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Police Trace Times Square Bomb Vehicle to Connecticut/Concern Raised About Environmental Effects of Dispersants in Oil Leak

Aired May 02, 2010 - 14:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: A high stakes investigation is started after a car bomb is found in New York's Times Square. Who wanted to attack the crossroads of the world and why?

President Obama heads to the Gulf Coast for a firsthand look at desperate efforts to contain a massive oil spill. And nonstop storms cause deadly floods in Tennessee, and the rain is still coming down.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM on a very busy Sunday, May 2nd, 2010. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

First, the car bomb in the Big Apple. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg says his city has avoided what could have been a very deadly event. Police evacuated Times Square last night after discovering a car bomb in a Nissan Pathfinder, abandoned, with its engine running and its emergency lights flashing.

New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly is expected to speak with reporters in the next hour, and of course we'll carry that live.

Meantime, authorities are treating this incident as a potential terrorist attack.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JANET NAPOLITANO, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: There's a lot of forensic information due in part to the placement of - of the vehicle, where it was. There's a lot of cameras, a lot of other things in that area that you don't have in some other places. So the forensics are all being worked intensely and having been (ph) worked intensely overnight.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Well, here's what we know right now. The New York Bomb Squad removed propane tanks, gasoline containers and consumer grade fireworks from that vehicle. They also removed a locked metal box that as of this still has not been opened that we know of.

The license plate on the car came from a Connecticut junkyard and there's been no claim of responsibility.

CNN's Mary Snow is in Times Square. She's joining us right now.

So, Mary, give me an idea of the scene. Has it resumed back to normal as best it can there in Times Square?

MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Fredericka, and it would appear to be any other Sunday on a warm spring afternoon. There is no unusual amounts of security, none that wouldn't ordinarily be here.

And, you know, this is a busy time on a Sunday afternoon with Broadway shows having matinees. I talked to a number of tourists here who say that, you know, they will not be deterred from their plans, and then moving around the city. This is such a - a crowded area.

This, of course, as you mentioned, as investigators try to find out who is behind this potential bomb. And as investigators examine the car that was taken away - it was an SUV - and also those devices, police are also going to be looking at surveillance tapes, and we tried to show you, around New York City there are surveillance cameras throughout the city.

And the - the NYPD Police Commissioner said that this vehicle that was taken away that contained these potential explosives was spotted on surveillance tapes just minutes before an eyewitness saw smoke coming out of that car. Now, that eyewitness - it all started about 6:30 last night, and that eyewitness is a Vietnam vet who is a t-shirt vendor, and he first alerted a mounted police officer. His name is Lance Orton.

Reporters did catch up with him this morning. He was very reluctant to say much, but here's a little bit of what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you feel good that you pointed this out? Do you feel good - do you feel good that you pointed this out? Do you feel like you've -

LANCE ORTON, STREET VENDOR: Of course, man.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- you've made a difference?

ORTON: What do you think?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This was important for you?

ORTON: Of course.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To the people of New York, what do you want to tell them? What do you want them to know from Lance? Your message, Lance, to the people of New York.

ORTON: You see something, say something.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SNOW: And Lance Orton went to a police officer who then alerted police and then several blocks of Times Square were frozen, locked down. And, as we said, that they are reopened now. I also wanted to point out, Fredricka, that a federal investigator - a federal official, that is, who was briefed on the investigation tells CNN that it was not a professional operation, and, at this point, it does not appear to be affiliated with a terrorist network. And, as you mentioned, both the NYPD and the FBI are conducting this investigation, and there will be an update within the hour - Fredericka.

WHITFIELD: And Senator Charles Schumer went as far as saying that he believed or they have reason to believe that this may be an act carried out by a lone wolf. What more might be said about that?

SNOW: You know, at this point officials have been saying that they do not believe this was related to any other potential attacks around the city. But investigators and officials have been saying that they are looking at a number of things at this point.

But, certainly, they did not have any indication that there were any other potential sites beyond that SUV that was left in Times Square last night.

WHITFIELD: Is there any speculation or any link being made to the location where this vehicle was found? We know that Congressman Peter King made some pretty strong statements, trying to create some kind of tie between Viacom, the building nearby, which is also home to Comedy Central, and that vehicle.

Can you elaborate a little further on that?

SNOW: Yes, and of course there's a lot of speculation, and officials are saying they're looking at everything.

I should stress that Congressman Peter King, who's a ranking member on the - on the Homeland Security Committee, had said that this is potentially one of a hundred things. But he did raise the possibility, when he was on CNN earlier this morning, he did raise the possibility that perhaps the location of Viacom, which is a few blocks behind me, could be a potential lead.

