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Pres. Trump To Make Decision Fairly Soon On When To Reopen The Country; U.S. Death Toll Is Now The World's Highest; IRS Deposits First Wave Of Stimulus Checks; Trump Plans To Watch Pastor Jeffress' Service On Easter; Easter, Passover Celebrations Adapted For Social Distancing; Pope Delivers Easter Mass From Near-Empty St. Peter's Basilica; Joe Biden Wins Alaska Democratic Primary; Queen Elizabeth Shares Easter Message Of Hope Amid COVID-19; U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson Thanks Hospital Staff, "I Owe Them My Life"; New York Governor And New York City Mayor At Odds Over Keeping Public Schools Closed. Aired 6-7a ET

Aired April 12, 2020 - 06:00   ET

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


[06:00:00]

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: On this Easter Sunday the United States finds itself in a sobering and tragic position. It now has the highest number of reported coronavirus deaths in the world.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good news is the curve of the increase is continuing to flatten.

TOM HANKS, ACTOR: Ever since being diagnosed, I have been more like America's dad than ever before. Don't worry now. Don't be afraid.

This shaved head was just for a movie and my hair is growing back very slowly.

MICHEL AUPETIT, PARIS ARCHBISHOP (through translator): Today, Lord, during holy week, the whole world is ravaged by a pandemic that is wreaking death and immobilizing us.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The IRS says the first wave of stimulus payments have now gone out to American taxpayers who qualify for them.

HANKS: Hey, stay safe. We are in this for the duration, and we will get through this together.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: And whether you're watching from here in the U.S. or around the world, I'm Victor Blackwell. Good to have you.

AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Amara Walker in for Christi Paul.

BLACKWELL: President Trump says a decision is coming fairly soon, and last night he reiterated that he will rely on what he calls facts and his own instincts to decide when he will recommend opening up parts of the country, setting up really a potential clash with state and local officials who may believe that it is too soon to safely get everyone back to work.

WALKER: The staggering number this morning, more than 20,000 Americans killed by the coronavirus pandemic. The U.S. is now number one worldwide in coronavirus deaths. All 50 states are under a federal disaster declaration for the first time in history, and it comes as the IRS announces it's beginning to send out the first wave of stimulus checks.

BLACKWELL: It is Easter. Happy Easter to you. And most of the country is still asked to follow the guidance to socially distance and worship and celebrate the holiday from home. And there are some churches in the U.S. that are not listening to local officials. Instead, they are going on with service as usual.

CNN's Kristen Holmes is now with us from the White House. Kristen, good morning to you.

The president says that he will be celebrating Easter from home, and the pastor that he is going to be watching, quite controversial.

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Victor. So, because of social distancing, President Trump says he will join Pastor Robert Jeffress this morning.

Tweeted this out yesterday saying, "Wishing all a safe and blessed Easter Sunday. I will be tuning in to Pastor Robert Jeffress at the First Baptist Church in Dallas, Texas tomorrow morning."

Now, of course, Jeffress has been a big advocate of President Trump. He campaigned for him in 2016 and he's also known for very inflammatory comments about Catholics, Mormons, Muslims, and gays, among others. But in addition to watching this service, President Trump is going to be spending this day on that big decision that you mentioned, whether or not to open the economy amid a global pandemic. And all of this happening while CNN is now confirming details of an explosive "The New York Times" report about the early days of this outbreak. And I want to tell you what we have learned.

That while President Trump and his allies were on TV, were tweeting, downplaying this virus, behind the scenes, medical experts and public health officials were issuing dire warnings. And there's actually more details than that. We know now that in mid-February, these medical experts, these top U.S. health officials, met together for what they call a tabletop exercise.

So, what exactly is that? That means they were mapping out the spread of coronavirus -- where was it going to be? Was it going to become a pandemic here in the U.S.? And they found alarmingly that it was going to grow here in the U.S., and that was the point where they decided the movement needed to be from containment, which, of course, means keeping it out, keeping coronavirus out of the U.S., to mitigation, which, of course, is what we see now, the social distancing and those kinds of practices. Now, the plan was for these officials to meet with President Trump, but that got scrapped when one of these officials went public talking about these warnings, warning the American public of how serious this could be, causing President Trump to spin into a rage. He complained about it, said these were alarmist views.

