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American Morning
Devastating Floods in Vermont; Flash Floods Shock Upstate New York; Irene Hammers Outer Banks; Libyan Rebels Gadhafi Still a Threat; No Extradition for Lockerbie Bomber; California Wildfire Grows to 4,755 Acres; Recovering from Hurricane Irene; Lessons Learned from Irene; Lockerbie Bomber Lies In Coma
Aired August 29, 2011 - 06:59 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: The wrath of Irene in New England. Flash floods ripped through Vermont. Rivers are still rising, threatening to be some of the state's worst flooding in more than eight decades.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: The sun is rising after another dark night for millions of people. Record power outages and dangerous conditions with live wires down all along the drenched each coast.
ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR: Air and rail service limping back to normal this morning, but residual delays could linger for days on this AMERICAN MORNING.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: And good morning, everyone. It is Monday, August 29th. Welcome to AMERICAN MORNING as we assess Irene.
VELSHI (on-camera): As we continue to assess it, we still got Vermont. We're going to talk to the governor in a few moments, very serious situation there. North Carolina, Virginia, a lot of people without power, Trenton, New Jersey, the train station under water, trains not working. I get more and more irritated by the minute, by the people who are carrying on saying this was an overreaction. Live wires, trees coming down, 20 dead people, this is a serious, serious storm.
COSTELLO: Again, I just think that because so many places dodged the bullet, people say maybe there was an overreaction by the media and by some politicians. But we're going to get into that later.
VELSHI: Others say --
COSTELLO: It bothers Ali, as you can see.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: The only overreaction would have been in New York City. Because New York City dodged the bullet, that means nothing happened anywhere else. Everywhere else --
(CROSSTALK) COSTELLO: OK, let's get to it. This morning, the remnants of what was hurricane Irene have crossed the Canadian border. But the storm's aftermath is nowhere near over for millions still in harm's way.
VELSHI: Crews say it could take weeks to restore power to some areas of the east coast. At the height of the storm four million lost power from the Carolinas all through New England.
ROMANS: And right now we have just about 3 million people still without power. Irene being blamed for at least 20 deaths across eight states, the most in North Carolina. The state took the first direct hit from the storm. And the cost of wind damage alone could top $1 billion. That doesn't even begin to include the big one, flood damage or lost business. The ranges I'm seeing this morning, the reputable ranges are anywhere from $7 billion to $20 billion.
VELSHI: For all the damage.
ROMANS: Remember, hurricane Katrina was about $45 billion. So that puts that in perspective.
COSTELLO: We're not going to approach that.
VELSHI: Right.
COSTELLO: No, I don't think so.
Major airports along the east coast were deserted all weekend long. More than 11,000 flights canceled nationwide. But there is some good news right now. Arrivals and departures are under way at LaGuardia airport, arrivals at New York's other major airports, JFK and Newark, began in the last hour. But departures are not expected to start until noon today. Please, call ahead.
VELSHI: And that's because they send the planes out of the hurricane zone so they don't get damaged. And that's why you have to get the planes in before anybody can go out.
Amtrak, what's going on here. Trains are rolling again between Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. on the northeast corridor, but there are no trains running between Philly and Boston this morning. That part is just not running. Amtrak has canceled Acela service between Boston and Washington. You have the non-Acela trains only from Philly south.
COSTELLO: Got it.
Let's talk about --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is CNN breaking news.
COSTELLO: And let's talk about that breaking news. A massive house fire burning right now in Pompton Lakes, New Jersey. Take a look at this. This is one of the areas flooded by Irene. We don't have the video right now? I'm telling you, this house is up in flames. Yesterday Governor Chris Christie expressed particular concern about the flooding in that town. Flooding now preventing firefighters from approaching that house fire. Police say there was some sort of explosion reported and crews were trying to cut gas and electricity to the area.
We'll get the pictures for you soon, but there's this huge house, and it's totally engulfed in flames. And because firefighters can't get to it, it will probably burn to the ground. We'll keep you posted.
VELSHI: In fact we're just getting some reporting of -- from the owner. Apparently everybody was out of the house as of yesterday which is great and it does seem to be a gas-led fire. Governor Chris Christie had warned of that yesterday, particularly in this town, and that's what seems to be the case.
ROMANS: Also the big story this morning is in Vermont, raging waters ripping through the streets. These pictures sent by an iReporter. Floodwaters have also washed away bridges, they've knocked homes off their foundations. These -- it could be some of the worst flooding in this state since 1927. Gary Tuchman is live in Brattleboro, Vermont. Gary, my goodness, this is a state surrounded by land that's not surrounded by water.
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Christine. The landlocked green mountain state of Vermont seen its worst flooding in 84 years. And this is an example of what's going on. We're in Brattleboro in southern Vermont. This used to be called the Whetstone Brook. But it is now a raging rapids kind of like you would see in the bottom of Niagara falls or the Grand Canyon.
Up until yesterday, for generations children would swim in this brook. They were swimming just last week. But the waters all throughout the state of Vermont, every tributary in the state, every creek, every brook, every river has been flooded because of the waters from tropical storm Irene.
