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63 People Died At a Fire inside a Johannesburg Building; Idalia Weakens into a Tropical Storm; A Palestinian killed in a Gun Battle at the Occupied West Bank; Gabon now Adds to the African Countries that Declared Coups Since 2020; Chinese Home Building Firm Warns of a Default; New Attendance World Record has Set by University of Nebraska. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired August 31, 2023 - 03:00   ET

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

[03:00:00]

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UNKNOWN (voice-over): This is CNN Breaking News.

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. You are watching "CNN Newsroom" and I'm Rosemary Church.

And we begin with breaking news and a tragedy in Johannesburg where a deadly building fire has now claimed at least 63 lives, more than 40 others are injured. The fire broke out around 1:30 a.m. local time at a five-storey building in the city's central business district. Firefighters have been working to contain the flames.

And CNN's Larry Madowo is tracking developments for us. He's calling in now from Nairobi. So Larry, what more are you learning about this deadly fire?

LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on the phone): Rosemary, authorities did not know the cause of the fire yet. They're still working through that. But so far the death toll keeps climbing. 63 people so far confirmed dead, according to the spokesperson for the city's emergency services. And they fear that this death toll could rise as they keep pulling more people out of the building.

The reporters on the scene before being charred body, burned body think pulled out of the building it's a horrific scene why at the number so high here this is what it's called about in South Africa a hijacked building, often a building that are not in use and then you can be settlement coming inside of them sometimes partition that makeshift comes inside these buildings often a lot of people camp in very small surrounding sometimes but any big sometimes not even running water or power.

But this is quite common in parts of downtown Johannesburg, which is why this is a death toll that keeps rising, at least more than 40 people so far reported to have been injured. And as the day wears on, as the fires put out and days start to go room by room, floor by floor, the numbers could very much increase once a final toll is counted.

But a big concern in the country about the fact that so many people were allowed to live in this building, five-storey building. It does appear that it could have been overcrowded. Again, it's too early to tell, but this is a common trend in South Africa that's being seen in this tragedy, Rosemary.

CHURCH: And Larry, I know it's difficult to even know at this juncture, but when you talk about people inside these buildings, what sort of numbers are we likely talking about?

MADOWO (on the phone): Sometimes these buildings could have hundreds of people. And often they're, like I mentioned, buildings that are not occupied. They're not necessarily abandoned, but they just don't have occupancy. And you see people coming in, often from low-income backgrounds. Some of them could be undocumented immigrants in the country.

They do a lot of business around downtown Johannesburg city center. We were just there a few days ago filming for a story. And it's a very busy part of the city. There are markets, there are taxi ranks, there are all sorts of it's a hub of activity and many of them live not too far from there. In buildings like this one, there was seen this tragedy occurring in. They lived there with their families, often several people sharing a very small space, and that suddenly appears to be the case in this instance.

CHURCH: And how much pressure is likely to be brought to bear on the government to do something about this when you say this isn't the first time this sort of thing has happened?

MADOWO (on the phone): So there are two angles to this. One is that a human tragedy like this occurred right under the party's notice. But the other one is that emergency services, South African police and other authorities sometimes raid these buildings and clear them out. Then a few days later, they'll arrive back to where they started. So it's not an easy solution to permanently clear them.

The other one, which is already a narrative you're seeing on social media, is some xenophobic sentiment. People saying these illegal immigrants are in our country and living in these quarters below the standards that you'd expect of a building. Again, a lot of this is unconfirmed, but it's a narrative that's common sometimes in South Africa and it's reddening its head again in this instance.

[03:04:59]

CHURCH: All right, our thanks to Larry Madowo on the line there updating us on this breaking news, this tragedy, this fire in Johannesburg, claiming the lives of 63 people confirmed dead at this juncture, but authorities saying that number could very well rise and we will continue to stay on top of this breaking news story.

Well after delivering a catastrophic blow to Florida's west coast, Hurricane Idalia is now a weakening tropical storm bringing rain and flooding to the Carolinas. The storm is over North Carolina at this hour. It is expected to move out into the Atlantic Ocean in the next few hours.

Charleston, South Carolina is one area reporting localized flooding. The city's harbor saw water levels rise to about three meters late Wednesday, the fifth highest ever recorded. The National Weather Service reported a weak tornado touched down in Goose Creek, South Carolina, tossing this car into the air. Several people sustained minor injuries.

Idalia made landfall early Wednesday along Florida's Big Bend coast with maximum sustained winds of more than 200 km per hour. In short, property losses are estimated at more than $9 billion.

