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More Midwest Flooding as Levees Continue to Fail; Would Offshore Drilling Make Any Difference in Oil Prices?

Aired June 18, 2008 - 09:00   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 are in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Tony Harris.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Hi there, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins.

You'll see events come into the NEWSROOM live on this Wednesday morning, June 18th.

Here's what's on the rundown.

All was lost. A sheriff's sad response after sandbagging fails to hold back the flood-swollen Mississippi river.

HARRIS: Fighting high gas prices by drilling offshore. President Bush calling on Congress to lift the ban.

COLLINS: And five human feet wash up in western Canada. Mystery in the NEWSROOM.

The mighty Mississippi. Levees on the brink. Lives at the edge of disaster. The latest levee to be overwhelmed just hours ago near Myer, Illinois. That town already evacuated.

Now the rising floodwaters carry the danger southward to Canton and Quincy. Can those levees hold?

CNN's Sean Callebs has the very latest now from Iowa's Des Moines County.

Sean, good morning.

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Heidi.

We're standing here basically on the frontline of defense. This is what you see all along the Mississippi, through Iowa, on down on the Illinois side -- these levees.

Now just a couple of days ago, about 30 hours ago, the water from the Mississippi was actually at the very top of these sandbags. Because they've had the breach, you know, the apparent overtopping of the levees in the Illinois side, it has relieved the pressure.

The water's gone down somewhat here. That is good news for people in Iowa, but still tense. Want to show you some pictures we just took a short while ago. There are a number of farmers on a 14-mile stretch of levee just about 10 miles north of where we were yesterday in Burlington, Iowa. They're going up and down this levee in their ATVs.

And every now and then they come across a little red flag. Those are the areas where they're concerned about seepage.

We had a chance to speak with one of the volunteers and here's what the big concern is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID WAGENBACH, FARMER: What we got to watch out now is for seeps and things like that that's going to come up to the side of the levee. There are some places down south where the water is just bubbling out of the side of the levee. And as it goes down there is less pressure but that's our biggest concern now, or sticks or animals tearing up the burn.

Right now there's trash along the levee. If the wind comes up, these sticks will come and tear up the plastic we have on top inside them bags, and -- then create a leak. So that's kind of what you got to watch for now even though the water is about a foot down from where it was.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CALLEBS: OK. The real critical situation about an hour south of where we are on the Illinois side. I want to show you a map of exactly what we are talking about. It's actually pretty near Quincy on the Hancock-Adams County lines down there.

The Army Corps of Engineers says the Mississippi topped -- over- topped the levee. The sheriff in that area says it gave way in two places. Regardless, there are a number of homes that have been swamped as well as thousands and thousands of acres of farmland.

Here's some really dramatic pictures from yesterday. Really want to go back to these and show you. This is going to be the concern. Now this happened yesterday right across from Burlington, Iowa in the town of Gulfport, Illinois.

Look at this water just pouring in. Apparently got up as high as 10 feet in that area. Boy, what a mess that is.

And folks here are not out of the woods, even though this has gone down somewhat. Want to show you there's puddles like this all up and down. Now this water is clear, and that's good news. It means the levee is doing its job.

Heidi, if the water was coming through and there were sediment in it, if it was dirty, that would mean that it's scouring and they're concerned that it could be weakening, the integrity being challenged, and that could open up.

And if it did, look what would happen. It is as flat as the eye can see up to that tree.

COLLINS: Wow.

CALLEBS: So all of these acres of very fertile corn would just simply wash away instantly -- Heidi?

COLLINS: Yes. Boy, oh, boy, all right, Sean Callebs for us this morning in Des Moines County. Appreciate that, Sean. We'll check back with you a little bit later on.

COLLINS: Hancock County, Illinois. Flooded communities and an agonizing dilemma. Do officials take the precaution of turning off power to those areas? That would reduce the risk of electrocutions but it would also shut down the sump pumps that are keeping so many in the homes safe.

Joining us by phone, a man who is wrestling with that decision, Hancock County sheriff, John Jefferson.

Sheriff, thanks for your time. And talk to us about the decision process that you're going through right now and making a decision as to what to do about the power.

SHERIFF JOHN JEFFERSON, HANCOCK COUNTY, ILLINOIS: Well, currently right now in the Warsaw Bottoms, which is going to be flooded here in a matter of hours because the levees have been breached, the electrical companies are shutting off all power to everything down here in the bottoms right now because this will all be under water in a few hours.

