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U.S.-North Korea Summit Back on Track; HHS No Answer Yet for Missing Children; MH370 Families Still Clinging to Find Answers; Mr. Scissors Appointed as Italy's Interim Prime Minister; Warriors to Meet Cavaliers in NBA finals; Alberto Downgraded To Subtropical Depression; Power Plant And More Homes In Lava Path; Migrant Honored For Rescuing Child; The Death Squad Of El Salvador; Pearl Harbor Veteran's Mission. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired May 29, 2018 - 03:00   ET

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


[03:00:00]

ROSEMARY CHURCH, HOST, CNN: An historic summit apparently back on track. The high stakes meeting between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un might happen after all.

Plus, a Maryland town devastated after flood waters rip it apart again. We will hear from a resident who survived that storm. And an unbelievable rescue as a Spiderman leaps up four floors to save a dangling child.

Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from here in the United States, and of course all around world. I'm Rosemary Church. And this is CNN Newsroom.

We are just two weeks away from the planned summit between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un. But it's anyone's guess if that meeting will actually happen. Delegations from the U.S. and North Korea have been meeting in the Korean Demilitarized Zone. And top North Korean officials are also in Singapore to work out logistics it the United States.

Well, President Trump spoke by phone with Japanese Prime Shinzo Abe on Monday. They agreed to meet again before Mr. Trump's expected summit with Kim.

And CNN's Paula Hancocks is live in Seoul, South Korea. She joins us now. So Paula, as efforts to revive this summit continue what else are you learning about the progress made the U.S. delegation at the demilitarized zone and the other U.S. delegation in Singapore?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CORRESPONDENT, CNN: Well, Rosemary, for intents and purposes it looks as though this summit is going ahead. When you look at the preparations behind it there has been a flurry of diplomatic activity since the U.S. President Donald Trump sent that cancellation letter to Kim Jong-un, the North Korean leader.

So what we know right now is there is a U.S. delegation here in South Korea. They have met at the DMZ with the North Korean side. Talking about the substance of these talks that could happen, talking about the agenda. Talking about what would be an in a potential communicate is of course speculation they're not publicly saying what those discussions are centering around.

But we can assess that this is more about the substance of what could be agreed at this summit. Now I've also heard from someone who is familiar with U.S.-North Korean relations that there will be potentially be another meeting tomorrow as well.

So this is an ongoing process. And also as you say you also have the logistical side of it. That the delegation from the U.S. and as we understand it one from North Korea as well was seen landing there according to Japan NHK.

They are potentially going to meet to talk about site survey, security, the logistics of everything. So even though we haven't heard definitively that this summit is going ahead in Singapore on June 12 the diplomatic activity that is going on right now would suggest it is quite likely. Rosemary?

CHURCH: That is certainly the way it's looking so far. And of course the U.S. and North Korea are still very far apart on what they want to see come out of this. But we do know that the U.S. is holding off on implementing tough new sanctions on North Korea. So what might that signal?

HANCOCKS: If that's the case then it would certainly signal a goodwill gesture from the United States but it could represent what could happen if a deal is not done. It's sort of a show of more sanctions that could happen if a deal is not done.

Now we heard consistently from the Trump administration that throughout the whole negotiation process they intend on continuing with this sanctions and pressure policy. They're not going to stop that just because the North Koreans have agreed to come to the table. They want to see real credible and as I've said this concrete verifiable irreversible denuclearization.

But what we've also heard from the North Korean side at the same time this flurry of activity and this apparent keenness to meet with Donald Trump.

We're also seeing KCNA articles and Rodong Sinmun articles, a state run media which is slamming the U.S. military for preparing for the next round of joint military drills, Ulchi-Freedom Guardian they're called, they're expected to start in August.

So at the same time you have this diplomatic process, you have suggestions from the U.S. that could be more sanctions. And you have suggestion from North Korea that they could get very angry if there are joint military drills. So it is still very much a work in progress.

CHURCH: Yes. Most certainly. And watching all the developments our Paula Hancocks joining us live from Seoul in South Korea where it's just after 4 p.m. Thanks so much you for that. Well, Josh Rogin ia a CNN political analyst and columnist for the

Washington Post. He joins me now live from Tokyo. Great to have you with us.

