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Magnitude 7.4 Earthquake Jolted Western Colombia, 132 People Killed; Harry Potter Fans Celebrate After Dobby's Grave Saved from an Undersea Cable Project. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired August 11, 2026 - 03:00   ET

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

[03:00:07]

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: Hey everybody, thank you so much for joining me. I'm Polo Sandoval live in New York and this is "CNN Newsroom."

Happening this hour, people still being told to evacuate as buildings crumble after that deadly earthquake that devastated parts of the nation of Colombia.

And President Trump issuing his latest conditions for ending the war with Iran after Tehran spelled out its demands over the weekend.

And we'll also see how the weather is contributing to those devastating wildfires burning in throughout parts of North America.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Live from New York, this is "CNN Newsroom" with Polo Sandoval.

SANDOVAL: All right, let's begin this hour with the devastating aftermath of a 7.4 magnitude earthquake in Western Colombia.

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Some incredible pictures there. You see panic-stricken people running for safety. Some could be heard praying out loud.

Officials say at least 132 people have been killed. 60 of those deaths were reported in one city alone. A total of five major cities under a red alert at the moment after the quake collapsed dozens of buildings, damaged hospitals and also shut down seven airports.

The country's geological survey says that the quake is the strongest to hit the Colombia region in the century. And the epicenter was located in the Choco region near Colombia's Pacific coast.

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Local officials there urging people to evacuate buildings showing signs of any sort of structural damage. The video you're looking at here showing part of a church crumbling to the ground as people cling to one another to stay on their feet. Colombia's new President who just took office on Friday has declared a state of national disaster. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ABELARDO DE LA ESPRIELLA, COLOMBIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): We are confident that with God's help and the support of the new government we will be able to overcome this terrible ordeal that today has plunged all of Colombia and of course the people of Choco into mourning. Let this be an opportunity to tell the country that Choco will never again be the forgotten land.

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SANDOVAL: All right, let's go live to Rome now and CNN's Stefano Pozzebon live from Rome. Stefano, you've reported for many years out of Colombia, you know the region very well. What are you hearing about the latest rescue efforts?

STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well, unfortunately the latest we're hearing in, Polo, from Colombia, from Cali in particular which is the largest city impacted by this earthquake. It's the third largest city in Colombia and at around 7 a.m. here in Rome, so 6 a.m. -- 1 a.m. sorry, local time down in Colombia, the mayor of Cali, Alejandro Eder, updated a death toll to up to 85 people killed by this terrible earthquake that impacted Colombia at 7 a.m. local time on Monday.

What we're hearing is of course that the search and rescue operations are ongoing. The fact that the earthquake took place so early in the day, 7 a.m., just as people were getting out of their homes for the rush hour and getting into work, of course gave the first responders a whole day to try to make sense of the situation. And right now it's of course the race against time to try to locate and rescue as many people as possible.

Take a listen to one paramedic in particular.

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YURI BEDOYA, PARAMEDIC (through translator): The situation is delicate because there are still people trapped. There are about four people trapped in this building.

They have already pulled one out. They're about to pull out another, and then one more after that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

POZZEBON: They pulled one out, there are minors trapped underneath the rubble, of course. It's similar scenes to the ones that we have seen less than two months ago, fortunately, in the same region that was in neighboring Venezuela. That catastrophic double earthquake that hit Venezuela on June 24 caused thousands and thousands of victims.

Preliminary reports from Colombia suggest that perhaps the damage is not as big, not as devastating, but of course the authorities are trying to mobilize as many resources as possible to the first responders and to try to bring as many people as possible into safety. Polo.

SANDOVAL: Stefano Pozzebon with the latest there out of Rome. Thank you so much.

The U.S. and Iran, they appear to be no closer to reaching an agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. President Trump has responded to Tehran's latest list of demands to reopen that critical waterway.

He said in part, quote, "I am likewise demanding compensation from Iran for all of the people that they have killed and gravely wounded." The President also doubled down on that stance from the White House on Monday.

[03:05:05]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: You said this last round of talks was Iran's last chance before decapitation. So what now? What comes next?

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: You'll find out.

UNKNOWN: Are you still, are massive escalation, is that still on the table?

TRUMP: Well, we have that, certainly that ability if we want to do that. Yes, you'll find out.

UNKNOWN: You said you're low-keying it with them. You're semi- negotiating. What exactly does that mean?

TRUMP: Well, they asked for reparations, you might say, or they asked for money for the damage that we've done. And I said, that's a good idea. Well, we're going to ask for money for the damage they've done over a 50-year period.

