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Russia Pulls Out Of U.N.-Brokered Grain Export Deal With Ukraine; Suspect In Attack On Pelosi's Husband Facing Multiple Charges; Trump To Hold Rally In Ohio One Day Before Election; Report: Dozens Suffer "Cardiac Arrest" During Seoul Halloween Fest; Cities Across U.S. Ramping Up Security Ahead Of Elections. Aired 12-1p ET

Aired October 29, 2022 - 12:00   ET

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

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[12:00:37]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST (on camera): Hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me this Saturday. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

We begin with some breaking news on Ukraine. Russia says it will suspend its participation in the grain export deal that it made and had gotten underway with Ukraine.

CNN's Nic Robertson is in Kyiv. So, Nic, what's the significance of this?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (on camera): Very significant. Russia says it's withdrawing from this deal for an indefinite period. It agreed the deal brokered by the U.N., sort of in parallel with a similar deal with Ukraine back at the end of July.

Back then, it was anticipated that this would allow all the grain that was backing up in Ukrainian ports to get to all those hard hit third world countries in desperate need of food supplies. Anticipated that maybe 20 million tons of grain could be shifted.

In recent weeks, Ukrainian officials have been saying that the Russians have been dragging their feet. The Russians have been saying that they're not sure that they would actually continue with this grain deal.

So far, some 405 ships have been involved in the deal, moving 9.1 million tons, which is less than half of what was originally anticipated.

But what precipitated this showdown by Russia today in Sevastopol, in Crimea, occupied by Russia, there were explosions in the port area there today.

Russia is saying those explosions, report some of its chips and is blaming Ukraine for what it calls a terrorist attack, and saying that the attack was actually led by British specialists. Now, Ukraine is saying that this is another fiction that's been created by Russia, much along the lines of the previous fictions, it says it's created.

I think there are a couple of things to think about here when we step back and look at this grain deal. It was only ever for three months. And the anticipation was about now it would be extended.

Russia that created this situation of the global grain shortage, because it started the war, actually got a break on sanctions to allow this deal to happen in the first place.

Russia has been complaining recently that the grain that's been coming out has been going to the first world and not the third world, but they actually created the scenario where there was this global shortage by starting the war.

So, this puts the U.N., if you will, in a difficult position. The U.N. is asking Russia not to act in haste. But it does seem now that, that deal is off. And there are apparently about 175 ships under contractual obligation waiting to come in and take out grain that is still in the ports.

This is now a big, an ongoing problem, and a setback to the U.N.'s efforts to sort of brokering some kind of lines of peace here.

WHITFIELD: A giant setback. Nic Robertson in Kyiv. Thank you so much. Keep us posted.

Let's talk more about this and the overall strategy of the Russians. Let's bring in Colonel Cedric Leighton, he is a retired Air Force Colonel and a CNN military analyst.

All right. So, so, good to see you. So, so, this deal to unleash grain that was blocked and backed up on Ukrainian ports. Russia went into this deal, saying, you know, we're going to allow this to happen, the export of this grain now suspended.

Do you think Russia ever really had the intention of fully being committed to this deal?

COL. CEDRIC LEIGHTON (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST (on camera): Fredricka, frankly, I think they'd never had the intention to be fully committed to this deal. You know, when you look at the way in which the Russians have actually used their military to go after civilian targets, the fact that they're going after the energy infrastructure, the power grid, and other elements of the energy infrastructure in Ukraine, and even from the beginning of this war, the fact that they have gone after the Ukrainian food supply system and the fact that Ukraine, a major exporter of grains was extremely vulnerable on this point.

The Russians know that vulnerability and they're going to push every single button that they can in order to achieve their goals. And in this case, they know that if they cut off grain supplies to the rest of the world, and that will cause a severe shortages and, of course, that's a major Ukrainian vulnerability in this effort.

[12:05:04]

WHITFIELD: So, what will be the role of the U.N. at this juncture?

LEIGHTON: So, the U.N. is going to try to, I think, get this grain deal started again. They've got a real uphill battle, in this case, Fredricka. And I think what -- you know, they, of course, had the good offices of Turkey, at the beginning of this working through all of these deals with the Turkish president, the Turkish foreign minister. So, I think the church will probably be engaged once again, trying to salvage this deal.

It's critical, of course, you know, for the third world because a lot of countries in Africa get supplied by Ukrainian grain. So, it's a key element here that could -- you know, be used to prevent famine.