And look what's happened. Because of the power of these waters, the power of these waters basically exploded this brook into more than triple its width, eroding the land under that building. That building was an art studio and a yoga studio, three stories, and it is about to collapse into this water. There's no more land under there. We don't know when it will collapse. Authorities say they can't go in. It's way too dangerous.
Last night we talked to two tenants of this building who were saying that they have valuable items inside the building but obviously could not go in. But this is what is going on right now in Vermont. More than 260 roads are or were under water. It has now started to recede. Where I was standing yesterday was water past my knees. It's now dry.
But since we've been here, let me give you a look. This is a huge tree. We got here last night. That was standing right here last evening. Because of the eroded ground, muddy wet ground, it has now collapsed into the water. We actually camped out here overnight because it's too hard to get back here and we heard this tree go down in the middle of the night.
So it's a frightening situation here in the state of Vermont. We could tell you the saddest news, is that at least one person has died here in Vermont. The body of a woman was recovered from a brook like this about 20 miles west of us in the city of Wilmington a couple hours ago.
ROMANS: Gary, that's too bad when you hear that there have to be fatalities. Quick question, why Vermont getting so much water? Is it because the spring was so wet or where it sits in relation to the storm and the eye-wall that the rainmaker just happened to hit Vermont?
TUCHMAN: It's a combination of all those factors. You have a situation where they had some flooding several months ago, so the streams, the brooks, the creeks were very full. And then also the location of the tropical storm as it was coming up. It was just too much for this state to bear.
I mean they haven't gotten hit by a tropical system since the great hurricane in 1938 which is 73 years ago. One very important point, a lot of people are saying why didn't people evacuate? Everyone in this state lives near a creek, a brook like this. If you would evacuate people from vulnerable areas you would be evacuating the whole state, and it's not practical.
ROMANS: Gary Tuchman, thank you so much.
VELSHI: Joining us is Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin. Governor, thanks for joining us this morning. You heard what Gary was talking about. What's the situation right now? You've got 260 roads that are otherwise -- that are underwater or otherwise affected. As Gary said, every waterway in your state, and there are lots of them, is flooded. You know we thought we would be talking about major metropolitan areas being hit by this hurricane. Were you expecting this to happen?
GOV. PETER SHUMLIN, (D) VERMONT: Well, we were prepared, but obviously it's been devastating to many parts of the state. My heart goes out to the loss of life that we have in Wilmington. I was born and raised in Windham County. The shots you looked at in Brattleboro, that's my hometown. But we've got that kind of devastation throughout southern and central Vermont.
And the answer is, we were prepared, emergency shelters were open. We evacuated an awful lot of people. But when you get that much water in that period of time, we literally were taking on an inch and a half of rain an hour for a sustained period, you can't take that. Vermont is the green mountain state, large mountains and valleys. And as you mentioned the Whetstone Brook, that's a little piddle stream most of the time. You saw what that looks like. We've got our hands full in the state of Vermont assessing damage, digging out, and trying to get back on our feet.
VELSHI: Right. And a lot of places where the storm hit, we were worried about a storm surge or water levels rising. You have an entirely different problem. Our Chad Myers was doing a good job of describing the topography in Vermont, and that is it's sort of flash flooding. You've got water coming off the mountains. You've got water coming in from the rain.
Is there a way that you could have been better prepared? And I ask you this, governor because this morning, we're hearing a lot of, you know, Monday morning quarterbacking about being over-prepared in other parts of the country, over-fearful about what was going to happen.
SHUMLIN: You know, I do not think that there's any blame to go around. I think that, frankly, those that got hit have their hearts broken and understand how serious this storm was. You cannot predict exactly where a storm is going to do the damage.
Because Manhattan didn't get hit, folks down there and certainly the major networks seem to think everything is beautiful. The fact of the matter is the areas of America in the northeast that were hit by this storm, and Vermont was hit last, and, therefore, we're going to dig out last, have tremendous damage, loss of life as we all know about, obviously property damage, homes, infrastructure. We've had historic covered bridges in Vermont that have been wiped out as well as our more modern bridges.
So we're dealing with huge infrastructure problems, power outs, state government shut down, real infrastructure challenges. And those that were hit know that there was no such thing as over-preparing.
Now, having said that, you just can't prepare for water like this. You can't predict where it's going to hit. Where I'm standing right now is between Berry and Waterbury. We would have predicted Berry would have flooded first. In fact Waterbury flooded first, and Berry seems to have gotten off pretty well. So you just can't make the prediction about exactly who's going to lose homes, who's going to lose property. I think that emergency management has done an extraordinary job.
VELSHI: And governor, do you have everything you need right now? Are you getting the help you need to get folks rescued? Are there still a lot of people you know that need help getting out?
SHUMLIN: We're still digging people out and doing some evacuation. But I have to say President Obama and the FEMA team have just been extraordinary. We've been on the phone with them continuously. They're getting us the help that we need. And between the federal and state governments, we're going to get this dug out. It's going to be a long dig. We have a lot of rebuilding to do.
Vermonters are tough. We're tenacious. We have good common sense, and we deal with big storms a lot. This is bigger than what we're used to. We don't usually get tropical storms up here. But we're going to get out of this one, too.
