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Stranded, Flooded, Washed Away; ATF Director Melson Being Reassigned; Vice Signs $100 Million Contract; Gadhafi's Daughter Gives Birth in Algeria; Nancy Grace To Dance With The Stars; FEMA Disaster Funds Running Low; Blessing In Disguise

Aired August 30, 2011 - 12:59   ET

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

RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: Roads and bridges trashed and washed away. Whole communities isolated or worse. Hundreds of people stranded or flooded out. And some rivers and streams still rising. Almost 48 hours after the rains of Irene, much of the Northeast is still in the depths of disaster. This is Vermont -- take a look there -- where FEMA director Craig Fugate is touring the floods and promising federal help, even if it means postponing long term health for prior disasters.

In New Jersey, first responders are rafting house to house rescuing hundreds of families, pets included, from the bloated Passaic River. It is cresting today well above what's considered major flood stage.

Likewise, the Connecticut River due to crest at midnight. From Florida to Massachusetts, at least 40 deaths are being blamed on hurricane, slash, tropical storm Irene. And more than three million homes and businesses still don't have power. Flood warnings still are in effect in five states from Vermont to New Jersey. All this brings me to my colleague, Mary Snow, in Patterson, New Jersey. Mary, what is going on there around you right now?

MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Randi, you know evacuations have been going on for the past 48 hours and they are only intensifying because you just mentioned, there are some rivers that have yet to crest. And here in Patterson, New Jersey, which is about three blocks away from the Passaic River, and that has not yet crested. We are told it's about seven feet higher than it normally is, and there have been boats going out that were with the State Office of Emergency Management, their search and rescue teams have been going out all morning. We're joined by the mayor of Patterson, Jeff Jones. Mr. Mayor, thanks for joining us. What is your biggest concern right now?

JEFF JONES, MAYOR OF PATTERSON, NEW JERSEY: Well, the biggest concern right now is the fact that folks didn't take it as seriously as we had announced it and that's understandable. This is one of the record floods we've ever had. So, we're now finding more folks who are in the path of danger than one could imagine. The expanse of the flooding has almost doubled on both sides of the river. And we've lost all of our bridges, so there's only one way in and one way out, and any vehicle traffic is now only adding more to the congestion. We're just dealing with communications and trying to get people out. SNOW: How many people -- I've heard that hundreds of people have already been evacuated, right?

JONES: As of 9:00 last night, when we went to Bergen Community College, which is the designated center by the Red Cross, there were about 200 to 300 folks in route. This morning I got a number of 850. We just had to evacuate Presidential Boulevard, which has four buildings, approximately 20 stories, 15 apartments each floor. So, that's the equivalent of four or five city blocks. That doesn't include Triangle Village which is over here or Colt Street -- Colt Arms (ph) right here.

SNOW: So, all said and done, talking about thousands?

JONES: Thousands.

SNOW: We've been watching these rescues throughout the day, small children, and we saw some aerial shots of rescues. Any injuries that you know of?

JONES: Well, I don't know of any fatalities, and thankfully if that's the case, we've had some folks who are obviously under stress and some emotional issues, have required medical attention. We have taken them directly to St. Joe's, who's been very supportive. But to this date, we have no knowledge of any harsh or extreme conditions.

SNOW: And now you're just waiting for the waters to continue to rise?

JONES: Cresting is established at -- based on last report, 2:00, originally it was 6:00. And at this level, and we haven't crested, I have no idea how far back we're going to be pushing back. Our command center has moved back on east main twice and now they're on north 2nd street, and that's approximately a little less than quarter of a mile.

SNOW: Mr. Mayor, we appreciate your time, we know you're very busy. We appreciate you joining us and giving us that update.

JONES: Thank you.

SNOW: And you know, Randi, we've been here for two hours or so and just have seen a steady stream of the state OEM rescue workers coming in with boats. We talked to one man earlier today, he said he was on the second floor of a home, that he thought this area gets flooded a lot, he thought he could ride it out, and then last night he realized that he need to get out. He didn't have a phone so he was waiting for boats to come by and caught the attention of one crew.

KAYE: And Mary, they have enough shelters for these stranded folks? Is that where they're taking them?

SNOW: Well, the mayor is saying that he's looking to open up some schools because he's going to need more space, and that is in the works right now.

