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Massive Medicine Recall Sparks Congressional Hearings; Tropical Storm Agatha Causes Torrential Rain; "Easy Rider" Star Dennis Hopper Dies

Aired May 29, 2010 - 17:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Tonight, growing doubts that the Top Kill will actually plug that massive oil leak still gushing in the gulf. Bp, they're giving it one more day, but already the company is hatching a new plan. We're going to get you to a live news conference perhaps this hour.

Also, clean out your medicine checks. Some new concerns today about dozens of children's cold remedies. We'll have a pediatrician joining me here at cnn to talk us through what exactly we should do if you give your child one of those medicines that has been recalled.

And have you heard the news, actor and long time Hollywood bad boy Dennis Hopper dead at age 74.

Here we go. Crucial time in the gulf right now. We could know possibly, they're saying, within 24 hours whether or not the Top Kill will successfully stop this gushing oil leak. But you know, there are growing doubts now as to whether it is really the answer. First, want to go underwater. Take a look with me. Live pictures. This is that combination we have all been watching for the past couple of days now. You're seeing mud, but you're also seeing what they call hydro carbons, the mix of gas and oil that still blowing out of the sea floor some 5,000 feet down. Now, crews, they actually started this Top Kill process Wednesday afternoon, right around 2:00 Eastern by pumping heavy mud deep into that well, then hoping to stop the flow so they could seal it with concrete. That would be that final step.

But they're also trying something else called the junk shot. In fact, they tried it a couple of times. They have been plugging the leak with debris, like tires, even golf balls, without reporting any success. Meantime, let me take you to the coastline today where teams there are starting to use machines to essentially suck out the oil out of those marshes in Plaquemines Parish. And one gulf coast official is pleading with President Obama to end that moratorium in that current ban on new drilling and exploration. LaFourche Parish President Charlotte Randolph who actually met with President Obama yesterday says, it would hit the local economy very hard.

Right now, BP is considering whether it is worth going forward with the Top Kill. In fact, one hour from now, as I mentioned, we should hear from officials there on the ground in Louisiana, from a press conference, find out really if it is working and where we stand. But for now, we'll turn to Carol Costello. She has been down in the gulf. She's live in Port Fourchon, Louisiana. And Carol, is the going back and fourth Top Kill days and days now, really, my question is simple. And that is, is this top kill working?

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (by phone): Easy know as a simple question when supposed to BP officials, you never get a really simple answer. Let me tell you why I'm on the phone and not live in front of a camera, Brooke. It is raining cats and dogs here, I mean, it is raining sideways. A violent storm with lightning, which won't make it easier for the people trying to keep any oily residue from washing up on shore here. Bp gave us an update around a couple of hours ago. It lasted for 15 minutes and it started out pretty positive, you know. Doug Suttles saying that they're seeing less oil on top of the water. But then he quickly added that's because skimming effort were working. The top kill procedure, now that is another matter. They were assessing the situation and when asked directly if the procedure was working or if things had improved over yesterday, this is what Suttles had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DOUG SUTTLES, BP Chief Operating Officer: To date it hasn't yet stopped the flow. I mean, that's what I do know. What I don't know is if it ultimately will or not. And what we're going to do, as I said, we'll just going to keep up this until we either believe we see it work or we believe it won't work and then we'll move to the next option.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: So, that sounds like a big fat, I don't know. Hopefully when they get to that next update in an hour, which we hope will take place, because they have been running for few days, we'll get more answers from them. There is a plan b, though, Brooke. And they are ready with the plan b. They are preparing themselves for plan b in case the Top Kill procedure doesn't work.

BALDWIN: Yes. I think, Carol, it is more like plan d and then I think there's a plan e, but we'll have to wait and see if we find out any definitive information in that hour. But Carol, let me ask you about the story that so many people were even tweeting me about this morning and you I know you were e-mailing about this last night, the issue over those, I think it was 300 or 400 workers, a lot of people wondering, after these allegations over possibly BP shipping in these workers to, I think, the quote was more or less dog and pony show just in time for the president and then they would leave. Meantime, Bp saying not at all, those workers will be back on Saturday. So, you were there. Did you see the workers?

