Return to Transcripts main page

New Day

Family Survives Being Stranded in Nevada Snow; South Africa Continues to Mourn Nelson Mandela; College Student Killed by Police; Controversial Presidential Handshake; Lululemon Founder Resigns

Aired December 11, 2013 - 7:00   ET

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

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: The family's car overturned after they went to play in the snow, and it took drastic measures to keep hope and to keep the family alive. Stephanie Elam is in Nevada this morning. This is just really an unbelievable story, Stephanie.

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is, John. It's unbelievable that not only just one of them but all six of them made it out safely. We're here in Pershing General Hospital where the family is hopefully sleeping, getting good rest right now. Hopefully they'll be going home later today off two days in some really frigid temperatures.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELAM: An incredible finale to a dramatic story of survival. A Lovelock, Nevada, family of six, including four young children were found alive and in fairly good condition Tuesday after being stranded in the rugged terrain of Seven Troughs mountain range, about 120 miles northeast of Reno. Family, friends, and search teams says this rescue is truly a miracle.

CHRIS MONTES, HELPED WITH RESCUE: It was a huge relief. I was expecting the worst.

SHERIFF RICHARD MACHADO, PERSHING COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE: It was the work of a lot of people in the community.

ELAM: For two days, search teams and more than 200 volunteers covered 6,000 square miles by air and land, off-roading through the snow and mud in search of James Glanton, his girlfriend, Christina McIntee, and the children, ages three to 10. According to police, the family set out to play in the snow on Sunday when their jeep slowly tipped over in the soft snow, slipping and then completely overturning down a ravine. The conditions at the time of the accident, brutal, with temperatures plunging to 21 degrees below zero. But officials say Glanton and McIntee did a fabulous job of keeping their kids and McIntee's niece and nephew warm. The 34-year-old father even heated rocks to battle the biting cold.

DR. DOUGLAS VACEK, PERSHING GENERAL HOSPITAL: The first thing he did was built a fire. And I think that really prevented any serious medical problems for them.

ELAM: Police say it was a joint effort that led to the family's rescue Tuesday afternoon. A couple of pings from Glanton's cellphone eventually led pacific air patrol to the family. Meanwhile, Glanton's friend, using binoculars, also located them while scanning the mountainside.

MONTES: He's one hell of a guy, that's for damn sure. He kept them alive and warm, and my hat's off to them, because not a lot of people are capable of that.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ELAM: All in all, the doctor says he's very surprised the family was doing so well. They have some slight dehydration and some slight hypothermia. They're saying this Christmas will probably be a little extra special. We can see why, Kate.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: No gifts needed this time around. Thank you so much, Stephanie.

Let's bring in Paul Burke, search and rescue coordinator for the Nevada Department of Public Safety. Paul led the effort to find the missing family. Paul, thanks for coming in so early out there in Nevada. You led the search. What was your first reaction when you found out they were found, not only alive but doing relatively well?

PAUL BURKE, NEVADA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY: I have a lot of history doing these types of searches in this particular weather, especially up in Alaska where I work from. So I was extremely pleased, very, very shocked to be quite honest with you. I've been in a lot of searches with outcomes not so good. So very happy, very tired but very happy about it.

BOLDUAN: Absolutely. Talk to me about the conditions that this family was facing, especially in the overnight hours. How difficult was it for them?

BURKE: Well, for one thing, 22, 23 below zero is incredibly cold. Being in a vehicle that they couldn't heat up is also extremely dangerous. The fact they stayed inside the vehicle, the fact that they were able to warm themselves and get fluids in them, all that contributed to the success of their living through this incident.

BOLDUAN: And I think that's a question many folks have. You know this area. You were involved in many, unfortunately, many rescue efforts similar to this. What is the number one thing this family, especially the father, did right that people should take notice of?

BURKE: As soon as this happened, they stopped, they stayed together. The survivability goes up incredibly high when people stay together. If they were to separate, if he were to walk away or try to find help, chances are he wouldn't have survived and most likely the family wouldn't have survived. So staying together, staying warm, that was the key to their survival.