But if it fails, we're going to see some major food shortages in all of these areas.

WHITFIELD: Major food shortages, and then you just talked about, you know, Russia at targeting the power grid. It seems unrelenting, and, you know, talk to us about the -- what appears to be the growing strategy of Russia to further cripple, not just Ukraine, but the region.

LEIGHTON: Yes, this is really an interesting development. And frankly, you know, in normal circumstances like this, you would have expected the Russians to target the energy grid, the Ukrainian energy grid.

From the beginning of this war. they haven't done so until now. I think it shows the, you know, the fact that they brought in the new general who understands a bit more about targeting these kinds of things, it appears that his predecessors, that may have made a difference.

And the other thing to keep in mind, Fredricka is that Ukraine is a net exporter, or at least, was a net exporter of electricity to the European grid, and that, that very fact creates problems for countries like Poland, Romania, other countries that are hooked into that grid and get power from Ukraine.

So, this is a big deal, and it's designed to pressure the Europeans to force the Ukrainians to come to the negotiating table at this point.

WHITFIELD: So, it seems as though, the only one that has leveraged, the only country that has leverage here is Russia. But as you just mentioned, the other -- the dependency of other countries like Poland, on that power grid. How might they come to the table? Or will they come to the table in any way to try to negotiate directly with Russia?

LEIGHTON: Well, there are going to be people in various countries, especially in countries like Germany, which is dependent on another aspect of Russian energy, which is the gas price, the natural gas supply that they have from Russia, at least, before had -- received from Russia. So, there is going to be pressure from various elements within these countries, Germany, a little bit like France as well. You know, some other countries, Italy.

Those countries are going to be looking to try to resolve any type of energy shortages that they might be experiencing this winter. I -- if they can assure gas supplies, it won't be as difficult a situation is has been predicted by some.

But, if those gas supplies fail, or if there is an uptick in demand, because of the more severe winter, that's going to create some real problems. And that pressure is going to definitely be felt not only in places like Berlin, but also in Kyiv. And that could have a significant impact on the Ukrainian war effort.

WHITFIELD: Is this winter make or break for Ukraine and its allies?

LEIGHTON: Yes, it is. And you know, I hate to be that stark in my assessment, Fredricka, but this is a critical component, and it is very important for the West to sustain its support of Ukraine no matter what the energy shortages are.

We have to find ways around those energy shortages, and they might have to be creative, in fact. But those energy shortages are going to play a significant role in popular opinion and popular support for this war effort, which up to this point has been very strong, not only throughout Western Europe and the U.S., but obviously in Ukraine as well.

WHITFIELD: All right. Incredibly consequential. Colonel Cedric Leighton, good to see you. Always appreciate your expertise. Thank you.

LEIGHTON: Thank you.

WHITFIELD (voice-over): Still to come, the suspect in the attack on the husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is in police custody and facing multiple charges.

[12:09:34]

We'll have more on the investigation and the condition of Paul Pelosi, next.

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WHITFIELD: Right now, the husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is recovering in a San Francisco hospital after a brutal attack at the couple's home.

A spokesman for the speaker says 82-year-old Paul Pelosi underwent successful surgery for a skull fracture and serious injuries to his right arm and hands.

Police say a man broke into his home just after too early in the morning on Friday, and attacked him with a hammer. Sources say Paul Pelosi was able to call 911 at the start of the attack and officers responded quickly, taking the suspect into custody.

The attack shining a spotlight on new security concerns. Federal agencies warning that violent extremists pose heightened threats to the midterm elections.

CNN's Josh Campbell and Sunlen Serfaty are covering all of the latest developments.

Josh, let's begin with you in San Francisco. What more are you learning about this vicious attack and the recovery of Mr. Pelosi?

JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST (on camera): Yes, Fred. Paul Pelosi, the husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi remains in the hospital at this hour, recovering from those very serious injuries, including a fractured skull.

[12:15:07]

CAMPBELL (voice-over): Now, the Speaker's office says that he is thankfully expected to make a full recovery.

Here is what we know about the alleged assailant at this hour. Police have identified him as a 42-year-old man named David Depape. They say that he entered the home here through the rear of the building, engaged in this altercation with Mr. Pelosi.

We're learning through our reporting that it appears as though the House Speaker was the intended target. She was not here, but the suspect was allegedly yelling, where is Nancy? Where is Nancy?

