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Two Confirmed Dead in Balloon Accident; Nigeria's President Vows Girls Will be Rescued; Interview with Arsalan Iftikhar; New Recording Tied to Clippers Owner; New Allegations of VA Cover-Up; Murders in Home Owned by Tennis Star; Taking the Tough Mudder Challenge; Gay NFL Prospect Not Drafted Yet

Aired May 10, 2014 - 13:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Hello, again, everyone. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. And here are the big stories that we're following right now in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Tragedy strikes a hot air balloon festival north of Richmond, Virginia. One of the balloons hit a power line and burst into flames. There were three people were on board and we've just heard from officials in Virginia that two of the victims have been located. They are still searching for a third victim.

Erin McPike is live for us at the scene.

So, Erin, officials just wrapped up that press conference. It's been very difficult they say to even locate those bodies. How are they conducting the search for that third victim?

ERIN MCPIKE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, first of all, the Virginia Police has said that of course there are no survivors so they are still looking for that third victim and the search will continue until they find that person.

Here is that spokeswoman describing how the entire community has been helpful in speeding up the process.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CORINNE GELLER, SPOKESWOMAN, VIRGINIA STATE POLICE: We've had probably anywhere between 30 to 40 calls from people who witnessed it, from here at the festival on Friday to neighbors to people driving within the vicinity, and it's been a tremendous help. We've been following up with those folks and we truly appreciate them taking to time and call and give us their names and contact information.

There are actual scientific steps being taken that help us to kind of triangulize where these search points are going to be. You know, it could be almost like looking for a needle in a haystack. So based on witness accounts, where they were standing at the time they saw things, where the video was taken, where the photos were taken, that has really helped us in concentrating our search efforts, and I think it definitely expedited the process.

(END VIDEO CLIP) MCPIKE: And Fred, this is a very intensive search. There are more than 100 people on the ground right now, still looking for that third victim. There's also civil air patrol assisting in the search.

WHITFIELD: And they are not revealing the identity of the victims, right?

MCPIKE: They are not yet. They have spoken to the families of all three of the victims but have not yet released the identities or the genders. When we get more information on that, of course we'll bring it to you.

WHITFIELD: All right. Erin McPike, thank you so much.

So immediately people sprang into action trying to find those who were inside the balloon's basket. Here is one of the first 911 calls.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Possible mass casualty incident, reported multiple hot air balloons have crashed into power lines and the balloons are now on fire.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do have visual of the airborne hot air balloons, appears to be still smoking, still pretty high there.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We've got a report that the basket has come off. So we're trying to find that right now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Caroline, advise all units, the airborne balloons aren't the issue. We need to locate the basket.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right, well, in that call, it says multiple balloons. Of course we have since learned it is one balloon. There were three people on that one balloon. The bodies of two have been located, they're still searching for the third. From the ground witnesses described what they saw.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LYNN SHULTZ, WITNESS: It was on fire on the left side, and then there was big fire, and the fire dwindled down some and the balloon kept floating up. And then the fire sort of circled around the bottom and then debris started falling off. My heart was in my stomach because all I kept thinking is this is not good, this is not good.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We heard, like, a loud bang. And we thought it was just, like, a firework, and we remembered that the balloon festival in Doswell, and also and my boyfriend, you know, came running out, and he's like, oh my gosh, he said look at the sky. He's like the balloon is on fire. And all we seen was just stuff, like, falling from the sky, the basket, the balloon, everything was on fire.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You could hear them screaming, please, dear god, sweet Jesus, help us, we're going to die, oh, my god, please help us, please help us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Gosh, horrible.

Joining me now from Frederiksberg, Texas, is hot air balloon expert, Phillip Bryant.

So, Phillip, we've heard, you know, about these horrifying accounts of what may have been happening as we listen to those eyewitnesses. Police are saying that it did hit a power line.

Based on what you heard from those eyewitness accounts, the bobbing and weaving of the balloon, that quick descent of the balloon, the screaming, what does that all this information tell you about what may have happened, what may have caused it?

PHILLIP BRYANT, HOT AIR BALLOON EXPERT: Well, it doesn't tell me anything about what caused the accident at all. I think we need to leave that to the investigators. I really don't have any facts or data about the event other than what I have heard through the news report, so I am not sure I can add any value to that.

