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California Storms; Search Missing Georgia Hiker Continues; Preparing for the New Hampshire Primary
Aired January 05, 2008 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When it happens, it happens really quick.
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BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: This man and hundreds of others are being told to leave their homes again. Remember those California wildfires? Well, this weekend we could see California mudslides.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We'll go wherever they need us.
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T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Friends, family, even strangers searching for a missing hiker. Police now talking to a man they call a person of interest. New details for you on that this morning.
NGUYEN: And what is going on here? Combat boots and a tiara? Yeah, Miss Utah and she is on a mission. Jill Stevens joins us live this hour.
HOLMES: All right, Jill Stevens. From the CNN Center, this is the CNN NEWSROOM and it is Saturday, January 5th. Good morning to you all. I'm T.J. Holmes.
NGUYEN: Yes good morning everybody, I am Betty Nguyen. I want to thank you for joining us, 10:00 a.m. here in Atlanta, 7:00 a.m. in California. Let's get you up to speed on what's happening.
HOLMES: All right, when you think arctic, California? Easily one of the first things that comes to mind. Yes, those two words not usually put together. But the Golden State looking a whole lot whiter today in the mountains. Blizzard conditions forced part of Interstate 80 to shut down across the Sierra. And there's choppy surf along the coast all the way up to Oregon.
Meanwhile in southern California, all that rain that they didn't get last year. Remember we were talking drought? Well, they're getting it all, right now. And also the wind, hurricane-force winds at times. Enough to knock down plenty of trees as we have some of our i-Reports showing us. It's about 600,000 are without power right now in the Bay Area. Take a look at that. NGUYEN: Let's take you to Reynolds Wolf. He is in the Sierras actually in Truckee, California, to be exact. The snow is just coming down there. Something they really don't need at this time. He joins us live with the latest. Good morning, Reynolds.
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Hi, good morning to both of you in Atlanta. I got to tell you just to put things into perspective, the snow that's coming down now, this is nothing compared to what we had late yesterday and last night. It was coming down in sheets.
In fact in the Tahoe Valley, we had anywhere from one to three feet of snowfall which kept people like this gentleman right here, hey buddy, kept them really busy.
As you can tell, the street behind me is in pretty decent shape. And one of the reasons why is because these guys have been up all hours. They've had one hand on the wheel, the other hand holding on to a cup of coffee and sometimes dropping the coffee to keep the trucks from slipping. It's been that kind of a day.
We have had actually some city buses that have been making their way through. We have one that's about to make it's way on. And it's all due to the hard work of the men and women here who have been cleaning up the snow.
We've got some video for you that we'd like to share with you. That video is going to show them doing just that. Getting up in the morning and as the snow began to pile on down, it was their job to move it clear out of the way.
Now although the heaviest snowfall again as I mentioned here in Tahoe Valley we had one to three. We had even higher amounts up in the higher elevations. Around 7,000 feet, we had snowfall totals in fact of four, five, six feet. Some places up to eight, even 10 inches of snowfall. That accompanied with that heavy wind that T.J. was talking about, some of it hurricane force winds.
Right now the situation is getting a little bit better. Snow is still going to be in the picture, but not quite as heavy as what we had earlier. Some spits and drizzles, then a little bit of a break. A little bit more and then a break. That's the way it is going to be through the rest of the weekend. Certainly not the heavy arctic punch that we had to start things off. Let's send it back to you guys in the studio.
NGUYEN: Spits and drizzles, huh?
WOLF: Well I mean, you've got to remember this, put everything in perspective. You have to put things in perspective. I mean we can see four inches here in Truckee. You could see eight inches of snowfall in some of the smaller hills here. High hills, obviously more.
But see the thing is it's not unusual to get snowfall here in Truckee. Four to eight inches is nothing to these people. The big thing is when you have the snowfall and you have that wind coupled with it. We did have that blizzard warning no longer in effect at this time. That's a very rare thing for the high Sierra.
When you have that combination of that snow and you bring that wind on with it, that's something you just don't see every single day. As it stands, we still have the winter storm warning. Certainly a lot of concern about that. Interstate 80, way over these buildings behind me and over those trees. Still closed for the time being with hopes of reopening it in hopefully the next couple of hours. But of course we will have to keep our fingers crossed and send it back to you where in Atlanta, the roads are a lot better. Maybe not when T.J. is driving.
NGUYEN: Yes, we stay off of them when he's on the road. Thank you, Reynolds.
Well heavy rain in southern California is a huge concern for people who just a few weeks ago were battling wildfires, like this one in Malibu in November. Remember that? Our Kara Finnstrom was there then and she's back live this morning with the latest on what is going on with the rain that's pouring down in some areas. In fact, some people are reporting mudslides.
KARA FINNSTROM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Betty. A little bit of a let-up in the rain here in the Malibu area right now. But we have seen a steady, soaking rain throughout southern California since about noon yesterday. And forecasters tell us that there's another heavy band of rain on the way. And the big worry now is what all this accumulated rainfall could mean for areas recently devastated by those wildfires.
