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D.C. Airport Control Tower Silent; Two Workers at Daiichi Plant in Hospital; Small Amounts of Radiation Found on the U.S. West Coast; Overweight Mothers, Obese Children; Radiation Drifts to U.S.; Eyewitness to a Nuclear Crisis; Quake, Tsunami Survivors Cope With Grief

Aired March 24, 2011 - 11:00   ET

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

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Live from Studio 7, I'm Suzanne Malveaux. Want to get you up to speed for Thursday, March 24th.

There are new safety and security questions today at Reagan National, a major airport four miles from the White House. Early Wednesday morning, two commercial jetliners waiting to land got no answer from the control tower.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The tower is apparently unmanned. We called on the phone and nobody's answering. So the aircraft went in and just says uncontrolled airport.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's interesting.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: The pilots talked themselves down and landed the planes safely. Just one controller is on duty for the graveyard shift at Reagan National. The transportation secretary says that's going to change immediately.

Well, there's a good chance that some flights out of Miami will be delayed or canceled today. Fire at the airport's fuel depot triggered explosions that ripped apart one tank. It put the other five fuel tanks out of commission. The airport will use tanker trucks to refuel planes today.

For a fifth straight day, coalition warplanes bombed military targets around Libya's capital today. State TV showed what it said was a military base in flames. Coalition air strikes on Gadhafi forces outside Misrata and Ajdabiya haven't stopped the shelling of those cities.

In Yemen, a president under fire puts his supporters on the streets in a noisy demonstration.

(CHANTING)

MALVEAUX: President Saleh is under intense pressure to step down immediately, but he is refusing. Several of Saleh's key generals and diplomats switched sides after he launched a bloody crackdown last week.

In Japan, levels of radioactive iodine in Tokyo's water system, they dropped significantly today. Officials say it is now safe for babies to drink tap water or for parents to use tap water in formula. But, still, the city handed out about 250,000 bottles of water today to homes with kids.

Two Fukushima nuclear workers are now in the hospital today for possible radiation poisoning. The men stepped in a puddle while laying cable at the plant. Water seeped through the protective clothing that they were wearing and got on their legs. A third worker was wearing boots high enough to cover his skin.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promises to act vigorously, he says, following a bus bombing. The terror attack in Jerusalem killed one person and wounded more than 50. Israel's ambassador to the U.S. says that the bombing does not appear related to militants' recent rocket attacks on southern Israel.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates met with his Israeli counterpart in Tel Aviv today, and he is urging the Israelis to restart peace negotiations with the Palestinians. A defense official says that Gates believes Israel can get ahead of the populist wave that is sweeping the Middle East by pressing a peace deal.

And hundreds of potential jurors are at the Los Angeles County courthouse today. Twelve will be chosen to decide whether Michael Jackson's doctor goes to prison. Dr. Conrad Murray is charged with giving Jackson an overdose of an anesthetic. Opening statements in the trial are set for May.

Now more for our top story.

There are safety concerns at Reagan National Airport after two pilots were unable to reach the control tower before landing.

Our CNN's Sandra Endo, she's in Washington with the details of this.

And first of all, Sandra, I mean, the flight landed safely, but there's still so many questions here. The real issue, why the control tower couldn't be reached during that critical time.

SANDRA ENDO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, absolutely, Suzanne. An investigation is under way right now. But, basically, it was radio silence from a lone air traffic controller in that tower.

And the Federal Aviation Administration says that the first case happened at 12:10 Wednesday morning, when an American Airlines flight wanted to land. It was coming from Miami, and it couldn't get in touch with the air traffic controller.

And then, 15 minutes later, a United flight coming from Chicago also wanted to touch down, but had problems connecting. There was no one responding to calls from these pilots.

Here's a recording of a pilot talking to a regional air traffic controller. Have a listen.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: American 1900, so you're aware, the tower is apparently not manned. We've made a few phone calls. Nobody's answering.