WHITFIELD: For those of you who make a living with these hot air balloons, when people come and, you know, they just envision to have a very pleasurable ride on these hot air balloons, what did you tell them about the potential risks, what to be expected on a ride on a balloon?

BRYANT: Well, first of all, the balloon is -- is manufactured, inspected and serviced on a regular basis by certified repair stations such as I operate. The pilots are trained in conformance of FAA regulations, so there's every expectation that this is a safe sport.

What I tell the pilots is that the only thing we're going to do that morning is create good memories and my job is to bring you back safely, and you know, unfortunately ballooning is a very visual sport. And people are taking pictures when this is going on. So we almost suffer an unfair advantage in the fact that our accidents hit the newspapers and the TVs where other sports do not, and of course with video thing that are around, you get more of that from other sports.

It is unfortunate that these things are so highly publicized. That is not to diminish the seriousness of it because it has happened. It's happened riding bicycles and cars. 3,000 people a year in the state of Texas on the highways suffer similar events. And so, you know, I don't know what to tell you other than we do all we know how to do to provide safe, trained pilots and the particularly the wide operators that giving passenger rides are associated through the Balloon Federation of America, and they are working their first mission of safety.

WHITFIELD: All right. Well, this investigation is under way and continues.

Philip Bryant out of Texas, thank you so much. All right. Overseas, Nigeria's president makes a promise to the world today, weeks after hundreds of schoolgirls were kidnapped. What he said, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: The search intensifies this hour to find hundreds of schoolgirls who were kidnapped by a terrorist group. U.S. advisers are in Nigeria to help in the effort to rescue the girls. And earlier, Nigeria's president promised the world, quote, "that we must get these girls out," end quote. That's precisely what First Lady Michelle Obama would love to see happen. She explains why today in her first weekly address.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHELLE OBAMA, FIRST LADY: In these girls, Barack and I see our own daughters. We see their hopes and their dreams and we can only imagine the anguish their parents are feeling right now. Many of them may have been hesitant to send their daughters off to school, fearing that harm might come their way. But they took that risk because they believed in their daughters' promise and wanted to give them every opportunity to succeed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Let's go now to CNN's Vladimir Duthiers in Nigeria.

So, Vladimir, the first lady also said President Obama directed his administration to do everything possible to help the Nigerian government.

So how is the U.S. making its commitment? How is it delivering on that promise and how about other countries?

VLADIMIR DUTHIERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Fred. Well, we know that the United States already has a team here in Nigeria. Another seven military team flew in just yesterday evening. They're eventually going to be joined by a team of almost 50 to 60 U.S. personnel.

What they're going to be doing is an advisory role -- Fred. They're not going to need any combat boots on the ground. That much we know. What we do know is they're going to be providing intelligence gathering, they're going to be providing map analysis, they're going to be looking at perhaps hostage negotiation techniques, there are some law enforcement officers that are going to be accompanying the team.

But it's going to be very, very difficult. U.S. intelligence reports that these girls may have been split up and they may have been trafficked into neighboring countries. Those neighboring countries include Cameroon, Chad, Niger. If you look at a map of Nigeria, it's an enormous area to cover.

And so even with all of this technology being brought to bear, and British units are here. We're also talking about French teams and even perhaps Chinese teams. Even if you look at this area, this very wide area that they're going to have to be looking at, it's going to be very, very challenging no matter what kind of assets are brought to bear in the search -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: And then there's this report from Amnesty International saying the Nigerian government actually knew about this plot from Boko Haram in advance -- in the degree of four hours, but then didn't do anything. And the Nigerian military has actually responded, right, saying not true?

DUTHIERS: That's right. They have vehemently denied this report. They say it simply not true. What they say in fact is that they were -- received a call to bring in reinforcements, and that they were on their way to reinforce these troops that were already there, when they themselves came under attack in an ambush. But the report from amnesty international dovetails with what we heard from people on the ground which is that the military, the few soldiers that are there are outmanned, they are outgunned, and the night of the attack they were not anywhere to be seen.

