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Search and Rescue on Sunken Ferry; Scanning Ocean Seabed for Flight 370; Flyer Demands Jews "Register" in Ukraine

Aired April 18, 2014 - 09:00   ET

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


CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, happy Good Friday. Happy Easter. And I'll do my best. Have a great weekend.

"NEWSROOM" starts now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Happening now on the NEWSROOM. Ferry disasters.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Divers in South Korea have finally made their way into the ship's hull.

COSTELLO: Breaking overnight, a tenuous rescue and a race against time. Conditions making the search nearly impossible.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you move it is more dangerous, don't move.

COSTELLO: This morning, the captain and the warning to stay on the ship under new focus.

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: But a blanket warning of don't move doesn't make sense to you?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not to me.

COSTELLO: Frustration and fear.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're all bloody liars and you're lying to us again now.

COSTELLO: As the search for Flight 370 enters its 42nd day.

HISHAMMUDDIN HUSSEIN, ACTING MALAYSIAN TRANSPORT MINISTER: We're going to intensify the deep water search.

COSTELLO: As teams pin their hopes --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If there's anything to be found on the surface, they'll find them.

COSTELLO: You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(END VIDEOTAPE) COSTELLO: Good morning. I'm Carol Costello. Thanks so much for joining me. We begin this morning in Jindo, South Korea, where that capsized ferry is now completely submerged.

You're looking at a live picture of the docking area where families have been waiting for any update from search officials. Arrest warrants have now been issued for the captain and two crew members.

These are brand new pictures just in to CNN of the captain. Prosecutors are now saying the 3rd mate was at the helm of the ship when it began to sink. Where was the captain? Well, it's not clear at this time.

We also have new video from inside the ferry as it sunk. Passengers donning lifejackets as the ship turns on its side. This person, you'll see him soon, he was actually walking on the wall of the ship's deck. That's the floor he's touching on the right side of the screen.

Simply an unbelievable sight. 179 people were rescued soon after the boat started sinking, but nearly 270 people are still missing. These are family members crowded in a school gym waiting for any word. Some of them so overcome with emotion they had to be taken away on stretchers.

Paula Hancocks is on the scene this morning.

Paula, bring us -- bring us up to date.

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, there's certainly a lost questions coming in, most notably why the captain was not at the helm. We know now it was the 3rd third officer at the helm.

We're also asking about the arrest warrants. We know that they have been issued for both the captain and two of the crew members of that ship.

And also relatives are asking why they're spending a third night sitting by the side of the water here at Jindo harbor wondering where their child is.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HANCOCKS (voice-over): This morning divers in South Korea have finally made their way into the ship's hull. The ship, now completely submerged in the (INAUDIBLE) seas, the strong currents and murky water making any rescue efforts nearly impossible.

Rescue at this morning pumping oxygen into the ship in the hopes of providing air to anyone who inside who may be alive. But for desperate families waiting for answers, it's not enough. They're pleading with authorities to do more releasing a statement saying, "We are making this appeal with tears because we are so furious with the way the government is handling this."

Nam Sing Won is waiting for word on his 16-year-old nephew. NAM SING WON, NEPHEW MISSING ON SUNKEN FERRY: Even if how hard it is, how difficult it is, how hard it is, I don't care. I want to hear the truth.

HANCOCKS: And new questions this morning. Why, when the ship took two and a half hours to capsize, were hundreds still trapped. The captain we now know was one of the first to be rescued while close to 300 passengers were told not to move.

And investigators now revealing that he was not at the helm at the time of the accident. His third officer was.

"I'm sorry," he says. "I am at a loss for words."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HANCOCKS: And, Carol, we also now know that the deputy principal of that school where these high school students were from has been found dead by the Jindo auditorium, found hanging from a tree. He was actually on this ship. He was one of the few that managed to get off. Now at this point police are saying that they're investigating, they're not saying it is a suicide at this point. But the deputy principal we now know has been found dead hanging from a tree just very close to here.

COSTELLO: Paula Hancocks reporting live from South Korea this morning. Families and friends are holding candlelight vigils. They carried signs with messages to loved ones that read, "Aren't you hungry? Let's eat, and I miss you."

Pauline Chiou has the story of some of those who survived.

