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Mighty Mississippi: Three States Face Flood Risk; Evacuees Left in Limbo; Taliban in Control?

Aired June 17, 2008 - 11:00   ET

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

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, everyone. You're informed with CNN.
I'm Tony Harris.

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Hi there, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins.

Developments keep coming into the CNN NEWSROOM on this Tuesday, June 17th. Here's what's on the rundown.

Right now, another city right now threatened by floodwaters. A Mississippi levee system stretched to its limit in Burlington, Iowa. Our reporter on the scene.

HARRIS: Sandbagging also going on in other Mississippi River communities. Fears that more than two dozen levees could fail.

The story in the NEWSROOM.

The mighty Mississippi and the big danger that's now flowing downstream. The river is surging higher as it heads south. Tense days lie ahead in Iowa, Illinois and Missouri, as the Mississippi climbs to its crest.

The threat is dire and widespread. The federal government says the river could wash over 27 levees.

Armies of volunteers are stacking millions of sandbags now to hold back the floodwaters. Hundreds of homes are at risk.

We want to head down river where the Mississippi continues to rise. In Burlington, Iowa, the river's level now stands at just over 25 feet, but it is expected to climb at least eight more inches and crest at more than 26 feet.

So will the levees still hold? Of course, that is the question.

Sean Callebs is there live this morning.

Hey, Sean.

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Heidi.

We're in downtown Burlington. This is perhaps the lowest point. We're on 2nd Street and Division. If you look over here, you can see pumps are in a warehouse. This is a warehouse that has bedding material -- sheets, mattresses. So they're working feverishly trying to keep the water out. I don't know if you can see in the distance, but there is a well-stocked area right inside there. So they're worried about losing that.

If you look out, you can see just how high the river is. It is usually well out past that second line of telephone poles, but it has jumped its banks, flowed over very significantly.

Now, on the other side of the river, Illinois, very disappointing news. A levee gave way there a short while ago. It is now flooding the area right across from where we are. That's Gulfport, Illinois. And there's also a bridge just out of view here that has been closed connecting Iowa and Illinois.

But look at the water line against that building just in the distance. You can see the water has dropped, I'd say, close to a foot and a half, maybe even two feet. The reason, once that levee gave way across the river, the Mississippi began flowing through that breach, and so it's allowed this to come down somewhat significantly.

It's not going to last long. As soon as the water levels off there, the rising floodwaters coming downstream are going to continue to come up.

Now, when people talk about flooding in this area, they use 1993, the historic flooding there, as a benchmark. And right now the water is as high, they say, as it got back in 1993. So they're worried what's going to happen. They're also worried about what the federal government is going to do for them.

We had a chance to speak with the owner -- or the manager, rather, of this warehouse. And he said he's concerned because there's so much need up river, what kind of assistance they're going to be able to bring down to smaller towns like Burlington, a town of about 25,000.

If you look inside this warehouse, you can see just how well stocked it is. There are boxes and boxes basically stacked about halfway to the ceiling. So they're working pretty feverishly trying to keep that as dry as possible.

This, the loading ramp, and the water is only about a couple of feet from the top of the loading ramp. They say the river is going to rise -- Heidi, you said about eight more inches. It's tough to say what that is going to translate into, because it could be much higher than eight inches once it gets to this point. But certainly very, very tense times.

There are a number of levees, seven miles of a stretch of levee just north of Burlington, that is suspect right now. There have been some minor leaks. They call it boils, water coming through.

The National Guard has about 500 troops in this area. The community is out sandbagging. If you walk through the downtown, it's almost like a ghost town, Heidi, because everybody is doing what he or she can trying to keep the floodwaters out of this small town. But it looks -- the way things are now, it's going to be a very difficult, difficult, long, hot, muggy day here in southern Iowa.

COLLINS: Yes. So tough. And what a race against Mother Nature, too. We certainly hope the folks in Burlington and many of the other cities there are going to be successful in doing that.

CNN's Sean Callebs for us, live this morning in Burlington, Iowa.

Sean, thank you.

HARRIS: Well, the big question -- will the levees hold? Earlier we spoke with Ron Fournier of the Army Corps of Engineers. He tell us, despite 'round-the-clock work, not all the levees will be able to hold back the mighty Mississippi.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RON FOURNIER, U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS: The levees are going to break, levees are going to over-top. But, you know, they're not all going to break and they're not all going to over-top, but that's going to happen during this flood just like it did in 1993.