VELSHI: Very good. Our thoughts with you, governor. Thanks very much for joining us. Governor Peter Shumlin joining us from Vermont.
SHUMLIN: Thanks for having me.
COSTELLO: OK, we were telling you about that house fire, that massive house fire burning right now in Pompton Lakes, New Jersey. These are the pictures. So here's what happened. The owner of that house, this is according to WABC, the local television station right here in New York, the owner of this house reported a ruptured gas main yesterday. Because everything was flooded around this area of New Jersey, rescue workers or firefighters or gas line workers couldn't get in to offer any help.
So eventually this house, there was an explosion, and this is a gas-fed fire. You can see the flames are burning, and that house will probably burn to the ground. Because the homeowner noticed the rupture in the gas line, he managed to get everybody out safely, so his family is OK. But can you imagine standing there and just watching your house burn to the ground because firefighters just can't get there? We'll keep you posted, but we're glad everybody got out safely.
Also in New Jersey, Irene the first hurricane to make landfall in more than a century. And right now some rivers are still on the rise, adding to flooding that's already being called some of the worst in the state's history.
In suburban New York city, the town of Elmsford in Westchester County, a number of families had to be rescued from high waters after the Sawmill river spilled over its banks.
And in the Catskill mountain town of Prattville, New York, seven families who thought they had escaped Irene's wrath are now trapped there after floodwaters washed away bridges, blocking their escape.
Let's head to Rob Marciano. You hear the governor of Vermont, you have to admire his spirit, because he says, OK, we'll get out of this, but no rain expected there today because I don't think the governor wants any more of that.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: No. You saw the sun actually shining on green mountain state today. It is very green because of rainfall and other things. The green mountain state is going to get more flooding. But the rivers will begin to recede as early as now through this afternoon.
And because the topography is so rough there, because the mountains are so steep and valleys so deep, you get the flooding the last and quickly, but you also get the recession of those rivers a little quickly as well.
Meanwhile, places farther south in jersey, you're going to see crests more like later today and tomorrow, and then places like North Carolina we will see them later in the week because it's a little more flat there.
All right, let's show you some of the rainfall tallies across this area. Some of the new numbers coming out are pretty impressive. Allendale, Delaware, over 10 inches, Adamsville, Delaware 10 inches, east Hartford seeing over six inches, and Burlington, I know there's a Burlington, Connecticut, but not sure if that's Vermont or Connecticut, 8.7 inches. Other rainfall tallies for you, in New Jersey seeing 8.92, and Tuxedo Park seeing almost a foot of rainfall there.
Other slices of video from upstate New York. This stuff is impressive. I mean when you go north and west of where this thing made landfall, that's where most of the rainfall was, on the west side of the storm. The east side of the storm saw less rain and more wind. The west side saw more rainfall. And little streams on quaint mountain towns like this, turn into torrential rapids.
And then another slice of video you probably seen this morning as well, this is just heartbreaking stuff. Between four and six of these historic covered bridges wiped out in Vermont. And that is just tough, tough to look at.
All right, winds were the other issue on the east side of the storm. Sayville, New York, seeing 91 mile an hour wind gusts, LaGuardia seeing 67, and Fire Island seeing 64. Obviously closer to the coastline you saw more in the way there. So it was a pretty strong storm.
As far as our next storm is concerned, tropical storm Jose back there. Not so worry for us, tropical depression number 12 could be Katia in the next couple days, but it's way out there, so we shouldn't have to worry about that at least for now. Toss it back to you.
COSTELLO: Thank goodness.
ROMANS: Keeping himself in business with td number 12.
VELSHI: That's right.
ROMANS: Thanks, Rob.
Planes, trains and automobiles, they're trying to get back on track this morning up and down the east coast, but for millions of commuters in the New York City area, it's likely going to be a rough ride for at least another day. In just the last hour, subways began rolling again, but not at full capacity. It's going to take several hours, if not all day, before things in the subway system can get back to normal.
Riders should expect slower service. They should expect private trains. Everyone be nice to your neighbor, please.
CNN's Jason Carroll is in Penn Station right now where the commuter train service, including Amtrak, also still struggling to get back on schedule.
So you have, you know, New Yorkers trying to get into work on the subway system, but you know it's this big commuter network, Amtrak, New Jersey Transit, Long Island Railroad, these big trains connecting this whole area of the country that's still - still slow to get up and going, isn't it? JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Still trying to get back on track. You know, 7.5 million people use the mass transit system every day, but you would never know it, Christine, from looking from where we're standing.
Check out outside Penn Station right now, I mean, it's empty. I mean, you know Penn Station. I mean, this is what it looks like on a weekend morning at around 6:00 A.M. You look right over here where the cabs line up, usually there's a huge line of people extended down the block trying to grab a cab. Now you've got more cabs than people.
Obviously lot of folks deciding to take a holiday today, rather than deal with the - the transportation system. But let's update you in terms of what's happening. The subways are actually up and running. They are up and running. That happened at 6:00 A.M.
Let's tell you about some of the other systems that we've got going here. New Jersey Transit, the trains are still suspended. Long Island Railroad, there is a service on Long Island Railroad, but there also is some of the service there has been suspended. Especially if you're talking about the areas near the Rockaways.
