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CNN This Morning

Tornado Watch In Effect For Missouri, Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky And Tennessee; Tornado-Spawning Memorial Day Weekend Storms Across Central U.S.; State Of Emergency Operations Center Activated In Oklahoma; Oklahoma Campground Struck By Likely Tornado; Four Girls Stabbed In Massachusetts Theater; Trump Met With Boos, Few Cheers At Libertarian Convention; Biden Touts NATO Expansion, Middle East Negotiation Efforts; Nicki Minaj Films Her Arrest For "Soft Drug" Possession In Amsterdam; Relentless Russian Bombing Of Ukraine's Second-Largest City Amid Offensive; Recent Turbulence Incident On A Singapore Airlines Flight Caused By Rapidly Developing Thunderstorm; NYC Works To Recruit More Lifeguards To Staff Beaches; Inside The Growing Trend Of Deepfake Videos On Chinese Social Media. Aired 6-7a ET

Aired May 26, 2024 - 06:00   ET

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

[06:00:33]

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: And the breaking news this morning, severe weather is battering several states, right now, extreme storms. Let's start in Dallas. They left a disruptive mark there.

Look at this. This is what happened overnight. This was a Shell gas station after a possible tornado touchdown. It's not far from there, 18 wheelers blown over. Search crews, operations happening right now.

This morning, more than 200,000 customers across Missouri, in Kansas, Texas, Oklahoma, Nebraska, in the dark. And more than 100 million people are at risk of severe weather across the country today. We, of course, are tracking it all.

AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: Another breaking story we are watching this morning, a stabbing spree across two Massachusetts communities. Police say the suspect stabbed four young girls at a movie theater before driving to another town and stabbing two others at a restaurant an hour later. We will have the latest on that.

Amara Walker and Victor Blackwell here for you on this busy Sunday morning of breaking news. Right now, in Denton, Texas, an area about 40 miles northwest of Dallas, emergency crews are working to rescue multiple victims who are trapped under this collapsed building following a possible tornado that touched down last night, causing widespread injuries and destruction.

BLACKWELL: Take a look at this video, what's left of that Shell gas station in Valley View, Texas. You can see several cars crushed under, I guess, what used to be a part of the building there. People gathering on the roadside watching as police move in to secure that area.

There were several reports of tornadoes across several counties in Oklahoma. This is video of a campground. This is near Claremore, destroyed after it was hit by a likely tornado last night. The storms have prompted the state to activate emergency operation centers.

CNN's Allison Chinchar is with us now. They keep coming, these storms. Of course, we've mentioned how many states are affected. What are we looking at as the path thus far and what could be next?

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Right. I mean, we still have active tornado warnings, watches all of that ongoing this morning. Usually by morning things start to die back down. That's not the case this morning, and it's going to continue into the afternoon and evening hours just progressing eastward as it does.

So yes, we take a look at the last 24 hours. This video from earlier yesterday. This is Windthorst, Texas, near Wichita Falls, so the northern portion of Texas there. You can see that tornado there in the background. That was one of more than a dozen total tornado reports in just the last 24 hours. We've had over 100 damaging wind reports, over 80 hail reports, some of them the size of baseballs. So again, you're talking incredibly large hail.

We've still got a lot of those ongoing storms this morning. You've got a severe thunderstorm watch valid in Texas and then several tornado watches for portions of Missouri, Kentucky, Illinois, and even northern Arkansas.

It's this cluster, right here, that's really the focus just east of Springfield. Several tornado warnings active as we speak, some severe thunderstorm warnings as well as that line continues to make its way off towards the east and it will continue to do so through the rest of the day to day.

And you can see some pretty large populated cities could be impacted by this same system later on today. You're talking Chicago, Cleveland, down through Louisville, St. Louis, Nashville, Memphis, even down as far south say Atlanta and Birmingham, looking at the potential there for a few tornadoes, damaging winds, and yes, we could even see some large hail again today, the size of golf balls or even larger.

The other thing to note is these storms aren't really moving very fast. A lot of these areas have had several days of rain. So, you also have the concern of flooding that's going to be an issue too. So, even if you get lucky, you don't have a lot of the severe components, you may still have some flooding to contend with. That's why you've got these flood watches in effect for much of the day today.