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JOHN ST. CLAIR, MALIBU RESIDENT: Up the canyon coming down corral was a wall of flames.
FINNSTROM (voice-over): John St. Clair watched one of last fall's fire monsters ravage his neighborhood.
ST. CLAIR: There's eight homes and mine was the only one that made it.
FINNSTROM: Now his family is dealing with the treacherous aftermath, potential flooding and mudslides.
ST. CLAIR: We still have debris in these two lots and I don't know if that's going to come down or not.
FINNSTROM: St. Clair is using sandbags, bricks and gutters to divert rushing rainwater away from his home.
ST. CLAIR: This part here, do we need to build it up a little bit more?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah.
FINNSTROM: But he realizes this will be useless if the earth gives way.
SUSAN CANNON, U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY: Sandbags and measures to that point can work for very small events. But given the forecast for rainfall for this weekend, and the -- what our modeling is showing is that a sandbag wall would not be very effective.
FINNSTROM: Experts with the U.S. Geological Survey are setting all California burn areas. They warn those affected in Malibu that a half inch of rain within 30 minutes puts them at risk for mud and debris flows. And say there's no way to predict how minor or major such events might be.
LUCY JONES, U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY: Minivans get picked up. Cars get picked up and carried with this. They can travel up to 35 miles-an-hour. So they are one of the most deadly phenomenon that we have seen in southern California.
FINNSTROM: Emergency officials further south in Orange County issued evacuation ordered Friday. But many residents say they won't go. Back in Malibu, John St. Clair's wife and children will stay in a hotel during the storm. He'll once again try to protect their home against nature's fury.
ST. CLAIR: I think we'll be OK if we can just make it through this here. I think we'll be fine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FINNSTROM: Now all of the evacuation orders we're being told are not being put in place lightly because emergency officials here tell us that the threat to some of these burn areas could last for years. They say because what's happening here is the fact that these fires not only destroyed the trees and the shrubs above ground. They also incinerated the root system underneath. So that is what actually holds these hillsides in place. So they say until that grows back, which could be two to five years, that threat of mudslides will continue every time it rains hard like this. Betty?
NGUYEN: All right, CNN's Kara Finnstrom joining us live. Thank you.
HOLMES: Well lost and found? Now safe and sound. The missing family from Clovis, California rescued after they got lost during the storm. Search teams found 64-year-old John Hopper and his 15-year-old twins Matt and Sarah at a popular hiking destination, Sierra National Forest. They were with three other people who apparently got trapped in the woods after the storm hit. All six were in good condition when the searchers found them last night.
NGUYEN: Florida farmers are checking their crops for damage from a dip in the mercury. So far, it looks like the citrus crop weathered the cold temperatures with few problems. But tomato and strawberry growers report some damage to those crops. The freeze Thursday could hurt the state's overall winter tomato production. And we should get a better picture of crop damage on Monday when an Agriculture Department releases a weekly progress report on all of this. Also, not only are the crops at risk in Florida, but the wildlife, too. This poor little guy almost became an iguana Popsicle. Yep, a man who found him says the iguana has lived in his back hard for years but he nearly found the iguana nearly frozen stiff. Now the iguana is staying in his bathtub until it warms up. Hey, we're learning a lot about iguanas.
HOLMES: All right, iguana Popsicle.
NGUYEN: Not the flavor I would choose, but, yeah.
HOLMES: We will turn now to another story that is a serious one here of concern to a lot of folks, family members here in Georgia actually. Search and rescue teams combing the woods in the north Georgia mountains at this hour. They are searching for that lady. Missing hiker, that's 24-year-old Meredith Emerson. She disappeared after she went hiking along the Appalachian Trail on New Year's Day. This morning, there are some new developments we want to get to you. And Reggie Aqui is the man for us on the scene live for us from Blood Mountain. Please tell us what's happening there this morning.
REGGIE AQUI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes well first of all, once again, searchers are combing out into the woods trying to find any trace of where this missing 24-year-old may have gone. They actually worked all through the night, T.J.. This is now a 24-hour operation. And the early morning shift is under way.
Let's get to what happened last night. Some major developments that I'll show you. They actually were able to find, police were, this person of interest. They've been trying to find for the past couple of days. His name is Gary Michael Hilton. He was found in a suburban Atlanta gas station. Now we're told by police that two people called 911 saying that they recognized this guy. Police got there and sure enough, there he was. Right now they are questioning that man. So far, we don't know how helpful he has been.
The other big piece of information we found out last night was they found Meredith's dog. You might remember she was with her dog on this hiking trail. And it was on that hiking trail that witnesses saw Gary Michael Hilton and Meredith Emerson at one point together. And so that's why police were looking for the man. They're also looking for the dog.
The unusual thing, the dog was actually found 50 miles away from where I'm standing at a Kroger supermarket. Veterinarians were able to identify that dog by looking at the chip that was implanted in him.
Now right now I'm joined by Peggy Bailey. And Peggy is Meredith's godmother. She's known her all her life. I know that you have essentially become the support for Meredith's parents throughout all of this. I want to know how they are doing right now, given all this information in the past few hours.