And that is because Viacom owns Comedy Central and a couple weeks ago there had been an episode of "South Park" that had been widely talked about, where there had been an attempted depiction of the Prophet Mohammed.

Now, Mayor Bloomberg was asked about this earlier today and he had said that there is no evidence that there is any kind of link. Viacom isn't commenting on this.

But, again, really, it's so early in this investigation that officials are really stressing that they have not found any link at this point and that they are looking at a number of things. But Congressman Peter King did raise that possibility earlier today.

WHITFIELD: All right. Mary Snow, thanks so much, in Times Square. We'll check back with you momentarily. Meantime, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano says authorities are treating this car bomb as a potential terrorist attack. Napolitano spoke with CNN's Candy Crowley on "STATE OF THE UNION" earlier today.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Certainly they found a lot of explosive material in this car. Do you have any reason to believe at this point, Secretary Napolitano, that there are international terrorist ties to this?

NAPOLITANO: Well, we're taking this very seriously, and - and with the New York City Police Department, with the FBI, the Joint Terrorism Task Force, we are treating it as if it could be a potential terrorist attack.

The derivation of that, we do not know, and that's what the investigation will tell us.

CROWLEY: And - and what have you found so far in the investigation that they've told you about? Are you - are you honing in on suspects or is it still, you have a lot of nothing at this point?

NAPOLITANO: Well, I would - I would say to the - it's more than a lot of nothing, but less than particular suspects. There are - there's a lot of forensic information due in part to the placement of - of the vehicle, where it was. There's a lot of cameras, a lot of other things in that area that you don't have in some other places.

So the forensics are all being worked intensely, and having been (ph) worked intensely overnight.

CROWLEY: And by forensic to mean (ph) are there fingerprints in the car, that kind of thing that could be really palpable information?

NAPOLITANO: There is all that. There's forensics about the vehicle, about the - the tanks, the propane inside. There's forensics in terms of video or possible video that might exist. So there's a - a lot of evidence being tracked down by a lot of people right now.

CROWLEY: And any sense of how big this might have been had this exploded? Do you know anything about what was in that car?

NAPOLITANO: Yes. I don't have a picture of that right now. Suffice it to say, however, that given that area, there's a lot of people back and forth. It's a very crowded area. So we - we view this very, very seriously.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano speaking on behalf of the Obama administration.

And prior to last night's car bomb in New York City, the president had said that he would be traveling to the Gulf Coast region to see for himself the oil spill. We understand he is now on the ground there in Louisiana, before he gets to a location where a planned press conference will take place. We'll of course bring that to you as it happens.

Meantime, our Kate Bolduan is at the White House. Kate, give me an idea how the White House is responding to this bomb scare in New York, aside from what we just heard from Napolitano.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. Well - well, Fredricka, there were - Janet Napolitano, Secretary Napolitano is really out there, speaking for the administration. She was out there on all of the shows this morning, speaking to our Candy Crowley.

And she also, in that interview with - today also said that right now - now, we've talked about this, but it's worth reiterating, because the secretary said it herself, that right now they don't have any evidence to suggest that this car bomb is part of a larger threat, anything more than a one-off, as she put it. A lone wolf.

And, to that end, a federal official briefed on the investigation told our Ed Henry that this device, it wasn't a professional operation and thus doesn't seem to appear to be affiliated with a terrorist network.

All these pieces of information are very important. But, all of the officials are speaking to continue to stress that this is still early on in the investigation into what - what is behind this incident, who and what motive.

Bit in terms of the White House response, they've been - they put out a statement earlier today and it continues kind of update - update us today, saying that President Obama has been kept updated by his Homeland Security Adviser, John Brennan. He has tapped John Brennan to continue working with NYPD and the other agencies involved to keep the president updated on this situation.

WHITFIELD: And - and is the White House saying anything more about the Joint Terror Task Force and - and what, you know, they are doing specifically to help local authorities as they try to flush out who done it here?

BOLDUAN: They're not getting into the specifics of it. Press Secretary Robert Gibbs on the - on the flight down to Louisiana that - where they're traveling down to take on the other major priority for the administration right now that they're facing, the oil spill.

On that plane flight down with the reporters that - or pool, as we call them, traveling with the president, Robert Gibbs did say that they - they're not going to get into any assumptions, he said, about who might be involved and what their motives might be.

You can be sure that, as they always are in - when it comes to these types of very sensitive investigations, officials are very careful in how they characterize things. And you can be sure that while the president is being kept updated, Robert Gibbs was not going to be showing their hand in all of the intelligence that President Obama is getting to at this point.

But we did also hear that the president was already scheduled to make a statement to the pool cameras while they're down there in Louisiana. And now we've got a little more detail.

