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CNN Sunday Morning
Latest on Efforts to Rescue Trapped Miners; Faces of Faith: Interview With Les Cheveldayoff
Aired August 12, 2007 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: From the CNN Center in Atlanta, Georgia this is CNN SUNDAY MORNING, it is August 12. Good morning to you all, I'm T.J. Holmes.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Brianna Keilar in for Betty Nguyen who is on special assignment. It is 7:00 am here in the east, 5:00 am in Utah where we will have the latest the rescue efforts for those six trapped miners.
Plus --
HOLMES: Take a good look at that guy in the shades there. Do you believe he's running for president? And he has something to celebrate this morning.
KEILAR: And then this man, his job is to be Jesus. He joins us for our "Faces of Faith."
In Utah survivable space but no signs of life and some relatives of six trapped coal miners say they're losing hope.
HOLMES: These are new pictures now just in to us just a few hours ago from the rescue operation. Official says a camera lowered into the space where the men were thought to be shows there is survivable space, but there's no response. No sign of the miners yet. They are reinserting the camera now, this time with a different lens to hopefully get a better look. CNN's John Zarrella joins us now from Huntington, Utah with more on this development. John they were hoping this was going to be it. But now we still -- still more of a waiting game here?
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, T.J. What we had expected was some sort of news that they had lowered the camera back in there, but it's again quiet up here on the mountain in the overnight hours. No news from mine officials on what's happened with the camera. What transpired yesterday was, of course -- and they did release some still photographs yesterday showing both the 8 1/2 inch drill that they used to bore down into the cavity where they believe the miners are trapped as well as shots of the camera that they lowered down that shaft into the cavity to look around.
What happened was that as they lowered down into the shaft, as they reached the cavity, and they did find the cavity, a vertical lens picked up this open space and showed them that, in fact, there's about a 7 1/2 foot from floor to ceiling area, and about two feet of rock on the bottom there. But certainly about five feet of space, open space where the trapped miners could be. But they had a problem with the horizontal camera. The lens was dirtied up, got dirty going down. They couldn't get usable images from that horizontal lens, which is a 360 degree range.
So they brought the device back up and they were going to refit this. Now this is more than 12 hours ago now. And they expected within seven hours or so that they would have the camera back and reinserted. Again, we expected to have some news on what images they might have gotten from that horizontal lens, but nothing yet. Also at this briefing yesterday, they discussed further how the initial collapse took place, and what parts of the mine actually collapsed.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICHARD STICKLER, MINE SAFETY & HEALTH ADMIN: The roof line has not collapsed. And even in the area where we are doing the clean-up work, we do not see any caves or collapse of the roof itself. The material that is filling the mine entry or mine tunnel is material that was forced off of the walls because of the pressure and the weight of the strata bearing down crushing those pillars and causing the broken material to fill the void or the mine entry.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZARRELLA: Now, we still do not have word on what the oxygen levels are down there. Of course we know they have been pumping air, compressed air through that -- through that first hole they dug, the two-inch bore hole and putting compressed air down there as a precautionary measure to make sure that they can keep the oxygen levels up down there so that humans can breathe them if in fact these trapped miners are there. But no new word from mine officials on what readings they are getting on the oxygen. Now it's really a waiting game. No word on what progress they made in digging out that main tunnel.
HOLMES: All right. John Zarrella, for us there in Huntington, Utah. Thank you for the update. We will check back in with you. Thank you very much.
We turn to L.A.X., and a nightmare going on out there. Things are slowly returning to normal however, this morning but more than 11,000 international travelers were left stranded in airport terminals and on runways yesterday it happened because a customs computer system crashed. Passengers who got stuck went a bit stir crazy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE) We sat for three hours on a plane. Then we sat for two more hours in an aisle. And then we sat for another hour in a room. Then we stood in line.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: The computer glitch has been fixed. But the shutdown caused a huge backlog of passengers. If you are traveling from L.A.X. today you need to check the status of your flight before leaving the airport.
KEILAR: And some stranded passengers contacted CNN directly. Josh, you were here to tell us about that.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it's a confluence of technology doing something great and causing problems. We have this great thing the CNN I-report now, where you can send in your pictures, your videos, your personal stories, we post them on line and we share them with you right here on CNN. At the same time this whole thing was cause bid a technological problem out there at L.A.X.
I want to show you photos we received from an international traveler named Peter Geis. He sent us a series of photos that he took on the planes that he had been on and also on the waiting areas where put everybody they got off. Understand these people were coming in from very long international flights, some from Asia. Nonstop flights to the west coast of the United States. At the end of that, they are told they can't check in, they are sitting on the planes for several hours and then they are sitting inside the terminals at the airports unable to go through customs for several hours.
That extends the process more. We will share some of your stories throughout the day. We heard one woman. Jessica said she was returning from Beijing and she had been sitting on the tarmac there at L.A.X. for more than three hours. So the passengers were starting to talk to each other, get to know each other what can do you.
If someone else out there has pictures, your own videos from this, anything else you want us to know, it's not just L.A.X. Some people have been through similar experiences elsewhere. L.A.X. having these kinds of challenges actually can cause problems for other airports throughout the country. Let us know your experiences. We'll keep an eye on that all day.
KEILAR: All right. Thanks, Josh.
LEVS: You got it.
KEILAR: Here you can see this is a live picture of L.A.X. What they are dealing with, if you are traveling from L.A.X. Check the status of your flight before you leave for the airport.
An arrest warrant has been issued for a fourth suspect in the execution style killings in New Jersey. He is identified as 24-year- old Rodolfo Godinez. Police call him a principle player in the shooting deaths last weekend of three college students. Three other have already been arrested in connection with case. Meantime, grieving friends and family attended funerals for all three victims in Newark yesterday. The Deshawn Harvey, Terrance Aeriel, and Iofemi Hightower all college friends at Delaware State University.
HOLMES: Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney celebrating this morning. Romney easily won the Iowa straw poll taking nearly twice as many votes as his nearest Republican rival. Senior political analyst William Schneider, is called Bill as well, has all the poll results from Iowa. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL SCHNEIDER, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST (voice over): Mitt Romney needed a substantial victory in the Iowa strong hold, and he got one. With 11 candidates on the ballot, Romney came a solid first with a nearly a third of the vote. What about the front runners in the national polls Rudy Giuliani, Fred Thompson and John McCain. They skipped the Iowa poll. They forfeited Romney charged.
MITT ROMNEY, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It is too bad the other guys weren't competing here, if they though they could have been successful they would have bee here.
SCHNEIDER: Romney campaigned hard and spent big in Iowa. Now he hopes it will pay off by bringing him more national support and more attention to his message. Romney wants to be the candidate of change, even though there's already a Republican in the White House.
