Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Heat Wave Scorching Europe Smashes Temperature Records; U.K. Endures Its Hottest Day Ever As Homes Catch Fire; Six Wounded In Missiles Attack On Odesa Region. Aired 2-3a ET
Aired July 20, 2022 - 02:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:00:43]
LYNDA KINKADE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to viewers joining us from all around the world. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Lynda Kinkade. Just ahead, climate change baking Europe and causing large destructive wildfires. While tens of millions in the U.S. and China suffer through withering heatwaves.
And we're live in Colombo where at any moment Sri Lanka's Parliament will select its next president, tasked with leading the country out of a political and economic crisis.
Plus, the first round goes to Twitter in its legal battle with Elon Musk.
ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Center. This is CNN NEWSROOM with Lynda Kinkade.
KINKADE: Well, the global heatwave is scorching much of the Northern Hemisphere from Europe to the U.S. and parts of Asia. Records are being shattered. New fires are igniting and people are dying. The high temperatures tormenting Europe won't break until the middle of next week. That's according to the World Meteorological Organization. But the U.K. will cool down at some in the coming hours after setting an all-time record on Tuesday.
Forty degrees Celsius. That's 104 Fahrenheit. And it set off a surge of fires in the London area, some spreading to homes. Officials warn that because the ground is a tinderbox dry and any spark can lead to flames. Where 21 European countries are under heat alerts that stretch as far east as Poland.
And deadly wildfires are still tearing through parts of France and Spain where tens of thousands of people have been evacuated.
In the northern outskirts of Athens, hundreds of firefighters are trying to contain a large wildfire. Power has been cut in several areas with hospitals on high alert.
And scientists and are wanting a very high levels of ozone pollution in Europe, which can harm human health, agriculture and ecosystems. Well, our Barbie Nadeau is standing by for us live in Rome. And our meteorologist Pedram Javaheri is here in Atlanta. I'll start with you first, Pedram. This was the hottest temperature ever recorded in the U.K. And it's far from the only place smashing records right now. What's going on?
PEDRAM JAVAHERI, CNN WEATHER ANCHOR: It's incredible. You know, we've had a massive dome of high pressure with high pressure causes the air to sink, when air sinks, it compresses and it warms up. And Lynda, I use the analogy of if you've ever pumped a basketball or pumped a bicycle tire, what you're doing is you're compressing air into that pump, you're warming that pump up, you feel it will get warmer there on the needle itself of the pump.
That's precisely what's happening on a broader scale across Europe as the air sinks and compresses over major cities and the temperatures is remarkable as it gets. In fact, of the top 10 hottest temperatures ever observed in recorded history across the U.K. Every single one of those top 10 occurred yesterday. Notice we've never had a 40-degree observation, we've never had a red alert that we've talked about.
But never had a 40 observation, we had eight of those yesterday across the U.K., London included. So an incredible setup here to produce this sort of heat all-time warmest day now going into July 2022. Notice the other countries that have held all-time records. France, highest they've ever reached 46 happened three years ago. Spain hottest they ever reached was at 47.3 happened about 11 months ago.
And in 2003. Portugal bested that at 47.4 degrees, but this sort of a heat again, not just across the U.K., and France, Paris climbed up to 41 degrees yesterday afternoon. 24 is what is considered normal in the warmest time of year. With that comparison said notice where London ended up yesterday, where Tehran ended up yesterday. And incredible disparity here for what you typically expect and what they usually see there more in line for Tehran, of course, than in London.
But the good news, as you noted here, Lynda is that there is some changes, at least for some of these northern cities in northern countries where cooler weather is going to be coming in as early as the next few hours and potentially stays there for a couple of days. But the Southern tier as indicated in the orange contours really don't see my change. Temp is still going to be in the 30s and 40s the next several days.
At this hour, a comfortable 19-degree morning to start off in London, Paris after that 41 sitting at 19 degrees and here's where we expect to end up by this afternoon.
[02:05:02]
Twenty-four, much better than 41. 26 Much better than 40. So, again changes there on the horizon but if you're tuned in in Frankfort, in Munich, the middle 30s, the upper 30s are back in action across this region and the storms that are coming in here. Some of them could be severe. But that's the reason why we have some cooler air coming in with this weather on the horizon, Lynda. KINKADE: Yes. At least those in London will get some reprieve. Our thanks to you, Pedram. I want to go to you, Barbie, because these wildfires continue to rage across parts of France and Spain. What more can you tell us?
BARBIE NADEAU, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well, these wildfires are very worrying, you know, we're seeing massive evacuations of people and people don't really have anywhere to go to keep cool, to keep safe. You know, they're leaving their homes that we -- there, you know, there have been a number of deaths, tragic deaths, obviously. And when it comes to fire, people burned in their cars and things like that.
