge collapse, that the I-35 bridge, behind us, has collapsed. And she gets a call from her boyfriend on the cell phone. And she says, "Watch out, there's been a collapse on the I-35 bridge." And he says, "I know. I'm on it." Here's what happened next.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HEATHER HENNING, BRIDGE SURVIVOR'S GIRLFRIEND: The loudest noise he said he ever heard in his life. It was like a big boom. And him and his friend looked at each other and said, "What was that?" And Adam said that he saw the 35W sign for Washington Avenue, drop down like an elevator. And all he said was he felt the bridge collapse and the cars go into the water.
And he said his friend looked at him and they just heard a shock. And the shock waves started hitting the car. And the friend said get out of the car. Adam got shocked and stayed in the car. His friend got out of the car, and then the bridge collapsed down and dropped.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROESGEN: And you know, it's always strange the way things work out Don. Adam, Heather Henning's boyfriend, who stayed in the car was not seriously injured, but if he had gotten out of the car, where it is behind me, he would have been crushed, the friend in the passenger side, who did get out of the car, freaked out, opened the door, ran out. He has a concussion, but he was saved.
So that's just one of the many stories of people who survived this bridge collapse.
In the meantime, the divers, as you mentioned, are back in the water today. These FBI and Navy divers were so eager to get going with their special gear that they were in the water at 2:00 this morning, Don.
And we heard in the last hour from the local police department here that they are actively searching, actively cutting through the heaviest debris right now, and they may be retrieving bodies as early as later this afternoon.
LEMON: Susan Roesgen live there on the scene.
Susan, just as you finish there, the Hennepin County Sheriff Rick Stanek is standing in front of the microphone, that press conference about to get underway now lets go to it live.
RICHARD STANEK, SHERIFF, HENNEPIN COUNTY: Is to reunite the families of those missing as a result of this tragic disaster with their loved ones. During the president's visit on Saturday morning, I asked for two federal resources, the FBI's Underwater Search and Evidence Recovery team, as well as the U.S. Navy's mobile diving and salvage unit. The secretary of Transportation, Mary Peters, Secretary of the Navy Donald Winter, and the Department of Justice, acted immediately, and we are now utilizing these resources in our recovery efforts.
Last night I had the opportunity again to visit with the families to update them on our progress and developments. This visit was emotional and somber. As we continue our work, the families understand that we're taking great care to keep our divers safe and that this is a slow and methodical process. As I mentioned, I have with me this afternoon representatives from the FBI, and the Department of Defense, Navy. We're happy to take questions as we go along, and I'll defer to them as appropriate. I think also Captain Chandler --
CAPTAIN CHANDLER, HENNEPIN COUNTY, SHERIFF'S OFFICE: Right here.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right here
STANEK: Is here as well in terms of our planning operations at this stage with the Hennepin county sheriff's office.
Questions?
QUESTION: Sir, can you tell us about the car that came out today?
STANKE: No. We want to -- Captain Chandler from the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office.
CHANDLER: The car that was pulled from the river today was found by a sheriff sonar early in the week, sheriff's divers from one of our teams cleared the car. The Naval salvage divers verified that today, but the car was moved specifically to make room for the Naval dive operations. All other vehicles right now are going to stay in place. It was simply moved to make it easier for the divers to avoid entanglements.
QUESTION: Was that one of the cars that had been searched previously?
CHANDLER: Correct. It had already been searched and cleared previously, and accounted for.
QUESTION: Captain, a number two car removed?
CHANDLER: Yes. There is the second car we have removed from the water, correct.
QUESTION: (OFF MIC)
CHANDLER: I believe that person was safely accounted for.
STANEK: Other questions?
QUESTION: Are you surprised you have not found more remains yet? Now that every effort is being done, are you surprised that you've not been able to identify and locate the rest of the missing? STANEK: Yeah. As you know, I mean our recovery efforts have been ongoing 24 hours a day since the day of the disaster, since that night. All you have to do is take a look behind us with the -- I mean, just the scope and the magnitude of the devastation out there, from cars half submerged, cars fully submerged on the that murky river bottom, tons and tons of concrete, debris, rebar.
