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Zoo Tiger Attacks, Panama Plane Crash, Bridge Collapses, Holiday Shopping Rush, Heaven Sent Wishes, Spelling Relief, A New Blessing
Aired December 26, 2007 - 9:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: I'll see you on Monday. Kiran will be back tomorrow.
CNN NEWSROOM with Brianna Keilar and Tony Harris begins right now.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning everyone. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM. 7 I'm Tony Harris. Heidi Collins is off today. Brianna Keilar joins me next hour watching the events coming live on this Wednesday morning. It is December 26th.
Here is what is on the rundown. Escapee attacks, a tiger breaks out of its zoo pen and kills a man. How did the animal get out?
A Georgia student gets a free ride to Yale. Young man with a promising future joins us.
And writing beyond the grave. Friends get Christmas cards from a real joker two months after he dies. That story and more in the NEWSROOM.
Christmas day terror. A tiger escapes its cage at the San Francisco Zoo and goes on a deadly hunt for people. CNN's Dan Simon is here with the latest.
Dan, do we have any better idea of how this happened?
DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We really don't, Tony. In fact, zoo officials are at a total loss to explain how the tiger was able to escape its cage or enclosure. That enclosure is surrounded by a 15- foot wide moat and a 20-foot wall. One zoo official telling us there is no chance the tiger could have gotten through a door, that, in theory, it literally would have had to leap over its enclosure.
This happened just after 5:00 p.m. yesterday, about an hour before the time the zoo closed, as the tiger first attacked a man outside of its enclosure. He is about 20 years old. Killed him right there on the spot. The tiger then headed about 300 yards to the outdoor cafe at the zoo and attacked two men also believed to be in their 20s. When police got here to the scene the tiger was still in an attack mode. Take a look.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP) STEVE MANNINA, SAN FRANCISCO POLICE: The tiger jumped back on top of the victim. The officers moved in closer. Shortly after, the tiger turned his attention and started to attack one of the officers. That's when the officer shot at the tiger, killing the tiger.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
SIMON: The two people who survived the attack, of course, they were taken to the hospital. They were alert and speaking when they got there. At this point, they are in serious, but stable, condition. Again, Tony, we really have no idea how this happened. The zoo is in lockdown mode today. One thing that is interesting because it happened at 5:00 at night as things were winding down, officials really weren't able to say definitively that there weren't any more victims. Throughout the night they have been searching the area and they are going to look obviously again at daylight to make sure there aren't any more victims here inside the zoo.
HARRIS: Dan, to say it this way but this tiger, a bit of a repeat offender here. This isn't the first time this tiger has attacked.
SIMON: Tony, almost a year ago to the day, the same tiger, 350 pounds, the tiger's name is Tatiana, it attacked a trainer during a public feeding demonstration and that trainer ended up losing her arm. At the time, zoo officials made the decision not to euthanize the animal. What they did, they reinforced the enclosure. They thought they did a good enough job to enforce that area. Apparently was not good enough. Again, we're still trying to determine how this, in fact, happened but that official saying there was no door that this tiger went through, that somehow it was able to get over that 20-foot wall.
HARRIS: Dan Simon for us at the San Francisco Zoo this morning. Appreciate it, thank you.
A sole survivor. A plane crash in Panama kills a California businessman, his daughter and the pilot but the daughter's 13-year-old friend somehow survives. Kara Finnstrom is outside the girl's school in Santa Barbara, California.
How is that community, particularly that school community, coping with this news?
KARA FINNSTROM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, taking it very hard and just holding on to hope this morning that Francesca Lewis will survive this. She survived the initial plane crash and now the hope is that she will make it through the injuries she suffered. An hour from now, we know Panamanian officials will hold a press conference about the rescue efforts and we may learn how Francesca is doing at this time. We do know this plane crash killed three other people and authorities say smashed this plane to pieces. This community really clinging to what they believe is a miracle here in the midst of this tragedy.
Francesca and the Klein's were vacationing when the plane went down on Sunday. Authorities there combed the mountainous terrain for nearly three days looking for this plane so she was out there for quite sometime. They finally found it on Christmas day. Authorities have shared she suffered numerous traumas, including some broken bones and that she is suffering from hypothermia. Now to complicate all of this even more, this plane crash took place in a very remote area on the slope of a volcano. For a while, they couldn't get her out of there.
They had to make a shelter and treat her right there and keep her warm. We know that she has been transported to an area hospital and, again, hope to get more word on her condition out of this press conference but Tony, the Klein's, very prominent family here in the Santa Barbara area. And so this community today really mourning the loss of the Klein family and also, at the same time, really holding on to hope that this little girl, just 13 years old, will pull through this.