BOLDUAN: And talk to me about the rescue efforts. Hundreds of people involved, scouring thousands of square miles. What was the rescue effort? How did you end up pinpointing them? BURKE: First of all, putting the right resource, the right people, trained searchers and untrained volunteers who know what to do in the right area, that solves a problem. We had people with the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center down in Florida working on controlling aircraft. We had a cell forensics expert down in Ohio working on cell forensics. We had a number of agencies around the state of Nevada, including the Nevada National Guard, aviation units, NAS fallen, naval air station helicopter. We had a number of resources working on this, all professional, all well-trained.

BOLDUAN: How unusual is this? I know you said you were shocked. You're involved in these rescue efforts. I'm sure while you hope for the best you are absolutely preparing for the worst when you're talking about temperatures dipping into negative 21, 22.

BURKE: We have to prepare ourselves psychologically, and we prepare hopefully the family psychologically for any outcome, good or bad, to try to let them be realistic about the success it will have. But we always remain optimistic. I've seen cases like this. This is just another where some incredible things happened to cause their survival, things that I would never have heard of. Heating rocks, staying with the vehicle, lighting a tire -- he did some things to encourage them and to encourage us to keep going.

BOLDUAN: Have you had a chance to speak with the family yet?

BURKE: No. Actually they've been in the hospital. And as soon as the search was over, I wanted to get back to town. So we haven't had a chance to talk to the family, but I can certainly understand how they feel. We're very happy they're back together.

BOLDUAN: I'm sure they would like to take the opportunity to thank you and maybe you'll have opportunity to get together at some point after they warm up and you already are back at work. Paul Burke, great to meet you. Thank you so much. Please remind me to get your cellphone number and let you know when I take a trek out in the wilderness. I'd like you to be the one looking for me.

BURKE: Thank you very much.

BOLDUAN: Thanks so much, Paul.

BERMAN: They did everything right, including the little things. The big thing was not to panic.

BOLDUAN: That's the thing. I think there were some reports they heard helicopters overhead. That gave them the hope that people were looking for them. Maybe that kept them together a little bit more. Regardless, the fact that it turned out this way, I don't think we can talk about it enough.

BERMAN: Heated rocks, who knew?

President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama back in the United States this morning. They had been in South Africa attending the memorial for Nelson Mandela. Mandela's body is now lying in state. Thousands lined the procession this morning as his coffin draped in the South African flag was moved to Pretoria's union buildings. For the next three days people will get their chance to pay their own respects.

Our Isha Sesay is there. There's been an outpouring of emotion. With the casket there, it's been very emotional.

ISHA SESAY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, John, no doubt about it. I think it's the case of seeing the remains of the former president that is really bringing it home for people that he has departed, Madiba is no longer here with us. There's been a constant stream of members of the general public making their way here to the union building, all coming here to pay their respects to Nelson Mandela. Some are draped in the South African flag on others are carrying pictures of him. It has been a very solemn procession of people, and they have made their way past the glass-topped coffin containing the remains of Nelson Mandela.

Earlier in the day, VIPs and members of the Mandela family had the opportunity to pay their final respects to Madiba. And then too we saw the somberness of the occasion. Many tears and many well-known faces that we've come to recognize from pop culture, from being leaders of politics, and all upset, a very, very somber day here in Pretoria. Kate, John?

BERMAN: Isha Sesay for us in Pretoria. Thank you so much.

BOLDUAN: Another story breaking overnight, violent clashes in the Ukraine, riot police moving in with force against anti-government protesters gathered in Kiev's Independence Square. The action is being condemned by the Obama administration. Let's get more from CNN's Phil Black who's monitoring the developments for us in Moscow. Phil?

PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kate, the police, the riot police moved in in big numbers, hundreds of them, not with the intent of clearing out the protesters but tearing down the barricades they had set up at all the entry points to Independence Square. The Ukrainian government had said that it would not use force against peaceful demonstrations, but it clearly was not prepared to tolerate those fortifications which were designed to keep the police out.

As you can see, the protesters resisted, responded with big numbers of their own. There was a lot of pushing and shoving as they tried to slow down the police work. But there was not any great violence, things did not escalate.

