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CNN Sunday Night

Latest Updates from Tsunami Devastated Areas; Palestinians Conduct Election For Their Leader Today

Aired January 09, 2005 - 22:30   ET

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

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


CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: This is CNN SUNDAY NIGHT. Old man winter is staying too long out west. Southern Californians are digging out of mudslides. Northern Californians are stuck in a storm with another five feet of snow coming their way. We've got live reports.
Also, the sound, the fury. We have yet again amazing new pictures of the fight for survival. The tsunami swallows everything in its path.

And in the Middle East, the beginning of a new era. The Palestinians elect a new leader. These stories and a lot more next on CNN SUNDAY NIGHT.

Up first tonight, disaster strikes again in tsunami ravaged Indonesia. A U.S. military helicopter crashed about two hours ago near the Bande Aceh airport, which serves as a major hub in the relief effort. 10 people were on board. We're going to go right to CNN's John King, who's live in Bande Aceh.

John, what happened?

JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good evening to you, Carol from Bande Aceh. We're told this is more a crash landing than a crash. A U.S. Navy SH-40 - SH-60, excuse me, Seahawk helicopter trying to approach the main airport here in Bande Aceh. It tried to land instead. It ended up crash landing in a rice paddy, we're told about a football field's distance away from the airport.

10 U.S. sailors aboard that helicopter. All have been taken back to the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln in waters off Sumatra. We are told two of those on board were injured. We do not know as yet the extent of those injuries, but all 10 did survive. Two injured. We are trying to get more information there.

The Seahawk is essentially the shuttle of the U.S. Navy relief operation here. They have flown 243 sorties using this Vietnam era helicopter from the ships to bring personnel in, from the Bande Aceh Airport to bring relief supplies out to more remote areas, where you cannot get from the road. So it is a critical piece of equipment here as part of the relief effort.

On the scene, you see the helicopter sitting on its side, the rotor broken into the ground. But again, all 10 service members did survive. Two with injuries. We are still trying to determine.

Relief flights out of the airport were suspended for about an hour to 90 minutes, we are told, while there was an assessment done on the ground, mainly a safety check. But those relief flights are back underway. U.S. Navy officials and other military officials are now investigating this. Their assumption now, Carol, is that this was a mechanical failure. And what they also tell us is that this is to be expected. These are old helicopters, aging helicopters. And when you fly so many missions, some of them do have mechanical issues.

They have ruled out any ground fire. That investigation's continuing. We'll try to get more information on the extent of the injuries of those two we are told, who are injured. But again, the most critical thing from the operation on the ground here, everyone would say those relief flights, they are now continuing - Carol?

LIN: All right, that's good news indeed. John, I know the investigation is continuing. You're saying there's some speculation it might have been mechanical failure, but give us an idea of what the weather was like.

KING: The weather this morning was quite nice. It is clear this morning. It was about 7:20 a.m. when this happened. It's a beautiful day here at the moment. So there's no indication there could be any weather effect to this at all. There was some concerns initially that perhaps there could be ground fire. That is always a suspicion on reflex because we are in a conflict zone.

There are from time to time fire fights between the Indonesian military and the separatist rebels here. So certainly the Indonesian military would worry about that at the get go. But both U.S. officials and Indonesian military officials telling us that has been ruled out. And again, the investigation's continuing, but the assumption is, and the assumption is based on the fact that this happens back in the United States during training. It happens in Iraq. It happens in other missions around the world. These are aging helicopters. They tend to have mechanical problems from time to time. So that is the assumption, Carol, that this was a mechanical failure of some sort.

Again, a crash landing more than a crash. The pilot trying to get to the ground when he had this problem on board that helicopter. More details as we get them.

LIN: All right, thanks very much. John King reporting live in Bande Aceh. Of course, we're going to have much more detail about the crash and the U.S. - of that U.S. helicopter in Indonesia. Later this hour, I am expecting to be talking to Commander Mark McDonald, public information officer of the combined support force of the U.S. military there out of Thailand. So we will have more on this story.

In the meantime, we also want to show you some new video that surfaced today of the tsunami plowing through Bande Aceh, Indonesia. And it certainly makes us wonder how anyone could have survived this. I want to show you more of this video in just a moment.

Right now, on the telephone with me, Commander Mark McDonald. He's a public information officer of the combined support force out of Thailand. Commander, what can you tell us about what you know? Is it confirmed that it was mechanical failure that brought down that U.S. helicopter?

MARK MCDONALD, COMBINED SUPPORT FORCE: It's not confirmed that it's mechanical failure. That is a potential cause. And we are currently investigating to find out the exact cause of the grounding.

LIN: All right. But you can confirm, though, that it was not hostile fire that brought it down?

MCDONALD: I can confirm that it is not like - it is certainly not likely that it was hostile fire that caused it. That has been ruled out as a possible cause.

LIN: All right. What about the injuries sustained by the 10 people on board? How are they doing?

MCDONALD: It appears to be minor injuries. All 10 personnel that were on the aircraft have been Medivac'ed back out to the Abraham Lincoln, where they're being evaluated for any medical problems they may have.

But very capable platform in terms of medical capabilities. And it turns out that it appears to be very minor injuries for those that were in the crash.

LIN: Were they all military personnel on board? Or were there some non-military or humanitarian aid workers on board?

MCDONALD: No, it was all military personnel that were flying continued support missions in the Bande Aceh area.

LIN: All right, Commander, it seems that those 10 people are very lucky to be alive. This is what we've been reporting on the story. I want to get your thoughts on it, that this helicopter was on approach, trying to land at the Bande Aceh Airport. It fell short, crashed about 500 yards away from that airport. Is that true?

MCDONALD: That's correct. And of course, extremely fortunate that these crew members are going to be OK. And you know, that's one of the things that these pilots trained for is when mechanical functions or anything that may hinder them, they are able to do as well as they can to get their aircraft down and faithfully get their personnel out, then casualties.

That's what happened here. And we're very fortunate that there are not any more significant injuries.

LIN: Commander, why were relief flights suddenly terminated? It almost appeared that the aid mission there was going to be in jeopardy because of this crash?

MCDONALD: Well, of course, our goal is to fly as many aid missions as we can. And to date, we've flown a total of 243 sorties, providing relief aid. And when something like this happens, and there's a major incident like this, of course, everyone wants to be safe. So initially, flights were suspended there in the area, but we've been able to continue operations, both from the Abraham Lincoln and Baja Merchard (ph) and working with our partners there on the ground to get as much aid to folks as possible.

LIN: All right, Commander Mark McDonald, thank you very much. Confirming that the 10 people on board are alive. They are not seriously injured as was previously thought. They sustained minor injuries. They're being treated on the U.S.S. Abraham. And aid missions back into Bande Aceh, which is the tsunami battered Sumatra island, the main city on the Sumatra island there in Indonesia, have resumed. That is good news indeed.

Anyway, I want to take you back to this videotape. It's brand new videotape. And what is so different about it, look how close this photographer was to the devastation. That is the water from the sea, pouring in and taking everything with it.

But take a look at that. The people standing there. They're standing on a rooftop. They're trying - they can't believe what they are seeing there, as the water spread. It was a wedding photographer that took these amazing pictures. Take a look at this.

It was a river of cars and planks of wood, and entire trees that were rushed onto the island. Those people, standing on a rooftop, the water just below them. Hard to believe what they're looking at. And it's amazing anybody survived that torrent. You would simply just be crushed under the rubble.

Well, we've got so much more ahead on the tsunami disaster throughout this hour. In fact, a bit later, I'm going to chat with the man leading a team of investigators into the region, personally hunting down child sex predators. We're going to show you how they're going to do it.

In the meantime in other news, if you're watching us out West of the Rockies tonight, you've probably sought shelter from the snow or the rain or the mud this time. This latest winter storm is not playing around, hammering Washington state all the way down to Los Angeles, in Idaho, Salt Lake City and Utah, and then Nevada, Las Vegas. If it's not covered in too much snow, it's washing away in too much rain simply put.

For example, in the Lake Tahoe area, where they usually welcome a bit of winter weather because of the ski season, it's testing even the hardiest souls. And that is where we find one of our hardiest souls.

Sean Callebs tonight, dressed in layers we hope. There he is. We've got him standing by with Sean. Stand by there. We're just going to get to you in just a moment. We want to get to Miguel Marquez. He is in flooded Santa Clarita.

Miguel, a desert community underwater?

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, we're actually in Santa Clarita a little earlier today, Carol. Right now, we're in the Hollywood Hills in front of a house that came down in all of this.

We have seen scene after scene of just dramatic video from - and Mother Nature's fury in the last couple of days. But we just got a new scene in. And it involves a rescue of a man in Cerrito, just south of Los Angeles. And this guy almost didn't make it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Come on now, come on now, come on.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hold on.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MARQUEZ: Just an unbelievable swift water rescue. That video had to be digitized because the man literally lost his pants because of the force of the water, as they tried to pull him up. How did he get there? Well, about 40 minutes earlier, his kids had been rescued, three kids rescued, but he ended up staying on the top - the roof of his BMW and floating for approximately two miles until he could be rescued. He floated for about 40 minutes. And then finally, he was pulled over to the side and rescued, but that's just one scene of many emergency scenes that we've seen in southern California over the last couple of days.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A house in the Hollywood Hills crumbled after the water sodden hillside behind it gave way.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This woman from this house say, "Oh, my God, oh my God, my (UNINTELLIGIBLE.)

