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Turkey-Syria Quake Survivors Coming To Terms With Painful Reality; U.N. Says Aid Is Now Flying Into Northwest Syria; Fierce Fighting Rages On Front Lines In Eastern Ukraine; U.S. Blacklists Companies Linked To Chinese Military. Aired 12-1a ET
Aired February 15, 2023 - 00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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LYNDA KINKADE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone, I'm Lynda Kinkade.
Ahead on CNN NEWSROOM, miraculous stories of survival more than a week since the devastating earthquake rocked Turkey and Syria. The time to find people alive under the rubble may finally be running out.
The West promises to support Ukraine as long as it takes. The President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warns that speed is key in its fight against Russia.
And inside China's balloon operation, how they could be used for more than just surveillance.
ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Center, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Lynda Kinkade.
KINKADE: Well, last week's catastrophic earthquake has now killed more than 41,000 people in Turkey and Syria. Yet nine days after the disaster, we're still seeing astonishing stories of survival.
Moments ago, a 77-year-old woman in southern Turkey was saved. She survived 212 hours trapped under rubble in bitterly cold conditions. Turkish media report that she was hugged by family members waiting at the scene of her rescue.
And on Tuesday, a handful of people were found alive after being buried some 200 hours. And during all those aftershocks, three of them pulled from the debris in the Kahramanmaras region of Turkey.
Another woman was rescued from a collapsed building in Hatay according to Turkish state media. As many tried to process the scope of the disaster, the Turkish president explained why the magnitude 7.8 quake and its aftermath has been so awful.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RECEP TAYYIP ERDOGAN, TURKISH PRESIDENT (through translator): The disaster that occurred in an area larger than many countries territorial integrity happened in an area closer to the surface compared to other earthquakes in the history. And this increased the effect of the destruction which brought an energy equal to hundreds of powerful atomic bombs. The biggest earthquakes in the world occur in the oceans and affect the lands, but the earthquakes in Kahramanmaras happened directly under the residences.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: The Turkish president went on to say that more than 13,000 quake survivors are hospitalized in Turkey. They are among the lucky ones.
Even luckier quake victims are healthy and receiving shelter. CNN's Nada Bashir reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NADA BASHIR, CNN REPORTER (voice over): The landscape permanently changed, the death toll still rising. Those who made it out alive now grappling with a devastating new reality.
For Semir and Amal, it is a reality that's painful to come to terms with. They fled their apartment with 3-year-old Lina (PH), and seven- year-old Yusif (PH) seconds before the building collapsed.
Now, they found temporary shelter in the home of one generous Istanbul resident living overseas, but their trauma is difficult to overcome. And memories of the quake still haunt this family.
SEMIR CEKIC, EVACUATED FROM QUAKE ZONE (through translator): Our friends and relatives are still under the rubble. The whole family is gone.
AMAL CEKIC, EVACUATED FROM QUAKE ZONE (through translator): Yusif tells me, mom, I don't have a room. I don't have a house, no toys, no friends. I want to go back to school. Lina is constantly crying. She's my only daughter. She's changed a lot.
BASHIR: The chances of finding survivors beneath the rubble is getting slimmer by the hour. But in Turkey, hope persists with more miraculous rescues over the past 24 hours.
But as the days passed by, the focus is shifting to recovering the dead and helping the living.
As you can see here, these volunteers have formed a human chain to carry these boxes of donations into this truck. They're being loaded, ready to leave this distribution center in Istanbul and head straight to Southeast Turkey.
Now, according to coordinators at this center, there are some 20,000 volunteers working around the clock across two centers here in Istanbul. They've been working for the last week, sorting through thousands of boxes of donations all ready to be sent to people impacted by the earthquake.
[00:05:19] But coordinators here say they need more support and fear they will be forgotten by the international community.
Were you scared when it happened?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
BASHIR: Scary?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Very.
BASHIR: Very scared?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
BASHIR: And while act of generosity may go some way to help. For those who've lost everything, the rebuilding is just beginning.
