Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Dozens of Levees Fail or Soon May in Midwest; Oil Prices: The Pain Hits China; Pregnancy Pact in Gloucester, Massachusetts

Aired June 20, 2008 - 14:00   ET

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

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Well, from Iowa to Illinois to Missouri, the power of the water is still too great. Too many levees are still too weak or they're too short. Already more than 20 levees on the bulging Mississippi have failed to hold back the floods.
Downstream, people are shoring up dozens more. So far, the flooding is blamed for 24 deaths. Tens of thousands of people in six states are out of their homes, and millions of acres of farmland are more like swampland today.

The latest levee breach is just east of Winfield, Missouri, outside St. Louis. The town is hoping a second levee will keep some of the floodwaters at bay.

We start with CNN's Reynolds Wolf. He is there, and Reynolds has been helping out.

How is it going now, Reynolds?

REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: It's going very good here, Don. I'll tell you, the spirit here still remains really good.

You're going to see a lot of these that are going to be popping all over the place. See this? This is not the white flag of surrender. This is a sandbag, sandbags they've been filling up here all morning. In fact, we've had millions of these things that have been filled up and down the Mississippi.

At this place we've got Lorenzo. Lorenzo's been working like crazy. He's over here with Taylor. Check out Taylor. Taylor is working awfully hard.

They both have been working. Everyone has been here putting them together. It's been a community effort filling up these sandbags like this one you see right here.

And one comment earlier. These are only supposed to have three scoops of sand. And like I'm telling you, man, I'm telling you, these are feeling like it's four, five, six. These are getting awfully heavy.

But they've been putting them on these pallets, these big trucks you see farther off in the distance, take the pallets away to places where they are needed. And trust me, even though the forecast, river forecasts, are not quite as bad as they were originally, we still have some flood warnings that are in effect for the area. So everyone is really taking this seriously.

No one's relaxing just yet. And we see Lorenzo. He hasn't stopped. He's been here since early in the morning. The man is a workaholic. So it is a great thing to see.

And we're going to keep at this, Don. I mean, it's hot, the heat keeps building up, the rivers can keep rising. No sign of rain.

It did rain here earlier in the day. Not enough to really make a big difference in the flooding, but certainly enough to make this sand very heavy.

You know, and speaking of sand, what they've been doing is filling them up and they pour the sand right into these little funnels. These are actually traffic cones, and they fill them up and they move them off.

You've been doing this since how long?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Since this morning. Early this morning.

WOLF: Since this morning. Since early this morning.

She's been here for days.

There we go, pouring it right in and off it goes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's kind of a neat thing.

WOLF: She says it's kind of a neat thing. It's an amazing thing. An amazing thing to see people -- this is the second state we've seen it happen, but it's been happening in Iowa, been happening in Missouri, been happening in Illinois. Everybody getting together.

Over here you've got some people taking a break, but they're all not taking that much of a break...

LEMON: Hey, Reynolds...

WOLF: ... because in a few minutes they're going to be back up and loading these pallets.

Yes, Don? What's up?

LEMON: How much is this paying off? Have they been able to hold back the water with this work that they're doing?

WOLF: Well, I mean, you have to remember, they're battling a river, a river that has been here for millions and millions of years. This planet is around 4 billion years. So the planet -- the river's been here for millions of years, and these people have been battling it for thousands of years. For as long as people have been here, they've been fighting it.

Is this going to make a big difference? It's going to make some difference in a few spots here and there. But it's still going to be that power, that river, that may pop through levees. And that's the big concern. That's the reason they're stockpiling so many of these sandbags, because some of those levees they're not too sure on.

Earlier, we were talking about some issues that we have in places like East St. Louis. For now, that levee is holding. But they need something in reserve.

And that's where all this comes into place. And that's why they're working so hard. Nobody is letting up until the threat is over. And hopefully by the time we get towards the end of the weekend, we can begin to breathe easy a little bit.

So let's send it back to you -- Don.

LEMON: Reynolds Wolf, thank you very much. Hopefully their hard work is paying off.

We appreciate that, sir.

