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Four Killed, At Least 15 Injured In Shooting Tied To Birthday Party; Sailboat With Three Americans On Board Missing Off Mexico Coast; Debt Ceiling Tops Agenda As Congress Returns This Week; Holocaust Survivor Shares Story So New Generations Never Forget; MLB Rule Change; NFL Quarterback-Specific Helmet; Migrants On Treacherous Trails. Aired 4-5p ET

Aired April 16, 2023 - 16:00   ET

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

[16:00:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EVA LONGORIA, ACTRESS: My god. Deer chorizo? (Speaking in foreign language)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through text translation): That is machacado, also venison.

LONGORIA: OK. Eggs with deer, deer sausage, deer meat. It's venison served five ways. Frankie, I'm going to give you a little bit of everything.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK.

LONGORIA: You guys need a tamale.

Our British sound recordist Nathan has taken a break so he can try his first ever tamale. This is huge.

(Through text translation): You have to tell the gringos that they have to remove the leaf.

You have to take the leaf off. She's going to drop this on my head. All right.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't film me.

LONGORIA: Nathan ate the leaf. He's not supposed to eat the leaf.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: All right. Watch an all-new "EVA LONGORIA: SEARCHING FOR MEXICO" tonight at 9:00 p.m. on CNN.

Hello, again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. And we're learning new details about a deadly mass shooting in Alabama. At least four people were killed and 15 teenagers shot and wounded at a Sweet 16 party. The shooting happened last night in the small town of Dadeville. CNN's Isabel Rosales is following the latest developments and joins me

now from Dadeville.

Isabel, are you learning anything more?

ISABEL FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Fred. Yes, we are learning new details here. One of the four victims that have been killed from the shooting right behind me at this dance studio venue, what has been described as a Sweet 16 party, birthday party, has been identified as Phil Dowdell. This is per the deejay who attended this event, who was in charge of the music here, also according to the pastor.

And now the assistant football coach at Dadeville High School, whom we just spoke with who has known Phil since he was 9 years old, described him as a great athlete, altogether great at track, football, basketball, any ball you put into his hand. He says that Phil was blessed by God, calling him a freak athlete. Listen to how he described him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL TAYLOR, ASSISTANT COACH, DADEVILLE HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL: Phil just told me about a month ago, he said, Coach, if anything ever happened to me even when I go to college, take care of my two sisters. I never dreamed that he was talking about this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROSALES: Any plans to follow through on that promise that he made to the victim. We also did as I mentioned to speak with the deejay at this venue who told me that he didn't hear any sort of fight or disturbance before the shooting occurred, also says that the party was for Phil's sister. It was her Sweet 16 party. Describing Phil as a hometown hero, someone who is about to graduate next month, had a scholarship to Jacksonville State University to play football there in Jacksonville, Alabama.

We did also receive via Twitter a statement from the head coach, Rich Rodriguez, at Jacksonville State, saying, "Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of Phil Dowdell and the other victims of this senseless tragedy last night. He was a great young man with a bright future."

And Fred, we're also hearing about those other people that have been heard, the multitude of injuries as authorities have described it. We know from Russell Medical Center that they received multiple patients. They haven't told us an exact number on that. Many of them have been treated and released or transferred to another facility. At Lake Morton Community Hospital at least 15 were shot.

Fred, we're hoping to get more details at a 6:00 p.m. press conference here.

WHITFIELD: All right, we'll look forward to that. Thank you so much, Isabel Rosales. I'm joined now by CNN senior law enforcement analyst Charles Ramsey.

He's a former Washington, D.C. police chief, former police commissioner for Philadelphia.

Chief, good to see you. I mean, we're hearing these details, you know, that this was a 16-year-old, you know, Sweet 16 birthday. Four people were killed. But when we listened to the press conference, we didn't hear much detail about how it unfolded or even a suspect, whether they have arrested anyone. What stands out to you about the information provided and the information not provided?