KAYE: OK. Mary Snow there in New Jersey, thank you very much, Mary.

And checking some other developing stories that we're following, a shake-up today in the bureau of alcohol, tobacco, firearms and explosives. Director Kenneth Melson being reassigned to the justice department as the senior advisor for forensic issues. Melson came under fire for the so-called fast and furious program involving illegal weapons sales along the border with Mexico. The justice department says Melson is being replaced by U.S. attorney Todd Jones, who will serve as acting director of the ATF.

From NFL outcast to one of the highest paid players in pro football, that is Michael Vick. The Philadelphia Eagles say Vick has signed a new contract worth $100 million for six years. Of that, $40 million apparently guaranteed.

Vick was arrested on dog fighting charges, you may recall, back in 2007, and spent 18 months in prison. Since his release, Vick has appeared at public events with the humane society condemning dog fighting. Last year, he led the eagles to the NFC east title and was the comeback player of the year.

The daughter of Moammar Gadhafi has had a baby in Algeria. An Algerian official tells the French press agency that Aisha Gadhafi gave birth to a girl shortly after arriving in the country yesterday. The government says she made the crossing with Gadhafi's wife and two of his sons. Algeria says they were allowed into the country on humanitarian grounds. Aisha Gadhafi served as a U.N. Goodwill ambassador until she was dismissed when Gadhafi launched his crackdown against anti-government protesters earlier this year.

All right. For you "Dancing With The Stars" fans, we have got the new lineup for you. And you're looking at least one of them. Among the 12 contestants for the 13th season of the ABC show, Nancy Grace of our sister network, HLN. Some of the other celebrities she'll be going up against, soccer star, Hope Solo, the outspoken pro basketball star, Ron Artest, actor David Arquette and actor and Iraq War combat veteran, J.R. Martinez. As for Nancy as a prospect, she says, quote, I know I'm not the youngest or the thinnest but I've got a lot of heart.

FEMA's disaster funds are nearly depleted and that could be bad news for victims of both Hurricane Irene and other disasters this year. What repair projects will have to be put on hold? We'll take a look, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: FEMA is putting the brakes on some long-term repair and rebuilding projects because its disaster funding is running low. Now, here's a closer look at why. Check out this map here behind me. Forty states, highlighted here in blue, have made major disaster declarations this year. That means they are all eligible for federal funds from FEMA following some sort of natural disaster. In fact, there have been ten storms that have cost at least $1 billion each this year alone, from severe winter storms in parts of the northeast and Midwest to tornadoes and flooding in the southeast and out west. This has been a very stormy and very costly year.

And what's worse, we are just now approaching the height of hurricane season. FEMA says its disaster relief fund is below $1 billion right now which is the minimum amount they like to keep on hand. That means some projects will have to be put on hold.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CRAIG FUGATE, FEMA ADMINISTRATOR: For the individuals that we're helping, for the cleanup and for the emergency costs, we're continuing that, but for any projects that have not come in for approval, we are not going to be able to fund those at this point. We're going to postpone those. They are still eligible but we won't be able to start new permanent work such as permanent construction repairing damages from those tornadoes.

JANET NAPOLITANO, SECRETARY, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY: We're not diverting any funds from reconstruction in Joplin, Missouri. All we have done is to make sure that all survivors are paid, all ongoing projects continue, but no new projects will be approved until we see what the immediate survivors of Irene need.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Joining me now on the telephone is Congressman David Price from North Carolina. He is on the Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee which is responsible for FEMA's budget. Representative Price, thank you for your time today. You saw this funding crunch coming. What did you and your fellow panel members do about it?

REP. DAVID PRICE (D), U.S. CONGRESSMAN, NORTH CAROLINA (on the phone): Not enough, I'm afraid. I have said for weeks as we've had disasters throughout the country and now, of course, faced with this Irene disaster all up and down the Eastern seaboard that we simply must replenish the disaster relief fund over at homeland security. And what's more, we need to designate this as the law provides emergency spending. This is a genuine emergency.

And the notion that we would hold this up until Republicans can prompt another budget fight and figure out what they want to cut, what they want to offset in the budget and to pit one section of the country against the other and to delay this and create this uncertainty, it's just the latest chapter, and I think one of the most unsavory ones of our budget wars. We need to get this money in place so that our communities know they've got the support that they've counted on.

