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Fire Ravages Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris; Redacted Mueller Report to Be Released on Thursday. Aired 6-6:30a ET

Aired April 16, 2019 - 06:00   ET

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


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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It looked like an explosion. The sides and top. It was just horrible.

[05:59:26] UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We heard the tower fall. People screamed. It's so sad.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What was in my mind was the heart of Paris was burning.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The redacted report will go to Congress and to the public Thursday morning.

REP. ERIC SWALWELL (D-CA): The fact that they are unwilling to release everything shows a consciousness of guilt.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Democrats believe the president's financial transactions hold the keys to some of the unanswered questions.

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ANNOUNCER: This is NEW DAY with Alisyn Camerota and John Berman.

POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. This is NEW DAY. It is Tuesday, April the 16th. It is 6 a.m. here on the East Coast. John and Alisyn are off today. I'm Poppy Harlow here with my friend, John Avlon.

JOHN AVLON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Good morning.

HARLOW: Good morning. We have a lot of news to get to.

We are getting the first look at the extent of the devastation of Paris's iconic Notre Dame Cathedral. After nine hours, firefighters have finally extinguished that blaze, capturing the world's attention for all of those hours as it raged.

Look at Notre Dame this morning. Look at these before and after images from inside the blackened cathedral. You can see the crucifix still standing and illuminated -- look at that -- illuminated amid the destruction. French President Emmanuel Macron is pledging to rebuild the iconic cathedral that has stood at the heart of Paris and, in many ways, as the soul of City of Light for more than 850 years. Millions have already been pledged to restore Notre Dame to its full glory.

Officials believe the fire started in the wooden beams that make up the church's roof.

AVLON: The flames erupted late Monday and quickly engulfed the Gothic architectural masterpiece. More than 400 firefighters battling the flames, in hopes of saving it from collapsing.

We watched in horror as the cathedral's iconic spire toppled, falling through the roof and changing the city's skyline. The faithful singing hymns as they watched the powerful symbol of Catholicism and France itself burn.

This morning, the Paris Fire Brigade says stone construction of the cathedral has been saved, along with many of the church's most hallowed relics.

CNN's Melissa Bell live outside of Notre Dame with the very latest.

MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John, the slight drizzle here in Paris this morning has done nothing to detract the vast crowds who have come out to see for themselves how bad the damage was to this architectural marvel.

As you say, the soul, very much, of Paris. Many of them trying to get as close as they can. All of them, really, quietly mourning as they look on.

And that message from the French president, we will rebuild, is very much the one we're getting from authorities here this morning. The idea that Paris will come together to bring back, to rebuild as much as it can what was an architectural marvel when its building began in the 12th Century and that had, until last night, stood the test of time.

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BELL (voice-over): Daybreak in Paris, bringing the first images of the badly-damaged Notre Dame Cathedral after a fire ripped through the beloved Catholic landmark, stunning the city and the world.

CNN obtaining this exclusive look inside the burnt-out cathedral. A fire hose running. Embers still falling from the ceiling. Rubble scattered across the floor and an apparent hole in the roof.

In one picture, candles still burning from where visitors left them before the fire began. This haunting image showing smoke surrounding the altar and its cross illuminated and seemingly intact. Rose of wooden pews and much of the nave appears to have survived.

The image: a stark contrast to the architectural masterpiece that stood just hours before. Flames first seen leaping from the cathedral's wooden roof just before

7 p.m. local time. Police say the fire began in the attic and spread across the cathedral's wooden roof, known as the forest because of how many trees it took to build it.

The cathedral's rector tells CNN that the entire roof's structure is destroyed.

The inferno filling the city sky with smoke and ash that rained down on thousands of onlookers who'd gathered on the street stunned as the blaze gained strength.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We looked around and looked back, and gasped, and saw this transpiring. We watched as the rest of Paris watched in silent shock, as -- as these flames just grew and spread across the roof.

BELL: Sirens echoing through the silence as the fire engulfed the cathedral's iconic spire. The 300-foot-tall structure eventually collapsing.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We heard the tower full, and it was the worst sound. And people screamed.

BELL: Nearly 400 firefighters battling the blaze, working to save what was left of the iconic structure and the treasured artifacts inside.

Paris's mayor tweeting that many of the priceless pieces, including the Crown of Thorns and the tunic of St. Louis were recovered successfully. Firefighters also managing to save Notre Dame's iconic facade and bell towers.

French President Emmanuel Macron emotional as he visited the historic cathedral.

EMMANUEL MACRON, FRENCH PRESIDENT (through translator): So I say this very solemnly to you tonight. We will rebuild this cathedral together. And it is undoubtedly part of the French destiny and a project for the years to come.