(WEATHER REPORT)

LEMON: If you would like to help the victims of the flooding in the Midwest, please go to our Impact Your World page. It's our Web page where you'll find links to several organizations that are stepping in to offer assistance. That's at CNN.com/impact.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: The price of oil up again. Late this morning, crude futures were up about 4 bucks a barrel. At last check, the price had come down a little bit, just under $135 a barrel. Up $2.70 from yesterday, by the way.

Today's jump blamed partly on news of Israeli war games apparently meant as a signal to Iran. Also being blamed, the shrink U.S. dollar, which took a big weekly hit against the euro.

And in Washington today, a bill is being circulated that would tighten laws on energy speculation. Just for good measure, one lawmaker took a shot at big oil.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. PETER WELCH (D), VERMONT: The oil companies have us coming and they have us going. They have resources in the ground that are available for exploitation. They don't drill, but they call for more land to drill on.

They have speculation in the market that's driving up the price. It increases the value of the assets that they're not bringing to market.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Now, on Sunday, Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman will take part in a global oil summit in Saudi Arabia. The Saudis are expected to announce a production increase of 200,000 barrels of oil a day. Now, gas-guzzling China is often seen as a cause of rising energy prices. In a surprise move yesterday, Beijing announced a jump in the price the government sets for gasoline.

More now from CNN's Eunice Yoon on a move that could moderate worldwide demand.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

EUNICE YOON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Paying more for fuel in China. The government is allowing prices to rise. It's the biggest jump in years, marking what some call a dramatic change in the country's energy policy.

STEPHEN GOLLOP, CEO, TYCHE GROUP: They have taken a fairly significant U-turn. And they are going to start to reduce the subsidies, which long term can't go on.

YOON: Paying subsidies and imposing price controls on energy has been common practice in China. The government does it to keep fuel and electricity affordable for its people. The price of fuel in China has been roughly half the international price, but the global price of oil has soared, making it tough for authorities to pay up.

GOLLOP: They're just putting too much their income into these subsidies. It's very expensive for them.

YOON: The situation has also created problems for some of the nation's oil refiners. Companies that would buy oil at high global market prices have had to sell fuel at low government-set prices. To preserve profits, some firms have cut back on buying and selling fuel altogether, causing shortages and long lines at the nation's petrol stations.

It's hoped that the new energy rates will ease those shortages. Gasoline now costs 17 percent more; diesel, 18 percent, jet fuel, 25 percent; and electricity, prices are also going up on average by nearly 5 percent.

But there is a fear the height could stoke inflation, already at its highest rate in a decade. There's also concern about frustration on the streets.

In an effort to ease the blow, the government has exempted farmers from the fuel increases, along with those hardest hit by the recent earthquake. Some manufacturers and economists also worry the price hikes could make Chinese goods sold to the rest of the world pricier.

QING WANG, CHINA ECONOMIST, MORGAN STANLEY: It will add to the cost of production for China as a whole and -- which will make the goods produced in China more expensive than otherwise.

YOON: Still, some hope the move could help cut demand in the world's second largest oil-consuming nation.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I feel the price has increased too much. I will try to drive less.

YOON: And experts say possibly pave the way for China to become more energy efficient down the road.

Eunice Yoon, CNN, Hong Kong.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Now back to a story we have been following throughout the day. We're talking about a pregnancy pact in Gloucester, Massachusetts.

We have got Christopher Farmer on the phone with us now. He is the superintendent of the Gloucester School District.

We have been talking to -- Mr. Farmer, we have been talking to the reporter here who broke this story and also plan to talk to a psychologist later. While we thank you for joining us today, but we want to know what's going on. How is it that 16, 17-year-old girls in your school, so many of them got together and made a pact and got pregnant?

CHRISTOPHER FARMER, SUPERINTENDENT, GLOUCESTER SCHOOL DISTRICT: Well, can I just say to begin with, I had not come across the term "pact" used in connection with this issue until I read the "TIME" magazine report yesterday. And I have been trying to contact Kathleen Kingsbury (ph) through the day, and she me, so I can have a discussion with here as to where the term came from.

Certainly, we knew that there were a number of girls who were having pregnancy tests on a regular basis, such to indicate to the health center staff that they were not trying not to get pregnant. And we did know that when some of them had their babies, they expressed considerable pleasure at that.

But the term "pact" was new to me yesterday. And I am trying to establish when and how and where and by whom. But the term was introduced.