Here's a look at the line. This morning, it's mainly we focused over Missouri, Illinois. But as we get later on into the afternoon now you start to see more of Chicago, St. Louis, those areas coming into play.

Tonight, that first line continues to spread into the mid-Atlantic, into the northeast, but then we also have this second development here. This is what's going to be the concern this evening and as we go into the overnight hours. That spreads from Kentucky down into Tennessee and eventually into Georgia, and even the Carolinas. That means tomorrow, I know, not everybody has to work tomorrow, but for those that do or for those that are traveling, likely going to be very soggy start to the day, places like Charlotte, Greenville, Spartanburg, even around Atlanta by tomorrow morning.

[06:05:01]

So, something to take into consideration there. And you can see, this is the potential for excessive rainfall. That flooding risk tomorrow or today and through the evening hours, it kind of starts to spread out towards the east. So, all of these areas have the potential for those heavy downpours and that saturated ground that could lead to some flooding there.

And it's not over today. This is going to be a multi-day event. We started with the severe weather yesterday. It continues today and also for tomorrow.

So, notice tomorrow though now, you're talking Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., stretching down through Raleigh, Atlanta, Montgomery, and then, guys, even down into portions of Mobile and Baton Rouge as well.

WALKER: A lot going on, a lot to be careful for. Allison Chinchar, thank you very much.

BLACKWELL: Let's bring it now storm chaser Brian Emfinger. He is in Rogers, Arkansas, this morning, but he was in Claremore, Oklahoma, last night. That's where an apparent tornado hit a campground. Brian, I believe the video that we just showed is your video. Tell us more about what's happening here. What did you see?

BRIAN EMFINGER, STORM CHASER: Yes. It was just -- it was a horrible scene. You know, this park, this KOA campground was, you know, obviously full of Memorial Day vacationers, and the tornadoes just went right there. When I pulled up on scene, there was a tremendous amount of search and rescue.

Now, apparently some of the people did take cover in a shelter that is there at the campground but apparently some people did not. I asked the officer on seeing if he knew, you know, if everyone is OK, he could not give me an answer. But I did see multiple search and rescues where people were just trapped in their campers and RVs. There were some that were destroyed, some that were tipped over, and it was a -- you know, it was very full campground.

WALKER: Where do you seek shelter in a campground? I know you're mentioning that some people are trapped in their RVs and such, but I mean, where were -- tell me about the people who were able to, you know, get out there safely.

EMFINGER: So, there has been some people that have commented on some of my social media. I can't verify it, but they said that they're -- that they've stayed at that campground and that there is a shelter. You know, it's Oklahoma, so I would be surprised if there wasn't a shelter for such a large RV campground as that. I would be -- and there's also a casino nearby. It's a very well-built building. So, I do -- I imagine that there was a safe place for them to get to.

BLACKWELL: Yes. You, Brian, you mentioned this briefly, but I want everybody to remember that this is a holiday weekend. And if there is a time when families get together, head to the campgrounds, it is likely when they've got a holiday and some time starting off the summer. Were the rescue crews able to pull people from these tipped over buildings, all of this wreckage? Were they finding people while you were there?

EMFINGER: There was one specific camper RV that's in my video and there was clearly someone in there and they were having trouble getting to them. I believe I heard people say that they were fine. They were just trapped.

There were multiple other ones, but that was the one that was right next to me that I was focused on. I eventually had to leave and they were still working -- I don't know if you could see the drone video where they're just like looking around and trying to figure out, you know, how to get to this person.

It was -- it was really a sad thing. There were family members nearby and they were just all just kind of watching and waiting. But even from their demeanors, I believe that person was going to be OK once they got them out.

WALKER: Again, you know, as Victor was mentioning, this is a holiday weekend. Just give us a sense of how busy it was or crowded at this campground and just the extent of the damage and destruction that you saw.

EMFINGER: Yes. There was -- you know, there's two main rows of campsites. And on each of those rows, there was, you know, like five or six in a row that were just like gone. But you could tell that there had been something there and then there were some that were tipped over.

You know, this was a very full lot. You know, the roads are for all pack. You know, this is a campground, RV campground that's right next to a casino. People were obviously there, you know, enjoying their holiday vacation.

