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CNN International: Bronny James in Stable Condition After Cardiac Arrest; U.S. Heat Wave Expanding East, Millions Under Heat Alerts; Wildfires Rage in Parts of Greece, Southern Italy; Former U.S. Marine Trevor Reed Injured Fighting in Ukraine; Police Conclude Search of Gilgo Beach Murder Suspect's Long Island Home. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired July 26, 2023 - 04:00   ET

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

[04:00:00]

MAX FOSTER, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and a warm welcome to our viewers in the U.S. and all around the world. I'm Max Foster in London. Bianca is off this week but we've got it covered. Just ahead on CNN NEWSROOM.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The good news, you know, as Bronny in less than a day was out of the ICU.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sudden cardiac arrest and death is rare in young competitive athletes, but these cases are tragic and they do occur.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The heat that's been bottled up in the desert Southwest is now on the move toward the Northeast.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is not going to be a good week. The hotter it gets, the harder it is to breathe for some people. There's less air.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There is an expectation perhaps the best and biggest target, Joe Biden might be the one to go after.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know that we've made the case for a formal impeachment inquiry. I do like the committee digging into this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: Live from London, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Max Foster and Bianca Nobilo.

FOSTER: It's Wednesday, July 26th, 9:00 a.m. here in London, 1:00 a.m. in Los Angeles where Bronny James, the eldest son of NBA star LeBron James is now in stable condition after suffering a cardiac arrest on Monday. He will undergo tests in the days ahead to find out what actually caused it. The 18-year-old basketball star is an incoming freshman at the University of Southern California. He was practicing there when the incident occurred. James was first admitted to intensive care but later transferred out on Tuesday. Medical experts say a sudden cardiac arrest for a young athlete is rare but it's not unheard of.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: It tends to happen more in men than women. It tend to happen in athletes who are competing at a higher level. Basketball is one of those sports where you tend to see these types of sudden cardiac arrests more. And the more minutes that you are playing, the higher likelihood of it happening.

Now again, this is rare. So I just want to be clear that no one is suggesting that, you know, you tailor the number of minutes and things like that. But built on that is dehydration and other things causing the heart to work harder, possibly bringing something like this on. So it may have been an underlying condition that may not have posed a problem yet in someone's life, but as you're going through these different paces, different conditions, taxing the heart harder, it could have elicited an electrical abnormality. Could have elicited something with the muscles of the heart now leading to the sudden cardiac arrest.

People who have sudden cardiac arrest, if they can figure out what caused this, there is a possibility that they could address this and that he would go on to play. And you know, be able to play at the level that he was playing before. Again, that's speculative.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: LeBron James has long said he would love to play with his son in the NBA one day. Right now though the family's main concern is Bronny's health. CNN's oral Brian Todd has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A Hall of Famer and his family rallying around their son tonight. Bronny James, the 18-year- old son of NBA superstar LeBron James, is in stable condition and out of the ICU after suffering cardiac arrest Monday during a practice at USC where he's been slated to play this coming season. The James family in a statement saying they send their deepest thanks and appreciation to the USC medical and athletic staff for their incredible work and dedication for the safety of their athletes.

DAVE ZIRIN, SPORTS EDITOR, THE NATION MAGAZINE: What happened to Bronny James is beyond shocking, partially because we've seen him grow up.

TODD (voice-over): Bronny James has spent his entire life around his father and the NBA. Observers say LeBron James has been a devoted father, dedicated to nurturing both his sons' basketball dreams.

CARI CHAMPION, HOST, "THE CARI CHAMPION SHOW": We see this GOAT of our time, this once-in-a-lifetime generation player coaching AAU basketball tournaments during his offseason. We've never seen it from the likes of a Michael Jordan or anyone else who has that same type of stature.

TODD (voice-over): With only about a 20-year difference in age between them, LeBron James has talked openly, including to ESPN, about wanting to play on the same NBA team as Bronny if it can be arranged. Citing baseball stars Ken Griffey and Ken Griffey Jr. who briefly played together for the Seattle Mariners in the early 1990s.

[04:05:00]

LEBRON JAMES, ALL-STAR FORWARD, LOS ANGELES LAKERS: I would love to do the whole Ken Griffey Senior/Junior thing. That's -- that would be ideal for sure. Being with him, spending a full year with him in the same uniform, that would be -- that would be the icing on the cake.

TODD (voice-over): Could Bronny James' health emergency derail those plans?

BEN GOLLIVER, NATIONAL NBA WRITER, WASHINGTON POST: I expect that he is going to be putting, you know, the family bonds and Bronny's health before anything else at this point. You know, that being said, this isn't necessarily, as far as we know from the publicly available information, a career-ending situation.

TODD (voice-over): It was just this past January that Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin's heart stopped in the middle of a game after a collision. Hamlin was revived and is attempting to return to the NFL.

