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Florida Residents Race to Evacuate as Cat 5 Storm Closes In; Netanyahu Tells His Defense Minister Not to Leave for U.S.; Lebanese Village Becomes Israel-Hezbollah Battlefield; Harris Launches Media Blitz One Month Before Election; New Book Details Trump's Relationship with Putin. Florida Prepares for Widespread, Long-lasting Power Outages; Nintendo Museum Showcases Company's History of Innovation. Aired 12-1a ET

Aired October 09, 2024 - 00:00   ET

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

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COLLINS: Be safe. We'll see you tomorrow night. Please stay safe, OK?

HELLER: Thank you, Laura. Thank you.

COLLINS: Thank you so much. And hey, thank all of you for watching out there. "ANDERSON COOPER 360" is next.

PAULA NEWTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello, and welcome, I'm Paula Newton. Ahead here on CNN NEWSROOM.

Not survivable. That's how one Florida official is describing Hurricane Milton and the deadly storm surge the category five storm is expected to produce.

For the first time a top Hezbollah official is supporting a ceasefire with Israel as the IDF expands its ground operations in southern Lebanon.

And a new book by Watergate reporter Bob Woodward makes some surprising claims about President Joe Biden, Benjamin Netanyahu, Donald Trump, and Vladimir Putin.

ANNOUNCER: Live from Atlanta, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Paula Newton.

NEWTON: In just a matter of hours, one of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes ever will slam into Florida's Gulf Coast, and just two weeks after Helene, hurricane Milton could bring devastation on a scale the region has never seen before. Right now Milton is back to a rare category five strength in the Gulf of Mexico.

And while it should weaken some before landfall, Milton is forecast to double in size, meaning the destruction will be far more widespread.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Local emergency currently exist. Quickly secure your home or business. And safely evacuate the area. Listen to local media -- (END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: As you can hear there officials have done all they can to warn residents in the path of the storm to head to safer areas.

You have to understand millions of people right now at this hour are under mandatory or voluntary evacuation orders. And many have taken that to heart with interstate traffic far more congested than usual to say the least. You see it there statewide about one in five gas stations are out of fuel due to this mass exodus. That's according to the tracking Web site Gas Buddy. People are leaving behind many of their possessions as well as the wreckage caused by Hurricane Helene.

Many fear the debris from that storm will become dangerous projectiles when Milton's powerful winds come ashore.

CNN's Paul Murphy spoke with emergency workers on Anna Maria Island who say once the storm reaches land, they'll have to evacuate themselves, meaning those who stay behind they're on their own.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL MURPHY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: If you're here, there will not be helped coming for you. You are on your own and he's made that very clear. It's that same message we're hearing from officials. Write your name, write your number, write someone else's number. Your date of birth on you because when they come looking for you, they want to know who to contact because you decided to stay.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: Meantime, stunning video shows hurricane hunters flying through Milton on Tuesday. And you can barely see anything beyond the wings of the plane because there's just so much rain. Storm chaser Nick Underwood says the turbulence made a mess. You can see there on the plane's cabin, but as rough as the flight was, they were still able to get their equipment out in order to collect that oh-so- valuable data.

Now, for the Tampa metropolitan area, meantime, home to more than three million people, a direct hit from hurricane hasn't happened in more than a century. And while it's too soon to say where exactly Milton will come ashore, Tampa's mayor has made her warning blunt and crystal clear. This storm is a matter of life and death.

More now from CNN's Isabel Rosales.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ISABEL ROSALES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We heard Tampa's mayor Jane Castor telling people if you decide to stay in an evacuation zone, that's a mandatory evacuation zone, against what we're asking you to do, you're going to die. I worked here. I lived here for several years in the Tampa Bay area. I have never heard such blunt language from Tampa's mayor ever before, and I've covered many storms. They're telling people to get out, please heed our warnings. Debris.

That's also a huge concern. Getting it out of the neighborhoods. You're looking at gusts up to 150 miles per hour here in Tampa. Those are become flying projectiles, extremely dangerous. But then you have Tampa General Hospital where I'm at right now. Davis Islands, that's a neighborhood of Tampa. This is the region's only level one trauma center.