So it was actually three weeks after this meeting, after they had determined it was time to move to mitigation, that President Trump actually did that. In the immediate aftermath, we saw, of course, Vice President Pence being put in charge of the task force, that message being really being toned down. But again, this is pretty explosive information on what led up to this outbreak here in the U.S.

WALKER: Yes, explosive and disturbing. And, Kristen, we know that millions of Americans are out of work right now because of the coronavirus pandemic. A lot of people at home wondering when are they going to get their stimulus checks?

[06:05:03]

HOLMES: Right. Well, the IRS is saying the first wave of checks went out yesterday. And actually, this is the direct deposit issue here. And I want to make this very clear because I'm getting a lot of questions from viewers as to the difference between the checks and the direct deposit.

So, first, let's talk about who actually gets money. I can pull this up for you here. There's a diagram saying who gets the stimulus checks. We know individuals earning $75,000 or less will get $1,200. Couples earning $150,000 or less will get $2,400. Individuals with children get $500 per child. And then the payments decrease for individuals earning up to $99,000 or couples earning up to $198,000.

Now, again, these are going into the accounts. This means if you filed your taxes online, you get a direct deposit back, they can put this money directly into your account. If you are waiting on a paper check, if you are one of those people who still mails in their return and gets a check back, those are not going to be issued until May 4th, so a big clarification there for people who are waiting for this check and desperately need this money.

WALKER: All right, important information to know, Kristen Holmes, appreciate your reporting. Thank you for that.

So, let's talk more about who Pastor Robert Jeffress is and why the president is tuning into his Easter service, why it's so controversial.

BLACKWELL: CNN's Sarah Westwood takes a deeper look at some of Pastor Jeffress' more controversial comments in the past.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SARAH WESTWOOD, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: The president has chosen to tune in this morning for Easter services to a pastor who's a longtime supporter, but who's also controversial. DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Pastor Robert Jeffress.

And he's a terrific guy, a terrific man. I've gotten to know him very well.

He's a man of great compassion. He loves our country. And I'm going to be with him on Easter, meaning I'm going to be with him watching on a laptop.

WESTWOOD: Jeffress is someone who has long backed Trump and who campaigned for him in 2016. He now serves as an adviser to the president and sits on his evangelical advisory board. But the Southern Baptist pastor also has a history of making inflammatory statements, particularly about other religions. He's gone after Mormons, Muslims, Catholics, and gay people in the past. And as he told CNN in 2011, he's even labeled some other religions like Mormonism as cults.

REV. ROBERT JEFFRESS, SENIOR PASTOR, FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF DALLAS: The Southern Baptist Convention, which is the largest protestant denomination in the world, has officially labeled Mormonism as a cult.

WESTWOOD: Jeffress has received pushback for some of his commentary, including from former GOP nominee Mitt Romney, who called the pastor a -- quote --"religious bigot" when he was invited to pray at the opening ceremony of the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem.

Jeffress has also accused former President Obama of paving the way for the anti Christ, suggested the Catholic church was led astray by Satan, and has claimed gay people lead miserable, filthy lifestyles. But Trump has elevated Jeffress since the start of his presidency, when he invited Jeffress to pray at a church service before his inauguration. Jeffress has defended Trump on nearly every front, including against allegations of infidelity, because he says Trump has done the most for Christians.

JEFFRESS: It is true. I believe President Trump is the most pro-faith president in history.

TRUMP: Pastor Robert Jeffress, a great friend of mine. He would say, our president may not be the best at the Bible. He may not have read it 2,000 times, but he's the best for us. And that's good. That's good.

WESTWOOD: Jeffress' beliefs about other faiths that they will not result in salvation are shared by some evangelicals, and he has characterized his views as coming from a place of deep conviction in his Baptist faith.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLACKWELL: Sarah Westwood for us. Sarah, thank you.