KAYE: And when you say, hold this up, I assume that you're speaking in part to representative Cantor's comments that the money to pay for the disaster -- Eric Cantor's comments on Fox on Monday, that the money to pay for the disaster aid will have to be offset with cuts elsewhere in the budget, that we're just going to need to make sure that there are savings elsewhere to continue to do so, were his exact words. So, it sounds like there may be a potential fight here with the House Republicans? PRICE: Well, I think it's a -- it's a -- it's an untenable position and one that simply is unresponsive and insensitive to the kind of situation we face in this country. You know, I'm not saying every past designation of emergency funding was justified. We need to make sure we're talking about genuine emergencies. But how can anybody doubt that this is a genuine emergency? This is a horrible storm. We have in North Carolina, just been talking to our rescue groups out there, we are going to have enormous repair and rescue efforts to pay for and that's true all the way up the east coast of this country.

And as your reporter just said, there are obligations from past disasters in Missouri and elsewhere. And the notion that you would say in effect that we are going to not do this until we can have another budget fight, figure out whose budget we're going to cut or what kind of economic development funds, like high speed rail was one they picked earlier. What kind of economic development funds we're going to cut, how many jobs we're going to cut in order to do disaster relief? That is not the way this Congress should be operating. An emergency is an emergency. We need to be straightforward and honest in labeling it as such and get the money where it needs to go to get relief to our communities. I just -- I think I'm just very impatient and I think the American people are going to be impatient with any attempt to hold these funds hostage to political objectives.

KAYE: Your committee is going to take up FEMA funding measures as soon as lawmakers return to the capitol next week. So, how do you plan to get that through?

PRICE: Well, we will -- I believe we'll get it through. The question is are we going to get it through in an expeditious fashion without encumbering it with a lot of these budget disputes and insisting that an emergency not be labeled an emergency but that instead, it come out of somebody else's hide, or are we going to do it right? And that's really the issue we're going to face. Of course we will vote for the emergency funds, but there is a question as to how completely we will cover the emergency and whether we will label it an emergency so it can be done in the most straightforward possible fashion.

KAYE: Are there any other options here? I mean, what if FEMA runs dry?

PRICE: Well, FEMA is wisely making some plans to prioritize. They have to do that because they can't spend money they don't have. But they shouldn't be put in this position, and the country shouldn't be put in this position of uncertainty and one region having to worry about whether they're traded off against another region, that's just unacceptable. It's not the way we've operated in the past. And you know, FEMA is really doing --

KAYE: But let me just -- let me just --

PRICE: -- a good job in this situation. They're doing a heroic job, as are the localities in the states. And it's just unconscionable that the U.S. Congress would somehow be the bottleneck in this process.

KAYE: And to those who say that adding to the deficit would be unconscionable, what would you say to those people?

PRICE: I would say that we have a law in this country that provides for responsible budgeting. And that law provides in advance for emergency designations for genuine emergencies. And so that's what we should do. It's very straightforward.

KAYE: All right, Representative David Price from North Carolina. David, appreciate your time. Thank you.

PRICE: Thank you very much.

KAYE: And stay with us. Coming up in about 10 minutes, North Carolina Governor Perdue, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack will be holding a news conference right there in North Carolina. And we will bring that to you. That's coming up around 1:30. About 15 minutes from now.

And up next, if you're looking for a job, we are going to tell you the top five companies now hiring.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: The news about the economy and jobs hasn't exactly been reassuring with reports that we may be headed back into recession, but jobs are still out there. You just have to know where to look. AOL tracked down the top companies hiring not in a few months or a few weeks, but this week, in fact.

So you car aficionados will know about this first one we're about to tell you. Mopar. The parts and service division for the Chrysler Group is one of those companies hiring right now. Mopar is searching for young and creative types who don't necessarily have to have an automotive background.

Let's take a look at who else. OK, we have Mopar. Then, of course, there is Verizon. Verizon was recently ranked third by collegegrads.com when it comes to companies hiring entry level workers. Verizon is looking to hire more than 4,000 new grads this year, pushing to attract more fine arts, music and liberal arts majors as well.

Moving on. Macy's is also looking for workers. As one of the largest U.S. retail companies, Macy's plans to hire 3,500 employees over the next two years.

