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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Evacuees from Texas Tie up Highways; New Orleans Fears Rain from Rita; What Causes U.S.'s Extreme Weather?; Impact of Hurricane Felt on Economy; Hurricane Expert Testifies on Katrina at Height of Rita Predictions
Aired September 22, 2005 - 18:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LOU DOBBS, HOST: Thank you, Wolf. Good evening, everybody.
Tonight, Hurricane Rita, already one of the biggest storms in American history, is threatening to inflict catastrophic damage on the Texas and Louisiana coast.
Rita is now a Category 4 hurricane. It is a huge storm, nearly 400 miles wide. It's packing winds of 145 miles an hour. And it's expected to smash into the Gulf Coast early Saturday.
Nearly two million people are trying tonight desperately to evacuate coastal areas before that hurricane strikes, but hundreds of thousands of those evacuees tonight are stuck in massive traffic jams, particularly in Houston, as they struggle to make their way to safety before the storm hits and before they run out of gas on congested and snarled highways.
From the east coast of Texas to southwest Louisiana, residents are bracing for the onslaught of what now appears to be a monster storm that is set to come ashore. It's as powerful as Hurricane Katrina less than a month ago.
Tonight we're reporting from across the broad coastlines of eastern Texas and western Louisiana, now the apparent target of this Category 4 storm. Sean Callebs reports from Galveston, Texas, which now appears to be squarely in the path of Hurricane Rita and which could feel the full force of this storm when it makes landfall.
Rob Marciano reports from Baytown, Texas, part of the Houston metroplex where millions of people are fleeing the storm, creating huge traffic jams and clogging highways north.
Mary Snow reports tonight from New Orleans, which is now being hit by the outer bands of Hurricane Rita. The question in New Orleans tonight is whether the weakened levees there will be able to withstand whatever rains and storm surges Rita delivers to the already battered city.
We begin with Sean Callebs in Galveston -- Sean.
SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Lou, we have been watching the waves out here throughout the day, as the tide has moved in, moved out, now seems to be being back in again. Really, the only tangible way we know Rita is out there churning and moving toward this area, the white caps kicking up well off the beach here, what you can call the beach, as the waves move in.
Really two significant stories have become very clear today. One, the people here in Galveston, this narrow strip of barrier island, are taking the evacuation notice very seriously. We have seen almost a total evacuation here.
Secondly, the fact that, as you mentioned, perhaps as many as two million people are trying to get out of the potential path of this storm, as well, and it is causing a nightmare on the highways. We'll start with that.
If you just look at the interstates leading from the coast up in toward Houston on in toward those areas, you just see traffic that is just tied up for miles and miles and miles. It is extremely hot out here, near record conditions. That is causing some vehicles to overheat.
We've heard stories of people being caught in traffic for as long as nine hours and only moving a matter of 20 miles.
Well, this has certainly got the attention of the governor of the state. He has now ordered both lanes of the interstate, 45 south and north, to be cleared so traffic can move up north. We have not seen any evidence of that, however, from the aerial pictures we have got son far.
Also, they are supposedly sending out gas vehicles out to help all these cars gas up that are simply running out of gas.
Now, here on Galveston, authorities have simply been overwhelmed. They have spent much of the past 48 hours trying to get the sick, trying to get the infirm, trying to get the elderly off this island. We know that authorities have moved about 2,300 people on their own. They've also provided busses and set up a central location where people that didn't have transportation off this island, they were able to go there and be taken off.
The last thing anyone wants is the situation they saw unfold in the Louisiana area when Katrina blew through that area. There are some big differences here, but also this is an area that knows its history. Remember back in 1900 -- everybody's read the stories -- as many as 6,000 people died when a punishing hurricane ripped through this area. So people here know that history. They also know what happened to the east, and so they are taking the evacuation.
One final note: as we were driving through this area today, there was an area not terribly far from where we are where the 18-foot sea wall stops. Now, forecasters are predicting that area could be inundated by as much as 25 feet of water, just completely swamped.
We ran into a group of horses, a business there that has horse riding on the beach. There are 39 horses. The owner has been trying desperately to get those horses out of the field. So far we know that she's been able to get six. So there are, as far as we know, still 33 horses down there, Lou. She is simply brokenhearted and terrified that if she doesn't get help soon those horses are simply going to perish -- Lou.
DOBBS: And with what the National Hurricane Center is telling us, Sean, this is going to be a powerful storm, and dread and apprehension are appropriate.
Sean, give us a sense right now, the temperature there and what you're seeing in terms of the clouds as this storm is approaching, which we're told could happen as early as late tomorrow evening.
CALLEBS: Yes. We've actually been waiting to see if we're going to be touched by those outer bands. Right now we haven't.
I can tell you, it is extraordinarily hot here. It's almost hazy as you look up and down -- this Seawall Avenue. It is void of any traffic at this hour, with -- the waves out there have begun to break further and further out. We're seeing white caps perhaps 200 yards off the coast. That is a dramatic contrast to what we saw yesterday. It was almost like a lake. So the storm is moving in. It's extremely hot.