HARRIS: Boy. You mentioned the Warsaw Bottoms essentially flooded. How many homes, if you know at this point, have been lost? How many homes are being threatened right now?

JEFFERSON: Right now in our county in Warsaw Bottoms, there's only six homes left here after the flood of '93, which there used to be numerous homes down here, but there are only six left.

But there's just thousands and thousands of acres of some of the most prime farm ground we have in our nation that's going to totally be lost.

HARRIS: Boy. Sheriff, how much work did the people in Warsaw do in trying to raise the height of that levee to try to increase the protection margin there? Was there a lot of work that went into that effort?

JEFFERSON: Extreme amount of work. The levee was raised all the way from Quincy all the way up to Warsaw, that's about a 30-mile stretch. That levee was raised three to four feet. The effort that's put into this was just massive with equipment, manpower, and it's just all going to go for naught now. So it's a really sad day.

HARRIS: Yes. Describe that. How disappointing is it to put all of that work and just watch the water continue to rise and now...

JEFFERSON: Right.

HARRIS: ... we've got this breach and this over-top situation.

JEFFERSON: Right. There's a lot of wheat fields down here just about ready to be harvested and they're going to lose all that, the corn crop, the bean crop, that's up are all going to be lost.

And the real works is going to come after the flood reseeds. It will take years to get this ground back into shape to farm it.

HARRIS: All right, Sheriff, do you have what you need at this point in looking forward in terms of assistance and, you know, extra hands on deck for that long recovery process that you describe?

JEFFERSON: Well, right now the state police have been very instrumental in helping us get everyone evacuated so we have no one left down in the Bottoms. So no one is in danger and we're just now going to try to make sure we keep those sightseers out so they don't get themselves trapped in the rising water.

HARRIS: OK. Sheriff John Jefferson, Hancock County, Illinois -- Sheriff, we thank you for your time and the best to you and your efforts and to the people there in Hancock County.

COLLINS: What an awful situation, boy, and we've been saying for days now that we have just been watching this thing move, obviously, southward and anybody who is south is in jeopardy.

Rob Marciano is with us now to take a look at sort of the path of what could happen next here, Rob.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COLLINS: Wow. All right, we'll check back with you later on as well, Rob.

MARCIANO: All right, guys. Good.

COLLINS: Watch the situation as it changes. Thank you.

Looking out to the U.S. coast now for relief from high oil prices. Next hour President Bush calls on Congress to lift the ban on offshore drilling. The current ban covers areas outside the western Gulf of Mexico and some areas off Alaska.

It was imposed, in part, to protect tourism and reduce the chances of major oil spills.

The president's latest push comes one day after Republican presidential candidate John McCain called for lifting the ban.

Opponents of offshore drilling say it would harm wetlands, contaminate the water and pollute the air.

HARRIS: A closer look now at what offshore drilling could mean for oil prices and the price you pay at the pump. Ali Velshi "Minding Your Business" live from New York this morning.

And Ali, as always, I'm going to ask you to cut through all of this...

ALI VELSHI, CNN SENIOR BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes.

HARRIS: ... (INAUDIBLE) and clutter, and help us with the bottom line on this.

VELSHI: All right. Bottom line is we produce in the United States roughly a quarter of the oil that we use every day. We import almost three-quarters of it.

And by the way, the total amount of oil that we use on a daily basis in the United States is 20 percent of the world's production. We're not 20 percent of the world's population. So what's happening is as Russia, India, China, the Middle East are growing and prospering, they're using more oil and that's part of the reason demand for oil is going up.

So John McCain's solution is when we've got the access to more oil, if you'll allow more offshore drilling, maybe another 20 billion barrels might be in there somewhere that we can start to access within three years to 10 years.

The issue here is where you stand on whether this is a supply issue, whether we need more oil, or it's a demand issue, that demand is growing so fast that we need to get out of the demand cycle. We start depending on things that are not about oil.

So John McCain has started what he says is going to be a two-week exercise in outlaying some details about his energy program. And yesterday he gave some sort of broad outline, including lifting this ban on offshore drilling in much of the United States.

HARRIS: You know you're talking about -- what are we talking about? Either a supply issue or demand issue? You know we can add a third piece to that...

VELSHI: Yes.

