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New Jersey Boardwalk Burned; Hundreds Stranded In Colorado's Raging Floodwaters; U.S. and Russia Reach Agreement On Syria; 22-Year- Old Newlywed Charged With Husband's Death; John McCain Wants Chance To Take On Russian President; "Parts Unknown" Season 2 Sneak Peek; AdTrap Shows High Potential; The Human Factor; CNN Hero; Technology Pushes Forward Global Initiative

Aired September 14, 2013 - 15:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. I'm Fredericka Whitfield. The next hour of the CNN Newsroom begins right now. Here are our top stories that we're following.

After the fire New Jersey Governor Chris Christie visits the Jersey Shore. He surveys the damage from the boardwalk inferno. Businesses say they will pick up the pieces and rebuild.

And roads washed away, towns cut off, rescue crews scramble to reach people stranded by flooding in Colorado. And officials warn the danger is not over.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're asking people to avoid driving in boulder, avoid being out in areas where waters are rising.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: And an ambitious plan. The U.S. and Russia reach a deal on Syria's chemical weapons. President Obama calls it an important step, but he says the U.S. is prepared to act if Syria doesn't keep its promises.

This afternoon, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is at Seaside Heights. He is meeting with business owners who lost their shops in that massive fire along the iconic boardwalk. Let's listen in to what Christie had to say just a short time ago.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Keep it up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't forget us.

GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE (R), NEW JERSEY: We have not had our cabinet members specifically the DCA and Michelle Brown of the DBA working since the fire started Thursday night to look at ways that we can help. So we'll have some announcements later. We have already come up with some plans and ideas to be able to help them I think in a really significant way at the state level and try to get some help from the federal level as well. But we will have more later on. I want to meet from them first with us.

But, I think, you know, I'm very proud of what the cabinets done already. They have worked really hard, been talking to our federal partners, and I think we'll have ways to help move this along relatively quickly. Get demolition going and for those who want to rebuild, to get them some assistance to help them rebuild.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE REPORTER: Governor, you're hearing a lot of words to the people on the boardwalk, and they're saying some things to you we couldn't always hear. What were you saying to them and what are they saying to you?

CHRISTIE: Well, you know, most people were just saying thank you for being here. And I said I wouldn't be any place else, you know. Obviously, I intended to be someplace else this weekend. But you know, that's what this job is all about. When crises happen, you have to be here to organize things, to lend encouragement and to deliver hope and so, most of the people were just saying thank you for being here. And what I was saying to them was, a few of them told me I look tired. And I just said to them, you know, we don't have time to be tired now. We have got to get back to work. Some people were telling me how sad they thought it was. I said the time for sadness is over now, you know. We had two days to feel sad about this. It's legitimately a sad thing, but we have got work to do now. And a couple days to mourn, and now we've got to move on and get to work.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE REPORTER: I heard you tell a couple of them were stronger than the storm, stronger than this as well. Do you think you convinced them that we're on the job? The state is on the job? Help is on the way?

CHRISTIE: Well, I hope I convinced them. That's part of my reason for being here. But ultimately, they will be convinced by what we do. And that's always been the test with my administration, you know. We talk about certain things, but then you have got to deliver, and I think we have done a pretty good job of delivering. I think that's why you see so many people being as grateful as they are. So now this is the next challenge for us to confront.

And you know, the bad thing in the last few years as I mentioned the other night is all the different natural disaster crises we have had in the last four years. The only good thing about it is that it's really trained me and the administration to be ready and know how to respond to these things. It's not our first time at this rodeo, unfortunately.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE REPORTER: And these business owners that you are about to be, is this the first time you've talked to them or have you talked to any of them before?

CHRISTIE: I spoke to a couple of them at the scene that night, on Thursday night. We were there watching their places burn down. I had some conversation with them. But this will be the first time I'm meeting with them as a group. And the cabinet is already positioned down there. The folks (INAUDIBLE) here today. We have backing insurance to deal with the insurance issues. We have EDA with the old business grants and loans. We have DCA to deal with permitting and zoning and demolition.