And so it really is -- that report does verify the facts as we know them from the families that we've spoken to, and the people that we've spoken to, there was one father, we had a heartbreaking conversation with him, who tell us that the fear of Boko Haram is so great now, Fred, that they have to sleep in the bush every night.

WHITFIELD: My gosh. Yes. And so many of these families saying they're afraid to reveal the identities of their daughters who have gone missing because they're afraid of the repercussions, they are afraid that kind of publicity would bring even more harm to the girls and the family.

Vladimir Duthiers, thank you so much. Keep us posted.

So in a video that came out this week, a man claiming to be Boko Haram's leader said, quote, "There is a market for selling humans. The law says I should sell," end quote. Well, one Muslim human rights leader -- lawyer rather is wondering if that man has actually picked up the Quran lately.

In a CNN.com op-ed, he says, quote, "It is obscene and absolutely un- Islamic for these lunatic human traffickers to invoke the name of god while kidnapping young girls and threatening to sell them into sexual slavery," end quote.

I want to bring in the author of that, Arsalan Iftikhar, joining us from Chicago now.

Good to see you. So what does the Quran say about the treatment of women and girls?

ARSALAN IFTIKHAR, SENIOR EDITOR, ISLAMIC MONTHLY: Well, Fred, you know, the Quran is quite explicit in condemning the actions of Boko Haram, if you look at Chapter 4, verse 20 of the Quran, it explicitly says that women cannot be forced to marry anyone and that they should never be detained against their will. Both of the things that Boko Haram is guilty of.

Now it is important to keep in mind that the vast majority of Muslims worldwide, both here in the United States and abroad, have categorically condemned the actions of Boko Haram as being completely un-Islamic, including the Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia, the Egyptian Religious Affairs Ministry, the Turkish Affairs -- Religious Affairs Ministry and the organization of the Islamic Conference, which is the largest block of the 57 Muslim majority nations on earth. And what we as Muslims are trying to do is show that we are just as horrified as everyone else in this case of human trafficking and sex slavery that's going on in Nigeria right now.

WHITFIELD: And you write that, you know, Boko Haram translates to Western education is a sin. And in your op-ed you spell out that these young girls, 16 to 18, might be sold for as little as $12, you know, to the buyers. As it pertains to the Muslim community who is hearing Boko Haram say that this is our right as Muslims, this is our duty as Muslims to sell these girls as property, what does the Muslim community do, if anything, to try to get ahead of this message, try to correct what Boko Haram is saying and invoking in the name of Islam?

IFTIKHAR: Well, you know, Fred, what I always tell people is that extremists like Boko Haram are about as Muslim as the Westboro Baptist Church is Christian. And just because you might have some sort of religious moniker in your name, look at the :Lord's Resistance Army and Joseph Kony, which was made popular in the Kony 2012 campaign.

The Lord's Resistance Army is a Christian organization that has eventually recruited child soldiers, which again all Christians know is completely antithetical to any normative understanding of their religion. And so we as people of faith around the world would like to show that -- I always say that if somebody claims that God is telling them to do something, they probably need a checkup from the neck up, not be taken seriously as religious scholars.

But we as Muslims around the world want to show our horror and condemnation of these acts and as Mother's Day approaches, hope that the 300 mothers in Nigeria are soon reunited with their daughters.

WHITFIELD: And do you worry, too, the message is difficult to reverse, when you have Boko Haram who is claiming responsibility for taking the more than 200 young girls, and then invoking the name of Islam, that it is very difficult to reeducate the world, people who believe that they are being guided by the Quran.

IFTIKHAR: Well, you know, Fred, I think it's important for people to come and sense to know that sex slavery and human trafficking is not allowed in any human religion. So if it is a Christian organization saying that we are going to, you know, traffic in the human sex slaves, You know, I think that most people would understand that to be, you know, the (INAUDIBLE) Colton and not part of the mainstream religion of over $1 billion.

And I hope that Islam and Muslims are afforded that same graciousness, in that, you know we -- this is completely antithetical not only to region but to humanity. I mean, as an international lawyer, you know, this is a complete violation of every norm and not part of the mainstream religion of over a billion people.

