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U.S. Strikes Rocket Launchers On Iran's Larak Island; Dozens Evacuated In Grand Canyon Flash Flooding; At Least 85 Americans Missing In Nepal Floods; Iran Retaliates Against U.S. Forces; GOP Grapples With Trump's Trade War, Blowback Over Beef Policies; Young Adults Use Loophole Boosting Surge in Prediction Markets; Inside the World of Doomsday Prepping. Aired 7-8p ET

Aired August 30, 2026 - 19:00   ET

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

[19:00:00]

BRIAN ABEL, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking news, the first U.S. strike tonight against Iran in more than a month. Central Command says U.S. forces hit two Iranian rocket launchers on Larak Island, which is near the Strait of Hormuz. This is a critical shipping waterway for oil tankers and has become a central focus of regional tensions.

CNN's Julia Benbrook is joining us now from the White House with the very latest on this -- Julia.

JULIA BENBROOK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we do know that Iran vowed quickly to retaliate, and they are working to do that. We know that Iranian missiles were launched at Jordan. Those were intercepted according to a U.S. official. There's no impact there to report. But this comes after the -- we had learned that the -- that U.S. forces struck two Iranian launchers on Larak Island.

A U.S. official had told CNN that this happened after Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces were observed preparing to launch rockets with sea mines into the Strait of Hormuz. All of that coming days after President Donald Trump had said that there was a zero tolerance policy on mine placement in full force and effect, and after U.S. Central Command said that it had finished clearing the sea mines from this critical waterway.

An official tells our team, quote, "U.S. forces are monitoring the area closely and remain prepared to protect the free flow of commerce through this essential waterway. The Strait of Hormuz has, of course, been a key area of focus during this more than six-month long conflict, and there have been conflicting messages when it comes to who is in control of that strait with both sides claiming some control.

Trump, for his part, he has remained adamant that the United States is in full control of it, and he says that they are watching every inch of it.

Now, as you pointed out, Brian, these are the first strikes in this conflict in over a month. And as I noted, Iran has vowed to retaliate -- Brian. ABEL: Julia Benbrook, at the White House for us, following

developments from Iran.

Julia, thank you.

More breaking news now. In the Grand Canyon, 15 people may be missing after flash floods, according to park officials. Urgent search and rescues are now underway after heavy flooding along the park's most popular hiking trail, Bright Angel Canyon, as well as the Phantom Ranch area. Park officials say nearly all foot bridges across the Bright Angel Creek have been destroyed.

Evacuations are ongoing with dozens of people already safely evacuated from the park. The National Park Service is asking anybody who knows of hikers or backpackers who may have been in these areas to contact their tip line.

And let's bring in former FEMA external affairs officer and active first responder Jason Pack to talk about this.

Jason, when you're talking about a place like the Grand Canyon, what goes into a rescue operation like this?

JASON PACK, FORMER FEMA EXTERNAL AFFAIRS OFFICER: Danny, this is one of the most difficult terrains in the United States, really, to conduct search and rescue operations. We know the park service and the Arizona Department of Public Safety are doing those air operations. I think what's important to note is unaccounted for. We heard that term used by officials today. And that doesn't necessarily mean the worst. And at least that's certainly what we're hoping for.

That could mean that hikers don't have communication, as we've heard that the footpaths were mostly washed out. So hopefully they will be able to locate those things with aircraft, with technology like thermal imaging. These types of things to be able to find where these missing hikers are.

ABEL: Maybe splitting hairs here a little bit, Jason. But when we talk about the biggest challenges facing rescue crews, is it the terrain? Is it having to use helicopters or is it the -- just the -- how remote everything is that it might be more difficult to find people that are stranded there, especially as nightfall hits?

