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Death Toll Surges in Nepal; Service for Freddie Gray to Begin Today; Defense Begins Case to Spare Tsarnaev's Life. Aired 9-9:30a ET

Aired April 27, 2015 - 09:00   ET

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

[09:00:04] CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, I'm Carol Costello. Thank you so much for joining me.

In earthquake ravaged Nepal the death toll surging higher. The final hours of hope a tick away.

Rescue crews finding fewer signs of life in the rubble of ancient landmarks and buildings. Many of those structures surviving hundreds of years and countless generations. On nearby Mount Everest the earthquake unleashes avalanches and mudslides.

This is the harrowing moment when climbers realize a wall of snow is about to swallow them and their camp. We'll show you all of the video in just a moment. But this morning the nation is in ruins. Much of the population is huddled in tents and tormented by powerful aftershocks. The death toll has surged past 3800 and is certain to climb even higher.

As the world scrambles to help Nepal hospitals overflow with the injured and supplies of medicine are dwindling.

CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta is in Kathmandu. He's lending his surgical skills to this medical crisis. He joins us now by phone.

I understand you've already performed surgery, Sanjay?

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right, Carol. I mean, it's one of these situations where the demand for care is outpacing the supply. So, literally, an extra set of hands, someone to perform a neurosurgical procedure in this case, necessary. That's what's happening here. They have a lot of injured. And immediately after the earthquake as you might imagine there were many injured.

Then there was a lull for a little bit. And they thought maybe the worst was over. But that's when the rescue missions which you've been talking about, Carol, were ongoing and those patients started to make their way into the hospital today as well. So today was one of the busiest days so far of these last few days. And it's expected to continue that way over the next several.

But, yes, Carol, I think there's -- I was performing an operation because they asked me to. But it's a little bit of an idea of what's happening here. An 8-year-old girl who had rubble that fell on her head, her house literally collapsed all around her. Her brother was injured, as well. He had fractures of his legs. Her parents for awhile their whereabouts were not known. But the good news is, a little bit of good news, is the parents were found. And the little girl is doing very well -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Are the hospitals absolutely overflowing, Sanjay?

GUPTA: Yes, you know, there's two situations. First of all one of the big hospitals here is a building, it's 120 years old. When the earthquake happened there was a lot of concern about, would it even be able to sustain itself? And I'm certain with all the aftershocks, some of them quite large, they just decided to move these patients to another building. A building that wasn't, in fact, a hospital. And wasn't functioning as a hospital.

So, you know, they have to find -- they have to make place for patients wherever they can. They're performing operations in rooms that aren't typically used for operations. And right now I'm in a tent city outside where so many people are just leaving. Thousands of people all around me here leaving, not necessarily because their homes are destroyed but because they're worried that they could be still with these tremors that are ongoing.

COSTELLO: Going back to that little girl that you performed surgery on. Did you have the right surgical tools to be able to do that?

GUPTA: Somewhat. You know, what's interesting is that they do have generator power in this particular hospital. This building that's functioning as a hospital. The problem is that it's very unclear how long that power is going to last. So they don't use it for things like particular operations that may require a lot of power. They're trying to keep the breathing machines, the ventilators, the lights on, all that sort of stuff.

So we had to use more rudimentary tools than we'd otherwise normally use. But it was enough to get the operation done. And, you know, these tools that people have used in war zone settings, and natural disaster settings in the past and it's what we did here again, as well.

COSTELLO: All right, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, thank you so much. We appreciate it.

As hospitals scramble to save the living rescuers are finding few signs of life amid the rubble. The work is grueling, painstaking and often heartbreaking. Earlier on CNN International we heard from one trekking guide who has joined the rescue effort in Kathmandu.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALOK TUMBAHANGPHEY, RESCUER: This is one of the main -- Durbar Squares, the palace square in Kathmandu which attracts a lot of tourists. And these are all very old structures, hundreds of years old, and it's completely gone down. But initial efforts they brought in the excavator to dig out as many bodies, but today we've been digging with our hands and trying to find out more survivors. Behind that temple over there is another very famous structure called

(INAUDIBLE) which is completely down. There are suspicions that there are people underneath. We've been trying to get them to cry for help and we've been digging along trying to rescue them out.

[09:05:09] UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Have you come across -- have you found any survivors?

TUMBAHANGPHEY: Well, today itself they pulled out at least two or three bodies from my -- towards my left. Towards my right there is just behind this where the excavator is digging there's another temple that's in ruins and people are digging with their hands and shovels. We think there are few people, at least one person there because we heard a small, faint voice, about an hour ago but we've been trying to find them. They haven't -- we've not seen them yet.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Just so tragic. A lot of humanitarian aid is necessary.

Arwa Damon has that part of the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We're just speaking with some of these kids and their families. They've all come to get treatment at this mobile clinic here. And a lot of them are camped out in this park. The vast majority of the families here consider themselves to be the lucky ones. They managed to survive. All of them describing the horrific moments that the earthquake struck, describing how the ground trembled.

