Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Sunday Morning
President, Mrs. Bush to Lay Wreath at 9/11 Memorial In New York
Aired September 10, 2006 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: More violence in Afghanistan to tell you about. In the south, NATO-led forces say they've killed 94 Taliban insurgents in fighting overnight, and earlier today. Now to the west, more than 100 Taliban fighters raided a government compound today killing two policemen, and in the southeast the governor of the Paktia Province was killed in a suicide bombing outside his office.
Florence bumps up to a Category 1 hurricane, and it is expected to hit Bermuda tomorrow, but forecasters think Florence will make a turn and miss the U.S. East Coast. We'll have a live report from Bermuda in just a few minutes.
An American journalist jailed in Sudan is on his way home. A plane carrying Paul Salopek is due to land in New Mexico later this morning. For the past month Salopek was held in the war-torn Darfur region on spying charges. He was released yesterday after New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson travel to Sudan and met personally with the Sudanese president.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Two senior Republican senators head to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba today. Majority Leader Bill Frist and Majority Whip Mitch McConnell say they want to see conditions at the detention facilities for themselves.
They'll be looking into the interrogation techniques and the value of intelligence that is gained from the detainees. It is a prelude to possible legislation sought by the president to allow military tribunals of the Guantanamo detainees.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good morning, Houston. Thanks for the music. It really is a beautiful day up here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: What music, you ask? Well, it's "Moon River" by Andy Williams. You didn't get to hear it, but they did. However, it was a bit short lived because they've got a lot of work to do. Astronauts have begun a tedious inspection of the space craft's outer skin. The robotic arm is searching (ph) for possible dings or damage from yesterday's liftoff.
We run down the top stories every 15 minutes here on CNN SUNDAY MORNING, with in-depth coverage all morning long. Your next check of the headlines is coming up at 9:15 Eastern. NGUYEN: From the CNN Center in Atlanta, it is Sunday, September 10th, 9:00 a.m. here in Atlanta, 6:00 a.m. out West. Good morning, everybody. I'm Betty Nguyen.
SANCHEZ: I'm Rick Sanchez. Thanks so much for being with us this morning.
NGUYEN: About eight hours from now President and Mrs. Bush will mark the fifth anniversary of 9/11 with a wreath-laying ceremony at ground zero. Here's a live picture of ground zero. Afterward they'll attend a prayer service at a nearby church and CNN's Elaine Quijano is live at the White House with the latest on today's memorial services.
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT, CNN SUNDAY MORNING: Good morning to you, Betty.
That's right. This afternoon, the president and the first lady will in fact take part in that wreath-laying ceremony in New York, followed by that service of prayer and remembrance at St. Paul's Chapel. It is really the start of two days of somber commemorations, but it also comes at an interesting time politically.
We are two month away, in fact, from the congressional midterm elections. National security has been high on the agenda. This past week we've seen President Bush layout in a series of speeches his views in the war on terrorism. And as Democrats and Republicans continue to battle things out, try to convince American voters that their party will keep America safe.
The president urged, in his speeches, that the Republican-led Congress to pass legislation dealing with military trials for terror suspects. He also asked them to get behind the controversial NSA surveillance program. Well, today, amid Democratic criticisms that the country is less safe, the president's homeland security adviser Frances Townsend insisted that tools like the Patriot Act and the NSA program have produced results.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FRANCES TOWNSEND, HOMELAND SECURITY ADVISOR: We've taken a lot of steps that have made the country safer. In addition to which, we haven't been attacked as a result of many of those things both on the offense in our fight overseas as well as the defensive measures we've taken here at home.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUIJANO: Democrats argue that the president and the Republicans who supported him have mismanaged the war on terrorism. So it's a delicate balancing act for this administration, very mindful of not wanting to appear as though it is politicizing the September 11th anniversary.
Now, as for the president after today he'll have a couple of other events in New York City tomorrow morning, including breakfast with New York City firefighters and he'll then also go to Shanksville, Pennsylvania, as well as the Pentagon. And of course, he'll be delivering remarks from the Oval Office in prime time. And White House aides say it won't be a political speech, but rather a reflective one -- Betty.
NGUYEN: Elaine, with so many events surrounding the memorial of 9/11, the fifth anniversary of that tomorrow, why are two top Republicans headed to Guantanamo Bay?
QUIJANO: Well, that's an interesting development, Betty. That's right. Two top Republicans in the Senate, Senators Bill Frist and Mitch McConnell are headed to Guantanamo. And, in fact, they want to take a first-hand look at the situation of detainees there. But it's coming at a time when they're trying to push forward President Bush's proposed legislation.
