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A Drill Could Dig a Life-Saving Holes for the Trapped Miners; Earthquake in Indonesia; Deadly Heat Wave Across the U.S.; More on the Minneapolis Bridge Collapse

Aired August 08, 2007 - 15:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Two and a half inches wide, almost 500 feet deep and getting deeper by the minute. A hole from this drill could be a life line for six trapped miners in Utah.

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: And no break in sight for millions of us struck in pressure cooker of heat and humidity. It was dangerous before now it has turned downright deadly.

Hello, everyone, I'm Don Lemon live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.

PHILLIPS: And I'm Kyra Phillips here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

LEMON: We have more details coming this hour from Indonesia, the site of a powerful undersea earthquake, this about 70 miles east of Jakarta. Seismologists report the magnitude 7.5 quake struck the main island of Java just after midnight. It was about 180 miles deep.

Now at the moment, we have no report of casualties and no tsunami alert has been issued. Our producer Kathy Quijano is in Jakarta. She along with a lot of others felt that quake and she joins us on the phone now.

Tell us what you felt Kathy.

KATHY QUIJANO, CNN PRODUCER: Well, Don, we felt the earth shake and sway for what I thought was more than a minute. I was in an apartment building on the fourth floor with several people standing on a balcony when the building started to sway. And we ran indoors and just hoped that it would stop but it didn't. It went on for a while and actually got stronger while the quake was going on for, as I said, almost a minute.

And after this, I ran out and -- to find panicked residents have been running out of their apartments as well. But shortly after this, we discovered that fortunately there were no significant reports of damage or casualties. And the same can be said so far in the areas outside of Jakarta, particularly in West Java, which is closest to the epicenter -- Don.

LEMON: Yes. So people were running out, you said, afraid, didn't know what happened. When you feel something like this, Kathy, does your mind and do people's minds there automatically turn back to the tsunami for concern?

QUIJANO: That's right and particularly for people who live close near to coast. Jakarta is actually on the northern tip of Java Island and there are apartment buildings here just along the coast.

But particularly for us here in Jakarta, many of us live in high- rise buildings. I was in a building myself and my thought was that, you know, I just hoping that it would really stop because it was much longer than the earthquakes we've felt here in recent memory, Don.

LEMON: Yes. And Kathy Quijano, we're glad you're safe. Any new information, please report back to us. Kathy Quijano, our producer in Jakarta, thank you for joining us today -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Oppressive and deadly, the heat wave gripping a huge chunk of the country. It is now blamed for at least three deaths. Conditions are especially dangerous in the big cities, Atlanta for one, where there's lot of concrete below and smog above. Our own Chad Myers has ventured outside for a bit.

Chad, how are you feeling?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: You know I'm feeling really good actually. I bought one of these lifesavers from these Popsicles, you know, and I'm thinking about, well, should I try it? I'm thinking no. I'm going to leave it in the bag and just put it on my forehead. And now this is actually pretty good. And the photographer said, "What a great idea. I'll give you 20 bucks for that Popsicle." So, you know, you can actually make some money out here if you really want to.

But it is actually very hot. I can tell you, the breeze kind of picked up here in the past half hour and it feels at least ten degrees cooler than it did when I was out here a little bit ago.

Let me show you some of the temperatures though across the country because oppressive doesn't even begin -- it's a heat wave, yes, temperatures are close to 100 degrees, but it's also a humidity wave and that humidity wave is making the heat index just feel terrible. And so we're going from 114 in Charleston. Here's your temperatures, 111, 101, you know, 103s.

But when you add in the heat and humidity, that's when the weather really feels bad. That's when you have to be careful with yourself because the way your body cools itself is that, well, it sweats and the sweat evaporates, kind of like when you're going for a shot at the doctor. The doctor puts a little bit of alcohol on your skin to make your skin nice and clean and the alcohol evaporates and you feel a little bit cooler.

Well, the same thing happened to you when you sweat, that evaporation actually helps you cool off. When you can't evaporate that because the humidity is so high, you know, this is not a dry heat. You feel every last drop, so to speak, on your forehead, you know, down your back and all of that. But standing here in front of the TV lights doesn't help really, probably another 15 or 20 degrees here -- Don. PHILLIPS: OK. Don was just mentioning you could probably give that Popsicle to one of the cute little kids right behind you, Chad.

MYERS: I will. You know, if I didn't open it, I would. But I will -- because I opened it, I will keep it closed.