We're also learning new details about how police were actually called to this residence, in the first place. Our colleagues John Miller and Jamie Gangel are reporting that Paul Pelosi, during this altercation was able to place a 911 call, and left his phone open. The signal open speaking in code.

It was an adept police dispatcher who realized that something was wrong. She dispatched police officers to this residence. They were able to tackle that suspect.

The police chief spoke yesterday, calling this targeted, calling it intentional. He also had very forceful words in response to the wave of threats we have recently seen against lawmakers.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAM SCOTT, CHIEF, SAN FRANCISCO POLICE DEPARTMENT: Our elected officials are here to do the business of their cities, their counties, their states, and this nation. Their families don't sign up for this to be harmed, and it is wrong. And everybody should be disgusted about what happened this morning.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMPBELL: And Fred, we know that this suspect is now facing multiple charges, including attempted murder, including burglary, including threatening a family member of a public official, as well as elder abuse.

He remains in custody at this hour, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right, Josh.

Sunlen, to you now. This attack, you know, has sent shockwaves, you know, throughout the country, and particularly, in Capitol Hill.

How are lawmakers and other officials responding?

SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Fred, there certainly has been bipartisan condemnation of this attack. Many Republicans and Democrats, of course, both expressing outrage over the violence here, and certainly, sympathy for the Pelosi family.

Just moments ago on the campaign trail, we heard most recent comments from House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer. He said, point-blank, this is a dangerous time for our country. He asked for prayers for Paul Pelosi as he recovers and for the Pelosi family.

And he said it's up to us to make sure that America survives this hate and division. And he likened that to why people's votes matter in the midterm election just next week.

We, of course also heard from Republicans former Vice President Mike Pence, who says he's outraged by the violence. And America should not be a place where violence like this exists.

And certainly, others like Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, saying that he is horrified and disgusted by this -- by this violence.

But on Capitol Hill, this really certainly is a culmination of many years of worry for many lawmakers about the threats posed not only to them, but their families.

This follows many years of several high-profile incidents, not the least of which January 6th, at -- on Capitol Hill.

And if you look at the data, it really is concerning. Capitol Hill and law enforcement sources as the numbers of threats and statements made against lawmakers and their families has jumped significantly in recent years.

Last year in 2021, nearly 9,600 threats came in. That is alarming number. And we know according to sources that in the wake of all of this, that Capitol Hill police is assessing whether additional security needs to be applied to members of leadership, excuse me, family members of leadership.

That's something that right now, Fred, does not exist. And why Paul Pelosi did not have security at their home.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks to both of you. Sunlen Serfaty and Josh Campbell. Let's talk more about all this now with CNN's chief law enforcement and intelligence analyst John Miller. John, so good to see you. We've learned so much through you and your sourcing about the details of the events, including the 911 call that Mr. Pelosi made. Have you learned anything new?

JOHN MILLER, CNN CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT AND INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: You know, the call is really interesting, because it was the difference between -- probably, life and death in this case.

But Paul Pelosi calls the 911 operator and he is speaking in vagaries. There is this person in my house, so on and so forth. And at some point, Heather Grimes, the 911 operator says, Sir, are you OK? And he says no.

And the conversation goes on in the background. You can hear David Depape, the alleged subject here -- the suspect. And he is saying, who is that? Put down the phone. And then, you can be barely hear him, because he sounds like he's whispering, according to people who have heard the conversation. And the call ends.

[12:20:06]

But Heather Grimes knows this isn't right. And that is the residence of Nancy Pelosi. All of that goes -- the entire conversation basically goes into the mobile data transmitter that gets to the officers.

They read it, and then, Kyle, Kyle -- Williams and Officer Cagney and Williams come through the door, Sergeant Coyne, not far behind them. And then, they see this struggle for the hammer, where they order both men to let go.

When Pelosi lets go, Depape allegedly hits him with the hammer and he goes down and the officers tackle him. All of this happens within a quick second as they come through the door, trying to assess what exactly is going on here.

Because what they got was a wellness call at the house, something's wrong, but not a lot of detail. That made sense.

WHITFIELD: Wow. But like you said, I mean, the extraordinary instincts of Mr. Pelosi and that 911 call, and the instincts of a really good dispatcher in -- Heather Grimes.

So, to learn now more about the suspect and the attack. Tell us of what investigators are doing. You know, for starters, they're looking for stressors, or triggers, and how this even came to be?

