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Crisis in Central Asian Country of Kyrgyzstan; Rising Death Toll in Arkansas Flash Floods; Country Music Legend Jimmy Dean Has Died; Day 56 of Oil Spill Crisis
Aired June 14, 2010 - 09:58 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Checking top stories: a growing crisis in the central Asian country of Kyrgyzstan; ethnic violence has left at least 114 people dead. Hundreds more have been hurt and an estimated 80,000 Uzbeks have fled that area. The International Red Cross is calling it a humanitarian catastrophe.
The U.S. Military has a vital base which re-supplies troops fighting in Afghanistan. We'll have more on that in just a moment.
The death toll rises from Friday's predawn flash flooding at an Arkansas campground; 19 dead, including 6 children, 1 person still unaccounted for. The search has resumed again this morning. We're going to have a live report from the scene in just a few minutes.
Country music legend Jimmy Dean has died. Dean may be best remembered for crooning "Big Bad John" hit song that went number one on both pop and country charts back in 1961. Younger folks may recognize him as the sausage guy. But he did also have a little bit of TV in between. Local police say it appears he died from natural causes. Jimmy Dean was 81 years old.
First up, though, it's day 56 of the oil crisis in the Gulf, and BP has new plans to better contain the growing disaster. CNN has obtained the letter and our Chris Lawrence has all the details. He's live in New Orleans -- Chris.
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Kyra. It came after a lot of pressure from the Coast Guard but BP now says it has a plan to more than triple the amount of oil it can contain in a day in just a matter of weeks.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LAWRENCE: The Coast Guard told BP hurry it up, and the company has delivered a new plan to capture oil spilling into the Gulf of Mexico. It includes more backup systems to account for mechanical failures in hurricane season. BP is also mobilizing ships in South America and Europe and now expects to accelerate its oil collection operation by two weeks.
BP had hoped to capture 2 million gallons of oil a day by mid- July. Now they're saying they can get to that number by the end of June. The government estimates anywhere from 900,000 to 1.7 million gallons are gushing into the Gulf every day. It told BP to deploy pressure sensors to get a more specific number.
On Sunday, the company used remote-controlled robots to position those sensors inside the containment cap itself. But a BP official told us it will take few days to know if they are sending better information. Quote, "It's a complex operation and how effective it will be, we don't know. It's not as if they'll plug these sensors in and get readings right away."
BP says it's capturing 600,000 gallons every day. And starting Tuesday it plans to rejigger that top kill system.
Now, it didn't work when the ship was pumping mud down to plug the leak but now the same pipes will suck up oil and BP claims it could contain another 400,000 gallons a day.
The systems can't capture enough oil, so other ships are skimming it off the surface, but as they head towards one beach, the constantly shifting oil slick splashes into another, so the Coast Guard commander ordered a change in strategy. Skimmers need to get further offshore to collect the oil that's not being captured above the well.
ADM. THAD ALLEN, NATIONAL INCIDENT COMMANDER: What we're finding out is we're getting to a point where we need to fight this war between the shore and the off shore well where the oil is starting maybe 50 miles off the coast.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LAWRENCE: Residents and the government have been critical of BP over the past month or so as the company seemed to lurched from one last ditch effort to another. One of the keys to this new plan will be how well these backup plans work because it's got to account for mechanical failures or weather and a hurricane to make sure something is there if things don't go exactly according to plan. Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Chris, thanks.
And the oil keeping flowing, and so does criticism of the way that the White House is handling the spill. So right now President Obama is on his way back to the Gulf coast. It's his fourth trip since the April 20t explosion but his first outside of Louisiana and his first overnight.
Gulf port, Mississippi is the president's first stop. He'll get an update from Admiral Thad Allen holding a round table discussion with people who live and work there. Then it's on to Theodore, Alabama where the president will speak before heading out on the water for an up close look at that disaster.
He ends the trip about 130 miles from where it started in Pensacola, Florida, it's home to some of the state's most famous beaches. That's where he'll spend the night before heading back to D.C. tomorrow and addressing the nation in a primetime speech.
Now CNN will have live coverage of that address to the nation. It's scheduled for 8:00 p.m. Eastern, 5:00 Pacific. Just tune in to CNN and analysis from the best political team on television.
19 dead and one person still unaccounted for from Friday's deadly flash flooding at an Arkansas compound. We're getting word now that the little Missouri River rose nearly 20 feet in a matter of hours during a torrential rainstorm. Survivors say the raging floodwaters hit their camp site like a tsunami. Angela Chriss says she felt helpless as the river just carried her child away.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANGELA CHRISS, FLOOD VICTIM: My 16-year-old son was camping about 100 yards from us, and we were screaming because we couldn't get to him the water was coming so fast.
