Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Ida's Arrival; Tropical Storm Track; Memorial at Fort Hood; D.C. Sniper Execution; High School Hostage Situation; Remembering the Victims

Aired November 10, 2009 - 09:00   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, John and Kiran. That's right. Here's what we're working on today.

Late-season tropical storm makes land. Ida's heavy rains could bring flooding to the southeast and travel delays beyond.

Plus, remembering the victims of the Fort Hood shootings. President Obama attends today's memorial service as we learn more about the suspect.

And scary subway scene. A woman falls on to the tracks as a train comes barreling into the station. We'll tell you more about that, too.

Good morning, everybody, I'm Heidi Collins in New York, and you are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Well, it lost some punch, but tropical storm Ida is still delivering a weather smackdown to the U.S. Gulf Coast this morning. The storm made landfall near Mobile, Alabama just before dawn.

Here's what it left in nearby Destin, Florida. These images captured by CNN iReporter Jan Mull.

So, Jan, thank you for those.

Big storms are not unusual for Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, or Florida. All four states preemptively declaring states of emergency before the storm. Across much of Florida's western panhandle high winds downing a few power lines and trees. And we're hearing some about sporadic electrical outages and localized flooding, too, especially in some of those low-lying coastal areas.

It is not over yet. The situation could get worse with expected storm surge. In Pensacola, water levels could be 3 to 5 feet higher than normal.

So let's find out how things are looking down there right now. CNN's Rob Marciano just had to head to the beach for his field duty this morning.

Wow, we can barely see you, Rob. It's definitely no picnic there. Ida, though, is not the category 1 and 2 hurricane it once was, so is that any consolation for the people on where you are? ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, it certainly is. I think the people here were preparing for a hurricane, even though pretty much everyone couldn't believe their eyes. They know the history of November tropical systems, and that is, there aren't many of them.

And certainly aren't many of them that make landfall. The last hurricane to make landfall in the United States was back in 1985. Last tropical storm, back in 1988. So it did increase in intensity to a tropical storm. That was sort of expected. And then the storm surge that we saw here in Pensacola, also expected, which means not terribly bad.

Along the Alabama coastline up towards Pensacola, we saw about a 3 to 4 foot above average tide. And now when you get to where I'm standing right here, and since then the tide, the astronomical tides have receded.

So even though we have onshore winds right now, which would push the water onshore, we've got the moon pulling the water offshore. So that's a good thing. There's been a little bit of beach erosion. There have been some sporadic power outages because of the winds that have been gusting over 40, 50 miles an hour at times, but not terribly widespread. About 2,000 or so as far as power outages are concerned.

A couple of local roads are under water, but generally speaking, most roads and all bridges are open. The Coast Guard has shut down all ports along the Florida panhandle to the Mississippi coastline until tropical storm Ida winds down.

Now conditions have actually gotten a little bit worse here. You can see the waves pounding along the pier. Waves 10, 15, and in some cases 20 feet high. Since even though the storm has weakened, because it's getting closer to us now after making landfall a couple of hours ago, the winds have been steady, if not steadily increasing.

So I think it will be a good 12 to 24 hours before things begin to wind down here along the Florida panhandle as this storm makes that right turn that I'm sure Jacqui Jeras will describe for you.

But, Heidi, as far as the damage here is concerned, four inches of rain, about three of that came in about four to five hours. So tremendous amount of heavy rain...

COLLINS: Wow.

MARCIANO: ... last night just leading to localized flooding. But as you can see right now, most of the rain is north and east of the system, and right now we're about parallel with the storm, which is about 30 or 40 miles to my west.

That's the latest from here. An unusual situation.

COLLINS: Yes.

MARCIANO: And you think back to just two weeks ago, Heidi, we had a major snowstorm across the high plains in the Midwest. And now we're still talking about tropical storms rolling into the United States.

COLLINS: Yes.

MARCIANO: So certainly some interesting weather to say the least the last two weeks.

COLLINS: Yes. Really weird, too. But, boy, those waves are definitely looking big behind you. So we'll keep our eye on that and of course come back to you anytime we should need to do that this morning.

Rob Marciano, thanks so much. Appreciate it, Pensacola, Florida, this morning.

Want to get you a little bit more now where the remnants of Tropical Storm Ida are tracking. For that, meteorologist Jacqui Jeras is standing by in the Severe Weather Center this morning.

