Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Saturday Morning News
Gulf Coast Could See Squalls as Bonnie Nears; Film Project Aims to Capture People's Everyday Lives
Aired July 24, 2010 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, how you doing?
(LAUGHTER)
HOLMES: Hello there, everybody. From the CNN Center here in Atlanta, Georgia, this is CNN SATURDAY MORNING. The 24th of July. I'm T.J. Holmes.
And look what we have here.
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Look what the cat dragged in.
HOLMES: We just -- we can't get rid of you. You're like a little stray you feed; it just keeps coming back.
But no, Kate Bolduan with us this morning. Always good to have you in from D.C.
BOLDUAN: Yes. Thank you (INAUDIBLE).
HOLMES: So good morning to you.
BOLDUAN: Good morning.
And yes, you may not know it with the way we're acting, but it is 6 a.m....
HOLMES: Yes.
BOLDUAN: ...here in Atlanta, and it is 5 a.m. in Pascagoula, Mississippi. Thanks for starting your day with us, everybody.
So everybody...
HOLMES: Yes. Yes.
BOLDUAN: ...ya'll, all of you, everyone is watching the Gulf this morning. Why? Well, because of Bonnie. Bonnie is making its way across the region. It has weakened to a depression after hitting Florida, which is a good thing.
But Admiral Thad Allen says that workers that are -- that are out there in the Gulf who have been working and trying to stop this oil spill and cap that and finally kill the well -- well, they are getting out of the Gulf as a precaution and drilling on the relief well has been suspended.
HOLMES: All right. We got two live reports coming in just a moment.
Also, out of Washington, D.C., 241 teachers waking up today without a job. Told they are fired. Why? Because they are not getting the job done.
This is all part of a new teacher-assessment system there in D.C. Two hundred and forty-one teachers out of there. We'll talk about how many other teachers are now on notice as well.
And also, Kate, a lot of us just love this picture at least this week we saw.
BOLDUAN: I love it.
HOLMES: A lot of people thought it was too perfect. This was out of South Africa. A couple had their ship attacked, essentially, by a whale. This picture was caught from a distance.
Well, now we've got some new video to show you that may prove, in fact, this is the real deal. Some just thought it looked a little too perfect.
BOLDUAN: And you will want it to see this.
HOLMES: Yes.
BOLDUAN: It's actually quite fascinating.
But first, let's get you back to one of the big stories we're following, as Tropical Depression Bonnie churns in the Gulf of Mexico. Ships responding to the Gulf oil disaster have been moved out of harm's way. But the Coast Guard is still monitoring the sealed oil- well cap from the air and via satellite.
We have team coverage of Bonnie's approach to the Gulf Coast. Our Jacqui Jeras is here in the Weather Center with the latest tracking -- tracking data, and Reynolds Wolf is live in Grand Isle, Louisiana, watching the coastline as Bonnie approaches quickly over there.
And so let's start with Jacqui Jeras. Jacqui, what's the latest with Bonnie?
JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, Bonnie has weakened quite a bit. It is a tropical depression now. Even though it's over the open waters -- you know, you get worried when anything gets in the Gulf of Mexico this time of the year because the water is so warm.
But we've got a couple of things working against it, one of which are the strong winds. And that's why it's weakened so much in the overnight hours. So 35 mile per hour are the maximum sustained winds with Bonnie at the time. And it's moving at a pretty good clip, west northwest, at 17 miles per hour. So that means we could be seeing landfall as early as maybe 24 hours from now. Where is this thing going? There you can see the forecast track. Here's the center of the storm right now. And it is heading towards Louisiana. That cone of uncertainty now is pretty small. It does include you in Mississippi, and then stretches all the way over towards the Texas-Louisiana state line.
Now, we do think that some strengthening is going to be possible here in the next 24 hours, though it's probably going to be pretty minimal because of those strong winds. So we could be get back up to tropical-storm status, but probably a weak tropical storm at that time.
Now, what is this doing to the oil spill? Right now, those winds rotate counterclockwise around the storm. So it would actually be pushing that oil offshore and away from the coast. That's good news. However, as we head down the line and it continues on that northwesterly track, we're going to see those winds change and they're going to come in more from the southeast, and that will pull -- pull it closer towards shore as it gets near a landfall. So it certainly will be having some impact.
Now, we do have tropical-storm warnings which have been posted from Morgan City stretching all the way over towards Destin, Florida. And that means those conditions are expected very shortly. In fact, I think we'll start to see some of those tropical-storm-force wind gusts probably in these squalls, later on for today.
Also want to show you the satellite picture here and what that's doing with -- with the latest for Bonnie. And you can see that little burst of convection. It does kind of help you understand just how close some of those squalls are going to be.
Rainfall amounts, probably on the range of one to three inches, and storm surge also about one to three feet. So not a major impact with this storm, we don't think, along the Gulf Coast. This is a much bigger storm, really, largely in part because of that oil spill.
Kate and T.J, back to you.
HOLMES: All right. So it's going to be on one side of the oil slick. That's good. It's going to move to the other side; that's going to be...
JERAS: And that's bad.
HOLMES: ...bad. All right. I know you're keeping a close eye. Got Jacqui Jeras here with us this weekend. Good to have you as well. Thank you so much.
But right now, we have to stop the cleanup efforts. The good thing is, we were able to get that cap in place.
BOLDUAN: Right.
HOLMES: The new cap. So -- which means, when the ships have to leave, we can actually still keep oil from going into the Gulf. That is great, great news right now.
BOLDUAN: They hope, and they hope that everything stays in place.
HOLMES: Yes.
BOLDUAN: I mean, it's all -- there's always that...
HOLMES: Chance.
BOLDUAN: ...chance.
HOLMES: And we have seen that throughout.
BOLDUAN: And we've seen that throughout. Not everything has been going as planned, as you could say.
But we are going to get the latest. Our Reynolds Wolf, he is in New Orleans this morning with the latest on Bonnie, on the oil, on everything.
Reynolds, what is going on?
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, the latest we've got is that the commander, Retired Admiral Thad Allen -- a lot of the boats obviously pulled back to safe harbor. But you still have a handful of them out near the former site of the Deepwater Horizon.
And what this small flotilla of ships mainly is going to be doing is just keeping a very close eye on the well with remote sensing, using not only seismic readings but also a bit of sonar. They're also going to be controlling the underwater robotic cameras that are going to be circling around in concert around the -- the cap itself.
And those boats are actually designed to handle some of the rough surf. One of the ships that was actually pulled back to shore yesterday was one of the ships that is involved in the whole process of -- of drilling one of the -- one of the relief wells.
And I mean, get this, guys -- it -- it was pulling just some pipes yesterday, about 50 foot increments, 5,000 feet of them, bringing them back on shore and then pulling them back -- back on the boat and then back on shore. So again, it -- they are going to be pulling a lot of ships back, which is -- again, something that they have to do, just to safeguard as this boat -- as this storm comes a little bit closer.
But I will tell you, at the same time, there are definitely some -- there's a lot of activity that's been taking place on the shore. For example, down at Grand Isle, they have been moving some of the -- the booms.
And the absorbent boom that's already been contaminated with the oil, pulling that onshore and also putting out some of the pressure- absorbent boom to basically safeguard -- as the storm comes closer, it may be bringing in a storm surge anywhere from two to three feet, they say, at worst, if it does strengthen back to a tropical storm. And they're just making those preparations.
Back to you.
BOLDUAN: Reynolds, what -- just real quickly, what type of disruption are we talking about? I've heard different number of days that this could put things, delay the kind of cleanup and -- and -- and the work to get the relief wells in place and ready to go.
What type of disruption are we talking about now that, you know, Bonnie is a depression? How does this all work?
