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Water Disruptions For More Than Half Of Texas; Domestic Violence Shelter Evacuates Amid Winter Storm; Biden Declares "America Is Back," Pledges $4 Billion Toward Global COVID-19 Vaccine Aid; U.S. Willing To Resume Talks With Iran On Nuclear Deal; Biden Tours Pfizer Manufacturing Plant; Ambulance Workers On Front Lines Struggle In Wales; Pro-Democracy Protesters Honor Woman Killed By Myanmar Police; NASA Sends Images Of Perseverance Rover On Mars; Centenarian Makes History With COVID-19 Shot. Aired 4-5a ET

Aired February 20, 2021 - 04:00   ET

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

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ROBYN CURNOW, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Hi. Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and all around the world. Thanks so much for joining me. I'm Robyn Curnow.

Just ahead on CNN, a final night of a deep freeze in Texas. The frigid temperatures and now a water crisis following the near total collapse of the state's power grid.

Also, America first no more. U.S. President Joe Biden striking a new tone, declaring America is back as he meets virtually with some of America's top allies.

And she lived through the 1918 flu pandemic, now this 111-year-old woman just received her second dose of the COVID vaccine. She shares her secret for a long life.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Live from CNN Center, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Robyn Curnow.

CURNOW: Millions of Americans in Texas are facing a worsening water crisis after winter storms devastated the region. More than half the state's residents are being told to boil their water, if they have any at all.

Long lines now the norm at mass water distribution sites as store shelves run bare and while much of the state's electricity has now been restored, freezing temperatures have persisted for yet another night.

President Joe Biden says he is ready to sign a national declaration order to provide more resources as soon as it hits his desk. Ed Lavandera has more from Dallas.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A military plane transporting 84,000 bottles of water from California landed in Galveston, Texas. Thousands of people are driving through massive food and water distribution sites in Houston and San Antonio.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't think any of us was expecting this. For it to be like this. So it's all about survival right now until we start getting warm.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No water?

It's getting real bad. And I have a 7-year-old. And it is like, it's tough.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): Some 14 million Texans are battling water shortages as more than 1,200 public water systems across the state are fighting to fix disruptions caused by the winter storm and power grid failure.

The worst of the Texas freeze is over. State officials say the power grid emergency is now under control.

GOV. GREG ABBOTT (R-TX): We want to make sure that whatever happened in ERCOT falling short never happens again.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): Governor Greg Abbott is now calling on state lawmakers to pay for power plant weatherization upgrades.

ABBOTT: To ensure that all the machinery that froze up and was unable to generate the power you need, that may require funding. The state of Texas should step up and provide that funding.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): There are still tens of thousands of people without power in Texas but getting those people back online will require utility crews to prepare damage inflicted by the historic winter storm and that could take several more days to repair.

BILL MAGNESS, ERCOT: I really want to acknowledge just the immense human suffering that we saw throughout this event. When people lose power, there are heartbreaking consequences.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): Seven people around the town of Abilene died from weather related causes.

[04:05:00]

LAVANDERA (voice-over): A volunteer found an elderly couple in their home. It was 12 degrees inside.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They had been reluctant to leave their home. And so it was 24 hours later. She went back to take them food and found the husband deceased in bed.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): As if battling a massive power outage and frigid temperatures was not enough, residents like Melissa Webb in the San Antonio area apartment complex could only watch as fire destroyed their homes.

MELISSA WEBB, SAN ANTONIO RESIDENT: I haven't been able to go to work all week long. And now everything that we have in there is gone.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: As the water pressure was -- as you mentioned that --

LAVANDERA (voice-over): Part of the building collapse as a reporter interviewed a firefighter, frozen fire hydrants and failing water supply hampered efforts by firefighters to put out the flames.

Cities are battling crisis after crisis. Del Rio mayor Bruno Lozano says his city's wastewater system was knocked offline for an hour this week, which sent sewage seeping into some low lying parts of the city.

MAYOR BRUNO LOZANO (R-TX), DEL RIO: This is something that is beyond historical, beyond unprecedented. It's a chain reaction of worst-case scenario of worst-case scenarios.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): Texas governor Greg Abbott has renewed calls for an investigation of ERCOT, the agency that runs the state's power grid system and has also called for its executives to resign.