This protest movement is all about the fact that many Ukrainians are angry with the government's decision to move closer to Russia instead of the European Union. The international community believes the standoff must be solved through negotiation, and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has issued a very strong statement expressing the United States' disgust at riot police being used in this way against peaceful protesters. Kate?

BOLDUAN: All right, Phil, thank you so much for monitoring that clearly developing situation overnight.

But let's get to Pamela Brown now in for Michaela for a look at more of this morning's headlines.

PAMELA BROWN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good to be here with you. The headlines today, Secretary of State John Kerry sparring with members of Congress over nuclear negotiations with Iran. Kerry calling it a, quote, "delicate diplomatic moment" urged lawmakers from both sides to honor a U.S. pledge to refrain from any new sanctions over the next six months in exchange for Iranian concessions on enriching uranium.

And the National Transportation Safety Board will hold hearings today about this summer's Asiana Airlines crash in San Francisco. Investigators are focused on human error, believing the pilots misunderstood an automated speed control system and were going too slow on approach. The crash killed three people and injured 180. The hearing was postponed a day because of yesterday's snow.

Two British nationals have no pleaded guilty to terrorism charges in Connecticut. The men are accused of running a website to raise money and solicit donations for Al Qaeda and the Taliban. The funds were used to support Muslim militants fighting in Afghanistan and Chechnya. Sentencing is scheduled for March 4th. Both men have requested to serve their time in the U.K.

And if you're feeling lucky, you may want to give mega millions a try. The jackpot for Friday's drawing has grown to about $400 million. Nobody won last night's $344 million prize drawing. So it's been more than two months, actually, since somebody won this jackpot. Remember, though, if you do buy the ticket, it will be on Friday 13th.

BERMAN: So I guess that means if you do win, you are possessed?

BOLDUAN: Maybe so.

BROWN: I'm not sure what to make of it.

BOLDUAN: If you win on Friday 13th, what does that mean?

BERMAN: Good news/bad news. You're rich but --

BOLDUAN: But you're cursed.

BERMAN: Exactly.

(LAUGHTER)

BERMAN: Thanks, Pamela.

We're going to get a quick look at the weather now. It has been a mess all up and down the east coast. Let's go to Jennifer Gray in the CNN's Weather Center.

JENNIFER GRAY, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Hey, guys. Yes, it has been a mess. Luckily that system has pushed out, waiting on the next one. And it's not going to be good news for a lot of you. We'll talk about that in just a minute.

But first I want to show a little bit of snow around the Great Lakes region. We could pick up an inch or two of snow around Chicago for today. Look at these snow totals around Buffalo, a foot to a foot and a half of snow expected for today. And they've already received several inches over the past day or two. So just adding insult to injury there.

We are looking at wind chill advisories, watches, warnings, all across the north with wind chills very, very cold, feeling like 20, 30, 40, 50 degrees almost below zero. This is when you factor in the temperature and the wind, so feeling very cold across the north. The rest of the country still cold, Dallas at 25 degrees, Memphis at 27, we're at 30 degrees in Atlanta. The next winter storm is already starting to shape up across the country, could see rain and icy mix and even heavy snow to a large portion of the northeast on Saturday and Sunday, guys.

BERMAN: Heavy snow. How heavy are we talking here?

BOLDUAN: That's relative.

GRAY: That's mainly going to be for upstate New York. But we could see several inches in upstate New York. Could see an icy mix possibly in New York City and Boston.

BOLDUAN: The mix is always the worst. You get the snow, the rain, the mix is where the mess comes in.

BERMAN: Good for snow balls in a dangerous kind of way.

BOLDUAN: Thanks, Jennifer.

Let's turn now to the story coming out of Texas we've been following. Parents of a Texas college student shot and killed by police say they are waiting for answers. And they are now speaking out to CNN. Family members are left, though, planning a funeral for Cameron Redus after campus police shot him, saying he resisted arrest almost 60 times. CNN's George Howell has the very latest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GEORGE HOWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A father and mother struggle with the unthinkable.

VALERIE REDUS, MOTHER: I'd give anything if he'd walk right through that door.

HOWELL: And 23-year-old Cameron Redus shot and killed by a campus police officer, just hours after celebrating the final day of the semester. He was set to graduate in May but now Valerie and Mickey Redus are planning his funeral.