So two airplanes went in, in the past 10, 15 minutes. So you can expect to go in as an uncontrolled airport.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is there a reason it's not manned?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I'm going to take a guess and say that the controller got locked out. I've heard of this happening before.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's the first time I've heard it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. Fortunately, it's not very often. But, yes, it happened about a year ago. But I'm not sure that's what happened now, but anyway, there's nobody in the tower.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's interesting.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

ENDO: Interesting, but also potentially dangerous. Luckily, both flights landed safely. And now the investigation is under way by the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board, although Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood already directed some orders saying that overnight shifts at that tower, Suzanne, now have to be manned by two people.

And in a statement, he says that, "It is not acceptable to have just one controller in the tower managing air traffic in this critical airspace." So, of course, the investigation will continue. And he is also calling for a study on staffing nationwide at all airports -- Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: Sandra, that was such an understatement when he said, "interesting." A lot of people looking at that, shaking their heads, thinking, what the heck is going on over there? We're going to talk to an air traffic safety expert to ask, essentially, is this typical and whether or not that really was a dangerous situation.

So we'll find out more on that. Thank you very much.

Now is your chance to "Talk Back" on one of the big stories of the day.

President Obama is facing growing criticism over his handling of the air strikes in Libya. He returned home from a five-day trip to Latin America. He returned yesterday, but he hasn't made any public statements yet about his strategy in Libya.

So that brings us to the "Talk Back" question. And our Carol Costello has that question for us.

Because we wonder, you know, a lot of people have questions. There's confusion over the mission. What is he going to do?

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And the questions are coming from lawmakers, from the public. They're coming from everywhere.

MALVEAUX: His supporters and his critics.

COSTELLO: You got that right.

The president says the U.S. has an exit strategy for Libya that will take place this week, and that has some scratching their heads. Exit strategy is one thing, but what exactly was the entrance strategy?

It didn't take long for House Speaker John Boehner to fire off a letter to Mr. Obama complaining of limited, somewhat contradictory information from the administration on Libya. Boehner says the president committed U.S. military resources to war " -- without clearly defining for the American people, the Congress and our troops what the mission in Libya is." Democrat Nancy Pelosi sent her own letter cautiously supporting the president.

Mr. Obama has no public appearances and no speeches scheduled for today, and some are saying that has to change, and fast. Michael Waldman, a former speechwriter for President Clinton, says U.S. presidents don't just order troops into war without explaining themselves to the nation. Waldman writing on Bloomberg.com, "Mr. Obama may believe U.S. missiles speak for themselves. They don't."

So how about now? Will the U.S. stay in if the war drags on, or cede control to other partners?

So, the "Talk Back" question today: What do you want the president to say or do about Libya?

Write to me on Facebook.com/CarolCNN, and I will read your responses later in the hour.

MALVEAUX: You and I were talking about this. I won't place bets, but I think the president's going to say something. I think he's going to come out and say something.

COSTELLO: Well, there's no scheduled public appearances today, but he's meeting behind closed doors to shore up support with members of Congress. And he's also meeting with Joe Biden. So maybe he'll come out and say something tomorrow or Monday. I don't know.

MALVEAUX: I think his press people are going to take a look at it and say, you know what? We've got to put him out there.

COSTELLO: That would be smart.

MALVEAUX: In our opinion.

COSTELLO: Yes.

MALVEAUX: All right. Thanks, Carol.

Here's a look at what's ahead "On the Rundown."

We're going to talk to an aviation safety expert about that incident that took place at Reagan National, pilots unable to reach anyone in the control tower.

Also, a government trip to find civilian casualties in Libya takes a wrong turn.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is a government convoy. And most likely, people around here, even if they knew anything, wouldn't tell government officials.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Plus, parents in denial about their children's weight.

And the disaster in Japan may halt production at U.S. Toyota plants.

And finally, an American worker who was inside that Japanese nuclear plant.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's gone in a matter of seconds. But there's no precursor, no warnings. Nothing, other than when it hits.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Two pilots flying into Reagan National Airport could not reach the control tower Wednesday morning. They landed with no problem, but there are unconfirmed reports that the one guy on duty in the tower was sleeping.

