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CNN Live Today

More Names Released in London Bombings; Egyptian Attacks Hurt Tourism; Chicago Faces Another Heat Wave; Discovery Rescheduled to Launch Tuesday

Aired July 25, 2005 - 10:00   ET

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

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: AMERICAN MORNING lies ahead tomorrow. In the meantime, let's head to Atlanta. Betty Nguyen is there to take you through the next couple of hours on CNN.
Betty, hello.

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Miles. A busy day. Thank you.

Here's what's happening right "Now in the News."

British Prime Minister Tony Blair apologizes for the killing of a Brazilian electrician mistaken for a terrorist. However, Blair commended London police for operating under very difficult circumstances. Also today, police raided an apartment in North London. We have a live report on a London terror investigation. That is coming up in just one minute.

A Greyhound bus went out of control and overturned on to its side along Interstate 95 in Baltimore this morning. Here's a picture of that. At least 14 people were injured in a rush-hour accident. A spokeswoman with the Maryland Transportation Authority says two passengers had to be freed from the bus.

Nevada police are searching for an eight-year-old girl who may have been abducted by a convicted sex offender. Lydia Bethany-Rose Rupp was reported missing on Friday. Police have identified the suspect as Fernando Aguerro. He's believed to be driving a blue/gray 2001 4-door Kia Rio sedan without license plates. Aguerro had been living in the child's home near Reno, Nevada.

Suicide car bombers target a guardhouse at the Sadeer hotel and a police commando checkpoint in Baghdad. Iraq's defense ministry reports at least 14 Iraqis dead and 27 wounded in the two attacks.

Well, good morning, everybody. I'm Betty Nguyen at the CNN Center in Atlanta. Daryn Kagan is off today.

We want to begin with the latest on the London terror bombings. Just in the last few minutes, British police are now naming two of the four suspects in last week's attempted bombings. CNN's Jim Boulden is outside Scotland Yard in London.

So, Jim, with these names, what do we know about these guys? JIM BOULDEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We don't know that much about them, Betty, but they have given us, as you say, two of the four, if not five would-be bombers from last Thursday's failed attempts. One is 27 years old. His name is Muktar Said Ibraihim. The other one is a 24-year-old named Yasin Hassan Omar.

Now what the police told us is that they could actually trace where these four men went after the failed bombings. Of course, three were on trains in the underground or in the stations. Another man was on a bus in North London. And then the fourth man ran.

They even talked about, the police said, that one of the men was actually chased by some members of the public and they were able to tell where these four men went and they're now asking for Londoners to see if they to know where these four men are, especially the two that they have now named, and want to know if they saw their whereabouts. Some of the men were seen 15, 20 minutes after the failed bombing attempts running through the streets of London or running under underpasses. One man actually jumped into the garden and through the house of an old family and they ran through the house and the was the last time he was seen.

But the police have now given us these two names. That is some major leads. They've also given out some new pictures of these individuals.

They also talked about the containers. On Saturday, Betty, another bomb was found in West London. It was actually found by a member of the public. And in that rucksack they were able to find, in that backpack, they were able to find a white contain and they're able to link all five of these bombs by this white container with a white lid that they found. A kind of container, a food storage container, that could be actually bought in shops. So now the police are asking any shopkeepers, did you sell these containers to anybody? Did you sell four or five or six of these containers? And they want you to call the police immediately.

This is a major breakthrough for the police and to finally tell us they know a little bit more about these four men. But what they haven't told us yet, Betty, is, are these four or five individuals connected to the four suicide bombers who blew themselves up and 56 people on July 7th.

Betty.

NGUYEN: Jim, there are a lot of questions, including investigators focusing on this white water rafting central. What does that have to do with the terror investigation?

BOULDEN: Yes, this is really interesting. On June 4th, two of the suspected suicide bombers, the two men who died, were actually seen in a photo of white water rafting in North Wales. This is about 300 miles away from London. About a three-hour drive from London. And they're actually taking place they're actually taking part in a white water rafting trip. And there's a photo of six or seven individuals, all of Asian complexion, and two of them have been confirmed to be two of the suicide bombers. Two of the men from the Leeds area, which is about three hours north here of here in London. And those two men were seen in the white water rafting pictures. And there were other individuals in that photos and there were other individuals, other Asian-looking men, who were also taking part in an afternoon white water session. And the police are very keen to see whether or not there might have been some kind of summit, some kind of meeting in this part of Wales on June 4th for a preparation or some kind of sort of gathering before the deadly deeds of July 7th.