If there's damages to be paid, I think Iran should pay those damages.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: CNN's Paula Hancocks joining me live from Abu Dhabi with more on that. Hey, Paula, just curious what else we're learning about the President's demand for compensation from Iran, and also what Tehran has to say about that.

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Polo, this follows the demands that we heard over the weekend from Tehran, from specifically the Revolutionary Guard, asking for these war reparations, but also a number of other conditions before they would consider opening the Strait of Hormuz.

So really all of this suggests that we are not close to seeing an agreement being reached between the U.S. and Iran. So the U.S. President is really doubling down on what Tehran demanded over the weekend, saying that if Tehran is going to ask for war reparations, then he will as well, saying that all those thousands of people that over the years have been killed by roadside bombs, have been killed by Iranian militia, will be compensated.

Also saying that thousands, in fact, he said hundreds of thousands of protesters that have been killed by Iran over the past 50 years should be compensated as well. So it really does show that the two sides are particularly far apart at this point.

We've heard from the U.S. President suggesting that they are semi- negotiating at this point, although Tehran, we've heard from the foreign minister Abbas Aragchi saying there are no direct talks at this point, but did acknowledge that mediators are still passing messages between the two sides and trying to find some common ground in order to bring them back together again. But everything we're seeing on face value at this point does not suggest that is imminent.

For example, if you look at the demands that Tehran made over the weekend, apart from those war reparations, they were insisting that the U.S. pull all of its military out of the area surrounding Iran, that also they lift the naval blockade completely, lift all sanctions and also unfreeze all assets of Iran.

This was part of the memorandum of understanding, but it was understood it was going to be in a phased approach. It was going to be method tested. But of course what we're seeing now is Tehran doubling down and being more forceful in its demand, saying that it wants all of those conditions met up front.

Now we're also seeing at the same time the U.S. Treasury has imposed fresh sanctions on individuals, on exchange houses, also on companies that it says are helping Iran fund its military operations. Iran has pushed back against that.

We've heard from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs saying that they have shown in the past sanctions against Iran simply don't work. Polo?

SANDOVAL: Paula Hancocks, thank you so much for your reporting.

Let's go to another conflict now. Palestinians displaced by the war and desperate to return and rebuild their homes, they are reacting to Israel's rejection of the U.S.-backed peace plan for Gaza.

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UNKNOWN (through translator): We are used to these statements, and I'm not surprised by them.

We had a fake ceasefire in the last period of time. The goal was to whitewash the face of the occupation. But our suffer increased, the search for food increased, the search for water, for tents.

We are used to the statements of this man and don't believe in them.

UNKNOWN (through translator): I want to return to my home after four years. It has been very difficult. We were happy about the ceasefire. We felt relieved and we were very pleased. We heard there was going to be a withdrawal from Khan Younis.

Then, during the night, we were shocked by Netanyahu.

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SANDOVAL: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is demanding the full disarmament of Hamas before any Israeli forces withdraw as part of the plan. Israeli forces currently occupy more than half of Gaza. And senior Israeli ministers have signaled that they want to even expand control. Netanyahu also went on to say, quote, "As long as I am Prime Minister, no Palestinian state will be established, not in Gaza and not in the West Bank."

In the meantime, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza is getting worse. Joining me now is Dr. James Smith, he's an emergency physician working at a primary care clinic in Gaza. Dr. Smith, thank you so much for taking the time to join us.

[03:10:10]

DR. JAMES SMITH, EMERGENCY PHYSICIAN: Thanks very much for having me.

SANDOVAL: As a doctor currently in more of a non-emergency care setting right now, what are some of the medical conditions that are particularly difficult to treat right now, be it because of the ongoing hostilities or the persistent shortages in medical equipment?

SMITH: Well, Polo, the first thing I want to say is, as the interviewees there in Gaza, elsewhere in Gaza, have mentioned, is that there's absolutely no correlation whatsoever between political rhetoric on one hand and the material conditions here in Gaza on the other. There has been no ceasefire in Gaza.

Just last week, there were at least 39 Israeli airstrikes. That's to say nothing of the artillery fire, the soldiers shooting at people near the Yellow Line, the Israeli warships firing onto the coastline. And what we're seeing here now, as that military presence consolidates, as the titration of aid continues, are the slower effects of cumulative deprivation, the deprivation of the conditions of life, to use the legal term.