Nada Bashir, CNN, Istanbul.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Well, the U.N. says humanitarian aid is now flowing into northwest Syria, where so many people have so little.
Secretary General Antonio Guterres says nearly five million Syrians are in need of food, shelter and health care.
The U.N. is launching an appeal for nearly $400 million to help earthquake victims in Syria. U.N. trucks are now allowed to pass through three border crossings from Turkey. But the Syrian opposition rescue group known as the White Helmets is criticizing the United Nations for giving Syrian President Bashar al-Assad authority over the aid deliveries.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANTONIO GUTERRES, U.N. SECURITY-GENERAL: They have an urgent message to the international community. The human suffering from these epic natural disasters should not be made even worse by man-made obstacles, access, funding, supplies. Aid must get through from all sides to all sides through all routes without any restrictions.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Kieren Barnes is the Syria Country Director for Mercy Corps and joins me now from Amman, Jordan. Good to have you with us.
KIEREN BARNES, SYRIA COUNTRY DIRECTOR, MERCY CORPS: Thanks, Linda.
KINKADE: So, even before the earthquake, northwest Syria was fragile, many there already reliant on aid for basic necessities. Explain the situation before and the need now.
BARNES: Yes, I mean, this was certainly a crisis already prior to the earthquake, mostly corps has been working in northwest Syria for a number of years. There are around 2.8 million people who are displaced from homes already. So that's people living in tents, temporary shelters, that they have no permanent homes.
And for the last few years due to the conflicts, they've been having to move around, which means organizations like Mercy Corps, we provide things like water, blankets, mattresses, food, and other such basic items. And that was all prior to last Monday.
KINKADE: So, the United Nations says the Syrian regime president has agreed to open these new crossing points from Turkey to the rebel held northwest. What is your team seeing on the ground? Has that happened yet?
BARNES: I think -- I mean, we've been calling for this for the -- for the last week, to be honest. And I think they're certainly are -- our teams are desperately wondering, where's the -- where's that -- where's the support coming from?
I understand that the crossing points are open now, which is good. And it's positive that the U.N. has more options and more ability to move aid, but it's not just the U.N. that's required. It's also the commercial sector, the supply chain has been broken now for about a week. And that has a knock on impact into the market.
So, we've been out meeting with communities where we normally work and assessing the situation. And about half our camps where we usually support or reporting that they're not having enough food. And the cost of food that is in the market is rapidly increasing and people can't afford to buy it. And people need things like baby supplies, hygiene products, and fuel to stay warm in the winter.
So, this is turning into a desperate situation. And really, we should be tackling this much quicker, much sooner.
KINKADE: And I understand Mercy Corps works with 12 other organizations in northwest Syria. How many people do you reach? How many people are you helping?
BARNES: On a regular basis, so our team directly on the ground usually is reaching about 300,000 people on a regular basis. And we also -- as you've mentioned, work with a few partners as well.
So, this is our typical work. And what we've seen in the last week is trying to get back to the level that we were before but we actually need to double the size of our response.
And unfortunately, we still haven't -- we're still yet to see the international community step up with the vital funds that are required.
KINKADE: Does your organization have any concerns about aid going via the regime of Bashar al-Assad? Like, are they concerned that it won't get to the people who need it most?
BARNES: This particular pocket of northwest Syria has multiple people in control. And it's an area we've worked for a number of years. We have very robust and strong systems to ensure that everything that we receive that we're able to give out directly to people and it's very closely monitored. I don't have concerns about that.
It is a constant issue that gets talked about but from our perspective, we prioritize the people in need and what they need, and we make sure that we get it to them.
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KINKADE: You mentioned some of the aid that you've been providing in terms of blankets and fuel. What more is needed in the coming days, weeks and months?
BARNES: Yes, and this is going to be critical. We're looking at the water supply. That's one thing that's been damaged by the earthquake. Some of the boreholes where you take the safe water and we deliver it by trucks to the communities. And because they're on the pipe networks that you would normally see, these have been damaged and the mud and soil is seeping in, which means it's not safe to drink. We need to rapidly fix those and find other water supplies. That's one key thing.