PHILLIPS: That's true because they've probably been told never to take a Popsicle from a weathercaster or meteorologist.

MYERS: Look at that. Can you see that? Look at the haze on this picture here from WSB, just gross air out here. Code Red which means that it's unhealthy for almost everybody out here so if you're going to do something outside, you need to do it during the morning hours before all of this ozone pops up because it pops up because of the sunshine and the heat of the day around 4:00. That's when it's worse.

PHILLIPS: Thanks, Chad.

Well, a 70-year-old St. Louis man in a home with an air conditioner that was turned off. His death is one of at least three blamed on excessive heat. Our national correspondent Keith Oppenheim is there braving the sizzling temperatures.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Another sweltering day in the nation's midsection with another opportunity for the heat to take lives. So far, the only heat wave related death that we know of is that of a 70-year-old man this week in East St. Louis.

Having said that, officials are quite concerned that the death toll could rise especially if the needy and the elderly don't get good access to air conditioning. That's why, for example, one church group in St. Louis is raising money to distribute 250 air conditioners to, get this, anyone who gets a prescription from a doctor saying that the patient has a medical condition which requires the safety of good cooling.

The Reverend Larry Rice explained why history in St. Louis teaches that a heat wave can be so dangerous.

REV. LARRY RICE, NEW LIFE EVANGELISTIC CENTER: I think back to 1980 when hundreds of people died. St. Louis brick makes wonderful houses but it also creates ovens that people find themselves in. And it's not unusual when it's a 100 degrees outside to be 110, 115 degrees in that house and even higher when you're on the second floor with that tar roof. And people...

OPPENHEIM: And people could die in those things.

RICE: Yes, people die. People die every summer in those conditions.

OPPENHEIM: People are trying to cope with the heat in all kinds of ways. Yesterday we were riding along and we just came across a group of kids on the hot streets of St. Louis cooling off in a fire hydrant that was open that is until some firefighters came along and turned off the spicket. Oh, well.

The excessive heat warnings are expected to continue here until Friday evening.

Keith Oppenheim, CNN, St. Louis.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: First it was stormy, well, now steamy and also sticky. New York City just can't get a break today. Reporter Molly Kroon of our affiliate New York 1 standing by with a report on the damage for us.

Hi, Molly.

MOLLY KROON, NEW YORK 1 CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Don, I'm here in Sunset Park, Brooklyn where members of the National Weather Service are on the ground trying to figure out whether an actual tornado hit this community. As you know, that is not a normal occurrence here in New York City. What we do know is that the city was pummeled by a major storm early this morning causing significant damage, flooding, power outages, and a nightmare of a morning commute. I spoke with one woman this morning who said she woke up to watch as the roof literally pealed off her home.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And the wind kicked in and I thought my windows were going to blowing out in the back of the house so I started coming forward. And it wasn't until I got to maybe the third room in and everything started to fall, the dining room fixtures, the glass (UNINTELLIGIBLE) on my table. But in my mind, it still was like, you know, my roof is leaking from the rain. It wasn't this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KROON: Now millions of people here in New York City take the subway every day so you can imagine what it was like when that subway system basically shut down because of flooding underground for the morning commute, causing people to walk to work. Fifteen minute commutes became hours long, people shoving their way into shuttle buses trying to ultimately get to work although many people decided not to.

We have been told that there could still be major delays for rush hour tonight and of course, that heat. Officials, including Mayor Michael Bloomberg, said that they are concerned not only about seniors and people with medical conditions but also people who have to be -- who have been evacuated from homes and are now temporarily homeless. They're trying to get people into cooler shelters. It is just sweltering out here and there are also concerns about new storms on the horizon.

That's the latest here, Don.

LEMON: Wow! Molly, I lived in New York for years and never saw anything remotely like that. That is amazing. All right, thank you so much for that report.

Also, we have some i-Reporters who are sending in pictures and video. Check this out. This one is from Ken Zudama (ph), this is the damage on his street. You see that very populated area and you see the wires down and the trees down there as well on top of cars. Man, oh, man, all of that happening in New York City.

That's a pretty good i-Report, don't you think, Kyra?