HARRIS: Absolutely. Kara Finnstrom for us in Santa Barbara, California, appreciate it. Thank you.
They plummeted into icy waters. This morning in Nepal at least 16 people are dead after a bridge collapsed. Dozens of others injured. 28 people still missing. They were part after group of 500 walking to a festival just across the river. Authorities say the bridge snapped from all of the weight.
Back here at home, retailers take stock after the Christmas shopping rush. Sales are looking pretty weak but luxury goods. We'll get to that in a second.
Ali Velshi is "Minding Your Business" this morning. Ali, great to see you.
What about all of those people who got those gift cards for Christmas, picked up a couple myself, is that counted in those sales figures we're talking about?
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good question. It's not. The gift cards are not counted until they are spent. You'll see about $26 billion or something, you'll see that in January. It's really a blip compared to what we are supposed to be spending in the holiday shopping seasons. The numbers are not fantastic. Interestingly compared to last year, according to MasterCard's spending pulse. Women's clothing compared to last year is lower and I don't know why men's apparel is higher. Look at that luxury goods, seven percent. That is almost double the average of shopping across the board. That is because American luxury goods are cheaper than everybody else in the world.
HARRIS: I seem to remember that being the story last year that there may have been some problems in other areas but luxury goods, as I recall, seemed to do pretty well last year at this time.
VELSHI: We constantly talk about how many Americans we poll seem to think we are heading for a recession but that is different about this economy right now. Some people at -- at the higher end of this economy are not feeling that pinch. They are not feeling the $3 gasoline the way many other people are you have a stronger upper end of the economy and you've got foreigners spending money in the United States. The combination of those two things is helping one sector but in the rest of it, you know me. I love electronics. There was no must-have item this year.
HARRIS: We ended up with one of those games. That Guitar Hero game is pretty big in our household.
VELSHI: Video games and DVDs all sell well.
HARRIS: You're following the markets for us today?
VELSHI: I will be here. The thing to watch for today, Target said it's going to have a tough time in December so that stock is pushing the market down. I'll have that for you all morning.
HARRIS: There he is. Ali Velshi is "Minding Your Business" all morning long. Great to see you. Happy holidays, doctor. Heading out to the malls to redeem those gift cards perhaps. But you know what? I know what, Reynolds, that picture means now behind you. Those are flights in the air right now. Correct?
(WEATHER REPORT)
HARRIS: Holiday cards we've made excuses for coming up short on the seasonal chore. Prepare to be shamed. These cards went out on time even though the sender had the perfect excuse. He is dead. But before passing on two months ago, Chet Finch made arrangements for the cards to be sent out at Christmastime. He wanted to assure loved ones that he and his late wife were finally reunited.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DEBBIE HANSEN-BERNARD, POSTCARD RECIPIENT: Jessie and I have been dancing up a storm here in that big dance hall in the sky. All good squares. I ask big guy if I could sneak back and send some cards to my dance friends, family, and a few others. At first, he said no. But at my insistence, he finally said OK.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Chet Finch always wanted the last laugh so he worked on the idea for some 15 years. He made plans with his barber to mail the cards. The return address by the way? Heaven.
For this couple, tragedy and joy comes in threes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: With these blessings, I hope that it's over. I hope that our bad luck has changed and we're going to have this miracle for the rest of our lives.
HARRIS: Three little angels watched over by three other angels.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Welcome back. I'm Tony Harris. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Paying for college lead to sleepless nights. Families forced to pull equity from their homes. A new price break is spelling some relief. Big-time relief. CNN's senior correspondent Allan Chernoff is here with a breakdown. Allan! Our favorite story of the morning so far.
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Tony, I got to tell you, as the father of twins, just thinking about this topic scares me! My kids are in kindergarten right now!
HARRIS: I'm there with you.
CHERNOFF: Oh, yeah. But many of our viewers, of course, are already digging deep to send their kids off to college. Now some of the nation's top schools are trying to ease the financial pain.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHERNOFF: When Paul Belmonte was admitted to Harvard, it was a dream come true for his parents Gerry and Diane.
GERRY BELMONTE, FATHER OF HARVARD STUDENT: I was kind of ridiculous about it. I went out and told everybody I knew.
CHERNOFF: It was a financial nightmare at the same time. Diane's first thought?
DIANE BELMONTE, MOTHER OF HARVARD STUDENT: How am I ever going to afford that?