So, hi, Jacqui.

JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Hey.

COLLINS: This storm is going to make its way north at some point, is what we're expecting, right?

JERAS: Well, eventually but it's going to take a trip to the east first. Kind of a complicated pattern that we're going to be seeing, but basically Ida is going to get absorbed in a cold front and it's almost going to take a nor'easter kind of pattern.

In the meantime, we're still kind of starting that northeasterly turn a little bit. We did have landfall earlier today at Dolphin Island. Right now it's over Mobile Bay, but we are going to be seeing landfall once again.

It's really hard to pinpoint because our system has become so disorganized and it's really hard to find the center. And you're going to have to rely on things like wind profiles to help figure that all out.

Maximum sustained winds, 45 miles per hour. It will continue to weaken. Rainfall, certainly the big story. And check out that big swath here of those rain bands. We're expecting to see anywhere between about three to six inches of rainfall. Pretty widespread.

Our winds so far, you could really hear it gusting, couldn't you, from where Rob was? There you can see our sustained winds have been in the 10 to 20-mile-per-hour range in this area. But gusts certainly still reaching along the 30 to 40-mile-per-hour range or so.

I want to show you. There you can see the flood warnings, winds and watches which are in effect at this hour. We just kind of want to show you that track and all of this rain. This is not just a coastal storm. Watch how this moves through Charlotte and to Raleigh and eventually into the mid-Atlantic states.

We could see some rain in places like Washington, D.C. from this storm and some very windy travel conditions -- Heidi?

COLLINS: All right. Jacqui Jeras, we will continue to stay up to snuff on all of this with you as well. We're getting a little bit of news coming in, Jacqui, so we'll check back with you later on.

JERAS: OK.

COLLINS: Thank you.

At any moment now, the president and first lady will leave the White House and head to Fort Hood, Texas. There, they'll meet with survivors of last week's shooting rampage and attend a memorial service for the 13 men and women who were killed.

CNN's David Mattingly is at Fort Hood right outside the gates where the memorial will actually be taking place this morning.

David, good morning to you. Sure to be a very, very emotional day today.

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Heidi. Already, a very powerful moment this morning. Every morning here at the post, as they do every day, there's revelry, the soldiers stop and salute as the flag is raised. But since the tragedy of last Thursday, after the flag is raised, it is then slowly lowered to half-staff. A constant reminder of the 13 people who lost their lives in that shooting rampage.

And the president and Mrs. Obama due here. They're going to be meeting with the victims and some of the wounded that are still in the hospital -- that will be private -- before the president speaks to a very large gathering here. It's supposed to be, we're told, a traditional type of program for this memorial service.

But in scope, it is very large and the emotions in play are still very raw here at Fort Hood. We're getting some indication of what type of emotions and how strong they are from some of the services that have been held in small -- in hometowns of the victims all throughout the country.

Just last night, there was a candlelight vigil, this in Kiel, Wisconsin. And this one was for Sergeant Amy Krueger. She was 29 years old. She joined the Army after 9/11. She was part of the 467th Medical Company. Her story like others lost in this shooting, we have been telling -- we have been hearing that she is -- was committed to duty.

We're hearing about her enthusiasm for service and of course, how much she will be missed.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I love you, Krugels, I miss you so much, and thank you for being the best friend that anybody could have ever asked for. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We all love you very much and we'll miss you every minute of every day. We are proud of the sacrifice you have given to our country and all of us that are here tonight. You are the definition of a true American hero. We salute you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'll personally miss seeing her and hearing her say, hey, Uncle Bob. Amy -- Kreugs, this world is definitely a lesser place without you in it and you'll be forever remembered and loved.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: And thousands expected for the services here, Heidi. This is a very big challenge to the military. Everyone here so used to having to deal with losses on the field of battle. This one hitting very close to home, affecting people in ways they hadn't counted on.

COLLINS: Absolutely. All right, David Mattingly, we're going to make sure we stay up to speed on all of this as well. In fact, want to make sure we let you know. You can join us for our special coverage, "MEMORIAL AT FORT HOOD." It will begin at 1:30 Eastern, 10:30 Pacific.

If you're away from your TV, you can always watch the full memorial coverage on CNN.com/live.