Good news, Christine, for the area airports. As of 7:00 A.M. all the area airports, Newark, LaGuardia, JFK, they are open and running, but still, passengers should be checking with their carriers in terms of possible residual delays.
Also, all the bridges and tunnels, they are open and running. So the situation is this, although you do have some suspensions on things like Amtrak, you should definitely be checking with Amtrak especially if you're trying to head to Washington, D.C., or areas north, in Boston. But basically the situation on the subways is they're up and running.
New York City's mayor basically telling us yesterday, that you should be prepared for some delays just in case.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR MICHAEL BLOOMBERG, NEW YORK: It's fair to say, you're going to have a tough commute in the morning, and if you're pleasantly surprised, that's great.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CARROLL: Well, Zach Rose (ph) is one of those people who is pleasantly surprised this morning. How is your commute going so far?
ZACH ROSE (ph), COMMUTER: It was good. Just came up from Fulton Street and I had to wait a little bit longer probably than I would normally have to, but otherwise got on the train, wasn't overly packed, you know, but -
CARROLL: Not overly packed because a lot of people, obviously, decided to stay home.
ROSE (ph): Right. CARROLL: Now, Fulton Street is downtown. You're trying to head to where?
ROSE (ph): I'm actually heading back to Boston. I came down for the weekend and, you know, I took a bus down. I was supposed to take a bus back. I tried to get out before on Saturday night. They canceled all the busses Saturday. And just now I got one in about an hour.
CARROLL: All right, Zach (ph). So good luck trying to get back to Boston.
ROSE (ph): Thanks (ph).
CARROLL: We wish you the best of luck.
Once again there have been some trains suspended, especially on Amtrak. As we went down here in Penn Station, we saw that practically every destination was canceled, although Amtrak says that they do have some service in the northeast, so if you're traveling on Amtrak you definitely want to check that before you head out.
But as for the subway system, it is up and running. You should expect some delays, simply because there wouldn't be as many trains on the tracks but, obviously, a lot of folks simply decided to stay home this morning - Christine.
ROMANS: All right. And, Jason, thanks, Jason. I love you guys. Zach decided to come down to New York for the weekend from Boston. What hurricane? Why not. I'm going to New York.
COSTELLO: It's a smart move because the city's not crowded -
ROMANS: That's true.
COSTELLO: -- and New York wasn't damaged from the storm.
VELSHI: But - but I think hotels were full because a lot of - a lot of companies had put their staff up in hotels. So you think you get cheap rates like on a holiday weekend in New York, you come in and get a hotel room for $99 is something I don't know if that happens.
ROMANS: You certainly could not go to a Broadway show. That's for sure.
VELSHI: Did not. That was canceled. That's right.
All right. Still to come, it is still dangerous out there as we mentioned, but how did the states do in their preparations?
We're going to talk to Chad Sweet. He's the former Chief of Staff for the Department of Homeland Security.
It's 19 minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) VELSHI: Welcome back.
A lot of discussion this morning about what went right and what went wrong in the preparations for Hurricane Irene.
Joining me now live from Washington is Chad Sweet, he is the former Chief of Staff for the Department of Homeland Security. He's dealt with a number of natural disasters, including Hurricanes Gustav and Ike, which involved one of the largest evacuations in U.S. history. He's also the co-founder of the Chertoff Group, a Global Risk Management firm.
Chad, good to see you. Thank you for - for being with us.
CHAD SWEET, FMR. CHIEF OF STAFF, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY: Sure.
VELSHI: Your evaluation first of all? Because there's a lot of what I'm calling Monday morning quarterbacking about some places being over prepared. The media hyping this. And the weather forecasters sort of over forecasting this. What's your general thought about how we went into Irene?
SWEET: I'm smiling because today, as you know, is the anniversary of Katrina.
VELSHI: That's right.
SWEET: Its sixth year. And who would have thought, you know, here we are six years later and instead of debating failures, we're debating being over prepared.
I think it's a good thing. The American public should be proud that their leaders both at the state, federal and local level are leaning forward and all across the East Coast, we saw leadership in close collaboration as a team. I think FEMA did an excellent job along with the state and local leaders. And the governors like Governor Christie, Mayor Bloomberg and others who made the tough decisions for mandatory evacuations, should be applauded.
I mean, when you do these types of large evacuations, they're tough decisions to make but that resolves about 90 percent of your problems.
VELSHI: You know, think back to - let's talk about Katrina six years ago. There was - there was a sense that FEMA didn't do its job afterward, but really, as Craig Fugate told us many times last week, the decisions to evacuate, the preparedness decisions are often made on the local and state level. There seems to be uniformity with that all the way from where the - where the storm first hit, all the way up the coast with mayors and governors saying we are going to take a decision to achieve a higher level of reparedness and rather be safe than sorry.
SWEET: That's right. And I think if you think back to the lessons of Katrina, right after Katrina, there were essentially in every major category of disasters, fires, floods, tornadoes and hurricanes, there were major stress tests that occurred under the Bush administration, everything from the worst tornado season in U.S. history to the major Midwest floods in 2008, to the San Diego wildfires and then lastly a repeat of almost a replica of Katrina, which was Gustav and Ike as we mentioned on the program.