PAULINE CHIOU, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Carol, the survivors of the ferry accident continue telling incredible stories of pure luck and determination. I'm outside the hospital where several survivors are still recovering. One of them is 71-year-old Shin Young Ja. She was on the ferry with her friends for a holiday and she was watching TV in a big common room when she felt a huge jolt and the room started filling up with water. She swam toward some cabinets and tried to climb them like a staircase. Here is what happened next.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHIN YOUNG JA, FERRY DISASTER SURVIVOR (Through Translator): I didn't have enough strength to climb up. The young man in front of me pulled me up and said hold on tight. Then when he got to the top of the cabinets, I saw the window. Man near me was banging on the window with a life jacket and somebody saw us. Then they turned the rescue boat toward us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHIOU: There is another survivor story with a bittersweet ending. Six-year-old girl Kwon Ji-yeon was traveling with her parents and 7- year-old brother. Her brother put a life jacket on her and somehow she made it to the deck where passengers found her crying. They passed her on to rescuers. When she came to the hospital, the doctors said she was fine physically but this is what he's concerned about.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (Through Translator): My biggest concern is after going through this kind of disaster, she may experience post-traumatic stress syndrome, especially when she finds out her parents and brother have died. How she deals with this would be the biggest challenge. In my opinion, recovering from this kind of psychological shock would be the biggest concern.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHIOU: Ji-yeon is now being taken care of by two aunts and an uncle -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Pauline, thanks.

We also have a distress call from the ship to Jejou's Emergency Services Center. The first call came in at 8:55 Wednesday morning in Korea. The ship crew says, "Please notify the coast guard, our ship is in danger. The ship is rolling right now." At 8:56, the dispatch answers, "Where is your ship? Yes, OK, we will notify the coast guard." Ship, "The ship rolled over a lot right now. Cannot move. Please come quickly. We're next to Byeongpung Island."

Dispatch, "Yes, understood." At 9:00 a.m., dispatch asks, "What's the current situation?" Ship, "Currently the body of the ship is tilted to the left, containers fell over, too." Dispatch answers, "OK, there are no damages to people?" Ship, "Currently it's impossible to confirm. It is impossible to move as the body of the ship is tilted." Dispatch, "Yes, OK. Please put on the life vests and get ready as people may have to abandon ship." Ship, "It is hard for people to move." Dispatch, "Yes. OK."

With me now by phone, Lt. Arlo Abrahamson, he's with the U.S. Navy.

Welcome, sir.

LT. ARLO ABRAHAMSON, COMMANDER, NAVAL FORCES KOREA: Thank you, Carol. Thank you for having me this morning. And first I just wanted to express urgent report that I want to express our thoughts and our prayers for the passengers of this ferry and their families during this very difficult and uncertain time.

COSTELLO: It's just an unbelievable tragedy. And I'm sure that you are seeing those families waiting on the dock, waiting for some kind of hope. Is there hope?

ABRAHAMSON: Well, absolutely. You know, our operations continue aboard the USS Bo Bonhomme Richard. And that's the Navy's contribution. We've got to MH-60 helicopters that are searching the rescue capable and we also have liaison officers from the South Korean Navy that are aboard our ship that are working with us. And as long as we're tasked to continue these search and rescue operations, we're going to continue to work tirelessly to -- with hope to find the survivors. And those families are who we are working with right now or working for as we do these operations.

COSTELLO: Is the ferry totally submerged right now?

ABRAHAMSON: I can't comment on the specifics of the ferry because I'm not at the scene. But what I can tell you is that these are obviously very difficult conditions, and our rescuers are out there trying to work in.

And I can tell you that the other thing is the South Korean Navy and our Navy are used to working together. We work together quite a bit out there. We've got a very close relationship. And we're going to continue to work tirelessly to try to find these passengers, and we're going to continue to work hard to locate the remaining passengers that may be alive.

COSTELLO: Are any U.S. divers going down in the yellow sea?

ABRAHAMSON: Well, the U.S. Navy very doesn't have any divers currently assigned to this. So our current duties are with our helicopters, and we're currently doing through a search and rescue operations from the MH-60 helicopters from the Bonhomme Richard. They saw the Bonhomme Richard is in the vicinity of the area.

COSTELLO: I know that crews have been trying to pump oxygen into that sunken ship. Are they still trying to do that or is that operation over?

ABRAHAMSON: Yes. That's another, Carol, for the South Korean authorities to answer. But I can tell you that each one of these search and rescue operations is uniquely difficult. And what I can tell you is that we'll continue to work with a sense of urgency here to support our South Korean partners to look for these lost passengers.