PHILLIPS: It's amazing what we get on pictures and videotapes, showing us not only the damage from environmental things. But also take a look at this one, this is Manuel Sanchez. This is one of the miners trapped, Don, in Utah. We actually got the i-Report from a friend. It looks like a friend of his sister. It says, "This is Manuel Sanchez. He's one of the men who are trapped in the mine. I thought we should share this with the world in hopes to see him again soon alive." And then it goes on just to say how the family really wants -- is asking for everybody's prayers and support. And they wanted to put a face on one of the miners who's trapped there in Utah. He is one of the six missing right now.

LEMON: Yes. And we appreciate those i-Reports. So if you can send one in. If you have pictures of this, things like this, like the miner trapped and also weather, just send it to CNN.com and look for the i-Report logo.

PHILLIPS: Well, it's a small hole just 2 1/2 inches across, but for the families of six men trapped in the collapsed Utah coal mine it holds huge hopes. Rescuers have drilled nearly a third of the way down to where the miners are beloved to be. In the meantime, loved ones are waiting and hoping.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT ROBERTSON, COUSIN OF TRAPPED MINER: I think they're alive. You know I'm sure there's some injuries that way. It's going to take a while to get to them. There's no doubt about that but everybody is doing everything they can. There's no more that people can do. You can't send rescue teams into a dangerous environment and lose more people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Let's get straight to Emery County, Utah and CNN's Dan Simon -- Dan.

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, Bob Murray, the owner of the mining company, a name that many people are familiar with now, says that the drilling into the mine is progressing well. He says at least one of them should reach the cavity where the miners are in two days. That is critical for two reasons. First, it will tell rescuers if, in fact, the miners are still alive; and second, if they are, it literally provides an opening to pass through life-saving supplies like food and water.

Meanwhile, unlike previous news conferences, Murray declined to talk about his questionable contention that an earthquake caused the collapse. He says he still believes that's what happened but he says he's through talking about. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BOB MURRAY, PRES. AND CEO, MURRAY ENERGY CORP.: From our mining experience, we know that it was an earthquake, from the experience of mining and mountain bumps and how this occurred. I'm not going it address that issue anymore because it seems to be that the media is more concerned about trying to place blame than they are in the families and in the actual rescue effort underground.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIMON: Well, Kyra, right now the best hope for these miners seems to lie with a mountain-side drill. Again, it's believed that it will reach the cavity where these miners are in two days. We're talking 48 hours and finally these families will have an answer.

PHILLIPS: And, Dan, also we got word that our Gary Tuchman along with other members of the media are actually getting a chance to go into that mine. Is that right?

SIMON: Well, I know that Mr. Murray invited members of the media to go down and take a look. I'm not sure how far they'll get. From what I understand, he's going to allow people into the immediate opening but it will be the first opportunity really for our cameras to at least get a glimpse of what that area looks like. So expect Gary to be back up with some videotape, I would say, within the next hour.

PHILLIPS: All right. Dan Simon, thanks so much.

LEMON: One week since the bridge collapsed in Minneapolis. Are we any closer to learning the cause? Are we any closer to finding the remaining victims? We'll get an update straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.

PHILLIPS: And you're watching live pictures right now from Kennedy Space Center. The space shuttle "Endeavor" astronauts just hours away from lift-off. A live report next.

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

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LEMON: All right. Space shuttle "Endeavor" waiting patiently on the launch pad for this evening's lift-off. You can see it through the haze there. The crew has been waiting patiently, too none more so than teacher turned astronaut, Barbara Morgan. Space correspondent -- I like saying that -- space correspondent Miles O'Brien joins us live with more.

It is hot out there, isn't it, Miles? MILES O'BRIEN, CNN SPACE CORRESPONDENT: It sure is, Don Lemon. I'm telling you, we are feeling the heat here as we all are across the nation.

You know it's interesting, this mission harkens back to the Challenger mission of January of 1986, which of course was a horribly cold launch which led to that disaster. This is just the exact opposite as far as weather goes.

We'll tell you a little bit more about challenger connection in just a minute but first of all, take a look at the launch pad. You're right onboard "Endeavor" here, looking at Scott Kelly, the commander, as he gets suited up. You see them -- these are some of the close-out crew. They call them the Cape Crusaders, helping him with his helmet. He's got all of his gear there. He's got to get his communications gear set up. He's got a special pillow there to hold his helmet up. He's sitting on top of a parachute right there, getting ready.

Look at the huge watchband that they have to have on the outside of those pressure suits that they wear, which was one of the safety recommendations which came out of the Challenger disaster. The crews prior to that did not wear pressure suits. That's designed to keep them safe and sound if something bad happens during the launch and of course during reentry as well.