Of course, you would assume that he would be speaking about the oil spill. We're told, yes, that it's happening, but we also heard he will comment on the situation in New York, that car bomb, so we'll all be looking forward to hearing what the president has to say a little later this afternoon.

WHITFIELD: OK. Air Force One touching down there in New Orleans, and then via motorcade, we understand, the president will make his way to Venice, Louisiana, and when those comments do take place, of course we'll carry them live.

Kate Boldaun, thanks so much, from Washington. Appreciate that.

Meantime police have turned their attention to a used auto parts company in Stratford, Connecticut. And that's where we find CNN's Drew Griffin. He's joining us on the phone right now.

This location, because this vehicle ended up at this junkyard, correct, Drew? And, at the same time, the license plate on this vehicle came from this junkyard.

Give me an idea of how investigators are trying to piece things together.

DREW GRIFFIN, CNN INVESTIGATIVE UNIT CORRESPONDENT: Let me - let me tell you exactly what we know about Kramer's Auto Parts, which is in Strat -

WHITFIELD: All right. We're going to have to try that again. We're having a real problem with our - our phone communications. We'll get to Drew as soon as we can, out of Connecticut.

Meantime, we're going to have much more on the investigation of this car bomb in Times Square in New York. Also, we're going to delve into the oil spill. We're talking about a 130-mile long oil spill.

The president of the United States is now on the ground in Louisiana. He's going to survey for himself, and then somewhere within the next couple of hours, we expect to hear from the president from Venice, Louisiana about what he is seeing as it pertains to the oil spill, and what he also might be able to add to the investigation of the car bomb.

Much more straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, pictures right now of Air Force One there in New Orleans, landing in Louisiana. The president is going to be briefed by first responders. He's going to be making his way to Venice, Louisiana, and after he's briefed by first responders there in the oil spill situation, a 130-mile long oil spill that continues to send more oil into the Gulf of Mexico, he will also be briefing reporters.

And we also understand he is also going to have a few comments about this situation, what took place last night in Times Square. A vehicle loaded with explosives, and now investigators are trying to figure out who is responsible for this car bomb. This vehicle found smoldering in Times Square, noticed by some vendors who then approached mounted police last night.

This is during a busy time after the 6:00 hour, Eastern hour there in Times Square. Police responded right away, evacuated the area, tried to remove as many spectators, people, just passers by as best they could before they were able to get to the bottom of this vehicle, remove it.

We understand now the - the origins of this vehicle. It came from a Connecticut junkyard, and police have also traced the license plate to this Connecticut junkyard. However, they've also traced the vehicle - identification number to this vehicle and contacted the previous owner of this vehicle. Thus far, we understand investigators don't believe the owner of that vehicle had anything to do with this. But, still, very early stages of this investigation.

Meantime, while we're covering what took place in Times Square last night, we're also covering another major story, that massive oil spill from that damaged BP oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico. And, today, the president's planned first look at the spill.

Here's what we know right now. President Obama did arrive in Louisiana a short time ago. You're looking, again, at live pictures of Air Force One. He is expected to meet with those first responders and then tour the area.

There is also new concern about the impact of the vapors from the leaking oil, and the fires burning to control the slick. The EPA has stepped up air quality monitoring, and the oil slick itself appears to have tripled in size in just the last two days alone.

The U.S. Coast Guard had estimated that some 1.6 million gallons have leaked into the ocean, into the gulf there, since April 20th, that explosion. But they have now conceded that the number just simply could be much higher.

BP is of course defending its safety record today. The company blames the oil spill on a failed piece of equipment. They still can't say when the leaking well head will be plugged, but our Brian Todd has been following the investigation into this oil rig explosion and spill from Venice, Louisiana, where the president would - will ultimately end up there in Venice.

So, Brian, what more is being said about how this oil spill occurred and what BP is saying it may be responsible for? BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, they're still saying that that blowout preventer is at the core of - of the cause of this disaster. Whether that could have been, you know, sealed off or the explosion could have been prevented in the first place by the use of a remote control switch is kind of what's being looked at now in the investigation.

BP is saying that we didn't need that remote control switch, that these remote submersibles work better than those remote control switches for capping these leaks at the time they occur. But, clearly, those remote control submersibles are not working right now. So that's a big part of the investigation.

You know, and again, right now, what the president is going to be seeing firsthand or what the responders are looking at, and that is some efforts at containment here, hampered by the weather. Very high winds, the threat of thunderstorms and rain really cropping up all around the coastal area.