I hope Islam and Muslims are afforded that same graciousness in that, you know, we -- this is completely antithetical not only to religion but to humanity. I mean, as an international lawyer, you know, this is in complete violation of every norm of international human rights out there. And we hope these girls are soon reunited with their mothers.

WHITFIELD: We certainly do.

All right, Arsalan Iftikar, thank you so much for your insight from Chicago.

IFTIKHAR: Thank you, Fred.

WHITFIELD: Donald Sterling might be banned from the NBA, but that doesn't mean his family is going away. What the team's coaching is saying about the latest comments, from Sterling's wife, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: The saga of embattled L.A. Clippers owner Donald Sterling is getting even more bizarre. In a new recording released yesterday, a man alleged to be Sterling says he was jealous. That's the explanation for those racist remarks. And that came just as the NBA named a new CEO to the team, former Citigroup and Time Warner chairman, Richard parsons.

Alexandra Field is live outside for us NBA headquarters.

So Alexandra, what is parsons now saying about his role and the duty that comes with it?

ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, he has of course just been named as interim CEO. But with that title he's taken a moment to sort of reflect on the gravity of what's transpired over the last couple of weeks. So I want to share with you his statement. He says, quote, "This is actually a large and important issue not just for the Clippers or the NBA but for the country in some ways. All eyes are on this. Now we work all the way through it is important."

That's Parsons. He is speaking out, at the same it seems that Donald Sterling also have some more to say.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FIELD (voice-over): Clippers players still playing. Donald Sterling still talking.

DONALD STERLING, LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS OWNER: I'm talking to a girl. I'm trying to have sex with her.

FIELD: The latest recording released by RadarOnline is believed to be Sterling offering some kind of explanation for his racist rant.

STERLING: What the hell, I'm talking to a girl? The girl's black. I like her. I'm jealous that she's with other black guys. I want her.

FIELD: Sterling could be forced through a vote by NBA owners to sell the team. This week, his estranged wife, Shelly Sterling, is saying she's a partial owner and she wants to keep it. Clippers coach Doc Rivers --

DOC RIVERS, LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS COACH: I think it would be a very hard situation if you want me -- I'll say that much. I think it would be very difficult. I guarantee you every person wouldn't be on board with that.

FIELD: Players have already protested Donald Sterling turning their shirts inside out. Sports law professor Marc Edelman says they could turn to social media, too. Beyond that, there are consequences.

MARC EDELMAN, SPORTS LAW PROFESSOR: Everybody is so quick to say what the players should do, when they don't have any skin in the game. But for a player, they have to be cognizant of their contract and the fact that if they do not show up to a game when they have an obligation to appear, they do run the risk of termination.

FIELD: Professional athletes have had lockouts and contract disputes, but a team rarely publicly goes up against its owner. There is an extreme example. Eight players, including the infamous Shoeless Joe Jackson on the 1990 Chicago White Sox team were accused of conspiring with gamblers to lose the World Series, an apparent act of retaliation against an unpopular owner.

EDELMAN: It just goes to show what could happen if all levels of respect between an owner and a player would have fell apart.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FIELD: Adam Silver, the commissioner of the NBA has asked the other team owners to vote to force Sterling to sell his team. That vote hasn't yet happened -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Alexandra Field, thanks so much, in New York.

All right. Coming up, Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki testifies next week before a Senate committee to answer questions about an alleged cover-up. One that may have cost dozens of veterans their lives. We are back with that after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. Now more update on mortgages.

(LAUGHTER)

Rates dropped. Take a look.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. Bottom of the hour now. Welcome back. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. And here are the big stories that we're following for you this hour.

They are still searching for one of the people from that hot air balloon that caught fire and crashed during a balloon festival in Doswell, Virginia last night. Police say the balloon hit power lines as it was trying to land. The three people on board could be heard pleading for their lives as the balloon was coming down. Witnesses say they saw two people jump or fall from the balloon. Rescue crews have yet to find the balloon and the basket.

A solemn procession through the streets of Manhattan this morning. The unidentified remains of those killed in the 9/11 terror attacks were removed from the medical examiner's office and returned to the World Trade Center site. The remains will be housed in an underground repository in the same building as the National September 11th Memorial and Museum.

