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Number Of Missing In Hawaii Fires Expected To Drop Below 50; U.S. Government Seeks To Block 2024 Titanic Expedition; FDA To Ban Menthol Tobacco Products In "Coming Months"; Millions To Hit Skies, Roads For Last Summer Holiday. Aired 1:30-2p ET

Aired September 01, 2023 - 13:30   ET

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

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[13:30:01]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: Investigators in Hawaii will be releasing some new information today on the number of people who are still reported missing in the Maui wildfires.

The governor is telling CNN he expects the number to drastically drop from triple digits to below 50. Right now, 115 people are confirmed dead at this point.

Crews still removing hazardous materials and debris to make it safe for families to return to their homes. But the recovery process is fueling mistrust between the community and government officials.

CNN's Natasha Chen is here with an update for us.

Natasha, why does the governor believe that this number is going to be much lower, which certainly is very good news?

NATASHA CHEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Brianna, last week, we heard that the list was 388 people. He said that quickly dropped to 300 when they figured out there were certain people incorrectly reported, or incarcerated actually.

And that there were just over 100 actual missing persons reports filed to the police department. Of those, he said half of them were immediately found as either, unfortunately, having died in the fires or in the hospitals.

So he hopes that number will be below 50 when that is updated today -- Brianna?

KEILAR: That is very good news.

The Maui County mayor shared a video statement online last night clarifying what he called "misinformation." Tell us a little bit about that.

CHEN: Yes, earlier, during a press conference on Tuesday, there was a tense exchange with reporters about what he knew and when and when the communication was delivered to the state level. He issued a video statement last night saying that he was in the

Emergency Operations Center during the course of the fire and did not learn of deaths from the fire until the next day, August 9th, and shared that with the lieutenant governor.

Now, even during the tense press conference exchange, the -- a state- level major general told the press that, had they known about the deaths on the day of the fire, there may not have been a lot that they could have done because of the very challenging conditions. That fire was moving a mile a minute.

Here is the mayor in that video statement last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICHARD BISSEN, MAUI MAYOR: We will be tested as others try to divide us and even turn us against each other. However, we can be steadfast in working together. And in this time of (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE), our strength is our care and our compassion for one another.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHEN: And the statement was made during a press conference earlier this week, as well, that by the time everyone had situational awareness, it was, unfortunately, too late to help some of those people who later were found dead from this fire.

Just extremely tragic. As you mentioned, 115 confirmed dead at this point. And we are going to hear that update on the number of unaccounted for later today -- Brianna?

KEILAR: We will be looking for that, definitely.

Natasha Chen, thank you for that report.

Alex?

ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN HOST: In Florida, crews are racing to restore power to tens of thousands of people in the aftermath of Hurricane Idalia. The powerful category 3 storm made landfall on Wednesday morning as the most-powerful hurricane to slam into the Big Bend region in Florida in more than a century.

Right now, more than 110,000 homes and businesses across several counties in that area of Florida as well as parts of Georgia are reporting outages.

All of this coming as temperatures in Florida are expected to hit the high 80s with a heat index over 100 degrees in some areas.

The region could also see up to four inches of rain today and into Saturday, which could complicate recovery efforts in areas that are already waterlogged from Idalia.

The hurricane damaged thousands of homes, ripping off roofs, toppling trees and dumping waist-deep floodwaters onto roads. President Biden declared a major disaster in Florida yesterday, making

federal funding available to those impacted by the storm. Now, Biden is set to visit those battered communities tomorrow -- Brianna?

KEILAR: A new "Titanic" recovery expedition is being planned but the U.S. government is trying to stop it. We're going to tell you why. And we're going to speak with the president of the company planning the expedition, next.

[13:34:28]

And a roadway spill leads to the release of five million bees in Canada. Ahead, we will show you what's being done to get out of the sticky situation.

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MARQUARDT: Welcome back to CNN NEWS CENTRAL. Now to some of the other headlines we're watching at this hour.

In Missouri, a judge ruled that an 84-year-old white homeowner will stand trial for shooting a black teenager who mistakenly went to the wrong house to pick up his siblings.

You probably remember this story from back April. And 16-year-old Ralph Yarl, who suffered multiple gunshot wounds and a traumatic brain injury, he testified yesterday at a preliminary trial.

The homeowner, whose name is Andrew Lester, did not take the stand. Now, Lester doesn't deny shooting Yarl, but he has pleaded not guilty claiming self-defense.

In Arkansas, a law that would require parental consent for minors to create social media accounts will now not go into effect today as originally planned.

This comes after the law was temporarily blocked by a federal judge yesterday. That judge citing concerns about whether the restriction is constitutional. Similar laws in Texas, Louisiana and Utah are scheduled to take effect next year.

[13:40:10]

And take a look at this. A sticky situation in Canada as authorities rushed to capture five million bees after they spilled out of their crates and onto the road.