You see the white caps out here on this inland off the Gulf Coast. That is hampering efforts to lay down boom right now. I just spoke to a BP official. It's making it tough for them to lay down boom. It's making them - tough for them to put down chemical dispersants under water to disperse of this oil.

Also, a new development, Fred, NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, has just issued a severe restriction on commercial fishing for at least 10 days while they test out seafood and water samples. That's going to really impact the economy here.

A lot of those fishermen actually are being deployed now to lay down boom to protect the coastline. I just talked to the president of St. Bernard Parish. They deployed about 100 commercial fishermen to lay down boon. So everybody around this area who can help is being asked to right now.

WHITFIELD: And so, Brian, do people feel confident that the booms will really help? When we understand from a number of specialists, environmentalists who say that the - the oil slick is not just surface, but there is depth to that oil? And that boom simply give the appearance that it may be containing the oil, but that the oil is actually traveling just as the tide is traveling toward the shoreline?

TODD: That's a big concern. You know, the booms cannot do everything. Some of the booms aren't quite as absorbent as others, some of them act like sponges, others do not. A lot of them are some susceptible to, you know, tide washing over them, and, as you mentioned, some of them can't contain a lot of the - the oil that's at underwater depth.

There are all different kinds of boom being - being laid down, and not all of it is consistent. And, as we noticed when we flew over some of these protected areas, some of the exposed areas that were roped off by boom, the tide is breaking the boom apart in certain areas.

So that's a real concern. They're - they're always trying to monitor this and go over the areas where they laid boom. But, at the same time, they've got to, you know, get that boom out in as many new areas as possible.

It is a very difficult operation, and when you look at just the incredibly vast area of marsh land of Barrier Island here that they have to try to protect, it's almost insurmountable.

WHITFIELD: And so, these fishermen you mentioned are part of this effort. They have volunteered. They are jumping in to try and save their industry as best they can.

TODD: That's right, and a lot of them that we saw a couple of days ago, when they were coming in to volunteer to lay down boom, they actually had to take a crash course on how to do that and how to kind of respond to some - some spills and - and just other procedures to follow.

So it's not like they can just go out there. Number one, they have to wait for the boom to be delivered to them. That's been kind of an issue with BP trying to get as much to them as they can.

And another issue is just training them on how to do this. They're doing all of this, a kind of a crash course. So that's another challenge that they're facing. They're getting as many of those guys out there as they can to lay the boom, training them how to do it.

So, you know, these are real tough obstacles right now.

WHITFIELD: Wow. And that came out of that meeting with BP officials and fishermen just two days ago. And so - that they have kind of encouraged their volunteerism and help speaks volumes too, doesn't it?

TODD: Right.

WHITFIELD: Brian Todd, thanks so much, from Venice, Louisiana.

Of course, the president will be ending up there in Venice, Louisiana. He'll be making a statement about all that he is observing after meeting with first responders. And the president is expected to also comment on the car bomb in Times Square last night.

Meantime, back to the oil spill. Alabama's governor is also expected to fly over the Gulf Coast today. He wants to get a better look at that massive oil slick and the containment booms which have been deployed, as our Brian Todd was explaining.

Our Richard Lui is in Dauphin Island, Alabama. So, Richard, the weather is not very good right now and I wonder if that flyover even for the Alabama governor will be able to happen.

RICHARD LUI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, right now, Rose - sorry, Fred, is what we're seeing is the weather was sunny this morning. Now there's some cloud cover coming over us, so if the governor does take a look at the moment, it should be OK, but we - we do expect here, Fred, that the weather might turn worse.

And, amazingly, despite all of the precautions that are happening off the coast right now, Fred, what they are doing is they're celebrating. Fishermen are getting together in the seafood capital of Alabama here, Bayou la Batre, to take - a tradition, a 61st anniversary of the Blessing of the Fleet. They've been preparing for this for the last two days. They're definitely looking forward to, if you will, letting some steam off.

But it certainly is a little bit different this time of the year for some of the fishermen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAURICE RYAN, BAYOU LA BATRE FISHERMAN: I hope it will change it for me. I hope, you know - I mean, that's why we're here.

You got to put your trust in someone, and I really feel like, with the church and the bishop, I got my life in good hands, because BP certainly isn't helping me.

BISHOP THOMAS RODI, ST. MARGARETS CHURCH: It could have widespread effects, but not only the livelihood of the people, an entire way of life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LUI: That was the archbishop of Mobile, Alabama who drove down this morning. He's going to be giving that blessing this afternoon in Bayou la Batre.

You know, very ironic for Maurice Ryan. He was preparing, as I was mentioning, just like the other fishermen, his boat for a couple of days. He took us on a tour of the waterway, what - He has gone up and down many times in the 60 years that he has been alive. Because he cannot go out and fish tomorrow.

