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Florida in the Wake of the Massacre; Gator Warning Signs for Disney; Memories of Terror. Aired 9:30-10a ET

Aired June 17, 2016 - 09:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:34:17] PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back. I'm Pamela Brown, live in Orlando, close to the Pulse Nightclub, where the deadliest mass shooting in American history happened. And I'm joined by the governor of Florida, Rick Scott.

Governor, thank you so much for being here with us.

I first want to talk about the visit with President Obama.

GOV. RICK SCOTT (R), FLORIDA: Sure.

BROWN: He was here yesterday. What can you tell us about that?

SCOTT: Well, I want to thank him for coming. I talked to him on Wednesday. I've asked him for an emergency declaration to make sure we have all the federal resources. I did the same thing for my state on Sunday or Monday. These days are, you know, going so fast. You talk to so many people. And so - but I want to thank him for coming.

So I spent most of my day yesterday talking to families, thanking people. I went to two viewings to grieve with the families. And it's hard. And then I met with some families outside the grieving process, or outside of a viewing, and, just, you know, they - I mean they - they're just in shock. I mean they're young - these were young people. They were full of life. Really targeted our gay community, our Hispanic community. And so - and my job is to try to do everything we can to help them with the grieving process. If there are any needs, make sure we have those.

[09:35:30] I also gave heroism All the law enforcement officers involved in the shooting. To think there just are people willing to risked their lives to save others and they've saved others. I went to the hospital to thank their workers for what they've done. Went to the 911 centers that got the calls. I talked to the lady that got the call from the shooter, how - what an impact that has on her life. So bring our - bring our city back - back to normal, bring our state back to normal, and grieve with the families is what I'm doing right now.

BROWN: We know those funerals are underway and will be over the next few days.

There has been a lot of focus on gun control in the wake of this shooting. Did you talk to President Obama about that at all? SCOTT: Well, it wasn't - it wasn't - yesterday wasn't about politics.

So, yesterday, you know, was, I thanked him for coming. I think it was touching that he and the vice president brought wreaths and put them - I had taken flowers there earlier in the week. I think that was - that was nice, you know, for the families and I think that was a nice thing to do. Whoever's the president, I like them to do that for the people in my state.

But right now my job is to, you know, I'll continue to go to viewings. I'll continue to go to funerals. I'll continue to reach out to the families and make sure they have all the - all the resources this I can help them receive. And then just thank everybody. There's so many people - this has been - you know, you've seen the - all the people that have done things since, and bring these communities all back - back together.

BROWN: Yes, absolutely.

You said you've been meeting with the victims. President Obama has been very outspoken against gun control opponents, and he said he dares them to meet with the vehicles and see if that doesn't change their views on gun control. Has it changed your views at all, this experience meeting with the victims, and the fact that it's easier to walk out with an AR-15 in the state of Florida than a handgun?

SCOTT: Well, nobody would think that a - anybody on a terrorist watch list should have a gun, right, that should - you know. We all can agree that they should - you know, we don't want somebody that's going to do something like that to be walking around with any - any weapons. But the Second Amendment didn't kill anybody.

This is ISIS. This is evil. This is radical Islam. I'm tired of what's going on in our country. We're not focused enough on ISIS. We - we (INAUDIBLE) of journalist beheaded in 2014. He was from Miami. And we have 40 people slaughtered right here. When are we going to say to ourselves in this country, enough's enough. Let's - let's focus on destroying ISIS. When we find information about somebody coming to our country, if you're - if we don't - if we're not comfortable with you coming into our country, this is our country. Why are you coming here? And then if we do that to somebody and we allow them in, why won't we share that with our local law enforcement so we can - if we feel like we need to, because we're responsible for public safety in our states. We're - you know, we're approaching (ph) at a 45 year low in our crime rate, but I don't want anything like this to happen to my state ever again, to any other citizen.

BROWN: Certainly no one does.

SCOTT: Yes.

BROWN: Certainly no one does. My law enforcement sources though tell me that while ISIS may have played a role, there were other factors at play that he more recently became radicalized. So, again, my question to you is, yes, ISIS, terrorism could be to blame, but can you accept any responsibility for the, you know, gun laws here in Florida, the fact that it is easier to walk out of a gun store in half an hour with an AR-15 that can kill more people faster than a pistol, yet it's harder to get a pistol than an AR-15..

SCOTT: Let's remember, the Second Amendment's been around for over 200 years. It didn't - it didn't, you know, that's not what killed innocent people. Evil killed innocent people. There's going to be a time to have a conversation about what we do to make our state or city, our country safer yet. But let's have a conversation about how we destroy ISIS. Where's that - where's that conversation? Why are -

BROWN: The conversation is there (ph).

SCOTT: Yes. Why are we not having that conversation about what are we doing? Why - I mean I was on a - I was on a call after the Paris attacks with the White House and I said, will you share - if you allow a Syrian refugee into my state, will you share that information with me and your background checks. And they said no. Come on. Give me a break. I'm responsible for the public safety of the 20 million people in my state, 100 million tourists, and you have information about somebody you're allowing to come to my state or moving to my state and you won't share it? That's wrong.