HARRIS: Ron, how -- maybe quantify this for us. How concerned are you about the rising waters along the Mississippi?

FOURNIER: Well, we're very concerned, of course. We have been at it. We have over a hundred people out there, we've provided more than 10 million sandbags.

We're working hard with the communities to get these levees up, and we're very concerned that the water is going to go over the top of them. And that's not good. So we need to make sure, the communities need to make sure that these levees get built up to that level so when the rainwater hits them finally, hopefully the levees will be high enough to keep that water back in the river.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: In much of Iowa, the floodwaters are in retreat, and angry homeowners are in limbo. Health officials say it's just too dangerous for them to return home to assess their losses.

CNN's Ed Lavandera is in Cedar Rapids with that story.

And Ed, I guess the question is, how are the city lead leaders and health officials doing in responding to the mounting frustration? Folks just want to get home.

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right. And they think now they've figured out how to do this, essentially.

A couple of hour ago, we were just up the block about four streets. Now we've been able to move into some newly opened-up areas. This is the new checkpoint here on this corner. And if you look just down at the end of the street, down where that convenience store is, that's where the floodwaters have receded to this morning. In fact, if you look at just along the line of these trees, you can also see a bug chunk of fence and porching that has been left propped up against a tree.

But these streets have now been opened up, many of these homes have been checked out and deemed worthy of being able to go into them. You know, there's a lot of structural concerns at this point.

As you walk around in the neighborhood this morning, we're starting to see more of this, people coming in. There must have been about six feet of water here we're standing at some point, so people going through their homes and their belongings and pulling out what they can, and beginning the process of salvaging.

And what we have seen repeatedly, a lot of people getting back into their homes here this morning, opening up the windows, letting everything start to air out. You know, it's been -- these homes have been sitting in water for several days. And of course, that creates a rather nasty situation inside.

But this is just a new series of streets that have been opened up. And the idea is to shrink over the next couple of days the area that is restricted and that people can't get into. And as that water continues to recede rather quickly, that area will continue to shrink, and they hope -- the city officials hope they'll be able to kind of keep up with that and keep opening up streets throughout the day.

HARRIS: Yes. And I think folks get it, that water, all that standing water, can create a bit of a toxic stew. And that's definitely not good.

Ed Lavandera for us this morning.

Ed, appreciate it. Thank you.

And when the weather becomes the news, remember you can send us your iReports. Just go to CNN.com and click on "iReport," or type ireport@CNN.com into your cell phone. And be safe.

COLLINS: Waiting and worrying. Iowa City residents stuck in a shelter, wondering when they can go back home.

CNN's Gary Tuchman talked with some of them.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The ugliness is more visible when the day is beautiful. In Iowa City, hundreds of homes are buried in what was rolling prairie just a few days ago, but is now a mucky lagoon. Ducks swim in what was a parking lot. Water rises past the windows of a mega-church, where thousands of members worshiped.

Matt Hayek is a city councilman.

MATT HAYEK, IOWA CITY COUNCILMAN: It's been very emotionally trying for our city.

TUCHMAN: These people would agree. They are now living at the county fairgrounds. It's a shelter for those with nowhere to go.

(on camera): How long are you going to stay here?

BRENDA BERNIER, FLOOD VICTIM: I have no idea.

TUCHMAN: Do you have anywhere to go?

BERNIER: No.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Brenda Bernier was sleeping in her home with her fiance and four small children when police banged on her door and screamed to leave.

(on camera): And what did they say?

BERNIER: They said: The water is coming. You need to get out of your house.

TUCHMAN: And you're thinking what?

BERNIER: That we were going to die.

TUCHMAN: Were you scared?

BERNIER: Yes. Hell, yes. I'm sorry. I shouldn't say hell, but...

TUCHMAN: No, that's OK.

BERNIER: Yes.

TUCHMAN: That's how you felt.

BERNIER: Yes, I was terrified. Yes, I was.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Brenda cannot walk very well because of an illness. Her family could no longer get out the door because of the rising water, so they had to climb out of a window.

BERNIER: I was like really scared of, like, me or the kids drowning, because they can't swim, and I can't swim anymore.

