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Tornado Causes Damage in Tupelo; Organizations Trying to Get Aid in Myanmar; Hillary Clinton Fights On

Aired May 08, 2008 - 10:00   ET

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

ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: The pink polygon you see there in the center of your screen, that is the warning area where folks should just take cover. We will get in a little bit closer here and give you an idea. And the red line you see, that's within the watch box. It's in effect until 2:00 local time. So, here's how things are moving. A little bit closer in, and I'm hoping. Well, OK.
Anyway, as we -- do we have Glen up on air? Is that what's going on? OK. Regardless, Tupelo, you are out of the woods with this. But folks who live north and east of Tupelo, you are in it. And that does include northwest Alabama, Colbert County, Franklin County. Still in the path of this thing is Itawamba County, Prentiss County, and Tishomingo County.

Tom, do we have that shot that folks -- Take a look. We are getting some -- well, i-Reports in from the CNN family. Tom Foust, who's the show producer on the show. Coincidentally enough is from Tupelo. His folks still live there, about a mile from the airport.

Tom and Donna Foust, safely field reporting for us here. Taking this shot of some ominous clouds there. Obviously, some high voltage power poles there. Power lines and showing that particular storm. We are still watching this as it moves to the north and east of about 32 to 35 miles an hour. It has not changed much in its signature here on the radar screen. It still remains about the same strength as it has been the past half-hour.

So, as far as we are concerned, we should just assume that it remains on the ground. We have a tower camera from Birmingham, is that what we're it's at? Birmingham, you are within the watch. Almost within the watch. You might be included in the watch later on today.

WVMA, that's our affiliate about that way, you are OK. Well north of you, in Colbert and Franklin counties, you are under a tornado warning until 9:30 local time, for the next half-hour, as this storm begins to make its way over the Alabama-Mississippi water. And as far as we are concerned, there are probably still is a tornado on the ground. And you should prepare for that if you live in those areas.

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And just a reminder to everyone, and Rob is in the same boat with us, that we are trying to hustle up some pictures of the damage. We are getting some indications now that there might be considerable damage.

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Yes.

HARRIS: In the Tupelo area.

NGUYEN: Cars and trees, tractor trailers, are overturned. So, obviously, there is damage on the ground. It is a matter of trying to get that video to you. And we are working it. But in the meantime, we are doing our best here, at least bring you the people who are there, who can at least describe what they've seen.

HARRIS: And I guess the best part of this is our ability to warn the folks in neighboring counties to Mississippi and folks in Alabama, northwest Alabama, of what's going on right now. If we could, all right - I was going to talk to toss to some sound from last hour with Deputy Chief John Paul of Lee County but I believe, Betty, there's someone waiting to speak with us.

NGUYEN: In fact, we do have Bobbye Jones with the Mississippi Department of Transportation on the phone. Bobbye, are you there?

VOICE OF BOBBYE JONES, MISSISSIPPI DEPT. OF TRANSPORTATION: Yes, I am.

NGUYEN: Great. Well, talk to me about this storm that blew through. What were you able to see?

JONES: We didn't see anything. Other than we had reports on some of the people calling in saying that they had heard that a tornado was west of Tupelo. Coming this way. And so we were down in the break room area. Which is our basement area, or whatever. And about (INAUDIBLE) everything just got real dark.

NGUYEN: Did you start to hear sirens?

JONES: Right. The fire station sirens in the northern part of Tupelo, it was going off.

NGUYEN: And as people call in to the Department of Transportation, have they reported any damage? Because we heard from a guy earlier at the airport who says that the mall may be on fire.

JONES: I don't know anything about that.

NGUYEN: Have you heard of any damage?

JONES: Not with regard to the mall. Of course, we had extensive damage here.

NGUYEN: Well, talk to me about that. What kind of damage - there at the Department of Transportation, there is damage?

JONES: Right.

NGUYEN: OK.

JONES: Right. We have trees down everywhere on vehicles. The roof of our building was torn off, the side of the shop building, I understand. The old project office was damaged. We do not have any major injuries that we know of.

NGUYEN: But the trees are on top of cars.

JONES: Right.

NGUYEN: And how fast did this blow through? Is this something that just kind of lingered? Or did this tornado come through quickly?

JONES: No. It probably two, three minutes.

NGUYEN: Really. And did you hear what most people say they hear as the tornado comes through, that train sound?

JONES: No.

NGUYEN: No? What did you hear?

JONES: Didn't hear anything.

NGUYEN: Really and you just stepped outside and saw the damage.

JONES: Right.