MARQUEZ: A 33-year old man and his two kids were plucked from the debris. Fire officials say his 10-year old son buried up to his neck in mud was lucky to survive.

In the suburbs north of Los Angeles, a river raged in what was once a dry creek bed. After a wall collapsed, a trailer park flooded. Residents packed up children and Chihuahuas and headed for drier ground.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My dad wants to stay, but we have no choice. We have to evacuate.

MARQUEZ: Across Southern California, mud slid off rain soaked hills, rock. And mudslides blocked roads, creating hazards almost everywhere.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is Mother Nature at its worst.

MARQUEZ: Mother Nature relentless. In Malibu, a car with five passengers plunged onto the rocky shore. One person was killed. Near Dodger Stadium, a homeless man died after being buried in mud.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MARQUEZ: Now I want to give you a sense of where we are in Los Angeles. We're really in the middle of the city in the Hollywood Hills on Laurel Canyon Boulevard, which is a major thoroughfare right over the hills. This thing has literally turned into a river tonight. And this is a lot of the reason that this house has come down and others.

You can see the cars just flashing up here. A lot of them turning around because they are concerned about the water coming down Laurel Canyon right now.

California's Office of Emergency Management says so far only two people have killed - been killed because of the storm itself. But there have been many other traffic accidents where people have been killed in this storm. They don't count that in the official count.

Do you know if it's rain in southern California, it is snow in the north. And that's where we find our CNN's Sean Callebs in Tahoe City, California - Sean?

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, here the situation has changed just a little bit in the last couple of hours. The people in this region are now lamenting the loss of that light, fluffy snow. And they're getting a little bit of drizzle, not very much.

But let me show you what's going on. It's been kind of sleeting and raining. And you're seeing these large build-up of snow on these routes. All throughout this area are now beginning to slide off. What we are seeing here just a moment ago during Carol's intro, a huge chunk fell down. And this isn't light stuff. And the residents in this area say they're really worried because they believe that is about two tons of snow. So once it comes down, it could cause a great deal of difficulty.

This is what this whole area is like. We're kind of trapped inside a little snow cocoon. The snow did taper away today. We'll show you what the streets look like, because it has changed dramatically in the past several hours.

For the first time, residents can now make their way up and down Highway 89 here without chains. But it is going to get a lot colder tonight. It is simply slop at this hour. A lot of slush, a lot of snow out there. They expect this precipitation is going to continue throughout the evening.

So what we're seeing here with this heavy snow that's building up on all the rooftops in this area could overburden some of these facilities in this area throughout the evening, and also cause kind of a glaze. And it's going to be a lot more difficult to get around.

Our Rob Marciano's here. He's going to be here first thing in the morning, Carol. He'll bring the folks up to date on just how bad the situation is in the Tahoe region.

LIN: You bet. Thanks very much. Sean Callebs and also our thanks to Miguel Marquez in the Hollywood Hills in Southern California.

Well, what West Coasters need now more than anything is just for this weather system to give them a break. So we have Jacqui Jeras back in the CNN Weather Center for us.

And Jacqui, what's in the cards for those folks?

JACQUI JERAS, METEOROLOGIST: Well, the break is coming, Carol, though we just have to be patient. We've got one storm system which is moving in at this hour across Southern California. Look at this plume of moisture. The pineapple express, if you will. Subtropical moisture moving in, bringing more heavy rain.

And up here, this storm is waiting in the wings. And that's what's going to be affecting folks late in the day for tomorrow and into your Tuesday as well. So the moisture already in place. They ground very saturated. Continued problems with flash flooding, avalanche concerns, and also concerns with mudslides.

Our next storm is going to be moving in for tomorrow, late in the day, expecting more of that rain and heavy snow. We'll be tracking across California, into Nevada by Tuesday. It will be drying out late across the Southwest. But the snow will be picking up through the Wasatch (ph) and into the Rockies.

As we head into Wednesday, we'll watch our storm system then move across parts of Colorado. Windy across the four corners. Possibly strong to severe thunderstorms into the south and heavy snow potentially into the upper Midwest.

And as we head towards the latter part of the week, we may see some icing in the Ohio Valley. Thunderstorms across the Southeast. Windy with blustery conditions and heavy snow expected on the Lees (ph) side into the western Great Lakes and then into northern parts of New England. We will start to see some of that snow come down, but we think in New York City at this time, probably going to be a rain event.

And one other note, all this warm air that you've been experiencing across parts of the deep south and into the southeast, that will finally be coming to an end as you head into the weekend.

So the storm system that they're experiencing across parts of the West now affecting the lower 48 throughout the rest of the week.

One other weather note. We told you last night about the tropical depression near Sri Lanka. It is expected to move westward. It should be weakening, which is good news, but bad news that it will likely still bring in some flooding rains - Carol?

LIN: All right. Thanks very much, Jacqui. We've got some other news today. And it was history in the making in the Arab world. A day both anticipated and dreaded by Middle East watchers. And the nearly two million people eligible to vote for Palestinian president. Election day and the process to replace Yasser Arafat was a potential security fiasco that fortunately never materialized. Tonight, frontrunner Mahmoud Abbas has declared victory. And the exit numbers seem to support that right now. Our Ben Wedeman was up early in Gaza when the polls opened.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): At 83-years old, voting is no small feat for Subha Ferhan. But she was up bright and early Sunday morning to cast her vote in Gaza's Gerbalia (ph) refugee camp.

I asked her what she wants from her candidate, frontrunner Mahmoud Abbas.

"We want our land back," she says. "We want our children to prosper."

Like politicians everywhere, the candidates have promised far more than they may ever be able to deliver. But for one voter, an end to the violence is the key.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When we start intifadah, we'll be able to achieve and fulfill all of those promises, you know? That's the point.

WEDEMAN: While others cast their ballots, 26-year old Mahmoud Salah stayed at work making kabobs. He had better things to do than vote in what he described as a useless election.

"Nothing will change," he says. "Gaza and the West Bank will never change."

Back at the voting station, frustration. This man went from place to place, trying to vote. He called the toll-free number set up to straighten out such problems. The line was busy.

Worker Mohammed Ibrahim voted early to avoid such problems and savor what he said was special.

"I wish all Arabs had this kind of democracy," he says. "They've been deprived all these years."

(on camera): Despite the occasional complications, this election was by the standards of the Arab world relatively free and fair. The Palestinian territories may not be on the verge of becoming a beacon of democracy in the Middle East, but there is a glimmer.

Ben Wedeman, CNN, Gerbalia (ph) refugee camp, Gaza.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: And there's a glimmer of hope for the tsunami survivors. Help is coming even from the youngest among us. She is only nine. But one girl is doing her part to help one of the smallest victims of the tsunami tragedy.

Also, a political comeback for a former Washington power player. Up next, Carlos Watson is going to share the inside scoop on what could be on the horizon for Newt Gingrich. He'll be heading to the White House?

And that leads us to our last call question. How do you feel about Newt Gingrich running for president in 2008? Give us a call at 1-800-807-2620.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: It's been a busy night. Breaking news in South Asia. Want to give you a recap of our top story, in case you're just joining us. A U.S. military helicopter crashed just 500 yards away from trying to land at the Bande Aceh Airport in Sumatra Island of Indonesia.

You're looking at the wreckage there. Amazingly, though, 10 people on board. None of them died. They suffered minor injuries. They're being treated right now on the U.S.S. Abraham. Investigators are on the scene. And so is our John King. He's going to be joining us again with more of the latest details from that crash scene. A U.S. helicopter crashing in a rice field just 500 yards from the Bande Aceh Airport, as it was trying to deliver aid and relief supplies to the victims there, the tsunami.

It has also been a busy day, a busy weekend politically. Not only in the Palestinian territories as we've reported tonight, but right here at home as well. Now curiously, none of the big domestic political stories are in Washington amazingly. We're going to bring in CNN's political analyst Carlos Watson to talk to him about -- well, forget about the California climate out there, Carlos. You're swimming there to work these days.

Let's talk about some of the political climate that's going on. Palestinian elections out in the Middle East, an important event, and an event that is bringing some strange bedfellows together?

CARLOS WATSON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: It has. And two interesting things to think about in the Palestinian election, which is the historic one.

First is that the turnout at the exit polls are right. We won't know for another six hours. Actually could be higher than the Palestinian election among the 1.8 million eligible voters than it was in the U.S. election just a couple months ago. So an interesting side note to watch.

But more significantly, for President Bush who's made Middle East democratization a big part of his foreign policy, he's got an interesting compatriot here. Namely, former President Jimmy Carter.

You notice that President Bush, whether it's in the Palestinian area or in Iraq, has been pushing for big elections, but often has lacked the full credibility to get the elections taken seriously. And who comes along in the case of the Palestinian election to add a little more credibility? None other than Jimmy Carter. And the idea of strange bedfellows come together is not unusual in politics. You think of someone like Newt Gingrich and Bill Clinton coming together around welfare reform or balanced budget. Or some 60 years ago, FDR and his former opponent in the 1940 presidential campaign, Wendell Wilke, came together to rally the country around entering World War II. So an interesting Texas two step here on the international front.