Normally, the Blessing of the Fleet indicates that the baiting season and the shrimping season would start tomorrow. But the state has told him starting at 3:00 P.M., they cannot do that tomorrow.

So, instead, what he's trying to do today is keep focused, enjoy the day with his son and his grandson, just as he had done with his father and his grandfather in years past.

And as you were mentioning here, Fred, back here off the coast of Alabama, the weather, it's OK. But, of course, what may be happening tomorrow as the storm come through. Whether you see that storm is being weather or an oil slick.

WHITFIELD: Wow. OK. Quite extraordinary.

Richard Lui, thanks so much. We'll check back with you momentarily.

Our Jacqui Jeras is in the Severe Weather Center. And, Jacqui, weather can certainly hamper - continue to hamper these efforts to contain this oil spill, and the weather seems to be deteriorating if you just look at those live shots from Richard as well as Brian.

JACQUI JEARS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, absolutely. You know, the storm system there, there was a tornado watch, even, in effect earlier this morning. That has since expired, but we're going to continue to see some scattered showers and thundershowers across the area. And you get those erratic winds and that can help make the seas a little bit choppier.

There is some coastal flooding today as well because of those strong winds associated with high tide this afternoon, so we could see a little bit of wash-up on the shore as a result of that.

Now, the winds today - this is a forecast map of what we're going to expect. And notice the wind vectors. Those arrows are pointing in the direction that the wind is blowing. So there you can see those winds very strong in that area towards Louisiana, Mississippi and into Alabama.

But, as we put this in motion, the cold front is going to be moving through here, and by Monday night and into Tuesday, we'll start to see those offshore winds. And so, that should help the situation a little bit, and we'll also see calmer seas.

So today we could see seas up to 8 feet. By tomorrow, probably down to 3 to 5. And then, as we head into Tuesday, probably 2 to 4 foot seas. So there is a little bit better forecast in the future.

Now where is this oil spill going and how much progress has it been making? If we could go back to that map, it'll show you where it is right now. There you can see the location of the slicks.

So we have seen a little bit of wash up into Plaquemines Parish as well as St. Bernard Parish. But, we thought, as of Friday, this was going to get into Mississippi today. So the good news is it doesn't look like it's going to get to the Mississippi Coast until at least tomorrow at the earliest and then maybe push in towards Florida as we head into Tuesday and Wednesday.

So, obviously some of this cleanup that they've been doing with the booms and - and using some of these dispersants possibly has been helping. So a little bit of good news, even though the weather is still bad today. We'll see those improvements by Monday night - Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: OK. Let's hope so.

All right, thanks so much, Jacqui. Appreciate that.

Our other big story today we continue to follow is what took place last night in New York's Time Square. A car bomb found there. And now, investigators have descended upon a junkyard in Connecticut, trying to find some kind of commonalities here, the route to who might be responsible for leaving that car with explosives inside.

We're going to be talking to a bomb security expert when we come right back, about what police have already discovered about the bomb used and what this tells them about who is responsible.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Well, welcome back to the NEWSROOM. We're covering a couple big stories.

President Barack Obama there, arriving in New Orleans, Louisiana, because he is soon to get his firsthand look at the oil spill that is encroaching on the gulf coastline. He'll be making his way -- as you see right there, being greeted by Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal. The president will be making his way to Venice, Louisiana, and he'll also be meeting with first responders along the way, first responders to that oil spill, and then he'll be briefing reporters somewhere within the next couple of hours there in Venice, Louisiana, about what he is observing.

He will also be talking about what took place last night in the Big Apple, in Times Square. A car bomb was located just after the 6:30 PM Eastern hour. We understand some vendors actually found this vehicle to be rather suspicious, saw some smoke coming from this dark green Pathfinder, and then turned to mounted police and immediately let them know.

Let's give you an idea of what the timeline -- how it unfolded there in New York City in Times Square. 6:28 PM last night, this Nissan Pathfinder was seen actually driving west on 45th Street. It was noticed by a New York Police Department camera. Then at 6:30 PM, a T-shirt vendor noticed smoke coming from the Nissan Pathfinder. We understand the Pathfinder was still running, but no one was in it.

6:34 PM, 911 -- a call was made to New York Police Department. And then at 10:45 PM, President Obama was updated and pledged federal support. And then shortly before 3:00 AM today, a police robot breaks the window to recover a box. We understand the box has not been opened, or if it has, then it has not -- that information has not been made public. And then shortly before 6:00 AM today, the SUV was actually towed away to a Bronx facility.

