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Biden: Georgia Voting Law "An Atrocity," Says DOJ Looking Into It; Former CDC Director Tells CNN He Thinks COVID-19 Originated In Chinese Lab, But Cites No Evidence; Boulder Officer Who Died In Shooting Led Team Into Store Within 30 Seconds Of Arriving On Scene; Gun Shop Owner: Shooting Suspect Passed Background Check; Biden Urges Action On Gun Control After Back-To-Back Mass Shootings; Large Container Ship Remains Stuck In Suez Canal; Tornado Survivor Calls Untouched Cross "A Miracle". Aired 3-4p ET

Aired March 27, 2021 - 15:00   ET

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

[15:00:23]

ANA CABRERA, CNN HOST: Hello. On this Saturday, you are live in the CNN NEWSROOM. Thanks so much for joining us. I'm Ana Cabrera in New York.

We begin in Georgia, with that state's newest law, a law that's sparked outrage across the country, because it's built on lies, what many call the big lie. Now, important to remember, voters there in Georgia shocked the nation by flipping the state from red to blue, replacing two Republican senators with Democrats.

So the response in Georgia is this new law that sharply restricts voter access going forward. The state's Republican governor says it makes the process more fair.

President Biden calls it the exact opposite.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOSEPH R. BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It's an atrocity. The idea -- if you want any indication that it has nothing to do with fairness, nothing to do with decency, they pass a law saying you can't provide water for people standing in line while they're waiting to vote? You don't need anything else to know this is nothing but punitive, designed to keep people from voting. You can't provide water for people about to vote. Give me a break.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: President Biden says the Justice Department is now reviewing this new law in Georgia.

Here's what the measure does. It limits the use of ballot drop boxes, putting them inside early voting location, only accessible during certain hours, so if you work two jobs or have to drop your ballot off the a odd hours, you just can't.

It imposes new voter ID requirements for absentee ballots, and as the president mentioned, it makes it a crime for anyone to approach voters in line to give them food or water, even if they've been stand for hours in the hot sun. And we have reported on situations where voters have had to stand in lines for up to eight hours long in the past.

This was the moment the bill became law on Thursday. Georgia's Governor Brian Kemp signing it at his desk in Atlanta, observers noting the cement symbolism that the governor is only surrounded by men below a painting of what appears to be a civil war plantation style home.

Opposition to this new law in Georgia is strong, especially among Democrats and voting rights groups.

CNN's Natasha Chen is in Atlanta, where people are making their voices heard today -- Natasha.

NATASHA CHEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Ana, there are a lot of people here. The crowd has just grown over the past hour. You can see behind me, holding different signs, including "the South shall not rise again."

"Y'all got the wrong one", referring to Representative Park Cannon, who was knocking on the door to try to witness Governor Kemp signing that bill that you just showed the image of, and she was taken away in handcuffs. She was arrested.

And so, a lot of people are here to support Representative Cannon, and they're saying she may have knocked on the door, but we are going to answer. When I talked to one of voters who came to this rally, to ask her what she thought of the bill. She said ultimately, it's going to hurt everyone. Here's what she said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KIMBERLY WALLACE, VOTER: You're supposed to be making it easier for people to vote, not harder. You're making it into a black or white thing, but you're hurting the people in rural Georgia that work these long hours in these companies that make them work long hours, that they're not going to be able to get out and vote, either. So, you're not hurting particularly, you're hurting everyone.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHEN: And that woman, Kimberly Wallace, made a startling realization when she saw the image of the governor signing the bill and that depiction of seems to be a plantation she told me. That plantation is where her family worked, she suddenly became very emotional about that, seeing that image of where her family has put in so many hours in past generations, and just seeing that happen as that bill in particular was signed, Ana.

CABRERA: You can hear the passion in people's voices behind you there.

Natasha Chen, thank you for the reporting.

I want to bring in our CNN political commentators now, former Clinton White House press secretary, Joe Lockhart, and former Republican Congresswoman from Utah, Mia Love.

Congresswoman Love, are the Republicans saying here that our strategy is don't bring more people into the party, just prevent people from being able to vote, especially people of color?

