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Saturday Landslide Creates New Barrier Lake Near Disaster Zone; At Least 85 Americans Among Those Unaccounted For In Floods; At Least 900 Workers Missing Across Nepali Hydropower Projects; GOP Frets Over Talarico's Huge Money Lead In Texas Senate Race; Sir Anthony Hopkins Launches New Music Career At Age 88; 780-Plus Dead, 3,000 Missing After Floods Along China-Nepal Border. Aired 2-3p ET
Aired August 30, 2026 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[14:00:03]
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.
And we're tracking the latest breaking developments on the desperate search and rescue efforts underway on the Nepali Chinese border following those catastrophic floods.
Today, the death toll has risen to more than 780 people. Some 3,000 still missing, including almost a thousand workers at various hydropower projects in Nepal.
Emergency workers are now pumping air and dropping food into one tunnel, but have yet to establish communication with anyone inside.
And today, displaced survivors are facing new concerns after another landslide formed another barrier lake that officials fear could lead to more flooding.
Help continues to arrive in the flood zone. A shipment from China has landed in Kathmandu, and the U.S. is sending more than $3.5 million of aid.
CNN's Will Ripley joins us now from Nepal. Will, what's the latest on the rescue efforts there?
WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INGL CORRESPONDENT: Fred, the rescue efforts are ongoing, although on the Chinese side, the report has been that they have not found any new survivors over the last day or so, which is incredibly discouraging for all of the people whose loved ones were at that border crossing between China and Tibet, the scene of some of the most horrific images from this flood, when that massive black wave of water destroyed a building that appeared to be anywhere between four and seven stories and also washed away a row of busses.
But there were a handful of survivors from that area, including an Italian couple, Stefano and Valentina, who I spoke with earlier. They said, as they just barely escaped with their lives perhaps by a matter of just a few seconds, they looked down and saw that wave and what it did, the destructive power of it. And they said, it's difficult to imagine that anybody caught in the middle of that could have survived.
Here's more of my conversation with them earlier today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VALENTINA PICCININI, ITALIAN FLOOD SURVIVOR: Everybody turned right. Only me turned left. So that's the point. I don't know why, but my mind, I can -- I don't know, I cannot explain. I cannot see anything, anybody around me. I cannot hear my name because they are only -- everybody is saying my name. But I was not able to hear them.
So I'm just following Hernan and he showed me the only way I could follow to survive -- the only way. Because if I'm going straight on for sure, I would not be here.
RIPLEY: Did you know it was water that was coming when you saw the big black --
STEFANO LUTUMOLO, ITALIAN FLOOD SURVIVOR: No, we couldn't know. Like as you see in the images at some point (ph), it was the beginning. And we just saw something crashing into busses 30 meters in front of us. It was very big, like it was crazy. The sound, it was unbelievable.
PICCININI: I felt that everybody of them, they were alive. I don't know why, but my heart can tell me, ok, don't worry. They are all alive.
So first start, think about you. Start to run. Think on -- and survive. And then somebody, somehow, universe, God, Shiva, whoever will find a way to bring you back to them or bring them to you.
RIPLEY: And you said the healing power of the Nepali people has kept you here and helped you to heal from this experience.
LUTUMOLO: We were together. They were not different between Italian and Nepali. We were just human beings, survivor, and we just try. Also the night time celebrating life.
And they lost everything. They lost everything -- people, houses. They have nothing. They had nothing left.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RIPLEY: They know that they are among the very lucky ones. We actually spent the whole day yesterday in Bidur, which is one of the hardest hit areas.
And I was chatting with people there who have lost, in some cases, almost every member of their family a woman who lost 17 family members, a man who lost eight family members.
And they said there are also entire families that were killed and have not been reported in the list of the missing because there simply is nobody left to add them to that official list.
Also, bodies presumably buried under deep layers of quicksand along the flood route.
So the sense I got, and I'm still trying to process it, Fred, is that we need to mentally prepare ourselves for the fact that the number of missing currently at 3,000 could actually be far, far higher than that.
WHITFIELD: Wow. So Will, we showed video yesterday of people rescuing with their bare hands a six-year-old girl who was buried underneath a lot of rubble. You could hear her, you know, crying. What's the latest on her?
