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Boston Blizzard Could Break Records; Bridgeport CT Caught in the Crosshairs; Obama in Saudi Arabia Today
Aired January 27, 2015 - 09:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Jennifer Gray is still frigidly cold, though. She's out in Boston. She's been talking to some people.
Jennifer, how's it going there?
JENNIFER GRAY, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Oh, yes, you know, I think the only people having fun out here are the dogs. They have been coming out and just having a blast. But it has been coming down steadily, very, very heavy. Probably a little bit lighter now than when I talked to you last time, Carol, but it's been coming down at about two inches an hour. And you come out here, you go on the truck and then you come back out and you can't even see your footsteps again. That's how quickly the snow is falling.
And if we dig in just a little bit, you can see how deep it is. And these snowdrifts, what's so impressive, look at that, one minute you'll stand somewhere and it will be knee deep, the next minute you'll stand somewhere it will be waist deep. That's what we talk about with these snowdrifts. The wind blows at about 30, 40 miles per hour and it just takes the snow, this light and powdery, it takes it off the ground and just pushes it in the direction that the wind's going.
So I want to walk over here because they have been plowing these streets pretty steadily. There goes another wind gust right there, you know? They have been plowing these streets and they do fill up very, very quickly. So we still have about an inch of snow here. It was just plowed in the last 30 minutes.
But we did talk to some people that were out here, Carol, who were checking it out. Listen to what they had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GRAY: All right, you think people are kind of heeding the warnings and staying indoors? You haven't seen anything crazy out there?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, it looks pretty empty out here. It's kind of funny for the streets of Boston to be so empty, but people seem like they're staying inside.
GRAY: Ys, sounds like it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, absolutely. It's pretty nuts out here. GRAY: But it is pretty to look at, isn't it?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is, definitely.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Definitely.
GRAY: All right, I think we're good. Did you guys get that?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRAY: And that's the thing, it is - it is nice and pretty. People are getting out here to check it out. But it is still very dangerous. That driving ban is still in place here in Massachusetts. Of course, Nantucket getting the brunt of it where the entire island is without power right now. We also have seen pictures of coastal flooding just south of Boston. You know we're protected by the harbor here but some areas, not so much. And so that's where we're seeing a lot of that coastal flooding. The next high tide, of course, coming about 4:00 this afternoon. But it's far from over, Carol. Just as Chad says, we'll be out here for several more hours with it coming down. Could pick up another foot easily.
COSTELLO: All right, Jennifer Gray, thanks so much. I appreciate it.
Brutal conditions in Boston couldn't keep everyone off the street. Some looking to have a good time, others simply doing their jobs.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You've got ice on your eyebrows there.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, yes, it's a lot of - a lot of ice (INAUDIBLE), but that's OK and I need a job, you know.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have no school tomorrow -
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have no - yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So we thought we should come out, join the party, hang out with friends, enjoy the blizzard while we had it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: I don't think he was properly dressed.
Nothing like a state of emergency to get the party going. And how about this shocking reveler? A yeti. OK, perhaps he's not the real deal, but it's pretty funny. Thanks to Mashable (ph) for the post and the laugh. We appreciate it.
Still to come in the NEWSROOM, this storm is hitting Connecticut so hard the governor has called in the National Guard. I'm asking the mayor in Bridgeport just how bad things got in his city, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Another city in the crosshairs of this relentless winter onslaught. Bridgeport, Connecticut. Actually, you're looking at New London right now. It's pretty empty. And that's just the way city officials want it. They want everyone to stay indoors so they can get the snow cleared off the streets, off the sidewalks to make it a little more safe for everyone.
Joining me now is the Bridgeport mayor, Bill Finch. Good morning, mayor.
MAYOR BILL FINCH, BRIDGEPORT (via telephone): Good morning. Good morning. How is it in Atlanta?
COSTELLO: Actually, I'm in New York and it's fine. We've got maybe six, seven, eight inches of snow in the city. So what's it like in Bridgeport?
