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Dennis' Aftermath in Pensacola; Life After Columbia Disaster

Aired July 12, 2005 - 13:30   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Mopping up. That's the order of the day pretty much here in Georgia. Of course, some folks have to wait for the waters to recede first. Here in the Atlanta area, the remnants of Dennis dumped as much as eight inches of rain. Damage estimates across Georgia start at $3 million. And that flooding turned many roads into rivers, fields into lakes and theme parks, such as Six Flags Over Georgia, into water rides. This is what happens to The Great American Scream Machine when the Chatahoochee River goes over its banks.
Laugh, cry or lose your mind -- that's how one woman put it as she surveyed the damage to her Pensacola, Florida, home. That community took a direct hit from Hurricane Dennis. Our Randi Kaye rode out the storm there. How are people coping? And I sure hope you didn't lose your mind, Randi.

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No, I didn't and luckily not any of my belongings. But my hotel did lose part of its roof and its sign, but they will recover, which, of course, is good to know.

Buck Lee, the general manager from the Santa Rosa Island Authority is joining us. You have surveyed some of the damage in the area. Better or worse than Ivan?

BUCK LEE, SANTA ROSA ISLAND AUTHORITY: Worse -- I mean better than Ivan, but not real good. We had -- we got hit by a Category 3 hurricane. And the further you go to the east, down island, the worse it gets.

KAYE: I was in there just a short time ago, about an hour ago. We want to share some of that video with you that we took. We went all the way out to as far as we could go, where the condominium complex is, where you could see the cranes that were collapsed. That is such a sight to see. I mean, it looks like, I mean, an erector set. You know, they just snapped.

LEE: What happened in Ivan, we got the storm surge that really tore up the island. This time, the wind did it. The storm surge was there, but it's not as big as Ivan. The wind got us. What got us was the northwest wind. And that's why the cranes were down. That's why you see a lot of houses that are damaged, especially on the sound. We had two surges. The Gulf had a storm surge, and the Inner Coastal Canal had a storm surge. And they both met in the middle of the island.

KAYE: So today, you have some air-conditioned trolleys -- which is awfully kind of you -- taking homeowners out to their homes to survey them and see if they even still exist there. What else are you doing? And how quickly can you get these people back into their homes?

LEE: Well, Georgia Power, the sister company of Gulf Power, is supposed to be here tomorrow. And they're going to start cleaning that debris going where you went. As soon as they do that, they'll start re-erecting the poles, putting the lines back up. And it may be a week, two weeks even three weeks before we have power.

KAYE: We were driving around, and it does appear that it's somewhat of a dangerous situation where there are so many power lines down. And I saw people riding their bicycles in and out of the area. I mean, that's probably just one way to get in and out of there. But have you done anything to make sure that it's secure, to keep folks out?

LEE: Well, yes, the power company turned off the power.

KAYE: Okay.

LEE: So that was a good idea on their part, I thought.

KAYE: What do you have to do to get onto that area though? I mean, we were allowed in because we were media, but...

LEE: You were press, okay. What we're doing now is the people are taking trolleys down to 18th Avenue or Avenue 18, as we call it, and then they have to walk the rest of the way. As soon as that is cleared by the power company, then the trolleys can go all the way to Portofino, where you talked about the cranes being down.

KAYE: It just breaks your heart to see so many of these people, they get off the trolley, and they find out either their home is gone or severely damaged, and it's really something. And Emily could be coming this way. So who knows?

LEE: I have good news though for you.

KAYE: Okay. Give it to us quickly.

LEE: Within 24 hours, we had the people back on this barrier island thanks to our county administrator and the chairman of the commission, and that's never been done before. And we're really proud of that.

KAYE: Well, make sure you're ready for Emily, as well, just in case.

LEE: I will. I'll drop to my knees and prayer.

KAYE: All right, Buck Lee joining us. Back to you, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: A little powerful prayer. All right, Randi Kaye, thank you so much.

Well, those slammed by Dennis don't want to really hear it, but brace yourself. You just heard it right there. Another storm could be headed your way. And as you heard, its name: Emily.

Jacqui Jeras tracking it from the CNN Weather Center. Hi, Jacq.

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Hi, Kyra. Yes, Emily is a tropical storm. That happened last night at 11:00 Eastern Time. It has been increasing in strength very gradually ever since.

Here it is on the satellite imagery. You can see it's becoming a little bit more organized, and you have nice outflow, as we call it, that you can see on the satellite. And basically what that means to you was that conditions are very favorable for additional strengthening. So we're probably going to be talking about Hurricane Emily maybe late tomorrow into the early hours of Thursday.

There you can see the windward islands of Lesser Antilles. Hurricane watches now have now been posted for a few of the islands, including Barbados, Grenada, the Grenadines, St. Vincent And St. Lucia Island. That means that hurricane conditions are expected within 36 hours.

