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President Bush Makes Surprise Visit to Iraq; Hurricane Felix Taking Aim at Parts of Central America; Sex Scandal Fallout

Aired September 03, 2007 - 09:00   ET

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

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everybody. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
I'm Heidi Collins. Tony Harris has the day off today.

Watch events come into the NEWSROOM live now on Monday, September 3rd.

Here's what's on the rundown this Labor Day.

President Bush in Iraq this hour. He stops in Anbar province on his way to Australia.

And here comes Felix. The hurricane quickly grows into a dangerous Category 5 storm. The target, Central America.

Why is this man smiling? Oh, he' got millions of good reasons.

Bunky's big jackpot, in the NEWSROOM.

Breaking news this morning. It caught just about everybody by surprise. President Bush making an unannounced visit to Iraq.

We want to go directly to CNN's Arwa Damon, live in Baghdad for us this morning.

Arwa, good morning to you.

I know that we are expecting a speech from the president a little bit later today.

ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Heidi. We're expecting that at about 12:30 Eastern, 8:30 local time.

The speech is expected to be held at the mess hall at the Al Assad Air Base. That is where the U.S. president arrived just earlier today, about an hour and a half ago.

Now, Al Anbar province is significant in that it has been one of the provinces that President Bush has been holding up as an example of American success, citing there are tribal leaders and former insurgents turning against al Qaeda to fight along U.S. forces. He is expected there to be meeting with some of these tribal leaders, as well as top U.S. military commanders, including General Petraeus, and potentially with the Iraqi leadership as well. Now, the president is visiting this area. It is right in the Sunni heartland, as I was just mentioning. The base itself is one of the larger bases in that area, home to thousands of U.S. Marines and Army soldiers.

And the thing is that even though Al Anbar has turned around in the sense that violence there has decreased, because of this new alliance between the United States and former insurgents, by and large, what it has done is created a very small opportunity for the Iraqi government to take advantage of it. But few here really believe that it's going to be able to do just that, but that's sure to be one of the main topics of conversation -- Heidi.

COLLINS: Yes, and this, is well. We know that British troops are withdrawing from Basra. They're completely out. So the area is now under the control of the Iraqis?

DAMON: Well, not just yet. What the British troops have done is withdraw from the last base that they had within the city of Basra. So, they removed 500 of their troops from that location, consolidating all of their forces at the Basra -- near the Basra airport. Some 5,500 British troops stationed there right now.

And they've handed that base they withdrew from to the Iraqi security forces. But this is problematic, because Basra is the fifth province to yet be handed over that the Brits controlled to the Iraqis. But the other four provinces that the British handed over are now quite simply under militia control.

Basra, itself, largely under militia control. There has been uptick in attacks against British forces over the last few months as control has been sliding more towards the militias. In fact, the governor of Basra was fired by the Iraqi government. He refused to step down. And the Iraqi security forces in that area were unable to implement their own government's orders -- Heidi.

COLLINS: Any chance that we're going to be seeing U.S. troops now move into that area, once again, down in Basra?

DAMON: Well, highly unlikely. Remember, the British troops have not handed over the entire province to the Iraqi security forces just yet. And the U.S. military is really concentrating much of its efforts and has been since the very beginning on the other parts of the country, leaving the south pretty much to the British forces.

Now, the British forces are also saying that they are -- until they hand over the province fully to the Iraqis, that not expected to take place until later on in this year. They are positioned and ready to move into the city should that be required. But they're also losing what's called here eyes on the ground. They're using visibility as to what is exactly happening in that city, and as I was just mentioning, it is shifting more towards militia control -- Heidi.

COLLINS: CNN's Arwa Damon for us this morning on Baghdad.

We appreciate that, Arwa. We'll check back in with you a little bit later on.

Want to give you some background on Basra as well. It is the city's second largest city, and it controls a key land supply line from Kuwait to Baghdad. It is also near important oilfields.