LEMON: OK. So you need to talk to her to find out if it's true or just the word "pact"? Because according to her reporting and other people who have been investigating this, that the girls were filing into the school clinic to find out as early as October if they were pregnant or not. And then when they have weren't, those who weren't became upset. And one eventually -- or some of them eventually said, you know, we got together and said we all wanted to have these babies because we wanted unconditional love.

You have not found that just by talking to the principal or the girls or the parents?

FARMER: Well, as superintendent of the schools, I will leave the details of the discussions with the girls and families to the professionals who are working in the health center and at the school. I certainly can say to you that you are correct in reporting that some of the girls were apparently disappointed when their tests were negative.

LEMON: As much as you can share with us, with your conversation or the information that you're finding out from the principal -- because the principal -- Ms. Kingsbury (ph) said that she spoke to the principal and he willing admitted that, yes, this is unusual, four times the annual number of girls getting pregnant. 17 girls there who got pregnant as part of this group. As much as you can share with us what you spoke to him about, what did he say? Is he saying this is not true?

FARMER: Well, it is certainly a matter of fact that back in October and November, we knew of 10 young women who were pregnant. And we began to have a discussion between the school district, the city's health department and the health center as to the steps that we might begin to take to respond to the situation.

LEMON: OK. OK. Listen, are you -- and I hate to cut you off. But we're running out of time, really. Forgive me. Pardon for me for that. But are you at all alarmed about this?

FARMER: Yes, of course, I am. It would be irresponsible of any of the adults associated with the education service or the health center not to be very concerned about the situation.

LEMON: And what are you going to do about it?

FARMER: Well, the school committee is going to receive reports in due course from other municipalities that have high school-based health centers to hear about good practice and the experience of other places.

LEMON: OK.

FARMER: They will also be consulting with the Gloucester community.

LEMON: OK.

FARMER: And I will be developing a report on how we might improve our health education programs, help to build resiliency in young people, better support them and engage families.

LEMON: Mr. Farmer, we have some developing news that we have to get to, but we want to thank you for joining us here in the CNN NEWSROOM. And will you come back and talk to us once you figure out what you're going to do about it?

FARMER: If invited, yes.

LEMON: Yes. Thank you very much, sir.

FARMER: OK.

(WEATHER REPORT)

LEMON: So we talked to the school superintendent. We had that conversation just a moment ago. And we talked to the reporter about 30 minutes ago who wrote this unbelievable story.

Coming up in about 30 minutes, we hear from a sex educator about what was going on mentally with these teenage pregnancy club members.

PHILLIPS: And Afghanistan, it's volatile and it's dangerous. So what's it like to actually be there? CNN's Nic Robertson takes us on a journey where terror could be around any corner.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: From southern Afghanistan, we're hearing NATO and Afghan forces have been made considerable progress toward ridding the Kandahar area of the Taliban. Accurate numbers are hard to come by since we get figures from all types of sources. And even getting a reporter to Afghanistan is a challenge.

Let's watch as CNN Senior International Nic Robertson takes us on his long commute to work.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We're on our way now. We're at the British Airways lounge at Heathrow, waiting to fly to Dubai, then Kabul. It's the front line news, the headline news in the newspapers here, war in Afghanistan.

We've just arrived in Dubai. We're changing terminals. We have to go to a different terminal to get the flight to Kabul. And already we're getting information here on the wire services about what's happening in Afghanistan.

It says here that NATO forces have used their helicopter gun ships to attack areas in the Arghandab Valley just north of Kandahar. This is where most of the fighting seems to be going on.

We're on the plane now waiting to go to Kabul. We've talked to our fixer there. He's been very good. He's set up security for us when we arrive at the airport to get us to the hotel. We have a hotel booked. Now what we've got to do is sit back and relax, because when we get there, the hard work's going to begin.

(SPEAKING ARABIC)

How are you? Good? Thank you.

Well, Kabul airport. We're here now.

Well, we got here. All the bags are here. Ten pieces are here, which is good news. If we didn't have them, then we would be quite stuck.

Now we've got a briefer to do in about 10 minutes or so, an update on the situation, what's happening in Kandahar, what we're seeing here in Kabul. So we've been on the ground now less than half an hour. It's already straight to work.

