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CNN Sunday Morning
Tornadoes Devastate the Midwest
Aired May 06, 2007 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Whoa. Right in front of us.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Dude.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right in front of us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
T. J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Yeah, dude. Staring down the destructive power of nature. Dozens of twisters reported in tornado alley.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There's no business. There's no -- there's nothing. Main Street is gone. The hospital, there's nothing. There's no jobs.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: The devastation began Friday night in the small Kansas town of Greensburg. So how can they begin to rebuild their lives after so much has been torn apart. We have live coverage on this developing story through out the morning, you don't want to miss.
But first off, we want to say good morning, everybody. Welcome to the CNN SUNDAY MORNING show. It is a bright and early 7:00 a.m. Eastern Time on this May 6th. I'm Betty Nguyen.
HOLMES: I'm T.J. Holmes. 6:00 a.m. in right now in Middle America, which has really gone through hell the past couple of nights. We want to thank you for starting your day with us.
We will begin with new video out of the Midwest this morning. After more damaging tornadoes, tiny Sweetwater, Oklahoma, one of many communities devastated. The area high school heavily damaged. Tornadoes seem to have a beef with this high school, because the same school badly damaged by another tornado just four years ago the National Weather Service say they got reports of more than 75 tornadoes. Those sightings stretching from Texas to South Dakota.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go, back up! Back up! We're OK.
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HOLMES: This video came into us yesterday. We were just struck by it. Couldn't get our eyes off of it how close these folks got. This is the cause of a lot of the devastation this is one of many twisters that touched down on Friday. This video shot by some tornado chasers. This was in Ellis County, Oklahoma.
NGUYEN: While Kansas's residents saw their share of tornadoes, that curfew it lifts in two hours in Greensburg. While the whole town was evacuated a day after the initial destruction, more tornadoes hit the state last night. Yes, not what they needed but it came. State officials confirming at least 8 touchdowns and a Federal Declaration to tell you about. So far one Kansas County designated a disaster area, which is eligible for federal relief. Now western Kansas took the brunt of the storms. Sounds like Osbourne, Bennington and Greensburg, which we have been talking a lot about.
Friday's tornadoes are blamed for eight deaths in Greensburg. A ninth person died in nearby Stafford County. Dozens of people were injured in those tornadoes. But we may not get a full count until search and rescue crews get a better look in daylight.
HOLMES: We have some more stunning new video of those tornadoes that swept through Kansas yesterday. We will take to you Stafford County where one person was killed in the first round of twisters the night before the National Weather Service says tornadoes touched down in six southwest Kansas Counties yesterday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Whoa. Right in front of us.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stop.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Dude.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right in front of us. Small tonight right in front of us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Another look here at some tornadoes near Great Bend, Kansas. This is courtesy once again of storm chasers. Twisters were spotted in Illinois, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Nebraska as well.
NGUYEN: We want to give you a look at where the storms are right now. So let's take you to Reynolds Wolf who is live in the Severe Weather Center. Reynolds the thing that I want to point out, is as I was reading that there were 75 touchdowns just yesterday, that's after all the destruction in Greensburg is that a record?
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Not a record, the record was actually set back in April of 1974 on April 3rd and 4th. They had 148 tornadoes. That was called the super outbreak. By the time all is said and done, we may end up with the entire situation; we may end up with around 120 reports. But again there's a lot of stuff that has to take place. First, this thing ends and they go back and examine many of these reports. They don't want to double the reports, and two or three people seeing the same storm system and then count that several times over. So we may end up with 120, so certainly a historic outbreak.
For the time being, we are dealing with some strong storms. We have a severe thunderstorm watch that is in effect from Des Moines southward to the north of Kansas City, right along the I-35 corridor. Some of these cells are very, very intense. No tornadoes with these, but still some damaging winds. At the same time we could see flash flooding from Saint Joe's southward to Kansas City, possibly over to Auburn and Topeka, maybe even into Manhattan, Kansas as well. This line extends back into parts of Oklahoma and Kansas, even into Texas as we head south towards I 40.
There's a couple of factors we want you to really pay attention to. We are about to pop these up on the screen, I fully understand many of you may be tuning in without power, but you are listening in your car compliments of satellite radio. Here's what we want to tell you. After a tornado passes, you want to watch out for fallen lines. Many of these things are still alive. You don't want to get shocked. Stay out of damaged areas. Kind of hard do if your entire community is ripped apart. But try to avoid what you can. Third thing is listen to the radio. Whether just through the airwaves or through satellite whatever. More information is better. Do not use candles at any time whatsoever. Reason is simple because any time you have these storms; they are quite often gas leaks. When you have gas leaks and you have a lit flame, not a good combination. Those things can pop up like a tinderbox.
It is going to be still a stormy day for many parts of the central Plains, especially through Kansas, southward to Oklahoma and Texas. On the northern half of the system, looking at the potential of flash flooding from the Dakotas into the Corn Belt. We are going to tell you more about this throughout the morning, throughout the day and if need be throughout the evening.
Back to you.
NGUYEN: Good advice there. Another thing too especially for the folks in Greensburg, they don't have electricity and because the water is out they are asking folks not to drink the tap water.
WOLF: We have a lot of things to deal with.
NGUYEN: Absolutely. It is going to take a lot of time. We will talk about that a little bit later we are going to talk with the FEMA director this morning. So definitely want to stay tuned for that.
HOLMES: Nothing is working there now. For many of those hurt in the storm in Greensburg is recovering at a hospital in nearby Pratt. Joining me now on the phone is hospital spokeswoman Kim Stivers. Ma'am thank you again for your time. Give us an update on the numbers of injured and the conditions of those injured. KIM STIVERS, PRATT REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER (via telephone): Good morning. Currently we have five patients still in the hospital who were victims of the tornado, which hit Greensburg on Friday night. Only one of those patients is in ICU, and probably in fair condition. The other four are in good condition. Several of them went -- underwent surgery that night. So they're recovering. They are almost ready to go home. Good news from Pratt. We did update our numbers and estimate we saw approximately 78 patients through Friday night.
HOLMES: Were those 78, 78 new patients directly impacted by the storm, directly their injuries were a direct result of the storm or were some of those 78 also some that had to be transferred from the other hospital?
STIVERS: I would say 78 were directly from the storm. We only accepted, I believe, five from the other hospital.
HOLMES: Ma'am, describe for me the types of injuries that you are treating there.
STIVERS: You know, the injuries range from scratches and bruises to head and neck trauma. So they were just a wide variety. Many of the people who came in had lacerations from flying debris. That's probably what most of the surgeries were all about. They were pretty cut up when they came in.
HOLMES: Have you been having a hard time with communication as well? Has your hospital been flooded, I guess, with calls, people trying to check on loved ones? Give us an idea of your situation there as far as -- we know communication has been nonexistent pretty much in Greensburg. How have y'all been communicating? Kind of just update us on how that is going for you.