JOSH ROGIN, POLITICAL ANALYST, CNN: Great to be with you.

[03:04:57] CHURCH: So, last Thursday, President Trump cancelled the summit with Kim Jong-un. Now it is apparently back on. But how likely is it that this face-to-face meeting just two weeks away can produce any substantial deal given both sides don't share the same definition of the word denuclearization.

ROGIN: Sure. Well, the success or failure of the Trump-Kim summit assuming that it does take place and we think it will, depends on what the expectations are. And I think what you're seeing now is an effort to define those expectations in a way that both the United States and the North Korean regime can be comfortable with.

And when you see some Kim's meeting in North Korea and then the expected visit of North Korean former Intel chief to Kim Yong-chol to Washington, what you're seeing is an attempt to find the overlap between what can be a deal that can be reasonably achieved in Singapore as a minimum to set forward the path for the bureaucrats to follow up on air force.

What that means basically is that you want to have an agreement that the end goal is complete verifiable denuclearization. And then a time line that gets you there in a way that the United States can say that the North Koreans are aren't dragging it out, and then initial steps that show that North Korea is serious.

If you can get those three things, that's a lot. That will allow the both sides to claim the Singapore summit as a success and begin a process that leads the goals that both sides want.

CHURCH: Right. If North Korea refuses to provide total and complete denuclearization as Mr. Trump has requested, will this summit be perceived as a failure. Or is the bar so low now that simply having the two leaders in the same room will be perceive as a success?

ROGIN: Well, I think that in between those two things there's a gray area. And that gray area is where the diplomacy action really is. And the bottom line is that what will happen I presume is that North Korea will make a pledge towards total denuclearization without actually doing it or committing to a time line right away. That will ultimately leave both sides room to say it's a success.

You can be sure that if they have the meeting then the results of the meeting will be portrays -- portrayed as a success. If they can't do that, then they won't have the meeting.

Now in those details there will be a lot of criticism. And hardliners of both sides will say that each side got taken by the other. That's inevitable. But the bottom line is you've got to find a way where Trump can come back to the United States and say they promise to denuclearize and then the experts will quibble over whether or not they actually did. That's just going to happen.

CHURCH: And Josh, while I've got you I do want to just quickly go to another issue. Because President Trump was criticize for a tweet he sent out Monday saying this. "Happy Memorial Day. Those who died for our great country would be very happy and proud at how well our country is doing today. Best economy in decades, lowest unemployment numbers for blacks and Hispanics ever, and women in 18 years, rebuilding our military and so much more. Nice."

Now critics of that tweet were shocked that a U.S. president would brag about his perceived achievements on a day that was meant to remember, honor and thank all those who have served and sacrificed their lives for this country.

Why does Mr. Trump appear to be so tone deaf to issues like this? And what are the consequences of the U.S. president who makes most issues all about him?

ROGIN: Right. Well, there are two theories on this. And you know, I completely understand why people were deeply offended that the president of the United States decided to claim to know what deceased U.S. soldiers would think about his current policy. It's totally unconventional and really unheard of.

Now there's only two possible explanations, either he can't help himself and he simply doesn't have the self-discipline to address any topic without making it about himself. The other theory is that he's intentionally trolling the media and saying offensive things in order to get the media spun up to distract from the things that the media otherwise would be talking about, namely the investigations into his administration.

I can see both of those things being true. I can see it being a combination of both. Anyway the effect is the same. It directs attention back to Trump himself and distracts the media and the public from the things that the president doesn't want us talking about.

CHURCH: Well, he certainly upset a lot of American citizens in the course of that. Josh Rogin, thank you so much for joining us. I appreciate that.

ROGIN: Any time.

CHURCH: Well, the U.S. government has placed thousands of unaccompanied immigrant children in sponsor homes. Yet, by one official's own admission they have no idea when many of those children are right now. Health and Human Services claims the children are not lost but also argue it's no longer responsible for them anyway.

More now from CNN's Rosa Flores.