Last week, of course, we heard the president make that stunning announcement acknowledging the existence of secret CIA prisons overseas, announcing that detainees had been transferred out of CIA custody and to Guantanamo. Now the question is how should the detainees be tried.
The proposed legislation -- some moderate Republicans in the Senate have trouble with it -- including Senators John McCain, John Warner and Lindsey Graham -- they don't like one of the provisions that would bar detainees from seeing classified evidence against them. The White House says talks are ongoing with all the key players. And you can be sure, Betty, we're going to be hearing more about this in the days to come -- Betty.
NGUYEN: Yes, we will. CNN's Elaine Quijano at the White House for us this morning. Elaine, thank you.
SANCHEZ: Americans will be publicly marking the 9/11 anniversary in a variety of ways. One method to honor the victims is made through handmade quilts all over the country. One of these works can be seen at St. John's University in Staten Island.
At the Pentagon, there will be a public tour of the site where American Airlines flight 77 slammed right into the building. Although rebuilt, a scorched stone remains as a reminder of that tragedy there.
And two hours from now about a thousand motorcyclists will be expected the New Year's annual ride from the Dulles Airport -- I should say -- from Dulles Airport to the Pentagon. The event is called Rattle the Runway. Dulles was the origin of flight 77, before it was hijacked and steered into the Pentagon -- Betty?
NGUYEN: Let's take a look now at your thoughts as the nation prepares to mark the fifth anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks. In a CNN poll about emotions, 85 percent of respondents say they feel sadness when they think back to 9/11; 74 percent of those polled feel anger; and 44 percent feel fear; 43 percent feel a need for vengeance. These figures show an increase of negative emotions from one year after the attacks. SANCHEZ: One of the biggest changes after the attacks is the country's security. What do you think? Do you feel safer now? E-mail us your thoughts, Weekends@cnn.com. And we will share them with the rest of our viewers.
NGUYEN: "Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer" tackles America's security. Coming up at 11 Eastern, hear from Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. And on Monday join us for our special coverage of the 9/11 anniversary.
Paula Zahn is live from ground zero and 8:00 p.m. Eastern. Then at 9:00, Wolf Blitzer leads the coverage of the president's prime time address, followed by "Larry King Live" and Anderson Cooper.
SANCHEZ: Reynolds Wolf is following Florence for us now.
(WEATHER REPORT)
SANCHEZ: Bermuda is one of those places that is used to hurricanes. They have to deal with plenty of them. So with a Category 1, possibly a 2, by tomorrow, how are they preparing. We sent CNN's Karl Penhaul to Bermuda to get a sense of that.
Karl, how are people there preparing for this hurricane? I know they're quite hardy people, but do they see it as a real problem? And what are they doing?
KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT, CNN SUNDAY MORNING: Yesterday, to be honest, they were being a little bit sluggish. We didn't see down on Main Street in the capitol, Hamilton, that much activity in terms of boarding up the windows. We did see several people with the old plywood and the power tools and the hammers. Others were putting up hurricane shutters imported from Miami.
But then, later somebody explained to us that because of the level of hurricane preparedness here, many simply have these electronic shutters so at the push of a button those shutters will go down. That explains why people were being late.
Certainly, Bermuda does have a history for being excellently prepared for hurricanes and building codes here are stringently enforced. And these are very expensive homes. This is very much a paradise island and so Bermudians aren't expecting to take that much damage, Rick.
SANCHEZ: As you around, from a topographical standpoint, are there enough low-lying areas in Bermuda that could be seriously be affected by a tidal flow, or storm surge, pushing up to the island?
PENHAUL: There are low-lying areas. In fact, during Hurricane Fabian in 2003 the causeway, which connects one part of the island to the other, and principally to the airport, that was what took the brunt of the damage. And that's where four people were killed.
Talking yesterday to the acting police commissioner, she told me that the numbers living in low-lying areas were in the dozens, not even the hundreds. And there are plans there to evacuate them, if need be, to a high school that is being used as emergency shelter. She says that she expects other people simply to move in with neighbors and friends in higher ground, Rick.
SANCHEZ: Low lying or not, just looking at some of the pictures that are beside you there as we look at the story, it does sure does seem like a beautiful place. Karl Penhaul, we thank you for bringing us that report. And we wish you the best of luck as you ride this thing out yourself. Thanks so much.