Bill Magness, the CEO of ERCOT, answered those questions on CNN.

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: How can you keep your job after a week like this?

MAGNESS: We are accountable to the people and the leadership of Texas. We are going to go and explain the steps we took and how that played into the entire situation on the electric grid. If that is the outcome, that is the outcome.

LAVANDERA: This is the last kind of frigid temperatures below freezing before temperatures fully warm up this weekend. But at the end of this miserable week, it's important to remember that 26 people died here in this catastrophe this week, most of them from hypothermia and exposure to carbon monoxide -- Ed Lavandera, CNN, Dallas.

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CURNOW: Joining me now in Dallas, Texas, is Paige Flink, the CEO of The Family Place, one of the first family violence shelters in the state.

Paige, hi. Thank you so much for joining me. It's been a devastating few days for people across Texas but particularly for women and children, who have just managed to escape a vulnerable, dangerous situation at home.

And then what happens?

Talk us through some of the video you sent to CNN.

PAIGE FLINK, CEO, THE FAMILY PLACE: It was a scary few days. Started out that we were without power for 48 and then it became 72 hours. Then we started to see the ceiling leak from our sprinkler system.

Then we made the decision to leave. Just after we made the decision to leave, the pipes in the ceiling started to burst and literally the ceiling came through. The insulation came down on people's clothes and we were grabbing clothes and the clients were screaming, my ceiling just fell in.

It was traumatic for these women and children, who came to us for safety, having fled domestic violence situations. So it's been traumatic for all of us, including our staff, who are incredible.

CURNOW: It's a double victimization on one level, isn't it?

When you look at these pictures, you can see the amount of water that must have come in from the ceiling. And these women and children don't have much. They fled, as I said, an abusive home. So they've come literally sometimes with the clothes on their back and perhaps an identity card or some documents.

What was the most horrifying thing in terms of what they've lost as well?

FLINK: They suffered in the dark every night for two or three nights. So that was scary enough. And then to have the water pouring down on some of the things that they -- it was all they had, the clothing that they had brought with them.

And then they had to get on a bus. We got five city buses and we moved them to a church that volunteered their space because they had power. And then they had to go sleep on cots. And we had two bathrooms for 123 women and children and no showers.

So it continued. So it's been really a hard five days. So tonight we moved them into an extended stay hotel. At least they're all sleeping on a soft, warm bed and will be feeling a lot better tomorrow morning.

CURNOW: I think that makes all of us listening to you better. So they're in a hotel tonight.

But how long does that last?

FLINK: Well, yes. The shelter will not be operable. We won't be able to move back into the shelter apartments where they've been living. So I'm looking at least 12 weeks before we're able to repair the facility.

And that's determined by how long does the insurance company take and about the construction and we are not alone in Dallas. There are many other organizations who have also suffered the same type of devastation.

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FLINK: So we're all going to be fighting for the same repair people and that sort of thing. So if I can get it out in three months, it will be hundreds of

thousands of dollars to put them in these -- in the hotel but -- which is not optimal because it's not as safe as our facility, which has a big fence and security 24 hours a day. So that part is also unnerving for us.

CURNOW: And what have these women been telling you?

No doubt they're probably also afraid of being found on top of all of this.

FLINK: That's right. Some of them were really concerned that when we moved to this -- it was a lovely church but still it has no fence and it's right there on a corner. And there's so many levels of fear that women who have come to us for safety have.

They've fled chaos, we get them settled and then this chaotic situation makes it so much worse because the trauma they've experienced is long-term for some women. They're resilient, though. And they've been so cooperative and so thankful.

But they're very emotional and the kids are also traumatized because nothing is normal for these children. And we're just trying to keep it calm and figure out how to put structure back in the day as they go to school.

I have no idea. The school that serves our shelter, we have relationships with and they were going to go back to the classroom. We have a shopware (ph) center that the moms could go to work. So we have a lot of things to figure out before we're able to get it -- you know, there's so many questions I still have on how it's all going to work.

CURNOW: So many unanswered questions.

So are you getting help?

Do you feel like the community is rallying around you?