And this right now is the only place where they really feel safe because of all of the aftershocks that have taken place. People quite simply are too afraid to risk going back home. Even if they do have a home that has not been damaged because of the reality of the fact that there could be many more aftershocks. No one is really sure what is taking place.

Here in the park, those that we've been speaking to are saying that there are bathrooms that they can use, that they are receiving a certain level of assistance when it comes to food and water. But, of course, if this continues for a long time there are going to be concerns about basic services and keeping the whole camp sanitary.

You see encampments like this throughout the entire city. On a much smaller scale, but people waiting for whatever reassurance it is that they're going to need to be able to eventually go back home.

Arwa Damon, CNN, Kathmandu.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: All right. The earthquake and its aftershocks triggering massive avalanches on Mount Everest. Watch this terrifying 40 seconds as climbers on the world's tallest mountain become engulfed in a cloud of snow.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go, go. (EXPLETIVE DELETED).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. Yes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Just unbelievable. Helicopter evacuations now under way. But at least 17 climbers did not survive. Among them, three Americans, documentary filmmaker Tom Taplin, Dr. Marisa Eve Girawong, and Google executive Dan Fredinburg.

International aid from dozens of countries pouring into Nepal as we speak. But the need is great and if you'd like to help head to CNN.com/impact to find out how.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:12:43] COSTELLO: In just a few hours family, friends, and lawmakers will gather to say good-bye to Freddie Gray. This is where his funeral service will be held in a couple of hours. Fifteen days after the Baltimore man was first arrested by police suffering a fatal spinal cord injury in the process, the questions surrounding Mr. Gray's death prompting protests and multiple investigations.

Three White House officials including Cabinet Secretary Broderick Johnson are expected to attend the service. They'll be joined by the group Families United for Justice. Members include the families of Eric Garner, Amadou Diallo and others who have died under questionable circumstances.

CNN's Athena Jones in Baltimore with more for you.

Good morning.

ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. Speaking of those questionable circumstances there are still a lot of unanswered questions about how Freddie Gray came to be so severely injured during that police van ride two weeks ago. But today the focus is on honoring his memory and saying good-bye to him.

Gray's family has asked that there not be any protests today. This after that largely peaceful demonstration on Saturday ended in violence. There were skirmishes, vandalism, six police officers suffered minor injuries.

A lot of the Gray family supporters have been saying that they need the time and the space to heal after this incident and that protests that can become violent, those end up being distractions. One people who said that is Congressman Elijah Cummings. He represents about half of the city of Baltimore. And he'll be one of the speakers at today's service.

Yesterday he spoke emotionally about the toll this incident has taken not just on Gray's family but on the Baltimore community as a whole. He told me he wants to see the Baltimore Police Department make changes so that it can become a model department for the country. And he also talked about the importance of improving police community relations. Let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. ELIJAH CUMMINGS (D), MARYLAND: I do believe that this is -- for this generation, this is the civil rights cause. Respect from the authorities like the police. They shouldn't have to fight that fight. But they're fighting it. And so it pains me that they have to go through that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JONES: And so there you heard him say that it's the police community relations is the civil rights cause of this generation. We could hear echoes of that theme in his remarks today.

[09:15:03] As you mentioned several White House officials will also be in attendance. We expect a lot of emotion and perhaps some straight talk about the kind of changes that need to take place to avoid this kind of incident from happening again. All as the family and friends of Freddie Gray gather to say good-bye. We just saw the hearse pull up a few minutes ago and so this will all be getting under way in just another couple of hours or so -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right. Athena Jones reporting live from Baltimore this morning.

As you heard Athena say the family of Freddie Gray is asking for a halt in the protests as they prepare to bury Mr. Gray. That request comes as 35 people were arrested over the weekend in scuffles that followed a week of peaceful demonstrations. The mayor of Baltimore addressing the city's residents and appealing for a sense of unity.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR STEPHANIE RAWLINGS-BLAKE (D), BALTIMORE: At the end of the day, we are one Baltimore. We need to support peaceful demonstrations, and continue to enforce in our communities that rioting, violence and looting will not be tolerated.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: I want to bring in Reverend Jamal Bryant, pastor of the Empowerment Temple Church. He'll deliver Mr. Gray's eulogy in just a few hours.

Welcome.

REV. JAMAL BRYANT, WILL GIVE EULOGY AT FREDDIE GRAY FUNERAL: Thank you. Good morning.

COSTELLO: Good morning. I suspect it was difficult for you to come up with the right words to say about Mr. Gray. BRYANT: Not difficult at all. He was a young man who was in the

prime of his life, just 25. All he had in front of him was his future. And his family is mourning and overwhelmed by it but I pray today they get some closure.

COSTELLO: Are you going to say -- are you going to say some words -- are you going to address the city of Baltimore, too, and the unity that the mayor spoke about?