So, I think we have labor here as well to help with any kind of employment questions. So, we have got everybody here I think that we need. So, we are going to have, you know, a meeting where we go over with them, to take some questions from them and then get to work. I mean, you know, Monday we will get to work on trying to make sure that we make money available to them and other resources to help them.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE REPORTER: I know it's really early, but this is yet another significant wound to a place that hasn't really recovered from the last wound. How do you envision the boardwalk in the future?

CHRISTIE: You know, listen. Fortunately, if you look at this, and this is not in any way to minimize the loss to people, but this could have been significantly worse. We could have lost all this. I mean, I was here. I was watching what happened. And we were, you know, probably 30, 40 minutes away cutting the trench didn't work of losing the whole boardwalk.

And so, you know, my view is, we have got some pieces of the boardwalk to repair. There are some businesses on the boardwalk to rebuild. But, you know, in the context of what we have been through already, much smaller, much more containable, and I think much more attainable for us in a relatively shorter period of time.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Governor Chris Christie there, talking to reporters and business owners. And then later on, we are going to be actually talking to a business owner on that boardwalk who had a chance to talk to Governor Christie earlier today to find out what his hopes are for rebuilding after that inferno.

All right, turning now to Colorado and to unprecedented rescue attempts to reach hundreds of people stranded in record high floodwaters. The hardest-hit area is around Boulder. They got a year's worth of rain in just a matter of days. The storms are blamed for at least four deaths and 172 people still unaccounted for ten miles away in Longmont. The challenge has been getting through floodwaters. Just watch as these firefighters in their vehicle try to get through. And it looks like they are being pounded by the waves there right up to the windshield.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYING)

WHITFIELD: Let's go ten miles to the northeast of that town to a place called Lyons. More than 800 people including children have been rescued, many by air by the National Guard. While flood levels have dropped today, the threat is far from over.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHERIFF JOE PELLE, BOULDER COUNTY, COLORADO: The intense operation in the air and on the ground will continue today at a level I have never seen to get people inserted and into those areas that are otherwise impassable or unreachable. (END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Seven thousand people have been ordered out of Longmont, Colorado, alone. And CNN's George Howell is there.

So, George, what more can you tell us about the evacuations? Any kind of rescue attempts?

GEORGE HOWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fredericka, you know, we know that those evacuation efforts continue. We have had sunlight for really the last day and a good part of today, but things are changing. I don't know if you can kind of see the sky. It's a bit gray back there. We are starting to feel raindrops. Things are changing. More rain is expected in the forecast. So that could be problematic when it comes to getting into those communities.

I want to give you sort of a show-and-tell of what we are looking at here in this particular location. Just right down here, you can see where water eroded, just washed away, you know, the mud where these foundations were buried. It's gone. And that's the power of this, you know, the water. So much water came down in such a short amount of time, that's the problem, dealing with all of that right now.

Look right over there. That used to be a bike path. And it says low clearance of about eight feet. That's got to be, like, six feet high there. So, a lot of water still coming through many different communities.

I want to show you over here, too. Look over here because when you see how this land has been cut off by what used to be a stream, now merging into the same gray river, that's a problem. You know, you can't get into many of these different places like Jamestown. It's hard to get into Lyons. So you know, you see officials using helicopters to get in. They are dropping, you know, food, water. They're trying to get people out as best they can. But if you get a sense of how strong this water is flowing through many of these different rivers, it's coming down fast.

This is the St. Vrain River. One local told me that it's ten times as high as it should be, Fredericka. So, look. It's a problem out here. It continues to be a problem, you know, until these waters recede. And with more rain in the forecast, it's not looking so good right now.

WHITFIELD: Oh, boy. All right, George Howell, thanks so much for that update.

So to find out how you can help the victims of this week's floods, visit our "impact your world" page at CNN.com/impact.

The U.S. and Russia agree on a plan to rid Syria of its chemical weapons. And President Obama says it's a significant step. In a statement a short time ago the president said, quoted, "I welcome the progress made between the United States and Russia through our talks in Geneva which represent an important concrete step toward the goal of moving Syria's chemical weapons under international control. While we have made important progress, much more work remains to be done. If diplomacy fails, the United States remains prepared to act," end quote, that from the president.