LIN: All right, you mentioned Newt Gingrich. Can you believe this story? He wrote a book. He's promoting it. He's going to be going to Iowa, New Hampshire. No coincidence, Carlos? You think he's planning on running for president in 2008?

WATSON: Well, he knows it will sell books. He saw it work for Colin Powell in 1995. All the speculation around Powell running certainly increased sales of a book that already was going to do well.

I'm not sure if Newt Gingrich will run. But certainly, one of the things it says is that one of President Bush's biggest challenges over the next four years may not come from Democrats, but may come from Republicans who want his job in 2008. And so if they attacked him on issues like Social Security, if they come after him on issues like Iraq, that could be where some of his biggest challenges come from.

And in fact, Newt Gingrich already went after the president on the issue of Iraq.

LIN: All right. Newt Gingrich for the Republicans, Hillary Clinton maybe for the Democrats. Can you imagine that race? I'm looking forward to it already. Anyway, Carlos...

WATSON: Lots of good combos.

LIN: Another guy who may or may not run for president, they've got to change their constitution first, Arnold Schwarzenegger. You managed to snag an interview with the California governor for your upcoming special on January 23rd.

WATSON: We did. You know, coming up January 23rd, Sunday night, two weeks from today at 10:00 Eastern and again 10:00 Pacific, we'll not only have Arnold, where he talks about his thoughts on the constitutional amendment or the possible constitutional amendment, which will allow him to run, but also talks very interestingly about kind of how he approaches fatherhood, and marriage. And some of that has changed over the years, his relationship with the Kennedys, and what kind of advice he does or doesn't get.

And we also sit down, by the way, with the guy we're calling the new face of religion in America, Dr. Kreplowadollar (ph), well known televangelist. And we sit down with the star of "Desperate Housewives," Eva Longoria. So a little religion, a little entertainment, and definitely a lot of politics.

LIN: All right, look forward to it. 10:00 Eastern and Pacific on January 23rd.

All right, thanks Carlos. Great to see you. Stay dry out there.

WATSON: Good to see you. Take care. Have a good one.

LIN: All right, we want to remind you also of our last call question, by the way. How do you feel about Newt Gingrich running for president in 2008? Give us a call at 1-800-807-2620.

Also an important story following the tsunami disaster exploiting children for sex. That's a major issue in Asia. And it's even happened to kids who survived the tsunami disaster. Straight ahead, we're going to find out how some suspects are tracked down and eventually caught.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: Good time to take a look at the headlines tonight and tomorrow. The Abu Ghraib abuse trial. Charles Grainer (ph) is the Army reservist accused of leading a pattern of abuse at that Baghdad prison. Well, he's being court-martialed at Fort Hood, Texas. The jury was seated Friday and opening statements begin in the morning.

Peace treaty. The Sudanese government and rebels agree to end a 21-year civil war in the south. Two million people have died from the fighting, famine and disease. The peace agreement does not include a separate conflict in the country's Darfur region, which we've been reporting on.

And no more butts. A very controversial no smoking law went into effect in Italy at midnight local time. It bans smoking on public transportation, in hospitals and movie theaters. Restaurants and bars can only allow smoking in ventilated smoking rooms and for the Italians, that's big news.

Now the face of a survivor. The 60-year old man you're looking at found beneath the rubble in Sri Lanka. Two weeks after the tsunami hit, he's in a hospital dehydrated, with a broken arm but he is alive. He spoke a few words today that he had a son and daughter. The doctors say he will be just fine.

Two weeks now since the size and scope of the tsunami disaster began to come into focus and since then of course, the video images, the witness accounts, amazing stories of rescue and survival and the unimaginable sorrow. There are new developments tonight in the effort to assist the people of Indonesia. CNN's John King in Banda Aceh. John, first let's get to the breaking news out of your location, the helicopter crash, a U.S. military helicopter crashing outside the airport of Banda Aceh. For those of just tuning in, tell us more about what you know.

JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, that crash landing, the pilot trying to get back to the airport at Banda Aceh, having troubles with his Seahawk helicopter SH-60 off the "U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln," a crash landing in a rice paddy near the airport. Ten U.S. sailors aboard that helicopter, two of them we are told injured to the point where they need extensive medical treatment back on the "U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln." Beyond that, we do not have details on their injuries.

It was about 7:20 a.m. this morning. Again the chopper going down, a crash landing in a rice paddy near the airport in Banda Aceh, that is so close, so key to the relief operations. Australian military personnel rushed to the scene first to help treat those Americans. The Navy is now investigating. It believes though this crash landing due to mechanical failure. Relief flights were suspended for about an hour to 90 minutes. They are back up and running now, but even that brief suspension of note here, because those relief operations are so critical to trying to get Banda Aceh back on the path to recovery.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KING (voice-over): Sunday morning, the market bustling, Banda Aceh two weeks later. There is nothing normal here anymore but some streets are busy again. (INAUDIBLE) comes for salted fish, some chilies, watercress and with her groceries, carries hope that from disaster, will ultimately come better days.

TRANSLATOR: Let's see what happens after these foreigners come. With the aid coming in, maybe it will become a greater city. There's so much help coming in.

KING: Coming in by the plane load, though at the two-week mark there are still significant problems delivering help to devastated coastal areas to the west of Banda Aceh.

UNKNOWN: For the foreseeable future, there will be no access to the large portions of the coast. It will be by boat and helicopter.

KING: This line near the town center at times run two hours. At the end, cheerful Australian troops and a cherished commodity, drinking water. New video shown on Indonesian television shows the devastation as the tsunami hits Banda Aceh. Ritzi (ph) was on a bridge and saw it coming.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I run with my friend. I have eight friends and I run. Running, running, you don't think about nothing, don't think about it, just running.

KING: Two weeks later, she still worries it could happen again.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I can't explain it. Trauma. I feel trauma.

KING: When it comes to the daunting clean-up operation, there is heavy equipment and heavy equipment, these elephants off to their next job. A playful scene but a sanitation nightmare, a dirty irrigation canal used for bathing and laundry across from a roadside refugee camp. Zimil (ph) wants a new house but far from the water this time in case the wave comes back.

TRANSLATOR: Lots of people say there will be, but only Allah knows. KING: She found her two children after three days but says others were taken away from Banda Aceh by the government and two weeks later, their parents know nothing.

TRANSLATOR: There is no information. They should return the kids to their parents. The poor parents there are tired of looking.

KING: Look on the roadside and this is an all too familiar scene. Here, three women and a child found Sunday morning in an alley. Banda Aceh still counting its dead two horrible weeks later.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KING: And that new video, that dramatic new video perhaps helping to give some perspective to just what happened here two weeks ago. In the video you see pick up trucks, cars, boats, just simply being tossed like toys and Carol, two weeks later, if you go downtown, the debris still litters everywhere. There is a clear shortage of the heavy equipment necessary to clean up here. Many say it will take months, perhaps years, just to clean up and then to rebuild.

LIN: Easily and not only just the - in the aftermath of the shock and the aftermath of the tsunami, but literally shocks from earthquakes. Did you feel the one earlier today?

KING: About 4:20, 4:30 this morning, quite a significant one. That happens just about every day or every other day, sometimes two or three a day. The one this morning was quite a significant rumble. We tend to joke in our compound, it's an early morning wake up call, but as joke, it is quite serious to many of the locals. When they feel the ground tumble, Carol, all they can think of is what happened two weeks ago. They still get nervous. Some still move inland. Everyone you talked to here who live near the water wants to be relocated. They say they simply do not want to move back close to the water again.

LIN: Is it fallout from the tsunami or is it just a natural phenomena, having earthquakes?

KING: It was the earthquake that caused the tsunami and the aftershocks are a natural occurrence after that and like I said, sometimes there's two or three a day. They tend to happen in the early morning hours. The one this morning gave a little bounce to our here, but it happens, but it does scare the locals.

LIN: You bet. All right. Thanks very much, John King reporting live in Banda Aceh.

We want to talk about a serious problem out there also going on right now, tracking child predators who target children of the tsunami disaster. Up next I'm going to talk with a man who leads undercover teams in the region in search of those criminals.

And later in spotlight, the story of one boy who nearly lost everything in the disaster.

And don't forget our last call question. Did you hear the news? How do you feel about Newt Gingrich who might run for president in 2008? Give us a call at 1 800 807-2620.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: Some of the most disturbing stories coming out of the tsunami disaster are reports of human traffickers and criminals taking advantage of the most vulnerable victims, children. They are being kidnapped and sold for sex and raped in shelters. Even before the tsunamis, many places in the region were known as havens for sexual predators.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDREA BERTONE, DIR, HUMANTRAFFICKING.ORG: In these areas, there may be child sex tourists who either come on holiday and are situational child sex tourists or either they're pedophiles who actually may live in the area.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LIN: Indonesia has cracked down by not allowing anyone except parents to take children out of the country right now, but that may not be enough. Gary Haugen is actually sending undercover officers to track down child sex traffickers and even sent lawyers to make sure the trafficker ends up behind bars. He wrote about it in his work, about his work, in his book, "Terrify No More." Gary's nonprofit group, International Justice Mission is already at work in south Asia and Gary joins me tonight. Gary, has your team actually arrived on the ground in south Asia yet?