CHERNOFF: A question many parents ask about college. At Harvard, tuition, room and board ring in at more than $45,000 a year!
BELMONTE: You're looking at a big number. Is it going to be a subtle lifestyle change or is it going to have to be a drastic lifestyle change?
CHERNOFF: Students and families earn less than $60,000 attend Harvard for free but the Belmontes are solidly middle class.
PAUL BELMONTE, HARVARD STUDENT: My dad's a truck driver and my mom's a teacher.
CHERNOFF: So Harvard tuition has been a strain for the family's finances but next year, when they drop Paul at school for his junior year, things will get much easier.
BELMONTE: It sounded too good to be true.
CHERNOFF: Harvard has a new pricing plan for families earning between $60,000 and $180,000. They'll pay no more than 10 percent of their income.
BILL FITZSIMMONS, DEAN OF ADMISSIONS, HARVARD: The old system wasn't working. We needed something, a bit of a revolution in financial aid.
CHERNOFF: Harvard is not alone. Princeton, the University of Pennsylvania and Duke are among the handful of other top schools aiming to ease the strain of college tuition. For the Belmontes it will mean about $1,000 a month in savings.
BELMONTE: If you have a major car repair or dishwasher breaks you don't have to worry about it.
CHERNOFF: Harvard will be able to replace all student loans are grants.
FITZSIMMONS: Student loans are gone.
CHERNOFF: Still, there are critics. Researchers at the Center for College Affordability say Harvard could do even more with its $35 billion endowment.
LYNN MUNSON, CENTER FOR COLLEGE AFFORDABILITY: It should be truly accessible and personally I have to say I think Harvard should be ashamed to be charging anyone tuition.
CHERNOFF: But the Belmontes aren't complaining. For them, it's a huge boost to giving an Ivy League education to their child.
BELMONTE: You still don't believe sometimes when we drop him off he is really at Harvard.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHERNOFF: It is very nice what Harvard is doing but the fact is the school could do more. The discount is going to cost the school $22 million a year and not only even two-thirds of 1% of Harvard's endowment. I'm waiting for them to come out the two for one discount.
HARRIS: When you get that, could you pass on the information? I could use it. Hey. Let me just ask you a quick question here. The university that you mentioned, at least the three or four that you mentioned in the piece are private universities. What is going to on with public universities?
CHERNOFF: Tony you know of course, they are much less expensive, but the fact is their costs have been rising very rapidly. In fact, in some years as rapidly as private universities, up more than 6% in the latest year. That is about double the rate of inflation. So we've got some real challenges for parents sending their kids either to public or private schools.
HARRIS: That is the truth. We're talking about Harvard just a moment ago. We've got a Yale man here in the house, Allan. Take a look at him over here. Ray Grissom is going to -- wow! Going to Yale! First in the family going to college, period! We're going to talk to Ray in just a couple of minutes right here in the NEWSROOM. I'm so not worthy.
Still to come, a Christmas curse. One family devastated, three separate times. Now ready to move on, thanks to a special Christmas Eve delivery. The story now from Jane Slayter of affiliate KMGH in Aurora, Colorado.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JANE SLAYTER, KMGH: Somewhere along the way the spirit of Christmas was lost.
CHRIS SPIEGEL: Can't avoid it. Christmas music or commercials that were, you know, had anything to do with Christmas.
SLAYTER: And who could blame Chris Spiegel and his wife Susan?
SUSAN SPIEGEL: My first child that died, he died of SIDS. He was two months and 25 days old.
SLAYTER: After that, there was Skyler, their oldest.
SPIEGEL: He was 16 years old. He died on his way to homecoming in a car accident in veil.
SLAYTER: If that wasn't enough, the unthinkable.
SPIEGEL: C.J. died in Grand Junction and hit by a car. Three years ago, he was seven.
SLAYTER: It's must have enough to make anyone give up on Christmas, parenting, life.
SPIEGEL: Every morning I would get up to go to work and go wherever. I really didn't know where I was doing it.
SLAYTER: The only thing they knew what to do was parent so they tried it again this time using a surrogate. And a funny thing happened.
SPIEGEL: When they told us we were having three, I just knew it was the boys that gave us this blessing.
SLAYTER: That's right, three. Two boys and a little girl all born early and on all days, Christmas Eve.
SPIEGEL: This morning they turned Christmas music on in here for us. Susan said I don't even mind listening to Christmas music now.
SPIEGEL: With these blessings, I hope that it's over. I hope our bad luck has changed and we're going to have this miracle for the rest of our lives.
