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Hurricane To Test President Trump Ahead Of Midterm Elections; Florence Grows In Size As It Takes Aim At The Carolinas. Aired 5:30- 6a ET

Aired September 13, 2018 - 05:30   ET

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

[05:30:00] TOLUSE OLORUNNIPA, WHITE HOUSE REPORTER, BLOOMBERG NEWS: -- for the thousands of victims who were killed in this hurricane. And instead, he's just talked about how great a job that the federal government did and how difficult it is to access Puerto Rico.

He's also talked about the idea that Puerto Rico's electric grid was already dead before the hurricane.

That's a sore spot for the politicians there in Puerto Rico who dispute that. They say that the electricity was not already dead before the hurricane hit and it's insulting for President Trump to say that Puerto Rico was already in disrepair before the hurricane hit and now, the politicians there are trying to use the hurricane to fix their electrical grid.

So --

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Yes. I mean, Puerto Rico had infrastructure challenges --

JOHN AVLON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: No question.

CAMEROTA: -- I think that everybody understands that -- but it's not inaccessible.

I have vacationed there. You can fly there. You can also take a boat there and get things into position.

Before -- I mean, we had so many days of warning before Maria.

AVLON: Right.

CAMEROTA: People knew how bad it was going to be. And the argument -- the case that Puerto Rico made was that they felt neglected by the federal government that wasn't paying attention and didn't seem to care that much about Puerto Rico.

AVLON: And one measure is 11 months many folks went without power on that island.

And that's important because people are going to lose power in the wake of this storm. And I don't think you're going to see anything resembling 11 months of outages, but that's the marker that's been set. That's unacceptable in the United States of America. But there are going to be a lot of folks in the path of this storm who

do lose power and it may be days, it may be weeks in places. But that's the thing to really watch out for.

CAMEROTA: Toluse, here's the curious part about all of this, right, and it's that, of course, the president is a person who likes to give himself an A+ for everything regardless of evidence. We all understand that, we all know that.

AVLON: Yes.

CAMEROTA: The Bob Woodward book reinforces that, the op-ed reinforces that.

But what -- and he's -- he can be a very persuasive person.

But what generally doesn't work for him, as we've seen in the past 18 months, is when people can see it with their own eyes.

When people can see the crowd size of the inauguration with their own eyes. When people can see him blaming America in the Helsinki summit, standing next to Vladimir Putin, with their own eyes.

When people can see with their own eyes what happened in Puerto Rico and they can see the bottles of water sitting unattended, not getting out to people. They can see the lack of electricity. They can see that 3,000 people died there.

Then his powers of persuasion just seem like crazy talk.

OLORUNNIPA: Yes. The whole idea of fake news is not as persuasive when people see with their own eyes or hear with their ears what the president is saying like he did in Helsinki. That was not an instance of fake news. It was people hearing the press conference directly and saying that the president underperformed there.

And similarly, with Puerto Rico, people have seen these images not only of the water bottles on the tarmac but also people without electricity for months on end.

The general idea of chaos, it seemed, in Puerto Rico where it did not seem like locals were coordinating with the federal government. It seemed like there was just a lot of -- a lot of miscommunication and a lot of things that should have taken place. A lot of coordination that should have happened that did not happen.

And there are a lot of people who were stuck in the dark for months on end and I think people seeing that is enough to cause them to question whether or not President Trump and the federal government deserves an A+.

And there have been federal reports from the Government Accountability Office that have said specifically that the response in Puerto Rico was not -- was not as sufficient as it should have been, in part because there were previous hurricanes that had taken up some of the resources of the FEMA. CAMEROTA: All right. Toluse, John, thank you very much. Obviously, we will be monitoring exactly what the federal response is today.

And let's go to North Carolina. That is where we find John Berman. He is there on the ground watching all the preparations and evacuations ahead of Florence -- John.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: You're talking about the readiness and the preparations.

When we arrived in Raleigh, which is about a 2-hour drive from where I am right now, at the rental car center there were rows of SUVs there waiting for people from FEMA. FEMA contractors had already lined up. FEMA had already lined up dozens and dozens of SUVs for after the storm.

So yes, they are ready for this.

You're looking at live pictures right now of the radar of Hurricane Florence as it heads ever closer to this coast. We'll get a forecast just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:38:46] BERMAN: All right.

John Berman here in Oak Island, North Carolina, one of those barrier islands that will be so vulnerable when Hurricane Florence makes landfall and rakes this coast over 24-36 hours beginning this afternoon. Some of the outer bands of this storm are beginning to hit the Outer Banks north of me.

And again, we are in for two days of just an excruciating level of wind, and rain, and possible flooding.

I'm joined now by meteorologist Derek Van Dam. He is live in Carolina Beach, which is north of me, for a sense of the forecast.

And, Derek, I can see the tide behind you. It's low tide right now. Several hours from now it won't look like that at all.

DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes. No, that's right and if the forecast storm surge actually materializes John, this beach and this entire landscape around me will look completely different in 24 hours' time because according to the National Weather Service and meteorologists of CNN, a nine to 13-foot storm surge inundation.

That is inundation in areas that are normally dry. That is abnormally high water levels above and beyond what the normal high tide is.

So, of course, we don't want the peak of Hurricane Florence to make landfall when that high tide is forecast. Time will tell if that timing will coincide or not.

[05:40:05] But what we're working with here is Carolina Beach, and this area is under a curfew at the moment. So the 6,000 residents that call this place home -- most of them have evacuated but there are still about 1,000 people, according to authorities, that have decided to ride out this storm. Not a great idea considering the threats that we have facing us here at this particular location.

Storm surge being the main threat. We know that that's the main killer for tropical systems, but it's also the extremely heavy rainfall and, of course, the extremely strong winds that we're anticipating with Florence's arrival and Florence's fury.

This area -- they're no stranger to hurricanes. Remember the benchmark hurricane being Hugo back in '89. People know how to prepare, they know the hazards, they know the threats. But still, they refuse to leave. Some of them obviously can't leave because of a particular condition.

So, John, there are so many threats that face us here and people are just going to have to listen to authorities and the advice from authorities as best as possible because time has run out.

BERMAN: Hopefully, they already have listened to the authorities.

VAN DAM: Yes.

BERMAN: Derek Van Dam in Carolina Beach, North Carolina. Just a little north of me, Derek.

I want to go south now. Joining us by phone is Brenda Bethune who is the mayor of Myrtle Beach in South Carolina. Again, just a little south of where I'm standing right now.

Mayor, thanks so much for joining us.

When this storm track changed 24 hours ago your city became an area of major, major concern because of what could be a very large storm surge, a lot of rain, a lot of flooding -- not to mention winds that will be hitting your city for more than a day.

Give us a sense of what's happening right now.

MAYOR BRENDA BETHUNE, MYRTLE BEACH, SOUTH CAROLINA (via telephone): Things right now are very calm and peaceful but we are buckling down because we know that not too long from now that's not going to be the case any longer.

BERMAN: Now, I believe you had a mandatory evacuation for Myrtle Beach?

BETHUNE: We did. We had a mandatory evacuation enacted by Gov. McMaster and it was for all zones. So that very rarely happens here and that, in and of itself, showed people exactly how threatening this storm is.

BERMAN: Did people heed those warnings? Is your sense that most people did move to higher, safer ground?

BETHUNE: I think we had a great amount of people that evacuated. I think -- that's shown by the way that the roads looked -- people trying to get out of town.

However, we always have people that are just stubborn and don't heed the warnings, they don't listen to the reports, and they just put themselves into this lull of it won't be that bad. We've gone through this before.

That is what really concerns me is that we have people who are going to try to tough it out because they think that this is just going to be some wind and rain, and that is so not the case with Florence.

BERMAN: It's going to be wind, and wind over a 24 hour-48 hour period. It's going to be storm surge and it's going to be rain the likes of which few people in this area have ever seen.

What will happen to those people who have chosen to stay? Will rescue services and any city services be available to them while this storm is hitting?

BETHUNE: No, and that's the very concerning part is we cannot risk our emergency personnel to be out on the streets during a hurricane. So people really are staying home at their own risk. We will not be able to get to you.

And the other factor of that is that we do not have a hospital right now. By DHEC's orders, the hospital was closed. So we would have to transport people to other hospitals and that just is not feasible during a hurricane like this.

BERMAN: Now, the rain totals -- I've seen anywhere from two feet to three feet of rain. What's your flooding concern? How much do you think Myrtle Beach can handle in terms of the rain before you have serious, serious, flooding?

BETHUNE: We were pretty well saturated throughout July with rain. We had a very wet July. And even though August was not the same, the grounds still have not completely absorbed all of that.

So it is a major concern, especially with two major bodies of water. We have the inland waterway and the Atlantic Ocean, so flooding is a major concern. We will have flooding.

The storm surge is scary and the fact that this storm is just going to stall over us for what could be two to three days. So flooding will be a major issue.

[05:45:06] BERMAN: Yes.

BETHUNE: And, quite honestly, we really don't know what to expect at this point.

BERMAN: Brenda Bethune, the mayor of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

We wish you the best of luck over the next few days. We know you've been working very hard to get people to listen and many have, and we're grateful for the work you've done. So thanks very much, Mayor.

BETHUNE: Thank you.

BERMAN: All right.

Hurricane Florence is disrupting air travel ahead of making landfall, which it will do over the last -- next several hours. At least 800 flights have now been canceled in the southeast. That number is going to go up -- way up.

American Airlines canceled more than 500 flights through Sunday. United has suspended flights to and from airports in the region in parts of North and South Carolina. Spirit Airlines also canceling flights.

And you can imagine that's going to be the case with other airlines as well throughout the next several days.