ROMNEY: Change begins in Iowa and change begins today.
SCHNEIDER: The other winners, Mike Huckabee's second place finish will keep him going and very likely pump up his standing with religious conservatives. The Baptist minister saw the straw poll as David versus Goliath.
MIKE HUCKABEE, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm not the best funded candidate in America, I can't buy you. I don't have the money. I got another thing, I can't even rent you.
SCHNEIDER: The only other candidates to get over 10 percent. The other contenders not so good. Did we see one or more of them hang it up?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHNEIDER: A straw poll is supposed to separate the starters from the nonstarters. And that process starts right now. Bill Schneider, CNN, Ames, Iowa.
HOLMES: And Bill Schneider will join us live from Iowa in the 9:00 a.m. Eastern hour. We'll have more on the Iowa straw poll and what it could mean for the GOP candidates. His performance in the poll got him second place but it was Mike Huckabee's performance on stage that was number one with some classic rock fans. Check him out.
Yeah. That's the former Arkansas governor there. He jammed out with fans in Ames on Saturday. You can make him out with the bass and the dark glasses. They performed several rock classics including "Born to be Wild."
Now we head over to a different presidential contender, and Senator Hillary Clinton is trying to build support in a crucial group, organized labor. Campaigning at a union hall in Houston yesterday Clinton pledged to work to help the middle class.
After a trip to Nevada on Friday, Barack Obama campaigned in Chicago yesterday. Speaking at a journalist convention in Los Vegas, Obama defended his statement that he would hold dialogue with dictators. His position sparked an earlier spat with Clinton.
KEILAR: In Utah people are waiting for answers. Later this hour families voice frustrations. The search for missing miners moves into its seventh day.
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And triple digit heat across the nation yesterday, it looks like it may continue for today. What about the work week? I'll let you know coming up in a few moments. T.J., stop it. Folks, you can't see it. That's good.
KEILAR: Right after this, our very own, Sean Callebs takes us to a theme park suitable for Sunday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Les Cheveldayoff has portrayed Jesus since "Holy Land" opened six years ago. He heard all the jokes.
LES CHEVELDAYOFF, PORTRAYS "JESUS:" The Jesus coaster.
KEILAR: It's a holy land experience Florida style.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KEILAR: The Orlando, Florida area is home to some of the biggest and most famous theme parks in the world but the city also has one you might not have heard about. It has no ride but visitors say it's just as thrilling. CNN's Sean Callebs takes an inside look at the one of a kind holy land experience.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CALLEBS (voice over): This could be described as a theme park that is truly out of this world. And the biggest attraction at Holy Land Experience is the crucifixion that you can see six days a week as graphic and grim as possible.
(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): Pretty much it's a living biblical museum.
CALLEBS: There are no rides here's and Holy Land really does not compete with the mega amusement parks in Orlando and elsewhere in central Florida. Hot summer months lure about 2,000 people a day.
(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): It's not very commercial, it is not very crowded.
(UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE) Good morning. Welcome.
(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): I always wanted to come.
CALLEBS: Les Cheveldayoff has portrayed Jesus since Holy Land opened six years ago and he's heard all the jokes. CHEVELDAYOFF: The Jesus coaster. You run with the laughs go with it, because people identify. You may be able to sneak in a few bits of truth.
Give to Caesar what is Caesar's and give to god what is gods.
CALLEBS: Which they do in biblical dramas. But the performances along with what is built as the largest private collection of biblical artifacts outside of the Vatican have not been enough to keep the park out of debt. Declining numbers of tourists almost closed Holy Land a number of times over the past couple of years.
TOM POWELL, CEO, HOLY LAND EXPERIENCE: There were times when we were so close. I would project our financial situation out for a couple of months, and it would be razor thin.
CALLEBS: But Holy Land has been given some heavenly help. In June the world's largest Christian television system, Trinity Broadcasting purchased the park, instantly wiping out $8 million of debt and giving it the kind of marketing budget it could never afford. Now Les Cheveldayoff worries less about losing his job and more about his wardrobe.
CHEVELDAYOFF: There's a right and wrong way to put it on.
CALLEBS: And making sure the holy land faithful get a different kind of theme park experience.
CHEVELDAYOFF: It's humbling. I don't think anyone on this earth can portray what Christ did properly.
CALLEBS: Sean Callebs, CNN, Orlando, Florida.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KEILAR: Later this hour we will talk with the man who portrays Jesus at the Holy Land Experience about his life really does imitate art that is Les Cheveldayoff. You saw him there. He will be our guest coming up in about 30 minutes.
HOLMES: Things we're keeping track of this morning for you. Those rescue efforts at the Utah mine and the recovery work in Minnesota as well.
KEILAR: And right after this, rough water and dangerous currents hinder the search for people still missing in the Minneapolis bridge collapse.
Meanwhile, in Utah --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): No good news.
(UNIDENTIFIED MALE) Same stuff. I'm getting tired of hearing it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Families getting frustrated with the long wait for word on those missing miners. Those stories later this hour right here.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KEILAR: You might have noticed how quiet the hurricane season is so far. Forecasters are revising their predictions saying they are actually expecting fewer. But they are warning it is way too soon to be complacent. Our Susan Candiotti has that story.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Miami's Biscayne Bay may be as smooth as glass now but between now and October in the heart of hurricane season, things could explode here, up and down the Atlantic and across the Gulf Coast.
DR. GERRY BELL, NOAA: For the conditions we are predicting typically we would see two to four hurricanes striking the U.S. That's what people need to be prepared for.
CANDIOTTI: Forget last year's unexpected reprieve from battering winds, the ride could be bumpy. The newly updated NOAA forecast has not changed much. As many as 16 named storms instead of 17 predicted in May. A possible nine hurricanes instead of ten. Three to five storms could be major. That prediction remains the same. The numbers virtually match last week's revision from Colorado State University's forecaster Dr. William Gray.
BELL: People should not let their guard down at all.
CANDIOTTI: NOAA researchers say you can blame it on an active la Nina wind pattern in the Pacific that increases cyclone development in the Caribbean and Atlantic.
STANLEY GOLDENBURG, NOAA: It is always spectacular when you are in a powerful eye.
CANDIOTTI: NOAA researcher Stanley Goldenburg who has flown through 100 hurricane eye balls for data says the Atlantic is warming up like picture in bull pen for October.
GOLDENBURG: It is almost like you are seeing the batters all line up on a star team. They have not started swinging the bats yet. They have not gotten any runs, but we are forecasting there is going to be a lot of runs because we see the line-up.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CANDIOTTI: Weather forecasters cannot emphasize enough if you are not ready now don't wait until the last minute to prepare. Every super active hurricane season since 1995 has had at least one Atlantic landfall.