He came floating down the river with his little buddy. (inaudible) He said, mommy, please save me. My husband went back and he was in the tree, and we were coming in.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: More than 100 searchers are fanning out again this morning for that loan camper still unaccounted for. Catherine Callaway joins us live from the search command center in nearby Langley. Catherine, what's making the search so difficult right now?
CATHERINE CALLAWAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's the same thing that's been difficult all along. We went out yesterday with one of the mother elite teams, and what they're facing - as you mentioned, the water rose up more than 20 feet off the river bed there, and when it rose, it took with it buildings and trees and debris, leaving it sometimes up in the trees, and it was going at such a force that it created huge piles of debris all along the banks of these rivers, and we hiked into some of the areas they were searching yesterday and got a look at these debris piles that they are trying to search through.
And remember, we were only one part. This is all up and down the river. It's hot. The debris is difficult to get through. Even saws are used to try to open up some of those piles and get a look. They have to use dogs, of course. And remember, when the water rose, it not only uplifted debris, but snakes and spiders. It is a grueling job.
These searchers, these volunteers, they have been doing this for three days now. They have another day of it, looking for one confirmed missing camper today. And we will hear at about 11:00 local time, noon Eastern time, where they are in the search and what their plans are ahead.
PHILLIPS: All right. Catherine, we'll look for that.
More of the CNN NEWSROOM, straight ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Well, thousands of ethnic Uzbeks are fleeing Kyrgyzstan right now. Ethnic violence against the minority, Uzbeks, has left at least 114 people dead, nearly 1,500 injured. An estimated 80,000 people have fled to neighboring Uzbekistan. Smoke has been rising over the streets over Kyrgyzstan's second largest city. The Pentagon closely watching that violence as well. It has a base there that supplies U.S. troops fighting in Afghanistan.
And all that violence also takes a toll on the United States. Josh Levs here to show us what's at stake. Josh.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, you were mentioning just now the base that's there. We'll talk about that but there are also other ways that the United States is seriously impacted by any kind of instability in the region. I have a map behind me.
Before we zoom in, let's just take a look at the big picture right here. When you're hearing Kyrgyzstan, keep in mind, there's a war going on in Afghanistan. We have tremendous interests in Pakistan, concerns about Al Qaeda, concerns about the Taliban, concerns about nuclear weapons and Kyrgyzstan is right in that region.
By the way, Iran and Iraq right nearby as well. So as it is, the United States wants stability in this region. All right. let's zoom in to Kyrgyzstan. As we do I'm going to tell you something about it that you don't hear often enough. Kyrgyzstan has 5.5 million people and three quarters of them are Muslim. And this is the time when the United States needs all the Muslim friends it can get in stability in Muslim friend nations.
This area is called Osh, right here. This is what we've been hearing about. A lot of the violence is taking place here right now, with many people being killed. Ethnic Uzbeks we're hearing have been killed and they are among these refugees.
Now, this is down here in this section of the southern part of country, let's zoom back out and we're going to go back up to Manas Air Base. It's generally called - it's official called a transit center. This is the area that the United States uses there. It is a critical junction point for fueling, for getting supplies to Afghanistan. And something happened here recently.
The United States announced just weeks ago, actually this month, that it was not going to be using this area for actually fueling up jets for a while at this point but it does continue to use this area right here to bring troops into Afghanistan and that's one reason it's so important.
Now, I want to give you some perspective. Let's zoom back out and take a look at the distance between Manas Air Base and Osh right down here. It's a small country, so we're just talking about 200 miles even all the way across there. So when we're hearing about violence here, it impacts the whole country and it can certainly impact that area as well.
Let's zoom back out one more time. So what we have here is an area in which the United States has really important interests, economic interests and relevant tie that help in the war in Afghanistan and the last thing the United States wants to see, Kyra, or anyone wants to see is continuing ethnic violence and instability in Kyrgyzstan.
PHILLIPS: We'll follow it. Josh, thanks.
LEVS: You bet.
PHILLIPS: When the temps go up, so do the prices at the pump do too. But not this time, we're going to tell you why gas prices are actually going down.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Checking top stories now. It's day 56 of the Gulf of Mexico oil disaster. President Obama visiting Gulf states today and tomorrow. Also, BP says it has a plan to contain more than 50,000 barrels of oil a day by the end of the month. We're following that.
And a criminal investigation launched into an oil spill in Utah now. Chevron has accepted responsibility for that broken pipeline. Workers are cleaning up 21,000 gallons of oil in a creek that actually runs through Salt Lake City.
And gas prices has dropped more than 20 cents in the past five weeks. Demand is down, supply increased, jobless picture has actually led to the decreased demand.