And, you know, this ground is just so, so dry. There's been droughts across this region as well. And so, almost anything sparks a flame sparks a fire, and then they're so quickly out of control because the firefighters, of course, are maybe in one area, and they've got to quickly dash to another area. It's just been very, very challenging for people on the ground there, Lynda.
KINKADE: Yes. No doubt. And of course, in France, many people have been forced from their homes because of those wildfires. And I understand the French president, Macron is being criticized for his handling of that situation.
NADEAU: That's right. You know, most of the -- most of the criticism comes from the fact that they just don't have the right equipment in the right place at the right time. You know, they're using these Canadair planes to try to, you know, put out the fires from above, and they just don't have them, and then -- and he's become under a lot of pressure because of that. It's just a logistical nightmare.
And it's something a lot of people think he should have thought about sooner, or his ministry should have allocated and prepared for better, Lynda.
KINKADE: Yes. All right. Barbie Nadeau for us in Rome. Our thanks to you.
Well, we're going to stay on this story. For more on these extreme conditions, we're joined by Frederick Otto, the climatologist and a senior lecturer in Climate Science at the Imperial College in London. Good to have you with us.
FRIEDERIKE OTTO, SENIOR LECTURER IN CLIMATE SCIENCE, IMPERIAL COLLEGE IN LONDON: Good morning.
KINKADE: So now that the U.K. is broken, the 40 degrees Celsius mark is just a sign of what's to come, could this be the new norm?
OTTO: Well, luckily, so far, it's not the new norm yet. But it is the new extreme. It's an extreme that without climate change would really have not been possible. And it's something that depending on when we globally reach net zero and at what global mean temperature could be a very normal U.K. summer in the future.
KINKADE: And of course, Friederike, homes in the U.K. are not built to withstand these sorts of temperatures. It is going to take a lot of investment to adjust and adapt. What are the first steps?
OTTO: I think that the very first step has already started to being taken in this heatwave is to educate people that heat waves are not a fun thing, but that they are deadly and dangerous. And that you have to make sure that you keep your body temperatures down. So, we have the red warning, the alert from the Met Office, we have had very good forecasts of this heatwave until a week in advance.
People have started to talk about that it's dangerous and that you need to make sure to drink enough water to keep yourself cool. But then, of course, we need to redesign our cities and not only because of heat waves, but also of course, because of energy prices. And to be able to lower emissions. Insulating homes needs to be an absolute priority in the U.K., but then also for our cities, creating more green spaces.
Educating people that don't open the windows during the day, if it's 40 degrees outside, some very simple first steps that can be taken.
KINKADE: Green spaces in particular. Just looking at these pictures of London. Just give us the climate science behind these extreme temperatures. Can you explain the conditions that have led to this and how much are humans to blame?
OTTO: So, every extreme event and including this heatwave is always a combination of several causes. So, there is just the natural variability in the weather which we also had here. We had the high pressure system, and then we had the hot air coming in from Africa. So, there would have been a heatwave without climate change. But because we have warmed the atmosphere by putting more greenhouse gases in the atmosphere that means we have shifted what possible temperatures are in any given place towards the high end.
So we see more frequent heatwaves and this heatwave is hotter. than it would have been without climate change.
[02:10:03]
And we see this also very clearly when we don't just look at the U.K. but the whole of the Northern Hemisphere. There are heat waves in North Africa, there are heatwaves in large parts of Europe. The heatwaves in China, the heatwaves in the U.S. There have been heatwaves earlier this year in South Asia. And this is not just in 2022. We've seen the same thing. 2021, 2020. So, this is very different from -- when we had the last big heatwave that everyone's talking about here in the U.K. in 1976 where it was just the U.K.
And so that's the big difference that climate change makes. Temperatures are higher than they would have been. And heat waves last longer. And there are many, many, many more heat waves than would have otherwise been.
KINKADE: And obviously, these heatwaves and the wildfires that we're seeing, as you mentioned are deadly. When are we going to get to a point of slowing down the effects of climate change? What are the mitigation is needed? And it is it a matter of increasing the price of carbon?
OTTO: We have to stop burning fossil fuels if we want to stop these extremes from getting worse. It's -- so that's -- the physics -- the answer that I as a physicist can give. And if a high price on carbon, that seems to be one important criterion. But of course, it's not just -- it's not just something that markets can regulate. We also need policies to go with that. And of course, we will not reverse climate change.
Even when we stopped burning fossil fuels now, we have to live with regular occurrences of 40 degrees in London which is something the city is not built for. So, apart from stopping to burn fossil fuels, we also have to really prioritize adaptation to save lives.
KINKADE: Absolutely. Friederike Otto, really good to get your perspective. Thanks very much.