NGUYEN: Ground zero crews, they brought their work home with them.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'd take a shower, and my shower would be -- it looked like a barbecue grill. Solid black and you wake up in the middle of the night, with the corner of your eyes, and a drip on your pillow and there would be black liquid.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Sick from the toxins or just something else? We'll take a closer look at the health issues haunting those who worked at the site.
SANCHEZ: Also Afghanistan, five years later. Osama bin Laden is still on the loose and the fighting has now actually escalated in Afghanistan. We'll get some insight from our very own Nic Robertson, who was in Afghanistan during 9/11.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
This is A.W. One, Sean Grahala (ph) from CTF 57 Bahrain. I just want to say hello to my parents, to Dee and Donny, and Blue, I love you and miss you guys.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'd like to say hi to my wife, Savannah. Hi, I love you, honey. I'll see you soon. Not soon enough and all of my friends and family back home. I'll see you guys real soon.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hello, Bobby. I love you. I miss you. And I hope you get to see this.
(SMACK, MOCK KISS)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Taking a look at this vacant site, in Lower Manhattan, is all that remains of the World Trade Center. Looking at live pictures today, the day before the fifth anniversary. President and Mrs. Bush will be there this afternoon for a wreath-laying ceremony.
It is one of many memorials planned today on the eve of the September 11th anniversary. And you'll want to stay with CNN for extensive live coverage of today's events.
Five men, including four Iraqi war veterans, were arrested at the Pentagon 9/11 Memorial yesterday. Pentagon officials say the men acted inappropriately. One of the men says he left postcards on a window seal warning about health dangers of depleted uranium.
Bermuda prepares for a hit. Florence is now a Category 1 hurricane, packing 80 miles per hour winds. Florence is expected to reach Bermuda tomorrow, but forecasters say the storm should veer to the northeast and back out to sea missing the U.S. East Coast.
SANCHEZ: British Prime Minister Tony Blair is trying to keep the peace in the Middle East. A short time ago he met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, yesterday he sat down with the Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.
The British prime minister says it's essential that both sides return to some kind of peacekeeping talks.
Celebrations turned crazed mayhem at Ohio State University; fires and injuries and arrests reported in Columbus, Ohio, following last night's football win. Fire crews had to extinguish burning couches and trash bins, about 30 fires in all. This after the Buckeyes beat Texas 24-7 in Austin. We should say that again. Buckeyes beat Texas.
NGUYEN: Would you stop saying it already. I know, already. They're still the national champs until someone else beats them.
SANCHEZ: Moving on. We run down the top stories every 15 minutes here on CNN SUNDAY MORNING, with in-depth coverage all morning long. The next check of the headlines is coming up at 9:30 Eastern.
NGUYEN: Think you're funny don't you? Funny guy there, Rick Sanchez.
Let's move on, shall we?
Federal agents say tips from the public helped capture a prison escapee in Alabama. Dedrick Grimm (ph) was captured about 36 hours after his escape. He was facing charges of kidnapping a Birmingham lawyer back in May. The abduction was captured by a surveillance camera. Now, Grimm's girlfriend has been charged with helping his breakout.
North of Los Angeles, crews are scrambling to knock down this wildfire in the Las Padres National Forest. Over the past seven days, flames have swept across 20 square miles of dry brush and timber. And so far, no homes have been lost. No injuries are reported.
On his feet, on the ground, his head in the clouds, though and his name in the record books. An Indiana man, a former Army Green Beret soldier, set out to break his own world record for most parachute jumps in a 24 hour period. Jay Stokes celebrated his 50th birthday by completing -- get this -- 640 jumps as 106 more than the record he set three years ago. And take a look. You have to take a look at this, folks. Oh! You see the little thing right there? That's a cute baby. Well, it will be cute just as soon as the giant panda features start to fill in. You can barely see the little thing.
The folks at the Zoo Atlanta are just thrilled about the birth of the bouncing baby panda. Here's another live look. I don't know if you can see baby too well in that. Another bit of our panda cam. Folks at the zoo haven't yet determined the baby's sex. Both cub and mama, as you can see right there, live at Zoo Atlanta's Giant Panda Habitat. We'll keep checking on the little one.
SANCHEZ: Looks like mamma is on top of it, kind of cleaning it up there a little bit.
NGUYEN: Yes, doing what Mamma's do.
SANCHEZ: Trying to keep it groomed.
One lucky lady hits the jackpot not once, but twice.
NGUYEN: This is so hard to believe.
SANCHEZ: Isn't that amazing?
NGUYEN: Can't even win a scratch off.