Following the collapse of Saddam Hussein's rule, Britain controlled security across Basra and other parts of southern Iraq. Basra is the last of five provinces in the south that Britain had yet to hand over to Iraqi control, as you just heard Arwa mentioning.

British forces will remain to train and supervise Iraqi forces. The Basra palace has come under attack from rival armed militia groups battling for control. Some of those groups had been linked to Iran.

Our other big story we're following this morning, a potential catastrophe in the making for parts of Central America. Hurricane Felix, now a dangerous Category 5 storm, is barreling toward the region.

Look at that. Winds, 165 miles an hour. A hurricane warning already in place in Honduras. Parts of Belize, Nicaragua, and Guatemala also likely to feel the storm's impact.

Just hours ago, Felix skirted popular tourist spots in the southern Caribbean. Pounding surf and high winds, the hurricane's calling card in Aruba, Curacao, and Bonaire. It toppled trees and flooded homes on all three islands. Felix now the second hurricane of the Atlantic season.

Of course we want to bring Jacqui Jeras into all of this.

I remember Hurricane Dean, obviously, but what we were talking about with Hurricane Dean is the fact that it was a Category 5, which is so rare. Now here we are again.

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Wow. And this storm is rare, too.

You know, Heidi, if you haven't been watching the news at all this weekend and just been kind of taking a break over the weekend, when we left you on Friday, there was nothing going on. Just a bit of a disturbance, a tropical wave. And this thing has just blossomed.

You know, in 27 hours, it went from a tropical storm with winds of 70 miles per hour, to a Category 5 yesterday evening with winds of 165. And it's been maintaining that status ever since.

This is one of the fastest intensifying storms that I've ever seen. And I can really only compare this to Wilma in terms of its rapid intensification.

Boy, what a monster of a storm. And the only good thing about it, I guess, is that it's small. The wind field is only about 115 miles across, and those hurricane-force winds, the really bad ones, are only about 25 to 30 miles across. But it's barreling on a north to northwesterly track, and there's nothing to slow this thing down or break it down between here and landfall.

There you can see the forecast track. It is now bringing it over Honduras, likely scraping here along the coast for a while. And that should weaken it down just a little bit.

Now, I want to show you some of the probabilities here, showing you the spaghetti map. All of these lines representing one individual computer model. And I want to bring you in here towards the coastal areas.

And notice how they're pretty uniform here, bringing them in towards the north shore. But one thing I want to point out, it's kind of hard to see, but there's this green line down here, and that tends to be the best computer model, at least in terms of history. And that one has been kind of the outlier all the time.

And this one keeps it over Central America. However, the rest of the models bringing it on up here towards Belize.

So, we'll have to wait and see as it gets a little bit closer and see how it interacts with land. But still a lot of uncertainty in the future.

We're not giving the green light just yet for the U.S. If you live in Texas, watch this one very closely for late in the week. But right now, it should be a miss, hopefully.

COLLINS: Oh, yes, hopefully. Certainly.

All right, Jacqui, we will stay in close contact with you. Appreciate that.

And when weather does become the news, count on CNN to bring it to you first. And if you see severe weather happening in your area, send us an I-Report. Just go to CNN..com and click on "I-Report," or you can type ireport@CNN.com into your cell phone and then share your photos or video with us.

Senator Larry Craig leaving office, but still in the news. Critics turning their attacks on Republican leaders and the way they handled the men's room sex scandal.

CNN Congressional Correspondent Dana Bash sets the stage.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Ironically, Craig gained national attention soon after his Washington career started during a sex scandal. In 1982, the freshman congressman issued a statement adamantly denying he had sex with congressional pages, even though no one had publicly accused him.

Here, on NBC.

SEN. LARRY CRAIG (R), IDAHO: I have people telling me that a whole series of false accusations were made against my character. Frankly, it makes me mad as help.

