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CNN Live Today
2006 Hurricane Season Starts in Iraq; Atrocity In Iraq?; Army Chopper Crash In Georgia; Tragic Twist; Immigration Nation; Verdict Reached in Maryland Sniper Trial
Aired June 01, 2006 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: We have a lot ahead for our viewers this hour, including the latest fallout from Haditha. The killing of Iraqi civilians prompts the military to get back to basics. U.S. troops in Iraq are ordered to undergo values training and this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEVIN EVANS, DEPUTY CORONER: One family had tragedy and the other family had a sense of joy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: A horrible case of mistaken identity. The wrong woman is listed as dead at a crash site. That's ahead on LIVE TODAY.
First, though, the start of what could be another mean season.
ANNOUNCER: CNN, your hurricane headquarters.
KAGAN: Predictions, preparation, anticipation, the 2006 hurricane season starts today. Forecasters predict another busy one. Meteorologist Chad Myers will have more and national correspondent Susan Candiotti reports live from Florida. Like people on the Gulf Coast, folks there are still trying to get back on their feet after last year's hurricanes.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARY JOHNSON, HURRICANE VICTIM: Up in here, there's mold everywhere.
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): Mary Johnson can still see and smell the effects of Hurricane Wilma from last year.
How can you breathe in here?
JOHNSON: It's very hard, but when you don't have nowhere else to go, what choice do you have?
CANDIOTTI: In Belle Glade, Florida, Johnson's story is not uncommon. No one will repair her home's interior unless the roof is fixed first. There's no insurance money left to do that and FEMA turned her down. But condemning homes like Johnson's is not an option. SHERI TAYLOR, DISASTER RESPONSE COALITION: What is the best thing, to render these families homeless or to try and keep them there until such time as we can get volunteer groups in to repair the homes or until we can find financial resources?
CANDIOTTI: After getting rocked by at least three hurricanes in the last two years, scores of homes in Belle Glade have yet to be repaired.
People here are facing the same problems as others across the state. For example, if you have insurance to get a new roof, more often than not there aren't enough building materials or contractors to go around. If you don't have insurance or FEMA writes you a check that isn't enough to cover the cost, well you're also playing a waiting game.
Blue tarps are still a very common sight in south Florida. A recent survey of coastal residents says 83 percent have taken no steps to make their homes stronger. Up to 68 percent have no hurricane survival plan or supplies. Florida officials are running TV ads designed to shock people into action.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 911.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. Water is all in the house. The roof has completely caved in on us. We need emergency assistance, please!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK, ma'am, we can't respond right now because of the condition of the hurricane.
CANDIOTTI: If the ads work, all the better. But what about Mary Johnson?
JOHNSON: I am very worried.
CANDIOTTI: For some, help is on the way.
SHEILA JOHNSON, WE HELP ORG: We're the last resort when everything else has failed and everybody's been waiting, actually, for assistance.
CANDIOTTI: We Help is one Palm Beach County group organizing volunteers and donors to get the job done and it's working. Johnson will get a new roof. Many others are still waiting as hurricane season gets underway.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: And Susan Candiotti -- well, we did have her live there. Do we have Susan? All right, just like that, a flick of a switch and we have you back. Magic, Susan.
What does FEMA say about how they're ready to handle hurricanes there in Florida this year?
CANDIOTTI: Well, not only in Florida, but in other areas and other states as well. Some new things that they are doing the following. They're going to pre-position more supplies. They say in some cases quadruple the number of supplies.
KAGAN: Well, hopefully hurricane season goes better than Susan's live shot. We're going to work on getting Susan's live shot to work a little bit better. Meanwhile, let's bring in Chad Myers.
Chad, this is the first day of what could be a very busy six months for you.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Certainly. You know, that's why I have one more vacation. I'm on assignment next week a little bit and then basically I am here all of the way through the end of November, probably into December because 17 named storms, according to Colorado State, Dr. Gray. The normal should be about 9.6. Call it 10. That's 70 percent more than normal. So, yes, they're not forecasting a record-breaking season like last year, but certainly well above normal.
Right now we have to look in this area here. We have to look in the Gulf of Mexico. We have to look in the southern Caribbean. Those are the only areas right now that are warm enough to make hurricanes.