It's hazardous and treacherous at worst, out there. In terms of the recovery efforts, you know, we have been doing searches of the waters surrounding the collapsed structure. And as I mentioned the other day, as of Saturday afternoon, Saturday morning, in meeting with the president, it was time to move on to what was really phase two, which is start to penetrate the debris itself and really get inside and take a look at areas that were no easily accessible or accessible to the Hennepin County sheriff's office divers, in our mutual assistance.
QUESTION: (OFF MIC)
STANEK: Captain Hooper, do you want to comment?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Uh, the Navy divers--
STANEK: Come one, come on up, go up to the microphone.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Navy divers are specially trained to penetrate wreckage like this. They're salvage divers. Most the time they penetrate wreckages like this, it's damaged ships and to effect repairs and do the same sort of operations that Sheriff Stanek has asked us to do.
They're determining the optimum points of entry into the wreckage, and as they discover findings, they relay that both to the FBI, to the sheriff's office, and we regroup and then take the next steps as appropriate under the direction of the sheriff on how he wants to continue based on the findings that they have in the wreckage.
QUESTION: (OFF MIC)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. That's exactly correct.
QUESTION: (OFF MIC)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, they are absolutely working in concert with the FBI as well -- we're operating under the direction of the sheriff. And we are coordinating ourselves I think very, very well given the circumstances. And given their special training, given their equipment that they have, that can go in there and meticulously cut away the rebar and other reinforcements that are there as part of the wreckage.
We'll carefully go inside and gather intelligence, come back, share it with the sheriff, as well as the FBI, determine the best course of actions on the recovery operations that we've been asked to come in and perform. And work in concert with the sheriff to see that to it's end. And once that's at its end, we'll be retreating and when the sheriff is ready for us to go back, then he'll continue what he needs to do on the scene.
QUESTION: (OFF MIC)
STANEK: Let me just add to that real quick, hang on to that one. You know, in addition, I mean, the cooperation between the FBI, the Department of Defense, and the Navy and the Hennepin County sheriff's office, you've got a number of other people out here from NTSB to others who have been working on different components of the recovery operations.
Even last night, again, we told you we're doing 24 hours a day in terms of the recovery operation operations. Last night, we identified a vehicle submerged on the downriver side. Turns out to investigation by the detectives it's not related to the collapsed structure, had been in the river a number of years. But we continue to search up and down the river between here and Fort Dam, as well as the banks of the Mississippi.
QUESTION: How many Navy divers are there? Are they rotating? How is that working?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are two teams of divers. They operate in shifts. There are approximately six teams that are actually performing the diving operations. They have another command element that is overseeing the entire operations and coordinating their movements with the other agencies that are here.
QUESTION: Are these the kind of divers -- are they scuba or hardhat kind of --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No. This type of diving is not done in scuba. We have scuba gear here, but it's just as a standby for an assist role. This is done in very robust, hard-hat diving for going into this kind of wreckage, because you're interested in the protection of the divers first. And they've had the training to go into a wreckage like this, like I said before, most of the time in the context of a damaged ship, as opposed to this kind of structure. But they know how to get in through rebar, and they know how to get in through a structure like this, and extricate themselves, and bring back the information for further evaluation.
QUESTION: Have they started cutting yet or are they still exploring?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're looking. As the sheriff said, they removed the one vehicle this morning so they could gain access into the interior of the wreckage and continue that intelligence gathering. And we're in constant dialogue with the sheriff's office, letting him know what's going on and with the FBI. As that information is gathered, courses of actions are changed, and we proceed from that point.
QUESTION: (OFF MIC) UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They have a whole host of different tools to do very precise, meticulous cutting of the reinforcement steel that there. They can do that both with exothermic, i.e., torches as well as cold cut. And they have that equipment on the site, and they can use it whenever it's called upon or whenever it's appropriate to remove debris, remove wreckage to get to the divers -- I mean,. to get to any potential targets that would aid the recovery operations.