TUCHMAN: This shelter is most unique, because it also takes in animals from the flood, not only dogs and cats, but birds, mice, hamsters, gerbils, and many more.

MISHA GOODMAN, IOWA CITY ANIMAL SERVICES: We do have six cats in a house in an area where it is too dangerous to take a boat in yet. But we hope to be able to do that in the next couple of days, as the waters start to recede a little. TUCHMAN: In the human shelter, most of the small children are oblivious to the stress.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My daughters just wants to go home and watch "Hannah Montana." So...

(LAUGHTER)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... that's all she says.

(CROSSTALK)

TUCHMAN (on camera): ... smile on your face.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She wants to watch "Hannah Montana."

(LAUGHTER)

TUCHMAN (voice-over): But it's very difficult for the adults, who are now adding up the losses of the belongings in their destroyed homes.

BERNIER: It was all we had.

TUCHMAN: The people do agree it could have been worse, because they weren't hurt or killed.

Gary Tuchman, CNN, Iowa City, Iowa.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Boy, you wish you could just take that attitude as a little kid and keep it in your heart. That's for sure. But it is a very tough situation.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COLLINS: Young lives cut tragically short being remembered in Nebraska. Funerals scheduled in Omaha this hour for 13-year-old Sam Thomsen and 14-year-old Ben Petrzilka. They're two of four Boy Scouts killed last week when a tornado swept through their camp.

Thirteen-year-old Josh Fennen was buried over the weekend. Yesterday, loved ones remembered 14-year-old Aaron Eilerts as having touched a lot of lives in his very short time.

HARRIS: Are the Taliban taking control? NATO forces are moving into southern Afghanistan right now to put down what may be a Taliban takeover.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: In southern Afghanistan right now, conflicting reports about a Taliban takeover. U.S. officials have been disputing reports that militants took control of a villages north of Kandahar, but a NATO spokesman says there is a significant Taliban presence. Barbara Starr is at the Pentagon now to help us sort all of this out.

So what's the situation, Barbara?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Heidi, it really is unfolding hour by hour.

Earlier today, a senior NATO spokesman told CNN that, yes, there is, in his words, a significant Taliban presence is this area north of Kandahar. They don't know how many Taliban are there, they don't believe they're in control -- "control" being the operative word -- of my any significant number of villages in this region called the Arghandab, north of Kandahar, where there was, in fact, a prison break on Friday and hundreds of Taliban escaped.

You see now that Afghan forces, however, are moving into the region, getting ready if fighting breaks out. And NATO spokesmen also confirming that Canadian, British and U.S. forces have been repositioned in this region.

So the bottom line appears to be, they do believe that the Taliban are in the area. They believe there is a presence there. And they may well be in a number of villages. Whether they actually control ground, if you will, perhaps remains to be seen.

The Taliban often are in this area sight unseen, of course. They don't come out in the street waving their Taliban membership card, but they are a significant influence. This is a Taliban stronghold.

And one indication of NATO getting ready, earlier NATO warplanes dropped leaflets in the region warning villagers to stay in their homes if fighting breaks out in the hours and days ahead, advising them that that will be the safest place for them and their families. So certainly the groundwork being laid for what may be a combat operation coming down the road very soon -- Heidi.

COLLINS: OK. Interesting, though, Barbara. So the U.S. is saying that, no, they're not in control, but, yes, indeed there are 400 to 500 Taliban in these villages. Now, this is the same province we're talking about where the prison outbreak was -- or jailbreak, I should say, on Friday, yes?

STARR: Well, that's absolutely right. I mean, the numbers do tell a story here.

Openly acknowledge by NATO and the U.S.-led coalition, that that prison break in Kandahar on Friday, about 500 so-called common criminals escaped. But also, upwards of 500 members acknowledged members of Taliban militia. And only a handful of those people had been rounded up.

So, you know, the question hanging in the air -- where are those hundreds of Taliban? Are they now in this region moving through these villages, intimidating people and taking over villages? That's what NATO is trying to figure out. They do believe Taliban are there. What they're not ready to acknowledge are the news reports coming out that the Taliban are now controlling these villages. That may be a distinction without much of a difference -- Heidi.

COLLINS: CNN's Barbara Starr from the Pentagon this morning.