BASH: Despite that, Craig served 25 more years, elected to the House, then the Senate by huge margins. He stayed popular, fighting for gun rights and tax cuts. The red state Republican who voted against gay rights has been plagued by rumors he is gay for years.

After news broke of his bathroom bust, Craig's local paper reported on a six-month investigation into those rumors. He called it a witch hunt.

CRAIG: I am not gay. I never have been gay.

BASH: Craig's Senate salary was his only income. And, despite pleading guilty to a misdemeanor and leaving in disgrace, Senate rules allow him to walk away with a $130,000 a year pension -- paid for by taxpayers.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Dana Bash is joining us now live from Boise, Idaho, this morning.

Dana, are we hearing anything about when or even if Senator Craig is going to go back to Washington? I guess maybe to say good-bye?

BASH: We know the answer to neither of those questions, Heidi, when he will go back or, as you said, if he'll even go back. What his aides say is that they simply don't know, that it hasn't been decided.

Senator Craig apparently went on vacation after he made his stunning resignation announcement here in Boise on Saturday. Certainly, it would be quite interesting, quite a scene, as you can imagine, Heidi, to see Senator Craig walk back into that Senate chamber after his colleagues there, his very own fellow Republicans that he worked with for years and years pushed him out the door.

COLLINS: All right, Dana. We will continue to follow this story as it develops -- if it develops, I should say, any further.

Dana Bash joining us live from Boise, Idaho, this morning.

(NEWSBREAK)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: President Bush's unannounced visit to Iraq today a stopping point on his trip to the Asian-Pacific summit in Australia. Security crackdowns in Sydney already rubbing some residents the wrong way.

CNN's John Vause explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Australia has never seen security like this -- a weeklong lockdown in its biggest city. Many parts in Sydney are now off limits, including the famous opera house, surrounded by nine-feet-high, three-mile long ring of concrete and steel.

Jet skis and ski boats patrol the harbor on land. More than 5,000 police and troops have been deployed, supported by military helicopters. Fighter jets will enforce a 45-mile no-fly zone, all to protect the 21 world leaders attending the APEC forum, but far from welcome by many who live here and face major disruption.

DAISY MORRISROE, SYDNEY RESIDENT: I think it's crazy. It's just, I've never seen anything like it. I think it's really over the top.

VAUSE: Jim Propencher, a local teacher, found out just how tight security is.

JIM PROPENCHER, SYDNEY RESIDENT: I think you should treat people with respect...

VAUSE: Quickly surrounding by police after photographed the security fence.

PROPENCHER: I think they should get some manners. And they said -- they threatened me. They said, "We can take your camera if we want to."

VAUSE: The Australian government says -- deal with it.

JOHN HOWARD, AUSTRALIAN PRIME MINISTER: There will be some inconvenience. The only way you avoid any inconvenience is not to have any of these events, and that's saying to the world it's too hard for Australia. Well, damn (ph) that.

VAUSE: But memories here are still fresh of a February visit by the U.S. vice president. His motorcade caused traffic gridlock crossing the Harbour Bridge, all so Mr. Cheney could enjoy a beer with Prime Minister John Howard.

The fear is APEC could be 20 times worse, especially because of widespread, possibly violent protests. Police will be ready with a new water cannon, purpose-built (ph) jails on wheels, and temporary new powers to search and detain.

(on camera): Another cause of complaint, the cost of security, around $150 million. But it's not all bad news for city residents. They've been given a public holiday this Friday.

John Vause, CNN, Sydney.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: In Minneapolis, the 10th Street Bridge is open again this morning. It's next to the one that's collapsed August 1st, killing 13 people, and it's already attracting the curious.

Boyd Huppert of affiliate KARE has more. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And it's been open for three or four hours and is full of people.

BOYD HUPPERT, REPORTER, KARE-TV (voice over): It was a forgone conclusion that the 10th Avenue Bridge would eventually reopen. That it would reopen like this is another matter entirely.