CHARLES RAMSEY, CNN SENIOR LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Well, hopefully the next press conference they have will have a lot more detail than what we know so far. They have not put out any message around potential shooter, whether or not there's still an individual, a manhunt on the way, or what have you. 15 people shot, that's an awful lot, so we don't know, was this a single shooter, multiple shooters? What kind of weapon was used? Is this an assault rifle? Was it semiautomatic handguns? More than one person?

I mean, there's just a lot of unanswered questions. You know, this is just one more tragedy that we're talking about now, and these things are not going to stop anytime soon unfortunately.

[16:05:08]

WHITFIELD: So what do you believe could be going on in their investigative phase as to why it does seem like there's been a lot of time that has elapsed since when the shooting took place and when they had the press conference earlier today, revealing the little bit that was revealed?

RAMSEY: Well, this is a small town. And certainly I don't think they're used to handling anything on this scale. They have a lot of assistance from federal and state. You can tell that just from the video footage that we've been looking at. That could explain a part of it. The other part is that behind the scenes, they may be executing search warrants. They may be trying to get their hands on the individual because they know who the shooter is. That's not unusual as a small town.

This is a Sweet 16 birthday party. Probably another teenager. Somebody knew who he was. And they're trying to get this person in custody before they released that kind of information. These are all possibilities. I'm just speculating, but these are the kinds of things that might be happening now.

WHITFIELD: Yes. I mean, terrible situation. I mean, what a last seven days. I mean, you know, we've been talking about all that transpired in Louisville, Kentucky, and then yet there was another shooting taking place in Louisville last night. And then now this. I mean, sadly, it is way too commonplace to be talking about the occurrence of mass shootings.

RAMSEY: It is and it's not even summer yet. So, you know, we still have to get through the warm weather, so there'll be a lot of gun violence, not necessarily mass shootings, but cities across America experience shootings every single day, and most go unnoticed by people for the most part. The gun violence in our country is an epidemic and it has to be addressed.

WHITFIELD: Chief Charles Ramsey, thank you so much.

The city of Boston will commemorate a grim anniversary this week. It has been 10 years since the Boston Marathon bombing. Back-to-back explosions, killing three people, injuring more than 260. The aftermath inspired the Boston Strong Movement that brought the city back to its feet. The 127th edition of the Boston Marathon is set for tomorrow.

Still ahead, it has been nearly two weeks since three Americans went missing near the coast of Mexico. Everything we know about the search to find them is coming up next. And California is exploring -- exploding, rather, in color after the historic rainfall this season caused a super bloom of wildflowers. We'll explain this rare and beautiful phenomenon, straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:11:55]

WHITFIELD: It's now day 12 of the search for three American sailors missing off the Mexican coast. Right now, the U.S. Coast Guard and Mexican Navy are looking for married couple Frank and Kerry O'Brien and their crew member, William Gross. They've been missing since April 4th. The group disappeared while traveling from Mazatlan to San Diego. They were supposed to stop at the Mexican city of Cabo San Lucas for supplies. But the group never showed up.

Today the mother of Kerry O'Brien spoke to CNN on what she's learning about the search operation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ELLEN ARGALL, MOTHER OF MISSING AMERICAN KERRY O'BRIEN: We've heard from the U.S. Coast Guard who's been in touch with the Mexican Navy, and they have sent airplanes and ships looking for them up and down the coast where they were supposed to be traveling. The Coast Guard has also done night searches with infrared. Searches so -- and using sonar, but still nothing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: CNN's Camila Bernal is working this story for us.

Camila, you spoke with the mother there. What else does she have to say?

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Look, Fred, she's heartbroken. She says that she is sad and frustrated, but still very hopeful that her daughter will be found alive. She says, look, every mother worries, but she wasn't particularly concerned about this trip because of the experience here. She says her daughter and her husband have about 20 years of experience sailing, and they say that Bill had about 50 years of experience.