As I mentioned, some of those hygiene kits that we're giving out. Shelter repair as much as possible for buildings that are damaged but are repairable, we need to start working on that to prevent more people becoming homeless.
And then, particularly things like food and also cash so that people can buy the specific things that they need in the market.
But again, we need the markets to be functioning which means those supply routes need to be open.
KINKADE: All right, well, we wish you and your team all the best. Kieren Barnes with Mercy Corps, thanks so much.
BARNES: Thank you.
KINKADE: NATO Secretary General is making it clear that allies will continue to support Ukraine for as long as it takes as the war now nears the one year mark.
Jens Stoltenberg's comments came as the NATO Defense Ministers met in Brussels. Also in attendance, Ukraine's defense minister, who says Russia is the most significant and direct threat to NATO countries, and that Ukrainian soldiers are defending all of Europe. NATO's chief reaffirm their commitment to helping Ukraine.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JENS STOLTENBERG, SECRETARY GENERAL, NATO: NATO allies are providing unprecedented support to Ukraine to help uphold its right of self- defense.
And from the start, we have been working very closely with the European Union determined to support Ukraine for as long as it takes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Ukrainian forces are now locked in fierce fighting on the frontlines in the east where Ukraine says Russian troops are continuing offenses from the air and on the ground in the Donetsk region.
Bakhmut is among the cities that's been targeted by Russian attacks. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says his soldiers are facing a tough fight.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): The situation on the front line, especially in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions remains extremely difficult. It is literally a battle for every meter of Ukrainian land. We must understand the significance of these battles. Every meter won is to defend our entire country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: CNN's David McKenzie is following developments and has more on the battle raging between Ukraine and Russia on the frontlines.
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DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Thousands of miles from the front lines, a cemetery in Russia's Far East, poor (PH) young men cut down in relentless waves of attack. Off camera, a woman sobs and says our boys.
Soldiers of the 155th Marine Brigade, their unit has taken catastrophic losses in Vuhledar.
For weeks, the coal mining town, the epicenter of Russia's efforts to break through Ukrainian lines. But the assault here has been a disaster. At least 30 Russian tanks destroyed by Ukrainian mines and artillery, a scrambled chaotic retreat.
Across this front, the Ukrainians are well dug in, their lines aren't moving.
But this soldier says they are now 10 attacks a day. It used to be just a couple.
To the north, the Russians are inching forward around Bakhmut and every exit from the city is extremely dangerous.
The battles here at close quarters, unrelenting trench warfare on the edge of the city.
It's so hard, the enemy is pushing from different directions says this Ukrainian soldier. All the efforts our men are making are priceless.
Fighters of the Wagner Mercenary Group paraded their flag at a village on the outskirts of Bakhmut. But they are being forced to fight for every single house. And Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin admits, Bakhmut will not be taken
tomorrow because there is heavy resistance and grinding. For the meat grinder to work properly, it is impossible to suddenly start festivities.
This as Wagner units continue to endure heavy losses in its efforts on the heels around Bakhmut, where they are vulnerable to Ukrainian artillery and drones.
Ukrainian officials now expect another Russian thrust further north in the forest near Crimea.
[00:15:07]
There's been fierce fighting here for weeks. A Russian advance here would allow the Kremlin to claim it's captured all of Luhansk region, a key objective of Vladimir Putin's war.
But Ukrainians are putting up stiff resistance, and their allies expect that in the spring, they may be able to launch attacks of their own. If they are supplied the weapons and ammunition they need.
GEN. LLOYD AUSTIN, DEFENSE SECRETARY: We believe that there'll be a window of opportunity for them to exercise initiative and then change or continue to create the right conditions on the battlefield there.
MCKENZIE: Before that, along this vast front, Ukrainians must hold off what they expect to be an imminent Russian onslaught.
