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NEWS STREAM

Turkey Closes Border To Syrian Refugees; NFL Reaches Deal with Referees; Using Satellites to Monitor Flooding

Aired September 27, 2012 - 8:00   ET

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

KRISTIE LU STOUT, HOST: I`m Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong. And welcome to News Stream where news and technology meet.

And we begin in Syria where the UN is warning up to 700,000 people could flee the country by the end of the year. We are live at our border refugee camp.

Also ahead, the lockout is over. NFL officials reach an agreement to end a labor dispute with referees.

And one of the most anticipated novels of the year, we are live as fans get their hands on JK Rowling`s first book since Harry Potter.

Now Syria is bracing for more bloodshed after the deadliest day yet in the country`s civil war, that`s according to opposition activists who say 343 people were killed in violence on Wednesday. And that is driving a mass exodus. The United Nations warns that the number of Syrians fleeing their homes can now reach 700,000 by the end of the year.

Now it is appealing for nearly $500 million in aid to help cope with the growing refugee crisis. More than a quarter million Syrians have already crossed into neighboring Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon and Turkey, or are awaiting registration.

But thousands are stuck in a makeshift camp in Syria not far from the Turkish border. And Ivan Watson reports the conditions are desperate.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IVAN WATSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: They live almost hidden in the olive groves, Syrian families sleeping in the dirt. Over the last month, a makeshift camp of more than 5,000 people have sprung up on the northern edge of Syria, families made homeless by war.

There are no toilets here, residents line up for water that is hard to even swallow, water that Yousef Daboul (ph) has gotten used to drinking.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`ve been here from one month ago, one month, five days.

WATSON: Living_

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah, here.

WATSON: Here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Under the olive trees. It`s not nice. It`s not healthy also.

WATSON: Why did you come here?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I come here because my house is destroyed. There is no house for me.

WATSON: Everyone tells stories of rockets and air strikes, artillery and explosions.

Asama Hamdu (ph) fled here from the battleground city of Aleppo. His two-year-old daughter Marram (ph) was badly burned when a bomb blew up his house last month.

I try to ask her how are you?

(SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

WATSON: She`s deaf now?

Marram (ph) can`t hear. The little girl has been deaf ever since the explosion.

We see far too many children here covered in insect bites, suffering from fever and diarrhea.

She has a fever? She has a fever.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Her head too hot. Yeah. Her body is hot.

WATSON: Is there a doctor? Is_

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There is no doctor.

WATSON: This filthy camp sits less than a hundred yards from the Turkish border.

And you just want to go to Turkey.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, we want just to go there to keep ourself, to save ourself, our child, our relatives.

WATSON: For more than a year, Turkey welcomed fleeing Syrians, caring for them in well organized camps. But the Syrian refugee population in Turkey recently swelled to more than 87,000. And now Turkey appears to have partially shut what it once called its open door policy for Syrians.

These desperate people are stuck waiting at the border. Under the eyes of a Turkish border post, they hold a futile protest begging the Turkish government to let them in.

Some of the children here look dazed, overwhelmed by their surroundings, the faces of what could be a lost generation. They are victims of a conflict that`s tearing Syria apart.

At sunset, the families get ready for another night under the olive trees, hoping that tomorrow their Turkish neighbors will finally let them in.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Some desperate scenes there.

Let`s bring in Ivan Watson now. He is at another refugee camp on the Turkish side of the border with Syria. And Ivan, back to your report, why is Turkey doing this? Why has Turkey partially closed its border to Syrian refugees?

WATSON: Well, a spokesman for the Turkish foreign ministry insists that the open door policy to Syrian refugees is still in place, but he said that Turkey simply cannot build camps fast enough, as he put it, to keep pace with the violence that the Syrian government is causing against its people. Basically, the Turks can`t keep up with the flood of people who are coming to the Turkish border. And that`s why they`re not letting people in right now.

Turkey has more than 87,000 Syrian refugees. I`m at the first of the refugee camps that were established in Turkey more than a year ago. It`s full to the gills with 2,700 people here. The conditions of course much, much better than in that awful olive orchard just across the border. And that`s part of why the Syrians are trying to come here. But the Turks say they just can`t cope with the flood of people coming to the border.

And it`s not just at that olive orchard, Kristie, it`s also in neighboring villages where we saw hundreds of Syrian families living in schools and in mosques, schools that were open for students last year, but are now full of refugees. So the situation is very dire.