SANCHEZ: What are the chances of actually wining a million dollar scratch off game, not once, but twice? Let's just say it probably won't happen to us.
NGUYEN: That's true. I stopped trying.
But first, Brenda Bernard is "Going Global" this morning.
Brenda, hey, you may not have to go global if you can win like that lady.
BRENDA BERNARD, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: I wish. I wish. I can't win anything either, Betty.
But Betty, you've seen belly dancing and I've got pot belly dancing for you.
NGUYEN: No way!
BERNARD: Get a load of these tiger dancers. Beyonce and Britney don't have anything on these guys when it comes to shaking their stuff. Just ahead on CNN SUNDAY MORNING.
SANCHEZ: Was that the panda bear shot, again?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Well, after that preview, I don't know if we want to "Go Global", but we will. It's time to check our international desk. Boy, those dancers were enough to get you --
SANCHEZ: It's a different type of belly dancing. Brenda Bernard is joining with us what is going internationally -- Brenda.
BERNARD: Hi, Rick.
Growing demands for answers in Israel -- will have the belly dancers later, but right now we're talking about Israel. Tens of thousands of people gathered for a massive demonstration last night in Tel Aviv. They were calling on Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to order an independent inquiry into his handling of the war in Lebanon.
It was the largest public show of dissatisfaction with Mr. Olmert since he took office in May. Polls show his popularity plummeted over Israel's failure to crush Hezbollah guerillas. The prime minister has promised only a government probe, not an independent investigation.
The newest country of the world is holding an election today. It's Montenegro's first election since independence. Voters are expected to retain the government now in place, that advocates economic liberalization. It's been three months since Montenegro ended it's union with Serbia, completing the breakup of the former Yugoslavia.
Rick, this is for the tiger in you.
NGUYEN: Is that Rick right there?
BERNARD: Yes. Check him out!
Indian dancers use their bellies to raise spirits at Honan (ph) festivities. It's the harvest festivals in southern India. Men paint their bodies skillfully and then gyrate so that every move invokes the moves of the king of the jungle.
The ceremony dates back 250 years. Some 10,000 people actually go out to watch it, Rick?
SANCHEZ: Good for them. You have to be unbelievably comfortable with yourself to take off all your clothes, and have someone draw a tiger on your bell.
BERNARD: They have a saying there, Rick. The bigger the belly, the better the dance.
NGUYEN: Look at the gyration going there.
SANCHEZ: I should tell you this, is the kind of thing I do in the privacy of my own home.
BERNARD: We don't want to know about it?
NGUYEN: And that's why it's in the privacy of your own home.
BERNARD: We don't want to know about it, Rick.
NGUYEN: Yeah, bad visuals, bad visuals.
SANCHEZ: Thanks so much, Brenda.
NGUYEN: Thank you. We'll talk to you later.
SANCHEZ: I'll surprise you one day and do the news that way.
NGUYEN: Ratings would go up.
SANCHEZ: Coming up, once they fought crime, now they'll be fighting something else.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right now I'm borrowing time, 5 percent only live as long as I have.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Just two of thousands who blame their illnesses on ground zero toxins. What is it? We'll tell you about it.
NGUYEN: And while dust may have settled, the anxiety is still very real for many others. We will speak to a doctor to see how the first responders are dealing with their emotions.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Florence is gaining strength and is now a hurricane and Bermuda, residents are told to board up buildings and stock up on food supplies. Florence could be stronger when it hits the island tomorrow. Reynolds Wolf is at the CNN Hurricane Center following this for us.
Reynolds, what you got?
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, Rick, you are absolutely right. I mean, there is no question the storm is really intensifying. In fact, we have hurricane hunter aircraft go into the center of this storm, several hours ago, and it was showing all signs of getting bigger, getting stronger and is expected to become a Category 2 storm within hours. And again, as it comes closer to Bermuda it's certainly going to have a big effect on that island.
Coming up, we're going to give you the latest forecast path from the National Hurricane Center and let you know exactly where this storm is headed and how it may affect us here at home. All of that's coming up in just a few minutes. Let's send it back to you.
SANCHEZ: Thanks Reynolds. Interestingly enough, there's new fighting in Afghanistan. NATO and Afghan troops say that they've killed 94 Taliban insurgents in the Kandahar Province. In the West more than a hundred Taliban fighters raided a government compound today killing two policemen. And in the Southeast the governor of Paktia Province was killed in a suicide bombing just outside his office -- Betty. NGUYEN: A bomb went off today in neighboring Pakistan in the city of Quetta. Now, police say eight people were killed. Now Quetta is where intelligence officials believe Taliban leader, Mullah Omar is located. Omar heads the religious militia fighting U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan.