David McKenzie, CNN, Kyiv.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Joining us from Washington is David Sanger. He is a CNN Political and National Security Analyst as well as the White House correspondent for The New York Times and joins us now from D.C. Good to see you, David.
DAVID SANGER, CNN POLITICAL AND NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST (on camera): Great to be back with you, Lyn.
KINKADE: So, the West is continuing to promise to support Ukraine for as long as it takes. Looking at the way this war has unfolded, how long could that be?
SANGER: Well, it could be years. It depends on whether or not either the counter offensive that the Ukrainians are hoping for, or this offensive that appears to have begun, at least at a low to medium level by the Russians actually results in a significant change on the ground.
If it doesn't, if we're in for the long slog, then the Russians and the Ukrainians will be battling over the south and the east. And the Russians will be looking for a moment where they could revive their hopes of taking the whole country. We think that's a reach too far for them right now. So, the question is, does this become somewhat frozen conflict, an
accelerated version of what happened after the invasion of Crimea in 2014. And of the South in the east of Ukraine shortly thereafter, or does this become a sort of all out conflict in which the Russians go beyond Ukraine's borders and take on NATO nations. So far, they've shown no interest in doing so.
KINKADE: I want to ask you, David about the weapons. The Ukrainian President Zelenskyy has made it clear that speed is key, not just shipping weapons, but also training troops. Given this anticipated spring offensive, but there are big problems, much of what has been promised in recent weeks, the armor tanks, the longer range missiles, some of which haven't even been built yet.
How big a problem is that in terms of getting those weapons that have been promised into the hands of fighters on the front line?
SANGER: Well, there is an increasing mismatch between Western promises and what we're able to deliver.
You know, in the early days of the war, when the Ukrainians mostly needed anti-aircraft and very light weapons, javelins, portable airplane and tank killers, there were a fair number of those around, they were in storage, they could be handed to the Ukrainians pretty quickly.
We're in a very different situation now. The war has moved to what is essentially more of an artillery conflict in the flatlands as the south and the east. They run through a huge amount of ammunition. And it's clearly not possible right now for the United States to continue to keep up.
The easy stores of older weapons have been exhausted. And so, now the U.S. when it promises weapons, is basically putting them out order in the factory. That's what they did with the Abrams tanks. And that means it could be months, could be more than a year before they get delivered.
And what you're hearing from Zelenskyy -- President Zelenskyy is he's saying hey look, I don't have a year, I don't even have three months. I need the weapons now because they're starting their counter offensive or hope to soon.
KINKADE: And high on the wish list for Zelenskyy is fighter jets and Ukrainian pilots are receiving training in Britain but even if those fighter jets are promised, that won't happen quickly. Why is there this reluctance David to offer those?
SANGER: The reluctance on President Biden's part comes from the fact that those jets can reach well into Russia. They could bomb Moscow and while the Ukrainians say that is not their intent, this is the way the war could escalate quite rapidly and turn into a U.S.-Russia war or a NATO-Russia war.
[00:20:17] And consistently, you have heard President Biden offer two different objectives here. One is he says we'll support the Ukrainians. The second is he says, we will not get into World War III.
Well, Putin has sense the vulnerability that that second criteria creates. And that's why episodically you hear him threatened to use nuclear weapons and so forth. He's clearly trying to say to Biden, there are some parameters here.
And if the Ukrainians are going after Crimea, which of course Russia seized in 2014. If they are going after Moscow, if they're going after Russian infrastructure, that would be what would trigger a larger war.
KINKADE: Yes, that is a major concern. David Sanger, always good to get your perspective. Thanks so much for your time tonight.
SANGER: Great to be with you.
KINKADE: Well, still to come, the U.S. blacklist companies linked to the Chinese military, some of the history of making balloons. After the break, CNN tries to track down one of the factories.
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KINKADE: Welcome back, the White House is sharing of leading theory about the three airborne objects shot down over the U.S. in the Canadian airspace over the last few days. Given a limited amount of information they have, officials believe the balloons were serving a commercial or otherwise benign purpose. But getting to the actual wreckage is the biggest hurdle to learning more. Bad weather and even the location where the debris landed is making the task more difficult.