So, this will be a new way of trying to celebrate Easter for billions of Christians around the world, adapting traditions because of the coronavirus outbreak.

WALKER: Yes. Pope Francis is leading the Easter Sunday mass from St. Peter's Basilica. A year ago, thousands packed this place to hear the Pope's message. This is a very different year. Speaking at Easter eve mass, Pope Francis offered a message of hope saying, "Do not be afraid, do not yield to fear."

CNN's Vatican correspondent Delia Gallagher joining us now live from Rome. I mean, it is an eerie feeling or bizarre. I mean, usually, we see tens of thousands of faithful filling St. Peter's Square, and it's quiet.

DELIA GALLAGHER, CNN VATICAN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. That's the word. It's very quiet, something of a somber tone, of course, considering the pandemic here from Rome, but also for the millions of people on lockdown around the world this Easter and Passover, having to adjust their expectations.

Take a look at how some people are celebrating.

[06:10:00]

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GALLAGHER (voice-over): It's a strange time to be celebrating. But perhaps now more than ever, the ancient rituals of Easter and Passover bring us together.

The Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem, the street said to have been walked by Christ before his crucifixion, normally crowded with pilgrims on Easter Friday, is empty like never before. But a few representing the many carry the memory.

AUPETIT (through translator): Today, Lord, during holy week, the whole world is ravaged by a pandemic that is wreaking death and immobilizing us.

GALLAGHER: And in a small sign of rebirth from Notre Dame Cathedral, itself victim of a devastating fire last year, prayers are raised for the COVID-19 victims and their families. And the creativity of community, a priest in Ireland offering blessings from an old popemobile used by John Paul II. And in Germany, drive-in services.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): For weeks we've been at a distance. We stay at home. Churches are closed. Right now for Easter, there's a need to come together this week.

GALLAGHER: Passover commemorating the Jewish exodus from ancient Egypt during a time of plagues takes on new meaning today.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Celebrating Passover because we hope coronavirus will pass us over.

GALLAGHER: Seders are virtual across the world as Jews celebrate while social distancing. While governments continue to battle the global pandemic, urging all to stay home this Easter --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: After all the sacrifices so many people have made, let's not ruin it now. GALLAGHER: -- it may be song which can unite us. Opera legend Andrea Bocelli will sing alone in Milan's Duomo Cathedral on Sunday evening.

ANDREA BOCELLI, ITALIAN TENOR (through translator): It will be a prayer, and as a consequence, it will not be important who is present physically, but rather, who wants to be with me spiritually in that moment.

GALLAGHER: A celebration of human spirit and transcendence, a prayer of harmony in a time of hardship.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GALLAGHER: And, Victor and Amara, we are waiting now for Pope Francis. He has just finished his mass and he'll be giving a special Easter address. And we want to say that Easter is probably a sad day for many people around the world who have lost a loved one or have somebody in the hospital right now. Pope Francis in his previous Easter services has been remembering particularly those families -- Amara, Victor.

BLACKWELL: Such a -- just a remarkable image to look here and it's completely empty. Completely empty there at the basilica. Delia Gallagher for us there in Rome, thank you so much.

WALKER: And we want to hear from you. Coming up, we have experts here to answer your questions. Let us know what's on your mind. Share your stories by tweeting us along with your questions. Tweets us @AmaraCNN, @VictorBlackwell, and we will try to get you the answers here on NEW DAY.

BLACKWELL: So those are coming up.

Let's turn to a little bit of politics. Former vice president, presumptive Democratic nominee for president, Joe Biden has won the Alaska Democratic primary. He defeated Senator Bernie Sanders, who dropped out of the race on Wednesday. Still on the ballot, though, Biden got just a little more than 55 percent of the vote there, picking up all nine of the state's 15 delegates in the process.

WALKER: Alaska delayed the contest by nearly a week and canceled all in-person voting in response to COVID-19 concerns. The state's Democratic Party says the number of mail-in ballots was nearly double the amount of people -- the number of people who caucused in 2016.

BLACKWELL: Still to come, a special Easter message of hope from Queen Elizabeth during the COVID-19 pandemic. We are live in London next.