QUESTION: And when you say moving the debris, how does that process work?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, the only people that are working on that bridge right now are the divers, so they would be the ones that are cutting it. They go in, they gather the intelligence, come up with a course of action, coordinate with the agencies here, particularly the sheriff's office, and then they go in and execute. They get more intelligence, come back, regroup, go back in.
QUESTION: (OFF MIC) Are we talking finally looking under that (OFF MIC)?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's penetrating it to go inside the wreckage, to see what the FBI sensors couldn't see before, and what the sheriff's divers couldn't see before either.
QUESTION: Any ballpark idea when we might get a look at what might be under that big chunk of road?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, we started our diving operations this morning at 2:00 in the morning. And you can tell by your own clock we've been 12 hours into it. It's been very dynamic, and a lot's been accomplished in a short amount of time. I think you'll see that progress continue.
QUESTION: (OFF MIC)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They've looked at the entire length of the bridge, and most the diving operations today have been determining the optimum points to gain the penetrations and how to prioritize their efforts, so they're thorough and meticulous covering all the area.
QUESTION: How many divers now from the sheriff's department, Navy, and the FBI? How many divers are in the water today?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, we have two teams, and there's eight divers per team. Then there's a command element that oversees their operations and coordinates them.
QUESTION: (OFF MIC)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'll let the sheriff's office answer that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They want to know how many divers you have out there.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are not actively diving. STANEK: The sheriff's office divers worked through day yesterday, so we've been in the water every day since yesterday. We have pulled our divers out, but we have four public safety divers on standby, plus other support personnel to assist the Naval divers. We are not physically going in the water, though, right now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah. We have 13 FBI divers here. And we work in coordination with the Navy. We've been on other missions before, so this isn't the first time we've coordinated our efforts.
QUESTION: Are your men in the water yet, or are you waiting for --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They have been in the water and they will be again this afternoon.
QUESTION: (OFF MIC) If they're starting to look under that bridge, have they seen under it yet? Do they have cars under that concrete? Do we know yet?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I just got debriefed by the divers on site. First of all, I'm Colonel Mike Chesney (ph). I'm the overall Department of Defense point of contact, the command and controlling officer for all the activity here that we're bringing to bear to support the local sheriff.
The divers are continuing. They just got in the water, as the captain mentioned, you know, within the last 12 hours. So they're still trying to do a good thorough reconnaissance, confirm the data that was provided by the sheriff's department, then analyze the situation. We are not yet really into the penetration to determine what is exactly what is inside that main structure.
STENEK: You know, the best way to describe this, all that's going on behind us, somebody said it earlier, you know, there's a lot going on above the surface, there is a heck of a lot going on below the surface. It's fluid, it's dynamic, ever changing and moving. That's why we time to pick a time to come out and give you a briefing every day at 1:00. We'll continue to give you briefings and updates as things develop. If something significant changes or comes out of the recovery efforts.
Any other questions? Go ahead.
QUESTION: (OFF MIC)
STANEK: I'm not familiar with what the Minneapolis police department released this morning. But I can tell you that, you know, Captain Chandler, who's a diver himself, has worked on this team for a number of years. I think he can tell you a little bit about those dynamics.
CHANDLER: Yes, sir.
I've been managing the dive team and been a national diver and working water patrol. Not to make myself old, but over 20 years. We know the dynamics. We're very familiar with this. And the Hennepin County sheriff's office has been used for diving all around the Midwest from our expertise and our understanding of that.
And yes, we understand from the water flow in a normal situation without obstructions, it's very likely bodies could have been resurfacing on their own within 24 hours, given that -- a lot of variables -- but basically given the depth and the temperature, which leads us to believe that there's entrapment here. Which again, was why we did a slow, methodical search for all the vehicles, first, before we moved on farther.
QUESTION: (OFF MIC) What kind of technology has been brought in and specifically how can it help, whether we're talking about the unmanned submarines or radio sonar?