MILLER: So, they are doing archaeological dig, if you will, through the entire life of David Depape. We spent a good deal of time yesterday, when we got the identification going through his social media.

We see his Facebook just cuts off basically in March before Facebook cut him off officially yesterday.

And we looked for him in other places and see some activity but he was operating in the full menu of anti-vax, anti-January 6th committee, anti-everything -- anti-Semitism.

I mean, he has the full menu of anger and hate that he is reposting. And he has an entire religious sideline, where he is criticizing the Catholic Church and other institutions.

So, he was somebody who was a lot of anger, a lot of hate.

WHITFIELD: Wow. And you say, this is like an archaeological dig. And we have to remind people, you know, that this attack of Mr. Pelosi comes just two weeks after we all saw this new video of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): OK. If they stop the proceedings, they will have succeeded in stopping the validation of the president of the United States.

If they stop the proceedings, we will have totally failed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So, remember, this was just a sliver of what January 6th was like. And Pelosi there are getting to a safe space, and then, leader huddled with bipartisan leadership on January 6th, planning on how to resume business, you know, despite the tumult and the violence,

So, Pelosi daughter was the documentarian, you know, behind that video. In your view, now, just two weeks since the world saw that video. And now what happened, coincidence or possible connection to the timing of the attack on Mr. Pelosi, is that something that investigators will also be trying to look into or solve?

MILLER: Well, I mean, some of this may come from David Depape, if he agrees to speak to investigators. But I mean, Fredricka, it's really interesting to see how this has been marinating in the background. So, if you go back to the online stuff that's literally happening yesterday, and today, in extreme right-wing extremist channels, you're seeing people praising the attack in those chat rooms, you see people criticizing the suspect for not finishing the job.

And then, there's a whole separate discussion about how this is a false flag operation by the Democrats to create this illusion. So that -- so that they can defeat Donald Trump and come take our guns, which is interesting, since no gun was involved here.

But you can also look at history here. You know, there is an Arizona man who's serving 21 months in prison for threatening to kill Pelosi by sending numerous messages to her office with those threats.

There is a North Carolina man serving 28 months for threatening to kill Pelosi. And when they searched his trailer, they found an assault weapon with a telescopic sight and a handgun. So, this didn't start yesterday.

WHITFIELD: Right. MILLER: And when you look at that film, you know, the names they're calling out Fred --

WHITFIELD: Right.

MILLER: Get Pelosi, get Schumer, get Nadler, all three of those individuals have security details. But there are 435 members of Congress and 100 senators and the Capitol Police no way has the resources to protect all of them.

WHITFIELD: Right. I mean, it's so frightening and you, you zero in on, it's an issue of resources, perhaps, you know. And this -- all of this happening too after the GOP, as according to The Washington Post, you know, made Nancy Pelosi a top target In Republican campaign ads.

[12:25:04]

So, you mentioned the issue of resources, but then, given what is known about why -- you know, why and how Nancy Pelosi, among others who are constantly targeted, why wouldn't there be resources made available to make sure that she would have or her property and her family members would have more protection, 24/7, regardless of where she is? I mean, you know, we know the detail follows her.

But for the vulnerabilities of her family members, or even her home and the placement of our home, why would it resources be made for that?

Well, I mean, that is a decision that's made on the current threat stream. The protection of Nancy Pelosi is the responsibility of the Capitol Police. And they have a field office in San Francisco.

When she is there, that security is very high. But family members, you know, this is -- this is part of the resource reality. Family members, in these cases find themselves on their own.

WHITFIELD: Yes. All right. John Miller, always enjoy hearing from you. Thank you so much.

And this breaking news out of Seoul, South Korea, where dozens of people are receiving medical assistance after an incident during Halloween festivities in the city. A live report straight ahead.

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[12:30:34]

WHITFIELD: All right, just 10 days to go before the midterm elections. And election data shows more than 17 million Americans have already cast ballots in early voting. In Georgia where there are several competitive high profile races, voters have turned out in record numbers with more than 1.3 million ballots already in. And, and last night, former President Obama held a Get Out the Vote rally in Georgia for Democrats. Let's go now to CNN national correspondent Nadia Romero who is live for us in Atlanta outside a polling center. How busy is it today? NADIA ROMERO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, and it's been pretty steady today. No line so far, because it is still a sleepy Saturday here. A lot of people are out thinking about Halloween and that holiday that will be coming up. But still, we've seen almost 600 people, a poll worker told us, at this location alone just today, that brings their total to over 10,000 at this location.