NICKIE LECAPTAIN, BRIDGE VISITOR: And I told him this morning -- I woke him up and said, "We can get on the bridge right next to it today, and they were -- they were all for it. We parked way down and walked all the way, but they wanted to see it.

HUPPERT: A steady stream of post-rush hour traffic crawled through two lanes down from four, making it clear the river crossing was badly missed. But for the immediate future, it's likely humans will outnumber cars.

SUSAN PATTON, BRIDGE VISITOR: I just wanted to be able to see the bridge.

HUPPERT: Susan Patton and her children were in the flood of people who walked the equivalent of a few city blocks to get just feet from the collapse site. Some were moved to tears. Others simply overwhelmed.

PATTON: Well, I think you can't really get a grasp on the scope of it until you've seen it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The enormity of it, just the hugeness of what happened, bang. It kind of got to me.

HUPPERT: Like the cleanup efforts take place below, removing the barriers from 10th Avenue is a necessary step in the recovery process. That's not to say it will ever be complete.

PATTON: We trust so much that things are going to work and things are going to be safe and stable. And you just can never know.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Minnesota engineers will answer questions about the rebuilding of the collapsed bridge during an open house on Wednesday.

Still ahead this morning, Bunky bags a big payday. He says he's one of the winners of a $330 million jackpot.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So I'm standing there. And she starts calling off the numbers. And I'm like, "Yes, yes, yes, yes! Oh, my god!"

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: That never happens to me. I'm usually a big no after the first number. The new millionaire and his big plans ahead.

Also, Fred Thompson, ready for his close-up, making it official later this week he's in the race for the White House.

We'll take a closer look at that, too.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Among the top stories this hour, a Labor Day surprise. President Bush slipped one over on us, making an unannounced visit to Iraq. CNN's Kathleen Koch is following the story from the White House.

Kathleen, we know that he has landed in Anbar province, not usually where he lands when he does make these trips.

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No, in the past, in his prior two visits, he has gone to Baghdad. Today he landed after a surprise 11-hour flight at al-Assad Air Base in Anbar province. Among those with President Bush on the trip was Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Also the president's top adviser in Iraq and Afghanistan, Lieutenant General Doug Lute, Defense Secretary Robert Gates flew into Baghdad early, before the president for meetings.

The trip obviously was held secret for security reasons, the White House not wanting to telegraph when the president heads to a dangerous war zone. This comes at a very pivotal time. This is the top general in Iraq, General David Petraeus will be testifying before Congress. Also, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq, one week from today, both of them about progress in Iraq, about the status of the troop surge.

And while in Iraq, the president will be meeting with both Petraeus, Crocker, and certainly with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al- Maliki. The president will then be meeting with tribal local leaders, provincial leaders. And he will be having dinner with some of the 10,000 soldiers and Marines who are stationed at al-Assad Air Base before around 12:30 today, Heidi, making a statement live which I imagine CNN will be carrying.

COLLINS: Yes, indeed we will. All right. CNN's Kathleen Koch from the White House this morning. Kathleen, thank you.

More violence though to report this morning in Baghdad. A car packed with explosives blows up near the Iraqi National Museum. Two people were killed in the blast. An interior ministry officials says as many as 10 others were injured.

Tracking insurgents in Iraq. The U.S. military making inroads with help from the locals. CNN's Aneesh Raman has that story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's 1:00 a.m., 50 kilometers south of Baghdad, and under the cover of darkness, a ritual of the Iraq War starts anew. This is an air assault on a suspected al Qaeda safe house. And soldiers from the 3rd I.D. are hoping to catch insurgents by surprise. The house is empty, though there's little doubt who was here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's a guard schedule of everyone that looks like is working here, some guys that we have been tracking.

RAMAN: It is a constant chase, this time the insurgents a step ahead.

(on camera): The goal right now isn't to secure this area. There simply aren't enough Iraqi security forces to do that. Instead, it's to keep the insurgents on the run. It has been done many times before over the past few years, but right now, right here, the U.S. military says something is different.

