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The Situation Room
State Department Probes Israel's Cluster Bombs; Congressman Shays Urges Troop Withdrawal
Aired August 25, 2006 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks Christine. And to our viewers, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM where new pictures and information are arriving all the time. Standing by CNN reporters across the United States and around the world to bring you tonight's top stories.
Happening now, it was a tropical depression known only as a number only just a few hours ago. Now it's a tropical storm with a name. Could Ernesto soon become a hurricane threatening the U.S. coast? I'll ask the director of the National Hurricane Center, Max Mayfield.
It's 2:00 a.m. in Lebanon where anti-personnel (ph) bomblets (ph) are taking a toll of civilians returning to the war zone. Did Israel use them in violation of an agreement with the United States? The Bush administration now investigating.
And Oprah's $40-million promise. We'll take you to South Africa where she's turning education into action and transforming the lives of girls.
I'm Wolf Blitzer. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
Tonight a new storm threatening at a time when many Americans are reliving the horrors of Hurricane Katrina. Tropical Storm Ernesto formed in the Caribbean within the past few hours, and the warm ocean temperature stretching into the Gulf of Mexico could help intensify Ernesto even more over the coming days, and that means it could -- repeat -- could become the first hurricane of this season, almost exactly one year after Katrina ravaged the gulf coast. Our meteorologist Reynolds Wolf is tracking this storm. He's joining us from the CNN Weather Center. What's the latest, Reynolds?
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, the latest that we have, as you mentioned, it is a tropical storm, and you brought up a brilliant point. Water temperatures right now in the Caribbean as well as the Gulf of Mexico are into the high to mid 80's, so this is perfect fuel for this storm to really strengthen. At this time maximum sustained winds are at 40 miles per hour, but by the time we get to tomorrow afternoon they're suppose to rev up just a little bit.
It's forecast to reach about 45 miles per hour, but then as we go from Saturday into Sunday notice the jump in the wind speed going from 45 miles per hour to 65 miles per hour, so we're talking about a great deal of intensification in a pretty quick amount of time. We then pass forward a little bit more, the form passes Jamaica, south of Cuba, by 2:00 p.m. Monday the forecast has it within 75 mile per hour maximum sustained winds, a category one storm on the (INAUDIBLE) scale.
As we continue onward with the path of the National Hurricane Center, this storm then expected to cross into the Gulf of Mexico with winds at 80 miles per hour, and then as we get into Wednesday moving deeper into the center of the Gulf of Mexico by 2:00 p.m. Wednesday. Again, can't say this enough, Wolf, a lot can happen from now until this forecast point at Wednesday. The storm could weaken, could run into land and die out all together or could get much stronger. We just have to be patient. We have to watch it very carefully -- back to you.
BLITZER: Thanks, Reynolds, very much. We're going to be speaking later this hour with Max Mayfield of the National Hurricane Center.
Also tonight fresh concern that if Ernesto were another major storm does take aim at the gulf coast, New Orleans will not necessarily be ready. CNN's Sean Callebs is joining us now from New Orleans with more. Shawn, what's going on?
SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Wolf, (INAUDIBLE) this is not an uncommon site. You can still see debris from people's homes littering all kinds of thoroughfares throughout this city. People focusing on Katrina, but no question that the storm in the Caribbean has the attention of people in this area. They're very concerned about it and even today another warning coming out that the system designed to protect this area, to keep water from flowing in, is seriously inadequate.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(SOUNDS)
CALLEBS (voice-over): There are a lot of people like Al and Yani Hebron (ph). The Lakeview (ph) couple has spent months and thousands of dollars gutting and renovating their flooded out home after Katrina. But with another storm churning in the Caribbean they know what they will do if the storm threatens New Orleans.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Whenever you say storm, we pack up and we get out of here.
CALLEBS: It's been almost a year since Katrina struck, but some memories fade slowly.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In this block that we're the only people that live here, three people drowned in this one block here. Twenty-three drowned in Lakeview (ph).
CALLEBS: The Hebrons (ph) live in the shadow of this metal monster, new flood gates and a pumping station designed to protect New Orleans. The Army Corps of Engineers is responsible for maintaining the levees and flood walls and offers a glowing review of what it has done to keep water out of the city.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is nothing short of remarkable what was achieved. And my opinion that the system has not only been repaired to its pre-Katrina levels of protection, but in fact is from a holistic perspective is actually a better system than what we had in place a year ago today.
CALLEBS: But in recent tests on the new pumping station it failed to perform the way it's supposed to. Efforts are being made to correct the problem. But there's no way to test the bolstered levees. Everyone remembers what New Orleans looked like when the levees failed.