OTTO: You're welcome.
KINKADE: Well, the grueling battle grinds on in eastern Ukraine as Russian forces ramp up efforts to seize complete control of the Donetsk. Ukrainian officials say at least one person was killed Tuesday in a Russian missile attack on the city of Kramatorsk. Strikes were also reported on Sloviansk, a key target in Russia's push to capture more cities in the Donetsk region and take control of the entire Donbas.
Areas to the west are coming under attack as well. In the Odessa region, officials say at least six people were wounded in an overnight attack. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy calling the strikes clear evidence of Russian terrorism.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Every day, the occupiers give new reasons for recognizing Russia as a terrorist state. Last night they carried out a missile attack on a village in the Odesa region. Seven sea-based caliber missiles against an ordinary village.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: And nearby Mykolaiv, the mayor is urging residents to leave as soon as possible. He says the city has been shelled every day and it's more than their air defenses can handle. Meanwhile, the U.S. warned on Tuesday that Russia is likely planning annexation attempts in the occupied southeastern regions following the same playbook they used in Crimea back in 2014.
With many Ukrainians trapped behind Russian lines trying to escape can seem not only dangerous but nearly impossible. And yet as CNN's Ivan Watson reports, thousands have been willing to risk their lives just to reach the relative safety of Ukrainian-held territory.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Trudging down dirt roads, Ukrainians escaping zones of Russian occupation, elderly women on foot with little more than the clothes on their backs. The invading Russian army closed many roads to Ukrainian- controlled territory, forcing people to improvise. Hundreds of discarded bicycles left behind by displaced people who used them to reach the village of Zelenodolsk.
Andre Halilyok (ph) fled 10 days ago, walking down roads past unexploded landmines.
WATSON (on camera): He traveled on foot and then on a rubber dinghy across the river and then on foot again and then in a car and then in a bus to try to get here.
WATSON (voice over): Halilyok says he lived for more than four months in his village under Russian military occupation.
WATSON (on camera): Andre says that pro-Russian militia from Donestk broke into empty apartments and were living in their, broken two businesses as well. He calls them barbarians.
WATSON (voice over): Since Russia invaded Ukraine. More than 61,000 people fled to the city of Kryvyi Rih where they were all initially welcomed at this reception center.
WATSON (on camera): Natalia (ph) says there are about 400 new arrivals fleeing the conflict zone who come here every day.
WATSON (voice over): At the center I meet Maxim Ovchar.
WATSON (on camera): They detained you.
MAXIM OVCHAR, FLED RUSSIAN-OCCUPIED KHERSON: UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. Yes. Twice.
WATSON (voice over): Ovcahr is a medical doctor who lived and worked in the southern city of Kherson which was invaded and occupied by Russian forces in early March.
He says he fled with his grandmother on July 7th, after armed Russian officials tried to convince him and other Ukrainian doctors to work for them.
WATSON (on camera): When you and the other doctors said no to working with the occupation, how did the Russians react?
OVCHAR: They react the very hateful for us.
WATSON (voice over): In the first weeks of the occupation, some Ukrainians in Kherson protest. Until Russians opened fire. The occupation has since cut off Kherson's communications with the outside world. But the Ukrainian government claims there is local resistance.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ninety percent of people of Kherson -- WATSON (voice over): Ninety percent of people in Kherson hate the Russians, Doctor Ovchar says. He says he saw Russian troops wounded by a local resistance attack, then brought for treatment at a Kherson hospital. At the welcome center, volunteers organized temporary shelter for displaced Ukrainians.
OVCHAR: I've lost my job, I've lost my house.
WATSON: Do you have a car?
OVCHAR: Some of my friends, I will say murdered by the Russians.
WATSON (voice over): The charity provides free food, medicine, clothing and counseling for traumatized adults and children.
OVCAHR: We lived well before the war, Doctor Ovchar says. And now I'm ashamed to ask for help.
Russia's deadly invasion of Ukraine has forced millions to rely on the kindness of strangers.
Ivan Watson, CNN, Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Well, the impact of Russia's wars leading to hunger and starvation across the globe as many countries depend on Ukrainian grain. Russian President Vladimir Putin could help end the crisis tomorrow by ending his war. But instead he's in talks with Turkey as Ankara looks to play mediator. With both leaders in Iran Tuesday, Mr. Putin thank Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan for his efforts to negotiate between Russia and Ukraine.
When it comes as Cuba accuses Russia of blocking the shipment of more than 20 million tons of grain.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VLADIMIR PUTIN, PRESIDENT OF RUSSIA (through translator): Initially we raised the issue in such a way that it should be packaged together, namely that we would assist with Ukrainian grain. We proceed from the fact that all restrictions related to possible supplies of Russian grain for export should be lifted.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: The leaders of Russia, Turkey and Iran are also touting their cooperation particularly on security matters following the summit.