FLINK: Yes. Dallas, Texas, is an amazing place. They are so generous. And so we have offers of food and clothing and almost sometimes more than we can handle. So we've said, first, let us get settled and then we have to take it sort of one day at the a time, which is the same way the clients lived their lives, which is one day at a time.

CURNOW: Thank you so much for the work you did before this, all the work you're doing now, extraordinary time and please send our best to all the women in your shelter. Thank you very much for joining us, Paige Flink.

FLINK: Thank you.

CURNOW: And even though domestic violence shelters in Texas are struggling, as Paige said, with the severe weather conditions on all levels, many are still open and offering sanctuary.

For our viewers here in the U.S., if you are being abused by a partner, you can get free, confidential help when you call the national Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE. That's 1-800- 799-7233.

And millions of Texans are facing long lines and empty shelves, as food and water, also, run out in the capital, in the state capital of Austin; 325 million gallons of water was lost because so many frozen pipes had actually burst. The mayor told CNN earlier, they're in urgent need of supplies there.

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MAYOR STEVE ADLER (D), AUSTIN, TX: Water. You know, I would -- we could -- we could -- we could -- we could hand out all the bottled water that would be delivered our way. We have truckloads that are coming in.

We couldn't source it in Texas. We had to order water from the southeast -- east -- southeastern states. That's supposed to be arriving here to -- tonight. We have -- we're -- we're sourcing water. It'd be great if the federal government came in with just an armada or planes full of water.

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CURNOW: Well, after days of freezing temperatures, some much needed warmer weather is on the horizon.

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CURNOW: So Joe Biden stepped into the virtual world stage on Friday as he renewed America's solidarity with its oldest allies and tried to remove all doubt that the Trump era was over. That story is ahead.

Plus, Biden's bold overture to Iran. We'll discuss what happens next with Fawaz Gerges of the London School of Economics.

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CURNOW: U.S. President Joe Biden has now put the world on notice that Donald Trump's America first foreign policy is gone. The president's virtual appearances before the G7 and the Munich Security Conference marked a radical shift in tone from his predecessor.

Biden stressed renewed cooperation with allies and promised that America would earn their trust as a reliable global leader. Here is Nic Robertson with all the details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: The big headline from the G7 commitment to get COVID vaccines to the poorer nations, to speed the development and deployment of the vaccines, to increase manufacturing capacity of vaccines and to share more information about the variants of COVID-19 that can potentially be more deadly, more infectious.

That was a priority, committing more money so that those vaccines could get to those poorer nations, $7.5 billion committed. President Biden came with his own money as well.

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BIDEN: We must cooperate if we're going to defeat COVID-19 everywhere. My first presidential mass security memorandum focused on surging health and humanitarian responses to defeat COVID-19 and to better prevent and prepare for the next pandemic.

Today, I'm announcing that the United States is making a 2 billion dollar pledge to COVAX with the promise of an initial $2 billion to urge others to step up as well.

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ROBERTSON: And the G7 is not the only event of the day. The Munich Security Conference virtual as well. President Biden speaking there, talking about an inflection point in history, where you can go with democracies or you can go with autocracies.

He says he wants to work with other democratic nations to develop diplomatic plans to work together and hold China to account, to hold Russia to account. He said the United States is back on the world stage, wants to earn its place back in a leadership role, welcomed by Boris Johnson.

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BORIS JOHNSON, U.K. PRIME MINISTER: As you've seen and heard earlier, America is unreservedly back as the leader of the free world. That is fantastic. And it is vital for our American friends to know that their allies on the side of the Atlantic are willing and able to share the risks and the burdens of addressing the world's toughest problems.

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ROBERTSON: Angela Merkel also offering support, saying it's important to get a joint transatlantic plan of how to deal with China, how to deal with Russia.

Emmanuel Macron, the French president, said, we agree on all the shared interests and values. Sometimes the priorities might be a bit different, he said. But we can work together.

That is the very clear message emerging at the end of the Munich Security Conference. The message also for President Biden is not all European nations are perhaps going to go along with him as easily as perhaps he would like, specifically on China and Russia, too. So not plain sailing.

But the United States, President Joe Biden, back on the world stage, leading, as he wants to -- Nic Robertson, CNN, London.

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CURNOW: Thanks, Nic, for that.

