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CNN Saturday Morning News
BP Working to Cap the Oil Leak; Showdown in the Waters of Gaza
Aired June 05, 2010 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Thank you to our colleague Dr. Sanjay Gupta there in New Orleans. But hello to you all from the CNN center here in Atlanta, Georgia. Welcome to CNN SATURDAY MORNING, 8:00 a.m. where we are, 7:00 a.m. down there at Grand Isle, Louisiana. I'm T.J. Holmes.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Suzanne Malveaux. Thanks for being here this morning and thanks for starting your day with us
HOLMES: And as you've been hearing Dr. Sanjay Gupta talk about it, it in fact, day 47 now of this whole oil disaster. Can you believe? Oil, thousands of barrels a day, has been gushing every single day for the past 47 days and now that oil is on the move showing up in places like Florida. Some of those pristine, white beaches.
Meanwhile, this is a big weekend, because the latest effort to try to cap that leak is going on this weekend. We should get an update at some point today from Thad Allen, having a briefing later this morning. We'll take you there live.
MALVEAUX: And, also, the race for the cure is in Washington, DC. It is the fight against breast cancer. We're expecting about 50,000 people to gather, to participate, obviously a very important event. The race is starting right now. We're doing to talk to the founder, Nancy Brinker who is coming up in just about 10 minutes.
But first a look at this morning's top stories ...
HOLMES: Up first here, President Obama expected to nominate retired Air Force Lieutenant General James Clapper as the new director of national intelligence. CNN will carry that announcement at 10:45 Eastern time when it happens live. If confirmed he will replace Dennis Blair who resigned last month. Political observers say Clapper's prospects for confirmation are questionable.
MALVEAUX: And Israel has boarded another aid ship on its way to Gaza, but this time the crew did not resist. The ship from Ireland says it contains only humanitarian aid. Nine people died when Israeli forces boarded another ship trying to break its blockade, touching off an international furor.
And UCLA's legendary basketball coach John Wooten (ph) died last night of natural causes. He was 99. He earned the title "the wizard of Westwood" after his team won seven straight national titles, from 1967 to 1973. HOLMES: And as we mentioned, today is day 47 now of this oil disaster and today and tomorrow could be critical days in the effort. You're seeing that live picture once again as we continue with the country's worst oil disaster we have had in our history. That oil continues to gush out as we speak.
Like I said, this could be a big weekend, a critical weekend because BP is now attempting to shut four vents that are on top of that containment cap that's now in place. If they're able to close those, they say they should be able to in fact collect most of that oil and siphon it up to a ship instead of having all that oil go out into the Gulf.
So here is the update for you. BP says it has collected more than 76,000 gallons of oil in the first 12 hours after it put that cap on top of that ruptured undersea well. The recovered oil flowing up to the drill ship. That ship named "Discover Enterprise." This is a start, however small it may be; 76,000 gallons is less than 10 percent of the estimated 800,000 gallons that are pouring into the Gulf of Mexico every day.
That estimate comes to us from the Federal government. Shutting those vents on the cap could significantly reduce the amount of oil that's flowing out. We don't know for sure how much exactly, but still, they can get those closed they believe they can collect the majority of the oil. Yesterday President Obama made his third trip to the Gulf since this whole spill began.
Meanwhile, like I mentioned a moment ago, more and more beaches, more and are more places starting to be affected by this oil, starting to show up in different places, including the sandy, white, pristine, beautiful beaches of the Florida panhandle. Locals worried that their livelihood will be affected at the start of this all-important tourist season.
CNN meteorologist Rob Marciano has been in the region covering this story for some time. He joins us now live from Pensacola. Tell us first of all, you've got some daylight out now. Is it revealing what we hoped it wouldn't? Are you seeing more and more of this oil now, Rob?
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yeah, exactly that. Similar (INAUDIBLE) to what was captured yesterday morning. Maybe even a little bit more prevalent. We just combed the beach now that the sun is up and tar balls are showing up, blobs of oil anywhere from a quarter to silver dollar in some cases, pancake size globs.
I would say frequency of about five of them every 10 feet and beachcombers have been out here checking them out, in some cases trying to help clean up. There will be clean-up crews later on today, but other things that have washed up.
This is kind of disturbing as well. A water bottle that's just completely caked in oil. We actually found one of these as well on one of the barrier islands in Mississippi just a couple of days ago. It's becoming a little bit more obvious for sure. We've been showing this since yesterday afternoon.
This was two big softball sized tar balls that were placed into this Styrofoam cup. These were found a couple of miles down the beach. But nonetheless that is just disgusting stuff and bubbling up at times. We talked to a number of people. You can just imagine the reaction that people around here are having, but it's interesting to get the take of a teenager.
Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SOFIE WATRET, BEACHGOER: Like cartoons, like really black and slippery but it's actually sticky and gooey and brown and just ugly.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARCIANO: Exactly that. Now, this is obvious signs of oil, but less obvious signs are these oil plumes, the subsurface oil plumes we've been talking about. What do they look like? Where have they been found? There's been some chatter about it for sure, these big blobs of oil underneath the surface of the ocean.
Scientists really haven't found that and we talked to a University of South Florida scientist, David Hollander. He just got off the (INAUDIBLE) research vessel and here's how he described what's going on out there underneath the Gulf of Mexico.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVID HOLLANDER, USF CHEMICAL OCEANOGRAPHER: We don't have any indication that we see this -- this cloud of -- of -- of what we would consider petroleum. You're not seeing some mixture between half water and half petroleum. It's a much subtler characterization than that.
Some people recently have found what others have suggested as darker water in the subsurface. Our crews, we do not identify that at all. What we did identify was water that seemed, that was colorless, but had signatures, chemical and sensor signatures that are definitively of dissolved hydrocarbons that are in solution in the water.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARCIANO: So even more scary than what you're seeing here is potentially what you can't see, those underwater plumes. Most of them invisible, but chemically nasty and especially to the young microorganisms that infiltrate the Gulf of Mexico. The food chain certainly can be affected. All right. As far as the health of people out here is going to be affected? Are these beaches shut down?
No. (INAUDIBLE) County is promising they will shut them down when it become a health risk. But for the most part, these little globs and the tar balls rolling up not posing a health risk and they're doing the best they can as far as keeping these beaches clean. They are protecting the estuaries for sure in the way of booms, but they don't boom the beach T.J..
There are miles and miles and miles of beach here across the sunshine state. So the best strategy is keep the beach as clean as possible. If more tar balls come onshore, clean them up as quickly as possible and hope that the thickest oil remains offshore. Whether that happens or not, we'll just have to wait and see. T.J.?
HOLMES: Still beautiful in that shot behind you, as you just look at the ocean, look at the beach there. Man, a lot of people certainly turned off and concerned about taking trips. Tourism, how it's going to be affected. Rob, we appreciate those illustrations. We appreciate you this morning. We'll talk to you again soon.
Also want to let you know, we are expecting to hear from the president later this morning. He's actually going to step out to formally announce his nominee for the director of national intelligence. That's expected to be retired Air Force Lieutenant General James Clapper. The president's announcement expected around 10:25 Eastern time this morning from the White House. We will take you there live when it happens.