Both U.S. and Canadian officials admit they might not be able to get to the crash sites. Here's John Kirby speaking with CNN's Don Lemon.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN KIRBY, PRESS SECRETARY, PENTAGON: When you do something like this, Don, you want to do it over areas where you're not going to hurt people on the ground, which means it's going to be over remote areas as best you can.
And then just getting to those remote areas can be difficult on particularly, if you throw in not only the latitude at which these things are located, at least the first two, but the weather conditions right now. It's February and up there near the Arctic, the weather conditions are just not real permissive for searching and recovery operations.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Well, the White House has ruled out the possibility that these balloons are owned by the U.S. government. And unlike the balloon shot down over South Carolina, they say there's no sign yet these are Chinese. The U.S. is also taking precautions to keep its technology out of the hands of China. Over the weekend, the U.S. Commerce Department restricted six Chinese companies with ties to military aerospace programs from buying any U.S. tech without government approval.
[00:25:11]
CNN's Selina Wang has more from Beijing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SELINA WANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): They're hoisting the balloon up for a big moment. It's the maiden flight for China's first high tech giant balloon. State T.V. says it's for both military and civilian use.
If we can master this technology, the narrator says in this 2015 state media documentary, it might be (INAUDIBLE) in global competition.
Fast forward to 2023, now the world's attention is on China's balloons. The U.S. Commerce Department has blacklisted six entities tied to China's military aerospace programs from obtaining U.S. technology without government authorization.
And the balloon launched in this documentary was made by one of the blacklisted entities, Beijing Nanjiang aerospace technology. We tried to find the place, we geolocated a possible address for one of its factories.
According to state media, they've got a balloon factory on the outskirts of Beijing. So, we should be getting close now.
This appears to be the exact spot from the state T.V. documentary. You can even see the same view of the mountain ranges behind me.
But if you look here, it looks like there used to be buildings here but now it's just this empty space and there's this metal gate and barrier over this area.
We actually spoke to multiple villagers around here and none of them had heard of a balloon factory in specific but when we showed them the state T.V. documentary, they said it was definitely filmed in this area. And two of them said that they know several the factories in recent years have been torn down.
We don't know if the balloon that was spotted over the U.S. this time around has anything to do with the six blacklisted companies. But Beijing Nanjiang Aerospace technologies balloon has flown over the U.S. before according to state media.
In this 2019 state media video, a co-founder of the company scientist Wuza (PH), points to a computer screen showing the trajectory of an unmanned airship flying around the world.
He says, look, this is the United States. Beijing claims the balloon that intruded U.S. airspace earlier this month was only for civilian research purposes. But U.S. intelligence officials claimed a balloon is part of a fleet of Chinese surveillance balloons.
The general manager of the Beijing based balloon company told state media in 2015 the balloons can be used for military purposes, if they carry telecommunication or surveillance equipment on board.
Scientist Wuza also founded Eagles Men Aviation Science and Technology Group or EMSAT, another balloon maker on the U.S. blacklist.
In this 2017 state media report on EMSAT, the anchor touts that these airships can carry a large number of detectors and communication equipment for surveillance or reconnaissance for both military and civilian use.
CNN has reached out to all six Chinese entities for comment, but none have responded.
DREW THOMPSON, SENIOR RESEARCH FELLOW, LEE KUAN YEW SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY: This balloon program is not just for surveillance, but also for strike and the potential for dropping warheads, including hypersonic, glide vehicles from high altitudes.
WANG: This week, Beijing has made accusations of its own saying the U.S. has illegally flown balloons over Chinese airspace more than 10 times since last May. A claim the White House immediately denied.
KIRBY: There is no us surveillance aircraft over Chinese in Chinese airspace.
WANG: The U.S. is now on high alert for airborne objects in its airspace. Putting China's near space ambitions on the world stage.