We are feeling the temperature drop ever so slightly. Perhaps the fact that pressure is dropping and that punishing hurricane could be making its way right here -- Lou.
DOBBS: Sean, thank you very much. Sean Callebs, reporting from Baytown, Texas.
The massive exodus from Houston is clogging highways as far north as 100 miles from Houston. As we reported, many drivers stuck in traffic jams for many hours, are now simply running out of fuel.
Rob Marciano reports -- Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Hi, Lou.
Well, you know, the city itself, a huge city, Houston, completely shut down. It's a ghost town. Well, where did those people go? They hit the roads. In order to do that, well, they had to fill up first and then they're stuck in traffic and even with the gas they filled up with, they're running out of that.
Well, lines at the gas stations, you bet, the gas stations that actually have gas, there are tremendous amounts of lines in order to fill up tanks.
As Sean mentioned, tremendous amount of traffic especially from Houston north away from the storm, towards Dallas along Highway 45, which is typically, you know, three, four-hour drive to Dallas. We've had reports of 14 hours or more to get there. People are running out of gas in this searing heat. Record temperatures near 100 degrees.
We've had reports -- people are comparing this to the Superdome, except spread out across the entire city. So not sure what's worse: staying in your car and sweating and running out of gas and possibly even being stranded on the highway when this storm comes in. So a dilemma of a different sort as this city prepares way in advance for this storm, which now may be shifting a little bit farther to the east.
But Galveston, Houston, Baytown where I am right now, certainly still within the cone of the path of this storm. The waves that were breaking into Galveston earlier today, eerily similar to the way they were described back in 1900 by Isaac Klein, the weather bureau chief in Galveston then, the great 1900 hurricane. Waves rolling, slick, something you don't see typically in Galveston.
But now, Lou, as the shift begins to turn -- the track begins to shift farther east, southwest Louisiana under the gun and even southeast Louisiana, New Orleans, what they don't want to hear, more rain and possibly a storm surge from this system.
Back to you.
DOBBS: Rob, thank you very much. Rob Marciano, we appreciate it.
Thousands of people trying, of course, to evacuate Houston by all routes possible and certainly by air. But incredibly, some of the people responsible for helping those evacuees find refuge simply failed to show up for work today.
And among the missing workers at Houston International Airport, in a shameful shadow of what happened in New Orleans, 100 of the staff of the Transportation Security Administration, they didn't show up at all. The failure of those workers to report for duty leading to long lines of increasingly frustrated and angry evacuees and delayed aircraft departures.
While this storm has weakened to a Category 4 hurricane, there are fears it could again strengthen to Category 5 and inflect a major disaster on Galveston. Just how much damage depends, of course, on the size of the storm surge that comes ashore with Rita.
University of Texas researchers are predicting a Category 5 hurricane with a storm surge of 19 feet would flood the entire city of Galveston. This computer simulation is based on Hurricane Carla that caused massive damage on the Texas coast back in 1961.
Louisiana is also bracing for its second hurricane in less than a month tonight. The outer bands of Hurricane Rita have already begun to darken the skies in western Louisiana and have brought rain showers to New Orleans, the first significant rain since Hurricane Katrina.
Everyone there, of course, hoping that, because of the weakened levees and renewed threat of flooding, that forecasts of three to five inches of rain over the next 24 hours are accurate.
Mary Snow reports from New Orleans -- Mary.
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Lou, there is also a tropical storm warning in effect here in New Orleans, and with that, the worry level has been turned up a notch.
As you mentioned, the concern here, the weakened levees. We're at the 17th Street Canal, and what is being done now that hadn't been done in Katrina, 60 foot steel pilings are being put up. They have been locked in now. This as an attempt to act as a barrier between Lake Pontchartrain and the weakened levees, which is about a quarter of a mile behind us.
Earlier today we took an aerial tour with the military. We joined General Bruce Berwick (ph) of the Joint Task Force Katrina. He was inspecting the levee.
His assessment at this point is that the best case scenario would call for minor flooding, about two to four feet. He expects that to happen in the areas that were so hard hit with Katrina.
Earlier today, also the governor of Louisiana, Kathleen Blanco, spoke saying that with the storm taking a turn toward the east, southwest Louisiana, that is, is in danger and she urged people along the coastline there to get out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. KATHLEEN BLANCO (D), LOUISIANA: Rita is a powerful storm. It is a massive storm. Forecasters are calling for 20-foot seas or storm surge in Vermillion Bay. Vermillion Bay affects Iberia and Saint Mary and Vermillion parishes. Hurricane force winds will rip much of western Louisiana. I'm urging people to head north.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SNOW: This, of course, as the governor is telling people not to head toward Texas and ominous clouds are starting to roll in here in New Orleans. Small patches of rain before. They are being intermittent with some spots of sunshine. But again, a tropical storm warning in effect here in New Orleans -- Lou.
DOBBS: And Mary, of course the governor warning Louisianans not to head for Texas, because Texas already taking on a couple of hundred thousand of the evacuees from New Orleans and from Louisiana. Thank you very much, Mary Snow. Appreciate it.