Matthew Chance joining us live now from Geneva.

So Matthew, this plan calls for quick action by Syria, at least within a week. Give us kind of a walk-through of this timetable.

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, an extremely ambitious timetable that's been imposed on Syria as a result of this meeting here in Geneva between the Russians and the Americans. They have got a week to present the international community with a list of their chemical weapons sites, their production facilities, their stockpiles. That in itself is a job, a huge job. I mean, it's got some of the biggest chemical stockpiles in the world. It has to present a comprehensive list to the U.N. inspectors.

Then by November, those U.N. inspectors need to be on the ground verifying that list. That's something that normally takes a long time. You can imagine in a situation like Syria, it's going to be enormously problematic given there's a raging civil war taking place there. But also by the same month, by November, according to this agreement, production facilities, equipment used to mix and fill chemical weapons, they have to be destroyed with a view of eliminating, moving out of Syria, or destroying chemical weapons entirely by the middle of next year, by the middle of 2014.

So again, a very ambitious timetable that will rid, if it's put into practice, Syria of its chemical weapons by the middle of next year.

WHITFIELD: And so Matthew, what is the next step?

CHANCE: Well, the next step, I think, is to see this being implemented. I mean, that's clearly what has to happen. Now, in the first instance, John Kerry, U.S. secretary of state, is doing the rounds visiting his allies. He's going to Israel tomorrow. On Monday he will be visiting Paris and meeting with the French foreign minister. The British foreign minister will be meeting him as well, as well as a representative from the government of Saudi Arabia where he will be briefing them on the outcome of this agreement and outcome of these meetings in Geneva.

They then are going to go to the Security Council and get some kind of resolution basically putting this into legal force. Then the onus will very much be on the Syrians to comply with what they have said they are going to do. If they don't comply, it could be serious consequences.

Now, for the moment the United States has taken direct military action off the table, though it says it retains the right to unilaterally strike against Syria if diplomacy fails in the words of President Obama. But if there is noncompliance, the agreement at the moment is that they will go back to the Security Council, look at military action potentially, look at sanctions potentially. That would have to be discussed depending on the nature of the noncompliance. But at the moment, the onus is very much on Syria to start acting. Matthew Chance, thank you so much in Geneva.

The leader of Al-Qaeda urges his followers to keep attacking Americans in order to damage the U.S. economy. Ayman al-Zawahiri stressed the importance of small-scale attacks like the Boston marathon bombing. He says they force the U.S. to spend more money on security and the military. Zawahiri released the audio message to mark the anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks.

A Greyhound bus flipped over in Ohio overnight. It happened about 4:00 a.m. about 30 miles north of Cincinnati. About 52 people were on board, and at least 34 of them were rushed to the hospital with injuries. The bus was on its way to Detroit from Cincinnati.

The conviction against baseball star Barry Bonds will stand. A federal appeals court has upheld a ruling that he gave evasive testimony to a grand jury investigating performance enhancing drugs. Bonds will spend 30 days under house arrest and two years on probation.

And next, married just eight days and charged with murder. The story of a newlywed who police say killed her husband on their honeymoon.

And later, John McCain wants his shot at Vladimir Putin on paper.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: It wasn't the way honeymoons are supposed to end. A 22- year-old newlywed charged with killing her husband is now out of jail. She's accused of pushing him off a cliff eight days after they were married. She is now on home confinement in her parents' house. And our Kyung Lah reports on this story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Jordan Graham, out of jail, returned home, crouching in her parents' car. Probation officers' papers in hand, spoke with the now infamous bride as she began home confinement as ordered by the judge, a slap in the face to friends of Cody Johnson.

MAXIMO ROCHA, VICTIM'S FRIEND: I want them to do the right thing. I want justice for Cody.

LAH: But the judge released Graham, ordering her to electronic monitoring at her parents' home before her second-degree murder case goes to trial, saying she has no criminal history whatsoever and never exhibited tendencies for violence or even anger except for the charge that she pushed her husband of just eight days off this cliff, face first in Glacier National Park, killing him.