They cannot evacuate. They're too big, too specialized. The patients that they have are too sick. So what did they do? They put millions of dollars in tools like this. This is the AquaFence that they have bolted down to the ground. It can withstand storm surge in different parts, different height, up to 15 feet high. We're anticipating 10 to 15 feet here in the Tampa Bay.

[00:05:01]

But look at this. This is why it's so serious. They're on a manmade island. Look at this, I could throw a rock right over to the Hillsborough Bay. This is the first time this season by Helene that the AquaFence has been tested, and waters did reach right up there. It withstood it. It kept the hospital dry, it kept their patients or staff safe. They're hoping if it comes to this that it will do it again.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: Joining me now is Denis Phillips, He is chief meteorologist with our Tampa affiliate WFTS.

Listen, Denis, we're leaning on you here. For Tampa, this could be the worst storm in a century. What are you seeing? And how would you describe what the city is facing over the next few hours and days?

DENIS PHILLIPS, CHIEF METEOROLOGIST, WFTS: I mean, you're right. The last major hurricane, Paula, that hit this area 1921. So folks here aren't really used to it and there has been, I don't want to say a sense of panic, but certainly it got their attention. We had mass evacuation orders. Most of Pinellas County evacuated. And the big question is, where's the surge going to be? I mean, I think Floridians are used to hurricanes coming through, you know, but not ones that are cat 5's.

And even though this one is expected to drop down to a cat three by landfall, that's still winds greater than we've seen in again over 100 years. Gas lines, there are things that we've just never experienced. Back, you know, when Irma came through, and Ian, there was a lot of evacuations, but this one, you know, it just has that feel. There's something about it that it's really getting people's attention. I don't think many people are ignoring this one. They're preparing the best that they can.

NEWTON: And clearly they should not. Now when you look at the wind, the rain and fall, the storm surge, what most concerns you especially given Tampa's infrastructure, right? So much of it just right there along the bay, nowhere to hide from the storm. PHILLIP: Yes. It's the surge, absolutely. Matter of fact, I mean, I'm

sure you've noted throughout the evening and in the overnight that there was a wobble in the afternoon hours and that wobble maybe only was about 10 or 20 miles. But this track has changed. While the earlier on Tuesday, the track was right into the bay, now the latest track is a little more to the south between Bradenton and Sarasota.

I mean, it's such a fine line. The way this surge is going to work wherever landfall is, just to the south, we're talking 10, 15, 20 miles is where that worst surge will be at about a 10 to 15 foot surge. So right now, with that new track and that new little wobble, the bay itself is supposed to be right on the fringe of the highest surge. And I would not be surprised if we get another wobbler, too. So while worst-case scenario is 10 to 15 feet, there's a lot of indicators right now saying the bay itself might escape the worst of the surge and much of it might be Sarasota, Siesta Key, you know, down to the south.

NEWTON: And we have already seen so many damage in those regions already. I mean people are really just exhausted. They do not know what will be left.

When you look at this storm and the impact it could actually have through the entire west coast of Florida, not to mention the fact that everyone in Florida will be feeling some effects from the storm, how do you think people will cope going forward in the next few days?

PHILLIP: You know, what makes it so tough is we just got hit two weeks ago with Helene. I mean, areas of Pinellas County, which is an extremely populated area, they've had surge unlike anything they've ever seen. Literally in their lifetime. And there's a lot of folks that lost everything because that storm came through and it was 100 miles offshore. They had all that damage with a storm that never got closer than 100 miles.

So imagine a storm that actually makes landfall a stronger storm and one that's going to bring that water back in. I mean, obviously, the folks, a lot of them don't even know what to do because they already lost so much with the last storm. So to say, there's panic, absolutely. To say that the wind is also going to be an issue because we didn't get a lot of wind with Helene, 65, 70, Floridians in general, they're like, all right, I can do a 65, 70.

But right now, it's 165 and you're talking about something that we've never experienced before. I will tell you a lot of people did evacuate this go around. This storm really got their attention.

NEWTON: Which is great to hear from first responders. I mean, look, Denis, a lot of people, even if they're not in Tampa will now be leaning on you to wherever they've evacuated. It's a really get them through the storm in terms of really trying to describe what's happened and how it hits. When it gets closer to landfall, what exactly will you be looking for?