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GOV. RON DESANTIS (R-FL): We haven't had a storm take this path at this level since the 1890s to hit this part of Florida. So this is something that is a really big deal and not that you ever want to do but there's parts of Florida that have had these things happen and they've built up infrastructure and in response to it. Well this part of the state hasn't necessarily seen a storm like this in quite some time.

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CHURCH: A tornado watch is in effect along much of North Carolina's coast and the governor is warning residents the danger of flooding is not over yet.

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GOV. ROY COOPER (D-NC): We're concerned about the potential for storm surge. And always, we want to keep an eye out on flash flooding and potentially riverine flooding. We don't know about that yet. This storm is moving faster than people had anticipated. That means we're going to get some stronger winds than we thought we were going to get, but maybe less rain.

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CHURCH: Let's bring in meteorologist Karen Maginnis at the CNN Weather Center. So Karen, tornadoes, flooding, what is the latest this hour and of course what's ahead?

KAREN MAGINNIS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, it may be at tropical storm intensity. We don't see any low level circulation, but still has tropical characteristics. So what that means is we're seeing loss of deep convection all the way from the Piedmont of North Carolina and into the outer banks. You can see just this blossoming of deep convection across areas around Wilmington, Nags Head, Oak Island, and into the Raleigh-Durham area. And still lots of activity offshore.

All of that is very capable of producing some tornadic activity because it is convective and we have seen some reports of some tornadoes across this region. That's why the tornado watch goes into effect until 4 a.m. local time.

Here you can see it better on the radar. And for North Carolina, some of the rainfall may add up to 4 to 8 inches. So it looks like even though this is only at tropical storm intensity, it still has a lot of moisture associated with it.

There may be somewhat of a mild storm surge across this region, like Wilmington may see some localized street flooding. We could see some beach erosion as well, but flash flood warnings out for this region as well. There are tornado watches out. It extends into the Outer Banks region, but lies just to the north of Wilmington. Something -- this is a fairly high population areas, even though it is kind of a resort area as well.

Well going into Thursday morning about 8:00, still anticipating it to be at 60 miles per hour or about 100 kilometers per hour. It's going to edge away from the coast. It is racing along at about roughly 21 miles per hour and it will continue that. As it pulls away, it's going to take a lot of that tropical moisture with it. That's the good news because this area is going to get that soaked over the next four to eight hours or so.

There you can see in the orange, that's a level three flood threat out of four, so significant precipitation here. In Charleston, well, the all-time flooding position was during Hurricane Hugo during 1989. And this was the fifth most significant rainfall and storm surge that they have seen there in quite some time when it makes the top five, and Charleston floods fairly easily, so the storm system didn't help.

I'll be back at the top of the hour and we'll bring you another update. Rosemary?

CHURCH: We appreciate that. Karen Maginnis, many thanks.

[03:10:01]

Well, residents along Florida's Gulf Coast have begun the cleanup after Idalia sparked widespread flooding and a trail of destruction. CNN's Brian Todd takes a look at some of the damage left behind in the state's capital, Tallahassee.

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BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Late Wednesday, Governor Ron DeSantis delivered some much needed good news for residents of Florida he said the Cedar Key Bridge leading to the community of Cedar Key which was cut off during the storm that bridge was reopened late Wednesday that's going to be a crucial development because in the coming hours and days officials are going to need to get a read on how many people might have been unaccounted for in Cedar Key.

That place was isolated. One resident told us the whole area didn't look very much like it used to look and they were really worried about elderly residents in isolated areas not being accounted for. So the opening of the Cedar Key Bridge was a very important development. Also, the governor saying that by late Wednesday, the number of customers without power had dropped, but they're still frantically working to get hundreds of thousands of people back online, not only in Florida, but also in Georgia.

There were reports of at least two weather-related deaths in Florida, two car accidents not related to each other involving two men being killed. At least 10 hospitals had to be evacuated during the storm. According to Governor Ron DeSantis, out of those 10 hospitals in Florida that had to be evacuated at least nine of them will probably have gotten back online by late Wednesday night.

Here in Leon County this is the city of Tallahassee, the capital Florida they're still digging out they're still assessing damage still tens of thousands of customers without power and look at some of the violence that occurred courtesy of hurricane Idalia.

This is a house on Big Oak street in Tallahassee, and look at it, this is a large pine tree, and look just the force of the storm and look at the root system here it uprooted the entire root system of the tree toppled the tree and in the process look what it did to this fence it just uprooted the entire fence slammed across the yard broke the other part of the fence over there and then was stretching all the way across the street.

Luckily crews got here and cleared the street of that part of the tree but again and also what I should tell you is that in this area in Tallahassee there's a lot of Spanish moss and other growth on these trees, which makes them much heavier. You come over here and you see just how close it came to landing on this house, just a few feet from this house. We talked to the homeowners, everybody there is okay, but they were pretty shaken by this event.