STANEK: Captain, did you bring those releases with information? This would be a great time. What we did was the department of defense and the Navy and the FBI all put together -- I call them bios. They're a little information about who they are, and what they do. She'll hand those out to you. If you have specific questions for the team, please -- because we act as team here.
QUESTION: Captain Chandler, (OFF MIC) this is entrapment, does this mean (OFF MIC)?
CHANDLER: The question is if we expect they're contained and not down river. Yeah. However, as part of our normal operations all the time, we always continue to search down river, downstream from any incident we've ever had, and we're going to continue to do that.
Again, the water is very powerful and dynamic, and we understand that. We also understand that because of those dynamics, a body could wash out, and that's why we are doing a 24-hour, nonstop patrol with boats all along the river from the collapse site all the way down to the Fort Lock and Dam.
(END LIVE FEED, IN PROGRESS)
LEMON: All right, you're listening to a press conference. The Hennepin County sheriff along with the FBI and the Navy.
Here's what's important: 15 Navy divers are now on the scene. Many have been in the water already; 13 FBI divers all helping out, the sheriff's divers there.
This is what I found important about these divers. It says that these divers who are joining the search have learned from some of the country's most challenging water salvage operations, including the wreckage of TWA 800 and also the Atlantic -- that was in the Atlantic Ocean. And also the space shuttle in the lakes and marshes off of Texas.
So, they're there to help speed up this recovery effort. We're going to continue to update you on this breaking news story. In the meantime, there are eight people still missing this in all of this. We certainly wish them well. CNN has pictures of at least six of them. As we go to break, we'll take a look. We're back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: The Fed has just announced its latest decision on interest rates. Susan Lisovicz and Ali Velshi join us now.
Susan, what the word? Let's start with you.
SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN FINANCIAL CORRESPONDENT: The Federal Reserve did nothing, I think you can say that. It kept rates unchanged for one near now, the ninth consecutive time, federal funds rate, which is the benchmark for credit, for borrowing in America, at 5.25 percent.
But you could certainly say that the Fed said something. The Fed has been talking for, all this year, about the twin risks to the economy in the housing market recession, as well as, of course, inflation. So, it's been battling with both of those. It's been addressing both of those in the statements.
Today, for the first time, the Fed talked about the credit crunch that we're seeing. The Fed for the first time also said in its statement that down side risks to growth have increased somewhat. The two new areas, what the Fed said.
And the market, very volatile, the Fed addressing that as well, the market had been rallying just very modestly, and now it's selling off, very modestly.
PHILLIPS: Well, on what you said, Susan, Ali do you think the Fed helped create all these credit concerns?
ALI VELSHI, CNN FINANCIAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, that's -- Susan mentioned that the Fed has said there's a downside risk to the economy, to growth, and that's a bit of a hint as to what happens next. Here's what they said about the credit concerns.
The Fed said financial markets have been volatile in recent weeks. Credit conditions have become tighter for some households and businesses, and the housing correction is ongoing. Remember, they say correction. They don't call it a slump or a slide.
But here's the key of it -- "Nevertheless, the economy seems likely to continue to expand at a moderate pace over the coming quarters supported by solid growth in employment and income and a robust global economy. So, the message, Susan, if I read this the same way, is that it's OK. There's enough good going on to offset the bad that's going on, and there's no need for the Fed to intervene and start lowering interest rates.
LISOVICZ: But there would be some folks, I think, Ali and Kyra, that would say that the Fed is starting to nudge closer to cutting rates. That, you know, all these concerns that we've seen that are a fallout from the housing sector, are starting to create real concerns. You know, American Home Mortgage just went out of business yesterday. That was not in the subprime market. We had a couple hedge funds from Bear Stearns. They're virtually worthless. You are seeing these losses. There are lot of concerns. The Federal Reserve did what it had to do, essentially. It had to acknowledge the 800-pound gorilla in the room.
This is the concern. Its primary concern is still inflation. Don't forget, oil prices at an all-time high last week. So, that's the number one concern, but, you know, it's a little bit more concerned, if you will, about the slowdown that could take place.
PHILLIPS: All right.