And the search for the missing Malaysian plane is focusing in on where the first ping was heard more than a month ago now. Reuters reports that Australia's Ocean Shield is heading to that spot today. Search crews had been focused on another area where other pings were heard, but there's been no sign of the plane.

The 2016 Summer Olympic games may be changing its venue. Olympic officials are apparently extremely concerned because host city Rio de Janeiro is so behind in preparations, so much so that one media report says London has been asked to take over. But another conflicting report says the International Olympic Committee is dismissing those claims as, quote, totally unfeasible.

All right. The scandal that veterans died while waiting for medical care at least one VA Hospital is growing wider. An employee at a Wyoming clinic after the Department of Veterans Affairs has been placed on administrative leave, and allegations have surfaced that scheduling clerks at the VA hospital in San Antonio cooked the books to cover up long wait times.

Earlier, the chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee spoke to CNN's Wolf Blitzer about embattled VA Secretary Eric Shinseki.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS, CHAIRMAN, VETERANS AFFAIRS COMMITTEE: As of this moment, if you're asking me do I think Shinseki has done a good job, far from a perfect job, far from a perfect job. Has he done a good job, I do. Do I think we should ask for his resignation today before we even have the facts about what went on in Phoenix, no, I don't.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: For more, Peter Gaytan is the executive director of American Legion. He's joining us live mow from our Washington bureau.

Good to see you.

PETER GAYTAN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, AMERICAN LEGION: Thank you for having me. WHITFIELD: So your feeling is Shinseki should be fired or resign. Period. Why?

GAYTAN: Well, it's not personally my feeling, it's the feeling of the nation's largest veterans service organization, the American Legion. And the American Legion has reached the point where we're -- it's not just Phoenix. We know that Phoenix has to be investigated and we can't wait to see the results of that investigation. But when you take into account Phoenix, Fort Collins, San Antonio, Austin.

And now as you mentioned just yesterday the secretary himself removed a VA official at a facility in Wyoming. Where does it -- where does it end and how many more veterans have to die before we do something?

WHITFIELD: So it's the Phoenix VA that kind of got the ball rolling here. It was a CNN investigation that revealed there were these two lists and that people died waiting to get medical care, and that's what kind of started this. And now consequently, we've heard about this other VA facilities and those allegations that I mentioned. So -- but you heard from Senator Bernie Sanders who says wait a minute, all the facts are not in.

Why not wait until they know the who, the what, the when, the where, all of that before Shinseki or anybody else should be asked to resign?

GAYTAN: Well, when National Commander Dan Dellinger made this decision along with the leadership of this organization, they had reached a point where they had seen enough and heard enough from America's veterans who are suffering and waiting for their care, their earned benefits that they've earned through service to this country. We have heard enough is what the national commander said in meetings. That it's time to act. And that action needs to be swift and strong. And that's why the leadership of this organization made that decision.

WHITFIELD: Are you also saying that the American Legion have heard of similar complaints, knew about some of these allegations long ago, and if that is the case, then why wouldn't the American legion make more I guess -- get more attention about their concerns, its concerns, period, because is it not true that just a year ago the American Legion was aggressively defending Shinseki?

GAYTAN: That is true, but let me back up a little bit. We are hearing things now that Phoenix had broken. We set up a special Web page on our Web site so veterans can let us know what's going on and leadership is hearing that.

And yes, General Shinseki has done some wonderful things at the VA. But all of these new allegations and questions that are coming out about access to health care, when you couple that with the huge delays we've historically seen in the past few years of the VA disability claims, and you couple that with construction delays at four different hospitals, VA hospitals, construction delays that are overrun by years, and then cost overruns in those facilities, all of those things equate to one thing, Fredricka, that is delayed access to health care that's earned by America's veterans. And the American Legion is taking strong stand to change that. WHITFIELD: So what are they saying -- do you tell the vets now? How do you comfort them? How do you encourage them? Because these vets are relying on medical care, variation of care from these VA hospitals, clinics, installations. What do you tell them as they come to you with their concerns about whether they're going to be treated with the dignity that they are expecting?

