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Hurricane Bertha On the Move in the Atlantic; Wildfires Force Evacuations in Seven Counties; Car Bomb Explodes Indian Embassy in Afghanistan; Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton Campaigning Together; FEMA Supplies that Never Made it to Katrina Victims; The Lowdown on Hypermiling
Aired July 07, 2008 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, once again, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Tony Harris. Stay informed all day in the CNN NEWSROOM. Here's what is on the rundown. Bertha, the season's first hurricane on the move in the Atlantic. In California, a hellish fire season forced an evacuation in seven counties.
CHETRY: Three years after Katrina, new stories of sheer incompetence. FEMA supplies that never made it to hurricane victims.
HARRIS: Are you a hypermiler, we show you how to drive past the gas pump laughing. Recession-proof your life today, Monday, July 7th. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.
So weather events, part of our top stories this morning. We are watching the first hurricane of the season. Meteorologist Rob Marciano, there he is. He's tracking Bertha. He will tell us where it's supposed to go. Plus, we are live in California for the wildfires. A break in the weather provided some relief for firefighters but will the weather hold? That's a critical question for firefighters and homeowners. CNN's Kara Finnstrom is in Goleta, California this morning. Kara, good morning to you and a bit of a break for weather conditions out there and a chance for some folks to get back to their homes.
KARA FINSTROM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Tony. I mean you could see the thick, marine layer right here. A cooler, damper weather moved in over the weekend and here in Goleta, those temperatures are not expected to heat up. Firefighters say until about Wednesday, so they are trying to take full advantage of this break in the weather and get an upper hand on this blaze.
One way they've been doing that is with a crushing air attack. We got some videotape to show you of, you know, up to 15 air tankers up in the air at one time. A flight of helicopters dropping hundreds of thousands of pounds of flame retardant and also water on to these flames, trying essentially to take the intense heat out of this fire. It's brutally intense, they tell us. And by doing that, that allows the ground crews to get in there and do the real hard dirty work of actually putting these fire out.
Now, at this point we're told this fire is about 30 percent contained. So, that's a nice improvement. But they do stress that 2,800 homes remain threatened. So they don't feel they are completely out of the woods yet. The other bit of good news, Tony, is that this fire is moving in a northwesterly direction. That means it's moving towards the forest, towards lots of trees and more fuel but away from homes. So they will be continuing to make those air drops once this marine layer lifts today. And trying to make the most of this break. That they are hoping. Right now definitely no visibility out here for them to fly.
HARRIS: Sure.
FINNSTROM: But they are hoping later today they will be able to do that.
HARRIS: OK. Our Kara Finnstrom for us in Goleta, California. Kara, good to see you. Thanks.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COLLINS: Now to Afghanistan, it ripped through the wall of the Indian embassy. A car bomb. That may in fact be the deadliest attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, since the fall of the Taliban. Journalist Thomas Coghlan, is following the developments for us and joins us by telephone now. Thomas, what do we know at this point? At least 41 people killed?
VOICE OF THOMAS COGHLAN, FREELANCE JOURNALIST: That's right, Heidi. We've got a death toll of 41 dead and 139 injured in this attack. The attack happened at around 8:30 a.m. local time and you can see the devastation outside of the Indian embassy. Following that, the Indian defense attache and the press attache of the Indian embassy are both among the dead. That's after a local taxi rammed into an Indian embassy vehicle as it was driving through the gates of the Indian embassy. Many people were killed in the blast and injured were Afghan civilians queuing up for visas outside of that embassy waiting to collect their visas when the embassy opens.
COLLINS: Tell us, Thomas, the thinking, if it at all possible at this point any way, targeting the Indian embassy.
COGHLAN: Well, the Indian embassy is a prominent symbol of one of the major donor countries to Afghanistan. India has contributed around $750 million in the reconstruction of Afghanistan. It also is a country linked historically to be the old northern alliance. Now, that was the alliance that fought against the Taliban alongside U.S. soldiers back in 2001. And so that would be a reason why the Taliban, for instance, might wish to attack symbol of India. India is not a major contributor to the military effort in Afghanistan. But as I say, it's a huge donor nation and that's a prominent embassy in the Afghan capital.
COLLINS: Yes. All right. Well, Thomas Coghlan, we appreciate that, joining us by telephone this morning.