We're facing the prospect of two Category 4 hurricanes hitting this country in less than a month. That would be unprecedented. Two such powerful storms have never, in fact, hit this country in the same year.
Some are suggesting that these powerful hurricanes are caused by global warming. Others say they are part of a natural 30- to 40-year cycle. Whatever the reason, these hurricanes are not the only extremes in our national weather pattern.
Weather over the United States is always volatile. It is increasingly unpredictable and often deadly. Bill Tucker is here with more -- Bill. BILL TUCKER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Lou, of course, we're focused on the prospects of hurricanes hitting the coast, but the truth is there are more than just hurricanes that work in the weather patterns. Take a look at some of these statistics that we just put together.
Starting with the fact that there are more than 20 million lightning strikes in the United States every year, there are more than 3,500 earthquakes. We had two that happened today just outside of Los Angeles, outside Bakersfield, a 4.0 and a 4.9.
There is 1,000 plus tornadoes every year in this country. We have volcanoes in Washington and Hawaii. And so far, Lou, this year we've had 17 named storms, which have hit the coast of America.
DOBBS: Now how does all of this compare to the rest of the world? I've often heard it said that this country has the most extreme weather in the world?
TUCKER: The short answer is we don't know. The scientists are looking at that and making studies on it. They hope to have an answer in a couple of years, but they just don't know.
A lot of people are laying this at the feet of global warming, saying that's what's the cause of it. We'll get to that a little later in the program, I know. We just don't know.
DOBBS: Bill Tucker, thank you very much.
Well, the -- we'll have more on the violent weather ahead. As this country suffers from one of the worst hurricane seasons ever, we'll be examining, as Bill Tucker said, whether global warming or natural weather patterns are responsible for the rising intensity and frequency of these storms. Three leading weather experts will join me.
And Hurricane Rita could have a major impact on our economy, and people all over this country could soon be paying higher prices for all sorts of products. We'll have that special report.
And we'll be going live to the National Hurricane Center for the very latest projections on the direction of Hurricane Rita, its expected strength and its likely impact on the Texas and Louisiana coast. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DOBBS: There is concern tonight that gasoline prices that rose to over $3 a gallon in the wake of Hurricane Katrina could further spike to as high as $5 a gallon after this hurricane hits.
The American Petroleum Institute warning that Hurricane Rita is likely to cause serious disruptions to U.S. crude oil and refine production pipelines. That would cause the price at the pump to rise dramatically, we're told. And oil analysts say $5 a gallon for gasoline is certainly not out of the question. More than 27 percent of our refinery capacity in this country lies in the path of this dangerous new storm, and the Texas Gulf Coast is home to two major ports that handle up to 15 percent of all U.S. oil imports.
Shell Oil today shut down its biggest refinery, processing some 340,000 barrels of oil each day. It's in the path of the hurricane.
We would like to know how you feel about the issue. Do you believe the federal government should impose gasoline price freezes during natural disasters like Hurricane Katrina and now Rita? Cast your vote at LouDobbs.com. We'll have the results later here in the broadcast.
The economic impact from Hurricane Rita so close after Katrina could extend much further than the price of energy. U.S. industries employing millions of middle class Americans could find themselves severely damaged by this unprecedented series of major hurricanes. The result could be higher prices for consumers all across the country.
Kitty Pilgrim reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KITTY PILGRIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): You don't have to be in the path of a catastrophic hurricane to feel its punishing impact. Higher prices are already here and are going higher.
Plywood nationwide since Hurricane Katrina, up 15 percent. Framing lumber, up 15 percent in less than a month. Because of the hot housing market, a lot of the material was already in short supply.
JERRY HOWARD, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF HOMEBUILDERS: The two hurricanes are definitely going to have an impact on home prices inasmuch as they're going to impact the availability of building materials and the availability of labor. We haven't seen the increase in shingles yet, but that will absolutely be part of the equation, as will insulation and undoubtedly drywall.
PILGRIM: New Orleans was the biggest port for importing cement in the country. No more. Now under discussion: whether to import more Canadian lumber and Mexican cement. Economists say it may be necessary to at least slow run-away prices for those products.
DONALD NICHOLS, UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON: Rather than see a spike in cement prices like we're seeing a spike in oil prices, we should let in enough cement from Mexico to keep that price stable.
PILGRIM: People living in coastal areas are already seeing their insurance rates climb.
JEAN SALVATORE, INSURANCE INFORMATION INSTITUTE: The last couple of years insurance companies have started to increase rates in coastal areas because of the increased risk for catastrophic losses. Not just in the gulf states, but really from Maine to Texas. PILGRIM: Higher prices also expected on plastics and textiles, and businesses will pass those costs on to the consumer.
Gulf Coast residents have fled the storms into almost every state, and rental costs nationwide are expected to rise dramatically.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PILGRIM: These higher prices don't include the most important economic costs. The Labor Department just reported the highest number of unemployment claims in more than two years. The Congressional Budget Office says Hurricane Katrina has resulted in 400,000 lost jobs, and Lou, Hurricane Rita is fast approaching.
DOBBS: Indeed. Kitty, thank you very much. Kitty Pilgrim.