BRYANT: Absolutely. I think that this has really been a drawing board for all of us. East and west Baltimore coming together. You're going to see a reflection and evidence of that on today. But the focus will be primarily on the family. But we still march on. We still realize that we still have to deal and address this issue after the funeral is over. And so we're going to keep marching, albeit peaceably.

COSTELLO: You're not asking that people not protest. But you also say the bible is clear, sin not. What message do you want to send to the city of Baltimore?

BRYANT: The scripture says be angry but sin not. That you have a right to have righteous indignation, to be upset, and have a right to vent that. We've called for no protests on today. Tomorrow we're going to be doing a town hall meeting, at our church, Empowerment Temple, AME Church, for people to come to voice and to express their grievance.

But then to talk about strategy. What is the next step? How do we begin the healing process? Not just for the family but for the entire city. We still have an issue with a broken and a corrupt police department that has to be addressed head-on.

COSTELLO: The mayor and the police commissioner said outside agitators were responsible for the looting and the broken windows in police cars over the weekend. Who are those outside agitators?

BRYANT: I really don't know. And I don't know whether it's outside agitators or the evidence of internal frustration. A lot of Baltimoreans are upset and flustered about how policing has taken place here in the city of Baltimore. So many unanswered questions. If there was no charges, why was he even in the police vehicle? And if there were no charges, taking him to the precinct, what was to be done?

And so those kinds of questions are going to have to be answerable both by the mayor and the police commissioner.

COSTELLO: And is there a message that you want to send to the people who were violent over the weekend?

BRYANT: Yes. That we are not going to in any way besmirch the name, the legacy of Freddie Gray. That we're seeking out justice but justice never comes at the hands of violence. It is not ours to seek out revenge but to seek out justice. And we believe that justice it going to be served and the city of Baltimore is going to be better because of it.

COSTELLO: Reverend Jamal Bryant, thanks so much for being with me. I appreciate it.

BRYANT: Thank you.

COSTELLO: Still to come in the NEWSROOM, the defense begin its case to spare the Boston bomber's life.

Deborah Feyerick in Boston this morning.

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning there, Carol. And family members of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev will be there in court trying to convince a jury that his worth -- that his life is worth saving. That's coming up right after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:23:14] COSTELLO: The defense in the Boston bombing trial is beginning its case to spare Dzhokhar Tsarnaev's life. Over the next few weeks Tsarnaev's lawyers will continue to paint the convicted marathon bomber as a victim himself, calling him, quote, "a puppet following his older brother's instruction."

Members of the Tsarnaev family are now in Boston. Notably missing, his mother, who cannot come back to the United States because of a shoplifting charge. The Tsarnaev family that did make it to Boston for the trial had to be moved to an undisclosed location because of the media frenzy surrounding them.

Deborah Feyerick is outside the courthouse where proceedings are about to begin.

Good morning.

FEYERICK: Good morning there, Carol. Yes, the family arrived on Thursday and immediately they were swamped by members of the press. It's really the first time that anybody has seen anyone directly connected to Dzhokhar Tsarnaev here in Massachusetts. The court has been absent of his sisters, of his parents who are over in Chechnya and Dagestan. The mother apparently not well.

And the family also at odds as to whether in fact this has been the right defense strategy for Dzhokhar Tsarnaev who has never complained about the legal assistance that he's getting. But we're really, Carol, as you mentioned, expecting a very different picture of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the young man who came when he was very young, who was torn between loyalties to his adopted country of America, but also deep connection to his Chechen roots.

His grandmother expected possibly to take the stand in his defense, as are other members, to portray him in a somewhat sympathetic light and to also say that, in fact, he was brainwashed by his older, dominant brother. So the defense is really wrestling with trying to save this young man, to save his life, to show him as somebody who is sympathetic, and worthy, really, of another chance, certainly, to stave off the death penalty -- Carol.

[09:25:08] COSTELLO: All right, Deborah Feyerick reporting live from Boston this morning.

New video just in to the NEWSROOM, you're looking at drone footage. This was shot by Reuters. It shows the extensive damage in Nepal after this weekend's massive earthquake. 3900 people have died in this disaster. More than 6,000 are injured and many more remain missing.

Up next we learn some of those victims' stories.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: And good morning, I'm Carol Costello. Thank you so much for joining me.

In Nepal rescuers are racing the clock and battling hopelessness. Saturday's massive earthquake pulverizing ancient buildings, crews often picking through the rubble by hand in the hopes of finding any signs of life.

CNN's Ivan Watson is in Kathmandu.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Emergency workers here are doing the difficult, dirty, urgent work of digging through the rubble of what was the tallest building in this neighborhood. A building that was literally knocked over, crushing vehicles, and resulting in the deaths of dozens of people.

Tragically, there was a church here where there was a prayer service in session on Saturday when the earth began to shake. So most of at least 28 people killed were churchgoers, in prayer, when they were trapped inside.