Still ahead, the Gulf oil disaster and the steady drum beat of bad news. Are you ready for a little satire to ease the tension? Well, it's a wildly popular video on the internet. And it asked what would BP do if the spill were simply a tipped over coffee cup. You won't want to miss this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: All right. Jacqui Jeras tracking all kinds of weather for us. First it was all New Orleans, and now Arkansas and now Kansas.
JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes. We keep getting these clusters of thunderstorms. We call them MCSS or mesoscale convective systems and it's basically just a big bunch of thunderstorms kind of locked together, bringing tremendous amounts of rainfall, and that's what's been happening overnight and this morning across parts of Oklahoma, Kansas as well as Missouri and Iowa.
Let's show you some new pictures in out of the Kansas City area. Widespread flooding here, lots of small rivers, and creeks and streams have gone out of their banks. You had about five inches of rain late yesterday evening and overnight. You can see some vehicles have gotten stuck with this. There have been a couple of rescues. We haven't heard any word of any injuries. Hopefully that will stay this way. But a dangerous situation that includes one of the suburbs, Overland Park, one of the largest suburbs in the area.
And so we're watching dry weather in Kansas City but it's very likely tomorrow morning you're going to be waking up to more heavy rain and some thunderstorms. So the flood threat continues to be real here across parts of the central plains states, the Mississippi River Valley. Some of the heaviest rain just north of Oklahoma City, along I-44, now moving into southwestern parts of Missouri.
There are flood watches and warnings in effect across most of the area, and one to three inches can be expected on top of what you have already had and radar estimating these as much as eight inches just in the last week. Flooding is one of the top weather related deaths on average in the last 10 years. We've seen 91 deaths as a result of that.
The heat another big story. (inaudible) heat indices, well beyond 100 degrees in the orange highlighted areas across the lower Mississippi River Valley as well as the coastal Carolinas and Georgia. So take it easy, do stuff this morning where there' much of the morning left yet.
And then we want to show you what's going on in the tropics. It's hurricane season but usually we won't see things developing this far out in the Atlantic. So this is a pretty unusual thing. It's probably only happened a handful of times. This is just a tropical wave right now but it does have the potential to become our first tropical depression of the season. In the next 24 hours or so, the model is bringing it towards the Caribbean, but the winds here, not very favorable. So if this does develop, Kyra, hopefully it won't cause any problems as it heads towards land.
PHILLIPS: All right. Thanks, Jacqui. Well, from the CNN NEWSROOM, straight ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: So 56 days of this Gulf oil disaster, 56 days of terrible news, and we've seen the tears and the fears, the devastation and definitely the outrage. They will continue, so a parody of BP is a some welcome comic relief. It may us laugh, so we decided that we must share.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is the best plan of action.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't worry about it. It's a small spill on a very large table.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sir, I think we are underestimating just how much coffee was spilled.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, that's a lot of coffee.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, we better hurry up, because it almost reached my laptop.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Calm down. Calm down.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's also going to destroy all the fish.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, boy. OK. Look at that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My god, it's encroaching on my map of Louisiana.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Look, no, no, fish.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Map.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Wait, wait, I got a brilliant idea.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK, Jones, you got to hurry up. I think the public is getting suspicious.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All set. Damn, didn't work.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my god. We are really screwed now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look, garbage will fall into the coffee cups stopping further spillage.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Now there is just coffee and garbage.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Wait, I got an idea.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Damn, I really thought that would work.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, maybe it doesn't work right away. Let's observe it for three hours and then reassess it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We just wasted three hours.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Damn it. That's everything I got.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: God.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The gentlemen from Halliburton are here.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Send them out.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Gentlemen - oh, my god.
You guys are partly responsible for this. You provided the Styrofoam cups knowing they were unstable.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, no, no. Don't put this on us. You know what? Halliburton doesn't have to listen to this. We are out of here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, god.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stop, now. I've got Kevin Costner on the phone. He'll know what to do for sure.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How big is the spill? UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Pretty major, Mr. Costner.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you have a golf ball?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have a ping-pong ball.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good, now throw it at the spill.
What happened?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nothing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You guys are (bleep).
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: That was from the good people at UCB comedy.com.
400 oil skimming boats scooping up the mess in the Gulf coast, and one businessman says he has a dozen more ready to join the fight but he can't get the go-ahead to help out. So what's the hold out? We're talking to him about this fix it idea, right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: It's day 56 of the oil disaster in the Gulf, and today marks the beginning of a very busy week. BP is presenting a plan that it says could capture more than 50,000 barrels of oil each day. According to the letter obtained by CNN, the plan could be in place by the end of the month.
At any moment, President Obama begins making his way to the region and this two day trip will take him to Mississippi, Alabama and Florida and then tomorrow he returns to the White House for an address to the nation. He'll discuss the growing crisis as the environmental damage spreads and the economic impact.