WALKER: Plus, live via Zoom. It was "Saturday Night Live" at home.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Approach to trying to do a live show, so --

KATE MCKINNON, COMEDIAN: And live from Zoom, it's sometime between March and August --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is crazy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: You see it there. The cast returned, performing the entire show remotely. We will have all the highlights when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:18:47]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

QUEEN ELIZABETH II, UNITED KINGDOM (voice-over): This year, Easter will be different for many of us, but by keeping apart, we keep others safe. But Easter isn't canceled. Indeed, we need Easter as much as ever.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: And that was Queen Elizabeth with a special message to mark the Easter weekend. She is encouraging hope in the face of COVID-19 saying, it will not overcome us.

BLACKWELL: Also, U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson sent a message of gratitude to the entire health care staff at St. Thomas Hospital. That's where he's recovering from COVID-19.

And CNN international security editor Nick Paton Walsh is outside of St. Thomas Hospital there. Nick, hello to you.

First, a message from the prime minister and his recovery. What do we know about it?

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: A short message, his first statement so far in which he thanked those working in the National Health Service, the free health care service in the United Kingdom, which treated him as well, in which he said, I cannot thank you enough. I owe you my life.

Now a short message from a man still on the road to recovery. That possibly portrays the gravity of what we were dealing with here. He went to hospital initially seen (ph) for a routine test and that suddenly turned into intensive care treatment with oxygen being given to him.

[06:20:06]

He is not back at work at this point though, but certainly keen to deliver a message of consistent recovery. What we have heard, though, from the queen today, in a bid to give a country here experiencing a staggering daily death toll -- remember, this United Kingdom is about a fifth in size of population as the United States, but every day now we are hearing of over 900 people losing their lives, and a startling figure, frankly, for any nation to deal with.

The queen, though, as part of her message also saying, "As dark as death can be, particularly for those suffering with grief, light and life are greater."

Now, that kind of message of hope will be needed, frankly, for a country, as I say, is beginning, say some officials, to see the plateau of infection and death tolls but may be seeing a lag over this holiday weekend here and we may see larger numbers come out in the week ahead, possibly.

U.K. nearing the 10,000 death toll, but I should just tell you here, that may not be the full picture, because some other government figures have suggested that while those dead are, in fact, those who have tested positive in hospital and subsequently died, remember, testing is very hard to come by here in the United Kingdom. There are many others, too, that are counted differently in different government numbers.

One smaller period, perhaps not representative entirely, did suggest this may be an undercount of possibly as many as a half. Still to see though those real numbers, but the United Kingdom dealing with a startling death toll, kind of as bad as it ever was in Italy or Spain here.

And unfortunately, now those numbers being released in a global climate of general, almost, sadly, universal catastrophe in most countries, trying to get a grips on this virus. This one, though, with its prime minister on the road to recovery. Back to you.

WALKER: Yes. That's a little bit of good news. And as you say, testing hard to come by in so many parts of the world. Nick Paton Walsh, thank you very much.

BLACKWELL: All right. So now week four wrapping up of this new abnormal. The question is, when could potentially cities, states, the country reopen? Well, coming up, we're asking a medical expert what a safe return to our daily routines might look like and we're answering more of your questions about coronavirus.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:26:24]

BLACKWELL: We have some good news coming out of New York, but the situation there is still very grim. We're talking about the number of cases and deaths. Governor Andrew Cuomo says that the number of deaths are stabilizing but are still at a horrific rate.

WALKER: And those numbers are weighing on the debate on when will be the right time to open, not just businesses in New York, but also schools.

And it's Easter Sunday, but most church doors are closed. CNN's Jason Carroll is live outside a very quiet St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York. Good morning to you, Jason.

JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: And good morning to you, Amara. Typically, this would be one of the busiest Sundays at St. Patrick's, but not today. The services are closed to the public. Instead, Cardinal Dolan will be holding mass online.

Governor Cuomo says that the social distancing here in the state it is working, working in the state, working in the city. The number of hospitalizations are down. The number of intubations are down.