Betty.

NGUYEN: Very interesting. Thank you for that update.

Jim Boulden outside Scotland Yard for us today.

Thank you.

Now to the investigation of another series of terror attacks. The early Saturday morning bombings in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh. Authorities have been seeking several Pakistanis since before that attack. At least 20 people have reportedly been detained. The death toll stands at 84 with more than 200 people wounded. CNN's Chris Burns has more from the site of the bombings.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRIS BURNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): Near the suddenly deserted beaches of Egypt's Red Sea riviera, they were picking up not only broken debris, but broken hopes of a booming tourism business. A day after the triple bombings in Sharm el-Sheikh, streets in the usually busy old market district were eerily quiet. Shopkeepers like Haled (ph) say they'd like to get their hands on who planned the attacks.

HALED: (INAUDIBLE). I kill him.

BURNS: This is where the car bomb exploded here in the old market, leaving this crater about a meter deep. It went off just as the night life was reaching its peak, shredding these shops and restaurants, laying waste to these cars, these taxis. And this is also where most of the people died in these three attacks.

As the city reeled in mourning, flags flew half-mast. Survivors lay in pain at the local hospital. Foreign tourists were among the victims, the most were Egyptians.

I was watching an English couple taking pictures of each other. And the next thing I knew, they were gone, he said.

Security in this already heavily guarded resort was beefed up. Bomb-sniffing dogs are searching vehicles. But an effort, also, to return to normalcy. The shattered hotel where the other suicide car bomb exploded was shrouded in canvas. And though many frightened tourists were leaving, others were back on the street. Some as disaster tourists taking home a souvenir the government here would rather they forget.

Karen and Richard Birch of Britain plan to return even though the bomb at the hotel across the street blew in the windows of their hotel room. Karen was cut by the glass.

KAREN BIRCH, BRITISH TOURIST: Crawling across it. (INAUDIBLE). I had a bit of glass in my knee but . . .

BURNS: That was crawling on the floor.

BIRCH: Yes. You didn't see it. You just thought, I've got to get in the bathroom, you know.

BURNS: But for someone who grew up with IRA bombings in London, she tries to take it in stride.

BIRCH: It can happen anywhere. This is what we were saying last night, you know, anywhere where we'd be going for a holiday it could have happened.

BURNS: With hopes broken, but perhaps not lost, that the place that hosts so many summits on ending conflict won't lose its nickname as the city of peace.

Chris Burns, CNN, Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: And one more note for you. President Bush plans to visit the Egyptian embassy in Washington this morning. He will sign a condolence book for victims of this latest terror attack. We'll take you live to the White House for more on that story just a little bit later in this newscast.

The Pentagon has a new plan to tackle terrorism. The soon to be released document is outlined in the current issue of "U.S. News & World Report." Now according to the article, the conflict cannot be fought by military means alone or by the U.S. alone. So it emphasizes foreign partners. It also redefines the enemy as extremists, Sunni and Shia movements that exploit Islam for political ends. The report says, "recognizing that al Qaeda's influence has spread, the United States is now targeting some two dozen groups, a significant change from the early focus on just al Qaeda and its leadership."

Well, a little relief is on the way for the Midwest after a brutal heat wave, but some areas will have to wait at least another day. The mercury topped 100 in Chicago, St. Louis and Iowa City yesterday. In fact, Chicago's high was just one degree off the highest temperature ever for the city. CNN's Chris Lawrence is in Chicago this morning.

Another day, Chris, and the temperatures continue to rise.

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Betty, it is much more comfortable right now than it was over the weekend, but city officials are still taking this heat wave seriously. That's why they've got city officials going out door-to-door today checking on some of the older folks who live alone. And if a case worker finds someone they think is in immediate danger, they've got the authority to take them out of their home and get them into some air conditioning until things cool down.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LAWRENCE, (voice over): Like a lot of the Midwest this weekend, Chicago just simmered.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's hot. It's really hot, man. Hotter than the hot.

LAWRENCE: This weekend, temperatures topped 100 degrees in 13 states. St. Louis, Missouri, hit 104. Omaha, Nebraska, 105. Chicago broke 100 for the first time in six years, missing its all-time record by two degrees.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I feel like I'm in Cancun, Mexico.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're dying here.

LAWRENCE: You could say that now and people won't take you literally, but not 10 years ago. Not here.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It seems to be another heat-related DOA.