On Wednesday, the president will hold his first meeting with BP executives we're told. He is ordering the oil giant to set aside millions of dollars for the people and businesses that are suffering financial hardships right now. Meanwhile, the company has installed new sensors on the underwater geyser. Within a few days it could better assess about how much oil is actually gushing into the sea.
Well, every day CNN introduces ways that might purge oil from the Gulf. And there are ideas from scientists, inventors centers and even you, the viewers, BP hasn't tried them yet but maybe they should. Until something works, CNN is demonstrating about five ideas a day.
So what about oil-skimming boats? The Coast Guard says they are definitely key to the cleanup. And a Texas businessman says he can dispatch a dozen of them right now. He's just having a tough time getting the green light.
Fred McAllister of Allegiance Capitol Corporation joining us live from Dallas. So, Fred, tell us what you've got to offer.
FRED MCALLISTER, FMR. VICE PRESIDENT GENERAL COUNSEL: Kyra, we have assembled a fleet of specialized vessels, including oil skimming vessels that are designed specifically to put out the boom and to retrieve the boom and also specialized equipment and housing vessels.
Now apparently BP says that it is reviewing your proposal, right? Have you heard from them directly. What if they told you what is the status of that?
MCALLISTER: That's correct. We have heard from BP over the weekend. As recently as yesterday evening I was in touch with the team leader for vessel procurement. We're told that our vessel proposal is being reviewed. They have to send it through a process internally there, but I'm certain that they will be back in touch with us over the next few days.
PHILLIPS: Describe to us how your vessels would operate. I understand these are different from a number of vessels that are already out there. Tell us what's unique, Fred?
MCALLISTER: The skimming vessels, in particular, are they are designed specifically for this purpose. You can get skimmers that are put on vessels that are not designed to house them and they are more or less efficient. But these vessels basically motor across the surface of the water. They have wings that spread out, gather the oil off the surface, separate it, and then dispense the water back into the ocean, take the oil that's recovered off for disposal or processing.
PHILLIPS: How fast do you think you can you work and what kind of impact do you think you can make?
MCALLISTER: Well, these vessels are capable of doing about 3,500 gallons per hour each. So you know, there's a significant impact. Since these proposals were made, there has been about 12 million additional gallons that's been spilled into the Gulf. It's going to take a lot of these types of vessels.
One of the reasons we wanted to make this a public discussion is that these types of vessels are not needed. I don't know if there are enough available certainly in the U.S. and even internationally to address the size of this catastrophe but certainly since these vessels are available, they're being asked for by states like, you know, Florida, the parish presidents, this type of vessel ought to be put to use in the Gulf.
PHILLIPS: You know, there's been a lot of talk lately with regard to the Jones Act of 1920, even Admiral Thad Allen brought it up Friday in his briefing, and it talks about no merchandise will be transported by water between points in the United States and any other vessel than a vessel built in and documented under the laws of the United States and owned by persons who are citizens of the United States. So, basically, this was put into protect the merchant marine by stipulating that only American-owned and flagged ships, primarily American crews could transport goods into the U.S., are any of your vessels coming in from other countries? Or all your vessels in country?
MCALLISTER: These vessels would be coming in from outside the country. These vessels are - would be Coast Guard inspection, and it's important to note that the Jones Act, which is a 1920 act, has been waived and can be waived for specific purposes.
The Jones Act serves a purpose, but it is also specifically within the act there is a provision that allows for waiver, and it can be, the Jones Act can be waived for specific purposes without destroying the integrity of the act, and I think in this case, that's what should be done.
PHILLIPS: So, are you pushing to have the Jones Act waived, in particular, so you can get these vessels in from overseas?
MCALLISTER: For specifics purposes, and this would certainly not offend the long-term impact of the Jones Act but it would certainly help in this catastrophe.
PHILLIPS: Got it. Fred McAllister, keep us updated, will you? We want to know what happens with regard to your assets and if indeed they get in here into the United States. Appreciate your time.
MCALLISTER: Thank you very much.
PHILLIPS: You bet. BP says that it has received more than 7,500 proposals for products and services through its online site. If you want to help, it's horizonedocs.com. And we're going to keep looking for oil spill solutions all week long so stay tuned to CNN for fix it ideas, clean up possibilities. Share your ideas as well. We are sifting through them all.
Well, call it modern day slavery, call it human trafficking, but millions of people worldwide are working against their will in sweatshops and fields and brothels, and behind those numbers there are real faces and real horror stories. Coming up, we're digging deeper and looking for answers.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Well, moments from now, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will speak about a brand-new report on human trafficking. We got a copy of the 737-page report this morning, and the numbers are staggering. Over 12 million people are involved in forced labor, bonded labor, and forced prostitution worldwide. And only a tiny portion of those victims have been identified. An estimated 4 out of every 1,000.