COSTELLO: I did. The workers were back on Saturday. The big buses were there, the school buses that they were taking these workers to the beaches. It appears there were 100 or more and they're in red t- shirts and they're blue t-shirts and they were dressed in plastic pants, I guess, not really hazmat outfits, but they're heading out to the beach to clean up tar balls. We did manage to pull one worker aside. Because, again, those who appeared in charge of this thing would not talk to the media. But Antwan agreed to talk to us secretively at a secret location. And this is what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTWAN COURTNEY, CLEANUP WORKER: They called us back about 11:52 when I received the call. And I didn't get to leave out of my house until 1:00. And I thought maybe if they knew that they was going to dispatch us out, they should have told us in the class that we should be prepared to leave that evening, you know? And they woke me up in the middle of my sleep, and asked me to be here for 3:00 in the morning. And it is like, it is just -- it is hectic.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: You can see Antwan wasn't very happy. Now, the class he was talking about Brooke, BP has contracted out, and they're actually training workers to remove debris from the beach safely. Those were the classes he was taking. So, this has been an ongoing process. Why he was awakened, well, I never know how to properly say that, but why they woke him up so early this morning, we don't know. But BP was asked about that again today, they said they were appalled that anyone would suspect their motives. These people are out in the heat of the day, they're working, of course they're going to show up early and of course they're going to go home early in the afternoon because, you know, temperatures yesterday were 95 degrees.

BALDWIN: Well, it sounds like BP perhaps will be pressed on that issue again this afternoon. Carol Costello, we thank you for getting that secretive interview. Carol, stay dry. Thank you.

President Obama meantime says, when it comes to the oil spill, quote, "the buck stops with me." You saw lots of pictures of him yesterday, traveled to the gulf. But he is still really hearing it from critics who want the government to take a more active role here.

Cnn's White House Correspondent Dan Lothian is in Chicago where the president is spending his weekend. And Dan, is the White House satisfied with how things are going?

Dan Lothian, Cnn White House Correspondent: Well, you know, I did ask Robert Gibbs that exact question, in terms of the information that they're getting from BP, in terms of the way that this operation is being carried out, and he seemed to express that there was some satisfaction with BP in terms of how they were carrying out this operation, how they were providing the information. But clearly this administration believes that there are some mistakes that were made, that this situation is not going to be perfect along the way. And so, you know, they're not going to say that this is a success, that everything that is being done here is being done, well, 100 percent.

But, what the president is trying to do, what he tried to do yesterday is sort of instill confidence to the people in the region, that as you pointed out, that the buck stops with him, that the administration is doing and will continue to do everything to try to make sure that this leak is plugged, to try to make sure that they can mitigate and also clean up oil that is coming on shore, and also make sure that later on, all those who have been impacted by this in a negative way will be made whole. But, again, the president also pointing out that going forward, things will still be difficult. Take a listen.

BALDWIN: Do we have that -- I guess we don't have the sound. All right. Well, Dan Lothian, I know we heard from Plaquemine Parish President Billy Nungesser who has been very critical and at least the president seemed to have quelled some concerns from him, as you said, a lot of great words. We'll be looking for the action in the coming days and weeks and probably months. Dan Lothian for us. Thank you.

Well, 20 years later, the "Exxon Valdez" spill is so fresh on the minds of many many of those in Alaska. We will look at what they have gone through and what implications it may have on those affected by this spill there in the gulf.

And Johnson & Johnson has issued a massive recall of children's medicines. A pediatrician will be joining me to really just break this whole thing down, what does this mean for you and more importantly what does this mean for your children.