In places here like Tallahassee, this is still not a safe area. It's not safe to navigate around here. A lot of downed power lines like that one hanging down right there that you see, and there were several downed power lines down on this street.

Again, they're telling people, don't try to navigate these streets in a car or on foot, because these power lines, some of them could be live. They could kill you if you step on them. Also, people, a lot of people on the street running generators to get just to function at their homes. A lot of generator-related deaths are often reported in the aftermath of these hurricanes.

So just in the process of recovering and navigating your streets or running your generator, you may not be out of danger.

Brian Todd, CNN, Tallahassee, Florida.

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CHURCH: We are getting word that Russia has shot down a new drone headed towards Moscow. The city's mayor says the aircraft was intercepted southeast of the capital Thursday morning, which came on the heels of the biggest wave of drone attacks Russia has seen since the war began.

Six Russian regions came under attack Tuesday night and Wednesday morning. But across the border --

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Ukrainian officials say Kyiv also came under attack, the most powerful assault in months. But Ukraine says it shot down dozens of drones and missiles near Kiev and across the country.

So let's go to investigative producer Katie Polglase, who joins us live from London. Good morning to you Katie. So what more are you learning about the biggest drone assault on Russian territory since Moscow launched its war on Ukraine and also this latest drone that was heading for the capital?

KATIE POLGLASE, CNN INVESTIGATIVE PRODUCER: Well Rosemary, it's clear that drone warfare, drone attacks are an increasingly common and an increasingly important part of this war. As you mentioned, there was another reported drone intercepted over the Moscow region this morning, the Moscow mayor Sergei Sabanyin saying there are no reported casualties or damage as of yet.

But this comes in a week of intense drone assaults, intense drone attacks over the Russian territories as a whole. As you mentioned, Tuesday into Wednesday was one of the largest drone assaults Russia has seen really since the beginning of this conflict in the areas that were hit are really quite far ranging. One was as far north as Skov, which is beyond Moscow. That was an airport that was hit. It was four military aircrafts that were damaged as a result.

We also saw attacks in Bryansk, which is a region that borders with Ukraine. There, it was a TV tower that was reportedly the target of the attack. We also saw attacks as far south as in the occupied Crimea territories.

[03:15:05]

This wide range of these drone attacks shows the scope and clearly the intention behind this. They are suspected to be from Ukraine, although that has not been confirmed. The intention is clearly to make the impact of this war be felt at home by the Russian people.

And we saw yesterday on Twitter the special adviser to the Ukrainian president Mikhailo Podliak said that it's clear that the drone attacks we're seeing this week, it shows that the war is increasingly moving to Russia's territory and it cannot be stopped.

That is the aim here, to make the Russian people feel the impact of this war in the same way that the Ukrainian people are also clearly feeling the impact already. At the same time of these drone attacks Tuesday into Wednesday, there was also drone attacks on Kyiv, also other missile attacks, other kinds of aerial bombardment. And in fact, that was one of the largest attacks on Kyiv since spring. Two people were dead as a result, others injured as well.

This aerial intensification is continuing in Ukraine, but also now we're seeing in Russia. And it's worth noting one thing about the Ukrainian drones, if they are Ukrainian drones on Russia, that if these are Ukrainian, they are very likely to be homemade, made in Ukraine rather than elsewhere because per their agreements with their Western allies, any equipment they're receiving cannot be used in Russia. And so if that is the case, that shows they are increasing their drone capacity and manufacturing ability. Rosemary.

CHURCH: Katie Polglase, our thanks for that report. I Appreciate it.

Well, Ukrainian troops are trying to break Russian defenses and they're counter offensive in the South. But some civilians who live near the front lines in that region are just trying to survive. CNN's Melissa Bell has that story.

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MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The waters for the animals left behind. Svetlana draws some each week as she waits for her own supply, or rather her villages. It's too dangerous for emergency services, so she will carry it the rest of the way.

I can't abandon the people, she says, the elderly. And she quotes a Soviet era saying, if not you, then who?

But even in the center of Stabnogorsk, there aren't many people left. The Russians are only five kilometers away.

(on-camera): Residential buildings like this one have been on the front line of this war for nearly a year and a half. The shelling say the few residents that are left here is day and night About 500 to 600 civilians left in this town from several thousand before the war. So far they say that the counteroffensive hasn't made things much worse in terms of the shelling, nor though they say has it made things any better.

(voice-over): It's dangerous every day, says Ior Samsonenko. Overnight, the roof of that house was hit, there was shelling yesterday afternoon, and a building was on fire just the other day.