Susan Candiotti, CNN, Miami. (END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Reynolds Wolf is here with us now talking about hurricane Flossie.
KEILAR: This is heading towards Hawaii, right?
WOLF: Right now the path, which we will show you, has the storm moving a little bit to the south of the big island of Hawaii. Even though it's not expected to make a direct hit, the southern shores can expect heavy surf, strong winds, and heavy rainfall as well. The high elevations of the big island, it won't help matters. Flooding could be a possibility.
We will give you the big bird's-eye view from up in space. You can see that big swirling mass is indeed Flossie, T.J.'s favorite name for a hurricane. We are expecting that storm to weaken a bit. In fact, it's moving into cooler water. As it moves into cooler water these tremendous storms derive all their power from warm water. It is expected to weaken a bit. The question is how much will it weaken? For the time being, this is a tremendous storm. A category four, not a category five, but still a category four with gusts up to 160 miles per hour. This packs a massive punch.
As we make our way over the next 12, 24, 48, 72 hours, we will see this weaken. By 2:00 a.m. on Tuesday dropping from this Sunday into Monday into Tuesday to a category 2 storm with winds at 105. Here is the big island. Passing just south of the big island at 2:00 a.m. on Wednesday. If this forecast holds true, it will still be a hurricane but the current path brings it south of the island.
However, you need to look at that cone of probability. There's always a possibility the storm could move further south, which would not affect the islands much or it could mover father north and go right through the islands. Regardless, we will watch this at CNN.
Meantime we are also watching and feeling the extreme heat through parts of the country. In Memphis, 104 the high for today, in Dallas we are looking at 102. Check out the temperatures in Dallas that we can expect for today, 102 to 104 on Monday. In Austin, a bit further to the south, a great shot from KVUE, which looks beautiful this morning? Expecting a nice day there if you don't mind the heat because in the capital city they can expect triple digits as well. That is the latest in your forecast; we will have more coming up throughout the morning.
Back to you at the news desk.
KEILAR: All right. Thanks Reynolds.
WOLF: Any time.
HOLMES: In Minneapolis at least five people are still missing in the collapse of that Interstate 35w bridge. Navy divers were in the treacherous waters about nine hours yesterday before thunderstorms and stronger currents forced them out. So far eight bodies have been recovered from the site of the bridge collapse 11 days ago. A double funeral was held yesterday for two of the victims.
Rise and shine. Shuttle "Endeavour" astronauts got their wake-up call a few minutes ago today the astronauts will use the shuttle's robotic arm to inspect a gash in the space crafts heat shield. NASA wants to see if repair is necessary. The gash is caused by a piece of fuel tank foam that broke off during launch. Yesterday they installed a new addition to the International Space Station.
KEILAR: We are watching developments in Utah where crews are getting ready to insert a camera hoping to learn what happened to those six trapped miner.
Also coming up this hour, a most unusual job. The job description, crucifixion daily followed by resurrection. We will talk to the man who fills this job later this hour.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The lines are long but it often does not compare to the confusion.
KEILAR: And our Betty Nguyen is on assignment in Africa. She is reporting from Sierra Leone one day after an historic election. Stay with us your in the CNN newsroom.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KEILAR: Hi, welcome back. I'm Brianna Keilar.
HOLMES: I'm T.J. Holmes. Betty Nguyen is in Sierra Leone for presidential elections.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): The sierra Leonens want their voice to be heard and make sure that their choice of the future is very clear.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Betty will show us why 90 percent of the population registered to vote.
KEILAR: And back in America just follow the hand, Jeanne Moos takes a close-up look at the president's gestures.
HOLMES: An update on the six trapped coal miners in Utah. Rescuers are reinserting a camera into the chamber where the miners might be. They are hoping the horizontal lens on the camera will give them a better view. Officials say the initial images from the camera show there's is survivable space but it's not clear whether there's sufficient oxygen. There's been no response from the latest attempts to signal the miners.
KEILAR: It's been almost a week since the mine collapse in Utah. It's been an agonizing wait for families of the six men. For some frustration builds and hope fades with each passing day. We have this story from now from CNN's Ed Lavandera.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Time has stopped in Huntington, Utah. People look and wonder about the fate of six trapped miners. Words of comfort are draped all over town. Inside this school, six families are living through what seems to be an endless ordeal and the waiting is taking its toll. Terry Erickson, the brother of trapped miner Don Erickson, left irritated after a meeting with mine officials.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are they telling the families?
TERRY ERICKSON, BROTHER OF TRAPPED MINER: Just what you are hearing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What exactly is that?
ERICKSON: Just the same stuff that's on TV.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Same stuff over and over?
ERICKSON: Yeah.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What about Bob Murray have to say?
ERICKSON: Same stuff. Getting tired of hearing it.
LAVANDERA: Mine officials have acknowledged that rescue efforts have not moved fast enough and that these families have endured without much positive information. The only question they want answered is whether their loved ones are dead or alive.
(on camera): About 50 family members attend the briefings on the rescue efforts, but when the meetings are over you can sense that the uncertainty looms heavily over these families.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No good news?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What did they say?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, no good news.
LAVANDERA (voice over): No good news because the progress is slow and definitive answers are elusive. Tomas Hernandez is the uncle of Luis Hernandez.
He says, "We're very sad as more time passes we are losing hope. We have very little hope."
RICHARD STICKLER, MINE SAFETY & HEALTH ADMIN.: The families are under a lot of stress and concern. It's been a long, drawn-out process. But they are supporting each other. And we are doing everything we can do to support them. I think they are remarkably strong.
LAVANDERA: Even if the six miners survived the collapse, their families know time is no longer on their side. Hoping and believing in a miracle is not easy anymore. Ed Lavandera, CNN, Huntington, Utah.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Turning now to Joshua Levs at the Dot.com Desk, been following the story on line, has some new details.
Joshua, good morning,
LEVS: Yes, good morning to you.
What we're doing is we are trying to follow absolutely everything. Any little piece of news that we get involving the miners and efforts to find them. I want to tell you something that I'm seeing this morning.
Our affiliate, KSL, which is out there, they are reporting that the federal government has sent two human-sized capsules to assist in this effort. What we are hearing is that there are these capsules that are sometimes used in mine rescues they are dropped way down to where it is believed miners may be trapped. These are big enough for a miner to crawl into and then be lifted to the surface.
Apparently this kind of thing has worked in the past. We are seeing from the "Salt Lake Tribune" that this method worked well in 2002 to rescue some miners in Pennsylvania.
However, don't want to get too many hopes up here. We are also hearing from the Associated Press, and several other places, that even that effort itself could take almost as much as three weeks, because you would have to drill a hole the size of that capsule in the first place. So why is this significant? What all these agencies are saying, and officials on the ground, is that every effort has its own significance. The fact that the federal government is sending these capsules along suggests, A, it's still a rescue effort. And B, that there are serious considerations for the possibility that the efforts going on now might ultimately not be the ones that actually succeed. T.J.?