Meantime, Iran's oil ministry has announced a $40 billion agreement with Russia and gas company Gazprom. Iranian officials say the deal will include investments by Gazprom and Iran's oil and gas fields and collaboration on liquefied natural gas projects and pipelines. Russia isn't the only country busy signing energy deals. Europe is bracing for a potential full blown energy crisis later this year. The immediate concern is Nord Stream One. That crucial pipeline supplying Russian natural gas to Germany and beyond. It's due to restart operations Thursday after 10 days of routine maintenance. But amid concerns Russia might not resume supplies. A number of European countries have struck deals with energy producers in the Middle East and North Africa.
Well, CNN's Clare Sebastian joins me now from London. And Clare, let's start firstly, on that Nord Stream scheduled to restart Thursday. How worried is the E.U. that it won't and what's at stake?
CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Lynda. What's at stake here is whether or not the E.U. can avoid gas shortages going into winter. Something that would almost inevitably according to experts lead to a recession certainly in Germany. The continent's largest economy with spillover effects perhaps to the rest of the continent. So, this is an extremely critical situation. I think the context is worth understanding here.
Before June, the Nord Stream One was the really the biggest single supply route of gas into Europe. It was about 40 percent of what Europe imported from Russia last year in terms of the amount of gas. In June, of course, Russia slashed the amount of gas that's coming through the Nord Stream because it said a technical issue. And on top of that we already had Russia and cut off the gas.
The E.U. says to about a dozen E.U. countries either fully or partially. It already stopped the gas coming through another critical pipeline The Yamal pipeline and according to an expert I've spoken to reduced the gas flowing through pipelines through Ukraine.
[02:20:04]
So, the Nord Stream was really the last remaining sort of real significant supply route for gas. So cutting down to 40 percent was a problem. That caused Germany to trigger the second stage of its emergency system. And now with the -- with the scheduled maintenance and the worries that it might not restart, that is causing serious alarm. The E.U. isn't commenting really on whether it actually expect the gas to restart or not, but it says it's preparing for the worst.
And it's clear that they are looking at all kinds of different measures as to how to get ready for potential winter with its gas storage targets in question.
KINKADE: Yes. I want to ask you about that plan. Given that the E.U. is worried that Russia will cut off deliveries. It is going to announce a plan Wednesday to reduce gas demand. What more can you tell us?
SEBASTIAN: So the bottom line here is that there is no way in India to replace all of Russian gas with other gas. The E.U. is already working on this. You talked about the various deals with the likes of Azerbaijan. And they're already regularly importing more gas from the U.S. for the first time ever than they are from Russia, because they've ramped up the LNG imports so much. But they're pretty much at capacity there in terms of infrastructure.
So, what they have to do now is demand reduction. So the plan they're going to announce today is called Save Gas for a Safe Winter. It's going to include according to a draft documents seen by Reuters, voluntary targets for countries over the next eight months that they could move to legally binding targets if the E.U. faces a real gas emergency. The E.U. isn't commenting on this leaked draft at the moment.
But this is clearly very serious. We're looking at a potential situation where the E.U. could be legally forcing countries to reduce the amount of energy they're using. That has serious implications for industry. And again, for these economies which are already very fragile facing record inflation rates. This could tip them over the edge, Lynda.
KINKADE: Clare Sebastian is staying across it all for us from London. Thanks very much.
Well, still to come. Sri Lanka's Parliament now voting for a new president as the country rules under economic turmoil. CNN's Will Ripley is covering the critical vote. We'll join him for a live report next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
JAVAHERI: Twenty days into July 2022. Meteorologist Pedram Javaheri. About 30 days removed for when summer officially started. And the heat has continued for about the entirety of the 30 days across the central United States. We are watching a few pockets of severe weather namely across parts of the Ohio Valley, Cleveland in particular, even on into Cincinnati, you could see a few strong storms.
General concern here is going to be for some strong winds maybe as much as 100 kilometers per hour. And yes and large hail associated with these storms as well. And some of the severe weather by Thursday does include portions of the northeastern United States, including Boston and New York, down towards the south in and around Atlanta as well could see some storms that will produce some gusty winds with them.
But the big story has remained the over 100 plus million Americans underneath excessive heat alerts. And that's about one in three Americans there dealing with these temperatures that in spots will feel as hot as 45 degrees. Now, Central U.S. that has been plenty hot. This does want to expand a little farther towards the north and east. So we do expect some of that heat to make its presence felt across areas of the Northeastern U.S.