As we inspect the damage done by last night's artillery fire, a Russian drone inspects us, exploding just as we leave.

But little phases the local emergency services who've been showing us around. People are used to the war, says Mikola Malikhyn, before a shell interrupts him.

Those the emergency services can't get to, rely on people like Svitlana. She will now walk with what she can push on her bike for more than an hour towards enemy fire. But with her dog for company, she says, she's never afraid.

Melissa Bell, CNN, Stepnogorsk, Ukraine.

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CHURCH: And CNN's Christiane Amanpour anchors her show from Ukraine all week. You can tune in at 6.00 p.m. in London for special reporting and coverage. World leaders are condemning a military coup in Gabon, but in the

streets of the Central African nation, some people are celebrating the coup and the arrest of the president. Details coming up in a live report.

Plus, one of the most powerful U.S. senators suffers what looks like another disturbing health episode on camera, raising questions about his future in office.

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[03:20:00]

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CHURCH: In Jerusalem, a man was shot and killed after allegedly stabbing another man at a Jerusalem train station in what Israeli police are labeling a terror attack.

Israeli police are crediting an alert officer for quote "neutralizing the man with a knife" on Wednesday evening. Police say the stabbing was witnessed by the border patrol officer who was on a train. He then got off the train and fired on the suspect, killing him. The suspect is identified as being from East Jerusalem. The 25-year-old stabbing victim was taken to the hospital and is said to be in moderate condition.

Well meantime, in the West Bank, Palestinian Authority security forces and militant fighters reportedly got into a brief gun battle last week with at least one Palestinian man killed. CNN's Hadas Gold has details.

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HADAS GOLD, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: This was a rare clash between Palestinian Authority security forces and militants in the West Bank. And it resulted in the first Palestinian to be killed by Palestinian Authority security forces this year. And the reaction from the militant groups has also been harsh. It highlights the widening gap between the official Palestinian institutions and the militant groups, which hold increasing sway and power, especially in the northern part of the West Bank where this happened.

Now violence has been surging across the occupied West Bank over the past year and a half, with the Israeli government saying that the Palestinian authorities' lack of action compels the Israeli military, they say, to conduct regular raids across the West Bank to tamp down on militant activity.

So what happened was that a gun battle erupted in the town of Tulkarm after Palestinian Authority security forces say that their forces entered the refugee camp there to remove what they called hazardous materials and barriers, including some that were near a school, and that they then came under fire from armed youths in the area.

A local journalist told CNN that the forces entered the camp to remove unarmed IEDs that were put in place to target Israeli forces if and when they were to enter the refugee camp. Now security forces say that they took quote "necessary measures to control the situation."

Now the man killed was identified as a 22 year old, Abdul Qader Zakda. His brother told CNN that he was an electrician and claimed that he was not associated with any militant groups. But the militant groups have called this, like Hamas said, a crime against our people, and the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, which is associated with the Fata Party, which is the dominant party in the Palestinian Authority, they accused the Palestinian Authority forces of assisting the Israelis and announced that official security forces from the Palestinian Authority were now quote "prohibited from entering the Tulkarm refugee camp."

The militants also warned that the Palestinian security forces would be treated quote "like the occupation," meaning the Israeli forces. If they came into the camp.

Hadas Gold, CNN Jerusalem.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: For the second time in weeks, there are serious questions about the health of Mitch McConnell. The Republican Senate leader struggled to answer a question on Wednesday, appearing to freeze while speaking to reporters. Manu Raju has details.

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MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Now for the second time in his many months of health care for Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell, this after he froze back in July in Washington for about 30 seconds during a press conference with reporters. He later answered some questions. His office said at that time that he was lightheaded and Republicans said he was dehydrated.

[03:25:02]

Then the Senate recess has been gone since early August where they have been, members have been back in their home states, traveling across their country, talking at various events as Mitch McConnell did on Wednesday in Covington, Kentucky. There he spoke to a local chamber of commerce, started to give a speech, answer questions. Then he had a press conference with reporters at the event.

At the press conference, he was asked by a reporter about whether he would run for re-election in 2026. At that moment, Mitch McConnell once again froze for 30 seconds.

REPORTER: Thoughts on running for re-election in 2026?

SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY), U.S. SENATE MINORITY LEADER: What are my thoughts about what?

REPORTER: Running for re-election in 2026. Oh, awesome.

MCCONNELL: That's good. UNKNOWN: Did you hear the question, Senator, running for reelection in

2026?

MCCONNELL: Yes.

UNKNOWN: Alright, I'm sorry you all, we're gonna need a minute.