MIA LOVE, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, I certainly hope not. I think that there are some issues that still have to be worked out. I don't like the fact that you can't give people water. I mean, I remember, in Utah, we have all vote by mail also.

[15:05:01]

And one of the people that couldn't vote by mail and the people that actually like going to the polls, went to the polls. And sometimes they were there for four, five hours.

CABRERA: Right.

LOVE: And to keep them there, they need to be able to eat, they need to be able to have something. I mean, just regular sustenance.

CABRERA: Right. How does -- how does giving people water and food, and making that a crime make elections more safe?

LOVE: I don't know. You know, there's some -- that is one of the major issues in this bill. I just don't see how that looks good or how that helps more people vote. I agree with the young lady, Kimberly Wallace, who was there saying, look, what you do to us hurts you also.

So, any policies they put in place when it comes to voters is going to affect Republicans and Democrats. And you want to do whatever you can to make it easier for people to vote, give them more options and give them more time.

And any bill that is targeted towards that is a good bill. I see there's some of these issues here that really need to be fixed. I mean, I just -- I don't see what the water issue had to do with helping more people vote. It just doesn't make sense.

CABRERA: What's the rationale, do you think?

LOVE: I don't know who decided to do that. I don't know if that was an amendment that went into the bill. I have no idea what the rationale is.

CABRERA: Yeah.

LOVE: It just seems stupid. I don't have any other words for it. I mean, you can make a point for so many other things in the bill. That one, you just can't make a point for that. You can't just make any excuse for it.

CABRERA: And we touched through a lot of the things the bill is supposed to do here. Joe, listen to how the governor defended the new law.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. BRIAN KEMP (R), GEORGIA; Georgians will no doubt by soon overwhelmed with fancy TV ads, mailers and radio spots attacks this measure. According to them, if you support voter ID for absentee ballots, you're a racist. According to them, if you believe in protecting the security and sanctity of the ballot box, you are, quote, Jim Crow in a suit and tie, end quote.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: Georgia elections officials spent months defending the integrity of this last election. Why is a bill like this even needed, Joe?

JOE LOCKHART, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, it's needed for political advantage for the Republican in Georgia and around the country. If this was just in Georgia, you might that they had good intentions, which I don't believe they do.

But this is happening all over the country. I believe there are voter suppression bills in 43 of the 50 states moving through state legislatures. This is a coordinated strategy by the Republican Party, because they understand -- because they refuse, first, to evolve as a party. They're going in the wrong direction with Trump, and they understand the only way they can win elections is to keep people from voting and keep Democrats from voting.

You know, one of the things you didn't mention about the law that might be the most dangerous is that it allows the state to take over local election officials, and their work. So if the state, run by Republicans, can go into Fulton County, which is primarily Democratic, and take over the counting of the votes, that's going to do nothing to make people believe it's on the level, and again, it's all part of a strategy.

CABRERA: Congresswoman, State Representative Park Cannon is facing two felonies for knocking on the door of the governor's office, arrested while the governor was signing this new voting bill, surrounded by six men beneath this picture of what appears to be a plantation-style home, just the juxtaposition of those two images that we just share, what kind of message does that send?

LOVE: Look, again, I think that if you're going to -- first of all, you're a governor and you're a governor for all of the people of Georgia. You're not just the governor for Republicans. And when you're a president, you're president for all of the American people. So any laws you put in place have to benefit people and their ability to vote.

I think that he should have -- it doesn't look good. He should have had a conversation with this woman. If you're going out and you're trying to solidify the integrity of voting, people need to know that they can vote, they can voice their concerns, and they can do it in a way that is safe. So, voter -- making sure that people have the right type of IDs, you could do that. But arresting people just because they're knocking on the door trying

to talk to you? It's not a good image, and it doesn't show them that he is actually working in their best interests, whether they're Democrat or Republican.

I would like to say one more thing. We need to remember that whatever laws you pass, they're going to -- if they're going to hurt Democrats, they're going to hurt Republicans also. If you're going to suppress Republican voters, you're going to suppress Democrat voters also.

