Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Live Today
Tracking Tropical Storm Jeanne; Mosul Car Bomb; Update on Scott Peterson Trial
Aired September 27, 2004 - 10:59 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Well, good morning. It's 11:00 a.m. on the East Coast, 8:00 a.m. in the West. From the CNN Center here in Atlanta, I'm Betty Nguyen, in for Daryn Kagan.
Up first here on CNN, tracking Tropical Storm Jeanne. The storm that battered Florida as Hurricane Jeanne is bringing strong wind, heavy rain and the threat of tornadoes to Georgia and South Carolina. It has already caused flooding in areas of south Georgia. And we'll get the latest on Jeanne and its aftermath.
Meteorologist Chad Myers is in Melbourne, Florida. National correspondent Gary Tuchman is in Vero Beach. And meteorologist Jacqui Jeras is tracking Jeanne from the weather center. And we want to begin with Jacqui.
What's the latest on Jeanne, Jacqui?
JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, we just got the new advisory in, Betty, and there you can see it's barely a tropical storm now. You have to have 39-mile-per-hour winds for it to be a tropical storm, and it's down to 40 now. So it's progressively weakening and will soon be a tropical depression, I'm sure by our next advisory.
You can see the location, 15 miles, east-southeast of Albany, Georgia. And it's moving north at 12 miles an hour.
We do want to show you some fresh video that we just got in. This is from Indian River County in Florida. And it shows you some of the damage received from Jeanne. Indian River County is just north of where the actual eye made landfall. So you get the worst of the weather, just north and east of the center of the storm.
And you can see very catastrophic damage there, boards broken off, a lot of beach erosion, of course, took place. And this is the second storm to hit this area.
And it's really difficult sometimes to tell how much of this damage is from Jeanne or how much of this could be from Frances. Many places got this big punch twice now, unfortunately -- pieces of roofs down there.
Jeanne is still causing some problems for today. Let's go back to the maps and show you a new tornado watch has just been issued that includes parts of southeastern Georgia and into North -- or South Carolina. It's just been issued, so not even plotting on our map right now. But the big concern is this squall line that's moving in near Myrtle Beach, extending up towards Charleston. And then it's heading across I-95 over towards Columbia. We could see some rotation out of this squall line in particular, and we also may see some more activity of tornadoes later on in the afternoon.
You can see it's going to be a rough go of it along I-75 for today. Winds will be gusting at times between 30 and 40 miles per hour. So it's not going to be a great day for travel, not to mention the very heavy rainfall associated with this as well.
This is the forecast. Rainfall expected between now and Tuesday morning at 8:00. And this big, bright bullet there you can see estimating anywhere between three and six inches of rainfall. You can expect that widespread across central Georgia, extending up into western parts of South Carolina. Everybody else should see more on the order of one to three inches.
The storm will be making its way up towards the mid Atlantic and then making its way off the coast by Wednesday. And hopefully by then, Jeanne will be history. But it has weakened quite a bit now. So that's some good news -- Betty.
NGUYEN: Yes. We are ready to get rid of Jeanne.
JERAS: I know we are.
NGUYEN: Thank you, Jacqui.
People along Florida's east coast are just beginning to assess the damage caused by Jeanne. Law enforcement officials say at least six people died as a result of that storm. Jeanne slammed ashore just before midnight Saturday, with 120-mile-per-hour winds. National correspondent Gary Tuchman is in Vero Beach, just north of where the storm made landfall, and he joins us now with the latest there.
Hi, Gary.
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Betty, hello to you.
You drive anywhere here in coastal parts of Indian River County and St. Lucie County to the south and you see damage virtually everywhere. But some areas are harder hit than others.
For example, this area, this is a picturesque lakefront subdivision. And look in the lake and you can see what they've been going through.
These are portions of roofs and other debris that have ended up in this picturesque lake. Three hundred fifty homes in this subdivision, almost all of them damaged. And, the vegetation.
Now, you see this tree that's here. Huge tree that was knocked down. But as you can tell, over here it's been trimmed. And it's been trimmed because this isn't from Hurricane Jeanne. This is from Hurricane Frances. Over here is from Hurricane Jeanne. This is a roof next to a home. You might assume the roof came from this home. It did not. It came from a home two lots away.
So it gives you an idea of the violence of these two hurricanes that have hit this area. This area has not been directly hit by a hurricane in the entire 20th century and the four years so far of the 21st century until this month of September, with Hurricane Frances and Jeanne, and has now been hit twice. A lot of damage here and a lot of anxiety.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(voice-over): She left on a 250 mile trip not knowing it would be impossible to find gasoline. And now Sharaya Smith finds herself at a Vero Beach, Florida gas station, preparing to sleep in her car, frantic with worry about her 5-month-old son she is trying to get home to.
SHARAYA SMITH, STRANDED DRIVER, VERO BEACH, FLORIDA: My whole family has lived here for 12 years, now. And we want to leave. We might move back north.