Take a look at some of the pictures from earlier today as the crew made its way out to the launch pad. This is -- this whole launch is happening a little more than a week after that bombshell report on the health of astronauts, the mental health and what flight surgeons do and do not do or astronauts to keep them mentally healthy. This in the wake of that former astronaut, Lisa Nowak who drove half way across the country in diapers to confront allegedly another lover involved in a lover's triangle. She faces assault charges.

The bombshell portion of that report was that there were some rumors, innuendoes, not substantiated allegations, which came to the conclusion that astronauts on occasion in the history of this program had violated the rules on drinking too close to a launch or to a flight of a T-38 fighter or even in one cause, a Soyuz launch in Russia.

I had a phone call from the shuttle commander, Scott Kelly, who you saw just a few moments ago on Monday, and he told me what the reaction inside the astronaut office and among his crew was.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

SCOTT KELLY, ENDEAVOUR COMMANDER: I think it was just shock. You know, you're shocked. You know, you're certainly shocked if something like this would have occurred. But without any facts, you're just shocked of a report like this was released without any facts. I mean, it's hard to believe. You're kind of -- you know, you're certainly very disappointed that it was -- that it happened, the report.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: Now, NASA is running all of this down. There's an investigation under way. They put back 10 years. So far they cannot find any instance where this particular rumor would bear itself out in the facts.

Take a look at these pictures. These are some of the finalists of the Teacher in Space Program which was initiated way back in 1985. And these teachers gathered on Monday in Cocoa Beach. These are people who were among the finalists, finally picked among them was Christa McAuliffe, who of course, perished in the Challenger crash. Her understudy, Barbara Morgan, is flying today, putting a cap on that tragedy, and if all goes well, will be teaching some of the lessons that Christa never got a chance to teach -- Don.

LEMON: Miles O'Brien, thank you, sir. We can't wait to see that. Do you think it's going to go off without a hitch? I just want to ask you real quick.

O'BRIEN: Well, we'll see. You know, I don't like to put money on these things.

LEMON: You don't want to put money in it. OK, Mile O'Brien, thank you very much for that.

I want to remind our viewers, Miles, that they can watch the space shuttle "Endeavor," the launch, right here on CNN. Lift-off is scheduled for 6:36 Eastern this evening and we hope it goes off without a hitch on time.

PHILLIPS: As the search for Madeline McCann nears the 100-day mark, there's been a flurry of activity by police and investigators in several countries. In Portugal, where Maddie disappeared, special sniffer dogs have been brought in.

And in Belgium, some DNA results have just come out. Joining us with the very latest, CNN's Phil Black. He's in Praia Da Luz, Portugal -- Phil.

PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Kyra.

First, let me give you a sense of where I'm standing. This is the resort that Madeline McCann and her family were staying at when they disappeared but -- when she disappeared, sorry, rather. Let me give you a sense of the layout of this place but also what happened that fateful night more than three years ago. Just on the other side of that wall is a swimming pool and just beyond that, the outdoor restaurant where Madeline's parents, Kate and Jerry, were dining with friends. Now, while they were eating there, just this short distance up here on that ground floor corner apartment, that's where Madeline was sleeping with her siblings.

Now, we're told that Madeline's parents and other adults came and checked on them regularly. There is a line of sight between the two locations. But during that time, it was when Madeline was taken. Now Kate McCann, Madeline's mom, said today that she's coming to terms with the guilt she feels for that significant decision, for deciding to leave her children unsupervised in that room while they went to dinner just that short distance away. She says she knows she's a loving mother, she knows she's a responsible parent and she's holding onto that at this difficult time -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, Phil Black. We'll continue to follow the investigation of course and all of the developments.

LEMON: All right, we'll get to some information just in to the CNN NEWSROOM, some breaking news. Remember that accident that killed a woman during the Big Dig a couple of years back? Well, the company that supplied the epoxy for that overpass for the Big Dig tunnel has now been indicted and this is according to the attorney general, Massachusetts attorney general. A grand jury has returned a one- count indictment. And we're going to tell you all about that coming up in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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LEMON: All right, new information just into the CNN NEWSROOM. You're looking at Boston, Massachusetts, the site of the Big Dig. This was July of 2006 when four concrete slabs, each weighing at least three tons, fell from the ceiling and crushed a woman in her car. Well, the Massachusetts attorney general has just returned an indictment of involuntary manslaughter against Powers Fasteners Inc. The New York company provided the glue or epoxy that was used to hold the bolts that gave way and led to the ceiling collapse and the death of that 38-year-old woman.