And even to sustain a tropical storm up the east coast is very difficult in June. The waters are just not warm enough. And especially out here in the eastern Atlantic, on through Puerto Rico and the Windward Islands, the Leewards, that water won't really be warm enough to make anything until August. So, yes, we are starting hurricane season now. Let's just say we're kind of in spring training for hurricane season, if you will.
This is the kit that I put together and obviously you want to make water and you have to put some food together for yourself. But these are some of the things that you don't think about. You want to have a charcoal grill with you. Something that you can pull some charcoal out and, guess what, your power is going to go out, you're going to have 10, 20 pounds of hamburger in the fridge, you're not going to know what to do with it. The freezer. It's going to go bad. If you can grill it, you can give it to all your neighbors. It's really a nice idea to keep some of that fresher food cooked and not having to throw it away.
Get yourself some fresh gasoline. Did you get gas last year? Is it still in that can? It doesn't last more than a year. Use this gas that's in the can now. Pour it into your lawn mower, whatever, get rid of it and buy some fresh gas so that you have that for your season.
A big first aid kit, always necessary no matter what it is. You can buy these first aid kits put together or just put one together yourself. Get some band aids. This is a new product, Daryn, that I found, walkie-talkies that also have the NOAA weather radio in them. Give one to your neighbor and give one to yourself. If his house is damaged you your house is damaged, you can talk back and forth to one another after the hurricane goes by. It may save your life. This is a brand new product. Haven't seen this before. You need a flashlight when the power goes out, but this one is a big one. This is the one that I carry with me, not just because I have to travel on an airplane to a hurricane, but because it has a glow in the dark switch here. You will not believe how important that is to try to find this thing in the middle of the night. Otherwise you take your cell phone and you open up your cell phone and you keep hitting two because your light goes on and you can see a little bit. So it's easier than doing that.
Some gloves and some hard-soled shoes for after the hurricane. Nails, boards, everything's on the ground. Then let's say, OK, we're on the ground, you're in a hurricane, I have all of my crews wear these. Maybe they're not a fashion statement. I'll tell you what though, you need to have some eye protection. And then after the storm some lung protection because you don't want to be breathing in all of the -- it's the insulation in the attic. I mean there's probable asbestos around too. It's just kind of ugly.
Now, personal protection. The day after a hurricane is the hottest, sunniest day of the year for some reason. Like 99 when I was in Punta Gorda. Make sure you have some sunscreen for you because the next day you're going to be out picking up things outside and you're going to want to not get burned from that.
The bugs are very angry after a hurricane. Some type of Off or Cutter. And then something else that's very angry. I found that poison ivy and poison oak don't particularly like hurricanes. All that stuff, all that oil gets blown around. You may need that. And if you don't have a store that's open, you can't find that. To go with -- just keep yourself clean, keep your hands clean. Some type of handy wipe because you can't imagine how important water is when you don't have it.
Put together a pet kit, too. Some extra foods, his medicine, her medicine, whatever, and some water for the pet as well because, obviously, it's no pet left behind this year.
KAGAN: Absolutely. Really good tips. Some things I would have never thought of.
MYERS: Yes, you know, I even have -- I have a set is tweezers because you're going to get some splinters. And a can opener. Because if you only have an electric one, it doesn't do you any good if the power's out.
KAGAN: Absolutely.
MYERS: You have all these cans of spaghettios and you can't eat them.
KAGAN: Yes, tweezers. I was going to say, ah the eyebrows can wait till another time, but I get it.
MYERS: Right.
KAGAN: OK, Chad, thank you. MYERS: You're welcome.
ANNOUNCER: Stay with CNN, your hurricane headquarters.
KAGAN: Allegations of a massacre. Today the focus is on military discipline. A U.S. commander in Iraq today ordered values training for troops. Detailed instruction on legal, moral and ethical ways to behave on the battlefield. The order follows last year's killings in Haditha. Twenty-four Iraqi civilians allegedly slain by U.S. Marines. Also today, sympathy and a promise from a U.S. Army general in Iraq.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAJ. GEN. WILLIAM CALDWELL, U.S. ARMY: We mourn the loss of all innocent life. And the loss of any life is always very tragic and very unfortunately. But let me be very clear about one point. The coalition does not and it will not tolerate any unethical or criminal behavior.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: New details are emerging about how the civilians in Haditha died. Here now is CNN's Ryan Chilcote.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RYAN CHILCOTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): These are the death certificates of the Haditha victims. It's the first time they've been shown publicly and they make shocking reading.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE, (through translator: Most of the reports show that the bodies arrived to Haditha Hospital with bullet wound in the head or chest or abdomen.