HOLMES: All right. Fascinating new information there.
Josh, sure to appreciate it.
LEVS: Thanks.
KEILAR: And new this morning, the presidents of Afghanistan and Pakistan are pledging to work together to combat the threat from Al Qaeda and Taliban militants. Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Pakistan's leader Pervez Musharraf addressed a closing session of a tribal assembly in Kabul today.
A declaration coming out of the session called terrorism a common threat to both countries. It went on to say the war on terrorism should continue to be a part of the national security strategies of both nations.
The continuing threat of terrorism is just one of the topics on "Late Edition" today. Congressman Joe Sestak, a member of the House Armed Services Committee, and a Republican presidential candidate Duncan Hunter, they both will join host Joe Johns. "Late Edition" comes your way, at 11:00 a.m. Eastern right here on CNN.
HOLMES: They lined up by the millions in Sierra Leone, a country scarred by a long civil war, its people are raped, maimed and killed. This weekend voters cast ballots for a better life. Betty Nguyen reports now from the West African nation.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN (voice over): Sahr Tarawallie is preparing for a short trip down the road, but he says it is one of the most important journeys he has taken. And getting there is no easy task. He lost his leg during Sierra Leone's civil war. He said rebels stormed into the diamond mine where he was working and fired a rocket propelled grenade.
SAHR TARAWALLIE, VOTE: It was blown off by fragment of the RPG.
NGUYEN: Tarawallie did not think he would survive let alone see the day when he would vote in his country's second presidential elections since emerging from war. He wants to see the winner bring about change.
TARAWALLIE: What this country needs, one, good medical facilities, good road infrastructure, good education.
NGUYEN: So with the help of his wife, Tarawallie is doing his part to make that happen. And he is certainly not alone. People started filing in overnight, so many that when the gates opened, it was a mad dash.
(On camera): The lines are long, but it often doesn't compare to the confusion. Many don't know which of these polling stations to go to. After standing in line for hours, sometimes in the rain, you can understand the frustration.
(Voice over): Some 2.6 million people have registered to vote. That's 90 percent of the eligible population, according to Victor Angelo with the United Nations.
VICTOR ANGELO, OBSERVER, UNITED NATIONS: The Sierra Leoneans want their voice to be heard, want to make sure their choice of the future is very clear.
NGUYEN: That's because there's a lot of work to be done. Sierra Leone remains the second poorest country in the world with unemployment at a staggering 70 percent. And most people are still without electricity and clean water.
In fact, Tarawallie was being treated for cholera when he checked himself out of the hospital, just so he could vote. And because he's an amputee, he avoids waiting hours in line. But still, it's not easy.
Now having made the journey, Tarawallie knows exactly who he wants to win. His vote is quickly cast and his finger placed in ink so the stains of democracy are there for all to see. As he slowly heads home the excitement hasn't diminished.
TARAWALLIE: Oh, I'm happy.
NGUYEN: The question now is whether that enthusiasm will fade once the votes are counted. Betty Nguyen, in Sierra Leone.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KEILAR: We are getting some information from the military this morning about more U.S. troop deaths in Iraq. Officials say one soldier was killed by small arms fire while on patrol in southeast Baghdad. Now four others died yesterday in an explosion during combat operations south of the Iraqi capital. Four others were wounded.
Today on this week at war, training Iraqi soldiers in Mississippi. Afghanistan and Pakistan, plus Iran's influence in the region. "This Week At War", you can check that out today at 1:00 Eastern, with Tom Foreman.
A few stories to watch for in the minutes ahead --
HOLMES: A theme park Jesus. We talk to the man who has that job. That's ahead this morning -- there he is. Say hello to Jesus.
How you doing? Give us a wave, there.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good morning, T.J. How you doing?
HOLMES: Good morning, Jesus. Then I need to talk to you.
We have Jesus coming up. Also stay tuned for something else coming up here --
That's right. Our Jeanne Moos will read the secret language of President Bush's hand gestures. So stay right here on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: In today's "Faces of Faith", a man whose day job is to be crucified and resurrected, six days a week, to entertain tourists. Les Cheveldayoff says he did not seek out the lead role at the Holy Land Experience theme park in Orlando, the role found him. He joins us now from Orlando to explains what it's like to be Jesus.
My goodness, Jesus I have needed to talk to you for quite some time.
(LAUGHTER)
Thank you for being here. You are crucified and resurrected six days a week. How are you feeling? What kind of toll does that take on you?
LES CHEVELDAYOFF, PORTRAYS JESUS: I'll tell you, it's very humbling, T.J. It's an amazing responsibility, but I tell you God has really blessed me with an amazing job. Very unique job that I take very seriously.
HOLMES: Really, doing that day in and day out, we kind of joke here, you heard a lot of jokes and whatnot about it, you are doing serious work there. And certainly trying to get through to people, does it take an emotional toll on you having to do that day in and day out?
CHEVELDAYOFF: Yeah. I used to do a lot of plays. It's different when you get ready for a play, you can get psyched up for it. Or whatever, but when this is a daily thing, you really have to dig deep. Prayer is huge. We pray a lot right before going out there, just to get rid of yourself, the stuff going on in the day.
T.J, it's kind of interesting. I have a place, a point when I drive onto the property, I just say OK, this is it. I'm leaving my past behind, leaving everything behind. And now, you know, going into the role of Christ, which is, honestly, an amazing responsibility.
HOLMES: It's called a theme park. I guess it could be misleading, or it could be dead-on what would you say? Is theme park the accurate way to describe the Holy Land Experience you have going on there?
CHEVELDAYOFF: It's a spiritual theme park, if you will. I think a lot of people looking for rides and stuff like that. What we have to offer is basically you get to see Bible stories. You get to experience Bible time, things that you probably heard, read about, whatever at church. You can experience those firsthand. I'll tell you our motto is basically life-changing. You know, bringing the Bible to life, to all who enter our gates. And that's what we do. You will go away from there, changed completely.
HOLMES: Could this role that you play, do you think it could be played by someone who simply needed a job, and who was an actor? Or does it take someone deeply religions to play this kind of role?
CHEVELDAYOFF: That's a good question. I think it has to go down further. It's got to be something that is in you, that you just take a lot of pride in. Because, really, the hardest part of this job is not necessarily on set. On set I'm expected to do certain things. I'm right on letter (ph) , which is the words that Christ's speaks. It is off-set. It's your lifestyle. People see what you are doing away from the Holy Land Experience. You know, how you drive. Things you do at the mall. Places you hang out and stuff. It's pretty humbling.