It`s clear that the Turks feel overwhelmed and they can`t deal with the masses of people coming to them, and it`s also becoming increasingly a political football here domestically in Turkey with opposition parties criticizing the Turkish government, people coming out in protests now saying they want some of these camps closed is putting a big strain on this border region -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: And Ivan, in your report, you talk to the refugees about what they fled from in Syria: the explosions, the rockets, the air strikes, what does Syria`s refugees tell you about their future? I mean, could they imagine that they could ever return to their homes?

WATSON: No. And in fact that English speaking young man that I talked to, the 30-year-old man, Yousef (ph), he used to be the manager of a KFC restaurant in Aleppo. And he said when he imagined his future a year ago he thought maybe he would go and study in Europe at some point and develop himself. And now he was living in a tent with more than 30 people for more than a month in this squalid refugee camp.

None of these people know if they can ever go home. Their homes are destroyed in Syria. The best hope right now is to come to Turkey to at least not be in danger of coming under attack from the Syrian armed forces.

Now what`s striking is when you ask them, listen, is this uprising worth it? Is this revolution and this armed rebellion against the regime of Bashar al-Assad worth it, some of them, including the father of that little girl Marram (ph) who was deafened and terribly scarred by an explosion last month, he said yes. They can destroy our homes, they can even kill my children, I don`t care, as long as this regime collapses.

And that gives you a sense of how incredibly polarized the populations are inside Syria today -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: Indeed, indeed. And now we`re hearing from the UNHCR that as many as 700,000 people could have fled Syria by the end of this of this year. And Ivan, that is a huge jump from previous estimates. So why is this crisis escalating to such a degree?

WATSON: Well, clearly the fighting has expanded. And what the refugees were telling me is that yes they`d already previously fled their villages and homes due to fighting, but they`ve been able to escape to neighboring communities and taken shelter there.

Now it appears the bombardment, what you could describe, and what I`ve witnessed, is basically collective punishment of rebellious communities has gotten so severe that they can`t go to neighboring villages anymore, they`ve decided that the only place they can go to save their lives, to save their families is to neighboring countries where the Syrian army can`t get them.

And some of these people have come from towns and villages that I`ve visited, Kristie, just last month, towns that were relatively safe. And now they say the airstrikes and the artillery bombardments have become so severe, they have become so routine, that they can`t even try to take shelter there anymore, their best bet is to try to flee across the country. They can`t go back to their homes. And now it appears they`re no longer truly welcome in neighboring countries like Turkey who feel they`re overwhelmed by the already 87,000 official refugees.

You have to keep in mind there are estimated more than 40,000 unofficial refugees living, paying for their own rent in apartments and in homes here, also in difficult conditions, unable to find jobs. And they are telling me, Kristie, that Turkish police are starting to go house to house warning the Syrians either move into refugee camps or go back home. You can no longer live freely, renting homes in Turkish cities and towns.

So the predicament is going from bad to worse for those people who have managed to get out of the country -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: It sounds like they`re simply trapped, a very dire situation for so many Syrian families. Ivan Watson reporting for us live at the border, thank you.

Now Syrians are waking up to more fighting and shelling. Opposition activists say at least 22 people have been killed today one day after 343 people lost their lives. And a warning, now these next images we`re about to show you are very disturbing.

Now activists say that more than 100 of those killed on Wednesday were massacred. And this amateur video purports to show some of the victims. Now CNN cannot confirm its authenticity.

The opposition accuses the Syrian regime of escalating the violence at every possible opportunity.

You`re watching News Stream. And still ahead, the president of the Palestinian Authority is due to speak at the United Nations General Assembly. And he`s expected to seek a status upgrade at the world body. We`ll explain.

And the race for the White House has moved to the U.S. state of Ohio where Republican candidate Mitt Romney and President Barack Obama have been working hard to connect with voters.

And still in the U.S., a deal has been reached to bring professional referees back onto National League Football fields. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Welcome back.

Now the United Nations General Assembly will hear from more world leaders today. And among them, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. Now you may remember this time last year, the Palestinian delegation asked for full UN membership. They brought this symbolic chair to the UN headquarters in New York as part of their campaign, but that bid failed.

Now if it had succeeded, the Palestinians could have joined the UN`s 193 member states where each member gets one vote in the assembly.