(voice-over): To see why, we head to an area further north with General Rick Lynch, where American soldiers have, in just the past six weeks, slowly divided the local population against al Qaeda by changing strategy, decreasing attacks by 90 percent.

MAJ. GEN. RICK LYNCH, U.S. ARMY: The surge gave us this capability. See, what I found is you have got to take the fight to the enemy. He only responds to offensive operations. So, we took the fight to the enemy.

RAMAN: And, in doing so in new areas, they're trying to bridge the divide with a fearful population caught in between.

CAPT. HENRY MOLTZ, U.S. ARMY: We had to cut the phone lines because they were tracking our movements. We had to block some of the roads. So, the first thing that we had to do to reconcile with the population was, we had to take the first risk. And we're willing to do that. We turned all the phones back on. We opened up all the roads. We invited them into our base.

RAMAN: Where they meet regularly. There are now just over 300 of what the U.S. military calls "concerned citizens," Sunnis, some former insurgents, being paid about $380 a month to work with American forces against al Qaeda.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, we need the surge forces in our areas to maintain over watch of these concerned citizens.

RAMAN: And to show up in areas they don't routinely patrol. This night, four houses were raided. It is a success story so new that as Washington considers whether to keep the same troop levels into next year, area commanders are warning, if that doesn't happen, this newfound trust could quickly fade away.

Aneesh Raman, CNN, near Salman Pak, Iraq.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Hurricane Felix's brush with Aruba caught on tape by one of our I-Reporters. Jeffery Nolen is an American working on the island. Look at this video now. He and his daughter took a tour of some of the damage after the hurricane had passed. They ended up rescuing an Aruban couple and their dog.

See the little dog there?

Nolan is with us on the telephone from Aruba. Jeff, I'm hoping that you can hear me OK. Tell me what you noticed when you went outside after the hurricane was over?

JEFFREY NOLEN, ARUBA: I noticed that there was a good outpour of people from Aruba just going out, helping everybody, just taking amongst their own. We were -- Aruba was great as far as providing alerts and everything for this event. Everybody recovered. As a matter of fact, kids are back in school this morning.

COLLINS: Wow, that's amazing, especially because we are reporting here now a Category 5 storm. Had you ever seen anything like this before?

NOLEN: Well, I had gone down after Hurricane Katrina and worked with FEMA during the disaster recovery. And it prepared us a little bit knowing that, you know, what could happen. So we're a little bit prepared for that.

COLLINS: It sounds, though, like maybe even people were surprised that the damage wasn't worse, is that the case?

NOLEN: Well, it is. And you have to look at the way buildings are built here in Aruba. They're a little bit more of a brick-and- mortar rather than a stick-and-brick type building down here. So they tend to be -- they realize they're in a hurricane zone and they build a little better for it. And with it being on an island, we do have limited place for the water to go.

So that's why my daughter and Gracie (ph) and Valentine (ph) and I, both honor students, by the way, went out and said, what can we do to help?

COLLINS: Excellent. Hey, tell me the story, would you, of these people -- this couple that you rescued with the dog? What happened? How did you find them?

NOLEN: Well, basically we were going around the north side of the island below what's called the Alta Vista Church. And we had just went through this. Now, we're going through it in a Defender, which is fairly well -- a fairly good prepared Land Rover. And we saw these guys and we said, surely they're not going to do that.

And because when we went through it, the water was over the hood, you know, over four feet of water. And we turned around and said, they didn't make it. And they said, what can we do? And Gracie waded pack out in there, who -- Gracie just received her rescue diver certification. So she got to put this into practice.

COLLINS: Excellent. NOLEN: And these are two seniors in high school. So youth can do a lot. So we found a way back through there and hooked up the straps and was able to get the vehicle back out of there. And the little dog was just yapping right around. It was a good -- and we were very fortunate that nobody was hurt and that we were able to get everybody out. And I'm just so proud of the kids, Gracie and Valentine did a great job.