PHILLIP: So as it approaches, we're looking for that little wobble. Most of the time, I mean, I've worked in this market 30 years then I'll tell you, when you get storms coming in from the south like this is for whatever reason, and by the way, it's not predictable, models aren't going to show it. But for whatever reason, you get a little wobble that kicks over to the right as the storm approaches. It might be 10 or 15 miles, you say, well, that's no big deal.

Ten or 15 miles might be the difference from Sarasota to Siesta Key or Bradenton to Sarasota, and it makes it challenging for these folks because it's such a close call.

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I mean, this is when we tell you don't look at the middle line, look at the whole cone of uncertainty to determine whether or not you're going to evacuate or not. And I will tell you, like my family, they evacuated from Pinellas County. They drove to Jacksonville. It's usually about a three and a half hour drive. Took them 11 hours to get there last night. Because the entire road, there was everybody was on the road. So again, the good news is people are taking notice and they are evacuating. The bad news is, is the traffic was insane and it was still like that.

NEWTON: Yes. And better they evacuated. Spare a thought for everyone who has, you know, kids, pets, and obviously people who maybe aren't feeling that well, who had to make this, you know, this evacuation work. We're glad they did.

Denis, we'll continue to check in with you, and obviously pray this storm is nowhere near as historic as it's looking like right now.

Denis Phillips for us from WFTS.

PHILLIP: Appreciate it.

NEWTON: Appreciate it.

Now, a top Hezbollah official is saying for the first time the group supports a ceasefire with Israel even without an end to the fighting in Gaza. And it comes as Israeli military operations in southern Lebanon have expanded now to the west. That is despite the IDF claim that its campaign would be limited. Israeli airstrikes hit Hezbollah targets in southern Beirut again overnight. Lebanese state media report massive destruction, including the collapse of four residential buildings. Hezbollah is pushing back on the Israeli prime minister's claim of success.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: We've degraded Hezbollah's capabilities. We took out thousands of terrorists including Nasrallah himself. And Nasrallah's replacement and the replacement of his replacement.

Today, Hezbollah is weaker than it's been for many, many years. Now you, the Lebanese people, you stand at a significant crossroads. It is your choice. You can now take back your country. You can return it to a path of peace and prosperity. SHEIKH NAIM QASSEM, HEZBOLLAH DEPUTY LEADER (through translator): They

are the ones who want to exterminate everyone who stands in their way. Everyone who says, we have rights, they want to subject all the surrounding countries and peoples to their policies and orders. This will not happen. I would like to reassure you our capabilities are fine, and what the enemy said about our capabilities being affected is a delusion.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: Meantime, a new controversy appears to be simmering between the U.S. and Israel.

CNN's international diplomatic editor, Nic Robertson, has our details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Pentagon officials are saying that the Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant is delaying his trip to Washington. He was expected to meet with U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on Wednesday. That's not happening now.

A source in Israel is saying the reason for the delay is because Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wants to receive a phone call from President Joe Biden before Gallant can go to Washington. Also, Netanyahu wants to have a cabinet vote on what they should do, the nature of the response to Iran's strike last week.

And we've also heard from the State Department saying that they object to IDF troops raising an Israeli flag over a southern Lebanese border village that they appear to have taken control of. They say it is inappropriate that they want the IDF to stick to the terms of what they said they were doing, which was limited incursions, and not giving the impression that they are taking and holding territory inside of Lebanon.

And to the west of there, the IDF also increasing their military operations along that northern border, creating another closed military zone, very close to the coast there. Another division bought into that area, stepping up the military operations across the border. Not clear how long they'll go on, how far they may go into Lebanon. But an indication that operations, IDF military operations, all the way along that northern border are increasing.

And the response from Hezbollah into the west, that northern part of Israel, into the northern town of Haifa, the port city there, a large number of missiles, 105 the IDF saying coming into Haifa and into the upper Galilee region as well, those missiles impacting in the northern suburbs of Haifa, two buildings taking direct hits in those residential areas. An elderly lady treated for minor injuries.