I suspect that, you know, a lot of them probably did make it into the shelter because, you know, that's like the worst place to be in a tornado is in a structure like that. So, the fact that, you know, I'm not sure that I've heard of any major injuries or fatalities in that area is just a testament to people being weather aware in that part of the country in Oklahoma. You know, you have to be weather aware during the night and it probably saved people's lives even in this extremely busy worst time to hit, you know, this type of area at this time for Memorial Day weekend.

WALKER: Oh, thank goodness. They had time to find shelter. Brian Emfinger, really appreciate you joining us this morning. Thank you very much.

To another story now that we're following. Breaking news, a man has been arrested in Massachusetts for allegedly stabbing four girls in a movie theater last night.

[06:10:02]

Police say the four girls were stabbed without warning inside an AMC theater and sustained non-life-threatening injuries. They were all children between the ages of nine and 17.

Police were then called to a McDonald's a half an hour away where a young man and a woman were discovered with stab wounds in a similar attack. Both were sent to a hospital. They are expected to survive. The suspect led state police on a car chase before crashing and then being taken into custody.

All right. Joining me now is retired detective sergeant Felipe Rodriguez. Really appreciate your time this morning. First off, talk to us about, you know, there are two crime scenes, right? The suspect is in custody. We don't know much more about the suspect, but what does an investigation looked like when it spans, you know, different crime scenes in different -- in different towns?

FELIPE RODRIGUEZ, RETIRED DETECTIVE SERGEANT, NYPD: When we look at it right -- we do the historical perspective at this time. We have actually three crime scenes, right? It started -- they're saying there's an alleged homicide that, you know, occurred in Deep River, Connecticut. So, they were alerted to the suspect already, what he had done.

The Connecticut state police then put out a BOLO. So, the BOLO now went out to other states, and now we have a series, if we look at the timeline, two more stabbings. So, it's going to be a detailed -- you know, a very detailed, complex investigation, and it's going to be interagency that needs to get together and try to piece the timeline and try to find a motive.

WALKER: Yes. I mean, regarding the motive, obviously, we don't know very much, but the fact that at least these two incidents, at the movie theater and at the McDonald's, they were unprovoked. I mean, what does that tell you about, you know, how this attack unfolded?

RODRIGUEZ: Well, we also had, you know, numerous reports that the individuals that have a -- a wig on, a blonde wig. He was wearing a trench coat, glasses. It's almost like, you know, he had some sort of psychotic break and he's almost taunting the police by committing these crimes. And he's like, listen, this is what I'm doing. Catch me if you can. And a credit to the, you know, the Massachusetts state police that they were able to quickly, you know, apprehend him.

WALKER: How much will this investigation rely on witnesses, especially when you're talking about a theater where its dark inside, hard to see, versus, you know, at a restaurant, at a McDonald's where presumably there were, you know, obviously people who saw what happened. RODRIGUEZ: You might have a hard time prosecuting this incident that happened in the movie theater because -- think about it. A lot of times most crimes are based on eyewitnesses and is perfectly like, you know, you stated, it is dark. You know, you have very young children that sometimes the way this trauma occurs, they might try to seal it off almost like to compartmentalize it because it was a very traumatic incident.

So, will they be able to even identify the individual? That's something that we will have to see later on.

WALKER: And what are the next steps then for the suspect who was treated at an area hospital now in custody?

RODRIGUEZ: Well, we're going to have to go to an arraignment. We're going to see what kind of charges. I mean, they might -- you know, Massachusetts might charge attempted murder depending on the injuries of the young ladies, even though I heard none of them are critical. Thank God.

But we still have the other stabbing that occurred in the McDonald's. Or they might try to, you know, even institute some sort of terrorism charge to the multiple, you know, and the numerous amount of assaults that occurred. It all depends, you know, which way Massachusetts is going to charge. And he still has to be extradited to answer the charges in the state of Connecticut also.

WALKER: Just terrifying to think that, you know, you're in a movie theater enjoying it with friends and all of a sudden, you're attacked in the dark there. Felipe Rodriguez, appreciate you joining us this morning. Thank you.

