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Heat Wave Kills at Least 12 Across Country; No New Public Statement Attributed to Fidel Castro

Aired August 03, 2006 - 15:00   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Oppressive and seemingly unrelenting. It's brutally hot, still, in the Plains and up and down the Eastern Seaboard. The intense has taken a tragic toll. At least a dozen people, possibly 20, have died from it, including a 74-year-old Pennsylvania man found dead in his apartment, windows closed, only a table fan running.
And it's downright sweltering in subway stations, where temps are often 10 degrees hotter. Paramedics are working overtime caring for all the passengers overcome by the heat.

And you can't get much lower than this, stealing air-conditioning units right out of the windows. Bristol, Connecticut, police are on the case.

Well, in this heat, keeping cool is the order of the day. We're still seeing near 100-degree temperatures from Dallas, to Tulsa, Memphis to Philadelphia. And that has one business on ice.

Here's reporter Sarah Lee with our affiliate in Washington, WJLA.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SARAH LEE, WJLA REPORTER: Well, keeping the chill on the arctic char, it's a full-time job every day around here, but, on a day like this, they are having to refill the fish displays every few minutes.

(voice-over): At the Main Avenue seafood market in southwest D.C., the only thing fresher than the seafood today is the ice. At Jesse Taylor's (ph), Clarence Goodman (ph) is working as hard as the company ice machine to replenish his displays.

It seems, as soon as he has put the cool on his cod, it's time to go back and shovel some more.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right now, I feel like pouring it right over top of me, you know what I mean, or sneaking in here and just closing the door.

LEE: Over at Pruitt's, the ongoing cycle is the same. Bob Mead (ph) says he is refreshing the bar every 10 minutes, more than three times as often as any other day. He estimates in just one of these barrels are about 400 pounds of ice.

BOB MEAD, SEAFOOD VENDOR: You know, it's bad when you can take an ice cube, hold it in your hand, and, by the time this conversation's over, that ice is not in my hand. As you notice, it's running right out of my hand. That's how fast it's melting on that bar.

LEE: No doubt keeping up with the thaw is back-breaking work, especially in these temperatures. But, when it comes to seafood, you can't be too careful.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They have been doing something. It looks good. It's iced down for sure.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's melting fast. It's melting very fast. But the food is good, though, and I'm talking to you all. I'm not sick yet. I feel pretty good.

LEE (on camera): Here at Pruitt's Seafood, they estimate they are going through about eight to 10 tons of ice every day. They are going through it like it's water.

For CNN, I'm Sarah Lee, reporting from Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well, first the heat, now this, violent storms across the Midwest spawning at least one tornado in south central Minnesota. It ripped through a farm, flattening nearly everything, and knocking out electricity for miles. Amazingly, no one was hurt.

Storms also lashed the Chicago area overnight, leaving about 40,000 homes and businesses in the dark. About 25,000 are still without power.

Hundreds of air travelers are spending the better part of today trying to get where they were going yesterday when the storms hit. They spent the night at O'Hare International.

So, where's it going to cool down?

Meteorologist Reynolds Wolf monitoring the new CNN Weather Center.

What do you think, Reynolds?

REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I'm thinking that we are going to get some relief in parts of the country, but it is going to be loud relief.

What I'm talking about is, we get a real, I wouldn't say cold, but a cooler air mass, that is trying to get through the Great Lakes, through parts of the Midwest, and trying to get into parts of the Northeast.

Now, for it to make that cross, it has got to interact with that really muggy, warm air. And, when you have that kind of contrast, you have showers. You have storms. And some of those could be severe.

Let's talk about the numbers first, currently 80 -- rather, try 95 degrees for New York, 96 in Philadelphia, 98 in degrees in Washington. Now, what's interesting about these numbers, these are the numbers, how they stand alone.

This is not in -- does not include the high humidity, which makes it feel like it's beyond the century mark in these places. But, as I mentioned, relief is going to be on the way, and it is going to come from this frontal boundary, this area of low pressure, this long cold front, with cooler air behind it, drifting from parts of the Great Lakes into the Northeast.

And, as it comes through, there will be the possibility of showers and storms. Already, the National Weather Service has posted severe thunderstorm watches into the Ohio Valley. And, as we get a little bit closer to the Empire State, you will notice, from Buffalo, to Rochester, into Syracuse, we have seen the showers make their way from the west to the east. Some of these have been severe.

And, into the afternoon, there's the potential for more severe thunderstorm activity. Now, is there the potential that we could have some tornadoes? There's going to be that chance, but it looks like, right now, primarily a rain and hail and possibly some damaging-wind event.