GARY HAUGEN, AUTHOR, "TERRIFY NO MORE": Well, we've already had some personnel in the region in advance, but we also have investigators who are being deployed to the region now and what we know is really two things. Number one, there are thousands of children who have been separated from their parents and secondly, they're in a region which even in the best of times, sees hundreds of thousands of children taken into the sex trafficking rings of this part of the world. So there's a serious threat and we want to go out there and assess the situation, see if there are target areas we can focus on and begin to ratchet up the cost on those who would traffic on children.

LIN: Gary, you actual - you and your organization actually cracked a major case in Cambodia last spring. I want to show pictures of the young girls who were going to be sold as sex slaves who you were able to help free and convict their traffickers. These are the faces, the victims oversees. How difficult is it to actually go into that world, go undercover and try and identify the people who are trying to hunt these kids down right now in south Asia?

HAUGEN: Well, it's difficult to do because it requires some courage to actually infiltrate these areas, to develop the informant networks and so it requires some expertise, but it's not as hard as one might think because this is an industry that's actually looking for customers and it's one of the reasons why it's one of the most promising targets for law enforcement to actually stop this kind of abuse, because if millions of customers can find these children every year, then so can the police.

LIN: So give me an idea of how you set up an operation. What do you do?

HAUGEN: Well, we begin with setting up an informant network that's connected to the traffickers and then we infiltrate those trafficking operations and then once we develop those informants, we then get specific evidence against specific children and their perpetrators and take that to our secure police contacts, conduct raids to release those children, give them the long-term after care and prosecute the perpetrators.

LIN: In Cambodia, the youngest victim was actually five years old. That was shocking to me. How much would a boy or girl be sold for?

HAUGEN: Well, it could be as little as $5 for a sex act or $15 or $30. It's going to be less for nationals and it's going to be more for westerners who might have more money. But as you've seen in our book "Terrify No More," I was in the back of a brothel where I was offered a dozen girls between the ages of five and 10 years of age for just a few dollars would be forced to provide acts.

LIN: That's disgusting.

HAUGEN: This is going on all over in this region of the world.

LIN: You don't have an concrete evidence yet that this trafficking is going on right now in south Asia though. You haven't heard from your people yet.

HAUGEN: Well, we know there's trafficking going on in the region.

LIN: No, but as a result of the tsunami, that orphans are being taken abroad, et cetera.

HAUGEN: Correct. We're going to confirm the reports and then develop target investigations out of what we learn.

LIN: Gary Haugen, thank you very much, founder of International Justice Mission, good work out there. We're going to follow the progress and let's hope you find nothing frankly.

HAUGEN: I agree.

LIN: Well, later, we're going to have a story of a nine-year old Florida girl who wrote to CNN to help a little boy who was saved from the tsunami. Her help is going a long way.

And also, a boy's whole family lost in the tsunami tragedy or so he thought. That's our spotlight tonight. Up next, we're going to share the incredible story of a boy named Nasir (ph).

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: In the spotlight tonight only on CNN, the smallest survivors of the tsunamis who are being forced to grow up before their time. One child, a 13-year-old boy in Indonesia, lost most of his family in the disaster, but unlike many of the children, he has a reason to be thankful. CNN's Alex Quade has his remarkable story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALEX QUADE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Life for Nasir is hard, orphaned, his family and village gone, swept away by the tsunami. While other children swim, 13-year-old Nasir scrubs laundry. Just getting by is a daily struggle with work and memories.

TRANSLATOR: I saw people running on the road. They were screaming, "the water is rising!" I told my sisters to follow me. I saw the top of a palm tree already in water. I ran to the mosque to save us. Then the mosque was hit by the wave and the water came in. I had my two sisters on my left. They kept calling for my mother. More water came in. After 10 minutes being underwater, they couldn't breathe and were limp. I didn't let go of their hands. I held them tight. Then I couldn't breathe anymore, so I let go. I was forced up by the water. Somebody saved me.

QUADE: Nasir ended up here in a refugee tent with three other families. He cooks.

TRANSLATOR: I want to buy vegetables but have no money. All there is is rice and dried fish.

QUADE: Throughout it all, he feels guilty.

TRANSLATOR: The last time I saw my father was when he said good- bye before going to work. He gave me pocket money and said not to spend it all. Take care of your sisters, he said. Then he left. Half an hour later, the water came. I'm very sad to lose my sisters whom I loved so much. The last time I saw them they were yelling "moma, moma" and holding on to me in the water. I didn't want to be separated.

QUADE: Two days ago, his life changed again. The mother he thought dead showed up at his tent. Nasir, an orphan no more.

TRANSLATOR: Before I found my mother, I couldn't eat. I couldn't sleep at night. Every day for a week, I went on searching for my mother. I was elated when I saw my mother. Now I can eat. I have my appetite back after I was reunited with my mother.

QUADE: She helps him wash for prayers, but is too depressed to do much else.

TRANSLATOR: I am responsible for my mother now. She can't work. She thinks about my sisters. They're gone. When the tsunami came, my mother almost surrendered. She wanted to die with her children.

QUADE: So now he must work even harder to care for them both. He doesn't mind. The only thing missing, his sisters and father.

TRANSLATOR: I miss my father's hug. I want to apologize to him. Maybe I did something wrong. I miss my father.

QUADE: Alex Quade, CNN, Banda Aceh, Indonesia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: In the two weeks since the tsunami disaster, CNN has received thousands of e-mails from people searching for loved ones or searching for ways to help. And one of our most heart-warming e-mails came from a little girl who wanted to help in a big way. CNN's Veronica de la Cruz read her e-mail. She joins me now with the story. You were compelled. You were so excited when you told us about how you met this little girl.

VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: She is just absolutely adorable and you know, Carol, we have been receiving tens of thousands of e-mails into the newsroom. And we've seen e-mail come in from all over the world and it has been coming as you're going to see, from people of all ages.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LARRY KING: And joining us from Phuket now is Rebecca Baddall and Ron Rubin. They are both tsunami survivors.

DE LA CRUZ (voice-over): Missy McDonough was touched by the picture she was seeing on television of the tsunami tragedy. While doing homework, she heard the story of Ron Rubin and Rebecca Baddall, the couple who saved the Swedish boy and reunited him with his father.

REBECCA BADDALL: Basically I just, I just held him and cuddled him for the day.

DE LA CRUZ: After watching "LARRY KING LIVE," Missy told her mother she wanted to help. She sent an e-mail to CNN.

My name is Missy and I am 9-years old. My great grandmother just recently passed away and left me some money. I want to send $100. I just watched your show and it had Ron and Rebecca on it. How can I send my money to them, so they can give to the people who need it most?

So we connected Missy and the young couple.

MISSY McDONOUGH: Rebecca?

BADDALL: Yes, Missy.

McDONOUGH: I saw you and Ron on the news and I saw how you saved that little boy so I want to send you guys $100 to give to the people.

BADDALL: Oh, thank you so much. That is so nice of you. You know how many people (INAUDIBLE)

McDONOUGH: Yes. DE LA CRUZ: And so continues with the effort. Missy is collecting money at local YMCAs around her Florida home.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DE LA CRUZ: So Carol, I wanted to tell you today, I received an e-mail actually from Missy and so far she has raised $324 all by herself and Rebecca was telling her that that is going to feed a family of four for six months.

LIN: Yes, I mean some of those people only make $5 in a year so Missy is giving an absolute fortune.

DE LA CRUZ: She is. She is and if you would like to donate, there is a complete listing of aid organizations. You can find that at cnn.com/tsunami. You can also still send us your e-mail. That's at tsunami@cnn.com.

LIN: All right. Interesting stories, keep us apprised.

DE LA CRUZ: Of course.

LIN: Good for Missy. All right. Well an update now on the U.S. helicopter crash, also out of Banda Aceh, Indonesia. An American Navy transport helicopter went down near the Banda Aceh airport earlier tonight and as many as 10 U.S. service members are being treated for minor injuries. A Navy spokesman says the cause of the crash was likely mechanical. The U.S. aid mission has resumed. It was cancelled briefly, but aid is still on its way.

We're going to leave you tonight now with your responses to our last call question. How do you feel about Newt Gingrich running for president in 2008? Here's what you had to say. Have a great night.

CALLER: I think it's a great idea. I think Newt would be a good candidate for the Republican Party. (INAUDIBLE) that Bush ran for this year. America (INAUDIBLE) support.

CALLER: I feel scared to death about him running for president in 2008. If George Bush can get reelected, I'm sure that Newt Gingrich could get elected and it really scares me.

CALLER: Newt Gingrich would be an outstanding, outstanding president for the United States. I can't say enough, how bright he is. I hope he has luck in running for the nomination.