HARRIS: ... and we could talk about speculation.

VELSHI: That's right.

HARRIS: I mean I know there is a lot of talk right now focusing in on how much speculation is in this market right now.

VELSHI: You are absolutely right. Those are sort of three ways of looking at this reason that oil is high. There's too much demand growing, we're running out of oil in terms of supply, or are people driving the price of oil up?

And in Congress right now there are several bills floating around that would try and address what they call excessive speculation in the oil market.

Remember, Tony, we've talked about this.

HARRIS: Yes.

VELSHI: In any housing market -- in any market at all there is speculation. You take the housing market, for example, it's the same thing. So Congress is looking at what it can do to try and reduce this excessive speculation.

There are some people who think that might be 10 percent of the market, all the way up to 30 or 40 percent of the oil price. So we still get less. If you take out excessive speculation you are still left with a much higher price of oil than, you know, $50 or $60.

HARRIS: Right.

VELSHI: So we still probably have to address this. Oil is not -- gas isn't $4 and something cents, 8 cents, because oil is at $135. We could see these gas prices go up much higher just to catch up with what the price of -- oil is right now.

HARRIS: That's a scary thought.

VELSHI: Yes.

HARRIS: Ali Velshi, "Minding Your Business" this morning. Ali, great to see you. Thank you.

VELSHI: You, too.

HARRIS: You know we're going to bring you President Bush's statement on energy and his calls to lift the ban on offshore drilling. That's coming up at 10:35 Eastern live right here in the NEWSROOM.

COLLINS: Torture and abuse at the hands of the U.S. military. Did it happen? A Senate committee takes a tough look at interrogation tactics.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Welcome back, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Is your child smoking marijuana? If you're a parent you need to hear Elizabeth Cohen's report.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Burying the dead. A funeral today for victims of a massive bombing that ripped through a northwest Baghdad neighborhood yesterday. 63 people were killed, five of them children. 71 others were wounded.

The U.S. says the blast may have been the work of an Iranian- backed militant trying to stir up Shiite violence against Sunnis. The bomb was detonated on a minibus and ripped through a nearby market.

HARRIS: Massive operation targeting Taliban militants. Afghan troops backed by Canadian forces launching attacks in villages just outside of Kandahar. Officials say two Afghan soldiers and at least 23 militants were killed in today's clashes.

This offensive comes days after 400 militants escaped from Kandahar's prison in a daring jail break. But NATO says so far they have not found a large grouping of militants.

In a separate development today, Britain's defense ministry says four British soldiers were killed in a vehicle explosion yesterday in Afghanistan.

COLLINS: Evidence of abuse and torture. That is the conclusion of a human rights report on the treatment of U.S.-held terror suspects in Iraq and Cuba.

CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr is joining us now from Washington.

So Barbara, how credible is this evidence?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Heidi, this is the group Physicians for Human Rights, which conducted medical evaluations on 11 men that were held at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq and at the U.S. detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

These physicians say they found evidence that these men had been badly mistreated, tortured, if you will. The report says that there was evidence of, quote, "beatings, electrical shock, sleep deprivation, sexual humiliation and sodomy."

Dr. Allen Keller was one of the medical evaluators.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. ALLEN KELLER, NEW YORK UNIVERSITY: We found clear physical and psychological evidence that torture and abuse often causing lasting suffering. Whether it was scars from beatings or nightmares of sexual humiliations that they endured.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STARR: One thing really perhaps worth noting in this report, Heidi, is the forward, the preface to the report was written by retired Major General Anthony Taguba.

Now he's the army general, while on active duty, that led the army's own investigation into the Abu Ghraib prison scandal.

And in this report General Taguba says, quote, "There is no longer any doubt that the current administration committed war crimes. The only question is whether those who ordered torture will be held into account."

Pretty tough words from a man that was very well regarded inside the army when he conducted the investigation into Abu Ghraib.

Now for its part, the Pentagon continues to say that it -- deals with detainees in a humane fashion, that there is no policy towards torture, and if there was any misconduct, any abuse, it was in violation of government policy.

But this report clearly a pretty damning indictment if it stands on its own -- Heidi?

COLLINS: Will these reports be testimony at some point, hearings on all of this that could be taking place?