Right. OK. Thanks.

So they've -- it sounds like all they've said is they've left Arghandab. Yes.

Right. OK. Yes, thanks.

Well, according to the latest figures that were reported overnight from the NATO and Afghan offensive in the Arghandab district, 20 Taliban were killed there. Now, though Kabul is not as dangerous, anything like as dangerous as Baghdad, we are going to get our flak jackets out of our bags just to have them handy for the ride to the hotel.

Here we go. Looking a bit dusty, dirty. Haven't worn it for a couple of months. I'll get used to it again.

Jonathan, you've just arrived in Kabul for the first time. What are your thoughts?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, it's hot and I'm braced for what lies ahead.

ROBERTSON: What are you doing there, Tom?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just getting the body armor ready. Put my plates (ph) in.

ROBERTSON: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Making sure everything's packed away correctly so that (INAUDIBLE). Before we leave, we'll be getting a brief. (INAUDIBLE) just in case there is an incident. And if there is an incident, everybody knows what to do. So we have got the procedures in place, because obviously if there isn't a brief, then everybody will be doing just what they want to without any sort of understanding of what we should be doing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: And joining me now on the phone from Kabul, Afghanistan, CNN Senior International Correspondent Nic Robertson.

Nic, give us a feel for what the situation is like on the ground right now. You know, last week we covered the massive jailbreak where 800-some members of the Taliban and other insurgents were able to escape that prison. And then, of course, the villages that were taken over as well by the insurgents. Are you still seeing signs of the intensity there?

ROBERTSON: Certainly. You see it in different ways and different places where the NATO and Afghan forces were fighting in the south. The villagers are able to go back into their villages. They're going back on foot because they're afraid their vehicles might blow up landmines.

They're finding dead Taliban under the buildings there. But then look at Kabul here. There are concerns about security in this city right now, the possibility of further attacks by the Taliban.

We heard this evening that a Frenchman had just been released, had been kidnapped here over a month ago. He had been released with two Afghan colleagues.

But the threat of kidnapping here, the threat by the Taliban to kidnap westerners here in Kabul, that appears to be going up. That's something new. It's a change in tactics. We saw that earlier in the day, a suicide bomber jumping from the roof of a building onto a coalition vehicle.

You know, you see these changing tactics everywhere different. Nowhere is safe.

PHILLIPS: And also, Nic, I had a chance to talk with General Dan McNeil last week. You know him as the former head of Afghan -- or of forces there in Afghanistan. And he had predicted these spikes in violence, he had talked about need for more troops in Afghanistan.

Are you seeing more troops on the ground or are you getting a sense for, yes, this is an area that does need more help, does need more military presence?

ROBERTSON: There is an increase. Three thousand Marines have gone into the south of Afghanistan over the past few months. We've seen their casualties go up as they've gone into some tough areas.

There's no doubt about it, General McNeil left frustrated that he couldn't do more with all the troops he had. Secretary Gates is frustrated because he can't get more NATO troops into Afghanistan.

Yes, they do need more troops here to provide more security. Yes, there is a frustration that the Afghan police and the Afghan army are not as developed and trained as they should be.

So, while you see some improvement in the economy, for example, in Kabul, the reality is, is that security is not as good as it was. Security is deteriorating. And it does need -- certainly that is the assessment of commanders here, it does need more troops here to make it more safe.

But that can be counterproductive. If you kill too many innocent Afghans as a byproduct of fighting the Taliban, that works against you. And this is what coalition commanders here live with every day.

PHILLIPS: And we really could not forget the reason why the U.S. went to war there is because of 9/11. That is where it all started.

And Nic Robertson, we appreciate your reports. I know you're going to bring us some great stuff in the coming weeks.

Thanks, Nic.

LEMON: Hurricane Katrina survivors in Louisiana are getting supplies they need. It only took three years. The supply was there. The demand was there. So what on earth got in the way? (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Looking live at the numbers there at the New York Stock Exchange. Dow Industrials down about 206 points right now.

Stephanie Elam following the numbers for us. We're about 90 minutes away from the closing bell. We'll take you there live before we wrap the show -- Don.

LEMON: OK. So it was just a week ago that CNN covered FEMA had given away $85 million worth of brand-new hurricane supplies that had been sitting in warehouses for the past two years. Various government agencies got the items, but not Katrina victims. That's the people they were supposed to go to.