GAYTAN: We tell them that they can trust the American Legion to work with VA towards a solution. This isn't about specifically blaming anybody, but it is about focusing in the right direction. If we know these things exist, if VA knows they exist, and they're system wide as these stories are coming out, a plan has to be in place by a leadership team that can take care of it.

And we tell the veterans they can count on the American Legion to provide a voice not only for them and the 2.3 million veterans of this country who are members of the American Legion but everybody who's wearing a uniform now so when they return home and they sacrificed their lives to serve this country, they can ensure that they'll have a strong VA that could take care of them.

WHITFIELD: Peter Gaytan, thank you so much from Washington. Appreciate it.

GAYTAN: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right. A deadly fire at a home owned by tennis star James Blake. Now police say they know how a family of four was killed.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Police in Tampa believe they now know who is responsible for the grisly death of a family who lived in a home owned by tennis star James Blake.

Our Alina Machado has that.

ALINA MACHADO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fred, investigators believe this was a murder suicide, but they're still talking to people who knew this family as they try to figure out a possible motive for the crime.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED CALLER: My God. This is so bad. I was walking my dog and the house just exploded.

MACHADO (voice-over): It was this frantic call for help early Wednesday morning that alerted police that something was horribly wrong.

UNIDENTIFIED DISPATCHER: OK. Do you see flames and smoke?

UNIDENTIFIED CALLER: The house is engulfed in flames, ma'am.

MACHADO: Inside this Florida mansion owned by tennis star, James Blake, authorities found a family of four dead. They believe Darren Campbell shot his wife Kimberly and their two children Megan and Colin in the head, before spreading fireworks throughout the house and setting it ablaze. Police believe he then turned the gun on himself.

Why? Investigators say they may never know.

GORDON LAMSIE, KIMBERLY'S FATHER: Colin, my grandson, was a pretty good ballplayer and his dad was very active in his support.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Son, was really good friends with him. He hasn't done anything wrong ever and the daughter, she was beautiful. The parents were great people. It's just so bad that this happened.

MACHADO: The Campbells had been renting the 5800-square foot house from Blake for the past two years. Located in the exclusive Avila gated community, a neighborhood where celebrities including New York Yankee great Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera have owned property.

In this surveillance video obtained by CNN, you can see a man believed to be Darren Campbell inside a Phantom Fireworks store in Tampa, Florida, on Sunday buying about $600 worth of fireworks. He walks out of the store with one cart. An employee seems to help him out with a second.

Authorities believe Campbell also purchase several gas cans and bought gas from two stores. The alleged murder weapon, a gun, has been recovered. Police say it was registered to Darren Campbell.

COL. DONNA LUSCZYNSKI, HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE: This is certainly disturbing. We have two teenagers that were well-respected, well-liked by their friends and peers in community. The family seemingly normal. Any time this happens it's a tragedy.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MACHADO: Investigators are still trying to establish a timeline. They also say they're going to be going through the family's financial records as they try to figure out why this tragedy happened -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: So sad. All right. Thank you so much, Alina Machado.

The witness accounts are nothing short of horrifying. A hot air balloon on fire crashing to the ground. Next, the latest on the search for victims.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Fred, it was about four years ago this month when this phenomenon started catching fire of extreme endurance challenges. Nowadays you've got all sorts of different races. You've got the Warrior Dash, the Spartan Race. But back then, there was just one. It was called the Tough Mudder.

And funny enough, one of our producers, Ben Tinker, decided he was going to partake. And we decided to go along for the ride.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You guys look really, really pumped up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. Just here to enjoy all the people and like a true challenge. I think it's going to be a lot of fun.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have been talking about doing some sort of adventure race for a while now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have committed to doing this race. I'm not sure if that's a good idea. When I signed up, I thought, you know, there would be all shapes and sizes of people here. Everyone here is in really, really good shape and I'm starting to wonder if I can cut it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right. So we have reached the top of the hill. I've got my number. Sophie says it's too late to turn back. So you're going to mark me up. Yes?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, it's too late now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go. Let's go. Let's go. Come on, come on, come on.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It started out with those guys at the beginning of the race. They're a little bit ahead of me now. But I'm hoping they just gave everything they got in the beginning and I can catch up right now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tough Mudder.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Let's go, mudders.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Got it. All right.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get up there. Come on.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Almost at the end. How are you guys feeling?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Little tired.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right. How about how?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fantastic.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good team work, guys. Good team work. Come on.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's going to be something that tests everyone. For every different person it's something and it tests all of those fears in one place, all in one day.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you on?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't stop.