Thank you, Barbara.

STARR: Sure.

HARRIS: Winning in pain. Tiger Woods captures another major championship two months after knee surgery, but did he do major damage? We will ask our medical correspondent, Elizabeth Cohen.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: You know, it was often painful to watch. Tiger Woods grimacing after offering up a mighty lash at that poor, defenseless golf ball on the tee at the U.S. Open. He won despiting undergoing knee surgery two months ago.

CNN Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is here with some insights.

And Elizabeth, here is a question -- did he come back too soon?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, we were talking about what he said at a press conference recently, right?

HARRIS: Yes. He said, I'm a bad patient. His doctors told him not to play, but he said, I'm a bad patient and I'm going to play. It's the country's national championship and I want to win it.

COHEN: Well, without knowing anything about the conversations that happened between Tiger Woods and his doctor, I would say in general it's good to listen to your doctor.

HARRIS: Yes.

COHEN: And if your doctor says don't do something, you probably shouldn't do it.

HARRIS: Exactly.

COHEN: However, I will say that, according to the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, after someone has surgery like he had -- and we'll get into the surgery in a minute...

HARRIS: OK.

COHEN: ... if you're in good shape, and obviously he's in good shape, you can go back to physical activity, your athletic activity, within a few weeks. So it is not out of...

HARRIS: Yes. COHEN: You know, it's not -- there are times where after a surgery like his that you can go back after a few weeks because it is a relatively noninvasive surgery.

HARRIS: Well, let's talk about that relatively noninvasive surgery. I keep being reminded as I hear that, it is surgery.

COHEN: It is.

HARRIS: Do we know what the procedure actually entailed?

COHEN: Yes, we do. And I suppose I should say less invasive than other types of surgery...

HARRIS: OK.

COHEN: ... because it's arthroscopic.

HARRIS: Yes. Yes.

COHEN: So what they're doing -- and we have a picture of this -- is they are sticking instruments into your veins.

HARRIS: The scope, yes.

COHEN: So, yes, they're sticking a scope in, they're taking a camera, they're looking around. And what we were told by Tiger Woods' spokesperson is that he had some cartilage damage in his knee, and the doctor went in -- Dr. Thomas Rosenberg (ph) went in and cleaned it up. Those were the...

HARRIS: Yes.

COHEN: ... the terms -- you know, corrected the cartilage problem. Now, cartilage is this flexible tissue that covers the ends of bones so that they glide over each other.

HARRIS: That's right.

COHEN: Because if you don't have cartilage, what you have is...

HARRIS: Is it bone on bone?

COHEN: ... bone on bone, which is not good. Yes, you can imagine how much that would hurt. So if you can go in and clean some of that up, you can really help a person who's in pain.

HARRIS: Can you help us understand what it is about the game of golf that can put some stress on the knee? And I think I know where you're going with this.

COHEN: Yes, if you think about how someone stands when they play golf, and how they move and how they do the follow-through...

HARRIS: It's that torque.

COHEN: ... it is that torque, it is that twisting, it's that extension.

HARRIS: Yes.

COHEN: And it can really -- it can wreak havoc on your knee. It doesn't always, of course. I mean, most people are perfectly fine. But with all of that twisting and extension, it can do some damage.

HARRIS: Yes. So he's loading up on the right side to get going, and then moving everything, all that weight, to the left side. And he's wearing metal spikes that root you into the ground.

COHEN: Right. So it's the knee that takes the -- right. Right. Right. It's the knee that can take some of that pressure.

HARRIS: Well, Elizabeth, we appreciate it. He says he's going to shut it down for a while because it really hurts. That's what he says.

COHEN: Right. Maybe he's going to go listen to his doctor now and be a good patient.

HARRIS: For a change.

COHEN: And be a good patient.

HARRIS: And be a good patient. All right. An empowered patient.

COHEN: That's right.

HARRIS: Hello?

Thanks, Elizabeth.

COHEN: Thanks.

COLLINS: Well, if you get up early in the morning like we do here at NEWSROOM a.m. --- and we're always looking for sympathy for that -- you'll want to hear this story. Coffee may actually do more than help you keep you awake. It could help you live longer.