Now this time around, Abbas is expected to seek something just short of that, asking for the Palestinians to be recognized as a non-member state observer. As it stands now, the General Assembly recognizes Palestine as an observer entity.

Now senior international correspondent Sara Sidner is following the story from the West Bank. And she joins us now live from the city of Ramallah. And Sara, why are the Palestinians making this renewed bid? And how will Mahmoud Abbas make the case for it?

SARA SIDNER, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, he`s expected, first of all, to announce that they are going to put in the proper draft of the resolution in a few weeks from now. So this is an announcement of what they`re going to be doing. And they`re going to be asking for non-member state status in the UN.

Now it`s mostly a symbolic move if they do get non-member state status, they will not, for example, be able to vote at the UN, but they will then be officially considered a state. And his argument is, and the Palestinian leaderships argument is, that once they are recognized internationally as their own state, they`ll be able to do things such as be able to join some of the UN institutions, including the International Criminal Court.

And here is what the Palestinian lead negotiator had to say about why it`s important for the Palestinians to go ahead and try to get non-member state status at the UN.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAEB ARAKAT, CHIEF PALESTINIAN NEGOTIATOR: The UN step aims to achieve the preservence (ph) of the two state solution. Those who believe in the two state solution or six step alliance, we don`t see any logic, or any reasoning beyond their objection of this step, because the occupied Palestinian territories of 1967 in accordance with international law are not disputed territories. And when Palestine gains the status of non- member state, no Israeli can argue that these are disputed territories and all the actions of Israel (inaudible) Palestinian dictations on the ground will become null and void, including the annexation of East Jerusalem.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: Now he said just after that, that if they do indeed get non- member state status in the next few weeks that life here will not be the same. But if you ask the Israeli leadership if they think that`s true, they say absolutely not. The Palestinians should be going to the Israelis first, trying to work out the conflict between each other since they are neighbors and then go to the UN.

We earlier this week were able to listen to a talk by the Israeli deputy prime minster Dan Meridor, and here is what he had to say about the Palestinian`s bid.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAN MERIDOR, ISRAELI DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER: And the statement in the UN will give them some advantage in the world of public -- public opinion, but this is it, nothing will change on the ground. I think it`s a wrong -- it`s easy and wrong way out, not the tough and right way in.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: So there you`re hearing, and for a lot of Palestinians here, you hear the arguments there between the leaders, but for people who are living here, for people who feel that the occupation has disturbed their lives, you`re really hearing a different opinions here, but a lot of people do believe that it is a good idea for Abbas to at least try to get statehood in any form for the Palestinian territories -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: Sara Sidner, live in Ramallah for us, thank you.

Now turning now to U.S. politics and the battle for the presidency is zeroing in on Ohio. Now no Republican has ever won the White House without winning that state. As Mitt Romney and the man he hopes to replace at the White House, President Obama, were campaigning in Ohio on Wednesday.

Romney sought to reassure Ohio voters that he feels their financial pain and that he can put the economy back on the right track.

Mr. Obama, meanwhile, slammed Romney for what he called Romney`s sudden outrage over trade with China after, quote, "profiting from companies that sent jobs to China."

Now the latest polls show Mr. Obama leading Romney in Ohio and in the other battlegrond states of Florida and Pennsylvania. But Romney insists to CNN that he`s not worried.

U.S. political correspondent Jim Acosta is traveling with the Romney Campaign.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Across the critical battleground state of Ohio, Mitt Romney has been a man on a mission to connect with voters.

MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: My heart aches for the people I have seen.

ACOSTA: The message of the day was not only that he can fix the economy. It`s that he can feel it.

ROMNEY: There are so many in our country that are hurting right now. I want to help them. I know what it takes to get an economy going again and creating jobs. ??ACOSTA: The straight-from-the-heart appeal is echoed in a new ad that shows Romney looking directly into the camera.

ROMNEY: President Obama and I both care about poor and middle-class families. The difference is my policies will make things better for them.

ACOSTA: Translation, pay no attention to the man in that hidden camera video.

ROMNEY: There are 47 percent who are with him who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims.??