VELSHI: Let's just show you how it affects the homeowners. While the Fed's number one concern is inflation, how does it affect those of you out there who have loans? The Fed rate has stayed the same for the ninth time in a row at 5.25 percent. The prime rate is generally three points higher than that, that 8.25 percent.
So, many businesses, or consumers, have loans that move or are tied to the prime rate. If you're one of those people, your costs didn't go up. But as Susan said, even people who are not subprime, or people with bad credit have been seeing the mortgage and the loan market tighten up around them. So the rate may not be higher, Kyra, but you're going to see, it's just going to become harder to get a loan. There will be more you'll have to prove in order to get a loan.
PHILLIPS: Ali, Susan, thanks so much, guys.
LISOVICZ: Thank you.
LEMON: 2002, the flooded Quecreek mine in Pennsylvania. No victims, only survivors. We'll talk to one of them straight ahead in the NEWSROOM and guess what? He still works there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Don Lemon. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM. 2:32 in the east. Here are three of the stories we're working on for you right here in the CNN NEWSROOM. We just heard from authorities at the site of the Minneapolis bridge collapse. They've removed more debris from the Mississippi River including another car, but they're still looking for eight people. A moment of silence is planned for tonight.
In Utah, they're trying, they're digging, but it's slow. We're told it could take at least three days to reach six miners trapped in a coal mine that collapsed early yesterday.
And temperatures could hit or exceed 100 today in much of the nation. Wow. And with the humidity, it feels even hotter. Heat alerts are posted in a number of major cities.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: A mining company says progress at Utah's Crandall County coal mine has been too slow. Still he says it will take three more days to find the miners and that's only if everything goes right.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BOB MURRAY, PRES./CEO, MURRAY ENERGY: So, the lord has determined already whether they're dead or alive from the percussion of the earthquake. But it's my job to get to them as quickly as possible and find out. And I will not leave this mine until there's been a rescue, dead or alive.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Well a cave in trapped the miners yesterday morning. They're believed to be more than three miles back from the entrance, about 1,500 feet underground. Was it really a quake? Questions still surround the cause of the Utah mine collapse. It was initially blamed on an earthquake but experts aren't so sure now. The mine company owner though is. So, did a quake cause the collapse or did the collapse cause the quake? Chad Myers talked to an expert yesterday and he has him on the phone. Chad, can we clear it up?
CHAD MYERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we hope so. We hope that there's some new information that we didn't hear about yesterday, some information that maybe was worked on overnight. We have all of these men and women out there trying to figure things out. And really the focus should be on the six people down that there that we need to get out of that mine. But here you go. Here's what we have. Some of the shaking that went on, the big red square you see is the mine permit area. And pretty much assume that they were mining under the entire permit. But we're also seeing a few of the aftershocks that happened in the overnight hours as well, pretty small, 1.2, 1.4, 1.6. Now, were those more of the collapsing of maybe some of the ceilings of this mine or was that really an aftershock or was this an aftershock, was this an earthquake at all? Dr. Walter Arabasz from the University of Utah, you talked to us yesterday, you really cleared up a lot of things but you couldn't clear it up all the way. Can we do that yet today?
DR. WALTER ARABASZ, UNIVERSITY OF UTAH: Unfortunately not. This is still a work-in-progress. Piecing together the cause and effect relations between that recorded earthquake and the mine collapse.
MYERS: What do you make of these little aftershocks we've been seeing here?
ARABASZ: OK. First, I think for your viewers, probably important to caution about inherent uncertainties in the location of seismic events. In this area, using our regional seismic network, for example, if there were an apparent separation of a mile or more between our earthquake or seismic event location and the location of the mine collapse, that would not be totally disconcerting to me as a seismologist. Our regional network, nearest station 12 miles away, certainly uncertainties in that view locating a seismic event like this of a mile or more and in depth's view, all bets are off.
We just don't have a density of instruments to pinpoint whether the seismic events occurring exactly at mine level or where whether they're originating deeper. Regarding the aftershocks, OK, we know that energy was released in the earth, caused seismic waves to radiate outward, as a 3.92 earthquake, was the source of that energy release slip on a fault or was it the mine collapse?