PEGGY BAILEY, MEREDITH'S GODMOTHER: Reggie, it's real hard. They are having a hard time right now. They want to find Meredith. They are still hopeful that they will find Meredith soon. But this is a hard time for them. And we're all struggling.
AQUI: That news when it came out last night, what was your initial reaction when you heard they had this person of interest, this person who could lead you to where Meredith was.
BAILEY: Well it was a combination of emotions because that's exactly what we wanted to happen. We wanted to find this guy. We thought he would have answers for us. But it's also scary because that means we're on a road to finding something we don't know what that something is going to be. We want it to be Meredith. It's great we found him. But that's a stepping stone to her. We want to find her. So we were hopeful and scared at the same time.
AQUI: Final thing I want to ask you. I know the parents have a message for everybody out there.
BAILEY: A message from Meredith's parents from Dave and Susan, Meredith's parents, is please, if they know anything, if anyone out there knows anything, and Susan says specifically, even if to you it seems insignificant, it's those little things that people pass off to us that have been very, very helpful.
So please call and don't hesitate to call. And again, the outpouring of support and love from this community has -- and prayers and just people from -- people that we know, that my husband and I know, that they know, all over this country, has really sustained them and continue to do that and thank you so much.
AQUI: We appreciate you talking to us. I know a lot of people are thinking about you today. And T.J. and Betty, again any information, please let these folks know because it's been many days since they've seen Meredith and they want her back as soon as possible. Back to you guys.
HOLMES: As we could all imagine. Tough time for that family and friends right now. Reggie Aqui for us on the story for us. We appreciate you this morning, Reggie.
NGUYEN: There's also some disturbing new information surrounding the deaths of two American soldiers killed in Iraq. It happened the day after Christmas. The U.S. military says they were allegedly killed by an Iraqi army soldier during a joint operation in northwestern Iraq. The military says they don't know why the Iraqi soldier opened fire on U.S. troops. He's now in custody along with two other Iraqi troops. Three U.S. soldiers were wounded in that attack.
HOLMES: It is 2008.
NGUYEN: Can you believe it's already here?
HOLMES: It's already here. That means it's officially an election year. Have you noticed?
NGUYEN: A little bit here and there. HOLMES: There's some stuff going on. Stuff like this. Hillary Clinton, one of the candidates, she's in New Hampshire with the rest of them. They are putting their new spin on their messages now that they are -- got Iowa behind them and some of them placed maybe not where they thought they should place. So they're having to tweak their messages a little bit. We are dipping it, talking to a lot - not talking to today, but rather listening in to a lot of candidates who are in forums, town halls and audiences just like the one you are seeing here. Hillary Clinton among them. We'll be checking in with her and so many others throughout the morning on the campaign trail.
NGUYEN: Plus an army nurse in Afghanistan is now taking on a new challenge, from combat to beauty queen.
And would you eat cloned meat T.J.? Has that ever been up your alley?
HOLMES: It never really occurred to me, but beef is beef. I'll take it.
NGUYEN: Really? OK.
HOLMES: Well, would you eat it, folks if you didn't know you were actually eating it? Would that be a problem for you as well? We have some new information from the Food and Drug Administration.
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NGUYEN: It is 15 minutes past the hour on this Saturday morning. Our quick hits giving you more news in less time. Let's get straight to them.
HOLMES: All right, well strong, gusty winds blow through southeast Washington state. The high winds knocked down trees and power lines. Airports there in Washington as well. One of them reported wind gusts up to 78 miles-per-hour yesterday.
NGUYEN: Yes, that was in Walla Walla, Washington.
A previously unheard of Islamic group is claiming responsibility for killing a U.S. diplomat, John Michael Granville in Sudan. That was on several Islamist Web sites making that claim. And Granville, as you recall, was gunned down as he headed home from a New Year's Party early Tuesday. His body was flown back to the U.S. yesterday. Granville's mother said she was always worried about her son and she recalls some of the conversations they had.
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JANE GRANVILLE, MOTHER OF SLAIN DIPLOMAT: I did discuss his safety all the time. And he said, mom, I want you to listen to me. I am doing what I love every day of my life. How many people could ever say that?
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NGUYEN: That's true. Well, Granville's driver was also killed in that shooting.
HOLMES: And voters heading to the polls in Wyoming today. That's right. Wyoming holding its Republican caucus today. But only about half of the candidates have even been to Wyoming in the past few months. There are about 12 national delegates up for grabs there.
NGUYEN: Politics taking center stage here on CNN today. We're going to be following the candidates in New Hampshire as they travel across the state.
HOLMES: Let's take a live look now. Something happening, Senator Hillary Clinton there in New Hampshire. First event she's got going on this morning. It's in Penacook, New Hampshire. She and the rest of the Democrats are trying to drive home their post-Iowa messages, which of course those messages having to be tweaked now that we have the results of what happened in Iowa.