Now let's take a moment to turn to the investigation. Investigators say Major Nidal Malik Hasan will be charged by the U.S. military rather than in a civilian court. They say it appears he acted alone and without any outside direction.

He did, however, communicate with a radical cleric overseas as many as 20 times. They say those communications appeared innocent.

Nearly one year ago, the FBI began looking at the accused gunman before deciding he did not pose a threat. Well, now the FBI is turning the microscope on itself. Director Robert Muller has ordered an internal review of the bureau's handling of that information.

Twelve hours. That's all the time John Allen Muhammad may have left. The mastermind of the D.C. sniper attacks is set to be executed tonight.

CNN's Jeanne Meserve is at the prison in Jarrett, Virginia where three weeks of terror went on.

You remember it all too well, right, Jeanne?

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: I do, Heidi. It was 23 days, 16 shootings, 10 people dead. A terrifying time in the greater Washington area. And tonight, John Allen Muhammad is scheduled to pay for those sins with his life.

Shortly before 9:00 Eastern, he'll be taken into the death chamber here at the Greensville Correctional Center. IVs will be put in both arms and he will be given a lethal injection. But before that happens, he's going to have a visit from his first wife, Carol Williams, and their son, Lindbergh.

Carol Williams says she's been getting about two letters a week from John Muhammad. Last night Larry King read one of those letters on his program. Here's a bit of it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LARRY KING, HOST, "LARRY KING LIVE": "Carol," he writes, "you need to be here in Virginia on the night of November 9, '09 so that you can be at this prison at 8:30 a.m. on November 10, '09, so that you can see me at 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. And then take an hour and a half break and then see me again for a contact visit from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.

"Carol, I miss my family for the past eight years. I don't want to be missed the day that these devils murder my innocent black (EXPLETIVE DELETED). Carol, the time that you're giving me is too late or you will have to leave. When if you do what I've said, you'll see me for four hours.

"So please, Carol, get there at 8:30 for our family. Don't forget that. Thanks. Love, John. And thanks to get healthy and stay strong and healthy. Thanks, Carol, much."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MESERVE: And yesterday the Supreme Court rejected an appeal from Muhammad's lawyer. They argued that he should not be executed because he is mentally ill, still pending a clemency appeal that's before Virginia's governor, Timothy Kaine.

Back to you, Heidi.

COLLINS: And Jeanne, what is the reaction to his impending execution?

MESERVE: Well, they run the gamut. Earlier this morning, Charles Ramsey, who was the police chief in Washington, D.C. at the time, was interviewed. And he said, if he had the opportunity, he'd like to be the one to administer the death penalty to John Muhammad.

He said he's absolutely deserving. Many victims' families believe the same way. However, there is a different point of view. His lawyers, of course, believe that he's mentally ill. And also, we spoke to Reverend Al Archer. He ran a mission out on the west coast where John Muhammad stayed first with his three children, with his wife, Mildred Muhammad, and then later with Lee Boyd Malvo.

Archer was very suspicious of what he saw Muhammad doing with Malvo, but he feels also that he's mentally ill, that he should not be executed. He's very upset to see this happening tonight.

Heidi, back to you.

COLLINS: All right. CNN's Jeanne Meserve. Jeanne, thanks so much.

And just as we are talking about the D.C. sniper, we want to get this breaking news to you out of New York state. In fact, a hostage is apparently being held at a high school. We want to go ahead and get Gregg Pulver on the phone now. He is the Pine Plains town supervisor, actually on the scene of what's going on to find out exactly the latest here.

Gregg, if you can hear me OK, our understanding is that at Stissing Mountain High School there, there's apparently a hostage that is being held by a gunman inside the school and is it true that you believe it could be the principal of that high school?

GREGG PULVER, PINE PLAINS, NY TOWN SUPERVISOR (via phone): Yes. We are -- we are being told that it's an administrator. At this point, we're also being told it is a principal. There are two principals, so we are unclear which one at this point. We do believe, though, it may be the high school principal.

COLLINS: This happened, I believe, after kids came to school, is that correct? Where is everybody else in the high school at this time?

PULVER: The school is under lockdown. They have the gunman contained to a single room. He is being monitored. They have been in communication by phone with him. As I said, they are considering this a hostage situation.