WOLF: I would say, at a minimum, you're at least going to have a setback of a couple of days. And there certainly is a detrimental aspect to it. But at the same time, there are some benefits. One of the great benefits that you have, is you have to remember that salt water is a very corrosive agent.
So with all this emulsified oil that's been rising up, and some of it in the mid levels of the water, not making it to the surface, when you have the ocean getting churned up, whether this ends up being a tropical, if it ends up being -- just staying as a depression strength, or even if it were to strengthen into a hurricane, there is definitely a benefit of having that water mixing up. It will actually help break up some of the oil, which is great.
But as Jacqui mentioned, at some point, what this system may do is actually push much of this oil a bit closer to the shore line, especially in some of those environmentally sensitive areas like the marshlands you have in parts of southeast Louisiana. That's certainly a scenario that we don't want to see played out, but it is something that may indeed happen.
The best news of all though is that the cap is still in place. They're very confident that it will remain just fine. It's been there for the last eight days or so, and despite a little bit of seepage that is unrelated to the cap itself, near the ocean floor -- or, on the ocean floor, things remain pretty well.
The only issue that we have, the biggest issue, is, as you mentioned, just the long-term delay that we have in putting in the static kill. And that is something we could see at least for several days, if not several weeks.
Back to you.
BOLDUAN: Well, at least it's staying in place. I mean, I guess at this point...
HOLMES: That's something.
WOLF: Absolutely.
HOLMES: Depending on how choppy those seas get and whatnot, hopefully, it will hold.
Reynolds, we appreciate you, buddy. BOLDUAN: Thanks, Reynolds.
HOLMES: We will talk to you throughout the morning there in New Orleans for us once again.
And once again on the Gulf Coast, we saw the first lady making another trip there. She was there to visit the Coast Guard members in particular in Mississippi, thanking them for their effort throughout this whole Gulf oil disaster. She says specifically that this has been, in fact, a difficult assignment on so many levels for them.
BOLDUAN: And while she was down there, the first lady was briefed on all of the cleanup efforts at an emergency-operations center, and she also christened a Coast Guard named in honor of Dorothy Stratton. She's the Coast Guard first female commissioned officer, and I believe she broke a bottle. (INAUDIBLE).
HOLMES: It always seems like a fun thing to do.
BOLDUAN: It would be fun. I'm sure -- I mean, how -- I actually have no idea how often that happens anymore, but that would be really fun to do.
HOLMES: Well, she is the honorary -- what does it say -- she is the honorary chair or representative or something like that for that ship. So that was a nice moment yesterday.
But we are finding, certainly, new ways to continue to cover this Gulf oil disaster. We are going to take you now somewhere we haven't taken you before. We're going to take you underwater, but this time in a submersible.
BOLDUAN: A submersible. Our Amber Lyon, she takes a trip in this thing. It looks like a bubble, and it got a lot of stuff going on in and around it. But it's helping with -- with the oil -- it's helping at the oil-disaster site, and we'll show you how it all works, coming up in a little bit.
And the woman at the center of a media firestorm meets with a family she was accused of discriminating against.
HOLMES: This was really the story that captivated the country for the week. And there you see, together again, Shirley Sherrod and the white farmer she spoke about in that explosive speech.
It's 10 minutes past the hour here on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(MUSIC, JOE COCKER, "WITH A LITTLE HELP")
HOLMES: Hey there, everybody. Eleven minutes past the hour here on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
We are just going to take the moment here, take a breath it seems that we need to, after everything we saw this week. It's been a tough couple of weeks.
BOLDUAN: Yes.
HOLMES: After the NAACP-"tea party" flap...
BOLDUAN: Yes.
HOLMES: ...of a week or so ago, and then the Shirley Sherrod story that broke, this whole controversy over this woman who is now the former USDA employee who was forced to resign over those comments that some say were taken out of context.
BOLDUAN: Yes, taken out of context.
She wasn't a household name until a few days ago, and now, I'm sure, you know her name. And then after a videotape of that speech that she made was posted by a conservative blogger, Andrew Breitbart, she quit. She was forced to resign, pressured by her bosses. And now she and Breitbart may actually come face to face.
Both have been invited to a minority journalism conference. And of course, Sherrod has already had one very important meeting, with the white farmer she helped so many years ago, that was kind of the -- her talking about this farmer was the whole reason this whole situation started, and she said that she learned then that the real differences between people usually come down to money, not race. And the couple remains grateful today.
Listen here.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROGER SPOONER, FARMER: You need to stop and think before you...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Before you make a joke.
SPOONER: Before you -- before you -- before you run your mouth or take a step. Know where you're going. That's right. Know where you're going. And you -- you won't -- you'll stay out of trouble. Do unto others as you would have them to do unto you. And that'll -- that'll -- that'll save a lot of heartache.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: And tonight, taking an intimate look at the life of Shirley Sherrod, from her early years growing up in rural Georgia, to the murder of her father and the impact the last week has had on her. "THE WOMAN BEHIND THE CONTROVERSY," tonight, 7:00 and 10:00 Eastern, right here on CNN.
Meanwhile, if you got a camera and you got a computer, got a little imagination, it could get you in a movie. And a movie that's upcoming going to be put together by an Oscar-winning director.
BOLDUAN: Yes. This is fascinating.
Josh Levs is here to explain. Josh, what...
(CROSSTALK)
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: What do you guys think? On an -- on an average day when we're not at work, right? Do you guys think your life is interesting?
BOLDUAN: Which is when?
(LAUGHTER)
(CROSSTALK)
LEVS: If there were a day when we didn't work, would our live be interesting enough to be in a major documentary at Sundance?
BOLDUAN: Don't need to think about that. The answer would be no.
LEVS: Yes, I'd put a big red "X."
BOLDUAN: Like, come on. I...
HOLMES: I don't know what I do when I leave here. You don't know what I do.
BOLDUAN: I don't. I don't think I need to know.
LEVS: No, let's leave it at that.
But here's the idea: You got this major Hollywood actually duo, these power players, who could take your life from today -- today only, right? And turn that into a major documentary premiering at Sundance.
I got details coming for you after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(MUSIC, U2, "BEAUTIFUL DAY")
HOLMES: Would you believe that whatever you are doing today, whatever it is right now, it could end up in a major documentary?
BOLDUAN: Right now.
HOLMES: Yes.
BOLDUAN: Yes.
YouTube has teamed up with two Hollywood heavyweights to produce a movie about what people all over the world do in a single day.
Our Josh Levs has all the details.
So Josh, what is going -- how is this going to work? LEVS: Yes, you know what's interesting about what they're doing today? Is that today's date is 7/24, July 24, and they're looking at it 24/7. That's kind of why they chose this date, or what they're playing off of. See? 7/24, 24/7.
The idea here is that everyone in the entire world -- literally, every person, no matter where you are in the world, is invited to send a video.
We have a video here that YouTube put together. It's called "Life in a Day," and you can take video of whatever you're doing. You might be having a really exciting day today. You might be getting married; you might be jumping off a click somewhere. You might just be going about your normal business and doing whatever you're doing.
And what they're saying is that they want whatever it is to be submitted on YouTube, so you get a chance to take part in this.
One of the people behind this is Kevin Macdonald. He's the Oscar- winning director of films "The Last King of Scotland" and "Touching the Void." He will edit the most compelling footage into this documentary.
Here he says what he's looking for.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEVIN MACDONALD, DIRECTOR: You just need to go ahead, take your camera -- hopefully something reasonably good quality -- you go and film something.
LEVS: I have no monitor at all.
MACDONALD: It could be something that turn to you seems really banal -- it could be your journey at work, washing your baby at bath time, going to the hospital to visit a friend, your birthday, going for a walk in the countryside.
Or it could be something much more meaningful to you, much more emotional than knocking down the building next to where you live that you've always loved. The death of a friend.