HARRIS: "Issue Number One," the number one topic for them today, John McCain and Barack Obama speaking about the economy on the campaign trail. McCain is in Denver laying out a plan to balance the budget in four years. Obama travels to Charlotte to talk about helping families hurt by the slow down. More tag team events coming up.
Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton will make three joint appearances this week unlike the Unity rally last month, these are planned as private fund-raisers and the Obama campaign says the Senator will accept the democratic nomination before 75,000 people. His speech has been moved from Denver's Pepsi Center to Invesco Field at Mile High. Are you hearing what you want to hear from Barack Obama and John McCain on "Issue number one"?
Our e-mail question of the day, have the candidates been specific enough about their plans for the economy? Let us know at cnnnewsroom@cnn.com.
COLLINS: Your paycheck is shrinking, your costs climbing as experts debate whether or not we are in a recession. We're answering an important question for you. How can you recession-proof your life? Pain at the pump is relief in the pipeline. We'll have the latest on surging prices of oil and gas.
And a big week on Wall Street, investors are on edge as new economic numbers shine a light on the road ahead.
HARRIS: Well, the experts argue whether over whether or not this is a recession, let's see where the rubber meets the road for real. Gasoline prices hit another record high. AAA says prices climbed 0.01 of a penny. Regular self-serve now averages just under $4.11 a gallon. And Chrysler employees begin a two-week vacation today, whether they like it or not. It's the first time the nation's number three automaker is shutting down its worldwide operation. The company is trying to shave costs as it battles slumping sales.
COLLINS: An offering to some motorists. CNN's Dan Lothian reports on how one church diocese is helping during a time of high gas prices.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Jennifer Munoz has a car. But these days, with gas over 4 bucks a gallon, the single, unemployed mother of two is riding the bus, running errands and looking for a job.
JENNIFER MUNOZ: It help saves money. I don't have filling my tank up every few miles.
LOTHIAN: And she doesn't have to pay for this trip to the grocery store because the Roman Catholic diocese of Providence is picking up the tab.
MUNOZ: I don't have to be set back when I don't have the money for the gas. I can still depend on me to do whatever I have to do.
LOTHIAN: The diocese, which provides shelter and food for the needy is now handing out books of ten one-way bus tickets. Each book worth more than $17, tapping into their charity fund to pay the bill.
BISHOP THOMAS TOBIN, DIOCESE OF PROVIDENCE: We thought by purchasing these bus tickets and sharing them with people if they can't afford gasoline, if they don't have their own car, at least it's one way to get them around for some basic needs.
LOTHIAN: The church never expected to be in the business of funding public transportation but as gas prices keep increasing, so, too, was the burden on many commuters, like Munoz who not long ago was driving a large SUV before trading it in for a small car.
And then now, even that is too expensive.
MUNOZ: Yes. It is.
LOTHIAN: So far, the diocese has spent more than $17,000 to buy bus tickets and more than 400 of the books have been handed out to people who can show they have a real need.
TOBIN: We have a very simple application process. We don't want to make this so burdensome or so bureaucratic that it defeated the purpose.
LOTHIAN: Bishop Tobin says he realizes that this effort won't solve all the problems of those who need a little help, but he says at least it will help relieve some of the pain, especially during this summer travel months.
MUNOZ: It's not cheap. It's not like the way it used to be.
LOTHIAN: Dan Lothian, CNN, Providence, Rhode Island.
HARRIS: A daring rescue. 15 hostages freed. We will show you how it all went down deep in the jungles of Colombia.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Get out the yellow ribbon, that is for sure. We can actually hear from the three Americans held captive for years in the jungles of Colombia today. They'll be attending a welcome home ceremony this afternoon in Texas. And these latest pictures show them getting reacquainted with their families. Marc Gonzalves, Thomas Howes and Keith Stansell, were among 15 hostages freed last week in a daring rescue mission. That rescue caught Colombian rebels off guard. Our Karl Penhaul takes us inside that secret operation.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: FARC rebel toting assault rifles, mount watch in a drug plantation in eastern Colombia. The time on the video says 1:22 p.m. 15 of the rebels most valuable hostages wait nearby, including former presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt and three American defense contractors. The rebels believe that a helicopter that had just land is a humanitarian mission to ferry their captives to another guerilla camp. They have no idea this is the final phase of a daring operation by Colombian military intelligence months in the planning.