We're seeing in the clinic here every day hundreds of patients with complications related to the abysmal conditions that they're forced to live in. Overcrowding, a lack of access to the most basic forms of shelter, a very small proportion of people that have access to the minimum volume of clean water per person per day, the minimum humanitarian standard. Access to nutritious food is still extremely complicated.

Every week, we're enrolling more children into our malnutrition programs. So these are acute new diagnoses of malnutrition.

So even though the reports that are circulating suggest that there have been some improvements, and indeed across Gaza there has been some change in, for example, the food security situation, the reality is that that change, that shift, is unequally distributed. And certainly the conditions that people are being forced to live in are extremely difficult.

SANDOVAL: The conditions and then also just the access to basic medical care that others in other parts of the world may take for granted. And so just based on what you're seeing, doctor, is treatment for chronic illnesses like cancer or maybe even just blood pressure management, is that even possible in Gaza right now?

SMITH: The short answer is no. Polo, I mean, you know, we're seeing patients coming in with severe pain and we're not able to give them more than two tablets of paracetamol.

I mean, imagine, one of the most basic medicines that's available in most other pharmacies the world over. That's to say nothing of more complex medical interventions and medications, the sort of care that you need to give for someone who has cancer.

We know that thousands of patients have died waiting for urgent medical evacuation out of Gaza because they need access to medical and surgical care that is no longer available here because the Israeli military, under the orders of the Israeli state, has decimated the healthcare system here. We know that in a six-month period in 2024, it's estimated that approximately 3000, there were 3000 excess deaths from people with non-communicable diseases.

So here we're talking about diabetes, cardiovascular disease. These are diseases that could have been prevented if people had access to the care that they need. And that is care that has been systematically denied to the Palestinian people.

SANDOVAL: Yes, that's a sobering statistic, doctor. 3000 essentially preventable deaths, as you point out.

You've also previously shared with us that Gaza's entire population, as you put it, is in psychological -- in need of psychological support after being a witness to this conflict over the years. Just speak to the worsening struggle for civilians suffering from wounds that aren't visible.

SMITH: Absolutely. I mean, the latest U.N. assessment is that the entire population of Gaza is in need of immediate psychosocial support and protection assistance.

[03:14:52]

We're supporting people here who have borne witness to the killing of their family members, the injury of their loved ones, the destruction of their homes, their communities, the killing of their neighbors, the accumulative trauma of that, and of course years and decades of Israeli assaults and the Israeli occupation.

And that's to say nothing, of course, of the additional traumatization that comes immediately, surely, from expecting that the so-called international community would have stepped up and acted, and to have seen no action from that international community then, and to see no action from the international community now.

The only option that appears to be on the table is the proposal that's being pushed by the so-called Board of Peace, which of course it's important to emphasize has no political legitimacy here. The Palestinian people have not been involved at all in determining what their future looks like. And of course all of those things together are going to leave people profoundly traumatized.

SANDOVAL: Yes, as you heard a woman say just leading into your interview, there was so much hope after the ceasefire and that quickly fading. Dr Smith, we certainly hope for, if not a resolution, at least some help for you and the rest of the medical personnel there helping the people of Gaza. Thank you so much for your time and for what you're doing.

Well, there are concerns, growing concerns, over the health of an American man detained in Russia. We'll tell you why Robert Gilman's family believe their son may be near death, or maybe even already gone.

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[03:20:00]

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SANDOVAL: A Russian missile strike has damaged a children's hospital in Kyiv, leaving craters outside the facility. Ukrainian officials say that the patients and medical staff were taking shelter and survived the attack uninjured. But the city of Zaporizhzhia was not so fortunate.

Officials there are saying that Russian strikes killed 6 people and wounded 19 overnight. And on Monday, another 13 people in Zaporizhzhia were injured, and that includes a child.

And Russia is accusing Ukraine of launching drone attacks on more Wildberries warehouses. Social media is showing fire erupting from a building about 180 kilometers from the Ukrainian border. Ukraine has been targeting the Russian e-commerce company's sites, accusing it of providing equipment for Russian military.

An American man detained in Russia is said to be near death. According to the head of an advocacy group representing his family, Robert Gilman's relatives have not been allowed to see him. And that's fueling concerns over his mental and physical health.

CNN's Jennifer Hansler with more.

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JENNIFER HANSLER, CNN SENIOR U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: The U.S. government is, quote, "deeply concerned" about Robert Gilman's health and continued detention in Russia. That's from a U.S. State Department spokesperson in recent days. The spokesperson said the U.S. has repeatedly raised Gilman's case with the Russians, and they've pressed him to release Gilman on, quote, "humanitarian grounds due to concerns about his health."