It's a little snapshot of -- of your life.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEVS: And the executive producer behind this whole project is Ridley Scott. He's the director of "Gladiator," "Black Hawk Down," "Thelma & Louise," "Blade Runner."
He talks about this as an opportunity for aspiring film makers out there. Or maybe you're someone who has another job, but you always wanted to be a film maker. He says, he's your shot to learn your craft, take a crack at it, and ultimately, maybe, have your work in this documentary.
Here's what Ridley Scott says.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RIDLEY SCOTT, EXEC. PRODUCER, "LIFE IN A DAY": It should be personal. And it must be personal. That's what we're looking for.
The key, of course, is what appeals to you as the -- as the author.
Think from here, really think about why that sunrise makes you happy or why that sunset makes you sad. There's no excuse. You have the digital camera, go out and shoot your film, seriously. There is no excuse.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEVS: Now, when he talks about there being no excuse, there actually would be, because there's a lot of people in the world who don't have cameras. That's why one of the things that I really like about this project is they're -- YouTube folks are working with poor communities all over the world in all sorts of countries actually bringing cameras -- some flip cams, some simple cameras -- to poor communities in order to make sure that as many people as possible can take part in it. They're expecting tens of thousands of submissions.
They're going to pick just a few. I have all the details for you up at my Facebook and Twitter pages, joshlevscnn. Take a look at it, because I would definitely hope, I guess, as many as possible take part. You never know if you'll end up in this documentary.
And guys, it will all be premiering January 2011 at Sundance. So not bad for an average Sunday, huh?
BOLDUAN: Not -- I -- I -- that will be fascinating regardless.
LEVS: Yes.
BOLDUAN: Because I'm sure while, I know at least I am extremely boring...
LEVS: I think I'm boring.
BOLDUAN: ...I'm sure there are some really fascinating people out there that do actually fun things on their days off.
(LAUGHTER)
HOLMES: Some do, Kate.
BOLDUAN: Some do. Oh, I'm sorry.
HOLMES: Some of us do.
BOLDUAN: I may be boring, but you know T.J. Holmes is...
HOLMES: No, this is as boring as you'll ever see me. LEVS: T.J., why don't you take part? Go ahead. You should do it.
BOLDUAN: This as boring as you...
HOLMES: Can't get fired though. Can't get fired.
BOLDUAN: Can't get fired. Can't get fired. Yes.
HOLMES: All right. All right, Josh.
LEVS: See you guys.
HOLMES: Josh, thanks.
(LAUGHTER)
BOLDUAN: Another fascinating topic: You've heard of your typical bear trap. I don't actually know what a -- you know, what a typical bear trap would be.
HOLMES: You hear about them.
BOLDUAN: You hear about them.
Well, one family, they caught a bear without even trying.
HOLMES: They have their own bear trap: The family car. We'll tell you how this whole thing worked, coming up on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BOLDUAN: Check your top stories right now.
A suspected U.S. drone attack in Pakistan this morning kills 16 alleged militants. At least five missiles are believed to have hit a compound in South Waziristan. The region used to be a nerve center for the Taliban until an offensive last year chased most of the fighters away.
The U.S. military does not comment on reported drone attacks.
And a huge shakeup in the D.C. public-school system. This is big. The school's chancellor announcing yesterday 241 D.C. teachers are fired now because they failed an education assessment -- basically, an evaluation of -- of how they're doing. Seven hundred and thirty-seven other teachers are now -- have been put on notice for -- quote -- "minimally effective" grading that they received in this same assessment.
And tension between the two Koreas. As the United States and South Korea go ahead with plans for massive joint military drills scheduled for tomorrow, North Korea is threatening the joint exercise with -- quote -- "nuclear deterrence." The U.S. Defense Department says the drills are in response to the sinking of a South Korean warship. About 8,000 military personnel from the United States and South Korea are scheduled to participate.
It's 23 minutes after the hour. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(MUSIC, ELVIS PRESLEY, "LET ME BE YOUR TEDDY BEAR")
HOLMES: Hey there, everybody.
Not quite a teddy-bear story we got here, but a bear nonetheless. A -- a bear behind the wheel, if you will, on this story. A bit of a joyride. But as you can imagine, a bear in your car, it doesn't sound like a joyride.
BOLDUAN: Not so much. Not if you're in the car.
It revolved around a family Toyota and an uninvited driver, a very large black bear. Deputies pieced together the tale this way: A neighbor heard a car horn at 3 a.m., came out to see this Colorado family's car rocking back and forth. By the time the family got up and went outside, no car. Car is gone.
The bear had somehow gotten behind the wheel, put the car in neutral and rode it down a 25-foot hill. It was apparently lured -- the bear -- by a leftover peanut-butter sandwich. I told you there was going to be food in the car.
Sheriff's deputies decided to tie a rope to the door and let the, by now, extremely agitated-and-probably-scared bear out. He finally took off, leaving the car in tatters, because he had shredded the interior. It's not very kind of him.
HOLMES: Well, we go from bears to whales now.
BOLDUAN: Mm-hmm.
HOLMES: And this story, a lot of people would be familiar with. And a lot of people questioned this story this week, because the picture was just perfect. A lot of people thought it had been Photoshopped of some kind.
But there's the picture we're talking about.
BOLDUAN: Yes.
HOLMES: This whale essentially destroying these folks' ship.
BOLDUAN: Yes, this is a whale breaching in front of that sailboat. Can't miss it, right? I mean, you can't really believe it. No way, right?
Well, now, check out this amateur video that we now have. The situation was real. See it? And it was very scary. And it could have been a lot of worse. Take a -- I'm sure we'll show it again.
The couple on the sailboat, they were on a whale-watching expedition of the shores of Cape Town, South Africa. It turns out the whale was just as curious as they were, or he didn't really know they were there, and it literally crashed the party, crash-landing on the deck of their boat, hitting the mast, actually. It took off the mast.
But the boat wasn't badly damaged. An expert...
HOLMES: It wasn't?
BOLDUAN: Apparently not as -- as badly damaged as it could have been. An expert says that they were sailing without their engine on, and that's why the whale did not hear them.
They said it could have been a lot worse if the whale had hit a different part of the sailboat.
HOLMES: And I think the whale is OK. They say it left some skin behind, but for the most part, it wasn't too severely injured.
BOLDUAN: Yes.
HOLMES: But that picture -- I guess it was the real deal. We have the video to prove it now.
BOLDUAN: The real deal. Now you can believe it, folks.
So Tropical Depression Bonnie is having a direct impact on the oil disaster in the Gulf.
HOLMES: Yes, and coming up next, we'll have the latest on where the storm is going. Also, we're going to be live to see what the Coast Guard is doing to prepare for all this rain and wind that is coming no matter what.
BOLDUAN: And one woman falls onto the train tracks as a train barrels toward her. The remarkable rescue caught on tape. You'll want to see it.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Hello again. Welcome back this CNN SATURDAY MORNING. Bottom of the hour here, now. I'm T.J. Holmes.
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Kate ...
(LAUGHTER)
...Bolduan.
HOLMES: Are you all right? Everything OK?
BOLDUAN: Yes, it is I can't talk as fast as you or something.
HOLMES: Oh, sorry.
BOLDUAN: I'm Kate Bolduan, thank you for starting your day with us. HOLMES: Well, sorry. And you're the one drinking coffee.
BOLDUAN: I know. Well, you don't need it. You are just that good.
HOLMES: All right.
Well, hello to you all. Good to have you all here with us on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
BOLDUAN: Good morning.
Let's get a check of the top stories. Two bombings in southern Afghanistan killed five U.S. soldiers today. Commanders in Afghanistan confirmed the deaths, so far, no further comments. This month more than 70 international troops have died, including more than 50 Americans.