But the good thing about this, the good side, is that some rain- cooled air will be moving into the region. And, then, right behind the front itself, temperatures will return right back into the 80s, as we make our way into the weekend, with drier air. Again, less humid air, drier air, will make all the difference, so, better times are ahead.

Meantime, we are looking at, again, some different numbers for you for parts of the hurricane season. We have got some revised numbers for you. And we're looking at a -- kind of a drop, if you will, in the possibility of those storms.

Originally, we were looking at a higher number of storms in the Atlantic Basin. The latest numbers we have, for Dr. William Gray, 15 named storms, seven of which should be hurricanes, three major hurricanes, Category 3 and higher. So, the numbers have dropped from the original forecast.

But, I have to tell you, it is still well above average. So, that is some good news, but, still, we're looking at a very busy season.

And that's the latest we have for you.

PHILLIPS: What's the deal with Tropical Storm Chris?

WOLF: The latest we have from Tropical Storm Chris, believe it or not, is, the storm is still just barely, just barely, at this time, a tropical storm, with maximum sustained winds right around 40 miles per hour, expected, by the next update, to possibly be a depression -- but, still, no time to get calm, no time to really relax. We still need to keep an eye on it.

PHILLIPS: All right, Reynolds. Thanks.

WOLF: You betcha.

PHILLIPS: Well, for some of you, a break in the heat is on the way. Right now, the goal is to beat the heat any way you can.

And our own Allan Chernoff has found some folks doing just that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Here in Astoria, Queens, thousands of homes were without power last month. And now we have had three consecutive days of oppressive heat.

The best answer? Coming right here, to the Astoria pool, the biggest pool in New York City. And these kids certainly know how to cool off.

Everybody having a good time?

(CHEERING)

CHERNOFF: You can see, everybody real happy, and that's because the water here, nice and cool -- no question about it.

How long have you folks been here?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Eleven, 11:30.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Eleven o'clock.

CHERNOFF: So, you have been here more than three hours now?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

CHERNOFF: When you getting out?

(CROSSTALK)

CHERNOFF: Maybe never, huh? The whole day long?

(LAUGHTER)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Maybe never.

CHERNOFF: Obviously, this is just a great place to be, if you cannot make it to the beach. New York City has several major pools like this for the kids and the parents to come to cool off, certainly very important when we're confronting such intense heat right now.

But at least we can look forward, the forecasters say, to some relief on Friday.

Allan Chernoff, CNN in Astoria, Queens. (END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld spent time on Capitol Hill this morning. He answered questions about the U.S. military's role in Iraq and other regions during testimony before a Senate committee.

Iraq was the issue on most senators' minds, especially the growing concern that Iraqi insurgents are gaining the upper hand. Rumsfeld acknowledged, there's still a lot of work left to do.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD RUMSFELD, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: Are there setbacks? Yes.

Are there things that people can't anticipate? Yes.

Does the enemy have a brain and continue to make adjustments on the ground, requiring our forces to continue to make adjustments? You bet.

Is that going to continue to be the case? I think so.

Is this problem going to get solved in the near term about this long struggle against violent extremism? No, I don't believe it is. I think it's going to take some time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Secretary Rumsfeld also warned against an early withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq.

Well, a flood of speculation, but a bare trickle of information -- here's what we know right now about the condition of Fidel Castro.

The ailing Cuban leader has not released a new statement on his condition, and there's no photos or video of him, as he reportedly remains hospitalized after intestinal surgery.

In Miami -- in Miami, Juanita Castro told reporters that her estranged brother is -- quote -- "very sick," but she has been told he's no longer in intensive care and is expected to recover enough to resume control of Cuba.

And the Cuban government is denying or just not responding to requests for journalists' visa. "The Miami Herald" reports, four journalists were turned away Wednesday when they arrived at the Havana Airport from Panama.

Forget no news is good news. As far as Miami's Cuban exiles are concerned, in the absence of solid information, only speculation runs amuck.

CNN's Rusty Dornin has more now, as Little Havana waits to exhale.

Rusty, go ahead.

RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: OK, Kyra, we -- there's a lot of folks that come here to the Versailles Restaurant to speculate, rumors, gossip, that sort of thing.

But there's also a group of the Cuban exile community that is very involved, very concerned about what's going to happen in the future. And one of those organizations is the Cuban American National Foundation.

Jorge Mas Santos is one of the leaders of that organization.

First of all, let's just talk about why do you think Raul Castro has not stepped forward?