It's now 1:24 according to the video. One military intelligence officer posing as cameraman asks a question to this FARC commander known as Cesar. Cesar seems relaxed but declines to answer. Like the other hostages, American Keith Stansell is handcuffed, ready for the flight.
1:27, Stansell utters the word gringos for Americans and shows the plastic cuffs to the man he thinks is a bona fide cameraman. The lieutenant Raimundo Malagon held hostage for 10 years seems agitated. I'm the Lieutenant Malagon of the glorious Colombian army and I've been held in chains for 10 years, he says. A minute later, the hostages walk the final yard on their way to the waiting chopper. The audio is cut as we see Ingrid Betancourt preparing to board. She looks haggard after more than six years as a hostage. A last shot of the guerrilla captors. And minutes later, this - pure joy. Betancourt is in tears. The hostages have just been told they are free.
PENHAUL (on-camera): The full details of such secretive military operations are rarely revealed. But the key fact, 15 long suffering hostages and now home free. Karl Penhaul, CNN, Bogota.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Incredible, incredible video. We are likely to s see the three American hostages with their families. We'll definitely see them this afternoon during a yellow ribbon ceremony at Brook Army Medical Center in Texas. It's a live event happening in "The Situation Room" today at 4:00 Eastern.
HARRIS: And an important introduction in the shadow of the G8 Summit in Japan. President Bush speaking face-to-face for the first time with Russia's new leader. CNN White House correspondent Elaine Quijano is following the summit from Hokkaido, Japan.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Beneath the smiles and pleasantries, the meeting was a chance for President Bush to size up Russia's new president Dmitri Medvedev.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Medvedev is a smart guy who understood the issues very well.
QUIJANO: On the sidelines, the group of 8 summit in Japan, the two men met for the first time since Medvedev took office in May.
BUSH: I'm not going to sit here and start psychoanalyzing the man but I will tell you that he's very comfortable, he's confident, and I believe that when he tells me something, he means it.
QUIJANO: That cautious assessment stands in sharp contrast to 2001 when President Bush after his first meeting with Russia's then President Vladimir Putin, famously said he had looked Putin in the eye and added - BUSH: And I was able to get a sense of his soul.
QUIJANO: Now Medvedev, Putin's hand-picked successor says he agrees with the U.S. on the need to curb Iran and North Korea's nuclear ambition. But like Putin, he's firmly against the Bush administration's plan for a missile defense system in Eastern Europe.
QUIJANO (on-camera): Medvedev says he would like to reach an agreement on that issue as well. And while President Bush may only have six months left in office. In Medvedev words, he says he's very comfortable dealing with George. Elaine Quijano, CNN, Hokkaido, Japan.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: State flags in North Carolina are at half staff today honoring former Senator Jesse Helms. Helms dies last Thursday. His body is on public view. A live picture now at a church in Raleigh, North Carolina. He will be buried tomorrow in a private ceremony. Helms was a staunchly conservative republican. He represented North Carolina for 30 years. Jesse Helms was 86.
COLLINS: So are we in a recession? Does it really matter? Rising prices and shrinking dollars and how to recession-proof your life. Gerri Willis has some tips.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Well, Steve Miller there for you.
HARRIS: OK.
COLLINS: Yes, and we're looking at the big board, which we were told was going to lightly open in a tepid manner and that's pretty true. Up about 60 points right now. But there is a plus sign. We always look for that. On Friday it was closed. So this Monday, we're following those tepid numbers.
HARRIS: Look, unemployment on the rise, foreclosures certainly mounting, stocks OK, falling, is the economy facing a recession? CNN's personal finance editor, Gerri Willis, tells us what you need to know about the "r" word and boy I guess it's still in some quarter an open question but if you're talking about your own personal finances, you know better than most if you're in a recession or not. But clearly the idea for a lot of us, Gerri, is to tighten the belt where we can.
GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: Absolutely, Tony. Good to see you. Happy Monday. You have to cut down and reduce spending that isn't essential. Pay down credit card debt that can add hundreds to your annual household budget. You know, Tony, the average American household budget has about $9200 in credit card debt and the interest rate is mid-to-high teens. So you want to get rid of that.
HARRIS: Yes, you have to do that. I mean, tell us about the conversation that heads of households, moms and dads should be having with the rest of the family. WILLIS: Well, you've got to talk to the kids.