Saying all this to know that very little is being shared publicly about why this vehicle was left there, who may be responsible. And we understand police have now descended also on a Connecticut junkyard because it is believed that that vehicle was turned in by its rightful owner to that junkyard. And police were able to trace the vehicle identification number, and also the license plate, which apparently does not belong to that vehicle, but the license plate has origins to the junkyard. And now they're trying to piece together who may have apprehended that vehicle and made this its new purpose there in Times Square.

Sal Lifrieri is a security consultant and a former director of security and intelligence operators for New York City's Office of Emergency Management. He's joining us from right now from New York. Good to see you, Sal.

SAL LIFRIERI, SECURITY CONSULTANT: Hi, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: So based on what we know -- and granted it's very little, at least publicly. We know that this vehicle was left running, there was smoke coming from it. Even the vendors who looked at the vehicle said that they saw some wiring, something that appeared to be fireworks. We know now there were explosives in the vehicle. The mayor of New York says that this is an amateur event, or at least it doesn't look as though it was professionally laid out, a bomb in this vehicle. But it was enough to cause quite a scare and enough, potentially, to really harm people.

Based on all that kind of information, how do you categorize this bomb and this car bomb as a whole?

LIFRIERI: Well, I think -- based on the intelligence information we have so far, that's been released publicly, I think, you know, the mayor is correct. I think this kind of lends itself towards more domestic home-grown sort of terrorists.

But the thing we need to caution about is that, you know, when we talk about terrorism, we right away jump to international terrorism or organized terrorism. And in reality, the situation is that, you know, we have a lot of home-grown domestic individuals that have become troubling over the years, and more so now with the advent of the Internet and the capability to do research and be able to create devices like this.

WHITFIELD: So give me an idea how law enforcement is trying to piece together these components. What are they looking for? What are they closely looking at to try to figure out who's responsible?

LIFRIERI: Well, one of the first things that they're going to be looking at, the greatest source of evidence that they have, is from the vehicle and from the device itself. We're not going to understand all of the intricacies of the device, as much as we ask, because a big part of that is used for the investigation.

Ultimately, when you do find someone who does claim to be the responsible person for this, he would have -- he or she would have intimate knowledge of the device. So it's critical that a lot of that particular specifics about the device not be released, just to aid in the subsequent prosecution. So that's one of the things that you're not going to find out a lot about.

WHITFIELD: So you would think the basic things, such as fingerprints, obviously, would, you know, be taken, if there are any from this vehicle. But there was a great elapse of time between that vehicle being towed from the crime of -- the scene of this crime and the discovery. Why would there be such a great lapse of time?

LIFRIERI: At the point that the vehicle is rendered safe, you no longer are under any time constraints. You're not playing beat the clock. So you have all of the time necessary to effectively collect the evidence and make sure that you don't -- that you don't mess up any of the evidence that could be in the car. So one of the things that I'm sure was...

WHITFIELD: So 12 hours -- I mean, we're talking a span of 12 hours, the point of discovery and the time in which it was towed away. It doesn't seem particularly odd, in your view, especially in a place that is so busy and constantly teeming with people, despite the fact that this immediate area was evacuated?

LIFRIERI: Well, because the car was illegally parked and holding up traffic is really no consequence to the bomb technicians as they went through it. The key thing was to ensure that the vehicle was rendered safe. And then subsequent, for the investigation that has to take place or the examination of the vehicle that takes place, you want to ensure that the officers that are looking at the vehicle are going to remain safe and there's no other devices.

You know, a key thing that we always worry about is secondary devices, and that just doesn't leave with -- because there was a device found in the back of the car doesn't mean that a secondary device could not have been under the hood of the car.

WHITFIELD: Sal Lifrieri, security consultant, also an author and lecturer, thanks so much for your time. I appreciate that.

And we understand the police commissioner out of New York will also be holding a press conference momentarily on this car bomb. Of course, when that takes place, we'll take it live.

We're going to have much more from the NEWSROOM after this.

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WHITFIELD: All right, back to a couple of our big stories. Before I tell you about the oil slick dangers, let me tell you about what happened last night, this car bomb in Times Square. And momentarily, we understand, the police commissioner, Ray Kelly, will have a press conference, talking a little bit further about the vehicle -- the dark green Pathfinder that was located, and inside it, this bomb that police were able to detonate, even after vendors noticed it was smoldering. And they were the ones who actually called police attention to it. An evacuation took place, et cetera. Well, Ray Kelly, the commissioner for New York City, will be having a press conference. We'll go to that live as soon as we can.