TUCHMAN (on camera): Because of this hurricane?
SMITH: It's been that bad. It's just back to back, and you don't get a break from them.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): The wrath of Hurricane Jeanne in utter darkness, the fright caused by Hurricane Ivan's one-time Category 5 status. Hurricane Frances hitting the same part of Florida as Jeanne. And Hurricane Charley strengthening to Category 4 as it approached land.
These four storms have not only made many Floridians weary, they have created anxiety, excessive difficulty and more fright than many have ever experienced with weather.
This 22-year-old walked to that same gas station with his infant son and dog after running out of gas on the side of the interstate.
Motels and shelters are full, he is told. There is no one to tow his car.
(on camera) So you're saying you may sleep in your car on the highway?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's better than outside. He has to have some kind of shelter.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): Then there's the man who was driving to surprise his girlfriend with a diamond ring.
DOMINICK SGRO, RESIDENT, VERO BEACH, FLORIDA: I've got a fistful of money and no gas station.
TUCHMAN: You want to propose to the woman you want to marry, but you can't get there.
SGRO: I can't even get there.
TUCHMAN: But Dominick Sgro's story is a happier one. His girlfriend drove 100 miles with jugs of gas and then got her surprise.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, my God. You're not going to do this right now? Oh, my God!
TUCHMAN: She said, yes.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(on camera): It's nice to have a pleasant story to tell after a depressing night. We do want to tell you about that 22-year-old with the baby and the dog. He did not spend the night in his car on the highway. He found somebody else who had a car at the gas station, and he and his baby and his dog when the in their car, slept there.
We told the Red Cross about that young man early this morning. The Red Cross went over to the gas station, found him, brought him to a shelter, got him some clothes, and also got him gasoline and a new battery for his car. And that young man and his little baby are now off safely.
Betty, back to you.
NGUYEN: Oh, good news there. But you spent the night in the car last night, didn't you?
TUCHMAN: We did spend the night in a car also. The fact was, there were absolutely no motel rooms to be had here in the Vero Beach area unless you made reservations early. We did not know we would be here.
That's what happens in the news business sometimes. You go somewhere at the last second. So, yes, the crew and I, we did sleep in the car last night. So if we don't look really refreshed, maybe that's why.
NGUYEN: Well, hopefully you'll get a better night's sleep tonight. Thank you, Gary.
Jeanne is the fourth hurricane to hit Florida in six weeks. The first time a state's been hit by four hurricanes in one storm season since Texas in 1886.
First, there was Charley. It maid landfall in Punta Gorda, Florida, as a Category 4 on August 13. With Charley's 145 mile-an- hour winds, it caused more than $7 billion in damages in the U.S. and killed 31 people.
Then came Frances, which came ashore as a Category 3 storm on September 5, and like Charley, battered the peninsula. Frances had 120 mile-an-hour winds. It caused more than $4 billion in damages in the U.S. and at least 33 deaths. Then after a slow crawl through the Gulf of Mexico, Ivan arrived as a strong Category 3 on September 16. When it came ashore at the Alabama-Florida border, it was packing 130 mile-an-hour winds. It's blamed for $3 billion to $6 billion in damages and at least 43 deaths.
And now Jeanne hitting Florida where Frances did as another Category 3 storm late Saturday. It arrived with 120-mile-an-hour winds and has caused an estimated $4 billion to $8 billion in damages right here in the U.S. The storm is being blamed for more than 1,500 deaths in Haiti as well.
This hurricane season is putting relief efforts to the test. In fact, the Federal Emergency Management Agency says the four hurricanes that hit Florida add up to the largest relief effort in the agency's history. FEMA director Mike Brown was a guest earlier on CNN's AMERICAN MORNING.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE BROWN, FEMA DIRECTOR: Just for the teams to be able to get into some of these areas that have been hit time and time again, it's so frustrating for our teams. And we have over 5,000 people deployed trying to do recovery efforts.
And we move into an area then we have to move out because of additional storms. If we could just have a two or three-week period where we could just get down here and stay down here, we could make an awful lot of progress.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Hurricane Jeanne left a swath of destruction along Florida's east coast before moving across the state's midsection. Meteorologist Chad Myers rode out that storm in Melbourne, Florida, along with CNN's Anderson Cooper.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: At this point in time, it is hard to stand up. Remember you asked me -- you asked me about 20 miles -- 20 miles an hour ago, "When is it going to be very hard to do this?" And I said, "About 100." And this is pretty darn close to 100.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Finally, he's all dry. And Chad joins us from Melbourne, where things are much calmer this morning.
Chad, what's the situation there? How bad is the damage?
MYERS: Well, you know what? The winds, Betty, were 102. That was our maximum measured gust. But down in Vero Beach, it was 122. So we know the damage is farther south than us, at least a few miles farther south, down towards Palm Bay. Now, there were damages here. Many places are damaged. And, in fact, most of the areas here have at least one damaged room.