Authorities say the straps attached to the crates carrying those beehives came loose on a roadway near Toronto. It took more than half a dozen local beekeepers about four hours to get those bees back into their hives.

Police are saying one beekeeper was stung repeatedly but, thankfully, no other injuries were reported.

Brianna? KEILAR: Right now, a legal battle is brewing over a "Titanic"

expedition. The U.S. government is pushing to bar a salvage trip planned for 2024 and they cite a law that protects the shipwreck as a gravesite.

With me now is Jessica Sanders. She's the president of the company that is at the center of this legal fight, RMS Titanic, Incorporated.

Jessica, thank you so much for being with us.

Your company previously has been given exclusive salvage rights to the "Titanic" back in the '90s but the government is now arguing that under a new 2017 law, you must obtain authorization from the secretary of commerce to launch this expedition.

Why not just do that?

JESSICA SANDERS, PRESIDENT, RMS TITANIC, INC.: Well, thank you for having me.

Actually, there's two issues at the center of this. One is more of a philosophical concept. And that is whether or not you should recover artifacts at the wreck site at all. That's more of a philosophical conversation.

The other part of it is, what does the law say? We've been in the possession for pretty much 30 years.

Since our last expedition, there has been this legislation put in place and also an agreement put in place that seems to call into question what's required of us as salvers to exercise the rights given by a federal judge.

It's more of a question of clarifying how this legislation affects us as salver. That's where we're at.

KEILAR: OK. So according to the court filing, the expedition is planning entry into the hull sections. And the described activities in this expedition, quote, "are likely to physically alter or disturb the wreck, meaning that approval is required."

Do you think that description is accurate?

SANDERS: Well, actually. the way that we're designing the expedition is really not to alter it. We were looking -- the initial plan to recover the Marconi included cutting sections off and recovering the Marconi that way.

We were looking for --

(CROSSTALK)

KEILAR: I just want to be very clear so that people know -- I want, Jessica, for people who aren't as steeped in this as you or I, the Marconi is the radio that was used to telegraph distress signals.

SANDERS: Yes.

KEILAR: And this is really something that you guys would like to get not far from the grand staircase.

So continue on, because the initial plan talked about maybe if you couldn't get through a skylight, cutting through a corroded section of the hull.

SANDERS: Correct. And this is part of what's teeing up this argument. So one of the things that the government is pointing to -- and I will back up to help.

One of the things that the government is pointing to is an agreement, and it's an international agreement, and it says that the preferred method for protecting artifacts for a wreck site is to leave it alone.

But also in that agreement it says, and I quote, "Recovery is justified by educational, scientific or cultural interests, including the need to protect the integrity of "RMS Titanic" and or its artifacts from significant threat."

Now we know at the wreck site that there are decks collapsing. And we also had observed that the roof over the Marconi radio room -- the Marconi was used to telegraph and call the Carpathian. And it was really the last voice of "Titanic." Responsible for saving the passengers that survived the tragedy.

We have noticed that there is degradation in the roof over the Marconi. And we felt that that artifact was at risk and that was something we could reasonably get.

So we applied for the court to be able to get that. Unfortunately, because of Covid, we were never able to do the expedition. But also it brought up to the forefront this Section 113 and also this international agreement.

So now, as we are planning to go back in next year and do some imaging, we contemplated accessing -- doing some imaging in areas that have now, have opened up because of deterioration, not cutting into the ship.

But there's a hole now in the side of the ship. If we can take a camera in there and take some imaging, then we can see areas we weren't previously able to see.

So imaging, we contemplated artifact recovery. And as far as the Marconi was concerned, recovering components of the Marconi that wouldn't require detaching anything. We didn't want --

(CROSSTALK)

[13:45:03]

KEILAR: OK. So there's --

(CROSSTALK) KEILAR: Jessica, if you could, talk a little bit about this philosophical question, which is, should this sort of hallowed site, a gravesite for so many souls, should it be disturbed?

Because, obviously, this comes less than three months after that Oceangate submersible disaster. It's not legally related to that.

But that sort of renewed this conversation about what is appropriate commerce around this gravesite. And that is sort of at least the public atmosphere that I think this conversation is being had in.

Do you think that's weighing at all on what the government is saying here, or no?

SANDERS: Well, the truth is -- and as many people know, one of the people that were on that submersible was our employee, a colleague and a friend -

(CROSSTALK)

KEILAR: Right.

SANDERS: And he believed that all people had the right to see the wreck site and had the right to see the artifacts and not just a select group of people who were specifically trained or who could afford to go there. He spent his life with that belief and died with that belief.

So the company has spent millions of dollars and decades recovering these artifacts, conserving them, putting them in exhibitions and researching them. Because we believe that is what serves the public interest.