STIVERS: We had to bring in some volunteers yesterday to help answer the phones. Family members continue to look for loved ones. The Red Cross has also been in touch with us. They made up a pretty good list of the people who they think are still missing and are working with others to see if those people can be located.
HOLMES: Ma'am, are you all the closest hospital to Greensburg?
STIVERS: Yes, we would be.
HOLMES: OK. Again, ma'am, Kim Stivers, who has been keeping us updated the past couple of days, it's been tough for your community. Thanks again for your time. I know it's a busy time for you. Thanks so much.
STIVERS: Thank you. You're welcome.
NGUYEN: We are going to continue to track the storms moving through the Midwest this morning.
HOLMES: A town that may be reeling the worst from the damage, Greensburg, Kansas.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was over, I walked around the corner, I looked up the stairs, I saw nothing but sky. No more house. I walked up and looked no more neighborhood.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: No more house no more neighborhood. Coming up, the town's manager relives a nightmare. Storm damage in Oklahoma to tell you about as well.
NGUYEN: We are also following other news for you this morning a family's fear, the worst. An update on the search for that missing Kenya Airways jet.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Here's some of the newest video coming in to us. This from the small town of Sweetwater, Oklahoma. One of many that has been touched overnight by severe storms and tornadoes. A tornado reportedly tore through this town as it did in several small communities. A reported 75 tornadoes through the midsection of the country. Sweetwater is one of them getting hit. Some of the newest video, some daylight pictures. You can see some of the damage there. The high school there reportedly hit hard by this storm. The same high school was hit four years ago by a tornado. Another mess last night. We were talking about the storms yesterday here on "CNN Saturday Morning." Reynolds was giving us the word, that could be in for another rough night and unfortunately that turned out to be the case. Here we are again talking about more storms and more storm damage. This is the latest from Sweetwater, Oklahoma.
NGUYEN: Let's take to you Greensburg, Kansas now because they are still under curfew this morning. That means the search for victims and survivors is on hold at least for another two hours. The town is about 100 miles west of Wichita, but there's very little left of Greensburg. CNN's Jeff Flock takes us through all the devastation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEFF FLOCK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The only way to get the enormity of the destruction is from the air. But the only way to see its completeness is on the ground. I mean, that -- that bark looks like it has been just ripped clear of the tree.
STEVE HEWITT, GREENSBURG CITY ADMINISTRATOR: Yeah. This -- I mean, all over town we're seeing this is typical all over town.
FLOCK: All over Steve Hewitt's town. He's city manager of a community that doesn't really exist anymore.
HEWITT: This was city hall.
FLOCK: Where you worked.
HEWITT: It is where I worked. FLOCK: The town's center, churches, most of the houses, Hewitt takes us to a place now off limits to all but search and rescue.
HEWITT: Everything is destroyed. The city is destroyed, 95 percent of this city is destroyed.
FLOCK: That includes Steve Hewitt's house too. The one his grandfather built with his own hands. It kind of looked like this one. He would show us, but it is completely gone. He was in the basement.
HEWITT: It is hard to believe you know? I'm reliving it in my mind now what we did. I held my son as he cried. My wife was crying. We were -- we got close together, but yet it was over, I walked around the corner, I looked up the stairs and I saw nothing but sky. No more house. And I walked up and looked and no more neighborhood.
FLOCK: No more Greensburg, at least not as they knew it. It is difficult to convey just how widespread this destruction stretches and how bad it is. I have not seen one single structure either home or business in this town that has not been damaged in some way, and most of them are like this, completely leveled. You got some warning.
HEWITT: Yeah. We had excellent warning. Our sirens went off for 20 minutes plus.
FLOCK: That, he says, is the only reason more are not dead. Though he doesn't rule out finding more bodies in the rubble. But Steve Hewitt is one of the lucky ones. When we talked, he hadn't slept since Thursday. He has no house, no car, and no possessions. Clothes?
HEWITT: No clothes.
FLOCK: What do you got?
HEWITT: What I got.
FLOCK: Maybe it was the lack of sleep, maybe it is having nothing left, but what he most treasures, his wife and child, but Steve Hewitt is determined to put Greensburg back together.
HEWITT: It is scary. It is scary. Where are we going to go? But yet I feel like we're going to do it, because I just think we're a small community. We all work together. We're all friends. We know each other. It is time for us to come together. We're going to have come and rebuild. We're going to have to -- we're going build the city from the ground up because we don't have a city.
FLOCK: Indeed, they don't have much choice.
I'm Jeff Flock, CNN, in Greensburg, Kansas.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Well a little bit later this morning we will talk with Steve Hewitt, once again this time live. Again he is Greensburg's city administrator. He is going to talk to us about the devastation in that community and his resolve to bring it back to life. So join us for that, it is at 9:00 Eastern.
HOLMES: We will continue to follow these storms, their damage, and their devastation. Also it's not quite over. We'll tell you where they are headed now and of course we will bring you the latest video as it comes in to us. The path of destruction spans several state.
NGUYEN: Also the battle against breast cancer at home and at work. How looking good can help patients feel better in the long run. CNN SUNDAY MORNING continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WOLF: No tornado warnings at this time but we still have plenty of loud stuff going on. Strong thunderstorms rolling through parts of not only Iowa but also into the northern half of Missouri, not far from Saint Joes along the I 35 corridor, some intense thunderstorms, not severe at this point. But as we make our way into the rest of the morning and into the midday hours, we could see more of this begin to develop.
Now from Wichita northward, even into Manhattan, Kansas it is just light to scattered showers. As we make our way into the afternoon, we will have more heating. When that heating takes place, it means more convection, more cloud development, more storm development. With that we may deal with another round of tornadoes. At minimum, at least some strong thunderstorms that could provide more rain, damaging winds and hail. Certainly something we will watch out for into the central Plains. That's the latest. Let's send it over to the news desk.
NGUYEN: A lot of excitement this hour in Washington the fight against breast cancer hits the streets for the second day in a row. It's all part of the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. The two-day 39-mile walk raises money and awareness for the treatment and prevention of breast cancer. Living with cancer is hard enough, but coping with it while still on the job, that's an added stress.
HOLMES: CNN's Kyung Lah reports on how a program called Look Good, Feel Better helps women with cancer get back to work.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ELIZABETH SHEPHERD, BREAST CANCER PATIENT: I would grab a little piece of it and go, see?
KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Breast Cancer patient Elizabeth Shepherd was prepared to laugh about the effects of cancer to cope with the disease. What she wasn't ready for, the effects on the people around her. Especially at her job.
SHEPHERD: It was hard. I have to say. I left the office on a Friday with long hair. On Wednesday I came into the office with no hair. I'm a successful professional woman and, you know, here I am in this position where people are thinking, you know, hope she makes it kind of thing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People wonder, you know, is it OK for me to talk to her?
LAH: That affected how she coped and how she felt. The American Cancer Society says that's not unusual.