PACK: Absolutely. That is the challenge. In the United States, you know, unlike Nepal, we can send fire engines, ambulances, helicopters, any resource pretty much that we need is readily available to drive up there. Well, in the Grand Canyon, the problem is you can't get there except by path or by helicopter. And so even though you have all these resources available, finding those right places to use them is extremely challenging because it's measured in depth and those types of things instead of just being able to drive to the scene. And that's what makes it extremely challenging.

ABEL: (INAUDIBLE) types of treatments do people need in situations like this? PACK: Well, I think it's a good idea. That's why when you go hiking,

it's a good idea to tell someone you have to have an emergency plan and let people know where you're going. That would help in this situation. I think that's why we've seen the park service turn on their tip line for people who have that information. But they are pretty good at these search and rescue operations. They integrate well with other agencies like the Arizona Department of Public Safety.

We've seen in the past the National Guard has also come in to help.

[19:05:03]

So they have these training missions that they use to fly, and they're used to doing these types of operations. I mean, they are racing against the clock. It is going to be nightfall out there, but hopefully the hikers were prepared to and had a plan in case something like this happens. Really flash flooding is really difficult, though, because it comes so quickly and with such force. We heard in Hurricane Helene here in upper east Tennessee, we've had people that were, you know, taken from North Carolina all the way across the mountain into Tennessee with these flash floods. Hopefully that's not the case here.

ABEL: Hopefully so. Jason Pack, really appreciate your expertise on all of this. And hopefully everybody has found.

Jason, thank you.

PACK: Thanks.

ABEL: Officials in Nepal say at least 780 people have died following catastrophic floods and landslides on the China-Nepal border earlier this week. Search efforts are underway as thousands more people are still missing. Local police also say with so many decomposing bodies and waning resources, they laid nearly 200 of the unidentified dead to rest in a mass grave in a forest this week.

Now, India is sending a team of forensic scientists to help identify people's remains in Nepal. Meanwhile, families have been flying into the region from around the world to search for their loved ones. Here, you can see hundreds of missing person posters lining a hospital wall in Kathmandu. Another grim reminder of the personal toll that these catastrophic floods and landslides have taken on this region of the world. Meanwhile, survivors are returning home to find absolute devastation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SARASWATI GHALE, HOME DESTROYED IN MUDSLIDE (through translator): What am I feeling? Looking at everything it's like there's no world. What is left? It's like I am dead. What to do now? I don't have anything. What is there that is worth living? Now what will happen? Who knows? I am saved but how things will pan out, who knows? That's it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ABEL: At least 85 Americans are among the more than 3,000 people missing across China and Nepal. The U.S. State Department saying that nine Americans have been safely evacuated. There are no confirmed reports of U.S. citizen deaths so far.

CNN correspondent Rafael Romo has been closely watching this story, and we've been hearing from some of the families of those missing Americans.

What are you learning?

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Just imagine the uncertainty, Brian. It happened on Wednesday. These families are still waiting to hear any news whatsoever from their loved ones. And over the last 24 hours, we've been able to get in touch with some of the families of a group of 10 men traveling together for a hiking trip of a lifetime, for both spiritual and recreational reasons.

There were nine Americans and one Canadian in the missing group of friends traveling as part of a tour as catastrophic flash flooding hit the area where they were around the Nepal-China border on Wednesday. One of those missing men is Kesava Rao Tadipatri, a 73-year-old American father who lives in Arizona. Tadipatri is the one located in the upper left corner of the following picture, holding a phone.

His daughter told CNN earlier today that her father sent his family the group photo of himself and his fellow hikers just a short time before the flood waters hit the border crossing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RAMYA TADIPATRI, DAUGHTER OF MISSING MAN IN NEPAL: That picture that 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 the last we heard.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMO: Tadipatri described her father as a spiritual guru and guide for the Hindu community, and shared with CNN that the 73-year-old had run his second marathon earlier this year.