HARRIS: Yes, you do.
WILLIS; You know, tweens and teens, they're going to push you right through your household budget and into the red. I want to enlist their help in curbing spending and you lead by example here. Share your savings plans and realities of money with them. Look, if you're car pooling, let them know it. Show them the brown bag.
HARRIS: There you go. There you go. And we also for those of us lucky enough to have jobs, we certainly want to protect those jobs and all of the job losses we've seen in the economy. Give us thoughts on how to do that.
WILLIS: Well, job loss is the primary problem with the recession. That's what you've got to worry about. And the economy shed about $448,000 jobs since the beginning of the year to make sure that yours is not the next one to go, make sure your boss knows your value to the organization. Volunteer to help of any task left unfinished due to layoffs. Maybe there have been layoffs in your office. Raise you profile with trade groups, professional organizations, they can help you find a job in the event you lose yours and update your skills by taking a class at a local college. Consider it a career investment. Now it's time to put money against you.
HARRIS: Yes. That's great advice. If you would, remind us again because the importance of putting together kind of an emergency fund.
WILLIS: Well, this is tough. You know, we always talk about the importance of setting aside an emergency fund of three to six months worth of savings and the scenario today is the reason why we suggest that a slow economy poses extra risks and costs to the average family. Even if gas prices have you struggling, set aside some money on a regular basis. The good news here is banks are desperate for deposits and paying more than they otherwise might for your money. Some banks are offering introductory rates as high as 4.65 percent on money market accounts. Find out more, bankrate.com, hsh.com, and you don't want to find yourself tapping into your 401k fund. Get some savings together.
HARRIS: Well, that segues us perfectly to a last point here. Is this a time for us to take a look at our retirement funds and maybe look at tweaking some things?
WILLIS: Well, OK, you know, it may not be a recession and it could be what they call stagflation. Slow growth, rising prices, inflation doesn't just make it tough to meet your household budget. It also hurts your investments. There are tweaks you might want to make. Consider adding what they call Tips, that's Treasury Inflation Protected-Securities, it's a hedge against inflation. Your principle in the investment is adjusted up every six months to keep pace with rising prices and that's a big problem for investors. You can buy tips directly from tresurydirect.gov, through a mutual fund company or through a broker. Another hedge, investing in asset classes that typically rise with broad inflation such as real estate, commodities, lots of different things you can be doing right now. Go to morningstar.com to find some great funds to invest in. Of course, if you have any questions, send them to us at toptips@cnn.com. We would love to hear from you.
HARRIS: I'm going to buy some oil as a hedge. Oops. That's part of the problem. All right. Gerri, if you would, give us a look ahead to "Issue number one" at noon, Eastern today.
WILLIS: Well, we'll be looking at everything to do with your wallet, jobs, housing, debts, investments. That's today at noon. Also, answer your questions by e-mail. Send us a question at issueone@cnn.com.
HARRIS: OK. Gerri, good to see you. Thanks.
WILLIS: My pleasure.
COLLINS: I've got it well.
HARRIS: I appreciate it. Thank you.
COLLINS: A driver who's hyper about getting his money's worth.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: He routinely gets 50 miles per gallon in his plain old Accord, twice what Honda promises.
Our Miles O'Brien learns how to go many, many miles on a gallon of gas.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: And we made it to the half hour. Welcome back everyone to the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Tony Harris.
COLLINS: Hi everybody, I'm Heidi Collins.
Returning home in southern California. Cooler temperatures helping firefighters gain ground on a fire in Santa Barbara County. But that break may not last long. Temperatures are expected to creep back up during the week. Some evacuation orders have are been lifted. That fire is about 30 percent contained. In northern California, the cooler temperatures have both helped and hindered. Look at that. Fog slowing the firefighting flights. And the fire in Big Sur is now 11 percent contained. Officials say they won't have full containment until the end of the month. Can you believe that?
(WEATHER REPORT)
HARRIS: More on the economy now. And you know, despite all of the talk about -- oh, I should pause for the music a little bit, shouldn't I?
COLLINS: Always pause for the music.
HARRIS: Oh, that's right. You know, despite all of the talk -- OK, enough of the music -- about the recession, the most recent numbers show the economy still growing all be it at a snail's pace. But, still growing.