Everybody has something off a house somewhere. But from 102 miles an hour about 36 hours ago, to almost zero miles an hour now, the traffic is now at a standstill. The traffic jam you see behind me to get back in the city is now three miles long. And that's only to get to the first stoplight.
The next stoplight has another one-mile backup because the power is out. And the traffic lights are not working.
All the traffic lights are now four-way stops. And four-way stops, with thousands of cars trying to get back into the beach area, really doesn't work very well. This is going to be one very slow area for the next few hours, and maybe even for the next few days.
Seventy-six percent of this county still without power as we speak. Power crews are out, but there's an awful lot of devastation out there, and they're spread. Those power crews are spread so thinly all the way up and down the East Coast, trying to get obviously the biggest lines back on the biggest polls first -- Betty.
NGUYEN: And Chad, can the camera person show us some of those power lines that you were talking about, kind of spread out?
MYERS: Sure. Well, the power lines ---- what we have here, we have an east-west road here. The east-west road is taking everybody back into the city of Melbourne.
And all of these east-west power lines are actually in pretty good shape. And, in fact, that's why we're here.
But if you go on a north-south roadway, all of those power polls are, in fact, broken. And those power polls don't have any way of getting back together until they dig another hole, put another poll in, and then restring the wires.
So this line of cars obviously coming back. The folks that we see in line here are the ones that evacuated. And we said so many times during the day on Saturday that few folks evacuate compared to Frances, that most of the people here are actually the ones that went into Orlando or went farther west than here, and now they're trying to get back home.
And not only do they have damage to deal with, they have to wait in this very long line of cars. And most folks have much gas, and neither do the gas stations -- Betty.
NGUYEN: One problem on top of another. And in fact, we spoke with Florida Power and Light yesterday and they said it may take up to three weeks to get some of that power back on. So it's going to take some time.
MYERS: And -- and we talked to some of the roofing companies here. And they said that all the roofs in this area will not be fixed until January.
NGUYEN: January?
MYERS: That's how far they're backed up already.
NGUYEN: Oh, that's a long wait. Chad Myers, thank you so much.
MYERS: Yes. You're welcome.
NGUYEN: Now to the desperation and devastation in Haiti. Officials say nearly 2,400 people are dead or missing in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Jeanne. The United Nations says relief agencies are working around the clock trying to get aid to storm-ravaged areas.
And CNN's Karl Penhaul joins us by videophone from the coastal town of Gonaives.
Hi there, Karl.
KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Betty.
Well, first of all, just to bring you up to date on what we know of the death toll and injury toll, we were talking to a representative from Haiti's Department of Civil Protection this morning. He says that in northwest Haiti, 1,330 people are confirmed dead. More than 1,000, though, still listed as missing. So there's every chance that confirmed death toll could still rise.
The situation, though, the main focus of attention right now, though, is obviously how to care for the survivors of that storm which lashed through the city of Gonaives more than a week ago now. Now, in the first week, last week, the aid situation here, the relief operation was very chaotic. We've seen rioting in the food lines, we've seen fights for water, we've seen some of the aid trucks being looted.
But the aid agencies had a meeting yesterday. Things seem a little more orderly this morning.
I'm just going to step out of the way, Betty, and just let you see what is a pretty normal scene here after this storm. Normal, I say, because since yesterday, in this neighbor, one of the relief organizations -- it was CARE International, one of the main independent organizations working here -- came up, set up a well, and on the top of one of those buildings there they've got a large plastic sack full of several thousands of gallons of water. And that's being distributed to the local people here.
Water has been identified by the aid organizations as the most important thing right now. Because without clean drinking water supply, then there will be disease, there will be sickness.
Already talking to some of the children here in this neighborhood, they've been telling me they've already had very bad diarrhea over the last few days. They say that some of that may now clear up because they feel they have enough clean drinking water on hand. But Cuban doctors and volunteer doctors we spoke to yesterday were also saying, if the next phase of operations, which is clearing the debris and clearing the thick mud from the city, if that's not done fairly shortly, there could be also a further risk of other infectious diseases such as typhoid and malaria -- Betty.
NGUYEN: A devastating situation there. Desperation. Karl Penhaul, thank you for that.
And you can track Tropical Storm Jeanne's trek into Georgia and the Carolinas. That is on our Web site. You'll also find video of the damage Hurricane Jeanne caused in Florida, as well as links to relief agency Web sites. All you have to do is log on to cnn.com.
Securing Iraq's border from terrorism. A U.S. military delegation is getting ready to open discussions with Syria on protecting the war-torn nation. We're live with the latest on that.
Also, testimony in Scott Peterson's double murder trial begins its 18th week today. We'll take you there.
And minding the president's health is round-the-clock gig. We'll meet the medical team available to the first patient.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: I want to update you now on what's happening in Iraq today. A car bomb killed three Iraqi National Guard members in the northern city of Mosul. The explosion went off as a convoy of Guardsmen passed by.