Also, don't just sit there. We invite you to be part of our conversation. I know I'm not Don, but you can send Don a note and I'm sure I can find it some way. You can send it to us via twitter or Facebook. You just check out the blog, go to cnn.com/don or go to twitter Facebook as we said, or you can send me a twitter, brookebcnn. Want to hear what you think. Stay right there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Watching oil foul the gulf coast is really deja vu for a lot of people in Alaska. Let's go back, 1989, that was the "Exxon Valdez" spill, 11 million gallons of crude oil. We've all seen the pictures, that is the Prince William Sound and for some Alaskans, they never got their life back.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN PLATT, COMMERCIAL FISHERMAN: I loved to fish. I'm a third generation fisherman. But this other craft that is beyond my control, I wasted 20 years of my life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Well, those involved simply can't help but compare today's catastrophe right now in the gulf with what they went through some 21 years ago. And tonight, we're getting really unique perspective here from an attorney who actually represented 2500 fisherman who sued Exxon.

Peter Ehrhardt joining us from Alaska via Skype. Peter, good to see you. Let me first ask you with, I'm hearing that right now, May 29, 2010, a couple of fishermen still though receiving payments from Exxon. First of all, let me just make sure that's correct. And number two, why did it take so long for these payments to take place?

Peter Ehrhardt, attorney for exxon valdez victims: Yes. It is true and the reason that it took so long is because Exxon was able to appeal the jury verdict. We had a verdict in 1994, $5 billion against Exxon. And Exxon was able to make the appeals last almost 20 years.

BALDWIN: Almost 20 years. So...

(CROSSTALK)

Ehrhardt: Almost 20 years.

BALDWIN: All right. Go ahead.

Ehrhardt: Well, in fact, when we started the Exxon case, we had lawyers come to Alaska who had worked on the Amoco Cadiz Spill and they told us, it would take 20 or 25 years before we saw anything from the oil company and we thought they were joking, but they were right.

BALDWIN: They weren't joking. And I'm sure a lot of people in the gulf right now are listening to you and they know you're not joking as well. I want to read a statement, because, of course, in the sake of being fair, we reached out to Exxon. And here is what they said to us. Let me read and let me quote here, they said, quote, "The Valdez oil spill was a tragic accident and one which Exxon Mobil deeply regrets." The company voluntarily compensated more than 11,000 Alaskans and businesses within a year of the spill.

In fact, u.s. district judge in the case noted immediately after the spill, Exxon stepped forward with both its people and its pocketbook and did what had to be done under difficult circumstances. And Exxon also says, the people are confusing, you know, you have compensatory damages, which are the more common, paying for the hospital bills, lost wages and then you have the punitive damages, which is taking years and years and years for some of these fishermen to receive. Mr. Ehrhardt, what is your response to that? Why is that?

Ehrhardt: Why is it that it has taken so long or why is it that Exxon would make a statement like that?

BALDWIN: How about let's go with both? Why would Exxon make a statement like that and specifically in talking about these punitive damages, why so long?

Ehrhardt: Well, if you look back at the history of oil spills, if you take a look back, you can see that what as the demand, worldwide demand for oil has increased, we've had more and more spills and they've got more and more serious. And Exxon just is sort of getting in line with a long line of companies that refuse to accept responsibility. So, it is part of their pr to tell us that some judge some place said, well, Exxon was a good corporate citizen. The truth of the matter is that $5 billion in punitive damages were awarded by a jury of 12 people who decided that Exxon hadn't done enough, didn't do enough, and then Exxon appealed and the u.s. Supreme Court reduced that amount to $500 million, which for a company like Exxon is nothing.

BALDWIN: Right, they have very, very deep pockets. Let me -- 15- second answer, Peter, but for the people who are watching, who are considering perhaps suing BP or already have or who are reported feeling sick, what is your advice to them? Ehrhardt: You can do it. You know, this is what basically just a bunch of country lawyers in Alaska that took on the largest corporation in the world, it took us 21 years, and we finally won. You can do it. You got to keep your records. My heart goes out to the spill workers who are basically taking a bath in gasoline every single day. My heart goes out to those commercial fishermen, my friends, the commercial fishermen here who were losing their livelihood as that gentleman said before I came on, 20 years lost. Some of the fisheries in Alaska have never come back. This is a disaster. People don't even grasp how serious this is going to be.