Now, Eric Lebson, who works for Global Reach, the organization advocating on behalf of Gilman's family, said that Gilman has been given mind-altering drugs while in Russian prison, that he has been told horrible lies about his family and has been told that the U.S. government has forgotten him. More than six weeks ago, Gilman slipped into, quote, "a dissociative stupor" and was moved from the prison hospital where he has been detained some six hours outside of Moscow to a local psychiatric facility.

Now, in that time, according to Lebson, neither his Russian lawyer nor his mother has been permitted to visit him. And that is significant. Lebson said that his mother flew from the United States to Russia with a Russian court order that would allow her to see her son and was blocked from doing so.

Because of this, Lebson said, there are serious concerns that Gilman may already be dead or that his condition is so severe that that is the most likely outcome. They are very worried about this becoming a case similar to that of Otto Warmbier, the U.S. college student who was detained in North Korea for nearly a year and a half before being released with severe brain damage and dying shortly thereafter.

Robert Gilman's sister, Lexi Hudson, said in a statement, quote, "We want our government to make it clear to the Russians that they need to release Robert now before it is too late. Whatever deal is required to make that happen is better for the U.S. and Russia than having to navigate the death of my brother because both didn't seize on the urgency of acting when there was time."

Now, Gilman's case is very similar to that of others who have been detained in Russia, namely Paul Whelan and Trevor Reed, who are also former Marines. In a statement to CNN, Whelan said that he and Reed are, quote, asking the White House to take immediate action to bring Robert Gilman home from Russia.

Jennifer Hansler, CNN, the State Department.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: Well, still on the way, hot, windy weather. It is helping wildfires spread in parts of the United States and Canada. We'll have the latest on the forecast when we return.

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[03:25:00]

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SANDOVAL: Hi, I'm Polo Sandoval, in New York. And these are today's top stories.

A massive 7.4 magnitude earthquake has left parts of western Colombia in ruin. Now the country has declared a state of national disaster, mobilizing resources and rescue operations across several hard-hit cities. At least 132 people have been killed and hundreds more injured, according to local authorities.

President Trump is countering Iran's latest list of demands. He says that compensation would be required from Tehran for, quote, "killing all of the people that they have killed and gravely wounded." The President's announcement comes just days after Iran said that U.S. compensation would be required to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

[03:30:02]

Well, the British government says that nearly three-quarters of England is now experiencing extreme drought. It's being driven by a combination of low rainfall and higher temperatures, which is continuing this week as Britain endures its now fifth heat wave of the year. More than 25 million people have restrictions on their water usage in place.

Well, another heat wave and strong wind gusts are fueling more blazes across Spain. Officials are saying that a large fire is burning out of control in the southwest.

And also flying embers are setting off some smaller fires. Nearly 20,000 hectares, or 50,000 acres, have been scorched, and 500 people have been forced to flee the area.

And crews are also battling another fire in the eastern Castellon region. It's forced 900 people to evacuate, but it's close to being stabilized, according to authorities.

100 wildfires are still burning across British Columbia and western Canada, where fierce flames have damaged a number of homes and properties. They've also forced thousands of people to flee. An 80- year-old woman reportedly died while trying to escape the fast-moving Bald Range wildfire.

CNN meteorologist Derek Van Dam reports on how weather is playing a role in these fires.

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DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Terrifying moments for roughly 20,000 people that were forced to flee from this inferno in southern British Columbia. This is western Canada near the Okanagan Lake area. Beautiful part of the world, unfortunately, now strapped with drought and also wildfire activity.

Saturday was a difficult day for this region, but that's been a theme, right, over the western parts of North America. And this map shows it perfectly well. We know that this has been a smoky summer.

We'll call it the Summer of Smoke 2.0 because last summer was just as bad. But this NASA animation shows all the near-surface smoke emanating from the wildfire activity from Minnesota into southern Ontario, impacting the east coast and the Great Lakes, and now locked in across the Pacific Northwest and western Canada. The air is terrible out there. But let's take it back a notch and talk about how this stacks up to

previous years. When we average the past 10 years, our total acreage burned here in the United States well surpasses the year-to-date average. We're at 6.33 million acres and a total of over 45,000 wildfires, we should be roughly at 25,000 at this time of the year.