ROCHA: He didn't deserve whatever end she gave him. He never earned anything that Jordan did to him. And I disagree with all of my heart at what the justice system is saying is fair.

LAH: It was just a short time ago that the couple appeared happy and in love in her first dance at their wedding. While the groom's friends describe the bride as having cold feet, Elizabeth Shea remembers her as a normal bride excited about her life with Johnson. Shea is a custom songwriter. She says the bride hired her to write the lyrics to a song honoring the couple based on interviews she did with them.

ELIZABETH SHEA, CUSTOM SONGWRITER: I used words like you helped me to climb higher for a better view. You're my safe place to fall. You never let me go. And so now when I hear those words, it's a little creepy.

LAH: Eight days later, Johnson fell to his death, allegedly pushed by the very bride who danced this prophetic song with him.

Kyung Lah, CNN, Missoula, Montana.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LAH: All right. Thanks so much, Kyung Lah.

In court this week, Jordan Graham's attorney says it was all an accident. She never meant for this to happen.

And we will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Despite a second major disaster, in less than a year, the fire this week has not extinguished the hopes of people on the jersey shore. They vow to come back. And this is the front page of this morning's "New Jersey star ledger." An amazing shot of the burnt boardwalk with the headline "we'll make new memories."

Eric Faranda owned a shop on the boardwalk, and he got a chance to talk to Governor Christie earlier today. And he is joining me live now from Seaside Heights, New Jersey.

All right, Eric. First of all, boy, we are really sorry for your loss and your fellow business owners there on the boardwalk. What was your conversation like with the governor today?

ERIC FARANDA, LOST THE BUSINESS IN THE FIRE: Thank you. And it was very upbeat and uplifting. When we sat down with him on that closed meeting, he had a wealth of information for us for help that's going to be available, grants, loans. He wants this place to return. And I believe he is going to give us what we need to make it happen.

WHITFIELD: What do you think you're going to do? Are you going to try and rebuild?

FARANDA: Yes. I have been here on this boardwalk since I was 13- years-old. It's in my blood. When you work on the boardwalk and you're part of it, it's a magical place and I want back.

WHITFIELD: Your heart must have sunk when you learned that this boardwalk was on fire, especially at a time when everyone was really enjoying the comeback of this boardwalk after superstorm Sandy. Where were you? How did you learn the news that this fire was under way and that it was going to take everything you owned on that boardwalk?

FARANDA: We actually watched it happen. We were in the building this morning -- the morning of the fire. We had left briefly, came back to see the smoke start down in seaside park, as it slowly and quickly consumed our building and everything in between.

WHITFIELD: And was there a sense --

FARANDA: It was awful.

WHITFIELD: Clearly very awful. I wonder, you know, that sense of kind of helplessness as you're watching this happen and there's very little, if anything, that anyone could do.

FARANDA: Yes, it was -- we felt paralyzed. We wanted to do something to help. We wanted to stop it, but there was nothing that we could do to make that happen. It was just watching a slow-motion disaster. It was just not something that I want to relive.

WHITFIELD: And, of course, the investigation is still under way as to what happened here, how this and what may have sparked this blaze. In the meantime, what does a business, owner such as yourself, do in the amount of time it's going to take to get to the bottom of the investigation and also be able to even get started, getting started to rebuild won't happen tomorrow, but that, too, could take months.

FARANDA: Yes. Well, actually, the time line that we were given is the criminal investigation on an arson or a fire cause takes typically about a week. They are talking Thursday, Friday, maybe next Monday at the latest for the investigation to wrap up and then for the recovery to begin.

WHITFIELD: All right. Eric Faranda, all the best to you and your fellow business owners and colleagues there on the boardwalk.

FARANDA: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: And he is known as Washington's Maverick. You know exactly who I'm talking about, right? Now Senator John McCain wants his chance to take on Russian President Vladimir Putin.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Catastrophic flooding in Colorado leaves at least four people dead and 172 people missing. Right now emergency crews are trying to reach hundreds of people stranded by raging waters near Boulder. The situation is precarious. Floodwaters have washed out roads and taken out homes. And even more rain is forecast throughout the weekend.