MALVEAUX: Also, the forecast for the Gulf coast and beyond. I want to check in with our meteorologist Reynolds Wolf, at the CNN weather center. And Reynolds, what are people going to be dealing with this weekend? We're looking at the cleanup and we saw those tar ball and everything. How's the weather going to impact us?
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: It's going to be kind of just your typical tropical environment where mornings are going to be pretty nice with what you saw with Rob. But then later on, it's the afternoon, a chance of scattered showers and storms that could hamper some of the clean-up efforts.
Speaking of the oil, about a month ago I pulled over the former site of the deepwater Horizon where it sank and you could just see the pristine waters and some streaks of brown. Since then, the oil slick has grown significantly. So we know where it was. We know where it is now. The question is, where in the heck is it going to go?
We have a computer model we're going to show you. We're going to take this and as we put it into motion, what you'll notice, you'll see the point where the oil began to where it spreads out, where it gets caught in what we refer to as the loop current and watch as it passes down near the Florida Keys and then gets caught in the Gulf stream and, boom, hops up on the Eastern seaboard and then back out into the Atlantic.
This is not a forecast. This is a computer model of where the oil may spread. We're not talking about all of this being thick crude. Much of this, about 97 percent would be that rainbow sheen, which is about as thin as say, the paint on your house, as thin as a sheet of paper, but still it's in a place where you don't want it to go.
So again that's a pretty frightening scenario of what may happen possibly within the coming weeks. Now what is going to happen today as we wrap things up very quickly in your forecast, is we're going to be seeing some of those scattered showers along parts of the Gulf. When you get up into the Ohio Valley, this area of low pressure and this frontal boundary combined with daytime heating, that could give you some heavy rain, perhaps even some flash flooding in low-lying areas, places with poor drainage, certainly a possibility.
So keep that in mind. Very warm for you in the desert southwest. Of course, the northeast and along the Eastern seaboard, very muggy, highs of 87 degrees. New York, 85 in Atlanta, 94 in Dallas, 76 in Salt Lake City, 63 in San Francisco, 76 in Los Angeles, home of the Lakers and 71 in Billings, Montana. That is a quick snapshot of your forecast. Of course, the forecast of the oil, let's send it back to you at the news desk.
MALVEAUX: Thanks.
HOLMES: That Laker shout-out, what was that about?
WOLF: I don't know where it came from. I kind of prefer -- I'm a Sixers fan. What can I tell you? Hey, I'm a Barkley guy. What can I tell you?
HOLMES: Aren't we all. Appreciate you, Reynolds. We'll talk to you again here shortly.
As we've been talking about this oil disaster, it's also a pretty big PR disaster on BP's hands. We're going to take a look at some of the PR strategies out there to try to regain the public's confidence.
MALVEAUX: Plus a live look at the international waters where the Israeli military has boarded an Irish-owned aid ship. Now this ship is being towed towards (INAUDIBLE) Israel and we're going to have live team coverage from Gaza as well as (INAUDIBLE) after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Some breaking developments this morning, expecting, anticipating, another showdown in the waters off of Gaza. This comes some five days after we saw commandos, Israeli commandos raid those aid ships that were trying to get supplies into Gaza. Nine people were killed in that raid. Well, another ship, we got word yesterday, was on the way. Israel said they would, in fact, intercept and they did just that.
We want to turn now to our Matthew Chance. He's at Fort Ashville (ph) where the ship now is being brought to be examined. Matthew, first of all, any word of when that ship might get to where you are?
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, T.J., we're expecting it very shortly. It was intercepted about 22 miles s off the coast here in the Mediterranean Sea right behind me. About a hour and a half ago or so according to the Israel military, who told us their commandos boarded the vessel. This time, though, they didn't confront the ugly scenes that met them back on Monday morning when nine protesters were shot dead by those commandos. A number of (ph) commandos injured as well.
This time it was a peaceful boarding. It was done with the cooperation, apparently, of the peace activists onboard, who, remember, were heading to the Gaza strip, just a short distance to the side (ph) from here in an attempt to deliver humanitarian aid to the Palestinians in that territory which is under intense Israeli naval blockade.
We're waiting now for the ship to be towed into this (INAUDIBLE) port. At the moment though, we haven't seen any sign of it. We've seen a few naval commanders come back in their fast patrol vessels but we haven't seen the ship itself. We're waiting for it, T.J.
HOLMES: Matthew, do we expect -- I know you talked to some Israeli officials, but do we expect, quite frankly, this back and forth, cat as mouse game to continue, when people continue to try to challenge this blockade? Will Israel just continue this policy and try to certainly not have the kind of PR disaster they had after that last deadly one? But, still, we might see this back and forth continue for a while.
CHANCE: Yes. It was a PR disaster. That's certainly true for the Israelis. It was a human disaster, of course, for the nine people who were killed in that raid. Look, I mean, what the Israelis say is that they've got no choice but to continue to enforce this naval blockade. They say if they allowed unfettered access to ships to the Gaza strip along these seaways, that would just be a route in for the Palestinian militant groups like Hamas in Gaza to import weapons. It would be used ultimately against Israeli citizens. That's why they say they impose this blockade.
On the other side of it, there is a very real humanitarian crisis underway in Gaza and there are lots of peace activists, human rights activists as well, who say they'll continue to attempt to deliver their humanitarian aid directly to the Palestinian people on the ground in Gaza City, on the Gaza strip. So certainly we are expecting that this kind of confrontation, this kind of standoff in the high seas could go on and on for the months and weeks ahead.
HOLMES: All right, Matthew Chance, an update for us in (INAUDIBLE) waiting for that ship to come in. We appreciate you. Thanks so much.
MALVEAUX: We're also following the story from the other side. We want to bring in our own Ben Wedeman who is in Gaza City. Obviously, Ben, there's been a lot of talk about the need for supplies, humanitarian supplies and aid to get to the Palestinian people there. Give us a sense of what they are talking about, how they're feeling in light of this latest news now that you do have this Irish vessel that has been stopped and whether or not we even know if that aid is going to get to the Palestinians who need it.
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: There was a fair amount of disappointment here in the port of Gaza. In fact, if you just go over here, that it was expected that the ship, the Rachel Corrie, was going to dock. There were a lot of officials down here from Hamas. The Hamas-led government, but there were also ordinary Gazans.
In fact I saw one father that came with his two sons. They couldn't have been more than five years old, and he asked me, where's the ship? Is the ship coming? And I said, no. The news is that the Israelis have turned it around and sent it to (INAUDIBLE) and his reaction was never mind. Another will come.
So people here in Gaza are accustomed to disappointment. But I think there's the realization that if these -- these convoy, these flotillas are going to continue. In fact, this is the ninth one that's happened since the summer of 2008. And speaking to Hamas officials, their attitude is that, no matter what happens, they win in this situation.
If the ship had made it to the port, it would have been a victory for them, because the Israeli blockade would have been broken. Now that the ship has been diverted to Gaza, to rather (INAUDIBLE) to Israel, they're attitude is, it's another public relations blow for Israel. Their attitude is they win either way.