Harvard researchers found drinking up to six cups a day -- that's about right, six cups a day -- may cut the risk of dying form heart disease. This seems to work with decaf, as well as regular coffee. But researchers warn, as usual, much more studies needed before they can recommend drinking coffee for your health.

And if you'd like, you can read the whole story in the "Annals of Internal Medicine."

To get your "Daily Dose" of health news online, log on to our Web site. You'll find the latest medical news, a health library, and information on diet and fitness. The address, cnn.com/health.

HARRIS: Frustration boils over for flooded-out residents who want to go home. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The same house was safe for me yesterday but it's not today. And it's not just my house, it's everybody's. Thousands of people could be doing work on their house and they're not letting us in.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: No rapid return in Cedar Rapids.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Bottom of the hour, welcome back everyone to the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Tony Harris.

COLLINS: Hi everybody. I'm Heidi Collins.

We want to take a moment to show you some new video that we're getting in. These pictures are coming to us out of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, the situation there really just a mess. The only good news, I guess, if you can call it good news, is that people are getting a chance to get back into their homes, some of them, anyway, and so you see this. People going inside and taking out their belongings trying to get them to dry out. Goodness knows how long that's going to take.

You see a woman there with a mask on. I imagine the mold and all kinds of different smells, unfortunately that they may be having to put up with at this point. But at least some of them are able to go back and get a look at their belongings and their homes.

Rob Marciano is standing by. Rob, as we look at these pictures, again, some of the first pictures coming out of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, what do these people face over the next few days?

ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, you can imagine the water and mud and all the other things that would be flowing in that floodwater.

COLLINS: Nasty.

MARCIANO: Now gone. Just not a good deal. I mean, what else can you say? They're still in major flood stage in a lot of those areas even though the smaller rivers have crested, the Iowa River, the Cedar River there in eastern Iowa. In Wisconsin, there's one that still yet to crest. We have flood warnings that are posted for the rivers that are feeding into the Mississippi.

This all has to get down to the Gulf of Mexico in different spots affecting different people. The weaknesses and levees along the way will flood areas worse than one -- one area worse than the other. That's kind of a localized event. But it seems like the pictures we continue to get in show that this is a widespread event of unprecedented nature.

Across parts of the Mississippi River system, this being compared to '93, in some cases worse than '93. In '93, you may remember, it was considered to be a 1 in 100 year or in some cases a 1 in 500 year flood. We're getting pretty much the same deal within a 15-year time span.

Here's where the water is going to go. You're looking at the Mississippi. This is Missouri, Iowa, and Illinois. This is where we've had the biggest problems today, Burlington and across the river. Obviously that's where the river is raising the most. It's expected to crest later on this tomorrow morning and then eventually make its way down into St. Louis.

Right now, the forecast for St. Louis is for moderate flooding. But major flooding is at 40 feet. Right now the forecast is for 39.8. You know, you might as well include St. Louis in the threat for seeing major flooding. That will come on Saturday.

Rainfall with this? None. That's good. Right now we're dry. We should stay dry for the next 48 hours in this area. Get whatever water is in the ground and heading towards the river, that's about all we should see. None falling out of the sky. When the sun's out, I suppose it makes the cleanup a little bit easier.

COLLINS: Yeah. Sean Callebs was mentioning, you see the sunshine, and it looks like such a beautiful day. Then you look down and see this water just absolutely everywhere. Rob thank you. Appreciate that.

Want to take a moment now to get you to Burlington, Iowa, where the story is certainly developing and changing as we speak. Sean Callebs has been there all morning long reporting to us on what is happening. This is downtown Burlington, Iowa, we're looking at, Sean. A lot of people who may be familiar with the area may not recognize it now.

CALLEBS: Exactly. We're standing on Division Street. If you look, this is really the front line defense. There are sandbags throughout this town, 500 National Guard troops have been called in to this area to try to do what they can to keep the Mississippi out.

But, it has poured in. We're standing between Second and Third Streets. I want to draw your attention to this warehouse across the street. That is what people in this area are doing. They're putting pumps down in the basement. That's river water they're pumping back out trying to keep it out. We'll walk down the street just to give you an idea of what this river has done. It's usually well out past the second line of telephone poles out there. It's jumped its banks in a significant way, moving into this area.