ACOSTA: But for Romney, when it rains it pours. His two-day Ohio bus tour under steady showers at times has had the feel of a race against time. ??A stunning new poll from "The New York Times," CBS News and Quinnipiac finds Romney trailing the president by 10 points in Ohio, nine points in Florida and 12 in Pennsylvania. An ABC News/"Washington Post" poll may explain why; 54 percent said they had an unfavorable view of Romney`s comments on voters who don`t pay taxes.

Romney told CNN he`s not worried about the numbers. ??

ROMNEY: We`re taking our message to the people of Ohio and across the country. And polls go up and down. But, frankly, you`re going to see the support that I need to become president on Election Day. ??

ACOSTA: But he`s facing some strong economic headwinds in Ohio, where the governor, John Kasich, touted his state`s recovery at a Romney event. ??

GOV. JOHN KASICH (R), OHIO: I hope you all know Ohio`s coming back from 48th in job creation to number four, number one in the Midwest. ??

ACOSTA: Joined by golf legend and Ohio native Jack Nicklaus, Romney said the president shouldn`t get a mulligan or do-over when it comes to cutting the deficit.

ROMNEY: Now there`s over $16 trillion in debt. If he were reelected, I can assure you it will be almost $20 trillion in debt.

ACOSTA: As for preparations for next week`s debate, a senior Romney advisor compared President Obama to baseball great Sy Young and said Romney will, quote, need plenty of batting practice. It`s hard to set expectations for an opponent any higher than that.

Jim Acosta, CNN, traveling with the Romney campaign in Toledo, Ohio.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: The first presidential debate between Mitt Romney and Barack Obama takes place on October 3 in Denver, Colorado. And there will be a total of three presidential debates and one vice presidential debate between now and the end of October. And all of them live on CNN as part of our extensive America`s Choice coverage leading up to the U.S. election on November 6.

Now good news for NFL fans, you can go back to yelling at the real referees again. Now replacement refs have been kicked to the curb after a call that outraged many viewers. We`ve got the details next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Live from Hong Kong, you`re back watching News Stream. And this is a visual rundown of all the stories that we`re covering today. Now we`ve told you about Syria`s refugee crisis and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas as he prepares to address the UN.

But let`s turn now to a major story from the world of U.S. sport and a controversy that has hit the NFL.

Now American football players, coaches and fans are all breathing a sigh of relief after a deal was reached to end the referee`s lockout. Let`s go live to Alex Thomas for more -- Alex.

ALEX THOMAS, CNN SPORTS CORREPSONDENT: Kristie, less than three days after a major error from replacement referees in the prestigious Monday Night Football game cause global embarrassment for the NFL, the lockout of the regular refs has ended.

A new eight-year pay deal, the longest in the league`s history, was reached after two days of talks. And it means the officials will take charge of all this week`s games.

In a statement, NFL commissioner Roger Goddell said, "we appreciate the commitment of the NFL Referees Association in working through the issues to reach this important agreement."

As I said, the refs straight back to work. They`ll be in charge of the Browns versus Ravens game later on Thursday.

Now the 39th Ryder Cup officially gets underway later with the opening ceremony at Medina near Chicago. America`s and Europe`s top golfers going head to head for a trophy that`s been on this side of the Atlantic for the last two years. In fact, the Europeans have won six of the last eight Ryder Cups. And they have the world`s best player on their team.

CNN`s Living Golf host Shane O`Donoghue is there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHANE O`DONOGHUE, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Rory McIlroy will have a great deal of responsibility to lead by example in this Ryder Cup as Team Europe looks to retain the trophy here on American soil this week.

As world number one, the 23 year old fully realizes the expectations that have been placed on his young shoulders. And his would be a notable scalp for any of his opponents.

RORY MCILROY, GOLFER: I don`t think I bull`s eye on my back. I think it`s a huge compliement, you know, that people are saying that, you know, they want to beat me and whatever. But I -- whoever wants to take me on, they can take me on.

TIGER WOODS, GOLFER: That`s part of being ranked number one, that`s part of winning major championships. You`re always going to want to try to take out their best player. And that`s part of the deal. That`s a fun challenge. And I certainly have loved it over the years, and I`m sure he`s going to relish it as well this week.

JOSE MARIA OLAZABAL, EURPOEAN RYDER CUP CAPTAIN: I would say that he`s at this moment very close to how good Tiger was at that stretch of time between `99 and 2002, the way he`s playing. He`s full of confidence. He`s got the whole game. And he`s -- in that regard, he`s great to have players like that on your team.