BALDWIN: Peter Ehrhardt, I think we're starting to grasp some 35, 36, 37 days later, you say you can do it. We thank you, sir, for being on and providing that perspective.

Ehrhardt: Thank you.

BALDWIN: Well, an all-out war now being threatened by North Korea on its neighbor to the south. What is behind this and what can be done to diffuse that situation?

And the saga continues over who offered what to try and get Congressman Joe Sestak not to run for senate in Pennsylvania.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: All right. Let's get a check of some of our top stories. Up to 250,000 people took to the streets in Phoenix today to protest Arizona's new immigration law. Critics say the law which allows police to check the immigration status of anyone he or she suspects is illegal actually promotes racial profiling. Supporters of the law are holding their own rallies tonight at a baseball stadium in suburban Tempe.

And a Taliban leader in Afghanistan's Baghlan province has been killed by nato air strikes. Nato says, the precision strikes killed the so- called shadow governor and several of his fighters. He was suspected of organizing and directing attacks on coalition forces, and was believed to be plotting a raid on an Afghan national police outpost.

And Pennsylvania Congressman Joe Sestak says, he did indeed get a phone call from Former President Bill Clinton offering him a possible unpaid job if he would simply stay out of Pennsylvania's senate primary. Well, as we know with those primary results, Sestak declined the offer, enter the primary and he actually won. The White House has acknowledged the phone call was initiated by President Obama's chief of staff, that being Rahm Emanuel. Sestak was asked yesterday why it took so long for him to reveal that phone call from the former president. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JOE SESTAK (D), PENNSYLVANIA SENATE CANDIDATE: President Clinton had called me last summer, and I just didn't feel it was right for me to talk about that conversation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: The White House council issued a document Friday stating that the offer to Sestak was neither illegal nor was it unethical.

Talk about North Korea, it is threatening this all-out war now with its neighbor to the south, South Korea. Hostile rhetoric has been rising ever since a South Korean navy boat was sunk just a couple of months ago in March, killing 46 sailors. Now, the south says, the vessel was hit by a North Korean torpedo. So, they would have provoked this sinking ship. North Korea, meantime, says no way, they're flatly denying this.

Mike Chinoy is a senior fellow at the U.S. China Institute, at the University of Southern California. He's also the author of "Meltdown: The Inside Story of the North Korean Nuclear Crisis," by the way, is a former cnn correspondent. So, Mike, especially, as it is Memorial Day weekend and we're thinking about those 30,000 or so troops, right, who are still in South Korea, the threat of this all-out war, how seriously do we take this?

MIKE CHINOY, SR. FELLOW, USC'S U.S. CHINA INSTITUTE: Well, I think you have to take North Korean rhetoric with a grain of salt. It is always overheated brinksmanship and threats as central to the North Korean diplomatic style. But that doesn't mean this isn't a tense and potentially dangerous situation. You've got the two Koreas, both of them very emotional, both flinging accusations. And so, there is always the potential for an incident to spiral into something worse. But I would discount the all-out war rhetoric.

BALDWIN: OK. So, we're not hanging on its every word just yet. Got your message there. In order to talk about what happened in March, we really perhaps need to go back to November, there was another naval confrontation there, back then. Was this perhaps retaliation in March?

CHINOY: Well, I think you have to go back even further, there is a context to this situation. In October of 2007, the previous South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun, who was a liberal who favored engagement with North Korea, went up to Pyongyang, he held a summit meeting with the North Korean Dictator Kim Jong-il and they reached an agreement on a number of matters, one of them was an agreement to try to reduce tensions in this disputed waters where the most recent episode happened.