Now of course, they have some serious talk here, asking some serious answers. But there was a pretty lighthearted moment that just took place at this moment. Would you believe that, yes, at Democrat Senator Hillary Clinton's event, Bill O'Reilly is in the crowd. Check this out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Senator Clinton, Bill O'Reilly just asked me --
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D-NY), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Bill O'Reilly. Oh, hi, Bill. How are you? You got to give him points for courage. Go ahead, dear.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Bill O'Reilly just asked me what your plan is for removing troops from Iraq. And I thought that since you were going to be the next president you might be able to explain it a little better.
CLINTON: Thank you. Well, this question is for you and for Bill O'Reilly. The question is, what is my plan for removing troops from Iraq. Well, I have said that on the first day I am inaugurated president, I am going to ask the joint chiefs, the Secretary of Defense and my security advisers to give me a plan as soon as possible so that I can begin withdrawing troops within 60 days.
And the reason I am asking for a plan is because last spring, I was told by my military advisers who consist of retired military officers and some of the active duty officers that I am in touch with that there wasn't planning going on in the Pentagon because the Bush administration did not want to plan, because that wasn't part of their game plan.
And so I wrote to the secretary of defense and said, I wanted to know what planning was going on for the withdrawal of our troops. And I got a letter back which said we're not going to tell you. And I said, yes, you are. And so we had a hearing. It was a closed-door hearing, and what I can say to you is that basically, we got very little information.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: You hear Hillary Clinton there giving her answer to Bill O'Reilly's question that was passed along through another audience member. But kind of a light moment, but really a serious question.
NGUYEN: You can see him in the crowd there, yes no doubt about that. And CNN's Dan Lothian is live for us in Manchester, New Hampshire this morning, with the latest on where he is. Good morning.
DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. Well you know what, that shows you there if you can't get directly to the candidate, you throw your question to somebody else who can. Certainly an interesting moment out on the campaign trail.
But Senator Hillary Clinton really trying to make up some ground here in New Hampshire after that disappointing third place finish in Iowa. And one thing we've seen as you've been talking about just a few minutes ago is that the candidates have been tweaking their messages somewhat.
And we have seen her reaching out to a younger audience, appealing to young people to come out and support her. That is something that Barack Obama has been doing in Iowa. It is what it is believed has led to some of his successes in Iowa.
And so we have seen that being integrated into her message here in New Hampshire. As Senator Hillary Clinton also letting her supporters know and audiences and voters here in New Hampshire, that she is the one with the experience to become president and do an effective job on day one. And she's also letting voters know that she is the one who is best to face off with Republicans.
Now on the other side of the Democratic ticket, her contender Barack Obama also today meeting with enthusiastic crowds. He continues to hammer away on that theme of change. That is something that we've been hearing out on the campaign trail now from all the candidates, really, on the Democratic side. They are all talking about change. That they are the candidate of change. And Barack Obama again hammering away on that theme. And again, appealing to that younger audience, those younger voters who helped him win in Iowa.
One other thing, too is that he is trying to reach out to those Independent voters, the 44 percent of registered voters here in the state of New Hampshire, consider themselves Independent. And that is a key group for Barack Obama, trying to reach out to them hoping to capitalize on his win in Iowa.
Then you have Senator John Edwards who yesterday really seemed to try to twist this campaign around and turned it into a campaign between Edwards and Obama, essentially discounting Hillary Clinton after he narrowly defeated her in Iowa. And he continues hammering away on his themes of support for the middle class. And again, also, he's the one who is talking about change. A lot of change, that he is the candidate who can best make change in Washington. Back to you.
NGUYEN: All right, Dan Lothian joining us live today. Thank you, Dan.
HOLMES: And we're also going to be getting the Republican side of the story a little later on in the show. And a reminder for you as well, CNN's Ballot Bowl is back. We're doing it again this afternoon. It's all about the candidates in their own words and beyond those sound bites that you sometimes are stuck hearing. Only the sound bites. Our Ballot Bowl kicks off 2:00 Eastern. It's a good way to get up and informed and hearing the candidates in more extended form.
NGUYEN: Absolutely Ballot Bowl '08, don't miss it. In the meantime though, there's a food alert to tell you about.
HOLMES: The Food and Drug Administration looking into the safety of beef and dairy from cloned cattle.
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NGUYEN: We have some breaking news out of California to tell you about. This in Truckee, California, which is about 40 miles out of Reno. Here's what we know. A levee has broken along the Truckee canal. And what that's done is it's caused some 4,000 residents to be trapped in the area. Not exactly in their homes, but in the area. Now they are being evacuated. Emergency crews are on the scene. They are working to try to evacuate those residents. But again we're talking 4,000 people. So that may take a little bit of time. As you know, though, the winter weather has caused a lot of problems in this area. And now that a levee has broken, it's causing even more. Again, 4,000 people may be trapped in the area. They are being evacuated at this time. This again in Truckee, California. As soon as we get more information on this, we'll bring that to you.
HOLMES: We're going to turn now, Brad, who is over in the Weather Center for us. Brad, you've been keeping an eye on things over there for us. We actually have our Reynolds Wolf out there in Truckee. He's been keeping an eye on things with the snow actually. But there have been some flooding issues out in this county, Lyon County I believe in particular. But some flooding issues they've been looking at. So tell us what have you been able to pick up, what's happening out there? Now we're dealing with a levee break.