And CNN's Brent Sadler has that story and a diplomatic move aimed at next door. We're talking about Syria.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRENT SADLER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Insurgent attacks have hit Iraq's security forces in northern and central parts of Iraq, as well as the capital itself. The deadliest strike was aimed at Iraqi National Guardsmen in the northern city of Mosul when a roadside bomb hit a seven-vehicle convoy.
Seconds after the blast, gunmen sprayed the vehicles with machine gunfire, inflicting further casualties. A suicide bomber struck again at Guardsmen in Fallujah but failed to inflict heavy casualties, while another bomb targeted Iraqi security forces south of Baquba. And in Baghdad, mortars landed harmlessly in a police training academy.
U.S. warplanes were also on the offensive, pounding suspected Shiite militant positions in the slum district of Sadr City, partly controlled by militant anti-U.S. cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. The U.S. military authorities say the strike targeted a hotbed of insurgents loyal to Sadr, destroying positively identified hideouts. But doctors in the local hospitals claim the strikes inflicted casualties among women and children.
Top U.S. officials are now speaking of major political and military efforts in coming weeks to take control of areas now under the influence of insurgents, especially Fallujah. In addition, top level talks are now under way in Damascus to coax Syrian authorities into stemming an alleged flow of money and foreign fighters crossing into Iraq from Syria over a porous border. Securing the cooperation of Iraq's neighbors is seen by the Iraqi authorities here as a pivotal step in establishing security in Iraq ahead of planned elections at the end of January.
Brent Sadler, CNN, Baghdad.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: Defense attorneys for Scott Peterson are focusing on the lead detective in the double murder trial. We are live with those details.
And beyond the Earth. We'll tell you about Virgin Atlantic's new travel plans that are literally out of this world. We're talking to Virgin Atlantic Airways chief Richard Branson about his plan to begin commercial flights to space.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Scott Peterson's defense team gets the chance to question the lead detective in the murder case today. And CNN's Rusty Dornin is at the courthouse in Redwood City, California, this morning with the latest.
Hi, Rusty.
RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Betty, when Modesto lead detective Craig Grogan takes the stand again today, we can expect defense attorney Mark Geragos to really hammer away at what they say are the holes in the prosecution's theory, the fact that there was never a crime scene that was uncovered. No murder weapon was discovered, and they don't know exactly how Laci Peterson was murdered. But last week, it was audiotapes, videotapes and photos that prosecutors used to highlight why they thought Scott Peterson was the prime suspect.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DORNIN (voice-over): Forty pounds heavier, sporting a goatee and blonde hair, jurors got a glimpse of a different Scott Peterson in these police surveillance photos taken in the hours before his arrest. Lead Modesto detective Craig Grogan says Peterson led agents on an erratic chase around southern California that day.
When Peterson was told DNA tests confirmed his wife Laci and unborn son were dead, Grogan said the defendant lowered his head and shed a tore. Laci Peterson came to life for the jurors in this home video of the victim entertaining friends. Analysts say it was a good move for prosecutors. DEAN JOHNSON, LEGAL ANALYST: That's one of those things that you always want to see as a prosecutor in a homicide case. You want to impress upon the jury that this was a living, vibrant human being.
DORNIN: Jurors also saw the interviews Peterson did with reporters. Peterson told Diane Sawyer he admitted his affair with Amber Frey to police. Investigators say did he not.
Peterson said he was emotionality unable to enter the nursery for his unborn son. A video played in court showed the room cluttered with furniture and other things. In another taped phone call, Detective Grogan tells Peterson, "You and I both know what happened to Laci."
CRAIG GROGAN, MODESTO DETECTIVE: It's a matter of time.
SCOTT PETERSON, DEFENDANT: Craig, I had nothing to do with Laci's disappearance. Unreal. OK? I'm going to go.
GROGAN: Scott, what I'm offering you is an opportunity here to end all of this nonsense.
DORNIN: On cross-examination, defense attorney Mark Geragos tried to show investigators zeroed in on Peterson too quickly. He pointed out Peterson was cooperative and had no history of violence. The defense also claimed the reasons Peterson went back to the bay area several times was because he was looking for a witness he claims saw him put the boat in the water Christmas Eve.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(on camera): Now, the judge has told the jury that prosecutors should be expected to wrap up by this Thursday. We've heard from sources it might still into next week. Still, we have yet to hear from the detective who managed Amber Frey during all those taped phone conversations.
And also, a title expert who will testify about why during Scott Peterson's alibi he claimed he was fishing at Brook's Island. The fact that the bodies washed up to shore proves that they may have been dumped somewhere in that area.
Back to you, Betty.
NGUYEN: Getting interesting. Rusty Dornin, thank you.