And the Pentagon is in the middle of a child porn investigation. So far, several dozen current and form workers, including some contract workers are involved. Some have top security clearance. They allegedly bought or accessed porn on the Internet sometimes using their government computers to view it. The investigation, which "The Boston Globe" made public has been going on for several years.
And a CNN legend, a CNN original has died. Veteran journalist Daniel Schorr, whose career spanned more than six decades, died Friday morning at a Washington D.C. hospital. He was 93 years old. After his years with CBS, from 1953 to 1976, Schorr helped launch CNN. He was there in the beginning as CNN's senior Washington correspondent on CNN's first night on the air, in 1980. Schorr landed a major interview with President Jimmy Carter.
We are keeping a close eye on Bonnie.
JERAS: Yes.
HOLMES: Bonnie is not a hurricane.
JERAS: No.
HOLMES: Bonnie is not a tropical storm. It's a depression.
JERAS: It's a depression.
HOLMES: But we need to be paying attention to this storm. It is going to bring the rain and the wind, no matter what. But everybody is moving out of the way of it.
JERAS: Yes, and they should be. Because it is certainly going to have a huge impact, because as we know all the vessels have gone on out of there, and it has more to do with the wave action really more than anything else and how strong the winds are going to be. Winds, in fact, pretty light at this hour. Looking at 35 miles per hour, that's it. But this could strengthen a little bit.
HOLMES: Where is it? It is one of these things that it's not even well formed. You can't even tell where it is.
JERAS: No, it is not well organized anymore. And you can't pick out, you can't really look at a satellite and pick it out. You have got look at the winds within the system. And it's somewhere within here. Let me show you the track and you will have a better idea plotted on the map here, of where this thing is. And there you can see it.
So, it is about over 250 miles away from the coastline of Louisiana and the mouth of the Mississippi River here. Some strengthening is possible. This could happen in the next 24 hours. We think it will be about 24 hours before landfall would take place.
What is it doing to the oil right now? Here you can see where the slick is. Winds move counter clockwise around an area of low pressure. So the winds right now are pushing any existing that is still out there, offshore so that is actually good news right now. And the wave action also helps to break it up a little and disperse it. At this time things are OK, other than the vessels not being out there.
However, as that storm system continues that northwesterly track and gets into this area, those winds are going to be moving in like this. That's going be pushing in closer towards the coastline, or course, that's a problem as well as the storm surge. That will bring it further inland than it normally would have become.
We do have watches and warnings in effect. Tropical storm warnings have been issued for Morgan City, stretching over towards the Dustin area. We will be seeing showers and thunder showers throughout the day today, along the Gulf Coast; 1 to 3 inches of rainfall, can be expected here. You can see some of the spotty showers. And these are the real clusters right here, associated with Bonnie.
I do want to mention a couple of other weather stories real quickly for today. Because these are some big ones. Thunderstorms moving across the Upper Midwest at this hour; strong to severe, causing flash flooding. We are seeing lots of problems in the Chicago Land area. If you have travel plans for today. Use a lot of caution. We expect to see delays at the airport. Some of the storms could be severe later on for today. There you could see flash flood watches and warnings.
And heat, a huge issue. There are 22 states under heat advisories from New York City, stretching all the way down towards the Gulf Coast, where it is going to feel like 100 to 110 degrees, so very uncomfortable.
And, you know, T.J. and Kate, when you talk about the tropical storm or the tropical depression as it makes its way towards the Gulf Coast the high pressure system is in place. So any moisture coming in from this system is just going to make it a little bit more oppressive, unfortunately adding humidity to the air.
BOLDUAN: Wow. Hot, hot, hot. Thanks so much, Bonnie. We are going to be watching it all, and watching it all in the Gulf. Meteorologist Reynolds Wolf is live in New Orleans with a look at, really, what could happen when this tropical depression comes ashore.
Reynolds, what sort of impact are we talking about here, in terms of the Gulf oil spill?
WOLF: Kate, you want me to make some stuff up? You want me to talk about some good and some bad things that can happen. Because there really are both sides to this.
BOLDUAN: Yes, good and bad. Let's start with the-let's start with the bad, so we end on good.
WOLF: OK, let's go. We'll begin with the bad, and then we'll finish up with the good stuff. The bad stuff is the idea that Jacqui mentioned. That there is a chance that you could push some of the oil closer to shore. Everyone knows that is bad. That is one bad aspect.
Another bad aspect is the idea that we're going to have to stop that great progress we were making getting closer to the static kill. That is one thing that we've been talking about. So those are negative things.
But then let's get to the positive aspects. Positive aspects that we have is, one, with the enhanced wave action what it can help is do is actually break up much of the oil that is still out there. Although it has been harder to find, there is still plenty of oil out there. You have to remember that salt water is very corrosive agent, so it really can break up a lot of the emulsified oil.
Another great aspect and this is something I haven't heard too many people speak of, as of yet. Is that this is a great dress rehearsal for what may come in the next couple of months. Remember, this is a hot bed of tropical activity. We are talking about the Gulf of Mexico.
We are bound have a busy season. We already it has been fairly busy. And we are really getting to the peak of the season over the next month or two. So there is a chance we will see this scenario play out again once again. So, to actually have this rehearsal, to be able to bring the boats in, in a systematic way, again, these are both very good things.
Something else we are going to be seeing out there, in terms of bringing the ships in, there is a lot, plenty that have actually been brought in closer to safe harbor. There are many in Lake Ponchartrain, wide variety of ships. Including one that had brought up some of the implements used in digging one of the two relief wells.
And this is just an amazing endeavor, drilling the relief well, but then bringing up, out of the water, we are talking about over a mile of pipe that is brought up in 50-foot sections, and then stacked on the ship and then brought back closer to shore.
There are a few boats that are going to remain out there. In fact, Admiral Thad Allen said that there is going the boats, basically, watching and observing this, with seismic sensors, also sonar. At the same time you have the boats that are out there that are controlling these underwater robots. Those boats are actually designed to handle pretty rough seas. They should be in fairly good shape.
Along the coast, you have a lot of people busy, too. A lot of the oil has penetrated some of those absorbent booms. That has been taken away, put in airlock containers and shipped away from the coast in case there is any kind of storm surge. They also have been putting out of the absorbent boom for what oil may soon be approaching. Certainly a busy time. Of course we have the good and bad aspects. Let's kick it back to you, Kate.
BOLDUAN: The good, the bad, not coming from an ugly. Thank you, Reynolds. I had to do it. The good, the bad, the ugly, but I didn't want to say that.
WOLF: It works. Whatever it takes.
BOLDUAN: Anyway. Get me off the camera.
HOLMES: All right. Both of you, two. We will move on to submersibles now. We have been covering this thing in so many different ways, this Gulf oil disaster. We are going to take you under water in a whole new way now.
We are going to try to determine the severity of the contamination hundreds of feet below the surface. To get there, though, we have to use a manned submersible and researchers are going do just that. And they are allowing us to tag along. This sub is able to descend to the depths of up to 3,000 feet. It is about to be deployed.
CNN's Amber Lyon with a preview.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
AMBER LYON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: While most people are heading into port, because of tropical depression Bonnie, as you can see it's very windy out here. We are actually heading out into the middle of the Gulf of Mexico with a team of researchers from Florida Atlantic University, because we have been given an amazing opportunity to go down in this thing. And it looks like it is from a science fiction movie. It is called a manned submersible. It can go down to about 3,000 feet below the sea.
And we're going to be going there looking for oil dispersant. We will also be using this claw here, to collect samples, and also collect some fish and get baseline research here.
So, what can be done with that arm?
DON LIBERATORE, CHIEF SUBMERSIBLE PILOT: The arm, you can use the manipulator arm to grab samples with the jaws, which are right here. Using the thumb (ph).
LYON: Oh, I see.