The Texas giant roller coaster ride is reopening this weekend at six flags over Texas. It was shut down for nearly two months after a woman fell out of the coaster and then plunged to her death in July. Rosa Esparza's family filed a million-dollar wrongful death lawsuit last week. They are accusing six flags of negligence. Park officials say an investigation proves otherwise.

In California, the state could soon have an earthquake warning system. Our affiliate KABC reports the bill has passed the state legislature and is waiting for the governor's signature. The alerts would give up to 60 seconds' warning before an earthquake. The warnings would appear on television, radio and Smartphone apps. There is still the problem of paying for it, however. The cost, $80 million.

U.S. Senator John McCain has never been shy about voicing his opinion on Vladimir Putin. And now it appears the longtime critic of the Russian president is going one step further. According to foreign policy's blog, "the Cable," McCain will respond to Mr. Putin's controversial op-ed in "The New York Times" by writing an opinion piece of his own. In the Russian newspaper "Pravda." for more on this, we are joined now by CNN political analyst John Avlon in New York.

Good to see you, John.

JOHN AVLON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Good to see you, Fred.

WHITFIELD: OK. So, first off, not that you are a spokesperson for John McCain, but why?

AVLON: Yes, far from a spokesperson for John McCain, but I'll tell you, John McCain has famously been a critic of President Putin back when George W. Bush said that he looked in Putin's eyes and could see his soul, John McCain said he looked in his eyes and could see three letters, K-G-B. And John McCain like many folks was angry when he saw Putin getting an op-ed piece in "The New York Times" this past week. So, he pushed back and he said well fine, give me equal time in "Pravda." And it seems like foreign policy broker to a bit of a come together on that, and John McCain might just have his chance to push back at Putin.

WHITFIELD: Oh, my goodness.

OK. But a lot of people angry, not so happy about what Putin wrote, but especially right now at a very critical juncture in diplomacy, might John McCain sentiment be disruptive? Could it interfere in all the taking place so far?

AVLON: Well, to be clear, John McCain hasn't written the piece yet, so he's got a chance to recalibrate. You know, Fred, just over the last few hours, the agreement that seems to have been reached between the United States and Russia on Syria is a game changer. It fundamentally changes the calculus and really the whole tone of conversations to date.

There's every reason to be skeptical about Russia's role as a Mideast actor, especially with Syria being their client state. After all, in his op-ed in The Times, Putin said he believed that chemical weapons were possibly used by the rebels to gain international sympathy. Well, that whole approach from the Russian government now appears to be gone with the signing of this agreement. There's a focus on the Assad regime for using those chemical weapons, a timeline for them to turn them over and dismantle them. And Russia backing the possibility of military strikes.

So, it's a totally changed situation. So, presumably, John McCain, as hot-headed as he can be, has got to take that into account.

WHITFIELD: OK. But do you imagine the White House or perhaps even the State Department saying, all right, Maverick, don't do it?

(LAUGHTER)

AVLON: What, is this, "Top Gun"?

WHITFIELD: Kinda.

AVLON: Kinda. I think John McCain is notable for shooting from the hip, but he is a committed internationalist, and I don't think he'll try to blow up an accord just for the hell of it. But that's part of John McCain's charm. He calls it when he sees it. And taking Putin to task, well, that's something that we could all to see a lot more of going forward.

WHITFIELD: All right. We're going to see how it all unfolds if the plan really is carried out. John Avlon, thanks so much. Good to see you.

AVLON: Thanks, Fred. You, too.

WHITFIELD: All right. Ads on the internet. You're probably not a fan. Well, next we'll show you something new that just might get rid of them!