When the current South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, who is a conservative, took office in 2008, he discarded this policy of engaging North Korea and announced he wasn't going to observe those accords and you then had a series of sort of back and forth testing and probing in this disputed waters which led last November to the South Koreans getting the better of the north in a naval clash. And I would argue that while we can never know for sure, how the North Koreans calculate these thing, their sinking of the South Korean ship in March was simply payback, revenge and that fits the North Korean pattern, you push us, we push you back twice as hearth.

BALDWIN: And this payback revenge, might North Korea be taking advantage of the fact that Washington is very much so honed in on what is happening in the gulf coast? Might they be taking advantage of the fact that Washington is perhaps looking the other way, referring specifically to North Korea?

CHINOY: I would doubt that. This incident happened long before the oil spill. What I would say is that the North Korean leadership will look at the United States and see that it is waging a war in Afghanistan. It is trying to extricate itself from a war in Iraq, it is facing all sorts of financial and economic problems and therefore a full blown war in the Korean peninsula is the last thing the u.s. needs. And I think that may embolden the north to feel it can sort of push the envelope here without worrying about a massive American response.

To me, I think the critical thing now as the u.s. and South Korea push for the United Nations to condemn North Korea is to be sure that in all of this there is some exit strategy that will allow negotiations or dialogue with the north at some future point. Because otherwise, you get locked into this confrontation mode where another naval clash or some other kind of fire fight could conceivably spiral out of control and become a much more dangerous situation.

BALDWIN: I know Hillary Clinton was in Seoul just recently. Already there were some words of condemnation there. Mike Chinoy, we thank you for your perspective on the issue about the North Korea. Thank you sir.

Massive recall, did you heard about this, of children's medicine? So, we want to let you know what does this mean for you, what does this mean for your family and what options do you have? Also we have a doctor with us to make it simple and break it all down.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN NEWS GUEST ANCHOR: A massive recall of kids' medicines prompted a massive congressional hearing just this week and cries of outrage from lawmakers. We're talking about Johnson & Johnson. They announced the recall of more than 40 children's medicines, including liquid versions of Tylenol, Motrin, Zyrtec, Benadryl, all manufactured at the single plant in Pennsylvania that has now suspended its production.

Joining me now is Dr. Jennifer Shu, a pediatrician and CNN health contributor.

Yikes! When you hear all those different medicines, I think, I have that one and that one and that one. Let's begin Dr. Shu with what prompted the recall. And where do things stand?

DR. JENNIFER SHU, PEDITRICIAN & CNN CONTRIBUTOR: It was found that there were some inconsistencies during the testing of the medicines. Some of the medicine was found to be too strong and too potent and could potentially cause side effects. Others had tiny particles in them that were thought to maybe contain bacteria.

BALDWIN: So if there's a maybe, they just went ahead and -- SHU: As a precaution, the manufacturer pulled all the medicine from the market.

BALDWIN: OK. What about -- is there any indication that perhaps some of the children have been harmed from any of these recalled medicines?

SHU: As far as right now, the manufacturer is saying no children have been harmed. But the FDA is investigating several hundred reports of children who had had some symptoms. And they're looking to see if they may have been caused by the medicine. And also seven deaths. But right now, none of them have been confirmed.

BALDWIN: OK. So parents are listening and thinking, OK, my child gets sick, what kind of medicine, A, do I give my children, and, B, a lot of us reach out and grab those generic meds and some of those are being recalled. So what is a parent to do, right?

SHU: Right. If there is a problem with the generics, the next step is, if your child is over 2 years old, they may be able to do a chewable tablet. You can also teach older children how to swallow pills. And then there is also the old TLC, give your child plenty of fluids, give them a lukewarm bath. Make sure they get plenty of rest if they're suffering from a cold.

BALDWIN: OK. I know Johnson & Johnson has had four recalls in seven months. Might there be more worries that more medications might not be safe?

SHU: You know, it is possible. And parents need to remember that medicine needs to be taken very carefully and according to instructions. And you don't want to just give medicine if you're not sure what's going on. I think, be very judicious about using even over-the-counter medicine with children.