An independent group, the American Society of Civil Engineers, spent months reviewing work done by the Corps of Engineers and says the levees and flood walls protecting New Orleans suffer from serious deficiencies and that there is no quick fix. The group says since no one knows how the levees will hold up in a hurricane there is only one recourse, if a major storm bears down on the city.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's so important that the leadership of this area proceed in a calm fashion and an orderly evacuation if it becomes necessary in order to protect life and safety.
CALLEBS: This year neither the Superdome nor the Convention Center will be used as shelters of last resort. New Orleans does have 1,800 buses on standby and 47 Amtrak trains to carry people to safety this year, a way to prevent a repeat of these horrific scenes. People here know it's not a question of if another hurricane hits but when, and at this point residents say no one knows how New Orleans will handle it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That is big on that one, and that's real scary.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CALLEBS: Boy, the unknowns are scary. Just think if the levees work, if the flood gates work but the pumps don't, so even heavy rainfall could saturate and flood the city. We talked to Congressman Bobby Jindal from this area, and he said any kind of flood, even a couple of feet of water could be devastating to the psyche of these people who have been trying to rebuild for the last year -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Sean Callebs thanks very much. Sean Callebs on the scene for us in New Orleans and remember later this hour Max Mayfield of the National Hurricane Center, he'll be joining us.
Other news we're following tonight the United States formally investigating whether Israel used U.S.-made cluster bombs against targets in civilian areas of southern Lebanon. It's a possible, possible violation of a secret agreement on the use of such munitions. CNN's Brian Todd has been looking into this story -- Brian.
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, we got this model from Human Rights Watch. This group and U.N. teams on the ground say ordinances like this are all over southern Lebanon including civilian areas.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TODD (voice-over): A Lebanese boy tells of picking of what he thought was a ball, a ball that put him and his cousin in the hospital, a ball that potentially could have done this when they touched it.
(SOUNDS)
TODD: That ball like this one and canister shaped objects that may seem harmless to a child are called cluster bomblets. They spring out of air dropped or artillery launched shells, and according to U.N. officials on the ground and members of the group Human Rights Watch there are tens of thousands of these throughout southern Lebanon in nearly 300 locations where Israeli forces battled Hezbollah guerillas. Many of them are unexploded and still lethal.
BONNIE DOCHERTY, HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH: Well they're unexploded at the time of impact; they can still be detonated by anyone picking them up. We often find in the case of the artillery launched ones, which look little bells and have an enticing ribbon at the end, that children pick them up thinking that they're toys.
TODD: Some of the bomblets being found in southern Lebanon are American made. And the U.S. State Department is looking into whether Israel violated agreements with the United States over how those weapons should be used. A Human Rights official says in one deal Israel was not allowed to use cluster bombs in populated areas. An Israeli embassy spokesman tells CNN they've not been formally notified of the current probe and couldn't respond.
Other officials say the weapons they used against Hezbollah are legal and they point out U.S. forces have admitted using cluster bombs in Iraq and Afghanistan. CNN military analyst General Don Shepperd says he dropped cluster bombs as an Air Force pilot in Vietnam.
MAJ. GEN. DON SHEPPERD (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: OK, you can see what we have here is a B-52 dropping cluster bomb units or CBUs. They look like bombs, but they're actually a canister. Each one of these canisters is full of a couple of hundred bombs in tubes. They explode. They cover a wide area. The idea is to (INAUDIBLE) area, to kill personnel, to kill vehicles over a wide area.
TODD: But in southern Lebanon experts say those wide areas are densely populated.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TODD: General Shepperd says these bomblets can be filled with shrapnel, smoke, even gas. So why are they still legal? Shepperd says the U.S. and other nations are resisting pressure from the Human Rights community to ban them because they're too effective at what he calls area denial, driving the enemy out of huge swaths of territory with one strike -- Wolf.
BLITZER: All right, Brian, thank you. Brian Todd reporting.
Also tonight, a leading House Republican who was an ardent supporter of the war is now breaking with the president when it comes to Iraq. Congressman Chris Shays of Connecticut is urging the administration to set up a timeframe for bringing the troops home. Our congressional correspondent Andrea Koppel has more on Shay's about-face. What's the latest, Andrea?
ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well Wolf, as you know Connecticut Republican Chris Shays had been one of the president's biggest boosters on Iraq, but now as you mentioned Shays is breaking ranks both with Republicans and with Mr. Bush himself. In a phone interview with CNN Shays, who has just wrapped up his 14th trip to Iraq says he now know believes timetables must be set. That's because in order to force Iraq's new government to make tough decisions he said it's necessary.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VOICE OF REP. CHRIS SHAYS (R), CONNECTICUT: I believe that the administration needs to set timelines on troop withdrawal but clearly understand we will still have troops there for years. I think it's absolutely essential that the Iraqis understand that this is not an open checkbook that they can draw on for years and years and years.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KOPPEL: The 20-year congressional veteran is also locked in a tight race with Democrat challenger Dianne Farrell (ph) in Connecticut who told CNN she doesn't buy Shay's change of heart. And while it's unclear whether Shays will be able to win over enough voters in his district to hold on to his seat, analysts say Republican incumbents in two other Connecticut races are also on shaky ground. And that is placing Connecticut at the very epicenter of the Iraq debate this year.
Amy Walter (ph) of the "Cook Political Report" (ph) says if Democrats are to succeed in winning back the House this year they're going to need to win at least two of those three races -- Wolf.
BLITZER: And we'll be watching those races very closely right here in THE SITUATION ROOM. Andrea, thank you very much. One more note about Iraq, tune in to "LATE EDITION" this Saturday, my special guest the prime minister of Iraq, Nouri al-Maliki. You won't want to miss this exclusive interview with the prime minister. That airs this Sunday on "LATE EDITION", 11:00 a.m. Eastern. "LATE EDITION" is the last word in Sunday talk.
Jack's off tonight, "The Cafferty File" returns next week. Coming up, tropical storm gaining strength. Is New Orleans a potential target? Max Mayfield from the National Hurricane Center, he's in THE SITUATION ROOM.
Also, making friends with America's foes, Hugo Chavez blasting the United States and comparing Israel to the Nazis, while he cuts an oil deal with China. Plus, Senator Barack Obama, rock star treatment, we're going to live to Kenya where they're rolling out the red carpet for the U.S. senator. Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Venezuela's president, Hugo Chavez, once again grabbing the spotlight on the world stage, his latest outbursts coming during a visit to China. Let's bring in Zain Verjee. She's watching this story -- Zain.
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN ANCHOR: Wolf, his friends are America's worst enemies, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, but Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez will go anywhere to attack his enemies.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VERJEE (voice-over): The globe trotting Venezuelan leader in China making a big deal about an oil deal, lashing out at his favorite foes the U.S. and Israel.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I believe a genocide has occurred.
VERJEE: Chavez condemns Israeli military action in Lebanon.
PRES. HUGO CHAVEZ, VENEZUELA (through translator): These fascist acts should be stopped. Israel criticizes Hitler, as do we, but what they have done is similar, maybe even worse than what the Nazis did to half the world. This is fascism as sure as bread is bread and wine is wine.
VERJEE: The fiery authoritarian has increasingly aligned himself with Arab states selling himself as a leader who will stand up against the U.S. and Israel.
PETER HAKIM, PRES. INTER-AMERICAN DIALOGUE: Anti-Israeli of course allows him to appear as something of a champion in the Middle East.
VERJEE: Chavez recalled his ambassador from Israel winning him even more Arab fans. He recently traveled to Iran where he was given the red carpet treatment.
HAKIM: He's something of a showman. Venezuela was too small a stage for him. Being anti-U.S. is one way to generate support in many countries of Latin America.
VERJEE: Being anti American today scores Chavez some big points.
CHAVEZ (through translator): The United States has imposed a universal dictatorship; the greatest threat to democracy in the world is called the United States.
VERJEE: Chavez is irritated that the U.S. is blocking his bid for one of the temporary seats on the United Nations Security Council, so he's turned to China for backing. In exchange he's feeding Beijing's big appetite for oil. Venezuela plans to pump in a million barrels a day in the next 10 years.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VERJEE: One expert we spoke to says Mr. Chavez wants to undermine the U.S. and deny it access to Venezuelan oil. The U.S. is Venezuela's main oil market right now, and Mr. Chavez could be gunning for China to be its replacement -- Wolf.
BLITZER: All right, Zain, thanks very much. Stand by. Tonight Senator Barack Obama is making a very personal and political statement. He's not here in Washington or in his home state of Illinois, but in his father's homeland in Africa, and he's getting a hero's welcome. Let's go live to our Africa correspondent Jeff Koinange. He's joining us live from Kenya. Update our viewers on what's going on, Jeff.