So really, she says that if anyone could survive it is them. That's why her hope is still very much alive. They were last heard from on April 4th and that mother is saying that when she talked to her daughter, she was excited about this trip. She was ready to go. They were supposed to stop in Cabo San Lucas on April 6th. And that's of course, that never happened. So that's where the worries started and the concern started.

Here's more of that conversation with the mother.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ARGALL: We're so close. We either talk on the phone or we text each other. So when I didn't hear from her when she was supposed to be close to Cabo, I started getting very worried. Very worried, sad, concerned. But I'm still hopeful. I'm hanging on to the hope, we've all been praying. It seems so odd that in all these days, not one person has seen them or heard from them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERNAL: Now the Mexican Navy is really leading the operation here, but the U.S. Coast Guard is helping. Officials with the Coast Guard said that the weather was really not optimal for this trip, but they also say that it is something that should take or a trip that should take only about two days. They've been missing for more than 10. So of course everyone here is concerned.

Again, that mother saying that she believes these three could survive because of the experience and the knowledge they have. They were on a 44-foot sailboat and they were expected to go to San Diego.

[16:15:06]

Of course, they do not make it to San Diego. That search will continue. The mother saying that they get an update from the Coast Guard pretty much every afternoon, so I am in touch with her, and we'll ask her again if she hears from the Coast Guard today. But so far they have not heard anything -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Camila Bernal, thank you so much.

All right, lawmakers return to Capitol Hill tomorrow, and House Republicans are already gearing up for a fresh battle with the White House. We'll explain, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:20:01]

WHITFIELD: Congress is back in session tomorrow after a two-week break. The debt ceiling deadline will be one of the major issues facing lawmakers. President Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy are locked in a standoff over raising the debt limit. Well, today, McCarthy is holding a conference call with House Republicans, and tomorrow he'll deliver a speech at the New York Stock Exchange as he makes his pitch to investors on Wall Street.

We have team coverage of this showdown. CNN's Arlette Saenz at the White House. Alayna Treene on Capitol Hill or in Washington, not far down the street from Arlette.

So, Alayna, tell us more about, there's sort of a breakthrough among House Republicans on a debt ceiling plan, right?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You're right, Fred. We've learned today that House Republicans have begun putting together a package that would raise the debt limit for one year as well as include budget savings worth roughly $3 trillion to $4 trillion over the next 10 years, according to sources familiar with the proposal.

Now Speaker Kevin McCarthy wants to put this type of plan on the floor in May, which is no easy feat, given that Republicans have been divided on how to approach these debt limit talks, and they have a slim majority in the House. But the overall strategy from Kevin McCarthy here is to try to get all Republicans on the same page and then use that to force the Biden administration back to the negotiating table, and also argue that they have the votes to have some sort of debt limit deal with strings attached, and not a clean debt limit or a clean debt ceiling as Democrats have been proposing.

Now, a bigger problem as well has been that President Biden and Speaker McCarthy have not held negotiations on this for several weeks. They last met in early February. And as of now, there is no meeting on the books in the foreseeable future as well. We'll see if that changes with this latest proposal.

WHITFIELD: OK, Alayna, thanks so much.

Arlette, from the White House, is there any response coming from the White House thus far on hearing this news?

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, so far, the White House's position on this remains unchanged. President Biden has repeatedly said that he would not negotiate over the debt ceiling, that he does not think there should be any strings attached, and that ultimately he believes that this is Congress's constitutional obligation to raise the debt ceiling completely clean.

The White House has not responded specifically to this proposal. But one thing that the White House has repeatedly pushed for and said that they would sit down to talk about is the budget. President Biden has challenged House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to put forward his budget at a time when Republicans really have not been able to settle on one specific idea or outline of what they would try to pursue when it came to the budget.