O`DONOGHUE: McIlroy looks likely to partner fellow Northern Irishman Graham McDowell in the opening foursomes on Friday morning, but we won`t know that for certain until they`re announced officially during Thursday`s opening ceremony.

Shane O`Donoghue, CNN, Chicago.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

THOMAS: And we`ll be live to the course later in the day.

Now, Hamburg are up to third place in football`s Bundesliga thanks to a 4-1 victory over Nuremburg on Wednesday night. They`re also wins with Bayern Leverkusen, Virtabremen, and Hoffenheim. However the match at Borussia Moenchenbgladbach ended in a draw despite Rafael Wunderbar putting Hamburg ahead in the opening half an hour.

Martin Stransel equalized for the home team. And he got his head to that corner kick, however, the visitors reclaimed the lead before halftime. And then after the break Wundebar missed the chance to extend Hamburg`s lead when he hit the post from the penalty spot and the side paid for that mistake as Alvaro Domingues flicks Juan Arango`s free kick into the net. Final score, 2-2.

And we`re also keeping an eye on the disciplinary hearing of Chelsea football star John Terry, Kristie. There may be a decision later today. World Sport is in three-and-a-half hours time. For now, back to you in Hong Kong.

LU STOUT: A lot to (inaudible). Alex Thomas, thank you.

Coming up next right here on News Stream, filmmaking taken to new heights. How remote controlled helicopters propel one man to breathtaking movie magic.

And maps on your mobile, we often forget just how useful the tool can be. A look into how mobile technology is changing our lives.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN ANCHOR: You`re watching NEWS STREAM and these are your world headlines.

At least 22 people have been killed in Syria today following the deadliest day yet in the country`s relentless civil war. An opposition group says 343 people died in violence in Syria on Wednesday. This is prompting a desperate exodus. The U.N. says 700,000 Syrians may flee their country this year (ph).

After four days of high-level talks between Sudan and South Sudan in Ethiopia, there appears to be an agreement of sorts. A South Sudan spokesman says they have reached a deal on economic issues and a demilitarized zone. Sudan`s foreign ministry spokesman would say some issues were agreed to and others were not.

Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei has lost his second and final appeal against tax evasion charges in Beijing. That means he must pay nearly $2.5 billion in back taxes and fines. His legal adviser says that the court failed to hold a hearing on new evidence. Ai says the case is an attempt to silence his activism and requests (inaudible) comment from the court have not been returned.

Now Spain is set to unveil the country`s 2013 budget. The deputy prime minister is expected to announce another round of austerity cuts as the government tries to bring down its deficit and the measures are expected to include implementing higher taxes and changes to pension plans. And many have been expressing anger over the austerity measures.

Thousands have been protesting in Madrid this week. Spain, one of Europe`s largest economies, has been in recession since April, and the Bank of Spain has said it expects the economy to only get worse. We`ll have more on this story coming up on "WBT."

And usually, when we talk about drones in Pakistan, we`re referring to airstrikes on suspected militants. But not today. We want to share a breathtaking view of the country`s Karakoram Mountains. They were captured by a remote-controlled helicopter. It carried an HD camera and the footage is stunning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STOUT (voice-over): Gorgeous scenes there. But going into it, the team had no idea if their drone would work. And they planned to carry it on their climb more than 6,000 meters up. Now Corey Rich recorded the expedition. He joins us now live from Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

And hello there. Your footage, it`s absolutely breathtaking. Can you tell us more about just how you were able to get those sweeping shots?

COREY RICH, VIDEOGRAPHER: Sure. Well, I wish I could singlehandedly take credit for the footage, but it was really a small team. I was along to document two of the world`s great climbers, David Lama and Peter Ortner, climbing. And then we brought a Swiss RC helicopter pilot, Remo Masina, who, at 21 years old, has been flying planes and helicopters for over half of his life.

My job as a director and storyteller really was to try to (inaudible) through what was the big picture, what story are we trying to tell and really get that camera into new locations so that the world could see the Karakoram climbing in a new way. And I think we might have actually achieved that.

STOUT: So this is very much a group effort. Can you go through the costs with us? I mean, just how much does it cost to use a remote- controlled vehicle compared to a helicopter to get these sweeping aerial shots?