And according to Massachusetts law, this fine is $1,000. So, again, the attorney general of Massachusetts returning an indictment there for the company that made the epoxy or the fasteners for the Big Dig, involuntary manslaughter, but the maximum fine is $1,000. We'll update you.

PHILLIPS: Well, one of the nation's biggest food companies is bringing back on old favorite after a sticky situation earlier this year. Susan Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange with the details.

I guess sticky is the key word.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. It's literally a very sticky situation, but Kyra, the good news is that Peter Pan lives, Peter Pan peanut butter. ConAgra Foods was forced to pull its Peter Pan Peanut Butter from stores early this year after the government linked the salmonella outbreaks to that product. Now ConAgra says it's ready to bring Peter Pan back to life. The brand will return to store shelves this very month, just in time for school, for all of the school lunches. It will feature a new jar and money-back guarantee to reassure consumers. The company is also sending more than 2 million people coupons for a few jar.

Back in February, the federal Centers for Disease Control linked the peanut butter to the illnesses of more than 600 people in 47 states and ConAgra is facing several lawsuits. So the sticky situation, not quite over for ConAgra itself -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Well, the rally doesn't seem to be sticking on Wall Street.

LISOVICZ: No. You know when we last talked, the Dow was really, really rocketing higher but stocks are now mixed. The rally has faded fast. The Dow had been up 187 points, at its high today, nearly 8 percent jump.

And Cisco shares helping to keep the Nasdaq firmly higher, but check out the Dow. Once again fluctuating just modestly on the plus side. This is what volatility is all about especially in the last hour.

Warner Music, we want to mention quickly, is in the spotlight on reports that the company may be trying to escape the spotlight. "The New York Post" tabloid says Warner, home to artists such as Madonna, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, who you see there; and Kid Rock, is considering the possibility of going private. The company went public in '05. Shares were up 11 percent on that report.

I'll be back in about 30 minutes with a complete wrap-up of the trading day. Who knows where the markets will be then, but I'll be reporting it to you, Kyra and Don.

PHILLIPS: All right, we'll see you in a little bit. We're going to take a quick break. We'll be right back.

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LEMON: A little bit past the bottom of the hour. One week after the Minneapolis bridge collapse, there's still no closure for eight families. Each has someone who is presumed dead in the Mississippi River. The murky water, dangerous currents and unstable debris are turning the search for their bodies into slow-moving, a nightmare.

CNN's Susan Roesgen is in Minneapolis with the very latest for us. Susan?

SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Boy, Don, it's hard to believe that it really was one week ago tonight when this bridge behind me collapsed. You've talked today about how hot it is all across the country. It's 90 degrees here in Minneapolis, but the sheriff tells me that the water of the Mississippi River is 82 degrees.

So you've got the divers that you'll see here in this new video in the heavy, heavy wet suits going down in 82-degree water, staying down there for hours, a very difficult job, still trying to find the eight missing people. And the salvage crews have only brought up one car from the bottom of the Mississippi. They did that yesterday. And here's why.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) CAPT. MIKE MARTIN, MINNEAPOLIS POLICE: They left some vehicles to break the current. It slows down the current a little bit in the areas where they're working. The one vehicle that was moved yesterday was because it was an entrapment hazard for the divers. They're working on umbilical lines on surface air, and that -- those can get entangled, so they needed to move that vehicle.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

ROESGEN: And once again, we want to think about the people, not just the divers who are down there doing this dangerous job, but the eight people who are still missing. We have the pictures and the names of some of these people. Don, I've been talking about the cars on the bottom of the Mississippi River, six cars that they've identified that they've left there, again, to stop the currents.

But also today, the Minneapolis Police captain told me that they have also found the front-end loader that we believe Greg Jolstad, one of the missing people, one of the construction workers on the bridge when it fell, was actually in that front-end loader and went down with that loader to the bottom of the Mississippi River. Again, we haven't yet heard any word of any retrieval of any bodies, but they're doing the best they can right now. Navy divers specially trained in salvage operations and FBI divers who are specially trained in the retrieval of human remains -- Don?

LEMON: Yes, especially important. Families want to put their loved ones to rest in the proper manner. Thank you so much for that, Susan.