COLLINS: Yes. As we look at this video here, you know, we always tell people certainly don't be driving through that water unless you can see the bottom of it. So you know how deep it is, certainly. But glad you were there. And it sounds like you've made a great example or set a great example being that you were in Katrina, wanting to help people there.

And now here you are in Aruba with your kids doing the same thing. So we certainly appreciate your story, your pictures, and your video so very much. Jeffrey Nolen, glad that everybody's OK. Coming to us live from Aruba this morning. Thanks, again.

Jacqui Jeras is with us now at the weather center. Boy, did you see that?

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I did. And you know, that's not something you see every day in Aruba, let alone every year. In fact, if you go to like Aruba.com, you know, the Department of Tourism there touts that they are in a " hurricane-free zone." Because it just doesn't really happen there because they're so close to the equator.

In fact, over history, you know, maybe a dozen or so hurricanes have ever made landfall over Aruba. So a pretty rare thing for them. And a good thing that Felix was moving so quickly, because that kept the rainfall totals down a little bit. It could have been a much, much worse situation. It skirted just to the north of the ABC Islands.

And boy, it was only a Category 2 at that time. And it has ramped up to a 5 now. Incredible speed and winds with this at 165 miles per hour. It is a compact storm, so it is kind of small, but it's certainly packing a punch. And it's just one of the quickest intensifications I've seen with the storm. It's just incredible.

Now it is heading off towards the west-northwest. We are looking at tomorrow being a real ugly day here across the northern shore of Honduras in particular. We could be making a direct hit. Possibly, the best case scenario it stays offshore here. But unfortunately, it will then be worse for people who live towards the Yucatan or into Belize.

The best estimate now though is that it is going to be at least scraping in this area and continuing on that west to northwesterly track. Notice Texas, not in the cone. We're not giving you the green light just yet. You want to watch this for late next weekend. But it looks kind of similar to what was going on there with Dean.

(WEATHER REPORT) COLLINS: All right. Well, thank you for watching the hurricane. We'll check back with you later on that as I'm sure you know. And also I want to remind everybody that if you see severe weather happening in your area, send us an I-Report, go to cnn.com, click on I-Report or type ireport@cnn.com to your cell phone and share your photos or video with us. Stay safe, of course, when you do that.

Speaking of staying safe, the great white, it takes a lot of adrenaline to get up close and personal with these creatures. We go shark-diving with Betty Nguyen off the...

(SOUND EFFECTS)

COLLINS: ... after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: On the prowl for great whites. CNN's Betty Nguyen went aboard for shark diving off the coast of South Africa. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): This group of adrenaline junkies is in search of the great white.

CREG GRANT, TOUR SKIPPER: We're going to be waiting a while. Obviously, wild animals -- the sharks are wild animals, so we can't exactly call them on cue.

NGUYEN: But they try, and that's sparking controversy.

GRANT: A lot of people are thinking, OK, we are attracting the -- especially surfers, that we are attracting the sharks closer to the shore. But, actually, we're sticking around the islands where they predominantly feed, where they're predominantly found.

NGUYEN: Boats anchor along Shark Alley, just off of South Africa's southern tip.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Geyser Rock is home to up to 65,000 cape fur seals, OK? So that's what brings the sharks to the area and that's why we're here.

NGUYEN: It costs about $200 each to see a great white up close. Tour operators put out slick videos showing divers just inches from these deadly creatures. The only thing between them and these jaws is a steel cage that's lowered into the ocean. Then bait, consisting of tuna and various shark meat, is thrown overboard. Sharks can be lured, but they should not be rewarded with food.

(on camera): Now that the bait is in the water, we wait. Sometimes it just takes minutes. Other times, it takes hours. We've been at it for about 40 minutes now and so far, no shark sightings.

