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Millions Still Without Power Days After Severe Storm; 100 Million+ Under Winter Storm Warning or Advisory; Winter Storms Delay Vaccine Distribution and Injections; South Africa Begins Rollout of Johnson and Johnson Vaccine; U.S. Says North Korean Hackers Tried to Steal $1.3 Billion; Palace: Prince Philip Hospitalized as Precaution. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired February 18, 2021 - 04:00   ET

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

[04:00:00]

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, and welcome to our viewers joining us here in the United States and all around the world. You are watching CNN NEWSROOM and I'm Rosemary Church.

Just ahead, right now millions of people are still without power in Texas as freezing, frustrated families are forced to make incredibly difficult choices.

Also ahead, the devastating storm adds to the worries of an already stretched nation and is slowing down the COVID-19 vaccination efforts in several states.

And Britain's Prince Philip is in the hospital. The husband of Queen Elizabeth was admitted after not feeling well.

Good to have you with us. Well it's just past 3 in the morning in Texas where millions of people are spending another night without electricity or heat, days after the state was slammed by a powerful winter storm. Some residents are even sleeping in their cars to try to keep warm. The storm and continued cold snap have crippled power facilities causing widespread outages. The cold temperatures remain. More than 21 million people across Texas are under some kind of winter weather alert and all this is happening as officials in the state trade blame for the crisis. CNN's Camila Bernal reports from Dallas.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Unlivable conditions in Texas. Frozen pipes bursting. Flooding homes in bitter temperatures.

GOV. GREG ABBOTT (R-TX): The fact is every source of power the state of Texas has access to has been compromised because of the ultracold temperature or because of equipment failures.

BERNAL (voice-over): Utility companies are shut down unable to generate electricity.

TRICIA LANCASTER, LOST POWER IN TEXAS STORM: We knew for a week that this was coming. So if we knew for weeks that this was coming, why weren't we ready. Our house is 32 degrees inside. We're worried about the pipes.

BERNAL (voice-over): Linda shoemaker was forced to take her 101-year- old mother to this warming shelter overnight.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You can freeze in the middle of the night, so we had to find someplace to go.

BERNAL (voice-over): The mayor of hard-hit Austin said Texas should have been better prepared.

STEVE ADLER, AUSTIN, TEXAS MAYOR: I have a community right now that has been as scared and frustrated, confused, angry and I am too.

BERNAL (voice-over): Governor Greg Abbott said the dangerous lack of power is not the state government's fault but a failure by ERCOT. The states largest power grid management organization.

ABBOTT: ERCOT stands for Electric Reliability Council of Texas, and they showed that they were not reliable.

BERNAL (voice-over): Some 90 percent of the Lone Star state's power is managed by ERCOT. Alone electric council operate mostly independent of other federal power grids and, thus, mostly alone in its efforts to restore power quickly and safely.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The operators acted with judgment based on their training to prevent an event that would have been even more catastrophic than the terrible things we've seen this week.

BERNAL (voice-over): ERCOT said the bulk of the blackouts are due to oil and gas plants shutting down in the cold.

ABBOTT: About 19,800 megawatts of gas powered generation is still offline because of either mechanical issues or the lack of the supply of gas.

BERNAL (voice-over): But Abbott isn't letting the state's lucrative fossil fuel industry take all the blame and now facing backlash for attempting to blame green energy utilities.

ABBOTT: Wind and our solar got shut down and they were collectively more than 10 percent of our power grid. It just shows that fossil fuel is necessary for the state of Texas as well as other states.

BERNAL: And just to give you the big picture, 70 percent of the population here in the state of Texas is still under a winter weather alert. People are cold, they are frustrated, and they want answers as to when this situation is going to get better. Both the White House and FEMA say they're tracking this situation. FEMA already providing generators. They say they're bringing diesel to support the infrastructure here, things like hospitals and the water supply. And also at the request of the state of Texas they're bringing water and blankets.

[04:35:00]

But Texans say that is not enough. What they want is the state and officials to really figure out how to get their power back, and how to get it back as soon as possible. In Dallas, Texas, I'm Camila Bernal, back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Thanks so much for that report.