The last recession was in the 1990s. It lasted eight months in 1990 and '91. Unemployment peaked at 7.8 percent. Home prices in the top 10 cities fell more than eight percent. The stock market dropped 21 percent but bottomed out in three months. The recession in the '70s lasted twice as long -- 16 months between 1973 and 9175. The Dow Jones dropped an unbelievable 40 percent. Unemployment spiked at more than 9 percent. And in 1974, we saw the inflation rate balloon to -- what's wrong -- 11 percent.
COLLINS: There's just so many numbers.
Penny pinchers rules of the road. As gas prices keep climbing, hypermilers keep saving.
CNN's Miles O'Brien rides with a master conservationist.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN CHIEF TECHNOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENT CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Wayne Gerdes may look like he's out of gas. But actually he's just kind of hyper about saving every drop he can. And I mean hyper.
WAYNE GERDES, HYPERMILER: We're in neutral so I'm ready to pop. It starts, we're going.
O'BRIEN (on camera): Wait, you just went. That was like immediately into drive.
GERDES: There's no point in wasting any fuel.
O'BRIEN: Wayne is the reigning king of the gas mileage misers known as hypermilers. A ride with him is a real eye opener. Not to mention a filling loosener.
GERDES: OK, hold on to your camera. We're going to take it hard.
O'BRIEN (on camera): Yes, I'm going to hold on. I'm going to hold on.
(voice-over): That's what happens when you take a turn without touching the break pedal. Wayne avoids it like, well, gas stations. He routinely gets 50 miles-per-gallon in his plain old Accord. Twice what Honda promises.
GERDES: And I'm already going to shut it down. This is an advance technique...
O'BRIEN: He kills the engine whenever he can. Never tail gates but does draft behind big trucks. He always drives the speed limit. And plans trips as if they were the D-Day invasion.
(on camera): So it forces you to think entirely differently about how you drive.
GERDES: Yes, I'm already -- I'm thinking that like three lights ahead of us in the suburban traffic area. And now I'm going to use what's called a ridge ride.
O'BRIEN: In Wayne's world, angry tailgaters are proctologists.
GERDES: Guys that ride your butt.
O'BRIEN: And when they pass him in a huff...
GERDES: They're the mad rabbits.
O'BRIEN: And big SUVs are FSP's, as in...
GERDES: Fuel-sucking pigs.
O'BRIEN: I almost didn't have the heart to tell him about my Yukon-XL. But when he came to New York the other day, he held his nose, plugged in a gadget that displays fuel economy and we were off like a herd of turtles for hypermiling 101.
GERDES: Gentle, easy. Back off a little bit. No sense in racing. Shift to first because we're going slow enough to first. I want your foot on the brake and I want you to shut off the car at 1,100 RPM. And you're working your butt off right now.
O'BRIEN (on camera): It's hard work, it is.
(voice-over): Using his techniques, I instantly curtailed my FSP's thirst for unleaded by 30 percent. But still a long way from 50 miles a gallon.
GERDES: This vehicle just isn't meant for downtown.
O'BRIEN (on camera): You think?
I have to watch my own speed on this.
(voice-over): Wayne started doing this after 9/11 made him reconsider our dependency on foreign oil. He runs a web site with tips. And with gas where it is now, he has a growing, albeit, slow- moving following. He sure made me a believer.
(on camera): OK, call me "Hyper Miles."
(voice-over): In fact, you might say I'm pushing the concept.
Hyper Miles O'Brien, CNN, Wadsworth, Illinois.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: It's fun to watch an expert hypermiler like the one in Miles' story. But the truth is many of the most extreme tactics are not safe and sometimes even illegal.
Stephanie Elam has our energy fix from New York and will break it all down for us. Plus Stephanie, there's just a lot of people who are never going to make that effort.
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN BUSINESS NEWS CORRESPONDENT: No, they're not. And I don't know if you necessarily want to push your car at this point even with gas prices at a record $4.11 a gallon today, Heidi.
So, no surprise people are looking at things like hypermiling. But you're right. You know, from AAA to law enforcement, there are some really bold warnings that some hypermiling techniques are really dangerous. And some are illegal and some just simply aren't worth it. So, after all, saving a few pennies or even dollars won't do much good if you don't live to tell about it. Or if you've got a really expensive...
COLLINS: That's such a good point.
ELAM: Yes, you know, like living is actually better. So let's go that way first.