(WEATHER REPORT)
NGUYEN: There's a lot of questions to be answered especially with this levee breaking and what that means for those neighborhoods in particular. As we know at this hour though, we're being told at least 4,000 people are being evacuated from the area. Some of them could be trapped because of that levee breaking.
HOLMES: We got travel advisories. Certainly those people have been given a heads up not to be on the roads with all that flooding. Also people got issues with the snow-covered highways and what not.
But Rochelle Jenkins of the California Department of Transportation is on the phone with us. And Ms. Jenkins, thank you for being with us. Can you tell us anything first of what you know, if anything, about the situation with the levee break and the situation with the roads for these folks in Lyon County, around this area? That apparently we know it's flooded now because of this levee break.
ROCHELLE JENKINS, CALIFORNIA DEPT OF TRANSPORTATION (on phone): Unfortunately, I won't be able to comment on that. It appears from what I've been hearing from you it's on the Nevada side. So unfortunately, I don't have any information. What I have is I-80 at this time is closed due to visibility. It's closed from Applegate to the Nevada state line. Obviously, local traffic that needs to evacuate, we're certainly going to help them in any way possible.
HOLMES: What do you -- you mentioned local folks you need to evacuate. What do you know about folks you do have out there stranded on the roads right now, any numbers of people you have out there. How big of a project is that going to be trying to get people off those roads?
JENKINS: That's been handled all night. We don't really have any motorists that are stranded. We have got patrols constantly going through. Our snow plows are still operating even though the highway is closed because we have to stay on top of this storm. So anybody that perhaps got stranded on the highway, they've already been located and assisted to get them down off the hill.
HOLMES: You mentioned you got the plows still out there working. Is it possible the plows could get this to a point where you could open that highway again? Or is this a thing where we're going to have to wait this storm out and let it get out of the way and let kind of nature take care of clearing this road a little bit? And there's only so much you can do with the plows.
JENKINS: No we have what we call Sierra Snow Fighters. That's our crews that are up there working 24 hours a day, seven days a week. That's why we say we're here to get you there. They are there going at all times. They are knocking the snow off of the hill. As soon as the visibility lifts and we can -- motorists will be able to actually see. Because the problem is the blowing snow. As soon as that happens, we're going to be able to open the highway because our snow fighters have stayed on top of this storm.
HOLMES: I know this is probably going to be the tough question, one you're going to have a tough time answering. But I know a lot of motorists wondering when do you anticipate that snow not blowing around so much and possibly get that road back up and running when visibility is at least decent?
JENKINS: Only Mother Nature knows the answer to that question. Right now she's in control. And when she lets us have the highway back, she'll let us have it back. In the meantime, our crews are on it. They are staying on top of making sure the snow does not pack up on the highway too much. And so as soon as the visibility improves, we will allow the motorists back over the pass.
HOLMES: Like you said, Mother Nature knows the answer but we couldn't get her on the phone this morning.
JENKINS: No, we can't. She's an elusive girl, isn't she?
HOLMES: Rochelle Jenkins, we appreciate you giving us time at least this morning. And good luck out there this morning, thank you so much.
JENKINS: Thank you.
NGUYEN: Let's get you the latest now on that breaking news with the levee that has apparently broken along the Truckee canal. To give you a better idea, that canal runs through both Nevada and California. But the flooding is occurring on the Nevada side. We have learned after local reports in the area that as many as 4,000 residents may be trapped in that area. And they are in the process of being evacuated.
Lyon County emergency crews are on the scene and they are working feverishly to try to get people out of the area as this levee has broken along the Truckee canal. Again, this canal runs through both Nevada and California. But the flooding is on the Nevada side of that. So we're following this very closely.
This is a big problem not only because of the -- what it could mean for the neighborhoods in the area. But this is an area that's seen a lot of snow lately. So you combine those frigid temperatures with canal flooding, and it can be quite a mess.
So we're going to stay on top of this breaking news for you and bring you the latest just as soon as we get some more information on that.
HOLMES: All right and we will continue, all this stuff is coming into us fast and furious. Just getting word of course about the levee, also the road conditions out there. I-80 is closed. We're going to get all this stuff together, get organized. Going to take a quick break, get right back to you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right folks, want to continue to update you about what's happening out in California, out in Truckee in particular. This area, we're highlighting here now. But this is along the border. This is in Nevada as well as in California. That border there between the two states. But where we're talking about specifically where this flooding is happening I'm told is in Nevada. This area you're seeing in Fernley, Nevada, about 40 miles from Reno here where there is a canal there where a levee has broken.
Now we understand that some 4,000 residents may be in a bit of trouble here and they may be in need of some evacuation and even some rescue, possibly. But evacuations, we understand, going to have to happen with these folks. About 4,000 of them, after a levee broke there. We don't know specifically as we just heard from our Brad Huffines just a short time ago, necessarily if this is going to be directly attributed to some of the storms and some of the heavy rains and winds and what not that we've been seeing out in this area.
