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Massive Snow Storm Paralyzes East Coast; All Expense Paid Trip to Disney World for Chilean Miners; Julian Assange Signs Book Deal
Aired December 27, 2010 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ALINA CHO, CNN GUEST ANCHOR: It is 10:00 a.m. on the East Coast on the nose. 7:00 a.m. in the west. Good morning, everybody. I'm Alina Cho, in for Kyra Phillips this week. And here are some of the stories that have us talking this morning.
A massive snowstorm paralyzing much of the northeast today. Closing airports, canceling flights and stranding holiday travelers. As much as 29 inches of snow has fallen on parts of the East Coast. A blizzard warning still in effect for parts of New England.
Remember those Chilean miners who were trapped underground for more than two months? Well, they already got to visit Universal Studios in Florida and now they're going to Disney World. The Florida resort is treating them, their rescuers and their families to a six-night stay.
And the controversial founder of WikiLeaks has just inked a book deal. Well, get this. $1.5 million. Julian Assange says he needs the money to defend himself against sexual assault allegations in Sweden. The on-line whistle blower says he is innocent and the victim of a smear campaign for exposing secrets that were embarrassing to the United States.
But first, much of the northeast paralyzed this morning, frozen in its tracks by a massive blizzard. Snow, state of emergency blanket the region. All three of New York's major airports shut down and here's why. Howling winds and heavy snow created almost white-out conditions on New York's Times Square. Take a look at that. And from state to state the advice is the same. Don't go out if you don't have to.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's very icy out. It's like an inch of snow on the ground. It's very slippery. My brakes locked up a couple times down the road tonight.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You need a mask to keep the nose and the face warm. Other than that, stay in the house.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: You need more than a mask. The storm closed in yesterday and Maryland was one of several states to declare a state of emergency. Officials scrambled, and road crews braced for the worst. It turns out Maryland managed to avoid the worst of it. No such luck for Rhode Island. Some areas saw a foot of snow and while it's tapering off this morning, the driving is still treacherous there. Winds are kicking up creating snow drifts and occasional white-out conditions.
Visibility issues also played a role in shutting down all three major airports near New York City, LaGuardia, JFK and Newark are not scheduled to reopen until 4:00 p.m. today. Fingers crossed. And of course, once those airports do re-open they will be dealing with a backlog of cancelled flights, thousands of them.
At those airports, passengers only had to look out the window to understand why they were stranded. There is the look there. That is the view of the snow covered tarmac at LaGuardia. I have one on my Blackberry as well. CNN's senior correspondent Allan Chernoff inside the airport. Thankfully, he joins us now live. What is the latest from where you are, Allan? Good morning.
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Alina. Well, the airport still has plenty of snow. Those plows are hard at work over on the runways and the taxi ways. The taxi ways, by the way, the dental manager told me that has been the big problem because of so much wind.
The wind, he said, hit 60 miles an hour last night. Inside of the terminal, people have been bunking up, sleeping here overnight. Lots of folks in cots but not everybody. Some people actually sleeping on the baggage claim carousels if you can believe that.
I've got a family here, the Chmielecki, they actually started their journey yesterday in Hartford. They're trying to get to Dallas. The whole idea was "well, let's come to New York, probably the flights will leave New York sooner than they will Hartford." This is Mike along with Sabrina and Jacob. Mike, do you think it was a good move? You ended up sleeping here overnight?
MIKE CHMIELECKI, SLEPT OVERNIGHT IN AIRPORT: Yes, it beats the alternative. We would have gone out on Wednesday night from Hartford but we should go out tonight here from LaGuardia.
CHERNOFF: All right. You guys stayed in cots up in that hallway between the garage and the main terminal. Sabrina, what was it like for you? Did you sleep well?
SABRINA CHMIELECKI, SLEPT OVERNIGHT IN AIRPORT: Yes.
CHERNOFF: No problem?
SABRINA CHMIELECKI: No.
CHERNOFF: Jacob, not quite as good, right?
JACOB CHMIELECKI, STRANDED OVERNIGHT IN AIRPORT: No.
CHERNOFF: You slept how long?
JACOB CHMIELECKI: Like one hour. It looks like everybody was camping inside.
CHERNOFF: Do you like camping? JACOB CHMIELECKI: Outside.
CHERNOFF: Yes, I like in the tent much more indoors as well. Mike, your wife didn't join us. I don't think she had a very good night's sleep. You slept soundly?
MIKE CHMIELECKI: It was all right. We could have been a lot worse. We thought we were just going to be on the floors so the cots were definitely an upgrade.