JEFF KOINANGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Wolf. I guess it was one Kenyan newspaper headline that said it all. Obama mania, and it's one tiny village in the middle of nowhere that's about to become the center of world attention.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED GROUP: (INAUDIBLE)
KOINANGE (voice-over): People are so excited they are literally dancing with anticipation. There's a new sign going up at the recently renamed Barack Obama Secondary School.
(MUSIC)
KOINANGE: And at the nearby Barack Obama Primary School the youngsters are practicing the newly written song in honor of their little town most famous son. The village of (INAUDIBLE) is wound up tight for the triumphant return of U.S. Senator Barack Obama, whose Kenyan roots are evident just about everywhere here. After all, this is the village where his father was born and raised.
(on camera): Less than a mile from the Senator Barack Obama's secondary school is the homestead where his Barack Obama, Sr. was born and raised. These folks behind me are all Obamas who haven't seen the junior senator from Illinois in more than 14 years. You can just imagine the excitement and anticipation awaiting his return.
(voice-over): Meeting the (INAUDIBLE) on the big day will be Obama's own 82-year-old grandmother.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
KOINANGE: I can't wait to see my boy, she says. The first thing I'll do is give him a big hug and tell him how proud we are of his achievements. Grandma Obama keeps a collection of her grandson's memorabilia for all to see. From this personally autographed 2004 election poster on which he refers to her simply as mama Sarah to this extended family portrait taken during the lawmaker's last visit here nearly a decade and a half ago.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
KOINANGE: I am so excited. How many grandmothers get to see a day like this when their grandson is a senator in America, she says?
And how often does a place like this in the middle of nowhere with no electricity and no running water get to welcome a genuine hometown hero?
(MUSIC)
KOINANGE: The song the children are singing says it all. Thank you for making us so proud, Senator Obama.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KOINANGE: And, Wolf, Obama mania rolls into town in less than five hours time. Expect lots of people in Obama t-shirts and something else, this little guy here is selling at a premium in the streets of this little village -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Jeff, stand by for a second. Zain Verjee is still with us. Zain is from Kenya, as you know, herself, and Zain one of the first things that Senator Barack Obama is going to do is he's going to get himself tested for HIV, for Aids. Tell our viewers, Zain, because you've lived in Kenya -- your parents are still there -- why this is symbolically so important.
VERJEE: It's really important because HIV Aids infects a substantial amount of the country in Kenya. (INAUDIBLE) rate is extremely high. In fact, the place that he's going to where Jeff is in (INAUDIBLE), which is about 200 miles away from Nairobi (ph), it's a very sleepy little town on the shores of (INAUDIBLE), has an extremely high rate of HIV infection, so the fact that he's doing it, the fact that he's talking about it is really significant because, you know, there are a lot of cultural misperceptions and restrictions that still exist in Kenya and you know to have somebody of his statute to publicly come out and talk about this and take a HIV test is significant.
BLITZER: And that's going to make a difference in saving lives, Jeff, isn't it?
KOINANGE: No doubt about it, Wolf. And people are looking at it this way. If locals are reluctant to go for an HIV test, and Senator Barack Obama steps in, takes a test, what's to stop them? This is the message he's sending. It's such a strong message, Wolf. It's symbolic. It is strong, and hopefully it will reach right down to the grassroots where this AIDS epidemic has affected so many people, Wolf.
BLITZER: Let's hope it does. Jeff Koinange doing outstanding work for us. He's going to be back later this hour with a very different story. Jeff, thank you. Zain is going to be back at well.
Still to come tonight here in THE SITUATION ROOM, Tropical Storm Ernesto eyes the Gulf Coast. Are New Orleans and Houston at risk? I'll ask the director of the National Hurricane Center, Max Mayfield.
Plus, Oprah Winfrey turns education into action. We're going to take you to South Africa where she's keeping a $40-million promise. Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
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BLITZER: A human rights advocate finds that the Nobel Peace Prize may not count for much in Iran. In fact, it may be an invitation to persecution. Our Aneesh Raman is the only U.S. television network correspondent now in Iran. You can see his reports only here on CNN. Aneesh joining us from Tehran -- Aneesh.
ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, with the world focused on Iran's nuclear program, a prominent human rights activist here says the world is ignoring a bigger issue.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(APPLAUSE)
RAMAN (voice-over): She is the only woman from the Middle East to win the Nobel Peace Prize. A face known worldwide is a champion for human rights, but back hope stature gives way to simplicity and it is on this nondescript street in Tehran where you find this small sign that this is the office of Shirin Ebadi.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE)
RAMAN: She met me for a rare interview fearing that she herself would soon become a casualty of her own struggle.