And the Home Front Command now telling residents in the north of Haifa, in those suburbs there, that the schools will have to be closed because of the risk of threat. An indication there that IDF operations have now spread all the way from the east of the northern border with Lebanon, all the way across to the west now. Nic Robertson, CNN, Tel Aviv.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: The Israeli military says it's checking to see whether the presumptive new leader of Hezbollah has been killed in an Israeli airstrike.

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Now, earlier Tuesday, the Israeli prime minister claimed Hassan Nasrallah's successor Hashem Safieddine had been eliminated along with thousands of other terrorists. An IDF spokesperson says Safieddine was in a Hezbollah building in Beirut when it was hit on Friday but the results of the strike are still being assessed.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REAR ADM. DANIEL HAGARI, ISRAEL DEFENSE FORCES SPOKESPERSON (through translator): Destruct the intelligence compound in Beirut in El Dahieh neighborhood. This is the command center of the head of intelligence, Abu Abdel Murtada. And we know that Hashem Safieddine was with him.

The results of these strikes are being checked. Hezbollah is trying to conceal information. We will know and update the public.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: Meantime, the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, as you've just been hearing, has forced tens of thousands of Israelis from their homes in the north of the country and it destroyed Lebanese villages as well along the border.

CNN's Jomana Karadsheh spoke with residents who fled for their lives.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Serene and picturesque, it's what Alma El Chaeb once was. Today, much of this Lebanese border village lies in ruins.

The destruction is horrific, says Hanna Zohrob. Homes in Alma El Chaeb are destroyed, completely devastated by strikes. The face of the entire area has changed. He says war hit his village long before most were paying attention.

It began on October 8th when Hezbollah launched attacks against Israel under the banner of solidarity with Gaza, sparking a year of tit-for- tat cross-border attacks. Homes in Alma El Chaeb were destroyed, almost its entire population including local official Zohrob was forced to flee. The border conflict has now expanded to all-out war.

The last 10 days no one can imagine the level of brutality, Hanna says. They began using different weapons against the village. Whenever there is an airstrike now, it destroys a whole neighborhood. Five to six homes destroyed at the same time. Hanna thought like previous wars their Christian village would be

spared the worst of the violence. He believes its strategic position, right on the border overlooking Israel, has turned it this time into a battlefield for both sides, and its people are paying the price. Like 90-year-old of Om Jameel (PH). She was too old to leave, killed late last month in an Israeli strike on her home.

Hanna, like many of his generation, has seen every war in Lebanon since the 1970s. He says the Israeli onslaught in recent weeks is like nothing he'd seen before. He doesn't name Hezbollah, but he questions those who started this war.

Was that banner of solidarity with Gaza worth all the pain, destruction, and displacement, he asks. Now we talk about help for Lebanon and have forgotten that solidarity.

Hanna and his wife, Soud, show us what's left of the neighborhood where they grew up.

When these homes were hit, I felt like a part of my childhood is gone, Soud says. The memories are gone. It was all erased in an instant. The pain is unbearable. It hurts so much almost.

Alma El Chaeb is now a ghost town. The last of its residents have now fled. Their livelihood, these agricultural lands, olive trees, gone.

The big question is, will we ever return to our homes? Will we ever go back to our village, Hanna says. Will we rebuild it again and who will rebuild it? If this had stopped 10 days ago, maybe. But now, with this level of destruction and devastation, war has spread far beyond their small village. Home now the mountains above Beirut. What will become of their village and their country has never been so uncertain.

Jomana Karadsheh, CNN, Beirut.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: Ahead for us, a flurry of high-profile interviews. We'll look at the Harris campaign's medica strategy in the final weeks of what is, yes, a very tight race. And over a dozen U.S. states sue TikTok alleging the platform harms children's mental health. More on the lawsuit against the social media giant. That's ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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NEWTON: An Afghan national has been charged for allegedly plotting a terror attack on election day in the United States. The Justice Department is charging the 27-year-old with conspiring and attempting to provide material support to ISIS among other charges. The FBI had arrested him in Oklahoma on Monday after he purchased rifles and ammunition from an undercover law enforcement agent. Now prosecutors say the man had been talking with a known ISIS recruiter and planned to target large gatherings of people. Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris is doing a burst of

interviews this week as she tries to pull ahead in the neck and neck race for the White House. Now the latest CNN Poll of Polls gives her a razor thin lead over Donald Trump among likely voters, meaning, yes, there's still no clear leader here.