Now the president has repeatedly tried to paint Republicans and what he describes as MAGA Republicans as threatening the economy with this debt ceiling standoff. He really believes that this is something that must be done without any string attached to it. And so far, the White House hasn't shown any indication that they've changed their minds when it comes to sitting down with Kevin McCarthy. That last meeting was in early February, as Alayna has noted.

So one thing that will be watched over the coming weeks is, will there be an opportunity for these two men to sit down to talk about the debt ceiling, to talk about the budget? But so far the White House sticking by their position that the debt ceiling must be raised without any strings attached as you see House Speaker Kevin McCarthy proposing to his members a bit earlier today.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thank you so much, ladies. Arlette Saenz, Alayna Treene.

All right, on Tuesday, the U.S. will remember the victims of the holocaust and honor the survivors who remain with us. More than six million Jews and five million others were killed during the holocaust.

CNN's Dana Bash spoke with a survivor ahead of this week's Day of Remembrance.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

EDITH GROSS, HOLOCAUST SURVIVOR: I fulfilled my sister's wish because she always said you must survive because otherwise we never lived.

DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Edith Gross is a survivor. She beat unimaginable odds, endured the horrors of the holocaust and lived to tell her story.

GROSS: In 1944, we heard that the Nazis are coming.

BASH: Edith was 15 years old living in occupied Czechoslovakia with her older sister and brothers.

GROSS: In the first week, we had to wear a yellow star. If you didn't put it on and you were caught, they killed you right away.

BASH: As the Nazi grip on the country tightened, Jews were forced into ghettos and not allowed to run businesses. Then the transports to concentration camps began.

GROSS: They told us pack everything you can carry and you have to leave everything behind. We went for days. It seemed like for years. It was a nightmare, terrible. But finally, we arrived in Birkenau- Auschwitz.

[16:25:05]

BASH: Many did not even survive the journey to the camps.

GROSS: When we arrived, we did see a smoking crematorium and the smell was terrible. I remember lining up and walking from the train into Auschwitz, and there sat Mengele with a little stick in his hand. First for women and then for men. And he directed the people. This way went to work and this way went to the crematorium. I ran over to my brother and I gave him a big hug. And I could see his eyes he was so frightened. BASH: Edith managed to follow her sister to the line. She never saw

her brother again. After Auschwitz, Edith and her sister were moved to a forced labor camp.

GROSS: It was very, very hard labor. And there was a quota. And my sister always had back pain, so I was very fast. I always made sure that I made a quota.

BASH: As the Russians began to close in on their location, the Nazis moved them again, this time to Stutthof Concentration Camp.

GROSS: Stutthof was a very, very rough place. Waking us up during the night and watching somebody being hung.

BASH: Edith's sister became very ill. Her condition deteriorated rapidly.

GROSS: I remember she was on the other side of the electric wire, and I was yelling, Dwartija, my sister's name. I wanted a last glance because I knew we're never going to see each other again. And that was one of my saddest days, of course.

BASH: The Nazis becoming desperate amidst Russian advances started forcing the Jews on so called death marches.

GROSS: We didn't have any warm clothes of course. And no food, no nothing. And we started to march. People would just bend down, there were shot.

BASH: They marched Stutthof to Danzig, finally reaching Konigsberg, now known as Kaliningrad in Russia, where they were liberated by Russian troops.

GROSS: Russian tanks arrived and they said to us, you are liberated.

BASH: Edith slowly made her way back to Czechoslovakia, but there was nothing left for her in her hometown. She eventually ended up in America, where she enrolled in school and learned English. Edith now has seven grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren. Today, as more and more holocaust survivors pass away, Edith has made it her mission to continue to tell her story. She says even if she changes one mind she's accomplished something.

GROSS: Stop hate and take people the way they are. That's my aim, too, because I have never, never thought that in my life I would see antisemitism again. And I'm shocked.