CHILCOTE: Among the death certificates shown to CNN by the victims' lawyer, those for 76-year-old Abdul Hamid Hasan Ali (ph), his wife and their son. According to the coroner's report, the son's body came in totally charred. That may be because, according to witnesses, U.S. Marines used grenades, as well as gunfire, in their assault that day.
The director of the hospital in Haditha says the bodies of all 24 civilians were brought in by the U.S. military. It was 1:00 a.m., hours after the alleged massacre. The hospital director says his night shift examined the bodies before they were released to the families.
WALID ABDUL KHALAK UBAIDI, HOSPITAL DIRECTOR, (through translator): Abdullah Hamid (ph) was only three years old, Muhammad Salim (ph), two years old, Asha Salim (ph), two years old, Zaneb Salim, five years old.
CHILCOTE: The mayor of Haditha says the town will never forget what happened on November 19, 2005, or how it began. MAYOR EMAD JAWAD HAMZA, HADITHA, IRAQ, (through translator): Three families and a number of college student were executed at the hands of U.S. soldiers after the roadside bomb exploded. The people of Haditha have declared this a day of human catastrophe and contend that war crimes have been committed by U.S. soldiers. It was a black day in Haditha's history.
CHILCOTE: He and others in Haditha say they immediately went to the U.S. military and demanded an investigation and punishment.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: And Ryan Chilcote join us now live from Baghdad.
Ryan, what can you tell us about this core sensitivity training that U.S. troops are getting?
CHILCOTE: Sure. It's being called core values training. It's really to just reinforce the training that most of the troops, if not all of the troops, got before they came into Iraq. It's really there, the U.S. military command says, to reinforce the morals and the ethics that they want the troops on the ground to operate with when they are in combat. What we know in terms of details is that it will consist of a slide show and there are going to be some training videos, some training vignettes, as part of that.
You know General Corelly (ph), who issued those orders, also made a statement. He said that 99.9 percent of the multinational forces here, there are about 150,000 of them, are performing brilliantly. But he said, and he didn't make any direct reference to Haditha, he did say that some of the troops sometimes have chosen the wrong path.
Daryn.
KAGAN: And, Ryan, what can you tell us about what's happening in the southern part of the country in Basra. This has been a calmer part of Iraq but now there's been declared a month-long state of emergency.
CHILCOTE: That's absolutely correct. It was known as being one of the quieter places in Iraq, certainly relative to the rest of the country. But it has been an exceptionally violent period over the last few months and in particular the last month. More than 140 Iraqis killed there. All kind of violence. You've got attacks against British troops stationed down there. You've got sectarian violence. A lot of Sunnis getting killed, complaining that they believe that there are Shiite death squads operating. You've got some gang warfare going on. Basically Shiite militias fighting it out.
So the prime minister introduced this state of emergency. It comes into effect today. It will be in effect for at least a month. And he's, obviously, hoping that it will help to bring a stop to the violence.
Daryn.
KAGAN: Ryan Chilcote live from Baghdad. Ryan, thank you.
An update for you know on the condition of Kimberly Dozier. She is the American journalist who was seriously wounded in Iraq earlier this week. The CBS News Web site says that Dozier is now awake and alert at the U.S. military hospital in Germany. CBC reports that Dozier can't talk because she's on a ventilator, but she's writing messages to family members. They say Dozier has been told about the deaths of her two co-workers in the same attack.
It was a tragic mix-up. Actually, we'll get to that story in just a moment. First, let's get to some developing news. Fredricka Whitfield has that for us.
Fred.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: All right, Daryn, this taking place in rural Georgia, very south Georgia, in an called Colquitt County, near a town called Doerun. A U.S. military helicopter reportedly has crashed there. We don't know the exact circumstances, but initial reports are indicating that this helicopter with approximately five onboard may have crashed into a TV tower. And among those who are reportedly injured, they've been taken to a regional medical center in the area. And, of course, when we get any more information about this taking place in Doerun, Georgia, south Georgia, we'll be able to bring that along to you.
KAGAN: All right, Fred, thank you for that.
