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Death Toll Soars in Myanmar; Massive Protests in Turkey; Secrets of a Newly Discovered Pharaoh's Tomb. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired March 30, 2025 - 03:00   ET

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

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[03:00:00]

LYNDA KINKADE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to all our viewers watching from all around the world. Good to have you with us. I'm Lynda Kinkade.

Ahead on CNN Newsroom, the Death Toll climbs is rescue workers in Myanmar, search for survivors after a powerful earthquake.

Plus, a massive protests in Turkey after the government jails and opposition leader.

And the newly discovered tomb of an ancient Egyptian pharaoh, I'll speak about the secrets it's keeping with a man who helped find it.

Absolutely heartbreaking images there as the race to fine survivors continues after Friday's deadly earthquake, which ripped through Southeast Asia. The death on Myanmar has soared to more than 1,600, and that number is expected to climb much higher health workers on the ground are struggling as the United Nations says everything from damaged roads to a shortage of medical supplies hurting relief efforts.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LIU CHONG, U.N. STAFF MEMBER IN MYANMAR: The difficulty for now is we're out power, out of water and out of any network. So, we're in the dry season. So, the temperature in Mandalay maybe dark, can easily go up beyond 40 degrees. And even last night, I was not able to sleep because it was so hot. And for the people at Myanmar that you can imagine how they were suffering.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Well, rescue teams are also criticizing a lack of aid from the military government, which is waging a civil war against rebels. But the country's sort of shadow government has announced a two week pause in offensive military operations. They include ALTSEAN, the democratically-elected lawmakers who oppose the ruling junta. A U.N. human rights representative for Myanmar is now urging the international community to work with the shadow government on relief.

And in Thailand, the prime minister says their country's return to normalcy as the city of Bangkok announced its death toll had risen to 17. Rescue workers there are looking for survivors after a high-rise building collapsed. Two bodies have been recovered.

CNN's Will Ripley has more now from the Thai capital.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: In earthquake- ravaged Myanmar, families sift through the rubble, searching for signs of life, all too often finding death.

Mother, I'm your son. May you please go to a proper abode, says this man holding his mom's lifeless hand.

One of many devastating scenes across the crippled city of Mandalay, damaged stretches across entire neighborhoods, homes, and historic buildings reduced to rubble, Buddhist monasteries, places of peace and reflection, now piles of debris. Geologists say the massive 7.7 earthquake had the energy of hundreds of atomic bombs.

Myanmar's worst quake in more than a century hitting right during Friday, prayers, many mosques collapsed, trapping Muslim worshipers inside.

After several years of brutal civil war and largely self-imposed isolation, the leader of Myanmar's military junta surveyed the devastation, making a rare plea for international aid, now slowly beginning to arrive from China, Russia, India, other countries have also pledged support.

For this impoverished nation, help cannot come quickly enough, the 7.7 magnitude earthquake and its powerful aftershocks likely leaving parts of the nation uninhabitable. With severe damage, hundreds of miles from the epicenter, including in Thailand's capital city of Bangkok, skyscrapers swaying so violently, rooftop pools briefly became waterfalls.

And this 30-storey high rise under construction near a popular weekend market, collapsed without warning, likely trapping dozens inside.

Here in Bangkok, heavy machinery is now sifting through the rubble of that collapsed skyscraper. They do have the resources in the manpower for a massive disaster response, but with each passing hour of not finding anyone alive and all that rubble, hope for the families is fading.

Search and rescue teams are doing everything they can. Sniffer dogs picking up possible signs of life, giving hope to this wife and mother of two who was working in the building with her husband of 30 years, but stepped outside for a break just before the quake.

[03:05:06]

I'm looking for my husband, she says. He's trapped inside. Until I see his body, I still have hope. Drone footage captures the scale of the collapse, a tangled mass of steel and concrete where rescuers continued searching all day Saturday.