HOLMES: Do you have to be really careful? Here to kind of wrap up, it's about the experience, day in and day out. The people, certainly, when people see you -- maybe, certainly, we have it in context here, looking at you, but if people just see you out and about. Do you get some stares? And do you to be careful? You can't exactly be seen out there taking back shots of Patrone (ph) at the local bar, if you know what I mean.
CHEVELDAYOFF: You got that right, T.J. I tell you, it's improved my driving. The last thing you want is a Christ figure cutting you off, or something. It's been interesting for my family and all. It's been very interesting for my wife. We can't go out to eat -- you know, someone is always coming up.
That's, again, another responsibility. It's something you have to take along with and spend the time. Kids in the mall, "Hey, Jesus!" You have to stop and spend the time. Last thing you want is some poor kid to be damaged and said the Christ figure dissed them right there. Said, "See, ya. Didn't even talk to me.
(LAUGHTER)
CHEVELDAYOFF: It's quite an experience.
HOLMES: I bet it is, well, Les Cheveldayoff, again, is playing the character, lead role of Christ at the Holy Land Experience, theme park in Orlando.
Sir, Thank you for your time. I can't help, can't resist by saying -- Thank you, Jesus. We appreciate you this morning.
CHEVELDAYOFF: God bless you. Nice talking with you, T.J.
HOLMES: Good talking to you.
Brianna.
KEILAR: Where animals are under threat, right after this, the story of one man risking his life to protect the mountain gorilla. He's a "CNN Hero" this morning.
WOLF: And hi, America. Hope you're having a great day, great weekend. However you won't get much of a break this weekend in terms of the heat. Expecting triple digits again.
And T.J., go away -- I swear he's on the other side of this camera dancing and doing goofy things. We'll take care of him, coming up in just a few moments.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KEILAR: This morning's CNN "Hero" low is fighting so to protect the mountain gorilla. Last month three female gorillas and one male gorilla were killed in the Virunga National Park. And in seven months there have been seven deaths as human make the gorillas pawns in their politics. Here's today's "CNN Hero", Eugene Rutagarama.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
EUGENE RUTAGARAMA, PARK RANGER: When you approach a group of gorillas, the first feeling that you are approaching a relative, a human being.
In this region we have been able to bring conservationists from the three governments together to sign an agreement to protect these mountain gorillas. Having rangers to cover the park with the patrol means that we keep the poaching at the lowest level, but the poaching is still there.
My name is Eugene Rutagarama. My work is to protect mountain gorillas in their habitat.
When I came back from Burundi, Rwanda was devastated by the genocide. You would see the bodies of dead people, thousands of people.
The whole country had to resume from scratch.
My attention went to the national parks. If these parks were not protected it means that we have lost the mountain gorillas which is a hobby for many tourists. They bring foreign currency for this country, which has to conserve these parks.
Gorillas can't really do much if a human being has decided to decimate or to kill the gorillas. They need to be defended, they need to be protected by human beings.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KEILAR: If you would like to help Eugene Rutagarama protect the mountain gorillas or to nominate your very own hero for special recognition, later this year, go to cnn.com/heroes.
HOLMES: We are keeping you updated on the latest news on the mine rescue efforts in Utah. Plus stay here for a story you've got to see. Jeanne Moos will interpret what the president is really saying. Here's a hint. It's in his hands.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Check out this i-Report video. This was taken by one of our i-Reporters, Jeff Pontsler, from Tama, Ohio. Tama, Ohio is about 50 miles from Dayton. Jeff said he got to this fire last night before any fire trucks had even arrived. Nobody was hurt but the 100-year-old building was a total loss.
Certainly feeling some heat there. We are feeling the heat here in the Southeast.
KEILAR: That's right, not just the Southeast. Reynolds Wolf is live in the CNN Weather Center.
(WEATHER REPORT)
KEILAR: President Bush letting his fingers do the talking. Our very own Jeanne Moos will take a closer look at what his hands have to say. That's after this.
HOLMES: And the spouses -- we usually say the wives -- but Bill Clinton is in there, the spouses of the candidates, we will talk to Judith Giuliani, perhaps one of the most controversial of the presidential running mates, if you will. That's coming up at 8:00 Eastern.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KEILAR: President Bush is heading back to Washington today after hosting French President Nicolas Sarkozy in Maine.
HOLMES: You have to hand it to the president he has a way of talking with his gestures.
KEILAR: That really got our Jeanne Moos studying his sign language.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Remember when the first President Bush so memorably said --
GEORGE H. W. BUSH, FMR, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Read my lips.
MOOS: In his son's case we decided to read his hands.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: On the one hand, on the other hand.
MOOS: The president's hands were busy at Thursday's press conference, weighing, slicing.
BUSH: The forces of murder --
MOOS: Even conducting.
BUSH: Let's see here.
MOOS: Though, we've seen him really conducting before, since the president is known for mangling phrases, like barriers and tariffs.
BUSH: Terriers and bariffs everywhere --
MOOS: Maybe it pays to pay more attention to what his hands say. When he says unwind, they say unwind.
BUSH: Unwinding Saddam's laws.
MOOS: When he says embrace, they embrace.
BUSH: Embrace liberty.
MOOS: When he says bottom up, so do his hands.
BUSH: Bottom-up reconciliation.
PATTI WOOD, AUTHOR, "SUCCESS SIGNALS": This is a sample of symbolic body language, where what you're saying and what you're gesturing means the same thing.
MOOS: But you better watch out. When the president starts pointing that finger, for instance, at Iran.
BUSH: When we catch you playing a non-constructive role, there will be a price to pay.
WOOD: Putting your finger on the point where you want to put the pressure.
MOOS: But don't read too much into gestures. We recall a time when Condi Rice flicked her hand across a face. The cameras clicked, the next thing you know it looked like a secretary of state under siege.
At the president's press conference, this was the moment that cameras clicked.
BUSH: Put up your dukes, it's an old boxing expression.
MOOS: When it comes to the president's favorite gesture --
BUSH: The role of the president seems --
MOOS: This seems to be it.
BUSH: I strongly believe that's the case.
MOOS: Translation?
WOOD: This is something I feel strongly in my heart about.
MOOS: Youthful gestures can come back to haunt a leader. Take Tony Blair. Take that hat. For years this innocent air-brushed photo circulated. Only recently did the original photo showing Blair making a lewd gesture hit the pages of newspapers like London's "Daily Mail". So the president better watch how he lets his fingers do the talking.
BUSH: Flexibility, distrust, is it worth it?
MOOS: It's worth it to keep your two hands straight.
DAVID LETTERMAN, TALK SHOW HOST: No. 9, not knowing his left from his right hand.
BUSH: The left hand now knows what the right hand is doing.
MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KEILAR: From the CNN Center this is CNN SUNDAY MORNING. It's August 12, 8 a.m., at CNN headquarters, here in Atlanta; 6 a.m. in Huntington, Utah. Good morning, I'm Brianna Keilar in for Betty Nguyen.
Our John Zarrella is gong to be updating us very soon on the trapped minors in just a bit.
HOLMES: I'm T.J. Holmes. Good morning to you all.
Hundreds of people are glad to finally be home this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We sat for three hours on a plane, and then we sat for two more hours in an aisle, and then we sat for another hour in another room. And then we sit in line.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: A computer glitch causes major delays at one international airport.
KEILAR: And Judith Giuliani, once the other woman, now a major player in her husband's presidential election campaign.
But first, rescuers in Utah are hoping to get a better view inside the area where six coal miners are believed to be trapped. These are new pictures we have just in to us this morning from the rescue operations there. Officials say that a camera lowered into the mine cavity shows there is survivable space, but there has been no response from the miners. The crews are reinserting the camera. They're trying to get a better look. CNN's John Zarrella is joining us live from Huntington, Utah with more. John what's the latest?
ZARRELLA: Well Brianna, still no word whether that camera was reinserted down inside the cavity to see if they can spot the miners in there. What happened yesterday was that when they inserted the camera, the vertical lens worked fine, and they were able to detect this cavity space that's about 7 feet tall, about 2 feet of debris on the bottom, some water on the bottom, as well, but a survivable space of about 5 feet. But they had problems with the horizontal lens. It was not working, it was getting fogged up, covered up with dust, debris, and some water as well.
So they took that camera, and they raised it back out, and they were going to refit it with some more protective housing and then reinsert it down. Now, they expected that that would take about seven hours to do, but we are well beyond that seven-hour period now and have not heard any new word from mine officials in about 12 hours. They did release some pictures that showed the actual drill that they used to go down inside, to drill that 8 5/8-inch bore hole down into the cavity, and then they also did show images of the camera itself that was lowered in. And during that same press briefing, they discussed how the initial collapse took place and what parts of the walls collapsed.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICHARD STICKLER, MINE SAFETY & HEALTH ADMIN: The roof line has not collapsed. Even in the area where we're doing cleanup work, we do not see any caves or collapse of the roof itself. The material that is filling the mine entry or mine tunnel is material that was forced off of the walls because of the pressure and the weight of the strata bearing down, crushing those pillars and causing the broken material to fill the void for the mine entry.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZARRELLA: Now, still no word on whether there are any readings of oxygen levels down inside that cavity, awaiting that news as well. And again, Brianna, we have not seen or heard from any mine officials here in more than 12 hours now.
KEILAR: All right, John Zarrella has been covering this story around the clock for us there in Huntington. Thank you for the latest on that.
HOLMES: So hope fading, frustration building for some families of the trapped miners. The community showing support in any way it can, signs, banners, prayer vigils. For some relatives of the men, are losing their patience.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE) Are you the family?
(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): What exactly --
TERRY ERICKSON, BROTHER OF TRAPPED MINER: Just the same stuff that's on TV.
(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): Same stuff over and over?
ERICKSON: Yeah. Same stuff. Getting, I'm getting tired of hearing it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Tomorrow marks one week since the collapse that trapped those six men.
KEILAR: And Josh Levs of the ".com desk" has been following this mine rescue story online all weekend and he has new details for us. Hi, Josh.
LEVS: Hi. Good morning to you, everyone. We're certainly trying to follow everything in the search for the trapped miners as it comes in. So any details that could be significant in any way we're going to bring to you. I want to tell you something interesting this morning that we're hearing. Our affiliate KSL, is saying two human-sized capsules have been sent by the federal government to this rescue effort. Now, these capsules can fit a person, and you drill a hole big enough to get the capsule down there, and once it's down there, someone can climb in and be lifted up to the surface.
We're told, we're seeing from the "Salt Lake Tribune" that this has worked in the past, it worked in Pennsylvania in 2002. However, there is a negative side to this; we're also hearing that it could take almost three weeks before the large enough hole could even be there to get the capsule down. So why is this relevant? What everyone's saying is this is a sign that the federal government and state officials and also those carrying out the rescue there might start to feel that the efforts going on right now might not do it. So they're looking at other efforts. They're looking at other ideas.
We heard some frustration yesterday by the officials carrying out this rescue mission. So they're trying to see what else is even a possibility. So that explains why these capsules have apparently been sent there. Also, you know, a lot of people are going to church this morning, there are a lot of people praying for these people. And last night there was a special service. I want to show you a picture here from the "Associated Press" and also "Salt Lake Tribune." Last night about 200 people got together at this church in Huntington, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and they were from different communities around there. They gathered. They offered prayers and songs for these missing miners and their families, and they also started a fast, a special fast to connect with these families amid the pain that they're going through. We here at the ".com desk" will be following all the details for you today. We'll bring them to you as they come in.
Brianna, T.J., back to you.
KEILAR: Thanks, Josh, for that.
HOLMES: Well a frustrating time for travelers at L.A.X. Airport. Things are slowly getting back to normal this morning, however. There is a live look at L.A.X. this morning, a little after 5:00 a.m. on the west coast. More that be 11,000 international travelers left stranded in terminals and on runways yesterday at L.A.X., all because a customs computer system crashed.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): Came over the microphone, and they said that there would be a little bit of a delay. That little bit of a delay turned into four hours. They had two laptops that were running. So everybody had to go -- I think it was 400 people that had to go through two laptops.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: The computer glitch has now been fixed. Still, if you're traveling to L.A.X., you need to check the status of your flight.
KEILAR: Meanwhile, an arrest warrant has been issued for a fourth suspect in those execution-style killings in New Jersey. He's identified as 24-year-old Rudolfo Godinez, and police call him a principal player in the shooting deaths last weekend of three college students. Three others have already been arrested in connection with the case. And in the meantime, grieving friends and family attended funerals for all three victims in Newark yesterday. Deshawn Harvey, Terrence Aeriel and Iofemi Hightower, all of them college friends at Delaware State University.
And we're also getting information from the military this morning about more U.S. troop deaths in Iraq. Officials say one soldier was killed by small's arms fire while on patrol in southeast Baghdad. Also, four others died in an explosion during combat operations south of the Iraqi capital. That was yesterday.
HOLMES: Well, got a couple of things, couple of stories we'll look forward to coming up here on CNN SUNDAY MORNING.
KEILAR: Could Iowa's straw poll be the last straw for any of the Republican candidates? Well, the outcome is minutes away.
WOLF: And from Kansas City to Denver, southward to Houston and over to Memphis and Atlanta, we've got extreme heat. It's going to last today, but how long is it going to last? For days to come. We'll let you know when we'll get a little break.