They are trying to negotiate and they are keeping the students under lockdown until they have -- you know, until they're confident of an evacuation plan.

COLLINS: Yes.

PULVER: We are asking all parents to go to the Stissing House parking lot in the center of town. It's a restaurant. That's way if there is a -- that way when they're released or can be a reunification in a single spot. So that's where people should go for updates, parents, and hopefully we see this as a good outcome and...

COLLINS: Well, Gregg, I have to ask you. Boy, as you hear information like that, I'm considering if parents are listening at home right now, this is two hours from New York City, I understand. The children are in an area that is completely separate from where this is going on? I mean, they have been isolated, in a way?

PULVER: They have him isolated. The students are in their classrooms.

COLLINS: OK.

PULVER: Are locked down. You know, there are police in the building. They are safe, at this point in time. And we have no reason to believe that they will not become safe. You know, as this comes to a conclusion. So they are -- you know the police -- we have the state police MRT, the Mobile Response Team. We have the Duchess County Sheriff's SWAT team, as well as -- you know, you can imagine, a lot, a lot of police here at this point.

COLLINS: Absolutely. Is there any idea on who the gunman is? Are we talking about a student possibly?

PULVER: No, it seems like an adult. I hate -- I don't want to use the term "parent," because we don't know if the person has any kids in the school. At this point, it is an adult. It is not a student.

COLLINS: OK. And just to give a little bit of detail here, we're talking about -- about 500 kids, about 100 staff members, so that's 600 people or so that are in the building, potentially, at this time, right?

PULVER: Correct.

COLLINS: All right. And so you're working on the evacuation plan and probably most encouraging, and I just want to make sure we point that out, once again, is that the gunman is in contact and so they are negotiating with him as we speak?

PULVER: That is my understanding. That they have been in contact with him. That they are currently negotiating a peaceful end to this.

COLLINS: Of course.

COLLINS: We all pray. We all pray for that, obviously.

COLLINS: Absolutely. Well, Gregg, we're going to stay in touch with you, because we want to make sure that we continue to get all the latest information out about this pretty scary situation.

One of two principals being held hostage by a gunman inside of Stissing Mountain High School. This area is Pine Plains, New York. And Gregg Pulver, Pine Plains town supervisor, was just talking with us.

Gregg, thanks so much.

Again, this area is about two hours north of New York City. We will absolutely monitor the situation and bring you anymore details just as soon as we get them here.

Right now, though, if you would like to do something to help the victims at Fort Hood, Texas, but just aren't sure how, Josh Levs is here to give us some ideas on what you can do.

Good morning to you, Josh.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Heidi. Absolutely. We do have a list of places that will help you reach out to help those affected by the tragedy at Fort Hood. And we'll show you exactly where to go, coming right up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COLLINS: Top stories now. A renewed call for peace in the Middle East by someone who can help make it happen. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he wants an immediate resumption of peace talks with Palestinians.

Mr. Netanyahu talked about that just before a meeting yesterday with President Obama. The Palestinians want a freeze on any future Israeli settlements before resuming talks.

Quite the sight in Berlin, and for the rest of the free world yesterday, as Germans celebrated the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. We talked about it here yesterday. It's a collapse that signaled the end of communism in Eastern Europe and the subsequent reunification of post-World War II Germany.

The climax of the day's festivities was this, a line of thousand -- giant dominos toppling over where the wall once stood. Very cool.

A vantage point of the Afghan war rarely seen from the view of an American soldier. This video was shot last month by an Army sergeant deployed to the Kunar Province. You're seeing U.S. forces trade gunfire with Afghan insurgents in a two-hour-long battle. The soldier's mission, to separate the anti-government forces from the general population and live to tell about it.

Once again, we are following some breaking news out of New York. A high school is under lockdown at the moment. We're talking about Stissing Mountain High School. Two hours north of New York City.

What we have been told by the Pine Plains town supervisor -- and just to give you an idea, this is Pine Plains, New York -- is that apparently, one of the two principals inside that school is being held hostage by a gunman.

The gunman is in contact with authorities. They are negotiating with him. The children in this school are still in their classrooms. They are, as I said, on lockdown, but apparently where the gunman and this principal are is in sort of an isolated area, very separate from where the kids are.