Well, joining me, air safety expert Scott Wallace. He is the former director of accident investigations for the FAA.

And Scott, you know, a lot of people shaking their heads today when they hear this story. You know, if you were one of those passengers on either one of those planes that came in and found out there was no one in the control tower to help the pilot, would you be worried?

SCOTT WALLACE, FMR. DIRECTOR OF ACCIDENT INVESTIGATIONS FOR THE FAA: I wouldn't be worried. Clearly, procedurally, something went wrong here, and the investigators will get to the bottom of that. But 90 percent of the airports in the country don't have control towers. Many airports have part-time control towers. So what the pilot did at the instruction of the radar controller, the prior controller he was talking to, was treated as an airport where the control tower either had closed and landed. The risk to the passengers here was very, very low, negligible.

MALVEAUX: Why do you say that? I mean, because we would assume that the control tower, the guy in the control tower, would help both of those pilots know that the runways were clear, that it was safe to land.

WALLACE: That's correct, but the pilots fly into -- there are probably between 100 and 200 airports in this country that are served by air carriers that do not have control towers. So there are procedures to do that, and they're done safely every day.

MALVEAUX: Explain to us, help us understand that, because this is not just any airport. This is Reagan National. It's four miles from the White House. I mean, it's a very busy airport and a really important place.

WALLACE: Well, you're absolutely right. It's a very special airport. It's right next to some of the most strictly-prohibited airspace in the country.

I think there are special procedures for high-speed communication to the Secret Service and whatever else. And, so, it is a highly- sensitive airport. But to say it's busy, it's busy at some times of the day, but it's definitely not busy after midnight. It's very slow.

MALVEAUX: OK. So help us understand this, because I travel in and out of Reagan all the time here. I've taken those late flights. And I understand that even if the pilot understands that the runways are clear for the most part, there's not a lot of traffic, during that time you have maintenance crews that are towing planes, there are people on the ground.

I mean, how would a pilot possibly know what was taking place on the ground if he doesn't have communication with somebody in the control tower?

WALLACE: Well, I would point out I think we had good visual flying conditions of the airliner coming in. It's got strobe lights and landing lights, and it's big and it's making noise. And the likelihood at Reagan, of course, of an airplane being towed across that runway is extremely remote. There's really no reason to have airplanes on the riverside of the runway, assuming they're landing on the main north/south runway there.

So, I mean, something weren't wrong. The investigators will get to the bottom of that. There will be corrective measures. The risk here was really very low.

MALVEAUX: Why is it acceptable? I mean, the secretary of Transportation, Ray LaHood, says this was not a good idea, that you have to have at least two people in the tower. Why is it acceptable to just have one? Is that typical? WALLACE: Well, I would go back to the point that 90 percent of the airports in the country have no towers at all. And it's largely dictated by traffic counts.

And so, after midnight, departures are about zero and arrivals are very few. So, staffing levels are done typically based on traffic counts. But, you know, the secretary has made a decision -- I'm not questioning that -- that he will require to controllers in that tower.

MALVEAUX: There are some statistics as well. There has been an increase, 51 percent increase, in error from these air traffic controllers. I assume that, you know, there are times when they have to leave the tower and go to the bathroom, or perhaps they haven't gotten enough sleep.

Do you have a sense of why this is taking place?

WALLACE: I think that the errors you're talking about that are much reported are these violations of the separation criteria where airplanes get closer together than they should. And it's important to figure into the equation the fact that the FAA now has set up a system that really encourages reporting of errors, and controllers are much less likely to hide them.

So I'm not sure that the increase in the count reflects much more than the fact that they're being much more thoroughly reported. And many of these are just minor -- you know, 2.8 miles, what ought to be 3, or something like that. That's not to say that they aren't all being investigated. They certainly are. But the system is just incredibly safe overall.

MALVEAUX: And I want to follow up real quickly, because you had said that there's some visuals. There's not a lot of traffic during that time, around midnight or so. So you know that there may be just one or two planes that are coming in around that time.