I'm praying my mom and sister are among the survivors, she says, but I see how fast the building went down. It's hard to hold on. Hope is still alive here, but barely.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

RIPLEY (on camera): And here in Bangkok you can see that work is basically continuing around the clock. They're now using more of the heavy machinery to dig through this large pile of rubble, that concrete, and that steel, which raises the question, are they no longer concerned about destabilizing areas where they thought survivors might be trapped. The fact that they haven't found anyone alive, and it's been a full day of searching, certainly difficult for a lot of the families out here who continue waiting.

Will Ripley, CNN, Bangkok.

KINKADE: You are joining us live from Singapore is Journalist Manisha Tank. Good to have you with us. So, Manisha, this was obviously a devastating earthquake in Myanmar, but it was also felt right across Thailand. What's the latest on the high-rise city of Bangkok?

MANISHA TANK, JOURNALIST: Yes. Well, Bangkok has reported that 9,500 reports have been filed of damage to buildings of one kind or another due to this quake. And this is according to the city's governor. We also know that total -- he also went on to say that today over a hundred buildings are to be inspected by 20 teams of volunteer engineers. And anyone who knows Bangkok will know that it is an urban center, that it is a skyline dotted with skyscrapers as far as the eye can see. There's always a lot of construction going on, and so that will be a huge concern for residents there.

This is a city that is not familiar with this kind of seismic activity. This is such a shock to so many. And on that note, let's take it a thousand kilometers away to the epicenter near Mandalay in Myanmar, where we have seen so much destruction. Will was pointing it out there and some of the tragic stories that are emerging between families between those loved ones who have been lost.

The big question becomes, how is aid going to be deployed? We do now have a number of nations that are saying they're stepping up the funds, millions of dollars. We've heard this from Australia, the United Kingdom, Ireland also from the European Union, just to name a few, millions of dollars in aid is being pledged. But how is it going to get there?

We know from the United Nations that bridges have collapsed, that roads have literally been torn apart by Mother Nature's forces. So, getting the help to where it's needed is the big challenge. And on top of that, there have been power cuts.

Now, as we heard, there has been a civil war raging in the country for the last five years. Power cuts were an issue even before this quake. So, you can imagine the vulnerability of a country that already have it had its infrastructure under such huge pressure to actually then deploy, the medical supplies and the doctors and the nurses. I mean, Medicins San Frontieres, Doctors Without Borders, they have said that they have the scale, they have the ability to get help in there, but they need local authorities on the ground to help facilitate that. So, this is going to be a huge challenge.

Just to finish, really, the WHO, the World Health Organization has described the destruction there as enormous. I think it can give you a sense of just how challenging this is going to be.

KINKADE: Yes, certainly. Manisha Tank in Singapore, thanks very much.

Well, joining us now from Yangon, Myanmar, is Marie Manrique. She is the Myanmar programme coordinator for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. Good to have you with us. Thanks so much for your time.

MARIE MANRIQUE, MYANMAR PROGRAMME COORDINATOR, IFRC: Thank you for having me.

KINKADE: So, you've been a program manager with over 20 years of experience. How does the magnitude of this tragedy compare to what you've experienced in the past?

MANRIQUE: What we're seeing here in Myanmar is a level of devastation that hasn't been seen over a century in Asia. This is a level of the earthquake that we're going to see, not just today, tomorrow, but for the next weeks, ongoing death tolls, types of injuries. We know that buildings have collapsed. There are people still under those buildings. We have a small window of opportunity to reach those people now.

KINKADE: And Myanmar, of course, is one of the poorest nations in Asia and was already reeling from a brutal civil war that began four years ago after that military coup. Just explain the humanitarian need both before this strategy and now.

MANRIQUE: So, we refer to this as humanitarians as a compound crisis, or what is called a protracted crisis. So, basically, what you're seeing is humanitarian needs that existed prior to the earthquake have just been compounded with this earthquake.

[03:10:04]

So, in a country that has 3.5 million displaced people, the northwest areas of the country was particularly hit, which is an area that has been actually also affected by what is happening in the country.