RAJU: Now in addition to the two moments in which McConnell froze, there's also been other health scares this year, namely back in March when he fell down, hit his head, had a concussion, broke some ribs, was gone from the Senate for several weeks, had to go to the hospital, went recovered at a rehab facility.

And he's had a couple of other episodes in which he fell this year. McConnell is a childhood survivor from polio. He's also 81 years old, walks slowly, and there's questions about his health. He is indicated that he plans to serve as Republican leader through the rest of this Congress. He's the longest serving party leader of any party in the history of the United States Senate.

But what will happen at the end of this Congress, which is at the end of 2024? Will he serve in 2025 and 2026 as Republican leader? Those are still open questions, also not saying if he would run for reelection in 2026. McConnell, who is 81 years old, according to his staff, is still feeling fine despite that episode. As Ephra said, that he was feeling lightheaded. They also said he went to go see a doctor before his second event that day. But there is no word yet on what the doctor said.

What the underlying cause was of this incident that has caused a lot of concern even among some of his allies. But McConnell was on the phone with some of his allies in the aftermath of this incident, including some top Republicans, including John Thune and Shelley Moore Capito. And both of their offices tell me that Mitch McConnell is feeling fine. He sounded like his usual self and look forward to seeing him when the Senate returns on Tuesday.

Manu Raju, CNN, Capitol Hill.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Two of Donald Trump's co-defendants in the Georgia election interference case are asking a judge to formally separate their trials from the sprawling indictment. Lawyers Sidney Powell and Kenneth Cheseboro have both denied wrongdoing and have already invoked their right to speedy trials, which could start as soon as October.

If the judge agrees, the move would undercut the attempt by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis to hold one huge trial for all 19 defendants. She also wants that to start in October.

Donald Trump's former lawyer has just lost a defamation lawsuit here in the U.S. state of Georgia. A federal judge ruled that Rudy Giuliani is liable for spreading repeated lies about two election workers in 2016. Giuliani accused them of tampering with ballots but later admitted he could no longer contest that he made false statements. Those unfounded claims of election meddling upended the lives of Shea

Moss and Ruby Freeman. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUBY FREEMAN, FORMER ELECTION WORKER IN FULTON COUNTY, GEORGIA: I've lost my name and I've lost my reputation. I've lost my sense of security. All because a group of people starting with number 45 and his ally Rudy Giuliani decided to scapegoat me and my daughter Shea to push their own lies about how the presidential election was stolen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Sara Murray has the latest on the case and what's next for Giuliani.

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SARA MURRAY, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: More legal problems for former Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani. A judge saying Rudy Giuliani forfeits a case that had been ongoing where some election workers from Georgia accused Giuliani of defaming them.

He had accused Ruby Freeman and Shea Moss of ballot tampering even though he didn't have the goods to back up these allegations. A judge said because Giuliani did not comply with the discovery in this case, did not hand over the documents he needed to as part of this case, he forfeits, meaning he loses. That means there's going to be a trial to determine what kind of damages he could end up having to pay out to these election workers. That could happen later this year or early next year.

The election workers in this case said they felt gratitude about this decision.

[03:30:00]

They said Rudy Giuliani made their lives a living nightmare. Meanwhile a political adviser to Giuliani slammed this decision and said Giuliani wants to try to reverse it. It's hard to see how the New York mayor is going to do that though. One of the issues he's cited over and over again are his cash flow problems.

Sara Murray, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Still to come, we will bring you the latest on the breaking news out of Johannesburg, where a massive fire has killed more than five dozen people. Our reporter is on the scene. Stay with us for a live report.

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CHURCH: We're getting new information on the tragedy in Johannesburg. The fire that killed at least 63 people broke out in what a city spokesperson is calling a hijacked building.

He told a local radio show there were hundreds of informal settlements inside. The fire injured dozens of people when it broke out around 1:30 a.m. local time, presumably while many people were sleeping.

And CNN's David McKenzie is at the scene of the fire. He's on the line now from Johannesburg. David, what more are you learning about this deadly fire?

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on the phone): Well, Rosemary, I've had this building in an industrial area in Johannesburg. There is still smoldering coming out of the building, and there's a terrible scene unfolding here.

Local authorities say that they've had to click through floor by floor. Many of the bodies are charred beyond recognition. Many children, it's believed, killed in this fire.

Now when you describe a hijacked building, it sounds very strange, but in fact that is something that is happening all over this city, buildings taken over by gangs and other groups and then leased out to migrants and South Africans, ignoring all safety precautions. They describe what was inside this five-story building as like an informal settlement inside the building.