And even if the ship had made it, Suzanne, it's 1,500 tons of supplies. That is less than a drop in the bucket for what Gaza needs. Having said that, it's important to stress that it's not as if people are starving to death in Gaza. You go to the market. You go to stores. There's plenty of produce. The problem is, not necessarily what's getting into Gaza, but, rather, what's not getting out.
Gazan farmers, who used to export a lot of fresh produce to Israel simply can't do it because of the blockade. Factories which employed tens of thousands of people can no longer export to Israel. So unemployment here is running at around 50 percent. The problem is, the economy has come to a screeching halt. People can eat. They still get food with humanitarian assistance. The problem is, they just don't have any money.
MALVEAUX: Ben Wedeman, thank you so much, there from Gaza City. Thank for your perspective.
HOLMES: We're on day 47 of this crisis, this oil disaster. A lot of people directing their anger at BP including the president. But some of the loudest critics out there are launching some major efforts online. Josh Levs looking into that for us. Good morning to you again Josh.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning again to you guys. Never seen anything like this. You have a company at the center of a huge crisis that the world is watching, that's using the web in new ways to get you information, to get its message out there, but on the flip side, you have the critics who in many ways right now are winning this online PR battle. We are going to break this all down for you coming right up, T.J..
HOLMES: All right Josh. We appreciate it. We'll see you here in a second.
Also, a lot of people, it's that time of year, summertime. A lot of people like to take trips, maybe hit the road, maybe hit the road to the Gulf coast. Beaches are still open, folks. If you are hitting the road, we've got a list, a short list of the top five things you have to have on that road trip. You got to see it. Twenty minutes past the hour. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: Throughout the oil disaster crisis in the Gulf, BP has been making all sorts of information available online. We're just getting some information now that the Federal government says it's open now more than 16,000 square miles of ocean along the Florida coast that was previously closed for fishing because of the spill.
HOLMES: This is a very, very big deal and welcome news to a lot of people who depend on the fishing down there. And we got into a tie, really, on June 2nd of 37 percent of Federal waters being closed because this oil spill. What this group does, the Federal government, they keep an eye on where they think this oil is going and they have been closing Federal fishing waters.
Of course that has been putting certainly a cramp on many of the fishermen who depend on going out and collecting fish and also people that go out and do these tours. People who, captain, allow those boats that take people out. Now it's down to 32 percent of Federal waters closed. That's still a lot quite frankly, a lot of people would tell you.
But still, this is good news. They thought oil was going to be going into this particular area over the next 48 hours. They looked at some satellite (INAUDIBLE) said, no, that's not the case. We'll reopen those 16,000 square miles. That is great news, still 68 percent open now, the Federal waters. That's still a good chunk, but still better than it was.
MALVEAUX: Slow going, but obviously some good news for some folks who just need some relief.
HOLMES: So great news. Right now, Josh Levs, BP looking for some relief as well in the eyes of the public. Not getting a whole lot of it and certainly not getting a lot of help online.
LEVS: Yeah. I've been watching it. I'll tell you guys on this fishing, we've been looking at these numbers as well about the fishing industry throughout the Gulf region. You're talking about tens of millions of dollars each year. You're also talking about hundreds of thousands of jobs at stake in that. So it's great to hear any tiny little bits of good news whenever there's a little bit more of an area open.
What I'm here it talk to you about right now is BP is surprising an incredibly extensive effort to get their message out online, but also how they're in a lot of ways losing the PR battle to their critics who have come with up with some very unusual strategy. If you check out the website, bp.com, it's getting a ton of traffic. I was actually looking at the traffic meter that shows a big spike there. What you see is people have been taking a look and they have been going to all sorts of links. They've been going to the youtube page that BP set up, filled with videos all the time, sometimes statements from executives, sometimes animations that we see. They are also checking out the live feeds underwater. We can go to the latest ones that we're getting here. But what people have been doing is taking a look at what BP is making available.
That said, at the same time, you have a lot of the critics that are even louder and more successful in getting their strategies and their words out online. Let me show you one huge example of what's been going on on the web throughout this crisis. If you wanted to follow BP on Twitter, which obviously they want people to, because that's where they're putting out their messages, one place they're doing it.
If you Google to try to find their Twitter page, the first thing that comes up, BP public relations. This is actually a fake one. This isn't even their real one. This is one that's been skewering them and look at the kinds of things that they have been tweeting. People are giving us a lot of guff for spending $50 million in print ads, but this Twitter cost us billions.
Here's another one. It's hurricane season now. Don't worry. We planned for that just as well as we plan for everything else. Here's another one a lot of people are looking at. Spoil alert. The leak stopped eventually. Everyone forgets about it and we all buy another vacation home.
Also going to show you one more thing before I disappear here. This is from Greenpeace. They're getting a bunch of traffic online. They're using Flicker (ph) to have a contest for how to re-do BP's logo and they have some really striking examples that people are submitting that takes the logo and skewers it. You can see in these pictures what this message is that people are suggesting.
We have been asking you to weigh in on this. Let's go ahead and show up on how you can weigh in, let us know what you think if you're following this online. You got my Twitter, joshlevscnn, Facebook as well. We're going to be talking to an expert today in our 10:00 hour about what a company needs to do in a crisis to get its message out, 2010 it's all about the web. You got to learn to harness your messaging on the web. What do companies need to know? All that ahead today in the 10:00 hour. So we'll look for that then.
T.J., Suzanne, back to you.
MALVEAUX: Thank you, Josh.
Many different ways to get in touch with you. Thanks. We're going to do that. All right.
Well, coming up, the new accessories that you've just got to have on any road trip. We're going to show you the top five that are on the short list.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: Getting ready for that summer vacation. When you're hitting the road you're not going to want to forget to pack, of course, your toothbrush, some sunscreen and also some tech toys.
Digital Lifestyle expert, Mario Armstrong he's joining us to talk about the top five gadgets that you're going to want --
MARIO ARMSTRONG, SMALLBIZGOMOBILE: Yes.
MALVEAUX: -- on car ride. And Mario, gone are the days when we used to just be with our families in the car. And you have a family --
ARMSTRONG: I know.
MALVEAUX: -- and then you turn to your brother, don't touch me. Quit touching me.
ARMSTRONG: Right.
MALVEAUX: People are now very high-tech about their road trips.
ARMSTRONG: They really are. I mean, we used to play a game called that's my car. You know, when you would actually point at the vehicles. Well, now we don't play games like that anymore.
MALVEAUX: Right.
ARMSTRONG: We're actually using technology devices in the car.
So I've got a few to rundown. And the first one, you know Suzanne, that's really important is capturing the memories of the trip. So video is key. So the first one I wanted to take a quick look at here is one I'm holding up by Sony, it's called the Sony Bloggy.
And I really like this, it shoots in 1080p, which is High Definition, but it has a rotating lens. So it's easy for you to actually point this camera at yourself and be a part of the family shot, which is really cool for documenting your trip and things of that nature.
MALVEAUX: Well, it's cool.
ARMSTRONG: So I love this Sony Bloggy. Yes, that's really neat.