So, the humanitarian needs range from the most basic of having housing, safe and clean water, healthcare education, basic needs. And now we're seeing that, really, the importance of actually reaching out to people that have been living in the streets for the past two nights and we're coming onto night three. And we need to reach these people so that they have that safe housing, safe water, and that actually we're attending to the medical needs that they have.

KINKADE: And just talk to us more about the challenges, trying to reach all those people, because there's obviously major infrastructure issues, like damaged roads and also communication blackouts. Just explain what those challenges look like for you.

MANRIQUE: So, the challenges that you refer to are challenges that the earthquake really has caused a problem with internet connectivity, telecommunications, in general. So, in the areas that have been most affected, telecommunications is generally down with very few commercial telephone companies actually working. So, to get information has been quite difficult.

But one of the things we know from local actors of the Red Cross that are on the ground is really the devastating situation that is occurring. We're talking about situations where communities are trying to help one another. This is a country that people always work together to try and help one another. But trying to dig people out of the rubble, take people to any sort of original emergency medical care that's possible. We're looking at a situation where electricity has still not been restored in many of these areas.

KINKADE: Wow. And I understand the first overseas support began arriving this weekend from China and India, and more nations around the world are pledging support. What is the biggest need right now?

MANRIQUE: So, the biggest need right now would really be to have good housing for the people so that they can stay somewhere, and then, of course, the health needs and the water and sanitation needs in country. The International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies has just launched an emergency appeal for 100 million Swiss Francs, which is about the equivalent of $113 million U.S. dollars. This is a two-year plan to really work with the Myanmar Red Cross Society and community members to respond to this very devastating earthquake, but also look into strengthening resilience and building back better in the communities.

KINKADE: And I'm wondering if there are still any aftershocks and whether there are some people that are just too afraid to go back into a building.

MANRIQUE: Yes, of course, that happens after all earthquakes. There were 14 aftershocks that were quite large after the initial earthquake. What we're seeing is that, as you said, people are afraid to go back into buildings, not only because of the psychological impact of the earthquakes themselves but also not knowing what the damage is to the building or their house.

Infrastructure is being analyzed in some cases, as you mentioned. We're looking at bridges, roads, public institutions, schools, hospitals that have also been affected by this earthquake.

KINKADE: And about 20 million people live in areas impacted by the quake. The civil war continues, I mean, even in the hours after the earthquake struck. There were local reports that the military had launched airstrikes into the north of the state killing seven people. It's hard to believe the military is killing people when you're trying to save them. How does that further complicate your work? And has the military agreed to pause fighting like the rebels?

MANRIQUE: So, right now, as you can imagine, we're really focused on the emergency response and trying to reach people that need to be dug out from the rebel people that need access to emergency healthcare, water. This is what the Red Cross is focusing on here in the country. We know that there are many stakeholders that are involved in this, and so we're working together with those local stakeholders. The Red Cross works with 81 at the community level that is engaged in the humanitarian response. That is our focus right now.

KINKADE: Well, we appreciate all the work you're doing on the ground, you and your team. Marie Manrique in Yangon, Myanmar, thanks so much for your time.

MANRIQUE: Thank you for having me.

KINKADE: Well, Turkey's opposition presidential candidate sends a message to supporters in a letter written from jail. Still ahead, his harsh words for Turkey's President, read out loud at a rally attended by thousands.

And protesters take to the streets of Tel Aviv to demand that the Israeli government accept a ceasefire proposal and bring the hostages home.

[03:15:01]

That story and more, next.

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KINKADE: Welcome back. I'm Lynda Kincade.

Turkey's opposition is keeping up the pressure on the government following the arrest of the popular mayor of Istanbul. Thousands of people attended a rally in Istanbul Saturday more than a week after Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu was detained on corruption charges. It happened just before he was selected to be the opposition's candidate for the next presidential election, which is meant to happen in 2028.