And as you mentioned it, Fred, more than 1.3 million people in Georgia already participating in early voting in person. That's an impressive number. But when you really look at the demographics, we're not seeing that younger age group really coming out and hitting the polls. If you look at age groups, 22 to 29, they only make up about 4 percent of those ballots casted. So we spoke with a woman who is one of the partners of this organization that really is out there trying to push for the youth vote. And this is her pitch to get younger people to participate in this election.

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BRITTANY BURNS, PROTECT THE VOTE GA CO-FOUNDER: We're telling them, the reason why you should vote is because your vote equals your voice. So without a voice, you have no hope because you're not speaking up. And local elections is very, very important, especially here in Georgia, because we've been going through a lot.

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ROMERO: And when we hear from those younger voters, we went out last night to a rap concert. And the people there that we spoke with said that they want to vote, they want to be interested but they don't think that necessarily the politicians are talking to them directly about the things that matter to them about student loans, about them finding jobs when they leave college, and what their lives will look like. And they also told me, Fred, that a lot of these politicians are just too old. They can't relate to them. And they don't think they really represent them. Fred?

WHITFIELD: All right. Well, I hope that doesn't keep them from voting, however, right, the power of the vote. Nadia Romero, thank you so much.

So early voting is also underway in Ohio. That state is home to a key Senate race between Republican J.D. Vance and Democrat Tim Ryan. Polls show that race is too close to call. It's a race that could decide who controls the Senate. With me now to discuss this high stakes race is Jeremy Pelzer. He is a politics reporter for cleveland.com. Jeremy, it's so good to see you.

So President Biden and former President Obama campaigning in several battleground states for Democrats, but they don't have any plans to campaign for Tim Ryan in Ohio. What does that say about that state or that race?

JEREMY PELZER, POLITICS REPORTER, CLEVELAND.COM: Well, if you ask Tim Ryan, it says that Democrats are making a mistake by not focusing on a race that Tim Ryan at least says is very winnable. And the polls that you said show that Tim Ryan's within striking distance of scoring a big upset for Democrats and a state that is been leaning towards Republicans the past few years.

It also shows that Democrats are playing defense and are focusing on other races in areas such as, states such as Arizona, Wisconsin, Nevada, et cetera. But if you ask Democrats here, they think that they have an outside chance of, again, scoring an upset in a state that has been pro-Trump for a few years now.

WHITFIELD: In fact, on the GOP side, former President Trump will hold a rally in Ohio one day before the election. How potentially impactful might that be?

PELZER: Well, if you look at past races here, for both this cycle and last cycle, it's made a big impact. In fact, if you look at J.D. Vance how he won the nomination in earlier this year, it was because of President Trump's support that he advanced the general election. President Trump has been in Ohio many times over the past few years. And it seems, you know, you can't always tell how much it increases voter turnout. But obviously it seems to make a difference and President Trump is going to do everything he can to make sure that J.D. Vance goes over the finish line.

[12:35:07]

WHITFIELD: In fact you have written extensively about the importance of Northeast Ohio in that Senate race between Tim Ryan and J.D. Vance. And help people understand why is that area of the state so important, so pivotal?

PELZER: Sure, so areas like Cleveland, Akron, Youngstown, those areas traditionally are not only -- it's not only the most populous part of Ohio, it's also an area that has been historically the most Democratic part of Ohio. And so that if you're looking for signs on election night of how things are going to go for Tim Ryan, you really have to look at how he is doing in Northeast Ohio. For to give you an example, President Obama in 2012 won eight of those 12 counties in Northeast Ohio, where Joe Biden won two of those counties in 2020.

Of course, Obama ended up winning Ohio and Biden ended up losing Ohio by about eight points. So if Tim Ryan has any hope of beating J.D. Vance, he's going to have to be much closer to where Obama is in 2012 that where Biden was two years ago.

WHITFIELD: And what are the early voting numbers say about the race?