STARR: Well, you know, there was just that long set of hearings yesterday on Capitol Hill that we covered where there were -- the senators were really trying to get to the question of what was the policy, what was allowed, what was not allowed. And a lot of frustration on Capitol Hill, because now this goes back several years, delving into old documents, who said what in what meeting perhaps many years ago.

So far, of course, some low-level soldiers have been prosecuted for their role at Abu Ghraib, but no senior officer has been held accountable in any of these cases to date -- Heidi?

COLLINS: So those proceedings yesterday wrapped up or are you saying that it's possible things could continue?

STARR: Well, I think that it's very likely Congress will probably try to continue its role in looking into all of this. But at the moment, the Pentagon still holds publicly, firm to the notion there was no policy that condoned torture and abuse, and if it occurred, it was an isolated case by people violating policy.

But the bottom line is that, to this day, no senior officer has ever been held accountable in any of these cases -- Heidi?

COLLINS: All right. We'll continue to watch this one, of course.

CNN's Barbara Starr at the Pentagon -- thanks, Barbara.

STARR: Sure.

HARRIS: The high cost of high water passed on to you. Flooded fields in the Midwest affecting America's already-struggling economy.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Marijuana warning. A study says the stuff on the street today is more powerful, dangerous and addictive than it's been since last -- back in the '70s. A lot of kids are actually smoking it, too.

Look at this, 1 in 6 sixth graders? 1 in 4 high school seniors? That is according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

Boy, those numbers seem incredibly high to me.

CNN medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is here now with more details.

We should probably mention before we talk about how powerful the pot is, it is still illegal. We don't want our kids smoking it...

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Right. Oh, absolutely.

COLLINS: ... at all, obviously, but why is it apparently more potent?

COHEN: It has got more THC in it. As a matter of fact, people who've been analyzing pot for years now say they've never seen so much THC in pot before. THC is the chemical that makes pot psychoactive.

So let's take a look at that increase because the number is really pretty alarming. It a -- there's been 175 percent increase in potency in marijuana, 1992-2006. A 492 percent increase in marijuana abuse and a 136 percent increase in ER visits because of marijuana use.

Now when we talked to experts, they say marijuana is sort of an interesting drug because it affects people very differently. Some people are going to get addicted very easily, some people are going to have more long-term effects both on the body and on the mind than other people.

So you're king of playing Russian roulette. You never know which...

COLLINS: (INAUDIBLE)

COHEN: ... you're going to be or which your kid is going to be.

COLLINS: Yes. Boy, I still can't get past the numbers. 1 in 6 sixth graders? Can you imagine, 1 in 4 high schools?

COHEN: I -- yes, I found that shocking as well.

COLLINS: Yes. Absolutely. All right, so you talk about the munchies with this. Some people, as you said, are affected much differently.

COHEN: Right.

COLLINS: Some people get that sort of side effect, worse than others. But these ER visits -- I mean, that isn't really something that we normally hear...

COHEN: Right. And it's interesting...

COLLINS: ... when we talk about pot.

COHEN: ... why there are ER visits. It's not because the person is actually in physical danger. It's because the marijuana is messing up their mind so much. Basically they're showing up in ERs freaked out. The marijuana is making them paranoid. It's freaking them out and so they're showing up in emergency rooms.

But in the long-term -- let's talk about the dangers of marijuana not in an emergency sense but long-term. It impairs memory, attention, judgment and balance, both long-term and short-term. It also increases the risk of chronic problems like cough, bronchitis, and emphysema and the risk of cancer of the head, neck and lungs.

And you know, people don't really realize this, that marijuana is far more dangerous than cigarette smoking when it comes to lung cancer, has far more carcinogens than cigarettes.

So not only you're doing damage to your brain, you're doing damage to your lungs.

COLLINS: I have a great idea.

COHEN: What's that?

COLLINS: Don't do drugs.

COHEN: Just don't do drugs.

COLLINS: Don't do drugs.

COHEN: And make sure your kids don't smoke it.

COLLINS: Oh love it. All right, Elizabeth Cohen, thank you.

COHEN: Thanks.

HARRIS: You know things aren't exactly adding up off Canada's west coast. Five human feet are washing up on shore. We've got details of the missing feet mystery.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Welcome back once again, everybody. 9:30 Eastern Time now. I'm Heidi Collins.

HARRIS: And I'm Tony Harris.