(voice-over): Still, Frederick Vonheyer is hopeful. He's an avid surfer who doesn't believe cage diving operators are conditioning sharks to attack humans.

FREDERICK VONHEYER, SURFER: They don't go to beaches and lure them to where surfers are. So I don't -- in that respect, I don't think it's causing increased attacks on surfers.

NGUYEN: Try telling that to Craig Bovim. A great white nearly ripped off his right hand.

CRAIG BOVIM, SHARK ATTACK VICTIM: So the skin and a few tendons on the back just sprang it back. So I didn't even know that I had it.

NGUYEN: He was attacked in 2002, while snorkeling for lobster off this beach in Cape Town.

BOVIM: Well, I find it ridiculous that people can be offering cage diving and taunting and baiting great white sharks within miles of a huge city. And it's not just any city. This is Cape Town. It's one of the surfing paradises in the world.

NGUYEN: Most surfers are outraged. There have been seven shark attacks in Cape Town in the past five years. Scientists say there's no proof cage diving teaches sharks to associate people with food, yet they also admit there's very little we understand about these endangered species.

Back at the boat, Frederick slips into a wet suit, ready for his close encounter. And the crew tries its best to make that happen.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Come on, sharkie.

NGUYEN: But no luck. We waited over two hours and now a storm was rolling in. The cage was quickly pulled out of the water. These disappointed divers won't get a refund, only a rain check. And they hope to cash it in on a day when the sharks are biting.

Betty Nguyen, CNN, Cape Town, South Africa.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: The British shift their mission in Basra. Control of Iraq's second largest city now in the hands of Iraqis.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Former Senator Fred Thompson says he's making it official this week. How will he fit into the crowded Republican presidential field? CNN's special correspondent Frank Sesno takes a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. Thompson, can I get a picture?

FRED THOMPSON (R), UNDECLARED PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Yes, ma'am. FRANK SESNO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): What if Frederick Dalton Thompson actually catches fire? Predictions (ph) some competitors scoff at the idea. They say Thompson is long on platitudes, short on ideas. But these candidates know they could be in a lot of trouble because Thompson could scramble the field.

He'll position himself as reliable and likable in contrast to McCain; as a family values guy, compared to Giuliani, though they've both been divorced; and as a true and consistent conservative as an alternative to Romney, though Thompson once did a little lobbying for a pro-choice advocacy group.

THOMPSON: Ronald Reagan was...

SESNO: Like all of the candidates, Thompson likes to conjure up Ronald Reagan. But only Thompson shares the acting roots, from D.A. Arthur Branch...

THOMPSON: Tell his attorney we're preparing a counteroffer.

SESNO: ... to Admiral Joshua Painter.

THOMPSON: Senior captains don't start something this dangerous without having thought the matter through.

SESNO: His fame gives him a following and a camera-ready advantage, and he will use it. He already has. A few months back he cut a biting 38-second response to Michael Moore's health care documentary.

THOMPSON: A mental institution, Michael, might be something you ought to think about.

SESNO: What if Thompson's critics are proven wrong? Those who grumble that his reliance on tax cuts and smaller government read more like an old script than a new idea, that he can't match Reagan's heartfelt, shining-city-on-a-hill optimism, that some of his speeches have fallen flat.

Well, Thompson has been rehearsing for months now. He knows his lines. If he can deliver them well, convey confidence and organize a credible campaign, he could catch fire and turn this race on its head.

SESNO (on camera): These are all big ifs, but Thompson is counting on a hunger for a folksy, familiar conservative who can bring some personality to the Republican marathon. It may work even before his announcement; a new poll shows he's in second place among Republicans, behind Rudy Giuliani.

Frank Sesno, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: And this reminder now too, send in your questions for the Republican candidates to cnn.com/youtubedebates. That event is coming your way this fall. JERAS: I'm CNN Meteorologist Jacqui Jeras in your hurricane headquarters. Hurricane Felix, one of the strongest hurricanes now in history. Where is the storm headed? We'll let you know coming up in your forecast.