And while so many wait for the power to be restored, they are doing what they can to stay warm and help others. Earlier I spoke with Jasmine Smith, the director of Justice and Advocacy for the Austin Urban League, about her efforts to help the most vulnerable in her state.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JASMINE SMITH, DIRECT OF JUSTICE AND ADVOCACY, AUSTIN AREA URBAN LEAGUE: It's been extremely difficult. From, you know, building trust with individuals that have historically been oppressed, even building that trust for them to leave their encampments or in house neighbors was a problem we had to face. Once we built that trust and were able to move people, the very transportation -- because our vehicles were not equipped. We were not equipped to be doing this. That was a huge issue.

Finding shelters and warming stations to a point was an issue. Finding temporary shelters and hotels was an issue. Literally everything you could think of was an issue, and that was only when it was just a freeze. When we were just worried about the freeze. Then the power went. Then the water was jeopardized. And so even curveball after curveball really dealing with this boots on the ground and community led and driven.

CHURCH: Yasmin, while you've dealing with that, of course, you're in your office where you do have power. But at home you lost power and heating and how have you been coping with that? And knowing that there's no timeline here for when power might be restored?

SMITH: I actually had to be rescued by some of the same individuals I had been coordinating to rescue others. It's very traumatic to be boots on ground in this manner and also be very afraid for your own safety. In my home it was below 30 degrees. I did not have power and it was a very scary place to be.

Yes, I totally understand that. And of course, Texas governor Greg Abbott is blaming everyone but himself pointing the finger at ERCOT, the company that runs most of the state's power grid. Even trying to score political points by attacking renewable energy when we all know it's the frozen equipment of oil and gas plants that's the main reason for this power loss. So what is your reaction to the governor not taking responsibility for this and why do you think Texas was not better prepared for this winter storm?

SMITH: This is not the time to be pointing fingers. This is a time to be looking at what you have around you and making sure your neighbors are OK. And it would be a -- such a disappointing failure if we as Texas did not grow and learn from this experience so it should not happen again in the future.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH (on camera): And I was talking to Yasmin Smith earlier. Many thanks to her.

Right now more than 100 million people are under a winter storm warning or winter weather advisory from Texas to Massachusetts.

CNN meteorologist Derek Van Dam joins me now with the latest. So, Derek, are you saying when this deep freeze is going to come to an end?

DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, well we've still got a couple more days of below average temperatures for the state of Texas and much of the Gulf coast. Now the storm has got its eye set on the northeast.

But I've got to show you this video that's just been sent to us here from CNN. This is coming out of a bayou just a few miles away from the Gulf Coast in Louisiana. It just points to the depth of this arctic blast as it's traversed across much of the Gulf Coast this week in a very expanse, long duration cold event that now has impacted energy supplies, COVID vaccine distributions, water supplies. It's created what is pointing towards an ecological disaster as well.

We're seeing images on social media of what is called cold, stunned sea turtles. They have literally almost been, quote, unquote, frozen in place because of the arctic temperatures that have settled into some of these channels and into some of these shipping lanes and right along the immediate coastline there.

[04:10:00]

So you can imagine the ramifications will not only be felt from a human impact but also from an animal impact as well. So it's something we're monitoring.

Just this week alone. We're talking over 2.5 thousand record lows that were set. This is record low maximums I should say. And of course, this impacted people's power, the ability to get power. If you don't have power, you can't run generators. You can't run power to bring water to your home. So, in fact, over 141 counties within 254 counties in the state of Texas have some sort of water disruption supply issue as we speak. So that is a concern for people.

Lining up at some of the department stores here trying to secure some fresh water for their families and also some provisions just to keep going through this long duration cold spell.

There it is. We're talking about 30 to 40 degrees Fahrenheit colder than what it normally is this time of year. And the cold air is spreading across the mid-Atlantic and towards the northeast. Good news for Houston and Dallas. Temperatures on the rebound. But you can see still dropping below freezing overnight. This is going to allow for that expansion for the water pipes as well. So the potential here for burst pipes continues.

And then as we work our way towards the mid-Atlantic, there goes the winter storm. You can see it on the radar. Very active across the deep South. But the real concern here is an ice storm that is potentially forming across parts of North Carolina, Virginia, into the nation's capital. Half an inch of ice on top of several inches of snow will travel headaches across this region this weekend. Back to you -- Rosemary.

CHURCH: Unbelievable. Derek Van Dam, many thanks. Appreciate it.