SUSIE SCHROCK, AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY: People may step back and be afraid to associate too closely with someone undergoing cancer treatment.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That looks really nice. Looks really nice.
LAH: This is one way to ease the isolation and impact of cancer. A session of Look Good Feel Better, a free service runs by the Cosmetic and Fragrance Association Foundation and the American Cancer Society. Patients learn how to take care of their specific and changing needs. Skin, make-up and hair loss.
The patients also get this bag filled with $250 of free high-end makeup. This may seem like such a simple concept, teaching women how to apply makeup, but these impacts more than a patient's appearance.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It empowers women. It gives them choices. I think women done always know the choices that they have.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It also gives women an opportunity to regain their self-esteem and confidence, which is a huge boost during a difficult time.
LAH: Makeup may seem frivolous when you are fighting for your life, but as Elizabeth Shepherd learned, when she felt better about herself, she fought harder.
SHEPHERD: You don't want to be shoved off in the corner. You want to stay in your life and look as normal as you possibly can. This program really helps women to achieve that goal.
LAH: Kyung Lah, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Well they do say attitude is everything. So that does make a lot of sense.
Coming up, as Mother's Day approaches, CNN's "House Call" takes a special look at women and heart disease. Find out how you can protect your mom's heart. Dr. Sanjay Gupta and "House Call" that is coming up this morning at 8:30 Eastern.
HOLMES: As we have been telling you about this morning, a new wave of tornadoes. Coming up, more scenes of destruction after dozens of tornadoes are spotted in the Midwest.
NGUYEN: Also, ahead being president, getting shot, and dealing with Gorbachev. The personal thoughts of Ronald Reagan during his presidency straight from his diaries.
You are watching CNN SUNDAY MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Well good morning everybody, on this Sunday morning, May 6th. Got a lot to tell you about. Welcome back. I'm Betty Nguyen.
HOLMES: I'm T.J. Holmes. The talk this morning is tornadoes from Oklahoma to Kansas. Dozens have been spotted.
NGUYEN: And victims are now telling their tales of survival.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The roof went. Then the ceiling fell down in. I was grabbing a hold of the door. I was hanging on to the door.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Sounds like something out of a movie. It was a reality for so many folks there on the ground in Greensburg, Kansas. We want to get more on this wave of tornadoes that just tore through the area. One of them, Sweetwater, Oklahoma, that was an area that was hit last night. At least one person was injured. And the town's high school and other buildings were damaged. The twisters were part of a storm front that spawned tornadoes all across Kansas, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Illinois, even Nebraska.
At least nine people were killed by the powerful storm system. Want to get you an update on the weather from meteorologist Reynolds Wolf in the CNN Severe Weather Center. We talked earlier about last night and the fact that 75 tornadoes were spotted on the ground. That does not account for number of tornadoes that people saw throughout the area that did not touch down.
WOLF: Absolutely. They will look at the entire event. We had 70 some tornadoes last night. We are getting some reports that were called in last night and then you have to count day one. We could still see a few more today. By the time all is said and done, we could see well over 100 reports through this entire event. Let's show you what's happening right now.
We are going to zoom in on a couple locations. This is what is happing right now; we still have a severe thunderstorm watch in effect from parts of southern Iowa into parts of northern Missouri from Des Moines to about Kansas City, right along the I-35 corridor. As you travel just to the south of in the southwest back into Wichita, you are about to deal with some strong storms right overhead with those drifting into places, say, like back towards Elk City, along I-40. That corridor has been hammered over the last couple of days. And we are dealing now with not only the chance of more tornadoes today but also flash flooding. Which is no doubt it is going to occur because of the ground being saturated. Could we see more of this? Absolutely. Look at this tornado that we have, folks this was actually brought in yesterday. I believe this storm chaser, if I am not mistaken was in Kansas.
You see quite a bit of debris being kicked up with this storm. With the debris, that's the number one killer with any of these. With the smallest thing, a pebble, a penny, a coin, anything could become a deadly projectile when picked up by these winds; winds that can reach speeds of 318 miles per hour. This is another common sight throughout the Central Plains and we may see it today.
We have had, no question, quite a bit of damage in many communities throughout the Central Plains. It's a day where people will definitely be on their guard from Wichita, from Oklahoma, northward to the Dakotas. It could all happen again. Back to you.
HOLMES: Reynolds, a tornado on the ground for 20 minutes, that sounds like an awful long time, but that's what the National Weather Service reporting that one of these things might have done. Been on the ground for 20 minutes. Is that the norm?
WOLF: It's not the norm. We have followed tornadoes, we have followed them before that have been on the ground for well over an hour. That has happened. But that is really the exception. Most of these tornadoes, when they form, they do so very quickly, they're on the ground for just a matter of seconds and then, just then, they begin to dissipate. But being on the ground for 20 minutes is certainly, certainly a long duration but certainly not unheard of.
NGUYEN: Well, now, does that usually happen in areas that are not populated so there's more room for it to roam and stay on the ground, and nothing to stop it?
WOLF: There's no scientific study right now that proves when these things form -- they form -- become bigger because they happen to be in a populated area or a place that is sparsely populated. They can happen really any place on the planet. They just happen to occur more than any other spot right into the Central Plains.
Now, in terms of the longevity, how long they stay on the ground, that is still guesswork. We don't understand why some stay on the ground for a long time and why others don't. It's a mystery.
HOLMES: A scary thought, 20 minutes. You talk about an hour, my goodness.
NGUYEN: A lot of damage to be done within that time.
WOLF: No question about it.
NGUYEN: Thank you, Reynolds.
HOLMES: All right. Reynolds, thanks so much.
Also new this morning, President Bush has declared parts of Kansas a disaster area. That makes federal dollars available for areas ravaged by those tornadoes. The governor of Kansas says FEMA promises a quick response and Kansas Senator Pat Roberts echoed the governor's assurances. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. PAT ROBERTS (R-KS): I will tell you, this will not be another Katrina in regards to housing, and assistance, and FEMA, and law enforcement and everybody else. Already we have emergency people there. Already FEMA has been notified and are standing at the ready.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: And a White House spokesman issued a statement saying the president's thoughts and prayers are with the people of Greensburg and all of those who have suffered loss and injury.
NGUYEN: Their homes -- just gone; their town destroyed. Residents of Greensburg, Kansas, are faced with just trying to get back to the basics, a roof over their head and food and water. Hundreds are take refuge in nearby towns. Kim Hynes of affiliate KWCH reports from a shelter in Haviland, Kansas.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KIM HYNES, REPORTER, KWCH (on camera): I'm here at Haviland High School, just one of three shelters set up for people who have been evacuated from Greensburg. I spent some time here and talked to people who survived the tornado and heard their stories.
Julie Harshi (ph) sits bandaged in a hospital gown, still stunned by the tornado that hit her Greensburg apartment.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Suddenly the roof went. And not all the ceiling fell down in. I was grabbing ahold of the door. My little rear end was just flying. I was hanging onto the door.