BALDWIN: I was wondering. I was at a pharmacy recently and was getting -- they're all gone.

SHU: It is amazing to see empty spots on the shelves.

BALDWIN: It's amazing.

SHU: Exactly.

BALDWIN: Dr. Shu, thank you.

SHU: Thanks, Brooke.

BALDWIN: Thank you.

The first tropical storm of the season has formed in the eastern Pacific Ocean. We will take a look at where Agatha may be headed.

Also, we will tell you how being a "CNN Hero" enabled a Florida man to fulfill a dream and help a bunch of vets.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BALDWIN: Checking some of our top stories now. B.P. taking a hard, long look at whether it is worth going forward with this top kill to plug that oil gusher in the gulf. Now the company says the method has not officially stopped that leak yet, but it is too early to tell whether it will be successful. In the end, crews are preparing another back-up plan, dropping a custom made cap over the leak.

And have you heard about this? Call it the great tea robbery. Robbers in southern Iraq made off with $5.5 million after an accomplice served security guards tea laced with a sleeping drug. Iraq's interior ministry says, once the guards fell asleep, the bandits simply walked in and walked out with that money. Two suspects have been arrested, but the money, still missing.

And gay rights activists in Africa are celebrating a victory today in Malawi. The president of that east African country has pardoned two gay men convicted of crimes related to their relationship. The court originally sentenced both men to 14 years in prison. The president said the men had committed a crime against Malawi's culture, religion, laws, but issued a pardon anyway on humanitarian grounds.

And I have yet to see this video. I'm about to watch it with you for the first time. Cleveland Indians pitcher, David Huff, resting -- oh, ouch! He's resting in a New York hospital after taking that line drive. There he is, down on the ground. Line drive to his head in the game today in New York. The shot by Yankees Alex Rodriguez, A- Rod, struck Huff and ricocheted into right field. There it is again. Ow! Huff, immediately collapsing down on the mound. Minutes later, was taken off on a stretcher. Team trainers say he did not lose consciousness. He gave a thumbs-up signal to the crowd as he was carried off. Ouch.

Well, from that to a possible, I guess, a mixture of a possible tropical storm, with the volcano, what do you get? A huge mess.

Who knows about that? Jacqui Jeras tracking Agatha.

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Hey, yes.

BALDWIN: Yes.

JERAS: Just came up today, so here we go.

BALDWIN: Here we go. Here we go.

JERAS: Yes. This is an eastern Pacific storm, by the way. People said, isn't this early, I thought hurricane season was June 1.

BALDWIN: June 1, right?

JERAS: It is -- in the Atlantic. In the Pacific, we start that out on May 15th. So this is very normal to see this kind of development happen here.

This is Agatha. It is a tropical storm, a weak tropical storm at that. Winds only 45 miles per hour. It is kind of small as well. The biggest problem that we're going to see with Agatha is the heavy rain. We're talking torrential downpours, 10 to 20 inches-plus will be possible in this area over the next couple of days. That is just incredible. A lot of that has to do with the topography. It's a very mountain use region. You get that pressure pushing up the mountains and that enhances everything.

Now as you mentioned, Brooke, yes, mix that in with the volcano that has been erupting here, there you can see from our iReporter some of the ash. Let's advance to the next picture. You can see a black, sandy substance on the driveways and covering much of Guatemala City. Thanks to Harold Post (ph) for this. They're asking people to make sure this doesn't get in the drains, Brooke, because they're worried that could clog things up.

There has been some questions as to whether or not we can see Agatha get into the Gulf of Mexico. I think it is very unlikely, mostly due to the mountains and because this thing is moving so, so slowly. However, it is something to keep in mind that sometimes these things can cross the peninsula, and get into the Gulf of Mexico. We don't want to scare people about this.

BALDWIN: Right.

JERAS: We've been talking a lot about that, with the oil spill and the interaction. But just something to give you a little heads up that things are going to be developing now really anytime.

BALDWIN: That's an extra wrinkle they don't need.

JERAS: Yes.