Meantime, President Obama is in Louisiana today, and he, too, is expected to comment about that car bomb. But he's also in Louisiana to take a look at the oil slick in the Gulf of Mexico. He arrived in New Orleans just a short time ago. There's a picture of Air Force One, and the president deplaning there. The president's motorcade is expected to head from there to Venice, Louisiana. and that's a staging area for part of the emergency operations to contain that spill. Mr. Obama is expected to meet with first responders later on this afternoon. All this coming amid new word from the Coast Guard that the oil slick appears to have tripled in size in just the last two days alone.

Further east along the Gulf Coast, residents are anxious about what the oil slick will actually do not only to the environment, but to the tourist season, as well. Our Jeanne Meserve is in Pensacola Beach, Florida.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Wildlife and nightlife have made Pensacola beach a playground, but the party may soon be over. Business on the boardwalk, wiped out by Hurricane Ivan in 2004, was finally looking good again.

TOM CARMICHAEL, PENSACOLA BEACH BAR OWNER: It's just been a feel-good start-off of the season until yesterday morning.

MESERVE (on camera): When you heard the oil was coming.

CARMICHAEL: When we heard the oil was coming this way.

MESERVE: What do you think now?

CARMICHAEL: We're scared.

MESERVE (voice-over): Last year, 80 million visitors came to Florida and spent $60 billion. Locals worry that if the oil comes, the tourists won't. Although some booms are up to protect the shore, Pensacola City's assistant mayor worries they won't be enough to stop the oil.

DEP. MAYOR JEWEL CANNADA-WYNN, PENSACOLA, FLORIDA: In hurricane seasons, you know you can't stop the hurricane, but you can prepare. You can get ready. And we're great at that. But how do we deal with an oil spill? It's just -- it's a helpless feeling.

MESERVE: Dale Perkins, who captains a water taxi, says visitors are already canceling reservations at local condominiums. And Saturday, he got word this weekend will be his last on the job.

DALE PERKINS, WATER TAXI OPERATOR: They told us they don't need me any more.

MESERVE: For his co-worker, 65-year-old Johnnie Clopman, the news that he was also laid off was especially tough because it took so long to find this job.

JOHNNIE CLOPMAN, WATER TAXI OPERATOR: It's been one year.

MESERVE (on camera): That you were looking for work?

CLOPMAN: Yes, ma'am. One year. One year.

MESERVE: So you got this job and you worked how many days?

CLOPMAN: Eight.

MESERVE: And then?

CLOPMAN: Gone. MESERVE (voice-over): But Clopman is optimistic he'll find another job cleaning up the oil that cost him this job.

(on camera): These businesses thrive here because of this beach, because of this water, and there's a real sense of foreboding that it could all be washed away tomorrow or the next day, or maybe the day after that. Jeanne Meserve, Pensacola Beach, Florida.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Well, BP hopes the use of chemical dispersants which bond to oil and make it sink to the ocean floor will actually help clean up the slick. Wildlife experts say such measures can protect the shoreline, but they can have a negative impact on sea life. Richard Charter is a senior policy adviser for marine programs for Defenders of Wildlife. He joins us now from San Francisco. Good to see you.

RICHARD CHARTER, MARINE BIOLOGY EXPERT: Thank you for having me.

WHITFIELD: Why do you see these chemical dispersants as very troubling?

CHARTER: Well, first of all, the whole event is very troubling, and we have a very unique situation, so it may require special measures. We have an ongoing release of about 5,000 barrels a day of oil from 5,000 feet below the ocean and no way to shut it off. The offshore oil and gas industry created an accident that the can't fix.

So now it becomes a matter of bad choices. Which is worse, oil coming ashore and become in trade (ph) in the fur and feathers of the animals along the shoreline, or to keep diminishing the amount of oil that comes ashore to the maximum extent, do you apply a toxic material to the slick, which they've been doing with aircraft all week, that contains a chemical solvent 2-Butoxyethanol -- 2-BE, it's called -- that has been very controversial in the past and has been...

WHITFIELD: Well, tell me -- stop right there, actually. Tell me why this toxic material -- while it may do the job of absorbing, you know, this oil, tell me how toxic, how dangerous it is to the wildlife because, after all, you know, the wildlife -- this is their habitat, and these toxins will do what potentially?

CHARTER: Well, it depends on where it comes into contact, but it can be mutagenic. It can cause kidney damage in the water column, if this is what they're expecting to add to the spill at the sea floor. It could have effects on fish, turtles, sea turtles, everything in the water column.

WHITFIELD: What's the alternative?

CHARTER: The alternative is to not do anything or to continue to mechanically attempt to contain the slick, which obviously, if you look at the booms flowing up on the beaches by the wind, the weather's not cooperating. So we may have to accept the application of dispersants as the lesser of two evils, compared to having larger amounts of oil come ashore and damage wildlife.