HYNES: Harshi (ph) made it outside and passed out. She woke up in the back of a pick-up headed to the hospital.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is what they do with you when they don't know who you are.
HYNES: Neil Patent (ph) doesn't know anybody around here. He's a truck driver now stranded because of the tornado.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My tractor is laying on its right side. The trailer is completely off its wheels, laying on another guy's trailer of his truck.
HYNES: So, he'll stay at the shelter along with Harshi (ph), but neither mind because they both know they're lucky to be alive. In Haviland, Kim Hynes, KWCH 12, Eyewitness News.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: And we have been monitoring the new video and bringing that to you here, but also a lot of stuff going on, on the web. Nicole Lapin has been tracking some of that stuff that's been happening on the web. She joins us now this morning with that. Good morning to you.
NICOLE LAPIN, CNN INTERNET REPORTER: Good morning, T.J.
You know, when you see all those pictures of destruction it really doesn't mean anything until you see what the town looked like beforehand. That's what people are doing online right now. They're posting pictures from Greensburg, Kansas, before the tornado happened.
So take a look at this man. This is Richard Huckright (ph). He started working at the Hunter Drugstore back in 1952. Look at this soda shop. It's classic. You have that walnut and marble booths, you have these tin tiles on the ceiling. It was a main meeting place in Greensburg.
Also this, the Greensburg claim to fame was this Greensburg Well. It was built in 1888. It was the main attraction in town. Then I want to show you what the well looks like now. We just got these pictures in. Take a look at this well. This was the main area of town. This is what it looks like now.
Then we also have some pictures of what the downtown looked like right where that Hunter Drugstore stood. I was reading this blog online that said, "My God, it is all gone." That really sums it up right now.
So we are looking online. The main story online is that of remembrance. So people are posting their blogs and we're reading those, but also asking to you send us your pictures as well at cnn.com/ireport. We keep monitoring the web right now, because as you were mentioning there were tornadoes happening all yesterday from Oklahoma to South Dakota. So we're certainly going to see more pictures come in throughout the day. We'll bring those to you -- Betty and T.J.
NGUYEN: Yes, there's was a lot of talk yesterday about that well. That is their claim to fame. I think it's the largest hand dug well.
LAPIN: Hand-dug well. Yeah, indeed. So, obviously, you can't destroy the bottom part.
NGUYEN: Right, so that is intact.
LAPIN: But all of the surrounding area, and the buildings above are completely destroyed.
NGUYEN: Oh, goodness, just looking at these pictures --
LAPIN: And the meteorite. I have to mention the meteorite, Betty.
HOLMES: Oh, yeah.
LAPIN: This was this main area in the town. And everybody loved this meteorite, and everybody would go around, and the tourists would gather around. That's destroyed, too. You have to really see what it was like before to get a great perspective of what it's like right now after we have been seeing those pictures so much.
NGUYEN: And aside from all of that, this was is a place that so many folks -- what -- 1500, called home.
LAPIN: Right.
NGUYEN: And many of them are in shelters or with families this morning because, like they said, everything is gone.
LAPIN: Everything is gone.
NGUYEN: Nicole, thank you.
LAPIN: Sure.
HOLMES: All right. Thank you, Nicole.
And we want to turn to some other news now. We will move over to Iraq where we are getting word of three more U.S. service members being killed there. The military says two Marines were killed during combat operations in Anbar Province yesterday. And a soldier was killed by a roadside bomb explosion in Baghdad on Friday.
It certainly has been a bloody Sunday in Iraq as well. Officials say three car bombs killed at least 40 people and wounded 85 others. Two of those bombings happened in Baghdad, the third in Samarra.
Iraqi police say U.S. aircraft opened fire on several homes Baghdad's Sadr City neighborhood today. The Iraqis say a raid on the Shiite stronghold began early this morning. The U.S. military says its troops returned fire after they were attacked.
NGUYEN: There's no signs yet of a Kenyan Airlines jet believed to have crashed early yesterday. That search in a remote area of Cameroon is being hampered by fog and thick tropical forest. Teams of rescuers and villagers are combing this remote area but the search is also hampered because the jet's emergency locator signal has gone silent. The plane with 114 on board was headed from Nairobi, Kenya.
HOLMES: Here's some politics now. When Republicans running for president debated this past week and they invoked the name of Ronald Reagan 19 times. That says a lot about how popular the ex-president remains. The release of Reagan's personal diaries this month offers a rare glimpse of the man behind the political icon. Our special correspondent Frank Sesno covered the Reagan presidency for CNN.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RONALD REAGAN, FMR. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I Ronald Reagan do swear --
FRANK SESNO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The actor turned president started keeping a diary the day of his inauguration in 1981 and almost never skipped a day; the entries ranging from the profound to the mundane. There is humor and emotion throughout. He writes of driving through throngs in New York, "I wore my arm out waving back to them. I pray constantly I won't let them down."
An assassination attempt nearly killed him. The president remembers, "I walked into the emergency room and was hoisted on to a cart where I was stripped of my clothes. It was then we learned I had been shot and had a bullet in my lung. Getting shot hurts."
The diaries are filled with references to politics and politicians, terrorism, and tax cuts. Of the dramatic 1986 summit with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, when both countries nuclear arsenals were on the table, Reagan writes about his refusal to kill Star Wars, his dream of a shield against incoming missiles.
"I pledged I wouldn't give away SDI and I didn't. But that meant no deal. I was mad. He tried to act jovial, but I acted mad, and it showed."
There is much, much more. The diaries reveal rifts with his children. One time his son, Ron, hung up on him. Quote, "End of a not perfect day." After his daughter Patty screamed about the Secret Service protection invading her privacy, he wrote: "Insanity is hereditary, and you catch it from your kids."
But something else is constant. His devotion to Nancy shines through again and again. This entry from 1981: "Our wedding anniversary, 29 years of more happiness than any man could rightly deserve."
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: And we are joined now by Frank Sesno to talk more about these Reagan diaries. These things are absolutely fascinating. He talks about the big issues going on in the world. He talks about family and the smallest little issues he's having. But in particular there are certain and plenty of references in there to his kids. Talk to us about things you are finding about some of the entries having to do with his kids.
SESNO: Well, one I really find fascinating is where he writes about a phone call he had with his son, Ron. Ron was bristling at all the Secret Service protection. So was his daughter, Patty. But he says, "This evening, Ron called all exercised because Secret Service agents had gone into their apartment," meaning him and his wife, in California, "to fix an alarm on one of the windows. I tried to reason with him that this was perfectly OK. I told him quite firmly not to talk that way to me and he hung up on me. End of a not perfect day," the president wrote.
You know, when it goes bad with your kids, it goes bad.