The White House says it doesn't anticipate taking any actions against Iran at the time including sanctions but it did repeat the offer to open up channels of communication if Iran is interested. Biden's national security adviser said this may be the best chance of striking a deal.

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JAKE SULLIVAN, U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: One of our concerns right now is that Iran is presently threatening to move even further out of compliance, to refuse to cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency and the work it is trying to do to ensure nothing in Iran's program is being used for weapons purposes.

So I think the first order of business here would be for the Iranians to take the decision to stop the process of moving further out of compliance.

And then I do believe that there is a diplomatic pathway to getting to an ultimate agreement in which we can all have confidence that Iran's nuclear program has a lid on it, the kind of lid that was on it when we were actually all in the joint comprehensive plan of action together.

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CURNOW: Fawaz Gerges is a professor of international relations at the London School of Economics and director of the Middle East Center at LSC.

Thanks for speaking to us. Good to see you, sir. It's been a while and I really do want to get your take on this.

What do you make of those comments there?

The Biden administration is doing outreach but so much has moved on since Trump pulled the plug on that deal.

Where do Tehran and D.C. really begin?

FAWAZ GERGES, DIRECTOR OF MIDDLE EAST CENTER, LONDON SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS: You're right.

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GERGES: The world has changed a great deal. And the world is delighted to have Joe Biden, in particular in the heart of Europe. Even Boris Johnson, who was a very close friend of Donald Trump, is

delighted to have Joe Biden. Certainty, America now speaks with one particular voice. America stresses multilateralism. You can really summarize Joe Biden's foreign policy decisions by maximum diplomacy as opposed to maximum pressure.

That was the policy of Donald Trump. You're talking about multilateral diplomacy of Joe Biden versus America's first. So there is a great deal of elation in the world, most of the world.

Yet at the same time, the world is waiting to see the specifics. If you ask me about Joe Biden foreign policy, it's really big on basically the brock on tours (ph) but there is little really about specificity, no details.

Think of Joe Biden's domestic politics, very highly ambitious. It's really Joe Biden's proactive on the offensive. He wants to transform the American economy. He wants to bridge divide inside America.

Yet in terms of foreign policy, he is not as ambitious. It's cautious. That is why the world is waiting to see the specific policies. As I say, the devil lies in the details.

CURNOW: So where does Tehran look at this, though?

They certainly feel like America pulled out of the deal, that they want America to make the first outreach here. They want sanctions lifted before anything is done from Tehran's point of view.

How is some sort of compromise reached between Tehran and D.C. here?

GERGES: Robyn, there is a huge gulf between Iran on the one hand and the United States and its European allies on the other hand. For Iran, sanctions, sanctions, sanctions. The United States must lift the sanctions imposed by in Trump in 2018. Lifting the sanctions is a prerequisite for Iran to return to its commitments under the 2015 nuclear deal.

For President Biden and even for his European allies, Iran must respect its commitments while the sanctions remain in place. If you ask me what the with Biden administration wants and what Europe, too, remember now, Joe Biden is trying to portray the conflict with Iran is not the United States versus Iran.

It's the United States and Europe versus Iran. Not only they want Iran to return to the 2015 nuclear deal but they want to overhaul the original deal. They want to expand and deepen the 2015 nuclear deal and they want to include also other activities by Iran, including its ballistic missiles and its regional activities.

(CROSSTALK)

GERGES: So certainly you have a long way to go.

CURNOW: And it's certainly a very optimistic thought, if you think in the next week or so, despite these goodwill gestures, that Iran says it will stop IAEA inspections.

Is Iran playing with fire here, as the German foreign minister suggested?

GERGES: And this is to come back to Iran's strategy, Robyn, as you've said, time is not on Iran's side. The Iranian economy is bleeding.

And what Iran has been trying to do in the past few months is to really raise the stakes, to increase the pressure, to speed up its enrichments of uranium, to say to the International Atomic Energy Agency, you won't be able to come to Iran and check on our nuclear activities.

And all of these moves are part of Iran's strategy to pressure the Biden administration to begin the process of lifting the sanctions. The Biden administration says no way.

You might say why?

Why the Biden administration is not lifting the sanctions?

The secretary of state, Antony Blinken; the national security adviser, Jack Sullivan; the head of the CIA, William Burns and other players were the ones who basically negotiated the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran. So the Iranians are saying, look, guys, you were part of the deal.