You heard the governor talk so much about that apex. Well, that apex now appears to be a plateau. He says that's where we are now.

What is disturbing -- and you touched on this -- are the number of people who have died, the number of people who have been infected in the state stands at a little more than 181,000. The number of people who have lost their lives, 8,650 people have died as a result of COVID-19.

But again, the social distancing appears to be working, keeping nonessential businesses closed, keeping schools closed, but there is a bit of controversy about the school closures between the mayor and the governor, who have been known to go at it from time to time. Yesterday, the mayor came out and said that schools would be closed for the rest of the year. And then shortly thereafter, the governor came out and said that was just the mayor's opinion and he didn't have the legal authority to do that -- Amara, Victor.

BLACKWELL: Jason Carroll for us there in New York. Jason, thank you so much.

With us now, Dr. Jennifer Caudle. She's a family physician and associate professor at Rowan University's Department of Family Medicine. Doctor Caudle, thanks so much for being with us.

DR. JENNIFER CAUDLE, FAMILY PHYSICIAN: Thank you.

BLACKWELL: So, understandably, there are a lot of people who are feeling pretty melancholy this Easter, that they're not able to continue their traditions. So, the question is, when can people go back to those? Can you go back to packing a church or a school or a football stadium or a restaurant for brunch before there is a vaccine?

CAUDLE: Well, first of all, we are all looking forward to the time when we can pack churches and pack stadiums and going back to having brunch. And I know, you're right, Victor, that this is a really hard time for pretty much all of us.

You know, what's going to determine when we're able to get back to those things is a number of things, you know. Fauci has said that the virus is going to tell us when it's time to go back and how, and I think many of us agree with that. We're looking into many things, such as antibody testing. Obviously, we're looking into treatments and vaccines, which are on the horizon, but also, we still need more testing for the virus in general.

All of those sort of elements interplaying are going to eventually tell us when and how we can get back. So, we're in a little bit of a wait-and-see pattern right now. But you know, we're certainly hopeful that we can do that as soon as it's certainly safe to do it.

WALKER: And before we get to the viewer questions, Dr. Caudle, let me ask you about this testing that is so crucial. I mean, there's several kinds of testing. You have the swab, which will tell you right now if you have COVID-19, but there's also the antibody testing.

[06:30:01]

And that seems to be quite critical in determining when you could start lifting social distancing measures and the like.

CAUDLE: No, that's right. Because, you know, the antibody testing, for those who are listening -- and I know this word has been thrown out a lot over the last two days -- but the idea is when we test for antibodies to the virus, we're basically testing to see if you've been exposed to it, been infected with the virus, maybe haven't known that, and you have some sort of protection against that.

As you mentioned, it is potentially very crucial to determining maybe if we can send some people back into the workforce, if there are some people that can go back, or maybe to continue working if they're a healthcare worker, and know that they're working safely because maybe they have some sort of protection. So, that's what we talk about when we talk about this antibody testing, and that's one of the reasons why it's so important and will be something really, really good to have.

BLACKWELL: All right. Let's get to some of the questions from our viewers. I'm going to start with this one that I received on Twitter. A viewer asks, after returning home from the grocery store, from grocery shopping, is it recommended that we change clothes, take a shower? What should we do?

CAUDLE: Yes. Actually, I saw that question on Twitter, in response to your question about the coronavirus questions. You know, this is a common question that people are asking. So, we know that coronavirus is primarily spread by person-to-person contact and the spread of respiratory droplets. We also know that we can get the virus by touching an object with the virus on it, then maybe touching our face, et cetera, and getting infected that way. Those are the primary ways of spread.

Now, theoretically, is it possible to get coronavirus on your clothing? Yes, theoretically, it is. We do not think that's a likely form of spread. But just to be on the safe side, something I do is when I come in from outside, I have my outside and my inside clothes. I take my outside clothes off and put on my lounging gear or inside clothes. I also leave my shoes at the door or right outside the door. Those are certainly things that you can do.