And getting ready for round one with the debate on Thursday. We'll examine the strategies involved for both President Bush and Democrat John Kerry.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
Aired September 27, 2004 - 10:59 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Well, good morning. It's 11:00 a.m. on the East Coast, 8:00 a.m. in the West. From the CNN Center here in Atlanta, I'm Betty Nguyen, in for Daryn Kagan.
Up first here on CNN, tracking Tropical Storm Jeanne. The storm that battered Florida as Hurricane Jeanne is bringing strong wind, heavy rain and the threat of tornadoes to Georgia and South Carolina. It has already caused flooding in areas of south Georgia. And we'll get the latest on Jeanne and its aftermath.
Meteorologist Chad Myers is in Melbourne, Florida. National correspondent Gary Tuchman is in Vero Beach. And meteorologist Jacqui Jeras is tracking Jeanne from the weather center. And we want to begin with Jacqui.
What's the latest on Jeanne, Jacqui?
JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, we just got the new advisory in, Betty, and there you can see it's barely a tropical storm now. You have to have 39-mile-per-hour winds for it to be a tropical storm, and it's down to 40 now. So it's progressively weakening and will soon be a tropical depression, I'm sure by our next advisory.
You can see the location, 15 miles, east-southeast of Albany, Georgia. And it's moving north at 12 miles an hour.
We do want to show you some fresh video that we just got in. This is from Indian River County in Florida. And it shows you some of the damage received from Jeanne. Indian River County is just north of where the actual eye made landfall. So you get the worst of the weather, just north and east of the center of the storm.
And you can see very catastrophic damage there, boards broken off, a lot of beach erosion, of course, took place. And this is the second storm to hit this area.
And it's really difficult sometimes to tell how much of this damage is from Jeanne or how much of this could be from Frances. Many places got this big punch twice now, unfortunately -- pieces of roofs down there.
Jeanne is still causing some problems for today. Let's go back to the maps and show you a new tornado watch has just been issued that includes parts of southeastern Georgia and into North -- or South Carolina. It's just been issued, so not even plotting on our map right now. But the big concern is this squall line that's moving in near Myrtle Beach, extending up towards Charleston. And then it's heading across I-95 over towards Columbia. We could see some rotation out of this squall line in particular, and we also may see some more activity of tornadoes later on in the afternoon.
You can see it's going to be a rough go of it along I-75 for today. Winds will be gusting at times between 30 and 40 miles per hour. So it's not going to be a great day for travel, not to mention the very heavy rainfall associated with this as well.
This is the forecast. Rainfall expected between now and Tuesday morning at 8:00. And this big, bright bullet there you can see estimating anywhere between three and six inches of rainfall. You can expect that widespread across central Georgia, extending up into western parts of South Carolina. Everybody else should see more on the order of one to three inches.
The storm will be making its way up towards the mid Atlantic and then making its way off the coast by Wednesday. And hopefully by then, Jeanne will be history. But it has weakened quite a bit now. So that's some good news -- Betty.
NGUYEN: Yes. We are ready to get rid of Jeanne.
JERAS: I know we are.
NGUYEN: Thank you, Jacqui.
People along Florida's east coast are just beginning to assess the damage caused by Jeanne. Law enforcement officials say at least six people died as a result of that storm. Jeanne slammed ashore just before midnight Saturday, with 120-mile-per-hour winds. National correspondent Gary Tuchman is in Vero Beach, just north of where the storm made landfall, and he joins us now with the latest there.
Hi, Gary.
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Betty, hello to you.
You drive anywhere here in coastal parts of Indian River County and St. Lucie County to the south and you see damage virtually everywhere. But some areas are harder hit than others.
For example, this area, this is a picturesque lakefront subdivision. And look in the lake and you can see what they've been going through.
These are portions of roofs and other debris that have ended up in this picturesque lake. Three hundred fifty homes in this subdivision, almost all of them damaged. And, the vegetation.
Now, you see this tree that's here. Huge tree that was knocked down. But as you can tell, over here it's been trimmed. And it's been trimmed because this isn't from Hurricane Jeanne. This is from Hurricane Frances. Over here is from Hurricane Jeanne. This is a roof next to a home. You might assume the roof came from this home. It did not. It came from a home two lots away.
So it gives you an idea of the violence of these two hurricanes that have hit this area. This area has not been directly hit by a hurricane in the entire 20th century and the four years so far of the 21st century until this month of September, with Hurricane Frances and Jeanne, and has now been hit twice. A lot of damage here and a lot of anxiety.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(voice-over): She left on a 250 mile trip not knowing it would be impossible to find gasoline. And now Sharaya Smith finds herself at a Vero Beach, Florida gas station, preparing to sleep in her car, frantic with worry about her 5-month-old son she is trying to get home to.
SHARAYA SMITH, STRANDED DRIVER, VERO BEACH, FLORIDA: My whole family has lived here for 12 years, now. And we want to leave. We might move back north.