(END VIDEO CLIP) GUPTA: I don't know, Fred. What do you think? You want to do that with me as well? I know you're doing the triathlon and that's going to be a lot of fun.

Sometimes it's nice to have the producer do some of the heavy lifting as Ben did in this case. But what you saw there was a lot of camaraderie and that's I think one of the big assets of these types of events. People really supporting each other. So grab a friend, get outside and try and get fit.

Fred, back to you.

(LAUGHTER)

WHITFIELD: Well, Sanjay, I am taking you up on the offer for Malibu. I'm in on that for that triathlon, but I am not in on that mudder. Forget it.

(LAUGHTER)

That's for somebody else. But thanks so much for that encouragement. Sanjay Gupta, appreciate it. We'll be right back with much more in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. Crews are still searching for one passenger of that hot air balloon that burst into flames and crashed to the ground. Police say the balloon hit power lines as it was trying to land at the Mid-Atlanta Balloon Festival in Doswell, Virginia. The three people onboard could be hurt, pleading for their lives. Two bodies have been located. They are still searching for a third.

All right. Let's get more on the forecast. Might weather have anything to do with it?

Jennifer Gray with us now.

JENNIFER GRAY, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes. We're really not sure. I mean, it's too early to tell. Investigators will look into that. But what we do know is that storms were approaching.

This happened about 25 miles north of Richmond and you can see these small little storm starting to push through. This is between 7:30 and 8:00, what if possible, it could be a gust front. And that's just a big, strong gust of wind, a lot of times ahead of storms and it can affect areas up to 75 miles away from the actual storm. And when you go back in time and you look at these wind gusts, sustained winds around Richmond, we're about 12 miles per hour at 7:30, but possible gusts up to 30 and then going forward, those wind gusts died down to about 10:00 around 8:00 and then picked up again once it got later.

When you're flying these balloons you want ideal conditions. Winds no more than about four to six miles per hour. If you get above eight, that's considered very dangerous. You also want clear conditions. You don't want to have thunderstorms within 100 miles. They had storms within about eight to 10 miles. So investigators will be looking into that.

Let's switch gears just a little bit, though. I want to touch on the possibility of severe weather anywhere from Springfield, Kansas City, Wichita, St. Louis for later today with a possibility of large hail and gusty winds. Slight possibility of an isolated tornado. The big weather day is going to be tomorrow. And so we go forward in time upper energy with cooler air is going to mix with this war air from the south.

We're talking possible snow in the Rockies over the next 24 hours. It's going to mix with that warm, warm air and so the possibility of severe weather will be there, Fred, for tomorrow. Moderate risk for places like Kansas City, Des Moines, really going to have our eyes out on the plains as we go through tomorrow afternoon.

WHITFIELD: Wow, that caught my attention. May snow.

GRAY: Yes.

(LAUGHTER)

WHITFIELD: In Colorado. All right. Thanks so much, Jennifer. Appreciate that.

All right. It is day three of the NFL draft. Coming up, we'll check in to see who is making the cut.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: The third and final day of the NFL draft is under way. But one big question remains -- will a team draft an openly gay player?

Joe Carter and Chris Draft are here with more on the draft day drama or lack of drama for Michael Sam.

So gentlemen, good to see you again.

JOE CARTER, CNN SPORTS: Good to see you.

WHITFIELD: Joe, bring us up to date. What's happening? Who's being drafted, who isn't?

CARTER: We were about five or six picks from closing out the fourth round. OK. So we have -- the draft going to seven rounds. So we're looking probably about 8:00 p.m. Eastern they'll wrap it up. And the general managers and the coaches that we've talked to the last couple of weeks have said that if Michael Sam is drafted it'll be sometime late rounds. So probably round six, round seven.

WHITFIELD: Oh, my gosh. Nerve-racking.

CARTER: This guy has been waiting for this moment his entire life.