All of those we saw the same type of forward leaning, better coordination. And now, what we're seeing, whether it's the hurricane - the tornado in Joplin under President Obama or in this case, Irene, we're seeing again the same type of learning from the past, leaning forward and hopefully having a much more proactive response.
VELSHI: You know, let me tell you, Ron Paul came out this weekend attacking FEMA, calling it deeply flawed and wasteful. Now, look, you were - you remember a time when those allegations could be made and sounded fair. What do you think about Ron Paul making them today?
SWEET: Well, I respect Congressman Paul, but I would say he's just dead wrong on this point. Lives have been saved as a result of FEMA. I don't disagree with him that we need to avoid a culture of federal dependency. So he's absolutely right about we need every family, every business to take responsibility for their own survival.
Remember the first 72 hours are on you, the first 72 is on you. You have to be able to self-sustain. But we still need FEMA. There are cases where in natural disasters, states, localities will be overwhelmed and that's the role of the federal government. So I just respectfully disagree with him on that.
I think what we're seeing whether it's under the second phase of the Bush administration or now under Craig Fugate in the Obama administration, is they're taking what's the old FEMA and making it into the new FEMA - this FEMA 2.0. You're seeing them embrace social media which they didn't do in the past. They've unleashed an Android app. They're also doing things like the Old Stafford Act model which was reactive, where they would wait until after the storm to come in and do a disaster assessment and then help.
Now, what Mr. Fugate is doing is pre-positioning the assets before the storm hits and being there and we've heard this across the board, whether it's Republican or Democratic leaders across the states, thanking FEMA for being forward leaning. And that's the right model.
VELSHI: And generally speaking it is interesting, because Republicans and Democrats can't agree on anything these days. So if they agree that the preparedness for this disaster was sound I'm inclined to think that's worth listening to.
Chad Sweet, good to talk to you.
SWEET: Thank you, Ali.
VELSHI: Thanks. SWEET: Thank you. VELSHI: Good to have you here. Chad Sweet is the co-founder of the Chertoff Group and he was formerly the Chief of Staff of the Department of Homeland Security.
COSTELLO: Wow. We had a - we had a hallelujah moment -
VELSHI: That's right.
COSTELLO: Democrats and Republicans over FEMA of all things.
VELSHI: Yes.
ROMANS: All right. Up next, we're "Minding Your Business" including why, why you might just see gas prices go down because of Hurricane Irene. I'll tell you about that.
It's 26 minutes after the hour. You're watching AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROMANS: "Minding Your Business" this morning.
U.S. stock futures are higher and on Wall Street it's back to business. The opening bell will ring as scheduled after less than anticipated damage from Hurricane Irene in Lower Manhattan.
Here's how the markets closed on Friday. The Dow was up more than 130 points, the NASDAQ and S&P 500 were also up in case you were getting bottled water and flashlight battery instead of watching the markets Friday.
Early estimates from the damage from Hurricane Irene are starting to come in. The wind damage alone expected to top a billion dollars. But that's not even the half of it. It doesn't include flood damage, loss of productivity and business. It also doesn't include an economic boost like spending before the storm, construction and overtime. You're looking at a multibillion dollar storm here.
And Irene could cause gas prices to drop according to the latest Lundberg Survey because folks were hunkered down, flights were canceled. People stayed home. They may have put a big enough dent in demand because of all that to cause prices to fall over the next couple of weeks.
New numbers from the commerce department are expected to show Americans are still doing a better job of saving money these days. So thrift, it does have its downside. It also means Americans are spending less and, of course, that could slow economic growth.
And soon, Facebook will no longer offer those online bargains like Groupon. The decision coming just months after the social network first started offering discounts in a number of cities. Facebook did not give a reason for ending those deals. Don't forget, for the very latest news about your money, check out the all new CNNMoney.com. AMERICAN MORNING will be back right after this quick break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROMANS: The remnants of Hurricane Irene now moving into Canada. The danger not going away for days for millions in the U.S. and Vermont, raging water washed away bridges, knocked some homes off their foundations. It could be the worst flooding in that state since 1927.
VELSHI: Flash floods taking a major toll on towns in upstate New York. Muddy water plowing through the streets of Margaretville. Some resident had to be rescued by boat and taken to the fire station.
COSTELLO: Breaking news right now, a massive house fire burning in Pompton Lakes, New Jersey, one of the areas flooded by Irene. According to WABC in New York everyone was out of that house as of yesterday. That's a good thing.
That's because the front wall of the house collapsed, which ruptured a gas main. The wall blew across the yard in the explosion but the owner reported the gas leak yesterday, but no one could come to fix it. Governor Chris Christie expressed particular concern about flooding in this town. As you can see that house will burn to the ground.
ROMANS: North Carolina's outer banks were slammed so hard, some areas are only accessible by chopper right now. The main highway washed out stranding 2,500 people who didn't leave.
Our David Mattingly is live in Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina, where I'm told there was some 30 hours of rain in parts of North Carolina just a nonstop rain.