Well, Louisiana said no thanks to the supplies because a state official claimed no one had told him they were needed anymore. That's all about to change today with the delivery of several truckloads of those FEMA items.

Special investigations unit correspondent, Abbie Boudreau -- she is in New Orleans and she has been uncovering this. She joins us now with the very latest on this story.

Abbie, go ahead.

ABBIE BOUDREAU, CNN SPECIAL INVESTIGATIONS UNIT CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Don.

People are starting to get really excited out here because in about one hour, about three truckfuls of brand-new household items are going to show up right here. We're talking about all different types of household items, from mops and brooms, to pots and pans. All the kind of basic essentials that people have needed.

Those are the same items that have been sitting in a FEMA warehouse for the last two years. Today, Katrina victims will start getting some of those items.

I want to bring you in the warehouse, if I can. Now this is what Unity of Greater New Orleans calls its warehouse. But really it's just the back of an old, abandoned church. They've been asking for donations for the last two years; begging for cracked plates, a spoon, a fork, whatever people can give them. They've been saying, please, give these items to us, not realizing that for the last two years, items have been stored in FEMA warehouses, just stockpiled.

I don't know if you've seen the pictures but just boxes wrapped, stacked to the ceilings full of brand-new things. Today, this warehouse is about to get a makeover because they're going to receive thousands of brand-new things -- Don.

LEMON: All right. Thank you very much. It's good that those folks are going to get that.

Abbie Boudreau in New Orleans, standing in there in the midst of all of those supplies. We appreciate it.

PHILLIPS: Straight ahead, some alarming extra curricular activities at a Massachusetts high school. We talked to a sex educator about what's going on mentally with a teenage pregnancy club.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Vice President Condoleezza Rice?

Well, those words may sound good to a lot of people. But what does the secretary of state have to say about that?

She actually sat down with CNN's Fareed Zakaria for an in-depth interview, touching on Iran, Gaza and the vice presidency. Here's a small bit of it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CONDOLEEZZA RICE, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: I think the problem there is that one could never trust that Iran would stick to the deal. And the reason that nobody, and that includes Russia, China, wants Iran to have enrichment and reprocessing of any kind on its territory, is because nobody trusts them not to cheat.

So I do see things getting better in the West Bank. I don't see things getting better in Gaza. And I think that's --

FAREED ZAKARIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: But that's my point -- that you're isolating Gaza and it's doing worse. Why is --

RICE: No -- but -- Gaza is doing worse because Hamas is isolating Gaza and Hamas is a stranglehold on Gaza.

ZAKARIA: But isn't that collective punishment on the people of Gaza and not Hamas?

RICE: The problem is that Hamas is the one that made the bad choice. This is not a bad choice that the United States, or Europe, or anyone else made. Hamas made the bad choice.

ZAKARIA: If John McCain were to ask you to be his vice presidential candidate -- he needs somebody younger, he needs somebody who can help him with women. You're perfect.

RICE: John McCain is a terrific patriot and he's a good friend, and he would be a superb president --

ZAKARIA: If he offered it what would you say?

RICE: Eight years is long enough. I don't need another job in government.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Pretty fascinating conversation with Condoleezza Rice. See it Sunday, 1:00 Eastern on "GPS" with Fareed Zakaria, right here on CNN.

LEMON: It was quite a show. We're only learning about it today. Israeli launched a large-scale military exercise earlier this month. Fighter jets and bombers with apparently one purpose: to show the world just how far it can reach.

Israeli jets flew west far into the Mediterranean, about the same distance as strategic targets lie to the east in Iran. Israeli officials won't say whether that was the statement they were making. We have no video of the exercise. But these are the types of warplanes, or planes, involved in this. A report in today's "New York Times" says more than 100 fighters, bombers, helicopters and refuelers took part.

PHILLIPS: You may think nothing of handing over your I.D. to security officers before boarding a plane, but you don't have to until tomorrow, that is.

CNN's Jeanne Meserve explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND CORRESPONDENT: Nick Kloiber is not your average traveler. He flies about once a month. And when he does, he does something unthinkable to most of us -- he refuses a routine security request.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I.D. sir?