BLACKWELL: It's been a busy 24 hours for Donald Trump. He's off to Charlotte today for a NASCAR race, the Coca-Cola 600. Last night, he gave what might be one of the shortest campaign speeches of the campaign season at the Libertarian National Convention. This was in Washington, D.C. He walked out to a mix of boos and cheers, and he spoke for 34 minutes.

WALKER: Well, those clashes didn't stop there. CNN's Steve Contorno explains Trump's attempt to win over this crowd.

STEVE CONTORNO, CNN REPORTER: Donald Trump was booed and heckled from the moment he took the stage at the Libertarian Convention in Washington, D.C., on Saturday night. Trump arrived here hoping he could convert some libertarians to support his presidential campaign.

His supporters and convention attendees clashed in the audience, sometimes physically, as Trump suggests that it was time for them to unite. He sprinting through his speech, giving a ton of reasons why he thought the two sides should come together. The biggest one, defeating Joe Biden.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: That is why I have come to extend a hand of friendship to ask for your partnership to defeat communism, defeat Marxism, and defeat crooked Joe Biden who is destroying our country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[06:15:05]

CONTORNO: Trump did manage to win over the crowd at some points, like when he said he would put a libertarian in his cabinet if he was elected president. The biggest cheers of the night came when he said he would commute the sentence of Ross Ulbricht. That is the founder of the underground Web site, this Silk Road, whose imprisonment has become a cause for the Libertarian Party. But he lost the crowd once again when he suggested that the party should nominate him to be their candidate for president.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: The Libertarian Party should nominate Trump for president of the United States. That's nice. That's nice. Only if you want to win. Only if you want to win. Maybe you don't want to win.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CONTORNO: Whether or not Trump converted anyone at the convention on Saturday is unclear, but his campaign is hopeful that the outreach will help him win over some hearts and minds across the country especially from some of these people who are considering third-party candidates. They are especially concerned about Robert F. Kennedy Jr. who has also been courting libertarian votes. He spoke at the convention on Friday.

Steve Contorno, CNN, Washington, D.C.

WALKER: All right. Steve, thank you very much. Meanwhile, President Biden is back in Delaware after delivering another commencement speech. This time at West Point. He stayed away from mentioning Trump or making an appeal to voters.

BLACKWELL: Yes. Instead, he touted NATO's recent expansion and his efforts in the Middle East. But his speech also came with a warning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I have always been willing to use force when required to protect our nation, our allies, our core interests. When anyone targets American troops, we will deliver justice to them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: CNN's Camila DeChalus is joining us now from Wilmington, Delaware. So, tell us more about what the president said.

CAMILA DECHALUS, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, good morning, Amara, Victor. So, Biden, when he gave his commencement speech, he talked about the importance of preserving and protecting democracy. Now, even though, as you mentioned earlier, he didn't mention Trump by name. This is something that he has mentioned time and time again when he's on the campaign trail and that is how he believes that Trump poses a threat to democracy and how it's important to protect it.

Now, he also really talked about during the speech what the military has done among its service members, like lowing the rates of sexual assault, and how that has really improved in the last two years compared to the years prior. But he has spent some time talking about the important work that they have done and abroad. Take a listen to what he said yesterday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: I'll mention one additional way we've made progress. Every member of the armed forces must always be safe and respected in the ranks. For the first time in nearly a decade, rates of sexual assault and sexual harassment have gone down across the active-duty forces. It's long past time to end the scourge of sexual violence in the military once and for all, and we can do this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DECHALUS: Now, Victor, he also talked about the important work the military has done abroad like delivering the necessary humanitarian aid to places like Gaza. And that's really important to note, just considering that he is acknowledging how these cadet members are graduating at a time where there's two wars going on, the one in Ukraine and also the Israel and Hamas conflict. And so, he's reminding these cadets, these service members about the work his administration has done, and the work the military has done, but the work that but they still have continued to do in places abroad and also domestically. Amara, Victor, back to you.

WALKER: All right. Camila DeChalus, thank you very much. Still to come on CNN THIS MORNING, the death toll is rising in Kharkiv where a Russian strike hit a hardware store. We are live in Ukraine. Also, less than a week after Egypt threatened to quit as a mediator, more Israel-Hamas ceasefire and hostage negotiations will resume next weekend in Cairo.