PELZER: Well, the early voting numbers so far are not great for Tim Ryan. If you look at the six counties that Joe Biden won in 2020 in Ohio, those early voting absentee ballot requests are down about 4 percent as of last Tuesday, and the other counties, the other 82 counties that voted for President Trump. We have absentee ballot requests up about 8.5 to 9 percent. So you, I don't want to make it seem like this is entirely predictive of what's going to happen. There are many factors that go into this. But that sign is not great for Tim Ryan. WHITFIELD: Republican Ohio Governor Mike DeWine is also running for reelection. He is much more of an establishment Republican than a Trump MAGA style governor. So what are the prospects for him?

PELZER: It's very interesting, because as you said, Mike DeWine is sort of a more Bob Dole type, pre-Tea Party Republican. And of course, he's found a way to survive in a Trump era political climate. And he's done so one by not alienating, do everything he can to not alienate Trump himself, and also Trump Republicans. There has been some blowback but certainly not enough to cost him an election. And it seems that that combined with appealing to moderates is doing enough that he at least right now, it seems that he will win reelection pretty comfortably.

WHITFIELD: All right, Jeremy Pelzer thanks so much.

PELZER: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right, and now this breaking news out of Seoul, South Korea where dozens of people are receiving medical assistance after an incident during Halloween festivities in the city, a live report straight ahead.

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[12:42:22]

WHITFIELD: All right, welcome back. We're monitoring breaking news just in the Newsroom. A South Korean news agency says dozens of people have suffered cardiac arrest during Halloween festivities in Seoul. We're told South Korea's president has dispatched a medical team to the area. CNN's Will Ripley is joining us now live. What are you hearing, Will?

WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Fred. So we are on our way to Itaewon. This is the neighborhood in Seoul that is iconic for nightlife, particularly on Halloween. And you were watching all night live streams of, you know, tens of thousands of people packing into these very narrow, winding streets in costume, many drinking alcohol celebrating. And so many people packed in there that they could barely move.

And then the live streams, all of a sudden you start to see emergency vehicles moving through and people were talking on multiple different social media feeds about some sort of emergency and you can actually see the cameras going into the scene. And while we do not have hard numbers, we don't know the conditions of the people. I can just describe for you what we're seeing on these videos, Fred, and it's pretty grim.

You had people in some sort of what local media is describing as a stampede or a crush. You had 81 of emergency calls from people saying that they couldn't breathe. You have people in these videos, rows of people that are lying motionless in the street, some of them, you know, paramedics are trying to perform CPR, others you can see their friends are kind of waving and trying to get the attention of the personnel, the emergency personnel on scene to try to get them some help.

The fact that you have, you know, the mayor of Seoul, who was out of the country has now jumped off flight to get back here as soon as possible. The President convening an emergency meeting and sending the disaster medical team to this scene, you have -- we have a producer that's right in front of the Hamilton Hotel, which is where this incident occurred. They're sending emergency alerts across the South Korean capital by text message telling people of a human casualty situation to stay away from the area to go home as soon as possible.

And so we don't know the conditions of these people that we're seeing in these videos lying motionless on the pavement. But our producer describes them essentially being put into ambulances and taken one by one from a medical tent that has been set up to area hospitals. And the President has asked that area hospitals make additional beds available to handle this huge influx of people.

Some reports are saying upwards of 50 people who have separate cardiac arrest in whatever this incident was, whether it was stampede, whether people were just so tightly packed that they just couldn't breathe, whether people started to panic. I mean we know how these group situations can get when you have too many people packed into a small area. And then of course, it's nighttime, it's Halloween, it's partying, alcohol is involved.

[12:45:18]

And so as we get closer to the scene here, Fred, we're obviously hoping for good news. We're hoping that these people are being treated and are recovering. But from the look of these images that are coming in, it's pretty hard to watch some of these videos quite frankly, Fred.

WHITFIELD: Right. And Will, so many of your details is eliciting, you know, so many other questions, because while in some of these pictures, we're seeing, you know, the plastic sheets over, you know, seemingly bodies on the ground, that certainly start to imply death. And then we see people who are on the gurneys. And that implies perhaps injuries, as you describe some people been taken away in ambulances.

Are officials willing to say out loud, whether they're looking at cases of suffocation as a result of the crowd size that you mentioned but then you also mentioned a lot of alcohol flow? Are we then talking about, you know, the inferences of poisoning in some way? Are they giving you any kind of hint toward the direction of their investigation?

RIPLEY: At this point, they're being very conservative as you would expect them to be, you know, to not do -- to avoid panic from people who probably have family members who are there in the middle of this mayhem. All we have to go by is what we can observe.