Midwest flooding and many awakening today to a nightmare in west central Illinois. The Mississippi River has swamped at least one levee and has poured across a 25-mile stretch of Hancock and Adams Counties.

Beneath these flood waters, Gulfport, Illinois. About 400 people have to be evacuated after the levee there was overwhelmed. The flooding that began in eastern Iowa now flows southward in Illinois and Missouri, even more levees are in danger. And as floodwaters rise, mere inches may make all the difference.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) BRIG. GEN. MICHAEL WALSH, U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS: Some of those levees, both federal and nonfederal levees, are designed for storms of a much lesser degree or grade than what the storm that's hitting now. We're looking in some areas of this being a 500-year storm.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Wow.

Some towns face an agonizing wait, but several more days before the river is expected to crest some areas are bracing for levels as much as 15 feet above flood stage?

COLLINS: Yes, unbelievable. We are watching some of those numbers yesterday, too in different parts...

HARRIS: Yes.

COLLINS: ... as we go along here. But boy, 25-mile stretch now...

HARRIS: Yes.

COLLINS: ... because of these levees breaking.

Rob Marciano has been watching that all with these great, great maps.

Rob, we appreciate them. Let's talk a little bit more about...

MARCIANO: Right.

COLLINS: ... the continued flood threat now.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: Heartache for farmers now. Pain in your pocketbook later. Reporter Angela Hunt of affiliate KCCI looks at one major impact of the Midwestern floods.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANGELA HUNT, KCCI REPORTER (voice-over): Millions of acres of farm fields that look more like farm ponds can only mean one thing for the price of corn.

ROGER ELMORE, IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY AGRONOMIST: Record highs set almost everyday now in terms of the market prices of the corn. So how far will that go? How high will that go? It's anybody's guess.

HUNT: According to the latest crop report, 20 percent of the state's corn crop is either flooded, needs to be replanted or has yet to be planted this spring.

ELMORE: The corn crop was affected almost from day one this year.

HUNT: Elmore says that's a big difference from the floods of '93 that hit in July when the crops were already in the ground. This year farmers have struggled with cold and wet weather in April and now flooding in June.

CHAD HART, IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY, ECONOMIST: Definitely with the troubles we had getting into the fields, we had planting problems before. This just exacerbated those.

HUNT: So what does this mean for consumers? Economists say 20 percent of every $1 you spend at the grocery store is used to buy agricultural commodities. And more than the prices of corn-based products will be going up.

HART: When you look at Corn Flakes, about 5 percent of that is actually the cost of corn. But when you look at our meats, that's where you're likely to see a larger impact.

HUNT: Hart says it will take six to nine months before shoppers see a spike in prices. But it's not just food, 30 percent of the corn crop is used to make ethanol and flooding has already halted production at some plants.

HART: We had at least three plants had to shut down given flooding concerns. So you're talking about 300 million gallons per year of ethanol. You know, those plants usually great, they've had to shut down for some time now.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: And one group is calling for the government to ease up on EPA standards mandating increased corn ethanol production. That's to prevent a shortage for other uses of corn. And looking off the U.S. coast for relief from high oil prices.

Next hour, President Bush calls on Congress to lift the ban on offshore drilling. The current ban covers areas outside the western Gulf of Mexico, and some areas off Alaska. The president's latest push comes a day after Republican presidential candidate John McCain called for lifting the ban.

COLLINS: Speaking of, what triggered that long time offshore drilling ban?

Here's CNN's David Mattingly now with a history lesson.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The federal moratorium has been in effect for 26 years since 1982. Congress imposed it in a furious reaction to President Ronald Reagan's interior secretary, James Watt, who wanted to open up U.S. coasts for oil drilling.

At the time, members of Congress and much of the public were worried about the possibility of massive oil rigs ruining ocean views, the threat of air pollution, and the risk of oil spills. A huge one off Santa Barbara in 1969 coated 35 miles of California's coastline. Renewing the drilling moratorium became a yearly battle in Washington.

To end that, in 1990, the first President Bush announced that offshore drilling would be off-limits for 10 years along nearly all of California, Washington, Oregon, New England from Rhode Island up, and off the southwest Coast of Florida.

(on camera): President Clinton extended it to 2012. But the second President Bush is pushing to at least ease that ban. And the pressure to do that grows everyday with gasoline over $4 a gallon, because, when it comes to offshore oil and the waters of the United States, there is a lot out there.