Also, senior care is in high demand and the industry is in need of workers. Extendicare heath services operates more than 250 long term senior care centers. A lot of independently owned nursing homes are now hiring Extendicare to consult on how to make their operations much more efficient than they are.

Now, on the finance and banking side, there is Wells Fargo, the fourth largest bank in the U.S. based on assets. You probably heard about their merger with Wachovia bank. Well, that has opened up a whole lot more jobs.

Now, just a few places to start or continue your job hunt, we'll have a list of more companies on my FaceBook page, facebook.com/randikayecnn. Good luck with your job hunt.

It's time right now, about 20 minutes past the hour, let's check some of our top stories. The deadly avian flu may be coming back. Commonly referred to as bird flu. The United Nations warns there are signs a mutant strain may be spreading in Asia. This particular bird flu apparently can outsmart current vaccines. The Food and Agriculture Organization says the virus has appeared in Vietnam and China. You see there in red. But the mutant strain threatens a number of neighboring countries. The avian flu most recently killed eight people in Cambodia.

In Afghanistan, August has been the deadliest month for U.S. forces since the conflict began nearly 10 years ago. Sixty-six American troops have been killed this month. Almost half of those deaths took place on August 6th when insurgents shot down a helicopter in an eastern province. That attack alone killed 30 U.S. service members, including 17 Navy SEALs.

Republican Presidential Candidate Michele Bachmann says she just has a great sense of humor. Bachmann came under fire after making the comment that the D.C. earthquake and Hurricane Irene were acts of God sending a message to Washington. Bachmann said on Monday the remarks were intended to tell the president he was not listening to the American people. Bachmann says it was simply a joke and that she was, quote, being humorous.

President Obama now plans to speak at the National Cathedral on September 11th. The White House just announced that. After touring the memorial sites in New York, Pennsylvania, and the Pentagon, the president will deliver the keynote address at the cathedral's tenth anniversary Concert of Hope.

Now here's a story you have to stick around for. Last week's earthquake apparently cured a man's deafness. I am not kidding. You really have to stick around to hear this story. We'll have much more in two minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT VALDERZAK: My hearing is back. I can hear everything. People out in the hallway. To me it was a miracle. A blessing from God up above. And couldn't ask for a better day.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Why is Veteran Robert Valderzak telling the Fox affiliate in D.C. that his hearing is a miracle? Because the 75-year-old was deaf for months until, get this, last week's earthquake somehow rattled his hearing back. Joining me now, the man who is treating Robert, Dr. Ross Fletcher, chief of staff at the Washington, D.C. Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

Thank you so much, doctor, for joining us. So, just how well is Robert able to hear now? I mean is his hearing fully restored?

DR. ROSS FLETCHER, CHIEF OF STAFF, WASHINGTON, D.C., VETERANS AFFAIRS MEDICAL CENTER: Well, it's not fully restored, but he hears quite well now and he did not hear well prior to the earthquake. He had a lot of fluid in his ear and that caused him to not hear unless he was using an amplifier at the bedside. When he used the amplifier, he could hear. But not until the earthquake was the ability to hear everyone in the room easy for him.

KAYE: So can we really say that the quake actually cured his deafness? I mean what is the explanation for this miracle?

FLETCHER: Well, he has a -- there is an explanation in that he did have a buildup of fluid in his ears since he fell on Father's Day. And, at that time, the fluid built up quite strongly and tensed his tympanic membrane so much that he could not hear without the aid of accessory devices. He would use an amplifier, turn it up full blast in order to hear. And immediately after the earthquake, he could hear everyone in the room quite well.

KAYE: Have you ever seen anything like this before?

FLETCHER: No, I haven't, but I'm delighted that it occurred. This patient has had a lot of problems over the last few months and felt very joyous at the event and told his family, his daughters and his sons were all in the room with him at the time, that this had happened and he just is tickled to have this happen. And we are, obviously, very pleased that it happened as well and are supporting him in the joy that he feels about this event.

KAYE: Yes, of course. It's hard not to. It's very exciting news for him. But I'm curious, could this have changed or worked out differently maybe if he had been standing in a different spot? Or how precise did the quake need to be in terms of where it was and where he was? I mean what if he was down the street or in the next community, could it still have had the same impact?