At this point, the evidence in hand is more consistent with the idea that the mine collapse was the source of the seismic waves recorded as the earthquake. But to get final answers, again, we need to piece more information together both from the mine and more seismological analysis.
If the originating event was a natural earthquake, we can talk about the subsequent events as aftershocks. If the originating event was the mine collapse, we can talk about them as perhaps readjustments in the rock mass surrounding the mine from the collapse.
MYERS: Or still mine tremors as it would go, right?
ARABASZ: Yes. The terminology is fuzzy here, but all of these releases of seismic energy from a mine environment, mining related.
MYERS: OK. Let's go back to the CEO of the mine. Let's go back to what he said. He said this could not have been a collapse because it happened one mile beneath the surface. But when I looked at the data, the plus or minus error was, what, .6 of a mile, so it, in fact, could have been .4 miles deep or 1.6 miles deep. Is that -- am I reading it right?
ARABASZ: The uncertainty that would be posted along with the earthquake location would come from a mathematical model, and that would be the relative precision with respect to the assumptions that went into the model. I am saying, again, cautioning that the uncertainties both in that view and in depth could be significantly larger than numbers posted with plus or minus errors associated with the earthquake location.
MYERS: You went so far -- real quickly. You went so far yesterday to say you thought the initial lines that you looked at on the seismograph showed an implosion. Are you still seeing that?
ARABASZ: That analysis is proceeding with other seismologists looking at wave forms recorded on high quality stations in the near region. The evidence at this point suggests that the recordings are unusual, very unusual, if that were a natural earthquake.
MYERS: All right. Doctor, we will get back to you in the proceeding days if you don't mind because I would really love to know from your expertise what exactly is going on here.
Kyra.
PHILLIPS: All right. Chad Myers, thanks so much.
MYERS: Thank you, doctor. Thank you, Kyra.
LEMON: Applause. A welcome almost unbelievable. Sound more than three days after a mine event in 2002, Pennsylvania's Quecreek Mine. Nine miners are pulled out safe after being trapped for nearly 80 hours in a flooded shaft. Doug Custer was even luckier. He and some of his comrades were warned by the trapped miners that things were going bad and they managed to get right out then. Well, Doug still works at Quecreek and is starting his shift as we speak but his mind is on Utah.
DOUG CUSTER, RESCUED FROM FLOODED MINE IN PA. IN 2002: The six miners that are trapped are -- in Utah, it will definitely be on my mind but I definitely have to keep my mind on my job because my job depends on me doing it right for the 60 other guys that are under my roof supports.
LEMON: Yes. You said they're your brothers. You think of them like brothers. You're going to be thinking about them all day today while you're working.
CUSTER: Yes, definitely. Knowing what they're going through and how the rescue effort's going and -- because I really and truly believe just from what I've been seeing on the news, you know, the map -- the maps are in line. These miners knew what they were going doing because their entries are straight, their crosscuts are straight. They knew what they were going.
LEMON: If you can describe right now, and I know it's horrific, what the miners today are going through right now just kind of waiting? Are they conserving energy? Are they huddled? Are they trying to keep warm?
CUSTER: Well, I'd say they're probably keeping warm. Hopefully they're not dealing with any water. Usually on a mine collapse, there could be an aquifer in the strata above them. How high it caved, I don't know. But hopefully it was just rock that come down. Usually, if there's an aquifer, you know, it'll break off there and then you will have water. But I'm praying to god that there is no water there.
LEMON: Mr. Custer, what do you say to the families of those who are waiting for those miners, those six trapped miners?
CUSTER: Just keep praying. Pray to god and things will be OK because I really and truly believe those miners are still alive because, like I said, these are smart miners. You know, it's not a hit and miss type mining operation. Their cuts were straight and it went for 3,000, 4,000 feet long in their rooms. These were experienced, good coal miners.
LEMON: Why do you guys do this?
CUSTER: Provide for our families. That's the only reason. Number one and foremost is provide for our families.