RICH: Sure. Well, I think -- I think we`re living in a really incredible time from a technology standpoint. Historically to shoot something like these shots of the Karakoram and the Trango Tower, you would have used a real helicopter. And of course, the cost of flying a real helicopter in Pakistan in a remote mountain range would be extraordinary.

I mean, I`m guessing here, but $5,000 to $10,000 an hour, if you could even get a helicopter into the area. I think the expense of using an RC helicopter is probably close to that all day.

And by bringing a pilot with multiple RC helicopters to the Karakoram, it gave us incredible freedom. These little devices are becoming more affordable and more user-friendly in terms of use. Prices range from $1,000 to $40,000 in terms of the piece of equipment. So we`re living in a great time, from the pushing the limits of visual (inaudible).

STOUT: Indeed. And can you give us more details about this device? I think we caught a glimpse of it just then in your footage, this RC helicopter, how big is it, how much does it weigh, and the price tag?

RICH: Sure. You know, we brought two RC helicopters along with us, one that could carry a more substantial Nikon DSLR camera at lower elevations. But as we moved higher up the glacier, weight was a big concern. So we were flying just a small point of view camera, ultra- lightweight. Both of the RC helicopters were custom-made by Remo. He`s a real technician.

So he`s buying parts but then assembling them so that it performed at exactly the right elevation. I think the big surprise on this trip was actually that we flew the helicopter over 6,000 meters. And Remo really believed that he probably could have flown higher.

It`s also important to recognize that he was flying through goggles. He was wearing ski goggles that were modified with monitors inside. So he flying over a mile away from our base camp. He was sitting there with a remote control while myself (sic) and the two climbers were up on top of the Trango Tower, on the wall of the Trango Tower.

So he`s flying all by visual aid of his goggles. So it`s really an incredible scenario that in 2012, we can go to one of the wildest mountain ranges in the world and capture footage like that from a handmade, custom RC helicopter.

STOUT: It is incredible. It`s also incredible, I mean, this was essentially flying a drone inside Pakistan. It`s a drone not for surveillance or anything else, but for storytelling. Are there legal concerns or sensitivities that it could, you know, potentially violate a nation`s airspace? Did you ask for permission before you filmed there?

RICH: You know, we found the people in Pakistan were incredibly welcoming and really excited about seeing these two RC helicopters or drones in the Baltoro Glacier Valley. When we flew over villages, everyone stopped in their tracks and looked up and were fascinated by what was happening.

We brought two RC helicopters because I had to admit we were concerned one might get confiscated when we came through customs . But sure enough, there seemed to be no issue as we entered the country. I think it was -- there was a little bit of concern going in on the front end. But in the end, it worked out quite well.

STOUT: This was an experiment in drone filmmaking. It`s safe to say that the experiment worked. So what`s next? Where do you plan to film next?

RICH: You know, I`m more and more, as a filmmaker and as a director, I`m always looking for how do we push the envelope in terms of seeing in a different way. And the idea of flying in a camera very close to the ground, wind blowing through a real helicopter, really opens the door.

So I find I`m adding an RC helicopter to almost every shoot that I have on the horizon. The next shoot will be in Hawaii, shooting water sports off the -- off the coast. And I think it`ll add a nice perspective in an RC helicopter.

STOUT: Oh, definitely. Can`t wait to see that.

Corey Rich, joining us live from Jackson Hole, thank you so much for sharing your story and sharing your footage with us, really breathtaking stuff.

Good luck.

RICH: My pleasure, thanks.

STOUT: All right. Some breathtaking images there from the Karakorum Mountains in Pakistan. And let`s stay in Pakistan as the nation is recovering from major floods along the Indus River. Details now with Mari Ramos. She joins us from the World Weather Center.

Mari?

MARI RAMOS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Hey, Kristie, yes, we`re go ahead and head from the mountains of Pakistan that did get some very heavy rain to the valleys. And the images from here are actually pretty spectacular as well.

But we`re going to go from a different point of view, but nothing as beautiful and dramatic as what we were just seeing from that remote- controlled helicopter. But I got to show you, this is pretty impressive. These pictures are from NASA and this particular one that you see here behind me was taken on September 1st. You see the desert and brown. You see the colors here in green.

And that right over here, that squiggle that you see there is the Indus river. Now you got to remember, September is already well into the rainy season here. But the rain came and it happened very, very quickly. We`re going to go ahead and move this over so you can see the difference.