KAREN HARBERT, INST. FOR 21ST CENTURY ENERGY: Eighty percent of the Outer Continental Shelf is off-limits. That part alone, if we would just use that part of this oil, we would have actually a 35-year supply for gasoline for our cars. We would have heating oil for the millions of homes for the next hundreds of years.

MATTINGLY: As for the old worries about pollution, McCain says:

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), PRESUMPTIVE PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: It's safe enough these days that not even Hurricanes Katrina and Rita could cause significant spillage from the battered rigs off the coasts of New Orleans and Houston.

MATTINGLY: David Mattingly, CNN, Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: We're going to be bringing you President Bush's statement on energy and his call to lift the ban on offshore drilling now. It will be coming at 10:35 Eastern, right here live in the NEWSROOM.

A private funeral being held this morning for television newsman Tim Russert. Some live pictures for you as people go in to the church there. Family, friends, colleagues, Tom Brokaw there -- all arriving this morning for the private services at this church in the nation's capital.

Also both the presidential candidates, you see Barack Obama there just barely above that vehicle. There he is. It follows a wake that was held yesterday in a stone chapel on the campus of St. Albans School. As you remember or you've seen any of the coverage -- there's Tom Brokaw, you see there. That is where Russert's son, Luke, graduated in 2004.

Luke Russert greeted mourners as they filed past his father's flower-draped casket. Russert was the long-time anchor for NBC's "Meet the Press." He died Friday of a heart attack.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HARRIS: Israel and Hamas reached a ceasefire. Both sides confirmed the deal and said to take effect tomorrow. A year of fighting between the two sides has killed more than 400 Palestinians and seven Israelis.

An Israeli government spokesman says officials hope the deal will end daily rocket fire from Gaza. Palestinians hope it will stop Israeli air and ground attacks and ease blockades that have caused crippling shortages in Gaza. Israel today followed up on this deal with a call for direct peace talks with Lebanon.

COLLINS: New images of Cuba's Fidel Castro. The ailing revolutionary leader appearing quite animated on Cuban TV. These are the first scenes of Castro released since January. It shows the 81- year-old talking to his younger brother, Raul, who replaced him as president, and to Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.

Castro has not been seen in public since he had emergency stomach surgery almost two years ago.

HARRIS: Some would call Sherlock Holmes, quick! A human foot found in a sneaker on Canada's West Coast. It was discovered, Monday, on an island north of Vancouver. And you know what? It is not the first time this has happened.

Chris Brown from affiliate CBC has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRIS BROWN, CBC REPORTER (voice-over): BC's weirdest maritime mystery got even weirder with the discovery here yesterday of another human foot.

Where was it found? Right there?

This man told us it was floating in a shoe next to this dock that's now five different feet in less than 11 months washed ashore.

TERRY SMITH, B.C. REGIONAL CORONER: Well, it stretches one's imagination. I can certainly tell you that I've never run across something like this.

BROWN: This all started with the discovery of two right feet last August. The first on Jedediah Island, and six days later on Gabriola Island. Then in February, another right foot in a shoe turned up on Valdes Island. Three weeks ago, a fourth right foot washed ashore on Kirkland Island. And now a fifth on nearby Westham Island, but this last one was a left foot.

(on camera): One of the strangest things about this case is that there were four right feet, and now that there is a left foot, the question is will there be a match. Police won't comment. What they will say, though, is that it seems bodies wash ashore in this area more often than you might think.

(voice-over): Earlier this month, three bodies turned up in Richmond. Police say the deaths are not suspicious but they also apparently haven't helped solve this case. The coroner says its team is trying to match the DNA of missing persons with what was taken from the first four feet, but no luck.

SMITH: We have run into a couple of problems in terms of raising a DNA profile from some of the samples that we've gathered.

BROWN: One clue, police say the feet don't appear to have been intentionally severed or cut.

MIKE LADISLAUS, FOUND 4TH FOOT: She wouldn't leave that running shoes.

BROWN: Mike Ladislaus has a theory of his own. He and his dog, Sophie, found the fourth foot on Kirkland Island and believes that people died somewhere far from the coast and were washed downstream.

LADISLAUS: The only way you can get up that river is by power. A running shoe is not going to float up against a 5-1/2 to 6 knot current out.

BROWN: There are still far more questions than answers. Are these cases connected? How did the people die? And how many more feet are out there still to be found?