[03:10:02] ROSA FLORES, CORRESPONDENT, CNN: Nearly 1,500 children falling to the cracks of a broken immigration system. Raising questions about Attorney General Jeff Sessions new zero tolerance policy that leads to separating more children from their parents and placing them in the custody of the United States government. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEFF SESSIONS, UNITED STATES ATTORNEY GENERAL: If you are smuggling a child, then we will prosecute you. And that child may be separated from you. As required by law.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FLORES: The Department of Health and Human Services publicly admitting last month that it had checked on 7,600 kids placed in sponsor homes and couldn't account for 1,500.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HEIDI HEITKAMP, (D) UNITED STATES SENATOR: We're failing. I don't think there's any doubt about it. You are the worst foster parents in the world. You don't even know where they are.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FLORES: And the agency acknowledging it's not even trying to find where the kids are.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES LANKFORD, (R) UNITED STATES SENATOR: We now have a child somewhere in the country that didn't appear on a court record is not in the spot that we thought they were. Is there a pursuit to try to figure out where they are or what happens next?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There is not a pursuit.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FLORES: Rick Santorum counterpointing the concern for the children expressed by senators on both sides of the aisle and suggested that sponsors failing to follow up with HHS doesn't mean the children are in danger.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICK SANTORUM, (R) FORMER UNITED STATES SENATOR: The idea that they're, quote, "lost" I think is an over estimate is a hyperbole to try -- to try to create an issue I don't think there is one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FLORES: The findings from a 2016 Senate subcommittee report show the problem isn't partisan. That even during the Obama administration more oversight was needed.

The report saying, "HHS' policy and procedures are inadequate to protect the children in the agency's care." So much so, the report found that the children were placed in the hands of human traffickers. Like this case from 2014 in which a number of immigrants were forced to work at an egg farm in Ohio for up to 12 hours a day, six to seven days a week in an unhumane conditions and without pay.

And even though federal officials say that legally they don't need to find these children, they don't need to track them down and make sure that they're not in dangerous conditions, senators, both Republican and Democrat raise the question. Does the United States have the moral responsibility to make sure that these children are not in danger?

Rosa Flores, CNN, San Antonio, Texas.

CHURCH: And the deputy secretary of Health and Human Services says the reports of lost children are misleading. And that their sponsors simply have not responded to follow up calls from the department.

Let's take a short break here, but still to come, the mystery endures.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The loss of MS370 is the most bizarre mystery ever in aviation and arguably probably one of the most bizarre mysteries in any field at all.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: After more than four years of looking the search for flight MH370 is at an end. A live report from Hong Kong after the short break.

Plus, one of the largest economies in Europe will be led for the next few months by a man known as Mr. Scissors. How Italy's interim prime minister plans to address the country's political crisis.

And people escape a collapsing bridge in Cuba as the first named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season is now threatening the Southeastern U.S.

[03:15:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: It is one of aviation's biggest mysteries. A source of ongoing heartbreak for the families and friends of those who were on board Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 disappeared more than four years ago. And now the search for the missing plane is officially over.

So let's bring in Anna Coren from our Hong Kong newsroom for more on this. Anna, it's a huge blow of course to the loved ones of the victims on board that doomed flight. How are they coping with this news and why did the U.S. company Ocean Infinity decided it was time to end the search?

ANNA COREN, CORRESPONDENT, CNN: Yes, that's a really good point, Rosemary. When this company Ocean Infinity approached the Malaysian government early this year to renew the search it was specifically for a 90-day contract. Well, that contract ends today. And the company said in a press statement that it ends this search with a very heavy heart. Because they know what a renewed search means. They know that it brings so much hope from those families. And then to return empty handed people are just heartbroken all over

again. And for those devastated families of the 239 people on board they feel a real sense of abandonment and betrayal from the Malaysian government in particular that promised that it would find the debris of MH370. And they fear that their loved ones this tragedy will just go down as another footnote in history.

A routine Malaysian Airlines flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing would rock the aviation industry. And shatter the lives of the families of the 239 people on board. Flight MH370 vanished on the 8th of March 2014 less than an hour after takeoff.

These were the last communications with air traffic control.