CHERNOFF: Well, glad that New York City could at least provide upgraded accommodations. A lot of people who slept there not quite as happy but generally speaking people are taking all of this in good cheer. Understanding that there is only so much you can do when mother nature unleashes a blanket of white like this. Alina.
CHO: Have a piece of pizza, try to buy one of those travel pillows. I mean, yes, you just got to sit and wait. All right. Allan Chernoff, thank you so much.
Believe it or not those passengers tossing and turning in the airport may actually be the lucky ones. At least compared to those aboard an (INAUDIBLE) to Tel Aviv. They were stuck on JFK's tarmac for nine hours. One of those passengers spoke to CNN International seven hours into the ordeal.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ERIC SCHORR, STRANDED PASSENGER (ON THE PHONE): People right now are actually sleeping but for the first few hours people were going in and out of sort of, they're on their laptops, they were reading, listening to music and then people got up and started talking. You know, conversations. I got to tell (INAUDIBLE) crew has absolutely been fantastic. The captain has kept us appraised up until now about updates. There haven't been one in the last few hours because of the conditions but the crew, they served us dinner and people have been in good spirits.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: One down, one more to go. The New Jersey State Police are halfway through a rescue effort. They are trying to get some 50 passengers off a tour bus that has been stuck on the snow snarled Garden State Parkway since midnight. Just last hour, I got an update from Sgt. Stephen Jones of the New Jersey State Police.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SGT. STEPHEN JONES, NEW JERSEY STATE POLICE (ON THE PHONE): We had troopers finally make it out there with the aid of some construction equipment. They were able to bring some food and water from the station and make sure that these people had at least something to keep them going for a little bit. They were concerned with possible health issues. They were fortunate to find when they finally reached them, I guess around 5:00 a.m. that there were no real pressing health issues going on on the bus. CHO: Are they still on the bus right now?
JONES: One bus is there. They hope to clear it out very soon. It's a matter of trying to get tow trucks out there as well. The bus is off the road and it needs to be actually pulled out from where it is and there are no tow trucks or heavy duty tows available.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHO: Well, the first bus was freed a couple of hours ago. We're told that both were bound for New York from Atlantic City, New Jersey.
Well, whether by planes, trains, or automobiles, that ferocious storm has wreak havoc with the plans of holiday travelers. Among them our very own CNN meteorologist, Rob Marciano, who joins us live not far from his hometown in Stamford, Connecticut. Rob, good morning to you. Yes, brush the snow off the gloves there. How bad is it where you are?
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, in some spots you could literally be buried in snow, in other spots where the wind is kind of (INAUDIBLE) things off, it's a different ball game. That's been the story with this blizzard are the winds. You know, you got the snow totals that are certainly impressive but you got winds that are even more impressive, that has certainly done a fair amount of damage.
Drifting snow up here on this stairwell that should take you to city hall, but there's been no effort to clean the roads and city employees unless you are cleaning the roadways are on furlough. But you know, the roads are actually a better spot to walk than the sidewalk, because the sidewalks they haven't quite been shoveled yet. That's quite a project as you can imagine.
As far as the railway, we are told still from New Haven, the New Haven line has been suspended so commuters who are trying to get back and forth to New York from here that's a tough go. Long Island Railroad as well. But they did a fairly good job of cleaning the roadways here now that the snow has abated and come to an end. But earlier, last night, when it was coming down one, two, three inches an hour. There's no way you are keeping up on it. So it is actually, we see people that are constantly - everybody is walking on the roadways. Because it's easier to do. Although when you've got plows and buses that are constantly coming by and a slick surface it's not always the most safe thing. You got to keep an eye out for that.
Let's talk snow totals and then we'll give you an idea where the storm is headed. We are still under a blizzard warning here as we are across much of New England, especially across the coastline. As far as the totals that we've seen there are higher amounts locally in spots but Newark saw almost two feet. Brooklyn saw almost a foot and a half and Boston saw a foot at least. I think that number will go higher as we get official reports coming in.
But far to northwest Jersey, my goodness. Approaching 30 inches in some of those spots but as mentioned, the winds are the bigger issue or have been. Winds sustained at 30, gusting 45, 55 miles an hour in places just outside of New York City and up to 80 mile an hour wind gust in (INAUDIBLE) county, Massachusetts. That's on the cape. And that certainly took down some power lines. We have about 60,000 people in Connecticut and Massachusetts that are without power because of the wind. And when temperatures are in the 20s, that is not a fun deal.