But similar cases have ended in tragedy. College basketball star Hank Gathers, who had a regular heartbeat, collapsed during a televised game in March 1990, stopped breathing on the court, and died. He was 23.

Boston Celtics star Reggie Lewis died at age 27 after suffering cardiac arrest during an offseason practice.

ZIRIN: Heart ailments reveal themselves in periods of physical stress. And the tragic odds are that this is going to be a part of sports in the future, just as it's been a part of sports in the past.

TODD: Analysts say the message to take from this is the importance of having trained medical staff with defibrillators and other equipment ready during practices as well as games. Those were critical factors in saving the lives of Bronny James, Damar Hamlin, and Danish soccer star Christian Eriksen, who nearly died after suffering from cardiac arrest during a game at the European championships two years ago and is now back playing with Manchester United of the English Premier League.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Hunter Biden is expected to plead guilty in federal court for coming hours for tax crimes. The U.S. president's son is charged with two federal tax misdemeanors for failing to pay taxes on time. The plea deal will also resolve a felony gun charge if he abides by court- imposed rules. Hunter Biden owed at least $100,000 in federal taxes for both 2017 and 2018 but didn't pay what was due by the deadlines. Meanwhile his legal team denies that they lied to court officials in

order to get filings from a senior Republican lawmaker removed from the docket. The judge had threatened them with sanctions after a staff member allegedly misrepresented who they work for. Biden's legal team says the entire incident was unintentional and a misunderstanding with two court clerks.

And allegations involving Hunter Biden have the House Speaker threatening to launch an impeachment inquiry against President Joe Biden for the first time. We'll have a report from Capitol Hill on how lawmakers are reacting.

Now the extreme heat wave in the U.S. is unrelenting and expanding. Tens of millions of people are under heat alerts as the extreme temperatures continue to shift to the east. On Tuesday alone, there were multiple heat records above 100 degrees across the southern U.S. Our Chad Myers takes a look at what's in store for the rest of the week.

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CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, the heat in the South and Southwest we've been talking about now for a month is on the move. And it's on the move toward the East and toward the Northeast. The heat is still going to be in the Southwest, but we're going to start to push this jet stream farther to the north and warm up big cities. Minneapolis, Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland, all the way into the Northeast as this bubble of air here begins to push farther and farther and farther closer to bigger cities.

A lot of heat right here in the central part of the plains. Temperatures are going to be 105. We're going to see heat indexes 110 in north-central plains. But for Vegas, you're still going to be above 110 for a couple more days. Phoenix the same story. So even though you are losing the big core of the heat dome, you're still going to deal with an awful lot of heat here for at least the next three or four before you even get back down to normal.

We are adding tens of millions of people here to the heat advisories over the next couple of days. That heat slides to the east. Look here, this Friday, 97 in Chicago. Now it won't feel 97 if you are by the Lake Shore, but if you get toward Aurora and Schaumburg, you're definitely going to feel that kind of heat. Kansas city, 101, may be even warmer in parts there especially with the heat index. The humidity is really going to be with the heat here the rest of the week for that matter.

And temperatures as we work our way into the end of the weekend will be breaking more records. At least 180 possible records still and not only now in the desert Southwest. Notice how the little dots begin to move off to the Northeast cities.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Now the climate crisis is taking a grim toll on coral reefs off the coast of Florida where water temperatures have risen above 100 degrees Fahrenheit or 38 degrees Celsius. Scientists say multiple reefs around the Florida Keys are completely bleached and could be dead in just a week. The director of the Florida aquarium says it's a lot like the trees in the rainforest dying.

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Restoration experts are plucking coral species from their nurseries and taking them to land where they will wait until the extreme heat is over.

Meanwhile, a new study in the Journal of Nature predicts collapse of vital ocean current systems as early as 2025, a catastrophic event that would impact everyone on the planet. Scientists say the currents help regulate global weather patterns and a collapse would mean more severe winters, extreme storms and rising sea levels in the U.S. and Europe.

Right now some of the Europe hottest tourist destinations are burning. Out of control wildfires are tearing through parts of Italy and Greece and the weather is only making things worse. At least four people died from wildfires in southern Italy on Tuesday. All of the victims were elderly, one minister called it the country's most difficult days in decades. Northern Italy has been hit by storms where a 16-year-old girl died when a tree fell on her tent during a scouting camp out.

In Greece firefighters are working 24 hours a day to contain the blazes there on the islands of Rhodes, Corfu and Avia. Two group Air Force officers died when their plane crash whilst conducting a firefighting operation in Avia.

Now let's get the latest from Elinda Labropoulou, who is live for us from Rufina, Greece. And the challenge is that they might be dealing with a fire in one place, then another one appears and they have to somehow figure out where to prioritize.