For one, let's start with some basics here. Rolling through stop signs. OK, first all of all, no, we can't do that. That's dangerous, illegal, you know we all know those things. AAA also says you shouldn't turn off the engine or shift into neutral to coast down hills. Also very dangerous. Don't overinflate your tires. And particularly unsafe according to AAA, drafting behind large vehicles. For one thing, they can't see you anymore and your visibility goes down. And so you're risking your lives as well as the other drivers that are around you, Heidi. So that one's a really big stay away from.
COLLINS: Yes, unless you're on a bike and you're behind other bikes. I mean, that's a great tactic. All of that drafting works very well.
ELAM: If you were an (INAUDIBLE) and you're at the Tour de France, you may go ahead and draft.
COLLINS: When on the Tour de France, I draft.
ELAM: Not so much.
COLLINS: When I'm in my car, I don't.
ELAM: Exactly.
COLLINS: OK. Surely though, there must be some sort of energy fix that we can actually talk about that does work.
ELAM: That's true, that's true. There are some aspects of hypermiling that are safe and money saving and those are the true fixes. First, keep the tires properly inflated and avoid accelerating and breaking sharply. Like if you're merging into, let's say, the Holland Tunnel in New York City, don't do that all the time. Try to you know, gauge it and keep control of your speed. It's also a real drag on gas mileage to keep doing that. And it's also a problem if you're driving too fast. Slow down.
If you keep it close to 55 miles per hour on the highway, you'll get better mileage out of your gas. So that's also a good thing there too. Instead of turning off your engine on the downhill, by the way, just remove your foot from the accelerator. It's a lot easier to do, too. You don't have to think about too many things. And remove unnecessary weight.
So clean out your trunk. Make sure you don't have stuff in your car that you don't need there. A good hypermiler doesn't carry anything extra in the car. Now, car makers are coming up with some solutions as well. Today there's a report Toyota will add solar panels to some Prius models. And of course, if you want to know more about this, you can always check out CNNmoney.com. Where there's a very cool story about eight new plug-in vehicles. Something that can be a real energy fix for all of us -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Yes, very cool. Because you know what? I'm not going to be a hypermiler. I just know it. I'm admitting it. I'm sorry.
ELAM: No. I'm not going to do it. And I'm not getting out of the car to push it to start. These things just didn't go with me.
COLLINS: My goodness, lovely. All right. Stephanie Elam, thanks so much.
ELAM: Thanks, Heidi.
HARRIS: A Yankee strikes out. A-Rod's wife files for divorce. What's going on here? Will a pop superstar get the blame? Questions linger.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Quickly getting some information that we want to share with you directly from Pakistan. CNN has been able to confirm another explosion. Now, there was one that happened on Sunday to tell you about. We've been reporting over the weekend. Now, another blast. A series of blasts, in fact. In Kurachi, at least 30 people wounded that we are aware of right now. They were apparently brought to a hospital. And, again, we are learning that there was a series of explosions, four or five of them possibly.
One of our correspondents Reza Sayah, is in the area and will be joining us by telephone from Pakistan, in just a moment. So once again, following the situation in Kurachi, Pakistan. You are seeing some of the pictures coming in after this horrible series of explosions. So, once again, following the situation in Karachi, Pakistan, and we will get a live report coming up just as soon as possible. HARRIS: Well, the New York tabloids are going to have a field day with this one. Alex Rodriguez's wife has filed for divorce ending their six-year marriage. In the divorce filing in Miami, Cynthia Rodriguez says baseball's highest paid player quote, "emotionally abandoned his wife and children." The couple has two daughters, the youngest was born in April. Just last week, media reports linked the New York Yankee superstar third baseman to Madonna, saying he was spending late nights in her New York home. A-rod and Madonna both deny the reports.
COLLINS: Hurricane giveaway. A state sends supplies to everyone but the victims. The results of a CNN special investigation, next in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Again, want to let you know about this information just into the CNN NEWSROOM. In Pakistan, specifically, in Karachi, Pakistan, we have learned of a series of explosions. According to people who are in the city, four or five explosions. You're looking at some of the video now coming in. Obviously, at one of the hospitals where apparently 30 people have been taken. That's right, 30 people wounded in all of this. Again, it went off in Karachi, Pakistan. 30 people taken to the hospital.