And now to the story that was a tragic mix-up.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RON MOWERY, GRANT COUNTY CORONER: The one thing that I am most -- regret the most is it did happen on my watch.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: A coroner makes an emotional apology. He misidentifies the dead. Details ahead on CNN LIVE TODAY.
Also, a kidnapped attorney gets out of her bind. Her rescue and her captor's arrest is ahead as well.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When everybody is saying it's going to be above average, people need to sit up and take notice. And the message is, you know, very consistent -- prepare, prepare, prepare.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: And, yes, June 1st means the beginning of hurricane season. How bad this year and how prepared are we? Our hurricane headquarters is gearing up for the savage season. You are watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: One family's joy and another family's heartbreak. It's a tragic turn of events that began as an accident scene in Indiana. A survivor listed as dead. A dead woman misidentified as the survivor. Our Miles O'Brien has details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RON MOWERY, GRANT COUNTY CORONER: The one thing that I am most -- regret the most is that it did happen on my watch.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): An emotional apology from the coroner of Grant County, Indiana, following a tragic case of mistaken identity. For weeks, the family of 22-year-old Laura Vanryn believed she had survived a car wreck in April. A wreck that killed four students and an employee of Taylor University in Upland, Indiana. But as the woman emerged from a coma Tuesday, Laura's parents realized it was not their daughter after all.
MOWERY: She was asked if she knew her name, which is standard procedure. She said, yes, she knew her name. And she spoke her name.
MILES O'BRIEN: She said her name was Whitney Cerak. But that was one of the Taylor students thought to have died in the crash. It turns out the student who died was Laura Vanryn.
KEVIN EVANS, DEPUTY CORONER: One family had tragedy and the other family had a sense of joy.
MILES O'BRIEN: While it is unclear how the coroner confused the identities at the scene of the accident, there is no doubt there is a striking resemblance. A hospital spokesman says, "both families understand how this could have happened. We rejoice with the Ceraks, we grieve with the Vanryns." And so it is for students at Taylor University.
ASHLEY MOORE, TAYLOR UNIVERSITY STUDENT: I guess I feel like we're all starting right where we were again and just starting the grieving all over again.
TRACY YODER, TAYLOR UNIVERSITY STUDENT: It's hard to believe that there are even emotions left to take care of it because we were already numb.
Miles O'Brien, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: Abducted in Alabama. Now Sandra Gregory is recovering this morning. The family law attorney is found bound with a rope inside of a Birmingham motel room. She was held at gunpoint for nine long hours on Wednesday. Her kidnapper is in jail. He's accused of snatching Gregory from a city parking lot. The apparently random crime was caught on a surveillance tape and triggered a massive manhunt. A phone tip led police to the motel.
Gerri Willis finds herself in south Florida today. A little humidity there for you, Ger?
GERRI WILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm telling you, Daryn, there's a little humidity. It was raining here earlier. It's clearing up now. But, you know, it's the first day of hurricane season and we're here to tell you what you need to know to keep your house safe from extreme weather, when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: The markets have been open 53 minutes and you can see a little bit of movement in the correct direction. The Dow is up 12 points. The Nasdaq also moving a bit. It is up about seven points.
President Bush is keeping up his drumbeat on immigration. Just in the last hour, the president spoke at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. He says the nation that's both secure and welcoming to immigrants is not a contradiction.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It's a difficult task. Yet the difficulty of this task is no excuse for avoiding it. The American people expect us to meet our responsibility and deliver immigration reform that fixes the problems in the current system. That upholds our ideals and provides a fair and practical way forward.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: Let's go to the White House and correspondent Ed Henry.
Ed, just out of the reporter's gaggle. What are they really saying behind the scenes? How hopeful are they that there will be some kind of immigration reform taking place?
ED HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the White House is still hopeful, but they're going to say that because they want to be optimistic. Frankly, there's really no movement right now. You heard the president's speech there.
He was speaking to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. They're already onboard for the most part. I mean this is a business group that wants cheap labor out there. They want the comprehensive approach the president want, which is basically border security plus some path to citizenship for the nearly 11 million to 12 million illegal immigrants already here because these business groups want those workers. They want them to eventually become citizens.
But the problem for the president is that he's preaching to the choir, basically, but not converting the conservatives on Capitol Hill who are opposed to him. Instead, he's just talking right now to the folks who support him, but not really the bringing anybody from the other side to come onboard.