Plus an update on the tropics. It's all moments away.
HOLMES: All right, thank you, Reynolds. We'll see you shortly.
And also, dumping ducks in Chicago, a little something for you to smile about, maybe, coming up ahead on this CNN SUNDAY MORNING.
KEILAR: But first, a look at prayers going out to those six trapped miners.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KEILAR: Today will use the shuttle's robotic arm to make a detailed inspection of the small gash in the shuttle's heat shield. That inspection will help determine whether they're going to make a spacewalk to repair the damage.
HOLMES: What song was that?
WOLF: I have no idea. It's not in my selection, that's for sure.
KEILAR: It's not on the ipod?
WOLF: There are many cool things about being an astronaut.
HOLMES: Yeah.
WOLF: You get to use robotic arms; you get to sleep in a weightless environment, and the entire Tang you can possibly drink. Think about that.
KEILAR: Love the Tang.
HOLMES: Is that the highlight for you, man?
WOLF: Yeah. That's why I want to be an astronaut. Some people claim that I am. That's for sure.
HOLMES: I wonder why.
WOLF: That isn't the question. You know, we don't really have to talk about what's happening if you want to talk about things heating up. We have pleasant-a- of things happening on earth. In Atlanta, Memphis, Tennessee, we are looking at triple-digit heat. It has been happening the last couple of days, could happen again today, could happen tomorrow. Take a look at some these, Kansas City, out by Kauffman Stadium, a blistering hot day for you. In Memphis, Tennessee, on Beale Avenue, or rather Beale Street, it is going to be another roaster for you. Yes -- that's right, that's right. That's T.J.'s hometown. So definitely give them props there.
Houston, where it's going up in the triple digits, a very warm day, very muggy in Houston. Here is a great shot from KPRC that shows a little bit of a haze out there, but still for the most part a great looking morning. So good morning to you. Now, how long is the heat going to last in Houston? Brace yourself. If you want a cool day, you're not going to get it today, tomorrow, or even into Tuesday. You're going to get a little bit of a cool down as we get into Wednesday and Thursday. Maybe some stray showers. Right now we're looking at partly cloudy skies and I'm thinking maybe late on Thursday, Thursday evening, maybe some splash-and-dash showers from the sea breeze and daytime heating.
Speaking of the sea and the Pacific Ocean, we're talking about things heating up there as well. Here's Flossie. Pretty easy to see from high above. Here are the Hawaiians Islands, and over here to give your bearings here Baja, California, and of course the golden state itself. This system, this big, enormous system, which is a category four storm, a real powerhouse with gusts up to 160 miles an hour and winds, look at that, maximum sustained winds at 135. The storm expected to continue its march westward. As it does so, it will start moving into cooler water. When that happens, it's going to lose a lot of its power, going from a category four to a category two storm by 2:00 in the morning on Monday with winds dropping to 105 by 2:00 a.m. Tuesday, then 80 mile-per-hour winds at 2:00 a.m. Wednesday.
And if this path holds true, it should pass just to the south of the southern shore of the big island, bringing some heavy rainfall, some strong winds and possibly some heavy surf before making its way to the south and the west of the rest of the islands. However, you've got to look at that cone of probability. There is the chance that a storm could move a little bit more to the north and go straight through the islands. But at the same time, it could move farther south and out of harm's way. We'll watch it for you and keep you posted with the very latest.
And again, T.J., again, Beale Street, correct?
HOLMES: Beale Street. Thank you. What'd you call it, Beale Boulevard or something?
WOLF: Beale Avenue. I was thinking Union Avenue where Elvis lived, Graceland. Or lives, depends on --
KEILAR: who knows, right?
HOLMES: He's still there, actually. His mail still comes, everything.
WOLF: I've heard rumors.
HOLMES: Yes. Beale Street. Thank you. I'll take you there some time.
We have an ireport video we want to show you now from Jeff Pontsler, in Tama, Ohio. Jeff says he got to the scene of this fire last night before any fire trucks had even arrived. He says nobody was hurt in this fire, but this was a 100-year-old building and it was a total loss. So thank you to another one of our ireporters.
We're going to continue to follow the efforts to rescue the six trapped miners in Utah.
KEILAR: And also we're going to answer the question, who's the woman beside Rudy Giuliani?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JUDY GIULIANI: Rudy would be the best president of the United States.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: Judy Giuliani, the woman who would be first lady. Part of our special "Running Mate" series.
HOLMES: And then ahead on "House Call," a pill for the heat? New high-tech ways to help us fight heat exhaustion. That's ahead with Dr. Sanjay Gupta on "House Call."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Summer means fun in the sun, but that same sun can make running outdoors tough.
(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): The heat can be a significant limiting factor to what is physically possible, and if you try to run at a pace that is faster than your body can get rid of the heat that you're generating, then the body will begin to raise temperature and the mind then becomes clouded.
COSTELLO: So what should running fanatics do?
(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): If you're running and you begin to feel a little confused, your mind is not working as sharp as it should be, if paradoxically you begin to get chilled, you feel nauseated or queasy in the stomach, these are signs you might become overheated.
COSTELLO: And if you or a partner notices you've overdone it --
(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): You need to stop and walk. We think walking is better than sitting and laying down.
COSTELLO: Dr. Wilson says that's because it's important to keep circulation of the air across the skin. He also says when the heat rises, try to lower your intensity and spend less time outdoors. Happy trails! Carol Costello, CNN.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Well former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney savoring an easy victory this morning. As expected, Romney won the Iowa Republican straw poll Saturday, taking twice as many votes as his rival, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee came in second taking 18 percent of the votes, Kansas Senator Sam Brownback was third with 15 percent and Colorado Congressman Tom Tancredo took the fourth spot. The national Republican front-runner, Rudy Giuliani, didn't actively take part in that straw poll. The former New York mayor got only 183 of more than 14,000 votes that were cast. Now, we've been taking a closer look at the running mates of the presidential contenders, and today in a report that first aired on "AC 360," our Anderson Cooper has this look at Judith Giuliani.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Her husband credits her with helping him get through his hardest times 9/11, prostate cancer, but Judith Giuliani is arguably the most controversial of the presidential candidates' wives.
RUDY GIULIANI, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: She's a good friend, a very good friend.
COOPER: That was May of 2000, when the mayor was still married to TV personality Donna Hanover. A few days later, he announced his marriage to Hanover was over, and the gossip began in earnest.
LLOYD GROVE, "NEW YORK MAGAZINE" It was a complete surprise, I think to Donna Hanover, when he started taking up with then Judith Nathan.
COOPER: Lloyd Grove covered the city hall scandal and just wrote a profile of Judith Giuliani for "New York" Magazine.