There was a breach of a levee across the river, Gulf Port, Illinois, and that has allowed this water to go down slightly. We have a couple of cameras out here. This camera over here, we can show you just how much the water has gone down. If you look at the side of this building, you can see the water's gone down a couple of feet or so since that levee gave way. So really Illinois's punishment is turning out to be a temporary break for Iowa. But as soon as that water stabilizes across the way, it is going to continue to rise and come out this way. There are a few things we really need to point out.

Seven miles of levee to the north of this area is simply saturated. Water starting to boil through in certain areas. They're concerned about any of that seven-mile stretch giving way, and that could flood hundreds and hundreds of acres of mostly farmland. Down here, we're in the lowest part of the city; the water is going to continue to go up. A lot of people down here simply don't have flood insurance.

We talked to the manager of the warehouse to find out why. He says he doesn't think flood insurance is that great, one. Secondly, it costs so much. In the 1993 flood, many people thought they had been priced out of it. A lot of individual struggles going on in this epic flood that is really affecting the entire state of Iowa.

We heard Rob talk about it. You know what, St. Louis; it's coming your way. The question is just how bad it's going to be. We have some crews that are trying to make their way across river. The one bridge here in Burlington to Illinois has been shut down. That's the story pretty much to the north. Our crews are having to go to the south and come back up. It's going to be difficult to get across there. Once we do, you can imagine the pictures are going to be pretty sad.

COLLINS: Sean, you mentioned farmland. Obviously agriculture in that part of the country certainly the mainstay for many residents there. We continue to watch these pictures and certainly are thinking of the people in Burlington, Iowa, and many of those areas surrounding the Mississippi River. Sean Callebs, thanks so much.

In fact, it could be a while before thousands of evacuees are allowed to return home in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Many are angry about that delay.

Here now CNN's Dan Simon.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Breaking down doors. People got back into the flooded Cedar Rapids neighborhoods, but they were city inspectors, not homeowners, knocking down doors and climbing through windows, seeing if houses were safe. It was frustrating for residents who were told over the weekend they could start going back home, only to be to be told they couldn't.

LARRY VANHUSEN (ph), LANDLORD: The same house was safe for me yesterday but it's not today. It's not just my house. It's everybody. Thousands of people could be doing work on their house, and they're not letting us in.

SIMON: Larry Vanhusen is a landlord who has 12 houses that flooded including his own. He says city leaders are making a bad situation worse.

VANHUSEN: These are people that we put in office that are doing this to their own people. I guarantee they won't be there next time because I'll do everything I can to get them voted out of office. It's just silly. It's just silly. You've got people all around here that can do the work. They've been sitting here for two days trying to do the work, and they won't let us do it. It's just unbelievable that our own government would do this to us.

SIMON: But the city says the homes are too unsafe, citing the utility worker injured in an unstable house.

VANHUSEN: You get one guy hurt and now all of these thousands of people have to suffer? It doesn't make sense.

OFFICER BOB STAUFFER, CEDAR RAPIDS POLICE: I understand they are anxiousness to try to get back in and take care of business. We're trying to work as hard as we can to make that happen. We have the responsibility to make sure they're structurally sound and safe before they go back in.

SIMON: So now crews are going block by block, inspecting every home in the flood zone. Search dogs looking for survivors or, worse, for bodies.

This shows you just how high the water level got. People who live in these flooded neighborhoods were told to leave either a towel or a sock tied to their front door when crews come through here, if they don't see that towel or sock, there's a fear that somebody may be inside. It looks like New Orleans after Katrina. The neighborhoods filthy, worms everywhere. A lot of these homes will have to be demolished. Larry says that's why he wants back in. To try to salvage what he's got left before it rots.

VANHUSEN: It causes more damage.

SIMON: Water levels may have receded, but tempers are rising. One man was so upset that he rammed his car into a police officer who was guarding a checkpoint. The police officer was not injured, but the man was arrested and charged with assault with a deadly weapon.

Dan Simon, CNN, Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: The wedding rush is on in California. Hundreds of gay and lesbian couples flocking to courthouses to legally wed. The state Supreme Court cleared the way for same sex marriages last night, the first couple to get married, a couple who's been together for 55 years. California is the second state to allow same-sex marriage, Massachusetts the first. But unlike Massachusetts, California does not require state residency.

Thelma Gutierrez is in Los Angeles for us. Thelma it looks like another day of speakers and ceremonies.