The forecast track then has it making its way across the windward islands and then into the Caribbean Sea sometime maybe on Friday. Beyond that, we'll have to wait and see what happens. It's really too early to tell to know exactly where Emily is going, but I would certainly be on alert if you live along the Gulf Coast or on the Atlantic Coast. We really need to keep a close eye on that one for you.

Dennis, the remnants of Dennis -- still a tropical depression believe it or not -- bringing in some scattered rain showers across the lower Great Lakes into the Ohio Valley and middle Mississippi River Valley. Rainfall amounts a little bit lesser today, maybe on the range of one to three inches.

We're also keeping a weather eye on what's happening with the shuttle launch. That takes place tomorrow afternoon. We are getting some isolated showers and thunderstorms at this hour, kind of scattered along the east Florida coast. This is a true view sky, as we call it, of what the conditions are expected to be like tomorrow afternoon. You can see those scattered showers and thunderstorms are expected, so there's about a 60 percent likelihood that the shuttle will launch. And the temperature should be around 86 degrees.

So cross your fingers and hope those storms stay inland. Kyra?

PHILLIPS: All right, Jacqui. Thank you.

Well, to lift or leave in place restrictions on funding embryonic stem cell research. That's the emotional debate on Capitol Hill today. Senator Arlen Specter, who is battling cancer, says he and millions of Americans have a vested interest in the outcome.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. ARLEN SPECTER (R), PENNSYLVANIA: There's a very strong personal note to my own view. As has been reported, some 50 Republicans voted for the legislation in the House, because in many ways personal experiences. I hope we don't have to come to a point where 535 of us have personal experiences before we lead the battle for some 110 million Americans who suffer directly or indirectly from maladies which could be cured by NIH research or perhaps by stem cells.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Senators also are hearing from scientists who support alternative treatment methods that don't destroy embryos in the process.

Well, if you think you can drive safely while talking on a hands- free cell phone, think again. A new consumer study shows there's no benefit at all to using a hands-free phone over a handheld phone. Researchers found that you're still four times more likely to crash than someone who's not driving and phoning at the same time.

Some encouraging news for women who are very overweight. Dutch researchers conclude that obese women are more physically fit than obese men. Among their findings, women are able to better tolerate exercise, while men are more likely to have diabetes and tend to have more abdominal fat.

And for the week's top medical news, of course tune in Saturday and Sunday for "HOUSECALL" with CNN's own Sanjay Gupta.

Straight ahead, the personal side of a national tragedy. He lost his wife in the Columbia disaster that temporarily grounded NASA's shuttle program. Well, we'll hear how his life has changed since that day, and why it forced him to become a better dad.

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PHILLIPS; Twenty-six hours and counting. Apparently everything seems to be a-go rather. Here we are live in B control, and of course we're talking about the launch. The crew, the shuttle, even the weather eying tomorrow's launch Discovery. One NASA manager says it's like Christmas coming, and it's been a long time coming. Two-and-a- half years since the Columbia disaster. Its crew of seven died coming home when its orbiter disintegrated on re-entry. Of course you can watch the last minutes Discovery's countdown right here on CNN. Our space correspondent Miles O'Brien will bring us a firsthand look at the launch, beginning at 3:00 p.m. Eastern tomorrow.

Well, many people undoubtedly will be thinking back to that February morning in 2003 when another shuttle broke apart, just 16 minutes, as you remember, from touchdown. That day, as Miles O'Brien tells us now, Jon Clark lost a wife, yet in a way very much gained a son.

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JON CLARK, COLUMBIA WIDOWER: This is my peace and solace now, is going out sailing. This is what I do for comfort. MILES O'BRIEN, CNN SPACE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Two-and- half years later, Jon and Ian Clark are still plying a turbulent, uncertain sea of emotion.

CLARK: I just get a lot of enjoyment out of being out here in the wind and feeling a part of her is with us.

O'BRIEN: Their lives changed forever on the morning of February 1, 2003. When Columbia disintegrated, the crew lost, in many respects, so were Jon and Ian.

CLARK: I would have traded for my wife in a heartbeat, even at last second when the vehicle finally broke up. I mean, I would have much rather had me lose my life than have her lose it. But sometimes we have to face our worst fears. Her worst fear would be to lose her -- you know, to not be there for her son. My worst fear would be to be a single parent and both of those fears were materialized.

O'BRIEN: Wife, mother, and astronaut, Captain Laurel Clark was living out her dream, on top of the world, literally and figuratively. But her first trip to space was Columbia's last, and before she left, Ian, then eight years old, seemed to know it.

CLARK: He foresaw his mom not coming back. I'm not sure if it was he knew it was going to be -- what part of the mission it would happen in. But he had a profound overwhelming premonition.

O'BRIEN: Jon Clark is a NASA flight surgeon and an expert on crew survival in a mishap. One week before Laurel and Columbia were to come home, he worked an overnight shift in mission control. He read about the foam striking Columbia's wing, saw there was little concern and thought that was odd.