CNN's Eva McKend has our report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Vice President Kamala Harris in the midst of a media blitz, as the Democratic presidential nominee tries to reach as many voters as possible in the coming weeks of a campaign that is exceedingly close.

KAMALA HARRIS (D), VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It is good to be with you.

MCKEND: Among the flurry of unscripted interviews, most of them on nontraditional news shows, including an appearance on "The View," where Harris was asked if she would have done anything differently than President Joe Biden.

HARRIS: There is not a thing that comes to mind in terms of -- and I've been a part of most of the decisions that have had impact.

MCKEND: Harris leader pointed to one way she would differ from Biden if elected.

HARRIS: I'm going to have a Republican in my cabinet. Because I don't -- I don't feel burdened by letting pride get in the way of a good idea.

MCKEND: The Trump campaign quickly seized on the vice president's comments saying in a statement, "If you're a voter who wants to turn the page from Joe Biden's failed economy, open border, and global chaos then Kamala Harris is not the candidate for you."

With four weeks until election day, Harris also calling out the former president's series of falsehoods about the federal response in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.

HARRIS: It's profound and it is the height of irresponsibility and frankly callousness. This is so consistent about Donald Trump. He puts himself before the needs of others. I fear that he really lacks empathy on a very basic level.

MCKEND: In addition to "The View," Harris also sitting Tuesday with Howard Stern and late-night host Stephen Colbert, following a wide- ranging interview with CBS' "60 Minutes." This section posted online.

BILL WHITAKER, CBS "60 MINUTES" CORRESPONDENT: Which foreign country do you considered to be our great adversary?

HARRIS: I think there's an obvious one in mind, which is Iran. Iran has American blood on their hands. OK. This attack on Israel, 200 ballistic missiles. What we need to do to ensure that Iran never achieves the ability to be a nuclear power. That is one of my highest priority.

MCKEND: Harris telling Stern the high stakes of the election is causing her to lose sleep.

HARRIS: I literally lose sleep, and have been over what is at stake in this election.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MCKEND (on-camera): And Harris' media strategy, not only to preach to the converted, but to speak to Americans more broadly as she tries to remind them of some of the chaos that came to characterize the Trump presidency. She argues that he's easily manipulated by dictators and had a botched response to the pandemic.

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Eva McKend, CNN, Washington.

NEWTON: Legendary journalist Bob Woodward has captured a rare look behind the scenes of the highest levels of global politics. Now his new book called "War" reveals conversations from Joe Biden, Kamala Harris and Donald Trump, often about or involving other world leaders.

He described previously unknown details about the relationship between former president Trump and Vladimir Putin, including that there may have been as many as seven calls between the two men since Trump left the White House. And a secret shipment of COVID-19 testing supplies Trump sent to the Russian president at the height of the pandemic.

Jamie Gangel has more now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAMIE GANGEL, CNN SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT: These are never before revealed phone calls that Woodward is reporting about between Trump and Putin, including this verbatim conversation where they discussed, like you mentioned, that President Trump apparently secretly sent the Russian president this scarce shipment of COVID test machines for his personal use. So here is the exchange from the book.

Putin, please don't tell anybody you sent these to me. Trump, I don't care. Fine. Putin, no, no, I don't want you to tell anybody because people will get mad at you, not me. They don't care about me. Former president Trump today denied sending the test to Putin.

President Biden, reacting to the reports that Trump had sent these, according to Woodward, said, quote, "What the hell is wrong with this guy," meaning Trump.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: Our thanks to Jamie Gangel for that report. Now, among other new details, Bob Woodward reports that Biden's

national security team at one point believed that there was a real threat, a 50 percent chance in fact that Putin would use nuclear weapons in Ukraine. During a conversation about his son's legal troubles, meantime, President Biden said, he quote, "should never have picked Merrick Garland to be the U.S. attorney general," and he criticized former president Barack Obama for his handling of Putin's invasion of Crimea in 2014, concluding that Obama, quote, "Never took Putin seriously."