SHIRIN EBADI, NOBEL PEACE PRIZE WINNER (through translator): There's a recent order from the Interior Ministry, which says that if we continue our work we will be subject to prosecution.
RAMAN: Ebadi's work is defending those jails she says for no reason. Many kept in prison on charges of espionage for expressing dissent. Now her group has been deemed illegal. The Interior Ministry says it doesn't have a permit. The cofounder of the group has been sentenced to five years in jail on charges of disclosing confidential information and opposing the state. And Ebadi now faces arrest at any time. It is for her a familiar prospect.
EBADI (through translator): I have been jailed before, before the Nobel Prize and after I was summoned to court as a defendant, and on one occasion because I had shaken hands with a French president.
RAMAN: In Iran it is forbidden for women to shake hands with men. Ebadi is undeterred by this latest threat, surrounded in her office by like-minded activists. This, a picture of her with two other Nobel winners, but her fight these days is growing more difficult. With a world focused on Iran's nuclear program, on its relationship with Hezbollah, she tells me that attention is turned away from her struggle for human rights. It has been, she says, forgotten, left to the Iranians to fight as best they can. EBADI (through translator): Iranians hate violence, and they're not satisfied with their situation. But they express their demands in a nonviolent way. The people of Iran are reformists.
RAMAN: Iran has long faced international pressure over its human rights record and now with the country's leading human rights activist facing arrest, Ebadi can only hope that the world now seemingly preoccupied elsewhere will once again take notice.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
RAMAN: And Wolf, as of tonight, Ebadi had not been arrested, but she says it could come any day -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Aneesh, thank you. And to our viewers, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM where new pictures and information are arriving all the time.
Happening now, a newly formed tropical storm gaining strength right now in the Caribbean, Ernesto heading toward Jamaica and the Cayman Islands, it could become the first hurricane of the season, and it might head directly into the Gulf of Mexico by Tuesday exactly one year after Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast.
A frightening discovery today in an airline passenger's checked luggage, a partial stick of dynamite. The FBI says it questioned an American college student after Customs agents found the explosive and other banned items in his bag on a flight from Argentina to Houston. The man told authorities he'd been exploring abandoned mines in Bolivia and had bought the items as souvenirs.
Former President Gerald Ford is said to be resting comfortably tonight at the Mayo Clinic after his second heart procedure in a week. The 93-year-old Ford underwent an angioplasty today to increase blood flow to his coronary arteries. He was fitted with a heart pacemaker just days ago.
I'm Wolf Blitzer. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
The Gulf Coast understandably keeping a very close watch tonight on what soon could become the first hurricane of the Atlantic season. Tropical Storm Ernesto is on a possible path into the Gulf of Mexico, just in time for Hurricane Katrina's one-year anniversary. We checked in with the U.S. point man on hurricanes a short while ago.
Joining us now the National Hurricane Center Director
Joining us now, the National Hurricane Center director, Max Mayfield, who made a major announcement of his own earlier today. More on that coming up.
Max Mayfield, thanks very much for joining us.
Give us the latest, first of all, on Ernesto. What do we know about this tropical storm? MAX MAYFIELD, NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER DIRECTOR: Wolf, it's not very strong right now, but the bad news is that if it survives the next couple of days, it will likely continue moving through the Caribbean here and will likely end up somewhere in the Gulf of Mexico. It will likely be entering the Gulf of Mexico on Tuesday.
And, you know, we've got plenty of time to watch it. But any time you have a developing storm southeast of us in the peak of the hurricane season, we need to pay attention.
BLITZER: And right now, the waters in the Gulf of Mexico are very warm, and that would be like fuel for this storm. It would -- it would increase its power.
MAYFIELD: That's right. There is no problem with the sea surface temperatures in the Gulf. The inhibiting factor is going to be these upper-level winds that you see here out of the west.
If those winds were to stay there, this would actually weaken, and maybe even dissipate. Unfortunately, we think from the computer projections that this upper-level low that you see right here is going to move westward in the Gulf and conditions may become a little more favorable here with time.
BLITZER: Because when I saw you draw that line originally into the Gulf of Mexico, it almost looked like you were aiming towards New Orleans once again. Is it too early for people along the Gulf Coast, whether in Texas, Louisiana, Alabama, or Florida, any place to start worrying about this?
MAYFIELD: Wolf, it's too early to pinpoint one specific location, but I think the message is, especially to the folks that are in temporary housing, these 115,000 families, mostly in these FEMA trailers, they need to, you know, watch this carefully. We've got some time. We don't want people to, you know, get too excited about this, but they certainly need to be watching it. And the fact that it's a Friday afternoon, we don't want them to go the whole weekend without -- without paying attention.