RIPLEY: Her name is Manisha. And as you said, she's six years old. And it was -- it is one of the real, real joyous stories of this horrific flood because the armed police force released the video of her rescue 60 hours after the disaster struck.
[14:04:51]
RIPLEY: Her parents, who are also alive, we have learned today, they had given up hope of finding their daughter, Manisha. They were just hoping that rescuers could find her body so the family could have closure.
So when they were able to dig through the rubble of that building and pull her out alive, and they've now airlifted her to a hospital here in Kathmandu. And we've learned that just within the last several hours, she's been reunited with her mom and dad, and the family is now back together. They're all being treated for relatively minor injuries, considering the circumstances.
It is a true, in the words of many people on the ground here in Nepal, a miracle. And people here really do need news of a miracle amid so much uncertainty, so much heartbreak, and so much tragedy yet to be really be discovered, because there are even areas that rescuers have yet to reach, Fred.
WHITFIELD: Yes. Miraculous and very hopeful.
All right. Will Ripley, thank you so much. We'll check back with you. Appreciate it.
U.S. Officials say there are at least 85 Americans still unaccounted for in that flooding. Several of those missing Americans were taking part in group hiking trips in Nepal. They were right near the Nepali- Chinese border when the flash flood hit.
And among those missing Americans is Kesava Rao Tadipatri. The Arizona man sent his family a group photo of himself and his fellow hikers, you'll see him. He is located in the upper left corner of this picture that you just saw. And his family remains hopeful about his whereabouts.
I'm joined now by his daughter, Ramya.
Ramya, my heart goes out to you and so many families who are looking for, you know, their loved ones. Tell me about where you think your father may have been. You had
gotten that photograph, which was taken shortly before his hike. And tell me what you know.
RAMYA TADIPATRI, FATHER AMONG THE MISSING IN NEPAL: Thank you so much. And thank you for -- thank you for having me on.
I, so what we know so far we know that, my dad was on a recreational hike with this group and did -- and seeing various holy sites. So he spent some time doing that in Nepal. And then was traveling through the Gyirong Port. He was marked on his way to, into Tibet, and he was marked as departed from that port on at 8:30 local time.
And the last member of his group was marked as departed at 8:35 local time. That picture that you showed was -- we had received at 8:36.
And the tremors, the first tremors, we understand happened at 8:37. Then at 8:42, was we received a message from my dad and he said I will have some issues near the Trishuli River, which was that river that was flooded.
And my mom asked what issues and then it was a communication blackout that was -- that was the last we heard. And then two minutes later was that video, that showed the flood hitting that port, that very same port.
WHITFIELD: Do you, have you been able to ascertain kind of the distance, you know, between the location where he sent his message of saying, you know, I'll have some issues and, and what we've seen as it pertains to that video.
TADIPATRI: So we, we don't know where exactly he was when he sent that message. And, you know, we know the time -- the timestamp of when he sent the photo, we don't know if that was necessarily when the photo was taken or if he, you know moved on somewhere and then sent the photo from there. So it's a lot of unknowns, a lot of possibilities.
WHITFIELD: And where are you able to get some of this information or, you know, the updates, even the information about, you know, marked as having left, you know, certain areas.
is it the -- the group that organized the trip? Is there still some communication that's able, that you're able to have with people, whether they're, you know, on site or in that vicinity or stateside?
TADIPATRI: So my mom has been kind of the point person, you know, getting all the -- all the different information we've been in contact with the U.S. Embassy. And she's on a WhatsApp group with ten families that were -- that were in the -- the other families of the -- the other members of the group.
[14:09:49]
TADIPATRI: So they've been just actively reaching out and trying to get information. So there's an official list of, from the port that, of all the -- all the people and the times that they departed from it. WHITFIELD: So Ramya, tell me about your dad, you know, and this trip,
how he was looking forward to it, why this was important to him, what he was looking forward to and with these people that he was with.
TADIPATRI: Yes. So my dad, you know, he's an adventurer. When he sets his mind to something, he'll do it. He's 73. He ran his second marathon earlier this year.
And we took him -- we took him -- my husband and I took him hiking in Sedona in May of this year.