Two senior Republican senators head to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, today. Majority Leader Bill Frist and Majority Whip Mitch McConnell want to see conditions at the detention camp. They also want to learn more about interrogation techniques and the value of intelligence gain from the detainees. The trip is a prelude to possible legislation sought by the president to allow military tribunals of the Guantanamo detainees.
We do run down the top stories every 15 minutes right here on CNN SUNDAY MORNING, with in-depth coverage all morning long. So you're next check of the headlines, that's coming up at 9:45 Eastern.
Within weeks of the 9/11 attacks, many Americans expected Osama bin Laden and his followers to be rounded up or killed in short order. We all know that hasn't happened. CNN's senior international correspondent, Nic Robertson was in Afghanistan on September 11. In a report filed just a short time ago, Nic explains how things have changed in five years.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN NEWS SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Women still wear burkas, some men still choose to grow beards. There is still a very religious element in Afghanistan, but so many things have changed for people.
Just looking behind me over here, there's a construction site. It was never that way under the Taliban. This is a new hotel that I'm standing on here. Something new is being built over there and a look at the gardens over there, there's men working in the fields, they're making the gardens look pretty, they're watering the fields there. That wasn't happening under the Taliban.
The city feels different, it's brighter, cleaner, there is no doubt about it, there are still some very serious issues, security deteriorating for a start. There was a suicide attack that killed Paktia's governor, Governor Taniwal, killed his secretary, killed his bodyguard as well in the attack in Gardez. Three policemen were also wounded in that attack. And there was another suicide attack on Friday in Kabul, the most deadly since the Taliban were forced from power, is a significant increase and more than doubling on the number of suicide attacks last year, which last year it was up significantly on the year before.
On the eve of 9/11, Kabul is a far brighter place than it was five years ago under the Taliban, but there's no doubt in the past year or so the issues facing the government here or Hamid Karzai have grown and security is worse. The situation for the people, though, compared to five years ago is better.
Nic Robertson, CNN, Kabul, Afghanistan.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: And for more on the current state of affairs in that part of the world, tune in to ANDERSON COOPER 360. He'll be broadcasting live from Afghanistan tomorrow night 10:00 Eastern, 7:00 Pacific.
SANCHEZ: Something a lot of folks have been concentrating on ever since 9/11 are the toxins. Some of the effects it's had on people who live in and around the area. In fact, they call them Ground Zero toxins. Did they make thousands of rescuers sick or those people simply predisposed to some of those illnesses? Tough question as we near the fifth anniversary of 9/11.
Here, CNN's Randi Kaye.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Back up! Everybody, back up!
RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On September 11, five years ago as word spread America was under attack, hundreds of emergency responders rushed to the World Trade Center. Among them NYPD detectives John Walcott and Rich Volpe who arrived at Ground Zero right after the second tower fell.
RICH VOLPE, FMR. NYPD DETECTIVE: I remember you couldn't see your hand in front of your face, No. I remember constantly coughing and constantly gagging.
KAYE: Now retired, they're no longer fighting to keep drugs off the street, they're fighting to stay alive.
JOHN WALCOTT, FMR. NYPD DETECTIVE: Right now I'm borrowing time, five percent only live as long as I have.
KAYE: John is battling leukemia and rich, severe asthma and double kidney failure. Both blame their illnesses on exposure to toxins like benzene, dioxin and asbestos at Ground Zero.
DR. STEPHEN LEVIN, MT. SINAI HOSPITAL: I want to breathe real deeply.
KAYE: Dr. Stephen Levin heads the largest screening program for the 9/11 responders at Mount Sinai in New York City.
LEVIN: Oh, there's no question that people have developed very high rates of respiratory illnesses.
DAVID WARBE (ph), ATTORNEY: This is the list of the cancers...
KAYE: Attorney David Warbe (ph) he is one of 8,000 clients who got sick at Ground Zero.
WARBE: It the worst toxic waste site every. KAYE: Warbe says more than 350 of his clients have cancer, 1,000 have severe respiratory ailments, more than 60 them are already dead.
(on camera): At any point were you given a mask to wear?
WALCOTT: It took about three weeks to get a mask, then a couple of weeks they told us it was the wrong filter.
KAYE (voice-over): New York City declined an interview citing pending lawsuits, but issued this statement to CNN.
"Safety protocols were quickly implemented, including the requirement that respirators be worn and the city, its contractors, and OSHA supplied more than 200,000 respirators to workers."