Prices for other building materials have spiked since Hurricane Katrina on strong demand, of course, and fears of supply shortages. Lumber prices up 15 percent, steel prices have risen 10 percent, all of this in less than a month. Scrap steel prices are up 15 percent. Cement production disrupted by Katrina. Cement prices also expected to show a sharp rise.
And still ahead here, we'll have more on why lawmakers are distracting the very busy director of the National Hurricane Center while a major hurricane heads for the Texas and Louisiana coast. That story is next.
And more and more Americans are living dangerously, moving to regions in this country highly vulnerable to natural disasters. Why? And who should pay? We'll have the special report, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DOBBS: Congressional Republicans say they don't want their investigation into Hurricane Katrina to distract key officials from their jobs, but today those very same lawmakers called Max Mayfield, the director of the National Hurricane Center, to give testimony, although Mayfield, of course, is very busy right now tracking Hurricane Rita.
Ed Henry has the report from Capitol Hill.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ED HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Beamed into a committee room via satellite, Max Mayfield struggled to answer questions about Katrina, as he was handed urgent updates on Rita.
MAX MAYFIELD, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER: I'm getting a wealth of information here. The -- OK. I'm sorry here. I'm getting a little distracted here. But the...
HENRY: The hurricane maven kept getting interrupted.
MAYFIELD: I honestly can't remember the -- anything that... HENRY: More fodder for Democrats, who are boycotting the Republican-led Katrina investigation.
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), MINORITY LEADER: Having a hearing on them at a time when people are heading for the hills, literally, to me doesn't seem like a good use of Congress' time.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But we have a number of...
HENRY: The Republican chairman said Mayfield was given the chance to reschedule but wanted to address both hurricanes.
REP. TOM DAVIS (R-VA), KATRINA COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN: We worked this with him. We told him if this was a distraction that we wouldn't call him at all. Obviously, we didn't make him fly up here or do that. These are important questions and this was -- he did this on his own volition.
HENRY: But Mayfield's TV testimony, juggling two storms, added to a surreal scene with mostly no shows on the Democratic side. Two Democrats from the gulf region did attend, but even they want the probe taken over by an independent commission.
REP. CHARLIE MELANCON (D), LOUISIANA: One which takes this process out of hands of politicians and let the experts and those who have directly felt Katrina's impact drive the investigation.
HENRY: Democrats fear the Republican-led investigation will shift blame from President Bush to local officials.
REP. HAROLD ROGERS (R), KENTUCKY: Who in Louisiana is authorized to order an evacuation?
MAYFIELD: It's my understanding that it's the local officials.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HENRY: Now Chairman Tom Davis told me, however, that he will be asking tough questions of federal officials, as well, including ousted FEMA director Michael Brown. He's the star witness next Tuesday at their next hearing.
But it's also interesting that CNN has learned today that, in fact, Michael Brown, even though he recently resigned, is still on the federal payroll. Officials tell us that's only a transitional period, that month. He's not making any decisions. But I can tell you next week, Lou, he's going to be in the hot seat.
DOBBS: It looks like he's going to be in the hot seat, and I don't think anyone is forgetting about the mayor of New Orleans and the governor of Louisiana as they look at the prospect of heating up seats for various officials: federal, state and local. Ed Henry, thank you sir.
Still ahead, I'll be talking with Max Mayfield. We'll be talking about the very latest that has developed on projections of this powerful Category 4 storm. Will it intensify? The storm is heading straight towards Texas and Louisiana now.
And three leading weather experts will join me to debate why this hurricane season has been one massive storm after another and whether we should be blaming global warming. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DOBBS: Hurricane Rita, now downgraded to a Category 4 storm but obviously very powerful, winds as high as 145 miles an hour. Joining me now is Max Mayfield, the director of the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
Max, what are your latest projections now on the storm?
MAYFIELD: Well, as you said, Lou, it's a very, very dangerous Category 4 hurricane, you know, similar in strength right now to Katrina when it made landfall. The data we're getting in from the aircraft makes us think that we could see another round of strengthening here later on tonight. We'll likely see some fluctuations between now and landfall.
The center will be moving on to the coast probably early Saturday morning. And the most likely scenario right now is to come in here to the upper Texas coast. And, I don't really want anyone to think that we can tell you exactly where that landfall is going to be right now, whether it's near Galveston or Beaumont-Port Arthur or even over close to the Caymans (ph), Louisiana.
DOBBS: Max, last night we were talking about the high pressure system that was forestalling this storm in its northward track. It's obviously begun to move northward. What is your sense of what's happening with that high pressure system, and how much will it release this powerful storm toward the north?
MAYFIELD: Well, the -- you know the computer models are really consistent in moving that high pressure system to the northeastward. It's just they vary on the timing of that. And so the difficulty here is, you know, we are sure that it's going to turn to the northwest, but whether that does that -- you know, how soon that occurs makes a big, big difference on the landfall point here.
So no matter what happens, this, like Katrina, is becoming a large hurricane, not just a powerful one, but a large hurricane. It will have an impact over a very large area over Texas, Louisiana, and even some impact all the way over into Mississippi and Alabama.