WALKER: You're talking about COVID-19 being spread mostly person to person. We know the CDC recommended days ago that people could and should wear face coverings or masks when they go out in public, like grocery stores, where it's hard to enforce social distancing.

One viewer asks on Twitter, if someone sneezes in a supermarket, how long does it stay in the air? And would a cloth mask help reduce getting it?

CAUDLE: Yes, that's a really interesting question. Well, you know, sneezes, believe it or not, sneezes can be quite forceful and can really sort of expunge and expel a lot of air and respiratory droplets and things like that at a very, very high rate.

It's not possible to say exactly how fast some of the particles coming out of a sneeze go. It's going to be different for every person. But that brings me back to the point of a mask, which that viewer asked about. It's one of the reason why masks are very important.

And we have to remember that the recommendation to wear cloth masks, which is our recommendation now, is really to protect other people from us. So, me wearing a mask is to keep other people safe from me, if I were to sneeze or cough. It's to keep my particles to myself. So, yes, it's another reason why masks are really important.

BLACKWELL: Here is another one. A relative wants to visit from Atlanta to Louisville for a couple of weeks. Can she do that without a quarantine? And would you even suggest that she do so right now?

CAUDLE: No. No travel. No travel right now at all. I'm going to say a big no to that one. We know that many states have travel -- most all of us are travel-restricted. This is not the time to travel. We actually should be social distancing, that means staying away from people that are not in our immediate household, not just the six feet away when we're out and about getting our groceries and essential items, but we should be staying away from others. This is not the time to travel.

WALKER: And another question that I had, actually, for you as well, can someone who recovered from COVID-19 be re-infected?

CAUDLE: That's a great question. So, we do believe at this point that once you get COVID-19 and you recover from it that you will likely have some immunity. That means you'll be protected likely from getting it again. Now, how much immunity you're going to have and for how long, we just don't know that yet. And I always have to say that the information really with this condition is evolving, so we have a lot to learn, but we don't think it's going to be likely that you get re- infected.

But, again, for how long and how much immunity you have, those are things that are still really up in the air.

WALKER: So we don't know enough about immunity when it comes to this disease. I appreciate you joining us, Dr. Jennifer Caudle. Thank you very much.

CAUDLE: Thank you.

BLACKWELL: Later this morning on State of the Union, Jake Tapper will be joined by Dr. Anthony Fauci, also New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson and New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham. State of the Union airs at 9:00 A.M. Easter right here on CNN. WALKER: All right. Up next, an update on the struggle to contain larger-than-usual wildfires burning near the site of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster.

[06:35:07]

The details, next.

WALKER: New images this morning of firefighters in Ukraine struggling to contain wildfires burning in a still radioactive area near the Chernobyl Nuclear Plant. According to The New York Times, wildfires break out there often, but this spring, the blazes have been far larger.

[06:40:00]

BLACKWELL: Now, the people who oversee this area say that the radiation levels are higher than normal, but they still consider them safe. But the concern is, is that the fire would spread to what's left of the nuclear plant, and consider this, that the equipment that's left behind from the disaster in 1986 is still contaminated.

WALKER: Wow. While many across the U.S. celebrate the holidays, millions will be facing the threat of severe weather, including the chance of tornadoes.

BLACKWELL: CNN Meteorologist Allison Chinchar joins us now. So, who's facing the threat?

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: It's actually a pretty widespread area, Victor. Yesterday, we had some severe weather, states like Texas and Oklahoma, but now it's starting to shift to the east. Right now, the storms are still located in a pretty similar area.

What you're looking at is right now that area between Dallas and Austin, where we've got the most intense storms. You have some tornado warnings, some severe thunderstorm warnings, and there is a tornado watch in effect. That is likely to expand east as the storms are expected to do so throughout the rest of the day.

The main threats for today are going to be damaging winds, some very strong tornadoes that could be on the ground for significant periods of time, and also some large hail. You're talking the size of tennis balls, baseballs, even softballs.

Now, as the storm continues to track off to the east, it's going to continue to move as well, so other states like Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia will also be impacted. When we talk about the potential for those large tornadoes, it's going to be a lot of those southern states. This includes cities like Atlanta, Birmingham and even Montgomery, Alabama, that are going to be under the impact for that as well.