BLITZER: So are you already talking to authorities in those states, whether in Texas, Louisiana, Florida? Are you already in the initial contact stages?
MAYFIELD: Absolutely. We're already -- here at 5:15, we're talking to the state of Florida. That will be the closest state that it gets to initially, in the Keys.
And then at 5:30, we have a hurricane liaison team briefing with FEMA. Our local forecast offices, you know, do that hand holding with the local officials. So there is a tremendous amount of coordination already going on.
BLITZER: It may be way premature right now, but at what point do you start making recommendations about evacuations from the coast?
MAYFIELD: Well, that is usually a local or a state call, but as they -- we certainly don't want to do that until it gets, you know, into the Gulf of Mexico. And we'll see how strong it is there and see how the track shapes up at that time. But the main message here is that we do have a developing storm headed in the general direction of the Gulf of Mexico and we need to pay attention.
BLITZER: When you add that cone of uncertainty that we're all so familiar with now, how reliable -- the science at this point, how reliable is it in terms of four, five, six days out making some projections?
MAYFIELD: Well, we've got good news. The cone is getting smaller every year as the forecasts improve.
The not so good news is that it's still -- you know, the forecast in five days is about 300 miles. So that's why you don't want to single out any one individual location. But if it does hold together and survives the next two or three days, we should have a system entering the Gulf of Mexico that we'll need to pay very close attention to.
BLITZER: Here's what you said the other day in an interview with Reuters. You said, "I think the day is coming. I think eventually we're going to have a very powerful hurricane in a major metropolitan area, worse than what we saw in Katrina, and it's going to be a mega- disaster, with lots of lost lives."
When I read that story in Reuters, I said, Max Mayfield is a very cautious scientific expert, and that sounds like a real, real source of alarm.
MAYFIELD: And Wolf, those words have been said by every director of the National Hurricane Center before me going back through Jerry Jarrel, Bob Sheath (ph), Neil Frank, Robert Simpson. They have all said the same thing.
And I had the honor of going to many of the state hurricane conferences this -- during the springtime in the off season. And I have tried to share that, as bad as things were last year with the tremendous loss of life and the tremendous damage, it could have been worse.
You know, that core of Katrina could have been even closer to New Orleans. Rita could have hit Galveston and Houston, instead of, you know, easing in there in the extreme western portion of Louisiana. Wilma could have gone up into the Fort Myers or Tampa area.
So, believe it or not, things could have even been worse.
BLITZER: I noticed when we were talking about a hurricane forecast for this hurricane season back in May you were projecting 13 to 16 named storms. In August you revised that, August 8th, to 12 to 15 named storms.
This is -- this is Tropical Storm Ernesto right now. There hasn't been a hurricane yet at this point. Last year we were already at K, Katrina, as all of our viewers remember. What, if anything, does this mean in practical terms?
MAYFIELD: I don't think it means very much yet, Wolf. It -- and by the way, nobody is complaining to me that we haven't had a hurricane. But, you know, this is really about the third inning of a nine-inning ball game here. We've got a long way to go and we don't want to let our guard down now.
BLITZER: When we heard earlier today your announcement that you're retiring, a lot of us were surprised because we've come to rely on you for so many years for your excellent work.
Tell our viewers how this decision came up and what your personal plans are.
MAYFIELD: I've been talking about this with my wife for a long time. Actually, for a few years. And I told my bosses at the National Weather Service back in -- at the end of July about the decision.
And by the way, this is after this season. It's going to be on January the 3rd. So I'm still going to be here for several months, but it takes the government some time to fill a position like this. And I -- one of the nicest thing I could do for the nation's hurricane warning program is to let them know that now so they will have time to have a smooth transition here and get a successor in near the time I leave.
BLITZER: And as you get ready to retire, as you leave this critically important job, what's your biggest concern for the American public right now?
MAYFIELD: This national hurricane survival initiative, a public- private partnership that we have, this survey that they took near the beginning of the hurricane season said 60 percent of the people in coastal areas still do not have a hurricane plan. After the last two hurricane seasons and after Katrina, I don't understand that.
My message is the very consistent message we've been saying for years. We want every individual to take personal responsibility and know what to do before the next hurricane comes.
BLITZER: Max Mayfield, we wish you a happy retirement, you and your wife, of course. But we'll be speaking many, many times, I'm sure, before that day come January. We'll be watching Ernesto very closely with you.
Thanks again.
MAYFIELD: Thank you, Wolf.