DOBBS: That far east. How wide is this storm now? How far out do the hurricane force winds extend? How far out do the tropical storm winds extend?
MAYFIELD: Well, the hurricane force winds go out about 60 miles right now. That will likely expand some. The tropical storm force winds go out over 200 miles in the eastern semicircle. And the tide levels here along the Mississippi and even the Alabama coast over near near Dauphin Island are about two feet above normal now. Before it's all over, they could easily go up three to five feet. So those folks, even though they're in Dauphin Island, for example, they don't have the beautiful sand dunes they used to have. So, I think this result in some flooding even over there.
DOBBS: New Orleans, obviously a great concern because of the city already battered, devastated. And I know it's still much too early to focus with great accuracy on this. But is it your sense that New Orleans is going to be spared the worst of this storm at its outer reaches?
MAYFIELD: It will definitely be spared the worst of the hurricane, you know, the core of the hurricane will be well to the west of New Orleans. But we did extend the tropical storm warning to include all the southeastern coast of Louisiana including New Orleans. They will probably get tropical storm force winds and these outer rain bands and the squalls that come through and not sustained winds storm force for any length of time. But unfortunately they'll also get three to five inches of rain and that's the last thing they need to hear.
DOBBS: 145 mile an hour sustained winds, Max. Do you expect this storm -- is it possible this storm could strengthen significantly from here?
MAYFIELD: I think it very possible that tonight we'll see some strengthen. Again, it's moving over a warm eddy in the Gulf of Mexico, meaning that not only do we have very warm water, but it's very, very deep water. And that's the source of, you know, it's high octane fuel.
The upper level environment is still favorable. So, we'll likely see some fluctuation between now and landfall. But tonight, I would not be a bit surprised to see it strengthen. And it could even come back to a category 5 strength.
DOBBS: Max, thank you very much. And, of course, we'll be following this along with you throughout the evening through tomorrow and beyond. Max Mayfield, director of the National Hurricane Center.
Tonight, Houston is one of the biggest metropolitan areas in this country. It is bracing for the impact of Hurricane Rita. Millions of people are trying to flee the area, but huge traffic jams already clogging highways, people trying to flee by air as well, were delayed by the failure of key airport staff to show up for work today. Nancy Holland of our affiliate KHOU has the latest for us -- Nancy.
NANCY HOLLAND, KHOU: The lines have truly been incredible today. Not since the weekend after 9/11 when airlines started flying again have I seen anything resembling this kind of lines that completely filled Houston's airports, stretched out the door and down the ramps. It was literally taking some people four hours to check in for their flights. It was so crowded that I personally saw two people just pass out from standing in line.
Now, the airline workers were even out trying to hand out water to people, trying to do what they could to help them. One of the big problems, as you mentioned was that some key people did not come to work today. Some of the TSA workers, especially the screeners, really made those lines going through security very, very difficult for people and the lines stretched seemingly interminably.
Now, all flights out of Houston are going to stop at noon tomorrow. So, there has been a real rush to get flights, people have tried to come out here hoping to get on a plane. That has been utterly futile.
But people were getting on flights, people are leaving. There are still flights that are leaving, but they have told people if you don't have a ticket don't even bother to come out. So, in the last couple of hours, we have seen a little bit of a thinning of the crowds here.
That is not true about the highways. There are literally thousands and thousands and thousands of people still trying to flee by way of the highways. Just to give you some idea, it can take up to 12 hours to go 60 miles. That's what Houston looks like tonight. Back to you.
DOBBS: Nancy, that is incredible. Houston, first of all, opening its arms to all of the evacuees from New Orleans doing a wonderful job, the school system, your city government, all of the people of Houston. Then with all of this warning in making such an early effort to evacuate, still running into these problems.
Is there a sense that things are improving now that this crush is ebbing and that tomorrow people will be able to flee perhaps a little bit more without congestion and all of the frustration?
HOLLLAND: There's a bit of an ebb and flow on the freeways as people see how heavy it is, they may delay their start a little bit. There are times that you can make much better times than others. But there is simply no way to predict.
The airlines do seem to be getting the word out you can't come out here. There aren't flights left. If you don't have a confirmed flight, you're not going to be able to buy a ticket. And incidentally, I talked with one woman today who said I came here from New Orleans, my kids have been in school two days, I have to leave again, I'm going to Atlanta and I am not coming back.
DOBBS: Nancy Holland, KHOU, we thank you very much. And we wish you all the best.
HOLLAND: Thank you.
DOBBS: Recent studies in weather forecasts say we are entering a very active hurricane cycle. Forecasters say, in fact, hurricane behavior will likely revert to patterns not seen since early in the last century.
Since that time, Americans have flocked to coastal areas. And as Hurricane Katrina and Rita are proving an will prove, millions of Americans are now living dangerously. Christine Romans has the report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The threat of hurricane disaster is greater today than at any time in our history, because so many of us now live and work in high risk coastal areas. And despite the high risks, the census bureau reports 87 million Americans live within striking distance of an Atlantic season hurricane, that's 30 percent of our population.
In Florida today more people live in Broward and Dade counties than lived in the entire southeastern United States in 1930.