NGUYEN: Are you amazed by the damage, considering the fact you were in the basement and really didn't -- know much about the storm blowing through?

JONES: Well, I would say probably not amazed because -- in other words, we have a lot of Bradford pear trees. The wind blows them over anyway. But as far as other ...

NGUYEN: But the roof is missing on parts of the buildings, correct?

JONES: Right. Right. The lab building.

NGUYEN: All right. Well, Bobbye Jones ...

JONES: In other words, I have not been able to be outside other than just looking out the door. Everybody else has been out. I have been answering the phone.

NGUYEN: Well, you know, maybe you should step outside and we will talk to you in a little bit. And then you can give us a better assessment of the damage in and around the Department of Transportation. Because we have heard that not only at your building, there is also damage near the airport.

I'm also told that the mall at Barnes Crossing has sustained damage. Along with cars and trees, tractor trailers overturned. So, obviously, this storm has caused significant amount of damage there in the Tupelo area. Bobbye Jones joining us live from the Department of Transportation. She joins us by phone with the latest on the situation at that particular building.

HARRIS: Betty, last hour, we talked with -- actually spoke with Chief Deputy John Hall of Lee County. And of course, Tupelo, Mississippi. It is the major city in Lee County.

Here is how we described the reports of a tornado on the ground, in and around Tupelo.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VOICE OF CHIEF DEP. JOHN HALL, LEE CO., MISSISSIPPI SHERIFF'S DEPT: West of the heavily populated area of the city and then it moved across a major residential business on the north side. Tupelo has about 36,000 people.

HARRIS: OK. 36,000 people. Any reports at this point of any injuries?

HALL: No, sir. Not at this time. We still got units in the county that we have reports of trees down and we are going to check on possible accidents involving those downed trees across the county roads.

HARRIS: Well, our weather team here in CNN has been terrific at sort of sounding the alarm and reporting the warnings in your area. I'm wondering locally you feel like you have been given enough -- were given enough indication that you had a line of severe weather heading your way, packing strong winds, and possible tornadoes?

HALL: Yes, sir. Just a week ago, one of our neighboring counties had a lot of damage involving tornadoes. About that time, we probably had 10, or 15 minutes' notice. So, I think we were doing pretty good.

HARRIS: So give me a sense of what your teams are doing now. My guess would be that you have patrol cars heading out to some of the impacted areas. And maybe you can tell us -- Rob had a note of a Department of Transportation Building near Tupelo that had been damaged. Can you confirm that?

HALL: Yes, sir. It was the Department of Transportation. It's in one of the main northern district offices. It is in the Tupelo, just south of the mall and they did have some damage.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: And we were just speaking with Bobbye Jones of the Department of Transportation and she did confirm that there are some roofs blown off of the buildings there. Trees blown over on cars. So, Rob, as we are getting more indications, definitely a tornado has caused some extensive damage near Tupelo.

MARCIANO: Yes, that's for sure. Now continuing to move rapidly to the northeast at 35 miles per hour, such that the warning itself would still remain in effect for the next five, 10 minutes here for Lee county, which includes Tupelo. More cautiously, more importantly, north and east of there is where most of the action has taken place. By the way, that red watch box, a tornado watch that is in effect until 2:00 this afternoon local time. This pink polygon, purplish polygon, two of which, for two separate warnings. This warning is effect for the next five minutes. And for the next 20 minutes, I should say. And then this being extended into northwest Alabama for a couple of counties there, until 9:30 local. Franklin and Colbert counties.

Our radars indicating a couple of things. One, that it's got some hail going, Probably to an inch or two in diameter. People in the path of this storm probably upwards of 8,000 folks at this point. What's also showing up on this reflectivity is a little bit of a dimple or hook, which is something that we look for here. That's possible where that tornado might very well be. But where the radar itself sees twisting and turning within the clouds, we don't see a tremendous amount of that.

But nonetheless, you know, when these things touchdown they take on a life of their own and we have to assume that this tornado is still on the ground north and well north and east of Tupelo, in through Tishomingo County, Itawamba county and Prentiss County, as it heads towards Franklin and Colbert county in northwestern Alabama. Querying just a little bit more, we had a fair amount of strikes. Not a ton of lightning with this but certainly some hail.

I just heard the printer go off. Let me take a look at what this is. Tornado warning. It has been extended now for northeastern Itawamba county, Prentiss county and Tishomingo County for the next 20 minutes. So, they did extend that a little bit. That makes sense because the cell itself hasn't even gotten into northwest Alabama yet. So, this continues. Update live on the air. Tony and Betty and we'll continue to bring you updates as well. There is nothing more valuable as you know than talking to these people on the ground. They can be our eyes and ears.