Doesn't know necessarily if the weather is the direct cause of this. But still, we had all that going on and now we've got a levee break so it's just kind of an assumption to make. Still we don't know that for sure, but we do know a levee is broken. Lyon County emergency crews on the scene working to help evacuate some of these residents. We're keeping an eye on it.
No talk of any injuries right now, certainly any deaths associated with it, but still a tricky and troublesome situation out there for the folks in Nevada. We're keeping an eye on it.
NGUYEN: In the meantime though it's 7:38 in California where many are waking up to another day of heavy rain and snow from a powerful winter storm. Anyone trying to get to Nevada on Interstate 80, no dice. The main highway is still shut down. We just heard another update minutes ago. Now there are new reports, as T.J. just mentioned, of a levee break.
CNN meteorologist Reynolds Wolf is in the thick of the snowfall in Truckee, California. Help us understand this because this levee break occurred along the Truckee canal. As I understand it, Reynolds, that runs through both California and Nevada, but this break was on the Nevada side.
WOLF: Absolutely. It's quite a distance from where we are. Right here, we haven't had much in terms of rainfall. We certainly have had plenty of rainfall in the Reno area. Yesterday in fact we did have some flash flood watches and warnings which may be directly attributable to what has happened with the levee breaking.
Certainly an awful situation there and our hearts certainly go out to the families that are suffering this morning with the floodwaters.
Here's a different story. We're talking about liquid, we're talking about still some snow. Much of it is just blowing snow. We're already starting to see the skies clear up a little bit here in Truckee. Pardon me for having trouble speaking. The lips are frozen.
But take a look right down the street. Above the street you see the tree line. Above the tree line you can see the mountains and above that, clouds and a little bit of sunshine. That blue patch of sky is coming in. We are getting some, what we refer to as dry air. And that's simply dry air. A lot of that moisture now pushing off farther to the east, which is certainly great news for many people. Great people like the folks here at the Wagon Train Cafe in a coffee shop where just yesterday, they were actually having bets on how much snow we were going to get.
The final snowfall totals we had here, we're still adding up those numbers. But it was anywhere from one to three feet here in Truckee. You see right behind me, the roads are clear thanks to people like that who have doing all they can all night into possibly the afternoon too, keeping these roads in ship shape form.
And not just here, but they're still working on the interstates. Again you mentioned I-80 being closed. I can tell you, just because it's closed doesn't mean they don't have a lot of vehicles out there trying to scrape away that snow.
It's a never-ending process when you have storms like this. Things are going to get better. That's the good news. A lot of this is now moving off to the east, a lot of that energy. But still the cold air remains. So does the blowing snow. But thankfully the blizzard warning is no longer in effect. Still, we have that winter storm warning to contend with throughout the day. Let's send it back to you in the warm studios in Atlanta.
NGUYEN: Not only that, but you've got this levee that's broken. So there's a lot on their hands there today. Thank you, Reynolds.
WOLF: You bet.
HOLMES: And we need to turn back to some politics now. And this time, Republican Mitt Romney is answering questions at a town hall meeting this morning. What was the event? It was called appropriately.
NGUYEN: "Ask Mitt Anything."
HOLMES: Yes.
NGUYEN: And CNN's Mary Snow is there live in Derry, New Hampshire. I'm sure she'll be asking him a lot of questions throughout the day and the coming weeks on the campaign trail. What's the latest from where you are today, Mary?
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Betty and T.J., just to give you an idea of how seriously people take politics here in New Hampshire, this auditorium was packed before 9:00. And there are scenes like this at all different campaigns around the state three days away before the primary.
The pressure is on Mitt Romney after he lost in Iowa. And he is really fine-tuning his message here. His theme is that Washington needs an outsider. He is trying to portray his main rival John McCain as a Washington insider who has been there for decades. This as the race that heats up between two chief rivals in this primary race.
Mitt Romney addressed the crowd, also took some questions. One questioner was an Irish immigrant who pressed him on illegal immigration, asking him whether he should show more respect in terms of the people who are here illegally. Here is what Mitt Romney had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: How many people do you think want to immigrate to the United States of America from the world? No, no, from the world. A billion? More than a billion. There was a survey done in Colombia that I heard about where as many as 60 percent of the people in Colombia, if they could come to America would say they would. We simply cannot take all the people in the world that want to come to America. We just can't do it. And so -- and so we have to have a process to say who we can bring in. Legal immigration is the great source of vitality and opportunity for this country. Always has been. We welcome legal immigration.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SNOW: That moment actually grew a little bit more heated when Mitt Romney was pressed by this one questioner and people actually shouted him down a bit. But it is a big topic among Republican voters here. Mitt Romney trying to say that he's against amnesty, trying to target John McCain for his immigration reform bill -- a bill that he had sponsored. John McCain has been asked about this at several events here in New Hampshire. His message has been, yes, I get the message and that security needs to be tighter.
But there is an intense battle between Mitt Romney and John McCain and John McCain is going after Mitt Romney pretty heavily as well, trying to portray him as someone who doesn't have the needed experience, particularly on foreign policy to become president.
Also, these ads that Mitt Romney has taken out that target McCain here in this state. John McCain has been calling them desperate.