So we will, of course, stay in touch with this story, very closely. The negotiating is being -- is going on right now and they're working on an evacuation plan, of course, as well. So very, very tense moments right there.

We'll bring you the very latest should we hear anymore right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: More now on the memorial later today at Fort Hood. President Obama is on his way there right now and our Josh Levs is standing by in Atlanta with more on the event itself.

Josh, I've been looking at the schedule and there are going to be a lot of people speaking and a lot of people really trying to come together today.

LEVS: They -- yes, exactly. And you know, really thinking about the families and the lives that have been lost here. In fact, I want everyone to know throughout the day in advance of it and during it, we actually have a way that you can get to know all the people who lost their lives in this attack.

Let's zoom in here, I'll show everyone. This is from CNN.com. What we have here is a special that introduces you to every person that was killed on Thursday. And you can get to know some of their background and what they did, their service to this country.

COLLINS: Wow, that's great, Josh.

LEVS: And (INAUDIBLE) to the military. Yes, it's a really great way to get to know these people as individuals. You know, it's one of the most important things we can do today to really honor them, is understand what brought them in.

We also want to give you kind of lay of the land for today. So we have a Google Earth. Let's go to that, it's an animation. It's going to show you what's going on. We've been telling you for days about Fort Hood being the largest U.S. military post in the world. Tens of thousands on the post at any given time.

What you're seeing there labeled is where the attacks took place on Thursday. Now we're going to zoom over a little bit to where the event, the memorial is taking place today. That's where it will be, right there, in front of that center and we actually have some video of the preparations that you may have been seeing.

This is it. They've been creating this barrier along the area and obviously, an event of this magnitude would have a lot of preparations anyway, add in the fact that the president will be there. You can certainly imagine how much is going on throughout the day to prepare for all this.

So, obviously, Heidi, we encourage people throughout the day to keep it on CNN.com and look for those details and, you know, be with us for the event this afternoon.

COLLINS: Yes. Absolutely. This tragedy affected so many people. I know that there are viewers out there who probably want to do something to help.

LEVS: Yes. Exactly. There are. And we have a special way for you to do that. Let's zoom back in. I'll show everyone how you can help those people, the families of the victims and others.

We have a section here on CNN called "Impact Your World," CNN.com/impact. And we link you to all sorts of organizations that will offer support for the families, in this case, and also for veterans in general coming up on Veterans Day.

There's also something else going on. Fort Hood itself has made this list available. It's going to look like tiny little words on your screen, so it's not worth hanging it out here for long. But here's what we have done.

They list a whole bunch of organizations that are offering help to the families in this case. And we have posted a link to you. So let's go to my graphic. I'll show you where you can get in touch with a more than a dozen organizations that are offering direct help to the families of the victims at Fort Hood. The blog has it. CNN.com/josh.

We're also posting it right now at Facebook and Twitter, JoshLevsCNN. Click on any one of those links. You can provide items, you can provide money. You can simply send your messages of support.

And, Heidi, we know that we'll be getting a lot of traffic today.

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Yes. And sometimes you just don't have any idea what impact and how good it feels to get some of those messages of support.

So terrific. I'm really glad you did that. Thank you, Josh.

LEVS: Thank you.

COLLINS: And make sure you join us for our special coverage, "Memorial at Fort Hood." It begins at 1:30 Eastern, 10:30 Pacific. And if you're away from your TV, you can watch the full memorial coverage on CNN.com/live.

A cousin of one of the Fort Hood victims, Francheska Velez describes her anger. She was the last member of the family to talk to her Thursday morning before the shooting.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MELISSA MORTON, COUSIN OF FORT HOOD VICTIM FRANCHESKA VELEZ: Why ? Why did he do it, you know? Did she suffer? Did she go fast? Did they try to save her? You know, she was pregnant, so it's like, it's harder just to know that she passed away carrying a child.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Just a couple moments ago, the opening bell for this Tuesday morning. A lot of clapping going on, as usual, but I think people might be especially happy at the way the Dow Jones Industrial Averages and the markets closed yesterday, up so high. I'm sure you are well aware. Dow Jones Industrial averages closed up by about 200 points, 203, to be exact, ended the day at 10,226. Right now, we are looking at the markets down just slightly, single digits there down by about seven.

We'll continue to follow this. A lot of news to talk about by way of the economy and some earnings reports as well. So we'll get to that very shortly here.