BELL: With night falling, the crowd turning their heartache into hymns. Some onlookers mourning. Others on their knees praying, honoring the cathedral, a part of the city's core for close to nine centuries.

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[06:05:10] BELL: There is so much praise, as well, this morning for the efforts of the firefighters who really managed to save so much of what was inside those -- that cathedral, those relics in particular, which had been the concern of so many of the Catholics who gathered last night to pray, to sing together, to mourn together.

They're now being kept, we understand, in Paris town hall and will be transferred to the Louvre for safe keeping tomorrow until the cathedral can be rebuilt -- Poppy.

HARLOW: Melissa Bell, thank you for that reporting on the ground.

With me now is Robert Hardman, a reporter for "The Daily Mail," who was one of the first people inside Notre Dame right after the blaze. And Elizabeth Lev, an art historian based in Rome.

Good morning to you both. I would be remiss not to note, of course, this comes a day after Palm Sunday. This comes during Holy Week ahead of Easter. It is a tragedy for the world, for Paris, of course.

Robert, let's just begin with you and the remarkable access that you got, going inside, the smell that you describe as just palpable, and that vision, what you saw when you say the crucifix shone from what remained of the altar, a symbol of defiance in the gloom.

ROBERT HARDMAN, REPORTER, "THE DAILY MAIL": Yes. Hello, Poppy.

It was an extraordinary moment. It was a little after 1 a.m. in the morning. The fire was under control, though large parts of the roof were still ablaze.

I happened to be nearby. It was a small official delegation going in there with the French prime minister, and I walked in behind them. And there we were, underneath those iconic -- the twin towers, as they call them here. They were still standing. We were underneath them. And we went just inside the nave, and standing in an inch of water, water pouring in through the ceiling, bits of woodwork crashing down above.

But as you say, there, at the far end, in the distance, this extraordinary image of a crucifix.

HARLOW: Let's take a moment just to show our viewers around the world waking up to this this morning, Robert. Describe to us as we look at this beautiful, beautiful, haunting image, really, of the crucifix lit up because of the fire.

HARDMAN: It was -- it was -- I think it will be one of those images that people will look back on. I think, you know, this isn't just a place of worship. This is -- this is part of French national identity. This is so important to everybody in France, and indeed the whole of Europe.

And I think when I arrived in Paris last night, there were people on their knees on the streets. Thousands of people along both banks of the seine, singing hymns, saying prayers. I mean, it was sort of a religious moment for many.

So to see this almost redemptive shot of the crucifix surviving through it all, I think will be immensely reassuring to many people. I think they will see it as a symbol of defiance. Those of a religious disposition may detect divine intervention. Those who are atheists may just say it was a lucky escape. Either way, people will say what -- what an amazing moment. And, you know, thankfully, we are where we are this morning. It's still standing. HARLOW: Redemptive, I think that is a beautiful and very, you know,

and a perfect word for it this morning.

Elizabeth, Viktor Hugo, of course, famously called Notre Dame a vast symphony in stone. And not only is it the art and the history that it Housed, the Crown of Thorns, for example, but the structure itself, a work of art.

ELIZABETH LEV, ART HISTORIAN: The structure itself, really is, the beauty of it --

HARLOW: Go ahead.

LEV: It begins as this amazing structure, started in the 1160s, which is a big, solid structure. The first period was actually Romanesque, a very solid, sturdy type of building.

But towards the end of the building, in the 13th Century, they flowered into this Gothic church that we've been talking about. And it's an amazing thing that this nave, built in the Romanesque era, still standing, still sturdy, and that beautiful flowering of the stained glass windows and the high arches of the Gothic is damaged. But we know with those strong roots and sturdy foundations, that church can grow again. It can reflower.

HARLOW: A church that survived literally, Elizabeth, the plague, you know, the desires of Hitler and the Nazi regime to do away with it, that has withstood more than eight centuries.

And you think about Joan of Arc, right? And you think about kings of the past who have so much history there. What strikes you the most this morning as you recall all of history that has taken place inside Notre Dame?

LEV: Well, firstly, I think about the history we talk about, Henry IV's wedding and how he -- how he converted to Catholicism on the steps.

[06:10:00] We talk about Joan of Arc's retrial and how she was vindicated. Napoleon's coordination. But you know, that church has been the backdrop to wedding proposals, to people who lost loved ones. It's been there to comfort people in sadness. It's been there to rejoice with people in hope. It's been there to rally people in

moments of riots. It's been there to give hope to people in moments of occupation.

So that church really has been the back drop to the heart, the soul, the lives of the French, from the lowest, to the highest, to the most exalted, to the most simple.

HARLOW: Yes, to everyone of any stature. That's such a good point, Elizabeth.