CNN also got in touch with the wife of another member of the same group of men hiking together near the Nepal-China border when tragedy struck. Sneha Sudhir says her husband, Srinivas Sudhir Raghu, was enjoying a long anticipated hiking trip through Mount Kailash with nine other family friends.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SNEHA SUDHIR, WIFE OF MAN MISSING IN NEPAL: He was on a hiking trip from Nepal. And then he was with nine other friends, family friends. It was supposed to be a simple two weeks' Nepal hiking trip where he would go, have some good time with his boys, and be back home.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMO: Sudhir also told us the hikers, including her husband, had been preparing for months for this trip, and the men, whom she described as great human beings, were all in good physical shape.

[19:10:01]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SUDHIR: So these boys were supposed to be going on a hike. And then that was starting from Nepal. And eventually it would be the Mount Kailash trek and be back home. That was their plan. And they had a wonderful guide. They had prepared for this particular hike for close to about three months.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMO: Meanwhile, help continues to arrive in the flood zone. A shipment from China just landed in Kathmandu, and the United States announced on Sunday it was sending an additional more than $3.5 million of aid. But again, we don't know how long this aid is going to last. We just saw before my story how people are coming back home to nothing whatsoever.

ABEL: And every hour, every minute that goes by without these families hearing something is just excruciating.

Rafael Romo, thank you.

And if you want to help the people in Nepal affected by this disaster, you can go to CNN.com/Impact or scan the QR code that's on your screen now.

Well, still ahead for us, more on the breaking news. We are learning of new attacks on U.S. forces by Iran, and it comes shortly after the U.S. military struck Iranian rocket launchers near the Strait of Hormuz.

The very latest coming up right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:15:57]

ABEL: Breaking news. Iran is tonight retaliating for earlier U.S. strikes on Iranian rocket launchers near the Strait of Hormuz. A U.S. official telling CNN so far Iranian missiles fired into Jordan have been intercepted.

Let's go back to the White House now, and Julia Benbrook, as well as bringing in CNN national security analyst Alex Plitsas.

And Julia, what more are you learning right now?

BENBROOK: Well, this all marks the first big escalation in this conflict in over a month as the war has dragged on for more than six months at this point. And as you pointed out, the latest here is that Iranian missiles were fired at Jordan. A U.S. official tells us that those were intercepted and that there are no significant impacts to report. That was in response to what we reported earlier that U.S. forces had struck two Iranian launchers earlier in the day.

A U.S. official told CNN that that came after Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces were observed preparing to launch rockets with sea mines into the Strait of Hormuz. And all of that taking place just days after President Donald Trump said that there was a no tolerance policy on mine placement in full force and effect. And after U.S. Central Command said that it had finished clearing these sea mines from that critical waterway.

An official tells CNN this. They say, "U.S. forces are monitoring the area closely and remain prepared to protect the free flow of commerce through this essential waterway." The Strait of Hormuz has been a key area of focus during this conflict, a conflict that again has gone on for more than six months now. And when those first joint U.S.-Israel strikes against Iran took place, Trump had previewed that this might only last a couple of days.

He laid out a prediction of, you know, several weeks, six weeks at some point. Now it has been more than six months. And this all is happening as poll after poll shows that Americans, the majority of them, are not happy with the way that Trump has handled this conflict at this point. So all of this escalation taking place today, we're keeping a close eye out on Trump's Truth Social.

We often hear him comment for the first time on that social media platform. He has not done so yet. He has been posting about other things, other projects, but he has not commented directly on this conflict with Iran.

ABEL: And we will wait for that comment. Julia, thank you.

Let's turn now to Alex.

And Alex, it's been a month since U.S. strikes against Iran until today. What do you believe was the tipping point for this activity tonight?

ALEX PLITSAS, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: So this actually started, I think about a week ago, and it began with comments from the United States, particularly from Secretary Bessent, in which he was talking about the flow of oil out of the Strait of Hormuz, and that it had increased at one point, I think, saying that it almost got to 15 million barrels last Friday, if I'm not mistaken.