BLITZER: And up next storm chasers get an up close look at a tornado. Our Internet team has the situation on line.
But first Oprah Winfrey's $40 million promise is taking her to Africa. It's a very emotional story. You're going to want to see this. Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
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BLITZER: Families in many parts of the world find it difficult to send their children to school, but one group of girls in South Africa has a chance now to attend a new $40 million facility thanks to a promise made by one American talk show host.
CNN's Jeff Koinange explains.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEFF KOINANGE, CNN AFRICA CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): 12-year- old Palesa and her 13-year-old cousin Lebohang (ph) live in this three-roomed house along with four other family members in Soweto, one of Johannesburg's sprawling townships.
They've heard U.S. talk show host Oprah Winfrey is in town and she's looking for a few good girls to be part of her new project. What they don't know is that Oprah's about to pay them a visit. Word spreads fast about Oprah's presence in Soweto and the visit is no longer top secret.
After all, this is Oprah. Oprah has been coming to South Africa for the past several years, determined to fulfill a promise she made to former President Nelson Mandela, or Madiba to most here.
OPRAH WINFREY, TALK SHOW HOST: So I said to Madiba, I would like to build a school and I would like to commit $10 million. This was five years ago. And he said, yes.
KOINANGE: And just like that, the two broke ground for a girl's school just outside Johannesburg in what began as a $10 million project. It's since grown to $40 million and counting.
(on camera): Less than four years later this is the result: the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls. Set on more than 50 acres of land, it houses more than two dozen buildings and Oprah says she was personally involved in the design and layout of most of them.
WINFREY: The dream for me was to create a school that I would most want to attend. So from the very beginning I sat down with architects and I said, we have to have a library in the fireplace so that the girls can -- it can be a place of learning as well as living for them.
We have to have a theater because this is a school for leaders and in order to be a leader you have to have a voice. In order to have a voice you need oration. So the idea for the school came about based on what I felt would be an honor for the African girls.
KOINANGE (voice-over): And all this for free. Free uniforms, free books, free meals. Everything is free at Oprah's school, which brings us back to Soweto and Palesa and Lebohang's house. Lebohang's mother died of AIDS nearly two years ago. Palesa's mother and grandmother now help feed five hungry mouths. But Oprah sees potential here, the right ingredients for leadership in her leadership academy.
PALESA, 12-YEAR-OLD: The future awaits you.
WINFREY: The future awaits you, I agree. I think your future awaits you.
PALESA: Yes?
WINFREY: Yes, your future is so bright it burns my eyes. Yes, that's how bright your future is.
KOINANGE: Palesa's mother is overwhelmed by Oprah's philanthropy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was thinking that angels are white and they have wings and you only see angels in heaven. So now I can see that we are living in this world with angels. Oprah, you are an angel. Angel from God, I believe in that.
KOINANGE: And outside the word had spread like wildfire. The Oprah fan club had instantly multiplied.
GROUP: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE).
WINFREY: Hello?
KOINANGE: Oprah insisted on personally interviewing all the prospective students from schools around the country. Her requirements were simple: the girls had to have better than average grades and they had to come from underprivileged homes, much like she did.
WINFREY: I look in their faces, I see my own. The girls who came from a background just like my own. I was raised by a grandmother, no running water, no electricity, but yet because of a sense of education and learning I was able to become who I am.
And I want to do the same for these girls and so I think there's no better place than Africa because the sense of need, the sense of value for education and appreciation for it could not be greater.
KOINANGE: And in true Oprah fashion, she invited all the finalists to what was supposed to be an informal get together and dropped this bombshell.
WINFREY: I brought you all here today to tell you that you will be a part of the very first class of the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy.
(APPLAUSE)
KOINANGE: And just like that, 150 young lives were transformed in an instant.
(on camera): What does this mean, this moment right now, what does it mean?
WINFREY: Oh, it is a complete, full circle moment in my life. It is -- I feel like it's what I was really born to do and that's what all of that fame and attention and money was for. It feels like the complete circle of my life.
KOINANGE: As for cousins Lebohang and Palesa ...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm overwhelmed. I don't know what to say. I'm that happy, I'm just waiting for next year.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: On the 12th of January, I'm just waiting for that date.
KOINANGE: It seems that date can't come soon enough for South Africa's best and the brightest here, an all expenses paid top class education. And all because one woman wanted to help out an old man.
GROUP: We love you, Oprah.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: Thank you very much, Oprah Winfrey for doing that.