You know, Robert, the last time I was in Paris -- and we're taking our children there in just a few weeks, and I was so looking forward to, and still will, take our daughter to see Notre Dame. The last time I was there was two days after the attack at the Bataclan in Paris. And it was when everyone was gathering to be together, regardless of faith or identity, and to worship and to come together as one.

What is the feeling on the streets of Paris this morning in terms of uniting a city that, in many ways, has been fractured amid these protests?

HARDMAN: You're absolutely right. It has very much been a divided city, a divided country for many months. But as with those terrible atrocities in 2015, the attacks on the satirical magazine "Charlie Hebdo" and then the ghastly terrorist attack on the Bataclan, France came together then, the whole of Europe came together with France. The whole world did.

And I think, again, last night there was that sense of France being very touched by the instant response from around the globe. The fact that, from the United Nations, from the United States, from all over the world, people were instantly expressing their solidarity.

And this morning, I think people are -- yes, they're angry, they're confused. How did this happen? How could this much-loved landmark go up in flames, just like that?

But at the same time, there is -- the word I hear this morning is renaissance. The word last night everyone talked about was catastrophe, catastrophe. But today, there is a sense of rebirth. And a sense that we are going to make this cathedral not just as good as she was but better.

HARLOW: Yes. And she will continue to stand for centuries and centuries to come, to hold even more history. And in the words of the French president, Emmanuel Macron, it is the cathedral of all of the French. And that will continue.

Our great thanks to you, Robert and Elizabeth, for your reporting this morning. We appreciate it.

AVLON: People across the globe devastated by the massive fire that tore into Paris' Notre Dame Cathedral. We've got more on this historic symbol of Paris next.

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EMMANUEL MACRON, FRENCH PRESIDENT (through translator): The place we have lived all our great moments: epidemics, our wars, our liberation. It is the epicenter of our lives.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

AVLON: That's French President Emmanuel Macron reflecting on the significance of Notre Dame, the Catholic monument that has embodied the heart and soul of Paris for more than 800 years.

But it's more than just a religious symbol. It has a powerful cultural significance around the world. Joining us now to talk about it are CNN chief international correspondent Clarissa Ward and CNN senior international correspondent in Paris, Jim Bittermann.

Jim has covered France for nearly 40 years. So Jim, I want to begin with you. As folks are waking up this morning, what has been lost? And what happened?

JIM BITTERMANN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's like -- it's like a stab to the heart, I think, John. I mean, the fact is that you -- I lived next to Notre Dame for seven years, the first seven years I arrived in Paris. And you walk by it every day, it was there. You were expecting it to be there. Sometimes you didn't pay any attention to it.

Other times, it was the bells on Sunday morning that woke you up. It was the organ concerts on Sunday afternoons. But it was so much larger than that. It meant so much to the country as a symbol, as an icon.

It brought millions of tourists to Paris, 13 million some say, each year.

So it is so much more than just a religious symbol, but it was that, too. It was my parish church, because I lived next to it. My daughter was baptized there. So it really -- it has a meaning, I think, for so many Parisians on so many different levels, and so many in the world on so many levels -- John.

Jim, to stay with you, we know that some of the key relics from the church were saved. A tunic from the 13th century. A crown of thorns believed to have been worn by Jesus during the crucifixion.

Do we know what was lost, and what's the status of the investigation, how this extraordinary international monument which survived the crusades, the world wars, burned yesterday?

AVLON: Well, the most recent statement we've gotten out is from the -- somebody in the prosecutor's office here who said that, in fact, it is most likely accidental. The fire was most likely accidental in nature.

But yes, Notre Dame survived everything for 800 years. It's just amazing that we see the destruction that may have been set accidentally.

As far as what's been saved, there's a number of things. There's relics that you mentioned, mainly the portable items. Some things inside that weren't portable, like for example, the big organ, five- keyboard, 8,000-pipe organ, whether it survived or not, the archbishop said this morning, Archbishop Aupetit (ph) said this morning that perhaps it had survived. But perhaps not. Or perhaps it will have to have a lot of work done.

It was only restored four years ago, so it's just a sad thing, to see it now today in doubt. And there are a number of -- there are a number of tableaux, like

great paintings that couldn't be removed. What kind of shape they're in after the fire is very difficult to say at this point -- John.

AVLON: Clarissa, it is such a heritage site. And here we are at Holy Week. You have travelled around the world. You know how sometimes tragedies can unify people. What's your feeling about the unifying possibility of this at the heart of Holy Week?

CLARISSA WARD, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think -- I think there's tremendous opportunity here, John. Because what we saw yesterday was a real uniting of people, literally flocking down onto the streets as this biblical blaze was consuming this majestic structure that is essentially an emblem of French history, of endurance, of resilience, of striving toward something better.