FLETCHER: Well, we don't know the exact mechanism of the earthquake. We do think that it did help release the fluid in his ear that we were aware of. And we have taken audiograms which show marked improvement.

He was on the fourth floor, and as you probably know, the higher up you are, the more shaking can occur. And he was startled by it and his family had to actually hold him down. But as soon as he got up, he asked for his usual listening device and then said, wait a minute, I don't need that device, I can hear quite well.

And I spoke to him right after the earthquake as well, and he was able to hear all of my conversation and simultaneously hear other people in the room at the same time.

KAYE: And does it appear to you that he is in the clear now or is there a chance that he could lose his hearing again?

FLETCHER: Well, if the fluid builds back up, it could happen. But we think it was related to his fall on Father's Day and it is quite likely that it will stay away. He does have chronic sinusitis and some of these patients do have reaccumulation. We weren't able to take the fluid off through our usual means because he has a problem with a bleeding disorder and we weren't able to do that. But taking the fluid off is what he needed and it does appear that the shaking during the earthquake helped achieve that goal.

KAYE: You don't know -- you don't strike me as especially excited about this, but we're really excited about this. In fact, we want to know, I mean, is it possible to create an earthquake chamber of some sort to help other people get their hearing back?

FLETCHER: Well, I -- I'm not -- we're not sure exactly how this all happened, but normally we have other methods of taking the fluid off and there are some medications that actually help. He was actually -- he was started on one of those medications, but clearly did not have the change in hearing that we now perceive on his audiogram until the earthquake occurred. And we are excited for him and we're very happy that his family is also very pleased with the result. He needs a break like this.

KAYE: It sounds like he does.

Dr. Fletcher, appreciate your time and good luck. Thank you.

FLETCHER: Thank you very much.

KAYE: And just ahead, a member of President Obama's family has been arrested. We'll tell you who and we'll tell you why, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Time right now, about half past the hour. Let's check the headlines and some other news that you may have missed.

We now know what caused this pipeline explosion outside of San Francisco last year. Yes, we all remember those pictures. A new National Transportation Safety Board report is pointing the finger at the Pacific Gas and Electric Company and weak oversight by state and federal regulators.

Here's what the NTSB said just moments ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DEBORAH HERSMAN, CHAIRWOMAN, NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD: We know now that this tragedy began years ago with PG&E's 1956 installation of a woefully inadequate pipe.

It was compounded over the years by a litany of failures, including poor record-keeping, inadequate inspection programs, and integrity management programs without integrity.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: The pipeline explosion back in September 2010 killed eight people and destroyed or damaged dozens of homes.

Hurricane Irene is long gone, but more than three million people along the East Coast are still without power. And many are surrounded by floodwater. Take a look at this, photos sent by iReporter Chris Brokski (ph) of residents in Randolph, Vermont, stranded, cut off by rushing water that carved through roads and took out bridges.

And in Paterson, New Jersey, families trapped by rushing water are being rescued by small teams in boats. Meanwhile, north of Jersey in Prattsville, New York, search teams continue looking for the missing. The number of the missing now is still unknown.

And President Obama's uncle is arrested for driving under the influence. Police say Onyango Obama, seen here, was arrested last week in Framingham, Massachusetts, after failing a sobriety test. He is the half-brother of President Obama's father. According to a federal law enforcement source, President Obama's uncle is not in the United States legally and had previously been ordered to leave the country. His case is now reportedly going through the immigration process.

Polygamist leader Warren Jeffs is hospitalized in Tyler, Texas, in critical, but stable condition. Prison officials say Jeffs is not in a coma, as previously reported. Jeffs reportedly has not been eating since he was found guilty of sexual assault.

Take a look at this picture of him in jail. And here's a photo of Jeffs during the trial there on the left. And as you can see, he lost quite a bit of weight. We will bring you more on Warren Jeffs next hour.

A controversial penalty at a high school football game Friday in Ohio. At Louisville High School's season opener, wide receiver Alex Schooley caught a touchdown pass, as you can see it there. He pointed to the sky. This reaction caused officials to penalize the team with excessive celebration.

But what officials may not have known at the time is that, earlier in the day, Schooley was a pallbearer at his friend's funeral -- 16-year-old Dominic Wilgus died after a car accident earlier in the week. The assistant -- Ohio High School Athletic Association says, despite the situation, the penalty was appropriate.