Dr. Stephen Levin says it's still too soon to know if there is a connection between Ground Zero and cancer.
KAYE (on camera): Based on your expertise, how long after exposure do you think it would take for someone to develop cancer?
LEVIN: In most cancer types, that latency period, that delay is more often 20 and 25 years. Is it possible that we could be seeing something in the World Trade Center mix of exposures that could accelerate that? It would really violate our understanding of the biology of cancer, but we can't close our minds to the possibility.
KAYE (voice-over): While he waits for answers, Rich remains focused on staying strong, and John, after six months of chemotherapy, he has hope. His leukemia is in remission. The days of coaching high school hockey are over, he's too weak. So instead he skates the ice with his daughter. In the face of death, family is top priority.
Randi Kaye, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: In fact, you can see more of Randi Kaye's reports on Anderson COOPER 360 weeknights at 10:00 Eastern. It's only on CNN.
NGUYEN: Well, from body to mind, coming up, lingering emotional damage five years later. For 9/11's first responders the horror of what they've rushed into still haunts them.
SANCHEZ: And then in two minutes we're going talk with a counselor who's one of many trying to help first responders heal the pain within. Stay right here on CNN, the most trusted name in news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Nine eleven. Two words, two numbers engraved in the American psyche. We're going talk, this morning, with a counselor, one of many providing emotional support to the men and women who pushed through the chaos and destruction of that day to help, but who are now still plagued with emotional distress?
Dr. Janet Bachant helped found the New York Disaster Counseling Coalition and joins us from New York.
Good morning to you, Doctor.
JANET BACHANT, N.Y. DISASTER COUNSELING COALITION: Good morning.
NGUYEN: You've been working with first responders ever since 9/11 occurred there, and let me ask you this, still to this day, five years after, what are they dealing with?
BACHANT: Well, they're dealing with a lot of stress. First responders, even before 9/11, had one of the highest occupational stresses of all professions and since 9/11 that stress has gone through the roof. So it's no surprise that there has been a great increase in the amount of stress and in anxiety and depression and drinking and problems with relationships that have been developing as a consequence.
NGUYEN: I know at first, obviously, it was grief and mourning, but I understand that now even five years after the fact, some are still just now beginning to see the signs of post-traumatic stress scored. Why has it taken so long?
BACHANT: One can never tell when PTSD is going to emerge. Every person is different; every individual has a different course in the development of whatever it is that's going to happen to them. So, it can come up a week, a month, a year, five years, 10 years down the pike. We don't know.
NGUYEN: Well, I'm sure anniversaries are very difficult with tomorrow being five years since September 11. How difficult of a day is this going to be and what are you telling first responders to get through tomorrow?
BACHANT: Well, I think it can be a difficult day for a lot of people, but what we are advising is to build mental fitness as well as physical fitness, and one can do that by working with developing resiliency. Of course, the first foundation of resiliency is in basic communication, and so talking with friends and family and loved ones is very important.
Staying in the present is very important. Remembering the resources, the things that have worked before is very important and also exercising choice. Exercising choice helps us to feel engaged and less helpless.
NGUYEN: Now, you have to choose how you want to see it. You have to choose how you go forward. You talk about the importance of communication which leads me to those family members because these first responders aren't going through it alone and they, too, have to take on a whole lot. What are you advising those family members as they deal?
BACHANT: Absolutely, family members of first responders are affected as directly and as importantly as first responders themselves which is why we at NYDCC have developed a model that serves and helps all first responder family members as well as the first responders themselves and, again, seeking to communicate with loved ones, to stay in the present and to seek the services of a professional if that is need.
NGUYEN: All right, Dr. Janet Bachant with the New York Disaster Counseling Coalition. We want to thank you so much for joining us today.
BACHANT: My pleasure.
SANCHEZ: CNN.com is remembering every minute of what happened that tragic day and Nicole Lapin is here to tell us now exactly what's happening on CNN.com tomorrow. This is interesting programming.
NICOLE LAPIN, CNN.COM: It's very interesting because we always have that question, well, where were you on September 11? So, we're telling you where CNN was on September 11th, tomorrow.
CNN "Pipeline" will stream free, uninterrupted footage of CNN's coverage back on September 11, 2001. So, from 8:30 in the morning through midnight, "Pipeline" is going show you where CNN was when the story unfolded from the sky, on the ground. We have live shots and interviews. It's going to be real-time, real elements, exactly as it played out on our air five years ago.