SLAYTER: And in her boys' absence, the memory of the three live on. Each newborn has their brother's first names as their middle names. In Englewood, Jane Slayter.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Chris Dodd on ice? The only candidate to skip the Christmas day break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Eight days to go. Candidates fan out across Iowa trying to get a little momentum in these last days before the caucuses. CNN senior political analyst, Bill Schneider is part of the best political team on television and he joins us from Des Moines.
Bill, great to see you. Who is -- I would imagine just about everyone, but I'll let you run it down for us. Who is in Iowa today?
WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Lots and lots of candidates. We got five Democrats here in Iowa. Hillary Clinton and, by the way, her husband Bill, the ex-president are here. Barack Obama, Bill Richardson, Joe Biden and Chris Dodd who was ice skating yesterday, the only candidate to make an appearance on Christmas day. He has moved to Iowa. He and his whole family live in Iowa. Three Republicans in Iowa today. John McCain, Mike Huckabee and Fred Thompson. The talk about how all of the states were moving up and Iowa and New Hampshire would be less important, well guess what? They seem to be more important than ever.
HARRIS: Bill, give us a reset here. The folks take a last couple of days to enjoy the Christmas holiday. Where does the race stand?
SCHNEIDER: A tie. How about that? Here in Iowa it looks like a three-way tie. You look at the polls and put them together you've got three candidates, three democrats I'm talking about, at the top of the list. Hillary Clinton, John Edwards and Barack Obama all more or less tied easily within the margin of error. Much depends upon turnout. Polls are very poor at predicting who is going to show up for caucus. So it could go any one of three ways and possibly others as well.
It's really wide open race. And guess what? In New Hampshire it's also a tie. In that case, between Obama and Clinton. Though with Edwards were to win Iowa he probably would be very much in contention in New Hampshire and in South Carolina, the third state, guess what? Another tie! Between Clinton and Obama. This race is down to the wire.
HARRIS: So we're talking about Iowa again right now. It really does feel like these candidates have to make the closing argument, the sort of sprint to the finish. Who has the most to gain here?
SCHNEIDER: Well, to gain, John Edwards needs to win Iowa. He has been here more or less nonstop since the last campaign and he is betting a lot on Iowa. If he wins here in Iowa, he clearly will be one -- it will not be Clinton and Obama which is the pair that everyone talks about but John Edwards will gain a lot of momentum here. Huckabee and Romney is in a tight race.
Huckabee is ahead in the recent polls but it may be closing up. Mitt Romney is hoping for back-to-back wins in Iowa and New Hampshire. If he is shut out both races he will be in terrible trouble. Huckabee has a base in Iowa but the question is can he go further than Iowa, South Carolina. Maybe, but we'll see.
HARRIS: Bill Schneider part of the best political team in Iowa for us. Bill, thank you.
Bill mentioned a moment ago not all of the presidential candidates left Iowa for the Christmas day break. He temporarily moved his family to Des Moines earlier this year. As a local guy he was able to spend Christmas mingling with potential voters.
If you want the most up to the minute political news available anywhere, cnnpolitics.com is your one-stop shop. It is the internets premiere destination for political news, cnnpolitics.com.
A Christmas day Christ to the zoo turns to error. A tiger gets loose and goes on a deadly hunt. We'll have the latest from San Francisco.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Let's get the business day started and take you to the New York Stock Exchange. Back to work after a break for the Christmas holiday. There was some trading on Christmas Eve and the Dow picked up about 98 points. So the Dow begins the day, 13,549. So we are following the mall madness today as shoppers return ill fitting, ill conceived gifts, less than desirable presents. And also, cash in on some of those gift cards. Ali Velshi is following the markets for us, right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
And welcome back everyone to the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Tony Harris. Heidi Collins has the day off. Brianna Keilar joins me at the Top of the Hour.
Our top story: An escaped tiger on the hunt, zoo-goers are its prey. One visitor at a St. Francisco zoo is dead, two others mauled, all three men said to be in their 20s. Police opened fire on the tiger as it turned from one victim and started coming towards them. Zoo officials are trying to figure out how the tiger escaped its enclosure and how long it had been loose before it attacked. The tiger is the same cat that mauled a zoo keeper last year. In that attack, the 300-pound tiger bit off part of a zoo employee's arm during a public feeding.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JACK HANNA, DIRECTOR, EMIRETUS COLUMBUS ZOO (on the phone): Unpredictable is the right word to use. You got to remember that about 95 percent of our animals in zoos come from other zoological parks but they are wild. That we tell our folks about animals like a loaded gun, it can go off at any time. These animals are phenomenal creatures. They're magnificent, they're very powerful, they can leap a long ways but again, I don't know how the animal got out.