CLARK: I look back on it and I regret not having made some mention of it. But by that time, all their options were rapidly diminishing. So all it would have done would have been to make matters worse.

O'BRIEN: Jon Clark has thought long and hard about the options NASA would have had if mission managers had taken their heads out of the sand and been true to their can-do lore.

CLARK: I think if NASA had set its mind that there's something that could be done, then something could have been done.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Three, two, one.

O'BRIEN: Following the report on the Columbia disaster, NASA admitted it needs to change, but Clark is skeptical that things have changed enough.

CLARK: We have not -- we didn't learn from Challenger. I mean, virtually the same management flaws were evident in Challenger that were evident in Columbia. And so I find it hard to say, well, we should be getting back the return to flight when we haven't addressed those fundamental cultural issues. O'BRIEN: But that cannot happen without a brutal confrontation with the facts. And this is where Jon Clark's personal loss and his professional expertise have intersected, right here on the floor of his hangar. He was part of the team that sifted through the wreckage of Columbia's crew compartment to see how and when it failed, how the crew responded, how they worked to solve the problems, right up until the end.

CLARK: As I envisioned it, it wasn't horror. It was work the problem, work the problem, work the problem. And maybe at the end there would be that sense that, well, you know, we're not going to make it, but we're here with each other. And I had always envisioned that Laurel grabbed Casey's hand.

O'BRIEN: Jon Clark freely admits he was not a great father to Ian when Laurel was alive, despite her urging. A workaholic, he was largely unavailable to his son.

CLARK: I was never a very good parent with a wife. And I've had to fill a role as a single parent. I can tell you, this is the hardest job I've ever had. Every day, you've got to be there and put on, you know, your best front and get him through the tough times.

I've got the A.C. on. Don't you want that? You'd rather have the windows open? Are you sure?

O'BRIEN:; Now, he says, he is the father Laurel wanted him to be, for all of the wrong reasons. And Ian is a boy who has no recollection of crying the day his mother launched into space. The other day, he came home with a questionnaire.

CLARK: Just a standard school questionnaire, not meant to be of any significance. It said, what do you want to do with your life? And he said I want to go to space. I would say, go, live your dream.

O'BRIEN: Laurel Clark realized her dream and never got to share the wonder with the crew she left behind. But lately, they've been making headway without her, her spirit in the wind that fills their sails.

(on camera): It's not smooth sailing?

CLARK: No, no. It never is. You just have to understand that the pain is there and you're not going to be pain-free. All you can be is -- you can have a lessening of it and a better tolerance of it, but it will still be there. And that's OK.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well, the nation's top priority, fire right now. The nearly 12,000-acre Mason Gulch fire in southern Colorado. It's about 30 percent contained, but only on the fire's north side. The biggest threat is south, with hundreds of homes threatened and thousands of people forced to evacuate. For more on the wildfires, check out CNN.com.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You can think of it as a double-edged sword, essential to the ecosystem, but ravaging and dangerous when it comes to human life and property. At CNN.com, a closer look at wildfires. The number of homes damaged by wildfires has doubled in the last decade, as urban development encroaches on wild land. Most wildfires occur west of the Mississippi River, in areas known for their dry and hot summer months.

The National Wildland Fire Outlook has placed Nevada, Florida and the Pacific Northwest at higher risk of major fires this season, but the deadly blazes also act as a cleansing agent, by eliminating dead underbrush, weak organisms and more. You can find out the details on the science of a wildfire, from how the weather may effect it to detention, prevention, and suppression by clicking through this interactive gallery. You can also revisit some of the worst wildfires in North America, including the Pestigo (ph) Fire in 1871, which killed nearly half of a Wisconsin town's population, and the Great Fire of 1910 in Idaho and Montana.

Finally, what is the number-one cause of wildfires? Is it lightning, human activity, lava or solar flares. take our quiz and find out. It is all online at CNN.com/wildfires.

From the dot-com newsdesk, I'm Veronica De La Cruz.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

PHILLIPS: Other news around the world now.

In Tokyo, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice urging North Korea to make a strategic decision about its nuclear arms. Rice says that giving up the weapons would ensure the success of six-party talks later this month. Talks between North Korea and five other nations broke down more than a year ago.

It's a big day in Monaco, where Prince Albert II has been formally enthroned as ruler of that tiny principality. Albert assumes the title of "His Serene Highness" from his father, the late Prince Rainier.

And in France, the cycling world's golden boy retakes the lead and the yellow jersey. Observers say that today's ride not only puts him in the catbird's seat, but in great shape for a seventh consecutive Tour de France win. After today, his first Alpine stage, his closest overall competitor is 38 seconds off Armstrong's time.

Well, coming up in the second hour of LIVE FROM, less than a week after London's terrorist attacks, police appear to have made a crucial break in that case. We're going to have a live report on today's developments in just a few minutes.

Plus, is securing public transportation here in the U.S. just a matter of money? Why some on Capitol Hill can't agree on how much funding is really needed to keep America safe.

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