If the weather was poor, if you had poor visibility, would the pilot land under those conditions, or would he have to, in fact, be talking to somebody in a control tower to know what was taking place on the ground?

WALLACE: Well, the -- you can shoot an instrument approach with a very precise guidance system into an uncontrolled airport. So that's possible. But that's -- I think that would have altered what happened here in all likelihood because the tower -- you know, the pilots, they made a judgment based on all of the conditions, and the weather was certainly very good. And if the weather had been challenging, they might have done something else.

MALVEAUX: All right.

Scott Wallace, we appreciate your perspective and your expertise on this. I know a lot of people looking at this situation and very surprised to find that no one was in that tower and that there are so many airports that don't have air traffic controllers in those towers during those times. Thank you very much, Scott.

We're also following another fast-developing story, the disaster in Japan, the water issue there, and the race to prevent a nuclear meltdown at the damaged plant in Fukushima.

We're going to have a live update.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: In the middle of Japan's triple disaster, perhaps there is some good news having to do with Tokyo's water supply. But to the north, at the Daiichi nuclear power plant, two workers have been hospitalized.

Our CNN's Martin Savidge, he's in Tokyo. He joins us with the latest on all of this.

Marty, tell us exactly what happened to these two workers. It really sounds like perhaps what everyone was fearing.

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it is. I mean, one of the things, of course, you're concerned about are all those who are up there at the Fukushima nuclear plant that are struggling to try to bring things under control. And we know that there are literally hundreds of employees that have been working on that. But there were at least three of them today that were working specifically on reactor number 2. And this is considered to be the most dangerous of all the reactors out there because of the fuel mix which includes plutonium, very, very dangerous stuff.

They were trying to run a new power cable in there -- the old power cables had been knocked out as a result of the tsunami -- get the power back on, get the pumps going, and you bring stability, at least, hopefully, back to the plant. While they were working, they stepped in a puddle of water.

Well, there's no such thing as a regular puddle of water out there. Highly-radioactive water. Some of that water splashed up on the legs of some of these workers and apparently got on to their skin. And as a result of that, they suffered radiation burns.

Three of them, to be specific. Two went to the hospital. The third, apparently, it splashed on clothing not directly on the skin. That's why he didn't go.

The level of exposure they've received, apparently the equivalent almost of one year of normal exposure on the job. So, they got it in one single event. Even so, it's not said to be life-threatening as long as you treat it quickly, which is why they went to the hospital, Suzanne. And they did treat it quickly.

MALVEAUX: We can only imagine what some of those emergency workers have been doing over the last couple of weeks and the danger that they're under, under radiation there. We hope they're OK. I want you to talk a little bit about the water situation as well, because now we're hearing new reports that pregnant women can drink the tap water?

SAVIDGE: Right. It's been this progression, of course, for the people of Japan, but especially in your major city like Tokyo here, where, first of all, they were concerned about the levels of radiation in the water. Then it was the levels of radiation in the food and how radiation was entering the food chain. Now it's the water.

Yesterday, levels of water were deemed to be unhealthy for children under the age of 1. And I'm talking about the radiation contamination.

Today, when they tested the water, the levels were significantly lower. And no one's exactly sure why you had that significant fluctuation in a matter of 24 hours. But you're right, now the water is considered safe, even for pregnant women, who you might expect would be very cautious.

The reality is, though, that even though the level of radiation may have come down, the level of fear is still extremely high. They have bought out just about every bottled water to be found in the city of Tokyo. And people are, I doubt, drinking tap water even with the government saying it's OK.

MALVEAUX: So I'm a little confused, though, because the government is distributing bottled water still, right, to households that have babies? Is that right?

SAVIDGE: Right. They just started that. And, in fact, what the government was saying they may have to do is start importing bottled water from other countries to meet up with the supply.

But then you get this kind of whipsaw effect where, yesterday, the news was dire. Today, it's no, the water's OK. It's no wonder that many people are simply saying, you know what? I think I'm going to stick to the bottled water for the time being because I can't figure out what the levels are going to be from one day to the next.