A hundred forty-five million people went to zoos last year and yes, accident happen but you know, when you look at the numbers of people that we educate in the zoological world, you know, it's something - it's a real safe place to go to. (END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: And at the Top of the Hour, we will go live to the San Francisco zoo. And you can hear this morning's entire interview with Jack Hanna.
Out for a ride on the new pink and purple bicycle she got for Christmas, then tragedy. A 7-year-old girl in San Antonio, Texas struck and killed on Christmas morning. Police say, Jackie Solis rode her bike into the path of a pickup truck. The family is very devastated.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RAUL GUERRA, GIRL'S UNCLE: She was very active with all of the little kids in the community. She was just you know, just a joy. A joy. Just a real tragedy. It was an accident. It just not much else we can say.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Police say the driver of the truck was not speeding and won't face any charges.
Buried by mud, landslides caused by heavy rain with dozens dead in Indonesia. A search and rescue official says at least 67 people may have been killed, hundreds of soldiers, police and volunteers are digging for survivors. Heavy equipment is on the way. In the meantime, villagers are using shovels and picks to dig through the mud and debris. Indonesia and other Asian nations marking three years after one of the deadliest disasters of the modern age -- the Asian tsunami killed more than 200,000 people and 12 Indian Ocean nations, villages and tourist resorts were washed away by the waves. Today, survivors and families of victims gathered across the region for ceremonies, prayer services and vigils.
The mission outside Baghdad: U.S. troops on remote areas of Iraq get a visit from their commander. CNN's Harris Whitbeck has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS WHITBECK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): One of the military's newest and most advanced helicopters flew General David Petraeus to the farthest corners of his area of operations.
GEN. DAVID PETRAEUS, U.S. COMMANDER IN IRAQ: Merry Christmas.
UNIDENTIFIED U.S. ARMY: Merry Christmas.
WHITBECK: He wanted to spend Christmas day with the troops. Just a few miles from the border between Iraq and Syria, he shared a holiday breakfast and told troops while they have made great progress in Iraq, there is still work to be done.
PETRAEUS: It's also a message that there are hard days and tough weeks and months ahead still. Yes, a lot of the trends are positive, but al Qaeda remains very lethal, very dangerous. It's still trying to carry out acts of indiscriminate violence.
WHITBECK: It is not often high-ranking generals visit these combat outposts. Many are small and seemingly off the radar screen.
(on camera): As remote as the outposts may be they are extremely important to the current U.S. military effort because of their proximity to the border with Syria. They're heavily involved in stopping the flow of smuggled weapons and foreign fighters.
(voice over): Petraeus told his troops that type of work, interdiction and intelligence gathering will be crucial in the weeks and months to come.
PETRAEUS: There will be ups and downs. Again, al Qaeda is a boxer who has been knocked to the canvas but continues to come off the canvas and still has a very powerful right hand and will continue to try to carry out indiscriminate acts of violence.
WHITBECK: Just miles from one of the outpost visited by Petraeus in the city of Baquba, a suicide bomber blew himself up at the funeral for the local leader of a concerned citizens council. The civilian self defense group's widely credited with having been a factor in the diminishing levels of violence in the country.
PETRAEUS: It reflects the importance that al Qaeda attaches to them. They know that if the local population is successful in turning against them and in being able to secure themselves, that the same will happen to them that happened in Anbar province and a number of Baghdad neighborhoods and those surround Baghdad. Al Qaeda has been pushed farther and farther from Baghdad.
WHITBECK: Petraeus wants to make sure this holiday, his troops will remain motivated to continue that fight.
Harris Whitbeck, CNN, on Combat Outpost Norseman, Iraq.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: And very quickly, let's get to Reynolds Wolf in the CNN severe weather center. So, you finished the jigsaw puzzle, huh?
REYNOLDS WOLF, METEOROLOGIST: We finished the jigsaw puzzle. You know that's the part of a really good mental image, that's exactly what it looks like, doesn't it? I mean, this is flight explorer. But you're right, it looks like a bunch of pieces from a jigsaw puzzle. You know, what's funny this represents nearly 4,500 flights that we have right now in offloading or mid-flight.
You now, somewhere there on this plane there is someone on one of these planes is in a very, very back row of the aircraft, they've got a screaming baby right next to them on the side and that someone (INAUDIBLE) and they're taking that flight from New York to L.A. and the flight seems like it's never going to end.