CALLER: I think it's a great idea. It's an answer to all of the Democrats problems. They would be a shoo-in for office in 2008 if Newt Gingrich runs as a Republican.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com


Aired January 9, 2005 - 22:30   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: This is CNN SUNDAY NIGHT. Old man winter is staying too long out west. Southern Californians are digging out of mudslides. Northern Californians are stuck in a storm with another five feet of snow coming their way. We've got live reports.
Also, the sound, the fury. We have yet again amazing new pictures of the fight for survival. The tsunami swallows everything in its path.

And in the Middle East, the beginning of a new era. The Palestinians elect a new leader. These stories and a lot more next on CNN SUNDAY NIGHT.

Up first tonight, disaster strikes again in tsunami ravaged Indonesia. A U.S. military helicopter crashed about two hours ago near the Bande Aceh airport, which serves as a major hub in the relief effort. 10 people were on board. We're going to go right to CNN's John King, who's live in Bande Aceh.

John, what happened?

JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good evening to you, Carol from Bande Aceh. We're told this is more a crash landing than a crash. A U.S. Navy SH-40 - SH-60, excuse me, Seahawk helicopter trying to approach the main airport here in Bande Aceh. It tried to land instead. It ended up crash landing in a rice paddy, we're told about a football field's distance away from the airport.

10 U.S. sailors aboard that helicopter. All have been taken back to the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln in waters off Sumatra. We are told two of those on board were injured. We do not know as yet the extent of those injuries, but all 10 did survive. Two injured. We are trying to get more information there.

The Seahawk is essentially the shuttle of the U.S. Navy relief operation here. They have flown 243 sorties using this Vietnam era helicopter from the ships to bring personnel in, from the Bande Aceh Airport to bring relief supplies out to more remote areas, where you cannot get from the road. So it is a critical piece of equipment here as part of the relief effort.

On the scene, you see the helicopter sitting on its side, the rotor broken into the ground. But again, all 10 service members did survive. Two with injuries. We are still trying to determine.

Relief flights out of the airport were suspended for about an hour to 90 minutes, we are told, while there was an assessment done on the ground, mainly a safety check. But those relief flights are back underway. U.S. Navy officials and other military officials are now investigating this. Their assumption now, Carol, is that this was a mechanical failure. And what they also tell us is that this is to be expected. These are old helicopters, aging helicopters. And when you fly so many missions, some of them do have mechanical issues.

They have ruled out any ground fire. That investigation's continuing. We'll try to get more information on the extent of the injuries of those two we are told, who are injured. But again, the most critical thing from the operation on the ground here, everyone would say those relief flights, they are now continuing - Carol?

LIN: All right, that's good news indeed. John, I know the investigation is continuing. You're saying there's some speculation it might have been mechanical failure, but give us an idea of what the weather was like.

KING: The weather this morning was quite nice. It is clear this morning. It was about 7:20 a.m. when this happened. It's a beautiful day here at the moment. So there's no indication there could be any weather effect to this at all. There was some concerns initially that perhaps there could be ground fire. That is always a suspicion on reflex because we are in a conflict zone.

There are from time to time fire fights between the Indonesian military and the separatist rebels here. So certainly the Indonesian military would worry about that at the get go. But both U.S. officials and Indonesian military officials telling us that has been ruled out. And again, the investigation's continuing, but the assumption is, and the assumption is based on the fact that this happens back in the United States during training. It happens in Iraq. It happens in other missions around the world. These are aging helicopters. They tend to have mechanical problems from time to time. So that is the assumption, Carol, that this was a mechanical failure of some sort.

Again, a crash landing more than a crash. The pilot trying to get to the ground when he had this problem on board that helicopter. More details as we get them.

LIN: All right, thanks very much. John King reporting live in Bande Aceh. Of course, we're going to have much more detail about the crash and the U.S. - of that U.S. helicopter in Indonesia. Later this hour, I am expecting to be talking to Commander Mark McDonald, public information officer of the combined support force of the U.S. military there out of Thailand. So we will have more on this story.

In the meantime, we also want to show you some new video that surfaced today of the tsunami plowing through Bande Aceh, Indonesia. And it certainly makes us wonder how anyone could have survived this. I want to show you more of this video in just a moment.

Right now, on the telephone with me, Commander Mark McDonald. He's a public information officer of the combined support force out of Thailand. Commander, what can you tell us about what you know? Is it confirmed that it was mechanical failure that brought down that U.S. helicopter?

MARK MCDONALD, COMBINED SUPPORT FORCE: It's not confirmed that it's mechanical failure. That is a potential cause. And we are currently investigating to find out the exact cause of the grounding.

LIN: All right. But you can confirm, though, that it was not hostile fire that brought it down?

MCDONALD: I can confirm that it is not like - it is certainly not likely that it was hostile fire that caused it. That has been ruled out as a possible cause.

LIN: All right. What about the injuries sustained by the 10 people on board? How are they doing?

MCDONALD: It appears to be minor injuries. All 10 personnel that were on the aircraft have been Medivac'ed back out to the Abraham Lincoln, where they're being evaluated for any medical problems they may have.

But very capable platform in terms of medical capabilities. And it turns out that it appears to be very minor injuries for those that were in the crash.

LIN: Were they all military personnel on board? Or were there some non-military or humanitarian aid workers on board?

MCDONALD: No, it was all military personnel that were flying continued support missions in the Bande Aceh area.

LIN: All right, Commander, it seems that those 10 people are very lucky to be alive. This is what we've been reporting on the story. I want to get your thoughts on it, that this helicopter was on approach, trying to land at the Bande Aceh Airport. It fell short, crashed about 500 yards away from that airport. Is that true?

MCDONALD: That's correct. And of course, extremely fortunate that these crew members are going to be OK. And you know, that's one of the things that these pilots trained for is when mechanical functions or anything that may hinder them, they are able to do as well as they can to get their aircraft down and faithfully get their personnel out, then casualties.

That's what happened here. And we're very fortunate that there are not any more significant injuries.

LIN: Commander, why were relief flights suddenly terminated? It almost appeared that the aid mission there was going to be in jeopardy because of this crash?

MCDONALD: Well, of course, our goal is to fly as many aid missions as we can. And to date, we've flown a total of 243 sorties, providing relief aid. And when something like this happens, and there's a major incident like this, of course, everyone wants to be safe. So initially, flights were suspended there in the area, but we've been able to continue operations, both from the Abraham Lincoln and Baja Merchard (ph) and working with our partners there on the ground to get as much aid to folks as possible.

LIN: All right, Commander Mark McDonald, thank you very much. Confirming that the 10 people on board are alive. They are not seriously injured as was previously thought. They sustained minor injuries. They're being treated on the U.S.S. Abraham. And aid missions back into Bande Aceh, which is the tsunami battered Sumatra island, the main city on the Sumatra island there in Indonesia, have resumed. That is good news indeed.

Anyway, I want to take you back to this videotape. It's brand new videotape. And what is so different about it, look how close this photographer was to the devastation. That is the water from the sea, pouring in and taking everything with it.

But take a look at that. The people standing there. They're standing on a rooftop. They're trying - they can't believe what they are seeing there, as the water spread. It was a wedding photographer that took these amazing pictures. Take a look at this.

It was a river of cars and planks of wood, and entire trees that were rushed onto the island. Those people, standing on a rooftop, the water just below them. Hard to believe what they're looking at. And it's amazing anybody survived that torrent. You would simply just be crushed under the rubble.

Well, we've got so much more ahead on the tsunami disaster throughout this hour. In fact, a bit later, I'm going to chat with the man leading a team of investigators into the region, personally hunting down child sex predators. We're going to show you how they're going to do it.

In the meantime in other news, if you're watching us out West of the Rockies tonight, you've probably sought shelter from the snow or the rain or the mud this time. This latest winter storm is not playing around, hammering Washington state all the way down to Los Angeles, in Idaho, Salt Lake City and Utah, and then Nevada, Las Vegas. If it's not covered in too much snow, it's washing away in too much rain simply put.

For example, in the Lake Tahoe area, where they usually welcome a bit of winter weather because of the ski season, it's testing even the hardiest souls. And that is where we find one of our hardiest souls.

Sean Callebs tonight, dressed in layers we hope. There he is. We've got him standing by with Sean. Stand by there. We're just going to get to you in just a moment. We want to get to Miguel Marquez. He is in flooded Santa Clarita.

Miguel, a desert community underwater?

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, we're actually in Santa Clarita a little earlier today, Carol. Right now, we're in the Hollywood Hills in front of a house that came down in all of this.

We have seen scene after scene of just dramatic video from - and Mother Nature's fury in the last couple of days. But we just got a new scene in. And it involves a rescue of a man in Cerrito, just south of Los Angeles. And this guy almost didn't make it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Come on now, come on now, come on.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hold on.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MARQUEZ: Just an unbelievable swift water rescue. That video had to be digitized because the man literally lost his pants because of the force of the water, as they tried to pull him up. How did he get there? Well, about 40 minutes earlier, his kids had been rescued, three kids rescued, but he ended up staying on the top - the roof of his BMW and floating for approximately two miles until he could be rescued. He floated for about 40 minutes. And then finally, he was pulled over to the side and rescued, but that's just one scene of many emergency scenes that we've seen in southern California over the last couple of days.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A house in the Hollywood Hills crumbled after the water sodden hillside behind it gave way.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This woman from this house say, "Oh, my God, oh my God, my (UNINTELLIGIBLE.)