NGUYEN: Right.

HARRIS: Yes. Good point.

NGUYEN: Yes, especially this early on into it. OK. Rob, thank you for that.

And speaking of people on the ground, let's get you to Jeff Snyder. He is with the mall in Barnes Crossing. And Jeff, we were speaking with a person a little earlier there in Tupelo who said he had heard rumors that the mall may be on fire. You are there. What are you seeing?

VOICE OF JEFF SNYDER, PROPERTY MANAGER, MALL AT BARNES CROSSING: Well, very fortunately, that was not the case.

NGUYEN: That's good.

SNYDER: We do have a very well rounded fire department. Whether any medical emergencies or any kind of emergency, weather emergencies, our fire department does respond to the areas that particular station covers. We didn't have a fire. We had some minor property damage. I believe three are smaller trees, were broken by the extreme winds and a brand new (INAUDIBLE) that we installed last week was tilted some 20 degrees. Most of the storm went to the south of our mall between U.S. rather highway 78 and the mall at Barnes Crossing. So we had a close miss but did read some of the harm of the strong winds.

NGUYEN: Did you actually see the storm itself?

SNYDER: My security director did see it. And some of the employees did see it. And that -- they were the ones that gave us an idea of where the storm actually passed.

NGUYEN: How did they describe it? Did they indeed say they saw a tornado?

SNYDER: Yes. There was a lot of rain and wind involved. And some very large trees away from the mall, down Gloucester Street, were blown across the street. That street is five lanes to give you an idea how big those trees were. And there was an 18-wheeler turned over on highway 78 which is a few thousand feet away from Gloucester Street. But most of it passed to the south of the shopping center. And the shopping center was closed at the time. We had a few employees here.

NGUYEN: Yes, it so early on.

SNYDER: And we had an area of construction that was under way. We got loose materials which was not affected. That was on the north end of the center of the storm, passing to the south of the center.

NGUYEN: You got lucky.

SNYDER: We got a lucky break today.

NGUYEN: Yes. No doubt. Let's go back to that 18-wheeler that was overturned. Any idea if the driver or anyone in the vehicle was injured?

SNYDER: I can't speak to that. The four-lane U.S. 45 runs adjacent to the mall. So, we were able to see it and emergency personnel were on the site and handling that situation. And we did not get a report on what the outcome of that was.

NGUYEN: We are continuing to watch the radar here to show viewers where this storm is headed. As the tornado is indeed on the ground. And as we try to warn viewers ahead of time, you feel like you got enough warning?

SNYDER: Yes. The mall at Barnes Crossing security department is very tightly connected with our 911 National Weather Service and even monitors amateur radio operators, responding services. We did have a good notice. We were able to put out some information to the employees who were on the site.

Again, we are very lucky, very fortunate that it did go to the south of us. And where it did go, like I said, there was a large field in that area. So that was a less populated area that they did cross within our area south of the shopping center.

NGUYEN: Have you spoken with relatives or friends in and around Tupelo to see how they are doing and if there is any damage in their parts of town?

SNYDER: I have not. We have been so busy here assessing and inspecting our property here which is very large. And we have not -- we have heard different reports from law enforcement officials here of other effects that it has on the north part of the city. But nothing that could be confirmed or nothing I can speak of.

NGUYEN: So no injuries at the mall. Minor damage. But the trees were blown down. An 18-wheeler nearby was turned over. Although there was a fire truck at the mall a little bit earlier, no point was the mall on fire. All right. Good news. You guys got very lucky as this tornado blew through.

Jeff Snyder at the mall at Barnes Crossing. Joining us by phone. Jeff, we do appreciate it.

HARRIS: All right. We will continue to follow the dangerous storms striking the mid south today. As you take a look at our severe weather team. Really working it this morning to get thank you the very latest information. Watches and warnings as the storm system moves from west to east. Approaching Alabama now in the Mississippi- Alabama border.

Rob Marciano leading that team and getting you the very latest information as soon as he gets it wire information as to watches and warnings in the area. Also, we need your help with i-Reports. If you can, we understand that this is a volatile situation right now. But if you can help us with i-Reports, it would be terrific.

Take a look at these pictures. Late yesterday, overnight in Oklahoma, there is a funnel cloud. There it is. Photographed by a storm chaser near Tulsa last night. No official report of a tornado. Not officially but certainly a pretty ominous picture. Accidents reported on the roads around Oklahoma City. Thunderstorms, hail, rain, strong winds, pounded the area. Several trees were uprooted and buildings damaged. At one point we understand more than 11,000 utility customers lost power.