This picture taken just 21 days later, and you can see how widespread the flooding is, not so much along the Indus proper, but remember that there are literally hundreds of canals that take the water from the Indus river and take it back over toward all of these farmers that are in this area for irrigation. That`s one of the major ways that they can sustain their agriculture.

Well, you can see how widespread the flooding has been all along these areas. And if we go back and do the "before" again, you`re going to be able to notice how significant the changes, particularly in these areas here and people are (inaudible) over a million people have been affected by this kind of flood.

Let`s go ahead and do the "after" one more time so you can really see how dramatic this actually is. And some of the concerns are these areas right in here, because this is where the towns and villages are and that is where people have been most affected.

So those pictures right there are from NASA. Let`s go ahead and show you the satellite image right now, clear, pretty much, across all of Pakistan, also across India. We`ve had some severe flooding across eastern India, particularly here in the state of Assam, along another major river in south Asia, the Brahma Putra. Let`s go ahead and roll the pictures from India.

These are new images and this is really amazing. Look at the tranquil river there. But this is actually part of the river that has overflowed. And you see how still the water is? Well, this water is not going to take days to go down. It`s going to take weeks to go down.

And here 1.7 million people affected by the floodwaters, at least 18 dead, 10 more missing. That was the count in the last 24 hours. And then it`s feared that this may actually continue to grow. There are over 300,000 people that are in shelters, but millions more living in the situation that you see these people right in that area. So this is another story that we`re continuing to monitor very, very closely.

Let`s head to east Asia, because there some more stuff going on right over here. We have two tropical cyclones. (Inaudible) right here, that already the outer bands are beginning to affect portions of Japan, Honshu in particular.

Tokyo getting some strong, some gusty winds from that. That`s (inaudible) expected to pass safely to the east of Japan, so we`re not going to talk about it too much. But this other storm, this is a supertyphoon still. It`s the one that has been bringing you all of that heavy rain across the Philippines.

We`re expecting this storm to move from the shores of northern Luzon to the north and pass very, very closely to Taiwan and then eventually affect the (inaudible) still as a major storm. Let`s go ahead and check out now your city (inaudible).

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RAMOS: And look at this picture, Kristie. This is from England, heading to the U.K., England and Wales have been the most affected by (inaudible) calling the worst storm in the last 30 years across England. Water levels are high. There are more than 60 flood warnings as we speak. People are trying to make the best of it, as you can see, right there.

But the damage has been substantial across the region. This is a story that we`re continuing to monitor. That weather system has actually started to move away from the U.K., and we`re starting to see an improvement there. But there has been some very heavy rain along central parts of Europe, including Switzerland where some areas got more than 100 mm of rain.

But we`re monitoring the situation across all of these areas. Temperature wise, we`re not doing too bad across the region. But just watch out for the heavy rain across central portions of the continent. Then I want to show you one more picture. Another part of the world -- I love this. No, this is not -- (inaudible), you know, cold place that you`d expect to see.

This is one of the most famous beaches in the world. What`s going on? People are wearing sweaters on Ipanema Beach in Rio. The temperature went down to 12 degrees, that`s pretty chilly for them yesterday. It`s spring. It`s supposed to be warmer. It will slowly get warmer in the next couple of days, so back to you.

STOUT: I know. Where are the bikinis? (Inaudible) forecast.

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STOUT: I know, exactly.

(LAUGHTER)

STOUT: Mari Ramos, thank you. Now you hold the world in your hand and we mean that quite literally. Mapping locations on your mobile device can prove pretty necessary. So after the break, we`ll take a closer look at the controversy over Apple`s new Maps app.

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STOUT: Now the U.S. has just released revised GDP figures for the second quarter, and they are sharply lower than previously estimated, 1.3 percent. That`s down from the original reading of 1.7 percent. It`s not a great sign for the struggling U.S. economy. We`ll have much more on this on "WORLD BUSINESS TODAY" in about 15 minutes from now.

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STOUT: All this week, we`re looking at "Our Mobile Society," exploring how mobile technology has changed our lives. And today, we want to focus on maps. Now sometimes it`s easy to forget how amazing mobile maps are with this ability to zoom in and out of maps of different scales. The app on my phone is far more detailed than this enormous atlas.

We now have the ability to know exactly where we are, what`s around us and how to get to where we want to go at any time in any place. Now the critical reaction to Apple`s new Maps app is a sign of just how important maps are to us.