BASH: Through the Chabad Organization in the town of Islip, Long Island, a community center was dedicated in Edith's honor. She recently took a trip to Israel, where she visited the Western Wall and Yad Vashem, the holocaust memorial. Though it has been 80 years since that horrible time, all that she has lost will always remain.

GROSS: When I hear holocaust survivors saying, I'll forgive and forget. No, there is no such a thing. I will never forget, forgive and definitely not forget. (END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Wow. Thank you, Miss Gross, for sharing that story and Dana Bash for bringing it to us.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:32:59]

WHITFIELD: All right, Major League Baseball made one of its biggest rule changes ever this season, pitchers have a lot less time to make their pitches. The whole thing was designed to shorten games and it worked. But shorter games also means less time to buy beer. And now several teams say they have extended beer sales into the eighth inning instead of the usual seventh.

David Samson is the former president of the Miami Marlins and host of the podcast, Nothing Personal with David Samson. So good to see you. So you've been part of this world for a very long time. Do you like the idea?

DAVID SAMSON, FORMER PRESIDENT, MIAMI MARLINS: I do. In fact, this has been going on for longer than what MLB is talking about. If you think about it, there's places to drink right outside the ballpark right after games, there's a lot of development. That's one of the pitches to get public funding is there's development outside the ballpark. There's going to be people around and those people leave the ballpark and they're drinking. So it's not about making sure that the fans have an opportunity to sober up before they leave.

It's about controlling fan behavior during the game, but making revenue available to teams all throughout the game and before and after.

WHITFIELD And so what are the fans say about all this?

SAMSON: Well, fans are certainly going to be excited because you don't want people walking around with three different cups of beer getting extra because quickly it's going to stop selling. But inside ballparks there's Tiki bars, they're sports bars, there's premium seating, where you can get drinks delivered to you. There's always that all teams are always trying to get people to buy more and drink more and eat more and wear more clothes.

So I think this is just natural, but it's a good excuse right now. With the game shorter, now teams have cover and the cover they have is hey, we're not able to sell for as long so we're going to extend it to the eighth inning. I think it's just a matter of time until it's through the entire game.

WHITFIELD: Oh interesting. Oh, wow. And hey, listen to this. I mean Philadelphia, Phillies pitcher Matt Strahm weighed in on, on a podcast this week saying, "The reason we stopped selling alcohol in the seventh before was to give our fans time to sober up and drive home safe, correct? So now a faster-paced game and me just being a man of common sense -- if the game is going to finish quicker, would we not move the beer sales back to the sixth inning to give our fans time to sober up and drive home?

[16:35:00]

Instead, we're going to the eighth and now you're putting our fans and our family at risk driving home with people who have just drink beer 22 minutes ago." Well, does he have a point?

SAMSON: No, unfortunately, he really doesn't. Because I understand why he's saying that, I really do. But they're never going to move it back to the sixth inning. But again, I go back to what I said. He's been around the ballpark. He knows when he goes to different cities, that there's opportunities to drink everywhere, before the game, during the game, after the game. So, while of course, we want fans to be safe. We don't want anyone drinking and driving ever.

But at the end of the day, we are trying to make a service available to all of our fans and one of the services is beer which happens to be "wink, wink", the most best profit margin in the entire ballpark is beer. So, the more teams can sell it, the more they're going to sell it. There won't be a six thinning.

WHITFIELD: Yes, it is a commercial business, huh? All right, David Samson, good to see you. Thanks so much. All right. The NFL is taking a major step to combat concussions with a newly designed helmet specifically for quarterbacks. The move follows last season's high- profile injury separate by a Dolphin's quarterback Tua -- Oh boy, you know what? I have a hard time saying his name. So I'm going to -- I'm going to say Tua Tagovailoa. There you go. on two separate occasions, the 25-year-old fell backwards and hit his head on the turf. CNN's Jacqueline Howard has more.

JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN HEALTH REPORTER: This is the first time a helmet designed specifically for quarterbacks will be available for the 2023 season following NFL lab test. And this helmet was specifically engineered to reduce the severity of impact when a quarterback's helmet hits the ground. And the NFL says about half of all quarterback concussions occur when that happens. Now it's not required for quarterbacks to wear this helmet.

But according to the NFL, this helmet performed 7 percent better than the type of helmet that was most popular last year among quarterbacks. And this isn't the first time that the league has leaned on helmet technology in hopes of making the game safer. In the 2021 season, helmet designed for offensive and defensive lineman was introduced and last year Guardian caps debuted at training camps across the league. Those are padded covers that are affixed to the outside of the helmets. But in general, no helmet is 100 percent concussion proof.

That's because while helmets can help prevent skull fractures and other serious brain injuries, they can't stop the actual movement of the brain inside the skull when there's a blow to the head. And that movement, when the brain moves around in the head can impact how the brain functions and lead to concussions. So that's what makes this an ongoing health concern as we talk about football and safety. Back to you.

WHITFIELD: All -- all so important, Jacqueline Howard. Thanks so much. All right, still to come, a treacherous journey to cross from south to Central America. CNN embeds with a group of migrants on their arduous journey to seek asylum in the United States. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:40:00]

WHITFIELD: CNN's Nick Paton Walsh and his team, Brice Laine and Natalie Gallon recently joined thousands of migrants crossing the Darien Gap. A trail that spans from South America to Central America and the route is used by thousands of migrants seeking a path to the U.S. And there are no roads in this path. People must make it on foot carrying all their possessions as they hike through the dense jungle, rushing waters and steep mountain sides. You see right there.

But despite the danger, the number of migrants on this trail only continues to grow. The team did this walk over five days and the stories they found are simply extraordinary.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT VOICES OVER: A football shirt, a porter, each numbered charging to carry bags, even children uphill.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE SPEAKING IN SPANISH: Whoever feels tired, I'm here.

WALSH: But it doesn't always work out Wilson is separated from his parents. Their porter raced off ahead. (SPEAKING IN FRENCH) My name is Nick. Nice to meet you. You are here all by yourself?

WILSON SPEAKING IN FRENCH: Yes.

WALSH SPEAKING IN FRENCH: You're waiting for your parents? Where are they?

WILSON SPEAKING IN FRENCH: They are behind.

WALSH SPEAKING IN FRENCH: Are you going to America? Where are you going?

WILSON SPEAKING IN FRENCH: Miami.

WALSH SPEAKING IN FRENCH: Miami. What do you like about Miami?

WILSON SPEAKING IN FRENCH: Daddy is going to build a swimming pool.

WALSH SPEAKING IN FRENCH: He will build a pool for you? What do you want to be when you grow up?

WILSON SPEAKING IN FRENCH: To work.

WALSH SPEAKING IN FRENCH: What work? WILSON SPEAKING IN FRENCH: School work. And my sister has chosen nurse.

[16:45:00]

WALSH VOICES OVER: Nearly a thousand unaccompanied children were found on the route last year, the UN have said.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Nick Paton Walsh joining us right now. I mean nick your report is -- is part of the first episode of the highly anticipated show, The Whole Truth with Anderson Cooper tonight. Tell us more about the people you encountered.

WALSH: What's important to remember just how many people that are making this trek now. It is something which is run by a cartel, organized voluntary trafficking exercise. But literally in the morning, when we started the walk, there were 800 people in the group that we went with, they were joined by hundreds of others. So at any given time, in the jungle on that route, there are 5000 to 6000 people. A record quarter of a million made that trek last year. And so far in the first quarter of this year, there are seven times as many who've made it then compared to the same period last year.

So they're on track at this rate to have over a million people make that walk, so many of them are indeed children. And you're watching parents carrying one year olds, two year olds, three year olds, even 12 year olds, heavy children on their back to get them through the steep climbs, the harsh descents, the extreme mud conditions and harsh rivers that they face around them. There are not only the conditions of nature, so, poisonous snakes, exceptionally difficult terrain, there's also to the threat of manmade hazards here.