His supporters say the arrest was politically motivated, as some polls show that he would be President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The mayor addressed his supporters in a letter from jail.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OZGUR CELIK, PROVINCIAL CHAIRMAN, OPPOSITION CHP PARTY: Erdogan gives one unfair and unlawful instruction after another. The evil he does is once again placing economic burdens on our nation. Even though he decides everything himself, Erdogan never takes any responsibility.

DILEK IMAMOGLU, WIFE OF MAYOR EKREM IMAMOGLU: This is just the beginning. We will keep fighting. We will keep fighting and fighting.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[03:20:00]

KINKADE: Well, for more analysis, we're joined by Halil Karaveli, a senior fellow at the Central Asia Caucus Institute. He's also the author of the book, Why Turkey is Authoritarian from Ataturk to Erdogan, and he joins us live from Gothenburg, Sweden. Good to have you with us.

HALIL M. KARAVELI, SENIOR FELLOW, CENTRAL ASIA-CAUCUSAS INSTITUTE: Thank you. Thank you. We're having me on the show.

KINKADE: So, can you just firstly start by describing what is unfolding in Turkey? Could this be a turning point?

It is definitely a turning point. Now, historically, repression has worked for Turkish President Erdogan. He has always been able to count on popular support when he has went -- gone after his political opponents. That was the case when they jail the secularist army of military officers and bureaucrats, and when they jailed Kurdish politicians.

Not so this time though when he went after and tried to crush what is Turkey's leading party, arresting his presidential candidate, because the Republican People's Party, the central one, CHP, is the ascendant force in Turkey. It carried the local elections in Turkey a year ago, almost to the day. And it has made significant inroads into the conservative base of Erdogan. And a week ago, 15 million people out of a population of 86 million voted for voted for Imamoglue, expressing their solidarity with him. And this shows that Erdogan's autocracy, or his attempted autocracy, is unsustainable.

KINKADE: Yes. It's interesting that despite the fact that the Istanbul mayor is being detained, that his party still named him as the presidential candidate for the 2028 election. Is Erdogan crackdown energizing opposition supporters?

KARAVELI: He has definitely energized them and it is important to stress that the CHP, the main opposition party, which has, you know, for the many years hadn't had much support beyond 20, 25 percent. It received 37 percent of the votes of the local elections last year. And, again, many conservatives, traditional Erdogan voters are also incensed by this blatant attempt to shell democracy and the blatant, disrespectful, popular sovereignty by removing an elected mayor in this way.

Now, I also know it's also important to stress that the events of the past week have shown cracks in the armor of the regime because there have been many instances where the forces of order have shown reluctance to suppress the protesters. This shows that Erdogan, if he were to persist in his attempt to establish his one man autocracy, he won't necessarily be able to count on the support of the police.

And I think that Erdogan also realizes that he needs to step back for from the brink. And there was an interesting sign yesterday when a critical ally of Erdogan said that those who are charged shouldn't necessarily be incarcerated. That is kind of implied that Ekrem Imamoglu might in fact be released. He will still face charges. He will be -- but until he's sentenced, if he is sentenced, he could actually be released.

And I also want to stress that now these protests, as I said, as we said, it's a turning point. They have shown that autocracy is unsustainable in Turkey, but this doesn't mean by definition that democracy will be easier to achieve because the protests have also shown that there is no purpose of unity among those who protest. They are against Erdogan, but they don't necessarily share the same objectives.

Many are definitely progressive university students, but it has also been -- it's also been a very worrying sign to see that many of the protesters are hateful, far right nationalists. And this is a clearly worrying sign because Turkey still remains a very divided country, where Turks and Kurds are pitted against each other, and far right nationalism is also an in ascendancy.

KINKADE: Now, we know like Erdogan has been in power for 22 years. Describe how he's consolidated his power and what his next step might be.

KARAVELI: Now, Erdogan has always relied on allies.