FINCH: Well, it's similar to New York. We had about eight inches of snow so far and they're talking about another six to eight throughout the day. So we're looking at a foot accumulation in total when the storm is done. And we all feel like we dodged a bullet because the prediction were for two to three feet and we've already seen what that looks like with Nemo and so we prefer Juno to Nemo at this point, I guess.
COSTELLO: Exactly. So there was a travel ban in the state of Connecticut. Some people might say, oh, city officials, state officials overreacted because the blizzard really wasn't that bad. What would you say to those people?
FINCH: Well, we always prepare for the worst and hope for the best. And I think considering what this storm could have been for Bridgeport, we definitely got the best. But it's still a foot of snow and it's a major storm event with lots of hazardous driving conditions. We always encourage people to stay off the roads. We encourage them to stay indoors and don't use candles and space heaters and things like that that can endanger them. And we ask them to move their cars to the alternate side of the street so that we can clear the one side of the street and then move the cars to the other clean side and clean the other snow-filled side of the street.
So we are really thankful for our citizenry cooperating as much as they did. In the past, I would say before Nemo, before we realized the dangers of a storm like this, you know, nature reminded us then and reminding us again now. But I think the cooperation, also the technology. We have real time ability for the citizens to put into their cell phone or their computer or iPad, their tablet, we get them to put this information in and in real time it goes out to our supervisors in the field and our police in the field so they get citizen input right in the field while they're in real time trying to manage the storm. So between the additional investments in technology and the physical plowing equipment, I think we've been able to stay ahead of this storm and thankfully it's - I hate to say this, but it's only a foot. COSTELLO: That's true. I know that's so strange to say, but you're
absolutely right. So when do you expect life will get back to normal in Bridgeport?
FINCH: Life's going to be back to normal tomorrow. We're working really hard to keep our - to get our schools open tomorrow so that the children only miss one day of school. I know my kids will be disappointed to hear that, but we want our kids in school so they get their scores up and they're not going to do that by staying home.
So our public works crew here is second to none. I mean we always win the state competitions for driving and things, but you really can see their skills when mother nature puts them to the test. And we're proud of our workers. Our public works director, George Garcia (ph), has done a tremendous job with his crew. And our chief, Joe Gaudet (ph), has done a great job. And thanks to CNN and just for the information you've been able to get out to people. I know they rely on it to stay safe and improve the quality of life there in these kind of challenging times.
COSTELLO: Well, Mayor Bill Finch, thank you so much for joining me. And I appreciate it. And a big welcome to you. Thank you so much.
FINCH: Thank you.
COSTELLO: Still to come in the NEWSROOM, 70 mile per hour winds, battering waves. The storm delivering blow after blow to some of America's most pristine coastlines. And the worst is yet to come. The areas on highest alert, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: All right. Let's go live to Plum Island, Massachusetts. As you can see, the wind is howling there. Blizzard-like conditions still battering coastlines this morning. Let's just listen for a bit.
Scary sounding, right, with the surf coming in like that? Furious winds slamming Plum Island, Massachusetts, overnight too. Right now,15 inches of snow on the ground. And as John Monahan from affiliate WXST reports, conditions are not letting up this morning,
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN MONAHAN, WFXT REPORTER: The wind is pounding us, and at first light, you can see just how strong the wind is, how much snow is blowing around. And take a look at the ocean. It is churning. It is bubbling. It is boiling. It has been like this all night long but we finally get a look at just how big some of these waves are and how much this wind is pushing the water along the coast.
The tide has pulled out since about 4:40 when we had high tide here on Plum Island, but the waves are still pounding this barrier of rocks down below us. We're about 30 feet up on the deck here and we can get a good vantage point of just how much the ocean is pounding along the coast here on Plum Island.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Amazing, right? So weather forecasters say another 12 to 24 inches of snow could come as the system stalls over Massachusetts.
Bob Connors lives on Plum Island. He joins me on the phone again this morning. Good morning, Bob.
BOB CONNORS, PLUM ISLAND, MA, RESIDENT (via telephone): Good morning, Carol.
COSTELLO: So what was it like to ride out the storm last night?