Here is the problem, it's going to continue to track off to the east as we go through the rest of the day. Most of the timeline is the first wave -- yes, you heard that correctly -- first wave will arrive this afternoon for the most folks and carry through the evening hours, but there is going to be a secondary wave as well. That secondary wave will be evening and through the overnight hours.

This is why it's so important to get some kind of alert, whether it's a weather radio or an app on your phone. Though I will caution you, if you have an app on your phone, please make sure that your phone is not under do-not-disturb or silent mode, because then the alerts will not work.

One thing, a lot of people try to seek shelter in events like this. If you have done so before or are planning to now, please check with city officials to make sure that those shelters are open. This right here from the Alexander City Police Department in Alabama, saying that they will not have shelters open because of COVID. And it's not just them. There are numerous cities, numerous communities that are doing the same thing.

Now, a statement from the American Meteorological Society has said they still want you to seek shelter. The basic recommendation going forward is get to a safe location. Then once you are in that safe location, Victor and Amara, then you can start the social distancing protocols where you can maybe bring a mask, maybe some hand sanitizer, and try to maintain a six feet of distance, but get to the safe place first.

WALKER: Yes, save your life first and then go into social distancing. Allison Chinchar, I appreciate you. Thank you.

BLACKWELL: You consider all of these first responders and the hospitals and the medical officials who are just overstretched now. One more marble on the scale may be too much as we face this severe weather that's coming in, Amara.

BLACKWELL: Yes, absolutely.

Well, still to come, Saturday Night Live is back with a special remote edition of the show. Even Tom Hanks dropped in for a little fun. We'll have the best moments, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:45:00]

WALKER: Police across the country are going beyond the call of duty to cheer up children during this outbreak.

BLACKWELL: Yes. CNN's Rosa Flores shows us how police in Florida made one boy's birthday really special.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's a surprise birthday party that rolled in, one Pembroke Pines Police vehicle at a time, all to celebrate Carter Corzo's 7th birthday while exercising social distancing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Happy birthday.

CAPTAIN ADAM FEINER, PEMBROKE PINES POLICE: Carter's mom, Crystal, is a nurse. She works at a local area hospital and she's on the frontlines with this pandemic. She basically asked from one first responder to another if we could shed some type of light on her son's birthday because she didn't want his birthday not to be recognized.

FLORES: Crystal Corzo has been juggling being a nurse on the frontlines of the coronavirus outbreak and being a mom. She now works overnight so she can oversee her children's cyber learning activities during the day.

CRYSTAL CORZO, NURSES: As nurses, we are -- at that time, we're touching patients. We can't keep social distance. We just do our best to protect ourselves so when we come home, we're not infecting our families.

FLORES: Family, friends and neighbors joined the birthday caravan, some wearing costumes and flying balloons, but staying in their cars or wearing masks.

And what's a party parade without a fire truck, the motorcycle squad and the big wheels of the SWAT Team?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We didn't want your birthday to go without anybody celebrating it.

FLORES: It's something law enforcement is doing all over the country during the coronavirus pandemic. The bomb squad in Albuquerque, New Mexico used a robot to deliver birthdays to four-year-old Zach.

Multiple law enforcement agencies in Mishawaka, Indiana, cheered for six-year-old Brentley. And in Bakersfield, California, police surprised ten-year-old Drew.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The fire engines are really cool.

FLORES: Back in Florida, even the K-9 unit made the party, and Carter's cousins joined in too.

[06:50:00]

CORZO: It was above and beyond what I just wanted to surprise him with, just to give him something for his birthday.

FLORES: Rosa Flores, CNN, Pembroke Pines, Florida.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALKER: I hope that put a smile on your face. So many creative ways to keep the birthday parties going.

We'll be right back after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BLACKWELL: Listen, we know, it is a very heavy time, so let's wrap up this hour with a few reasons to smile. Let's start with Saturday Night Live, back with its first ever remote edition of the show after being off the air for a month. This time, the entire cast, respectively, in their home.