BROWN: Understandably that that's frustrating. I just - to just put a button on this, you know, in the wake of any tragedy you learn. Lessons are learned.

SCOTT: Right.

BROWN: No doubt hopefully there will be changes there in your view. But will - will you push for any changes in the gun laws in Florida in the wake of this?

SCOTT: I think whenever something like this happens, you always have a - you always have a conversation about what you should do, you know, afterwards, right? And we're going to have that conversation. But let's have this conversation about how we're going to stop ISIS. I mean where is that conversation? Where is - where is the conversation about destroy - stopping radical Islam? You know, where is - you know, where - what are we going to do?

[09:40:05] BROWN: But in a situation like this, where he is being radicalized online, self-radicalized by all this propaganda putting out - being put out by ISIS, I mean how do you stop that?

SCOTT: Destroy ISIS.

BROWN: What do you do?

SCOTT: If ISIS wasn't in the world, there would be - that means destroy ISIS. What - I mean the first thing you do, go to the core. This is caused by ISIS being there. What are we doing to stop them?

BROWN: Now, can - can you - the FBI has said that this is not only ISIS, but that this is a hate crime. Do you also view this as a hate crime as well targeting the gay community?

SCOTT: Well, it's purely evil. Oh, I mean, this is evil and they targeted the gay community. They targeted the Hispanic community. Well, you know, you can just - without even meeting with the families. Look at the names.

BROWN: The last question for you.

SCOTT: Yes. BROWN: The money that's being poured in for these victims, how can you assure them that it will get to them to help them pay their bills, the funeral services, all that's going on right now?

SCOTT: Well, the - you know, we're raising money at the state level and I know the city is raising money at their level. We will - you know, part of our responsibility in the state government is to make sure, to the extent we can, we ought to look how you're a doing it. But you, as a citizen, watch where you give the money. Look at the background of where you're giving that money. And then we ought to be transparent. Like I know what the state will do, we'll be very transparent with where our money goes. And I hope everybody else that raises money will do the same thing.

BROWN: OK, Governor Rick Scott, thank you very much.

SCOTT: Thanks a lot.

BROWN: We appreciate you coming on.

And we'll be right back.

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[09:45:29] FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back. I'm Fredricka Whitfield live from Orlando.

Disney will add alligator warning signs to waterways on resort properties in the wake of a tragic attack that killed a little boy. That as autopsy results show two-year-old Lane Graves died from drowning and traumatic injuries. Wildlife officials continue the hunt for the gator responsible. Meanwhile, another parent is speaking about his son's close call with two gators at their Disney resort last year.

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DAVID HIDEN, SAVED SON FROM ALLIGATOR AT DISNEY: He's kind of maybe in ankle deep water, looking around. And then all of a sudden, I'm looking over his head and I see this alligator that I would estimate six feet plus or minus bee lining straight for him about 15 yards back. So I quickly grabbed my son, grabbed him out of that shoreline and brought him up to safety. Then I looked over to the left and another alligator caught my eye and that alligator was maybe five to eight yards away going for him as well.

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WHITFIELD: Amazing close calls. That father says he has written a letter to the Graves family explaining his own experience and offering his condolences.

CNN's Martin Savidge is following the latest developments from Lake Buena Vista, Florida.

Martin.

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Fredricka.

Yes, no timeline specifically from Disney as to when this new signage is likely to go up. As everyone knows, Disneyworld is a huge property. It encompasses some 44 square miles and a lot of water and water ways. So it could be some time. And signs are likely not to be the only things that will change.

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SAVIDGE (voice-over): The death of a two-year-old boy by an alligator at Disneyworld is horrific. And it's also rare. The only other reported incident was 30 years ago when an eight-year-old was bitten. That doesn't mean alligators are rare at Disney. A YouTube search reveals plenty of videos capturing tourist run-ins with the reptiles. One shows an alligator at the Splash Mountain ride, just a few feet from tourists passing by. At one point, what looks like a Disney employee is seen using a pole to keep him away. Another video shows an alligator swimming in a water hazard at a Disney golf course. Florida officials say Disney routinely has to remove alligators from its properties.

NICK WILEY, FLORIDA FISH & WILDLIFE CONSERVATION COMMISSION: Disney has been very proactive with regard to dealing with alligators and having - as the sheriff said, full-time staff observing these waters.

SAVIDGE: But is it enough? To find out, I head off in an air boat. Alligators are indigenous to Florida with an estimated 1.3 million alligators across the tropical state. Scott Vuncannon of Marsh Landing Adventures makes his living off alligators and tourists.

SCOTT VUNCANNON, MARSH LANDING ADVENTURES: Look right past, he's sticking his head up right there inside that grass line.

SAVIDGE: And he's never had a problem with gators.

VUNCANNON: Alligators are more scared of you than you are of them. If you jumped in the water right now, that alligator is going to run from you, not to you.