One other thing that Mitt Romney did a little differently. He also lumped himself in with Barack Obama and his rival Mike Huckabee saying that their victories really underscore the need for change. He's trying to tout his second place finish but certainly, there's so much pressure on him for his campaign to win here. Betty, T.J.?
NGUYEN: The big slogan nowadays is that need for change. And whoever is going to represent that so-called change. All right, thank you, Mary.
HOLMES: We will turn to another one of those change agents. Mike Huckabee he's at a campaign event in Londonderry, New Hampshire, along with his usual sidekick and potential running mate, Chuck Norris. OK, I made up the last part about the running mate. Huckabee is hoping his win in Iowa helped build support for a strong showing in New Hampshire. We see this live event happening right now. However, from this camera angle and it's not zoomed in, so we can't really see the stage. You can make out, is that a band?
NGUYEN: I was going to say is that someone playing guitar? We've seen Huckabee play before.
HOLMES: We have. He of course is a bass player, his band. So maybe that has something to do with it. We're keeping an eye there. We're also monitoring an event Barack Obama is participating in in New Hampshire. Here again you can't see the stage that well.
NGUYEN: But you can see the word change. That's what it's about on the campaign trail.
HOLMES: We do expect this one, we're told, to start pretty soon. So we're going to keep an eye on this, dip into it and bring you a little more from these events a little later.
NGUYEN: In fact, we'll have much more from all of the candidates. This is all part of CNN's Ballot Bowl. We're doing it again this afternoon. You don't want to miss it. It's about the candidates in their own words. We're going beyond the sound bites. Our Ballot Bowl kicks off at 2 p.m. Eastern.
HOLMES: And then up next, it's all about tanks and tiaras and television. What?
NGUYEN: Yep, one young woman goes from army sergeant to beauty queen. Find out how Miss Utah is breaking down stereotypes, next in the CNN NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JILL STEVENS, MISS UTAH: I'm so grateful to be serving in the U.S. military because of what it's taught me especially being in the pageant world. This is my new combat zone.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Well, she was a combat medic in Afghanistan. Now, Army National Guard Sergeant Jill Stevens has gone from combat boots to evening gowns. Stevens is the reigning Miss Utah. She holds a degree in nursing and she hopes to become the next Miss America. Jill Stevens joins us live from New Orleans this morning. Thanks for being with us today.
STEVENS: Hey, thank you, Betty.
NGUYEN: All right, so you set your eyes on becoming Miss Utah. But that was way after you went to Afghanistan. What made you want to do that?
STEVENS: You know, I've been a soldier now for almost seven years. I guess that's a good quarter of my life. I love adventure and challenge and really trying to make a difference. I've always been involved in service organizations, and no better way to serve my country than being a soldier.
NGUYEN: No doubt and we're looking at some pictures of you in Afghanistan. What's the most rewarding part of that mission because you served there for about a year, didn't you?
STEVENS: I was there a year, April 2004 to 2005.
NGUYEN: And so the most rewarding part, it seems like you spent a lot of time with the children there.
STEVENS: Oh, my gosh. Unforgettable because that's truly where the difference -- I saw that we were making because we're building schools for these children to give them a future. And I can't deny what I saw over there and the difference that we are making. NGUYEN: You know, you're not the first beauty queen to have military credentials, but you are the first to have served in a combat zone. What made you decide to go from the battlefield to what can be a combative world in the beauty queen industry?
STEVENS: So true. It's a whole new combat zone. It truly is getting the judgments. It's like dodging bullets again. But you know again, the challenge of serving my country in a different way as a title holder, but also the challenge of being a lady, and I am grateful for, wow, where I've come out of two years. I didn't even own a pair of high heels and now here I am, what it's taught me that I'm performing on stage in Las Vegas and working. It's brought out this whole woman inside of me that I never thought I could become.
NGUYEN: Well let's talk about that because you are a self- described goofball. And is this true, you tripped and fell flat on the floor when you receive your first title?
STEVENS: That is so true. My very first pageant in 2006 I busted on stage. And it was actually the night before I won.
NGUYEN: If only we had video of that. In fact, though --
STEVENS: I'm not sure if I want to get that one out.
NGUYEN: We'll find it, don't worry.
STEVENS: Probably.
NGUYEN: But we do have some videos of you in this new program. It's called "Miss America Reality Check." And I want our audience to take a little look at that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Miss Utah, I need to see something else from you. I am struggling, OK? I need to see you embrace the fashion side, the beauty side, as well as everything else that you can do.
STEVENS: OK.
JEANNIE MAI, CELEBRITY STYLIST: What were you thinking when you got prepared to come out here tonight?
STEVENS: Well, I had on a decent outfit underneath the sporty jacket, but all I had to stay warm in the cold weather was my running jacket and go out and make the best of it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: All right, Miss Utah, let me ask you this. In a world where little girls long to be Miss America, they just look up to that title. How important is it for a show like this and for someone like you to be on a show like this that kind of shatters that image of perfection which, honestly, isn't always reality? STEVENS: You know, I think it helps me relate to other people because I am trying to show that any girl can do this. You know, just two years ago - I've been a marathon runner, a soldier and a nurse and here I am now going for Miss America. I never would have thought. And I want to show girls that you don't have to be a part of the mold, but you can be yourself and bring something different to the organization.