(BEGIN VOICE CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Malaysia 370 contact to Ho Chi Minch 120 decimal 9, good night.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good night Malaysia 370.

(END VOICE CLIP)

COREN: Captain Zaharie Ahmad Shah was flying the Boeing 777 when it vanished from radar. Mounting speculation the disappearance of this ill-fated flight was in fact a deliberate act.

A massive search immediately focused on the South China Sea. But a week later tracking data released by Malaysian authorities revealed the plane had flown up to eight hours in the opposite direction before crashing in the Southern Indian Ocean of the coast of Western Australia.

[03:20:00] One of the most challenging and exhaustive searches in history began. With the initial search sign roughly half the size of the United States.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're not searching for a needle in a hay stack. We're trying to define what a hay stack is.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The lost of MH370 is the most bizarre mystery ever in aviation and arguably probably one of the most bizarre mysteries in any field at all.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COREN: In an Australia-led search, experts honed in on 60,000 square kilometers of seabed, 2,000 kilometers off the coast of Perth.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If there's a plane down there, you know, we will see it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COREN: Using sonar equipment and autonomous underwater vehicles they navigated trenches, volcanoes and underwater mountains, searching for a debris field up to six kilometers below the surface.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're looking for small features similar to something like this pixel.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COREN: But more than a year into the search thousands of kilometers away debris from MH370 began washing up on the coast of Africa, an island in the Indian Ocean. As the underwater search drag on the Australian, Malaysian, and Chinese government funding the $150 million operation decided it had gone on long enough, officially ending the search in January 2017, devastating families all over again.

Earlier this year a private U.S. company took up the search on a no- find, no-fee basis. But after five months it too has failed to produce any results and it's ending its operation.

"If the Malaysian government decides to end the search and there's no further search then I will be very angry," says Jiang Hui who lost his mother. "We cannot accept this kind of outcome." For KS Narendran whose beloved wife was aboard MH370 he is also pleading for the Malaysian to keep searching.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KS NARENDRAN, WIFE OF MH370 PASSENGER: Do not give up the search. Stay focused on finding what really happened. Finding the plane and finding the truth.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COREN: The desperate pleas there, Rosemary for the search to continue. Now the new Malaysian government has ruled out continuing the search they say that this is gone on long enough. This chapter must close there must be closure for the families of the victims.

But the families that we've spoken to, Rosemary, they say they want the search to go on. The aviation experts say the search must continue. That it is a moral obligation to find out the truth, to find out what really happened to MH370.

CHURCH: Yes. Let's hope this mystery can be solved somehow some day for the sake of the loved ones. Anna Coren, many thanks to you.

Well, Italy could have new elections as early as this fall after populist failed to form a coalition government. The president has appointed a former official with the International Monetary Fund as the interim prime minister.

For the next few months Carlo Cottarelli will lead a country with the second largest debt in the European Union. Populous scored a major victory in parliamentary elections back in March. But their coalition collapsed after the president rejected the Euro skeptic nominee for economy minister.

And CNN's Barbie Latza Nadeau joins us now from Rome with more on this. So Barbie, how are Italians reacting to the political disarray in the country? And how will the interim prime minister deal with these crises?

BARBIE LATZA NADEAU, CONTRIBUTOR, CNN: Well, Italians are not entirely unaccustomed to political chaos. But somehow this one feels a little bit different. I think those who voted for the Populist Party feel that the president overstepped his boundaries. And those who didn't vote for the populous feel they dodged a bullet.

But what is really a sort of the bottom line is this, is how confused Italians really are about how they feel about the euro. We spoke to several of them and let's listen to what they had to tell us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NADEAU: The latest last resort for Italy's political crisis is a man they called Mr. Scissors. No, not this one. This one. Carlo Cottarelli, a former director of the International Monetary Fund who earned his nickname Mr. Scissors for his severe cuts in public spending has been given the mandate to form a caretaker government that will guide the country towards new election.

(FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

NADEAU: He knows global markets are worried but he says the economy is growing. Adding that he will guide a moderate government where Italy's role in the European Union remains essential.