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Christine. When we rode out the storm here on the outer banks of North Carolina, we were hit by rain for over 30 straight hours. We experienced tropical storm and hurricane-force winds for almost that long as well. Officials here are only beginning to get the full picture of the damage that was left behind.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MATTINGLY (voice-over): A stunning view of the power of Hurricane Irene. North Carolina's Highway 12 chopped into pieces on Hatteras Island. The estimated 2,500 residents who stayed behind now stranded with no way to drive out.
BOBBY OUTEN: We're probably 24 hours away from being able to get there other than by helicopter.
MATTINGLY: Hit first, North Carolina felt Irene's strongest punch. Bringing what is described as epic flooding to waterfront communities along Alba Marl Sound. Houses and roads that weathered storms in the past were swamped like never before.
(on camera): Hurricane Isabel in 2003 was an incredibly destructive storm when it hit here, the winds were such that it actually blew this water in the Sound away from here. The water level was much lower. But this time when Irene hit, the exact opposite happened.
(voice-over): Entire neighborhoods were inundated in a matter of hours. One resident caught the flood on camera with winds whipping the water onshore. Just hours later, the waters receded, leaving a mess behind, and weeks of cleaning up.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's part of living in the slice of paradise.
MATTINGLY: People in Virginia now cleaning up as well, 1.2 million were without power from a full day of damaging winds and up to 10 inches of rain. Governor Bob McDonald is asking for patience.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's going to be a matter of days or perhaps longer before power is fully restored.
MATTINGLY: It is the second worst power outage in Virginia history. Two states that will remember Irene as a hurricane for the record books.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MATTINGLY: And the most tragic losses of all in these two states, Virginia, and North Carolina, 11 people lost their lives because of this hurricane. Christine?
ROMANS: All right, David Mattingly. Thanks. David.
VELSHI: All right, in Libya, embattled leader Moammar Gadhafi is still a major threat, this according to the National Transitional Council. The rebels are giving the loyalist troops until later today to disarm or face liberation, quote, as they advance on the lead ears hometown of Sirte.
Meantime, witnesses say Gadhafi troops killed nearly 150 civilian hostages. Their charred bodies were discovered in a warehouse yesterday.
COSTELLO: The Scottish government defending its decision to release the Lockerbie bomber back to Libya. It comes a day after the NTC announced it will not extradite Abdel Bassett Al Megrahi. CNN actually found Al Megrahi comatose.
You see him, there hooked up on an oxygen tank and has an iv in him. His family says his cancer is getting worse. He's on his death bed. Al Megrahi was convicted in the 1988 Pan Am 103 bombing that killed 270 people.
ROMANS: More than 800 firefighters are struggling to put out a massive wildfire in California. An air tanker dumping fire retardant on the flames over the weekend. The so-called motor fire is in the Sierra Nevada Mountains that spread to almost 5,000 acres. This is since it started on Thursday. Residents in the area have now been evacuated.
COSTELLO: Now is your chance to talk back on one of the big stories of the day. The question for you this morning, what will Dick Cheney's legacy be?
I ask you that because Mr. Cheney is starting a legacy building book tour. His book is titled "In My Time." Cheney himself says heads are going to be exploding all over Washington because of this book, maybe.
In an NBC "Today" show interview, Vice President Cheney was apologizing for nothing. Certainly not the now banned practice of waterboarding.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DICK CHENEY, FORMER U.S. VICE PRESIDENT: I would strongly support using it again if circumstances arose where we had a high valued detainee and that was the only way we could get him to talk.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: According to the "New York Times," what Cheney said of then Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Cheney writes of her, naive in dealing with North Korea, of Colin Powell, Cheney writes Powell tried to undermine President Bush. That sent Mr. Powell to the moon.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
COLIN POWELL, FORMER U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: He says that I went out of my way not to present my positions to the president, but to take them outside of the administration. That's nonsense.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Of George W. Bush, Mr. Cheney called the president an outstanding leader. If you think Cheney will be bowed by critics consider this, back in February when Ron Paul supporters heckled Cheney at a conservative gathering, he seemed to relish it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHENEY: All right. Sit down and shut up.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: War criminal!
CHENEY: The usual spirited exercise.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: He's got moxie. Talk back question today, what will Dick Cheney's legacy be? Facebook.com/americanmorning. I'll read your comments later this hour. ROMANS: Moxie, haven't heard that word in a long time. It's one of the best words in the English language. From the girl who has some. Still to come, as we just reported some residents in North Carolina virtually cut off after Irene slams into the coast. The latest on efforts to help them and others in that state. I'll be talking live with the governor next on AMERICAN MORNING.
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ROMANS: The torment of Hurricane Irene isn't over. Now that storm has passed Atlantic states are left to deal with some significant damage. You're looking at video of Irene's trail of destruction in North Carolina. Washed out roads, torn down trees, more than 400,000 people there are still without power.
Others remain stranded in their homes, thousands of them. On the phone now is North Carolina Governor Bev Perdue. Governor, where do you stand right now? The storm has passed and you're assessing the damage. What do you see?