JORGE MAS SANTOS, CUBAN AMERICAN NATIONAL FOUNDATION: Well, I think -- I think two things.

I think there's uncertainty as to their next move. I think, more importantly, there's different factions within the upper echelons of both the civil and military government of what direction to take the country in.

Many people have painted Raul Castro as a reformer. I do not believe that he will reform the country to transfer the power to the people of Cuba, which is what we all want, a path towards freedom, a path towards democracy.

And I think the fact that he has not shown up does not speak well. The transfer of power took place on Monday. He has not spoken to the Cuban people. His has to be a message of strength, a message of projecting a future. Uncertainty continues to build. But without a doubt, we have seen the era of Fidel Castro come to an end.

DORNIN: You were saying to me earlier that, within the army, there are two different real factions that -- through your intermediaries that you have been speaking to, can you describe what those are within the Cuban army?

MAS SANTOS: There are those who have followed Raul who have run the Cuban economy. They took the military and converted them to quasi-businessmen.

There's the other faction of the military who have been Fidel Castro's ideologues, the people who began a revolution with him. And there's two different forces pulling here, some people who want to drive Cuba towards some type of China model economy to continue lining the pockets of a few men. And there are the others who want to continue with this failed revolution of Castro.

That's what's happening now, because the future of Cuba lies in the younger generation, not in these septuagenarians who have been transferred power. And I think that's what's happening now. And I think it's our role to make sure that Raul Castro is not an acceptable successor to Fidel Castro, that it's time for those to step up and really start a transition toward freedom and democracy in Cuba. DORNIN: But, realistically, how can you -- what can you do from here? I mean, what will you do if -- if the government falls, what can an organization like yours really do?

MAS SANTOS: Well, number one, provide a message and provide support.

Secondly, the international community can play a major role in assuring those who want to continue a succession of enslaving the Cuban people, that will not be acceptable, because, regardless of who takes power in Cuba, they will have to give something to the Cuban people the Castros have never done, which is give them food and an ability for their well-being.

And that is where the international community and organizations such as ours -- and we're all Cubans, be it on the island or here in exile -- can use to assist, to ensure that this is the time and opportunity we take advantage of to allow the Cuban people to determine their own future through elections.

DORNIN: Are you encouraging or discouraging people from, you know, getting on their boats and trying to go to Cuba? Of course, the U.S. Coast Guard is discouraging that. But you, as an organization, are you discouraging people from doing things like that, if the government should fall?

MAS SANTOS: Well, I -- I don't think anyone is doing that. I think no one is getting on their boat and going to Cuba, much less to take something back, which are some of the rumors. And that's the propaganda mill of Fidel Castro.

There will come a time and place when the Cuban-American community, we will be present in Cuba. The conditions aren't ripe for that yet. That will come. And, when that day comes, we will have the support of this administration and the government.

DORNIN: Thank you so much. Thank you so much, Jorge Mas Santos...

(CROSSTALK)

MAS SANTOS: Thank you.

DORNIN: ... member of the Cuban American National Foundation, working towards this serious change, and, also, hopefully, a peaceful transitional government in Cuba -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Rusty Dornin in Little Havana -- thanks, Rusty.

Now, public support remains strong in Havana for Fidel Castro, Raul Castro, and the Communist Party. But, privately, the Cuban people must be wondering about the inevitable end of the Castro regime.

CNN's Morgan Neill has more on these days of uncertainty.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MORGAN NEILL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Walk through the streets of Havana, you wouldn't know that power in the Cuban government changed hands for the first time in 47 years -- Cubans going about their business, like any other day.

But, if you listen to what people are saying -- "We want Fidel to get better as fast as possible," says this housewife.

"Fidel is Fidel. He's the man who fought the revolution in the Sierra Maestra. Long live Fidel," said this peanut vendor.

Defense Minister Raul Castro remains in control of the country, two days after President Fidel Castro, facing surgery, temporarily ceded power to his younger brother. Cubans aren't expecting much change from Raul, but, if he stays in position, much longer:

HAROLD KLEPAK, PROFESSOR OF MILITARY AND DIPLOMATIC HISTORY, ROYAL MILITARY COLLEGE OF CANADA: This is a man who has shown he's quite keen on reform when it's needed in the past, and that he's willing to take risks with that reform, and the rest of the team as well.

NEILL: So far, Raul Castro has not yet appeared in public.

(on camera): Nevertheless, here in the streets of Havana, there's an unmistakable sense of calm. On this hot summer day, these people are lined up, not to protest or to march, but to buy ice cream.

(voice-over): While the world outside Cuba swirls with the speculation that Fidel Castro may never again lead this country, here, as one man put it, the peace and quiet is deafening.