NICK KLOIBER, PRIVACY ADVOCATE: No thank you.

MESERVE: He will not show transportation security officers his identification.

KLOIBER: I shouldn't really have to show my I.D. to travel in my own country. I will gladly go through the secondary screening to ensure that I am not a threat to anybody. But as for who I am, that's really none of their business.

MESERVE: Under current TSA policy, a traveler does not have to show I.D. if they are willing to undergo a more intense security search.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right, so I'm all finished here. You're clear to go.

MESERVE: But that changes on Saturday. Passengers who "willfully refuse" to provide identification at checkpoints will no longer be allowed to fly.

KIP HAWLEY, TRANSPORTATION SECURITY ADMIN.: We need to be able to stop somebody who we know is a terrorist from getting on the plane. It's not too much to ask to say, just tell us who you are.

MESERVE: But civil liberties advocates say U.S. citizens should not have to show documents to travel within their own country. JIM HARRISON, THE IDENTITY PROJECT: The TSA is incrementally chipping away at the freedoms that Americans have. And the freedoms that we're talking about here are the fundamental right to travel.

MESERVE: Although airlines check travelers' names against terror watch lists, the TSA says its document examinations provide another layer of security and turn up people traveling with fake I.D.s every week.

HAWLEY: To us, it's not a philosophical argument. There are people trying to do harm, take down planes, and we can't let them have a vulnerability.

MESERVE (on camera): People who say their I.D.s have been lost or stolen can still fly if they give the TSA information that will help verify their identity. But critics say a clever terrorist could bluff their way through security, and still get on an airplane.

Jeanne Meserve, CNN, Reagan National Airport.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Gloucester, Massachusetts -- made famous in "The Perfect Storm."

Remember that movie?

Well it's back in the spotlight now due to an outbreak of teen pregnancies. Why would young girls want to share some kind of pregnancy club?

PHILLIPS: Villagers thought she was a goddess. The girl with eight limbs. Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta with the remarkable update on her transformation.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Following a developing story. In the Midwest -- inundated with floodwaters -- and now St. Charles County, as Chad has been reporting.

Chad, that's part of the metropolitan area of St. Louis?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: It is. It is, Don.

But if you get just north of St. Louis proper, you're actually going to get into some farmland, in this what we call bottomland. It literally is the floodplain of the Mississippi River. And I can take you on kind of a Google tour.

There is St. Louis. We're going to fly you up to the Mississippi River area, up here north. You can literally see how many farms. It's all farmland there. And then, as we flatten you out, then you begin to see where St. Peters begins. That's the part of St. Charles County that people understand to be St. Louis. Let me flatten you back out again. And there is St. Louis. A lot of people that I know live up in St. Charles, but not up in the farmland area where you're seeing it here, kind up on the bluff -- the bluff that is St.Peters. But this is the area down here near the Highway-C levee. There is a small, little, almost like a drainage ditch that runs along this Highway-C. What used to drain into the Mississippi is now going the wrong way. The water is actually going up this drainage ditch.

When that happens, if it breaches over the top of it -- this is Highway-C, this big long street right there just north and south. And then back down here you can almost begin to see where there is a little creek and stream there. Those creeks and streams are backing up from the Mississippi River.

They are overtopping, not breaching, they are overtopping. There is a difference. They're just going over the top. That levee is still there. That dirt berm is still there. And if it erodes, and it goes away, that would be called a breach. If it just sits there for a while, and the water goes over the top of it nice and slowly, that's called an overtop.

Also, one other thing that Kyra wanted me to talk about, too. There was a sand boil in East St. Louis. Kind of -- bring you back here to St. Louis. St. Louis -- big, big city on the Missouri side. You get on the Illinois side, you get a town of East St. Louis. That sand boil is actually on the dry side of the levee, water coming from under the levee and up and boiling up on this side where it's the good side, the dry side.

They had to make a sandbag ring around that boil. Right now it is contained there in East St. Louis. They found it last night and they contained it with sandbags.

LEMON: It's the same sort of thing when you see the sewer sort of bubbling up from the street.

MYERS: Exactly. That's exactly it. Except the sewer is a big hole. This is just kind of a tunnel of water that is coming up.