LAWRENCE: A heat wave hit Chicago in the summer of 1995. The mayor said, let's not blow it out of proportion, and the city didn't take it too seriously. Four days later, Chicago was using refrigerated trucks to cart the bodies away and the heat had kill more than 700 people.

DR. WILLIAM PAUL, CHICAGO HEALTH OFFICIAL: There's no question that the system failed.

LAWRENCE: Now social workers go door-to-door.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. Roosevelt?

LAWRENCE: Checking on older people, like this man. If they don't have air conditioning or a way to keep cool, the city's bringing them to cooling centers until the temperatures go down.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The most susceptible people are seniors living alone and the number one protective factor is air conditioning.

LAWRENCE: For the folks who couldn't stand to stay indoors, they got by with whatever they had on hand. Umbrellas, paper fans and bottles of ice cold water.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LAWRENCE: The Chicago Fire Department says it appears that the heat killed three people on Sunday. But the medical examiner has not confirmed whether high temperatures were the cause. A doctor for the city of Chicago says that kind of discrepancy isn't all that unusual, and after a blistery weekend like we just had, it can take a couple days to find out how many people died and whether that had anything to do with the heat.

Betty.

NGUYEN: Chris, I know you talked about the elderly and the help that they are getting. What about folks at home who really just don't want to keep the air conditioner running 24 hours a day because of the electricity bills? Is that a concern? And is there any kind of relief being provided to them?

LAWRENCE: Yes, especially here in Chicago, because unlike cities like Phoenix and like that, a lot of these buildings are built to keep the warm air in. You know, this city is designed to go through some pretty harsh winters, not harsh summers like this. So you get that air trapped in there for a couple days at time and the air just heats up. And once you get past 90 degrees, a fan isn't going to cool you off, it's just blowing hot air around. So people say, you know, at least keep the air conditioning on during the hottest part of the day, from noon to 4:00.

NGUYEN: Yes. It may drive up the bill but it will save your life.

All right, Chris Lawrence, thank you.

Let's talk a little bit more about this heat and, finally, when folks are going to get some relief. Jacqui Jeras is in the weather center with that.

Hi, Jacqui.

(WEATHER REPORT)

NGUYEN: Will the weather have any impact on tomorrow's scheduled launch of the shuttle Discovery? Still to come, they are trying it once again. We will get the latest from the Kennedy Space Center in a live report.

Plus, six countries come together in an effort towards peace and stability. A look at what the U.S. expects from the talks on North Korea's nuclear program.

And a little later, the king of cycling says he is moving on. But how will the sport go on without him? And who is being groomed to fill his shoes? We're talking post-Tour de France coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: The countdown is well underway and NASA says tomorrow's scheduled launch of the shuttle Discovery is a go, even though engineers haven't yet gotten to the bottom of that fuel gauge problem. CNN's Sean Callebs is covers the preparations and joins us now from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

They can't seem to figure out this problem, Sean?

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it has perplexed them without question. The past 10 days they've had more than a dozen teams, 14 teams actually, of scientists and engineers trying to figure out exactly what is going on with that fuel gauge problem. However, they say it is not a safety issue at this point and the countdown is moving on. And tomorrow at this time, Betty, we should be saying it will be just about 30 minutes before liftoff.

Let's go live out to the launch pad and we can see the situation out there. As I mentioned, this time tomorrow, the astronauts should be in Discovery at this time. It's been two-and-a-half years since NASA has gone up and you can imagine everyone is very anxious but they say they are taking things cautiously and they believe they understand what is causing the problem, even though they can't put their finger directly on it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETE NICKOLENKO, NASA TEST DIRECTOR: I believe that we're ready and I feel very confident going into the conduct of the terminal launch countdown that the entire team's ready to execute this mission. And we fully expect that it should work as designed, which is what we would expect.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CALLEBS: Now, NASA is prepared to break its own rule. That one, of course, put in after the Challenger accident. There are four of these fuel sensors in the external fuel tank. Now, basically, as the craft goes up, these read the hydrogen fuel level and will indicates when it is out of fuel or, if indeed, there is still fuel in the tank. The concern is, if it shuts off too soon, they would have to make an emergency landing somewhere around the world. Or if it continued to burn after there was no more hydrogen in the tank, it could lead to a catastrophic problem.

Betty, they are also concern about the weather here. But clearly glad that that tropical storm has moved off the coast. However, still a 40 percent chance of foul weather could keep the shuttle on the ground. A big reason there, Betty, they need the situation to be very, very clear. They're going to have more than 100 cameras aimed at Discovery during liftoff to make sure that no debris damage the spacecraft as it ascends.