There are new developments to report in last week's shooting spree at Fort Hood, Texas. Investigators say Major Nidal Malik Hasan will be charged by the U.S. military rather than in a civilian court. They say it appears he acted alone and without any outside direction.

He did, though, communicate with a radical cleric overseas as many as 20 times. They say those communications appeared innocent. Nearly one year ago, the FBI began looking at the gunman before deciding that he did not pose a threat. Now the FBI is turning the microscope on itself. Director Robert Muller has ordered an internal review now of the bureau's handling of that information.

And right now, President Obama and the First Lady are on their way to Fort Hood, Texas. There, the president will meet with survivors of last week's shooting rampage and attend the memorial service that we've been telling you about for the 13 people that were killed.

And CNN's Jill Dougherty joining us now from the White House with more on this.

Jill, good morning to you. I know the president postponed his departure to Asia so that he could actually attend this service.

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN FOREIGN AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: He did. By just about an entire day. It's a major trip out to Asia, but this is an important day. He just left a few minutes ago with First Lady Michelle Obama. And the reason he did was not only, is, of course the shooting at Fort Hood, very serious personal problem for the people out there, very, you know, touching situation out there that he will face. It will be quite personal.

But, also, there are implications from that shooting that could be quite serious. The motivation of the shooter, et cetera. And that investigation continues. So, the president, when he is out there, will be meeting with the families, first of all, of the people who died in the shooting. He will also meet with the families and the wounded soldiers, both at Fort Hood and then also at the Darnell Medical Army Center. Meeting with them, talking with them. And then he has that major speech to the Fort Hood community, and that will take place at the memorial. So it's a big day. And much of it, you know, is actually off camera. It will be private meetings with the families and some of the people who were shot.

COLLINS: Sure, of course.

Jill, is there anything that the president was actually proposing, though, to avoid this kind of attack on military posts or bases across the country, in the future?

DOUGHERTY: You know, that would be a natural question, but at this point, you'd have to say that the investigation has to continue before they know exactly why it happened, what the motivation was, and how all of this went down.

So until that happens, I think you wouldn't expect that he would have anything concrete to say, but it would be certainly an expression of condolences and the seriousness of the situation.

And by the way, Heidi, you probably noticed in that video, both Michelle Obama and the president were dressed in black, a sign of mourning and a sign of respect.

COLLINS: Sure, of course. All right, Jill Dougherty in front of the White House this morning. Thank you, Jill.

And our special live coverage of the memorial at Fort Hood begins today, 1:30 Eastern. It will include remarks from President Obama. If you are away from your TV, you can still watch the full memorial coverage on cnn.com/live.

Tropical Storm Ida slows to a crawl and begins drenching the southeast. We'll show you what areas are in danger of flooding in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: I want to update you now on a breaking news story that we've been following this hour.

A hostage situation at a high school in Pine Plains, New York. The town supervisor just told us a moment ago, an adult gunman is holding one of the two principals of the school hostage. Police are negotiating with the gunman who has been confined to one room. The school is in lockdown. There are children there inside the building. We, of course, will keep following this story and bring you anymore details just as soon as they become available.

Checking some of our other top stories right now. Three teenagers have been charged as adult with attempted murder for allegedly setting a friend on fire. Two other boys were also taken into custody, but prosecutors did not file charges against them as adults. 15-year-old Michael Brewer remains hospitalized in critical condition with burns over 65 percent of his body. Police say last month's attack followed a dispute over a video game.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has called again for Iran to release three American hikers saying there is no evidence to support spying charges. A Tehran prosecutor announced the charges yesterday and said there would be more information about the case released soon. The three young people were detained along the Iran-Iraq border back in July.

And take a look at the woman in this video. She loses her balance on the edge of a Boston subway platform, then falls on to the tracks. A train is rumbling through the tunnel, heading right for her. The woman also risks, of course, electrocution, as her foot nearly brushes the third rail. People on the platform are frantically waving their arms to get the attention of the train operator. An inspector calls the driver and tells her about the woman directing the driver to put on her emergency brakes. So she does that and the train stops just inches away from the woman who fell. The woman who told police, later, she had been drinking, suffered only scraped knees. The train operator was honored by her colleagues yesterday. Wow.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Well, what was Tropical Storm Ida is now a tropical depression. But it's still a storm to be reckoned with. The one-time hurricane is dumping a lot of rain on the U.S. Gulf Coast. So much so the governors of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida have already declared states of emergency.