MALVEAUX: All right. Yes, there's a lot of confusion there. Thank you, Marty. Appreciate that.

SAVIDGE: There is.

(BUSINESS REPORT)

MALVEAUX: Now it's your turn, your chance to "Choose the News." OK. You know how it works.

We're going to tell you about three stories, and you vote by text-messaging the one that you want to see in detail the next hour, and we will it. So here are the choices.

From "National Velvet" to national treasure, her career spanned seven decades. A look at the life of Elizabeth Taylor. Also, for the past six months, a team of engineers has been working on a secret app for your mobile phone. If you believe what they're saying, it's as revolutionary as Facebook and Twitter.

And although it may be more convenient, swiping your credit card at the gas pump may be costing you big-time.

So here's what you've got to do. Vote by texting 22360. Vote 1 for "Elizabeth Taylor's Life"; 2 for "Revolutionary Phone App"; or 3 for "Paying for Convenience."

The winning story is going to air in the next hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: I want to show you some new video. This is out of Everett, Washington. The USS Mumsen has just returned from Afghanistan. Look at the -- oh, you've got to lot to love it. The dad and his kid. He picks him up, he kisses him. What a wonderful reunion. These are about 300 sailors that were on a six-month deployment in Afghanistan. And they are back home. You saw just that touching moment of one of those sailors just picking his kid up and kissing him all over. Oh, more hugs. Family reunion. Six months in Afghanistan. Taking pictures. Wonderful moment for these families. Nice to share it.

Explosions rang out around Tripoli. Earlier today, coalition forces carried out a sixth day of air strikes on Libyan targets. Libyan TV showed what it said was a military base in flames. Coalition leaders have disputed claims of civilian casualties from the air strikes. And one attempt by the Libyan government, their officials to show proof that their allegations didn't go as planned.

Details from our senior international correspondent Nic Robertson.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): A drive through Tripoli streets is a window on a city at war. The roads quieter than normal. Half the stores closed. Like all trips we take, government officials determine when and where we go. This one to the south of the city. Not quite as they planned.

(on camera): About 30 minutes ago, the government took us to set off on a trek to find a civilian house they said had been damaged in bombing. They said there was a military facility nearby but civilians had been wounded, collateral damage, they said.

Well, we've been driving around for the last half an hour, 20 minutes in one neighborhood around what seems to be a heavily war- dotted compound. They still can't find this house. And they've been stopping to talk to people along the way. But they're not talking to the people on the street side here. Because this is a government convoy. Most likely people around here, even if they knew anything, wouldn't tell government officials. (voice-over): About 12 hours earlier, not long after Moammar Gadhafi's defiant speech, state TV ran a video it claimed showed civilians being pulled from burning rubble. That's the place we were expecting to be taken.

After more waiting at the roadside, not far from a large military installation, there is still no help for the government officials.

(on camera): Well, after another 10 minutes of indecision, we're moving on again. I'm not sure that the drivers actually know where they're going this time, but we're going to find out.

(voice-over): The day before when officials took us to see bomb damage at the harbor, residents flocked there, too, keen to see the strikes, state TV doesn't broadcast. Despite the pro-Gadhafi rallies that have become a staple of government television, this is a city of apprehension and anxiety. Regime opponents afraid to speak out, silently hoping for change. Everyone worried a wider war may be coming.

Today our opportunity to find out more all too brief.

(on camera): Well, we've been brought back to the hotel. The government officials couldn't find the house, so here we are back at the hotel where this all began about an hour ago.

Our window closing. Until the next time.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Tripoli, Libya.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: Well, the military mission in Libya is to protect civilians from an onslaught by Gadhafi forces. But politically both President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton have said it is time for Gadhafi to go. Well, that mission may be a lot more difficult to carry out.

Richard Haass of the Council of Foreign Relations talked about that on CNN's "ANDERSON COOPER 360."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICHARD HAASS, PRESIDENT, COUNCIL FOR FOREIGN RELATIONS: Whatever the U.S. phase is, the operation, until Libya is functioning as a normal country that in any way is a positive place, that could be a matter of years.