Of course the most densely populated cities such as New York. 36. Factor in the humidity will feel closer to 40 degrees in a few spots and it really stays there for at least the next three to four days. And the long-range forecast also wants to show that warmth continuing as well. D.C., Vancouver, we go down 23 degrees there with sunny skies. KINKADE: Welcome back. Sri Lanka's Parliament is voting in a secret ballot to elect a new president. The winner of the three-way contest will inherit a country reeling from an economic meltdown and shortages of basic necessities like food and fuel. Sri Lanka has been in turmoil for months and hit a tipping point last week when protesters took over government buildings and forced to Gotabaya Rajapaksa to resign as president.
CNN's Will Ripley is following the developments and joins us now from Sri Lanka's commercial capital. Colombo. Good to have you there for us, Will. So Sri Lanka's Parliament holding new secret ballot, set to announce a new president any moment.
[02:25:03]
There are three candidates, a six-time prime minister versus a former tabloid journalist with little pull political experience, versus the leader of the leftist party. How is this likely to play out?
WILL RIPLEY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: So Lynda, we know that at this very moment that counting of those 224 votes has just gotten underway inside Parliament. And the three candidates that you just mentioned are -- have been summoned to essentially witness the counting process to make sure that everything was a secret ballot. Meaning that there's really no way to know who was supporting whom.
A lot of people, you know, may have publicly signaled one thing, but then when it comes down to placing the vote in that ballot box, maybe they make a different decision. So, we should find out relatively quickly when the voting process is complete. I would say, perhaps an hour, maybe a little bit more, we'll find out the results. And as of now, things are pretty quiet. On the streets in terms of protests, there's very small crowds.
But depending on whom is elected, is it going to be Ranil Wickremesinghe, the acting president, a six-time prime minister whose home was burned down whose resignation was demanded by protesters. Protest groups say if he's the one who is selected by Parliament, he's not going to be a legitimate leader in their eyes, and they might take to the streets again in droves, so that we haven't seen that thus far.
You have the other front runner here, as you mentioned, the former tabloid journalist, Dullas Alahaperuma. And he is essentially 10 years younger. He was a very close ally of the Rajapaksa family. And then he completely flipped when the economic crisis took place. And so chatting with people here in Colombo -- will think he's just the right, you know, influx of new energy that's needed.
Others wonder why he was such good friends for so long, and then just kind of completely was able to do a 180? And what does that say? And then there's this other candidate that is very far left candidate with very little support. But he does lead the left -- leftist party and he's not considered at the moment to be, you know, a serious contender here out of the three. So we'll see, Lynda, what happens the voting process underway as we speak. KINKADE: And of course, Will, whoever becomes president will have to somehow pull Sri Lanka out of its worst economic and political crisis in decades and overwhelming challenge. What are the expectations from Sri Lanka's 22 million people?
RIPLEY: Well, they don't want to wait in line for six to eight days for fuel. And days, you know, for milk powder and other food staples. And, you know, they want to be able to go to the hospital and get medicine and not have to be told that it's not available. And when I -- when I interviewed the acting president, the former prime minister and the front runner believed to be the front runner, Ranil Wickremesinghe.
He said that starting tomorrow, the fuel is going to be distributed to petrol stations and that people should start to see some relief and lines shouldn't be as long because there's also this problem with people stocking up on fuel and then selling it at six times the price on the black market here. So, people who can afford to pay 2000 rupees instead of, you know, 450 or 500 rupees they can get -- they can get gas while everybody else has to wait in the queue for over a week.
So that's one of the immediate pressing issues that needs to be addressed along with the food shortages and the medicine shortages. But then the longer term issue of rebuilding the economy, reshaping the economy, reinstituting some of the taxes, especially on the super rich, you know, these tax cuts that wiped out huge portions of Sri Lanka's GDP a few years back and then COVID hit. A series of what are being called really, really poor financial decisions.
And deceptive behavior, hiding this from the public, not letting the public know that Sri Lanka is bankrupt and that it needed to go to the IMF for help. And it needs a bailout maybe from China as well, which already has a lot of bad debt. You know, here in Sri Lanka, billions of dollars owed to Chinese creditors. It's going to be interesting. It's going to be -- it's going to be quite a slog. The opposition which supports the former tabloid journalists, they're saying five years to recover.
Ranil Wickremesinghe, the acting president, who's kind of supported more by the ruling party and establishment but not the protesters says. They could have recovery by 2024 and get a more sustainable economy going. So, different views, different strategies, and we'll find out who that one candidate emerges as the winner, Lynda, very soon.
KINKADE: We certainly will. And Will, we will come back to when we find out the results of that ballot count. When we learn who is the new president of Sri Lanka. Will Ripley in Colombo, thanks very much.