Selina Wang, CNN, Beijing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Iran's president is in China for a rare first state visit aimed at boosting ties. Ebrahim Raisi he kicked off his three-day trip with a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping around state medias as the two exchanged views on political and economic issues of mutual interest. They also witnessed the signing of more than a dozen cooperation documents.
Iran has come to increasingly rely on China as a main importer of its crude exports after being hit by Western sanctions.
China's top diplomat is on an eight day tour of Europe, Wang Yi will be in Paris Wednesday and meet with the French president Emmanuel Macron. He will also visit Russia ahead of the one year anniversary of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.
Wang Yi will also attend the Munich Security Conference this weekend where U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to be present and it would provide a chance for them to meet in person for the first time since tensions fled after a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon was shot down over American aerospace.
[00:30:05]
Still ahead, this search-and-rescue team from California has responded to hurricanes, and it's worked in war zones. They tell CNN they've seen anything like the devastation from the earthquakes in Syria and Turkey.
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KINKADE: Welcome back.
The death toll from last week's earthquake in Turkey and Syria has climbed to more than 41,000 people Tuesday. Tens of thousands are injured.
And near more than a week after the powerful tremors toppled buildings, rescue teams are still finding survivors. One couple was pulled from the rubble 209 hours after the quake. Rescuers are trying to reach the couple's five children, who are still under the remains of the apartment building.
And on Tuesday, more than three dozen trucks carrying humanitarian aid entered Syria, including at a newly-opened border crossing.
The U.N. says relief goods are flowing, but aide has been slow to arrive in rebel-held areas in Syria, due in part to years of conflict and sanctions on the Assad government. The U.S. is one of the Western countries with sanctions in place, although Washington says politics should not stand in the way of getting aid to the Syrian people.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NED PRICE, U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESPERSON: We have called for unhindered access to this aid. We have made that call when it comes to the regime. We've made that call when it comes to opponents of the regime.
Everyone should put aside their agendas and affiliations in service of one pursuit and one pursuit only, and that's addressing the humanitarian emergency, the humanitarian nightmare that's unfolding in parts of Northwest Syria.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: A search-and-rescue team from California is among the volunteers from around the world who have jumped into action in Turkey. They say they felt compelled to help any way they can.
CNN's Jomana Karadsheh reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Deep in the heart of Turkey's disaster zone, these Americans are on a mission like no other they've known. As soon as the earthquake hit, volunteers from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department say they just knew they had to be here. MIKE LEUM, MONTROSE SEARCH AND RESCUE, LOS ANGELES COUNTY SHERIFF'S
DEPARTMENT: It's the type of thing that we feel strongly about, because we volunteer to do search-and-rescue back in America, and so, it's one of the things that's just burning in our heart, to get out there and help people if we can.
KARADSHEH (voice-over): They do mountain rescues, have responded to hurricanes, and even traveled to Ukraine. They've never seen anything on this scale before.
COLLIN LIEVENSE, MONTROSE SEARCH AND RESCUE, LOS ANGELES COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT: The destruction here is incredible. There's -- we're in one city right now where there's -- you know, we could go to each and every building and just know that there's someone that needs help there, and there's not enough people to help them, even though there's over 100,000 rescuers. They would need 1 million.
[00:35:18]
This is just one city in a very large picture of Turkey.
KARADSHEH (voice-over): On Monday, they helped rescue a 17-year-old boy, the third life they've saved this past week in hard-hit Hatay. But there's just so much to do here.
LIEVENSE: We're looking at a pile of rubble the size of this building behind me, and we're standing there just on a pile of rocks. We knew there were hundreds of people underneath us, and getting to them is just near impossible.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- issues where we feel helpless, and -- and because so much devastation is being witnessed.
LIEVENSE: It breaks our hearts.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's been -- there's been times of complete happiness and joy because people are being found, so it's a rollercoaster of emotions.
The group says that they are only here to support the people of Turkey, reeling from their deadliest earthquake.