ELINDA LABROPOULOU, JOURNALIST: Absolutely, and of course that limits resources. What we know today is that things in Rhodes and Corfu are improving. So the situation there seems to be more under control. But of course, we're not out of the danger yet. And in Avia, which is right behind me, you can probably see it a little bit in the distance. It's very hazy because it's also very hot and because there is smoke coming out.

We just heard that although things have been improving, a new fire has just broken out. So it's extremely difficult to assess how things are going to develop in the next hours ahead. Greece is going through the hottest day of its summer today. It is 46 degrees Celsius in many parts of the country -- that's 115 Fahrenheit. And with strong winds blowing in most of the country as well.

So apart from what is actually happening on a day-to-day basis with all the phenomena we're seeing now, a lot of questions have started arising about, you know, the future of tourism. We have seen massive evacuations. The biggest evacuation in Greece's history from Rhodes, one of the country's most touristy islands where its economy is so dependent on tourism. And a country that the economy is dependent and about a quarter on tourism alone.

So now with everything that's happening, there's a lot of debate. What does this mean? Where is this going to lead this country, the rest of the Mediterranean? The Greek Prime Minister has spoken about being at war with the fires and has actually acknowledged that we're going through a climate crisis. So once the shock and the, you know, the panic subsides about how people are going to go out and what happens next, the debate is moving on to what this means for the future of this country and the region in general -- Max.

FOSTER: OK, Elinda in Rufina, thank you so much for joining us.

The U.S. Secretary of State insists negotiations to free two Americans detained in Russia will not be impacted by revelations of previously freed American Trevor Reed was fighting against Russian forces in Ukraine. CNN's Clare Sebastian joins us now with more on Reed's current status. I mean, extraordinary to hear he was out there.

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, we didn't even know that he had gone to Ukraine let alone to fight with Ukrainian forces against Russia until the news emerged that he has actually been injured and according to the U.S. government transported with the help of an NGO from Ukraine, from Kyiv, to the Landstuhl medical facility. Which is just next door to the Ramstein Air Base, an American airbase, as you know, in Germany.

So, yes, we don't know severity of his injuries. We don't know where it happened. We don't know the circumstances. And we don't even know how long he'd been in Ukraine. He's been out there in the 15 months since he was freed in that hard-fought prisoner swap that the U.S. negotiated amid reports that his health was deteriorating. He's out there tweeting. These been on television. He's been advocating for the release of other Americans who are detained in Russia.

So we're trying to find out more information about his condition. But meanwhile, there are questions around what this will mean for the ongoing negotiations as regard to Paul Whelan who has been there more than four years, arrested and now convicted. Arrested on those charges Evan Gershkovich has been there since March. Is now common, you know, outstanding trial on espionage charges.

The U.S. official telling CNN that of course they are concerned, although officially Antony Blinken is saying that, you know, it shouldn't affect things. I think the concern is that this will be used by Russia to sort of raise the price, to exact a higher price in these negotiations.

FOSTER: We haven't heard from Russia yet but presumably we will in the morning on the briefings.

SEBASTIAN: We're waiting. Honestly there's -- I've been looking for all morning at the Russian media, and watching the, you know, the top of the hour news. There's almost no coverage at all of this.

[04:15:00] Which sort of makes you feel like they are waiting for a signal from the Kremlin as to how they are going to handle this. How they're going to spin this. I think the other concern for the U.S. will be that they will try to use this to reinforce the rhetoric, which we've heard over and over again that the U.S. is somehow complicit in this conflict in Ukraine.

FOSTER: Clare, thank you.

One person is dead and several others injured after a major fire broke out on a cargo ship off the coast of the Netherlands. The Dutch Coast Guard says the incident happened on board the Fremantle Highway, a vehicle carrier. They say it was sailing under the Panama flag. It was enroute to Egypt. They also say boats and helicopters were used to evacuate the crew members.

Still to come, police finish searching the home of the suspected Gilgo Beach killer. We'll have details on what's next in that investigation.

Plus, the U.S. Federal Reserve will announce its decision on interest rates today. We'll see what Wall Street is expecting and how the markets are reacting as well.

And later, Skittles is coming out with an unusual new flavor. The first of its kind and already raising eyebrows.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE:

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FOSTER: We're expecting the latest decision on interest rates from the U.S. federal reserve today. Wall Street anticipating a quarter point hike. Investors will also be listening for any signals from Fed chair Jerome Powell on where things could go in the next few months.

Meanwhile, the Dow is on a 12-day winning streak. Consumer confidence is at its highest level since July 2021. And those signs of strength could push rates even higher of course.

Here is a look at the U.S. futures ahead of the Fed announcement and the opening bell. Slightly uncertain with the S&P up but the other two down. Gas prices appear back on the rise in the U.S. The average price for a gallon of regular unleaded jumped four cents -- so $3.64 on Tuesday. Analysts blame the extreme heat and cuts in oil production by OPEC and Russia. The prices are still well below last summer's peak. A year ago a gallon of regular unleaded cost $4.36.