Well, still to come on CNN NEWSROOM. More on the skyrocketing temperatures across the globe. What this means for the climate crisis. The details just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:30:00] KINKADE: Welcome back to CNN Newsroom. I'm Lynda Kinkade. More on our top story this hour.
A heat wave is sweeping across the globe with record temperatures. In Europe, the U.S., and parts of Asia. Wildfires are burning in several European countries. And climates scientists worry that extreme temperatures will soon be the new normal. CNN's Sara Sidner has the details.
SARA SIDNER, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: It is surreal. Now, the fire is out but the pictures that you are seeing from just outside of London look like something that you would see from the infamous fires that we see every year in the summer in California.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SIDNER (voiceover): Fire and stratospheric temperatures scorching millions around the world. The United Kingdom has never been this hot, ever. Parts of Britain hit 104 degrees Fahrenheit. A record.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We've never had this kind of heat. So, why would we be prepared?
SIDNER (voiceover): In a place where no one and nothing is acclimated to this kind of heat, it is a true danger to people and infrastructure alike. Climate scientists say this is not normal, not by a long shot. The new normal will be getting exponentially hotter for longer.
MYLES ALLEN, PROFESSOR OF GEOSYSTEM SCIENCE, UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD: Well, as long as we keep dumping carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, the world will continue to warm. And, as I say, it's warming at around a quarter of a degree per decade.
SIDNER (voiceover): In London, at Luton Airport, a runway buckled under the oppressive heat, stopping flights. But it's since been repaired. Fear over buckling rail lines, one of the main modes of transportation in the country, led authorities to paint as many as they could with a reflective substance to repeal the heat.
But for safety, trains at one of the busiest stations in London were stopped for hours. Trains that were running were told to slow their speeds to lessen the fraction on the boiling hot tracks. Less than one percent of homes in the country have air conditioning. Inside, temperatures are like being inside an oven in this heat.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I mean, the world is burning and we are doing nothing about it. We are just consuming, the industry is running, and nobody is doing anything about the climate.
SIDNER (voiceover): The land is literally burning. As London firefighters face one of the toughest days ever. The heat continues to fuel fires in France, Spain, and Greece. Hundreds of deaths are being attributed to the heat as well.
Europe is looking a lot like the United States where more than 100 million people are under heat advisories from Texas to Kentucky. Fires are burning thousands of acres in Texas and Oklahoma where temperatures have reached over 110 degrees. And there is no immediate end in sight as millions try to find relief.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think we need to just have to adapt, don't we? Our homes have to change. Our way of life has to change, too.
[02:35:00]
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SIDNER (on camera): And that is easier said than done. You know, we should mention that in Arizona, a temperature of 100 or 104 degrees is like a cool summer day there. But here in the U.K., it is truly dangerous with the government telling people not to go anywhere and not to do anything until the heat subsides.
KINKADE: Well still ahead, Twitter wins the first round in its legal fights with billionaire Elon Musk. We have the details for that trial scheduled to begin, we'll have those next.
Plus, sometimes a loss can be a win. Why Netflix investors were celebrating despite the streaming giant losing almost a million subscribers.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KINKADE: Welcome back. Not many companies could lose almost a million customers and consider it good news. But that's the case with Netflix which reported a second-quarter loss of 970,000 subscribers. But it's far less than the two million the company had predicted. Its shares jumped as much as eight percent in after-hours trading on the news.
A judge has ruled that Twitter's lawsuit against billionaire Elon Musk will proceed to trial in October. The social media giant is suing the Tesla CEO for backing out of their $44 billion acquisition agreement. Musk blames Twitter, saying the company never provided dotter (ph) about the bots and fake accounts on its service. But if Twitter wins at trial, the court could order Musk to either go through with the purchase or pay a $1 billion breakup fee.
Well, for more on these stories, I'm joined by Josh Constine, a venture partner at the VC Fund SignalFire. He joins us from San Francisco. Good to have you with us,
JOSH CONSTINE, VENTURE PARTNER, SIGNALFIRE: Yes, thank you for having me.
KINKADE: So, Twitter wanted this to go to trial quickly. The billionaire, Elon Musk, wanted to wait until next year. But a judge has set the date for October. Is this good news for Twitter?
CONSTINE: This is great news for Twitter. The uncertainty surrounding Elon's acquisition bid is causing chaos and confusion within the company. Tons of employees who worked for years on trust and safety measures are worried that Elon might roll over that work back in favor of what he calls free speech, but it's often harassment that allows bullies to shut down others and silence them.
And there are other projects and products that he may not want them to actually launch. And so, the teams who are building those are just waiting in the wings. And sources have told me that many are actually quitting rather than wait out the uncertainties. So, the faster Twitter gets this resolved, the better.