There are so many to choose from, though. So you have to really keep in mind when you're shopping for cameras, whether it's a flip camera, like this one with a little pop out slide, so you can actually view video.
It's really just how do you intend to use it?
Are you really a super user, are you rugged. Do you need something like a Kodak camera, that's more ruggedized that can handle drops and be water resistant or are you looking for something with image stabilization. Maybe you have jerky hands and you really want to have some image stabilization.
So that's what you want to look for in a camera.
MALVEAUX: And what's the -- what's the next one?
ARMSTRONG: The next one is still charging. Power is so critical when you're out and about. So I have a really cool device that goes green. It's called Soleo (ph), it's a solar charger and it basically uses the sun's rays to power your devices. You could power you're little game systems. You could power your MP3 players. You could power your phones all by using the sun's rays instead of using electricity, which is really cool.
MALVEAUX: That's cool. And the next one?
ARMSTRONG: Yes, the next one is when you're in the car and you're on the go, Internet connectivity is huge. So Sprint has what's called an overdrive hot spot. Verizon has the one called the MIFI. Both of these devices, Suzanne, enable you to connect up to five different devices.
You could have a laptop, a phone and other devices connecting to this to get Internet connectivity while you're on the go. It actually works kind of like a cell phone or like a mobile WiFi hot spot. So if you have WIFI at home --
MALVEAUX: You don't have to plug it in on anything. You're driving along the road, and you can just plug everything into that there?
ARMSTRONG: That's right. Or you're sitting at the park, or you're having a cookout, or you're at the beach. Wherever you are, as long as you can get a cell signal, you can get Internet connectivity with these devices.
MALVEAUX: Ok, what else you got there?
ARMSTRONG: Well, you know, you've got to go with an Apple iPad. Because it is a great display and it has so many things you can do. I mean, I love the iPad for things that you can do with kids. Because it's not only just fun and entertainment in looking at movies and video, you can also do educational things, like learning pictures and the alphabet and numbers.
So it's a lot of fun and can keep kids captive in a fun but also educational way in the car. So that's always cool.
MALVEAUX: Ok. You've got something else for us?
ARMSTRONG: Yes the last but not the least, if you want something with a little bit more computing power or you just really want to have your mobile office with you on the go, you want to look at a Netbook that has built-in 3G connectivity. In other words, built-in Internet connectivity, so this little notebook that you see here from Verizon and HP enable you to do that. So you can have your Internet connectivity while on the go, and have a full keyboard and everything like you expect to have a laptop in a Netbook form factor.
MALVEAUX: Ok. And I'm assuming the driver is not using any of these things, because the driver has his or her eyes on the road, I would assume?
ARMSTRONG: Right, they better have their eyes on the road and maybe GPS. I'll let them slide on a little GPS. But that's about it.
MALVEAUX: Ok, well these are all very interesting.
What's the top one? What's the one that you think you can -- no one can do without? You've got to get on the road, which one of those five?
ARMSTRONG: Oh, gosh, for me, it's Internet connectivity. I would have to go probably with the mobile hot spots, but that requires you of course to own a laptop or a computer or a device that needs the Internet connectivity. But if you're big on having that Internet connectivity while you're on the go. Absolutely, this.
Outside of that, you have to capture those memories. So go with the Sony Bloggy, it also can take digital still picture, that's the way to make sure you capture all your memories easy and quick.
MALVEAUX: All right. This is going to be one hell of a vacation there.
ARMSTRONG: Yes.
MALVEAUX: You know I'm going back to my, it is T.J. was teasing me who said, you know you had an etch-a-sketch back in the day. So that's what I'm going back to conversations. But thank you Mario.
ARMSTRONG: Slinky, etch-a-sketch, extra flash cards.
MALVEAUX: Of course, I need their help. Ok.
ARMSTRONG: Thank so much Suzanne.
MALVEAUX: Joining us each Saturday at this time, as our tech guru Mario Armstrong, gives us the scoop on the latest technology.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: Checking top stories -- the White House will nominate Lieutenant General James Clapper as its new Director of National Intelligence. The announcement should come today. Clapper will replace Dennis Blair who resigned last month.
Israel has intercepted an Irish aid ship on its way to Gaza. Now the ship is being towed right now to an Israeli port. The Israeli military says there was no confrontation. Commandos boarded the ship with the cooperation of the aid workers onboard. Nine people died when the Israeli forces boarded another ship trying to break its blockade earlier in the week.
Well, UCLA's legendary basketball coach, John Wooden died last night of natural causes. He was 99. After his team won seven straight national titles from 1967 to 1973, he earned the title of "Wizard of Westwood". Wooden retired after his tenth championship. The school's athletic director said quote, "There will never be another John Wooden."
HOLMES: Well, this weekend another critical one in the efforts to stop the worst oil disaster in the nation's history. Now on day 47 of this oil disaster, BP this weekend attempting to shut four vents on top of a containment cap that's about 5,000 feet below the surface of the Gulf of Mexico.
You're seeing the live picture. Oil continues to come out; they are collecting some, however. So far though, BP says it's having some success in reducing the flow of oil from that ruptured well head. The company says it has collected 76,000 gallons in the first 12 hours after it put that cap on, the recovered oil flowing up to a drill ship.
Now, it's a start, but this is a really small one, those 76,000 gallons, that accounts for just 10 percent of the almost 800,000 gallons the federal authorities estimate, are pouring into the Gulf of Mexico every single day. Shutting the vents on the caps could significantly reduce the oil flowing out. We don't know exactly how much you could collect.
Yesterday the President was back in the area. His third trip since this Gulf oil disaster began.
MALVEAUX: And we want a check on the weather obviously. It's a stormy Saturday for much of the Gulf Coast to the Ohio River Valley. Our meteorologist Reynolds Wolf, he's got more on today's forecast. And how is it looking? And I guess we'll be hearing from Reynolds Wolf soon.
HOLMES: All right, but before we get to Reynolds. It's all right. Take your time, Reynolds, we're going to come back to you in a second, buddy.
Something that a lot of parents would need to know about right now, a warning that's coming out from McDonald's about one of those gifts, those toys, those things you get when you go in there and get a Happy Meal. Well, those glasses you're seeing, you're being told to take them back or throw them out. They could be dangerous. We'll explain.
MALVEAUX: We'll have that, plus the race for the cure in the nation's capital. We're going to hear what the founder of that race is saying this morning about efforts to battle breast cancer.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HOLMES: And a reminder. We're going to be hearing from the President a little later this morning, going to be formally announcing his choice for the next Director of National Intelligence. Expecting that briefing, excuse me, that announcement at 10:45 Eastern Time this morning. We will take you there live when it happens.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Yes, we got the NBA finals started. Now, maybe the NBA was hoping for Kobe versus Lebron. Didn't get that's but probably got the next best thing. You've got the Lakers versus the Celtics, this is one of the storied rivalries in the game.
Now, the Lakers versus the Celtics; the last time the two teams got together it was the highest rated NBA finals in five years. It got 13 million viewers per game. Now, that was 52 percent over the finals from the year before. Of course, ABC is loving this.