THELMA GUTIERREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Tony, I can tell you that stampede has started here in West Hollywood. In about a half hour, the city of West Hollywood, together with the Los Angeles county registrar, will begin to issue same-sex marriage licenses. If you take a look behind me, you can see that the line is very long. There are a couple hundred people here already positioned to have that marriage license.

Now, joining me is Tory (ph) and Kate Perkindole (ph) and their beautiful 5-month-old baby. You were here at 6:00 p.m. last night. You wanted to be the first to be in line. And you look terrific for being here so many hours.

TORY PERKINDOLE: Thank you very much. Lots of makeup.

GUTIERREZ: How are you feeling today?

T. PERKINDOLE: So full of joy. It's really amazing. Really special to be able to validate this relationship for our family. It's incredible.

GUTIERREZ: So many of the couples have said that this is a huge day because in many ways it legitimizes the union in the eyes of the law and also the families who are standing by you. What does this mean? Because you have a 5-month-old daughter. What does this mean to you as a family?

KATE PERKINDOLE: I think this is a really important first step for us. It's just a first step because we hope someday that the federal government will also recognize our marriage. We both work for the federal government, and if I wanted Tory to stay home for the baby, my insurance wouldn't cover her. These steps are really for practical as well as social reasons. They're really important for us.

GUTIERREZ: What about for you?

T. PERKINDOLE: Oh, gosh, she said it all. It's not political for me. For me it's being able to be proud to say, this is my wife. Although we had a union in 2005, I was still nervous to say that word. Tomorrow I'll be able to feel proud about it.

GUTIERREZ: What do you think this will ultimately mean to your baby and children?

T. PERKINDOLE: I just -- I feel like she'll feel like she's part of a normal family. I know it's not going to be easy. This isn't going to change everything, but it's a step to make her feel like she's part of a normal family.

GUTIERREZ: What about for you? Grandmother?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm very proud of both of these girls and I'm very happy to be the grandmother.

GUTIERREZ: Big day for all of you. How are you going to celebrate later?

K. PERKINDOLE: I don't know. In 2005 we got married illegally and had 150 guests and had a great party. Low-key, get together with friends tonight.

GUTIERREZ: I'm sure you'll need rest. It's been a long day. Thank you very much. K. PERKINDOLE: Thank you.

GUTIERREZ: After they get these marriage certificates, which will cost about $70, these families will be able to go to the back of this building and there are canopy's set up. For an additional $25, they'll be able to have a civil ceremony. A lot of tears out here.

HARRIS: All right. Thelma, a question for you. Let's talk about the opponents to the process playing out in California. Opponents want to vote on a statewide constitutional amendment that would define the marriages between a man and a woman. Has the California secretary of state started the process of verifying the signatures to put this issue on the November ballot?

GUTIERREZ: Yes, Tony. In fact, this is a very contentious issue. There are 700,000 signatures needed. Those have been certified. They are on their way. This will be on the ballot. What will happen, if the voters decide in favor of this initiative, then there's a huge question as to whether or not the marriages will be null and void or how they proceed.

Do marriages then stop from November 5th forward? We talked to a constitutional attorney last night who said this is a huge problem, lots of big questions. They don't know exactly how it will come out in the wash.

HARRIS: Thelma Gutierrez for us this morning, great to see you. Thank you.

Here is a quick look at where the presidential candidates stand on same-sex marriage. John McCain says marriage is a union between a man and a woman. But opposes the constitution amendment banning same sex marriage. Which of course legal benefits for same sex partners? Barack Obama opposes same sex marriage. But supports civil union, he also opposes a constitutional amendment banning same sex marriage.

COLLINS: We're keeping our eyes on the candidates. Obama is holding a rally this hour in Michigan. We'll have live coverage when that happens. McCain will be at a fund-raiser in Houston later today. You can check out our political ticker for the latest news. Just logon to CNNPOLITICS.com. your source for all things political.

Gas, food, travel costs, all are going up. Now you can add health care to that list. Our Stephanie Elam is going to explain with a story and the latest numbers from Wall Street next in the NEWSROOM.