MICKEY REDUS, FATHER: All I could see was a tragedy. It would have been so devastated about unnecessary loss. VALERIE REDUS: He was well loved and a favorite of the group. And excelled, I was proud. I was just proud for him. I was proud to be his mother.

HOWELL: Police paint a very different picture of the college senior. Investigators say for at least six minutes early Friday morning, Cam Redus ignored 56 commands to stop resisting arrest when confronted by Corporal Chris Carter. Then police say there was a struggle, according to the University of the Incarnate Word, the officer drew his firearm, and was able to knock the baton from the suspect who continued to resist arrest. Shots were fired.

The university has put out a statement. The police are releasing some facts, and we still don't know all the facts. But as a family, how do you deal with the contradiction, these two stories about who you know Cam to be and what you're hearing?

VALERIE REDUS, MOTHER OF REDUS: I know the man that I've seen for 23 years. I know what he's become. I know how steadfast and true to the way we brought him up -- I just feel like the truth will come out.

HOWELL: A young man who loved adventure, Cam Redus's parents say he was loved by many, leaving behind a legacy that, they believe, speaks for itself.

MICKEY REDUS, FATHER OF REDUS: We believe him to be in heaven, beginning the greatest adventure ever. But for ourselves there's pain, because there's this huge hole that's left by his presence here with us.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

BOLDUAN: Poor family, completely devastated. And the numbers in this incident really don't add up. And that's why they're bringing in an investigator to look into it. The police department says he was told 14 times to put his hands behind his back. He was told three times that he was under arrest, and he was told 56 times to stop resisting arrest. But on the flip-side, there were also gunshots that were fired. And he was hit five times.

BERMAN: And the other number that's crazy, this went on for six minutes?

BOLDUAN: Six minutes.

BERMAN: Six minutes, which is an eternity for this type of thing.

BOLDUAN: I know. It doesn't add up. We'll see. The investigators are looking into it.

Coming up next on NEW DAY, the hand shake that seemed to shake up the world. The fallout from President Obama's unexpected encounter in South Africa with Cuba's Raul Castro.

BERMAN: And he blamed women's bodies for problems with his company's clothes. You knew this was going to be an issue. Is Lululemon founder Chip Wilson paying the price for his public comments about yoga pants?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BERMAN: Welcome back to NEW DAY, everyone. President Obama is back on U.S. soil this morning. But people are still talking about that very brief moment on the stage at the Nelson Mandela memorial.

It was this image, the president shaking hands with Cuban President Raul Castro, in this gesture, a handshake has been welcomed with cheers by many people in Cuba but also denounced by many others, including some Cuban-Americans.

CNN's Athena Jones is live at the White House with still more on this, Athena.

ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John. That's right. This move is being criticized also by some folks here in Washington. President Obama's former rival, Arizona Senator John McCain, compared this handshake to Neville Chamberlain shaking hands with Hitler.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

JONES (voice-over): It was the handshake seen around the world.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: Castro, he's shaking hands with Raul Castro.

JONES: The historic greeting between political adversaries at Tuesday's memorial service for Nelson Mandela garnered headlines across the globe. The White House saying the hand shake between President Obama and Cuban dictator Raul Castro was not planned.

The U.S. hasn't had diplomatic relations with Cuba in more than 50 years. It isn't the first such encounter. President Obama shook hands with Libya's Moammar Gadhafi at the G8 in Italy in 2009.

The greeting sparked controversy among Republicans and embargo supporters in Washington.

REP. ILEANA ROS-LEHTINEN, (R )-FLORIDA: Mr. Secretary, sometimes a handshake is just a handshake, but when the leader of the free world shakes the bloody hand of a ruthless dictator like Raul Castro, it becomes a propaganda coup for the tyrant.

JONES: That prompted this defense from Secretary of State John Kerry.

JOHN KERRY, SECRETARY OF STATE: As the president said in his speech today, honoring Nelson Mandela, he said, we urge leaders to honor Mandela's struggle for freedom by upholding the basic human rights of their people.

ROS-LEHTINEN: And would you say Raul Castro is upholding the basic human rights?