LIBERATORE: There is also a little cutter, you see on the side of it, so we can cut things off on the bottom, whether it is rope, or samples. There is a Plexiglas tube that you can suction samples up the corrugated tube.
LYON: To me, that is fascinating. If you see a fish you just like, shoop, suck it in?
LIBERATORE: Sometimes the fish are a little bit faster than we are. Sometime we are lucky, too. There is also a scoop.
LYON: OK, I see.
LIBERATORE: We can close it around, we can put it over the top of the fish sometimes. Oh!
LYON: And we just got a big ...
(LAUGHTER)
LIBERATORE: That was part of the ...
LYON: That was poor Chris Turner, the photographer is getting soaked out there.
Amber Lyon, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: We've been talking about rough weather out there. We have this tropical depression, now, Bonnie, that is out there. So, if the weather permits, Amber will be going out and under water, in that submersible you just saw there. You will see her reports throughout the day. Hopefully, again, if weather permitting starting this afternoon here on CNN.
BOLDUAN: Absolutely. And dramatic video out of Canada as a pilot practices for a weekend air show.
HOLMES: He lost control of his plane and look at what happens next.
It is 40 minutes past the hour here on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING. Details coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Welcome back everybody. This is the CNN SATURDAY MORNING; 42 minutes past the hour.
This could have been a horrible story but it turned out well.
BOLDUAN: Yes, we should say that right up front. It turned out well.
HOLMES: Yes.
BOLDUAN: Once in a while, you really hear stories of just amazing bravery and in an everyday setting, everyday people doing extraordinary things. And here is one that was actually caught on tape.
HOLMES: Look at this. This is from MARTA station, here in the Atlanta area. You see that woman walking by? Walks right on to the train tracks. Turns out she is visually impaired and she came off walking at a pretty good clip, down the steps, and walked right on to the platform.
What you are seeing there, now, is everyone came to her rescue. People jumped on, and rushed to her safety, and started to pull her up. Here is the video again but it is amazing to see it is like she had no idea of what was in front of her, and fell on to the tracks. And there it is, the train is on the way.
BOLDUAN: And it could have been, absolutely, easily a horrible situation, if people hadn't been so quick to react. Those good Samaritans that one man, and the other people jumped in, here is the thing they remain anonymous. No one knows who these people were. The train stopped four feet from where 57-year old Addie Norfleet (ph) lay on the tracks. She is OK as far as we know. But all those people remain anonymous. We would love to speak with them.
HOLMES: Really. We would love to hear from you. You know how to get a hold of us. There are so many different ways between Facebook and Tweeting, and whatever else. Just pick up the phone.
BOLDUAN: Not hard to track us down.
HOLMES: And call Kate. We will have her cell phone number up here shortly. Really we would like to talk to those folks, but it is also cool. A lot of people like to remain anonymous. I did my deed, just wanted to help out. I don't want any recognition.
BOLDUAN: I do respect that.
HOLMES: Let me go on about my day. But it could have been so different.
BOLDUAN: Good story, though, this morning. Some other startling video that you really want to see. That we want to show you. This of a crash of a Canadian military jet.
HOLMES: Now, this was happening at a practice for a weekend airshow. This is in Alberta, Canada. Let's go ahead and show this to you.
You can see the jet hovering there. Seems like it is almost stuck in midair but they realize, or the pilot does at least, that he is in trouble. You see him eject. He got out of there really just a second before the plane crashes. It nose dives. This is an F-18. It ends up in this fireball. You see, the pilot-now you will see it one more time here. You can see he gets out. I didn't realize how quickly he got out, or how close he was to this plane crashing.
But right before it crashes, he does get out. He was injured. Not seriously, but now the Canadian military are looking into the cause of this accident. But the pilot was able to get out. Amazing video we have got for you.
Also we have been hearing about a lot of cities and a lot of states having to cut back. We are seeing cut backs here and there. A lot of budget shortfalls.
BOLDUAN: Absolutely.
HOLMES: But in one spot the way you will notice the shortfall is when you go into the bathroom stall. You might notice a bit of a cut back.
BOLDUAN: Right. You did not miss this. The mayor of one New Jersey town has what some might call a very unique way to stop flushing money down the toilet. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BOLDUAN: And checking our top stories now.
A suspected U.S. drone attack in Pakistan this morning killed 16 alleged militants. At least five missiles are believed to have hit a compound in south Waziristan. The region used to be a nerve center for the Taliban until an offensive last year chased most of the fighters away. The U.S. military does not comment, as a practice, on reported drone attacks.
And a huge shake up in the D.C. public school system, 241 teachers fired. The school's chancellor said they were poor performers, or had not been properly licensed. More than 700 other employees have been given a year to improve on the job, or they themselves will be fired.
And a new escalation of tensions on the Korean Peninsula; this time it's over joint military exercises, by the U.S. and South Korea, set to begin tomorrow. The U.S. Defense Department says the drills are in response to the sinking of a South Korean warship. Pyongyang warns that they will counter the exercises with its, quote, "powerful nuclear deterrence".
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right. Ten minutes until the top of the hour. You have been places, even to restaurants sometimes, maybe a party, where it is BYOB, bring your own booze. You work in the City of Newark, New Jersey you may have to bring your own toilet paper to work.
BOLDUAN: Yes, yes, toilet paper, among other things this is on the mayor's list of things he wants to stop spending money on. They are in a big budget crunch, as many states are and many cities are. Mary Snow asked this mayor if this is really the best way to wipe out a budget shortfall. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): A glimmer of hope in a struggling city, a clothing store opening, but for the rest of Newark, New Jersey the picture is grim. Mayor Cory Booker plans to slash spending everywhere.
(On camera): One thing that caught our attention, you said you are cutting back on toilet paper? You really serious about that?
MAYOR CORY BOOKER, NEWARK, NEW JERSEY: I am telling you that we are going to stop spending on everything from printer paper to toilet paper to stop washing windows, anything we need to do to keep the fiscal integrity of our city strong and solid.
Everybody is watching us from bondholders to local residents who are worried about their fourth quarter tax bill. I would much rather go without some of these things than have my taxpayers in the city of Newark, my homeowners and my renters face yet another cost of living increase that they just can't take right now.
SNOW (voice over): Besides the prospect of having to bring in their own paper to toilet paper to work, non uniform city workers could be cut to a four-day workweek. More than 300 fireman and policemen stand to lose their jobs in a city where the unemployment rate is 15 percent.
All city pools are slated to shut next month. Booker says the cuts are necessary. He hoped to raise revenue by converting the city's water system into a municipal utility authority, a new agency that could sell municipal bonds. But Newark City Council rejected that idea and accuses Booker of using scare tactics.
RAS BARAKA, NEWARK CITY COUNCIL: That's the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard of, you know, we're not going to buy toilet paper. We're not going to do these kinds of things . These are extreme things to force the council to participate or vote for municipal utilities authority, that we think is bad public policy.
BOOKER: This is not scare tactics, this a fact of life right now.
SNOW: Booker is predicting the next couple of years will be the most difficult Newark has seen in a long time.
BOOKER: I have so much faith in our people, that we're going to not only survive this but we will come out of it and find ways to thrive at greater and greater levels.
SNOW: Mary Snow, CNN, Newark, New Jersey.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: A lot of state cities are in a bad spot. And you have to get creative sometimes and try different things to cut back on. Maybe this is-we'll see this trend. BOLDUAN: That's a lot, I mean, but no window washing, no copy paper, no toilet paper, four-day workweek. But it if keeps people on the job by telling them to bring their own toilet paper, I guess I'd do it.
HOLMES: Of course, we all would.
But, coming up here, one guy who is out of his job, General Stanley McChrystal. He is actually retiring, just had his retirement ceremony yesterday. And he didn't go out without saying some words about that "Rolling Stone" article that got him out of a job. We will tell you what he said coming up next. Just five minutes to the top of the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Coming up on the top of the hour.