We saw the dead bodies of people who appear to have experienced a violent death and there were stories of murder, sexual assault, extortion that we heard along the way as well. A lot of them are children as I said. Some get separated from their parents. If you're struggling to take your toddler with it, you might pay one of the porters on the Colombian side offered by the cartel to make some of the higher steeper climbs for you. But then you can indeed be separated. We saw the story of one five-year-old boy from Haiti, Wilson who was separated from his parents indeed, fortunately, we saw them reunited.

A couple of days later, there are sick children who were carried, one by his father Luva from Haiti, he sounded very bad, an exceptionally bad cough, very unwell for a matter of days, made a miraculous recovery later. And also two -- a 12 year old girl from Venezuela whose mother had simply taken him out of the country because she couldn't get the medicine that she needed to deal with her epileptic convulsions. She's also disabled as well. She had to keep traveling, she said to Colombia, neighboring Colombia to get that medicine. And that was why she was on the trek, she said.

But she told us that she'd been misinformed frankly about how easy it was going to be. Exceptionally difficult circumstances. That's the -- not only shows you how desperate people must be to undertake that trek in the first place, given what's behind them, where they've come from, but also at time shows these wonderfully edifying glimpses of positive human behavior, generosity, were for strangers, frankly, to pull each other through this difficult task. Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: The desperation that you speak up of it really is extraordinary and to just imagine that little boy out, little Wilson being separated for a couple of days, you know, during this treacherous journey before. He fortunately was reunited with his family, Nick Paton Walsh we'll be watching the rest of it. It's really fascinating. Thank you so much. And the new weekly program, The Whole Story With Anderson Cooper premieres tonight at 8 pm.

A former lawmaker in India's parliament was gunned down along with his brother. The two were being escorted by police at the time, and the whole thing was caught on live television Saturday. Here's CNN Vedika Sud.

VEDIKA SUD, CNN REPORTER: A rare and shocking moment of a murder of a former Indian lawmaker, Atiq Ahmed and his brother in Northern India was caught on live television Saturday. We'd want to warn our viewers that some parts of the video could be disturbing. Footage shared widely across social media shows Ahmed who was convicted in the case of kidnapping getting out of a police car near a hospital in Uttar Pradesh state. He's surrounded by police officers while his brother walks by his side. There's a chain attached to the handcuffs.

Ahmed is then approached by TV crews. Moments later, a series of gunshots can be heard. Ahmed falls to the ground and his brother is also hit. Over a dozen shots go off. There's panic outside the hospital where the police say Ahmed was being taken for a medical checkup. Three people have been arrested according to police officials. The shooters were disguised as journalists. The Uttar Pradesh government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's political party; the Bharatiya Janta Party has ordered a judicial probe into the killings.

After this daring murder, opposition leaders have questioned the law- and-order situation in the state. Vedika Sud, CNN New Delhi.

[16:50:00]

WHITFIELD: Thanks so much, Vedika. All right, the state of California has the highest rate of homelessness in the country. And often living among the thousands of unsheltered people are there four-legged family members. And while many are trying their best to take good care of their beloved pets, human owners often struggle to provide them with much medical care or even food. This week, CNN Hero has made it his mission to offer judgment free veterinary care and no cost on the streets of California.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. KWANE STEWART VOICES OVER: I've seen people give up their last meal for their pet, and people who have $3 for their name. And after I'm done with the treatment, they will try and give me that $3.

STEWART: This is your partner, obviously.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE#1: My best friend.

STEWART VOICES OVER: They see me with my stethoscope and my bag.

STEWART: Yes, you look good.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE #2: This little dog was days away from dying.

STEWART: And then they start sharing stories about their dog and the history.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE #1: It makes me feel good. And he loves me. And I know he loves me.