Cottarelli came to power after populous parties that won March elections on euro skeptic campaign promises failed to form a government. Steve Bannon, President Trump's former adviser has been especially interested in the rise of populism in Italy which he is here to support.

[03:24:59] STEVE BANNON, FORMER WHITE HOUSE CHIEF STRATEGIST: This populous movement is a global movement. It's to show the world that every day men and women can take control of their lives, take control of their countries.

NADEAU: It is clear that this country is in political chaos. Staying in the euro zone which is what E.U. countries that use the euro as their currency call themselves is no longer something people take for granted here.

I asked Italians in Rome whether they want to stay in or get out of the euro zone. Dentro or forty as they say it here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dentro.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Forty. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Forty.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dentro.

NADEAU: Italians are clearly divided when it comes to the euro.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NADEAU: Rosemary, you know, it's very clear that the problem -- the way to solve this problem is not going to be easy for this interim prime minister, you know, he's got to somehow keep what is essentially a wrecked car on the road until they get to the end of the year. Pass the budget for 2019 and then he can call new elections.

If he can't form a government either that the parliament approves before that, they're going to have to have elections before that. And the big worry of course across Europe and in Italy is whether or not a second election will just cause the same problem or a worse one. Rosemary?

CHURCH: Yes. It is a tough road ahead for Italy for sure. CNN's Barbie Latza Nadeau joining us there from Rome, where it is nearly 9.30 in the morning. Many thanks.

Well, coming up next here on CNN Newsroom, I'll be talking to the woman who shot this video about bouncing back from Maryland's devastating flash flood. Plus, the dangers multiply as the lava flow from the Kilauea volcano in Hawaii becomes even more intense.

We're back in just a moment.

03:30:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: A very warm welcome back. To CNN "Newsroom." I am Rosemary Church, I want to update you now on the main stories we have been following this hour. The negotiators from the U.S. and North Korea are working to revive the on again, off again summit between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un. Talks have been taking place in the Korean Demilitarized Zone and in Singapore where the summit is scheduled for June 12.

The U.S. government has yet to give an adequate explanation as to how it lost track of nearly 1,500 immigrant children. The unaccompanied minors were placed in the homes of sponsors after crossing the border with Mexico. A top U.S. official says the government is not legally responsible for them once they are with the sponsors.

The Golden State Warriors are heading to the NBA finals. To meet the Cleveland Cavaliers for the fourth year in a row. Golden State beat the Houston, Rockets, Monday to advance to the finals. The Warriors have won the NBA title two of the past three years. Game one Thursday in Oakland.

Well, parts of the southeastern U.S. are under the threat of flooding. As Alberto has been downgraded to a sub-tropical depression and is now moving north. It left damage in its path. This video shows the moment a bridge collapsed in Cuba. Two people on the bridge were able to save themselves at the last second.

But in North Carolina, the storm claimed two lives. News anchor, Mike McCormick and photo journalist Aaron Smeltzer, were killed when a tree fell on their vehicle. They were covering the storm. And had just told someone they interviewed to be safe.

Our meteorologist, Pedram Javaheri joins us now from the International Weather Center with the very latest. Pedram, this storm as we just reported is tragically claimed two lives with this freak accident. And it does hammer home just how dangerous storms like this and certainly this magnitude can be.

PEDRAM JAVAHERI, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Absolutely. It doesn't have to be a hurricane, certainly it doesn't have to be a tropical system. And you look at the system like Alberto, and it never really had significant strength behind it. And certainly saw this coming for several days, but the impacts are not going to be really lessened as you watch the system begin to diminish over this region. We often say with the sort of features as they work their way through land the water element becomes what is the most deadly.

And of course, this was a subtropical feature. Essentially a hybrid storm that had a cold and warm core center. So it didn't have all tropical characteristics you look for in a tropical storm or even a hurricane. Where you see a warm core fueled by warm ocean water. So, we had this and we didn't have much convection of thunderstorm activity near the center of the storm. But again, that is all negligible, a rainfall that is pretty impressive, four to six inches wide spread across the center portion of Alabama, parts of Florida, Panhandle.