COSTELLO: Lieutenant Arlo Abrahamson of the U.S. Navy. Thank you so much for taking the time to be with us this morning. We appreciate it.

An avalanche has killed 12 people today in the worst accident ever on Mount Everest. Three wounded, four others still missing. All of the victims are sherpas. Nepali officials say the avalanche struck a group of some 50 people at more than 20,000 feet. Climbers and guides have been setting ropes and preparing camps along the route when that avalanche hit.

The spring climbing season is the busiest of the year on Everest, the world's highest mountain, tallest mountain. Climbers arrive in April to get used to the altitude before heading toward the 29,000 foot summit, sherpas act as guides for the mostly foreign clients.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, if the wreckage is in the bottom of the ocean, bringing it to surface will be a monumental task. Martin Savidge has the story from 50 feet below the water's surface.

Good morning, Martin. MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, and good morning, Carol. We're going to show you some of the ways that not only will you have to try to retrieve but maybe even have to cut through debris in order to get at the valuable black boxes they have to have.

So we'll demonstrate it in a bit. See you then.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: The Bluefin-21 is back in the water and still nothing. It has now been 42 days since flight 370 disappeared. The under water drone is making its fifth trip below the surface of the water, scanning the seabed of the Indian ocean for any sign of that missing jet. Four other trips have covered 110 square miles. So far, not a single clue about 370's fate. More help may be on the way, though.

Earlier today, Malaysia's transportation minister tweeted that authorities are considering deploying more unmanned under water probes. In the meantime, back on land nearly a dozen military aircraft and 12 ships are still searching for debris. Of course, finding any kind of debris from that plane would be great, but finding those black boxes would be fantastic.

On the ocean floor that will not be easy, because once they find them, they may be damaged and that will make the mission ever so much more difficult.

Martin Savidge is at 50 feet below in a manned sub to show us how it's done.

Good morning, Martin.

SAVIDGE: Yes, good morning, Carol. I'm not sleeping on the job here. This is the position you have to take to be in these very tight confine of this submersible.

And a reminder, this submersible only goes down to about a thousand feet. It's not the one doing the recovery work at that depth. But much of what you operate would be very similar.

And so, joining me now, Phil Nuytten is a man who is -- I would say has done just about everything under water when it comes to recovery.

What we're going to do is show you here, carol, if they have to cut, in some cases clear debris, and in order to get to where the black box may be. We've got -- as you look on the monitor, we've got this wire. It could be possible that you have to get through wiring before you can even get to the black box.

You have a pneumatic cutter which I think is just about there. Jeff, our pilot, is going to be manipulating that cutter. Let's see if we can get it -- do you think we've got it to the point of making a slice?

Once we think that the cutter which is on one side, now we're going to have the arm hopefully we can watch the cutter. It's done by just millimeters here. This is why when you hear people saying that work under water is extremely slow, think of this. This is just one cable, one. There could be thousands of them blocking your way. You're now focused on cutting and pulling through it.

Jeff is doing that by working a pneumatic pump in the back here. And then what we hope is that when we reach that point, that Phil can then manipulate the robotic arm. It's saying we should be there.

Here we go. We pull and there it is. See how it's cut and broken away? You remove one obstacle. I've got to say that's just one of what could be many. So you clear that one. Then you would move forward and you would do it again.

It would be hour after hour after hour of doing this. People have said, well, how long could we stay submerged?

How long will that be, Phil?

PHIL NUYTTEN, SUBMARINE AND SALVAGE EXPERT: If we have to, we can stay down here for three days. Typically down for six to eight hours at a time.

SAVIDGE: I presume if this goes to the surface, there's another crew that gets ready and come down.

NUYTTEN: That's right. The submarine doesn't get tired, but crew does.

SAVIDGE: It's not like something that's going to relay on daylight, of course, because where they're operation, it's going to be pitch black. We have illumination provided by halogen lighting.

But it shows you what seems like a relatively simple task, under water with the issues of clarity as well are not easy at all, Carol.

COSTELLO: I can't imagine the amount of patience it would take to do something like this.

SAVIDGE: Yes. Well, you know, we were talking about -- Carol was saying she can't imagine the amount of patience. You do that because safety is a real danger here. I mean, a wreck like this could become a tomb for those trying to cut into it.

NUYTTEN: Absolutely. And you have to be so careful all the time. Even an ROV, even though there aren't people in it, you don't want to lose the ROV. So, you have to be careful always of what's around you, all the wreckage, the electrical wiring, the broken debris. Manned submarines even more you have to be, because they are manned. But you don't have the problem of the umbilical catching up in the wreckage, which you do have with the remotely operated vehicle.