[03:25:01]

When he first came to power, he relied on the support of the Humanist Brotherhood, who eventually then turned against Erdogan and tried to overthrow him in 2016. After 2016, Erdogan struck up an alliance with a far right nationalist party. And he owes this election and reelection to the support of the far right nationalist party. And he also has staffed the bureaucracy with the caterers (ph) that the far right nationalist party has provided. So, Erdogan relies on this. So, he has been very -- shifting alliance, coming to power first supported by liberals and unionists. And then when that didn't work, he continued and has now consolidated his power together with the far right nationalists.

The Turkish regime is a sort of a -- and the challenge that Erdogan's regime now faces is in a way was an existential challenge even before this arrest of Imamoglu. Because Erdogan has aged, he is not a long- term solution, his reelection is very much uncertain. So, the regime needs to -- if it wants to persist, it needs to first secure Erdogan's reelection and second to find a successor. And that is very much in doubt. In this case, I would say that it this regime, I would predict that it will actually not endure.

KINKADE: All right, interesting prediction. We'll talk again sooner now. Halil Karaveli, thanks so much for your time.

KARAVELI: Thank you.

KINKADE: Demonstrators turned out in Tel Aviv Saturday to demand that the Israeli government accept a ceasefire and secure the release of all hostages in Hamas captivity. Protesters want the government to agree to a ceasefire proposal that would see her must release five hostages and allow the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza. Hamas said Saturday it would accept the deal.

Israeli military is ramping up attacks in Gaza, announcing the start of ground activity in Rafah, and ordering some neighborhoods in Southern Gaza to be evacuated.

Well, Ukraine could be trying to get a new bargaining chip and ceasefire talks with Moscow. The Kremlin says Ukrainian forces have launched an incursion into Russia's Belgorod region, claiming 20 villages are under attack. Ukraine has been silent about that allegation, but the operation would come as Ukraine is losing ground in Russia's Kursk region where Kyiv gained ground last August.

It's unclear what Ukraine's goals might be in Belgorod, but both sides are looking for territorial gains, as the White House pushes for a ceasefire.

Well, groups of protesters carried out a global day of action Saturday. Ahead, the Tesla takedown movement and the backlash against Elon Musk.

Plus, Donald Trump says he won't rule out a military takeover of Greenland. We're bringing the latest on the dispute between the U.S. and Denmark.

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[03:30:00]

KINKADE: Welcome back to CN Newsroom. I'm Lynda Kinkade.

Let's check today's top stories. A desperate search for survivors is underway after Friday's deadly earthquake in Southeast Asia. The death toll in Myanmar skyrocketed to more than 1,600, as health workers on the ground struggle with a shortage of resources.

Thousands of people jammed a rally Istanbul in support of the arrested mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu. He was put behind bars on corruption charges last week, just before he was selected to be the main opposition presidential candidate. His supporters call the arrest politically motivated.

Demonstrators turned out in Tel Aviv Saturday to demand that the Israeli government accept a ceasefire proposal and secure the release of more hostages from Gaza. Hamas said Saturday will accept a deal that would release five hostages and allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza.

Elon Musk faces mounting international backlash for his role in slashing U.S. government jobs and foreign aid. In Northern Germany, new video shows seven Tesla vehicles burning in the city of Verden on Saturday. Police were investigating the cause of the file. It came as the Tesla take down movement called for a global day of action on Saturday. This one was in London where one protester seen holding a sign seeing honk if you hate Elon. In many other places, protesters showed up in droves outside Tesla showrooms. They're encouraging people to sell their Tesla vehicles and shares of company stock.

Here in the United States, more than 200 demonstrations was scheduled at Tesla locations. CNN's Marybel Gonzalez reports from a protest in Southern California.

MARYBEL GONZALES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The protests against Tesla and Elon Musk continue nationwide, with over 200 reported just this weekend alone. Now, here in Pasadena, California, dozens and dozens of people have come out outside of a Tesla store with signs saying, democracy is not autocracy, keep Elon Musk out of the federal government.

All sorts of messages they hold, get to the ears of President Donald Trump and Elon Musk himself. They're critical of Musk's recent downsizing of federal agencies and their employees. And they say they're worried about the future, especially when we're talking about (INAUDIBLE) and other means (ph).