Morgan Neill, CNN, Havana.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well, back to the crisis in the Middle East -- the head of Hezbollah made a televised statement today. We will hear what he had to say to his followers -- more LIVE FROM straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Hezbollah rockets crashed into the area near Haifa, Israel, today, with deadly consequences.

Matthew Chance is in northern Israel -- Matthew.

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Thanks, Kyra.

Well, it's one of the deadliest days for Israeli civilians since this conflict began more than three weeks ago, with nearly 200 rockets crashing into towns and cities across northern Israel, killing at least eight civilians in those towns, in the country's north, provoking shock and outrage across this country. Emergency teams have been scurrying all over these towns and cities, trying to repair the damage, trying to give whatever relief they can to the many injured as a result of this barrage of rockets that has come from Hezbollah's positions across south Lebanon.

In the meantime, there has been a ferocious barrage in the other direction as well from Israeli tanks and artillery and, indeed, ground forces, about 10,000 of which are currently on the ground in southern Lebanon, moving from town to village to town, trying to root out Hezbollah strongholds, and to destroy the infrastructure that Hezbollah has built up there over the course of the past six years, since Israel ended its occupation of southern Lebanon.

It is a very difficult battle. It's close-quarters fighting. There has been a lot of casualties, at least three Israeli soldiers killed today, many Hezbollah fighters, as well, according to Israeli military officials.

And it seems that Israeli boots could be on the ground in south Lebanon for some time, because the intention at the moment, Kyra, is to hold that ground, until such times as a multinational force has been agreed by the international community, and until it's ready to be deployed and take over from Israel -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Matthew Chance, thanks so much.

Meanwhile, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah went back on Lebanese television just a short time ago with a stern warning for Israel: Tel Aviv is in Hezbollah's crosshairs. Nasrallah vowed to hit Israel's second largest city, in retaliation for continued Israeli strikes upon Beirut.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HASSAN NASRALLAH, HEZBOLLAH LEADER (through translator): ... speak. If you hit our capital, we will hit your -- the capital of yours -- of your entity. If you hit Beirut, the Islamic resistance will hit Tel Aviv, and is able to do that, with God's help.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, Nasrallah went on to praise the fighting efforts of his troops. And he did made an overture toward possible peace.

Nasrallah said Hezbollah would stop firing its rockets into northern Israel if the IDF ends its military campaign.

Southern Beirut is back in the crosshairs. Israeli aircraft have renewed their attacks on suspected Hezbollah strongholds there.

Our Beirut bureau chief, Brent Sadler is standing by.

Hey, Brent.

BRENT SADLER, CNN BEIRUT BUREAU CHIEF: Kyra, a very serious threat just been made by the chief of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah. It was broadcast in a statement form, pre-recorded, on all Lebanese channels -- now, this after a day in which the Israeli air force dropped leaflets over the southern suburbs of Beirut. That's Hezbollah's stronghold.

Airplanes struck that area overnight last night. And those leaflets dropped over the southern suburbs this morning threatened a wider air campaign. And those leaflets advised residents -- if there are any residents left in that area -- to leave those districts as soon as possible, this as a prelude to possible airstrikes this night or subsequent nights, it's feared, by many Lebanese.

Now, that IDF statement said -- and I quote part of it -- "that, as a result of wider terrorist Hezbollah operations, the result of which will be a brutal and a hurtful response by the Israelis, and not just against Hezbollah," said that statement in those leaflets, meaning that the Israelis could go for another target. If they hit central Beirut, then, the quid pro quo for that, says Nasrallah, will be for Hezbollah to try to strike at Tel Aviv -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Thanks, Brent.

Well, President Bush arrived in Texas last hour to begin his annual August vacation, but his time at the ranch is going to be cut short this year.

Our White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux standing by for the mission in Texas.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, hi, Kyra.

Right behind me is the Rio Grande, and across there, of course, the Mexican border. president Bush is really here simply to show that he still has a dog in this fight, this immigration battle. That is what he is going to be addressing, talking about, immigration reform.

But there's less than 100 days left from the congressional midterm elections. You have House Republicans and Senate Republicans who have been crisscrossing the country, essentially selling their own immigration reform plans. The House, of course, is emphasizing border security. The Senate, Republicans, they want to see some way of citizenship for illegal immigrants who are still in the country.

So, President Bush, even if there is not an immigration bill that comes before the midterm elections, is out here today simply to try to make sure that key voters, Republican voters, come out to the polls, and, at the very least, this issue doesn't hurt the Republicans for the midterm elections -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, Suzanne Malveaux, tracking the president and all issues border-related.