And it can be dangerous. It can be the first sign of failure. They're not saying anything like that here. This is taken care of, at least at this point.

LEMON: Wow. East St. Louis, just on the other side of the river. It's sort of like Philadelphia/Camden. Same thing.

MYERS: Absolutely.

LEMON: Thank you very much, Chad.

PHILLIPS: A high school in Gloucester, Massachusetts is dealing with an outbreak of pregnancies. "TIME" magazine reports several teen girls made a pact to get pregnant and raise their babies together.

Sari Locker joins us now from Newton, Massachusetts. She's a sex educator and psychologist. She is going to join us to sort of explain what is going on.

It might be pretty difficult, Sari. But when you heard about this story, and as you've been learning more about it, are you shocked? Are you surprised? What are your initial thoughts?

SARI LOCKER, SEX EDUCATOR: What's surprising here is that these teenager girls are under age 16. Usually when teenagers plan to become pregnant, they're 18 and 19-year-olds. So that's what was a surprise about it.

I think the other thing, where you said -- it's hard to really know exactly what's going on. Because what we have so far -- we have a couple of reporters who have spoken with the principal and the nurse, and some students from that school. But no one's heard from those students who have gotten pregnant, as far as I know. And we haven't heard from the parents.

I'll tell you, Kyra, in a way I sort of hope that those voices aren't heard. I'm worried that this story is going to end up glamorizing those girls and making it even worse in terms of how teen pregnancy is depicted in the media.

PHILLIPS: Well -- interesting because you recently wrote an article, I was just looking at it right here, "America's Glamorization of Pregnant 16-Year-Olds."

Is pop culture playing into this?

LOCKER: I think it is, but not to as great of an extent as parents are.

So let me explain. I think that when the movie "Juno" came out and when Jamie Lynn Spears announced that she was pregnant, both had happened in December of this past year, we really were inundated with these glamorous images of pregnant teens. Jamie Lynn did not announce her pregnancy through a very somber interview, nor was it a rumor. It was a beautiful glossy photo shoot on the cover of "OK" magazine. And teens to do pick up on that.

Also, all the rage in Hollywood now is the baby bump, and all the baby bump watch and what celebrities are putting on their baby registering for for their baby showers. So teens pick up on all of that.

But honestly, I believe very firmly, and this is what I said in the article, that teenagers are following the values of their parents. So a teen whose parent teaches them to not get pregnant in school, or until they're married, is a teenager who will delay intercourse maybe, or certainly delay pregnancy if she is following those values, regardless of what the media is telling us.

PHILLIPS: Well, Sari, a number of psychologists coming forward saying, look, these girls were looking for purpose, they were looking for unconditional love. They just -- are you buying that?

LOCKER: Well I do believe that teenagers this age who would make a choice like this are choosing a particular identity. When it comes to where they are developmentally, girls this age are trying on different roles. They're experimenting with what it means to be a developing girl.

Most girls that age think about their future in terms of who they might want to be when they grow up. They think about their career aspirations, their job choices. They think about what extra- curricular activities they want to be in. Most of them are not choosing -- well, not just most, almost all of them, would not even think to choose motherhood.

So, yes, it is about identity search. But what is so unusual is that for them, they must have considered this a viable option for their young teen years.

PHILLIPS: And that's what is so hard to understand. I remember going through school, and anyone that got pregnant when I was in junior high or high school and it happened, you were really shunned. It was a disgrace, it was just something you didn't do. You had to take classes where you had to carry a baby around and learn how to take care of it. They would kidnap the baby and you would learn what it's like to be irresponsible.

Has that old-school mentality just gone out the window because we're more progressive in 2008?

LOCKER: I will say when a teenager does get pregnant and is in high school, I am all for that school doing everything they can to keep her enrolled in school. So if that means helping her in terms of daycare and things like that, as long as it's going to help keep her in school and help her graduate, I am all for that.

But the most important thing here is that we need in-school comprehensive sex education. Because good, comprehensive sex education is not teaching to go out and have sex and just make sure you use a condom. Comprehensive sex-ed is teaching about decision- making and choices. And it's encouraging adolescents to delay sex.

They need that sort of a forum. If this school had had somewhere where these girls could have talked to a sex education teacher, and if they had told a sex education teacher that they were thinking that getting pregnant would have great, maybe they would have had a chance to have some type of intervention, someone convince them that this was not the choice to make.