Plus, Dutch authorities have released rapper Nicki Minaj after taking her into custody at Amsterdam's Schiphol airport. We'll tell you why.

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[06:23:55]

BLACKWELL: Nicki Minaj is now out of police custody. She was detained for a few hours in Amsterdam. Authority said that she had what they classify as soft drugs in her possession at Amsterdam's Schiphol airport. This was yesterday.

Minaj livestreamed her arrest on Instagram. Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) NICKI MINAJ, ARTIST: They just said I have to get in this van and go to the precinct with them with no lawyer present, to make a statement with no lawyer present, after the pre-rolls they found from bags that they were not authorized to take. That we did not know what they took and we asked for our bags back. And after the security said, oh, those pre-rolls are his. They're telling me I have to go to the police precinct.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Minaj received a fine and was allowed to continue her travel, but her concert in the U.K. was postponed.

[06:25:04]

Joining me now is CNN legal analyst and criminal defense attorney Joey Jackson. Joey, good morning to you.

All right. So, some people sitting at home and by pre-roll, maybe we're all assuming it's marijuana. Nobody said that explicitly in these soft drugs. But Nicki Minaj tweeted, this is Amsterdam, by the way, where weed is legal.

Now, the government has what they call a toleration policy that does not prosecute sale of small amounts of soft drugs in coffee shops. But in the Netherlands, this is from the government Web site, it is against the law to possess, sell, or produce drugs. So, let's just start with that.

The fact that she paid a fine, left, is that the pop star treatment or is that what you would have expected for anybody?

JOEY JACKSON, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: So, good morning to you, Victor. So, what happens is is that the Netherlands is big on transactional matters. And what does that mean? Transactional matters in their parlance is fines, right? You have some governments, obviously, you know, in different parts of the country, in different countries who handle matters differently. And in the Netherlands fines are generally pretty acceptable and they're at the discretion of prosecutors.

So, on that basis, it would not appear that that's the pop star treatment. It appears is that's generically what they'll do depending upon the nature of the offense and what you're accused of doing and not doing.

Now, as it relates to the pop star treatment and it relates to her claims with respect to whether they were trying to not have her perform, that's another matter. That's something that has to be investigated and sorted. But with respect to actually how they handled the case itself, it seems to be in keeping with what they would generally do in terms of the fine.

BLACKWELL: OK. She said that the pre-rolls belonged to her security, but if they're in her luggage or in her bags, I mean, how much of a plausible defense is that? It's a defense that probably many people have used for many things that, oh, it's not mine. It's in my house, in my car, in my bag, but it doesn't belong to me.

JACKSON: Yes. You know, it's pretty interesting because oftentimes where there's a shared or common luggage, there's a presumption that whoever the -- really owner of the luggage is the presumption is is that whoever has control or authority or use of that, then it would belong to all parties. Sort of like in a car. The number of people in a car and there's something in a car the presumption would be that everybody is involved.

But apparently it was to the extent that it was, Victor, soft drug possession satisfactory to the government there, that they would issue the fine, release her, and she would go about her way. Now, obviously, she missed her concert. That's a very detrimental thing. She was detained for several hours. That's a very detrimental thing.

But with respect to the nature and gravity of the offense, it didn't seem to be so overwhelming that they would detain and keep her for any prolonged period of time. Some would say six hours is a prolonged period of time, but certainly there are people who in the Netherlands could be kept for up to three days really, and 15 hours.

BLACKWELL: All right. Joey Jackson, she was able to live stream this. I don't know if that would have worked in the U.S., but she was able to pull it off. Joey Jackson, thanks so much.

JACKSON: Thank you.

WALKER: Coming up, as Russia's bombardment of Kharkiv continues, Ukraine's president appeals to China and the U.S. to join a peace summit. CNN is live in Ukraine, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:30:00]

WALKER: We are following breaking news out of Claremore, Oklahoma where a campground was hit by an apparent tornado overnight. We're told at least four people were rescued from the debris after several trailers and RVs overturned by the powerful winds.

There's no word on any serious injuries right now. Of course, we'll be tracking this ongoing severe weather outbreak and the threat for more than a 100 million Americans all morning long.