But first, Anthony bourdain is back with new episodes of his Emmy- nominated series, "PARTS UNKNOWN." In tomorrow night's season premiere, he heads to Jerusalem. And I talked to him about the city's rich history and what he learned from those who live there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANTHONY BOURDAIN, HOST, CNN'S "ANTHONY BOURDAIN PARTS UNKNOWN": I don't know what kind of expectations I had really. I tried to go with an open mind. I went very wary. There's no more complex or contentious subject in the world that I could think of. And I was very, very painfully aware of that. I mean, I went with a lot of apprehension. How am I going to look? How am I going to see things straight? How am I going to describe them? I didn't know.

But I think there's definitely an advantage to going into very complicated situations and asking very simple questions. You know, how do you live? What do you eat? What would you like -- what would you like to be doing next year or the year after that?

People let their guard down, whether Palestinians in Gaza or the West Bank, or settlers in the West Bank, or urban Israelis in Tel Aviv or Jerusalem. People tell you rather remarkable things about themselves oft times when you ask those simple questions.

WHITFIELD: And did you feel they let their guard down because you are breaking bread?

BOURDAIN: Well, I think that's -- that's a phenomena we've benefited from over the years many, many times, often with people who have no particular reason to love me or to love Americans in general. The fact that you're willing to sit down, express an eagerness to sit down, break bread, and ask those simple, personal -- very personal questions. Yes, people let their guard down and reveal themselves to you sometimes in really extraordinary ways.

WHITFIELD: What were some of the questions you asked people, and who were some of the people that you were asking?

BOURDAIN: Some old men in the Gaza strip, you know, whose families were relocated in 1948. I asked them, will you ever be able to go to -- do you think you'll ever be able to go to the place you were born? You know, I asked people -- you know, people whose children grew up looking at what they calmed martyrs, paintings of people who brought down planes on the wall. Do you think that's -- you know, that's a very different situation than the way American children grow up.

You know, again, a lot of simple questions that got surprising -- very surprising answers. It's a very, very -- it's easy to have your heart broken over there. There are deep waters. I'm very aware of the fact I went in there pretty ignorant and came out only marginally smarter, but I did the best I could.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And you can catch the season 2 premiere of "PARTS UNKNOWN" tomorrow night, 9:00 p.m. Eastern time.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: It's one of the most annoying things about the Internet, dealing with all of the advertisements that pop up on almost every single web page. Well, a tech entrepreneur says he has the solution: a device that will block all of the ads. Dan Simon has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The early days of the Internet -- dialup, slow connections, simple graphics. But Chad Russell says in many ways, things were better.

CHAD RUSSELL, ADTRAP: It was page, text and pictures, and that's it.

SIMON: In other words, no ads. Today, they are everywhere -- inescapable and sometimes annoying. Of course, they pay for many great services we get for free but Russell has basically declared war on them.

RUSSELL: At some point, it's gotten a bit much.

SIMON: And now, this 31-year-old high school dropout may be on the verge of shaking up the entire Internet advertising industry.

RUSSELL: And this is AdTrap.

SIMON: The idea kicked off with a video on the fundraising Web site Kickstarter, where Russell showed off his invention called AdTrap that connects between the modem and router, and what one he says that blocks every kind of ad on a Web site.

(on camera): I have one of the first units right here. It's pretty easy to set up. Now, let's give it a try.

(voice-over): Check out the video on the top without the AdTrap. You get an ad. On the bottom with the device connected, straight to the video and the company says it works on any device.

RUSSELL: There is no software to configure or settings. That was really one of the goals of the project, is to make it easy for people.

SIMON: He wanted to raise $150,000. He wound up with well over $200,000.

AdTrap cost $139, based on early orders, demand seems incredibly high.

RUSSELL: I think the success of the product is really showing you how the general public feels right now about the state of advertising.

SIMON: As for potential lawsuits from advertisers, Russell is anticipating them, and that's why he's already retained a prominent Silicon Valley law firm.

Dan Simon, CNN, Palo Alto, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And next in the CNN NEWSROOM, firefighters called it a miracle. Hear from the man in this dramatic rescue from the Colorado floodwaters.

And for most of her life, Annette Miller has been burdened by her weight. Until now. She just completed the Malibu triathlon as a member of CNN's Fit Nation Team. Dr. Sanjay Gupta has her story in today's "Human Factor."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Growing up in Tennessee, Annette Miller always dreamed of playing basketball. So as soon as she was old enough, she decided to sign up for the team.