Airports as you have been reporting on are closed. And many of the larger airports and hopefully they will make progress in opening those up. We are making progress in this storm, getting out to sea or further off the coastline. The swirl of moisture that has just been rotating snow bands in across New England for the past 18 hours now finally beginning to make a move towards the elbow of the cape and hopefully towards the Canadian maritime and as it does so, the snow will come to the air from west to east but the winds will be a little bit more difficult.
As far as what you can expect, the snows that have fallen here in New York, in Philly, in Stamford, in New Haven and up the line in Boston is going to stay tonight and tomorrow for sure. Because daytime highs are not going to get above freezing until later on in the week. New York daytime high expected to be 27. In Atlanta, 28 degrees, the forecast high for the day. So the inch and a half of snow, that North Georgia got, well, finally, will start to go away as we warm things up with the warm spot, San Antonio and San Diego in the 60s, 63 degrees. That sounds pretty good right now. It's nostalgic and during it feels good to get out in the snow for sure but it gets old after a few hours, I can tell you that.
CHO: Rob, I was shocked I got off the plane yesterday and there was snow on the ground right outside the airport in Atlanta. That's something I don't see every day. Hey, I know you are supposed to get out. When were you supposed to get out of that area and when are you actually going to get out on a flight back to Atlanta?
MARCIANO: Well, my issues were coming from Atlanta here and Delta cancelled the flights because of the snow that was approaching Atlanta. And I'm not supposed to go out until later in the week. So I know everyone has had their issues. But you know, depending on your family, there are worse things to be stuck with. If you are stuck with your family that can be a good and bad thing. If you are stuck in an airport, I feel for you and just bear with it. But you know, more than anything, you just can't control it and it gives you what you get.
CHO: For you I know it's good to be stuck with your family. I know you love your mom's cooking. So anyway -
MARCIANO: Who doesn't?
CHO: Exactly. Exactly. All right. That's right. Rob, thank you.
Next, true love knows know age barrier, just ask Hugh Heffner. Despite the 60 year difference in their ages, Heff is tying the knot with a former 24-year-old playmate of the month. We're going to have that and all your entertainment stories coming up next. Two years ago she was the face of cutting edge medical advancements and just recently her donor's family stepped forward and she met them for the very first time. Connie Culp, the first face transplant recipient in the United States. We will have her emotional story of heartache and triumph later in the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(MUSIC PLAYING)
CHO: Take a look at these pictures courtesy of our CNN producer Julian Cumming (ph) in New York. Julian, Thank you, driving through Manhattan. You can see just how bad the streets are there. Well, if you can pan down a little bit, you'll be able to see a little better, you know, parts of New York got pounded with 13 inches of snow. All three of the major airports, JFK, LaGuardia and Newark shut down in the area. They are not scheduled to reopen until 4:00 this afternoon.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
CHO: Who could forget that song? She was called by some the "Ivory Queen of Soul." Teena Marie and her biggest hit, "Lover Girl." She died yesterday in her California home. That story and so much more, it's time to check in with our entertainment reporter now, Jawn Murray. John, so a sad day for fans of Teena Marie. She was young. I mean, she was 54 years old, right? What happened?
JAWN MURRAY, "TOM JOYNER MORNING SHOW": A great loss to the music industry, Alina. Her daughter found her on Christmas. She died in her sleep. Now, apparently about month ago she had a seizure and had been on some medication for the seizure. According to her reps, for the seizure and right now, they haven't released an official cause of death. She's still at the coroner's office. So everything is still pending. But they're hoping to have answers to it soon.
CHO: On a more uplifting note, Hugh Heffner, 80 something makes it wedding number three. I didn't even know it's his third marriage. Who's the lucky lady, when is this going to happen and why?
MURRAY: Well, I guess he thinks the third time is a charm, Alina. I mean, she is a Playboy playmate, of course. Her name is Crystal. She got her ring as a Christmas present. She's very happy. You know.
CHO: Of course, she is.
MURRAY: She is 60 years younger than him. If he was a woman we would be calling him a cougar. So I guess as a man, we can call him, a ground hog. I mean, we'll start a new term here today.
CHO: All right. Sounds good to me. We'll see if that actually happens.
Meanwhile, Fantasia of "American Idol" fame had a close call with a judge? What happened there?
MURRAY: Well, she actually got a Christmas present as well. Right before the holidays, a judge rules that her boyfriend, Antoine Cook, who, we know she was involved, the whole thing that caused her to attempt suicide with the aspirins and everything, the judge said that he was actually separated from his wife at the time when she met him and began dated him. So that's good news for her because it means the wife cannot sue her for alienation of affection. You know, people have been rooting for Fantasia. They were really hoping that there was more to this story than was originally reported. So this is good news for her and a great way to end her year and start a new one.