BALDWIN: And they don't want.

Jacqui, thank you.

JERAS: Sure.

BALDWIN: Each and every week at this time we honor a new "CNN Hero" for their extraordinary work. And this week, we're checking in with one of our top ten heroes of 2009 to see how the recognition he received has helped him expand his working, helping the homeless and addicted veterans. Now hear how Roy Foster can broaden his service motto to say, no man or woman left behind.

(CNN HEROES)

BALDWIN: Right on. According to the Department of Veterans affairs, by the way, Roy's housing facility for female veterans with children is only the second one in the country. How about that? To get involved with Roy's program in Palm Beach, Florida, or nominate someone you think is changing the word, go to CNNheroes.com.

You fall asleep on a flight to Philadelphia. You wake up on an empty plane. Yes. We're hearing from a woman who is suing United Airlines for false imprisonment.

And arthritis isn't just an old people's disease. Dr. Sanjay Gupta will tell us how it can actually affect our children.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: All right, parents, this is a diagnosis you might never ever, ever expect your child to actually have to deal with. I'm talking about arthritis. But juvenile arthritis is actually very real. It affects some 300,000 children in the U.S. And it can cause your child a lot of pain.

Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta has today's "Fit Nation" report.

(FIT NATION)

BALDWIN: Well, straight ahead is "The Situation Room."

Wolf Blitzer, what do you have for us?

WOLF BLITZER, HOST, "THE SITUATION ROOM": Brooke, thanks very much.

Lots coming up right at the top of the hour here in "The Situation Room," we're all over the disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. We'll hear from Thad Alan, the U.S. commander on the scene right now. He's in charge for the Obama administration. Also, we'll get some other perspectives, including from the Plaquemines Parish president. He's very, very angry at Thad Alan.

Plus this, North Korea, South Korea, how close are they to all-out war? The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice, she's here as well.

All that, and a lot more coming up in "The Situation Room."

Brooke, back to you.

BALDWIN: Wolf, thank you.

I also want to remind our viewers, we here are sitting and watching and waiting for another news conference. We should be getting an update, could be anytime now, as we're watching these live pictures of this top kill. It has been since Wednesday, 2:00 p.m. eastern, when this thing got going. B.P. saying we may know definitively sometime by tomorrow morning if it is actually working. We're going to get that update get that up date, and as soon as we hear from the officials from B.P. and the Coast Guard, we'll bring that to you live from Robert, Louisiana.

Meantime, Actor Dennis Hopper has lost his battle with cancer. We will take a look back at what made him such a Hollywood icon.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Actor Dennis Hopper died today at his home in Venice, California, after a long battle with cancer. His career spanned 53 years and included more than two dozen films and TV show. But he was always something of an outsider in Hollywood. It was a role he seemed to personify in this breakout film -- we all know it -- "Easy Rider." (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON (voice-over): The film's plot was incredibly simple, two drug dealers on custom Harleys riding care-free across the country. Dennis Hopper is Billy. His sidekick is Peter Fonda as Wyatt, aka, Captain America. The year was 1969. The film, "Easy Rider."

They touched a deep counterculture nerve nationwide. Thousands of young Americans bought motor cycles and hit the road.

The movie also turned Hopper from a Hollywood bit player, most notable for a couple of minor roles opposite James Dean, into a bona fide star.

"Easy Rider," directed by Hopper and produced by Fonda, for less than $400,000, became an instant classic and earned some $40 million.

It was a fast ride for Hopper, born in Dodge City, Kansas, back in 1936. Right after "Easy Rider," Hopper's career careened out of control, drugs, alcohol, and one failed marriage after another, including Michelle Phillips, of the Mamas and the Papas. That union barely lasted a week.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DENNIS HOPPER, ACTOR: I was down as far as you go. You don't go any lower.

LARRY KING, HOST, "LARRY KING": How long sober now?