And, you know, pre-war levels were about 20 to 21 million. Analysts in the industry will tell you somewhere between five to seven trending towards eight are getting out on a daily basis. Still not quite half, but getting close, certainly trending closer to U.S. official positions as to what they're saying. At the same time, the U.S. is still maintaining a military blockade of the Iranian ports, which is to add additional pressure on top of them, in addition to the sanctions package that was discussed, plus all of the destruction from the war. The Iranian economy is under pressure.

And so in response to those comments, I believe we saw a couple of things today. So earlier there was an attack on a ship off the coast of Oman, the U.K. Maritime Trade Organization. UKMTO, had put out an alert about it. So we saw an oil tanker looks like struck by a projectile. And then we saw these rocket launchers allegedly being -- you know, about to be firing some mines into the water, both of which looked like they were meant specifically to undermine the U.S. position.

So in response to that, the U.S. took offensive action to take out those launchers, as was just discussed. Now, the Iranians, as you just correctly, you know, noted as part of the program here, launched and fired on U.S. bases in Jordan. The question is, what happens next? What's been going on to date is that the U.S. has not allowed that to continue.

[19:20:01]

They've gone and gone on the offensive. The last time this happened, we saw several days of strikes along the coastal infrastructure inside of Iran to further degrade Iran's ability to attack. But again, this is another demonstration that we can't get every missile, we can't get every drone. And the Iranians are continuing to hold the Strait of Hormuz at risk to a certain extent by doing so.

ABEL: And Alex, so far, at least with the attacks aimed at Jordan, all Iranian missiles have been intercepted, the U.S. says. Will you lay out the dynamics for us here of why the aim is at Jordan right now?

PLITSAS: Sure. So there's several bases that have sort of taken the brunt of the Iranian counter-fire, and that has been in Kuwait, that has been in Jordan, that has been in the UAE, where we have all of these places. We have air bases, major air bases in the region, as well as outside of the capital city in Doha, and in Saudi Arabia, because that's where we have the majority of the air bases. So the Iranians have been firing back.

It's actually part of their four pillar strategy they have. The Iranians are, you know, for all the comments that are made about them, they are a rational actor. They do know that they understand that they are at military overmatch against the United States. And so they're pursuing a four part strategy. The first is to try to maximize casualties on the U.S. side, which, again, why we saw these attacks on U.S. bases today.

It's to increase the cost of goods and flow of commerce by choking off the Strait of Hormuz. It is an attempt to undermine the president's base at home, going up and leading into the elections while they're there, and then to put pressure on the Gulf states and the Arab states by firing at them to try to get them to pressure the United States into ending the war. The latter part has failed.

So this tonight was an attempt to strike U.S. forces there. Glad that everything was intercepted. But let's be honest, these were missiles that were fired at U.S. military bases with the intention of killing U.S. service members had they struck their targets. This was an attempted lethal attack against the United States military and forces in the region. So a serious action. But the president has got two tracks on this.

Let's not forget, you know, when we assassinated Qassem Soleimani and they responded with ballistic missile attacks five days later against our bases in Iraq, there were traumatic brain injuries that were reported afterwards, but there were no physical injuries or deaths. The president chose not to respond to that. In recent weeks, he has chosen to respond to attacks on U.S. bases, sort of sending a message to the Iranians.

So the president can go either way on this. He can say, hey, nobody was hurt or killed. We shot everything down. Let's move on. Or we could see several days of strikes afterwards. So I think if we see additional strikes, they could be substantive again, like we saw the last time. So it's going to be a question of whether or not the U.S. wants to reengage or if they're going to continue to let this economic blockade that they've instituted really take hold and see how much pressure the Iranians will take before they come back to the table.

ABEL: All right. We shall see. Alex Plitsas and Julia Benbrook, thank you both.