Also, on the Internet, ESPN NBA section saw a 79 percent jump in Web hits during the finals that year. Boston won. They beat the guy who was probably the best player in the game. Can we say that now? Kobe is the man, right?
Beat Kobe out, but Kobe certainly looked like a man possessed right now. Our man possessed is our business sports analyst, Rick Horrow, joining us from West Palm Beach, Florida. Is that fair to say they were hoping for Kobe versus Lebron. But Lakers versus Celtics isn't bad either.
RICK HORROW, CNN BUSINESS SPORTS ANALYST: It's fair to say, man possessed I'm not sure. That's for another day and another time. But 32 titles between the Lakers and the Celtics. This is a legacy of matchup.
And by the way, Kobe, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, that's four guys in our top power 100 of most influential guys.
So, yes, Lebron is not in, but they've got a lot of superstars in that deal as well, my friend.
HOLMES: Translate this into dollars for ABC.
HORROW: Well, look. The dollars are in the hundreds of millions of dollars ad revenue, especially with the ratings and you've got two top ten media markets with Boston and L.A. And everybody is going to be tuning in.
And because of this format when it goes back to Boston, they'll have three straight, no matter what happens. It's a big week next week and obviously a big week this week in L.A.
And 214 countries, the NBA games reach. So this is not just those markets, it's global as well.
HOLMES: All right. We're seeing some of that old video of Magic versus Bird from back in the day. Of course, sometimes on this big stage, you have breakout stars who get deals out of this. If you play well, you get endorsement deals and so on and so forth.
Kobe is certainly the biggest superstar in this series, but does he have much more to gain? Who else maybe has something to gain by putting on a good show?
HORROW: Well, Pau Gasol, obviously. He's eclectic, he's multilingual and everybody's getting to know him as well. But let's see how he does for the rest of the finals.
Then that trilogy of Boston Celtics we just talked about as well.
HOLMES: All right. Now, Lebron; he could possibly steal the show, quite frankly. They were worried that he would because everybody's worried about the Lebron sweepstakes right now. What city is going to get Lebron? Can Cleveland keep Lebron?
We have a countdown clock even up on ESPN for when he's actually going to reach free agency. Is this getting just out of control? Have we seen anything like this hype? You've got actual cities vying for this guy and putting out campaigns to get Lebron James.
HORROW: It's not out of control. It's publicity for the NBA. You wouldn't have thought this could ever happen 15, 20 years ago, especially in the Internet generation. He gets about a $30 million net premium because of the salary structure if he stays in Cleveland.
And the national conference of mayors starts next Thursday and we have some mayor fighting. Mayor (INAUDIBLE) says we don't like New York. Mayor Bloomberg says, come on Lebron, we'll change the name to le Bronx.
And by the way, I did Miami arena you remember and I have the first ever Miami Heat T-shirt. Lebron, if you come down, this is yours. A little -- I haven't washed it in 25 years but you can have it anyway. This is yours, Lebron, if you want it. Come on down.
HOLMES: It's unbelievable but it's believable because a lot of money is associated with Lebron James coming to whatever city.
We will wrap up here and just one note here. It's the biggest sports story now and we have to take a moment. John Wooden, the wizard of Westwood, dead at the age of 99. Just your thoughts -- I know you spent some time with him before -- but his impacts on the game to this day?
HORROW: And incredible statesman, an incredible thinker and he obviously revolutionized the game. More important, he revolutionized how sportsmanship applies in sports business and everywhere else. He will sorely be missed.
HOLMES: You're right. Not just a coach, a teacher. And every one of his players will come out and certainly attest to that.
Rick Horrow, always good to see you. Good segment as always this weekend. You enjoy the rest of your weekend, buddy.
HORROW: All right. Next week, pal. See you then.
MALVEAUX: Well, from personal tragedy to a national movement in Washington, D.C. today. We're going to talk to the woman behind the race for the cure. It is a story that touches homes.
Plus a story that touches millions. We'll focus on solutions to the oil spill disaster in the Gulf; coming up at the top of the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: There are a lot of breast cancer survivors who are taking to the streets today. They are all part of the Susan G. Komen "Race for the Cure". It's about raising money and awareness in the fight against breast cancer.
Our CNN's Jill Dougherty, she joins us live from Washington where there are now thousands of people who are with you, Jill, who have gathered there. And, you know, this has got to be a very special occasion here; obviously a lot of people who are determined to fight this disease.
Give us a sense of what it's like to be there.
JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN FOREIGN AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, there are 50,000 people. We'll get the exact figures a little bit later, but an estimated 50,000 people. So there's a race -- people running and then they are walking, all of them in teams.
There 41 Congressional teams, so the government is out there walking around and running around. And then there are international teams, 28 of them. Literally from all over the world.
So they come here. They remember people who have died. They give support to people who are continuing. And they raise money.
Just before the race began, we actually talked with the CEO and founder of the Susan G. Komen "Race for the Cure, and that's Ambassador Nancy Brinker. And she talked about the international impact of cancer.
Here's what she said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AMB. NANCY BRINKER, FOUNDER, SUSAN G. KOMEN RACE FOR THE CURE: With a million women around the world being diagnosed with almost a half million dying every year. It is an epidemic disease by the -- in a few years cancer will be the largest killer of people.
Susan G. Komen has always taken the approach that breast cancer occurs not just in our borders but outside our borders. And we have to reach, mentor, teach and work on solutions that lower the death rate of this disease as fast as we can.
(END VIDEO CLIP) DOUGHERTY: You know, Suzanne, it is really is a very touching affair because people have on the back of their T-shirts the names of people, you know, that they're remembering. But it's also a really rah, rah event. I mean they're out here. It's like a cheerleading squad to try to beat this disease.
MALVEAUX: And, Jill I wish I could be there with you. Obviously, there was, a couple of weeks ago there was a walkathon they did for breast cancer but this is the largest one in the country.
You are leading a group of people from CNN; Team CNN, who are running, participating in this. Tell us why you are involved in this.
DOUGHERTY: Well, I have a personal history, because ten years ago I was diagnosed and I went through treatment, and you know, our company and my friends here, my colleagues, were really, really supportive. So I've run it every year for ten years.
And I think the most important thing is, when I was going through treatment, just being able to get out there. I've been running for, God, 30 years, but just to get out there and feel you're still strong was very psychologically important for me.
And now I continue that, and it is a very strong feeling of, you know, connectedness to other people who have been through this. That's why I do it, and my colleagues are great.
I don't know how they've done in the race, Suzanne. We have to find out if they beat anybody.
MALVEAUX: Oh, we're going to beat a whole bunch of people I can tell. CNN, we're all a bunch of strong people. Jill, thank you so much. You look great, you feel great. You're inspiration to so many of us. So go kick some butt out there. I really appreciate it.
DOUGHERTY: Ok. See you.
MALVEAUX: All right. Thanks, Jill.
HOLMES: Such language from that Suzanne Malveaux this morning.
As we know, we have been keeping an eye on it. CNN certainly will stay on top of what's happening in the Gulf.