Chris Brown, CBC News, Delta, B.C.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Questions and a lot of speculation here. Could it be organized crime? Boating accidents? Maybe even the 2004 Asian tsunami? But until police can match DNA, we just don't know.

COLLINS: Independent voters down on the Republican Party, but that doesn't mean they're down on John McCain. The latest numbers from CNN's Bill Schneider, part of the Best Political Team on Television.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Independents hold the key to victory. Both contenders know it.

MCCAIN: I don't know if you would call it a maverick, but I certainly have issues that I think can attract Independents.

SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESUMPTIVE PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: As important as it is for Democrats to be unified, it's also important that we reach out to Independents.

SCHNEIDER: Who has got the edge with Independents? Two new polls give the same answer, neither candidate. "The Washington Post"/ABC News poll finds Independents split. So does the CNN poll by the Opinion Research Corporation; 45 percent for Barack Obama; 45 percent for John McCain. Independents remember have no brand-name loyalties. Bizarre as it may sound, they actually look at the candidates and the issues and then make up their minds. So what do they think of the candidates? Do they hate them both?

Actually, they like them both McCain somewhat more than Obama. On the issues, however, Independents are not happy at all. Seventy- eight percent think the economy is lousy; 72 percent oppose the war in Iraq, which explains why Independents are so down on the Republican Party.

Only 33 percent have a favorable opinion of Republicans; 53 percent like the Democrats, big difference. Obama is trying to sell change, which independents clearly want.

OBAMA: You're Democrats who are tired of being divided, but you're also Republicans who no longer recognize the party that runs Washington. And Independents who are hungry for change.

SCHNEIDER: If Independents are so down on the Republicans, why do so many of them support McCain? Because most Independents think McCain will be different from Bush. Otherwise, McCain wouldn't have a chance.

(on camera): Independents don't like the Republican brand, but they do like McCain. For independents, the brand comes second. For partisans, the brand comes first. A reporter once asked Harry Truman, do you vote for the man or for the party? Truman answered, "I always vote for the best man. He is the Democrat."

Bill Schneider, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Turning their lives around. We will take you to a high school where African-American students are defying national averages. It is part of our special series "Black in America."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: And a warning for sailors off Seattle. Watch out for the house. Take a look. This 3,300-square foot house used to sit on Seattle's Hunts Point. Its owners have property on Vancouver Island in British Columbia. They had it shipped by barge to the new site. And any time you ship a house on the water, it is going to draw crowds. And as you can see here, spectators lined a Seattle lot to watch the move.

COLLINS: Following in Tiger's footsteps. The thrill of a lifetime for some San Diego golfers. For $1,500 each, they got the chance to play the same Torrey Pines course where Tiger Woods claimed his third U.S. open title on Monday and it was all for charity.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKEY MCKINNON, JUNIOR GOLFER: I am excited to play it. I just want to try and break like 110. Try and beat my dad.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: Yes, that would be nice on that course. Wouldn't it? No word on whether Mikey beat his dad, but a big thrill, of course, for a 14-year-old golfer.

HARRIS: It's something educational researchers talk about. African-American students on average don't do as well as white students. But one school in New York City is defying those odds.

Here's CNN's special correspondent Soledad O'Brien.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Principal Elijah Hawkes of the James Baldwin School in New York City says his school has something most principals only dream about -- a 94 percent graduation rate.

ELIJAH HAWKES, PRINCIPAL, JAMES BALDWIN SCHOOL: The only way one can do this work and do it well is if you believe that students failing in your class is your responsibility.

O'BRIEN: It's a new public school made up mostly of transfer students and paid for with taxpayer money. The classes are very small, just 17 seniors last year. But what's most surprising, many of the students were failing out before coming here.

(on camera): How bad were your grades?

MARK GARRIQUES, HIGH SCHOOL SENIOR: I failed every class.

O'BRIEN: Really?

GARRIQUES: Yes.

O'BRIEN: So you came here as a failing student?

GARRIQUES: Yes.

O'BRIEN: What are your grades now?

GARRIQUES: It's like B minus.

O'BRIEN: Your graduation rate is significantly higher than the average graduation rate in New York City public school. (INAUDIBLE) fewer students gave you but much higher.

HAWKES: Having your voice heard can equate to passing a class.