ANNETTE MILLER, CNN FIT NATION 2013 TRIATHLETE: I got a permission slip from our coach at school and came running home that day. I was so excited to get to play basketball. Instead of getting a signature from my parents, I was told you're too fat to play.

GUPTA: At 10 years old and more than 200 pounds, she says, that mantra instantly changed her life. MILLER: "You're too fat" followed me into adulthood and I didn't realize how much it held me back.

GUPTA: But years later, when her twin sister, Bobbette needed a kidney transplant --

MILLER: I was not even tested or considered to be a donor because of my weight. That was the kick in the pants I need.

GUPTA: So she changed her diet. She started walking. She hit the gym. She was determined to get the weight off. By November of 2012, she was well on her way.

MILLER: I'm proud to say at this point, I've lost over 100 pounds.

GUPTA: And she wasn't finished.

MILLER: There's a little 10-year-old kid in here that still wants to play, wants to be a part of something, be a part of a team.

GUPTA: Miller applied for the CNN Fit Nation Challenge, and she was accepted in January.

(on camera): Congratulations. We've already picked you --

(voice-over): For eight months, she trained, swimming, biking, running, to compete in the Nautica Malibu Triathlon. And she got below 200 pounds for the first time in decades.

MILLER: I didn't stop, 198, and then I have never had a breakdown on a scale, but I started crying.

GUPTA: And on Sunday, September 8th, Miller got her chance to play, crossing the finish line in Malibu, squarely in the middle of the pack.

MILLER: Amazing. I made the turn around on the bank. I knew I had it.

If I can do it, you can do it.

GUPTA: Next up for Miller, surgery to remove the excess skin left over from her years of being overweight to complete her transformation. And as far as the basketball game, that dream came true as well.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: It was a heart-stopping rescue that captured America's attention and then played out on live television from coast to coast. Roy Ortiz was on his way to work Thursday morning when the road beneath him collapsed from the floodwaters in Boulder County, Colorado and then sent Roy's car right into the raging river. Well, emergency crews raced in, and as you can see from this video, they did save Roy. But he says he waited for two hours to be rescued and thought about his family.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROY ORTIZ, RESCUED FROM COLORADO FLOODING: So I had to wait. I had to pray. I had to see (INAUDIBLE) to God because I wanted to survive.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Wow! And firefighters who rescued Ortiz met him at the hospital this week, and they called him a real miracle. It was the miracle rescue, in their words.

All right, time for this week's CNN Hero. Today, access to healthy food for some of our neighbors, good friend is not easy to get. So when this week's CNN Hero discovered this problem in her North Carolina community, she planted a seed for a solution. Meet Robin Emmons.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROBIN EMMONS, CNN HERO: There's magic in gardening that you can drop a seed into the earth and, from that, there's an amazing fruit that is delicious and so good for your body. That's a miracle to me.

Here in Charlotte, 73,000 people live in low-income neighborhoods that don't have access to this fresh fruit.

You could call this the Miracle Mile. Pretty desolate in the way of healthy food options. There are barely any supermarkets. Once they get there by bus or a neighbor's car or on foot, they are paying a very high price for the food.

I'm Robin Emmons. I believe everyone should have access to fresh fruit, so I grow it and bring it to communities in need.

We want our market to be abundant tomorrow. So, let's hit it.

We have about 200 volunteers that help us harvesting the food.

These are heirloom tomatoes over here.

Bringing the food to the community and cutting the cost in half compared to what they would pay at a grocery store.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Six months ago, I was diagnosed with diabetes. I'm unemployed right now. Sometimes you have to buy the cheaper things.

These are beautiful.

I couldn't believe all this, fresh vegetables. And the price was phenomenal. It's making me and my family healthier.

I started growing food in my backyard. Today, I grow on nine acres of land. Since 2008, we have grown 26,000 pounds of food.

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Have a good day.