While Hurricane Irene tore up the East Coast, soldiers of the Old Guard seen here continued marching at the Tomb of the Unknown. They also reportedly refused shelter, dedicating themselves to their post. The historic monument sits at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia, a short distance from Washington, D.C.

The U.S. Army's 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment stands guard 24 hours a day year-round. The Tomb of the Unknowns is dedicated to American service members who died without their remains being identified. Our families say a lot about us, but what does family history mean when it comes to your heart? That answer from Dr. Sanjay Gupta in 75 seconds.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Heart disease is the number-one killer of men and women in the U.S. If you have a family history of it, heart disease poses an even bigger risk.

Our chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, falls into that category, like many of you. He has a family history of heart disease. But what can Sanjay or you do to avoid a heart attack?

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Randi, that's the question I think a lot of people have. If you have a family history, if you have a strong genetic predisposition, are you preordained to having heart disease?

And I think the incredibly optimistic and true answer is, you're not. You're not in any way preordained. You can change the way the genes express themselves. And a lot of people like Dean Ornish, for example, have written papers about this.

But it's a really aspirational thing. Live a healthy life, obviously, eat the right diet, and change the way your genes actually are making your body tick. Also, I think it's important to note this a lot of the risk factors that we typically think of with heart disease, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, smoking, hypertension, all that, while they are still risk factors, they don't paint a complete picture.

We have a lot more knowledge about what real risk factors are for people. You always hear the stories of someone who was seemingly the perfect picture of health, then they suddenly have a heart attack. Why?

We have a much better idea of the answer to that question now. Bill Clinton, a lot of people know he was featured in a documentary. He is now a vegan. He has made a strict change in his health. And I'll tell you, after his heart surgery, he modified his diet somewhat, but it wasn't until after he had his stents placed more recently that he really changed his diet. He says he feels great and again is banking on this idea that his heart disease that he has will start to be reversed.

One of the criticisms that always comes up with regard to vegan diets, is, is there enough protein, for example? Well, Randi, I will tell you that there's a lot of vegetables out there, for example, that have the same amount of protein per grams as meat does. Some of them even have more, broccoli, for example, spinach. You can also get protein in tofu. You get it in beans and lentils. So I think that's a bit of a spurious argument to say, I'm just not going to get enough protein. Look, this has gone from the realm of being sort of fringe anecdotal research to much larger, controlled studies. And what we found after a year of investigation is that people felt really good when they're on one of these diets and they started to see significant improvements in their heart health as well -- Randi, back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: Thank you, Sanjay. And you can watch all of "The Last Heart Attack" on Sanjay's live stream at CNN.com/Sanjay or on television this Saturday night at 8:00 Eastern.

The Libyan rebels expressing outrage at their neighbor Algeria. We will tell you what the dispute is all about. Plus, an update on the nanny allegedly tortured by the wife of one of Gadhafi's sons. We're going to live to Tripoli right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: The Libyan rebels have laid down the gauntlet to forces loyal to Moammar Gadhafi: Surrender by Saturday or face major assaults by rebel fighters.

Rebels have surrounded Gadhafi's hometown of Sirte and loyalist forces still control a few other cities in the northern and southern part of the country. In another key development, the rebel leadership is demanding that Algeria extradite Gadhafi family members who fled to the neighboring country yesterday. Algeria says it allowed Gadhafi's wife and three of his children to enter the country on humanitarian grounds.

CNN's Dan Rivers is following these developments in Tripoli and he joins us now.

Dan, what is the latest on this dispute between the rebels and Algeria?

DAN RIVERS, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Algeria doesn't recognize the new government here, the National Transitional Council, so they have allowed the Gadhafi family to cross over into Algeria.

They say they crossed over at 8:45 a.m. yesterday for humanitarian reasons. It wasn't really specified exactly what that was. But Gadhafi's daughter Aisha just gave birth, so that may be one reason why they allowed her across. She gave birth in Algeria.

The National Transitional Council, though, is furious. It's saying that the family should be brought back to face trial here in Tripoli. And they're saying if the Algerians fail to do that, it will be treated as an act of aggression against the will of the Libyan people. So they're not mincing their words. And relations between this new government that's just establishing itself and the existing Algerian government have been plunged into the deep freeze.