MARQUEZ: A 33-year old man and his two kids were plucked from the debris. Fire officials say his 10-year old son buried up to his neck in mud was lucky to survive.

In the suburbs north of Los Angeles, a river raged in what was once a dry creek bed. After a wall collapsed, a trailer park flooded. Residents packed up children and Chihuahuas and headed for drier ground.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My dad wants to stay, but we have no choice. We have to evacuate.

MARQUEZ: Across Southern California, mud slid off rain soaked hills, rock. And mudslides blocked roads, creating hazards almost everywhere.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is Mother Nature at its worst.

MARQUEZ: Mother Nature relentless. In Malibu, a car with five passengers plunged onto the rocky shore. One person was killed. Near Dodger Stadium, a homeless man died after being buried in mud.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MARQUEZ: Now I want to give you a sense of where we are in Los Angeles. We're really in the middle of the city in the Hollywood Hills on Laurel Canyon Boulevard, which is a major thoroughfare right over the hills. This thing has literally turned into a river tonight. And this is a lot of the reason that this house has come down and others.

You can see the cars just flashing up here. A lot of them turning around because they are concerned about the water coming down Laurel Canyon right now.

California's Office of Emergency Management says so far only two people have killed - been killed because of the storm itself. But there have been many other traffic accidents where people have been killed in this storm. They don't count that in the official count.

Do you know if it's rain in southern California, it is snow in the north. And that's where we find our CNN's Sean Callebs in Tahoe City, California - Sean?

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, here the situation has changed just a little bit in the last couple of hours. The people in this region are now lamenting the loss of that light, fluffy snow. And they're getting a little bit of drizzle, not very much.

But let me show you what's going on. It's been kind of sleeting and raining. And you're seeing these large build-up of snow on these routes. All throughout this area are now beginning to slide off. What we are seeing here just a moment ago during Carol's intro, a huge chunk fell down. And this isn't light stuff. And the residents in this area say they're really worried because they believe that is about two tons of snow. So once it comes down, it could cause a great deal of difficulty.

This is what this whole area is like. We're kind of trapped inside a little snow cocoon. The snow did taper away today. We'll show you what the streets look like, because it has changed dramatically in the past several hours.

For the first time, residents can now make their way up and down Highway 89 here without chains. But it is going to get a lot colder tonight. It is simply slop at this hour. A lot of slush, a lot of snow out there. They expect this precipitation is going to continue throughout the evening.

So what we're seeing here with this heavy snow that's building up on all the rooftops in this area could overburden some of these facilities in this area throughout the evening, and also cause kind of a glaze. And it's going to be a lot more difficult to get around.

Our Rob Marciano's here. He's going to be here first thing in the morning, Carol. He'll bring the folks up to date on just how bad the situation is in the Tahoe region.

LIN: You bet. Thanks very much. Sean Callebs and also our thanks to Miguel Marquez in the Hollywood Hills in Southern California.

Well, what West Coasters need now more than anything is just for this weather system to give them a break. So we have Jacqui Jeras back in the CNN Weather Center for us.

And Jacqui, what's in the cards for those folks?

JACQUI JERAS, METEOROLOGIST: Well, the break is coming, Carol, though we just have to be patient. We've got one storm system which is moving in at this hour across Southern California. Look at this plume of moisture. The pineapple express, if you will. Subtropical moisture moving in, bringing more heavy rain.

And up here, this storm is waiting in the wings. And that's what's going to be affecting folks late in the day for tomorrow and into your Tuesday as well. So the moisture already in place. They ground very saturated. Continued problems with flash flooding, avalanche concerns, and also concerns with mudslides.

Our next storm is going to be moving in for tomorrow, late in the day, expecting more of that rain and heavy snow. We'll be tracking across California, into Nevada by Tuesday. It will be drying out late across the Southwest. But the snow will be picking up through the Wasatch (ph) and into the Rockies.

As we head into Wednesday, we'll watch our storm system then move across parts of Colorado. Windy across the four corners. Possibly strong to severe thunderstorms into the south and heavy snow potentially into the upper Midwest.

And as we head towards the latter part of the week, we may see some icing in the Ohio Valley. Thunderstorms across the Southeast. Windy with blustery conditions and heavy snow expected on the Lees (ph) side into the western Great Lakes and then into northern parts of New England. We will start to see some of that snow come down, but we think in New York City at this time, probably going to be a rain event.

And one other note, all this warm air that you've been experiencing across parts of the deep south and into the southeast, that will finally be coming to an end as you head into the weekend.

So the storm system that they're experiencing across parts of the West now affecting the lower 48 throughout the rest of the week.

One other weather note. We told you last night about the tropical depression near Sri Lanka. It is expected to move westward. It should be weakening, which is good news, but bad news that it will likely still bring in some flooding rains - Carol?

LIN: All right. Thanks very much, Jacqui. We've got some other news today. And it was history in the making in the Arab world. A day both anticipated and dreaded by Middle East watchers. And the nearly two million people eligible to vote for Palestinian president. Election day and the process to replace Yasser Arafat was a potential security fiasco that fortunately never materialized. Tonight, frontrunner Mahmoud Abbas has declared victory. And the exit numbers seem to support that right now. Our Ben Wedeman was up early in Gaza when the polls opened.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): At 83-years old, voting is no small feat for Subha Ferhan. But she was up bright and early Sunday morning to cast her vote in Gaza's Gerbalia (ph) refugee camp.

I asked her what she wants from her candidate, frontrunner Mahmoud Abbas.

"We want our land back," she says. "We want our children to prosper."

Like politicians everywhere, the candidates have promised far more than they may ever be able to deliver. But for one voter, an end to the violence is the key.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When we start intifadah, we'll be able to achieve and fulfill all of those promises, you know? That's the point.

WEDEMAN: While others cast their ballots, 26-year old Mahmoud Salah stayed at work making kabobs. He had better things to do than vote in what he described as a useless election.

"Nothing will change," he says. "Gaza and the West Bank will never change."

Back at the voting station, frustration. This man went from place to place, trying to vote. He called the toll-free number set up to straighten out such problems. The line was busy.

Worker Mohammed Ibrahim voted early to avoid such problems and savor what he said was special.

"I wish all Arabs had this kind of democracy," he says. "They've been deprived all these years."

(on camera): Despite the occasional complications, this election was by the standards of the Arab world relatively free and fair. The Palestinian territories may not be on the verge of becoming a beacon of democracy in the Middle East, but there is a glimmer.

Ben Wedeman, CNN, Gerbalia (ph) refugee camp, Gaza.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: And there's a glimmer of hope for the tsunami survivors. Help is coming even from the youngest among us. She is only nine. But one girl is doing her part to help one of the smallest victims of the tsunami tragedy.

Also, a political comeback for a former Washington power player. Up next, Carlos Watson is going to share the inside scoop on what could be on the horizon for Newt Gingrich. He'll be heading to the White House?

And that leads us to our last call question. How do you feel about Newt Gingrich running for president in 2008? Give us a call at 1-800-807-2620.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: It's been a busy night. Breaking news in South Asia. Want to give you a recap of our top story, in case you're just joining us. A U.S. military helicopter crashed just 500 yards away from trying to land at the Bande Aceh Airport in Sumatra Island of Indonesia.

You're looking at the wreckage there. Amazingly, though, 10 people on board. None of them died. They suffered minor injuries. They're being treated right now on the U.S.S. Abraham. Investigators are on the scene. And so is our John King. He's going to be joining us again with more of the latest details from that crash scene. A U.S. helicopter crashing in a rice field just 500 yards from the Bande Aceh Airport, as it was trying to deliver aid and relief supplies to the victims there, the tsunami.

It has also been a busy day, a busy weekend politically. Not only in the Palestinian territories as we've reported tonight, but right here at home as well. Now curiously, none of the big domestic political stories are in Washington amazingly. We're going to bring in CNN's political analyst Carlos Watson to talk to him about -- well, forget about the California climate out there, Carlos. You're swimming there to work these days.

Let's talk about some of the political climate that's going on. Palestinian elections out in the Middle East, an important event, and an event that is bringing some strange bedfellows together?

CARLOS WATSON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: It has. And two interesting things to think about in the Palestinian election, which is the historic one.

First is that the turnout at the exit polls are right. We won't know for another six hours. Actually could be higher than the Palestinian election among the 1.8 million eligible voters than it was in the U.S. election just a couple months ago. So an interesting side note to watch.

But more significantly, for President Bush who's made Middle East democratization a big part of his foreign policy, he's got an interesting compatriot here. Namely, former President Jimmy Carter.

You notice that President Bush, whether it's in the Palestinian area or in Iraq, has been pushing for big elections, but often has lacked the full credibility to get the elections taken seriously. And who comes along in the case of the Palestinian election to add a little more credibility? None other than Jimmy Carter. And the idea of strange bedfellows come together is not unusual in politics. You think of someone like Newt Gingrich and Bill Clinton coming together around welfare reform or balanced budget. Or some 60 years ago, FDR and his former opponent in the 1940 presidential campaign, Wendell Wilke, came together to rally the country around entering World War II. So an interesting Texas two step here on the international front.