KERRY: No, absolutely not.

JONES: In fact, Cuba has been holding American aide worker Alan Gross for four years on charges he tried to destabilize the Cuban government. The handshake sparking anger among some Cuban-American exiles in Miami.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I mean, I understand the circumstances of where they were at with the Nelson Mandela funeral and all, but for us, you never shake the hand of your enemy.

JONES: But on the streets of Cuba, the gesture was met with surprise and hope for reconciliation.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think that to be a dialogue should happen and perhaps maybe things will get better.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

JONES: The question now is whether this handshake will change history or change nothing. Kate?

BOLDUAN: All right, Athena, thank you so much for that. Let's talk about yoga pants now.

BERMAN: Let's talk about yoga pants.

BOLDUAN; Let's transition to yoga pants, if you will. There's' more trouble for the popular active-wear company Lululemon . Its founder Chip Wilson has resigned as chairman a month after some controversial comments that he made that said some women's bodies don't work in the chain's clothing. Immediately after, he issued this apology.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

CHIP WILSON, FORMER CHAIRMAN OF LULULEMON: I'm sad -- I'm really sad. I'm sad for the repercussions of my actions. I take responsibility for all that has occurred and the impact it has had on you.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

BOLDUAN: This is correspondent Alison Kosik is here to explain more. So Alison, first remind us why Chip Wilson had to make that apology and does it have anything to do with the fact that he's now leaving?

ALISON KOSIK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So he made that apology because of comments he made during a different TV interview. Just to back this up so people can follow what's going on, yesterday he announced he's resigning from Lululemon effective next summer.

Now what happened was in March. These signature yoga pants that they have wound up being see-through. In fact, when the company had to pull them off the shelves, the company even said the transparency -- I can't believe they said this -- the transparency could be spotted only if the customers put the pants on and bent over.

BERMAN: Is that a big deal in yoga? I'm no expert, but I think that's something that happens from time to time.

KOSIK: That's what the company said. So then you've got Chip coming out in this interview last month on Bloomberg TV, and here's what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

WILSON: Some women's bodies just actually don't work for it. It's really about the rubbing through the thighs, how much pressure is there over a period of time.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

KOSIK: Yeah, that doesn't sound too appropriate. Anyway, it seems like he's implying it's because of the women's curvier body size that it's causing the pants to have these see-through issues. This, of course, caused a huge uproar on social media, a lot of people demanding that he offer a more sincere apology. Because that apology you saw earlier, many think, wasn't sincere.

BOLDUAN: But this kind of seems to be, and I don't know much about Chip Wilson, but seems to be a little bit in line with he says a lot of maybe -- that can be perceived as outrageous things.

KOSIK: He's quite a character. Look, he founded Lululemon, which has really grown into this big company. It's going through what many believe are growing pains. But he's been one to really not shy away from saying crazy things.

One thing he said in 2004 to a Canadian magazine, he said that he chose the Lululemon because it has a lot of ls in it and that he said that Japanese people couldn't pronounce the letter "l", which made it exotic to them and added that it's funny trying to see them say it.

BOLDUAN: That's a joke, right?

KOSIK: Well, this is what he said in this interview. So, you know, when you see him resigning, you know, you have to wonder what really got into pushing him to resign. For the company it means, you know, sort of detaching themselves from him and kind of moving on, giving, you know, investors a little more piece of mind when it comes to the PR for the company.

BOLDUAN: We'll see if a change at the top can change that for the company. Thanks, Alison.

KOSIK: Sure.

BERMAN: A whole lot of drama around yoga pants.

Twenty-seven minutes after the hour here.

(BEGIN VIDEOT TAPE)

BERMAN (voice-over): Next up on "NEW DAY", a U.S. citizen is jailed in the United Arab Emirates for eight months over a Youtube video that he just wanted to be funny. Now his family is demanding his release. We have a reporter on the ground searching for answers.

BOLDUAN (voice-over): And Elian Gonzalez all grown up. He was ripped from the arms of relatives in South Florida and sent back to Cuba 14 years ago. You remember that, of course. Well, now he is talking to CNN and taking on the United States.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)