General Stanley McChrystal, he was in all the headlines there for a little while, after that "Rolling Stone" article, well, now he is leaving the military, officially retiring now. He retired on Friday in a ceremony.
BOLDUAN: You see it right there. This comes a month after-and T.J. alluded to that-President Obama accepted his resignation. McChrystal stepped down after "Rolling Stone" article detailed negative remarks by, well, really mainly his aides, about the administration. But of course, McChrystal was involved with that as well. Listen here to a little bit of the ceremony.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEN. STANLEY MCCHRYSTAL, U.S. ARMY (RET.): This has a potential to be an awkward or even a sad occasion. With my resignation I left a mission I feel strongly about. I ended a career I loved that began over 38 years ago. And I left unfulfilled commitments I made to many comrades in the fight, commitments I hold sacred.
My service did not end as I would have wished. And there are misperceptions about the loyalty and service of some dedicated professionals that will likely take some time, but I believe will be corrected.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BOLDUAN: McChrystal, he also showed a sense of humor. Actually he is quite funny. He hinted jokingly that he had unflattering stories about friends in the audience, so he added, and I quote, "I know a 'Rolling Stone' reporter."
HOLMES: Nice, he went out with-he had to make some reference to it. That was on everybody's mind.
BOLDUAN: I guess I applaud that.
HOLMES: You know, he did, still everyone applauded his record. As everyone says too bad he had to go out the way he did. But still he was able to get out of the military, nice ceremony.
BOLDUAN: Retired, now he can spend much more time with his wife. They spent years apart, so there is a silver lining.
HOLMES: Enjoy you retirement.
And we hope you enjoy the next hour of CNN SATURDAY AND SUNDAY MORNING. The Saturday part starts right now. We are at the top of the hour.
Hello to you all from the CNN Center. It is the 24th day of July. Hope you are having a good one wherever you may be. I'm T.J. Holmes.
BOLDUAN: And I'm Kate Bolduan. Thanks so much for joining us. It is 7:00 a.m. here in Atlanta; 6:00 a.m. in Pascagoula, Mississippi. Thank you for being here.
So everybody is watching the Gulf this morning. Bonnie is making its way across the region. It has weakened to a depression, which is good, after hitting Florida. Admiral Thad Allen says that workers are getting out of the Gulf because they want to get out of harm's way, really. And they have to be careful. Drilling on the relief well has been suspended because of it.
HOLMES: Also, out of Washington, D.C., 241 teachers laid off, fired. Not because of some budget cuts, but because they weren't getting the job done in the classroom. We'll explain what's happening in Washington, D.C.
Also this morning, a lot of people using the Facebook and Twitter and all that good stuff just to keep up with your friends and family and so on and -- but some people are actually using it to make some money. Yes, you increase your followers, you can increase your dollars. And we are trying to help one business locally get on board. We'll have that story with financial analysts Clyde Anderson -- coming up.
BOLDUAN: And back to Bonnie. As Tropical Depression Bonnie churns in the Gulf of Mexico, ships responding to the Gulf oil disaster have been moved out of harm's way, but the Coast Guard is still monitoring the sealed oil well cap from the air and via satellite.
We have team coverage of Bonnie's approach to the Gulf Coast. Our Jacqui Jeras is in the weather center with the latest tracking data. And Reynolds Wolf is live in New Orleans watching the coastline as Bonnie approaches Louisiana.
Let's start with Jacqui with the latest on Bonnie's track.
Hi there, Jacqui.
JERAS: Hey, guys.
Bonnie is moving west-north and westerly, very quickly and kind of making a beeline towards the Louisiana-Mississippi coast there. It's weakened a lot in the overnight hours and it's now a tropical depression. In fact, you can't even identify the center of circulation on a satellite picture. Maximum winds: 35 miles an hour.
But the big impacts here really will be the showers and thunderstorms and what it's going to be doing to the Gulf oil spill.
I want to show you the forecast track -- and here you can see that Bonnie could intensify just a little bit here as it continues to move closer towards the shore. But we still expect it to be either tropical depression or tropical storm when it makes landfall, and probably a minimal one at that. Winds around the areas of low shore with counterclockwise. So, at this time, Bonnie is really in the good location because it's pushing any oil that's out there still away from the coastline.
However, as it continues on that north westerly track and starts to get into this area, we'll see those winds begin to push the oil back on shore. And that is the bad news with this. And we'll also see some storm surge, probably on the range of one to three feet above normal tides. So, that's going to bring some of it inland a little further than it normally would go.
And there you can see the intensity forecast, too, by the way. Winds may be 40 miles per hour as it makes landfall. Why has this thing been weakening? Well, we've got an upper level disturbance in the western Gulf and so the winds are rather strong and you really need light winds and calm conditions for tropical storms or hurricanes to get stronger.
There are warnings in effect though, tropical storm warnings for Morgan City, stretching over towards Destin. And we are expecting the tropical storm force conditions are going to be possible probably by even early this afternoon. And that's mostly going to be in the form of some squall lines as we call them, thundershowers and thunderstorms that move in and you get that gusts as thunderstorms rumble through your area.
There you can see that we do have some lighter showers at this hour. But they should pick up in intensity throughout the day. Rainfall totals on the rain just somewhere between about one to three inches. So, not really expecting any flood issues.
Another big story with what's going on across the southeast is the heat. There are a lot of heat advisories in effect here. So, all this moisture is getting trapped underneath the big high unfortunately and that's going to make for some really sweltering oppressive conditions this afternoon as well.
So, we're going to continue to track Bonnie. It's expected to slow down a little bit in forward speed but we're expecting landfall maybe somewhere within about 24 hours in this time.
T.J. and Kate, back to you.
HOLMES: All right. Jacqui, we appreciate you. We'll be checking in with you throughout the morning.
And this is exactly what they were talking about. This was the whole point that new cap, a big deal -- they could leave on and get out of there.
BOLDUAN: Right.
HOLMES: Get the ships out in case the storm came. But still, even if the ships are gone, they can keep the cap on and no oil is going out into the Gulf. So, they got this thing in place just in the nick of time.
BOLDUAN: Right. And they think it's secure. They've been testing it. It seems the tests have all shown that it is relatively secure.
Well, what is going on on the Gulf? Let's go to our meteorologist Reynolds Wolf in New Orleans.
Reynolds, what is the latest on Bonnie and its impact as it's getting to approach where -- exactly where you are?
WOLF: Well, one thing Jacqui mentioned a moment ago -- she was talking about how -- when Bonnie had moved across Florida and actually came under the Gulf. This storm was never a power house. It was never a major tropical storm, never a strong one.
So, to Florida just crawled its way out. And one thing Jacqui mentioned which is key is you have that upper level low that is in the west for half of the Gulf of Mexico and had that not been there, this storm could have gotten a lot stronger. So, in many ways, we're very fortunate about it.
I'll tell you that right now, the big operation is taking place locally here and certainly on the Gulf of Mexico. It's all about the people. It's no longer about the cap. They feel very confident that the cap in place is going to continue to keep that oil at bay, which is great news.
Plus, you have to remember, it's nearly a mile below the sea level, mile below the very top of the water. So, even with some of the biggest, heaviest waves, it's got minimal effect, if any, on the cap itself.
So, again, it's all about moving the people, the personnel that are out there on the water. (INAUDIBLE) flotillas that have been trying to contain that oil, taking them from that location and putting them in safe harbor should the seas get rough.
That being said, there's still going to be very small flotilla out there that's going to take at least a listen if you will using, again, sonar, using seismic instrumentations to really monitor that cap. Plus, they've got the two robots that are actually going to be moving right around the cap, taking a quick, quick look at that.