Apple replaced Google Maps in the latest version of the iPhone and iPad software with its own app. But there was one place where it looks like Apple`s maps are actually better than before -- China. Here`s what a part of Beijing looks like with Apple`s Maps app. Now let`s see what it used to look like on the iPhone and Google`s old app was much plainer, with far less detail.

Let`s see both of them together; you see Apple`s version`s on the left, Google`s is on the right. And Apple`s new app has far more detail, more labels, even building outlines. But you only see this if you`re inside China.

Now we searched for that same area of Beijing from here in Hong Kong, and the map we see here is even plainer than the others. Now "The Wall Street Journal" says that`s because of licensing deals. Now Apple has partnered with one of China`s top mapping companies to provide data for China. But the deal is only valid in China.

Now when women`s boxing made its debut at the Olympics this year, one athlete, Nicola Adams, walked away with the event`s first-ever gold medal. As part of our "Human to Hero" series, you meet Adams training in the U.K. to find out what it takes to become a champion.

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NICOLA ADAMS, OLYMPIC BOXER: There`s two sides (inaudible). There`s a mental side and a physical side. The mental side you have to be really confident and calm and relaxed and focused. (Inaudible) mentally, you`re thinking I can win and I can achieve it. And the physical side is really tough as well. You know, there`s a lot of training that goes into it.

I love everything about boxing. I love the fact that, you know, it`s the work that you put in is what you will get out of it. If you put (inaudible) then it`s down to you when you get in the ring.

My first encounter with, you know, the ring and the gloves and a gym was when I was 12 years old. My mum took me down to the gym. She used to do aerobics. And one particular night (inaudible) for me and my brother. And she took us down to the gym with her. And (inaudible) boxing class. And I think it`s that from there, really. You know, I (inaudible) in and I was the only girl there as well.

My first competition was when I was 13. I boxed another local girl. I remember peering behind the curtain (inaudible) big curtain for all the boxers to walk out under and then go into the ring, and I remember peeking out and you know, seeing all my friends and family and the crowd, you know, all waiting for the boxing to begin.

I`d only just started boxing and there wasn`t that many female boxers around. So when I got to boxing, it was really rare.

(Inaudible) training (inaudible) difficult for me when I started boxing for England, when I was 18. I was the first woman to represent my country. It was a real breakthrough for me. I couldn`t believe what I was achieving and I think it`s, you know, just out of my hard working, you know, my dedication and you know, I`m not letting anybody, you know, put me down.

(Inaudible) training involves (inaudible) in the morning, strengthening, conditioning, I do weights, press-ups, pull-ups and then a boxing session. Women tend to focus more on the technique than the power (inaudible) the men do. (Inaudible) and my footwork.

When I first got to Great Britain, this is one of my combinations that I used, which was quite strong for me. The jab and the hook to the body. And you`ve got to really love what you`re doing. Otherwise, you won`t get -- you won`t get through the training, you know, the times when you have run in the rain and it`s minus God knows what degrees outside and you get up and you -- and you go do the work.

I injured my back in 2009. I was packing my -- packing my things to go to a boxing match and I`d left my bandage hanging out of my bag. And I`d fallen -- tripped over it and fallen down the stairs. (Inaudible) little crack in one of my vertebrae. So that meant I was out of boxing for a year.

I was missing what I loved doing, especially because it was at the time when they were doing the selections for the team -- Team GB for -- to go up to the Olympics. I managed to make it back in time for the last assessment camp and made the team.

The biggest moment for me was when I knocked down Ren Cancan in the Olympic finals. When I walked out into the crowd, I was thinking this is my time. I want to win this. I just remember thinking, you know, why isn`t she (inaudible)? I`m going to do 10 times better, you know, if she throws a punch, I`ll throw five back.

Winning the medal for me meant everything, all the hard work, all the ups and downs that, you know, the highs and lows. And everything in my life, you know, has revolved around boxing. And so for me to win the gold medal was everything I`d dreamed about since I was a kid.

To be a champion, it does take a lot of inner belief and the will to win, the dream. You know, I dreamed that one day I`d be in the Olympics and I`d be able to box in front of thousands of people. You need that belief giving you that little bit extra when you might be down on points or you might be tired, because it`ll give you the little edge over your opponent to win.

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