We also want to talk now about Utah and the mine collapse. We have an i-Reporter who sent us a picture, Amanda Madrigal. This is of Manuel Sanchez, he's one of the six men believed to be down in that mine. Just from someone who is close to the family, apparently Amanda is, and she says she wanted to share this with the world and I'm paraphrasing, saying that everyone in the area is like family. And they'll do anything to help with the rescue and they wanted the world to see the kinds of people who are trapped down in that mine. And put a face on the situation.

So, again, this is from i-Reporter Amanda Madrigal of one of the trapped miners, Manuel Sanchez.

PHILLIPS: One of the major strongholds of Iranian support in Iraq is the Baghdad neighborhood of Sadr City. Overnight U.S. and Iraqi military operation there killed about 30 suspected Shiite militants, 12 others were detained. The raids targeted a cell said to have brought weapons and armor piercing bombs into Iraq from Iran.

Now the commander of multinational forces in Iraq speaks out. Lieutenant General Ray Odierno has held that job for almost eight months now. And in that time, he's been blunt in his assessment of what's going wrong and right in that war. I had a chance to speak with him earlier from Baghdad and asked about his personal belief in his mission and his family's personal sacrifice in this war.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Sir, your son is also a soldier. He actually lost his arm due to an RPG. How has that impacted you as a key leader in this battle?

LT. GEN. RAY ODIERNO, CMDR., MULTI-NATL CORPS-IRAQ: Well, first of all, it impacted me as a father. It impacted me because my son was injured and it impacted my family. As a leader, hopefully it does not reflect at all in my decision-making. And I don't think it does. But what it does do, it makes me understand the suffering that goes on to families in the United States when their sons and daughters are injured severely or, heaven forbid, they're lost in sacrificing their lives for their country. And I think it allows me to relate to that a little bit better.

But the bottom line is as the commander here, I've got to make the decisions I think are best for the soldiers on the ground, but more importantly, best or just as important, best for accomplishing our mission.

PHILLIPS: So when you meet with those families who have lost a son or a daughter, you take that on in a very different manner, a different perspective now?

ODIERNO: Well, I think it's, first of all, I do. You know, a while ago, sometimes it was hard to go into a hospital and see a soldier who had lost an arm or a leg or had a serious injury. I'm much more comfortable with that because I understand what it takes to do that. I understand what they're going through. I understand that there is a life after that because I've seen my son progress so well. He's done so well since his injury and I know they have a future and I'm able to help them to reach towards that future.

PHILLIPS: Sir, I remember when you got appointed to this position and took on this role in Iraq. I remember when I was there, you making some type of comment about the strategies in Iraq not working and you weren't quite sure about if you were winning this war or not. Tell me why you came forward and made such a bold statement. What was it that you saw that you knew you had to fix?

ODIERNO: Well, what I thought was we were turning over responsibility to the Iraqis a bit too fast. They weren't quite ready to do that yet. So what we thought we had to do was protect the population first. Provide them security and stability locally and then that will buy them the time and space to do the other things both economically and politically. I think we've had some success in now providing that stability. Now we have to continue to move forward on the economic and political peace.

PHILLIPS: Yeah, there's been a lot of shifting around of positions, a lot of positions lost, key positions. Do you think that this job that you've taken on could be career suicide?

ODIERNO: I don't worry about that. I mean, I -- all I care about is getting the mission done. As long as I feel comfortable with what I'm doing, as long as I feel comfortable that we're doing the right thing, that's all that really counts.

PHILLIPS: Why do you believe in it?

ODIERNO: That's what I expect the American people would expect.

PHILLIPS: Absolutely. I want to know why do you believe in this war, sir.

ODIERNO: Again, I think it has to do with the security of our nation. I think it has an impact for the future. I've been over here for four years now. I've seen the brutality of Al Qaeda. I've seen the brutality of Al Qaeda against all people, women, children, Iraqis, westerners. It's ruthless. And I understand what they're after. It's to destroy our way of life. And I truly believe if we're not careful, it could impact the United States in the future.

(END OF VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Danger outdoors. Millions of Americans warned to stay inside. A closer look at the deadly combination of heat and humidity in the CNN NEWSROOM. An update.