TUCHMAN (on camera): Because of this hurricane?
SMITH: It's been that bad. It's just back to back, and you don't get a break from them.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): The wrath of Hurricane Jeanne in utter darkness, the fright caused by Hurricane Ivan's one-time Category 5 status. Hurricane Frances hitting the same part of Florida as Jeanne. And Hurricane Charley strengthening to Category 4 as it approached land.
These four storms have not only made many Floridians weary, they have created anxiety, excessive difficulty and more fright than many have ever experienced with weather.
This 22-year-old walked to that same gas station with his infant son and dog after running out of gas on the side of the interstate.
Motels and shelters are full, he is told. There is no one to tow his car.
(on camera) So you're saying you may sleep in your car on the highway?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's better than outside. He has to have some kind of shelter.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): Then there's the man who was driving to surprise his girlfriend with a diamond ring.
DOMINICK SGRO, RESIDENT, VERO BEACH, FLORIDA: I've got a fistful of money and no gas station.
TUCHMAN: You want to propose to the woman you want to marry, but you can't get there.
SGRO: I can't even get there.
TUCHMAN: But Dominick Sgro's story is a happier one. His girlfriend drove 100 miles with jugs of gas and then got her surprise.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, my God. You're not going to do this right now? Oh, my God!
TUCHMAN: She said, yes.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(on camera): It's nice to have a pleasant story to tell after a depressing night. We do want to tell you about that 22-year-old with the baby and the dog. He did not spend the night in his car on the highway. He found somebody else who had a car at the gas station, and he and his baby and his dog when the in their car, slept there.
We told the Red Cross about that young man early this morning. The Red Cross went over to the gas station, found him, brought him to a shelter, got him some clothes, and also got him gasoline and a new battery for his car. And that young man and his little baby are now off safely.
Betty, back to you.
NGUYEN: Oh, good news there. But you spent the night in the car last night, didn't you?
TUCHMAN: We did spend the night in a car also. The fact was, there were absolutely no motel rooms to be had here in the Vero Beach area unless you made reservations early. We did not know we would be here.
That's what happens in the news business sometimes. You go somewhere at the last second. So, yes, the crew and I, we did sleep in the car last night. So if we don't look really refreshed, maybe that's why.
NGUYEN: Well, hopefully you'll get a better night's sleep tonight. Thank you, Gary.
Jeanne is the fourth hurricane to hit Florida in six weeks. The first time a state's been hit by four hurricanes in one storm season since Texas in 1886.
First, there was Charley. It maid landfall in Punta Gorda, Florida, as a Category 4 on August 13. With Charley's 145 mile-an- hour winds, it caused more than $7 billion in damages in the U.S. and killed 31 people.
Then came Frances, which came ashore as a Category 3 storm on September 5, and like Charley, battered the peninsula. Frances had 120 mile-an-hour winds. It caused more than $4 billion in damages in the U.S. and at least 33 deaths. Then after a slow crawl through the Gulf of Mexico, Ivan arrived as a strong Category 3 on September 16. When it came ashore at the Alabama-Florida border, it was packing 130 mile-an-hour winds. It's blamed for $3 billion to $6 billion in damages and at least 43 deaths.
And now Jeanne hitting Florida where Frances did as another Category 3 storm late Saturday. It arrived with 120-mile-an-hour winds and has caused an estimated $4 billion to $8 billion in damages right here in the U.S. The storm is being blamed for more than 1,500 deaths in Haiti as well.
This hurricane season is putting relief efforts to the test. In fact, the Federal Emergency Management Agency says the four hurricanes that hit Florida add up to the largest relief effort in the agency's history. FEMA director Mike Brown was a guest earlier on CNN's AMERICAN MORNING.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE BROWN, FEMA DIRECTOR: Just for the teams to be able to get into some of these areas that have been hit time and time again, it's so frustrating for our teams. And we have over 5,000 people deployed trying to do recovery efforts.
And we move into an area then we have to move out because of additional storms. If we could just have a two or three-week period where we could just get down here and stay down here, we could make an awful lot of progress.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Hurricane Jeanne left a swath of destruction along Florida's east coast before moving across the state's midsection. Meteorologist Chad Myers rode out that storm in Melbourne, Florida, along with CNN's Anderson Cooper.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: At this point in time, it is hard to stand up. Remember you asked me -- you asked me about 20 miles -- 20 miles an hour ago, "When is it going to be very hard to do this?" And I said, "About 100." And this is pretty darn close to 100.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Finally, he's all dry. And Chad joins us from Melbourne, where things are much calmer this morning.
Chad, what's the situation there? How bad is the damage?
MYERS: Well, you know what? The winds, Betty, were 102. That was our maximum measured gust. But down in Vero Beach, it was 122. So we know the damage is farther south than us, at least a few miles farther south, down towards Palm Bay. Now, there were damages here. Many places are damaged. And, in fact, most of the areas here have at least one damaged room.