We're on day 47 now of that oil disaster and CNN's Kyra Phillips has some exclusive access to the Coast Guard admiral, Thad Allen who's actually running the whole disaster response. She's bringing up a day date in the life of this very busy man.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
ADM. THAD ALLEN, COMMANDANT, U.S. COAST GUARD: Good to see you.
PHILLIPS: It's still dark on the Gulf Coast, but Admiral Thad Allen has begun another day in the eye of the storm. The 61-year-old commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard officially had his change of command last month, but he's now on the toughest assignment of his long career.
First, a jolt of caffeine; the admiral's security detail knows every coffee shop on the Gulf Coast.
And then the first calls of a very long day: the White House, federal agencies, governors, the Army corps of engineers. They never stop. Today's top priority -- hammering out an agreement on getting sand barriers built to protect the Louisiana coast and paying for them.
It's an issue that's sharply divided, state and federal government. The admiral has to be broker, diplomat, decision-maker, and the public face of the administration's efforts to tackle the worst environmental disaster in modern history.
Then it's on to the incident command post, the nerve center of the massive operation to deal with the spill.
ADM. ALLEN: Good morning.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: And you'll be hearing a lot more about and also a lot more from Admiral Allen in just a couple of hours. A news conference is scheduled for 10:45 Eastern time to give us an update on the efforts this weekend to cap that oil leak. Once it starts, we'll bring that to you live.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: Checking our top stories.
President Obama is expected to nominate retired Air Force Lieutenant General James Clapper as the new director of National Intelligence. That announcement expected about 10:45 this morning. Now, if confirmed by the Senate, Clapper would replace Dennis Blair who resigned last month. He'll become the nation's fourth director of National Intelligence in the last five years.
Well, McDonald's is recalling 12 million of their popular "Shrek" glasses. The fast-food giant believes that they contain cadmium, a potential cause of cancer.
And Israeli commandos seized an Irish ship on its way to Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid. The Israeli navy says that the ship ignored at least 4 warnings to stop. No one was hurt and the ship's cargo will be inspected and sent to Gaza by land. Now, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released this statement saying -- "Today we saw the difference between a sail of peace activists with whom we don't agree but honor their right to express a different opinion, and a hate sail organized by terrorism supporting violent extremists.
The top of the hour starts right now. HOLMES: Hello again to you all. Top of the hour here and as we do every Saturday at 9:00 Eastern time we dedicate this half hour to digging a little deeper into an issue that affects you. And this issue affects us all.
But more importantly, it certainly affects the people in the Gulf Coast region. We're talking about this oil spill disaster. Yes, the efforts are going on right now try to stop the oil leak itself. But a lot is being done right now trying to figure out how to clean the mess up as well. You see the live picture that oil continues to come out. BP is asking for ideas. Well, we've got a couple for them this morning.
We're going to focus on some of the solutions that some private citizens, private companies, have right now to try to clean up that oil. You will see them here live. BP has taken some 70,000 calls. Gotten another 20,000 e-mails, from people trying to help out. Take a look now at some of the things BP is taking a close are look at.
Listen to this one. Something as simple as this. A hairstylist has suggested stuffing panty hose with human hair. She says that will help soak up the oil in the water. The idea was tested by NASA and guess what? It worked. Also, a Texas Tech professor created non- woven cotton and says that cotton booms remain strong when wet and a gram of the cotton can absorb 40 grams of oil.
Another idea you may have seen because of who was out there demonstrating it. Actor Kevin Costner. He had an idea. He demonstrated it in front of BP officials last week. His company, ocean therapy solutions has a machine that spins water quickly, separates the oil, can process, he says, some 210,000 gallons of water every single day. Today, our guest in this special half hour also has some solutions.
So stick around and find out how molecules and popsicles can help clean up the spill. Seriously. We'll have the live demonstrations.
Meanwhile, I want to give you the very latest on what we've been seeing along the Gulf Coast now. And all of this reporting we have been doing, it has started, so much focus is on Louisiana, moved over to Mississippi, moved over to Alabama and now, in fact, Florida is a big focus, because the oil is on its way, and, in fact, our CNN meteorologist Rob Marciano is there. And Rob, not only is it on its way, it, in fact has made it to some of those pristine beaches.
MARCIANO: It has. Tar balls, globs of oil have rolled up onshore, and even debris. Litter that may have fallen off of boats in some way, shape or form into the oil, rolling out ahead of the main spill along the ways. And this kind of stuff is probably just -- just found this morning in Pensacola Beach. Found something similar to this across some of the shorelines of Mississippi just a couple of days ago.
And then, once again, this morning, once the sun came up, we were able to see, comb the shoreline and we found tar balls just about everywhere. About the frequency of about five for every, say, 10 feet. Anywhere from quarter to half dollar, even some cases pancake- sized tar balls and globs of oil. Speaking of globs of oil, we had this brought to us yesterday. A woman found this about two, three miles down the way.
This was -- this was -- two big softball-sized tar balls and they've since melted. It smells like oil. It is definitely oil from the slick that is just nasty, nasty stuff. This is affecting tourism, of course. The beaches are still open though. But it's also affecting the fishing industry and the charter boat industry as we've been reporting for about a month now. We ran into one charter boat captain yesterday who was frustrated to say the least.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOSH FORSYTHE, CHARTER BOAT CAPTAIN: We've had multiple, probably 35 cancellations already and we're getting three to four a day every day. Nobody's wanting to go out. You know, my whole family's fished here for three generations of captains and it destroyed it. We were catching fish, pulling them up, covered in oil 12 miles off the pass. It's a sad situation. A sad situation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARCIANO: Yes, Oiled fish coming out of the gulf. That's a bad situation. As is having oil globs here on the beaches itself. Cleanup crews, yes. I asked the mayor yesterday, I said, listen, if this gets worse, you know, what's your plan? Here's what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR MIKE WIGGINS, PENSACOLA, FLORIDA: I have many plans, of course, a beach cleanup crews, remain here. There's no question about that. We have some inland strategies on our inland waterways and intercoastal water ways, where we have booms laid out. We, of course, have aircraft reconnaissance. We have skimmers that are working. So we have strategies for all situations, but let's just hope we don't have to put those strategies into affect and the few tar balls that we had this morning is going to be the most of our problems.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARCIANO: There's no boom to protect this beach. They're just going to clean it up as the oil come. The boom is for sensitive areas like estuary. I should note on a good note, on a positive note, the federal fishing areas out there, they've actually -- the closed area has shrunk a little bit. They've opened about 16,000 square miles off the southern coast of Florida. They've opened that back up to commercial fishing.
So in the overwhelming amount of bad news that we've had to report, T.J., at least, that little sliver you can take home with you. Here in Pensacola, beautiful beach. No doubt about it. But it is peppered somewhat with tar balls. We're expecting crews later on today. And they're going to have an emergency managers meeting in about two hours, and there will be a press conference and we'll probably get some news out of that and report it back to you as soon as we get it.
HOLMES: All right. Rob, we appreciate it. Some good news there and certainly the mayor sounded awfully optimistic about the outlook down the road. Rob, we appreciate you.
I'm going to turn to from one meteorologist to another meteorologist. Reynolds Wolf here with me. You reported that good news -
WOLF: Yes.