So, the south needs to stay alert for the dangerous storms all day. Tornado on the ground, we understand, in Mississippi. At least at various points throughout the morning. Live to the severe weather center in minutes. Again, we will give you another look at what the system did in Oklahoma. Measuring the damage in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: We want to get you back to Rob Marciano here and as we do Rob through our coverage this morning, we are giving folks around the country an idea what it is like to live in, around, near the cities and states that make up tornado alley. NGUYEN: Tornado alley. Absolutely. They are feeling it today, Rob.

MARCIANO: And you know, this is an area -- it is really -- it is not technically part of tornado alley. But northern Mississippi and northern Alabama, for all intents and purposes should be. It's basically, it is the second area -- the second tornado alley. It gets a lot of tornadoes.

But more importantly, it gets a lot of tornadoes that are spawned by super cell-type thunderstorms, which the closer you get to you the Gulf of Mexico, are a little bit more difficult to produce. As opposed to those that are in the plains.

Well, nonetheless, we got tornado warnings that are posted this morning for counties, extreme, and extreme northeastern Mississippi. This one in effect for the next few minutes. Prentiss, Itawamba and Tishomingo counties, these are just -- These are northeast of Tupelo, which I obviously down through here. And this is all moving rapidly northeast at 30 miles per hour.

Then as we cross the border, the areas affected are Franklin, and Colbert County. And that part of the warnings in effect until 9:30 this morning local time. I just want to try to get something else on the radar scope here. All right, we have -- this has shown a little bit of signs of weakening a little bit.

But we still have to assume that there is a tornado on the ground. We have these warnings that are posted. We filed reports of it. And we get to the point we are ready to say this thing is over. That's certainly far from the truth. Lightning strikes with this. Hail upwards of an inch or so in diameter.

Serious storm rolling through northeast Mississippi, and the northwest parts of Alabama. And as you have been reporting, throughout a lot of the morning, talking to folks on the ground, pretty decent amount of damage done. And hopefully the injury and potential fatality reports is held to zero.

NGUYEN: So far we haven't heard anything. So, maybe it will stay that way. Hopefully. Thank you.

HARRIS: And I tell you, we have been hearing reports from the folks we have been able to speak with this morning that the locals have done a terrific job of getting information to their people about the storm approaching. We are still hustling up some of those pictures. You can help us, again, again, as ask you for i-Reports, we always remind you to be safe.

But if you would, and if you are in a place to do so, send us your i-Reports. Go to cnn.com. And click on i-Report. There it is. Or type ireport@CNN.com into your cell phone. Give us, in addition to the pictures, a description of what you witnessed. Again, always be safe.

NGUYEN: Let's turn now to presidential politics today. And Barack Obama trying to secure more superdelegates. Hillary Clinton rallying supporters this hour in West Virginia and vowing to stay in this race. Dan Lothian joins us now live from Charleston. Dan, Hillary is under some growing pressure to get out of it. But so far, she seems to be digging her heels in and is staying.

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, she is under a lot of pressure. Of course, since she lost big in North Carolina. And then only one in Indiana, by about two points. She is campaigning here in West Virginia. Will be appearing at a rally here at the state capital later this morning. She was also in West Virginia yesterday and she has been telling voters here that she believes that she is the strongest candidate to take on John McCain come November. 28 delegates up for grabs in this state.

Right now, according to the "Post," is the leading Senator Barack Obama. For now she is not going anywhere.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. Hillary CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm staying in this race until there is a nominee. And I, obviously, am going to work as hard as I can to become that nominee. I believe that I'm the stronger candidate against Senator McCain and I believe that I would be the best president.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LOTHIAN: Of course, the big concern among leading Democrats is that the more time spent on this Democratic battle. That really is in the long term hurt the Democratic party. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi though doesn't see it that way. She thinks that as long as Senator Clinton really wants to compete, then this race should continue.

NGUYEN: Another sticking point is what do with Michigan and Florida. As for Michigan Democrats, they say they got a proposal for getting their delegates seated at the convention. What can you tell us about that?

LOTHIAN: That's right and this is the proposal that they really adopted yesterday and they will be passing it on to the National Democratic Party. Officials there can vote on it when they meet on the issue at the end of the month. And here's how it split. It would give Senator Clinton 69 delegates and senator Barack Obama 59 delegates.