And it isn't just developing nations a world away dealing with modern-day slavery. It's a problem right here in the U.S. Take Nena Ruiz. She moved from the Philippines to L.A., thinking she'd as a caretaker for an elderly person. Instead, Ruiz said she was forced into slavery under astonishing conditions. Her captured dogs were treated -- she said captured dogs were treated better than she was.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NENA RUIZ, CLAIMS SHE WAS FORCED INTO SLAVERY: I had to brush the dog's teeth, clean their ears and even give them vitamins every day, but I was forced to sleep on a dog bed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: And a different type of human trafficking, sex slavery. We talked to a woman who says she was lured to the U.S. with a promise of a job at a restaurant. Instead ,she was trapped and forced to have sex with men all day and all night.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN (via translator): They didn't tell me what was going to happen. They just told me you're going to go with this man.
We were working 24 hours. It didn't matter if you were sleeping. They would get us up. If we were hungry, there was no time to eat. All that mattered was their money.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Once a topic hidden in shame and secrecy, the horrors of sex trafficking are now out in open and openly fought.
Our next guest is helping to lead that fight. Susan Muscari- Komoto is the executive director of the nonprofit group Drop Dead Gorgeous. She's also on the Georgia governor's task force investigating the abuse.
What a title, Drop Dead Gorgeous. How did you come up with that title?
SUSAN MUSCARI-KOMOTO, GA. GOVERNOR'S TASK FORCE: The name actually came from a group, myself and several other friends who were sitting around one evening who are all cultured creatives from fashion and entertainment and other communities. And we decided to approach the issue through specifically fashion, entertainment and business due to the amount of influence those industries have over culture and the ability to sway, and also the negative impact they have had on exploitation of women up to this point.
PHILLIPS: Interesting. You use a very important word, sway. Because I think there's a perception that it's only poor kids this happens to, that it only happens to kids overseas that are uneducated and come from the slums and are easily brought into prostitution and sweatshops. However, there's another phenomenon going on, correct, that's not so obvious, shall we say?
MUSCARI-KOMOTO: Right. That is a huge misconception, that people only feel it is only poor children or people from low socioeconomic classes. And really, it effects everybody, every race, every gender, social economic class, every race and every religion. Everyone is impacted by this. The foreign demographic is a little bit different from the domestic demographic. As in the foreign demographic, they are stolen from families or sold by families into the commercial sex trade, where domestically, you do see it typically more runaways in that end up in the sex trade.
PHILLIPS: So it is runaways? And how much does social networking impact this now? We're seeing so much more online, right? And kids becoming a lot more vulnerable with regard to connecting with people online.
MUSCARI-KOMOTO: That has had a huge impact on it in this day in technology. Unfortunately, in the United States, about 85 percent of people affected by the commercial sex trade occurs online. It does not occur on the street level as you see in our developing countries, where it's more open, and you see it in the brothel areas, such as Cambodia or Thailand. Here in the United States you see it on social networks sites and sex trade sites, such as Craigslist, for example, who receives three times more hits than any of the other services that are out there.
PHILLIPS: Wow. And so, how many kids -- when it comes to kids here in the United States, how many are taken overseas? How big of a problem is that with regard to kidnapping? Like you said, snatching kids from families and taking them over?
MUSCARI-KOMOTO: If you look at it from this perspective, there are about 1.7 million runaway episodes every year. And if one out of every four of those children ends up in the commercial sex trade within 48 hours of leaving home, that's a pretty astounding figure.
PHILLIPS: Wow. So, what are you doing here to bring about awareness and trying to intercept these kids before they become victims to the system?
MUSCARI-KOMOTO: One of the primary goals of my civic organization is to bring awareness to the issue outside of realms where people would normally hear from it -- hear about it. We do a number of large benefits every year, reaching out to people who may not hear about it, whether it's in church or on the news. And we have been very successful in that.
For example, as a member of governor's task force, one of the things I was asked to help do this year was assemble a group of really strong male role models from within the community to take a stand against this issue publicly for the first time.
And we had a -- the last benefit we had on May 20th, we had an astounding group of men from the community who came in, and they actually did do that for the first time, and we started our Men Against Exploitation Pledge, where we're hoping to gather a number of signatures over the next year. Where not only they're willing to take a stand against it publicly, but they're also willing to take action on it. So, for example, within their own businesses, not submitting receipts for strip clubs to their businesses.
PHILLIPS: Wow. So much of it is confidence and perception, and if we just -- if women looked at themselves differently or got some -- more positive feedback, that, hey, I'm strong. I don't have to fall victim to this, it could make such a difference.
Susan, appreciate your time.
MUSCARI-KOMOTO: Absolutely. Thank you.