Everybody has something off a house somewhere. But from 102 miles an hour about 36 hours ago, to almost zero miles an hour now, the traffic is now at a standstill. The traffic jam you see behind me to get back in the city is now three miles long. And that's only to get to the first stoplight.
The next stoplight has another one-mile backup because the power is out. And the traffic lights are not working.
All the traffic lights are now four-way stops. And four-way stops, with thousands of cars trying to get back into the beach area, really doesn't work very well. This is going to be one very slow area for the next few hours, and maybe even for the next few days.
Seventy-six percent of this county still without power as we speak. Power crews are out, but there's an awful lot of devastation out there, and they're spread. Those power crews are spread so thinly all the way up and down the East Coast, trying to get obviously the biggest lines back on the biggest polls first -- Betty.
NGUYEN: And Chad, can the camera person show us some of those power lines that you were talking about, kind of spread out?
MYERS: Sure. Well, the power lines ---- what we have here, we have an east-west road here. The east-west road is taking everybody back into the city of Melbourne.
And all of these east-west power lines are actually in pretty good shape. And, in fact, that's why we're here.
But if you go on a north-south roadway, all of those power polls are, in fact, broken. And those power polls don't have any way of getting back together until they dig another hole, put another poll in, and then restring the wires.
So this line of cars obviously coming back. The folks that we see in line here are the ones that evacuated. And we said so many times during the day on Saturday that few folks evacuate compared to Frances, that most of the people here are actually the ones that went into Orlando or went farther west than here, and now they're trying to get back home.
And not only do they have damage to deal with, they have to wait in this very long line of cars. And most folks have much gas, and neither do the gas stations -- Betty.
NGUYEN: One problem on top of another. And in fact, we spoke with Florida Power and Light yesterday and they said it may take up to three weeks to get some of that power back on. So it's going to take some time.
MYERS: And -- and we talked to some of the roofing companies here. And they said that all the roofs in this area will not be fixed until January.
NGUYEN: January?
MYERS: That's how far they're backed up already.
NGUYEN: Oh, that's a long wait. Chad Myers, thank you so much.
MYERS: Yes. You're welcome.
NGUYEN: Now to the desperation and devastation in Haiti. Officials say nearly 2,400 people are dead or missing in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Jeanne. The United Nations says relief agencies are working around the clock trying to get aid to storm-ravaged areas.
And CNN's Karl Penhaul joins us by videophone from the coastal town of Gonaives.
Hi there, Karl.
KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Betty.
Well, first of all, just to bring you up to date on what we know of the death toll and injury toll, we were talking to a representative from Haiti's Department of Civil Protection this morning. He says that in northwest Haiti, 1,330 people are confirmed dead. More than 1,000, though, still listed as missing. So there's every chance that confirmed death toll could still rise.
The situation, though, the main focus of attention right now, though, is obviously how to care for the survivors of that storm which lashed through the city of Gonaives more than a week ago now. Now, in the first week, last week, the aid situation here, the relief operation was very chaotic. We've seen rioting in the food lines, we've seen fights for water, we've seen some of the aid trucks being looted.
But the aid agencies had a meeting yesterday. Things seem a little more orderly this morning.
I'm just going to step out of the way, Betty, and just let you see what is a pretty normal scene here after this storm. Normal, I say, because since yesterday, in this neighbor, one of the relief organizations -- it was CARE International, one of the main independent organizations working here -- came up, set up a well, and on the top of one of those buildings there they've got a large plastic sack full of several thousands of gallons of water. And that's being distributed to the local people here.
Water has been identified by the aid organizations as the most important thing right now. Because without clean drinking water supply, then there will be disease, there will be sickness.
Already talking to some of the children here in this neighborhood, they've been telling me they've already had very bad diarrhea over the last few days. They say that some of that may now clear up because they feel they have enough clean drinking water on hand. But Cuban doctors and volunteer doctors we spoke to yesterday were also saying, if the next phase of operations, which is clearing the debris and clearing the thick mud from the city, if that's not done fairly shortly, there could be also a further risk of other infectious diseases such as typhoid and malaria -- Betty.
NGUYEN: A devastating situation there. Desperation. Karl Penhaul, thank you for that.
And you can track Tropical Storm Jeanne's trek into Georgia and the Carolinas. That is on our Web site. You'll also find video of the damage Hurricane Jeanne caused in Florida, as well as links to relief agency Web sites. All you have to do is log on to cnn.com.
Securing Iraq's border from terrorism. A U.S. military delegation is getting ready to open discussions with Syria on protecting the war-torn nation. We're live with the latest on that.
Also, testimony in Scott Peterson's double murder trial begins its 18th week today. We'll take you there.
And minding the president's health is round-the-clock gig. We'll meet the medical team available to the first patient.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: I want to update you now on what's happening in Iraq today. A car bomb killed three Iraqi National Guard members in the northern city of Mosul. The explosion went off as a convoy of Guardsmen passed by.