Now, remember back to January 15th, that's when Senator Clinton won the Michigan primary. Senator Barack Obama's name was not on the ballot there. Had it been split just based on the results, it would have been 73 Senator Clinton and 55 for Senator Barack Obama. Again this is something the Democratic officials did adopt in Michigan and now goes on to the National Democratic Party.

NGUYEN: OK. Dan Lothian joining us live in West Virginia.

Money and media appearances top the agenda for Republican John McCain today. The GOP nominee in waiting takes part in television interviews and holds a fund-raiser in New Jersey at noon Eastern. Yesterday McCain talked about the economy and protecting human rights during a speech in Michigan.

HARRIS: All right. Clearly a lot of -- in the air force here this morning in the CNN NEWSROOM. But frankly, that's the way we like it. We want to keep the Myanmar story on your radar. It certainly is on ours. And the efforts ongoing right now by a number of organizations to get aid, assistance, into Myanmar and to the people there suffering so desperately right now.

On the line with us, Tim Costello with World Vision. World Vision is one of just a few organizations on the ground right now in Myanmar. Tim, thank you for your time. If you would, give us your assessment of the situation now in Myanmar and your ongoing efforts to get aid and assistance to the people who desperately need it.

TIM COSTELLO, WORLD VISION: Look, it is still perilous and lives are hanging in the balances. It is a rush against time to get those lives saved. The waters are receding but now waterborne diseases, malaria, dysentery, diarrhea. And obviously, without water and sanitation systems in place the outbreak of cholera, those epidemics can kill more than the cyclone. So, it is a race against time.

HARRIS: Tim, if you would, can you, from your point of view, as an organization that is actually on the ground and my guess is has been on the ground in Myanmar for some time, not just in the aftermath of this tragedy, can you help us understand why the government has been so slow, has resisted to this point in allowing other aid organizations to assist and even help your group?

COSTELLO: Yes, World Vision has been here 30 years. So we got 600 staff. The government recognizes the political constraints here. They are essentially trusting local capacities. So NGOs like (INAUDIBLE) have local Burmese working and we are given free access and permission. They are very distrustful of any outsiders coming in.

There is a referendum. I suspect I guess the people may come in and be covert observers of the referendum. They might smuggle -- it has been a closed society. But we are working than behind closed doors persuading them this is a humanitarian exercise. We have no political motivation. We just want to save lives.

And the humanitarian space under international laws, all citizens should enjoy protection. A million people are at risk at the moment in those areas. They are exposed to the elements. They desperately need medicine, food, blankets. And that's our plea to really open the door and get the trickle of aid flowing.

HARRIS: Here's what's so difficult for me sitting here. I know people around the country, to understand. It seems that the government of Myanmar is willing to sacrifice and -- maybe that's the wrong word. Maybe that's going too far. At the risk of exposing some of its internal operations. People are, as you mentioned, living perilously close to the edge here.

COSTELLO: Yes. That's the humanitarian difficulty, to try and work with them to understand that there isn't political agendas going on. That this is a pure humanitarian crisis. Obviously, there is very little trust to the west. It is a closed society be. A military junta. They have very profound distrust of anyone outside. They have been isolated for so long. Breaking down that isolation to say this isn't stay, this isn't to run your government. This is just to save lives, is proving a hard message.

Look, I commend them that they have given access to our World Vision and other NGOs to go to areas that normally we can't walk -- work in. They are collaborating with us here on the ground. We are having to buy stock in stores that are running out here in Yang on. The prices have tripled. We desperately need to replenish the medicine, the food, the access to relief that these people need.

HARRIS: Tim, let me pick up on that note. If the doors swing open right now and all the aid organizations, and, frankly, stockpiles that the U.S. military has staged in Bangkok, Thailand if we could get all of that in right now, the doors swing open, what's the most immediate need right now?

COSTELLO: The immediate need is actually the stockpile, the epidemics of water borne diseases is spreading. The immediate need is to actually get food and shelter and particularly clean water to people. Look, I'm deeply moved by the courage of the Burmese. They don't expect much of the government. They are not even angry. They don't look to them.

And they are struggling against overwhelming loss. Because the scale of this is simply devastating and horrifying. Potentially 100,000 now dead. We are talking of tsunami proportions. That's the urgency. The need for real moral clarity to say it is humanitarian, it's not political.

HARRIS: It's so hard to that believe we could be talking about tsunami numbers here. But it seems to be the reality. we're hearing that number more. Tim Costello is with us, representing World Vision International. He has been on the ground for years in Myanmar. Tim, thank you for taking the time to talk to us and the best as you move ...