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COLLINS: Flooding in Iowa means a big chunk of the nation's corn crop is now under water. Stephanie Elam is on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange with more on what a corn shortage would mean for the rest of the country. Stephanie sure we have been talking about a lot of these areas, you know they are just farmland, this is a big deal. This is where a lot of the nation's corn comes from.

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Definitely. You know, I don't want to pooh-pooh the losses that are happening for these people that do live in Iowa, but the effects are far reaching as far as the economy is concerned because of the fact that corn does so much for the country.

You've got wheat, corn, all of that growing there in that area. On Monday, corn futures actually hit a record high. Let's take a look at what Iowa may have been going through. They may have lost between 1 and 3 million acres of corn production that is as much as 21 percent of the overall production.

Crops are already hit with cold weather and the planting season. So if you factor in all of that, this could mean that the Midwest harvest season for that region could be down 10 to 12 percent. This is coming from a brokerage firm that takes a look at these sort of trends here. That is where we are getting our information from.

They're saying some of the biggest impacts may be seen in meat and dairy because -- this surprised me -- half of the corn that is grown in the United States actually goes to feed the animals. Such a huge deal. On top of that, you can also see it as far as your sodas. High-fructose corn syrup is also another place you may see that.

As far as nonfood products, think about ethanol, the one most think about, and then your toothpaste, mouthwash, it is involved in that, also some plastics using corn. All of these could affect consumer prices as they go through the markets. That's what we're watching here.

COLLINS: It's amazing. It's far reaching for sure. We're talking about inflation, though. We've got some more news on that front as well today.

ELAM: Yeah. We got the producer price index, the government's way of looking at wholesale prices. We saw a jump in May of 1.4 percent, more than the 1 percent that was expected overall on Wall Street. But that means that prices are up more than 7 percent over the past year. The government is blaming these high food and energy costs and that really is the reason because if you take those cost out, then without food and energy, prices were up .2 percent. That's fairly tame.

I don't think anyone is surprised by that, that food and energy as far as gasoline prices, oil prices costing us so much. While we know those prices are going up, the markets seem to be going down a little bit. Not really asserting big losses here right now, but one good point, Goldman Sachs beating the street today, posting a $2.1 billion earnings gain for the second quarter. That means they've been pretty much getting through the credit crunch unscathed.

Good news. The Dow down 65 points, 12204. The NASDAQ on the down side as well. We'll keep our eyes on it. For now, it looks like we're in the red.

COLLINS: All right. Thanks so much Stephanie, appreciate it.

HARRIS: Let's see that picture from Los Angeles right now. A familiar face to a lot of you, George Takai, from the Star Trek show, is in line to get his marriage license today. We will hear from him in just a couple of moments but first a break here in the NEWSROOM.

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HARRIS: We mentioned this a moment ago. George Takei, Mr. Sulu from the Star Trek show, and his partner Brad Atman are at the L.A. County Courthouse to get their marriage license. They spoke to reporters just a short time ago.

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GEORGE TAKEI, ACTOR: Last month, the California Supreme Court made history by ruling for equality in marriage. And this morning we're all here to give flesh and blood reality to that ruling. We're going to make history. And, you know, I think the words of a great man who made history himself, Gaun Di (ph), said be the change you want. And what I see before me are people who are the change for equality. Equality in marriage and equality in everything.

I see before me people who personify love and commitment. I see people who are the personifications of joy and celebration. And Brad Atman and I are going to join you and we are going to get our marriage license today. Isn't that extraordinary? And isn't that wonderful? So congratulations to all of us and may equality live long and prosper!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Actor George Takei, Mr. Sulu from the Star Trek show and his partner picking up their marriage license from the L.A. County Courthouse. Their wedding to take place in September. Quick break and you're back in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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COLLINS: So look what turned up under an SUV in Ohio, a neighborhood prowler. This alligator, police had to close the street for about two hours.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RILDA EDWARDS, WITNESS: I just got out of bed, looked out the door, saw police and newscasts out there. I had to come out and ask what was going on. And there was an alligator underneath my husband's car.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: A gator wrangler, like they have in Ohio was called in. He handled the situation, and is now trying to find this guy a new home.

HARRIS: Just trying to cool off a little bit. Come on, now.

COLLINS: Yeah.

CNN NEWSROOM continues one hour from now.

HARRIS: "Issue # One" with Gerri Willis and Ali Velshi starts right now.