COLLINS: Also, a question for you now. What was the first hurricane of the 2007 Atlantic hurricane season? Think about it. Think about it. We'll have the answer for you in a few minutes.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice-over): Imagine saving 400,000 pennies and then making a pyramid out of them. That's what I-Reporter Marcelo Bezos did, putting his penny pyramid in the Ripley's Believe It or Not record book.

These are images I-Reporter Christopher Ebden took of a church fire in Pasadena, Texas. Ebden, a volunteer with the Pasadena Fire Department, says the fire was contained and no one was hurt, but the church was a total loss.

And it's hip to be square, 19-year-old David Alvarez likes to create artwork by using Post-It notes from a 10-foot-tall image of Ray Charles to a mosaic of Che Guevara. Alvarez got his idea from a PhotoShop class and says he used glue to make sure they stuck.

You can check out more I-Reports and even send in your own. Just point your browser to our Web site at cnn.woman.com.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: We asked you just before the break, what was the first hurricane of the 2007 Atlantic hurricane season? The answer: Hurricane Dean.

And Coney Island, is the party over? The New York playground may become a plaything for developers. CNN's Jim Acosta has the story now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): What has got an 80- year-old roller-coaster, an 87-year-old Ferris wheel, and more sideshow freaks than Times Square? Coney Island, a New York City original that has a vibrant past but now an uncertain future.

HELEN DERMAKE, GRANDMOTHER: When my parents and grandparents came here, this was our resort. I mean, you didn't run away. You ran here.

ACOSTA: Four generations of Helen Dermake's family have made this boardwalk amusement park their summer destination. But it has also caught the eye of land developers who have gobbled up huge chunks of real estate here, without saying much about what's to come. DERMAKE: I think it's kind of sad. I really do. I'll miss it.

ACOSTA: Since the end of the Civil War, this iconic beachfront has reeled in millions of visitors from around the globe, reaching its heyday after World War II.

CAROL ALBERT, ASTROLAND PARK CO-OWNER: It's really a part of the fabric of New York City.

ACOSTA: Carol Albert and her husband have owned the Astroland theme park, home of the world famous Cyclone roller-coaster, for 45 years.

(on camera): And what's going to happen to all of this?

ALBERT: I wish I knew for sure.

ACOSTA (voice-over): They sold the land under their attractions last November but still operate the rides. The new owners, she says, are making no promises.

ALBERT: It could be bulldozed and boarded up and darkened. And that's going to really hurt the remaining businesses in Coney Island.

ACOSTA (on camera): There's a little regret there.

ALBERT: There is. There is.

ACOSTA: It's still not certain what the developers have in mind. It could be high-priced condos or, as some have suggested, Times Square on the beach. What is clear, the view outside this window is about to become history.

(voice over): Paul Georgoulakos plans on closing the hot dog stand he has run for 37 years this fall.

PAUL GEORGOULAKOS, HOTDOG STAND OWNER: Next, please.

If they want to make and build condominiums, they'd better change the name to Condominium Alley.

ACOSTA: But all is not lost. Both the Ferris wheel and roller- coaster are designated historic landmarks and are staying. They still deliver the same thrills and chills they did nearly a century ago.

(on camera): I'm getting out of here! No mas!

(voice over): Many here hope the developers will add new and better attractions.

DICK ZIGUN, SIDESHOWS ON THE SEASHORE: If they're going to build a 21st Century amusement park with steel-looping roller-coasters, then, oh, boy, I'm in favor of that.

ACOSTA: But fearing the worst, visitors are now lining up to sign petitions to save Coney Island. ALBERT: There's an expression that when you're in Coney Island, you get sand in your shoes and it never gets out.

ACOSTA: A carnival and clams atmosphere that could very well be swept away by the tide of progress.

Jim Acosta, CNN, Coney Island.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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