And, you know, he had his bucket list. This was something that he really wanted to do. He is also a spiritual guru and guide for the Hindu community.
So he teaches religious scripture and Hindu tradition, scripture and philosophy. So, very frequent classes to virtual classes to people all over the country.
And, so he's been a guide to, you know, helping people get through, get through difficult times. And been married to my mom for 30 plus years and she's been inspired to kind of take on, to learn and carry on that same mission and be also -- be a spiritual guru and guide to the community.
And, you know, we're -- we're all handling this, you know, the best that we can, you know, obviously shocked and worried, but, and my mom probably handling it better than, better than the rest of us.
So she's recalling, you know, the -- their marriage -- their marriage vows. And so my dad was explaining everything, all the, the Sanskrit chants and everything to her.
And she would talk about so there was one ritual of placing her foot on the stone and it's to the bride, you know, by stepping on the stone, you become the rock that will weather any storm.
And yes, she sent out a message to the community saying, saying I'm fine, you know and, she wants to be an inspiration to all of the -- all of her students and the entire community and staying strong and using our scriptures and our teachings to get through it, understanding, you know, God gives us all, all different kinds of challenges. And we work through it.
And I have, a lot to learn. I -- whether or not I can be from my dad or still holding hope, but a lot to learn from my mom for sure.
WHITFIELD: Well, we are very hopeful for your dad, Kesava Rao Tadipatri and hopeful for you and your whole family. And indeed, he's as you describe him, he's a rock and he's been a rock for your family and such a source of inspiration.
Ramya Tadipatri, we're wishing all the best for you and your family and are very prayerful for you
TADIPATRI: Thank you so much. And I want to say, you know, we're very grateful for the U.S. embassy and all the rescue efforts.
And I hope that, you know, all the different countries, governments, people of different cultures and faiths and all come together and do everything to get the communications back and provide support to the people affected.
Thank you so much for having me on.
WHITFIELD: Very important. Thank you so much, Ramya.
TADIPATRI: Thank you.
WHITFIELD: And of course, for more information, you know, that you all could benefit from on how you can help the Nepal flood victims go to CNN.com/impact.
All right. Still ahead, disaster at sea. A ferry carrying hundreds of people capsizes off the coast of Cyprus. We've got the latest on the death toll and the scramble to find survivors.
Plus warning signs for the GOP and a Red state stronghold. New reporting on the massive Democratic spending blitz in Texas that has some Republicans sweating.
And 88 years old -- rather -- and nowhere near the finish line. The actor, who played the iconic role of Hannibal Lecter, is launching a completely new career, and he's talking to CNN about this surprising next chapter.
[14:14:43]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: A manhunt is underway after a deadly shooting at a rave in northern Switzerland. Police say one person was killed and five others injured when shots were fired around 2:30 in the morning.
CNN affiliate Sky24 reports that the woman who died was an Italian national. The five wounded people are being treated for injuries ranging from minor to severe.
[14:19:47]
WHITFIELD: Local officials say the shooter or shooters' motive is unclear. Police are patrolling the scene and the investigation is ongoing.
And right now a search and rescue effort is underway off the coast of Cyprus. At least seven people are dead and nearly two dozen missing after a ferry capsized in the Mediterranean Sea while traveling from northern Cyprus to Turkey.
CNN's Barbie Latza Nadeau is joining us right now from Rome. Barbie, what are you learning?
BARBIE LATZA NADEAU, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Yes, you know, we know that that search and rescue operation is still ongoing but night is falling in this part of the world and so that's going to be very complicated.
You know, we've seen images of those survivors on top of that overturned vessel, that 200 -- nearly 270 people ferried.
This was not a car ferry. So there's no complication of vehicles. This was a passenger ferry, but it was leaving a very popular holiday island of Cyprus, heading back to Turkey when it started to take on water in bad weather.
Now we're getting some detail about the survivors, those people who did get off that vessel said that it was a harrowing situation, that it was very quick.
Many of those were rescued by helicopters, some by rescue boats, some by even private vessels brought to the shore back in Cyprus. And the seas were incredibly rough at the time they were -- they were rescued.