GOV. BEVERLY PERDUE (D), NORTH CAROLINA (via telephone): We were out yesterday. We'll be out all day today, probably take the rest of the week to do the full assessment and to begin the partnership with the feds if we meet the threshold. We've had deaths in North Carolina so that's a real horrific loss for the families and the communities.
There are still about 350,000 homes without electricity. The flooding is real across the coast. Business and homes are destroyed. But again, it was not nearly as severe as it could have been though it was horrific if it was your home or loved one or business that's destroyed.
ROMANS: Yes, not the worst case scenario but certainly a difficult cleanup. You mentioned the loss of life. Our thoughts go out to those families and to your entire state as you deal with that.
Let me ask you about Hatteras Island because we're seeing pictures of really particularly devastated Hatteras Island. You told those people to leave and there are some 2,500 still there. What's the status for them? Are you angry that they decided to stay?
PERDUE: No, I'm not angry. It's where their homes and business and lives are. These are the real people in Hatteras that live there, not the tourists. They have ferry service. We put in ferries yesterday. The ferries are running for them. They are cut off.
There are two breaches that are big enough, I looked at both of them, one is huge, and the third one was a smaller bridge, but I'm being told this morning it presents serious challenges too.
We have engineers on-site now and Department of Transportation people from both Washington and here because it's a federal road trying to figure out how quickly we can rebuild it. After Isabel, it took us about two months. So that's kind of a timeline. ROMANS: Yes and I would assume those people like you said who live there, they are -- I think the first ferry will get there sometime today or tomorrow, but they are prepared. They hunkered down with this storm with the proper supplies as far as you know. PERDUE: Well, I don't know that anybody has proper supplies for two months. They will have to make a mighty long journey over the water, 2-1/2 hours minimum ferry drive, so that makes it impossible for people who didn't leave the island to go to work.
We're beginning our season after Labor Day where fishing and a lot of people come down. Hatteras is cut off from that. That's a huge economic loss.
ROMANS: It's a little tough I know at this stage to try to figure out what the financial impact will be, but you talked about tourist season being over. You talked about all those folks who are going to have a difficult commute for weeks if not months. Can you begin to assess where this one's going to rank for you guys on the financial impact on your state?
PERDUE: We can't at this point in time. There's terrific crop damage too. Let me tell you the good news about North Carolina. We are resilient. Hatteras is closed, but the rest of our beaches are open for business.
We're open for the last good weekend of summer from South Carolina to Virginia border. Come on down. And that's the motto of our state, our communities will be rebuilt, provide resources to do that and North Carolina is still the best state in America.
ROMANS: All right, Governor Bev Purdue of North Carolina, thanks for joining us and best of luck to you. Our hearts go out to those in your state whose families are really suffering right now.
VELSHI: All right, still to come this morning, the man convicted in the Pan Am 103 bombing above Lockerbie, Scotland hasn't been seen for two years until now.
CNN's Nic Robertson found Abdel Bassett Al Megrahi and takes us inside his home. This is a report you will only see on CNN. You don't want to miss this. It's coming up. It's 44 minutes after the hour.
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COSTELLO: Forty-seven minutes past the hour. Here's what you need to know to start your day. Irene pushing into New England and triggering unprecedented flash floods in Vermont. Officials telling hundreds of people to leave their homes. This is the worst flooding the state has seen in generations.
With Irene behind most of us, mass travel getting back on track. Major airports JFK and Newark have reopened to arriving flights. Departures will begin at noon. LaGuardia open to both arriving and departing flights. Most New York City subways are running with some limited exceptions. AMTRAC service not running. You should call ahead.
The Lundberg Survey believes Hurricane Irene could lead to lower gas prices that's because the storm kept people from traveling, putting a big dent in demand.
And Beyonce, boy did she drop a bombshell. The singer cradling her belly bump at last night's Video Music Awards making it clear that she and her husband Jay-Z are expecting their first baby. Congratulations.
You are caught up on the day's headlines. American Morning back in 60 seconds.
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ROMANS: In Libya, the National Transitional Council warns leader Moammar Gadhafi is still a major threat. He's gone into hiding since the rebels took over Tripoli last week and opposition fighters are giving loyalist troops until later today to disarm or -- this is how they put it guys -- to face liberation as they advance on Gadhafi's hometown of Sirte.
Meantime, witnesses say Gadhafi's forces killed nearly 150 civilian hostages. The charred bodies of those people were discovered in a warehouse yesterday.
VELSHI: So the rebel government's term "face liberation," that's their term...
ROMANS: It's a euphemism for "we will..."
VELSHI: Well, figure out a way to get this done.
ROMANS: In not a nice way.
VELSHI: In not a nice way, right.
The National Transitional Council, which is the government, says that it will not extradite the Lockerbie bomber. Abdelbaset al-Megrahi was convicted of the 1988 Pan Am 103 bombing above Scotland. Al-Megrahi may be one of the last men alive who knows the secrets behind the devastating attack and who knows who in Libya's government authorized it.
Now in a CNN exclusive, senior international correspondent Nic Robertson was able to track Megrahi down.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We found Abdulbaset al-Megrahi villa in an up market part of town. At least six security cameras and floodlights outside.
This is Megrahi's house. This is where he has been living for the last couple of years. We're going to knock on the door, see if we can get any answer.