Daryn.
KAGAN: The White House also watching what Secretary Rice is doing in Vienna today, I would imagine today, concerning Iran.
HENRY: That's right. In fact, the president right now in a cabinet meeting where he's talking about Iran, the war on terror. And this morning he actually spoke to Chinese President Hu about this entire new approach from the Bush administration.
Obviously a keen interest there is making sure China and Russia stay on board with the stick in this carrot and stick approach. Which is if that Iran does not follow through with the administration now willing to at least start talking to Iran. If Iran does not follow through on ending its nuclear program, it's uranium enrichment program, the president wants China and Russia onboard to support sanctions against Iran.
Daryn.
KAGAN: Ed Henry at the White House. Ed, thank you.
Yes, the calendar says June 1st and that makes it hurricane season. And even before the first ill winds blow, it's time to take a critical look at your home and how it might be vulnerable. With a checklist, we have our Personal Finance Editor Gerri Willis in a Miami neighborhood today.
Gerri, good morning.
WILLIS: That's right. Hi, Daryn. I'm in Miami Shores. And, you know, Florida has been hit with nine storms in the last two years. People here, they know how to protect their house. And we're going to get some great advice from Rob Davis from flash.org.
Rob, let's talk a little bit about vulnerabilities that houses have. What are the things people should be worried about.
ROB DAVIS, FED. ALLIANCE FOR SAFE HOMES: Going down the list you have your windows, you have your door and your garage doors and then you have your roof.
WILLIS: All right, those are the major systems.
DAVIS: Absolutely.
WILLIS: Let's talk about what you can do to lets say the windows to make them safe.
DAVIS: Windows. We like to see an approved shutter going up there. And the good news is these days there's lots of options for that. You have corrugated metal shutters. You have clear plastic that allows you to look outside during the storm and satisfies a lot of curious homeowners.
WILLIS: So you don't walk outside in the storm.
DAVIS: So you don't walk outside.
WILLIS: What about just boarding up the windows? DAVIS: In an emergency, temporary situation, that's fine. We like to see that the plywood is the correct thickness, 5/8 inch at least. And that it is installed correctly. Because if it's not, it can be sucked off the wall just like anything else and become another flying debris object.
WILLIS: Let's talk about garage doors for just a second. They can be a real point of venerability.
DAVIS: Sure can.
WILLIS: You have to let in enough air to pop the roof like a cork. What do you need to do to your garage door?
DAVIS: Your garage door is the largest opening on the house and you do need to protect that, that's absolutely right, Gerri. But what we like to see, is if you're not going to replace your garage door with a new impact-resistant one, go ahead and have some retrofit kits that you can install vertical members in there to beef them up a little bit. Almost like a rib cage.
WILLIS: Oh, wow, that sounds like a great idea.
Let's talk about the roof for a second, because there are concerns that you're going to have problems with your roof in a major storm. What should I be looking for before the storm hits?
DAVIS: On top of the roof, I would go up and check for any loose or missing shingles or tiles. If you can safely get into your attic and move around, I'd look for cracked, broken wood. Anything of that nature. Stray nails. Not the short roofing nails, but the longer nails.
WILLIS: Those are the problem.
DAVIS: Absolutely. If those are missing, that's really going to diminish the load capacity of your roof.
WILLIS: OK. Now before the storm hits, when you're waiting, what should you be doing to keep you and your family safe?
DAVIS: Well, you need to have an emergency evacuation plan ready and set, an emergency kit set and go over that with your family from time to time just to make sure that everybody's up to speed. Go around the outside of your home, the exterior. Anything that you think might be picked up by the wind and turned into a flying debris object, go ahead and pick it up and put it inside your house.
WILLIS: Patio chairs. Anything you have outside.
DAVIS: Patio chairs. Furniture.
WILLIS: Your grill.
DAVIS: You can even throw them in the pool if you'd like. Weigh them down with a gallon milk jug filled with water. That's a great technique.
WILLIS: Because that will hold them down.
DAVIS: Absolutely.
WILLIS: OK. Great idea. And, of course, we want to say that your Web site is flash.org if people want more tips.
DAVIS: We have tons of good information on there. Absolutely. There's a hurricane shutter cost estimator tools on there. And we do other natural disasters as well. There's a wealth of information.
WILLIS: Thank you, Rob.