But there'll be a lot of questions asked about just why this happened. This should be a very stable ferry and the Mediterranean -- while the seas were rough, there were no warnings that should have not allowed them to take off from the port there in Cyprus.
So there will be questions to ask. We aren't getting a lot of information about the nationalities of these people. We know that seven bodies have been recovered. We know that 23 people at this hour are still missing, and they're very likely trying to search for those people who are still inside that ferry as its overturned, making it very difficult this time of the night as darkness falls, Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Yes, incredible. Barbie Latza Nadeau, thank you so much. Keep us posted as you learn more.
Coming up, more than 900 workers among the missing in the Nepal floods trapped inside power plant tunnels. We'll hear from the lucky survivors who made it out about their terrifying and hellish escape. That's next.
[14:22:03]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. We're continuing to follow our top story, as search and rescue efforts continue along the border between China and Nepal following those catastrophic floods. More than 780 people were killed. An estimated 3,000 still missing, including almost a thousand workers at various hydropower projects in Nepal.
With time ticking, these are proving to be some of the most difficult search and rescue operations so far.
CNN's Hanako Montgomery has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN INGL CORRESPONDENT: In Nepal's mud-filled tunnels, desperate rescues are unfolding. Helicopters lifting survivors to safety, some too weak to walk.
These tunnels were built to harness Nepal's rivers and fuel its booming hydropower industry. But now they're the focus of a frantic search.
More than 900 are still missing, many of them workers trapped inside when the flood hit.
BHAKTI RAM BOHARA, FLOOD SURVIVOR: Me and my brother-in-law were working in the same tunnel. I lost him. His wife is my sister and she is pregnant.
MONTGOMERY: Amar Bista helped rescue these men. He and his team of volunteers trekked through dangerous terrain carrying medical supplies.
And with the help of the Nepali army, they flew to the worst hit areas, where they used picks and shovels to find signs of life. Sometimes they found the dead instead.
The rescued men we spoke to say the tunnels were filled with bodies. The floods stripped them of everything they had, including their clothes.
AMAR BISTA, TOUR GUIDE AND VOLUNTEER: All the clothes they lost, all the -- whatever they have like they lost their phones. They lost their -- like everything they lost, you know.
MONTOMERY: What about -- what about these men? Have they lost family members?
BISTA: Yes, like they lost their nephew. They lost their uncles, brothers, you know, like cousins, you know.
MONTGOMERY: Everyone's lost someone.
BISTA: But company must move too.
MONTGOMERY: Four days in the mountains have left Amar haunted by what he's seen.
BISTA: Like hundreds of people are there and no food. Everybody got diarrhea, you know, like nothing. So, you know, I didn't have a word for that because they all are from my area, you know, like, I don't know.
Nothing to tell because a lot of people here, they doesn't know the reality. When I enter there, like the reality is different. We cannot tell, you know, the reality is way different.
MONTGOMERY: For survivors, now comes the reckoning with what they endured and the enormity of what they've lost.
Hanako Montgomery, CNN -- Nepal.
(END VIDEOTAPE) [14:29:17]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:33:47]
WHITFIELD: All right. With just over nine weeks until the midterms, the Senate race in Texas between Democrat James Talarico and Republican Ken Paxton is extremely tight. Talarico is bombarding the airwaves with advertising and has outspent Paxton by a wide margin. Paxton is still waiting for an infusion of cash from the MAGA Inc. super PAC, and Republicans are worried.
Paxton was asked about that this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEN PAXTON (R), TEXAS SENATE CANDIDATE: Look, I know that they are going to be a part of this. They -- we can't coordinate on how much or what. So, I -- it's coming. I also think you're going to see resources coming from Republican senators.
And so, I'm very -- I'm optimistic. Our fundraising has been tremendously good in the last couple of weeks. And you're going to start seeing some ads. I just want to encourage people because we are fighting a guy that's raising money all over the world.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: CNNs chief congressional correspondent, Manu Raju, has more on the money issue in the race that could decide control of the Senate -- Manu.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Fred, Republicans are getting very anxious about Texas, the Republican nominee in that state, Ken Paxton, is getting absolutely trounced across the air. He is spending a fraction of the amount of money that James Talarico, the Democratic nominee is, since June.