Hello? For 15 minutes or so, nothing.
I'm not sure if they've heard me. So let's try the last ditch means, which is just shouting over the wall.
Hello? Hello? Hello?
Then, all of a sudden, someone comes. Nothing prepares me for what I see. Negrahi, apparently in a coma, his aging mother at his side.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He is just getting oxygen and some food by injection.
ROBERTSON: Uh-huh.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As you see, his body is weak.
ROBERTSON: He had been expected to die almost two years ago, but convicted pan am 103 bomber Abdulbaset al-Megrahi lives only just. This wasn't the way he looked when he was released from a Scottish prison two years ago. He came home to a hero's welcome, freed on compassionate grounds, because doctors said he would be dead in three months.
Almost immediately he began renovating this palatial house, money no object.
It doesn't take long walking around this building before you begin to realize, and looking at the marble here on these expensive fittings, to realize that it appears Megrahi was being paid off handsomely for all those years he spent in jail.
In the two decades since the bomb exploded on board Pan Am 103 over Lockerbie, killing 270 passengers, crew and townspeople, it seems the secrets of the attack will die with the bombers.
Megrahi always maintained he was innocent.
Just a month ago in a rare public sighting, Moammar Gadhafi had him literally wheeled out for a pro-government rally.
I'm seeing him now for the first time in two years. He appears to be just a shell of the man he was, far sicker than he appeared before.
Has he been able to see a doctor?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No. There is no doctor and there is nobody to ask. And we don't have any phone line to call anybody.
ROBERTSON: What's his situation right now?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He stopped eating and he sometimes is come in coma.
ROBERTSON: He goes unconscious?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. We just sit next to him and...
ROBERTSON: All that's keeping him alive, they say, oxygen and a fluid drip. I ask about demands he return to jail in Scotland.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My dad, he's still in the house. And if you sent him to Scotland he will die, by the way, here or there.
ROBERTSON: Do you know how long he has left?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nobody -- you can't know how long he will stay alive. Nobody knows.
ROBERTSON: It seems I've arrived too late. He's apparently is in no state to talk. Whatever secrets he has may soon be gone.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTSON: Now some former government officials will certainly have an idea of who authorized it and the steps of who was involved. But if they were to speak out, they would perhaps implicate themselves in that process. Megrahi, who always said he was innocent, always said that he would prove his innocence, perhaps by pointing a finger at somebody else, perhaps one of the last people who had nothing to lose by saying it was him and him. And perhaps it does seem in essence he's told his family this information really is going to go to the grave with him, Ali.
ROMANS: You know, it's interesting, Nic, because he's dying in a manner that his fellow countrymen aren't allowed. He's been protected by Gadhafi. Even now with Gadhafi out, he is living in that palatial home. You know, is his family afraid? Are they nervous that now with Gadhafi out that things could change for them?
ROBERTSON: I think they're very afraid of that. They told me that the house had already been looted by rebels who have come into the city. It's a very up-market neighborhood. They said that the medicines that they had had in the house have been looted and taken away.
They're very afraid, because they know that they're viewed as being part of the regime. Megrahi was a former intelligence officer. They've benefited from Megrahi's largesse.
What may save them, if you will, is the fact that the National Transitional Council want Megrahi's tribe on board and to support the new government here. That is very important for them. So, they may try and protect him, but this is still a chaotic time and the family are very, very -- seem very, very afraid. And they'll certainly know that there will be people out there on the streets who will be very angry at how well they've done out of Gadhafi -- Christine? ROMANS: All right. Nic Robertson, amazing reporting, Nice. Just to see you call over the wall, I mean, really interesting. All right, thanks, Nic.
COSTELLO: We asked you to talk back on one of the big stories of the day. We asked you this question, since Dick Cheney is on a book tour, "what will Dick Cheney's legacy be?"
And I must preface this by saying American Morning fans are not fans of Dick Cheney. Oh no.
This is from Jane. "Cheney's legacy will be one of coverup, chicanery, and torture. He's the poster boy for the failed Bush administration along with Rumsfeld. Thank god they are unable to hurt America anymore. He needs to take the advice he once gave a group he was addressing. Just shut up and sit down."
This from Tim, "Cheney was one of the most influential and powerful vice presidents in the history of the office. Don't forget, as secretary of Defense he oversaw the success of Desert Storm and Panama. In my opinion, like him or not, he is a vice president and that has has had more impact on America and American policy than any other vice president in recent history."
And this from Mike, Cheney will be remember as a man obsessed with power. No lie was too big. No nastiness too petty, no means too cruel if it served his ends. Whatever he says in his book must be viewed with deep suspicion and nothing can rehabilitate his reputation."
Whew!
Keep the comments coming. Facebook.com/AmericanMorning. And there will be another topic...
VELSHI: What did he say the book is going to do? It's going to make people's
ROMANS: Heads explode.
VELSHI: That's quite a tease.
All right. We'll talk about that in a bit.
Irene is moving out, but the threat is nowhere near over. Thousands are stuck with power. The water is still rising in parts of the northeast. The latest on the rescue effort. Straight ahead, 57 minutes after the hour.
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