Well, Americans, especially those in large agriculture areas, they are dealing with a triple tariff hit. After the break, just how big of an impact President Trump's moves are having on GOP leaders in those areas.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:27:16]

ABEL: President Trump is facing blowback from cattle ranchers and rural Republicans over decision to pause tariffs on some foreign beef imports. Last hour, I spoke with John Boyd, Jr., president of the National Black Farmers Association. He says this move is not putting America's farmers first.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN BOYD, JR., PRESIDENT AND FOUNDER, NATIONAL BLACK FARMERS ASSOCIATION: We are at a crossroads. And, you know, this election season is coming up in midterm elections. And I hope farmers will vote their pocketbook and their situations that we're facing right now. We are facing the lowest cattle count here in the United States since 1951. So we're not producing a lot of beef here. And the reason is, is because we're not investing real resources into America's farmers.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ABEL: All right. Let's talk about this now. We're joined by CNN political commentators David Urban and Karen Finney. David, a Republican strategist and former Trump campaign adviser. Karen, a senior adviser to the 2016 Clinton presidential campaign and a former DNC communications director.

David, first to you. It's a triple hit of tariffs, high gas and fertilizer prices. Now imported beef. How much does this weigh down Republicans in agriculture heavy states?

DAVID URBAN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Brian, you know, it's pretty tough in those states up in the northern, you know, northern border, North Dakota, Kansas, lots of other places, where cattle production is key. And, you know, as you point out, the fertilizer prices have an impact as well because -- and so do gas prices because you need to grow the food, the cows and cattle eat, right?

So it's kind of a vicious circle. I do believe it is, you know, it's hurting. I do -- I think the administration is looking to try to move to ameliorate some of that with perhaps country of origin labeling on some of this beef. So to give consumers a choice, allow people to try to drive down cost of meat while giving them -- you know, allowing American farmers to compete. If you want to buy all American beef, you can buy it.

But giving other options to drive down some of the costs. But, you know, you -- you're the president, you're stuck with all the things that go wrong in the economy, whether you cause them or not at this point.

ABEL: Well, say, how much of it is his own making right now with this particular situation?

URBAN: Yes. Well, the tariffs -- listen, the tariffs are -- well, the Middle East obviously, the situation in the Straits of Hormuz obviously has driven up gas prices, although were returning to somewhat normal there. Same with fertilizer. But that's a lagging. It's not going to be normal until sometime well after the election, right? So even if things were to reopen tomorrow, gas prices still remain high. Fertilizer prices high, all those things high.

This move on beef is somewhat curious, right? I'm not quite sure why you add insult to injury at this point. I think, you know, a lot of elected officials down ballot, right, congressmen and senators in those states, kind of scratching their head and asking the administration like, why? I think there is a lot of frustration amongst those rank-and-file members in the House and Senate.

[19:30:19]

ABEL: Karen, quite curious is one way to put it. What do Democrats -- what are the message need to be in response? Is it enough to just be anti-Trump in this moment, or do they need to be laying out a plan for what they could actually do if given majorities in the House, and maybe even the Senate?

KAREN FINNEY, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Yes, Look, as David knows well, it is never good enough to just be anti your opponent. You ve got to also talk to voters about what you're for and that is part of why you're hearing, I think our voters -- I am really proud of our candidates. They are laser focused in talking about the issues that are impacting people.

You know, in the Midwest, as we were talking about, it is fertilizer costs. It is -- you know, that direct hit to ranchers and farmers, it is gas prices -- I mean, gas prices is one that is obviously meaningful across the country. I was just in South Carolina for a week, and you could tell people are really hurting.

But also, you know, the thing that I think our candidates are doing well is also talking about costs and affordability in the language of what people are dealing with in their states.

Health care is another big one. But you ve got someone like Mary Peltola who is talking about fish because fishing is a big deal in Alaska and that's a different conversation than you might be having in the Midwest versus the South.