WHITFIELD: Yes. CARTER: He obviously had a huge moment by coming out back in February. But you know what after the season, and Chris can attest to this, when he came to the combine, when he went to the senior bowl, he just didn't perform. And that's going to be a big knock on.

And Chris, you've got to go through some of those numbers.

(CROSSTALK)

WHITFIELD: Track record has to mean something. I mean, wasn't he voted one of the best players in SEC and then --

CHRIS DRAFT, FORMER NFL PLAYER, ATLANTA FALCONS: He was co-defensive player of the year in SEC, which is huge.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

DRAFT: And the SEC is definitely the best conference.

WHITFIELD: So it has to count for something. Yes?

DRAFT: It does, but at the same time he went to the combine and he ran 4.9. I mean, that's just not good. And then his vertical was -- you know, it was 25 inches. I mean, those numbers --

WHITFIELD: Do they ever take into account nervous? No.

DRAFT: Well, this is a game where you have to perform. You go out on the field -- he was nervous, that's why, that's why we didn't win that game. When the spotlight is on, you have to perform.

CARTER: And that's just it. He grabbed the public's attention but he's not revving the scouts' attention. And some guys just don't perform well in those measurables and they perform better when the lights are on in the game. And Michael Sam had a good senior season but nine of his 11 sacks came against pretty poor teams. Arkansas State, Florida and Vanderbilt. Not great teams. Nine of his 11 sacks.

You know, this guy is all heart, all hustle. But did that translate into the NFL game? We don't know. And these general managers sitting around now thinking, OK, we're in the war room. We've got to pick. Are we going to take Michael Sam or are we going to take some other guy? And if they take Michael Sam what comes along with that?

You know, Chris and I discussed through here. What happens if they bring Michael Sam to this team, and then they put him on the field and in August he doesn't perform?

WHITFIELD: And he doesn't deliver.

CARTER: And they've got to cut him. What then?

DRAFT: Yes. And it's not just, if they have to cut him but if he's close, it's more about if he's close. Just absolutely doesn't perform, that's easy. You can say, he just is not good enough to play, but if he's close with another guy and he gets cut -- does he just go away? Or does that turn into some type of big scandal then? Somehow he -- you cut him because of his lifestyle?

WHITFIELD: Right.

CARTER: And that's what people are going to think. There's going to be people outside of the stadium saying --

WHITFIELD: Sure.

CARTER: -- you cut him because he's gay. And that the team's going to say, no, we cut him because he couldn't play football. And then what happens if the team says no, we should keep him just for the public relations standpoint. Players in that locker room are going to know, hey, they're keeping him even though he can't play football, just because of who he is.

(CROSSTALK)

WHITFIELD: So these owners and coaches, they're all thinking about this right now.

CARTER: That's what they're thinking right now.

DRAFT: You have to. So one side says, if you keep him, and he's not good enough, then you could actually destroy your team.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

DRAFT: Your team chemistry. The other side, if it's close and you have to cut him --

(CROSSTALK)

CARTER: A gray area.

WHITFIELD: So when a person -- yes.

CARTER: He's not great but he's not bad. He's right in that gray area where he could be on the tipping point of a guy who actually has an NFL career or a guy who got a very short and sweet NFL career.

WHITFIELD: So when at first it seemed like a great advantage that wow, you got this notoriety, everybody knows who you are, now it's almost a disadvantage.

CARTER: Absolutely.

WHITFIELD: Because everyone knows who you are.

CARTER: Yes.

DRAFT: Absolutely.

CARTER: And the spotlight is on and there are so many people watching and you know, when he had these two chances to really show, he didn't perform.

WHITFIELD: My goodness.

CARTER: Poor combine, poor senior bowl.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

DRAFT: It's a results game. Results game. When he comes out, you know, he made people aware. Look at me, look at me. But then when did take that look at him, combine, senior bowl. The numbers didn't really add up. And so now there's a question.

WHITFIELD: All right. Pressure's on. The clock is ticking. I'm sweating for him. I am nervous to him. Chris, Joe, good to see you. Thanks so much.

I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Thanks for being with us this afternoon. "YOUR MONEY" starts right now.