Many people have been pulled out. There's been lines of bodies laid on the streets. It's a tragedy that people are trying to comprehend. And as I stand now, you see firefighters and EMS services and police. The scene is relatively calm, but onlookers trying to understand how this has happened and something many people thought would happen a long time ago, Rosemary.

CHURCH: And David, as we just reported, a spokesperson for the city has suggested that this was what he called a hijacked building. Explain to us what that means and how often that happens in this particular part of the city.

MCKENZIE (on the phone): It happens reasonably often. There are buildings that have been abandoned by their landlords or taken over by gangs and then gutted and leased out to people who don't have the money or the means to rent more affordable or proper housing.

[03:35:12]

Now, you can envisage it almost like a large informal settlement that you find in South Africa, but squeezed inside a building. They described how the apartments were partitioned into multiple sleeping area for multiple people where only two or three should be sleeping, and of course, that presents a very large fire hazard.

Many of the building have been condemned, they've been a temp by the city to try and take them over or deal with some way of making these more safe, but unfortunately with the level of poverty in South Africa and the millions of migrants who come to the country whose seeking a better life, it is just a reality to this country. I can see some firefighters now at the edge of the building. The fire

appears to be out, but certainly this tragedy is still unfolding. Rosemary.

CHURCH: Yeah. David McKenzie, many thanks joining us on the line there from Johannesburg at the scene of that deadly fire. We'll continue to bring you the details as they come into us.

Well, back here in the United States in an update on Idalia, still packing a punch as it pushes across the Carolina coast bringing strong winds and heavy rain. Idalia is expected to remain a tropical storm as it slowly moves off the East Coast.

Early Wednesday the storm slammed into Florida as a category 3 hurricane before moving through southern Georgia and the Carolinas. In Charleston flooding has closed a number of roads across the city after water rushed onto roadways. Officials are urging people to stay home.

Idalia also unleashed heavy flooding across Florida's Gulf Coast from the Big Bend all the way to the Tampa area.

The U.S. president is pledging his administration's full support as states deal with a trail of devastation. He said this latest natural disaster is more evidence of climate change.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT: I don't think anybody can deny the impact of the climate crisis anymore. Just look around, historic floods, I mean, historic floods, more intense droughts, extreme heat, significant wildfires have caused significant damage like we've never seen before.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Another high-level visit to China by a senior US official will explain what the US Commerce Secretary had hoped to accomplish on her trip. That story just ahead.

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CHURCH: The U.K. has joined France, the United States, the United Nations and the African Union's Peace and Security Council in condemning Wednesday's military coup in the Central African nation of Gabon.

[03:40:06]

President Ali Bongo, whose family has ruled Gabon for more than 50 years, was placed under house arrest by the military leaders just minutes after he was named the winner of a contested election. More details now from CNN's David McKenzie.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALI BONGO ONDIMBA, GABON PRESIDENT: I'm Ali Bongo Ondimba, President of Gabon. and I'm to send a message to all the friends that we have all over the world to tell them to make noise, to make noise.

MCKENZIE (voice-over): It's an extraordinary appeal in English.

Just hours ago, Ali Bongo seemed untouchable. Now he's under house arrest.

Because of this, in this season of coups, a group of army officers making a now-familiar announcement.

UNKNOWN (through translator): Have decided to defend the peace by putting an end to the current regime. The general elections of August 26, 2023, as well as truncated results, are canceled.

MCKENZIE (voice-over): On the streets of Libreville, celebrations, shouts of liberation from some, and a scene replayed over and over in recent months. The coup leaders say that the just concluded polls were not transparent and said Bongo's leadership threatened quote chaos. International observers weren't allowed in and the internet was curtailed.

From former colonist France, a well-practiced response.

OLIVIER VERAN, FRENCH GOVERNMENT SPOKESPERSON (through translator): France condemns the military coup that is underway in Gabon, and France is closely monitoring the evolution of the situation on the ground and reiterates its desire to see the results of the election respected once it's known.

MCKENZIE (voice-over): Gabon, the latest in a cascade of coups on the African continent. If solidified, it will be the eighth in Central and West Africa since just 2020.

Most of them former French colonies, but each of them a different cocktail of power players and discontent.

In Gabon, the citizens have lived under a dynastic regime for more than 50 years. Omar Bongo ruled for more than four decades, much of that time spent in France, a critical ally.

The elder Bongo, members of his family and confidants, were accused of eye-watering corruption, often linked to OPEC member Gabon's significant oil wealth.

Ali Bongo took over from his father in 2009. He's been praised for conserving Gabon's vast forests and taking innovative steps to develop carbon credits to combat climate change.

But he's faced growing discontent from many, with violence breaking out after disputed polls in 2016 and an attempted coup three years later.