So as Florida's Gulf Coast braces for Hurricane Milton widespread and long-lasting power outages are sure to follow. I will speak with a former head of the state's largest power provider about the challenges those crews will likely face.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NEWTON: And welcome back to our viewers and all around the world. I'm Paula Newton and you are watching CNN NEWSROOM.

Right now, Hurricane Milton is once again a rare Category 5 storm in the Gulf of Mexico, with landfall expected on Florida's heavily populated West Coast sometime in the day ahead.

Now, it's forecast to weaken before then, likely to a Category 3 strength. But remember, forecasters warn the powerful winds and storm surge will still be life-threatening.

The city of Tampa is bracing for the worst-case scenario. Officials there say one thing that makes Milton even scarier is what it could do to all that debris -- you see it there -- left behind by Hurricane Helene, which hit the region just two weeks ago.

Another major concern: power outages, which authorities fear could be widespread and very long-lasting, affecting potentially millions of people.

Joining me now is Eric Silagi. He is the former chairman and CEO of Florida Power and Light.

And Eric, not too long ago, this storm and its aftermath would have been resting on your shoulders. So, if you're looking at this monster storm, what is Florida facing as it tries not only to keep the power on, but restore power when this storm finally does pass?

ERIC SILAGI, FORMER CHAIRMAN/CEO, FLORIDA POWER AND LIGHT: Yes, Paula, this one is going to be a really challenging storm, both from a standpoint it's a monster in and of itself. Category 5 right now. Hopefully, the predictions hold, and it does dissipate. But it, regardless, is going to be a major impact on the state, right on the heels of a storm that hit us just a few weeks ago, Hurricane Helene, and a lot of rain in the weeks in between.

So, we've had ground saturated; a lot of storm surge that hit the Western part of Florida, the West Coast of Florida two weeks ago; a tremendous amount of debris that is still piled up on the sides of the roads that, unfortunately, can become a projectile pretty quickly, in these kind of winds.

And predictions of, again, significant storm surge going forward.

NEWTON: When you were in your previous role as chairman, what did the worst-case scenario look like? And does this resemble it, in some ways?

And again, we all hope that that does not come to fruition.

SILAGI: Yes, you know, there are a lot of events that are coming together here to make it very, very challenging and difficult.

We drilled and trained as a company all year long for storms. You always hope that you never got a big one, but you always planned for it.

It's always a challenge when you have kind of one, two events, or one, two, three, where these storms have a tendency to come in waves. And ones that cut across the state or, in Florida's case, ones that started in the South and move North are always very challenging, because it's a very big state with a lot of population, a lot of density of people that live on the coastlines. And it's challenging to get as many crews as you need to come in, because they all have to flow from the North, South and from outside of Florida.

So, there's a lot of -- a lot of challenges yet to plan for and scenario-play and prepare for, which -- which we did. And I will tell you, the industry does. Utility workers understand what's -- what's ahead. They understand what's at stake, and they have a mindset of a duty to serve.

So, I'm confident that, you know, we've got the best folks with the best training ready to go. But we also shouldn't downplay the fact that the challenges of this one are going to be significant.

NEWTON: Right. To diminish it in any way. I mean, as you said, they know what's in front of them. And it's a challenge, perhaps, that no one in Florida has dealt with so far, at least not in recent history.

I want to ask you about, are their infrastructure plans already in the works in Florida so that utilities can better adapt to these storms? We all understand that the power might be out for one or two days, but when it starts to lean into a week, two weeks, three weeks, I mean, that really compromises lives and livelihoods.

SILAGI: Well, that's absolutely right. And Paula, like I will say that I said often to regulators and government officials, both in Washington and Tallahassee and elsewhere, there's no such thing as a hurricane-proof utility.

You really can't afford that, but you can do a lot to harden the system and to make it much more resilient.

And Florida is actually way ahead of the curve in this. As an example, at Florida Power and Light, we focused on our transmission systems starting many years ago. And as of a couple of years ago, we had removed every wood pole out of the transmission system. That's 8,000 miles. That's now all concrete, all steel.