CHO: All right. Jawn Murray, thank you so much for that update. Happy holidays to you.
MURRAY: Same to you, Alina.
CHO: All right. We will see you soon.
From the great white north Alaska to the desert heat of the southwest, the "Arizona Republic" newspaper is reporting that Bristol Palin, the daughter of former Alaska governor Sarah Palin has bought a home in suburban Phoenix, Arizona.
The recent "Dancing with the Stars" contestant apparently is getting a good deal on that house. Roughly half the price of what the foreclosed home sold for back in 2006. She paid, we're told, $172,000 in cash.
Nicole Kidman takes on a real life role to lift up women around the world. I sat down with her recently in New York to talk about her work as a U.N. goodwill ambassador. That story is next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(MUSIC PLAYING)
CHO: Welcome back. You are taking a live look there of Hartford, Connecticut, courtesy of our affiliate, WFSB. That area got easily a foot of snow in some parts, maybe up to 20 inches. In the forecast today? A high of 26 degrees. Stay inside.
The cop who saved Christmas leads our look across the country this morning. Suburban San Diego where an alert sheriff's deputy on patrol spotted a house fire early Saturday morning. Woke up the four people inside and they were able to escape unharmed. The cause of the fire still under investigation.
On to Elkhart, Indiana where a woman down on her luck and money goes Christmas shopping for her kids with the help of an anonymous donor. Listen to this, Jennifer White says she was about to use the overdraft protection on her debit card when a stranger came in and paid her shopping bill. How about that? He also gave her a couple of hundred dollars for good measure. We will bring you more on this story later this hour.
And last stop, Riverton, Utah, where Nate and Angie Farmer welcomed their newest bundle of joy. Isn't she cute? Eva Laurie Farmer was born on Christmas eve. And note her initials? ELF as in elf in the spirit of the holiday season.
Well, this is also the season of giving and Nicole Kidman, she is holiday royalty. An Academy Award winning actress and one of the most famous and beautiful women in the world. But it is her work as a U.N. goodwill ambassador as an advocate for women that she says keeps her most grounded. The behind the scenes work that she says makes her mom most proud.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NICOLE KIDMAN, ACTRESS: A lot of my life I have been trying to please my mother. And I suppose I still felt like I had won an Oscar or I had done this, my mom was not like OK, I feel like you really - this is probably the thing that she most responds to in my life.
CHO (voice-over): So that thing that Nicole Kidman is talking about is her work as a goodwill ambassador for UNIFEM, the United Nations arm that fights for gender equality and to end violence against women.
KIDMAN: Take action, say no.
CHO: A role she has held for nearly five years.
KIDMAN: These women in this organization, they're working for nothing, you know? And they are so committed.
CHO: Ironically it was a movie role, "The Interpreter" that first drew Kidman to the United Nations. What she didn't know was that soon art, in part, would imitate life. Her work with UNIFEM has taken her to Congress, fighting for women's rights. She has also traveled to places like Kosovo and just this year, earthquake ravaged, Haiti.
KIDMAN: It breaks my heart. I mean, I'm a terrible person sometimes for this because I can become so emotionally involved and actually in Kosovo, I had to be taken aside and told this is going to be a very emotional path for the rest of your life. You are going to see and hear things that you should never see and hear but they exist.
These girls were raped. A lot of their faces were completely battered and destroyed and their bodies and they had nowhere to go. When you see it, see it and hear it, it's - I think it changes you forever. It certainly changed me forever.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: By a nose, Nicole Kidman.
CHO: You are an Academy Award winning actress, you are married to a music star. You have a beautiful family. Some people might ask how does this woman, Nicole Kidman relate?
KIDMAN: Relate? I don't know how you say whether you relate but I certainly feel. And it brings me to my knees and I feel it's, I mean, it's my duty. It's an honor to be able to do the work.
CHO: It brings you to your knees? That's a strong statement.
KIDMAN: Uh-huh. Yes, but I mean it. (END VIDEOTAPE)
CHO: Kidman says she'll work with the U.N. as long as they'll have her. Tomorrow we're going to bring you another big star giving back. My interview with Halle Berry about her work helping domestic violence victims.
And you may not know her name but you probably know her story by now. It was two years ago that Connie Culp became the first face transplant recipient in the United States. So where is she now and how has her life changed? I talked with her this morning and you will hear from her, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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CHO: Snow or not, Central Park in New York City always a beautiful shot out there. That's where you're looking live. In New York the snowstorm is winding down. In fact, it's sunny out there but the problems are going to linger for quite a while longer as you might imagine. Some parts of the city saw nearly two feet of snow. Here's a look at midtown, ferocious winds whipped up the white stuff and created snow drifts and white-out conditions. Visibility issues also played a big role in shutting down all three major airports in the New York City are, LaGuardia, JFK, Newark aren't scheduled to re-open until 4:00 p.m. Eastern today and of course, once those airports do re-open they're going to be dealing with a lot of backlog of thousands of cancelled flights.