Well, as Derek pointed out, the deep freeze is forcing many states across the U.S. to delay COVID vaccinations and distribution. In the largest county in Texas the health department had to redistribute more than 8,000 doses to hospitals, universities and jails after their backup generator failed. These were some of the lines to receive the shots before they expired.

Meantime, other counties have had to close down vaccination sites and postpone appointments for several days.

Now despite the setback, there is promising news that several vaccines are effective against the more transmissible variants. New studies suggest the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines offer some protection against them, including the variant first identified in South Africa. And the vaccines appear particularly effective in warding off severe illness, but they come as health experts warn the spread of the variants still could lead to a rapid surge in cases.

And while the Johnson & Johnson vaccine awaits approval in many countries, including the United States, South Africa is launching its rollout. Health care workers there will be first to get the single dose vaccine.

So let's go straight to CNN's David McKenzie who's at a hospital in Soweto, South Africa. And in fact, David, people have started to receive this single dose vaccine from Johnson & Johnson. Talk to us about the rollout.

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well that's right, Rosemary. Just the first lucky few of those most vulnerable in the way to this virus. The health care workers in South Africa have received this Johnson & Johnson vaccine, single dose.

It has really brought a sense of relief I think to health care workers across South Africa. And yes, as you say, they are still awaiting approval -- emergency approval of this vaccine. But in this way, they're having this very large scale implementation trial which means tens of thousands, up to hundreds of thousands of health care workers can get the vaccine and they'll monitor their progress.

It is a way to at least start vaccinating those who need it most. Just a short time ago I spoke to one of the top vaccine experts here in South Africa. He was in charge of the AstraZeneca vaccine trial. They have now sent their millions of doses or will be sending it to the African Union. He says it's a race between the variants discovered all over the world now and vaccine development.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. SHABIR MADHI, DEAN, UNIVERSITY OF WITWATERSRAND MEDICAL SCHOOL: Yes, I think anyone that believed that the variant would disseminate into many other countries is naive about it. The other team that of African contacts with amount between South Africa and other countries in all likelihood this variant has dispersed in all of southern Africa. Unfortunately, there isn't much sequencing that's done in many parts of Africa. So there wouldn't be able to identify.

And the same thing holds true from many high income countries. We've already seen this variant now been identified 55 countries, and mainly in the northern hemisphere. And in many of those countries including in the United States there've just established community transmission.

[04:15:00]

Which means that this variant is seeded, and it might well be that we start experiencing many sorts of outbreaks related to this variant, which is resistant to most vaccines, or at least relatively resistant compared to our original virus.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCKENZIE (on camera): Well Rosemary, public health officials on the continent seem to be adjusting their expectations. They say the key here is to find vaccines that are effective against severe disease. They say it's probably unrealistic to get rid of COVID-19 entirely, that's why there's this race to get a vaccine that work against that form of the illness as quickly as possible throughout the continent -- Rosemary.

CHURCH: Yes, so very important. David McKenzie is in Soweto bringing us the very latest on that. Many thanks.

Well the Biden administration is scrambling to clarify its somewhat muddled message on reopening public schools during the pandemic. The president now says he hopes by the end of April to have most students back in the classroom five days a week, not one day a week as the White House said earlier. And while Mr. Biden strongly advocates that teachers be vaccinated, he said it shouldn't stop schools from reopening if not all teachers have had the shots. The country's top infectious disease expert said vaccinating all teachers first probably isn't realistic.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, U.S. NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: I think if you were going to say that every single teacher needs to be vaccinated before you get back to school, I believe quite frankly, Tony, that that's a non-workable situation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: And still to come, the U.S. says these three North Korean men tried to steal more than $1 billion. Find out how they allegedly did it and what it says about the cyber threat Pyongyang poses.

Then a royal health update. We are live outside the hospital where Prince Philip is staying for observation and rest. That is according to Buckingham Palace. We'll be back with that in just a moment.

[04:20:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Well, a day after North Korea was accused of trying to hack COVID vaccine developers, the country is facing new cybercrime allegations. On Wednesday, the U.S. charged three North Korean hackers with conspiring to steal more than $1 billion from banks and other companies around the world.

CNN's Will Ripley is following the developments from Hong Kong. He joins us now live. Good to see you, Will. So what more are you learning about this?

WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Rosemary. It's certainly an eye popping amount of money. Isn't it? $1.3 billion. The U.S. Justice Department giving us a hint of what the Biden administration approach on North Korea may be. Of course the U.S. continued to put pressure on North Korea's nuclear program. But their cyber army which as of 2016 was estimated to number some 6,000 strong, although it's hard to get exact figures in such a secretive nation.

It certainly is significant that you now have these three men named in a 33 page federal indictment. They are Park Jin Hyok, Kim Il, John Chang Hyok, all of these three. The U.S. Justice Department says were essentially modern day bank robbers. Instead of using guns they used keyboards. And instead of stealing wallets they stole cryptocurrency like bitcoin. This virtual currency that is untraceable once it's taken online. And when you are talking about the amount of money, they are accused of stealing it was the United Nations just last week sharing with CNN a report alleging that they stole $316 million over the span of a year.

And so to have these individuals who are likely inside North Korea named by the U.S. Justice Department, it is a very important and symbolic step, the Justice Department says, in laying out in a factual way the charges so that the United States can gain cooperation from other United Nations member states not only in prosecution but also in sanctions and enforcement, even if they don't actually expect they will be able to bring these individuals into custody.

But to have the U.S. Justice Department calling the North Korean regime basically one of the most malicious nation states in the world when it comes to cyber activity, calling them almost like a criminal syndicate bearing a state flag, it's very, very strong wording, Rosemary. These charges laid out in the indictment spell it all out. It's fascinating stuff. CHURCH: Unbelievable, thanks for keeping us across of that. Will

Ripley joining us live from Hong Kong. Many thanks.

Well Buckingham Palace says Prince Philip is in the hospital as a precaution, not an emergency. So let's get an update on the 99 year old Duke of Edinburgh's condition. And Max Foster is outside his hospital in London. He joins me now live. Good to see you, Max. So what is the latest on Prince Philip's condition and any new details on why he's in the hospital at this time?

MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the update is they don't want to give any update. They don't want to give any running commentaries we've told apart from a statement that we received. There may be some updates if something changes later on, but they're not giving us sort of details on his latest condition as it were.

So all we know is that he came to the hospital on Tuesday. This was his second night in hospital, and he walked unaided into the building and it wasn't an emergency admission. They're saying he's in to rest really and to be watched really by the medical staff. So his household doctor advised him to move from Windsor where he spent most of the pandemic with the Queen to come here to London.

We're not being told what his condition is, only that he felt unwell for a period of time, a number of days we understand. But he's been in and out of this hospital over the years and he tends to spend a few days here. They watch him and then they allow him to go home. He's 99 years old so any sort of treatments he does have, they need to check on whilst he's in hospital, make sure he's recovering OK from the night before. They let him go back to Windsor where the Queen is currently staying. She didn't come up to London. So that also shows how they're trying to sort of calm nerves really in the nation as they heard this news that the Prince is going into hospital.

CHURCH: Yes, and as you mentioned, the Queen hasn't gone there. Any other members of the royal family come to visit Prince Philip?

[04:25:00]

FOSTER: Again, we've asked that and we're not hearing anything. I think that, you know, the optics of that would suggest there's some level of concern. So where a normal family might have members of family coming to visit them and friends is not always the case with the royal family because they know the optics might suggest something else. But I'm sure he's taken some calls. We know it's not COVID related as well, Rosemary. Because there's been lots of questions about that.

CHURCH: Yes, that's a very important point. And as you mentioned last hour, both he and the Queen received their vaccination. Our Max Foster joining us live from London, many thanks.

And just ahead, how did a massive winter storm have such a devastating effect on the Texas power grid? We will take a look at the causes. That's coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: We are continuing to follow the desperate and dangerous situation in Texas where at this hour millions of people are still without electricity or heat days after a severe winter storm. The power outages have been widespread, and it's expected that power will remain an issue as cold temperatures are forecast to linger through the end of the week.

And that's not welcome news, of course, to so many across the state now struggling to stay warm and safe as this new crisis puts extra stress on families. And that includes these parents who have been rationing oxygen for their five-month-old son born with premature lungs since the power went out on Monday. The family made a makeshift heater and had to resort to burning another child's baby blocks as they ran out of wood. And then there was another mother who described her desperate situation.