KAYE: And let me ask you this. We know that Algeria hasn't recognized the rebel leadership. Do we know why that is?

RIVERS: There's quite a few countries in Africa that have not, because of presumably their previous close ties with the Libyan leader or because they are slow to react or because they feel that perhaps this isn't completely over yet. We don't know.

But they haven't, as haven't a number of other African countries. The vast majority of Europe and the West, of course, have and are already setting up embassy facilities for the NTC and holding press conferences with its leader and so on, and doing everything to make the NTC look every bit the official government, even though here on the ground in Tripoli there's still quite a lot of chaos in terms of lack of water, of electricity.

There's no police around. You know, the fighting has stopped in Tripoli, but this is not business as normal quite yet.

KAYE: Yes. And how easy was it for the Gadhafi family members to get into Tripoli? Do we know where they crossed?

RIVERS: We don't know, but there is a very, very long border between Libya and Algeria to the west, most of it barren desert. So, one would imagine it would have been fairly simple if they still controlled that south, sort of western part of Tripoli, for them simply to drive across.

The information from the south is pretty scant. As far as we're aware, the southern tribes are still loyal to Gadhafi, but, frankly, we haven't gotten much direct confirmation of that ourselves, not being able to get down there.

But if that is the case, if those southern tribes are still loyal to him, then it would be fairly simple for them simply to jump in a car and just drive through the desert and across into Algeria.

KAYE: Dan Rivers in Tripoli -- Dan, thank you very much.

We are just getting some information and on the line with us now is Hisham Abuhajer. This is just coming in. He's the Tripoli Brigades coordinator. And we have him on the line.

Hisham, thank you for joining us.

I want to ask you about this information -- I'm just getting it here -- 50,000 people both civilian and combatant have been killed in Libya since the uprising began on February 14?

CMDR. HISHAM ABUHAJER, TRIPOLI BRIGADE COMMANDER: Yes. Yes, that's true.

KAYE: What can you tell us about that?

ABUHAJER: total -- Actually, 50,000 is a number that has been looked at. While we believe it's a lot more, but, OK, just being on the safe side, we said 50,000 because we know for sure, for example, Misrata has about 9,000 killed on both sides, just Misrata itself. In the area of just Ajdabiya and Brega and Benghazi, it is also something in the neighborhood of 7,000 to 8,000 people killed, both civilian and in the army and from both sides. Zlitan itself, it has about 1,500.

The mountain Nafusa (INAUDIBLE) Nafusa area, also, it has maybe a total of 20 battles between the two armies. And in between, NATO is also shelling and bombing. And Gadhafi is also shelling with the Grad missiles the civilians. So it's a big war. It's a war that happened in several areas in a period of six months. And I think 50,000 is not a big number, as far as how big the event was.

KAYE: And you're expecting -- you just said that you're expecting an even higher death toll.

ABUHAJER: Yes. I expect a bigger toll because, Oklahoma, there are still some people missing, people we cannot find.

Some family members -- I know people here in Tripoli say that their family members are in Benghazi. And when we tried to call to Benghazi, we could not find them. We really don't know if they're missing or dead. I don't know how we are going to make the count, but, OK, probably it will be a little bit more than the 50,000.

KAYE: And just so we know, where are these numbers coming from? Are these numbers coming from the National Transitional Council, the opposition forces?

ABUHAJER: Yes, it's coming from the opposition forces, but, OK, for example, the number that came from Misrata, it came from the Red Crescent in Misrata.

The Red Crescent, OK, they made a big graveyard and they really counted head by head. And they went up to 6,000 just from the -- Gadhafi's forces that they buried themselves. So this is a real number here. OK, it's not really official, OK, but later, when it's quiet and then we can make the counts and look closer to the issue, I am sure we come up with some of the numbers.

(CROSSTALK)

KAYE: All right, Hisham Abuhajer, the Tripoli Brigades coordinator, thank you very much, some startling numbers there; 50,000 people have died there in that conflict in Libya.

ABUHAJER: All right.

KAYE: We will take a break here, and we will have much more news on the other side.

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KAYE: It's a bird, it's a plane, it's bulletproof skin created from genetically engineered spider milk. What?