The flights -- they try to get as many planes in here so they're on the ground so they can get people out after the storm passes, but once those wind speeds pick up it's very, very hard.

And, Alisyn, when we landed -- again, in Raleigh -- we were on a plane that was half-full on the way here but that airport was jammed. It was jammed with people trying to get out. And that was from Raleigh, which is inland of here -- substantially, two hours inland here. So you can get a sense of what direction people are going.

CAMEROTA: Well, that's good. That's a good sign.

John, just keeping an eye on all the satellite imagery and I'm seeing the outer bands it looks like approaching -- fast approaching where you are. How does the wind feel there at this point?

BERMAN: So far where I am Alisyn -- and you can tell by the fact that my hair is just as perfectly coiffed as ever, the wind hasn't -- the wind hasn't picked up here where I am just yet.

We're south of where you've seen in Kill Devil Hills where the wind is starting to rise. The Outer Banks are a couple of hundred miles north of here.

We're going to get things a little bit later down here so it hasn't happened just yet.

CAMEROTA: Got it. OK, John, we'll check back with you very soon.

So what do federal and local authorities need to do this morning to avoid any loss of life from Florence? Well, the man who coordinated the response after Hurricane Katrina is going to join us next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:51:48] CAMEROTA: Nearly one year after the much-criticized response to Hurricane Maria, the Trump administration and FEMA are preparing to respond to another major hurricane. Are they, today, taking the necessary steps? And joining us now is Lt. Gen. Russell Honore. He coordinated military police efforts after Hurricane Katrina and is the author of "Leadership in the New Normal."

General, great to see you.

I remember that you and I were together almost exactly a year ago in Houston in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey. And I remember watching you on the cell phone orchestrating the Cajun Navy ships to go and try to save people who were marooned in their houses at that time.

So if you were on the ground right now in the Carolinas, what would you be doing as Florence approaches?

LT. GEN. RUSSELL HONORE, COMMANDER, JOINT TASK FORCE RESPONSE TO HURRICANE KATRINA, AUTHOR, "LEADERSHIP IN THE NEW NORMAL" (via Skype): Well, we'd go out to the vulnerable population and work with the local mayors and the community leaders because Alisyn, you know most of the people who die during and after these storms are the elderly, the disabled, and the poor who live -- and did not evacuate for whatever reason. And that's my biggest concern.

I would also be working hard, while we have time, to get the people out who are on dialysis and get them to a center before the storm comes. And --

CAMEROTA: Yes, and, in fact -- sorry, General. We have heard that that is what some of the governors in South Carolina and North Carolina have done. They've already evacuated hundreds of hospitals because they knew this was coming, just as you're suggesting.

Our experts say that what they are really worried about is not the high winds for this one. It's the water -- the storm surge and the amount of rain.

So what does that tell you?

HONORE: Well, we'll get a double hit on the rain and the water. We get first, the surge, then the heavy rains that will go inland. And when the water goes inland it's going to try to come back out to the sea because that's where that water in that area of the country goes. It goes back out to sea.

So people will see streams and rivers that flood. They say they've never flooding that high before. And that is going to be the big surprise that this storm could have, kind of like what Matthew did, Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: So, General, look, Hurricane Maria, as we all know, was a disaster. Almost 3,000 people were killed.

Do you see signs that FEMA learned something from that experience that they will apply now?

HONORE: Absolutely. I think they are amassing a massive force. The United States military is on standby. There were ships that went

out to sea. Some of them have been designated to come in behind that storm.

We are moving helicopters in from all over the country and getting them to places where they can come in and assist.

Each state has set up the task force -- a dual commander, and Gen. Buchanan is one the way from Army North.

So, yes, we'll see a big difference here than we saw with Maria.

CAMEROTA: Lt. Gen. Honore, we always feel better after talking to you. Thanks so much for sharing your expertise with us.

HONORE: And the Cajun Navy is there Alisyn and the Red Cross.

CAMEROTA: I feel better already because not only did they save people, they also got us lunch when we were there, as you'll recall. So that is really helpful.

Thanks so much, General.

All right.

So, Hurricane Florence is bearing down on the Carolinas and CNN's team of reporters have you covered. Where the storm is heading now, when it is expected to hit, and how people are preparing. All of that, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:59:27] (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We are ready but this is going to be one of the biggest ones to ever hit our country.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The wall of water is still underneath this storm.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, I'm worried about this one. I'm worried about the flooding.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Take the mandatory evacuations very seriously. It's probably not going to be survivable.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We do expect up to three million to be out of power.

GOV. ROY COOPER (D), NORTH CAROLINA: Disaster is at the doorstep and it's coming in.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: All right.

Welcome to our viewers in the United States and all around the world. This is NEW DAY. It's Thursday, September 13th.

Alisyn's in New York.

I'm John Berman here in Oak Island, North Carolina where people are largely gone, frankly. Most people have already left this barrier island. They heeded the mandatory evacuation orders Alisyn to get out and get out before this storm is coming because the storm --