HARRIS: Merry Christmas! WOLF: And I know, it should happen in a holiday season. When you have rough weather that piles on top it to really does complicate things and that's going to be the scenario for many people today. In fact, we're already seeing those delays to begin to stack up especially like Detroit where it's going to be a ground stop until 10 o'clock eastern time. Houston, we expected this. You've got a ground stop until 9:00 a.m. Central time.
Notice the arrows going up at Newark and Wilmington and even New York City, everything beginning to pop up and increase from 30 minutes to 45 minutes, get a little bit longer, it's going to go up even more as we make our way throughout the day hours. It's the bad weather, it's the share volume, all coming together in the third busiest travel day of the year. When have you that scenario, you're going to have some issues. Let's talk about that weather, let's see where we're going to have issues in Houston. Remember that is one big area. Well, the reason why is this area of low pressure, it's not going to remain stationary.
This thing is going to grow some legs and it's going to move to the east. As it does so the big body of water here, the gulf of Mexico is going to supply a lot of moisture that is going to come on through and bring scattered showers and storms, maybe even some tornadoes in parts of Mississippi, Louisiana and into Arkansas. From the top half of the system, we're going to see that transformation going from raindrops to snowflakes for places like Oklahoma City where they had the ice storms not long ago, today, they could have a little bit more than icy type of weather, and also look for some of that up in parts of the twin cities and back into parts of Wisconsin.
On the other side, the lakes though in Michigan, take a look at this image of the Gatbury (ph), this wonderful AP photo that shows a shot from St. Joseph, Michigan. This is the pier. You know, if you were in Miami for the holidays, you were enjoying 80-degree temperatures. Think about your friends up in Michigan, icy, icy cold conditions but a beautiful thing to see but certainly not something you want to experience throughout your holiday. Thank you, a nice, warm studio.
HARRIS: Looks like a rendering there. That looks great!
WOLF: That's the thing you see? (ph)
HARRIS: Appreciate it. Thank you, doctor.
A police in Florida search for a hit and run driver. A car hits a convenience store and it's caught on tape by plenty of cameras. More now from Don Guevara of affiliate WSVN.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DON GUEVARA, WSVN: A Christmas crash caught on camera. The store, this express food stop on Broward Boulevard in Fort Lauderdale, it's 5:45 in the morning. The owner misses the crash by five minutes.
SALEH ALQADI, STORE OWNER: I'm lucky. I want to find who did it. I look at the camera. I think maybe he's a drunk or something.
GUEVARA: Four different cameras catch the collision. Here, it looks like the passenger side air bag is deployed when the car smacks into the store. Here, you can see the view from inside the store. The collision shifts shelves sending merchandise flying costing the owner a lot of money.
ALQADI: The window. Glass is almost $25,000, minimum, at least.
GUEVARA: From this last shot, it appears like the driver is going the wrong way down Broward Boulevard before crashing into the store. As for the cleanup, that's not going to be done right away.
ALQADI: Not today, anyway. Home Depot closed, Lowe's is closed. I have to stay whole night today in the store.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Man, so, police have plenty of videotape to review this morning as they look for the driver of that car.
So, the odds stacked against him. An Atlanta teen heads to Yale. All expenses paid. He got to call his mom. Ray, are you going to call your mom?
RAY GRISSOM, AWARDED FULL RIDE TO YALE: Yes, sir.
HARRIS: Yes, sir? What am I, Navy? Call your mom, tell her you're about to be on television, all right? Ray Grissom is coming up next in the NEWSROOM. Yes, sir.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: OK, we hear from you all of the time. Too much bad news, yes, yes. So, here is a story to make you smile this morning. A kid with all of the chips stacked against him, he beat the odds. Ray Grissom was born to a single teenage mom. His dad was never around. So, Ray had to work at Chick-Filet, I believe, to help his mom pay the bills but Ray never let his grades slip. And next year, listen to this. He has got a full ride to Yale! The first in his family to go to college. Ray Grissom, here with me now. Ray, great to see you. Look at him smiling and cheesing there all happy and proud and full of yourself here, man.
How are you, man?
GRISSOM: Good. Yourself?
HARRIS: Thank you. Not as well you're doing these days. You know, I was thinking as I was reading that. Odds stacked against him. Do you feel that way? I mean, did you feel, growing up, we talk about it all the time. He is underprivileged. He has got the odds stacked against him. And that's us, the outside projecting in. What does it feel like for you?