Tim Costello is with us, representing World Vision International. He has been on the ground for years in Myanmar. Tim, thank you for taking the time to talk to us and the best as you move forward to help the people who so desperately need it. Thank you.

And we know that you may want to help. Boy, it is hard enough to see those pictures and not want to do something. At cnn.com, we have a special page on the devastation in Myanmar. Complete with links to aid agencies like World Vision that are organizing help for the region. It is a chance for you to impact your world. Let us be your guide.

NGUYEN: In the meantime, back here in the U.S. You know, it seems like everything is costing more these days. The latest example, electricity. Why and what you can do in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: We just past the half-hour. Welcome back, everyone, to the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Tony Harris.

NGUYEN: Yes, good morning, everybody. I'm Betty Nguyen.

Let's take you straight to CNN's Rob Marciano in the severe weather center. Because I understand, Rob, there is a tornado warning in Alabama.

MARCIANO: Yes. Basically, the same cell that produced the tornado, that produced damage in Northeast Mississippi, including areas just barely north of Tupelo. It has moved in to Northwest Alabama. Here it is on the radar scope.

You can see that Tupelo is in the clear for now. But I should mention that there is a strong line well west of Tupelo. Still has to come through. So just be on your guard there and don't let your guard just down yet. All right, that's where the warning is. Let's zoom in a little bit more and slide the map up towards the Alabama-Northwest Alabama.

Colbert, Franklin County, you are in it now until 10:15 Local Time. This storm is moving northeast at about 25 miles an hour. That's why the polygon is addressed that way. The Doppler not only indicating that there are some twists but also indicating that there is some hail. How much of that hail is -- how big that hail is, well, probably about an inch or so. That's pretty much what we have been seeing out of this particular thing.

And Cherokee, that's one of the towns that is in the path of this. And I just wanted you to be aware of that. 10:15 Colbert, Franklin County take cover. The entire area under a tornado watch as you can see here until 2:00 Local Time.

If you live in the path of these storms, take cover. If the storm passes you by, maybe get outside and take a snapshot of it passing you by. That would be cool. Definitely stay safe and send us your i-Reports as we go on throughout the morning.

NGUYEN: Yes, we do need those because at this point it is very hard to get an idea of this damage. We've heard it from people on the ground, but of course, it is much more powerful when you are able to actually see it.

All right, Rob. Thank you.

MARCIANO: OK, guys.

HARRIS: Gerri Willis this morning, she is with us and has a warning for you. Your electricity bill may shock you. Rising fuel costs, they're pumping up the cost of electricity.

There she is. Gerri Willis, CNN's personal finance editor. Good to see you.

GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: Hey, Tony, good to see you.

HARRIS: Hey, Gerri, just how much are we talking about in terms of utility prices rising? I bet it's different from state to state the way it going.

WILLIS: Well, can I just say that, you know, the Farmer's Almanac is predicting that 2008 will be the warmest year of the past century. So you're thinking about your AC. You're going to have to run it longer. You'll have to pay more for it because electricity rates are climbing across the board after several years of pretty flat pricing.

Let's take a look at the average costs of electricity to residents. Do you see that uptrend there?

HARRIS: Yes, absolutely.

WILLIS: The cost for kilowatt hour up from 8.4 cents in 1997 to 10.6 cents last year. That's a 24 percent increase, Tony.

HARRIS: And I know it is different from state to state. I'm just sort of curious, do we have a way of knowing which states have seen the biggest increases?

WILLIS: Sure. Absolutely. Some states have seen big run ups. These figures are from December 2006 to December of last year. So as you can see here, prices increased at it double digits. Look at Illinois, Hawaii, Maryland, Oklahoma, D.C. these are big up-numbers you are seeing right here.

Look, one expert we talked to said the deregulation of energy markets means consumers are more exposed to price fluctuations and how?

HARRIS: You know what, I want to ask you what is driving the run up. But I don't want to hear from you is gas prices.

WILLIS: Well, it's raising energy prices, Tony.

HARRIS: There you go.

WILLIS: You know those power plants, they use energy to make electricity. So when fuel costs rise, their costs go up. And they typically use coal, 70 percent of electricity is made with coal. That price is doubled in the last year. Plus, they build these plants out of raw materials.

The cost of which is going through the ceiling. Steel, cement, because of all the demand from all over the globe. India, China, you name it. So you know, it is an energy story.

HARRIS: That means gas prices. That's what that means.

WILLIS: I'm telling you.

HARRIS: Hey, yes, it is the truth. I mean, there's no way around it.

WILLIS: It is all connected.

HARRIS: Yes, there's no way around it. So look, let's give folks some real practical advice here. What can we do to try to control these costs?