HOLMES: Now, you covered Reagan for six years. You know him pretty well -- or knew him pretty well, covering him all that time. Even reading through these yourself, did you get new insights into who this person was that you already thought you knew pretty well? SESNO: You know, T.J., I covered him for six of his eight years. I had done several documentaries, I've spent time with his family, I've spent time in the Reagan Library, I've looked at his extensive writings, what comes out in these diaries reinforces -- really, a remarkable revision in the way we thought about Reagan when he was president.
A common conventional wisdom when he was president, he was upstairs in the residence napping. Was that all of his aides were doing all of his thinking for him. That couldn't be further from the truth. These diaries, like a lot of his writings at the library that we found since his presidency are filled with detail, filled with plans and programs, idealism, sometimes very simplified, but really quite precise.
Reagan wrote a lot of letters, too. He wrote 10,000 letters during his presidency, some have estimated. So, if he was napping upstairs, they were short naps because he was a prolific writer.
HOLMES: How rare is it for us -- and how, I guess, fortunate we all are that he decided to do this. He kept a daily diary from the moment he got to the White House. I mean, who has time to do this? Who thinks to do this?
SESNO: Well, it's so true. I don't know that we've seen anything like this, and I'm not sure that we ever will again, because everybody is so afraid of being subpoenaed and having their stuff end up in front of a court. He did this almost on a daily basis. The writings are fascinating not just because they're Reagan, but because think of any president, with the weight of the world on his or her shoulders, going back at the end of the day, sitting down. And kind of saying what they thought, what they experienced.
There's one here on Israel, for example, when Israel bombed Iraq's Osirak nuclear reactor. He says, "Got word of Israeli bombing of Iraq nuclear reactor. I swear I believe Armageddon is near." Wow!
Then he writes, "More word on bombing. P.M. Begin", Menachem Begin was the prime minister, "informed us after the fact." You know, we knew some of this at the time but to hear it in his words, from his hand, is really just a remarkable thing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: And I got to read a lot more of those. And it is remarkable to see. He did it just about every day of his presidency. Just missed a few days when he was in the hospital. He was shot. He was busy.
NGUYEN: He was a little busy.
HOLMES: He had some stuff going on. Again, that was our Special Correspondent Frank Sesno reporting for us.
NGUYEN: That is really amazing, because this man was president, he had a lot on his hands. HOLMES: A lot going on.
NGUYEN: I can't even keep a journal five days in a row, during a seven-day week.
HOLMES: You can't even return e-mails.
NGUYEN: This is true, or phone calls.
All right. But I will tell you this, the storms they are not over for Kansas. Hundreds of people have already lost everything. Now more severe weather is hitting the Midwest. We will also take a look back at some of the worst tornadoes in U.S. history.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Well, take a look at the radar on the left-hand side of your screen. See all those different colors? Especially the reds and yellows? They are under a severe thunderstorm watch in Kansas and Iowa.
This is the same storm system that we saw over the past couple of days just tear through Kansas leaving so much destruction behind, especially in Greensburg in that area, eight people died in a nearby county. Another one person has been killed leading to nine deaths because of the twisters that tore through the middle section of the U.S.
HOLMES: And that twister in Greensburg was one of the worst, maybe in recent memory. CNN's Joshua Levs tells us about some of the worst tornadoes in U.S. history.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOSHUA LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The devastation, the loss, images all too familiar, especially to residents of the so- called tornado alley in the Midwest and South.
The National Weather Service says the deadliest tornado disaster was in March 1925. It struck Missouri, Illinois, and Indiana killing nearly 700 people.
Almost 50 years later, in April 1974, came the worst single outbreak of tornadoes in the shortest period of time, the infamous, "Super Outbreak"; 148 across 16 states in less than 24 hours. More than 300 people were killed.
One of the largest single twisters recorded was recent, in Hallam, Nebraska, in April of 2004. The National Weather Service says it measured nearly 2.5 miles across, though it killed only one person.
The U.S. experiences about 1,000 tornadoes a year, more than any other country, and the National Weather Service says about 60 people are killed each year. More die in heat or floods and in recent years, more have died in hurricanes. But of course, the impact of a tornado is not measured just in lives lost. Many in Greensburg, Kansas, who survived the latest twisters, have lost their livelihoods, homes, everything of sentimental value. Tornadoes generally last only a few minutes, but can destroy what people have spent years working for.
TERRY DAVID, KANSAS EMERGENCY MGMT.: This is the most significant emergency the state of Kansas has faced in a long, long time.
LEVS (on camera): One thing that's not known is how much it will end up costing the state. The National Weather Service says the costliest tornado ever was in 1973, in Georgia. When you account for inflation it ended up costing the state more than $5 billion. Joshua Levs, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: Will this weekend's tornadoes make history? That's a big question. Especially after all the damage that we've seen, because dozens of tornadoes have been reported. In fact, 75 touched down yesterday according to reports. And weather experts are still counting and surveying the damage.
HOLMES: We will switch gears, certainly had a horse yesterday that switched gears in the Kentucky Derby. The winner may have finished first, but it's the hats, the hats that may be the big winners that stole the show yesterday at the Kentucky Derby. We'll get into that. Stay here.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Street Sense was in 19th place, Betty. There were 20 horses in the race. This one was in 19th. Roared to the head of the pack in the final quarter mile at Churchill Downs yesterday to win the Kentucky Derby. More than 156,000 people cheered. And, of course, showed off their hats, and got a little tipsy sipping on the Mint Juleps, and whatnot. This is the third largest crowd in the Derby's 133-year history.
NGUYEN: I wonder what the pay-out was.
HOLMES: $1.45 million to the winner.
NGUYEN: Really?
HOLMES: Yes, I'm getting a horse this weekend.
NGUYEN: I'll go in with you. Maybe together we can afford one.
One person's presence in particular added to the event's glamour. Britain's Queen Elizabeth saw her first Kentucky derby in person. A Buckingham Palace spokesperson says she was very interested in the horses, but of course, she didn't place any bets.
HOLMES: Whatever.
NGUYEN: Right. Churchill Downs made careful preparations for the royal spectator and some workers even -- get this, T.J. -- took etiquette lessons. And the queen was offered a lavish meal featuring a variety of Kentucky ingredients.
I don't get that was Kentucky Fried Chicken, though. I doubt that was on the menu.
HOLMES: You do need etiquette, I'm sure she does not do that when you meet her --
NGUYEN: Oh, no, no you have to use the right fork, knife and all of that good stuff. The hats are as much of a draw as the horses.
HOLMES: Here are a few of the funky, fashionable and funny headgear that people wore to the race.
NGUYEN: Look at that one. I think that's the spire at Churchill Downs there.
HOLMES: OK.
NGUYEN: I think you have to strap that thing on. Don't know how you will be able to keep that on in the wind.
HOLMES: OK, that's nice.
NGUYEN: That's a nice hat.
HOLMES: We don't know who they are. That's a pretty good shot there, of their backs -- and their hats.