Now the U.S. government believes that it's best to just leave it alone. And we feel like there's only a handful of people who could ever see that. If it were anyplace else, it would be accessible but it's not.

We so believe the public's interest is best served by -- and the legacy for "Titanic" is best served by recovering these artifacts and telling these stories.

We tell real stories about real people using real artifacts and we allow people to connect with the story in a very special way.

KEILAR: Well, listen, this is something that is going to pique the interest of so many people. There are so many people interested in the "Titanic" and what it symbolizes.

And this is about that philosophical question, it's about history, it's about the judiciary versus, you know, Congress. And we're going to see how this all shakes out and if it does ultimately go to the Supreme Court. That's entirely possible.

Jessica Sanders, thank you for being with us. We will continue to follow this. SANDERS: Thank you so much, Brianna, for having me.

KEILAR: Alex?

MARQUARDT: Well, menthol's days have been numbered for quite some time. And despite missing a deadline, the FDA is insisting that the flavored cigarettes are still very much on its radar.

And then, millions of Americans are now hitting the road for the Labor Day holiday, despite high gas prices. Ahead, we have the warning for anyone planning to travel today.

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[13:52:23]

MARQUARDT: The deadline to pass a ban on menthol tobacco products has now come and gone. The FDA was supposed to announce new rules last month, but it missed that target date. The FDA is now under immense pressure to roll out the new policies.

Studies have long shown that flavored cigarettes are more addictive than non-flavored ones. In 2009, the U.S. banned the tobacco industry from adding flavors to their products. But 14 years later, menthol is still legal in the United States.

The FDA is saying that a ban will be announced in the coming months.

CNN health reporter, Jacqueline Howard, is now joining us live.

Jacqueline, what is going on with this FDA deadline?

JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN HEALTH REPORTER: Well, Alex, it looks like the FDA is simply behind schedule.

But what I can tell you, an FDA spokesperson confirmed to CNN that there are plans to finalize this ban, like you said, in the coming months. So we can expect to hear more from the agency soon.

What exactly this rule says is that it will prohibit flavored cigars and menthol flavor in cigarettes.

And the FDA says that it's proposed this rule to really help prevent kids from smoking. We know that flavored products are really attractive to children. And it's estimated that nearly half of kids who smoke use menthol cigarettes.

We also know that historically, tobacco companies have aggressively targeted black and brown communities with marketing menthol products.

And just in general, nationally, we know that smoking cigarettes is still the leading cause of preventable death and disease in the United States.

So, Alex, it will be interesting to see once this rule is finalized what will happen next, when it will go into effect, how tobacco companies may respond.

Previously, they have sued in response to rules like this. So that will be the next interesting step to see what exactly happens -- Alex?

MARQUARDT: And it will be very interesting to see what kind of impact it has on smokers.

Jacqueline Howard, thank you very much for that report.

Brianna?

KEILAR: It is the last summer holiday, and people are racing to pack in that final vacation.

TSA says this Labor Day will be one of its busiest travel weekends. A record 14 million-plus passengers are actually expected to pass through U.S. airports. And today is supposed to be the busiest with 2.7 million flyers.

So let's get to our CNN aviation correspondent, Pete Muntean. He is, as he almost is, at Reagan National Airport.

Pete, this is it, right? This is the final notch on a record-breaking summer travel season. How are the lines? Looks like lots of people behind you.

[13:55:01]

PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT: A lot of people, Brianna. But so far, it's been relatively smooth on this kind of climax, this crescendo to a huge summer for air travel.

When you add in the two numbers that you mentioned, 2.7 million today, 14 million people through Wednesday, according to the TSA, then you get this really big number, 227 million people, passing through security at America's airports all summer long, since Memorial Day.

A summer that's really been marked by a lot of frustration for travelers. The numbers for cancellations have actually gotten a little bit better when you compare this summer to last summer.

We saw 50,000 flight cancellations between Memorial and Labor Day last summer. So far, we've seen about 41,000. So about a 20 percent improvement.

But I want you to listen now to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. He says that things are on the mend and we're trending towards getting the cancellation rate back to what it normally was over the last decade.

Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETE BUTTIGIEG, TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY: This year, we have seen significant improvement. That doesn't mean that the system was immune from some tough travel days this year and this summer.

Most of the rough days that we did see this year had to do with storms that affected hubs, which then had cascading effects.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MUNTEAN: OK, Brianna, we are seeing some delays already in Vegas, San Francisco, Seattle, also in Florida. We'll see how the day develops.

You know, a lot of people may want to drive. And the big superlative here, essentially half of all Americans traveling for this holiday weekend -- Brianna?

KEILAR: That is a lot.

Pete Muntean, live for us from Reagan National Airport, thank you.

Alex?

MARQUARDT: Well, there are bills and then there are the kind of bills that Donald Trump's co-defendants are now racking up. So how are they paying for them? Stay with us.

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