WILLIS: Well, you know, cut down your air conditioning. Keep your house closed down tight in the daytime this summer. This is going to keep out unwanted heat and humidity. Don't open your windows during the day. Close the blinds, curtains and shutters to block out those intense rays. That really helps.

And you know what, people don't really think about this. But landscaping, you know, putting trees in beside windows that really are exposed to the sun.

HARRIS: For shade.

WILLIS: I'm telling you, you don't think about it but it is important. Think about planting trees. They lose their leaves in the winter. That's when you want the sun hitting the house. You get it. I mean, it is all pretty logical stuff.

You know, Tony, I should say that some utilities out there are actually offering programs to folks so that you can buy your energy in off-peak times, pay a little less for it. That's worth exploring, too.

HARRIS: No, that's not a bad idea.

Boy, you've got so many things on your plate now. Let's first talk about "ISSUE #1," coming up at noon Eastern Time. Give us a bit of a preview of that and then I want to talk about "OPEN HOUSE" as always.

WILLIS: Well, you know, we're talking about all the issues that are important to you. Your home, your job, you know, your retirement. All of those issues. We will be talking about those gas prices. They continue to go up. We're going to give you strategies for, you know, facing this real estate market this spring. It is a disaster.

And of course, we have "OPEN HOUSE" coming up this weekend. We've got a lot of good info especially on the real estate market for you. That's 9:30 a.m. this Saturday. Join us on CNN. If you can't get up that early, Tony, "HEADLINE NEWS," 3:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

HARRIS: Such a busy lady. So many hot shows for the network. Good to see you, Gerri. Appreciate it.

WILLIS: Thank you, Tony. Have a great weekend.

HARRIS: You, too.

NGUYEN: All right, so campaign uninterrupted. Hillary Clinton hunted delegates in the west. Barack Obama twists arms in D.C. All of it in the NEWSROOM.

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NGUYEN: Happening right now in Lebanon. Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah expected to speak and that is sparking fears of more sectarian clashes. But for now, there is an uneasy calm. Beirut at a virtual standstill. Soldiers have set up checkpoints and street patrols. Hezbollah set up its own roadblocks and stage is sit in. All of this after a strike over minimum wages.

Now in a rare move, Lebanon's Sunni Muslim spiritual leader criticize Hezbollah saying the Shiite militant group is using the strike as a political opportunity.

HARRIS: Israel celebrates 60 years from fireworks and fly-overs to backyard barbecues and picnics. The Jewish State is showing its pride today, but there is also a sense of uncertainty about its future and doubts about peace.

Palestinians today also marking the six decades of Israeli state by viewing it as an injustice. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were driven from their homes during the 1948 war over Israel's creation.

NGUYEN: Listen to this. Back here in the U.S. When the going gets tough, the tough really do go shopping. No joke. That is the conclusion from the April retail sales numbers. Can you believe it?

Susan Lisovicz is on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange with details on this. It just doesn't really seem to add up. But I guess reality is reality.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. And there are some explanations for those numbers, Betty. And I'm going to give them to you. First of all, yes, the numbers look pretty good on the surface. They beat Wall Street's expectations in many cases. Of course, the expectations were downright low.

Let's start with the 800-pound gorilla in retail and that would have to be Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart sales were up 3.2 percent in April. That was better than estimated. Wal-Mart is very much a beneficiary of the trading down trend. In other words, shoppers looking to save money and Wal-Mart has been offering more discounts.

Other big winners include the warehouse discounters BJ's and Costco. But I should say it was not just limited to them. Target sales were up more three percent. Saks on the high end up nearly 24 percent. Abercrombie, the biggest retailer of six percent are (INAUDIBLE) 25 percent, but JCPenny down about two percent and GAP down six percent. Limited was also down. So some big misses but certainly not the disaster that many analysts had feared -- Betty?

NGUYEN: Yes. And overall, it seems like a big rebound from March. But when you talk about expectations being lowered, can you really call it that? LISOVICZ: That's right. And when you look at what we've been seeing this year, Betty, you are talking about retail sales averaging about a one percent gain. That is well below, long term trends that we've seen. And a lot of analysts like to measure March and April together because Easter falls in either one of those months. It really skewed sales.

And when you do put those two together, again, anemic. Just under one percent. Remember, yesterday we got that government report showing far away, rose a lot in March as many consumers put more purchases on their credit cards.