HOLMES: About opening up some more 60,000 square miles for fishing. So now, they're down to what? Just 32 percent of the gulf, federal waters closed. But a lot of that had to do with the fact they thought the oil was going somewhere and it didn't show up. So that's why they opened up those waters back up. So can we really predict now where this stuff is going to go?
WOLF: You know, it really is, we're at the mercy of both the currents and of the winds. The winds are a little bit harder to forecast. Right now, T.J., let me just show you what we have in terms of a computer model. It gives us an idea where the oil maybe headed.
We're going to take this so viewers at home can see it as we put it in motion, you're going to see it right in the middle of the gulf. It's this glob that appears to be yellowish, reddish. The red indicates the heavier amounts. As you put it into motion you're going to notice the animation showing that oil spreading down into the straits of Florida, right near, say, parts of the dry Turtugis (ph) and then back out into the eastern seaboard and deeper in the Atlantic.
Now, here's the good news about it. The good news is much of this, much of the thicker oil will never make its way onshore. There is some that is obviously washing up onshore. But the thing we're going to see, at least 97 percent of the oil is going to be that rainbow sheen, the very thin stuff interspersed with those clumps. The smaller parts, the rainbow sheen is going to be the heaviest amounts.
But, again, that's just, again, still a little bit of a forecast that we have for you, at least the computer model. So it really bears watching. One thing that's certainly going to be interesting today, people trying to keep that oil contained are going to have a rough time, because we got some storms that are forming in parts of Louisiana, expect more of these to form out over the open water, which is going to hamper some of the efforts of trying to corral some of that oil, if you will.
Something else we're going to be seeing later on today will be the chance of strong storms not just in parts of the gulf coast but also in parts of the nation's midsection, then back into the western half of the Great Lakes. The reason for that is right here before you, you got this area of low pressure, this frontal boundary. Flash flooding a possibility. Maybe an isolated tornado. But the biggest threat is going to be your flooding and, again, as we finish up where we started off along the gulf coast. Temperatures very warm there today. Mainly into the 80s. With the high humidity like going into the 90s. Very warm times to say the very least. That is the latest we've got, T.J., let's send it back to you.
HOLMES: Reynolds, appreciate it, buddy. We'll be talking to you plenty throughout the morning. Thank you so much.
Again, we've got to take this special half hour every weekend to focus in on a particular topic. Something that affects you. And we did this last weekend and really people responded to it. There are a lot of ideas that private citizens have about how to help out in the Gulf Coast. How to actually clean up a lot of that oil. Some of those people, thousands, tens of thousand, submitting their ideas to BP.
Well, BP is going to see on Tuesday, there's a presentation that's going to be made to them by someone you don't have to wait to see. BP, you don't have to wait either. We have a live demonstration of a product that could help clean up the Gulf Coast. That's coming up next. It's 10 minutes past the hour. We're right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Welcome back to the CNN SATURDAY MORNING. 13 minutes past the our. And again, we're dedicating this half hour like we do every Saturday to focusing on one topic and drilling it home. And today we're looking a little deeper at something that a lot of people are curious about. How do you clean this oil up?
Well, there are tens of thousands of people submitting solutions, their ideas to BP. One of those people with me right now, and we kind of dirtied things up here on our brand new set, but we are going to explain MyCelx, I'm saying that name right?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That is correct.
HOLMES: All right. The CEO of Mycelx is with us, Connie Mixon. Ma'am, thank you so much for coming in and we're going to have this demonstration in just a second but first of all, you just explained to us what is it in the first place.
CONNIE MIXON, CEO, MYCELX OIL REMOVAL TECHNOLOGIES: MyCelx is a coating that we can apply to our spill products and our filtration products that will enable immediate and permanently removal of oil from water. It is a patented technology that has been in service for over 10 years.
HOLMES: You've been doing this, like you said, 10 years, and you do this kind of thing. Have you done quite frankly other oil spills?
MIXON: Yes, we have other oil spills. We've done in Canada, a very large oil spill two years ago. We actually have experts, field responders on our staff so that we use our product, really, all over the world. Obviously nothing of this magnitude because the world hasn't seen anything of this magnitude.
HOLMES: But you believe you can help out?
MIXON: Absolutely.
HOLMES: We're going to demonstrate exactly how this works. And to our viewers, bear with us. You're going to be coming into the screen here. But we're going to make sure you have the best shots so you all can see how this works and have you talk us through it. Come on up here and you start this thing off.
Wherever you need to come in, you just come on in and we'll adjust to you. So you show us what's happening. So we have two big bins, we have the water and we have a little oil mixed in there.
MIXON: Yes.
HOLMES: Make sure we have Scott and try to get the best shot we can.
MIXON: All right. What we have here, T.J., this is the current situation in the gulf now. Everyone is seeing the miles and miles of boom that is stretched along the coastline. This is the example of the traditional boom, it's right here in -- in the white soft boom. As you can see, as the water's agitated and with the dispersant, obviously, oil goes under the boom and with agitation from the wave will come over the boom as well.
HOLMES: It doesn't catch everything.
MIXON: It doesn't. So and everybody knows from the pictures as well, that it's heading towards the shoreline.
HOLMES: And Scott, if you can take a -- our camera here, but we have, you can see on top here what she's talking about. The oil on that side. Yes, it's stopping a lot of the oil, but still some is getting through. That's the demonstration she's going to explain.
MIXON: Correct. That is the first line of defense. We have a two-prong approach with Mycelx. The first thing that we can do to protect the shoreline, is to place our spill mass, which is the yellow mat that you see here. And it's engineered to cover a tremendous amount of surface area. So we will cover 50 square feet behind the surface boom, 10 feet long, and we can actually prevent the oil from coming to shore, because we absolutely remove it on contact permanently. So it does not reach the shoreline.
HOLMES: So this is key. You lay these down, and this will collect -- now let's see how these work now. You said that these will collect the oil that gets through. We don't have a mic on you so we can't hear you. Go ahead, Connie. You walk us through.
MIXON: So basically what we do is -- to demonstrate how we work, we actually can put the mat in the water and it will permanently remove the oil. That is the fingerprint of exactly what it touched. That will never, ever, come off of the mat. Other spill products that you see used in the gulf, if it's agitated, or stays in the water long enough, the oil will actually be released back into the ocean. Ours is permanently bound to that mat. The mat absolutely picks up no water either. No water.
HOLMES: OK. something to this magnitude, we're talking about though. I mean, can you produced -- do you have enough of these mats to put out there that can make a real difference in the gulf?
MIXON: Well, T.J., we actually have another approach as well. This is a very important approach. Because we think -- because this is what we would put in front of estuaries and very ecologically sensitive areas. But what we also have is a vacuum-water treatment system that we can put on barges that reaches into the marshes.
It is actually, sucks the oily water out of the marshes, treats it right on site on the barge and pumps it directly to clean water back into the ocean. We are the only technology that's certified to be able to discharge to marine, to marine standards.
HOLMES: OK. And we'll get this last one in. We only have about a minute left. But issues, that you're saying, we're seeing all these tar balls and things coming up on the sand right now as well?