So, in addition to all of that, in addition to the streaming original 9/11 coverage, "Pipeline" is also going to be streaming memorial services for you that are all happening tomorrow: D.C., New York, Pennsylvania, they're all happening throughout the day.
Here's something else. You can send us your own thoughts, your own memories, your story, your anecdotes, you musings, anything you want about what 9/11 means to you.
Send us your pictures, end us your video, your audio. It's all at CNN.com/ireport so you can become a reporter for CNN.
We all know that it's a day that it's going to remain in our minds forever and we realize it's a tough subject, we understand that and we keep showing you footage already, but you can do it at your own time online, you can take a deep breath,, you can go online and it's all at CNN.com/9/11 there's special section for your, and then you can watch all of that tomorrow at CNN.com/Pipeline.
SANCHEZ: And then the best thing about it is it is so interactive. I mean, it's a conversation with people, really.
LAPIN: Yeah, you can choose your own adventure, basically. I was showing you a second ago and you can click on whatever pipe you want. You can click on a memorial service that's happening in D.C. and then we're also going to have exactly as the day played out five years ago on one of the pipes, as well.
SANCHEZ: That's great stuff. Thanks, Nicole, for sharing so much with us.
LAPIN: Sure.
NGUYEN: "Now in the News," escalating violence in Afghanistan. In the south, NATO-led forces say they have killed 94 Taliban insurgents. In the West more than 100 Taliban fighters raided a government compound killing two policemen and the governor of Southeastern Paktia Province was killed today in a suicide bombing outside his office.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair is trying to keep the peace in the Middle East. Today he met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and yesterday he sat down with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. Next stop, Lebanon. A top Shiite Muslim cleric there says the British prime minister should be banned for supporting the Israeli military offensive in Lebanon.
Well, Hurricane Florence is expected to hit Bermuda tomorrow. It is a Category 1 hurricane carrying 80-miles-an-hour winds. Forecasters warn it will be stronger when it hits Bermuda. Island residents are told to board up and stock up on supplies.
SANCHEZ: In space and under the microscope, the crew of the space shuttle "Atlantis" has begun a tedious inspection of the craft's thermal skin. They're using a robotic arm to try and search for a possible damage from yesterday's launch.
A sibling rivalry, you might say or brotherly love? Well, it all depends on what you're looking at and how you consider it. It's the face-off tonight between quarterback brothers Peyton and Eli Manning. It's NFL history. The brothers share family ties and the good genes passed down from the NFL-playing father Archie Manning, of course, played in New Orleans.
Tonight's Colts versus Giants game will be one for the books no matter the outcome. Actually, there have been a lot of brother combinations and other combinations in the NFL in the past, nonetheless, it may be the first time their father was also a quarterback as well. So, it's a father, son, son.
We run down the top stories every 15 minutes here on CNN SUNDAY MORNING, with in-depth coverage all morning long. Your next check of the headlines is coming at the very top of the hour.
NGUYEN: Yeah, and it's the first time two starting quarterbacks will be playing against each other, there in lies the history.
SANCHEZ: I'm not sure that's true. Is it? Is it?
NGUYEN: It is true. Positive, Rick Sanchez.
SANCHEZ: I know the Hughard (ph) brothers played against each other, but maybe one started in the second half. Which is what makes that true.
NGUYEN: History being made tonight in the NFL, so, let's watch it. In the meantime, random acts of luck. You got to watch this. Twice, twice! Can you believe it? How much times have you scratched a lotto ticket and lost? Well, this woman has won not once, but twice.
SANCHEZ: Details when we come back.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANIEL SIEBERG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Henrik Jensen plays big roles in a handful of A-list movies, but it's unlikely you have ever seen his face.
HENRIK WANN JENSEN, ASSOC. PROF. U.C. SAN DIEGO: (INAUDIBLE) for example is "Jurassic Park," we have a dinosaurs, it's something that we as humans haven't really seen before, so when you see it in the computer graphic techniques it's OK if they don't sort of look exactly right.
SIEBERG: The new technique focuses on a much more difficult task. Animating things we see every day such as human faces or even glasses of milk, but Jensen's work isn't limited to fantasy worlds.
JENSEN: I can see sort of the medical industry as the next big frontier to try to help them with sort of computer science technology and faster methods for precise (INAUDIBLE) of assimilation of the light and how it interacts with skin, you know to treat various disease. That's an area with a lot of potential.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Time now to check in with Howard Kurtz. He's in Washington to see what's ahead on CNN's RELIABLE SOURCES.
Good morning, Howard.