And why are you taking your time?

So what you're seeing now is both sides are positioning themselves. And I think there is a new opening.

[04:30:00]

GERGES: And the new opening is the European Union basically has called for a diplomatic meeting to begin the process of talking, both Iran and the United States and European community.

(CROSSTALK)

CURNOW: And what about Russia and China here?

Because obviously, they are signatories to that original deal, as well.

How much negotiation and how much pressure or at least communication needs to be done via China and Russia?

And clearly does the Biden administration need to reach out to them on that case as well?

GERGES: You are absolutely correct. And the initiative by the European Union on Thursday was to include both Russia and China. Russia and China are not on the same page as the United States and Europe. Russia and China would like the United States to return to the 2015 nuclear deal. They do not really want to overhaul the nuclear deal. So yes, they would be involved. But the reality is, it's going to take

a long time because you have a huge gulf between Iran and the United States.

And a further complicating point, you have elections in Iran in four months. And the elections might produce a more conservative government than President Rouhani and the foreign minister Zarif.

So time is really of great essence here and that is why it seems to me I don't see the Biden administration really in any kind of a hurry.

And I think the strategy of the Biden administration is to keep the sanctions on and to pressure Iran not only to return to the 2015 nuclear deal but also to open up the deal and include other limits and basically on the Iranian nuclear deal and the ballistic missiles as well.

And I'm not optimistic. If you ask me, what are the chances of a breakthrough between Iran on the one hand and the United States and its European allies, I would say between 30 percent and 35 percent at this moment.

CURNOW: OK. Let's talk again and see what happens in the next few weeks and months. Fawaz Gerges there from the London School of Economics, always good to get your analysis. Thank you, sir.

GERGES: Thank you.

CURNOW: Coming up, President Joe Biden reveals when he thinks the U.S. might reveal to something close to normal but he's not making any promises. We'll explain when we return.

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CURNOW: Welcome back to all of our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Robyn Curnow. It is 35 minutes past the hour and you're watching CNN.

Despite the delays in vaccine shipments, President Joe Biden has said the U.S. will have enough vaccines for every American who wants one by the end of July. But he struggled to answer when the country might return to some semblance of normal. Take a listen to this.

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BIDEN: I can't give you a date when this crisis will end. But I can tell you we're doing everything possible to have that day come sooner rather than later. I believe we'll be approaching normalcy by the end of this year and, God willing, this Christmas will be different than last. But I can't make that commitment to you. (END VIDEO CLIP)

CURNOW: Mr. Biden made those comments on Friday while touring Pfizer's manufacturing plant in Michigan. Jeff Zeleny has more on that visit.

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JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: President Biden making a visit to the Pfizer factory in Portage, Michigan, where the coronavirus vaccine is being produced. And clearly there have been issues with vaccination supply.

So the president taking a firsthand look as he walked through the factory, getting a pledge from the Pfizer CEO to ramp up production. By the end of March, some 120 million doses; by the end of May, some 200 million doses. That is about two months ahead of schedule from the original plan.

Now there is no question, winter weather in the United States has slowed the distribution of this vaccine considerably. The president said there could be other bumps in the road as well. Different variants of the strain, of course, are making this even more challenging.

But he did say, by the end of July, he does expect some 300 million Americans should be receiving vaccines but also making the case that vaccines are safe. There is a worry inside the administration that people who are eligible for the vaccine are afraid to get it because of the safety concerns.

He made clear the vaccine is safe. Also, he pushed Republicans to support his $1.9 trillion COVID relief spending bill that is moving through Congress. He said the majority of Americans do support this plan. He made clear that things will get better slowly but acknowledged there would, indeed, be bumps in the road along the way.

He said, by next Christmas, things will be much better but he said also things are outside of the administration's control. But certainly, on the president's first visit here to this factory, where the world saw this vaccination rolling out in December, clearly progress is being made.

But bumps in the road now even clearer than before -- Jeff Zeleny, CNN, Portage, Michigan.

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CURNOW: Johnson and Johnson is asking the World Health Organization to allow emergency use of its single dose coronavirus vaccine. This would make the drug available in almost 200 countries and be part of the COVAX cooperative. COVAX aims to distribute doses fairly around the world, especially to developing countries.