[15:10:06]

And I think that the president, the former president actually did that. He suppressed a lot of Republican Georgia voters. And I think that that's one of the reasons why they were able to overturn that state.

CABRERA: Joe, just think about how the rioters at the U.S. Capitol were treated, even what the former president is say about those insurrections to this day.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

TRUMP: It was zero threat. Look, they went in, they shouldn't have done it. Some of them went in and they're hugging and kissing the police and the guards, you know? They had great relationships. A lot of the people were waved in, and then they walked in and they walked out.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

CABRERA: Five people died in that attack, including a police officer, and the former president is still trying to defend these perpetrators.

LOCKHART: Yeah, and he's not alone. There are a lot of Republicans out there. These two issues are very closely linked. You call it the big lie earlier. That's what it is.

They said the elections were rigged, and now, they're passing laws to suppress the vote, because the election was rigged. The election wasn't rigged. It was -- it was done aboveboard, and this is all a big lie.

And Trump, you know, he's still the most significant person in the Republican Party. Many in the party are still afraid of him. And, you know, his idea is he wants to attack our very democracy. He wants to attack the people's ability to vote.

And, you know, if you look around the country, I really don't agree with the person who was talking, saying this is going to hurt Republicans and Democrats down in Atlanta, because the bills that are being pushed around the country are being pushed by Republicans and being opposed by Democrats. This is about keeping Republicans in power, not what's good for the people or what's good for our democracy.

CABRERA: Mia, do you want to quickly respond to that?

LOVE: Well, I mean, all I can say is when you put a bill forward that is going to suppress any kind of voters, they're statewide, and there's no way one bill is going to completely benefit another. They may think it does, but it doesn't in the long run. And you have to do everything you can so as many people with vote as possible.

CABRERA: Former Congresswoman Mia Love and Joe Lockhart, I appreciate both of you very much. Thank you for being with us.

LOVE: Thank you, Ana.

CABRERA: Up next, an exclusive CNN interview with the former director of the CDC. Dr. Robert Redfield telling CNN he believes the coronavirus originated in a lab in Wuhan, China, but exactly what is he basing that on?

That interview is part of an unprecedented event with CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta with the medical leaders of the war on COVID break their silence. The CNN special report, "COVID War: The Pandemic Doctors Speak Out", begins tomorrow night at 9:00.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:18:11]

CABRERA: Welcome back.

In the next few days, we expect to see a nearly 400-page report from the World Health Organization on the origins of the coronavirus. This comes as the former CDC director, Dr. Robert Redfield, tells our Dr. Sanjay Gupta that he thinks the coronavirus originated in a lab in Wuhan, China, though he underlines that's just his opinion.

These extraordinary comments are featured in a new CNN commentary report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. ROBERT REDFIELD, FORMER CDC DIRECTOR: If I had to guess, this virus started transmitted in September and October in Wuhan.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: September and October?

REDFIELD: That's my own view. It's only opinion. I'm allowed to have opinions now.

You know, I'm of the point of view that I still think the most likely etiology of this pathogen in Wuhan was from a laboratory, you know, escaped. Other people don't believe that. That's fine. Science will eventually figure it out.

It's not unusual for respiratory pathogens that are being worked on in a laboratory to infect a laboratory worker. GUPTA: It's also not unusual for that type of research to be occurring

in Wuhan. The city is a widely known center for viral studies in China, including the Wuhan Institute of Virology, which has experimented extensively with bat coronaviruses.

It is a remarkable conversation I feel like we're having here because you are the former CDC director, and you were the director at the time this was all happening.

For the first time, the former CDC director is stating publicly that he believes this pandemic started months earlier than we knew and that it originated not at a wet market but inside a lab in China.

These are two significant things to say, Dr. Redfield.

REDFIELD: That's not implying any intentionality, you know?

[15:20:00]

It's my opinion, right?

But I am a virologist. I have spent my life in virology. I do not believe this somehow came from a bat to a human and at that moment in time the virus came to the human became one of the most infectious viruses that we know in humanity for human-to-human transmission.

Normally when a pathogen goes from a zoonotic to a human, it takes a while for it to figure how to become more and more efficient in human- to-human transmission. I just don't think this makes biological sense.