Well, the stock market is opening. The opening bell rang just about an hour ago, in fact. We want to check the numbers right now. The Dow is down about 26 points, I'm told. Meanwhile, retailers in the northeast may be double A thankful for the positive pre-Christmas shopping blitz.
That's because the blizzard now hammering the area is hurting a lot of post-holiday shopping plans.
CNN's Alison Kosik, live at our New York studios with the very latest.
I have to tell you, though, Alison, I happen to be at a Saks Fifth Avenue at -- don't ask why. At 8:00 in the morning yesterday.
ALISON KOSIK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Why, Alina?
CHO: I had -- well, I had to take care of some things. Anyway, it was mobbed.
KOSIK: I'm sure you did.
(LAUGHTER)
KOSIK: Really?
CHO: It was actually mobbed. There were women with like five handbags on each arm but I guess that's the exception to the rule out there, huh?
KOSIK: I -- you know, I think it is. I mean sure, everybody goes to the mall usually the day after Christmas, you know, to return those unwanted gifts, to find those extra bargains, which is what you may have seen.
But, you know, overall, though, the snow may have wound up spoiling one of the busiest shopping days of the year and in some cases some malls are even saying half of their business on the day after Christmas literally poofed, disappeared as the snow began to fall.
Now at the very least, the snow has postponed those after-Christmas sales. And if nobody can really get to those deals, retailers most likely will extend those offers. But the good news is most schools are out all week. Plenty of opportunity, of course, to take advantage of those post-Christmas deals since they're going to be hanging around doing not much all week.
Also we can't forget what's going on online, Alina. A lot of people shopping online and using those gift cards as well -- Alina.
CHO: That's right. In fact online shopping, Alison, it was a big, huge season for e-commerce. In fact they out performed brick-and- mortar stores by a lot, right?
KOSIK: Yes. You said it. I mean Spending Pulse which monitor this activity said it was a huge year that from Halloween to Christmas online shopping is up more than 15 percent this year versus last year. And you can tell the up in dollars, that's more than $36 billion spent online overall.
Look at this. These are the overall sales increases here on some of the biggest days of the season. I'm talking about cyber-Monday, sales up 16 percent. You know, now there's something called free shipping day on December 17th. Sales up more than 60 percent.
You know, clearly online shopping was a huge factor in what looks like a very merry Christmas for retailers. You know, and traditional stores generally did better than expected as well.
Alina, those results are going to start coming in next week. Alina? So what did you get at Saks?
CHO: And we'll wait for -- what's that?
KOSIK: What did you get at Saks?
CHO: Well, I didn't get anything for myself. I was actually exchanging a gift for a friend. The sweater was too small.
KOSIK: OK.
CHO: I have to get a larger sweater. Anyway, it's a long story but one little tip to you, Alison. You may not know this, but I do, is a good thing to do is actually get online and shop on Christmas Day if you have a moment. Because that's when the big deals start, right? But people don't really know that.
KOSIK: I'll have to remember that next year.
CHO: That's right. All right, Alison. Thank you so much.
Checking some of the stories that have us talking this morning. The heavy snow that's pounding the northeast, that's keeping the New York Giants from getting home. That's the second time this season that a team has been stuck due to bad weather. What makes it worse than they're staying at a Wisconsin hotel is the team's loss to Green Bay yesterday.
Police are looking for the person who attacked an Arizona state lawmaker on Christmas Day. Here's what happened. Frank Pratt went in to check on his swimming pool store when someone came in, beat him up, knocked him unconscious and left him tied up. Pratt is hospitalized in stable condition.
And that actor who was seriously injured while performing an aerial stunt in the Spider-man musical in New York is walking again. Thankfully. Christopher Tierney's father says Tierney wants to return to the show. He fell at least 20 feet during the Broadway show last week and had successful back surgery.
Well, you may not remember Connie Culp's name but you'll probably remember her incredible story. She was the recipient of the very first face transplant in the United States.
Back in 2004 a shotgun blast robbed her of her identity. Breathing, eating, living, everything we take for granted was difficult for her. Then after years of waiting, Culp was matched with a donor. A face donor.
Two years ago this month, eight surgeons at the Cleveland Clinic gave her a big piece of her humanity back and recently she met the family of her donor.