Up ahead, cashing in on the hurricane season. As a new tropical storm approaches the Gulf Coast there's information that will be of use to millions of Americans, some high tech tools, special toilets to wide angle flashlights that can help a lot of people involved in a hurricane. It's coming up in our special "Welcome to the "Future report. That's right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Tonight, all eyes are on Ernesto. It's a tropical storm right now, but in a matter of only a few days it could be the first hurricane of this season, and it could be headed right toward the U.S. Gulf Coast.
In today's "Welcome to the Future" segment, CNN's John Zarrella introduces us to some products that to fill every possible need before during and after a hurricane.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's called a zerolet and it's not just any toilet.
So you're telling me that solid waste literally becomes this?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Powder.
ZARRELLA: Powder.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sterile powder.
ZARRELLA: Heating elements in the tank do the trick. The water comes from this tank. No dependence on city water and sewer that might be out after a storm. The $3,000 zerolet was one of hundreds of new products on display at a hurricane conference in Fort Lauderdale. There is a sandbagger, and --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is an alternate to a sandbag. The company that makes it actually calls it the door dam.
ZARRELLA: In the aftermath of last year's mean season, companies have discovered there are big bucks in products designed to make life easier and emergency response better during and after a hurricane. The breakdown in communications was a major issue after Katrina.
EVAN KAGAN, GLOBAL SATELLITE: I think after we saw with Katrina and we saw the failures that were taking place, everyone sees the need for it now.
ZARRELLA: Now the market is flooded with high-tech satellite communications equipment, from hand-held to SUV mounted.
BILL WAGNER, MONROE CO. EMERGENCY MGR.: You look around and you say, boy I need this, and boy I need that. And hopefully we can get some of that.
ZARRELLA: For the average consumer there is a $25 light that can stay bright for 75 hours on one LED battery.
GREG KENNEDY, LAZERBRITE: You can flip the heads around and now you have a powerful wide angle flashlight.
ZARRELLA: For insurance purposes, Arkiva will document and store a visual record of all of your possessions, even photo albums.
BRUCE ROBERSON, ARKIVA: People during Katrina in the Gulf Coast states, places like Waveland, Mississippi, lost all of their memories.
ZARRELLA: Hurricanes have suddenly spawned an emerging market of products and devices to make getting through the storm a little less painful.
John Zarrella, CNN, Ft. Lauderdale.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: Up next, citizen journalist: twisters caught on tape by CNN viewers. You're going to want to see this. Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Minnesota residents are cleaning up today following a devastating series of tornados that ripped off roofs, wounded dozens, and actually killed one man. Now we're getting some new images online of the severe weather. Let's bring in our internet reporter, Jackie Schechner --Jackie.
JACKIE SCHECHNER, CNN INTERNET CORREPSONDENT: Wolf, this video was caught by two storm chasers at Minnesota State University in Mancado (ph). They posted the video online.
It's pretty incredible stuff. They caught more than a half dozen tornado touchdowns on video. They followed the storm around. There's some downed power lines, some damage. Just be aware if you got view this for yourself, there is some profanity, as you might expect, in these scary situations.
Also online, thanks to a CNNI reporter -- this is Taylor Switinburg (ph), he 18-years-old. And he sent the images to us again from the Mancado (ph) area of what he calls a multivortex tornado.
We encourage you to send us images and videos like this. Of course, stay safe when you go out and get them. But it's a new I report system which lets you be a reporter for CNN. Taylor tells us that the storm was moving away from him so he followed it for 20 miles or so -- Wolf.
BLITZER: All right. Jackie, thanks very much.
Earlier today, there was actually a tornado warning in New York Cityas well. Fortunately, it didn't happen.
Still ahead, tornados -- more on tornados -- fires, peacekeepers: Hot Shots coming up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Here's a look at some of the Hot Shots coming in from our friends at the Associates Press -- pictures likely to be in your hometown newspapers tomorrow.
South Dakota, a woman hugs her cousin in the rubble that remains of her home. It was destroyed by a tornado yesterday.
St. Petersburg, Russia, a fire rages through a 19th Century cathedral. The cause of the fire unknown.
On to the Middle East, U.N. peackeepers from France land on the coast of southern Lebanon.
And in Aimes, Iowa, an American gold finch drops by a sunflower looking for something to eat.
Some of today's Hot Shots, pictures often worth a thousand words.
That's it for me. I'll see you Sunday on "LATE EDITION," the last word in Sunday talk. Among my guests, my exclusive interview Nouri al Maliki, the prime minister of Iraq -- Sunday, 11:00 a.m. Eastern.
Let's go to "PAULA ZAHN NOW." Carol Costello filling in -- Carol. TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