We spoke to one organizer who tells us what drove him to attend this protest, which is now his third one in recent weeks.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SCOTT VICTOR, PROTESTER: These are not regular protesters. This is a pretty seasoned crowd, if you know what I mean. Probably most people here are over six (ph). And, you know, these aren't the activists type of people. So, you got the question, where are these coming in from.

There's been wholesale gutting of Social Security. There's a threat to Medicare and Medicaid, and there's so many people in our state who highly depend on that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GONZALEZ: Now, these protests have been, by and large, peaceful with organizers of this movement, asking protesters to remain calm when sending their message. But we do know that there's been several incidents of violent attacks and vandalism on Tesla cars, Tesla dealerships, and other Tesla facilities.

[03:35:06]

I asked these organizers what they think about these acts of vandalism and they strongly denounce them, saying that is not the way to send a message. Instead they said, this is what people should be doing, taking to the streets to boycott Musk's companies until they see him step down.

Reporting in Pasadena, California, Marybel Gonzalez.

KINKADE: U.S. President Donald Trump is standing by his national security officials amid the growing scandal over a Signal text chain discussing military operations in Yemen. The president told NBC News that he does have confidence in National Security Adviser Mike Waltz and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth saying, quote, it's just a witch hunt and fake news. It comes as The New York Times reports that Mr. Trump has privately considered firing Mike Waltz.

Well, President Trump is escalating his threats to take over Greenland. He told NBC News that he's engaged in serious discussions about annexing the Danish territory. But it's not clear who he is speaking to.

When he was asked about the possibility of using military force to take over the island, Mr. Trump said there's a, quote, good possibility that we could do it without military force, adding, I don't take anything off the table. He also said, we'll get Greenland, yes, 100 percent.

Well, the White House argues that controlling the Greenland is necessary for U.S security regardless about how its own residents feel. Well, that comes after the Vice President J.D. Vance's controversial visit to Greenland stirred up anger in both Greenland and Denmark.

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KINKADE (voice over): U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance may have left Greenland. What he said there is still causing a stir, both on the Arctic island and in Denmark, which controls Greenland's foreign and security policies.

J.D. VANCE, U.S. VICE PRESIDENT: Our message to Denmark is very simple. You have not done a good job by the people of Greenland.

KINKADE: Vance suggested Greenland would be better off becoming part of the U.S. rather than a semi-autonomous territory of Denmark, a brash offer repeated by the U.S. that struck a nerve in Copenhagen.

LARS LOKKE RASMUSSEN, DANISH FOREIGN MINISTER: We are open to criticism. But let me be completely honest, we do not appreciate the tone in which it's being delivered. This is not how you speak to your close allies.

KINKADE: Denmark says it remains open to further cooperation with the U.S. in Greenland. It's already investing more into Arctic security, and the Danish prime minister just announced plans to visit Greenland next week.

But near the U.S. Embassy in the Danish capital, some demonstrators had a less diplomatic message to the U.S., chanting Greenland is not for sale, and holding signs like make America go away. It's a lot of pressure on Greenland's new government, which was formed just hours before Vance's visit.

JENS-FREDERIK NIELSEN, GREENLAND PRIME MINISTER: We will have to engage in dialogue. There is no doubt about that. And the first thing we do is engage in dialogue with our closest allies. We will have to move even closer as the situation is now. KINKADE: Vance acknowledged that Greenland will ultimately decide its own future. The new coalition government says it favors a slow independence from Denmark, not exactly the fast track for change the U.S. is pushing for, but something some residents of Greenland say is much more their speed.

STINA SORENSEN, GREENLAND RESIDENT: Now, everybody's eyes is on Greenland, also Denmark, that in that way, it's good that he said something, but take it easy.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Well, still to come, a remarkable new discovery, shedding new light on ancient Egypt. We'll have that story and more, next.