There is the center of the storm as it begin pushing in through parts of southern Alabama. And like every frankly is the next location in line here for some very heavy rainfall this morning. And much of the state of Alabama sees a soggy Tuesday here before the system eventually exits the region and pushes up towards the north.

But about 30 million people have been put under a flood watch across these region of the United States. And we think this will be the big story for Tuesday potentially into Wednesday and even as far north as parts of the upper Midwest by Thursday, before the system is all done with. So here's what we're watching with us storm as it moves a shore and moves over land over the next several days and the heavy rainfall stretches all the way up towards the northern tier of the U.S. If you have travel plans in St. Louis and Indianapolis, in Chicago.

Certainly could see these be disrupted by the middle of the week as the system works its way to the north. And notice it will take its time getting there as well. So, this is going to be a story we'll be following. And Rosemary, if any god news comes out of this, we have had tremendous heat in place across the northern tier of the U.S. Highs for multiple days in a row have been in the 90s across places like Chicago and Minneapolis, up to 100 degrees Fahrenheit. This will bring some relief, some cooler weather with all the rainfall in store, Rosie.

CHURCH: All right. We are always looking for some good news in these instances. All right, Pedram, thank you so much.

JAVAHERI: Thank you.

CHURCH: And you can keep an eye on subtropical depression Alberto on our web site. Just head over CNN.com to finds exactly where the storms making landfall.

Well, emergency crews in the State of Maryland came to the rescue, at least 300 times over the holiday weekend after flash floods carried away cars and toppled buildings in Ellicott City, not far from Baltimore.

[03:35:00] Officials confirm, one person is missing. And the cleanup is only just beginning. The historic area is still recovering from deadly flooding that happened two years ago.

Kali Harris survived the flash flooding. She joins me now from Ellicott City in Maryland. Kali, good to see that you are safe. And in a very sheltered area. You are a hair stylist who lives and works on Main Street. Where were you when this flash flood hit and how did you get out in time?

KALI HARRIS, ELLICOTT CITY, MARYLAND RESIDENT: I was at my apartment. When it started flooding. The rain was just coming down really hard. Usually when it rains like this after the first flood that I lived through in 2016. I usually try to monitor the situation. I always have been at my third floor window. And watch the street below me and see what is going on. And this time, the same kind of thing. I was at my apartment. I was sitting at my window watching the rain come down. It wasn't letting up. Like, the same thing in 2016. So, you know, I just was pacing the entire apartment back and forth and just watching the water get higher and higher. And you know, cars started coming down the road and buildings start falling apart.

CHURCH: You must have been terrified. Did you think at that point that you wanted to flee the area? Or did you just sit tight until it all come out an end?

HARRIS: After learning from the last flood it's best to sit tight. I just stayed where I was. I stayed put. The only entrance I have to my apartment is through the front. Where the flooding occurred. So, I knew there was going to be no way out. And no way off the street. So, I stayed at the highest level that I could.

CHURCH: And were there other people in the building that was going through the same thing as you? Did you go with them at all? Or were you by yourself?

HARRIS: I live alone. I'm the only person in my building right now. Like all the buildings are connected on Main Street. I knew people were going through the same thing. By as far as actually meeting up with somebody, I was the only person in my building.

CHURCH: Wow. So what is left of your salon and your apartment must be OK, given it was three floors above the salon is that right? HARRIS: Yes. Well, I don't live above my salon. My salon is higher

on the street, but I haven't been able to see the damage there yet. I have seen pictures of it. But I know some the other girls I work with -- (inaudible) -- my apartment as far as I know is totally fine. You know, I grabbed some bags and was escorted out by a firemen. And as far as I know the building is OK. And my stuff is OK. I just know that it will probably be a while before I'm able to, you know, either choose to live there again or, you know, get my stuff out.

CHURCH: Kali Harris, it is great to know that you are safe. You were so brave during that tackling that all by yourself. And as you were watching all of this take place, right before your very eyes and you bounced back before with the previous flood, you will bounce back again. Thank you so much for talking with us. We appreciate it.

HARRIS: Thank you.