Wildfires are a natural occurring phenomenon. But unfortunately, when you start to see that amount of acreage burned and that many hot spots and forest fires, that's a problem. Look at all the hot spots right now across the Pacific Northwest, fueled by winds that are still gusting between 15 to 25 miles per hour at times.

No major weather makers coming into play, but that also means that there isn't much rain in this forecast either. We still have an elevated fire threat across Wyoming, Idaho, into portions of northern Utah, Nevada, as well as central California. And the quality of the air, we have alerts in store for that, locked and loaded east of the Cascades, basically impacting tens of millions of Americans, not to mention many residents across western Canada and into British Columbia.

The near-surface smoke forecast doesn't show much improvement. The quality of the air will be degraded through the rest of this week as these wildfires continue to burn. Very little rainfall to help extinguish these flames.

As we go forward in time through this week, we really desperately need a break in the weather. But unfortunately, temperature is here only on the rise. Back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: No break, at least not for now. Derek Van Dam, thank you.

Still on the way, a power company learning the hard way that Harry Potter fans are a force to be reckoned with. After the break, we'll tell you about the magic those dedicated fans worked to change the course of a $580 million project. And it was all on behalf of a beloved house elf named Dobby.

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[03:35:00]

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SANDOVAL: Welcome back to "CNN Newsroom." Here are your business headlines.

At the heart of Colombia's 7.4 magnitude earthquake lies the country's so-called coffee access. The major coffee growing region surrounds the location of Monday's epicenter where some of the heaviest damage was reported. The UNESCO heritage site helps drive up tourism and also boost the country's economy, Colombia is the third largest coffee producer globally, supplying about 7 percent of the world's coffee beans. Intel shares fell more than 4 percent on news that it will be selling

an additional $15 billion in stock to help fund its AI build-out. The chip giant says that it needs to boost spending because client demand for an A.I. computer power has soared. Many investors are now worried that the billions currently being spent on A.I. won't pay off.

Tech giant Meta throwing its weight behind smaller, cheaper, open- weight A.I. models.

[03:40:02]

The company releasing a new model called Glimmer that can be run on P.C.s instead of being hooked up to a powerful data center. CEO Mark Zuckerberg says that the U.S. should support open models to better compete against China in the A.I. race.

And Jeff Bezos may be close to buying a stake in one of Europe's most prominent football clubs. The Amazon founder is reportedly part of a consortium that wants to obtain about a third of Liverpool F.C., the former Champions League and also English Premier League champs. They are already one of the most lucrative sports entities in the world. The new investments could raise their value to nearly $6 billion.

Now to an ancient spa town in Italy that has an unusual new council member. The town appointed Eva Statitella, an A.I. personality, to work alongside elected officials. They say that she'll be used to analyze information, to prepare reports and also to offer advice.

The town's mayor says special guardrails have been put in place.

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DANILO RAPERTTI SARDO MARTINI, MAYOR OF ACQUI TERME (through translator): The first safeguard is that no sensitive data relating to residents can be disclosed. That's guaranteed because Eva operates on an independent server.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: Eva won't have the power to vote, but the unusual move to appoint an A.I. assistant has left locals divided.

A $580 million power project on the Welsh coast is taking a detour, and this after some diehard Harry Potter fans worked their magic. CNN producer Ivana Scatola with that story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IVANA SCATOLA, CNN PRODUCER: Harry Potter fans managed to get an electricity project rerouted, all to protect Dobby's grave. The grave is actually a memorial for the fictional character on a beach in Wales where Dobby's death scene was filmed. It's a popular tourist spot where fans leave stones and some travel across the world to visit.

The Greenlink intercollector carries electricity between Britain and Ireland through cables going under the Irish Sea. During the project's development, its planned route was set to go through the fan-made memorial to Dobby the Elf. That's before fans caught wind of the plan, former project manager Simon Ludlam said in a podcast.

He said they received hundreds of calls protesting the route after the plans were revealed. So they ultimately changed the planned route to avoid the grave.

It's actually not the first time the memorial's been saved. In 2022, the National Trust considered removing it or relocating it because of the environmental impact it was having on the beach. In the end, they decided that it could stay open as long as visitors stopped leaving socks and other items that could harm the environment.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: Ivana Scatola reporting there. Unfortunately, the planned adjustment now places that cable near a Bronze Age archaeological site. CNN has reached out to Greenlink for comments.

And with that, thank you so much for joining me. "World Sport" is next and I'll be back at the top of the next hour with more of your headlines, including the breaking news out of Colombia.

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[03:45:00]

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(WORLD SPORT)