DAVIS: Thank you, Gerri.
WILLIS: So, Daryn, we have lots of great information coming up on our show on Saturday morning "Open House" 9:30 a.m. Eastern, Saturday morning, join us. We're going to be talking about hurricane safety and preparedness. We'll tell you how to keep your pets safe. And we'll also take a look at storms across the country. What you need to be aware of.
KAGAN: Great tips. Looking forward to even more. Thank you, Gerri.
WILLIS: You're welcome.
KAGAN: Meanwhile, we have two breaking news stories. The first out of Maryland. The sentencing of sniper John Allen Muhammad. Let's go to Fredricka Whitfield with that.
Fred.
WHITFIELD: Well, Daryn, the sentencing is in and the judge in Montgomery County, Maryland, has sentenced John Allen Muhammad, a 45- year-old man, in the sniper killings cases in 2002 to six consecutive life sentences. He is already on death row, as you know, in Virginia for a sniper shooting there, but this case had been unfolding over the last couple of months in court. Malvo -- or -- testifying against him, which was his accomplice. And John Allen Muhammad representing himself there, without an attorney there in Montgomery County, Maryland, Now sentenced to six consecutive life sentences.
Now the other breaking story we're following for you out of south Georgia, that U.S. Army helicopter that has crashed in Doerun. Well, a representative at Fort Rucker in Alabama is now saying that four soldiers onboard that helicopter have died. Of course, when we get any more information about the circumstances of that chopper down in south Georgia, Daryn, we'll be able to bring that to you.
KAGAN: All right, Fred, thank you for both of those breaking news stories. Now we get back to hurricane beat. Can New Orleans weather another Katrina? From the levees to medical care, what happens if disaster strikes twice? The Crescent City prepares for the worst. A live report ahead on CNN LIVE TODAY. Nuclear stakes and diplomatic struggles. The U.S. meets it allies, Iran responds to an overture. Late news on this important story. CNN is your most trusted name in news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: The calendar tells a story. June 1st, hurricane season begins today. The Gulf Coast has barely started to patch itself up from Hurricane Katrina, and forecasters predict another busy season in the days and weeks ahead.
CNN's Kyung Lah is in New Orleans with a look at what that town is facing. Kyung, hello.
KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Daryn. It is, as you say, nine months after Katrina and the city is still trying to patch itself up. You can see behind me that some houses are still just reduced to rubble still. They're still trying to rebuild some of these homes that were almost flattened by Hurricane Katrina.
This isn't completely typical of what you see in New Orleans, but this is something that is not unusual. And what's also not unusual, people living in trailers, if they can get them, not able to get into any houses. Well, now New Orleans and the Atlantic coast is bracing for another active season.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LAH (voice-over): The number is 17. A noted hurricane forecaster says that's how many storms we can expect to see during this year's Atlantic hurricane season. William Gray of Colorado State University says nine of the storms will turn into hurricanes, five of them major with sustained winds stronger than 110-miles-per-hour. He also says there's a 69 percent chance one of those big hurricanes will strike the East Coast, including Florida.
DR. WILLIAM GRAY, COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITY: Simple planning today has the power to make all of our lives easier tomorrow.
LAH: And so Florida officials are using a public service announcement to tell residents to get ready.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you don't have a plan, you're gambling with your home, your livelihood, your life and your family's life.
LAH: But the big concern, the city of New Orleans. On the first day of the new season, the new FEMA director David Paulison, sold his plans for federal preparedness, saying food supplies will be available in a hurricane, people will evacuated aggressively and communication will be upgraded.
Paulison says he's already briefed the president on the levees.
DAVID PAULISON, ACTING FEMA DIRECTOR: The levees failed last year, so what we're doing is we're working with the local communities and we're working with the state, working with the parishes, to make sure there's good, solid evacuation plans in place, and we've walked through those plans.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LAH: Paulison has officially been in the job about one week and he says while being prepared, he acknowledges the only true test of this new level of federal preparedness is if a hurricane strikes -- Daryn?
KAGAN: Kyung Lah live from New Orleans. Thank you.
We move now across the world, but maybe no closer to a deal. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is in Vienna, Austria, today. She's in critical meetings on Iran's nuclear program. But even as the U.S. and European powers finalize an incentives package, Iran rejects Washington's offer to talk.