EMMONS: I feel like I'm giving them a gift, a healthier longer, more delicious life.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And if you want to learn more about robin and the amazing work that she is doing, head to CNN.com/heroes. And we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: And this just in to CNN, Senator John McCain is responding to the deal on Syria reached in Geneva earlier today. In a joint statement released along with Senator Lindsey Graham, McCain said he is concerned about the message the agreement is sending to other countries. He mentions Iran in particular and says both friends and enemies alike could see the proposal as, quote, "an act of" provocation - "provocative," rather, "weakness on America's part," end quote. McCain also said without the threat of force, the deal to rid Syria of chemical weapons is meaningless.

The future of the world's forests has become a growing concern for many environmentalists. Now a new program seeks to monitor deforestation across the globe, and we'll show you exactly how it works.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: 2013 is on track to being the worst year for measles in nearly two decades. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 159 cases have been reported in the U.S. so far this year. Health officials say nearly two-thirds of cases are being reported in communities where many people don't vaccinate. Symptoms of the contagious disease include fever, coughing, and a full body rash.

Do you ever wonder about the science behind something? Well, today, we look at a global initiative that uses the latest technology to keep a close eye on the world's rapidly shrinking forests. Here's Azadeh Ansari.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AZADEH ANSARI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Ever wonder what the effects of logging are on the environment or how devastating a forest fire can be? Governments and environmental groups want to know so they can do something about it.

Well, a new organization called The Global Forest Watch 2.0 can help by creating a near real-time interactive monitoring system. The project, which will be available to the public this fall, has been developed by the World Resources Institute with partners including Google, the U.N. Environmental Program, and the University of Maryland.

NIGEL SIZER, DIRECTOR, FORESTS INITIATIVE, WORLD RESOURCES INSTITUTE: Right now, there's a revolution going on in many realms of technology to transform and revolutionize the way people are able to see what is happening to forests and potentially other resources around the world in real-time.

ANSARI: To virtually bring to life a living, breathing model of the world's forests, scientists crunch through environmental data collected from dozens of satellites. Google then stores the images on thousands of computers and hosts an image catalog with more than a million megabytes of data coming in every day.

REBECCA MOORE, GOOGLE EARTH ENGINEERING MANAGER: The heart of Global Forest Watch is it's looking for change in satellite imagery. The scientific software's automatically detecting the change in the forest imagery and flagging that.

SIZER: So only about 15 percent, one five, 15 percent of the world's original forest is still intact. So 85 percent has either been cleared completely or seriously degraded and impacted by fires and logging and other activities.

ANSARI: The United Nations estimates that over 30 million acres of forest, mostly in the tropics, are being lost every year due to human activity. That's about 22 million football fields.

MOORE: It's sad to see, oh, my god, this is all we have left? But on the other hand, if we can protect what's left, the planet does have amazing regenerative powers, and we can turn this around.

ANSARI: Azadeh Ansari, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right, that's going to do it for me. Thanks so much nor watching this afternoon. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Much more of the NEWSROOM straight ahead with my colleague, Don Lemon in New York. Don?

Oh, you still have sunny skies there!

(LAUGHTER)

WHITFILED: Impressive, I like your window to the world.

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Are you hating on my sunny skies?

WHITFIELD: No! I'm loving it!

LEMON: Are you really?

WHITFIELD: Yes, I am because we have sunny skies now, too. But I don't have a window to show you, but that's another story.

LEMON: Come on, Mr. Director, can you show me a -- give me a high shot of Atlanta. Let me see Centennial Olympic Park or something. Looking for it. They don't have it. Sorry, Fred

WHITFIELD: Tick tock. Tick tock.

LEMON: It doesn't exist, Fred.

WHITFIELD: There you go!

LEMON: It's a beautiful day in Atlanta!

WHITFIELD: Isn't that beautiful? Yes, it's a very nice day. Very busy outside, folks at the park, you know, having a good time just as they are doing on a lovely Saturday in New York City.

LEMON: Guess what, you can get out and enjoy now.

WHITFIELD: Okay.

LEMON: You've done a great job, so now it's time to enjoy the fruits of your labor. Thank you very much, Fredricka. I'll see you again soon.