KINKADE: Yes, no one likes uncertainty. So, the world's richest man wanted to buy the social media company for $44 billion. Backed out, claiming the company failed to provide adequate information about bots, about fake profiles, fake users. Is that a legitimate reason to back out and is that the real reason?
[02:40:00]
CONSTINE: It's absolutely not a legitimate reason. One of the reasons Elon actually wanted to buy Twitter is because he said there were so many bots and he wanted to clean up the platform. But he never requested any more specific data on the numbers of bots. He knew this was a big part of the platform. Everyone knows the real reason is that Elon offered $44 billion to buy Twitter, the stock market crashed, and now the company is only worth $30 billion, and he's trying to weasel his way out. And so, even if he can just get hit with that $1 billion fine, that's a win for him.
And so, Twitter is fighting tooth and nail to make him honor his agreement and make this acquisition. And really if the judge does not make that happen, it opens the door to financial wrongdoing and gainmanship (ph) amongst the world's billionaires and biggest corporations. So, this could unlock a lot of worst behavior in the future if he -- fully held the task for his acquisition offer.
KINKADE: Yes, exactly. You make a good point. And Josh, Musk is already Twitter's second-largest shareholder. I wonder why he would want to harm Twitter, which is what Twitter claims. And is it likely this case will be settled before it goes to trial?
CONSTINE: Elon just wants to find his way out of this deal any way he can. I think he's realized that human beings are actually a lot more complicated than electrical circuits. You know, just ruthlessly making a battery more efficient is a lot easier than balancing all of the trade-offs of business and politics, safety and speech. And I think he might actually already be tired of running Twitter and he hasn't even taken control yet.
KINKADE: Well, let's leave his troubles behind for a moment, and let's focus on Netflix. Because Netflix lost more -- about a million subscribers this quarter, yet the shares are up at the end of trading. So, losing a million -- almost a million subscribers, not as bad as what investors were anticipating.
CONSTINE: Yes, I mean, the fact is that Netflix and other major streaming efforts like HBO Max and Disney Plus, all massively ramped up content production and marketing during the COVID lockdowns because people were stuck home with nothing to do but stream. But now that those lockdowns have ended and people are starting to leave their room and go out into the world again, they don't -- everyone doesn't need that same Netflix subscription anymore. Ando so, you're seeing users dwindle away.
In the meanwhile, we're seeing the end of the era of infinite contact. You know, these companies are not just going to recklessly spend to create, you know, shows for every single demographic anymore, knowing that it doesn't necessarily translate into subscriber growth. And so, we're going to see cuts across all of the streaming services in how much new content they're producing.
KINKADE: And so, Josh, with so many streaming services, so much content, was this, in some ways, inevitable?
CONSTINE: Yes, because in large part, Netflix is losing out to a whole new form of video, which is hyper short form, micro entertainment, that's TikTok. You know, users are getting used to these incredible personalization algorithms. You know, giving them the exact videos they want in the niche subcultures and interests that they personally have from creators they relate to. And the content density is just much higher than on Netflix. You know, the laughs, the ahas, the hahas of being on TikTok for a minute could outweigh, you know, 20 minutes, 30 minutes spent on Netflix.
And so, users are growing impatient. And they just say, hey, I've got this infinite feed of content from TikTok. Why do I have to pay for Netflix? And I think that's part of the reason why Netflix is now launching an advertising supported tier which is going to be a lot cheaper and really aimed at that Gen Z population that TikTok has stolen away.
KINKADE: Josh Constine, good to have you across the door for us. Thanks so much for joining us.
CONSTINE: My pleasure. Thank you.
KINKADE: And thanks to you for joining us. I'm Lynda Kinkade. World Sport is coming up next. And then I'll be back with much more news from around the world in about 15 when it's. You are watching CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:45:00]
LEMON: Let's go right now to CNN's Shimon Prokupecz for the very latest. Shimon, good evening to you. Tell us more about your new reporting on Uvalde School police chief Pete Arredondo.
SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Yes. So, Don, we've learned that there were discussions through the day about how to proceed in terms of firing Pete Arredondo. And a decision has been made that they do not want to keep him. They know they have a problem at the school board. They understand that it's time to let him go.
And so, there's a process now underway for that to happen. It's going to take a few days. I'm told that there's going to be a school board hearing. We should see a notice, perhaps tomorrow, that there will be a school board hearing on Saturday. And that is when the decision will ultimately be made.
He has a few days here to decide now whether or not he wants to resign before Saturday. But by all accounts, from everything that our team here on the ground is told, that it is expected that he will not be the school police chief for much longer, Don.
LEMON: But he could resign? No indication of that, right, before that Saturday meeting?
PROKUPECZ: There is no indication --
LEMON: But no indication as of now --
PROKUPECZ: That's right, as of now, Don.