And what I have witnessed in a number of videos, and you're probably seeing the pictures on your screen, I don't see what you're seeing. But, you know, these are people on the ground, not moving at all. And you can't tell from a video, whether they are actually breathing, there's no way to know. But it's very unsettling to see these images and to see the panic of people that are trying to get help for their friends.

I mean, these are -- a lot of these people who are in these Halloween costumes, these, you know, they're clearly out there for a night to celebrate, you know, they call the Halloween night in Itaewon, one of the one of the best parties in this region in this part of the world. People fly in from all over the place to come to Seoul to go out in Itaewon on this night, on Halloween weekend. All of the hotels in the surrounding area are fully booked. It's almost impossible to get a room.

So it just gives you a sense of how big of a deal this party is. But now you have an incredibly serious incident that you have the president involved, you have a disaster medical team headed to the scene. And you have more ambulances. I mean, as we're driving here, every few minutes or so more ambulances are passing by, sirens blaring.

And so we really don't know what we're going to find when we get there, Fred, hoping for the best certainly, and hoping for more details as this investigation and as this this effort and help these people will continue on through the overnight hours here.

[12:48:03]

WHITFIELD: All right, unsettling indeed. Will Ripley, thank you so much. I mean, the images, the detail, striking and very sad, thank you. We'll be right back.

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WHITFIELD: All right with the midterm elections fast approaching, cities all across the country are ramping up security, including in New York City, where law enforcement officials are urging the public to remain vigilant. CNN's Brian Todd has the latest.

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BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): An urgent warning from America's largest police force, more vigilance is needed for security for the upcoming midterm elections. The New York Police Department issuing a new bulletin warning that quote, malicious actors especially racially and ethnically motivated violent extremists and anti- government, anti-authority extremists will continue to prioritize the targeting of political rallies, voting sites, poll workers, and election officials.

JOHN MILLER, CNN CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT AND INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: You've got poll workers and election officials literally quitting their jobs because of the atmospherics. They are worried about what they are seeing and about what they are hearing.

TODD (voice-over): The NYPD says there are currently no credible threats to New York City polling sites. But there have been threats elsewhere. We spoke with Scott McDonell, the clerk of Dane County, Wisconsin.

SCOTT MCDONELL, COUNTY CLERK, DANE COUNTY, WISCONSIN: We've gotten social media threats. I have in fact, we got some wandering around all in camo in the April election shaking on doors, trying to get into places, by the time the police reacted to that he was long gone.

TODD (voice-over): Recently armed individuals in tactical gear we're seeing outside a ballot drop box in Mesa, Arizona. Officials in Texas have asked the Department of Justice to send monitors to Harris County, where Houston is, where efforts to intimidate election workers have been reported, incidents that prompted this vow from the U.S. Attorney General.

MERRICK GARLAND, U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: The Justice Department has an obligation to prevent, to guarantee a free and fair vote by everyone who's qualified to vote and will not permit voters to be intimidated.

TODD (voice-over): Law enforcement officials and analysts say the threats are being fueled by extremists who still promote the falsehood that the 2020 election was stolen from Donald Trump and that they'll use all sorts of tactics to intimidate voters.

MARY MCCORD, FORMER ACTING ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR NATIONAL SECURITY: That can be things that suggest to a person that they're being watched, that maybe what they're doing is illegal, following voters to their cars, recording their license plate numbers, certainly asking their many questions about their eligibility to vote or any kind of thing like that.

MILLER: The online chatter is like nothing we have really seen before in terms of an election season. They're talking about attacking political meetings.

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TODD (voice-over): And a new CNN report says federal funding for enhanced security measures at election offices and polling places often isn't getting to officials who would put those measures in place because of bureaucratic snafus or breakdowns in communication.

MCDONELL: If there's money available at the national level, we don't we don't know about it. There's no coordination, and it's really deeply frustrating for us on the frontline.

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TODD: As a result, Scott McDonell says security at his election office in Dane County, Wisconsin, heading into the midterms is quote, a joke. Security analysts tell us they're worried that the threats and the holes insecurity at some election sites will prompt some voters to stay away from the polls this time figuring it's simply not worth it.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

WHITFIELD: And this quick programming note, a new morning show is coming. Starting Tuesday join Don, Poppy, and Kaitlan for refreshing conversations every weekday on CNN this morning at 6:00 a.m. And we'll be right back.

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