A search for victims still under water after those flash floods at a campground in Arkansas. Top stories are up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Checking top stories. Day 56 of the oil disaster. BP presenting a plan that says it could capture more oil from the underwater wellhead. Also, President Obama begins a two-day trip to the coast. Tomorrow night, he addresses the nation about the disaster.
Searchers in Arkansas looking for at least one more person following deadly weekend flash flooding at a campsite. The governor said on CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING" there still could others. Nineteen bodies have been found. Six victims of children.
Michael Jackson's doctor fighting for his career in court. An L.A. judge will hear arguments about pulling Dr. Conrad Murray's medical license in California. Murray was charged with involuntary manslaughter in Jackson's death.
Travelers holding tickets for Spirit Airlines are finding their plans on hold at least for today and tomorrow. The company's pilots walked off the job over the weekend and forced the cancellation of all its flights. For nearly four years, the pilots have been haggling with the discount airline over pay, benefits and scheduling. Spirit Airlines is offering full refunds to its ticket holders, but many travelers say they are paying much more for last-minute flights on other carriers.
It's an agonizing decision. Do you seek Medicare when you simply can't afford it? That choice is even more grueling for people battling cancer. We're going to look at a grim reality facing millions of Americans.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: If you were bleeding to death, you'd probably rush to the hospital and worry about the medical bills later, right? But that's not always the case with cancer survivors. In fact, a new study finds that many of them are delaying or even skipping their follow-up treatments because the costs are too high. CNN senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen here to discuss the pretty grim decisions being made.
Boy, that is heart wrenching. ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: It is hard wrenching because cancer survivors more than anyone really need the follow-up care.
So, what this study looked at is cancer -- folks who had cancer and got care while they had cancer, presumably, but aren't getting the follow-up care that they need. Take a look at this statistic. What they found was that 17.6 percent of the cancer survivors in this study were not getting the care they needed. We're talking about not getting prescription drugs they should have. Sometimes, it was dental care. Other times, it was mental health care, but in general, 17.6 percent not getting what they need.
PHILLIPS: Age -- how does that play into this?
COHEN: Age actually played a huge role. Older people were much more likely to get care, and one reason for that, one word, actually. It's Medicare. Folks over the age of 65 by definition have insurance. They have Medicare, so they could get the care they need. But we all know that many people under the age of 65 are uninsured so not all of them were able to afford the care they need.
PHILLIPS: What about race? Does that play a role?
COHEN: Race also played a role. And again, for the same reason. African-Americans and Hispanics let likely to get the care they need. Again, because statistically speaking, those groups -- folks in those groups are less likely to have health insurance.
PHILLIPS: Is there any place these folks can go to to get help?
COHEN: There is. Here at CNN on the Empowered Patient, we don't like to just complain about things. We like to help.
(CROSSTALK)
PHILLIPS: Because this is depressing.
COHEN: Exactly. It's very depressing.
If you go to CNNhealth.com, you will see a link to this story right there at the top of the page. Click on that, and you will see some resources to help when dealing with cancer or the aftermath of cancer and can't afford the care.
PHILLIPS: I actually had a co-worker a number of years back, and he couldn't afford the insurance after he lost his job and his wife got breast cancer. And it cost -- wiped out his entire savings account. It was like a million dollars to deal with everything that had to be done for her.
COHEN: That's right. I mean, one of the major reasons why people go bankrupt in this country, why lose their homes, go into foreclosure, is getting the medical care they need.
PHILLIPS: All right. Empowered Patient. Go to your column. You do you this on a regular basis. You give us good solutions.
COHEN: Solutions. We don't just complain. We give solutions.
PHILLIPS: Thanks, Elizabeth.
Time and time again, we brought you stories of the uninsured or under-insured taking health care into their own hands. Whether it's a mom taking out her kid' s stitches to someone pulling out their own teeth, it's sad. And while these cases may be extreme, the CDC estimates there are over 43 million Americans under the age of 65. Elizabeth pointed that out, as well, without health insurance.
So, if you didn't have coverage and needed treatment, how far would you go to get it? Take a look at this story. Then we'll talk about it.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KATHY MYERS, SHOT HERSELF: This pain is unbearable. It is just maddening.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE, WSTB-TV CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Kathy Myers says the pain is so bad, she thought putting a bullet in her shoulder would help. It all began last month while she was playing with her dogs in the backyard in.
MYERS: I grabbed him with my right hand, and he pulled it backwards like that, and I felt it pop in three places and my collarbone.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The pain came on quickly and only got worse. But Kathy says because she's out the work and can't afford health insurance, it's been impossible to get a little more than a shot for the pain and Band-Aid.
MYERS: They will see you and treat you and make sure you are stable but beyond that, they're not going to do anything.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, weeks later, and apparently feeling she had no other option, Myers did what some would think unbelievable.