ROGER-MARK DESOUZA, POPULATION RESEARCH BUREAU: There are more people that are moving from other states to these states where you have warmer weather. And, of course, because it's an attractive area to live. And then you have a lot of migrants coming in from other countries that are also attracted to these areas because they have a lot of social support networks in those areas.
ROMANS: And Hurricane Rita is set to strike in the most vulnerable region, already demonstrated by Hurricane Katrina's devastation.
The population density of Gulf Coast is twice the national average, and the 50,000 square coastal miles from Louisiana to the Florida Keys are 3.5 times more populous today than in 1950, making evacuation more difficult and property damage more likely and severe.
MIKE TIDWELL, AUTHOR: If you take this sea level rise from global warming, plus growing intensity of hurricanes, plus the fact that we've built so many communities and put so many people in harm's way already, you're talking about a recipe for continuing suffering and economic damage.
ROMANS: Damage along a vast stretch of our nation's coast land. Since 1950, coastal populations have exploded from Texas along the rest of the Gulf Coast, to Florida, and the Carolinas. At the same time, forecasters say these are the most likely targets for deadly hurricane destruction.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS: Of course, someone has to pay to rebuild these devastated areas after a hurricane (INAUDIBLE). Well, homeowners, insurance companies and the federal government -- the government's share alone comes to at least $200 for every man, woman and child in this country, that's just for the congressional approved federal spending just for the damage so far, just from Katrina.
DOBBS: And we know that is just the first installment.
ROMANS: Indeed.
DOBBS: Christine, thank you very much. Christine Romans. As this powerful hurricane season continues to pummel us, one question is certainly being raised by nearly everyone in the country, time and again, is there a link between these powerful hurricanes and global warming?
Joining me now to discuss the issue from Washington, Brenda Ekwurzel who is the climate scientist of the Union of Concerned Scientist National Climate Education Program. Patrick Michaels, who is professor of environmental science at the University of Virginia and joining me from Atlanta, Peter Webster, professor of Georgia Tech school of earth and atmospheric sciences. Thank you all for being here.
Let me start out if I may with you, Brenda. Is there a direct connection between global warming and what we are seeing in terms of powerful hurricanes smashing into this country right now?
BRENDA EKWURZEL, CLIMATE SCIENTIST: We would never point to a single weather event and blame global warming. While hurricanes have bedeviled the Gulf coast region for years, global warming is making matters worse.
Recent scientific evidence has proven that our excess atmospheric carbon dioxide is warming the oceans. And those warmer oceans are converting low-grade storms into powerful hurricanes. In short, the -- a warm oceans are like fuel to a hurricane. It's like throwing gasoline on a fire.
DOBBS: And Peter Webster, do you agree, as Brenda says? Certainly more than one cause, but she makes a compelling case for the role that global warming is playing here?
PETER WEBSTER, GEORGIA TECH: Well, our recent study has shown that the sea surface in all the ocean basin where hurricanes form. And they have very similar trends to what we're seeing in the Atlantic Ocean. It's slightly decreased hurricanes, which is strange, but more intense ones. And this fits in both with the theories of Kerry Emanuel (ph) for his intensity potential, and also with the recent modelling studies of double two times CO2, we show much more intense hurricanes.
So over the last 20, 30 years, we see from this limited study, that there's been a double in category 4 and 5 hurricanes.
DOBBS: Patrick Michaels, your thoughts?
PATRICK MICHAELS, UVA: Well, what we are hearing here is a testable hypothesis that warming is associated with increased hurricane strength -- strong hurricanes. I have a graphic which I hope we can put up which shows data from the National Hurricane Center going back to 1860. The planet has warmed about one degree.
DOBBS: Can we -- excuse me. Can we put that up? There we go.
MICHAELS: About one degree the planet warmed over this period, one degree C. And you can see there's just no trend at all in the hurricane data. With regard to Peter Webster's study, he looked at data from 1970 to the present because that's when satellite coverage begins.
We have a record if the Atlantic of hurricane severity that's very good from hurricane hunter aircraft that goes back to 1944. And when you look at that data, what you see is the proportion of Category 4 and Category 5 hurricanes in the 19 40s and 1950s is precisely what it is today and there was no warming from human beings in the 40s and the 1950s. These are testable hypotheses and we really have to tell the whole story on this. That (ph) is part of it.
WEBSTER: Very true, very true. It is a testable hypothesis, but not just by looking at Atlanta data. For example, I'm sure Lou Dobbs would not take a poll in New York and infer that that be -- America thought the same as New York. You can't just look at the Atlantic and you can't just look at land falling hurricanes and infer that globally one thing is happening or not.
MICHAELS: I'll tell you what. There's other things we can do. We can take a look at damage costs from hurricanes and adjust them for population increases along our coast and for property value increases as we saw in the previous segment. And everyone knows that there has been no increase in damages.
WEBSTER: But that's still -- no, no, no.
DOBBS: Let me ask ...
WEBSTER: That's still just looking at New York and inferring what people are thinking in Kansas.