SAVIDGE: In other words, Carol, what we're in works autonomously. In other words, we can float and maneuver ourselves. We don't have to worry about a long cable going all the way to the surface. But that said, there are still dangers -- once we become trapped, who is coming to get us? NUYTTEN: Another asset, another ROV or submersible that can free you, finding out what's holding it down or free you.

So, yes, it's not a pleasant job. It's a very painstaking one. With the upwelling of the silt every time you move regardless of what sort of vehicle it is. If you have down-thrusters, you have silt blowing up in your face, you have to wait until it clears down. And it's just inch by inch, bit by bit. It's a job of great patience.

SAVIDGE: Yes. Patience is what keeps you alive.

Carol, again, just an example that this is going to be a long task, once and if they do find the wreckage of that airliner on the ocean floor -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Martin Savidge, Phil Nuytten, thanks to both of you.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM: one step forward, a giant step back in Ukraine as pro-Russian supporters refuse to obey a peace deal.

Phil Black is in Ukraine this morning.

Hi, Phil.

PHIL BLACK, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol. And more than that, the shadow of anti-Semitism now hangs over the crisis in Ukraine, ugly political move, to try and discourage discrimination against the country's Jewish population. More after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: One step forward, a giant step back. That pretty much sums up what's happening in Ukraine right now.

A pro-Russian separatist leader is defying an international deal to vacant seized buildings. He's culling for the Kiev government to step down instead. This is all unfolding in eastern Ukraine. It comes after a seven-hour negotiation in Geneva that included Secretary of State John Kerry.

Even President Obama is not completely hopeful this deal will immediately work. After all, it doesn't include the removal of the 40,000 Russian troops along Ukraine's border.

In the meantime, another disturbing term in eastern Ukraine. All Jewish people in one area have been asked to register. Flyers were distributed outside a synagogue in Donetsk, asking Jewish people 16 years old and older to report the names of their family members, their real estate and even pay a fee.

Phil Black is in eastern Ukraine this morning.

Who is responsible for those flyers?

BLACK: Carol, it's not entirely clear, but it is so sensitive, so ominous. That just one word registration, it's so powerful is because Ukraine is where millions were killed, terrible massacres during the Nazi occupation of this country in World War II. Now as this country experiences another crisis that threatens its very existence, someone is trying to encourage this sort of discrimination against the country's Jewish community to try and achieve a political goal.

Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLACK (voice-over): This letter has injected the fear of anti- Semitism into Ukraine's crisis.

The chief rabbi of Donetsk reads the text which says all Jews over the age of 16 must register their identities, real estate and car ownership. He tells me the notice was handed out near his synagogue on Tuesday by four men wearing masks. He says when he first saw it he felt shock and fear.

America's ambassador to Ukraine described his reaction to CNN's Jake Tapper.

GEOFFREY PYATT, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO UKRAINE: It's chilling. I was disgusted by these leaflets, especially in Ukraine, a country that suffered so terribly under the Nazis. It was one of the sites of the worst violence of the Holocaust. To drag up this kind of rhetoric again is almost beyond unbelievable.

BLACKWELL: The notice is signed, Denis Pushilin. Pushilin is the leader of the crowds occupying government buildings in Donetsk, who wants to breakaway from Ukraine.

Pushilin denies he's behind the leaflet, telling CNN it's a clear provocation.

The notice says Jews must register because they supported protesters in Kiev who drove out the country's former president.

The rabbi says the Jews of Donetsk believe they're being used in aid we're political game. He says the people who pray here are angry because those competing to control the feature of the country are repeating the mistakes of history.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLACK: It is not the first time the issue of anti-Semitism has been raised in this crisis. The Russian government has repeatedly made the allegation that the Jews are at some sort of violent threat from anti- Semitics and fascists in much of the country. The view of the many, and not just the Jewish population here, is that those allegations are widely exaggerated for political purposes.

The view of this latest episode involving the leaflets is very much the same. It is all making them very angry. They believe this highly sensitive issue is being hijacked and manipulated to try and achieve some sort of political outcome in the ongoing battle for the future of this country, Carol. COSTELLO: Phil Black reporting live from eastern Ukraine this morning.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM: an arrest warrant for the captain of the ferry that capsized off South Korea. So, where was he as his ship sank? We'll talk about that, next.

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