But not necessarily if you want to be Miss America, but anything in life. You can be your true self and go after your dreams. And that's what I'm trying to get out there, get that positive image out there doing it.
NGUYEN: Yes and your dream is to become Miss America. That pageant is coming up in a few short weeks. So best of luck to you, Miss Utah.
STEVENS: It is. Hey, thank you so much, Betty, thank you.
HOLMES: We are going to turn back here in a moment to the levee break out in Nevada. Some 4,000 residents potentially trapped. Rescues under way. People having to be evacuated. Stay tuned. We're going to talk to someone who was actually trapped out there right now. We're going to hear from him. Stick around.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: We want to turn back to the story we've been watching out in Nevada, the Truckee canal. A levee there has broke. This is in western Nevada. A levee has broken. And now potentially some 4,000 people are trapped in an area where this levee has broken and the roads are flooded. We have reports that several homes are under three feet of water. We are just now getting the very first pictures from the area. And once again, our i-Reporters are helping us out in this regard.
These pictures are coming to us from Denny Berry who is in the area. We have several that we'll keep up on the screen and be showing to you. But we do have Denny Berry actually on the phone with us. Denny Berry, thank you for being with us. Thank you for the pictures. Thank you for helping us tell this story. Tell me what is your situation, first of all? We are hearing that people are trapped. Some people on their roofs and things like that. How bad is it where you are?
DENNY BERRY, TRAPPED FERNLEY RESIDENT(on phone): Where I'm at right now, we are sitting up on a hill. So we're on dry land. No fear where I'm at. I live in Green Valley Ranch. And it's isolated. There's one road in, one road out. The one road in is covered by about three feet of water. On the one picture that I sent to you, you've got a -- you can see a loader going through it. It's pretty deep. But we're fine. You go on further north of here is where it's under water.
HOLMES: Now if you are -- your situation, you talk about three feet of water there. I'm trying to understand. You said you are up in a dry spot right now. If you needed to get out of there, do you have -- are you able to do it? You talked about one road in and out. Would you be able to get out of your area, out of that neighborhood or is this a situation where people would have to be plucked out of there by some kind of rescue?
BERRY: For our neighborhood to get out, we'd have to be plucked out. There is no way out. But we're not under fear of being flooded either.
HOLMES: All right now tell me, how many folks are in your area. You said you're a little more isolated, a little more up north where you are talking about. I guess, some of the worst flooding.
BERRY: No, I'm right down the street from the flooding. It's less than a quarter mile away from the house. It's flowing directly downhill. We're uphill from that.
HOLMES: OK, I've got you now. We saw a picture, one of your pictures as well, a helicopter circling around. What was that helicopter from? Was that a rescue thing or was that maybe even a television station, could you tell?
BERRY: No, that's a naval helicopter from the air force base. And they are in the process of rescuing people right now that are -- I haven't seen any, but I've heard reports of them being up on the rooftops.
HOLMES: How many people, give us an idea, of how many people. We heard 4,000 residents potentially trapped. Like you say you would be, you would have to be plucked out of there, couldn't drive out. Is that about right, about 4,000 people roughly in this area?
BERRY: I really don't know. I would have to say that's probably accurate.
HOLMES: What's your plan now? You are going to stand by television and, I guess, wait to see what happens? I guess there's no immediate danger. I guess you have enough supplies. That's not an issue just yet, I assume. But do you plan on just hanging tight?
BERRY: Yes, we're going to hang tight. We've got power, we have heat, we've got food. Our water is coming from uphill, so we're not in a water boil order. Our water is fine. We're just sitting back, keeping warm.
HOLMES: Where are you getting your information from as well? The local stations and what not? Are you being well informed about what you are doing or what you should be doing and just how dire of a situation you are in right now?
BERRY: Absolutely. Keeping close to the news and one of the guys from the city, who works for the city, is -- lives back here and is trapped as well. So I'm in contact with him for additional resources.
HOLMES: And give us an idea as well. We heard that three feet of water is the report. You said you can see some of this. You said you can't see people on their roofs. Is that right? Do you see homes, though, in the vicinity within your eye shot if you will, of -- that are under water if you will? Homes that are -- that have feet of water coming up on them?
BERRY: Not that I can see, but the water is moving. There is one - I think I took one picture of the house that is under water that I can see. There is a - if you go - I don't know if you want to put those pictures that I'm watching on the TV while we're sitting here. There is a fence and across from that fence is Park District Road. And across from that fence, those houses are flooded.
HOLMES: Are flooded. What have you seen as far as the timeline? I think we have - what is our timeline? I think we had a 4:30 Saturday morning that this levee broke? I guess when did you first get news of it and when did you first start seeing waters rise outside?
BERRY: I got news of it when my wife went to go to work this morning at about 5:30 and she couldn't cross, came home, got me and I went back and took a gander at it.
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