COOPER: Can you see a situation where Gadhafi remains in power and this operation ends?

HAASS: Sure.

He could -- he could hang tough. By and large, if governments stay intact and are willing to kill their own people, they can remain in place. And then the international community would have to decide whether to escalate. And we don't know whether the Arab League or all the Europeans and the United States would be willing to escalate.

The President said he wants Gadhafi to go, which is quite ambitious, but he also said no American boots on the ground. Right now we have a disconnect between the ambition of our goals and the limits on our means. And unless someone else is willing to provide those additional means, sure, it's quite possible that Gadhafi could survive or you simply have a standoff. You could imagine Libya fighting this out for some time to come.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Now also to the escalating violence in Syria. A human rights activist says thousands of people in Daraa turned out today for a funeral. It was for a soldier who was reportedly shot because he refused to fire on demonstrators.

Witnesses say 15 people were killed in a crackdown on protesters yesterday. An opposition leaders says at one point security forces tried to storm the area where protesters had taken up positions. The protesters want an end to the state of emergency that has been in place now for decades. They are also calling for the release of prisoners of conscious and for more freedoms.

Well, some overweight mothers don't know when their kids are too heavy. What is the reason for the disconnect? We're going to check with our senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen for the answers.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Don't forget to "Choose the News." Text for the story that you'd like to see in detail the next hour.

Vote one for the story about the life of Hollywood icon Elizabeth Taylor.

Two, for the story about mobile phone app that developers compare to Facebook and Twitter.

Or three, for the down side of using your credit card to buy gas.

The winning story is going to air in the next hour.

So if you or your kids are overweight, you've probably heard that you need to eat less, move more. But a new study now says that many parents suffer a disconnect when it comes to their own kids. They don't know when they're obese and that is something that can lead to health problems clearly later on.

Our senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen joins us. And tell us what the issue is here, Elizabeth.

How does this happen?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Right. The issue here, Suzanne, is do parents know that their kids are obese? And as a mom, I can say it's kind of hard sometimes keeping track of your kid's weight. They may seem chubby and then they shoot up and have a growth spurt. But parents need to keep track and know when their children are approaching dangerous weights.

And in the study by researchers at Columbia University of a low- income, mostly minority population, half of the moms were not aware that their children actually were obese. Suzanne?

MALVEAUX: Do you think -- do the kids realize that they were obese?

COHEN: No, the kids didn't realize it either. Four out of five kids didn't realize that they were obese. Now, these are kids who are old enough to know sort of theoretically, but it's a little less surprising -- it's sort of the mom part that surprises me more. You would expect a mom might know.

MALVEAUX: And why do you suppose the parents didn't realize there was actually a problem?

COHEN: You know, I think what happens is that as America gets more and more overweight and obese, your obese child just looks like all his friends. So your child is obese, but maybe his friend is even heavier than he is. So you start sort of feeling like your kid is OK. And that's a real problem because doctors need to say to parents, look, your child may look like everybody else, but your child is obese and maybe those other kids are, too.

MALVEAUX: Give us an example, Elizabeth. What would be obese for a child, for a kid?

COHEN: All right. Let's take a look at the growth charts here and see for an average height child, what would be considered obese.

For example, a five-year-old boy who weighs more than 48 pounds and is of about average height, that's obese. A 10-year-old girl of about average height, more than 96 pounds would be considered obese.

MALVEAUX: And how can you know if your kid is obese?

COHEN: Well, what you need to do is you need to go to the CDC web site and they have this great tool that really helps you figure it out. You put in your kid's gender and height and weight and it lets you know.

And if you go to CNN.com/thechart, there's a link to that CDC site. It's a little bit hard to find. There's a link to that site. So be an empowered patient, go in, put in your child's height, weight, age and gender, and you can find out if they're overweight, obese or at a good weight.

MALVEAUX: All right. Elizabeth, great information. Thank you.