STEWART VOICES OVER: I can treat about 80 percent of the cases I see out of that really small bag.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE #2: Well, you do vaccines too. Oh, that's really cool.

STEWART VOICES OVER: It's antibiotics, anti inflammatories, flea and tick, heartworm prevention. It's all there.

STEWART: It's at no cost to them and it's free.

STEWART VOICES OVER: I'm building a network of trusted volunteers, technicians. What hospitals and clinics we can go to, we can call on.

STEWART: Let me take a listen here.

STEWART VOICES OVER: It doesn't matter what your situation is, or what your background or past is. I see a pet in need and I see a person who cares for them dearly who just needs some help.

WHITFIELD: To see Dr. Stewart's story, go to CNNheroes.com.

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[16:55:00]

WHITFIELD: All right, so April showers bring May flowers, right. Well, thanks to an epic amount of rain this winter in California, those flowers have arrived. Behold the poppy super bloom. It's unbelievable to see all that. The rare instance when these vibrant orange flowers cover the fields and hillsides in California like a blanket.

With me now Professor Sarah Kimball, she's a plant ecologist who teaches Environmental Biology at the University of California, Irvine. Good to see you, professor. So, help us understand what this super bloom phenomena is all about. And we can see it but how does it happen like this?

SARAH KIMBALL, PROFESSOR, UC IRVINE CENTER FOR ENVIRONMENTAL BIOLOGY: Sure, well, the California wildflowers spend much of their time as seeds, just dormant in the soil waiting for the perfect conditions for them to germinate and grow and bloom. And they can remain dormant in the seed bank for several years. This year, we've had so much rain that many, many species of wildflowers have germinated. And they were able to survive because we kept getting more rains. And they started blooming and they just keep blooming.

So, it's really exciting to see them all this year.

WHITFIELD: Oh, it's so nice and beautiful to see these images. People are obviously really enjoying them. So, you can see them, you know, close up, you can see it in the aerial views we saw. How about from space?

KIMBALL: Yes, it's pretty amazing that so much of the state is covered in these brilliantly colored wildflowers that you can even see the super Bloom from space.

WHITFIELD: That is cool and hard to believe. So, the poppy is California State flower. You know, the Bloom is creating a whole lot of you know, extra excitement here. But the California parks director, I understand is also asking visitors to be respectful, "Don't doom the bloom." Because what -- what happens, what is the kind of poppy etiquette, if you will, that they're hoping people would exercise?

KIMBALL: Right. Well, it's great to get out and frolic amongst the wildflowers. But we also have to be careful not to step on them. So just to kind of respect what that individual flower went through to get there, that, you know, it took many years for it to grow and then to reproduce. And this is its chance to make seeds for future generations to enjoy. So hopefully, and that if we don't trample these flowers, they will successfully set seed and replenish the seed bank so that the next time we have a nice wet year, we'll have more wildflowers.

WHITFIELD: Oh, that's so nice. Hey, do you have a favorite spot to check out and enjoy the poppies?

KIMBALL: You know, the -- So I did want to say that it's not just the poppies, right. It's so many different species of wildflowers and that kind--

WHITFIELD: --Yes. A lot of things. Mm-hmm.

KIMBALL: Yes. Oh, we have like the purple lupins. The thing about this year is that everywhere in Southern California that I've been has been amazing. So, the deserts are great, the Anza Borrego Desert State Park, Mojave Desert. But also, there's the poppy preserve, the Carrizo plain. Just so many -- really anywhere you go, any natural area in southern California is covered in beautiful blooms this year.

WHITFIELD: Neat. Sounds like a road trip if you're out west if you're in California. All right, Professor Sarah Kimball, thank you so much. That was lovely.

KIMBALL: OK, thank you. WHITFIELD: All right. Today, Broadway is losing its longest running show ever.

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The Phantom of the Opera playing.

WHITFIELD: What a story and what a production.