You just saw images, the Man of Steel repelling bullets in Warner Bros.' 2006 "Superman Returns." But my next guests have created a bulletproof skin of their own, kind of. Take a look at this. Bullets fired at a reduced speed from a .22-caliber gun not being able to break a skin made from -- listen carefully here -- spider silk protein from the milk of genetically modified goats. I hope you're keeping up with all this.

Joining me now for today's "Big I" via Skype, Randy Lewis, professor of biology at Utah State University, who has been pioneering methods of producing spider silk from some -- well, some unexpected sources, and from the Netherlands, Dutch bio-artist Jalila Essaidi, who created this bulletproof experiment.

Thank you both so much for joining us.

This is really interesting, a little bizarre, but also really cool at the same time.

Randy, to you first. Tell me more about this spider silk protein and how the goats actually produce it.

RANDOLPH LEWIS, UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY: Well, we genetically engineered the goats so that they produced the spider silk protein in their milk. We then purify that protein from the milk and spin it into fibers.

KAYE: And why do you need goats to produce this? Why not just use spiders?

LEWIS: Well, there's two problems with spiders. The first is they're cannibalistic and second of all they're territorial. As opposed to silkworms, where you can just put a whole bunch of them together, and they will live in harmony, spiders tend to kill each other until they all have the space they need. It makes it very difficult to farm spiders in that sense.

KAYE: And I assume that there's science in here, right? Randy, your initial vision for this was something having to do with science?

LEWIS: Sure.

What we wanted to do was find a way to demonstrate just how good the spider silk is. It's much stronger than silkworm silk and it's much more elastic. So there are a number of uses for it beyond just the artistic effort that was done here.

KAYE: Jalila, you are what you would call a bio-artist. What is that, first of all?

JALILA ESSAIDI, BIO-ARTIST: Well, it's the boundary between biology and arts and in this case, biotechnology. And I love to work in this field because it's -- it looks at nature and the beautiful materials nature offer us.

KAYE: And so how did you get involved in this product -- project? ESSAIDI: Well, I read in 2001 an article of Dr. Randy Lewis about his transgenic goats and I got really inspired. And, well, I wrote him an e-mail about creating a bulletproof human skin. And he liked the idea and so we started working on the bulletproof human skin.

KAYE: And why the idea of this bulletproof skin, Jalila?

ESSAIDI: Well, one of the goals why we are producing this spider silk on large scale, I read, was to create bulletproof vests. And I thought why even bother with those bulletproof vests? Why not directly create bulletproof humans?

And that is where the ball started rolling and we came up with bulletproof human skin.

KAYE: And we have some pictures of you. We just saw you in a picture with a gun there. So, obviously, you have tested this. Tell us what that test was like and how it turned out.

ESSAIDI: We started with making -- weaving the spider silk into a bulletproof matrix. Then we grow human skin cells, a dermis and epidermis, and then we took it to the Dutch forensic center, and we shot at it with a .22 long rifle caliber. And the bullets got wrapped in the spider silk.

KAYE: So the skin there, it didn't break, but if the skin were on a human, would this human have survived?

ESSAIDI: No. The inside would be soups and the bone would break. It's -- you just keep a more beautiful package.

(LAUGHTER)

KAYE: So, Randy, what do you think of Jalila's test?

LEWIS: Well, I guess the thing that we were excited about is really two things.

First, that the materials that we created were useful for growing skin, that the cells adhered to it, they behaved like they were supposed to. They grew like they were supposed to. So that really is for us interesting and exciting for us because it is really something we hadn't done and had really not gotten to that point.

So she was able to move us forward in that area. I think the other thing is, it clearly shows since they compared it to silkworm silk that the silk we made actually has some very impressive mechanical properties.

KAYE: So, Randy, you don't see humans having bulletproof skin one day?

LEWIS: I think both Jalila and I went into this with the thought process this would be an interesting experiment, but probably not the future for mankind. KAYE: All right.

Randy Lewis, Jalila Essaidi, thank you so much, a very interesting project. Best of luck with it to both of you.

ESSAIDI: Thank you.

LEWIS: Thank you.

KAYE: And for more on this science and bulletproof skin, you check out my Facebook page at RandiKayeCNN.

Up next, we will take you live to New Jersey, where people are still being rescued from flooding caused by Hurricane Irene.

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