HOWARD KURTZ, RELIABLE SOURCES: Good morning Rick, thanks. After months of hype we'll go to the videotape and analyze Katie Couric's debut as a CBS anchor. Can she steal viewers away from Charlie and Brian?
The furor over ABC's not quite factual 9/11 docudrama. Former Defense Secretary William Cohen on how he's portrayed.
David Gergen and Bill Press face off over coverage of the president's renewed push on terror, plus the media five years after that fateful day. All ahead on RELIABLE SOURCES.
SANCHEZ: Sounds like a great package. Thanks a lot, Howard, look forward to it.
That's RELIABLE SOURCES coming up at 10:00 Eastern followed by Wolf Blitzer and LATE EDITION at 11:00 and stay THIS WEEK AT WAR, stay tuned to CNN as we go in-depth into the stories of the day. NGUYEN: Well as you know, tomorrow marks the fifth anniversary of September 11, the attacks on America. Here's our e-mail question this morning: Are we safer since 9/11?
First up, Joe from Maryland says, "We are not safer. Halliburton is richer, 2,600 troops are dead, and a terrorist state has sprung from the Bush administration's misguided response to 9/11.
SANCHEZ: That's Joe. This is al from Cheshire, Connecticut, "We are far from safer," he says -- what was that? Sorry.
NGUYEN: Actually we're going go to John from Florida.
SANCHEZ: Oh, sorry. We'll go to John from Florida. Look at the monitor, not the paper in front of you.
"I was safer since 9/11, not as safe as we should be. I wish that the billions spent on the war in Iraq were being spent here instead to beef up port security, our rail lines and airport security." Again that's John, he's in Clearwater, Florida.
NGUYEN: Well, Jim in Ohio disagrees, he says, "Are we safer? Yes! Have we been attacked. No! But there is no simple solution, no permanent fix which will make us safe without taking the fight our enemies. Once Islamic terrorists choose to declare war on the U.S. our safety will forever depend on the aggressive pursuit of those sworn to harm us, but on their turf, not ours."
And of course we appreciate all of the e-mails that we received today, answering a question, are we safer since 9/11.
SANCHEZ: Yeah, 75 percent or so, totally unscientific, of course, we should say, but 75 percent or so, according to our producers who are saying, they don't feel any safer.
NGUYEN: Yeah, according to the e-mails that we received in.
Well, let's talk a little bit about the weather outside because it is changing always. Reynolds Wolf is in the Hurricane Headquarters and you're keeping a close eye on a person named -- I shouldn't say a person, a hurricane, a big one, named Florence.
WOLF: Florence is right. And Florence is getting stronger. The storm is expected to become a Category 2 storm as it gets closer to Bermuda, not expected to affect the U.S. Mainland, but it will come very close to Bermuda, in fact passing just to the West and should do so, I'd say, around 9:00 tomorrow morning.
Currently winds are 80-miles-per-hour and we're going to see that strengthening, I'd say, by 2:00 in the morning, tomorrow morning, at about 110-miles-per-hour, then passing west you get to 2:00 a.m. on Tuesday than 2:00 a.m. on Wednesday the storm should weaken significantly as it interacts with cooler water as it moves into the North Atlantic. Again, not expecting to affect the U.S. mainland, but still we're going to watch it for you very carefully. Back to you.
SANCHEZ: Reynolds.
NGUYEN: As you always do, thank you Reynolds.
SANCHEZ: Thanks so much.
NGUYEN: Well, lady luck in New York. OK. Try to wrap your mind around winning a million dollars not once, but twice in your life time. A New York woman did exactly that. She won the New York state lottery four years ago. OK? Well, now she has hit it once again, did it last month and picked up her check this weekend. Here's one for the mathematics majors out there, it is a one in more than 3 trillion chance for that ever to happen.
I don't know if she's going keep on playing, why would you? But you know what? She won it once, played again, won it again. Why not keep playing? I can't win anything.
SANCHEZ: I can't see you getting that lucky two days in a row. Two days in a row I've been able to work with you.
NGUYEN: Well, that is pretty lucky. We'll see how it continues for the rest of the month.
SANCHEZ: That's a nice compliment, huh? Good guy.
NGUYEN: I'm on vacation, that's why I said that.
SANCHEZ: RELIABLE SOURCES is next, followed by LATE EDITION and then THIS WEEK AT WAR. So, don't go away.
NGUYEN: And Fredricka Whitfield will be with you all morning with live news updates. Don't go anywhere. Have a terrific Sunday.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