And if the seas get very rough, they will be able just to use satellite observation. The thing to remember, though, is if you got thick cloud cover, you're not going to really be able to deploy or really use that remote sensing. So, that's going to be kind of a difficult thing to have to deal with.
Something else they've been doing is they really have been preparing on land. In fact, not far from our location, a little bit to our southwest in Grand Isle, they have been putting out absorbent boom along the coast, taking some of the boom that's already been soaked with oil, storing it up, locking up, moving them away from the coastline, but just preparing for the possibility should this storm strengthening and provide anywhere from a two to three-foot storm surge.
If that were to happen, they're going to be ready for that. And you can expect similar situations like that playing out throughout parts of Mississippi, back into, of course, Louisiana here and then over to Alabama and even Florida.
That's the latest we've got, let's kick it back to you in the studio.
BOLDUAN: I think one thing you said earlier that is fascinating and I think true, you said one silver lining of all of this is that this is kind of a dress rehearsal because we're talking about the Gulf of Mexico.
WOLF: Absolutely.
BOLDUAN: This is where a lot of activity is going on in that region in terms of tropical storms, tropical depressions, you know, hurricanes and all that stuff.
WOLF: Oh, absolutely. I mean, the season lasts through November 30, and we have had instances where during a very active tropical season where you're seeing storms as they form after that point. So, yes, every step we take now, we're gaining something.
Sure the -- you know, you have to hold off on the static kill operation, but we are still gaining much in terms of experience. Never handled anything like this, certainly in the situation like this during this time of year where things can be so active in the Gulf of Mexico.
BOLDUAN: Absolutely. All right, Reynolds. We'll be checking in with you throughout the morning. Reynolds Wolf in New Orleans -- thanks so much, Reynolds.
HOLMES: All right. Well, can you imagine just driving down the street and you fall off into a hole that's 20 feet deep?
BOLDUAN: That sounds like an absolute nightmare. So, that's what happened to the man inside this SUV. Oh my gosh. You're going to hear from him -- next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BOLDUAN: So, we're talking about -- we love to talk about cars, by the way. You should hear us on the commercial break.
Anyway, driving down the street when the road suddenly opens up beneath you. That's exactly what happens -- it looks terrifying to man in Milwaukee when a giant sink hole appeared out of nowhere.
HOLMES: All right. Look at this thing -- go ahead and take a look at it. But yes, he fell into that. You see his SUV sitting down there, the black truck.
Listen to him now describe this whole thing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LANCE TREANKLER, DRIVER: The road just gone under me, and when I landed, my head snapped back and I went unconscious for a few seconds. And when I looked up, I remember just being like everything was just coming over the top. I thought to myself, if I don't get out quick enough, I might not -- I might not make it out.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Well, he did make it out. Thanks to one man who was close by, saw it happen and came to the rescue of the driver. The driver described his injuries there, but for the most part, they were minor. The sinkhole cut off power to the area, 200 homes and businesses should have their power back up and running this morning.
But a scary scene, we see these every once in a while certainly when you have a lot of rain, a lot of weather, those streets and roads get saturated and these can happen. But they are scary as all get out.
BOLDUAN: As all get -- I mean, that's huge!
HOLMES: Yes.
BOLDUAN: That's terrifying. I would not be talking on the camera. I would be in the corner.
HOLMES: No, you would not.
BOLDUAN: Yes, I would.
HOLMES: All right.
BOLDUAN: Anyway.
HOLMES: Well, this other -- now, this sounds like something you would be at actually. A bunch of people dressed up like super heroes.
(LAUGHTER)
HOLMES: No, no, no. This -- I make fun of this every year and they told me I shouldn't because this is big money, it's a big deal.
BOLDUAN: It's true, just like you're making fun of the World Cup when you don't like it ...
(CROSSTALK)
BOLDUAN: Anyway, Josh will be telling us all about comic-con.
LEVS: I'm sure he does (INAUDIBLE)
(CROSSTALK)
LEVS: Look, here's the deal now. Cities are battling. They're trying to steal this convention away from San Diego. So, as comic-con takes off, I'm going to tell you all about the impact it's having on the economy and which A-list stars are on their way.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(MUSIC)
BOLDUAN: (INAUDIBLE)
HOLMES: No, I get it now. I get this thing. It might not be my thing, but it's a thing to a lot of people. And it is big money. It is big business. And you better respect it.
I respect money. So admit it. When you think about comic-con, I'll admit, you think about geeks dressed up in crazy costumes. You do.
BOLDUAN: He said it. These days, you'll still see all of that, the funny costumes. Not funny. Sorry. It could be very serious costumes -- (INAUDIBLE) over this one -- but there's something new, Hollywood studio execs. They know there's big money to be made using comic book characters on the big screen.
Josh Levs ...
LEVS: There you go.
BOLDUAN: ... unfortunately, we could not convince him to wear his costume today. But he is going break down the numbers.
LEVS: I know. They really want to me to dress up like a (INAUDIBLE).
BOLDUAN: I think it says something. I don't know. I'm not involved in these discussions, but I'm just saying.
LEVS: Trust me, I'm used to it at this point. I get it every day.
But here's the thing, even I am surprised by these numbers. I mean, look, the bigger reason the studio execs want to be there is that so many people turn out. You're seeing just some of the pictures from comic-con this year behind me.
Take a look at this. You got 130,000, at least, people expected to take part this year in just a few days and numerically, listen to this number: more than $163 million impact to San Diego. That's what a convention group there is saying right now, which explains why so many other cities are interested in it. A few days, $163 million every year.
Now, the reason is that so many people are interested in sci-fi and these comics and the kinds of things that go on there. We have sound from inside this year's convention. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have been wanting to come to comic-con for years and years. I went last year and this is my second year. And tickets are hard to get, but I absolutely love it and I'm finally going back as much as I can.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Comic-con is a great experience, you know? You just go there, see the people, have a great time. I mean, some of us, we have like old friends that we never get to see until this time of year.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You guys are supposed to be what? I know, but say it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Honestly?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These are just freebies that we found (INAUDIBLE).
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEVS: There are tons of freebies like that. And that's what we keep hearing. That you go there, you get all this swag basically because they're so incredibly match-up (ph) that's being handed out.
Take a look at the line -- this is the line. We have an iReport video here of people who are lining up before the doors even opened the other day. And one of the reasons is, yes, ultimately, tons and tons of people are going to get in.
But the first people are the ones who get into some of the more VIP areas where the big stars come. This year, Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, Will Ferrell, Tina Fey, Sylvester Stallone -- the line keeps going. All these stars try to keep -- you know, keep showing up there. Even things that you wouldn't think of as sci-fi, the TV show "Glee," which doesn't have anything to do with sci-fi, apparently had a premier there last year. They're taking part again this year, all sorts of shows.
And believe it or not, at CNN.com, we have a whole section all about this because we want to reach you all, too, those taking interest. It's up on my Facebook and Twitter pages, JoshLevsCNN. And if you want to see some of the latest pictures, just go CNN.com/Comic- Con. So, T.J. and Kate, I assume you guys will be spending some time there during the break coming up, right?
BOLDUAN: Yes. And I have a great idea.
LEVS: What's that?
HOLMES: Oh, my goodness.
BOLDUAN: You should also go to all of Josh's pages which I can't even list them all. Facebook, Twitter, and tell him what costume he should wear.
LEVS: Oh no.
BOLDUAN: I think that is a great idea.
LEVS: I'm in trouble now. I'm still going to be one of these ...
(CROSSTALK)
HOLMES: Wasn't it here last year, the year before? What was that thing we had here in town? Do you remember that? We have -- was comic-con here one year?
LEVS: Comic-con is in San Diego, but there was another convention. Another one -- there was a sci-fi comic book convention.
HOLMES: Dragon-con, that's what I just talking about here. It was dragon-con. I just saw people walking down the street dressed weirdly.