CHURCH: Well, no end in sight from danger posed by the Kilauea volcano in Hawaii. It continues to erupt. Blasting fire and debris into the sky. Lava has reached a geothermal power plant on the big island. Over topping a well on the side. It's feared that a rupture of the well could produce an explosion causing the release of toxic gases. But for now, Hawaii County Civil Defense says the well is stable and secure.

Meanwhile, the fast moving flow of lava has forced more evacuations with about 240 people now in shelters. So far 82 structures have been destroyed. And volcanic smog remains a threat as long as Kilauea and surrounding fissures are active.

And in northeast China, four people are hurt and 20,000 have lost power. After a tornado touched down in (inaudible) province. And you can see debris flying through the air as the tornado moved through. It also ripped up dozens of trees and damaged houses. In a neighboring province residents were dealing with heavy rain and hail. Some of those hail stones were the size of eggs. Just imagine that smacking into your car. And many vehicles were damaged in the storm. Understandably.

Well, a migrant from Mali, is being honored and celebrated after he rescued a child dangling from a balcony in Paris.

[03:40:00] The French President is making him an offer that will change his life.

And more than 70 years have passed. But the memories remain vivid. The oldest survivor of the Pearl Harbor attack honored his comrades.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. Well, pressure is building on Nicaragua President to step down. Protestors set fire to the Pro- government radio station on Monday. Demonstrations began more than a month ago when changes were made to the social security system. Anger over the government crackdown that killed at least 77 people expanded the protest to call for Daniel Ortega ouster. The organization of American states urged him to hold early elections.

Mr. Ortega's support from the Catholic Church and the private sector is softening. The government estimates the daily highway blockades have cost the economy about $250 million.

CNN's Nick Paton Walsh, gets exclusive access to an elite gang fighting police squad in El Salvador. But some of former members of a controversial units alleged to have acted as a death squad. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is an undeclared war here in El Salvador. Elite police against MS-13. A gang menace of beheads, rapes and terrorizes. And it's America's war too. Because President Trump has declared MS-13 animals that must be eliminated and these men are fighting with U.S. money and help.

We're heading to one of the scenes of the more prominent killing safe deep inside gang territory.

[03:45:00] Carried out by what locals here say was effectively a police death squad.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Tune in Wednesday to watch the rest of Nick Payton Walsh's report. Starting at 5:00 a.m. in London. Noon in Hong Kong. Only here on CNN.

We brought you this story this time yesterday. And since then, the video has gone viral. A dramatic rescue in Paris. Ended with one life saved and another changed forever. When an undocumented migrant from Mali saw a little boy dangling from a balcony. He didn't walk away in fear of getting deported. Instead, he rescued that child by scaling four floors of the apartment building, balcony by balcony with such agility and speed some are calling him the Paris spider man. As to the child's father. Well, prosecutors say he had gone out shopping and was playing Pokemon-Go while his son's life was at risk. Jim Bittermann, has more now from Paris.

(BEGIN VIDEO)

JIM BITTERMANN, SENIOR EUROPEAN CORRESPONDENT, CNN: Looked look something out of an action film. A young man scaling the outside of the building to rescue a child. Dangling in midair. In fact Mamoudou Gassama, 22 year-old, an immigrant from Mali, who was here, kind of waiting to see whether he was going to get permanent asylum. Just suddenly sprang into action. He said he saw the child and he just had to do something. Here is the way he put it.

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MAMOUDOU GASSAMA, RESCUED CHILD DANGLING FROM BALCONY (TRANSLATOR): We came here to watch the football match at a restaurant. I saw a lot of people yelling. Cars were honking. I got out and I saw the child who was about to fall from the balcony. I have children. So, I would hate to see him get hurt in front of me. I ran and I thought of ways to save him. And thank God, I scaled the front of the building to that balcony.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (TRANSLATOR): How did you climb, it seem easy?

GASSAMA (TRANSLATOR): I got on top of door and I managed to pull myself up from balcony to balcony. And thank god, I saved him.

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BITTERMANN: That is a very humbling intervention for this hero. But it took a great deal of bravery to do that. And President Macron said that. This morning when he met him. And he said a policy said bravo at the end of their discussion and said that in fact Gassama will be given French nationality. The kind of dream that perhaps he had. It said that life expands and contracts with courage. And certainly Gassama's life has expanded today. Jim Bittermann, CNN, Paris.