MYERS: I put an ice pack on the back, an ice pack on the front of my shoulder, tied it off. I put a pillow behind me, pillow in front of me and one beside my face. I put the gun to the top of my shoulder and pulled the trigger.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Minutes later, she was in an ambulance headed for the hospital.
MYERS: They said it had to be life threatening and imminent danger, so I was making it be imminent danger, something that had to be done.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Turned out the wound wasn't serious and didn't hit anything major. And in less than 24 hours she was home.
MYERS: Nothing got accomplished.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: From neighbors --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think the fact that people don't have health care, and so you get pushed to the extreme.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But from police --
CAPTAIN JAMES MILLIN, NILES CITY, MICHIGAN POLICE: I would hope that most people would understand that this is the extreme, and that they would not attempt something like this.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A risk that for Kathy Myers didn't help, and authorities say could have killed.
MILLIN: When a bullet enters your body, there's no telling where it's going to go.
MYERS: I just want to take the pain away.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: That brings us to today's blog question. We asked you to share some of the wild things you've had to do to get medical care. And here's what some of you wrote in and said.
John said, "Although slightly irrational, this is an example of the lengths people go to to get medical attention in the United States. It would have been far cheaper for taxpayers to treat her original issue as opposed to a gunshot wound in the ER"
And this from Joe, "The really sad part of this story is that it's now common practice to put dollars over humanity."
And Beth. "This is crazy! How can a country so rich allow this to happen? Shame on you people and the ones who call themselves Christians.
And this one from John. "The woman has no health insurance, she's out of work, and can't afford health insurance, but can afford cigarettes. She has no money but has pets and can afford dog food. See the pattern here?"
Remember, we want to hear from you. Just log on to CNN.com/kyra to share your comments.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Let's get right to the live pictures out of Oklahoma City, coming to us from our affiliate KOCA. And Jacqui Jeras with me to talk about this extreme weather taking place. But what it looks like is there are people trapped in this car, and it looks like they are trying to bail themselves out. The car is filling with water.
The question is how quickly rescue crews can get to them. Don't know the circumstances, if they were driving someone they shouldn't have been and got trapped in the flooded roadways here. What do we know about the weather conditions?
JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, the weather has just been horrendous. It's been raining there nonstop for about five hours. I have been monitoring this for maybe four minutes or so, and I did see some firefighters approach the car. So, they do know they're out there and I'm sure they are doing everything they can to try to help these people.
These are one of many, many water rescues taking place right now, from what we understand. We are in touch with our affiliates, and there's widespread flooding across Oklahoma City. The north side of town. I've seen some pictures online of downtown actually flooded. There have been 4 to 8 inches of rain since 4:00 this morning. The ground has been saturated.
We have been talking for weeks now, Kyra, about these clusters of thunderstorms that keep developing overnight and lasting into the early morning hours, dumping these heavy downpours. Somewhat similar to the situation in Arkansas, the same type of thunderstorm complex. You have too much rain in a short period of time. I don't know if you want to break away for a second, show you the radar. We can show you that we've got some back-building thunderstorms --
PHILLIPS: Maybe we can double-box it. I don't think we want to lose this live picture --
(CROSSTALK)
PHILLIPS: Do you see the firefighters on the other side?
JERAS: They just walked into the shot and walked back behind that tree. So, we will continue to watch that.
There was that complex of thunderstorms and they started to do what we call back building, kind of training. So, they continue to move over the same area, as much as two inches per area.
PHILLIPS: You mentioned Arkansas, and that's been one of our lead stories all morning. The flash floods that came through, wiped out that campsite, and we have heard the awful stories of -- losing their kids and their loved ones, and still there's a search going on, possibly, for more of the missing. We don't know if they'll find good news there or not.
Here we go. Now we got your double box. Go ahead and talk about the radar, the way the system is moving because you say we're seeing the same type of thing now in Oklahoma City with regard to the rains that all of a sudden come in and many times catch you by surprise.
JERAS: They really do. There's no way to tell. We know how much moisture is in the atmosphere with the moisture content, and if you wring out that rag, so to speak, of how much we would estimate. But a lot of times those estimations could be double what you predict. So, we knew there was going to be heavy rain in the area. There are flood watches in effect, but when this back building occurs, you can't really precisely say this is precisely going to happen over Oklahoma City as opposed to maybe, this is going to happen in Wichita instead. We know everybody's going to get it, but where is the one point that will see the worst of it.
You know, this is kind of a very different situation in a way of what happened in Arkansas because terrain plays such an issue in Arkansas with those hills in that area. And everything kind of funneled into one spot. This is very widespread. You know, Oklahoma very flat here. The drains can't keep up with the amount of rain. That's a lot of it, and the smaller rivers and creeks come out of their banks.