LEMON: It's dangerous.
CUSTER: It's dangerous, but it's not a bad living. It's not a good living. But it's something that needs done. And we've provided for our families and for everybody that throws on a light switch.
LEMON: That was Doug Custer, survivor and current worker in the Quecreek mine.
PHILLIPS: Triumph in Pennsylvania. Tragedy in West Virginia, the families of 12 miners killed in an explosion at the Sago mine early last year, their mourning was made worse because initially they were told that most of the mines survived. In reality, one did, Randal McCloy. He was in a coma for 21 days with damage to his heart, brain, liver and kidneys. He had to learn to think and speak all over again. He still suffers physical problems but he is an amazing survivor and also a husband and a father. He and his wife welcomed their third child into the world just a few months ago.
LEMON: Keeping hope alive. After yet another blow, the parents of a missing British girl discuss a disturbing report about new evidence here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
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PHILLIPS: Well, the price is right. A supermarket chain now offering several prescription drugs for free. Details ahead in the NEWSROOM.
SIBILA VARGAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Sibila Vargas in Hollywood. The results are in on the Chris Pock paternity case, but is he the baby's daddy? I'll have that and more when CNN's NEWSROOM continues.
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LEMON: You know what the black and white means? Time for showbiz. Entertainment. Hollywood. Superstars. Superstar! Superstar! There you go, Sibila. Do it again. You ready? One, two, three, superstar. Very good. You did it. I love it. All right. Three-time academy award nominee Michelle Pfeiffer receives a major honor in Hollywood.
Entertainment correspondent, Sibila Vargas, joins me now with more news on that. How's that? Take it away. I set it up, you take it away.
VARGAS: She's great for the silver screen for two and a half decades as one of the world's brightest movie stars, Don. Now, Michelle Pfeiffer has her name on the sidewalk to prove it. The 49- year-old screen siren was honored by Hollywood Chamber of Commerce with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame yesterday. Friends and fellow actors Jeff Bridges and Paul Rudd and Pfeiffer's husband, David E. Kelly, joined a large crowd of fans for the event where the actress thanked her parents and others for their encouragement. And it's been a good year for Pfeiffer. The ceremony coincides with the release of her back-to-back summer films, "Hairspray" and the upcoming fantasy "Stardust." Congratulations.
LEMON: Congratulations. I wasn't sure if you were coming back to me. So, I want to ask you about Van Halen. Do you remember the original group?
VARGAS: I do. LEMON: Right.
VARGAS: I do. And I know some of the lyrics of some of their songs.
LEMON: OK, what is it?
VARGAS: Well, I'm not going to do it.
LEMON: David Lee Roth is going to tour with them?
VARGAS: That's right. It's been two decades since David Lee Roth and the Van Halen brothers hit the road for a major tour, but you know what, Don? That's about to change. OK, so I know the lyrics to that one, OK? According to Billboard, the legendary rock band is about to announce plans for a 50-date American tour with their former front man. Now Rob, who split from the group in the mid '80s to pursue a solo career, will reunite with founding brothers Eddie and Alex with Eddie's teenage son, Wolfgang, subbing for Michael Anthony on base. Van Halen's 2004 tour with Sammy Haggar grossed the group nearly $40 million..
LEMON: I hope they have some looser pants this time. Do you remember those outfits?
VARGAS: I do. All very colorful ones, you know.
LEMON: Yes. Look at that. And Kyra, didn't you go to the concert?
PHILLPS: I sure did. I actually touched David Lee Roth's bandanna on his left leg. Remember when he used to have the bandanna around his leg?
VARGAS: My gosh. Will you go to this new tour if it comes to town?
PHILLIPS: I'd love it. I bet you those tickets would sell out.
VARGAS: I bet you. Yes. If they made $40 million with Sammy Hagar, I think they would probably make a lot of money with David Lee Roth.
PHILLIPS: I always thought Eddie Van Halen was the cutie pie, though.
LEMON: God.
PHILLIPS: Sorry. Come on. What do you think, Sibila?