O'BRIEN (voice-over): Almost half the students are African- American. A Harvard University study shows black children start falling behind academically by age three. A separate Harvard study found in urban areas, the average black students performs on a level about four years below his peers. Over 1 million students attend New York City public schools. About three-quarters are minorities. 70 percent are impoverished.

JOEL KLEIN, CHANCELLOR, N.Y. PUBLIC SCHOOLS: For as long as anyone can remember in America, our African-American and Latino students are way under performing white nation students.

O'BRIEN: Schools like Baldwin are fighting to change that.

GARRIQUES: I just thought if I could like -- if I was guided the right way, then I would succeed.

O'BRIEN: The school's success proves size matters.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Small schools are just where it's at, where you can sort of like delve into like what a student is and who that student is and what they're about, and I think that that's our core.

GARRIQUES: I have teachers on my butt and I like that because I was never used to that. And they help me change to a better person and got me focused.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They realize that we value that they are individuals, and for many of them that's a catalyst for their success here.

O'BRIEN: They're also helped by mandatory week-long camping trips where students work to overcome challenges.

HAWKES: There's a lot of pushing and cajoling that leads us to students taking that trip and taking that leap of faith. And it's transformative for so many of them.

O'BRIEN: So transformative that a once-failing student is now planning for college.

GARRIQUES: Like I grew up a screw-up so I'm not going to like -- I'm going to change the pattern. I'm going to do something with myself, go to school and make something out of my life.

KLEIN: Baldwin isn't the end for these students. Baldwin is a step in the course of their academic career.

O'BRIEN: Beating the odds by focusing on individual needs. Soledad O'Brien, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: We certainly hope you will join us for an unparalleled television event, "BLACK IN AMERICA." Don't miss these important documentaries focusing on the black experience in America. It is only on CNN.

COLLINS: Preparing for the flood.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The most beautiful sight I have seen in my life was all these orange trucks coming down the road.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: Building makeshift levees in a race against the river.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: In Gulfport, Illinois, a levee is swamped on the Mississippi, and that has residents scrambling to protect their homes.

Here now, CNN's Dan Simon.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The race is on. The river is coming.

RON BIGGER, ILLINOIS DEPT. OF TRANSPORTATION: We've never seen water this high in this area. This is a new record flood for 2008.

SIMON: Here In Gulfport, Illinois, they're building stopgap defenses, temporary protection. Crews are feverishly working to build a temporary levee with truck loads of dirt.

CARL SWON, GULFPORT RESIDENT: The most beautiful sight I have seen in my life was all these orange trucks coming down the road. There's no way that we had time or the resources to do what these guys are doing. This is a tough time, guys.

SIMON: Carl Swon is preparing his daughter's house for the worst.

SWON: You can't imagine how fast it come up. Unbelievable.

SIMON: They're moving everything out of the basement, always the first to flood. It is a common sight around town. Reminded of how the day began. Just three miles away the levee broke, flooding acres of land, swamping a bridge, shutting down train service, ruining crops.

For Jim Olson, a season washed away.

JIM OLSON, FARMER: This is all planted in beans. And then our field across the highway is all planted in corn. And as you can see, it's not going to be farmed this year. It's a total loss.

SIMON: Back on the new front lines, workers are confident.

BIGGER: Yes, this is going to do the trick for these people here. We have two more of these that we've built and we've been real lucky with them.

SWON: We're hanging our hat on these guys and I trust them.

SIMON: At this point, that's all people here can do.

(on camera): President Bush is expected to visit the region on Thursday with a trip to Iowa. The administration is in the process of putting together a relief package to help the homeowners and farmers who have been so badly hurt.

Dan Simon, CNN, Gulfport, Illinois.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Good morning, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins.

HARRIS: And I'm Tony Harris. Stay informed all day in the CNN NEWSROOM. Here's what's on the run down.

Troubles rise with levees. The Mississippi River rolls over sandbag barriers. Miles of total farmland ruined.

COLLINS: Greater supply? Lower price? Live this hour. President Bush makes his case for offshore oil drilling. It's Wednesday, June 18th. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

HARRIS: The mighty Mississippi, levees on the brink. Lives at the edge of disaster. The latest levee to be overwhelmed just hours ago near Meyer, Illinois. That town has already evacuated. Now the rising floodwaters carry the danger southward to Canton and Quincy. Can those levees hold?