And ahead of the rain, lots of wind, too. In Florida, one huge gust blew a tree right on top of this car. Yikes. Brand-new Ford Mustang, in fact.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARGARITA GURRI, MOTHER: I heard this big crack and it went this way, Thank God.

SHERI GREEN, NEIGHBOR: I'm glad the winds were coming from the northeast and not from the southeast. Otherwise, it would have hit that house.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: Wow. Jacqui Jeras joining us now from our hurricane headquarters to talk a little bit more about this. Because, remembering, Ida was a hurricane, but now has been downgraded even more.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: All right, wow. I don't know. It's not looking very pretty, Jacqui.

JERAS: Not so much.

COLLINS: We'll come back in to check with you a little bit later. Thank you.

JERAS: Ok.

COLLINS: One of the few humans in the middle of a sea of Muppets. You know her as Maria; Maria, wave. And she joins us live in just a couple of minutes to talk about "Sesame Street"; it's the big 4-0.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: A very large bird, a red fuzzy creature, a Latino woman and a physically-challenged little boy. This is typical scene on "Sesame Street."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SONIA MANZANO, SESAME STREET "MARIA": "The Princess and the Monster." By Maria age seven.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Great title, Maria.

BIG BIRD, SESAME STREET: Oh, oh the story has a monster in it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: Forty years ago today the first episode of "Sesame Street" hit the airwaves. Lots of sunny days and not so sunny days later, the show is going strong.

And joining us now, Sonia Manzano, known to kids and adults throughout the world as Maria.

MANZANO: Hi.

COLLINS: Nice to have you.

MANZANO: Thank you very much.

COLLINS: I feel like saying happy birthday but it clearly is not your birthday it's the show's birthday.

MANZANO: Right, right. It's our 40th year and I can't believe it, 40 years have gone by so quickly.

COLLINS: Wow, I bet you can't. And you have been there the entire time.

MANZANO: I came in the third year that the show was on the air. So that's about 37 years.

COLLINS: Oh the third year.

MANZANO: Ok, ok, yes.

COLLINS: So I bet you have incredible memories.

MANZANO: Wonderful things have happened all through the years.

COLLINS: What are some of your favorites?

MANZANO: Well, one of my favorite of course, is Big Bird who was played by a man who was in the studio once and a 4-year-old was in the studio and Big Bird takes the top half of his suit off and the kid says, "Maria, does Big Bird know there's a man in him?" So they really believed in the Muppets that much.

COLLINS: Oh that's fantastic. I bet he was mortified. Because I know they're not supposed to...

MANZANO: Of course, yes, yes. To take their costumes off...

COLLINS: ... when the kids are around.

MANZANO: Right, right, right.

COLLINS: If you have to point to a couple things that have changed over the years, what would do you think that would be, with the production itself?

MANZANO: Well, the main thing is that younger and younger children are watching us. When we started the show it was preschoolers, 5-year-old kids...

COLLINS: Yes.

MANZANO: ... who started kindergarten and we wanted to help prepared them for kindergarten. Now kids watch us while they're in diapers.

COLLINS: Yes.

MANZANO: ... in the crib and I think that's why they love Elmo so much because he does appeals to the younger set.

COLLINS: I love me some Elmo.

MANZANO: Yes, of course.

COLLINS: Did you bring Elmo -- I thought we had a surprise guest.

MANZANO: I don't know, I'm always being upstaged by the Muppets.

COLLINS: No, no. I know, the reason I asked is because I know that they're very busy right now as we speak, right? There's a bunch of stuff going on.

MANZANO: Yes, there's a bunch of stuff going on. And the show has changed over the years.

This is the first time that the president of the United States was raised on "Sesame Street" as was the first lady. She's a guest on our opening show today...

COLLINS: Wow.

MANZANO: ... and it was just thrilling that she was on the set and when she saw Rascal Orman who plays Gordon she said, "Oh I remember you," just like a fan. That's just wonderful.

COLLINS: Yes, absolutely. Do you have a favorite character or are you not allowed to say?

MANZANO: I am allowed to say that I have always had a secret thing for Oscar the Grouch.