Our national security correspondent David Ensor is also in Vienna. David, hello. If Iran is saying no to any pre-conditions to talks, who makes the next move?
DAVID ENSOR, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, Daryn, the U.S. officials on the plane with Secretary Rice as we were flying here were predicting that Iran would say no to talks with preconditions. But the U.S. has made very clear, as has the U.N. Security Council, as has the International Atomic Energy Agency, that there must be a cessation of enrichment of uranium by Iran. And now the U.S. has said we'll even talk to you if you will do that.
So they're not surprised by the Iranian response. They don't think it is necessarily the final word. What they're preparing in this building behind me is the final package of carrots and sticks, carrots to tempt Iran, sticks to warn Iran if it makes the wrong choice. So they are hoping that when those are ready -- and they hope they'll be ready today, tomorrow or the next day -- they'll go to Iran with those and perhaps Iran think more seriously about this question.
KAGAN: Much has been made of the change in the U.S. stance, to say OK, now we will talk to you, of course, with preconditions. White House Press Secretary Tony Snow says time is of the essence, talking and pointing towards the end of the year. What are they basing it on and what is the time pressure right now?
ENSOR: You know, the problem is that Iran is moving ahead with this enrichment program, and there are those who predict that it could have a weapon within six months or a year. That's not the U.S. intelligence assessment. They still believe it's five or ten years. But there will be a point of no return at some point, and with the -- with Iran having closed out the International Atomic Energy inspectors, it's more difficult for the West to know when they've passed that point of no return. So there is a sense of urgency among the diplomats, the scientists and the spies who are working this issue -- Daryn.
KAGAN: David Ensor, live with us from Vienna, Austria. David, thank you. On the other side of the world, rescuers are still pulling bodies from rubble in Indonesia. The body count from Saturday's earthquake now more than 6,200. Hospitals are packed with wounded. They still lack basic supplies to treat the more than 46,000 quake victims. The U.S. and other countries have said up field hospitals, but foreign relief teams have yet to reach some of the 130,000 people left homeless. Those survivors have been pleading for food and shelter.
They were Ground Zero on 9/11. Now New York and Washington say they are getting short-changed.
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SEN. CHARLES SCHUMER (D), NEW YORK: Somehow this administration thinks that Georgia peanut farmers are more at risk than the Empire State Building. Something is dramatically wrong.
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KAGAN: What your money is paying to protect. Ahead on CNN, the most trusted name in news.
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KAGAN: Doctors are struggling with an unusual case in China.
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CHEN BOCHANG, SHANGHAI CHILDREN'S MEDICAL CENTER (through translator): The best result of the operation is getting rid of the weaker arm in terms of function and shape, while make something repairs on the one we keep.
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KAGAN: Yes, you're seeing right on your screen, that's a baby boy born with three arms. Doctors have a big decision to make. The story on CNN LIVE TODAY.
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KAGAN: A story now about a baby. This situation very rare and doctors in China aren't really sure what to do. Two month old Gigi (ph) was born with three arms. Usually in cases like this doctors remove the limb that is misplaced or not working, but in this baby's situation, neither left arm is fully functional. One is smaller and always bent toward his body. The other doesn't move, and its hand doesn't have a palm. The baby cries if anyone touches the limbs.
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CHEN (through translator): The best result of the operation is getting rid of the weaker arm in terms of function and shape, while making something repairs on the one we keep. We'll try our best to enable the remaining arm to function normally and make sure the baby can lead a normal life by himself.
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KAGAN: Doctors suspect that Gigi's extra arm came from cells that were once genetically programmed to be a conjoined twin. We'll keep you posted on the baby's surgery.
New Orleans after Katrina. Crime is up, the number of police officers is down. It's a bad combination. LIVE TODAY goes on the beat and into a dilemma. CNN, the most trusted name in news.
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KAGAN: He weathered political storms kicked up by Hurricane Katrina, so maybe it's appropriate that New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin is sworn in today, the start of hurricane season. Nagin takes the oath in his second term in just a few hours. The celebrations include a morning prayer service and a parade. Nagin defeated Lieutenant Governor Mitch Landrieu in a run-off.
On the beat and under the gun. New Orleans is facing a rising menace. Months after Katrina, a crime wave has washed over the city. CNN's Susan Roesgen has that story. Her report, from "ANDERSON COOPER 360."