More than half of the system that's on the distribution is underground. Hundreds of thousands of smart devices, smart grid devices were installed throughout the system.

[00:05:08]

And everybody, at least on the Florida Power and Light system, has a smart meter. All that comes together to really make a difference in being able to understand who's out, why they're out, and what's needed to get them back up as quickly as possible.

But again, Mother Nature will always throw you curveballs. Every storm is different. And, you know, I learned so much in the 21 storms I was responsible for. Every one was different.

We also responded to storms all over the country to help others. And we learned from those, as well. And you take those lessons learned. You apply them. And then you deal with the unexpected.

NEWTON: Right. And we will be leaning, of course, on all of those preparations going forward in the coming days.

Eric Silagi, thank you so much. You've really given us a lot of insight into what they're up against.

SILAGI: My pleasure. I'm sorry it's under these circumstances, but nice speaking with you.

NEWTON: Still to come, for decades, Nintendo has sent gamers of all ages on memorable, magical journeys in the worlds of Mario and Zelda and other iconic characters.

And you can see it all up close in a brand-new museum.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:38:26]

NEWTON: Israel's supreme court has given Elon Musk's X the green light to resume services in that country.

Now, X had been suspended since August after not complying with court orders related to hate speech and misinformation moderation.

However, Musk, who had denounced the orders as censorship, has since bowed to pressure, with his platform reversing course, blocking accounts flagged by the court and paying pending fines.

Now, 14 U.S. states are suing TikTok for allegedly harming the mental health of children. They're accusing the social media app of addicting young people with its endless feed and challenge videos that can sometimes encourage risky behavior.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) ANDREA CAMPBELL, MASSACHUSETTS ATTORNEY GENERAL: Our goal is to hold the company accountable for its unlawful conduct and to stop the company from engaging in practices that exploit our young people for profit.

This case is not about regulating the content that is shown to TikTok users. It's about TikTok's own bad conduct, its intentional design choices that trap young people's time and attention and hurt them in the process.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: TikTok says it strongly disagrees with the claims.

TikTok's Chinese parent company, ByteDance, is also battling a law that could ban the app in the United States.

So, few companies can say they have created as many widely beloved characters and seminal childhood experiences as Nintendo. Now a new museum in Japan is celebrating the video game company's history with interactive displays and other nostalgic fun.

CNN -- CNN's Hanako Montgomery shows us around.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

[00:40:02]

(MUSIC)

HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): That is the sound that brings childhood memories to millions. Nintendo opens its very first museum, giving people the chance to explore Mario's world, and guiding visitors through the company's 135-year history.

FERNANDO PATINO, MEXICAN TOURIST: When I was a little boy, I imagine like, wow, I want to be a game programmer someday. But in Mexico, it was like where -- do you know? It's something super-new even in these days.

But the music of the games is the thing that I like the most. I think it was very creative.

PENG MINGDA, NINTENDO FAN (through translator): The characters are really cute, and the games are pretty good. They always put new ideas into the games, which I really like.

MONTGOMERY (voice-over): From adorable characters like Toad to interactive games and even a burger-themed restaurant, the museum also features a massive haul, with almost every product ever released by the company.

Nintendo fans can now enjoy an interactive experience with their favorite characters.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Zelda.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Link (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mario, Zelda, X-hero.

MINGDA (through translator): The Legend of Zelda, Breath of the Wild.

MONTGOMERY (voice-over): And may encounter another fan favorite, a Poke Lid with an original Pikachu design featuring a Game Boy is also on display.

But visiting this highly anticipated museum is not as easy as it sounds. Visitors have to sign up for a lottery ticket system, at least three months in advance.

Even with the wait, fans are excited to be a part of Nintendo for a few hours.

MINGDA (through translator): I think they've added a new route for us to find out more about Nintendo. Not just the goods, but also the history of Nintendo in the past. It feels like we've gained another tool.

MONTGOMERY (voice-over): Hanako Montgomery, CNN, Tokyo.

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NEWTON: Hello, I'm Paula Newton. Ahead right here on CNN NEWSROOM, bracing for catastrophe. Major evacuations are --