LIEVENSE: The people of Turkey are doing the hard -- the hardest thing they've ever had to do. They're having to unbury their own community, their friends, their loved ones. Some of the people that we're working with lost their entire family, and they're helping to dig out --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This guy here.
LIEVENSE: -- and they're helping to dig out other people's families.
KARADSHEH (voice-over): There's no giving up. Everyone here is searching for a 70-year-old grandmother, just one mission in one city in one massive earthquakes zone.
Jomana Karadsheh, CNN, Antakya, Turkey. (END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: For information on how you can help the earthquake victims, you can go to CNN.com/impact. There, you'll find a list of organizations working on rescue and relief efforts.
Well, family and friends of the three students shot and killed at Michigan State University are paying tribute and demanding change.
They held a vigil Tuesday night for Brian Fraser, a sophomore from Detroit. His sister tells "The Detroit Free Press" she doesn't want her brother's name forgotten.
Arielle Anderson was a junior also from the Detroit area. Her family tell local station WXYZ she loved children and wanted to be a pediatrician.
And Alexandria Verner was in her junior year and came from a small town of Clawson in Michigan. The Clawson school superintendent called her an excellent student, who played three sports and took part in the school leadership groups.
Police have identified the gunman who took his own life as 43-year-old Anthony Dwayne McRae. They say they don't know his motive, but he did have a history of mental health issues.
They found a note in his pocket indicating he may have planned to target two schools in New Jersey.
U.S. President Joe Biden says Americans' hearts are with the students and families of Michigan State University. He's pledging federal support to assist in that investigation, and he's challenging lawmakers to take action to stop gun violence.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And it's a family's worst nightmare that's happening far too often in this country, far too often. While we gather more information, there's one thing we do know to be true: we have to do something to stop gun violence ripping apart our communities.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: According to the Gun Violence Archive, the U.S. has already seen 67 mass shootings so far this year. The country has topped 600 mass shootings every year for the past three years.
Well, still ahead, New Zealand is battered again by extreme weather. We'll have a report on the damage caused by Cyclone Gabrielle.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK
KINKADE: Welcome back.
At least four people including a child are dead after a new round of flooding, landslides and high winds on New Zealand's North Island. Officials say millions of people have been impacted, including some 9,000 who have been displaced from their homes.
The country is still recovering from the devastating rains and floodings that hit Auckland last month. Our Kristie Lu Stout reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR/CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A powerful cyclone has lashed New Zealand. It pummeled its largest city, Auckland, and surrounding areas with strong wind and rain, and prompted the government to declare a national state of emergency for only the third time in its history.
CHRIS HIPKINS, NEW ZEALAND PRIME MINISTER: It has been a very big night for New Zealanders across the country, but particularly in the upper North Island.
A lot of families displaced, a lot of homes without power, extensive damage done across the country.
STOUT: New Zealand declared national emergencies after the Christchurch earthquake in 2011 and when the pandemic hit in 2020.
The new declaration lets authorities prioritize the response to Cyclone Gabrielle, which has caused widespread flooding, landslides and extensive damage to roads and infrastructure.
As rivers swell and the tide rises, the storm has forced evacuations and even stranded people on rooftops.
STOUT: One New Zealand official has called Cyclone Gabrielle an unprecedented weather event. Another says this is the result of climate change.
STOUT (voice-over): On Twitter, James Shaw, New Zealand's minister of climate change, adds, "The impacts will get worse unless we act now to cut emissions quickly and adapt communities for the effects already here."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's certainly much worse than it would have been without climate change. Cyclone Gabrielle is likely to be one of the most severely damaging weather events in New Zealand's recent history.
Cyclone Gabrielle is the second significant weather event to hit Auckland and the North Island in a few weeks. Last month, the Auckland area was hit by record rain that unleashed floods and killed four people.
New Zealand is assessing the damage from the latest extreme storm as recovery efforts begin.
Kristie Lu Stout, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE) KINKADE: I'm Lynda Kinkade. I'll be back at the top of the hour with much more CNN NEWSROOM. But first, WORLD SPORT starts after this short break.
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