NGUYEN: Whoa! Check that one out. With the cigar, to boot.
HOLMES: Man. I can't recommend that one. But I'll -- all right, bro, do your thing.
NGUYEN: Barbaro, in memory of the beloved horse. If you look at the top of that hat, that's what Rick Horrow was showing us yesterday, there's a commemorative Barbaro doll.
HOLMES: The doll he was playing with the doll on the air yesterday.
NGUYEN: How old is the man, he's still playing with dolls?
HOLMES: Yeah, we don't want to say how old.
NGUYEN: We have to talk to him about that.
(LAUGHTER)
HOLMES: Stay here with us, folks. We will be talking about a high school drop-out and the possibility of that drop-out being a role model. They could be if they also become the police chief of our nation's capital. That's next on CNN SUNDAY MORNING. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Well, Washington, D.C. has a new police chief.
NGUYEN: Yes. A woman with a past, who put it all behind and became a role model -- and top law officer. CNN's Gary Nurenberg has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GARY NURENBERG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Little Cathy Lanier got in trouble early.
CHIEF CATHY LANIER, POLICE CHIEF, WASH., D.C.: I dropped out after the 9th grade.
NURENBERG: Became a mother at 15, was good at it, she says, because of her own mother.
LANIER: You are the one person in my life who never gave up on me. Who was never embarrassed or ashamed of me, even when you probably should have been.
NURENBERG: Lanier got a high school equivalency degree, became a D.C. cop at 23.
LOU CANNON, D.C. FRATERNAL ORDER OF POLICE: She is the American dream personified.
NURENBERG: Lou Cannon is president of the Washington's Fraternal Order of Police.
CANNON: She could have just stopped and she could have said, I can't do this. I will be trapped in this life forever. She didn't.
LANIER: Instead of viewing those situations as negative, you just have to kind of move on.
NURENBERG: She did. Earned two masters degrees and began a fast climb, eventually coordinating huge security events like President Reagan's funeral and catching the eye of a young D.C. councilman who admired her fight against sexual harassment in the police department.
MAYOR ADRIAN FENTY, WASHINGTON, D.C.: She is a person who can draw a line in the sand that she won't cross. She will compromise up to a point and she won't take anything, from anyone.
LANIER: So, I decided to come up with a compromise instead of this just being a -- this being a dictatorship.
NURENBERG: Lanier stayed on the streets during her rise, a vigil for a fallen officer would find her there earning rank-and-file respect for a white woman on a mostly black, mostly male force.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She's been out there, she's been on the front lines. She understands. NURENBERG: When that young councilman was elected mayor, he remembered Lanier.
FENTY: We have the best police chief in the country. I'm honored to swear her in.
NURENBERG: Her mother held the Bible, her son held her mother. The chief asked the big question:
LANIER: Who would have thought 20 years ago I would be standing here today.
NURENBERG: The mayor calls her a role model. Drop-out, unwed mom, chief of police in the nation's capitol.
LANIER: Congratulations. Have a good time and be safe out there.
NURENBERG: Gary Nurenberg, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEVE HEWITT, GREENSBURG CITY ADMINISTRATOR: I held my son as he cried, my wife was crying. We got close together but yet it was over. I walked around the corner I looked up the stairs and I saw nothing but sky. No more house. And I walked up and looked and no more neighborhood.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Can you imagine two days of destruction in tornado alley? Dozens of twisters, nearly a dozen deaths. We have live coverage though out the morning.
HOLMES: From the CNN Center this is CNN SUNDAY MORNING, it is May 6, 8:00 a.m. here at CNN Headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia, 7:00 a.m. in Greensburg, Kansas, where there is not much left apparently of Greensburg this morning.
NGUYEN: Good morning, everyone. I'm here with T.J. Holmes. Betty Nguyen. We want to thank you for being with us today.
HOLMES: New storms ripped through the Midwest and a new path of destruction. Tiny Sweetwater, Oklahoma, caught in the path of one tornado. It was one of more than 75 reported tornadoes throughout the Midwest.
New video just in to CNN this morning. A local high school and other buildings in Sweetwater badly damaged, about 100 residents there. Very little is left of the town. What would cause such destruction, you might ask?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go, back up. Back up! We're OK. We're OK.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Some storm chasers getting pretty close in Oklahoma. This amazing new video shows one tornado touching down on Friday. It was shot in Ellis County, which is just about an hour north of Sweetwater but look at that video. Can you just imagine the power of what a tornado would do, especially one half a mile wide with the kind of strength that this one has.
And there is more stunning video of some of the tornadoes that just swept through Kansas yesterday. Storm chasers captured these images near Great Bend. The National Weather Services said tornadoes touched down in six southwest Kansas counties; I want to get you another look at the twisters, both big and small. Tornadoes were also spotted in Illinois, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Nebraska.
HOLMES: Some Kansas communities took two hits from the violent storm system. This is what it looked like in Stafford County yesterday. Just the night before, one person was killed in the first round of storms. Nine deaths blamed so far and more than 50 others are injured. Those numbers could rise as information comes in from areas hit overnight by the storms.
NGUYEN: Though Kansas was hardest hit the National Weather Service reports a wave of tornadoes swept across several central Plains states. Here's a look at them. The big question now is, is it over? Reynolds Wolf is in the Severe Weather Center tracking the storm. This is a storm system that has really continued to stay on the move, Reynolds.
WOLF: It really has and unfortunately, many of the same elements, I'm going to show you exactly where the elements are in a moment, will continue through the morning and into the afternoon, possibly through this evening as well. We saw the severe thunderstorm watch into Iowa and northern Missouri; some of these have been severe. As you make our way back over to Kansas City, just near St. Joe's southward to Topeka, we have had reports of small hail, damaging winds and flash flooding in many spots which is no surprise because they've been dealing with rain through the central Plains over the last 24, 48 and even 72 hours in some cases and should continue through much of the day.
From Elk City southward to Oklahoma along I-40 and many spots in between that will be your scenario. What are the big elements in place today? Well very similar to yesterday we are going to have a lot of moisture coming in from the Gulf of Mexico. WE need some kind of lifting mechanism we are going to have that too, compliments of this area of low pressure and this frontal boundary, we got the dry line in place, the low level jet stream will play a part. As we get to the afternoon hours from parts of Oklahoma and into Kansas, once again this one band you see here, we have at least a moderate chance of seeing some severe thunderstorms, large hail damaging winds and maybe even another round of tornadoes.
It is going to be an interesting day for us. There is the potential we get to see more of the tornadic activity over places that have already been struck by tornadoes which doesn't happen all that often but that is a scenario that may play out for today. As we make our way into tomorrow the storm system will be weaker, should be weaker but we're still going to be seeing some rainfall through parts of the central Plains, moving into the Mississippi Valley. Now, this is another big concern forget about tornadoes for just a few moments. There's an area of high pressure that is sitting anchored over portions of the northeast. This low we've had over the southeast isn't going anywhere. Until this stuff moves out of the way it's almost like an atmospheric traffic jam, we'll keep the rain into portions of the Corn Belt which means we could see some widespread flooding in this area. So again, tornadoes today, but flooding may be an issue as we start off the work week. That's the latest we've got for you. Back to you.