BLACKWELL: In northeastern Ukraine, at least 12 people were killed and more than 40 others were wounded yesterday. Two guided bombs hit a hardware store packed with shoppers. 16 people are still unaccounted for. Ukrainian officials tell CNN there was nothing of any military value near that store.

WALKER: Ukraine says Russia struck the city more than -- three more times on Saturday causing at least 25 additional injuries in central Kharkiv. These missile strikes have become a daily occurrence in what has been constant Russian attacks on the region around Ukraine's second-largest city as Russian forces have launched an offensive there. CNN's Nick Paton Walsh is live in eastern Ukraine for us. Hi there,

Nick. What's the latest today?

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, we're currently hearing a death toll of as many as 14 which makes that one of the worse instance we've seen since we got here about two or three weeks ago with Russia's offensive pushing hard from the northern border over towards Ukraine's second city Kharkiv.

Now, they' be seen to have been stopped in their progress, according to Ukraine's president, and partially according to what we've seen as well. But Moscow's pressure continues to persist because essentially they want to take some key towns to be able to put their artillery guns in reach of Kharkiv itself.

Now, last weekend, we also saw horrific scenes when a lakeside tourist resort was hit and a seven-month pregnant woman among seven killed there by two missiles that hit one after another, commonly referred to as a double tap strike. One missile hitting and then another shortly afterwards to try and hit the first responders.

The attack on the epicenter, a hardware depot which you see the awful images there of smoke blowing out probably because of the chemicals, the materials that caught fire after these two glided bombs hit. That potentially according to Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy could have killed 200. He said that 200 people were there at the time and they are now trying to go through the wreckage to look for more dead. Scenes also too of children giving their DNA samples to police investigators to try and work out quite who's left in the ruins there.

[06:35:14]

The issue broadly for Ukraine is this is about air defenses. Since the offensive began two weeks ago, they cried out clearly for two Patriot systems from their European or American allies to try and shore up the defenses around Kharkiv. They've not arrived. And again and again it seems Russia is able to get closer to key cities and use these glided -- gliding guided bombs that can over number of miles allow planes to launch from a distance and then find their target in populated areas like this.

Now, Ukraine -- sorry, Kharkiv's night sky regularly lit up by drones, missiles, and air strikes too. So, a horror frankly that's getting closer and closer for many inside Kharkiv itself. And one regardless of how fast it thinks it's coming, that U.S. aid has not been able to stop right now. Amara?

BLACKWELL: I'll take it. Nick Paton Walsh for us there in eastern Ukraine, thank you so much.

How climate change is playing a role in the rise of Clear Air Turbulence? That's when we come back. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:41:02] WALKER: We are learning more about the severe turbulence incident on a Singapore Airlines flight last week that killed one man and injured dozens of others. We've now learned it was probably caused by rapidly developing thunderstorms. But some researchers say we could see more incidents like this without any storms in the area. It's called Clear Air Turbulence. And while that's not what happened on the Singapore Airlines flight, researchers say incidents like it could worsen because of climate change.

Joining us now is Paul Williams, professor of atmospheric science in the Department of Meteorology at the University of Reading in the U.K. Thank you so much for your time, Professor. First of all, let me ask you before we go into Clear Air Turbulence about these rapidly developing thunderstorms. I mean, obviously they develop so fast that pilots don't even have time to warn the passengers to put their seat belts on?

PAUL WILLIAMS, PROFESSOR OF ATMOSPHERIC SCIENCE, UNIVERSITY OF READING: That can happen with these thunderstorms. Of course, no one wants to fly through a thunderstorm but actually even flying around a thunderstorm or near a thunderstorm when you're not physically in the storm itself, that can be turbulent too because the storm can generate waves that propagate away from the storm. So, you can be tens of kilometers away and still experience some pretty rough air.

WALKER: And will we be seeing more rapidly developing thunderstorms because of climate change as well?

WILLIAMS: There has been one scientific study on that published recently and it found that all forms of turbulence that affect aircraft, so that's the thunderstorm related, but also the Clear Air Turbulence and flying over a mountain, range those are the three categories. They're all projected to strengthen in future in most regions around the world because of climate change.