But these scenes have wider consequences. Many fear that Gabon is not the last domino to fall. African Union and international actors have failed to effectively counter recent military takeovers. Bongo's fate in house arrest remains tenuous.

BONGO ONDIMBA: I'm calling you to make noise, to make noise, to make noise.

MCKENZIE (voice-over): David McKenzie, CNN, Johannesburg.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: CNN's Stephanie Busari is covering the story for us. She joins us now from Lagos, Nigeria. So Stephanie, what is the latest on Gabon's military coup? And of course, what's expected to happen to President Bongo?

STEPHANIE BUSARI, CNN SR. EDITOR, AFRICA: Rosemary, so calm, has restored to the streets of Libreville, the capital of Gabon, after yesterday's scenes of, quite frankly, celebration and jubilation.

The Gabonese people are just, frankly, very happy to see the end of five decades of the Bongo family rule. At some stage we saw them carrying beer cartons to the military coup leaders and army members on the streets of Gabon.

Now what's playing out here Rosemary is what people are saying that they want the end of democratic dictators. So, Ali Bongo ruled for 14 years, his father ruled for nearly 42 years before him. He's not the only one next door in Central Africa, is Cameroon, with Paul B and therefore over 40 years.

Now, people are saying that they're fed up. This is democracy, but in the name only. These men, these mostly men, conduct sham elections.

[03:45:00]

And what the citizens are saying is that they want an end to this kind of dictatorship, which is helped, propped up by a pseudo democracy.

Now, what happens to Ali Bongo? He may be forced into exile, into a friendly country. That's happened before with deposed former rulers. But what's clear is that his family is under a lot of scrutiny with his son arrested for high treason. And this is unfolding, Rosemary, and there'll be much more details to come in the next few days. Rosemary.

CHURCH: All right. Yes, indeed. I Appreciate it. Stephanie Busari, joining us live from Lagos.

Home building firm Country Garden was China's largest residential developer last year. Now it's warning it could default on its debts after reporting a $7 billion loss for the first six months of this year.

CNN's Kristie Lu-Stout joins me now live from Hong Kong. Good to see you, Kristie. So what more are you learning about this story?

KRISTIE LU-STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rosemary, this is China's largest residential developer, and now Country Garden is battling a liquidity crisis.

On Wednesday, it issued this warning that it would default, or it could default, on its vast debts after it reported a loss of $7 billion for the first half of the year.

Now it made a statement in a filing to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Let's bring it up for you. And this is what Country Garden said. It said, quote, "the company felt deeply remorseful for the unsatisfactory performance," unquote.

Country Garden has nearly $200 billion in total liabilities. It is facing increasing pressure to pay off its debts. And according to the company, it was caught off-guard by the depth and the ongoing nature of China's property slump, especially in the smaller Chinese cities.

Look, for the past two years now, China has been stuck in this historic property slowdown, which has resulted in unfinished and uncompleted homes in residential buildings and blocks, as you see there on your screen. It's resulted in unpaid creditors.

And the slump has been deepening. You know, we learned in July, new home sales fell more than 34 percent year on year. Chinese officials, they've been scrambling to shore up the market. They've been introducing a number of measures. In fact, the same day when Country Garden warned it may default, the Chinese city of Guangzhou announced that it would relax mortgage rules for home buyers.

But analysts say that such measures have not been enough, are not enough, because consumers in China are reluctant to spend money on new homes because of rising unemployment in China and because home prices are falling.

And now we have this Country Garden warning of default, and some are fearing that this liquidity crisis, it could spread beyond. It could spread to China's wider economy and even overseas. Back to you Rosemary.

CHURCH: Alright, our thanks to Kristie Lu Stout joining us live from Hong Kong.

Well, U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo is the latest senior U.S. official to visit China in recent weeks in a bid to stabilize relations between the world's two largest economies.

Raimondo had said she did not expect any breakthroughs during her visit, but she did secure agreements from Beijing to begin formal discussions on export controls and tourism. While visiting a joint venture in Shanghai between Boeing and China, the Secretary told reporters that her talks had addressed numerous complex issues facing both countries.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GINA RAIMONDO, U.S. COMMERCE SECRETARY: We were able to clarify in the first meeting that we are not targeting China. We are targeting certain behavior. We are targeting actions and behavior which undermine U.S. national security and we sought to begin clarifying our procedures.

(END VIDEO CLIP) CHURCH: Raimondo and other U.S. officials also visited Disneyland in Shanghai. The secretary made a point of noting that her email was hacked by China-based hackers prior to her trip. She warned that such actions are a deterrent to U.S. companies wanting to invest in China.