Our Reza Sayah is in the area. He's going to be talking with us by telephone to tell us more about what may have happened here. Coming to us live from Islamabad. I mean, it follows an explosion that happened yesterday as well, near a police station in the capital of Pakistan. At least 16 people were killed just yesterday. So we again will follow that story for you out of Pakistan.
HARRIS: We want to give you a look at the big board, New York Stock Exchange. Let's take everyone there right now. And we were given indications that this would be kind of a modest start to the work week. But take a look at this. The DOW encroaching on triple- digit territory. Up 95 points. We're getting ready for the second- quarter earnings reports so everyone's a bit nervous here. But, a nice start to the work week. The DOW up 94 points.
COLLINS: Outrage in Mississippi. Tens of millions of dollars of stockpile supplies meant for hurricane Katrina victims, never made it to needy. Instead, all of that stuff went to various states and to federal agencies.
Special investigations unit correspondent Abbie Boudreau, just got back from the Mississippi coast and is joining us now with this exclusive story. We've been talking about this for a while. So, what's the latest now?
ABBIE BOUDREAU, CNN SPECIAL INVESTIGATIONS UNIT CORRESPONDENT: Well, last month we reported what happened in Louisiana. How FEMA stored $85 million worth of household supplies, some were donated to the federal government. FEMA then gave these all these items away instead of giving them to Katrina victims. Well, the story in Mississippi gets even more complicated. Because the state actually took the supplies but, again, never got them to the people who are still in need.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SHARON HANSHAW, COASTAL WOMEN FOR CHANGE: This is bigger than what we think. This is gigantic.
BOUDREAU: Complete disbelief.
GLENDA PERRYMAN, UNITED HEARS COMMUNITY ACTION: We worked so hard to help people in our community when the government is holding stuff back that we can use to give to people that don't have.
BOUDREAU: Reassembled leaders of eight Mississippi nonprofits still doing all they can to help Katrina victims, nearly three years after the storm.
CASS WOODS, COASTAL WOMEN FOR CHANGE: You would have to be living under a rock not to know that there are still needs.
BOUDREAU: Each expressed outrage about what CNN's investigation uncovered. None of them knew that FEMA had stored these supplies for the last two years, and they all say the need for those items is still there.
ROBERTA AVILA, INTERFAITH DISASTER TASK FORCE: Even more now than right after the storm.
HANSHAW: It's scary to know that there are supplies that are harboring and people in need right now as we speak today.
BOUDREAU: Instead of the supplies going to Katrina victims, FEMA declared them surplus and in February gave them all away to federal agencies in 16 states. Louisiana's Surplus Agency said no thanks to FEMA's offer because it said it hadn't been notified that there was still a need.
It wasn't until U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu learned of CNN's investigation that she was able to retrieve some supplies for victims in New Orleans.
(on camera): And what do you think when you're watching all of these items coming off this truck?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think I'm going to get a new pot set.
BOUDREAU (voice-over): But no one is celebrating in Mississippi.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We didn't think it was going to be this long (ph).
BOUDREAU: Howard and Gloria Griffith's (ph) home was swept away by the storm. They have been living in this FEMA trailer ever since.
(on camera): These are pictures of brand-new household items that FEMA had stockpiled in warehouses for the last two years that were meant for you guys, meant for Hurricane Katrina victims. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I've never seen none of it.
BOUDREAU (voice-over): Struggling to make it, the Griffths say they still need the basics...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We still need cleaning supplies and stuff like that.
BOUDREAU (on camera): Cleaning supplies, kitchen supplies --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Very expensive.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Bath towels, washcloths.
BOUDREAU (voice-over): Both have full-time jobs and they have spent every penny they have earned to rebuild. But now, they say they are broke and there's little chance they will be finishing their home any time soon. That's the reality for many Katrina survivors on the coast.
But when Mississippi had a chance to help people, like the Griffiths, rebuild their lives, just listen to what happened. Unlike Louisiana, Mississippi's Surplus Agency told FEMA it wanted the supplies. But it didn't hand them to groups helping Katrina victims. Instead, it gave dinnerware sets, pillow cases, men's underwear, and coffee makers to state prisons.
Other agencies, like the Department of Wildlife, became the proud owners of more coffee makers, cleaning supplies, and other items. And the state even kept plastic buckets for itself.