And rush hour this morning, people are getting out, driving on the streets, and emergency crews are having a hard time keeping up with number of calls. They are warning people to stay home now -- that's what city officials are saying -- because they can't get to everybody in a very quick amount of time unfortunately.
PHILLIPS: And that's the word we're just getting -- you were talking about the drains not being able to deal with the large amount of water.
We are now apparently -- a number of calls going out. They want us to get it out on CNN that there in the area, they're asking people not to drive, not to go out into these conditions because they can't keep up with the amount of 911 calls that are coming through. So, if you are home and you're seeing these live pictures, you live in Oklahoma City, people probably know this area that are familiar with this exact spot -- I don't know if we can get an exact location of where this is. Maybe we can get that to our viewers.
But they're saying please don't go out into the elements because there are just not enough rescue workers to get to you if you get in a situation like this.
JERAS: And most of this is street flooding. We are getting some reports that there are some homes that are getting flooded and power outages in the city as a result of this, but most of the flood-related deaths and injuries and rescues taking place are because people are getting in cars and getting in the streets and taking that chance. They're driving through the road.
Also, speaking of Arkansas, some of the video we saw there showed that the roads were just washed away, pieces and chunks of asphalt were taken downstream for miles. You never know if that road is actually there underneath you when you start to drive in these conditions. That's one of the reasons we tell you not to do it.
PHILLIPS: In a situation like this, you can't just get out of the car because you never know how fast the water, right, is coming through. You can get caught. You don't know what's underneath the water. You could get caught, you could get stuck, you could get pulled under. The only option -- it looks like that water is rising, too, coming higher up on that door.
JERAS: Oh, yeah. You can see how quick it's moving, the current in the front and behind the car, too. Six inches will knock you off your feet. A foot will take a small car, and two feet of water can wash away an SUV.
PHILLIPS: We've got some local coverage, Jacqui. Let's go ahead and listen to our affiliate KOCO as they're on these live pictures.
(JOINED IN PROGRESS)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- where the water has dropped down a little bit. It's actually below the handle to open the car door, which is as low as we've seen it. It is still inside the car. Watch here for a second. You'll see the passenger side person in there is actually scooping water out of that car and having to throw it outside of that window.
Every four are five minutes a firefighter will wade out there as far as they can get just to make contact with them and remind them, they're not alone out here. There are crews standing by waiting as soon as the situation is safe enough, go get them out of their car. I have to think that the situation is not life threatening that they would have to risk an emergency responder to go get them. We have heard there may be a boat over there on the other side, but we can't see because there are just so many trees.
Again, this is Harrison Creek. You're looking westbound on Hefner Road near Sooner Road where there are two people stranded in this white car, and the rain continues to fall. So, it's just -- we're waiting it out with them. We're not going to go anywhere until these people are brought out safely. Paula and Jo?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (via phone): Brandon, can you have Charles pull out (INAUDIBLE) them bring the picture in tight?
PHILLIPS: If you are just tuning in, we're about 30 seconds away from handing off to Tony Harris in the CNN NEWSROOM. Stay with us, though. These are flash floods that have taken place in Oklahoma City. Not a good situation for drivers right now.
As a matter of fact, emergency response officials are saying, please stay home. Don't get out on the roads. They don't have enough people to come rescue you if indeed you get caught up. The 911 calls are overwhelming.
You are listening to right now to live coverage from our affiliate KOCO.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's gone. So it looks like -- is that some headlights I see on the other side of the street? I'm not sure if maybe they're able to get a little closer with the boat at this point yet.
There are the firefights, and they're closer on the other side. So that car got a little further towards the western side of Hefner (ph) from Harrison Creek that it is towards the east here. So, at least three firefighters on scene and two people inside that car. Really keeping an eye on them.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK, Brandon (ph). Thank you very much. You know, I was just looking on the live wire a few minutes ago, and it says the (INAUDIBLE). We're trying to keep your picture up, you guys -- situation. And they're going to come out to that intersection there of Hefner (ph) and Sooner (ph) and be ready to assist to if they need to.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And, of course, one of the things we've been talking about this morning is these crews, these first responders, they are trying their best to get out to anybody who needs help, but they are dealing with the same conditions that we are dealing with. They come to a flooded roadway and can't drive to it, have to find an alternate route. So they take up a little bit more time, but they are working very hard trying to get help to everybody who needs it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. They're there, and they can't get out to these people in this car. Apparently, they've got a boat out there ready to go, but that water is moving so quickly. And the best thing for those people are to sit there and just wait it out. They've got to be very frightened sitting in these cars.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We feel for them.
Let's check in now with Chris (ph).
Chris (ph), you've been on the move all morning, driving around the area. And there is another huge area of the flooded roadway.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, this is Pennsylvania and Southwest 21st, about 18 inches of water over the roads here.