CONNORS: Well, we had our high tide was about 4:40 this morning, Carol, and although it was a significant tide, it really didn't pose any real impact or cause any flooding. But we've had blizzard-like conditions for the last several hours, blowing a constant 40 miles an hour to 50 miles an hour, and visibility is very low.
COSTELLO: So you're having like a really healthy respect for Mother Nature at this point?
CONNORS: Well, we always do here on Plum Island, that's for sure.
COSTELLO: Just about 4-1/2 hours away from you is Nantucket. Nobody has power there. What would that be like, do you think?
CONNORS: Well, there's nothing worse than going through one of these storms than having no power. It's one thing to have your heat and lights and the TV and all the other creature comforts that we all take for granted, but when you have no power, then it just adds a whole new dynamic and certainly a whole new urgency to the whole situation.
COSTELLO: Especially when you're on a tiny little island. Don't you feel so alone and kind of helpless at times?
CONNORS: Well, Nantucket certainly you've either got to take a boat or a plane there. Plum Island, on the other hand, we have about a half mile long causeway that connects us right to the Newbury Port and Newbury area. But during these storms everyone has to hunker down and just be safe. We've become pretty proficient at that here on the island.
COSTELLO: I definitely admire you. So is the worst yet to come? Because I know that another tide is rolling in around 5:00 p.m. tonight.
CONNORS: That's -- that's the tide I'm most concerned with and I think our local emergency personnel are concerned with. The height of the waves and the wave energy, it starts to enter unchartered waters for here on Plum Island and it exceeds what we experienced back in 2013 when we lost half a dozen homes.
COSTELLO: Well, we're keeping our fingers crossed for you, Bob. Thanks for filling us in. We appreciate it. Bob Connors from Plum Island.
I'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: We'll return to our breaking blizzard coverage in just a minute. But first, President Obama is in Saudi Arabia to pay his respects to the late King Abdullah and to meet with his successor, King Salman.
Earlier this morning, the president wrapped up a three day visit to India. And while he was there, he talked exclusively to CNN's Fareed Zakaria. And we got some great insight on America's complicated relationship with Saudi Arabia.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FAREED ZAKARIA, CNN HOST, "FAREED ZAKARIA GPS": Will you speak about the blogger to the Saudis?
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, I think on this visit, obviously, a lot of this is just paying respects to King Abdullah, who, in his own fashion, represented some modest reform efforts within the kingdom.
But we have maintained a sustained dialogue with the Saudis and with all the other countries that we work with. What I've found effective is to apply steady, consistent pressure, even as we are getting business done that needs to get done. And oftentimes that makes some of our allies uncomfortable. It makes them frustrated. Sometimes we have to balance our need to speak to them about human rights issues with immediate concerns that we have in terms of countering terrorism or dealing with regional stability.
But the trendline is one that I will sustain throughout the rest of my presidency and that is to make an argument to those friends and allies of ours that if they want a society that is going to be able to sustain itself in this age, then they're going to have to change how they do business.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: All right. You can see Fareed's full interview with President Obama this Sunday 10:00 a.m. Eastern on "FAREED ZAKARIA GPS". That's only on CNN.
All right, let's take you back outside to take a look at what life is like in New York City at this time. As you can see, the city slowly coming back to life. The travel ban has been lifted. The subways will start running again right around noon, but they'll be on holiday schedule, which means they'll be about 60 percent up to speed. Hopefully, Amtrak will begin running soon between New York and Boston, but as you can see right now, the city looks peaceful and beautiful. The snowplows are out so it won't be long, New York, until everything gets back to normal.
I wish I could say the same to folks that live in Boston because they're still getting slammed as they are on Long Island, New York. And in Rhode Island, of course, schools are canceled. But you have to admire school officials because one Providence, Rhode Island, school announced their upcoming snow day in a truly special way. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MATT GLENDINNING, HEAD OF SCHOOL, MOSES BROWN SCHOOL (singing): School is closed, school is closed, because the snow is too deep. School is closed, school is closed. You can stay in bed and sleep. Here I'll snooze and here I'll stay. Let the storm rage on.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: My principal never did that back in the day. Anyway, this is Matt Glendinning. He's the video here; he's head of school at Moses Brown in Providence.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