State officials did not return our repeated calls and refused our interview request to try to find out how this could have happened. But we did talk to a spokesperson from Mississippi's surplus agency, Kym Wigggins, who told us, "There may be a need, but we were not notified that there was a great need for this particular property."
BILL STALLWORTH, HOPE COORDINATION CENTER: These families don't have anything or very little of what they need to have.
BOUDREAU: Bill Stallworth is the director of a nonprofit group that helps are rehouse Katrina victims. He's also a Biloxi city councilman. He says he cannot believe so many state and federal officials are this out of touch.
STALLWORTH: And when I hear people stand up and just beat their chest and say, we've got everything under control, that's when I just want to walk up and slap them upside the head and say, get a grip, get a life.
BOUDREAU: Stallworth, and other community group leaders, maintain if they had only known about these items, they would have begged for them.
STALLWORTH: When somebody comes up and says, oh, we've got it all together, everybody is taken care of -- hey, have you been down? Have you looked? Have you seen?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BOUDREAU: So why didn't these community groups get any of these supplies?
Well, it turns out they aren't registered with the state's surplus agency. Most of them say they never even knew it existed. Now they are getting signed up. Most of those groups are getting signed up.
I talked to a FEMA official recently who tells us it is now launching an internal investigation to find out why these supplies were never used, and to make sure this never happens again.
COLLINS: Well, are all of the supplies gone? It seemed like it was a pretty big stockpile.
BOUDREAU: Well we've been told that all of the supplies have been distributed. Of course, in Louisiana, they were able to get some of those supplies back to the Hurricane Katrina victims. The people in Mississippi, of course, are hoping that could only happen there. The nonprofit groups we talked to, though, say it might just be too late. They fear that they have been forgotten.
COLLINS: Wow. It's an incredible story. I know you'll continue to follow it for us.
Thank you. Abbie Boudreau, thanks.
BOUDREAU: Thanks.
HARRIS: Well we told you just moments ago about a series of blasts in Karachi, Pakistan. We want to get the latest on that. CNN correspondent Reza Sayah is in Islamabad.
And Reza, if you would, give us the very latest on this. The reports I'm reading right now indicate at least 30 people wounded.
VOICE OF REZA SAYAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Tony, not a good night in Karachi.
We're hearing reports of multiple explosions throughout Karachi with dozens injured. I just got off the police line with Karachi police. They tell us that there were a total of four blasts within the past hour. They have been back to back to back. One person killed, according to Karachi police, and 30 people injured.
Police say the explosion happened on a motorcycle, a truck, and a bicycle. Whether someone was on this motorcycle and bicycle inside this truck remains a mystery. The "Associated Press" reports that these blasts were low intensity. But judging by the pictures that we're seeing on local reports, they did some serious damage.
We are watching and monitoring local reports that show many of the 30 victims being transported to hospitals. It looks like they have severe injuries. And what's unusual about this blast is it happened in the city of Karachi, the economic hub of Pakistan. The last time Karachi saw a significant attack was of course October 18th, the day Benazir Bhutto made her return to Karachi. That day, her convoy came under attack by a suicide bomber. She survived it, but more than 140 people died.
Ever since then, Karachi has not seen an attack. But today, four explosions, according to the Karachi police, leaving one person dead and more than 30 injured.
HARRIS: OK. And Reza, just a quick follow up here. When you factor in yesterday's attacks near Islamabad in which 17 were killed, the question becomes: why this uptick in violence, and what do these attacks say about the new government?
SAYAH: Tony, one thing that's very frustrating about Pakistan and its turmoil is being able to connect the dots. Obviously, this government and past governments have come under threat by these militant groups in the tribal region along the Afghan border, but there's so many militant groups with so many different end-goals and ambitions that it's difficult to put your finger on who's responsible for this.
But one thing we can tell you is last week, this new civilian government launched its first major military offensive against militant groups in the tribal area. Many of those militant groups threatened reprisal. Are these explosions the reprisal that these militant groups promised? Government officials say it's too early to tell. But what is for certain is that --
HARRIS: OK. I think we just lost our Reza Sayah, reporting from Islamabad on the latest violence there, a series of blasts in Karachi. I'm sure we'll be able to talk to him again next hour right here in the NEWSROOM.
COLLINS: Meanwhile, stick around because we've got news about Senator Barack Obama's campaign plane (ph) in a moment.
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