[06:20:15] And they began singing hymns together. They began praying together. Tourists who may not be French, who may not be Catholics, who may not be religious at all, all standing together and wanting, somehow, to project or communicate their feelings of well-being and love for this structure. And that's a beautiful thing. And that's not something that happens every day.

And it's not something, especially John, that happens every day in France at the moment, with the kind of roiling political turmoil in the background. And so I do think there's a sense now that this could be a unifying moment, particularly given that this is the Holy Week for Christians across the world. Good Friday, obviously, coming up. This is a day of sadness. This is a day of mourning, the day of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

But Sunday, Easter Sunday, this is a day of jubilation. It's about rebirth, renewal, and celebration. And because the structure is still intact, because some of those really, really precious artifacts and relics of the crucifixion were saved, I think there's a sense that, notwithstanding the tragedy of losing that spire and of seeing this gutted in some ways, the fact that it's still standing, the fact that those relics were saved, that's something to come together and celebrate.

AVLON: That's a beautiful way of summing up the spirit of rebirth for the season.

Jim, pick that up for a second, because the feeling on the streets of Paris, from despair yesterday, to determination today and donations starting to roll in, what does it feel like on the ground?

BITTERMANN: Well, I think that it is, in fact, exactly that. When you see the kind of outpouring of sentiment that there has been. There have been online websites set up by individuals, by groups, by organizations. The city of Paris promised 50 million euros to rebuild. The regional government, 10 million. And France's richest man supposedly, Bernard Arnault, said his family who created and maintained the LVMH fortune, in fact, said they're going to contribute 200 million euros to the reconstruction of Notre Dame. So there is this great outpouring of unity. A number of associations,

like the French Heritage Society, UNESCO, so many other people have stepped forward and said they want to be part of the reconstruction.

So I think reconstruction, in terms of money, in terms of means, I think it's going to be fine, resources. But it's going to take forever. It's going to take probably 20 years before it's restored, according to some architects. Twenty years before it's restored to anything like its previous state.

AVLON: It's extraordinary. I mean, as Viktor Hugo wrote, Clarissa, you know, time is the architect. The nation is the builder. This is going to be a thing of decades.

But it's the personal commitment. You know, I remember Margaret, my wife, and I, went on our babymoon to Paris and have a picture outside Notre Dame.

What are your personal reminiscences?

WARD: Who doesn't remember the first time they saw Notre Dame? Any American tourist who has been lucky enough to visit, that moment, as you walk up and you see this facade, this extraordinary facade, and then you go, and this enormous space, which of course, is what contributed to the quick spread of the fire, so much oxygen in that structure to burn off of.

And you see that rose window, that beautiful, unique rose window. These are moments you don't forget. These are special moments. This is a structure that is designed to humble us, to remind us that we are small, that there is something greater in the universe, whether you're a spiritual or religious person or not, that we can all strive to.

And I think that's exactly why so many people are getting behind this, you know, effort to raise money, to try to renew it to its former glory. And I might add, after the French Revolution, when it was desecrated, there was a restoration period of 24 years. So Notre Dame has survived this before, and I think she will survive it again.

AVLON: Do it again.

Thank you, Clarissa.

Thank you, Jim.

HARLOW: Beautifully said. All right. Of course, we'll come back to that lead story.

Meantime, the redacted Mueller report will be made public in just two days. The White House, we know, is gearing up for a fight. The latest details, next.

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[06:28:23] HARLOW: All right. Welcome back. For months, this has been the question: when will the Mueller report

be released? Here's your answer: two days. In two days, the redacted report, or the Barr version of the Mueller report, will be made public by the Justice Department. This as House Democrats are ratcheting up investigations into the president's finances.

Let's go to our colleague, Sunlen Serfaty. She's in Washington with more.

So Thursday morning, big morning.

SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right. Thursday is going to be such a huge day here in Washington. And Trump's legal team, Poppy, is already prepping to push back on the redacted report.

Meantime, House Democrats are amping up their oversight authority, subpoenaing several institutions for financial information about President Trump.

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SERFATY (voice-over): The Trump administration bracing for the release of the attorney general's version of Robert Mueller's report after the Justice Department announced that the nearly 400-page redacted document will be released on Thursday morning.

Last month, Attorney General William Barr released a four-page memo summarizing Mueller's findings, saying that Mueller did not uncover evidence of conspiracy between the Trump campaign and Russia, but stopped short of a conclusion on the question of obstruction.

In anticipation of the release, President Trump resorting to old attacks on the special counsel, a change of tune from his tone after Barr's summary was released last month.

White House officials tell CNN that the president's legal team is preparing a rebuttal, but that they do not believe the coming report will change public opinion. The officials adding that they are concerned that any damaging information could give ammunition to Democrats who are escalating their efforts to obtain insight into the president's financial history.

The House Intelligence and Banking Committees subpoenaing Deutsche Bank.

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