Plus, big hopes on a small hole. Rescuers are drilling their way to those six trapped Utah coal miners. Our Gary Tuchman went down in the mine and he's on his way out. He'll update straight ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: All right, this just in to CNN, take a look at this. This is Red Rock, Nevada. You're looking at live pictures from our affiliate KVBC. Three kids are believed to be stuck on a ledge on what is called the calico basin. A metro search and rescue helicopter has been sent out to retrieve three children who are believed to be stuck on a ledge here. Just a little bit quickly, information about the red rock canyon, it's a national conservation area located just a few miles west of Las Vegas and encompasses about 197,000 acres within the Mojave desert.

So, again, this video that you're looking at are live pictures I should say, three kids stuck on a ledge out at red rock at the calico basin. A metro search and rescue helicopter has been sent to try to retrieve them. If that happens in this broadcast, we'll bring it to you right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

PHILLIPS: Rain, heat and fire. It's a day of extremes across the United States. Torrential rains flooded streets, subways, rail lines and New York City just in time for rush hour. The areas three major airports are still dealing with the back-ups. It's steamy and muggy there now as is across much of the mid Atlantic, the south and the Midwest. The oppressive heat is blamed for at least three deaths.

Temperatures are expected to stay around the century mark the rest of the week. And the west is still burning, 37 major fires in six states, the majority in Montana and Idaho. Hundreds of thousands of acres have gone up in flames, hundreds of families have fled. LEMON: The brutal heat and humidity across much of the country is putting more people at risk of heat stroke. It's in the high 90s here in Atlanta where CNN medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen reports from Centennial Olympic Park, just across from the CNN Center.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): When they say that it's not just the heat, it's the humidity, they are not kidding. That's because in heat, your body's way of coping is to sweat. But in the humidity, the evaporation of sweat slows down so your body can't cool itself as effectively as it might. And that means that in 15 minutes, body temperature can go up to 106 degrees. 400 people a year in this country die because of heat stroke.

Now, let's go over what some of the symptoms of heat stroke are. They are body temperature of above 103 degrees. Red, hot, and dry skin because the body isn't able to sweat the way it should. Now heat exhaustion is a much more mild form of a disease due to heat. The symptoms of that are rapid, strong pulse and a throbbing headache and dizziness. The most vulnerable for the heat exhaustion and heat stroke are the elderly and people with high blood pressure.

Now, some people have to be outside. They have to work. They don't have a choice. So in that situation, what you want to do is be outside for as short a time as possible. You want to move around as little as possible. And you want to drink at least two to four glasses of cold liquids every hour and they should be non-alcoholic.

Elizabeth Cohen, CNN, Atlanta.

(END OF VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Bonds, Barry Bonds. King of the home run. Just how much is the baseball worth? Find out straight ahead. Otis, where is the music? You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

LEMON: Also, we'll have this Kyra, big hopes on a small hole. Rescuers are drilling their way to those six trapped Utah coal miners. Our Gary Tuchman went down in the mine, he's on his way out. He'll update us in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: This is as close as we've gotten to this Utah mine collapse. CNN's Gary Tuchman has been allowed inside the Crandall Canyon Mine where six miners are trapped. Gary has just come back out and here's his report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): We're not being allowed inside the Crandall Canyon Mine, but we're being allowed very close to the opening. This is where the miners go in. Exactly here is where 10 miners went in Monday morning to start their work, six remain inside. A truck takes them up to that conveyer belt that's used to take the coal away.

But according to the owner of the mine, the miners are now 17,400 feet in that direction. They enter the mine there, 17,400 feet away, and right now, they're not very close to getting them out. They're just resuming work now in the afternoon Utah time. This conveyer belt takes the coal, once it comes out. You can see this pile right here of coal. This is the last coal to come out before the disaster.

According to the owner of the mine, that coal hasn't seen the light of day for millions of years. We want to show you now what they're using to stabilize the tunnel for the workers. Over here is what they call rock props. These rock props weigh about 100 pounds apiece. You can see they're holding it up right now demonstrating. They're using this to stabilize the walls for the workers to go inside the mine.

The walls right now are very tenuous, it's very dangerous. They say there's been seismic activity here over the last day and a half. They say there was a danger that more miners might lose their lives, the rescue miners, so they pulled out. They're just resuming the work now, they hope that these rock props stabilize the walls enough to make it remain safe.

But at this point, we won't know until at least Friday if these miners are alive or dead. They plan to do that with small holes, two small holes that they're boring into the top of this mine. They hope then to lower cameras and microphones into the mine to know if these miners are alive. If they are alive, it will take at least a week and the owner of the mine says maybe even more to get them out.

This is Gary Tuchman, CNN, in Huntington, Utah.