GRISSOM: I felt underprivileged at times. Of course, when I need a ride to go places or something and know that my mom couldn't do it, then I had to find a way, so I felt like I had to, you know, go around some type of obstacle. But on other times, I know that I got one of the best educations in the state, maybe in the country. So, underprivileged financially, but outstandingly privileged in too many more ways.
HARRIS: Tell us about this tremendous program at Campbell High School in that's in Smyrna, correct?
GRISSOM: Yes, sir.
HARRIS: In Smyrna, Georgia just north and a little west of Atlanta. Tell us about this program at this school because you have to pay off the school and the teacher who made a real difference for you.
GRISSOM: I attend the IB program which is the -
HARRIS: What is that? What is the IB program?
GRISSOM: International Baccalaureate.
HARRIS: Fancy, fancy stuff! OK.
GRISSOM: And it is an international world school and we get a very outstanding education. And the teachers are phenomenal. They teach you academically, put but also personal and character traits. It's just an outstanding school.
HARRIS: How did you turn this around? Because the story goes that in your freshman or sophomore year, you were goofing off a little bit, weren't you?
GRISSOM: I mean, I still maintained all A's.
HARRIS: You did?
GRISSOM: Yes, sir. But the friends I hung out with and the things they did, it wasn't the best thing to do.
HARRIS: Really? And none of this goofing off, we're happy that you maintained the grades have anything to do with a girl and, you know, coming into your manhood and all that sort of stuff? The rights of passage have anything to do with this young Ray?
GRISSOM: It's somewhat.
HARRIS: It did! All right. I have to ask you, what was your reaction to the news that you were not only -- you were going to Yale on a full -- come on, come on! This is Yale!
GRISSOM: Yes.
HARRIS: This is new haven! What was your reaction?
GRISSOM: I was silent. And I went to get to take a nap. HARRIS: Wait a minute. Wait a minute, wait a minute, back up here. Did you just say you were silent and you took a nap?
GRISSOM: Yes, sir. It was too much to handle.
HARRIS: Let me -- there you go. So, let me ask the question again. What was your real reaction to hear the news?
GRISSOM: I was speechless and shaking like I am now. It was just a lot to handle at one time.
HARRIS: Do you feel worthy of it?
GRISSOM: Yes. I do!
HARRIS: That's great.
GRISSOM: I worked hard.
HARRIS: OK, that's great. Have you been to new haven yet?
GRISSOM: No, sir.
HARRIS: When are you?
GRISSOM: Next month.
HARRIS: You know, I come from a city, I have to say this. It's personal; I come from a city where three-quarters of the young men, black men who enter high school in Baltimore never graduate. Never graduate. How is it -- what piece of advice would you have for young black men? Because, you know, folks are going to see you here and you're going to look like something of an example to young folks. What is that example? And what would you say to the young folks who, for whatever reason, can't figure out a way to make it through?
GRISSOM: For me, I realized that I wasn't doing things for myself alone, it was for my family.
HARRIS: What do you mean by that? For your family?
GRISSOM: Because, you know, my name is all that I have, so, if I do something, it affects my mom and it affects my little brother and it affects my aunt and grandparents. So, the decisions I make will you know, lead to other people. So, I think I realized that first and what make me I guess me.
HARRIS: What are you going to be study?
GRISSOM: Architecture.
HARRIS: Architecture. We're so happy for you.
GRISSOM: Thanks you so much.
HARRIS: We're so happy for you. Is your mom watching? GRISSOM: She should be.
HARRIS: Maria, I hope you're proud of him. I know you are. We can't wait to follow you at Yale next year. Send us e-mails, send those pictures, all right?
GRISSOM: I will.
HARRIS: Ray Grissom in the NEWSROOM this morning on his way to Yale, new haven. Man, send me back a t-shirt or something, a picture is as close as I'll get there, I suppose. Ray thanks for your time. Congratulations.
GRISSOM: Thank you.
HARRIS: Well done, well done.
Still to come in the NEWSROOM this morning, New Year's resolutions on the way and there are ways to keep them. And we'll show you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Holding out hope for a happy homecoming. Desperate families reach out to their loved ones deep in the jungles of Colombia. CNN's Karl Penhaul has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT, COLOMBIA (voice over): This is talk radio with a tragic twist. It's called "Voices of Kidnap." the target audience, hundreds of hostages being held by the revolutionary armed forces of Colombia or FARC. Every week, relatives line up to broadcast messages to loved ones. Some have been held for more than a decade. Radio host, Herbin Hoyos was himself once kidnapped by the guerrillas. What we are doing here is sending the hostages a dose of life so they keep resisting until they return to freedom, he says.