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SGT. TROY LYLES, POLICE OFFICER, NEW ORLEANS: A40, A32, 1019, please.
SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN GULF COAST CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): 7:00 a.m., on the beat in the "Big Uneasy." Hurricane Katrina chased away more than 200,000 people in New Orleans. But criminals are coming back. Police department figures show the number of murders has gone up every month since the storm. Zero last September, 14 in May. But the number of police officers is down about 10 percent.
LYLES: Staying cool?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, ma'am.
ROESGEN: Sergeant Troy Lyles had been on the force eight years when Katrina blew her world apart.
(On camera): In the flood after the hurricane Sergeant Lyles spent two days trapped in this house until a guy floating past on a door rescued her. She made it to a relative's house, took a hot bath, got a change of clothes, and went right back to work.
LYLES: I had to help somebody else. I didn't want somebody else to be stuck in the same situation that I was in.
ROESGEN (voice-over): Sergeant Lyles, and most other officers, lost their homes in Katrina. For this single mother of two daughters, the job is about the only thing that seems normal these days. But it's getting more dangerous. Police say street corner drug dealers are back. And detectives are now tracking the MS-13, a violent central American gang that police say rode into town with thousands of immigrant construction workers.
In the French Quarter where the big problem used to be mainly tourists who had had too much to drink, this Bourbon Street bar is now the scene of an unsolved murder.
And everyone here knows what happened to Officer Andreas Gonzales last week. A suspect shot him in the face. The bullet hit his spinal cord, and he may be paralyzed.
LYLES: You don't expect that somebody would do something like that to an officer, have that much disrespect basically to society itself. But you still have to get out there, and you have to help people. You can't let that consume you or control you.
ROESGEN: The police can't protect the city from a hurricane, only from what comes later. The question is, after Katrina, can New Orleans' police come back as quickly as crime?
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KAGAN: CNN's Anderson Cooper and the 360 team return to New Orleans for the first day of hurricane season 2006. A new report reveals shocking details about how prepared we are or are not for the storms to come. That's "A.C. 360" tonight at 10:00 Eastern, 7:00 Pacific, here on CNN.
They were Ground Zero on 9/11, now New York City and Washington say they are getting short-changed.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. CHARLES SCHUMER (D), NEW YORK: Somehow this administration thinks that Georgia peanut farmers are more at risk than the Empire State Building. Something is dramatically wrong.
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KAGAN: Protecting the homeland, politicians butt heads over money. At issue, does the latest budget put terror fighting dollars where they're most needed? Our Tom Foreman has his report from "THE SITUATION ROOM."
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TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When the government first started giving cities anti-terrorism funds in the wake of the 9/11 terror attack, there was virtually no question that New York and Washington should get the lion's share. After all, they were the targets, but something is different this year. There's less money to go around and more cities seen as potential targets. So the Department of Homeland Security is reducing the grants to New York and D.C., and officials in both cities are outraged. MAYOR ANTHONY WILLIAMS (D), WASHINGTON, D.C.: I think it's short sighted for the Federal Governments to cut funds in this way to the District and to the region.
SENATOR CHARLES SCHUMER (D), NEW YORK: Somehow this administration thinks that Georgia peanut farmers are more at risk than the Empire State Building. Something is dramatically wrong.
FOREMAN: New York Congressman and chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, Peter King, was even more blunt in a statement calling the move indefensible and disgraceful, adding, "As far as I'm concerned DHS and the administration have declared war on New York City."
Still, the metropolitan area is getting by far, the largest share of the money, more than $158 million. Los Angeles comes in second at $80 million, Chicago, third with $52 million and the nation's capital, $46 million.
On the other end of the scale, some cities were passed over for funds last year, including Fort Lauderdale and Orlando, Florida. They're each getting more than $9 million. And Memphis, Tennessee, also new to the list, is getting a grant of just over $4 million.
Tom Foreman, CNN, Washington.
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KAGAN: CNN's "Security Watch" keeps you up to date on safety. Stay tuned day and night for the most reliable news about your security.
Allegations about a massacre, now lessons in morality. New fallout from the killing of Iraqi civilian in Haditha. The military orders troops to undergo values training.
Also, the scene along one New Orleans canal immediately after hurricane Katrina. And here's what's going there right now. The round-the-clock effort to finish the floodgates.
The second hour of CNN LIVE TODAY begins right now.
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