I spoke to Connie Culp earlier this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: Connie Culp joins us now from Pittsburgh.
Connie, thank you so much for joining us. I guess the question everybody wants to know is how are you doing? What is day-to-day life like for you right now?
CONNIE CULP, FIRST U.S. FACE TRANSPLANT RECIPIENT: It's ordinary like everybody else's. I'm doing really good right now.
CHO: Yes. I bet it feels --
CULP: I'm trying to stay warm like everybody else.
(LAUGHTER) CHO: Yes, I'm sure. Not easy these days. You know one thing I definitely want to talk to you about is that I know that you recently met your donor family, the family of the woman who gave you your face, if you will. Tell me what that was like.
CULP: It was scary at first. We had a really good time. And they explained to me what happened to the wife. And they are just so sweet. I mean, she was a nurse in a (INAUDIBLE) home. And she was the donor from the beginning so yes. So it was easy for them to make the decision.
CHO: I know that she donated enough parts to help 50 people including yourself. And I know that you've said when they gave you that hug they held you so tight it felt pretty real, didn't it?
CULP: It did. It was an honest, real hug like they really meant it. They really care.
CHO: Yes. Well, that's great. And what a wonderful gift around the holidays to be able to meet them, the family of Anna Casper. I know it's been a little more than two years since your face transplant but it's been a long journey. Thirty surgeries in all and you still weren't able to eat solid food.
So tell me, in the two years since your face transplant what are you now able to do that you couldn't do before?
CULP: Well, I can smell now. I couldn't smell anything at all. So if (INAUDIBLE) that back.
CHO: And you're eating, right?
CULP: You can eat steak. Yes. I can take steak and -- yes. So I can eat almost any solid food it's all getting better.
CHO: That's wonderful. That's wonderful. I'll tell you something, as a person who loves to eat, that's a very good thing. Tell me -- tell you, you still, though, from what I've read, your doctors say you still might have a few more surgeries to go, right? So then in terms of your recovery are you in regular therapy? Do you have more surgeries planned? What's next?
CULP: They haven't mentioned any surgeries soon, but I still do the exercises like I was told and all the medicines so I won't get any rejections.
CHO: OK. And what types of exercises --
CULP: Everything is going good.
CHO: What types of exercises do you do?
CULP: I do -- I pronounce vowels real strongly like A, you know, O.
CHO: So a lot of --
CULP: To practice the movement of the muscles. At least have a movement on your mouth.
CHO: A lot of speech therapy. I know that you try to read a lot but you can't read for very long before you get a headache, right? So you're practicing that a lot, too, right?
CULP: Yes. I have to work on that.
CHO: Yes. Well -- you know, one thing I was actually quite surprised to read was that a common misconception is that you actually took on the face of your donor but that's not true, is it? It's more of a combination --
CULP: No.
CHO: -- of your own face and your donor's face, right? Do a lot of people ask you that?
CULP: Yes. And the truth is, they said the only resemblance is my nose.
CHO: Really?
CULP: I had the mother's nose. Yes. And I think my face is actually starting to come back a little bit. I mean I will never look like I used to.
CHO: Right.
(CROSSTALK)
CHO: I think you look great. And finally I know that you have often said that your sense of humor is one thing that has really kept you going. What has been the hardest part about the entire ordeal? And what would you say has been the best things to come out of it?
CULP: The hardest thing is when you're trying to put something together, that you know you fix them, and you can't get (INAUDIBLE), it's just really -- like screwing a light bulb, I mean it's easy, but, you know, sometime sometimes --
CHO: It's those little things. It's those little things.
CULP: Yes. Just the little things that bug you.
(CROSSTALK)
CHO: And the best part?
CULP: Everybody takes it for granted.
CHO: And I know that you --
CULP: The bad part?
CHO: The best part, I know you've made some great friends, some of them the nurses and some of them doctors but you've made some great friends along the way, haven't you?
CULP: Oh yes. Definitely. You wouldn't believe all the people that wrote to me in the beginning. It's awesome. And I'm still signing them. I just haven't sent them all out yet, but I'm working on it.
CHO: I wish you the very best. I'm sorry for the delay here but I wish you the very best holiday and a very happy new year. And I think you so, so much for joining us today.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: And we have this just into CNN now. We are now hearing that the three New York City airports that were scheduled to reopen at 4:00 p.m. today, that is not going to happen.
The FAA is now saying they do not know when JFK, LaGuardia and Newark will reopen. Across the country, 2500 flights have been cancelled since Sunday. But again in case you missed it the FAA is reporting on its Web site it is not known when New York's three major airports, JFK, LaGuardia and Newark will be back up and running.