SAVIDGE: He says when problems do occur, it's usually people who were at fault. The biggest mistake, feeding alligators.

VUNCANNON: If you feed an alligator one time, you're going to continue that alligator, whether it's one day old or one day away from death to associate all humans with food.

SAVIDGE: YouTube videos show guests at Disney feeding alligators. In this one, a mother records as her children toss in popcorn. The danger is so serious that feeding alligators in the wild is against Florida law. Some have also wondered why Disney hasn't put up fencing to keep alligators out of its properties. Vuncannon says he's seen gators climb a chain link fence, something I doubted until I saw this video. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't think you're getting over that fence, pal.

SAVIDGE: The five-foot alligator, scaling a backyard fence with no problem.

Vuncannon believes what happened to two-year-old Lane Graves was a perfect storm of incredibly rare, tragic events no one could have foreseen or stopped.

VUNCANNON: Disney could hire a fleet of people to do nothing but go through and eradiate alligators. You're never going to get rid of them.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SAVIDGE: Disney is likely also to become much more aggressive to trying to keep alligators off of its properties or away from its guests, but it's also going to require a change of mindset of tourists themselves. They can no longer come down to Florida and just think of them as kind of cute residents. They are not benign, as we all tragically learned or were reminded of this week.

[09:50:02] Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, very saddening, sobering, and frightening images as well.

Martin Savidge, appreciate it. Thank you so much.

Pam, back to you.

BROWN: Thanks, Fred.

And still to come, honoring the victims. How Orlando is paying tribute to the legacy, lives, and memories of those who lives were cut short.

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BROWN: Today, families and friends will say their final good-byes to at least nine victims of the Orlando massacre. In the midst of the tragedy, today will be about honoring the lives and the memories of their loved ones. It's hard to put into words the heartbreak and the devastation this community feels, but many people have found comfort in the way Orlando has banded together.

[09:55:20] I want to bring back my colleague, Fredricka Whitfield. She was at a memorial last night.

Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Well, Pamela, what a fitting tribute and how moving it is when you come close, just about two blocks away from the Pulse Nightclub and close to the entry of the medical center you will see that there is a cross representing all 49 of the victims in the Pulse Nightclub who were killed. And when we went there last night and we saw this just at that, you know, little pond there, there were people who were kneeling, they were putting down flowers, they were writing messages of I love you, I miss you for these 49 people.

This young man that you see right there, he says he's already feeling survivor's guilt because he was to pick up his friend on Monday to take him to the airport. And when he saw that his friend wasn't to be found at the hotel, that's when he put two and two together.

So this has become a place of mourning. It's also been a place of consoling. And so many of the loved ones of victims that I spoke with last night said that the Orlando community has been tight, but even out of this tragedy they feel an even greater closeness, and that's at least one of the good things that has come from such a devastating evening.

So why does this keep happening? That's a question that so many keep asking. In fact, it was the president of the United States who was asking that as well, saying that grieving loved ones kept asking him that during his visit to Orlando.

It's also a question many around the country continue to ask. My next guest knows that kind of tragedy. Mandy Pifer's partner, Shannon Johnson, was killed in the San Bernardino terror attack. He died after shielding someone else from a bullet. Fourteen people died that day after two shooters who had been radicalized opened fire at a holiday party. Mandy now joining me live.

Thanks so much for being with me.

MANDY PIFER, PARTNER OF SAN BERNARDINO SHOOTING VICTIM SHANNON JOHNSON: Thank you for having me.

WHITFIELD: Just the news of this tragedy last weekend had to strike fear in you, had to have you relive what you experienced in San Bernardino. Recall some of your thoughts.

PIFER: You know, it's interesting, just sitting here and watching, you know - watching right before I came on triggers anxiety and triggers a bunch of heartbreak. I think the people who I've spoken to who lost loved ones or Shannon's co-workers and even my friends who are with me December 2nd when we're waiting for word, that 24-hour wait and seeing those families just waiting for notification is - it's terrifying and heartbreaking all at once. Yes.

WHITFIELD: You had a chance to meet with President Obama after the shooting there at San Bernardino. You saw the president and vice president here in Orlando yesterday. What kind of impact did that have for you, his words of comfort? We're looking at the picture right now with both the president and the first lady and you. How meaningful was that for you?

PIFER: You know, it was by far the most surreal moment of my entire life. I mean, it is the absolute worst way to meet the president and the first lady of the United States, but they came out a couple of weeks after the massacre, and it - I needed comfort, and I needed to - I needed to be comforted by somebody who had some power to change the future. It was - it was comforting. It was confusing. People asked me what it was like to meet the president, and it's just - it's not a story I like to talk about, you know? It's an - it's an ugly story. I wish it had never happened that way.

WHITFIELD: It's comforting, at the same time express to me the level of frustration that you feel, the level of frustration we heard from the president who has now been to ten locations where there have been shootings, were there has been mass casualties. He spoke of the frustration. How about for you?

[09:59:49] PIFER: Oh - oh, it's - you know, I happen to be in that anger stage of grief to begin with, and so my blood is boiling right now.