GUPTA: So in the lab, do you think that that process of becoming more efficient was happening, is that what you are suggesting?

REDFIELD: Yeah, let's just say I have coronavirus that I'm working on. Most of us in the lab were trying to grow virus. We try to help make it grow better and better and better and better and better so we can do experiments and figure out about it. That's the way I put it together.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CABRERA: I want to be clear, the World Health Organization calls this lab leak theory extremely unlikely. Meanwhile, Chinese officials and state media there have increasingly suggested an unsubstantiated so- called multiple origin theory, but the facts are, more than a year after the outbreak began, we still do not have a definitive answer about the origin of this virus.

Joining us now is CNN medical analyst and infectious disease specialist, Dr. Celine Gounder. She is also the host of "The Epidemic" podcast.

Dr. Gounder, Redfield there says this is just his opinion, but still, to hear a former CDC director speculate that this virus escaped from a lab, what was your reaction to that? DR. CELINE GOUNDER, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: Ana, this is really a fringe

opinion even among virologists. This is fringe of fringe. And does Redfield have a right to his own opinion? You know, I suppose to, did you as much as somebody like Andrew Wakefield or RFK Jr., both known vaccine conspiracists, have a right to their own opinion.

I really don't think we should be giving airtime frankly to this. It's not science based and it's dangerous. The world scientists have studied the coronavirus genome and they have found no evidence that this was created in a lab. It looks like it spread from bats to humans, possibly through an intermediate host.

This is by far not the first virus that has done this. Ebola is just one recent example that has done this.

So, you know, I really do think it's concerning that we are creating, perpetrating disinformation that could be harmful both to the scientific process and to Asian-Americans as we've been saying over the past hour who are being tainted by this disinformation.

CABRERA: Of course, Dr. Fauci underline, again, this was Redfield's opinion, but he agreed it was spreading in China earlier than reported. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, CHIEF MEDICAL ADVISER TO PRESIDENT BIDEN: It likely was below the radar screen, spreading in the community in China for several weeks, if not a month or more, which allowed it, when it first got recognized clinically, to be pretty well adapted.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: It really is amazing we don't have more answers here, a whole year into this pandemic about the origin and where it all began. Are you surprised we still can't say for sure how this virus originated?

GOUNDER: Well, you know, for some virus, we still don't know older viruses. It could take decades, frankly before we know. I do think this speaks to the need to really build up our global surveillance systems. This is something we have massively underinvested in doing. And this is why we've had a blind spot in terms of detecting the emergence of infectious diseases like the coronavirus.

CABRERA: I want to talk about vaccines because Dr. Fauci says there's a new clinical trial underway to help determine what fully vaccinated people can and cannot do. And this involves 20 universities, 6,000 students who will get Moderna immediately, another will get the vaccine in four months, all of them will swab their noses daily, provide blood samples and identify close contacts who will also provide samples.

The results are going to take months, but what everyone wants to know now, is do vaccinated people still need to wear masks and practice social distancing to keep others from getting sick? Will this help answer that? GOUNDER: Yeah, this study is going to be essential to answering the

question, do vaccines reduce transmission and by how much? College campuses are really the perfect place in which to do a study like this, because you have college students who are living in close quarters with one another, maybe not social distancing and masking how they should be, and so, transmitting amongst that community.

At the same time, they're relatively lower risk for serious complications. And so, it makes sense to try to study this question, do vaccines reduce transmissions on college campuses?

CABRERA: But are we going to have to wait months to say a green light for more freedoms?

[15:25:00]

GOUNDER: I think in the meantime, the CDC advice which is that if you are fully vaccinated, you can spend time without masks, without socially distancing indoors, as long as you're doing it with one specific household at a time, and as long as there are no one at risk for severe COVID in that household. The key here is that we don't want people from different households mixing who have not yet been vaccinated.

And for everybody, including people who have been vaccinated, we would still advise against being around big crowds.

CABRERA: OK. Dr. Celine Gounder, you always provide great information, thank you for being with us.