[14:35:07]
That was in the aftermath of that very messy and divisive Republican primary. And Ken Paxton emerged from that primary, defeating the longtime incumbent Republican senator John Cornyn. Remember, it was Donald Trump who decided to endorse Ken Paxton in that primary.
Republican leaders pleaded with President Trump, begged him not to endorse Paxton. They wanted him to back Cornyn because they thought it would be far less expensive, much easier to get Cornyn reelected than try to get Paxton elected, especially Paxton has a laundry list of controversies in the state during his time as Texas attorney general, weathering an impeachment scandal and facing other controversies that could undoubtedly hurt him in a campaign. So Republican leaders said, Mr. President, we need your outside group,
MAGA Inc., to come in and help Ken Paxton, if you indeed choose, want him to become the nominee. That was the message that was delivered behind closed doors to President Trump. I'm told by multiple Republican sources.
At the time, Republicans thought that Trump's campaign operation would come in and spend money. They still think he'll come in and spend money, but it still has not. Even though MAGA Inc., Trump's outside group, is sitting on more than $400 million but has not spent money yet in the Texas senate race.
So, what does James Talarico done since June, when that primary ended, $31.5 million across the airwaves from James Talarico and Democratic allies, allies spending in the Texas airwaves compared to $4.7 million for Republicans in that same time frame, which is perhaps one reason why that Talarico has seen a bump in the polls? He is now leading narrowly, according to most polling, still within the margin of error of some, but enough to give Republicans a scare.
Yes, it's Texas. Yes, Democrats have not won there in decades statewide. But this environment not favoring Republicans and this situation involving Ken Paxton and the amount of money James Talarico has a lot of Republicans nervous because Democrats, of course, have to pick up a net of four seats to win back the majority. That means they need to win in red states. Red states like Texas. And now that Texas is on the map, many Republicans are pleading with President Trump to spend money now.
Now, MAGA Inc. told us that it is still planning, evaluating its midterm strategy would not show its hand about whether and when it plans to spend money in Texas. Trump did headline a fundraiser last week in Houston for the Republican National Committee, which presumably will also go to benefit Paxton as well. But a lot more money needs to be spent, according to Republican sources. And according to the Republican outside groups who have not spent money yet because they're waiting for Trump to come in and do so.
Will he do that? That's a big question, because the Senate majority is on the line and could hinge on Texas -- Fred.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: All right. Manu Raju, thank you so much.
Coming up, a tribute to a country music legend at the Grand Ole Opry. The special moments to remember Dolly Parton. And the reason this night meant so much to the artists who took the stage.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:43:01]
WHITFIELD: The Grand Ole Opry dedicated Saturday night show to Dolly Parton's life, legacy and contributions to country music. Following her death on Tuesday, her name was placed front and center on the venues outdoor marquee. Several country artists performed, including Kathy Mattea, Carly Pearce and Jelly Roll.
(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)
WHITFIELD: Parton was just 13 years old when she made her first appearance on the Opry stage in 1959. Introduced by the legendary Johnny Cash, she became an official member by the age of 23.
All right. Sir Anthony Hopkins is one of the most celebrated actors of our time, with a career spanning more than six decades in film, television and theater. But he is also passionate about another art form, and he's launching a music career at the tender age of 88.
Our Elex Michaelson sat down with him for details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sir Anthony Hopkins is listening to a performance of music he composed.
SIR ANTHONY HOPKINS, COMPOSER, "LIFE IS A DREAM": I'm sitting there thinking, where did that come from?
MICHAELSON: Where did it come from?
HOPKINS: From inside my soul.
Closer.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): Hopkins is perhaps best known for playing the cannibalistic killer Hannibal Lecter in several movies starting with "Silence of the Lambs".
[14:45:05]
HOPKINS AS HANNIBAL LECTER: A census taker once tried to test me. I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice chianti.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): Real life Hopkins just released his first ever album of his own classical compositions.
MICHAELSON: Do you think Hannibal Lecter would like this album?
(LAUGHTER)
HOPKINS: It's a silly -- that's a question. Hello Clarice. I like the Clarice -- the Clarice aria.
(LAUGHTER)
MICHAELSON (voice-over): The album is titled "Life is a Dream".