COHEN: Thanks.

MALVEAUX: Radiation worries on the west coast now. Five states now reporting trace amounts in the air of this radiation. Is it dangerous? We're going to tell you what health officials are saying about it.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Very small amounts of radiation have been detected in western United States, and officials say it likely drifted over from Japan.

Now, air monitors in Colorado and Oregon have reported trace radioactive particles this week along with Washington, California and Hawaii, but health officials insist there is no health risk. The EPA says, in a typical day, Americans get doses of radiation from natural sources like the sun, bricks, rocks that are about 100,000 times higher than what has come from Japan.

The shifting winds in northern Japan threatened to blow radiation over more land areas. I want to check in with our Rob Marciano.

Rob, what's the situation like? I know a lot of the West Coast folks are relieved and say not a lot of radiation, but there's areas where it's spreading, yes?

ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, certainly in Japan, and it's totally dependent on the local winds there because we have the radiation that's hovering over the plants.

And there's two things that can bring it down into populated areas. One, the winds, obviously. And thankfully, for the most part, the prevailing winds at the surface and at the mid-levels and in the higher levels is from west to east, so that with take it out to sea.

The other issue is, if you get any sort of precipitation with an onshore wind, which doesn't happen often but it can happen, that will take some of that radiation that's in the particles that are in the air that are radioactive and precipitate that down to the ground with the rain and the snow.

So we don't want the precipitation, but typically with the precip comes a pretty strong east to west wind. So -- or west to east wind I should say.

What we have right now, though, are very light winds. No real strong system over the area right now. We've got winds anywhere from three miles an hour to two miles an hour onshore or offshore.

But as we go through time here, the forecast as we get a couple of short waves or a little mini-cyclones that come through the area, that will help make the pattern a little bit more progressive from west to east.

So as far as what the forecast models are showing for our winds, we go from calm to slightly onshore to everything now over the next couple days really goes offshore pretty strong. And first it goes 10 to 20 to 30 miles an hour. And then, by the time we get to Sunday, anywhere from 10 to 15 miles per hour.

So that's the direction we want. And that's, for the most part, you know, four out of five days, Suzanne is when we'll get a pretty strong offshore wind and that's what we want. It's the one or one and a half days out of the week where we get either light winds or onshore flow is when things get nervous, and that's how that radiation gets into the soil and vegetation and unfortunately the water supply in spots.

MALVEAUX: OK, thank you, Rob.

MARCIANO: You bet.

MALVEAUX: An American contractor has a special interest in what's going on in Japan's crippled nuclear plant. He was actually there the day the earthquake and tsunami hit, and he talked about his dramatic experience with CNN's David Mattingly.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANNY EUDY, FUKUSHIMA DAIICHI PLANT WORKER: Kind of like slowed down just a little. Then all of a sudden it got worse and worse.

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When the quake hit, he was in a turbine building attached to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactor number one. The shaking was so violent, American contractor Danny Eudy says he didn't need a translator to know what the Japanese workers were shouting.

EUDY: You know "run" is "run."

MATTINGLY (on camera): Did you think you were going to make it out of that building?

EUDY: I wasn't sure.

MATTINGLY (voice-over): Once outside, Eudy says he saw cracks in the ground around the plant, a hillside had shifted on a road and one office building had collapsed. He was confident, however, that the reactors were fine.

EUDY: To the best of my knowledge, everything shut down when it was supposed to. I was not worried about the reactors.

MATTINGLY: But it wasn't long before his Japanese coworkers were shouting the alarm about something else, the massive tsunami topping the flood wall and hitting the plant.

Eudy had already run to high ground over a hill and wasn't able to see the wave, but he was able to see what it did, and that affected him deeply.

EUDY: It's just, it's gone in a matter of seconds. But there's no precursor, no warnings, nothing other than when it hits.

MATTINGLY: Eudy was evacuated to Tokyo and within days was back in the U.S., but his thoughts remain with the workers he left behind in Fukushima.

(on camera): Are those workers, in your mind, heroes?