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[03:40:00]

KINKADE: A burial chamber of an Ancient Egyptian pharaoh has been newly discovered. The tomb was found about 7 meters or 23 feet underground at the ancient acropolis called Anubis Mountain. Now, that's in the city of Abydos, about ten kilometers or six miles from the River Nile. It was uncovered in January, and archeologists are in the process of trying to discover exactly whose tomb it was since grave robbers long ago destroyed all the identification on that tomb.

Joseph Wagner is a professor of Egyptian archeology at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archeology and Anthropology. He is one of the leaders of the excavation and joins us from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Great to have you with us.

JOSEPH WAGNER, PROFESSOR OF EGYPTIAN ARCHAELOGY, UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA: Nice to be with you, Lynda.

KINKADE: What an exciting discovery. Just talk to us about the significance of this find. Does it have the potential to rewrite a new chapter of Ancient Egypt?

WAGNER: We are hoping, yes, it's a new pharaoh's tomb. We discovered it in January of this year. We're still searching for the name of this king, but we're pretty certain that he's a predecessor of a king called Senebkay that we discovered in 2014, not far away at the same site at south of Abydos. This particular tomb is larger and does seem to be earlier in time. So, we're investigating who this mystery pharaoh is.

KINKADE: And so I understand grave robbers stole the identity of this pharaoh. What's the likelihood you'll find other clues that will help our understanding of who it was?

WAGNER: We're hoping for that. So, we excavated the tomb. We dug the interior of it and tomb robbers had robbed out the burial equipment. The actual burial and burial chamber of the king was, you know, desecrated, let's say. They had also done damage to the decorated parts of the tomb that originally bore the name of the king. So, that -- we couldn't retrieve that evidence. But the area around it has a lot of potential for fragments of remains that may have the identity of the king.

And more broadly right around it, there's evidence that there may be additional tombs of this same dynasty. We call it the Abydos dynasty. It's a kind of a lost, forgotten dynasty that we first confirmed in 2014. So, yes, continued excavation has a pretty significant potential for identifying this king and maybe even others of his dynasty.

KINKADE: Amazing. And as you mentioned earlier, Joe, you and your team unearthed another tomb of a king back in 2014. What are the similarities with these tombs?

WAGNER: They're similar in design.

[03:45:00]

The architecture of the tomb's have the same basic kind of structure. This new one though is really a lot bigger. And so it has a massive stone -- limestone burial chamber with a series of brick structures that lead down to that. It has these huge soaring vaults which were originally, let's say, like six meters, six to seven meters in total height. So, it's very impressively built. But, overall, the kind of the structure of the architecture is similar to the smaller tomb of King Senebkay that we discovered in 2014.

KINKADE: Wow. And so will the public be able to see the tomb or any of the artifacts anytime soon?

WAGNER: Not immediately. Although I can say that we've installed in recent years with in cooperation with the Ministry of Tourism Antiquities in Egypt, a visitor building over the nearby tomb of Senebkay, and we're in the process of installing a series of visitor buildings actually at this royal necropolis. It was called ancient -- I mean, the ancient name of it was Anubis Mountain. It's in the southern part of Abydos.

And so we're probably in the future going to install visitor buildings over several of the tombs in this possibly including this new one. We still have to make a decision on that. But, yes, not immediately. People won't be able to see it. It is reburied for protection until we go back and reopen the excavations.

KINKADE: And this one that you found in January was seven meters underground, right?

WAGNER: Yes. The depth of the burial chamber from the current surface is seven meters.

KINKADE: And so how --

WAGNER: It's quite a deep structure, yes.

KINKADE: And it was buried that deep because sand had, you know, built up over it over time. Is that part of the reason for that depth? WAGNER: No. The construction itself, the architecture of the tomb there's an entrance shaft which descends to seven meters below the modern surface. And then, you know, at that depth, you have the interior architecture, including a series of brick chambers and the burial chamber. So, all of that, yes, seven meters from the modern surface, above that there's actually further sand and debris that had covered the surviving upper parts of it.