Joining me now is CNN Economics and political commentator Catherine Rampell. She's also an opinion columnist for the "Washington Post." A pleasure to have you with us.

CATHERINE RAMPELL, CNN ECONOMICS AND POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Great to join you.

CHURCH: So U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo is just back from her China visit with some deliverables such as plans for formal discussions on export controls and tourism. But did she achieve enough and use the leverage the U.S. clearly has right now with Beijing's struggling economy?

RAMPELL: I think this is, this should all be seen as part of a broader strategy to try to cool tensions with China.

[03:49:58]

The United States has now sent over several high-level officials, not just the Secretary of Commerce, but also the Secretaries of State and Treasury, amongst others. So in that respect, yes, it does seem like the visit was a success, that it was a friendlier visit than it might otherwise have been.

Now, whether that pays off in terms of better relations in the long term, I think is very hard to know. Secretary Raimondo talked quite a bit about the challenges that U.S. companies have faced, for example, operating in China because of seemingly arbitrary rates, for example, or lockdowns or other kinds of obstacles.

She tried to bring visibility to those kinds of problems, and the Chinese government made the argument that China is still a delightful and wonderful place to invest, whatever those conditions may be, whether we actually see different treatment of U.S. companies and more interest from foreign investors writ large, I think remains to be played out.

CHURCH: And some parts of China's economy grew after it ditched the Zero-COVID policy, but then it lost momentum. So what impact could China's struggling economy have on the rest of the world? And do you think Beijing can turn this around?

RAMPELL: It's very hard to say at the moment. Look, China has enjoyed a several decade-long boom. But it does seem like the economy, at the very least, has hit a rough patch. Now, we don't know quite the extent of the challenges that the economy faces, because you can't really trust the official statistics. Some of the statistics have stopped being printed altogether.

But some of the problems are structural. There are things like demographic challenges. Some of them, I think, were exacerbated by the government's management of the economy and the regulatory, the broader regulatory landscape. You talked about the COVID lockdowns, for example. I mentioned earlier the seemingly arbitrary interventions in both Chinese companies and foreign companies.

So, you know, it's very hard to know going forward whether the slowdown that the Chinese economy at the very least seems to be experiencing will continue. I think the fact that the Chinese government has been so non-transparent about the state of affairs is unlikely to calm concerns from investors and could unintentionally backfire. By hiding some of the bad news, that could actually create more anxiety about the state of the economy and therefore prolong the problems that the Chinese economy is facing.

CHURCH: And of course, most nations around the world are still recovering from the effects of the COVID pandemic and dealing with high inflation as well as resulting interest rate hikes and a range of other economic issues. So where do you see the global economy going from here with chatter still out there about a possible recession?

RAMPELL: China, as we have been discussing, has its own challenges. You know, you asked earlier about what that means for other countries, some countries have a lot of exposure to the Chinese economy, and there will be some, you know, potential contingent effects.

Some other countries may stand to benefit from geopolitical tensions, for example, with China. You know, we've already seen a number of businesses kind of relocate their supply chains out of China to elsewhere in Southeast Asia or to Mexico, for example. You know, that's been a big beneficiary. Mexico has been a big beneficiary of some of the tensions between the United States. and China.

So, you know, I think some of the regional effects are mixed. I think there's reason to be more optimistic than may have been the case a few months ago. But I would say cautious optimism is warranted at this point.

CHURCH: All right. Catherine Rampell, thanks so much for joining us.

RAMPELL: Thank you.

CHURCH: We are just now receiving word that British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace has resigned. Wallace had announced last month he would step down at the next cabinet reshuffle. Wallace informed No. 10 this morning that he was leaving after four years in the post. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak praised Wallace for his dedication and skill, and for taking a leading role in Western support of Ukraine.

And we'll be right back in just a minute.

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[03:55:00]

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CHURCH: The University of Nebraska is wild about women's volleyball. The school set a new world record on Wednesday night for the largest announced crowd at a women's sporting event.

92,003 people were on hand in Lincoln to see the home team take on in- state rival Omaha. And the five-time national champion Huskers team won the match. The previous world record was set in April of last year in Spain at a UEFA Champions League match.

Star gazers can see a rare spectacle in the night sky until Friday morning. It is a blue supermoon which peaked Wednesday evening. This is timelapse video of what it looked like over Jerusalem. A supermoon is a moon that appears to be much larger and brighter than a regular full moon because its orbital path is closer to Earth. And blue moons are when there are two full moons in a calendar month. So August began with a bright supermoon and will end the same way this week.

Thank you so much for your company. I'm Rosemary Church. Have yourselves a wonderful day. "CNN Newsroom" continues with Max Foster and Bianca Nobilo, next.

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