And CNN's Brent Sadler has that story and a diplomatic move aimed at next door. We're talking about Syria.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRENT SADLER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Insurgent attacks have hit Iraq's security forces in northern and central parts of Iraq, as well as the capital itself. The deadliest strike was aimed at Iraqi National Guardsmen in the northern city of Mosul when a roadside bomb hit a seven-vehicle convoy.
Seconds after the blast, gunmen sprayed the vehicles with machine gunfire, inflicting further casualties. A suicide bomber struck again at Guardsmen in Fallujah but failed to inflict heavy casualties, while another bomb targeted Iraqi security forces south of Baquba. And in Baghdad, mortars landed harmlessly in a police training academy.
U.S. warplanes were also on the offensive, pounding suspected Shiite militant positions in the slum district of Sadr City, partly controlled by militant anti-U.S. cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. The U.S. military authorities say the strike targeted a hotbed of insurgents loyal to Sadr, destroying positively identified hideouts. But doctors in the local hospitals claim the strikes inflicted casualties among women and children.
Top U.S. officials are now speaking of major political and military efforts in coming weeks to take control of areas now under the influence of insurgents, especially Fallujah. In addition, top level talks are now under way in Damascus to coax Syrian authorities into stemming an alleged flow of money and foreign fighters crossing into Iraq from Syria over a porous border. Securing the cooperation of Iraq's neighbors is seen by the Iraqi authorities here as a pivotal step in establishing security in Iraq ahead of planned elections at the end of January.
Brent Sadler, CNN, Baghdad.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: Defense attorneys for Scott Peterson are focusing on the lead detective in the double murder trial. We are live with those details.
And beyond the Earth. We'll tell you about Virgin Atlantic's new travel plans that are literally out of this world. We're talking to Virgin Atlantic Airways chief Richard Branson about his plan to begin commercial flights to space.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Scott Peterson's defense team gets the chance to question the lead detective in the murder case today. And CNN's Rusty Dornin is at the courthouse in Redwood City, California, this morning with the latest.
Hi, Rusty.
RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Betty, when Modesto lead detective Craig Grogan takes the stand again today, we can expect defense attorney Mark Geragos to really hammer away at what they say are the holes in the prosecution's theory, the fact that there was never a crime scene that was uncovered. No murder weapon was discovered, and they don't know exactly how Laci Peterson was murdered. But last week, it was audiotapes, videotapes and photos that prosecutors used to highlight why they thought Scott Peterson was the prime suspect.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DORNIN (voice-over): Forty pounds heavier, sporting a goatee and blonde hair, jurors got a glimpse of a different Scott Peterson in these police surveillance photos taken in the hours before his arrest. Lead Modesto detective Craig Grogan says Peterson led agents on an erratic chase around southern California that day.
When Peterson was told DNA tests confirmed his wife Laci and unborn son were dead, Grogan said the defendant lowered his head and shed a tore. Laci Peterson came to life for the jurors in this home video of the victim entertaining friends. Analysts say it was a good move for prosecutors. DEAN JOHNSON, LEGAL ANALYST: That's one of those things that you always want to see as a prosecutor in a homicide case. You want to impress upon the jury that this was a living, vibrant human being.
DORNIN: Jurors also saw the interviews Peterson did with reporters. Peterson told Diane Sawyer he admitted his affair with Amber Frey to police. Investigators say did he not.
Peterson said he was emotionality unable to enter the nursery for his unborn son. A video played in court showed the room cluttered with furniture and other things. In another taped phone call, Detective Grogan tells Peterson, "You and I both know what happened to Laci."
CRAIG GROGAN, MODESTO DETECTIVE: It's a matter of time.
SCOTT PETERSON, DEFENDANT: Craig, I had nothing to do with Laci's disappearance. Unreal. OK? I'm going to go.
GROGAN: Scott, what I'm offering you is an opportunity here to end all of this nonsense.
DORNIN: On cross-examination, defense attorney Mark Geragos tried to show investigators zeroed in on Peterson too quickly. He pointed out Peterson was cooperative and had no history of violence. The defense also claimed the reasons Peterson went back to the bay area several times was because he was looking for a witness he claims saw him put the boat in the water Christmas Eve.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(on camera): Now, the judge has told the jury that prosecutors should be expected to wrap up by this Thursday. We've heard from sources it might still into next week. Still, we have yet to hear from the detective who managed Amber Frey during all those taped phone conversations.
And also, a title expert who will testify about why during Scott Peterson's alibi he claimed he was fishing at Brook's Island. The fact that the bodies washed up to shore proves that they may have been dumped somewhere in that area.
Back to you, Betty.
NGUYEN: Getting interesting. Rusty Dornin, thank you.
And getting ready for round one with the debate on Thursday. We'll examine the strategies involved for both President Bush and Democrat John Kerry.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