Meanwhile, in Canada, COVID cases are down even though the nation has struggled to get enough vaccines. Shipments are ramping up now but Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says restrictions will continue for weeks because of the slow rollout and these new COVID-19 variants. He warns this could cause yet another wave of infections.

And Wales is also being cautious. The first minister there said the lockdown in place since December will last another three weeks but some measures could be relaxed a bit. For more, I want to turn to CNN's Salma Abdelaziz, joining us from London.

Hi, Salma, what can you tell us?

SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN PRODUCER: Hello, Robyn. Here in the U.K., there is now the authorities looking at easing lockdown restrictions after millions of people have received the first dose of their vaccine.

So quite literally this weekend, prime minister Boris Johnson will be sitting in Downing Street, crunching numbers, looking at the data, listening to scientists, reading projection charts. Ultimately, the plan or the decision to ease these lockdown restrictions, to ease these rules, must be based in the science.

So what are we expecting?

On Monday, prime minister Boris Johnson is set to announce a road map and easing of lockdown restrictions.

[04:40:00]

ABDELAZIZ: That will not happen overnight. It will be slow and steady and irreversible, the prime minister's words. That means anything that's done, you can't go back on it. This is the third nationwide lockdown that we're experiencing here in England. So there is very little political, public appetite for a fourth one.

So any steps taken have to be final. Two points of data here are the most important. First of all, the effectiveness of the vaccine. And I don't just mean whether or not it prevents disease. It also mean whether or not it prevents transmission of the virus. So studies and research has been done on that.

And infection rates which, of course, have been steadily declining over the last few weeks, the plan is that the authorities want to first reopen schools. The earliest that could happen would be March 8th. There might be a staggered reopening because you might need to test students, test teachers.

Reopening schools potentially as early as March 8th. The second thing is reopening the economy, nonessential shops. The prime minister will lay out when that will happen on Monday.

And finally the hospitality industry, hotels, pubs, bars. That would be reopened as well. A lot of experts and scientists say this has to be cautious, this has to be careful. This country could be quite different in a few months.

But there's still a very real threat of this variant of COVID-19 that's prevalent, up to 70 percent more transmissible. So the prime minister is going to have to dig his heels in on this numbers, on this data. People really want to get out of these restrictions but it's going to have to be slow and steady.

CURNOW: OK, Salma, thank you.

Myanmar's massive pro-democracy protests have now entered their third week. We'll look at the street demonstration underway right now and why, despite hundreds of arrests, they're showing no sign of abating. That story, next.

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CURNOW: In Moscow, detained opposition leader Alexei Navalny has had his three-year prison sentence reduced by a 1.5 months. Navalny was in court to appeal an earlier decision to convert his suspended sentence in a 2014 embezzlement case into prison time.

Navalny's lawyer petitioned the court to release him from detention, considering time served. His current sentence is now around two years, six months and two weeks. Navalny also asked the judge to allow video recording of the hearing for the sake of transparency.

The judge denied journalists permission to record the proceedings but said there would be a recording of the verdict. Navalny has another court appearance later today in an unrelated defamation case.

Pro-democracy protests in Myanmar have entered their third week. Despite the military's efforts, they don't show any sign of letting up. The anti-coup demonstrators are out on the streets again at this hour, demanding a return to democracy and the release of ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

And they're honoring a female protester who died on Friday 10 days after she was shot in the head by police. The military leaders who deposed the civilian government on February 1st are trying to stop the flow on information online. They've cut off internet access for the sixth straight night. Paula Hancocks is monitoring all this from Seoul.

Hi, Paula, what can you tell us about what is happening on the streets right now?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, as you said, the momentum is certainly continuing on the streets of Myanmar. The crowds are slightly less than we saw, for example, on Wednesday of this week, when it was the biggest crowd, according to those on the streets, that we have seen since February 1st.

But as you say, this is the beginning of the third week now. Every single day, people are coming out on to the streets, calling for democracy. And also, there is another call now. After that protester, Mya Thwe Thwe Khaing, a 20-year-old woman, was shot in the head and died on Friday.

That has now also galvanized many protesters. She had really become the symbol of the pro democracy moment as she had been in a critical condition for 10 days before passing away on Friday.