[06:55:00]

WALKER: Actor Tom Hanks, who just recently recovered from COVID-19, was the host, and the show was not complete without an appearance from the president. Alec Baldwin's reprisal of President Trump called into the show remotely.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Where are you getting most of your advice for this?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have to listen to the experts on this one, me, Hannity, Jared Kushner and Mike Lindell from My Pillow. All the experts agree, we need to wear masks.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right, right. So, are you wearing a mask?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's a nasty question, okay? No, I am not. The last time I wore a mask, I hot boxed myself and passed out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: Well, among the businesses closed due to the pandemic, hair salons and barbers. And people are pulling out their hair over no haircuts.

BLACKWELL: Yes. My beard has gone from brushable to combable. CNN's Jeanne Moos reports on do-it-yourself corona cuts. And it's really been a bad hair month.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Guys, is your hair starting to look like Stephen Colbert's? Gentlemen and ladies, start your engines. Put on your kids' lion bib, close your eyes so you don't see them coming at you with the scissors.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't go too high with the razors, okay? Why are we going so high? Why are you going so high?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He's getting nervous, folks.

MOOS: even for a neurosurgeon, it's not brain surgery. It's harder. Say hello to uneven ends and a devil horns haircut, even a long- distance dye job or a buzz cut by a stylist in a hazmat suit are technically off limits. It's the age of do-it-yourself #coronacuts.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's no turning back now. Whoa.

MOOS: The timid may opt for the trusty bowl technique, but the bowl go all the way. Take Jennifer Schansberg, take it off.

JENNIFER SCHANSBERG, SHAVED HER HEAD: This might not be for everybody. Literally have always been curious what I'd look like bald.

MOOS: Now she knows, thanks to a dull pair of scissors and a razor wielded over two days. People say it brings out her eyes.

When Star Trek actor Anthony Rapp shaved off all of his hair, fans remarked that the droppings resembled the other worldly creatures known as Tribbles. The singer, Pink, gave herself a drunk cut.

PINK, SINGER: When I'm drunk, I get really, really brilliant ideas. I can cut hair. Look what I did.

MOOS: Pink did herself and her eight-year-old daughter did dad. The kids says daddy now looks crazy.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

MOOS: On the bright side, to be fair, it's not too many barbers that would have three staff looking after you. Washington Nationals Relief Pitcher Sean Doolittle had his wife do maintenance on his mohawk.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do we have bandaids?

MOOS: Things may seem like they're going downhill, but at least quarantine hair gives brothers an excuse to exchange digs.

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: You look like you've been cutting your own hair.

MOOS: Coronacuts not for the faint of heart.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Holy crap.

MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was so liberating. I love it. I can't stop touching my head.

MOOS: New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALKER: And, Victor, you don't have that dilemma about who's going to cut your hair, but your beard, I mean, who's going to groom that beard?

BLACKWELL: Let me first say that being bald is very liberating. The other half of it is, you know, I'm just expecting there's going to be a call from somebody in management one day, like, what are you doing with this? Like, it's really getting kind of thick down here. But I mean, you know --

WALKER: Do you not have clippers or like a shaver? BLACKWELL: No, it's kind of a thing for me. Every Friday before show time, I go in, talk with my barber, we have barber shop conversation for 40 minutes over a 20-minute shave, you know? And I miss it. But we're all staying at home.

WALKER: Actually --

BLACKWELL: I'll be James Harden by May.

WALKER: Yes, I can see. It does look a lot longer there. It's like whiskers on the side.

BLACKWELL: Yes, it is, it is. But, you know, we're going to work it for as long as I can. We'll see how it goes.

WALKER: We'll see how long you can work it. I'll have to cut my husband's hair in the next day or two with clippers. I don't like those things. They scare me. I'm afraid I'm going to cut his ear off or something, but I'll record it and see how it goes.

BLACKWELL: Yes, please do. Please do.

WALKER: I will. I'll post it.

BLACKWELL: All right, next hour starts now.

[07:00:00]