EUDY: No, sir, I don't know about heroes. I would just call them, like myself, just workers trying to do the best they can.

MATTINGLY (voice-over): David Mattingly, CNN, Alexandria, Louisiana.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: A reminder about your chance to "Choose the News." You vote by texting 22360. Vote 1 for "Elizabeth Taylor's Life," vote 2 for "Revolutionary Phone App," or vote 3 for "Paying For Convenience." The winning story will air in the next hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Now is your chance to "Talk Back" on one of the big stories of the day.

President Obama's strategy in Libya is coming under fire from some Democrats as well as Republicans. That's the topic of today's "Talk Back" question. Our Carol Costello has your responses.

A lot of folks went in, huh, Carol?

COSTELLO: A lot of folks feel very strongly about this.

The "Talk Back" question today: What do you want the president to say or do about Libya?

This from Richie, "Exit strategy? Just turn the ships around. Sail in the opposite direction. There is way too much being made out of this. We bombed some buildings, killed some bad guys, let's move on."

This from Sherry, "Continue to support/protect these idealistic and brave freedom fighters of Libya. Being a world leader means leading the world."

This from Ned, "How about a concise explanation of the policy and what constitutes success? Secondly, why wasn't Congress consulted and how does he justify phoning in air strikes while leaving on a tour of Latin America?"

And this from Nic, "We did our part, now the other 99 percent of the U.N. can deal with it. We don't have the funds to be policing the world."

This from Rex, "Talk to Congress. I thought this guy was a constitutional scholar? LOL."

Continue the conversation -- Facebook.com/CarolCNN, Facebook.com/CarolCNN -- and I'll see you in about 10 minutes or so.

MALVEAUX: All right. Great, Carol, thanks. Moving on after heart break. A woman pretends that she's OK for herself and for her surviving son after Japan's devastating tsunami takes most of her family.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: The scope of the emotional trauma in Japan is just heart wrenching, it's just difficult to imagine. And the daily effort just to survive leaves little time to mourn.

In one town, many of the dead and the missing are children. Our CNN's Kyung Lah tells us how the parents are trying to cope.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KYUNG LAH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For Keiko Naganuma coping with loss comes by denying grief. She stays upbeat for her 6-year-old son, Ran, silently counting the number of her missing family members.

Seven or eight, she says, from her mother to her other son, 8- year-old son Koto (ph). He is presumed dead, his body washed away by the tsunami. He was at school.

"No matter what's happened to him, I just want him back," she says. "My child should come home to me, I need to find him."

It's a feeling shared by this community, searching for so many young children and mourning a loss that defies life's natural order.

(on camera): When the earthquake happened, students at Ishinomaki Elementary evacuated out of the school, they had no idea a tsunami was coming. Out of 108 students at the school that day, 77 are either dead or missing. That's 70 percent of the children at the school.

(voice-over): Only a shell stands where children learned. Backpack after backpack sits for parents to retrieve, along with a picture of the school little league team, the bats they used, art bags filled with crayons, all waiting to be identified and brought home.

But there are no homes for these Ishinomaki evacuees. You may notice there are hardly any children in this shelter. Those who survived will struggle emotionally.

Aid organization Save the Children hopes to ease the onslaught of the trauma, giving child tsunami victims something simple, a place to play inside the evacuation centers.

SHANA PEIFFER, SAVE THE CHILDREN: To have a sense of safety and to actually also work with the parents and how to support them in the process. It's going to be a long recovery process for children.

LAH: For 8-year-old Miku, one of the 30 survivors of the elementary school, it's a relief. A chance to draw something pretty away from the devastation of the world around her. The day ends for Keiko Naganuma without any word about her missing son. She will not fall apart, she says.

"I'm not OK," she says, "of course I'm not. But I have another son. Ran saw the tsunami, his brother is not coming home, so I think he understands. I can see he's pretending to be happy so we don't worry about him."

So mother joins and pretends for her son and for herself.

Kyung Lah, CNN, Ishinomaki, Japan

(END VIDEOTAPE)