GROVE: Rudy announced it on television and then it was a huge story in the tabloids and a huge soap opera in New York and beyond.
COOPER: Even "People" Magazine ran a cover story on the mayor's marital woes and it wouldn't be the first time Judith Giuliani then Judith Nathan would be the fodder for the tabloids, not the welcome a small-town girl might want. She was born in a Pennsylvania mining town in 1954. She worked as a nurse and married a medical supplies salesman, a marriage she never mentioned publicly.
GROVE: Wasn't that she claimed that she had only been married once before, but she sort of let it sort of stay uncorrected. So she just sort of let people assume that that was the case, and then it just reared up eventually.
COOPER: Five days after her divorce, she married Bruce Nathan, a wealthy businessman and they adopted a daughter. That marriage ended in 1992.
JUDITH GIULIANI, WIFE OF RUDY GIULIANI: I wanted to tell you all a little bit about how Rudy and I came to be our team together.
COOPER: This March, Judith Giuliani caused another controversy when she introduced her husband at a Manhattan fund-raiser with antidotes about when they first met without mentioning that the mayor was married at the time. And then another revelation, that Rudy's two children, said to be estranged from their father, wouldn't hit the campaign trail for their dad. His son Andrew was quoted as saying he has a problem with his step mother, not the best news for a candidate.
GROVE: For a presidential candidate to be estranged from his children is problematic and very troublesome, and Republican consultants I've talked to about this say, you know, if Rudy is serious about wanting the Republican nomination, he's got to repair those relationships with his kids.
GIULIANI: I have just recently begun; I think they call it in the political world, being ruled out.
COOPER: Giuliani says he relies on her completely, even hiring her as a campaign consultant. And in her first television interview with Barbara Walters on "20/20" in March, Judith Giuliani held hands with her husband and the two did the best to set the record straight on the hidden husband.
BARBARA WALTERS: So it wasn't that you were keeping it hidden, it's that nobody brought it up?
GIULIANI: That's correct.
COOPER: On being the other woman.
WALTERS: Did it bother you that the mayor was married?
GIULIANI: It was a rocky road, absolutely.
COOPER: On problems with the kids.
RUDY GIULIANI: She's done everything she can. She loves all the children.
COOPER: And on her husband's candidacy.
GIULIANI: Rudy would be the best president of the United States.
COOPER: We'll have to wait to see if the voters can set aside the gossip and give her husband their votes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: We'll, update now on the Giuliani story. Since the report first aired on "AC360", Giuliani's daughter Caroline Giuliani has identified herself on Facebook as a supporter of Democratic candidate Barack Obama. Now, when reporters started calling, she apparently removed her name from the Obama support group.
Well, next week we'll bring you more on the wife of undeclared presidential hopeful Fred Thompson. We'll have that for you.
KEILAR: And an update now on the desperate attempt to reach six trapped coal miners in Utah. Rescuers there are reinserting a camera into the chamber where the miners might be. What they're doing, they're hoping that a horizontal lens installed on the camera will give them a better view, and officials say the initial images from the camera shows there is a survivable space, but it's not clear whether there is sufficient oxygen. At this point, there has been no response from the latest attempt to signal to the miners.
And also in another development, affiliate KSLl is reporting that the federal government has sent two rescue capsules to the site in case they're need.
Have you ever seen a cop on a lawnmower? Stick around, because later this hour, we're going to tell you how this is the latest in speed control.
HOLMES: But first, we've got a look ahead to "House Call."
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Thanks, guys. Well, if you're recovering from the heat or still dealing with it, you're going to want to watch this show. There is a new high-tech pill that can actually measure your body temperature from the inside.
Plus, it's back-to-school time. Could you know the top three health checks your kids should have before hitting the books? Find that out, plus get all this weeks medical headlines coming up on "House Call" at 8:30.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Let's take a little stroll around the water cooler now, and folks are talking about this video out of suburban Chicago of a cutting-edge speed track.
KEILAR: As you can see, that's a cop, and he's holding the radar gun. He's dressed as a maintenance worker with an orange vest sitting atop a lawnmower in the median. Now, not surprisingly, it worked. They actually clicked 30 speeders in 90 minutes.
HOLMES: Some drivers, of course, not too happy about it. They say cops shouldn't be in disguise. They shouldn't be so sneaky about it. But of course, those are the people who are speeding. Of course those are the ones complaining.
KEILAR: I got a speeding ticket lately, actually.
HOLMES: How fast were you going, Brianna?
KEILAR: I -- it was too fast. It was too fast.
HOLMES: OK. KEILAR: I leave it at that. I deserved it, I'll say.
HOLMES: Wow! Cops don't hear that often, I deserve it, officer, and thank you.
KEILAR: Brianna was not reading the signs. My bad.
HOLMES: OK.
KEILAR: I deserved it.
Let's go to the next story. Can you tell what's being dumped into the Chicago River? It kind of looks like oranges or lemons, but no, that's 20,000 rubber duckies.
HOLMES: That's the Rubber Ducky Derby, an annual charity event to support the Special Olympics. $5 buys you a duck and the person with the winning duck actually wins a new car.
KEILAR: I'll bet!
Whoa. And this is some fascinating video, kind of disturbing, too. This is coming to us out of Siberia. This is an apartment with 130 house cats. And obviously, they get pretty excited around feeding time.
HOLMES: You have got to be kidding me.
WOLF: That's a nightmare.
HOLMES: Yes, that is a nightmare.
WOLF: Can you imagine the cat box? Oh my gosh.
HOLMES: Apparently, all the cats have names and they get petted daily. The woman who is taking care of them said the smell isn't that bad. But there's a good chance she probably smells like them at this point and doesn't even notice.
Now, the neighbors say the biggest problem here is all the meowing that goes on late-night, but my goodness. That is a bit ridiculous.
KEILAR: I have one cat, and it's a handful. 130, can't even imagine.
WOLF: It's like people in the audience at the Ed Sullivan theater when the Beatles first came out that first time, jumping around. Look at the cats, going cuckoo for cocoa puffs.
KEILAR: It's almost as if it's sped up there. It's just -- oh my goodness. I don't even know what to say about that. That's just crazy.
HOLMES: Good kitty, good kitty. Here we go. KEILAR: All right, well, also, of course, a story that we've been covering all weekend, we've been following, and we're going to continue to monitor -- the efforts to locate those missing miners in Utah. Right now, crews are trying to get a camera down a drill hole to get a better look inside. And when that happens, we're going to take you there immediately.
HOLMES: Also, Bill Schneider will join us live from Iowa at the top of the hour. We'll have more on the Iowa straw poll and what it could mean for the GOP candidates. Look forward to that. But first, "HOUSE CALL" with Dr. Sanjay Gupta starts right now.
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