Also, we don't know where their parents were in this. And I certainly hope that parents watching, that you talk to your teenagers about sex.

PHILLIPS: Great advice.

Sari Locker, author and sex educator, appreciate your time.

LOCKER: Thank you, Kyra. It was great to be here.

LEMON: Gas prices are up. But guess what? We're driving more than ever.

We look into it next hour -- or next, I should say, in our energy fix segment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Wow. Serious music there.

No surprise that high gas prices are causing many to cut back. But here's a shocker. We may never see as much driving as we did last year ever again. CNNMoney.com's Poppy Harlow -- I got it this time, Poppy. I didn't mess it up. She joins us now.

POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: It's Friday. It's OK.

LEMON: It took me the whole week to get it.

She joins us with our energy fix from New York.

Hi, Poppy. Are you going to tell us that people are driving less now because gas is so high?

HARLOW: You bet they are.

Our demand is falling, but not so much overseas. Let's get right to it folks. Driving is as American as apple pie and baseball. That is sure right. But it is all down hill from here, not the price of gas but the amount we consume. A new report out today from Cambridge Energy Research says demand for gas in this country will fall this year for the first time in 17 years. It also says 2007 will have been the peak year for U.S. gas consumption.

The short-term reason, consumers cutting back, as Don just said, as we see these record high gas prices and a weak U.S. economy. But there is a long-term trend as well. Systemic shifts are taking place with automakers, changing the types of vehicles that they make.

Goodbye, hummer.

And consumers -- taking a lot more public transportation.

Hello, subway. That's what I take every day.

But keep in mind, the report says the gas prices are going to continue -- if they continue at this record high -- that's when we'll see the demand fall. Whether lower demand will mean lower prices, though, that is certainly the question. That has yet to be seen because U.S. demand may just be replaced, Don, by increasing demand overseas.

LEMON: OK. So your mode of transportation is the subway. Other people a hummer.

I'm not sure, those hummers are so big. Which one holds more people, the hummer or the subway car?

OK. Poppy, have a great weekend, will you?

HARLOW: You too, Don.

LEMON: All right. Thank you.

We're following the energy fix story from every angle on CNNMoney.com.

PHILLIPS: Villagers thought that she was a goddess. The girl with eight limbs. Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta will update us on her remarkable transformation.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: A baby born with eight limbs. Indian villagers actually believed that she was a goddess. But now after pioneering surgery, she's had a chance to become a little bit more of a normal little girl.

We get an update from CNN chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Like the goddess she was named for, Lakshmi had eight limbs when she was born in India's Bihar region back in 2005. In fact, villagers there believed she was the goddess reincarnated.

Word spread to India's renowned surgeon, Dr. Sharan Patil.

DR. SHARAN PATIL, ORTHOPEDIC SURGEON: In spite of whatever the beliefs were, as a medical man I certainly thought she needs help.

GUPTA: Dr. Patil examined Lakshmi and recommended surgery to the remove her extra limbs, even though it was a high-risk operation.

PATIL: Amazing. The first time I've seen anything like this.

GUPTA: Tests revealed the heart, liver and lungs, just one working kidney, another would be transplanted from the parasites (ph).

PATIL: One is located here. The other functioning kidney is located here.

GUPTA: The twins (ph) were also fused at the spine. They would needed to rebuild her pelvis. An agonizing moment as Lakshmi goes into surgery.

A team of 30 doctors had prepped for a month. At 16 hours in, a critical milestone.

PATIL: The parasite (ph) is off.

GUPTA: After 27 hours, Lakshmi, with two arms and two legs, is transformed. DR. THIMAPPA HEDGE, SENIOR NEUROSURGEON: The hero in this whole story is Lakshmi.

GUTPA: Today, Lakshmi recuperates at a facility in Rajasthan and still needs work on her spinal cord and clubbed feet. But doctors say her progress is remarkable.

PATIL: I see her growing up as a normal girl.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well, we would like to thank CNN's team of journalists who covered this story, and also National Geographic. "The Girl with Eight Limbs" premieres Sunday, 9:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific time on the National Geographic channel.

The next hour of CNN NEWSROOM starts right now.