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CHURCH: Well, Europe is considering a ban on single use plastic such as straws, cups and plates. The European commission wants to ban ten items that make up 70 percent of the litter in European water and beaches. The proposal would make plastic producers pay the cost of waste management and clean up.

Well, that 8,000 Starbucks stores in the U.S. will be closed for a few hours on Tuesday. Staff receives anti-bias training. The giant coffee chain that faced protest and accusations of racial profiling back in April. After the arrest of two African American men in Philadelphia. The manager called police, because they were waiting for a friend and didn't order anything. Now, not all Starbucks will be closed. 7,000 stores in places like hotels and airports will be open.

Well, here is the oldest survivor of the infamous attack on Pearl Harbor. And his memories have not faded.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I saw all the ships on fire. And a terrible smoke screen through the harbor.

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CHURCH: The new mission for this 106 year-old veteran. We're back with that in just a moment.

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CHURCH: They marched into hell so America could know the blessings of peace. Those words from President Donald Trump, as he marked Memorial Day in the United States.

He placed a wreath at the tomb of the unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery. Paying tribute to fallen servicemen and women.

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DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: To every family member of the fallen, I want you to know that the legacy of those you lost does not fade with time, but grows. Only more powerful. Their legacy does not like a voice in the distance become a faint echo. But instead their legacy grows deeper, spreading further. Touching more lives. Reaching down through time. And out across many generations.

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CHURCH: The oldest surviving Pearl Harbor veteran has traveled cross country to honor his comrades killed in action. 106 year-old Ray Chavez was the first veteran to ring the freedom bell at the World War II memorial. CNN's Dianne Gallagher has more.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 1941, a date that will live in fomite.

DIANNE GALLAGHER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: A day that still plays out in the mind of Ray Chavez.

RYA CHAVEZ, VETERAN, PEARL HARBOR: Every day.

GALLAGHER: 76 years later.

CHAVEZ: I saw the ships on fire. And terrible smoke screen. Through the harbor. And ships.

GALLAGHER: At 106 years old, Chavez is the oldest surviving Pearl Harbor veteran.

CHAVEZ: It is never a better way, of what you see and -- that is the way I remember. And then I forget and remember again.

GALLAGHER: Remembering. It's what brings Chavez to Washington D.C. this weekend.

[03:55:00] Although he did meet President Donald Trump at the White House.

CHAVEZ: I look forward to it, because I didn't vote for him. And I enjoy meeting him. A pleasant enough to have me right next to him, when we were --

GALLAGHER: Chavez traveled across country from San Diego to D.C. stopping in Kansas to refuel and meet with fellow veterans to attend the 150th Memorial Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery. He and his family are the guest of Defense Secretary, James Mattis.

But the Navy veteran says more than all of the pompom circumstance surrounding his visit. His focus is on those who gave the ultimate sacrifice. The act of remembering that is most important this holiday weekend. CHAVEZ: National Remembrance Day, because it's very important that at

a younger generation know and learn at the beginning of a war.

GALLAGHER: Vice President Mike Pence, spent part of his Friday at the Taps Good Grief Camp. The younger generation that knows the consequences of war all too well. All of these children have lost a loved one that served in the armed forces.

MIKE PENCE, VICE PRESIDENTIAL-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES: A room full of heroes.

GALLAGHER: And many will spend part of their Memorial Day here. In section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery. Remembering their fathers, mothers, sisters and brothers. Veterans of wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and post 9/11 conflicts.

CHAVEZ: I would do it again. If I were called, but chances are they'll never.

GALLAGHER: Ray Chavez hopes that he can honor the memory of those who he served with.

CHAVEZ: I'll never forget that, because I met some of them. Real fine young men.

GALLAGHER: And the sacrifice of the men and women who came after as well. Dianne Gallagher, CNN, Atlanta.

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CHURCH: And thanks for your company this hour. I am Rosemary Church. Early Start is next for our viewers here on the United States, for everyone else. Stay tuned for more news with Hannah Vaughan Jones.