COLLINS: Of course.

MANZANO: Yes.

COLLINS: Who doesn't?

MANZANO: Yes, because when I'm talking to him I'm not sure if I'm talking to an 8-year-old or a 45-year-old...

COLLINS: Yes.

MANZANO: ... who's trying to buy me a drink.

COLLINS: Yes. MANZANO: Very nuanced character.

COLLINS: It works.

What do you think the secret has been to the success? You know, I mean, there have been a lot of shows, a lot of videos of course out there for little children and trying to get them to learn. But "Sesame Street" has always had this sort of recipe for making that happen and making it fun.

MANZANO: Yes.

COLLINS: How does that work?

MANZANO: Well, I think it's the Muppets. I think it's their subversive humor. I think everybody relates to those one-dimensional characters that we all have a little bit of ourselves in. We can imbue them with their own characteristics and its jokes. I mean, it's making people laugh while they're learning something and that's very appealing.

COLLINS: What do you think -- there they are in Central Park. Oh let's just watch. Can we just watch a little bit; just such great memories. What do you think "Sesame Street" is going to look like in another 40 years?

MANZANO: I think it's going to have more technology. I think it's going to be on people's iPods...

COLLINS: Yes.

MANZANO: ... and iPhones and I think it's going to be accessed in many different ways other than just television I think.

COLLINS: Yes, I think it's probably going to have to right? With everything that's out there.

MANZANO: Right, exactly.

COLLINS: Well, Sonia Manzano, we so appreciate your time today. It is a real pleasure to meet you...

MANZANO: Thank you.

COLLINS: ... in person and love that you have been there for almost the entire time.

MANZANO: Thank you very much.

COLLINS: "Sesame Street," happy 40th birthday.

MANZANO: Gracias.

COLLINS: Thank you, Maria. I get confused myself. Maria and Sonia, I get it. All right, we want to give you some fun facts on "Sesame Street" now too. The first episode aired on November 10th, 1969. It was sponsored by the letters, W, S and E -- how about that -- and the numbers 2 and 3. The creators considered naming the show "123 Avenue B" but they decided the title was just a little too New Yorky.

So the show now airs in more than 140 countries from Bangladesh, to Brazil, to Russia. Also, Oscar the Grouch who we were just talking about was originally orange during the first season but then changed to green. Fascinating. "Sesame Street" has won -- get this -- 122 Emmys.

All right.

We also have a lot going on this morning by way of news. Our CNN crews are in place to bring it all to you. I want to check in with our correspondents now beginning this morning with Ed Lavandera outside Fort Hood. Good morning to you, Ed.

ED LAVANDERA: Good morning, Heidi. Well, we're expecting several thousand people at the memorial service today at Fort Hood. We'll be talking about that and we'll also be talking about a little bit more in depth about one particular unit and what they have endured over the last four or five days here in Fort Hood.

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: I'm Jeanne Meserve in Jarrett, Virginia (ph) where the D.C. sniper John Allen Muhammad is scheduled to be executed tonight. I'll have that story at the top of the hour.

ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: I'm Rob Marciano in Pensacola, Florida, where a tropical storm made landfall just to the west of here. Most of the rain has moved inland but winds and waves continue to batter the northern Gulf coastline. A live report from the beach, Heidi, in the next hour.

COLLINS: All right. Very good. Look forward to it. Thanks guys.

We will also hear from a man who is helping survivors and victims' families cope in the aftermath of the Fort Hood shootings.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Checking our top stories now.

At least 20 people are dead after a suspected suicide car bombing in Pakistan; 50 other people were wounded in the blast outside of the city of Peshawar. The impact of the explosion destroyed several buildings and vehicles as you can see. Peshawar is not far from where the Pakistani army has launched attacks on Taliban militants.

With the focus on health care reform right now in the senate, Bill Clinton is making an appeal to Democrats there. The former president is speaking at the Democrats weekly luncheon today. Democratic leaders are warning wavering party members with what they call lesson of the Clinton administration failed to pass health care and Congressional Democrats will suffer in the next election.

It's a big day for gamers. The "Call of Duty" sequel, "Modern Warfare 2" is out today. The game recreates the terrorist attack and counter attack by military force. Analysts say this video game could be the biggest seller of all time.