Although the underlying issues are similar and I will just say, you know, listening to the segment just before us, when people see the sort of chaos in the Middle East, that does not assuage their concerns about whether or not prices are going to come down, and then when they see the President taking to social media to attack journalists, to talk about building his art, or all of these other things, what it says to them, what it reinforces is he is focused on those things. He is not focused on me. He is not focused on my concerns.

So I think you're going to continue to see our candidates focusing on the everyday concerns people have, but we still have to talk about the fact that Trump had a golden opportunity to do a lot for this country, and instead, he is been focusing on his own grift and his own ability to make now billions of dollars for himself and his family.

ABEL: And David, I want to talk about some of those concerns that Karen listed there. CNN's Adam Cancryn and Kristen Holmes had reporting just last week about concerns over the upcoming Republican Midterm Convention, dubbed Trumpapalooza, saying, "Republicans are privately questioning if it strikes the right tone amid the electorate's tightening budgets and the wisdom of diverting candidates from their districts just weeks out from Election Day," at a time when people are concerned with the cost of living.

So is it a good look? Is it a smart strategy to be hosting an event like this, David?

URBAN: Yes, so here is what I'd say to that. I am not super concerned. I think that Karen knows to run lots of campaigns as well. These midterm elections are about voter turnout, turning out the base. President Trump alluded to this.

He did an interview last week in The White House where he said, look, you know, people are saying that he is blaming House members. Well, you know, quite frankly, the electorate is pretty upset with the Congress writ large for a lot of things that they are doing. Trump is on the ballot.

And so the President is going to get out there. He is going to try to motivate, you know, the electorate. The Republican base electorate feels that Congress hasn t done enough to support the President's agenda that's why they are upset. So the President is going to get out there, try to motivate those base voters.

Look, he may be unpopular with the electorate writ large, but amongst Republicans, he is still in the high -- mid to high 80s and so these elections are about turning out your base.

If we can turn out base Republican voters in these elections, they are all very close. These are going to be all very close elections. If we can do that, Republicans will hang tough. I don t think we will lose the senate. The House is a different story. It is all about, you know, stemming losses there.

And I think -- I think he is doing the right thing. If you're going to divert House members away from campaigning in their districts, asking them to come there, that may not be smart, but Donald Trump getting out and rallying and going to some of these districts, it depends, too, Brian what districts he is going to and where is he going to try to target.

But, you know, I think Trump is on the ballot, whether you like it or not in the district. And so he might as well be out front trying to whip up voters to come out and vote.

ABEL: And Karen, the last word to you.

FINNEY: All right, I would just point out that in 2022, we had something historic happen and that was Joe Biden didn t lose in the midterms the way we historically see. Why? Because people agreed at the time, and we had problems then with what he was doing.

So if people believe that what Trump was doing and that what Republicans were doing was right for the country and benefiting them, you wouldn t necessarily see what looks like could be a very historic wave. Obviously, we have real concerns about making sure that everyone gets to vote.

[19:35:10]

The President is going to continue to create chaos when it comes to actually voting, but the trends that are moving in our direction are also because people are angry at Republicans for not holding Trump accountable to the things that he promised. So we will see what happens in November.

I think we are going to have a few more twists and turns between now and then.

ABEL: Just a couple of months away.

URBAN: No, no. No drama. No drama, Brian.

ABEL: None at all.

FINNEY: No!

ABEL: We will have to leave it there. David Urban and Karen Finney, thank you guys, as always.

The young people are finding a loophole for online betting and it has lawmakers and addiction experts concerned.

CNN's Marshall Cohen digs into the multibillion dollar industry after the break. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:40:31]

ABEL: A Division 2 college football player in Missouri has died after suffering a medical emergency during the first quarter of his team's season opener.

William Jewell College running back, MicahJo Barnett scored a touchdown shortly before the medical emergency and was taken to a local hospital, where he later died.

The school suspended the game and held a candlelight vigil last night to honor him. No other details about his death have been released yet.

Trying to find Lake Ontario on Google Maps.

Well, if you are in the United States, you won't. As of this weekend, users in the U.S. will now see the lake identified as Lake America.