DOBBS: Let me -- let me ask what Doctor Ekwurzel is thinking. Brenda, the fact is that these numbers are -- focus this chart with these numbers, focus on the major hurricanes, 3s -- Category 3s, 4s and 5s, and what do you make of this?
Max Mayfield, the director of the National Hurricane Center, is very clear he sees greater activity now and expects greater activity in the years ahead. What are your thoughts when you look at the peek in the 1940s and what has been -- if one can use the word benign in connection with these storms -- a benign period, relatively benign period over the past 30 years?
EKWURZEL: We know that cycles such as the El Nino in the Pacific and other cycles in the Atlantic that go by different names influence hurricane frequency which is a separate issue. I liken it to these cycles are going on, but when a storm naturally arises, we have new evidence that the warmer oceans are powering these storms. It's kind of like nature's rolling the dice and now we have loaded dice due to global warming.
DOBBS: Brenda, thank you very much. Patrick, we thank you. Peter, we appreciate it. And we -- I'm sure we're going to be debating this issue for some time to come. We appreciate your insights. Thank you all.
MICHAELS: Thank you, Lou.
WEBSTER: Thank you.
EKWURZEL: Thank you.
DOBBS: New science that it will take more than a hurricane to keep New Orleans down. Strippers are back in the French Quarter, believe it or not. Exotic dancers are once again entertaining police, fire fighters and military personnel at Bourbon Street's Deja Vu Club which reopened this week. In the words of one of the dancers, quote, "all of these men need entertainment." And entertainment they have.
Still ahead, why some say federal flood insurance gives people a false sense of security and makes them build where they absolutely should not.
And strong but not unanimous support for chief justice nominee John Roberts. Our senior legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin joins us to gives us his insight into today's Senate Judiciary Committee vote paving the way for Judge Roberts' confirmation. Stay with us.
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DOBBS: Continuing our coverage of Hurricane Rita, an update on the day's headlines. Hurricane Rita weakened a bit today to a Category 4 storm, sustained winds, however, still at 145 miles an hour. That is a powerful monster storm by any standard. It's now expected to make landfall between Galveston, Texas, and southwest Louisiana late Friday or early Saturday. Parts of Louisiana already feeling the outer bands of the storm, a tropical storm warning is now in effect extending through the New Orleans area.
Almost two million people in the path of Hurricane Rita are fleeing the storm. Tonight there are massive traffic jams in both Texas and Louisiana as residents head north to safety and refuge.
The Senate Judiciary Committee today voting 13-5 in favor of chief justice nominee Judge John Roberts. Five Democrats, including senators Biden, Schumer and Kennedy voted against Roberts. His nomination now heads to the full Senate.
For more now on the nomination of Judge Roberts, our senior analyst, Jeffrey Toobin. Any surprises today, Jeffrey? .
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN CHIEF LEGAL ANALYST: Maybe one. One Democrat -- there were three Democrats who voted for Judge Roberts -- Patrick Leahy who announced yesterday he would and the two senators from Wisconsin, Herb Kohl and Russell Feingold. Russell Feingold one of the most liberal senators, the only man to vote for the Patriot Act -- against the Patriot Act, he voted for Judge Roberts. Somewhat of a surprise.
DOBBS: And 13-5, it still shows some bipartisanship here. What do you expect the final vote to be when it reaches the floor?
TOOBIN: I think the ratio will be about the same. It looks like Roberts will get something over two-thirds of the senators, in the 60 to 70 vote range, and I think that's reflective of about how much support he has. Democrats are somewhat divided. Some want to say, hey, we're reasonable. We'll support good nominees like John Roberts and fight you on the other ones.
Others say, look, Roberts is as conservative as we're going to go and we want to show you we'll vote against him. So, President Bush, don't nominate anyone more conservative.
DOBBS: But in point of fact, the president is still the president and has the authority, the power and the political support to come forward with whomever he wishes.
TOOBIN: Fifty-five Republicans in the Senate. That's a big hurdle for any Democrats who want to stop any nominee. So I think the overwhelming likelihood is whoever gets nominated is going to get confirmed.
DOBBS: Your fundamental judgment f I may, Judge Toobin? Judge Roberts, how strong is he? What is your sense of who he is and what we can expect?
TOOBIN: I think it was the best nominee in terms of performance before the committee that certainly I've ever seen in my conscious lifetime. I think he'll go in with enormous support. I don't think it will be a big change in the court. His politics and judicial philosophy seem very similar to Chief Justice Rehnquist.
The big fight will be over Justice Sandra Day O'Connor because she's a abortion rights supporter, an affirmative action supporter. The president supports neither or those. That's where the potential for a big change on the court is.
DOBBS: Jeffrey Toobin, thank you for as, always, being here and guiding us through this process to this point. We'll look forward to talking with you next week when the vote comes. Jeffrey Toobin.
DOBBS: A reminder to vote in our poll tonight. Do you believe the federal government should impose gasoline price freezes during natural disasters? Yes or no. Please cast your vote at loudobbs.com. We'll have the results coming right up.
Still ahead here tonight, we'll have an update on Hurricane Rita. Why one victim of Hurricane Isabel which struck two years ago is still tonight living in a FEMA trailer. Stay with us for that story and a great deal more.