WHITFIELD: So is there a feeling that the application of the dispersants, while that still might kill wildlife, perhaps it will kill fewer or -- fewer species of wildlife than to allow the spill to just move ashore on its own?

CHARTER: Well, any of these things are simply nibbling away at the edges of a very large problem. Obviously, the central focus for everybody involved -- the spiller, BP, the administration -- is not a blame game right now, it's to figure out how to shut off the leak at the sea floor. That's the primary thing.

WHITFIELD: Does this make you angry?

CHARTER: Well, I've been through three of these now. They do occur around the world at various intervals. I think that this industry needs to wake up and get serious about safety, clearly, the offshore industry. I'm not criticizing the Coast Guard. I think we have the best people on the ground and along the Gulf Coast. The question is -- we rarely clean up more than 15 or 20 percent of a spill on a calm day, and we aren't seeing a calm day.

WHITFIELD: Yes, and alongside, while you were talking -- we were looking at images of experts trying to resuscitate, trying to help some of the bird life that is affected directly, images that are -- have come out just as early as yesterday. And we also saw some images of how people are being trained to try and scrub, trying to clean some of these birds that they are discovering already covered in oil.

CHARTER: Well, this is one of America's most fragile and beloved ecological treasures right here along the Gulf Coast. And the seafood that comes from that water and the visitor-serving industries that make their living, as you mentioned in the earlier segment -- these are all going to be impacted. And Americans love their coast, and this is, I think, really hurting a lot of people just to watch this happen. And for the people who live there, this is going to go on for a long time.

WHITFIELD: Yes, impacted in so many ways. Richard Charter, senior policy adviser for marine programs for Defenders of Wildlife, thanks for your time. We also know that already, a 10-day suspension has been put on for commercial fishermen, so many of them have docked their boats and are actually now jumping in, volunteering to help in any way the can to lay some of those booms to try and stop the oil slick from encroaching on the coastline an quicker.

All right, thanks so much for your time. Appreciate it. Meantime, they other...

CHARTER: Thank you so much.

WHITFIELD: The other big event that we continue to follow is now the investigation of that car bomb in Times Square last night. We are awaiting a press conference from police commissioner Ray Kelly momentarily. When that happens, we'll go there live.

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WHITFIELD: All right, last night a car bomb was located in Times Square. You're looking right now at images from early this morning, some 12 hours after the discovery, it being towed away there. It's the dark green Pathfinder. And it had fireworks and propane tanks al inside. Some vendors actually noticed it, saw it smoldering. The car was still running. After investigating it at that scene, police then had it towed away. We understand that the New York police commissioner, Ray Kelly, will be having a press conference momentarily about this car bomb, the discovery and the investigation, and of course, we'll take that live as it happens.

So after discovering this car bomb last night, police began evacuating Times Square, of course. Well, Pam Hall, who was evacuated from a McDonald's restaurant nearby, posted this video on YouTube. And then later, she talked with our Don Lemon.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAM HALL, SHOT VIDEO OF EVACUATIONS (via telephone): We were just sitting in there, eating and looking out (INAUDIBLE) square and noticed that the cops were moving people towards 47th Street and putting up a barricade and pushing them towards 47th Street. A woman came upstairs who had been in the square, and she seemed flustered. And she said that she heard noises and people started running, and they said that it was a gun, and she was concerned.

So we just waited. We weren't sure what to do. We thought we were safer in McDonald's, and we just waited and watched. And then we started hearing the cops talking very loudly and telling us that we were to pick up our food and our drinks and we were to leave. And he didn't...

LEMON: Are you staying in Times Square?

HALL: Yes. Sorry?

LEMON: Are you staying in Times Square?

HALL: Yes, I'm very close to it. I'm just a few blocks away. I wasn't -- but I wasn't in one of the hotels, so -- I've noticed that the people -- when I was going home, that people in the Marriott Marquis that's on 45th Street, they still can't get into their hotel.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right, pretty frightening moments for a lot of people in a very busy Times Square just in the 6:00 o'clock Eastern hour last night. A car bomb was located. Again, you're looking at file tape right here, images from last night as a bomb squad descended on the vehicle. They had to detonate the explosives that were in the vehicle even after some vendors noticed that it was smoldering. They saw smoke coming from the car and alerted police that something was awry here.

And upon further inspection, police did, indeed, discover that a bomb was inside this abandoned vehicle. And that vehicle, by looking at the vehicle identification number, police were able to trace it to a Connecticut junkyard, where investigators are right now. They were also able to trace the license plate to that. But still no arrests have been made.

Meantime, we're waiting for the police commissioner, Ray Kelly, to hold a press conference. We'll take that live as it happens. Much more after this.

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