MICHAELSON: What does "Life is a Dream" mean?
HOPKINS: Exactly that. Life is a dream. That's as I see it now, at 88- 1/2 years of age, going on to my 90s. I just see it as one a long dream. I look back over my life. I've met impossible. How did I get here?
MICHAELSON (voice-over): Hopkins grew up as an only child in Wales. He'll never forget when his parents took him to see the classical music star Jose Iturbi.
HOPKINS: I went backstage and got his autograph, but that's where my love of music started.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): His favorite musical performance still bring Tony to tears.
HOPKINS: I can't even talk about it without getting choked up.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): By age seven, Hopkins was playing piano. By 15, he taught himself how to write his own music. But he didn't want to publish it.
HOPKINS: I was cynical.
MICHAELSON: You didn't think people would like it?
HOPKINS: I didn't believe in myself at all. That's why I became an actor.
(LAUGHTER)
MICHAELSON (voice-over): The legendary actor Sir Laurence Olivier believed in Hopkins acting ability and became his lifelong mentor.
HOPKINS: I think he was taken by my pugnacious strength. I was a bit of a rebel.
MICHAELSON: Yeah.
HOPKINS: Bad boy.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): That bad boy would become one of the most celebrated actors of all time.
He'd win an Oscar for "Silence of the Lambs" and another for "The Father".
HOPKINS: I don't know what's happening anymore.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): He'd earn Oscar nominations for "The Remains of the Day", "Amistad," "Nixon", and "The Two Popes". But through it all, he never stopped writing music.
MICHAELSON: Is more of your passion than even acting?
HOPKINS: Yeah, more so now than ever.
MICHAELSON: Yeah.
HOPKINS: But it's been in me.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): Hopkins' wife, Stella, encouraged him to compile his seven decades worth of songwriting into one album.
MICHAELSON: Is there something, though, about it's never too late to try something new to.
HOPKINS: Never too late. And realization that this is it. So, we better wake up and live.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): Fellow actor Bradley Cooper suggested to Hopkins that he team up with world-renowned maestro Gustavo Dudamel. Dudamel taught Cooper how to conduct for his role in "Maestro". Dudamel is now preparing to lead the New York Philharmonic. He recently conducted the halftime show at the World Cup final.
HOPKINS: Hey, congratulations, how are you?
MICHAELSON (voice-over): This is the first time these two have ever done a TV interview together.
Dudamel recalling the first time he read Hopkins sheet music.
GUSTAVO DUDAMEL, COMPOSER: And I was digesting all of that inside of me, all the sound. I was completely in love immediately. I say like wow.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): Soon afterwards, Dudamel agreed to conduct the recording sessions in London.
HOPKINS: I'm sitting thinking, did I write that?
(LAUGHTER)
DUDAMEL: Yes, you did.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): They performed their album live in Saudi Arabia.
We met up with them at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles shortly before they appeared on stage together.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Congratulations on this new album, "Life is a Dream".
MICHAELSON (voice-over): The two discussing the album's tracks, which are largely inspired by Hopkins childhood. They play the music for the audience.
MICHAESLON: How would you describe Sir Anthony Hopkins, the composer?
DUDAMEL: The most generous person.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): Dudamel says Hopkins' pure joy for living, evidenced by all the dancing videos he posts to social media, is inspiring.
DUDAMEL: The most honest thing, I believe, is when somebody opens his heart, his soul, and he shares that with you. This is generosity. Welcome to the Hollywood bowl.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): Dudamel just wrapped up his 17-year run leading the L.A. Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl.
His final weekend, including a performance with the Foo Fighters.
DUDAMEL: A life-changing experience.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): And a collaboration with Coldplay's Chris Martin, raising money for earthquake victims in Dudamel's native Venezuela.
DUDAMEL: Music is not only entertainment. Music heals, you know, and it heals the spirit.
[14:50:03]
And we need more of that.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): A share of the proceeds from "Life is a Dream" will support earthquake relief in Venezuela.
MICHAELSON: Why was that important for you?
HOPKINS: Well, it was such a tragedy. And, my friend Venezuelan. And then the opportunity came. Well, put all that in into the relief fund.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): In less than a year, Hopkins and Dudamel have become good friends, two men from different generations and different continents united by the universal language of music, something they both learned to love as little boys.