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DOBBS: Hurricane Katrina is not the first time the federal government failed to do what it promised in the wake of disaster. Tonight, a disturbing personal account of the government's broken promises. Tom Foreman has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEO) TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When Hurricane Isabel slammed into the east coast in 2003, Eileen Thaden's house in Maryland was among dozens severely damaged or destroyed. She had national flood insurance administered by FEMA, so she wasn't worried.
EILEEN THADEN, FLOOD VICTIM: Really there's nothing left of our life from before. There really isn't.
FOREMAN: But she says the settlement she was offered was less than half of the quarter million dollars she need to repair her house. So two years later, she is still living in a FEMA trailer, bitter and broke.
THADEN: If they just did what was right from the very beginning, we would have our lives back. We would be just fine. That's all we ever asked from them. We weren't looking for more.
FOREMAN: FEMA officials have long promoted flood insurance as the best means of recovery from flood damage, but critics of the program say don't believe it.
STEVE KANSTOROOM, VICTIMS' ADVOCATE: No, no, no, no, no. That's a false sense of security.
FOREMAN: Steve Kanstoroom, a victims' advocate whose home was also damaged in the storm, started a Web site about the problems with flood insurance. He says he's got complaints from 14 states and a warning for the Gulf coast.
KANSTOROOM: There's no white horse coming in to save you. If you have a substantial loss, you're about to be in for the fight of your life.
FOREMAN (on camera): FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security which oversees FEMA say nonsense. Complaints about flood insurance are quite rare, and they say it was never meant to cover all rebuilding expenses anyway.
(voice-over): But their own Web site says flood insurance lets you keep the peace of mind in knowing you're not left to cover the losses yourself. And the new acting director said he wants to know more about these complaints and the lawsuit that's been filed by policyholders including Eileen Thaden.
R. DAVID PAULISON, ACTING FEMA DIRECTOR: Again, I'm not familiar with the issues. I've asked for a briefing from my staff. I think it came up earlier, and I'm going to find exactly what that issue is.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We understand they can't live forever in shelters.
FOREMAN: With FEMA under so much pressure right now, Eileen Thaden is hoping her two-year battle might finally lead to something good, but she's not betting on it. The last thing she heard from FEMA is they want to close her case, and they want their trailer back too. Tom Foreman, CNN, Washington. (END VIDEOTAPE)
DOBBS: Taking a look now at some of your thoughts. George in Burlington, North Carolina, saying "I don't hear any of the elected officials in Washington suggesting that they should take a cut in pay and services to help pay for the disaster. All they ever recommend is cutting needed programs or raising taxes."
C.J. in Salt Lake City, Utah. "Price gouging by these oil companies in the wake of these terribly disasters in no different than looting."
Ron, in Loveland, Colorado -- "I heard a political person say that the rise in gas prices was due to fear. I'm sorry, I thought it was greed. Our U.S. oil companies are making huge profits, another example of corporate theft and no controls in place to protect the consumer."
Bill in Madison, Connecticut -- "Years ago, I didn't highly of you, but wow, how you've changed by opinion. The last year or two, you have been a tiger fighting for the American Worker. All I can say is thanks."
Thank you. And Barry (ph) in Sedona, Arizona, with a different view. Your media coverage is obviously very biased to the left. You are creating the truth. This is a breath of your responsibility. You all deserve to be" -- quoting now -- "bitch-slapped." Not quoting any further.
We love to hear from you. Usually. Send us your thoughts at loudobbs.com. Each of you whose e-mail is read on the broadcast receives a copy of my book, "Exporting America." And if you want our e-mail newsletter, sign up on our Web site, loudobbs.com.
Now the result of tonight's poll. Ninety-three percent of you say the federal government should impose gasoline price freezes during natural disasters.
Still ahead here, we'll update you on the top story of the evening, of course, and that is Hurricane Rita. We'll have all the very latest details on the approach of the monster storm. Stay with us.
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DOBBS: An update now on the approach of Hurricane Rita. This massive storm, nearly 400 miles across, weakened somewhat this afternoon, but it is still a dangerous Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of 145 miles an hour and some strengthening is now expected.
Rita is also expected to hit still between Galveston, Texas, and the Texas border with Louisiana late Friday or early Saturday morning. People fleeing the storm are facing record heat and huge traffic jams as they evacuate the Texas coast and southeast Louisiana. Nearly two million residents in the path of the hurricane have been ordered to leave their homes and head north.
And a tropical storm warning is out tonight for the New Orleans region, already devastated, of course, by Hurricane Katrina. New Orleans could see gale-force winds from the hurricane, that city bracing for new flooding, and a five foot storm surge.
As of tonight, Judy Miller, the Pulitzer Prize winning "New York Times" reporter, has been in prison for 78 days protecting her confidential sources in the White House CIA leak case.
Thank you for being with us tonight. Please join us here tomorrow. My guest include a science journalist who earlier this year predicted a Category 4 hurricane would cause $50 billion in damage for the Houston area. Good night from New York. Anderson Cooper 360 begins right now -- Anderson.
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