LIN: All right, you mentioned Newt Gingrich. Can you believe this story? He wrote a book. He's promoting it. He's going to be going to Iowa, New Hampshire. No coincidence, Carlos? You think he's planning on running for president in 2008?

WATSON: Well, he knows it will sell books. He saw it work for Colin Powell in 1995. All the speculation around Powell running certainly increased sales of a book that already was going to do well.

I'm not sure if Newt Gingrich will run. But certainly, one of the things it says is that one of President Bush's biggest challenges over the next four years may not come from Democrats, but may come from Republicans who want his job in 2008. And so if they attacked him on issues like Social Security, if they come after him on issues like Iraq, that could be where some of his biggest challenges come from.

And in fact, Newt Gingrich already went after the president on the issue of Iraq.

LIN: All right. Newt Gingrich for the Republicans, Hillary Clinton maybe for the Democrats. Can you imagine that race? I'm looking forward to it already. Anyway, Carlos...

WATSON: Lots of good combos.

LIN: Another guy who may or may not run for president, they've got to change their constitution first, Arnold Schwarzenegger. You managed to snag an interview with the California governor for your upcoming special on January 23rd.

WATSON: We did. You know, coming up January 23rd, Sunday night, two weeks from today at 10:00 Eastern and again 10:00 Pacific, we'll not only have Arnold, where he talks about his thoughts on the constitutional amendment or the possible constitutional amendment, which will allow him to run, but also talks very interestingly about kind of how he approaches fatherhood, and marriage. And some of that has changed over the years, his relationship with the Kennedys, and what kind of advice he does or doesn't get.

And we also sit down, by the way, with the guy we're calling the new face of religion in America, Dr. Kreplowadollar (ph), well known televangelist. And we sit down with the star of "Desperate Housewives," Eva Longoria. So a little religion, a little entertainment, and definitely a lot of politics.

LIN: All right, look forward to it. 10:00 Eastern and Pacific on January 23rd.

All right, thanks Carlos. Great to see you. Stay dry out there.

WATSON: Good to see you. Take care. Have a good one.

LIN: All right, we want to remind you also of our last call question, by the way. How do you feel about Newt Gingrich running for president in 2008? Give us a call at 1-800-807-2620.

Also an important story following the tsunami disaster exploiting children for sex. That's a major issue in Asia. And it's even happened to kids who survived the tsunami disaster. Straight ahead, we're going to find out how some suspects are tracked down and eventually caught.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: Good time to take a look at the headlines tonight and tomorrow. The Abu Ghraib abuse trial. Charles Grainer (ph) is the Army reservist accused of leading a pattern of abuse at that Baghdad prison. Well, he's being court-martialed at Fort Hood, Texas. The jury was seated Friday and opening statements begin in the morning.

Peace treaty. The Sudanese government and rebels agree to end a 21-year civil war in the south. Two million people have died from the fighting, famine and disease. The peace agreement does not include a separate conflict in the country's Darfur region, which we've been reporting on.

And no more butts. A very controversial no smoking law went into effect in Italy at midnight local time. It bans smoking on public transportation, in hospitals and movie theaters. Restaurants and bars can only allow smoking in ventilated smoking rooms and for the Italians, that's big news.

Now the face of a survivor. The 60-year old man you're looking at found beneath the rubble in Sri Lanka. Two weeks after the tsunami hit, he's in a hospital dehydrated, with a broken arm but he is alive. He spoke a few words today that he had a son and daughter. The doctors say he will be just fine.

Two weeks now since the size and scope of the tsunami disaster began to come into focus and since then of course, the video images, the witness accounts, amazing stories of rescue and survival and the unimaginable sorrow. There are new developments tonight in the effort to assist the people of Indonesia. CNN's John King in Banda Aceh. John, first let's get to the breaking news out of your location, the helicopter crash, a U.S. military helicopter crashing outside the airport of Banda Aceh. For those of just tuning in, tell us more about what you know.

JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, that crash landing, the pilot trying to get back to the airport at Banda Aceh, having troubles with his Seahawk helicopter SH-60 off the "U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln," a crash landing in a rice paddy near the airport. Ten U.S. sailors aboard that helicopter, two of them we are told injured to the point where they need extensive medical treatment back on the "U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln." Beyond that, we do not have details on their injuries.

It was about 7:20 a.m. this morning. Again the chopper going down, a crash landing in a rice paddy near the airport in Banda Aceh, that is so close, so key to the relief operations. Australian military personnel rushed to the scene first to help treat those Americans. The Navy is now investigating. It believes though this crash landing due to mechanical failure. Relief flights were suspended for about an hour to 90 minutes. They are back up and running now, but even that brief suspension of note here, because those relief operations are so critical to trying to get Banda Aceh back on the path to recovery.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KING (voice-over): Sunday morning, the market bustling, Banda Aceh two weeks later. There is nothing normal here anymore but some streets are busy again. (INAUDIBLE) comes for salted fish, some chilies, watercress and with her groceries, carries hope that from disaster, will ultimately come better days.

TRANSLATOR: Let's see what happens after these foreigners come. With the aid coming in, maybe it will become a greater city. There's so much help coming in.

KING: Coming in by the plane load, though at the two-week mark there are still significant problems delivering help to devastated coastal areas to the west of Banda Aceh.

UNKNOWN: For the foreseeable future, there will be no access to the large portions of the coast. It will be by boat and helicopter.

KING: This line near the town center at times run two hours. At the end, cheerful Australian troops and a cherished commodity, drinking water. New video shown on Indonesian television shows the devastation as the tsunami hits Banda Aceh. Ritzi (ph) was on a bridge and saw it coming.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I run with my friend. I have eight friends and I run. Running, running, you don't think about nothing, don't think about it, just running.

KING: Two weeks later, she still worries it could happen again.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I can't explain it. Trauma. I feel trauma.

KING: When it comes to the daunting clean-up operation, there is heavy equipment and heavy equipment, these elephants off to their next job. A playful scene but a sanitation nightmare, a dirty irrigation canal used for bathing and laundry across from a roadside refugee camp. Zimil (ph) wants a new house but far from the water this time in case the wave comes back.

TRANSLATOR: Lots of people say there will be, but only Allah knows. KING: She found her two children after three days but says others were taken away from Banda Aceh by the government and two weeks later, their parents know nothing.

TRANSLATOR: There is no information. They should return the kids to their parents. The poor parents there are tired of looking.

KING: Look on the roadside and this is an all too familiar scene. Here, three women and a child found Sunday morning in an alley. Banda Aceh still counting its dead two horrible weeks later.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KING: And that new video, that dramatic new video perhaps helping to give some perspective to just what happened here two weeks ago. In the video you see pick up trucks, cars, boats, just simply being tossed like toys and Carol, two weeks later, if you go downtown, the debris still litters everywhere. There is a clear shortage of the heavy equipment necessary to clean up here. Many say it will take months, perhaps years, just to clean up and then to rebuild.

LIN: Easily and not only just the - in the aftermath of the shock and the aftermath of the tsunami, but literally shocks from earthquakes. Did you feel the one earlier today?

KING: About 4:20, 4:30 this morning, quite a significant one. That happens just about every day or every other day, sometimes two or three a day. The one this morning was quite a significant rumble. We tend to joke in our compound, it's an early morning wake up call, but as joke, it is quite serious to many of the locals. When they feel the ground tumble, Carol, all they can think of is what happened two weeks ago. They still get nervous. Some still move inland. Everyone you talked to here who live near the water wants to be relocated. They say they simply do not want to move back close to the water again.

LIN: Is it fallout from the tsunami or is it just a natural phenomena, having earthquakes?

KING: It was the earthquake that caused the tsunami and the aftershocks are a natural occurrence after that and like I said, sometimes there's two or three a day. They tend to happen in the early morning hours. The one this morning gave a little bounce to our here, but it happens, but it does scare the locals.

LIN: You bet. All right. Thanks very much, John King reporting live in Banda Aceh.

We want to talk about a serious problem out there also going on right now, tracking child predators who target children of the tsunami disaster. Up next I'm going to talk with a man who leads undercover teams in the region in search of those criminals.

And later in spotlight, the story of one boy who nearly lost everything in the disaster.

And don't forget our last call question. Did you hear the news? How do you feel about Newt Gingrich who might run for president in 2008? Give us a call at 1 800 807-2620.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: Some of the most disturbing stories coming out of the tsunami disaster are reports of human traffickers and criminals taking advantage of the most vulnerable victims, children. They are being kidnapped and sold for sex and raped in shelters. Even before the tsunamis, many places in the region were known as havens for sexual predators.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDREA BERTONE, DIR, HUMANTRAFFICKING.ORG: In these areas, there may be child sex tourists who either come on holiday and are situational child sex tourists or either they're pedophiles who actually may live in the area.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LIN: Indonesia has cracked down by not allowing anyone except parents to take children out of the country right now, but that may not be enough. Gary Haugen is actually sending undercover officers to track down child sex traffickers and even sent lawyers to make sure the trafficker ends up behind bars. He wrote about it in his work, about his work, in his book, "Terrify No More." Gary's nonprofit group, International Justice Mission is already at work in south Asia and Gary joins me tonight. Gary, has your team actually arrived on the ground in south Asia yet?