HOPKINS: We never grew up.
MICHAELSON: What do you mean by that?
HOPKINS: We're both kids.
MICHAELSON: Yeah.
HOPKINS: We're both children.
MICHAELSON: Even at 88.
HOPKINS: Yes. He wasn't grown up watching on the podium conducting the other night. He's a child. That's what it's about, about the power of childhood.
MICHAELSON: Wow.
HOPKINS: The child of enthusiasm.
DUDAMEL: Absolutely.
HOPKINS: Passion. MICHAELSON (voice-over): Elex Michaelson, CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: And now, children of the arts.
All right, coming up next hour, a race against time in Nepal to find more than 900 workers trapped underground. The dramatic rescue efforts as some survivors finally make it to safety.
Plus --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: Three, two, one -- ignition and liftoff. Go Falcon heavy and go --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: NASA just launched a new telescope that could change how we see the universe. I'll be joined by Bill Nye, who was at the launch this morning.
Also, for more than a century, only members of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints could enter the temple in Salt Lake City. In a CNN exclusive, we go to show you the massive renovations underway when you'll have the chance to go inside as well.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:56:27]
WHITFIELD: All right. The 2010s produced some of sports biggest stars, Simone Biles and LeBron James leading the way, while social media changed fan engagement forever.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: College football is the most beloved sport in the country. It's been part of the tapestry of Americana and part of our culture for well over 100 years.
JOHN U. BACON, AUTHOR: It's USC, UCLA, it's Michigan, Ohio State, Alabama, Auburn, Texas, Oklahoma. These teams never move. They never change colors. They never say, we're going to move to Nashville for a better stadium. Not one college team has ever left their town. It is truly a deeply regional game.
JESSICA MENDOZA, SPORTS BROADCASTER AND ANALYST, ESPN: I think until you're in those environments, you just don't understand, like this is a way of life. It's not just like, hey, I dig some football. Let's go watch. No, no, no, no. Like we hate them.
BACON: Were people getting tired of in the '60s, '70s and '80s was mythical national titles. You'd have 2 or 3 undefeated teams. They didn't play each other. Pick one. It's a beauty contest. VAN LATHAN, JOURNALIST: You play all your regular season games and
then you get invited to these gigantic bowls, Orange Bowl, Sugar Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, Rose Bowl, and you play against these other teams. And then somebody would sit back and they would vote on which team they thought was the best.
Well, this became so controversial that they said, we can no longer trust the human eye to tell us what the best team is.
The Bowl Championship Series, the BCS was created to crown the number one and number two teams based upon a computer scoring system, and then those two teams would face off for the national championship.
BACON: The BCS is a semi solution where at least the top two we think are going to play each other. That settles part of it. But you still have some problems there.
LATHAN: College football is very regional and so you have different play styles from all over different places. There were some people that thought the computer could not deal with the nuance of this. And so, you got matchups sometimes in the BCS between teams that people could not still agree on.
That is why people decided, you know what, we are going to just make a four-team playoff, and then we're going to expand that playoff to try to come closer to something that resembles a tournament for the national championship in college football.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Oh, so complicated. Watch the final episode of 'Decades in Sports" tonight, 9:00 p.m. on CNN. And tomorrow on the CNN app.
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ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.
WHITFIELD: Hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me this Sunday. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.
The frantic search and rescue efforts on the Nepali-Chinese border are now in their fourth day, following those catastrophic floods that washed away entire villages and towns under debris and mud. Today, the death toll has risen to more than 780 people, some 3,000 are still missing, including almost 1,000 workers at various hydropower projects in Nepal. Emergency workers are now pumping air and dropping food into one tunnel, but have yet to establish communication with anyone inside.
Today, displaced survivors are facing new concerns after a landslide on Saturday formed another barrier lake that officials fear could lead to more flooding. Help continues to arrive in the flood zone. A shipment from China has landed in Kathmandu, and the U.S. is sending more than $3.5 million of aid.
CNN's Will Ripley joins us now from Nepal with the latest WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: So we continue to
hear stories from people who just barely survived this massive flood, perhaps by just seconds.