VARGAS: I was into the blondes at the time.
(CROSS TALK)
LEMON: All right. I think one of them's losing their hair, so whatever. So, anyway, what would the entertainment segment be, Sibila, without a little legal drama? What's the latest coming out of the courthouses?
VARGAS: Yes. Well, this time the star involved is funny man Chris Rock, and the news is that he is not the baby's daddy. A lawyer for the famous comedian announced yesterday a court ordered DNA test proves Rock is not the father of a 13-year-old boy whose mother tried to sue the star for support earlier this year. Now in a statement from Rock and his wife, Malaak, the couple said they are glad to put this case to rest and accused the woman of telling multiple lies to sell her story to the tabloids. Kelly Bauer of Bulloch County, Georgia, who filed the paternity suit in March, denies making any money from the case and is disputing the results.
Well, shifting gears tonight, on "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT," Hollywood's first wives club. Why so many women everywhere will identify with the pain the first wives of some of Hollywood's hottest stars have had to go through. But how did they get through the ordeals? A special report on TV's most provocative entertainment news show, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT," 11 p.m. Eastern and Pacific. Back to you guys.
LEMON: All right. Thank you very much and I appreciated that whole Van Halen download you did for us. Thanks, Sibila. See you tomorrow.
VARGAS: Here to serve.
LEMON: OK.
PHILLIPS: Well, gimmick or good will? Either way, the public supermarket chain is cutting the cost of healthcare in some cases to zero. The chain will start giving away seven common generic antibiotics and customers need only present valid prescriptions; penicillin, amoxicillin and Cipro are among the freebies; Publix says almost 700 pharmacies in five southern states.
LEMON: Navigating the wreckage, trying to recover the victims. Divers get underwater assistance in Minneapolis. That's straight ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.
KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is sizzling in St. Louis. What's being done to help the elderly, the needy? I'm Keith Oppenheim in hot St. Louis. We'll give you the story. Stick around. The story's coming up in the NEWSROOM.
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PHILLIPS: Americans will heckle anyone these days. Just don't boo CNN's Jeanne Moos.
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: What a relief for Barry Bonds. Not that he finally got the home run and but that he didn't get booed. OK. Maybe a few boos. But so few that Bonds expressed gratitude for the crowd's attitude.
BARRY BONDS, SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS: I want to thank the San Diego fans. MOOS: There seems to be a booing binge lately from the arraignment of quarterback and alleged dogfight operator, Michael Vick, to the floor of the House, to a convention of liberal bloggers razing Hillary.
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D) NEW YORK: Seriously believe I'm going to be influenced by lobbyist or a particular interest group. Now, you know, I've been waiting for this.
MOOS: And Hillary's supporters have occasionally booed her detractors like the heckler with the sign.
CLINTON: Then let's make sure that we put it to work.
MOOS: From all the denials on the street, when is the last time you ever booed anybody?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Never. Never.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I never boo anyone.
MOOS: Ever.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't boo people. I ignore them.
MOOS: Kind of makes you wonder who's doing all the booing. Who booed Roseanne Barr for her rendition of the national anthem? And pity President Bush's former chief of staff? This is what happened when Andy Card stepped up to get an honorary degree from the University of Massachusetts.
These Frenchmen pulled up in France. They don't boo. They whistle their disapproval. Miss USA is used to approving whistles, but remember how she got booed after falling in what seemed to be an anti-American outburst at the Miss Universe Pageant in Mexico? Miss USA kept smiling.
But not this tenor when he got booed at the famous La Scalla Opera House in Italy. He stormed off the stage in the middle of his performance.
Barry Bonds, at least, seem resigned to the boos.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I booed him and I was like Barry, steroids.
MOOS: And did it feel good?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, it did.
MOOS: Maybe this could be considered canine booing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's Barry.
MOOS: Ally's (ph) owner jokes he can sniff out performance- enhancing drugs and if booing doesn't satisfy animal lovers upset with Michael Vick, there's always the Michael Vick doggy chew toy. TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.voxant.com