Don't miss the unprecedented event with Dr. Sanjay Gupta, when the medical leaders of the war on COVID break their silence. You see all of them there. You can watch the special report "COVID War: The Pandemic Doctors Speak Out." Tomorrow night at 9:00 Eastern, only on CNN.

Next, to Boulder, Colorado, the site of America's second mass shooting in less than a week. We have new details about how the shooting suspect, who's been described as antisocial and paranoid, purchased a firearm allegedly used in this attack.

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:30:41]

CABRERA: No more than 30 seconds -- that's how long it took Eric Talley, the Boulder police officer who died in Monday's mass shooting at a Colorado supermarket, to lead a response team into that store after arriving on scene.

Officer Talley was one of the 10 people killed in Monday's shooting.

According to police, it could have been even worse. The heroic and brave actions of these officers helped save lives. CNN's crime and justice correspondent, Shimon Prokupecz, joins us from

Boulder, Colorado.

Shimon, we are also learning new details how the suspected shooter got his guns. What more can you tell us?

SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN CRIME & JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: The gun shop where he purchased this weapon that was used, police say, in this massacre, he walked in simply the background check. The Colorado Bureau of Investigations, they run background checks.

The shop says in a statement to CNN that they put in a request, they put in for the background check and he passed. He was able to buy the weapon six days before the shooting.

Now, all this comes as authorities continue to try to figure out a motive, interviewing witnesses, employees from the grocery store here.

Behind me, one of those employees spoke to CNN yesterday. Here's what she said in the moments, at the start of this shooting, what she saw.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EMILY GRIFFIN, KING SOOPERS EMPLOYEE & SHOOTING WITNESS: I was sitting in front of the store with just a little girl next to me. We heard the loud popping sounds. And we look at each other and grabbed each other. I was like, I don't think it's fireworks.

We saw a gentleman running in the middle of the street to get away, and he got shot. Another time -- then when he fell, the gunman shot him four, five more times in the back while he was on the ground.

She looked at me and said, "What do we do?" We just grabbed each other and I said, "We run."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PROKUPECZ: Ana, the suspect is expected to face more charges. The D.A. saying about those officers that you mentioned who ran in and saved so many lives -- there were probably 150 people in the store at the time between employees and shoppers.

The D.A. is saying that the gunman is expected to face more charges, because he was firing at those officers. As you said, fatally striking Officer Talley.

He's also expected to face charges in connection with some of the people, the customers, the employees, and the threats they faced inside the store -- Ana?

CABRERA: Officer Talley was the father of seven children. There's so many families in so much pain. And the way that woman described what she witnessed, is jaw-dropping.

Shimon Prokupecz, thank you. Nicole Hockley is with us now. Nicole's 6-year-old son, Dylan, died in the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, in December 2012.

Since then, Nicole co-founded and runs the Sandy Hook Promise. This is a group dedicated to transforming this country into one that is safer from gun violence.

Nicole, thank you for being with us.

None of us can even begin to understand the shock that must go through you every time a mass shooting happens.

How do you react when you turn on the news and you see an Atlanta or a Boulder?

NICOLE HOCKLEY, CO-FOUNDER & MANAGING DIRECTOR, SANDY HOOK PROMISE: It immediately brings me back to December 2020 because I remember the shock of losing my son and finding out our school was being shot in.

It's something that never goes away. And every shooting brings me back to that moment, knowing how I felt in that time and how heartbroken families must be and how scared they must be as well.

CABRERA: I keep seeing this tweet from a famous British columnist. It's from 2015. It pops back up and people keep sharing it after every single one of these horrific mass shooting tragedies.

It's the one that reads, quote, "In retrospect, Sandy Hook marked the end of the U.S. gun-control debate. Once America decided killing children was bearable, it was over."

Obviously, gun control and the debate is not over. But so little has changed.

[15:35:03]

Nicole, why do you stay in this fight? It must be so frustrating.

HOCKLEY: It can be very frustrating. But I also know the solution will come to light, and that we will pass policy. We will continue to invest in our communities as well and our schools to make them safer.

We haven't passed a gun law at a federal level for a couple of decades, but that doesn't mean it's not possible. And it is definitely possible to find bipartisan solutions. And that's what I continue to fight for.