WALKER: So, you know, when this first happened, when we saw the first images of the passengers getting off the Singapore Airlines flight with head injuries, spinal injuries, I mean, obviously it was very frightening to know that 10 hours into a flight when you're 37,000 ft in the air that you could experience this kind of severe thrusting. And the speculation initially was well maybe this was Clear Air Turbulence. First of all, tell us what that means. What is that?

WILLIAMS: Yes, well, it must have been terrifying for those people on board. I think it must have felt like being on a roller coaster without any harness in place for those who weren't seat-belted. The Clear Air Turbulence is invisible. It's got nothing to do with storms. It's actually generated by these fast air currents called jet streams which if something called the wind shear in the jet stream is too strong, it can break down into this invisible turbulence which does not show up on the radar in the flight deck, so it has the potential to be particularly problematic coming out of the blue when the seat belt sign could well be switched off.

WALKER: How -- what was your reaction when you heard about this? I mean, I don't remember the last time I've heard of, you know, people being taking to the hospital having spinal surgeries or you know, skull injuries because of turbulence on an airplane. Has this something like this of this severity happened before?

WILLIAMS: Injuries are happening quite often. There are hundreds of injuries from turbulence annually around the world, most of them minor, but the most serious ones as you suggest for people who were in hospital for over 48 hours is the definition of an injury that requires mandatory reporting to the authorities. Now, they're relatively rare but they can happen.

The last fatality that I'm aware of from turbulence happened back in 2009. And the one before that was from Clear Air Turbulence in 1997. So, fatalities fortunately are not happening every year. It's more like once in a decade or less and I think we're all thankful for that.

WALKER: So, are you concerned about this Clear Air Turbulence as somebody who presumably flies? I think, you said that your latest future projections indicate a doubling or tripling of severe turbulence in the jet streams?

WILLIAMS: That's correct. We've been analyzing the numbers. And the tricky thing about Clear Air Turbulence is the fact that it's invisible, so it doesn't show up and satellites can't see it, for example. But what satellites can see is the shape and structure of the jet stream. And when we know that information, we can actually crunch some numbers and calculate how much Clear Air Turbulence would have been there even though the satellite itself can't see it.

And when we crunch those numbers, we do find there's today 55 percent more severe turbulence over the North Atlantic than there was back when satellites first began observing it in the 1970s. And as you've said, the projections based on computer simulations of the atmosphere for the future are for doubling or in some parts of the jet stream are trebling or even worse in the coming decades if the climate continues to change as we expected to.

[06:45:49]

WALKER: Yes. Well, that's concerning, you know. And hopefully, you know, we'll just continue to wear a seat bels even when that seat belt light comes off. Professor Paul Williams, thank you very much.

WILLIAMS: It's been a pleasure. Thank you.

WALKER: Thank you. Well, the unofficial start of Summer is here but a lifeguard shortage may force some New York beaches to stay closed. We'll have more on that ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:50:32]

BLACKWELL: The nation's highways and airports are slammed this weekend with people making the unofficial start to the holiday.

WALKER: AAA says getting on the roads before 1:00 p.m. today is your best bet for travel ahead of Monday's big rush. And tomorrow also one of the busiest days in the skies. The TSA already set a record to start the weekend with more than 2.95 million people screened.

And if you're trying to go to the pool or the beach, many areas are working overtime to make sure beaches are staffed and safe this Memorial Day due to a reported lifeguard shortage. CNN's Polo Sandoval has more from New York.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Victor and Amara, good morning to you. Memorial Day weekend marking the first wave of those beachgoers that we're going to be seeing here at some of New York City's beaches. I have to tell you, we certainly have seen it fairly crowded this weekend. With it though will come yet another year of New York City officials facing that challenge of a lifeguard shortage.

Here at Rockaway Beach, we have seen those lifeguard stands fully staffed at this point. The city saying last week that they have secured at least 230 lifeguards at the moment. They do expect that number to steadily climb. As you're about to hear from the commissioner of New York City Parks and Rec, they have been working really around the clock to try to incentivize people, motivate them to get recruited and to man some of these stands.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SUSAN DONOGHUE, COMMISSIONER, NYC PARKS AND RECREATION: When lifeguard recruitment for the 2024 summer season began last December, we dramatically expanded the number of qualifying test locations and exam sessions, making it easier for applicants to access qualifying tests. We also improved the vision exam process and enhanced our recruitment ads.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: And the city also added that so far. They've secured roughly 560 recruits or so. About 300 of them currently in training. The city say they will certainly be leaning on them as well as previous lifeguards to really ramp up the presence on these beaches as they get closer and closer to the 4th of July holiday. Amara, Victor?