Betty.

NGUYEN: No doubt.

Sean Callebs, thank you for that.

And we had just gotten word from the White House that First Lady Laura Bush will be headed to Florida to witness that shuttle launch tomorrow. And you want to stay with CNN for the latest on the shuttle's return to space. Our special coverage begins tomorrow morning at 10:00 a.m. Eastern. The launch is set for 10:39 to be exact. And, of course, we will bring that to you live.

Still to come on CNN LIVE TODAY, he is taking home the win and he is not coming back. A look at what's next for the king of cycling.

And if the Tour de France has inspired you to purchase your own set of wheels, Gerri Willis has a few tips for you.

Hi, Gerri.

GERRI WILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Betty. Good to see you.

Hey, are you going to buy a new bike this weekend. We'll show you how to save a little money when you go to the bike store.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: OK. Lance Armstrong, you've just won the Tour de France for the seventh straight time. What are you going to do? Well, Armstrong is not going to Disney World. Instead, he is heading to a beach in the South of France. That sounds pretty nice. The record- setting champion says he will spend a few days there having a blast with his kids. And we'll have more on Armstrong's win a little bit later in this hour, including a report from Paris. Plus, an interview with an author who has written about the Tour de France.

So whether you've been inspired by the Tour de France or just by watching your own kids pedal on their bikes, maybe you're thinking about buying one of those bikes yourself. Our Personal Finance Editor Gerri Willis can help with today's "Top Five Tips." And I guess the number one tip is, what kind of bike should you get? There are so many are out there.

WILLIS: There are seven different kinds, Betty, so it's difficult to choose. We looked at two trendsetter, President Bush and John Kerry, to find out what they rode. President Bush rides a mountain bike. You can see here. It's all for off-roading, low gears for hill climbing. John Kerry has a road bike. Now this is really popular with boomers because, well, frankly, they're for even pavement riding and much easier for people who are giving up their running shoes because they can't run anymore. Hybrid is a combination of the two. And Lance, of course, is riding the racing bike. If you want to be just like Lance, you've got to get a racing bike.

NGUYEN: That's going to be a hot ticket, though. Because when you think about these bikes, some of them are really expensive.

WILLIS: Oh, Betty, you've got to see these prices. It's amazing. You can pay anything from $300 to $11,000 for your bike. Now here's some good suggestion if you're going out shopping right now. Go to the manufacturer's Web site of the bike you want to buy and see what their suggested retail price is. When you go to the store, make sure you don't pay more than that. Tip number one. And also, think about buying this month in August. It's really off-season for buying bikes. You might be able to get a better deal.

NGUYEN: Now your next tip is called, avoid the faceless purchase. Does that mean you shouldn't buy one online?

WILLIS: Well, you know, there are advantages to buying it in one of the bike stores that you see across the country and this is it. You're going to get some maintenance. You're going to get some help maintaining that bike because, remember, to be safe, you want to have it looked at every once in a while by a professional. But you've got to make sure that those mechanics have certification, so ask to see that before you buy.

NGUYEN: OK. So you found the bike you want, in the shop that you want to go to. You got to the make sure it fits you just right. That's really key. I mean, your feet have to touch the pedals.

WILLIS: That's right. Well, tip number one, you straddle the bike to make sure that it fits comfortably for you. That you don't have to balance on tippy toe when you're standing like that. Handle bars for women, in particular, are important, making sure the distance, the length is right because women tend to have shorter torsos. You can always get adjustments made to the bike in a lot of different ways but you want to make sure from the get go that the bike is right for your body type.

NGUYEN: And with any major purchase, because some of these bikes are a major purchase, $11,000 as you mentioned. What about that warranty? What should you look for?

WILLIS: Well, they only cover a defect in the product. So if you have an accident, you hurt yourself, you damage your bike, it's not going to cover it. But you can get a maintenance warrant as well from your bike shop. Ask for that. That way you can make some cheaper fixes to your bike if you do have a problem.

Betty.

NGUYEN: I like the sound of that, cheaper fixes. We all want a deal, don't we, Gerri?

WILLIS: That's right.

NGUYEN: Thank you.

WILLIS: You're welcome.

NGUYEN: Well, not such good luck for one hiker in Hawaii suck in a barren lava field near a volcano. Find out how this man managed to survive for five whole days.

Plus, more dates on Capital Hill for President Bush's Supreme Court pick. More of the tug-of-war over John Roberts' nomination. That's coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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