The movement has grown significantly since Sandy Hook. There are more people outraged about mass shootings, and about everyday gun violence than ever before.

So the will of the people, the voices of the people will be heard and we will create a safer future.

It's just frustrating how long it's taking because, every day, more people are dying.

CABRERA: Every life counts, doesn't it?

I want you to listen to how some Republican lawmakers responded to calls for new gun control measures after these most recent mass shootings.

Here's Senator Ted Cruz.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX): And every time there's a shooting, we play this ridiculous theater, where this committee gets together and proposes a bunch of laws that would do nothing to stop these murders.

The Democrats propose taking away guns from law-abiding citizen. But when you disarm law-abiding citizens, you make them more likely to be victims.

If you want to stop these murders, go after the murderers.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: Then you had South Dakota Senator Mike Rounds tweeting this, a picture of a statue of himself holding a rifle and the words, "Hey, Joe Biden, come and take it."

Nicole, what do you say to these two U.S. Senators right now?

HOCKLEY: I don't know. Could you be more insulting? That is beyond ridiculous.

First of all, no one is trying to take anyone's guns away. This is about common-sense restrictions, common-sense safety, and access where appropriate. It's not about taking anything away.

I think, after every mass shooting or after every shooting every day, instead of thinking about this as talking points and ridiculous theater, perhaps they should consider the lives that have been killed.

If they thought about it as their own family or their own friends, maybe that would spur them to action.

There's more here than political careers. There are people's lives at stake. And I wish our politicians would focus more on that than their own agendas.

CABRERA: As Shimon just reported, this alleged gunman in Boulder did pass a background check. He bought his gun legally.

What common-sense law would help prevent shootings like that?

HOCKLEY: Even though a background check wouldn't have stopped this shooting, nor would it stop the shooting that killed my son, they do save lives. So that it still common-sense legislation that should be passed. Other laws that should seriously be looked at, at the federal and state level, include extreme-risk protection orders.

This is where, if someone is showing signs of violent behavior, or possibly self-harm, or making threats, or if a family is concerned, there is a due judicial process to temporarily restrict them from buying guns or from accessing the weapons they already have.

That is proven to save lives, particularly suicides, and could have helped in this incidence.

CABRERA: Do you think an assault rifle ban or assault-style weapon ban would be valuable, would make a difference?

HOCKLEY: I think it would make a difference because we know that the A.R.-15 is a mass shooter's weapon of choice. It wasn't the choice weapon in this incident. It was a different weapon.

However, I think that style of weapon -- I have yet to hear a logical argument why a civilian needs it. When I hear that logical argument, then I'll be prepared to have that conversation.

CABRERA: What can you say to those families in Atlanta and Boulder whose lives are now changed forever like yours was?

HOCKLEY: What I would say to them is to allow themselves the space and the grace to grieve however they choose fit and to do whatever feels right for them in their community.

I hope their community holds them in their heart, as I do, and upholds them and that they will find a way forward.

But that pain and that shot really never does go away. I still can't believe my son has been dead for over eight years. I still miss him every single day.

And they miss their loved ones, too. But you can find a way through this. But you have to give yourself the space to allow your own unique path to emerge.

CABRERA: You are such a strong woman, Nicole Hockley. Thank you. You're an example that is hopefully providing strength for those families.

[15:40:02]

Thank you for being with us and offering your perspective and insights.

HOCKLEY: Thank you.

CABRERA: Up next, to the saga unfolding in the Suez Canal where a ship the size of the Empire State Building has been stuck for days, costing the global trade economy hundreds of millions of dollars per hour. We'll take you live to Egypt for an update right after this.

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CABRERA: We are now on day five of a very costly traffic jam in the Suez Canal. One of the largest container ships ever built has been stuck there since Tuesday.

Every hour that goes by represents a loss of $400 million to the global trade economy. So the ripple effect is massive.

Hundreds of ships are stalled, waiting for rescue teams to get this stranded ship moving again. But that's no easy feat. It's like trying to dislodge something larger than the Empire State Building.

[15:45:02]

Let's go to CNN senior international correspondent, Ben Wedeman. He's been following this for us from Egypt.