MIXON: Correct. This is simulating the tar ball. As you can see, the technology, once it's applied even to the sand, which is an extremely difficult thing to clean, we can remove it from the sand instantaneously.
HOLMES: OK. That's a little impressive. You're telling me you can remove tar that's into that sand?
MIXON: Correct. Which also is the same, absolutely the same way it does in the marshes as well.
HOLMES: All right. And last thing. Certainly BP, I think you're making a presentation on -
MIXON: We are. Actually we're going to be Monday in Mobile, Tuesday in Long Beach, Mississippi and Wednesday we're going to be in (inaudible) Venice and in Plaquemines Parish.
HOLMES: All right. So hoping maybe I know you have a product and certainly you want to sell your business but still a lot of people like yourself have ideas that actually can help out in the area. This is a great demonstration right here of it.
Connie Mixon, again, MyCelx is the name of the company -- Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, please, let us know how it goes.
MIXON: We will. Thank you very much.
HOLMES: We might be seeing these yellow mats all over the place along the gulf.
MIXON: We hope so.
HOLMES: Thank you so, so much for that.
MIXON: Thank you.
HOLMES: Again, that's just one of tens of thousands of ideas literally we've have been seeing. But we're going to let you see even more. We have another solution we're going to bring to you, and let someone demonstrate.
Now this was pitched to me as somewhat of a creating oily popsicles, if you will. I'll let them explain and you'll see the demo. Stay with us. 18 minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right. Day 47 of the oil disaster and people have a lot of ideas. They want to help out and they actually have some inventive ways of helping clean up this oil spill. We just saw one demonstration about these special mats that can actually soak up -- you saw the demonstration here, soak up that oil. While other people have ideas.
Literally, tens ever thousands have been going in to BP. But what I want to show you now actually has to do with somewhat freezing the oil then scooping it up. Terry Hester and Will Anderson are of Earth Guard Technologies. They're joining us there from the coast of Alabama. Gentlemen, good morning. Thank you both for being here. Terry, let me just ask you first, before we see the demonstration, what is the product in the first place?
TERRY HESTER, EARTHGUARD TECHNOLOGIES: Well, T.J., we have a product right now that, a CO2 product, and this product actually will freeze the oil as it comes on the beach, and we also have the same CO2 product that will go on the water and we can freeze it on the water. I'm going to let Will do the demonstration now. We're going to do a live demonstration and we're going to show you exactly how our product, we feel like, is the solution to all the mayors that have a problem with it coming on the beach. We have a solution, and I'm going to turn it over to will, T.J..
HOLMES: Well, Will, you go ahead and show it to us. I know you have some stuff set up there. And as you're going ahead and talking and walking us through it, would either of you say, this is a product that should be used more so. It sounds like you can do both. But is it more so for use on the beaches or more so for use out on the water?
HESTER: T.J., we appreciate the time you all giving us today for this, and the product can really be used both places. Very effectively, on the water as well as on the beach.
HOLMES: All right. Go ahead and start your -
HESTER: We're going to start here very quickly.
HOLMES: Yes, go right ahead.
HESTER: What we're going to do, some of the oil -- right here. This is the oil that the CNN crew took off of the Pensacola Beach yesterday. We're going to pour some of that. You can see, it's very thick and tarry. We're going to put a little bit of it out first. This is very similar to what -- very similar to what I took off of the beach at Grand Isle yesterday.
HOLMES: And this is from our CNN crew, our Rob Marciano was there on the beach. Picked that up, a couple of tar balls. They've melted a little bit. All right. There you go. So that's what we have. We have so much of this stuff on the sand, on the beaches. Go ahead.
HESTER: And this is what we got off the water about 25 miles out from Venice last Wednesday.
OK. And this I scooped off of the beach at Grand Isle yesterday afternoon. Very similar to what you all found here yesterday.
HOLMES: All right.
HESTER: At Pensacola.
HOLMES: We got all of this soil, this tar on the beach. What do you do to it?
HESTER: Notice -- now I'm just going to sprinkle some of these dry ice pellets over all three. First what you all picked up yesterday.
HOLMES: And again, this is your product you're showing. This is it, right?
HESTER: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is our product.
HESTER: This is our product. We got one of the largest manufacturer of this product in the world, is two miles from the beach in Grand Isle. And they've agreed support us with all of this product that we need for as long as we need it to help rid the situation, and put it under control.
HOLMES: All right. After how long after you put this stuff on it can you scoop it up? Like you said?
HESTER: You're fixing to see it scooped up just very quickly after I put that on there. You can see first, I want to show you, it's already taking body. Just in that few seconds.
HOLMES: OK.
HESTER: All right. Now, here's what we picked up at Grand Isle yesterday. Notice when I picked it up, the sand underneath it is completely clean. Not any oil left behind on the water or the sand. There's the oil there, if you want to zero in, the oil was picked up all frozen. This is what we picked up off of the water just off of Venice, 25 miles off Venice last Wednesday. Same thing. There's all the oil picked up right off the water.
HOLMES: Huh.
HESTER: And here's the tar balls, you all people picked up yesterday.
HOLMES: Well, clearly -- well, tell me. It looks like -- I mean another impressive demonstration we're seeing. Are you guys in contact with BP?
HESTER: As a matter of fact, I had a meeting with one of the BP reps in Grand Isle yesterday and I'm hoping to hear from them on Monday.
HOLMES: Were they receptive to your idea?
WILL ANDERSON, EARTHGUARD TECHNOLOGIES: A lot of people -- very much. He was very impressed with what I showed him and we showed a couple of demonstrations but we want mainly for David Copperdale (ph) down at Grand Isle and Billy Nungesser, that we are listening. There are a lot of people out there listening and we heard the problems they got and in the marsh areas where this product does not work, we got a coalition with a company in Mississippi who has developed a bioremediation agent and it has been using it successfully for 15 years, and these -
HOLMES: I want to make sure, guys. Excuse me there. But last thing, I want to make sure you guys can mass produce these stuff. You have enough that you can make an impact in the gulf, you believe, on the beaches or out on the water?
ANDERSON: Absolutely. We can take this stuff up, and on a wide strip, if we had more time, I could show you how we could take an area -- I was down at Grand Isle yesterday, scatter this product over to it and in comparison with the crews out there with rakes and shovels, in less than a minute and a half we can start rolling that stuff up like a piece of polyethylene and throw it in trash cans.
HOLMES: Well, guys, like you said, if we had more time and we might actually get more time. But we'll talk to you when we get off the air here. But we might have you stick around and do that for us again and show that other product.
And I certainly got a ton more question, but guys, both of you, thank you. Terry Hester and Will Anderson of EarthGuard Technologies of Alabama. We might get to see more from you guys, because a lot of people are watching right now and paying attention and we are hearing from them and they would actually like to see and hear more from you guys. So thank you but we're going to you. Don't go too far.
ANDERSON: Thank you, T.J..
HOLMES: We're going to talk to you after this break. All right, guys. Thanks so much, to our viewers. Big break. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: We'll be back with more live news at the top of the hour, but right now, going to hand it over to "YOUR BOTTOM LINE" with Poppy Harlow.