HOLMES: All right. Reynolds, thank you so much. We'll check back in with you shortly for sure.
NGUYEN: We talk about the weather that keeps moving through. Over night and this morning Sweetwater, Oklahoma, took a brunt of a lot of this. Mary Joseph of affiliate KWTV filed this report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARY JOSEPH, KWTV: We're here in Sweetwater and really we're going to have to wait for the sun to come up. We're definitely where the storm came but we have to wait for the sun to come out to see the damage to the school. If you look directly behind me, that's the gymnasium. You can see a wall has collapsed there and the bleachers have twisted metal on them. If we swing over to the left, that's what's let of the all-purpose building, pretty much collapsed at this point, not a lot there to salvage. If we swing around you can see the shop building that also has extensive damage. We actually went back there, saw some tools out in the field. Really the school is estimating approximately $2 million in damage. They really had to take a good look at this in the light of day. If we swing over to my left you'll see the storm shelter. This is the school storm shelter we were told yesterday about 15 people were in here. We talked to one of the men when the storm rolled through, one of the things that we kept hearing over and over is how thankful this community is that no one was injured at this point. Looks like they have a lot of cleanup to do. Back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: The sun just coming up this morning in Greensburg, Kansas, shedding new light on the devastation there. The overnight curfew almost over less than an hour to go. Nearly every single structure in Greensburg damaged or destroyed. Here now, Ann Meyer from our affiliate KSNW.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANN MEYER, KSNW: Block by block, the devastation is incredible. Looking at what's left of Greensburg's Main Street. This was the city's high school. Take a look at this. This is all that's left of Greensburg's water tower. It's simply a twisted pile of metal. As for its best-known attraction the world's largest hand dug well, well it survived. It's underneath that silver grate behind me. Search crews have been through every structure, marking each one as they go through to make sure no victims are inside, but with all this debris, their efforts will continue for days to come.
HEWITT: You know 1,400 people in this community and I believe that 95 percent of the homes are gone and all of my downtown is gone. My home's gone, you know. My staff's homes are gone and we've got to find a way to make it work, come to work every day and get this thing back on its feet. It's going to be tough.
MEYER: While the town deals with the destruction, state lawmakers arrive to begin the process of bringing aid to this broken community.
ROBERTS: Our heart goes out to the people of Greensburg, and it's going to take a real effort for the rest of Kansas to get behind this community. That's why we're here.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Greensburg is in Kiowa County and the president has declared that county a disaster area. Federal funding will be available for the storm victims. The governor will tour some of her state's devastated areas later today.
NGUYEN: Well it's one thing to talk about the destruction and see the pictures but it's the stories of survival that touches our heart. Emerging from the rubble of these tornadoes is exactly that. Kansas house minority leader Dennis McKinney's home was destroyed, along with much of the town and he and his daughter survived by taking shelter in the basement. He joins us now on the phone from just outside Greensburg. I want to thank you for being with us. Boy, what a story, inside the basement. You were lucky enough to have a basement there. Talk to me about how this storm played out for you.
DENNIS MCKINNEY, KANSAS HOUSE MINORITY LEADER (via telephone): It was hard to describe. We were in the basement. There was a lot of noise above us. We were both praying pretty hard. We could hear all the, we could hear all the noise of everything being taken away. We were in the basement in the bathroom, and bathtub. Fortunately, we were very safe there. It's hard to imagine with all of the destruction passing over the top of you, when we finally came out, everything was gone but all I could feel grateful was that all of the destruction passed over us and we were walking away without a scratch on us.
NGUYEN: That is something to be grateful for. As you heard, nine people have been killed in the storms. You were in the basement with your 14-year-old daughter. I want you to take me back because you said something just now that struck me. You said when you came out and you saw all the destruction, you were grateful. When you stepped out of that basement, I want to you walk me through what it is that you saw.
MCKINNEY: First it, took us, we had to do some digging to get back up the stairs because there was so much debris in the stairway. We were concerned about our neighbor, we had a neighbor next door to the north of us who was home alone with her 1-year-old, very young son, and they had no basement and didn't make it over to our house. We had waited expecting her to be there so we were very concerned about her. We came out. We came out again, looked at her house to the north of us and it was gone, just a pile of rubble, and I was afraid no one could have survived. We went over and yelled and out of this pile of rubble her voice came out and she yelled "help me please save my baby." I yelled at the neighbors on north of us, and yelled at them to come help, and one of them is actually our school principal.
He went to get an emergency vehicle to get help, afraid they were badly injured, and then the school superintendent Mr. Hedrick and I started digging through the rubble. We dug awhile, it seemed it took so long. We pulled him out, he was mostly unharmed and we did some more digging and his mother came out. They were lying in a bathtub and we had to pull the bathtub apart piece by piece. She came out and walked away from it.
NGUYEN: That is amazing that you survived and the fact that so much rubble was strewn everywhere but you were able to not only help yourselves but also help your neighbors get out from all of that. Very briefly, if you could tell me, you know, Greensburg and the Kiowa County have been declared a federal disaster area. What do you feel needs to be done right now?
MCKINNEY: The first thing I have to say we have excellent storm centers that give us warning. We have an excellence response. Most of the firemen and EMTs are not professional, they're volunteer. They're making the sacrifice and this wonderful response. We finished the search and rescue and it's just going to take, we have to open up a new landfill, going to take a huge amount of time for the loaders and trucks, because really the whole town has to be hauled an put in the landfill and rebuilt. I think we'll do it but it will take a lot of fortitude.
NGUYEN: It is and looking at the pictures you can see that definitely. Representative Dennis McKinney there of the Kansas House Minority Leader there, thanks for sharing your story of survival and for what you're going to be doing in the coming days to get this town back in order. We appreciate it.
MCKINNEY: My family's safe, that's what matters most. The church can be replaced.
NGUYEN: Absolutely and that is the attitude to have. The fortunate thing is that so many people were able to survive despite the fact that 95 percent of this town was, as some have said it, wiped off the map.
HOLMES: They got enough warning, that's a good thing; the sirens went off for people watching the local news, the local weather sometimes so valuable for folks. They got the warning and they're used to tornadoes in tornado alley. Plenty of basements and storm shelters. Certainly it helped out.
NGUYEN: Absolutely. Families though still in distress. Because a renewed search today for a missing plane and its passengers is under way. We have the latest on this story that, is coming up.
HOLMES: Also back to work already. New Jersey's governor gets ready to head back to the office more than three weeks after a crash that could have killed him.