Ben, crews made another effort to free this ship today. Did they make any progress?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, apparently, they have made some progress, Ana. We're told part of the ship they've shifted by about 30 meters. That's just shy of 100 feet. So there is progress.

And there was the first press conference given today in Suez by the chairman of the Suez Canal Authority, who underscored that they have been focusing on dredging around the "Ever Given," trying to get as much access as possible, that they have been able, at least temporarily, to free the rudder and propellers.

So this is progress. But it's not quite clear at this point how soon the shift will be able to be moved out of the way for the other ships that have been stalled to resume movement.

As of this afternoon, there are 320 ships, according to the Egyptian authorities, that are either stuck in the Mediterranean, in the Red Sea, or in the middle of the canal itself.

Clearly, Egypt is sparing no effort to try to unblock this problem because there are billions of dollars at stake. Five days, basically, is equivalent to $50 billion of cargo that is not getting to its destinations -- Ana?

CABRERA: Just incredible.

Ben Wedeman, thank you for the update.

Back here in the U.S., after deadly storms slam the south, one Alabama woman pointed to this cross and calls it a miracle. Her story is next, live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:51:44]

CABRERA: Recovery efforts are underway this weekend after 23 tornadoes formed across the southeast between Thursday night and Friday morning. These storms leaving six people dead and some communities in ruins.

But at least one sign of hope has emerged.

CNN's Derek Van Dam has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST (voice-over): Violent tornadoes leaving a trail of devastation across the southern U.S. and leaving communities in shambles.

In Birmingham, Alabama, roofs torn off of homes. Some others ripped from their foundation. And residents like Dena Cook left racing to protect precious memories.

DENA COOK, EAGLE POINT RESIDENT: I didn't even think. I couldn't think that -- I mean, it's just -- I really couldn't think past that moment. I didn't even think about what was gone. I just wanted to get all my pictures out of the house.

VAN DAM: Others just remembering the precious lives lost.

KELVIN BOWERS, LOST HOUSE & FAMILY: It's terrible man, like to know family was in this stuff. Like they're gone.

VAN DAM: Shelby County search-and-rescue teams describe the damage as catastrophic, with the twisters indiscriminately destroying homes while leaving others untouched.

After the storms cleared, providing a short break for residents, the cleanup process has begun.

But unfortunately, this will be short lived for another round of severe weather is possible this weekend across parts of the same region.

Locals became volunteers, helping those hardest hit by providing basic necessities to get through this natural disaster.

With all the heartache that has been witnessed here, a glimmer of hope as we approach the week of Easter.

This cross and this purple scarf remaining virtually untouched as homes were destroyed around it.

After riding out the storm in her closet, Cook noticed and rearranged the scarf out of respect, a truly symbolic image for believers who observe Lent.

Cook says she may have lost the roof over her head but she has not lost her faith.

COOK: And my cross is still there because God was with all of these people and us.

VAN DAM: I'm CNN meteorologist, Derek Van Dam, reporting in Birmingham.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CABRERA: Over the past several months, hundreds of school children in northern Nigeria have been kidnapped. While some have been released, many remain captives, becoming the latest pawns in plots by terrorist groups, escalating fear and violence in an already dangerous area.

But this week's "CNN Hero" has made it his mission to give thousands of children caught up the conflict a brighter future. Meet Zannah Mustapha.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(SINGING)

ZANNAH MUSTAPHA, CNN HERO: These are children who do not even know what's their second name, what's their tribe, their religion. Children who don't even know we're having this war.

They are confused and in a helpless state. You need to give them courage. You have to give them hope.

Morning. Morning. Morning. (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE).

(BELL RINGING)

MUSTAPHA: We are in a community where every segment of the society is being ravaged.

Good morning.

CHILDREN: Good morning.

[15:55:02]

MUSTAPHA: What keeps me going is the resilience of these children. Whenever I see their faces, it gives you hope. It keeps my dream alive.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: Smiles sure are priceless.

To learn more about this story or to nominate someone you think should be a "CNN Hero," go to CNNheroes.com right now.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:00:05]

CABRERA: Thanks for joining us live in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Ana Cabrera in New York.