Patricia Perdomo has been sending weekly messages for the last six years to her mother Consuelo Gonzalez, a Colombia congresswoman but she's praying this would be her last. The FARC have said they will release Gonzalez, seen in this video in the next few days. Tonight, Perdomo has a message to all the FARC's prisoners. Don't lose home. We're working for you and your release. You will come home and your families are waiting for you and we will hug you again, she says.
Another hostage, Clara Rojas seen on the left in this rebel video may also be released with her 3-year-old son whose father is born of the guerrillas. Betancourt was a running mate of former presidential candidate, Ingrid Betancourt. Both were snatched in 2002. Betancourt is still held and looks thin and downcast in a recent video.
During "Voices of Kidnap," an artist sings for the freedom of all the hostages. Relatives send tearful messages usually a few words of family news. Ana Elba Castro's son, William, a soldier, was captured by FARC rebels a year ago. The guerrillas don't have the right to kidnap our children. Those children are our treasures, she tells me. Others send a message of defiance. Free our boys; kidnappers, you have no place in this country. You're damned undesirable, he says.
(on camera): This show is being beamed out to the depths of Columbian jungle every Sunday morning for the last 14 years and in that time there have been more than 25,000 kidnappings in the country.
(voice over): The FARC is being blamed for around a third of those abductions. The rebels are currently holding soldiers, police and three American CIA contractors, who they described as prisoners of war. At the radio show, the relatives strike up a chant. You took them alive. Give them back, alive. They chant. But for this Emperatriz de Guevara, there will be no homecoming.
Her son, police captain, Julian de Guevara died last year in captivity. She's still waiting for the FARC to hand over his remains. I long to have a special place for him, a place where I can talk to him and visit him, that would help heal my broken heart. She tells me. She watches silently as other families plead for their loved ones to come home alive.
Karl Penhaul, CNN, Bogota.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Still to come on the NEWSROOM this morning, sole survivor. A teenage girl found alive. The bodies of three others recovered after a small plane crash.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: OK. Too many Christmas trees this year? Time to start thinking about New Year's resolutions? You know, it's not as hard as you might think to keep them.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: As soon as I make them, that's when I break them.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know, you get on a fast track like for a month or 30 days or so and then, all of a sudden, you quit.
HARRIS (voice over): It's true. Most Americans drop their resolutions within the first six months of the New Year. The good news? Studies show 40 percent do succeed. We stopped smoking, lose weight and get our financial house in order. Amber Mette went from a size 16 to a size ten in 2007. How did she do it? Tip number one, she was finally ready to change.
AMBER METTE, KEPT 2007 RESOLUTION: You just say that's it. You know? I'm tired of living this way, I want to have more energy, I want to have more time for me and I just got to the point where I was like, that's it, I really want in 2007 to keep my resolutions. HARRIS: Now, 27 pounds thinner, she's keeping up with her two boys with ease. The magazine owner and editor in chief resolved to lose weight by walking three days a week, joining weight watchers and planning out her meals. That meant carving up more time for herself.
METTE: It's OK to say no. People, you know, people will be disappointed that you don't serve on this committee or that you're not there to help for whatever reason, but you know, it's OK to say no.
HARRIS: Tip two, set realistic goals. Write them down and slice them into very specific steps.
NANCY MCGARRAH, PSYCHOLOGIST: Instead of saying my New Year's resolution is to exercise more, maybe, my resolution is to go to the gym once a week and just start with something that seems doable, that doesn't seem impossible that's not going to add more stress to your life.
HARRIS: Tip three, don't go it alone.
METTE: I said, mom, my New Year's resolution is to lose weight and I want you to do it with me.
STANLEY HIBBS, LIFE COACH/PSYCHOLOGIST: If we make a commitment to ourselves, that's good. But making a commitment publicly, going on record and knowing that we're going to have to explain, that's a great motivator, we are all more likely to do what we need to do if we're accountable to someone.
HARRIS: And tip four, don't beat yourself up if have you a setback. Everyone falls off the wagon now and then!
MCGARRAH: The best predictor of success are people that can say, OK, I had a bad day. Tomorrow is another day. I can start over tomorrow. People that say, OK, that's it, I have no willpower, I may as well go back to smoking or go back to whatever the habit is, have the least chance of success.
METTE: It is such a marathon. It's not a sprint and the more I realize that the better I did.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
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