NGUYEN: Later on "House Call" a Mother's Day gift that will do a lot more than just warm your mom mom's heart, that is going to actually protect it. We'll tell you how.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Our Nicole Lapin joins us again; she has been keeping an eye on the web sites of our affiliates who have more on yesterdays out break of the tornadoes. Hello to you again Nicole.
LAPIN: Well we're getting a lot from our different affiliates from Oklahoma all the way to South Dakota, T.J., because we've been telling you about tornadoes that touched down yesterday, specifically in Sweetwater, Oklahoma, or the high school there suffered $2 million worth of damage. We just got this report in from affiliate KOCO. Let's watch a little bit of that.
We have a commercial right beforehand. We'll try to get you the report from KOCO, again the high school there were talking about some of the damage it sustained and actually tomorrow is graduation day for that high school, so they're scattering all around trying to get a makeshift area set up for the kids there to graduate.
We're also looking at our affiliates from South Dakota, and this is a tornado right here. If we can zoom in a little bit. Yeah, you can see this tornado that just touched down in South Dakota. These are the first preliminary pictures that we are getting in from Utica, South Dakota, and we are hearing that the barn there was destroyed but not on the other, none of the other structures. Now we have the video from Oklahoma. Let's watch a little bit from this affiliate KOCO.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is video of that tornado that went through Sweetwater and did quite a bit of damage there. We are told reports of $2 million worth of damage to the high school alone, but there is also a church, a post office, several homes that were damaged, also numerous cars in the area that were damaged and we're starting to get some of the personal stories from people in these towns about what it was like when this tornado came through, and one of the most dramatic so far seems to be out of the high school there in Sweetwater. Apparently there were a number of people inside that school, as the tornado approached, and luckily, there was a shelter, a large shelter that they were all able to run to, and get in, just before that tornado struck. You can imagine, after we see some of the damage and hear some of the reports of what this tornado did to that school, what it would have been like, had those people not been able to make it out of the school, so very lucky people out there tonight. Only one person with some minor injuries hurt.
LAPIN: Certainly we're waiting for the stories to color the story and as soon as we find any of those on the blogosphere we'll bring those to you, Betty and T.J. HOLMES: All right. Nicole we appreciate you keeping an eye on that stuff. See you soon.
Betty.
NGUYEN: Well it's been more than 36 hours since a jet carrying 114 people disappeared in Africa. That search continues this morning but hampered by dense rainforest, heavy rain and fog. The Kenya airplane disappeared after taking off in Cameroon and headed for Nairobi, Kenya. We'll update you as soon as things develop.
But we're also watching elections in France this morning. Latest word voters are turning out in droves to pick a new president. The choice for French voters a pro-American conservative and a socialist who could become France's first woman president.
Also New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine returns to work tomorrow after a near fatal car crash last month. Corzine spent nearly three weeks in the hospital recovering from a broken leg, collarbone and 11 broken ribs. Yes, he is returning to work tomorrow. Can you believe it? He also paid a $46 fine for not wearing his seat belt and apologized for setting a poor example. >
There are new storms and new pictures of damage to show you, what is ahead today for tornado victims. You'll have to stick around for that.
HOLMES: Also gas prices going up. What can you do to ease the pressure of rising gas prices, besides robbing a bank or stealing some gas? We have some news you can use, that is coming up after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): They jump from bed to bed and swing from chandeliers. They're the gymnasts and athletes from Cirque Du Soleil and their show requires them to stay in impeccable shape. Besides the physical conditioning, nutrition is the key to maintaining their physique while touring around the world. Cirque Du Soleil kitchen manager and chef Amira Eskenazi, travels with the cast and prepares over 300 healthy meals a day.
AMIRA ESKENAZI, CIRQUE DU SOLEIL CHEF: Things have to be diverse, two proteins, two starches, two vegetables, vegetarian.
COSTELLO: Eskenazi buys the food locally, scouting out markets before arriving in the city. Nutrition is her main objective, focusing on green and leafy vegetables.
ESKENAZI: They like the vegetables crispy so we try to keep the vitamins in.
COSTELLO: Although salad and veggies are a crowd pleaser the cast's favorite dish?
ESKENAZI: Meat and potatoes, especially when we set up and tear down, they want hearty food.
COSTELLO: Hearty foods and healthy food to keep athletes at the peak of fitness and ready to take the stage every night.
Carol Costello, CNN.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: The pinch, the pain or the pressure, whatever you want to call it. Americans are noticing a powerful change, a pricey change at the gas pumps. AAA says prices have jumped 30 cents on average since early April and with refinery production hitting some snags and demand for gasoline growing faster than usual, AAA says you could see record prices by the end of the month. I talked with personal finance editor Gerri Willis about some things you can do.
GERRI WILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: There are a few things you can do to save money. Now, obviously you shop around, gasbuddy.com, we say that all the time. But of course you can also share a ride at eshare.com. You can find somebody to buddy up with for your commute into the city. Look, if you are commuting 40 miles per day to work, that's is $2,600 a year. If you find a buddy to commute with, you're in better shape.
One thing you don't think about, if you get your gas every day at one of the places that has a convenience store nearby and you are buying the coffee and the doughnut and who knows what else you're really loading up on extra costs because that's where the operation makes its money, in that ancillary stuff they sell you, they really mark that up. So if you can cut that out, just having money at the margin so that you don't have problems. The other thing I want to mention is evaporative gas emissions, let's all say that five times fast.
HOLMES: Right.
WILLIS: If you have an older car, five years or older, guess what? If you park it in the sun this summer the gas evaporates. You slowly lose and gas is like gold now, right? You want to make sure that you park it in the shade so that you don't have problems with it. So there are three solid ideas for cutting your gas bill, and I know you have to, because you still have the SUV, right?
HOLMES: I still have the SUV. It does a little better on the gas mileage than my old one but I certainly don't want my gas to be evaporating out of that sucker.
WILLIS: No, you don't.
HOLMES: Something else I don't want to hear, Gerri is the talk you hear about $4, $5 plus gasoline. Is that stuff a real possibility and even if it does happen, what happens to us all?
WILLIS: Well, I got to tell you, if I could accurately predict gas prices, you know, I would own an island somewhere in the Caribbean right? I wouldn't be working for a living. But I can tell you what AAA saying. $4 gas is a possibility but not the average for the country. In California where gas prices are typically higher, that could happen. What they are forecasting right this minute is the prices will go up by 10 to 15 cents a gallon nationwide average, so whatever you're seeing at the pump right now, add a dime to it or 15 cents for the Memorial Day weekend. That's what you're going to be paying, and longer term, you know, I wish I could call it, but that's really tough to do.
HOLMES: Well, from dealing with gas prices to getting out of debt, good advice from CNN's personal finance editor Gerri Willis weekdays at 9:00 a.m. On "CNN Newsroom" and check out or top types at CNNMONEY.com/toptips.
NGUYEN: Well daylight is revealing new pictures of the damage; new storms actually have taken aim at America's heartland overnight. We'll update you on that right after this break.
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