We're going to continue to keep an eye on the conditions. We'll bring you the latest. We are also trying to get a live update from New York. So stay tuned.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHO: Taking a live look there at midtown Manhattan in New York City where, if you haven't heard the news, listen to this. The three major airports in the New York City area, JFK, LaGuardia and Newark, which were originally scheduled to reopen today at 4:00 p.m., will not reopen at that time.
In fact the FAA is saying it does not know when those airports will reopen. And imagine the backlog. Thousands of flights have been cancelled. More than 2500 flights across the country just since Sunday. So keep it here on CNN. We'll be keeping you updated throughout the morning.
Meanwhile the vicious snowstorm that's been pounding the northeast almost took a tragic toll in (INAUDIBLE), Massachusetts this morning. The fierce winds whipped the flames from one beach front to the next and pushed the ocean's waves right on to the streets. That meant that flooding had cut off fire crews from seven people who desperately needed to be rescued.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TODD KAZAKIEWICH, REPORTER: As soon as this house caught on fire, and then spread to the second house, that's when they knew they had to react immediately. So (INAUDIBLE) Fire brought in some inflatable boats and they rescued at least seven or eight people, including, we're told, a family of four. And then three other adults. So all of those people got back to safety.
(END VIDEO CLIP) CHO: It is not yet clear how many homes have been lost. Fire crews were unable to get their hoses through the flooded streets. So obviously we're hoping for a better situation there.
Meanwhile we are hoping for a better situation on the weather front. For that we're going to turn to CNN meteorologist, Reynolds Wolf.
I mean how about that news that we don't know when those three major airports in New York are going to reopen. That's not good.
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: It's the last thing you want to hear if you're sitting in a terminal, you've got three kids with you, and everyone wants to get home. I mean can you imagine? It's just a nightmare scenario. But I'll tell you things are going to get better in places around the country. The improvement we're going to see later in the week is going to be insane.
(WEATHER REPORT)
CHO: Thirty-eight in Atlanta. How about that, Reynolds?
WOLF: You bet. Yes.
CHO: It's cold. You needed a heavy coat last night.
WOLF: Exactly.
CHO: All right, Reynolds, thank you.
Well, remember those airport pat-downs? Well, those enhanced security measures will be in place at airports long past the holiday season. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano explains why in an exclusive interview next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHO: Well, take a look at that. It is a winter wonderland in the northeast today. You're looking at Hartford, Connecticut, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and New York City.
There's Hartford there which was hit with easily a food of snow. Now you're looking at Philadelphia there where sunny skies but lots of snow in that area as well. In fact an NFL game was cancelled yesterday, and there you're looking at the streets of New York, courtesy of our CNN producer Julian Cummings.
Julian, thank you for that. Wow. When I left New York City it certainly did not look like that. But in case you missed the news, all three of the major airports in the New York City area -- LaGuardia, JFK and Newark -- which were scheduled to reopen at 4:0 p.m. today will not reopen at that time.
The FAA still has not given us any specific guidance on when those airports will reopen but we're trying to get them on the phone, and we will bring you that as soon as we have them. Meanwhile Homeland Security chief Janet Napolitano says the enhanced TSA screening measures will remain in place at airports across the country. Napolitano's comments came in an exclusive interview on CNN's "STATE OF THE UNION."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JANET NAPOLITANO, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: Not for the foreseeable feature. You know we're always looking to improve systems and so forth. But the new technology, the pat-downs just objectively safer for our traveling public.
But in the meantime, I think it's important to note that what you're see at the gate with the pat-down and the new machine is just part of a longer system that begins for international travelers, actually internationally with new partnerships that we have developed particularly over the past year, with enhanced relationships with the private carriers, with enhanced ability to match ticketing information against other lists that we have.
So there's a whole kind of intel based system that's going on and then we get to the actual gate.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: We have some brand new CNN polls that were tracking how Americans feel about the new health care law.
Our deputy political director Paul Steinhauser has the results from the CNNPolitics.com desk.
Hey, Paul. Good morning. So what do the polls say?
PAUL STEINHAUSER, DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Well, good morning, Alina.
You know Republicans they take over the House of Representatives next week on top of -- you know, on top of their to-do list is to try to repeal the new health care law. But yes, let's look at these numbers. Brand new from CNN Opinion Research Corporation.
In a national survey, the majority still oppose the new health care law which was passed by this Congress and signed into law by the president earlier this year. Look now right there, 43 percent favor the law, 54 percent oppose it.
But break it the opposition down. This is interesting. Go to the next number and you can see that 37 percent oppose it because it's -- well, they say too liberal. But 13 percent say you know what? The law doesn't go far enough.