BLACKWELL: All right, breaking news out of Cook County, Texas. CNN has just confirmed at least five deaths after a likely tornado hit overnight. And we're told children are among the dead. We'll talk to the sheriff of Cook County, Texas in about 10 minutes from now.

All right, we'll take a quick break. When we come back, how China is using deepfakes and artificial intelligence to push its propaganda on social media. And we'll talk about the threat it poses.

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[06:57:31]

WALKER: There's a concerning trend on Chinese social media. Users are being exposed to a growing number of deepfake videos.

BLACKWELL: CNN's Will Ripley looks at how the A.I. generated content is being used to promote China's relationship with Russia and the threat that poses.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (text): I am really envious of you Chinese.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: China is the safest country in the world.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Only in China can you sleep soundly.

WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): On Chinese social media, what you see --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am Chinese.

RIPLEY (voiceover): -- may not be what you get.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (text): Single men in China, I have good news.

RIPLEY (voiceover): The women in these videos supposedly Russian with messages appealing to the Romantic fantasies and nationalist pride of some Chinese men.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (text): I love this land. I love China.

RIPLEY (voiceover): Below the videos, comments like this. Welcome to China, Russian Beauty.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is so creepy.

RIPLEY (voiceover): Olga Loiek is a student at the University of Pennsylvania. She claims in this video on her YouTube channel someone cloned her image in China and is pedaling products and propaganda with A.I.-generated deepfakes of her.

OLGA LOIEK, YOUTUBER: The narrative my clones were voicing sounded like blatant propaganda. Deepfakes designed to build a narrative of alliance and admiration between China and Russia, largely untouched by the government's heavy-handed sensors.

CNN cannot independently verify the videos which have now been taken down but not before Loiek says they racked up thousands of views.

LOIEK: Here she already has 140,000 fans and she has a ton of videos from my face where she likes saying how much she likes Russia and how much Russia needs Chinese economic support. As a Ukrainian this has obviously been infuriating for me.

RIPLEY (voiceover): How this happened, Loiek says she has no idea. CNN showed Loiek's real and fake video to people in Taipei.

RIPLEY: You couldn't tell the difference?

How's her Chinese?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A.I.

RIPLEY: A.I.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

RIPLEY: You can tell.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, I have no idea.

RIPLEY: You can't tell which one is A.I.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.

RIPLEY (voiceover): Artificial intelligence is advancing so quickly experts say you need A.I. detection software just to identify some deepfakes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A general kind of undermining of a source of truth.

RIPLEY (voiceover): Amplifying the power of disinformation and not just in Chinese.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Staged by the Filipino side --

RIPLEY (voiceover): Chinese State media is using A.I.-enhanced videos on TikTok altering the reporter's voice and face. A disclosure on screen for just a few seconds easy to miss.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Under China's jurisdiction.

RIPLEY (voiceover): The video is pushing Beijing's narrative on the South China Sea.

RIPLEY: Is this a threat to democracy?

FELIPE SALVOSA II, JOURNALISM PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF SANTO TOMAS: Most definitely. I think China has found a more cost-effective way to get its message across.

RIPLEY (voiceover): Turning today's digital landscape into a battleground for truth where seeing is no longer believing.

RIPLEY: Every time I do a story about these deepfake videos, what strikes me is the quality keeps improving. Our researcher, Yang, spent hours putting these through algorithms to determine with 99 percent accuracy whether these videos are real, whether they're fake, whether the voice has been altered, the face has been altered. Who on social media has time for that?

And a lot of people don't take the time, which experts say is danger particularly in democracies when people are watching these videos and then potentially using the information they hear to make decisions about how to vote.

Will Ripley, CNN Taipei.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALKER: All right, and the next hour of CNN THIS MORNING starts right now.