(END OF VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well, going, going, gone. The old homerun record, that is. Three days after tying Hank Aaron's record of 755 career home runs, Barry Bonds broke that record last night. Just by a little bit. But controversy over steroids, the hometown crowd erupted as the San Francisco slugger hit his 756th career homer, taking sole possession of baseball's most coveted record.

Now, get this, a New York man wearing a Mets jersey, no less, emerged with the ball and was escorted out by police. The problem was, Matt Murphy's clothes were torn. His face was bloody. The apparent aftermath of a struggle in the bleachers for that ball. Experts say the ball could bring maybe about $500,000, possibly more. Bond says, I have no interest in the bidding.

LEMON: I'd take a ripped shirt for that.

PHILLIPS: When Bonds became baseball's homerun king, the Nationals' pitcher, Mike Bacsik, became a foot note in the record books. I hope I'm saying that right.

LEMON: I think its Bacsik. PHILLIPS: Sorry, Mr. Bacsik. He threw the homerun ball and there's a weird coincidence. Bacsik's father was a Texas Rangers pitcher the year Hank Aaron, the previous homerun king, completed his career. Aaron hit his 755th and final homerun on July 20th, 1976. The elder pitched against Aaron a month later holding him to a single. Now if Aaron had hit a homerun that night in 1976, he would have finished his career with 756 homeruns. And if that had happened, of course, Bonds' 756 homer last night would have only tied the record, not broken it. Did you get all that?

LEMON: Yeah, but regardless, we honor him. If it's Bacsik or Basick, we honor you. How do you do this? I'm so glad we've had this time together.

PHILLIPS: Are we talking about Jennifer Stafford?

LEMON: Yes we are.

PHILLIPS: There she is.

LEMON: Just to have a laugh or sing a song.

PHILLIPS: She's been with us for eight years, heading to D.C. with the company. We wanted to give her a little love, a little good- bye. She's one of the best fonters in the biz. Right, Jen?

LEMON: So long. The closing bell and the wrap of all the action on Wall Street straight ahead. We wish her the very best of luck.

PHILLIPS: She has to put up with that Wolf Blitzer now.

LEMON: Yeah.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

PHILLIPS: the closing bell is about to ring on Wall Street.

LEMON: Susan Lisovicz standing by with a final look at the trading day. Hi Susan.

SUSAN LISOVICZ: Hi, Don and Kyra.

You know, talking about that extreme weather. It's definitely a factor in the work day here on Wall Street. In fact, we saw lighter volume in the first hour of trading according to the co-COO of the NYSE who was in here just about an hour ago because so many people had problems getting to work whether it was here at the NYSE or elsewhere around town. We did have tornado warnings. I know I took a ferry because the roads were so flooded and subways were flooded, too. A lot of folks had problems getting to work.

But New Yorkers being what they are, they did make it to work. The president talking about the volatility on Wall Street today. Reassuring investors that the economy is sound and that investors will focus on that. Another topsy-turvy day on Wall Street, but I just want to mention one other story today that escaped our attention and that it's Kyra's birthday today!

LEMON: You know, I'm glad you said that. Her desk looks like a morgue. There are so many flowers on her desk. So many well wishes. Happy birthday, my dear.

PHILLIPS: Thank you.

LEMON: There it is. Look at that.

PHILLIPS: Oh, my gosh. Please do not look at how messy my -- look at Sonya Houston, put confetti and a banner. Then Don and Jen gave me the beautiful flowers there in the middle. I feel very loved today.

LISOVICZ: Kyra, I have to read to you Yahoo's horoscope for today. It says, being modest is pointless now. Everyone knows you're a star, so step up and own it. Are you looking for a raise or maybe even a step up the career ladder? Now is the time to talk about it.

PHILLIPS: All right.

LEMON: Oh goodness, goodness.

PHILLIPS: Hold on a second, I'm calling Jon Klein right now. I'm reaching behind.

LEMON: I think we're going to get a call from him after this.

PHILLIPS: I hope he's listening. That's right, he's going to call on the red phone.

LISOVICZ: The stars are in alignment and we have a big rally. Happy birthday, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Love you, Susan.

LISOVICZ: Love you.

LEMON: All right, thank you, Susan.

LISOVICZ: I'll see you tomorrow guys.

LEMON: Now it's time to turn it over to THE SITUATION ROOM and Carol Costello.

Hi, Carol.

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