The change comes after an executive order from President Trump amid his tense trade war with Canada. He, however, can't force other countries to follow suit.

And young adults are betting big on the prediction market. According to new CNN analysis, people aged 18 to 21 have traded more than $5 billion on the Kalshi prediction market, and that's raising the concern of addiction experts and lawmakers, who warn they could also be gambling on their financial future.

CNN senior reporter, Marshall Cohen has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARSHALL COHEN, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: $5 billion, that is the estimate for the trading volume on Kalshi from users 18, 19 and 20. And I'll tell you why that is such an important cohort. It's because most people don't realize that prediction markets aren't treated as gambling under the law as it stands right now. They're treated more like the stock market and other financial markets that are 18-plus, while sports books and casinos in most states are 21-plus.

Critics call that a loophole. Public health experts have spoken out about this and said that they believe it puts younger adults at risk for addiction and to take risk of your behaviors that could lose them their money.

So, here are the numbers. $5.4 billion in estimated trading volume this year, so far on Kalshi for these 18 to 21 users. And $4 billion of that is from sports and parlays, which are incredibly popular with sports.

And everyone I spoke to has said that is going to explode in the coming weeks and months because the NFL season is right around the corner.

So for its part, Kalshi insists that it takes this very seriously and that it is always looking out for its younger users. They say that they have safeguards, that they impose voluntarily on the platform to make sure that those traders are protected. Things like deposit limits and warnings on the app if the system identifies a problematic trading patterns.

Kalshi also donated $2 million to a group that combats addiction on gambling and trading platforms.

However, the states just aren't buying it. Look at this map. Forty- four states across the country have banded together to push for more regulation in these prediction markets.

Like I said, they're currently regulated by the federal government and that means they're 18-plus. The states want this to be treated like gambling, like casinos, subject to state laws, state taxes and that would be 21-plus.

And these are blue states, red states, battleground states. It really spans the entire political landscape.

By the way, CNN has a partnership with Kalshi. We use its data to cover some major events, but editorial employees like myself and others are not allowed to use prediction sites.

Back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ABEL: Marshall Cohen, thank you.

Well, apparently many Americans think the end of the world as we know it could be near and are stocking up to be ready just in case of a doomsday scenario.

After the break, we talk to Nick Paton Walsh about his inside look at how survivalists live.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:49:29]

ABEL: Get this, one-third of Americans have spent some part of their household budget on survival equipment or supplies, like an end of the world scenario.

And an estimated $20 million Americans now self-identify as preppers, a number that has doubled since 2017. Up next, in this week's all new episode of "The Whole Story," CNN' Nick Paton Walsh dives into the prepping world with a popular YouTuber and urban survival expert.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Jack shows us his safe house, where his training gets more violent and the gear gets serious. AR-15, Sigs, night vision, this one with a thermal clip on adapter.

[19:50:09]

JACK, SURVIVALIST: If you come at me with a number one strike, go ahead. Give me the number one. I am going to cut your arm, so go ahead and give it to me again. So then I am going to step out. I am going to trap the arm.

All right. So, you are going to slap. So follow my hand this way. Do not you do not have to grab it. Just slap it. Cut so you are going to know you are going to follow me with this hand. One, cut control the arm. There you go.

WALSH: Would you mind slowing down your attacks?

There you go. And then that. Right. Okay.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So then I can cut.

WALSH: Right. Yes Fine. Okay. I am very dead.

Was that wrong?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No. That's good. Yeah. That's good.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[19:50:56]

ABEL: CNN chief national security correspondent, Nick Paton Walsh is joining us now. Nick, tell us what more you learned.

WALSH: You know, an extraordinary month's long dig into this world of prepping, as you said, something increasingly mainstream now.

And while someone like Jack, you saw their teaching skills that kind of hark towards the stereotype there, Jack a bit right-wing on the spectrum, you might argue, he says, his clientele has changed massively in the past years.