A potential UPS strike has been called off for now. The shipping giant and the Teamsters have reached a tentative deal on a new contract. Amongst the issues raised were air conditioning for delivery vans, demands for significantly greater pay and closing of pay gaps between workers. The tentative agreement still needs to be ratified by about 340,000 UPS Teamsters to end the threat of a strike all together.

The CEO of one of Britain's biggest banks in the U.K. -- one of Britain's biggest banks -- resigned late on Tuesday night. After admitting that she leaked financial details about Brexit campaign and Nigel Farage. Alison Rose, boss of NatWest, says she made a serious error of judgment by discussing the political commentator's relationship with the bank to the BBC. Last month Farage revealed he had been dropped as a customer by a major U.K. bank -- or rather downgraded in terms of accounts. The BBC reported his accounts had been closed for commercial reasons but he still retain the general NatWest one. However, Farage obtained a copy of the bank's report which appeared to confirm that his political views had played a role in that decision.

New York police have finished searching the home of the man they believe killed at least three women in what's known as the Gilgo Beach murders. Now the work begins to sort through the massive amounts of material that they covered. CNN's Jean Casarez tells us what's next for investigators.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): A new look at the house that accused serial killer Rex Heuermann shared with his wife and children as police wrap up their search of the home after 12 days.

RAYMOND A. TIERNEY, SUFFOLK COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY: We won't know exactly what we have for quite some time because just given the sheer volume of -- and evidence that was taken.

CASAREZ (voice-over): The Suffolk County district attorney saying that the house was very cluttered and the work ahead is going to be an enormous undertaking.

TIERNEY: A 13-year-old cold case doesn't get solved in, you know, a matter of weeks or days.

CASAREZ: The district attorney says investigators collected a massive amount of items. Now they have to be cataloged and analyzed. And among other things, they're looking for DNA, trace evidence and hair.

CASAREZ (voice-over): The focus seems to be on evidence taken from inside the home despite sonar technology leading to an excavation behind the house.

TIERNEY: There was nothing of note taken from the backyard, as far as remains.

CASAREZ (voice-over): All this, as new revelations about Heuermann, a New York architect, continue to come out. He is accused of killing three women and officials are looking into other victims as well.

Heuermann has pleaded not guilty to the charges, but hair and makeup artist Nikkie Brass said she went on a date with the suspect in 2015 and is positive he committed the crimes.

NIKKIE BRASS, CLAIMS TO HAVE BEEN ON A DATE WITH REX HEUERMANN: I am convinced. I am a thousand percent sure.

CASAREZ (voice-over): She said the date was unremarkable at first. BRASS: He seemed like your typical guy who was bored with his life, you know, and wanted some kind of excitement, you know what I mean? It didn't get weird until he asked me if I was a true crime fan.

CASAREZ (voice-over): When Brass told him she was, she says he outright asked her if she was familiar with the Gilgo Beach murders.

BRASS: When he brought it up, his whole demeanor changed. He sat up straighter. You know, he had like a smirk on his face. He seemed almost like too excited to talk about it. And then once he did start talking about it, it didn't seem like a true crime fan who just knows information they've seen on TV or read. It seemed like somebody who was reliving it.

CASAREZ (voice-over): Jean Casarez, CNN, Massapequa Park, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Attorneys for the man accused of killing four college students in Idaho suggests he was not at the location where the murders happened. Bryan Kohberger's alibi was the focus of Tuesday's court filing in the case.

[04:25:00]

His attorneys say that they will present evidence that he was elsewhere when the November murders happened. Investigators say DNA matching Kohberger's was found on a sheaf of a knife believed to be the murder weapon -- though it hasn't been found. Kohberger is charged with four counts of first-degree murder. A not guilty plea was entered on his behalf. Prosecutors say they'll seek the death penalty when his trial begins in October.

One of Donald Trump's staunchest allies is trying to take the focus off his legal problems and he's threatening an impeachment inquiry.

Plus, Donald Trump in historic New Orleans where big-money donors are what he told, what he told reporters about special counsel Jack Smith's investigation, next on CNN NEWSROOM.

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FOSTER: Welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Max Foster. If you're just joining us, let me bring you up to date with our top stories this hour.

Bronny James, the eldest son of NBA star LeBron James is now out of intensive care and in stable condition after suffering a cardiac arrest on Monday. The 18-year-old freshman at USC will under go tests to determine what caused this condition. The James family is asking for privacy at this time.

And Hunter Biden is expected to enter a plea deal later today for two federal tax charges. Justice Department prosecutors have agreed to resolve a felony gun charge if he abides by court-imposed rules.

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