HOPPER: I've got six years.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Yet Hopper managed to keep working.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HOPPER: Mess like that, they don't even count body parts.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Gradually rebuilding his checkered career with roles in "Speed" --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HOPPER: (INAUDIBLE). It's not just our destination.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: -- "Water World" --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HOPPER: We've playing Cedar Knob (ph) tomorrow. (END VIDEO CLIP)

Anderson: -- and a standouts performance in "Hoosiers," inspired by the true story of an Indiana State basketball championship in 1954.

In more recent year, Americans got used to seeing a sober and mature Hopper, pitching retirement planning in TV commercials.

In 2009, Hopper went public with his battle with prostate cancer. He blamed his fifth wife, Victoria Duffy, for jeopardizing his health by adding extra stress to his life. In January, Hopper filed for divorce and, with time rapidly running out for the frail and ailing actor, seen here in March, Hopper was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Dennis Hopper died just two months later.

He will forever be remembered as a rebel and iconoclast, an uneasy rider, who never really fit the Hollywood mold.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: I also want to let you know we'll have much more on Hopper's life and film career, coming up throughout this evening. Again, long- time actor and film director, Dennis Hopper, has died. He was 74.

This time each and every Saturday night we want to catch you up on the news you might have missed this past week. Horrifying, that is exactly how one woman describes waking up -- imagine this -- waking up on an empty plane four hours after it landed. Now Ginger McGuire wants United Airlines and a partner company to pay up. How much? Between $25,000 and $75,000. Mcguire, suing for negligence and infliction of emotional distress, among other things. She described the eerie moment when she first woke up.

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GINGER MCGUIRE, ABANDONED AIRLINE PASSENGER: I just woke up. And I looked at my phone. I grabbed my phone, looked at it. I was like, oh, my god, 3:00 in the morning. And I got up and there was nobody on the plane.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCGUIRE: Hmm. The airline says flight attendances are supposed to do a sweep of the plane after passengers get off. It is investigating the matter.

Oil not the only thing that's washing ashore on our nation's beaches. I want to take you to Hilton Head, South Carolina. Check this out. This is what the tide brought in. Yes, you're looking at a hunk of metal about the size of a car. Actually, it turned out to be a part of a satellite launched by a rocket made in France. It's not known how long that thing might have been way out there in the ocean.

And at 103 years young, Gladys Flavor still turning some heads, especially when she is behind the wheel of her '79 two-tone Cadillac Coupe de Ville. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GLADYS FLAVOR (ph), 103-YEAR-OLD DRIVER: A lot of them think they can drive better than me. Maybe they can. I don't have any problems with accidents. And the cops don't bother me, so I think I drive all right.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: The cops don't bother her. You go, girl! Age obviously not slowing down this Coatesville, Pennsylvania, resident, who hits the road every day, even running errands for her younger neighbors. And with her 104th birthday right around the corner, she says her secret to a long life is never missing Sunday church services. Happy early birthday to you.

Finally, the man who usually sits in this seat each and every weekend, he actually stood before the graduates of his alma mater this week to give the commencement speech. That's right, our very own, the handsome Don Lemon, speaking to more than 3,400 graduates at Brooklyn College, sending them off on an inspirational note.

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DON LEMON, CNN NEWS ANCHOR: I say to you, triumph, fail, succeed, suffer and enjoy every single moment, because that's what being alive means, and wisdom.

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BALDWIN: And congratulations to the grads. And Don, who received a distinguished alumni honor.

And as we sit here, right around 5:00 -- 6:00 p.m. now Eastern, we're awaiting that news conference from the unified command overseeing that oil spill operation down in the Gulf of Mexico. You know, the top kill, that's when they were pushing all this kill mud and then hopefully all that concrete to stop that gusher. It's now, they're saying -- officials are saying the largest oil spill in our nation's history. I

I want to let you know briefly who will be speaking. U.S. Coast Guard Rear Admiral Mary Landry. Also, we should be seeing B.P. COO, chief operating officer, Doug Suttles. And when that begins, we will break into "The Situation Room" and we will bring it to you.