(CROSSTALK)
BOLDUAN: You assume it could be lack of sleep.
HOLMES: You could assume. All right.
LEVS: Uh-oh.
HOLMES: Josh, thanks.
LEVS: I'm scared. See you.
HOLMES: Well, a lot of people out there are looking for ways in this tough economy to boost your business. You don't have a lot of money to advertise.
But we got a way you can advertise for free and reach the world. How? Social media. It can make you some money and we are sending our finance guy, Clyde Anderson, out to a local jeweler to convince him. He better get with it.
It's 17 minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BOLDUAN: Let's get a quick check of our top stories right now.
A suspected U.S. drone attack in Pakistan this morning killed 16 alleged militant. At least five missiles are believed to have hit a compound in South Waziristan. The region used to be a nerve center for the Taliban until an offensive last year chased most of the fighters away. The U.S. military does not comment on reported drone attacks.
And a huge shakeup in the D.C. public school system: 241 teachers fired. The school's chancellor says they were poor-performing and they got poor evaluations, or they were not properly licensed. More than 700 other employees have been given really almost like a year of probation, a year to improve on the job or they can get fired as well.
And a new escalation of tensions on the Korea Peninsula. This time, it's over joint military exercises by the U.S. and South Korea. It's set to begin tomorrow. The U.S. Defense Department says the drills are in response to the sinking of a South Korean warship. Pyongyang warns that it will counter the exercises with its, quote, "powerful nuclear deterrence."
HOLMES: Numbers from a CNN polls suggests a majority of people are disappointed with how the president is handling the economy. That means independent voters could be critical in the upcoming midterms elections.
Here now, CNN's deputy political director, Paul Steinhauser.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Good morning, Kate and T.J.
President Barack Obama's approval rating on how he's handling the economy is at its lowest level in his presidency, that according to our new CNN/Opinion Research Corporation national poll. Our survey indicates that 42 percent of Americans give the president a thumbs-up on the economy with 57 percent saying they disapprove.
Democrats and Republicans obviously don't see eye to eye in the issue. But what about those crucial independent voters? Two-thirds of independents we question give Mr. Obama a thumbs-down.
What's behind these tough numbers? Well, here's one thing. Nearly eight in 10 say that economic conditions are poor right now, with unemployment near 10 percent and (INAUDIBLE) housing crisis, it seems Americans don't have much to cheer about.
Here's another thing where the public agrees, the economy by far remains issue number one. If these numbers hold up over the next three months, which is a long time in politics, it could spell big trouble for President Obama and the Democrats in the midterm elections -- Kate, T.J.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Thanks to our Paul Steinhauser.
And coming up: we are going show every small business owner out there a way you can get free advertising and reach the entire world. Our Clyde Anderson, our financial guy, will explain coming up next.
Twenty-one minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right. You know about Facebook, Twitter, a lot of other media sites out there, social media sites. They're huge. And just this week, Facebook hit 500 million users.
But you can use these sites for more than just building up your fans, friends, and followers. You can actually use them to make some money.
And our financial analyst, Clyde Anderson, visited one local business that's not using social media to show them how to get with it.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CLYDE ANDERSON, FINANCIAL ANALYST: Doug, did you realize that just recently Facebook hit 500 million visitors, 500 million active participants. Did you realize that?
DOUGLAS BURKS, CERTIFIED GEMOLOGIST: I didn't realize that.
ANDERSON: That's huge. It's like a small country. And so, there's a lot of power there -- a lot of power. Are you currently using social media?
BURKS: No. Everything here at Burks Jewelers has been word of mouth for 10 years.
ANDERSON: That's good and you've been doing good with word of mouth.
BURKS: I'm doing fantastic with word of mouth.
ANDERSON: That was great. So, now, you can integrate something like social media into your business strategy, there's no telling what could happen.
Today, let's talk a little bit about social media and let's see how we can get you involved in social media and what we can do help you out.
BURKS: That sounds great.
ANDERSON: All right. Well, first, I got a couple questions for you and I'm going to give you a couple of tips, all right?
BURKS: OK.
ANDERSON: The first thing that we have to look at is having a strategy. And as part of that, you have to have people in place that can assist you. Do you have people here that can currently assist you?
BURKS: I do have people in place. I have my assistant, Marcus Griffin, and also have my administration person, (INAUDIBLE). So, yes, we are a complete jewelry story and do have those people in place.
ANDERSON: OK. OK.
(CROSSTALK)
BURKS: Let's see another part (ph).
ANDERSON: That's great. Now, we're getting that strategy, Doug, you want to make sure and we look where you want to go, what you want to do? Is your goal is to achieve more customers, better relationships, or just really gain exposure for the business?
BURKS: Really, gain exposure for the business, because like you know, like you said, you know, we've been here 10 years, but how many people we have come through this door daily, who say, I don't pass by everyday and not stop? So, if we have -- maybe like you said, the social media, they could stop a little bit more and know where we're at.
ANDERSON: All right. Well, this is where we're going start.
BURKS: OK.
ANDERSON: Let's get started with some Facebook, also Twitter, doing the blog, and also getting to YouTube. YouTube right now is the number search engine on the Web, right after Google. And so, people are really looking for video.
And so, really, we want to start there and get you going, getting some people following you, building some content and having relationships beginning to develop.
BURKS: That sounds great.
ANDERSON: And that's where we start.
BURKS: That sounds great.
ANDERSON: OK? And what we want to do is make sure that we don't eat the whole elephant at once.
BURKS: All right. It sounds great.
ANDERSON: Ease you into it. We'll get in there slowly.
BURKS: OK. ANDERSON: Now, the next thing we got to do is look at your database, because you're really going to make sure that the people that you currently have are really active participants in your business or active customers.
BURKS: OK.
ANDERSON: And so, whether this is encouraging. And there you have about -- maybe 6,000 you mentioned in your database?
BURKS: We have about 6,000 names right now in our database, and that's just over 10-year accumulation of this good people, good customer are coming to Burks Jewelers and been carrying the word out that they had got good service here and it's just like been a snowball effect. So, I can imagine whatever you're trying to introduce to me now is just going to be like icing on the cake.
ANDERSON: There you go. That's it.
Now, we're going to take those 6,000 people and we're going to find out who's using social media, who's not and maybe you'll be able to get them engage in social media as well.
BURKS: Sounds great.
ANDERSON: So, we're going to help build that database even more. We're going to start engaging customers that come in to the business to make sure they're part of your database, that you're capturing their information even if they're not buying right now.
BURKS: All right.
ANDERSON: We definitely want to build that up.
And the next thing we want to do is integrate some video into it. I mention video is exciting, people want it instant, they want it now. Video has become the new text.
And so, what we're going to do is we're going to do some short video. We're going to make sure that you got video out there on YouTube, out there integrating that into your blog. People can see what you're doing. They can learn and educate about the processes.
And the last thing I want you to be able to do and be aware and set your mind ...
BURKS: OK. We're going to do this.
ANDERSON: ... consistency.
BURSK: All right.
ANDERSON: Consistency is the key. Just like people get the newspaper at the front door every day, they're going to expect something from you every day. And so, we got make sure what the strategic plan that we talked about is the first thing. We got to make the consistency is there. And so, that you're on board and that we're going to jump out there and we're going to get on social media and see if it can grow your business.
BURKS: Clyde, I like that, because, see, I have a supporting cast. So, they're going to make sure that I get everything done right in a proper manner and keep things going.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: All right. They're going get on social media sites. We're going to be checking back with them over the next several weeks to see just how it possibly helped him out.
Well, Kate and I are going to be back at the top of the hour with more live news. But after the break, you're going to see the Dr. Sanjay Gupta. "SANJAY GUPTA, M.D." -- coming up.