Everybody stretched with super high gas prices, with rising food prices with credit tight, with declining home prices. You are seeing it play out. What we are seeing play out on Wall Street today, not much. Very, very modest gains for the DOW, the NASDAQ, the S&P. I'm happy to say that oil is also barely moving right now. And retail is pretty much ...

NGUYEN: I thought you are going to say something else.

LISOVICZ: Well, in overnight trading, oil got within about $124. About seven cents just below $124 a barrel but it's pulled off that and obviously that is major focus on the street here.

NGUYEN: Susan, we do appreciate it, as always. Thank you.

LISOVICZ: See you in the next hour.

NGUYEN: OK.

HARRIS: A developing story out of Russia this morning. Reports say Russia has expelled two U.S. military officials. What's going on here?

Let's check in with Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr.

Barbara, what can you tell us?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Tony, the Bush administration is now confirming that Russia is expelling two U.S. military attaches from the embassy in Moscow. No particular reason being given. The U.S. believed, in fact, that this expulsion is basically a throwback to the old cold war days, a bit of tit for tat the U.S. in recent months expelled two Russian personnel from their embassy here and this may be the Russian version of payback for that.

By all accounts, the two U.S. military attaches are being given two weeks to pack up and leave, but diplomacy is being worked. So we will see if in fact this really happens. We should tell everybody that these military attaches actually are trained and are sent there by the Pentagon's defense intelligence agency.

They function around the world in embassies as the top military liaisons in the country in which they reside. But once they get into a country, they are part of the U.S. embassy staff. So this expulsion actually now being worked through the U.S. State Department though the Pentagon is very sensitive to this and watching it very carefully because this week, U.S.-Russian relations are taking an interesting turn.

Of course, we have just seen the installation of Dmitry Medvedev as the new president of Russia. Vladimir Putin now taking on the role of prime minister. And tomorrow we expect to see a real throwback to the old days. The Russians are scheduled to stage the first military parade through Red Square in many, many years. So a lot of eyes on Moscow -- Tony?

HARRIS: What is going on? Barbara Starr at the Pentagon for us. Barbara, thank you.

STARR: Sure.

NGUYEN: Right now, we do want to give you an update on a story that we brought you yesterday. It is breaking news today. Interpol says that U.S. authorities have detained a suspected pedophile in New Jersey.

Two days after the international police agency called for public health to catch him. Here is this picture. This is what we showed you a couple of days ago and have been reporting on it. Well, Interpol says the man was detained in Union City, New Jersey, identified as Wayne Nelson Corliss.

Now he is the man suspected of sexually abusing at least three young boys from Southeast Asia. The boys are thought to have been as young as 6 to 10 years old. And CNN has indeed confirmed this.

Once again, Interpol put out these pictures a couple of days ago, asking folks around the world to help identify this man so they can capture him. Well, in fact, he has been captured in Union City, New Jersey. He has been detained and identified as Wayne Nelson Corliss and he is suspected of sexually abusing young boys in Southeast Asia. We'll continue to follow this story for you.

HARRIS: And our top story this morning in the CNN NEWSROOM. The south needs to stay alert for dangerous storms, in fact, all day. Tornado on the ground in Mississippi this morning. We will take you live to the severe weather center with Rob Marciano in just a couple of minutes.

Take a look at what this system did in Oklahoma. Measuring the damage in the NEWSROOM.

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NGUYEN: They say everything is bigger in Texas. Apparently even sinkholes. Take a look at this. This one has grown to the length of two football fields and it is as much as 200 feet deep. The sinkhole has gobbled up oil field equipment, telephones, even a tractor.

A road near the town of Daisetta has been closed over concerns that this hole could spread. Officials are trying to figure out what caused the hole to open up in the first place.

All right, so you want some free gas? I know, it sounds divine.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: First Baptist Snellville is offering you a chance to win one of two $500 gas cards.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: A church's clever plan to fill seats. Would you warm a pew to win?

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NGUYEN: So you need gas money. Well, you could turn to prayer. An Atlanta area church is offering cash for gas. Here is the catch though. You have to show up for a revival.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GENENE GRAIG, PRAYING FOR GAS MONEY: I'd be willing to come to the revival anyway. But $500 worth of gas, I would think would be incentive for others that may not.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: The church will raffle two gas cards worth $500 each. It takes commitment though. The revival begins Sunday and ends Wednesday.

HARRIS: The south, our friends in the south, stay alert all day for dangerous storms. Tornado on the ground in Mississippi earlier this morning. We will take you live to the severe weather center. Let's give you a look at the team right now. Rob Marciano leading that team and getting us all the warnings and watches as soon as they cross the wire. Measuring the damage in the NEWSROOM.

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