He is now seeing tech people, entrepreneurs coming to him to learn things they hope they never have to actually employ, including that knife fighting there, a big tip from Jack, never get in a knife fight. Run if you can.

But if you have an almost limitless budget, ultimately there is no end of stuff. You could spend your money on. Billionaires, millionaires, the ultra-rich spending huge amounts of cash, $5 million per apartment, potentially in tens of thousands each year on upkeep fees for the possibility that they have the most luxurious way of spending the end of times.

I should point out, it is still pretty unlikely, despite the political crisis, the climate crisis, the sense of endless omni crisis you get piped at you during your phone that we are going to live through some kind of massively apocalyptic event, you might argue, but still, people spending huge amounts of money on that eventuality.

Here is one extraordinary engineering feat we got to see inside.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WALSH: What was the cost to buy the abandoned silo itself?

LARRY HALL, OWNER & DEVELOPER, SURVIVAL CONDO: Three hundred thousand.

WALSH: But that's a bargain, right?

HALL: Oh, yes. Certain, yes.

WALSH: There is no denying the engineering feat owner and creator Larry Hall has achieved here over years of detailed planning.

HALL: Okay, this blue box you see is a volcanic ash scrubber. We have enough diesel fuel to run these for two-and-a-half years. It just takes care of itself. The computers that control everything.

This is what we call the pet park. People get the feeling that, you know, they're outdoors.

I have a lot of people, ultra-high net worth individuals that come in here. And a lot of them, when they first contact me, want to build their own private bunker. And I say, well, that's good. But why don't you come and look at what I've built? And then we found out that they value having other adults to bounce ideas off of, as opposed to having just their family locked in a smaller facility that they were exclusive to.

So now you're in a bunker. Now you've got other adults. Say, what do you think? Like, what's going on?

WALSH: So, you and billionaires need other people?

HALL: Yes, they did. And they really appreciated that.

WALSH: So long as it's other billionaires.

HALL: No, we only have a couple of people I would put in the billionaire category. Other people are just successful self-made professionals.

(END VIDEO CLIP) ABEL: And Nick, just fascinating stuff. Was there anything that you learned that surprised you when researching for this episode?

WALSH: Yes, I mean, we spent a large part of this. It felt like a very long time on a sliver of Mexican beach in the middle of nowhere, an old ruined fishing hut learning the most serious and basic of survival skills, and I ultimately learned I am completely ill equipped for something like that.

But the key thing there was if you break it all down to its most basic, what do you need to survive every day if you have nothing in the wild? There is an awful lot of work and energy you have to apply to the most basic things like how to fish potentially when you have nothing. How many coconuts can you eat a day without getting diarrhea? How do you make a shelter? How do you get fresh water?

How, most importantly, do you make fire, which you can purify water with, cook food with? I was useless at that. Even the most basic things in all that left me utterly bewildered and stranded. We had a phenomenal guide. Amos Rodriguez, a survival expert himself, who kind of kept me alive through all of this, but got bitten from head to toe horizontal rain, getting into even the most advanced of hammocks that I brought with me.

And that kind of taught you really how far we've come from those initial survival skills that maybe our great, great grandparents never thought twice about that ultimately now here, when most of the fish I get is delivered on a polystyrene tray in a supermarket, how hard it is to look back towards those things that hopefully will never need one day.

[19:55:10]

An interesting journey for us to go through. This total panoply from surviving in the city to surviving on a beach, to trying to do this with millions, to potentially surviving on so much less indeed, extraordinary to see how this thought process is becoming so much more part of mainstream America -- Brian.

ABEL: Yes, certainly an eye opening experience and journey.

Nick Paton Walsh, Nick, thank you.

And be sure to catch it, "The Whole Story" with Anderson Cooper, "The End of the World as We Know It" next right here on CNN.

Thank you for joining me. I am Brian Abel. Have a good night.

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