LEMON: Yes. So, last night's contentious school board meeting, parents wanted to see Arredondo fired. But today, watch this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRETT CROSS, UVALDE SHOOTING VICTIM'S PARENT: If he's not fired by noon tomorrow, then I want your resignation and every single one of you board members because you all do not give a damn about our children or us.
RACHEL MARTINEZ, UVALDE PARENT: The current staff is incompetent and liable for the already massive failure. You need to clean house. You need to start from zero.
JAZMIN CAZARES, UVALDE SHOOTING VICTIM'S SISTER: What do you, guys, are going to do to make sure I don't have to watch my friends die? What are you going to make sure I don't have to wait 77 minutes, bleeding out on my classroom floor, just like my little sister did?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: So, that was last night. They wanted them to resign by the day. Is frustration completely boiling over because there's been so little accountability here?
PROKUPECZ: Yes, you know, that's exactly right, Don. That's the problem. And what's really remarkable and really -- I have to say, I've been with these families, I've been at these school board meetings before, I've been at council meetings.
I've never seen the family speak out like they did last night. And it was just incredible to watch because you could really start to sense that the more information they get, the more they're told, the more answers they're demanding. They're starting to unite. They're starting to get together and demand the change that they all want. And also, the accountability, we really started to see that last night. You know, many of them were afraid to speak out in the beginning as they were starting to learn information. The thing that's happening here is that the release of those body camera footage, the hallway footage, this report, they're really starting to learn information. And it's not sitting well with them, and it shouldn't. Their kids are afraid to go to school. Parents are afraid to send them to school and they're talking about having virtual classes.
So, what they want is change. They want to feel safer. But they also want even school personnel, they want other people fired. They want a new police department. So, they're still going to keep going. But this is certainly the first step in what they feel will be some accountability for Pete Arredondo.
LEMON: Shimon Prokupecz, thank you, sir. Appreciate it.
17 members of Congress arrested today protesting for abortion rights in front of the Supreme Court. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:50:00]
KINKADE: Dozens of abortion rights protesters descending on the Supreme Court this afternoon to protest the high court's landmark decision overturning Roe V. Wade. Capitol police ordering the protesters to cease and desist their actions and arresting those who sat in the street.
Police say that they arrested at least 35 people, including 17 members of Congress. Among those taken into custody, New York Democrat Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, there she is in the green scarf there. And Democratic Representative Ayanna Pressley, again, wearing -- right there, on your screen, or Massachusetts. California Congresswoman Jackie Speier, tweeting after her arrest, proud to march with my Democratic colleagues and get arrested for women's rights, abortion rights, the rights for people to control their own bodies, and the future of our democracy.
Next, they got thousands of documents. But not the potentially missing texts. Where did the secret service texts go?
Plus, Steve Bannon on trial. We're going to tell you what went down in court today.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:55:00]
KINKADE: The secret service turning over thousands of documents to the January 6th Select Committee but not including text messages potentially missing from the insurrection and the day before. Source tells CNN that the secret service told the Committee that they're currently unaware of any text messages that were not retained, which, of course, raises even more questions about the national archives and the national archives wants answers. I want to bring in now CNN legal analyst Carrie Cordero and law enforcement analyst and former secret service agent Jonathan Wackrow. Hello to both of you. Thank you for joining us this evening.
Jonathan, the secret service says, text messages from January 5th and 6th are still missing. You say it is a bad look for them. But we're talking about an insurrection here. Why wouldn't the agency protecting the president and the vice president, you know, and -- you know, members of our government be sure to save every single piece of information from that critical day?
JONATHAN WACKROW, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST AND FORMER SECRET SERVICE AGENT: Don, this -- you know, this disclosure that these text messages are still missing really is an unforced error by the secret service. They should never be in this position today but yet they find themselves here. Because they know that they are bound by regulations to preserve all records of their activity. And that includes every single text message, e-mail, electronic communication.
And what happened today is, you know, the -- this admission by the service just compounds the problems that they face because there is no resolution, right. We're sitting here, there was a subpoena. The inspector general went up and spoke to the January 6th Commission that led to that subpoena. There's critical information that's missing and it's still not resolved.
And the result of this is, optically, the public just -- in public, it raises more doubts about the secret service. So, they need to act very quickly, right now, starting tomorrow, to start bringing some level of resolution, you know, to these text messages.
And here's what I want to hear from the secret service, very quickly. First, what exactly was the data that was lost? We're talking about text messages. But I want to know the context of those -- of that data. Does that data have any nexus to direct activity in Washington D.C. on January 6th? Second, how exactly was it lost, right? We're putting a lot of responsibility on individual agents and officers saying that they were, you know, it was their responsibility.
[03:00:00]