KINKADE: So, you're going to return back there in June. What's the plan then?

WAGNER: Yes. So, we'll probably reopen the area right around the tomb, begin systematic investigation of kind of the landscape right around it. It's adjacent to another quite large tomb that's a little bit earlier in time that we identify and associate with a king called Neferhotep I of the 13th Dynasty. He ran about 1750 B.C. And so that whole area seems to be very promising in terms of this particular group of tombs of this Abydos dynasty, this lost dynasty that Senebkay belongs to and this new tomb belongs to, so, yes, following up the excavations, expanding kind of our understanding of the area, searching for new evidence and possibly new tombs of the same era.

KINKADE: Wow. Incredible, amazing work. Thank you so much for spending some time with us. We appreciate it.

WAGNER: Sure. My pleasure to talk to you, Lynda.

KINKADE: Thanks, Joseph Wagner. Bye-bye.

Well, spring has sprung in Tokyo and Washington D.C. and crowds in both places is celebrating cherry blossom season. We're coming up by this year's peak bloom is several days early.

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[03:50:00]

KINKADE: Welcome back. I'm Lynda Kinkade.

Thousands of people in London were treated to a trip down memory lane on Saturday. It was part of Transport Heritage Initiative. The city offered free rides aboard vintage bus models to ordinary passengers and tourists alike. The London Bus Museum as well as private collectors loaned 35 vehicles to the course. Much of this fleet and its service before World War II.

Well, as the Northern Hemisphere welcomes the return of spring cherry blossoms have reached their peak in parts Tokyo and Washington.

CNN's Allison Chinchar has more on the seasonal beauty and the warm weather that brought the early peak bloom.

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ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST (voice over): Japan's cherry blossoms are once again in bloom, a fleeting ferry land lasting only about two weeks, uniting locals and visitors in Tokyo under a canopy of pink and white.

PAUL MYERS, U.S. TOURIST: We were excited. We'd heard that it was a big event. Everybody comes out, has a picnic, spends the day. And I love being around a lot of people and seeing everybody out, just having a wonderful time together.

CHINCHAR: The temperature sensitive buds flowered five days earlier than last year, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency, an earlier season that's raised some concerns in recent years about the potential impact climate change could have on the treasured trees. But some residents in Tokyo say the weather has been unusual lately.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The recent temperatures changed quite a lot, and my body can't adjust to it. I think the cherry blossoms probably can't keep up with the changes either.

CHINCHAR: Almost in sync with the cherry blossoms in Japan, Washington D.C. is also pretty in pink. The U.S. National Park Service declaring peak bloom on Friday. The trees were gifts from Japan, first arriving in Washington in 1912, with some people saying the fragile flowers are an escape from some of the harshness of the world.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: D.C. is majestic, and despite the political crazy, this is what it's all about. It's gorgeous. I love it. It's majestic. It's God.

CHINCHAR: Last year, Japan announced a new gift of 250 more trees to the U.S., once again sharing the joy that people both in Tokyo and Washington try to enjoy as long as it lasts.

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Allison Chinchar, CNN.

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KINKADE: Well, college basketball's March Madness is in full swing this weekend. In the west region, the top seeded Florida Gators found their way to a comeback win over Texas Tech on Saturday. Late in the second half, the Gators fell behind by ten points to the Red Raiders, but Florida went on a scoring run in the final three minutes to close out the game 84-79. The win marks Florida's first trip to the Final 4 since 2014. They'll face the winner of today's matchup between Michigan State and Auburn.

Also securing a spot in the Final 4 four is top seed Duke. Despite setting a three-point record in the previous round, number two seeded Alabama struggled to score against the Blue Devils on Saturday. Duke held a commanding lead from the opening tip off coasting to an 85-65 victory. Their next opponent will also be revealed today following a showdown between Houston and Tennessee.

Thanks so much for joining us. I'm Lynda Kinkade in Atlanta. Good to have your company.

Stay with us. There's much more CNN Newsroom with Kim Brunhuber after this break.

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