We want to take Senator John Warner, speaking on Capitol Hill, just came out of the Senate Armed Services Committee. As you know, General Peter Pace and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld were meeting with senators about the situation in Iraq.

Let's listen in.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

SEN. JOHN WARNER (R-VA), ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN: ... State Jim Jeffrey at the 2:00 briefing.

This morning's hearing at the Armed Services Committee was very thorough, strong exchanges of viewpoints. And I believe the secretary and the generals stated clearly and succinctly the situation that we are now faced with in the whole Middle East, not just the -- Iraq and Afghanistan, but, indeed, Israel, and the combat, in their defense against Hezbollah.

At this time, we're ready to take your questions.

QUESTION: Mr. Secretary...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Secretary...

QUESTION: Mr. Secretary, you said yesterday that sometimes politics enters into these things.

RUMSFELD: No.

QUESTION: I know. It's unbelievable in this town.

RUMSFELD: You have got to be kidding. Do you think there's gambling in the casino?

(LAUGHTER)

QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE) I don't know. I wouldn't (INAUDIBLE) in such places.

(LAUGHTER)

QUESTION: You have heard the testimony, today, of the senators. You have heard the questions. Were you called here for political reasons today?

WARNER: No. He...

RUMSFELD: Oh, my goodness, no. The chairman invited me up. And I thought we had an understanding with him that I would do the afternoon session and not the morning. But there were others who preferred to have me do both and spend the entire day up here. And here I am. And it's almost over.

QUESTION: What about Senator Clinton, specifically? Did Senator Clinton write you that letter, specifically, and release it for political motivations?

WARNER: Well, that, you would have to ask Senator Clinton. The letter speaks for itself.

RUMSFELD: But she never wrote me the letter. I never got the letter. Something was released to the press in a letter form, I think, to be technical.

WARNER: OK. That -- we have got a lot of important military information here. Can we get along with that?

Another question.

QUESTION: Senator Warner...

WARNER: Yes.

QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE) the testimony, this morning, from the generals that a civil war is possible?

WARNER: The question relates to a civil war. The generals will answer that for themselves. But the key to it is, one, the government in Lebanon is still functioning and functioning decisively.

They have got to make tough decisions with respect to demilitarizing the private armies and private militias.

QUESTION: And what about Iraq?

WARNER: That's where I'm speak...

QUESTION: Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you said Lebanon.

WARNER: Well, if I did, I meant in Iraq.

But I think General Abizaid addressed that question. I will invite him to give you more of an answer.

GENERAL JOHN ABIZAID, COMMANDER, U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND: Well, certainly, the sectarian violence problem in Baghdad is serious. We've made some appropriate military moves. The government of Iraq is making some very important moves to disarm militias, to take national reconciliation issues into consideration.

ABIZAID: And we believe that a combination of military and government moves will get the sectarian violence under control.

QUESTION: Secretary Rumsfeld, do you think it's a civil war? And -- and, if it -- if it becomes clear that it is, how does the mission change for the United States?

RUMSFELD: I agree with General Abizaid and General Pace in their characterization of it.

I think that the important thing is that we are there to support the Iraqi government. The Iraqi government was elected by 12 million voters in that country. It was elected under a constitution that the Iraqi people drafted. And the Iraqi government needs our support. And that's the purpose of our mission.

And I -- we have no reason to believe that that mission will change. WARNER: One other element, a criteria that's important, and that is the strength and growing capability of the Iraqi army. There's not to be seen any breakdown in any way in their command-and-control and their increasing willingness to step up and take on the toughest issues.

That's it. Thank you very much.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: And you just heard sort of an impromptu get-together with journalists there outside of the Senate Armed Services Committee meeting.

As you know, the generals, the secretary of defense, meeting with senators, talking about the situation in Iraq, some of the highlights that came out of that meeting, and also a few questions thrown to the senator and the generals -- and, that is General Abizaid -- warning of a threat of Iraqi civil war, if sectarian violence isn't stopped.

There has been a lot of controversy to whether Iraq is in the middle of a civil war or not. Finally, we are hearing from one of the generals that he does believe that it could happen, but you also heard the fact that he said it could be averted, he believes, as well -- Rumsfeld, though, repeating the warnings against premature troop withdrawals, and, also, the continued fight to defeat al Qaeda, deterring Iran, and solving Israeli-Arab -- the -- that conflict that's taking place in the Middle East.

We are going to take a quick break -- more LIVE FROM right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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