GARY HAUGEN, AUTHOR, "TERRIFY NO MORE": Well, we've already had some personnel in the region in advance, but we also have investigators who are being deployed to the region now and what we know is really two things. Number one, there are thousands of children who have been separated from their parents and secondly, they're in a region which even in the best of times, sees hundreds of thousands of children taken into the sex trafficking rings of this part of the world. So there's a serious threat and we want to go out there and assess the situation, see if there are target areas we can focus on and begin to ratchet up the cost on those who would traffic on children.

LIN: Gary, you actual - you and your organization actually cracked a major case in Cambodia last spring. I want to show pictures of the young girls who were going to be sold as sex slaves who you were able to help free and convict their traffickers. These are the faces, the victims oversees. How difficult is it to actually go into that world, go undercover and try and identify the people who are trying to hunt these kids down right now in south Asia?

HAUGEN: Well, it's difficult to do because it requires some courage to actually infiltrate these areas, to develop the informant networks and so it requires some expertise, but it's not as hard as one might think because this is an industry that's actually looking for customers and it's one of the reasons why it's one of the most promising targets for law enforcement to actually stop this kind of abuse, because if millions of customers can find these children every year, then so can the police.

LIN: So give me an idea of how you set up an operation. What do you do?

HAUGEN: Well, we begin with setting up an informant network that's connected to the traffickers and then we infiltrate those trafficking operations and then once we develop those informants, we then get specific evidence against specific children and their perpetrators and take that to our secure police contacts, conduct raids to release those children, give them the long-term after care and prosecute the perpetrators.

LIN: In Cambodia, the youngest victim was actually five years old. That was shocking to me. How much would a boy or girl be sold for?

HAUGEN: Well, it could be as little as $5 for a sex act or $15 or $30. It's going to be less for nationals and it's going to be more for westerners who might have more money. But as you've seen in our book "Terrify No More," I was in the back of a brothel where I was offered a dozen girls between the ages of five and 10 years of age for just a few dollars would be forced to provide acts.

LIN: That's disgusting.

HAUGEN: This is going on all over in this region of the world.

LIN: You don't have an concrete evidence yet that this trafficking is going on right now in south Asia though. You haven't heard from your people yet.

HAUGEN: Well, we know there's trafficking going on in the region.

LIN: No, but as a result of the tsunami, that orphans are being taken abroad, et cetera.

HAUGEN: Correct. We're going to confirm the reports and then develop target investigations out of what we learn.

LIN: Gary Haugen, thank you very much, founder of International Justice Mission, good work out there. We're going to follow the progress and let's hope you find nothing frankly.

HAUGEN: I agree.

LIN: Well, later, we're going to have a story of a nine-year old Florida girl who wrote to CNN to help a little boy who was saved from the tsunami. Her help is going a long way.

And also, a boy's whole family lost in the tsunami tragedy or so he thought. That's our spotlight tonight. Up next, we're going to share the incredible story of a boy named Nasir (ph).

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: In the spotlight tonight only on CNN, the smallest survivors of the tsunamis who are being forced to grow up before their time. One child, a 13-year-old boy in Indonesia, lost most of his family in the disaster, but unlike many of the children, he has a reason to be thankful. CNN's Alex Quade has his remarkable story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALEX QUADE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Life for Nasir is hard, orphaned, his family and village gone, swept away by the tsunami. While other children swim, 13-year-old Nasir scrubs laundry. Just getting by is a daily struggle with work and memories.

TRANSLATOR: I saw people running on the road. They were screaming, "the water is rising!" I told my sisters to follow me. I saw the top of a palm tree already in water. I ran to the mosque to save us. Then the mosque was hit by the wave and the water came in. I had my two sisters on my left. They kept calling for my mother. More water came in. After 10 minutes being underwater, they couldn't breathe and were limp. I didn't let go of their hands. I held them tight. Then I couldn't breathe anymore, so I let go. I was forced up by the water. Somebody saved me.

QUADE: Nasir ended up here in a refugee tent with three other families. He cooks.

TRANSLATOR: I want to buy vegetables but have no money. All there is is rice and dried fish.

QUADE: Throughout it all, he feels guilty.

TRANSLATOR: The last time I saw my father was when he said good- bye before going to work. He gave me pocket money and said not to spend it all. Take care of your sisters, he said. Then he left. Half an hour later, the water came. I'm very sad to lose my sisters whom I loved so much. The last time I saw them they were yelling "moma, moma" and holding on to me in the water. I didn't want to be separated.

QUADE: Two days ago, his life changed again. The mother he thought dead showed up at his tent. Nasir, an orphan no more.

TRANSLATOR: Before I found my mother, I couldn't eat. I couldn't sleep at night. Every day for a week, I went on searching for my mother. I was elated when I saw my mother. Now I can eat. I have my appetite back after I was reunited with my mother.

QUADE: She helps him wash for prayers, but is too depressed to do much else.

TRANSLATOR: I am responsible for my mother now. She can't work. She thinks about my sisters. They're gone. When the tsunami came, my mother almost surrendered. She wanted to die with her children.

QUADE: So now he must work even harder to care for them both. He doesn't mind. The only thing missing, his sisters and father.

TRANSLATOR: I miss my father's hug. I want to apologize to him. Maybe I did something wrong. I miss my father.

QUADE: Alex Quade, CNN, Banda Aceh, Indonesia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: In the two weeks since the tsunami disaster, CNN has received thousands of e-mails from people searching for loved ones or searching for ways to help. And one of our most heart-warming e-mails came from a little girl who wanted to help in a big way. CNN's Veronica de la Cruz read her e-mail. She joins me now with the story. You were compelled. You were so excited when you told us about how you met this little girl.

VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: She is just absolutely adorable and you know, Carol, we have been receiving tens of thousands of e-mails into the newsroom. And we've seen e-mail come in from all over the world and it has been coming as you're going to see, from people of all ages.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LARRY KING: And joining us from Phuket now is Rebecca Baddall and Ron Rubin. They are both tsunami survivors.

DE LA CRUZ (voice-over): Missy McDonough was touched by the picture she was seeing on television of the tsunami tragedy. While doing homework, she heard the story of Ron Rubin and Rebecca Baddall, the couple who saved the Swedish boy and reunited him with his father.

REBECCA BADDALL: Basically I just, I just held him and cuddled him for the day.

DE LA CRUZ: After watching "LARRY KING LIVE," Missy told her mother she wanted to help. She sent an e-mail to CNN.

My name is Missy and I am 9-years old. My great grandmother just recently passed away and left me some money. I want to send $100. I just watched your show and it had Ron and Rebecca on it. How can I send my money to them, so they can give to the people who need it most?

So we connected Missy and the young couple.

MISSY McDONOUGH: Rebecca?

BADDALL: Yes, Missy.

McDONOUGH: I saw you and Ron on the news and I saw how you saved that little boy so I want to send you guys $100 to give to the people.

BADDALL: Oh, thank you so much. That is so nice of you. You know how many people (INAUDIBLE)

McDONOUGH: Yes. DE LA CRUZ: And so continues with the effort. Missy is collecting money at local YMCAs around her Florida home.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DE LA CRUZ: So Carol, I wanted to tell you today, I received an e-mail actually from Missy and so far she has raised $324 all by herself and Rebecca was telling her that that is going to feed a family of four for six months.

LIN: Yes, I mean some of those people only make $5 in a year so Missy is giving an absolute fortune.

DE LA CRUZ: She is. She is and if you would like to donate, there is a complete listing of aid organizations. You can find that at cnn.com/tsunami. You can also still send us your e-mail. That's at tsunami@cnn.com.

LIN: All right. Interesting stories, keep us apprised.

DE LA CRUZ: Of course.

LIN: Good for Missy. All right. Well an update now on the U.S. helicopter crash, also out of Banda Aceh, Indonesia. An American Navy transport helicopter went down near the Banda Aceh airport earlier tonight and as many as 10 U.S. service members are being treated for minor injuries. A Navy spokesman says the cause of the crash was likely mechanical. The U.S. aid mission has resumed. It was cancelled briefly, but aid is still on its way.

We're going to leave you tonight now with your responses to our last call question. How do you feel about Newt Gingrich running for president in 2008? Here's what you had to say. Have a great night.

CALLER: I think it's a great idea. I think Newt would be a good candidate for the Republican Party. (INAUDIBLE) that Bush ran for this year. America (INAUDIBLE) support.

CALLER: I feel scared to death about him running for president in 2008. If George Bush can get reelected, I'm sure that Newt Gingrich could get elected and it really scares me.

CALLER: Newt Gingrich would be an outstanding, outstanding president for the United States. I can't say enough, how bright he is. I hope he has luck in running for the nomination.

CALLER: I think it's a great idea. It's an answer to all of the Democrats problems. They would be a shoo-in for office in 2008 if Newt Gingrich runs as a Republican.

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