Our poll also suggested that a majority like that provision in the law that prevents insurance companies from preventing people with preexisting conditions from getting insurance but a majority don't like the provision that mandates that you -- the American average -- have health insurance. Hey, you know, another thing I want to show you on the CNN political ticker this morning, and I asked for Kevin (INAUDIBLE) to zoom right in here. And this is out of Alaska.
Joe Miller, you know him. He was the Republican nominee for Senate up there. He beat Lisa Murkowski, the Republican incumbent, in the primaries. Well, he's going to continue to fight that law but he's going to let her get ratified and become the next senator. Back to you, Alina.
CHO: All right. Well, let's hope that's over some times.
And Paul Steinhauser, we thank you for joining us with that update.
Searching for a secret Santa in Elkhart, Indiana. How one family can't give thanks enough to a stranger they hardly knew but who made this Christmas so unforgettable.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHO: Welcome back.
Every day at this time we honor the men and women in uniform who have given their lives in Iraq and Afghanistan. We call this "Home and Away." And today we're lifting up Sergeant 1st Class Matthew Sluss- Tiller from Kentucky.
He was one of three soldiers killed on February 3rd when a bomb exploded near his vehicle. The soldiers were traveling to a Pakistani girls school that was renovated with U.S. assistance.
Jason McCloud (ph) served with Matthew. He says I hope he's remembered for his love of family and passion to be a soldier.
Well put. Jason says Matthew was probably the best instructor at the 82nd Airborne Division's jump master school.
And if you have a comrade or a loved one you'd like to honor, here's how you do it. Go CNN.com/homeandaway. Type in your service member's name in the upper right search field and pull up the profile. Send us your thoughts and especially your photos. We'll keep the memory of your hero alive.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHO: Welcome back. As we close out the program we take you to Elkhart, Indiana. They're on the lookout there for a secret Santa who is wanted for bringing the Christmas spirit to a family who could barely afford it.
From CNN affiliate WSJV reporter Trevor Shirley has this heartwarming story of generosity and goodwill.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TREVOR SHIRLEY, WSJV REPORTER: Jennifer White knew she couldn't afford Christmas for her daughters Trinity and January. Still she headed to this Niles Wal-Mart.
JENNIFER WHITE, THANKFUL MOM: I was pretty apprehensive. I normally don't do well around Christmas.
SHIRLEY: Jennifer knew she had no money in her checking account. And with Christmas looking, things didn't look good.
WHITE: I had a little bag of stuff that I had been buying throughout the year but it didn't really add up to much.
SHIRLEY: So she did her shopping coming to a grand total of $160.
WHITE: I do have overdraft protection. So it was just pretty much going to put me in the hole.
SHIRLEY: Jennifer stepped up to the register to buy what she could and that's when fate stepped in to see her through.
WHITE: A gentleman walked up behind me in line. And he asked me and the cashier both if we're ready for Christmas.
SHIRLEY: Then Jennifer pulled out her empty debit card and she couldn't have been ready for what came next.
WHITE: I just started to swipe it and the gentleman said no, I got this.
SHIRLEY: Stunned, Jennifer couldn't believe what was happening.
WHITE: I was floored. I was shocked. I couldn't even talk. I didn't know if he was serious.
SHIRLEY: But the man was serious and it didn't stop with just buying her gifts. He then handed her another $200 in cash and disappeared.
WHITE: Before I could get my stuff loaded up to follow him, he was out of sight. I didn't get his name. I didn't get anything.
SHIRLEY: Jennifer had managed to give him a hug but that was it. She has no idea who her mysterious benefactor was or why he chose her.
WHITE: I couldn't ask for a better Christmas present and to get it from a stranger is just phenomenal.
SHIRLEY: And with presents under the tree, Jennifer's daughter Trinity wishes she could mean the man who made it happen.
WHITE: Thank you like a million times and give him a big hug and I would probably cry right there.
SHIRLEY: So, while Jennifer still has no idea who that mystery man was, what she knows for sure is that he saved her kids' Christmas.
WHITE: There's no way I could ever pay him back. I would give him so much if I could.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHO: That's what you call the holiday spirit.
That does it for me. I'm Alina Cho. I'll be back here tomorrow morning at 9:00 a.m.
But CNN NEWSROOM continues now with my friend Tony Harris.
Good morning.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: That is good to see you. You're here all week?
CHO: I am here all week.
HARRIS: Pencil me in. Pen me in for some time with you.
CHO: I think we're penned in.
HARRIS: Terrific. Good to see you. Have a great day.
CHO: You too.