Now I spoke to two of her doctors earlier this Saturday and they both said that she never regained consciousness since she came into the hospital. Many were angry at what they had seen. Police said they had only used anti-riot equipment on that particular day, February 9th.

But the doctors I spoke to both confirmed that it was, in fact, a live bullet that had pierced her motorcycle helmet and was in her head.

So this is really the first casualty that we are seeing, the first known casualty from this protest. And many on the streets are not only chanting Aung San Suu Kyi's name, calling for her release, but they're now saying the protester's name, as well.

CURNOW: Paula, thanks for that update.

Coming up on CNN, she is the oldest person in South Carolina to get the coronavirus vaccine. What this 111-year old says the secret to long life is -- that's next.

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CURNOW: NASA is posting amazing photographs of its Perseverance rover, which landed dramatically on Mars on Thursday. Take a look at the image on the right. A different spacecraft in orbit caught this view of the parachute, which carried the rover down to the Red Planet's surface after its 300 million mile journey from Earth.

And, boom, this selfie, the rover being lowered on cables from the spacecraft's sky crane before transmitting a color view of the landing area in an old lake bed. Perseverance also showed off one of its six wheels. The rover's mission is to look for signs of ancient Martian life.

And Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have decided they will not return as working members of the British royal family. This means honorary military appointments and royal patronages held by the couple will be revoked.

Buckingham Palace made the announcement on Friday, adding that the Duke and Duchess remain much loved members of the family. A spokesperson for the couple said they will remain committed to their duties in Britain and elsewhere. The couple announced earlier this week they are expecting their second child.

And more than 59 million Americans have received a coronavirus vaccine so far. And one of those is a 111-year-old woman living in South Carolina. Gary Tuchman has her remarkable story and what she says is the secret to a lengthy life. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Maria Aulenbacher is the oldest living person in the state of South Carolina, one of the oldest people in the United States. And on this day, the 111-year-old is getting her second dose of the COVID vaccine.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK, that's good.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Maria Aulenbacher, now one of the oldest people in the world to get the vaccination.

MARIA AULENBACHER, SOUTH CAROLINA'S OLDEST RESIDENT: (INAUDIBLE) no, no.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Maria lives with a daughter and son-in-law near the Blue Ridge Mountains, two of her grandchildren and a great grandson live nearby. But she was born in Germany and lived there a long time, more than a century to be exact.

Incredibly, shortly after her 100th birthday, she moved across the ocean to the United States. Everyone calls her Oma, an affectionate German term for grandma.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oma, it's sunny and beautiful again in South Carolina today. Isn't it so nice to live here?

AULENBACHER: Yes.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Maria is incredibly optimistic. She loves her family reading and naps. And has a daily ritual that she's convinced has increased her longevity.

TUCHMAN: Ms. Maria, what is the secret to living to 111 years old?

AULENBACHER: Every meal, I eat what I like.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Maria was a little girl during the First World War and the influenza pandemic.

[04:55:00]

TUCHMAN (voice-over): And in her 30s during World War II. She became a widow more than 75 years ago. Her daughter and son-in-law say she's had to be strong.

DOUG DICKERSON, MARIA'S SON-IN-LAW: We look forward to seeing her every morning come out, cheerful, ready to have breakfast, a couple of cups of coffee. And take on the day.

TUCHMAN: How important was it to you that your mother get these vaccines? BIRGIT DICKERSON, MARIA'S DAUGHTER: Well, we kind of felt like it's a civic duty, everybody has to get this vaccine because if we ever want to get over this, we all have to go and have the vaccine.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Maria is well aware she is now a role model.

AULENBACHER: I'm very happy to get the shot.

B. DICKERSON: I really feel blessed that I can have her for such a long time. And I hope I have so many more years.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How old do you want to be?

AULENBACHER: Like old like Methuselah.

TUCHMAN: Like Methuselah. Methuselah is a biblical figure who lives in 969 years old. I hope you get there. And I think if anyone can, it would be you -- Gary Tuchman, CNN, Travelers Rest, South Carolina.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CURNOW: I'll have whatever Oma is having.

Thanks to all of you for joining us. That was a beautiful story to end the show. I'm Robyn Curnow. Much more news continues.