Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Saturday Morning News

Oklahoma Hit Again By Tornadoes; Three Missing After Arkansas Flooding; Flooding Danger in Oklahoma; Poisoned Letter Sent to Obama, Bloomberg; Four Firefighters Killed in Houston Hotel Fire

Aired June 01, 2013 - 07:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Here is what we know as the sun comes up in areas devastated by the tornados, a report of as many as 17 tornadoes, and that's from the national weather service, and CNN weather says about 23 possibly, touching down in several states.

In Oklahoma, it's deja vu unfortunately for that area in Oklahoma City. Five deaths are being blamed on the storms, including a mother and her child. At least 71 other people injured. But as morning breaks, we may get a new report of the injuries and damages there.

ALISON KOSIK, CNN ANCHOR: Yes. But now, there is a new problem and that's flooding. The same storms that brought in the tornados also brought 12 inches of rain in places like Moore, Oklahoma, which has already been through so much. And residents are being told to stay inside because of these flood threats. Oklahoma is still under a state of emergency from the storm that hit almost two weeks ago in Moore.

HOWELL: Let's go to Union City now to continue our coverage. George Howell is there this morning.

KOSIK: George, Union City was one of the hardest hit communities in the storm. How much notice did residents there have before they could take cover?

GEORGE HOWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Alison, you talk to people out here and it sounds like just a matter of minutes. You know, we just spoke to the family -- you know, we spoke to Kris Meritt. His mother and father lived in this home.

Here's the thing: Chris says that he called his mom and dad and said, hey, look outside, there is rotation. They also checked the local affiliates and they looked outside and they saw it and got out of the way and went to a nearby fire station.

They came back to the home to look at what was left here, and another tornado was forming at that time. So, they had to get out of the way again. So, really a matter of minutes with this storm system that really blossomed and developed and continued to grow, and just cause major damage for several hours.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KRIS MERITT, PARENTS' HOME DESTROYED BY TORNADO: It's a sobering thing to think about and to see all your memories just tossed about. You know, everything from your childhood on up.

HOWELL: We were talking a minute ago, you are saying the bottom line, nobody was in there.

MERITT: Nobody is in there. Everybody is OK.

HOWELL: Yes.

MERITT: And that's the main thing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOWELL: Now, that was Kris Meritt there talking about what it was like to come back and look at this home. The most important thing, you know, his family, his mother and father were able to escape.

But let's take an up close and personal look at exactly how strong this tornado was. I mean, this is the thing that really struck me. You see right there where the storm was so strong, the winds so strong, it knocked the bricks right off the side of the house, tore a hole in the top of the roof.

And I want to take you over here. This is where most of the damage happened. This used to be upstairs. This is where Kris says that he lived his senior year upstairs. That's gone, you know?

And a lot of the furniture there, it's down here. I see a bed here. I see a lot of wood and debris, all the things that used to be upstairs. Kris tells me that when he got back here, he had to get up there to turn the water off because it was causing flooding into the home.

So, you know, you look at something like this and you really get a sense of how strong the tornado was. I want you to pan over here and see this. I don't know if you guys can see it very well. We will reposition so you can see more of it.

Look over there. Just across of what used to be the fence over there, what used to be a home, it's gone. What used to be another home is gone. You can go down the street. You can count them. This house was sort of the lucky house. It's still standing.

And this is where Chad Myers said he saw the tornado that came through here, the same tornado that crossed over Interstate 40, and we passed through the debris field from the tornado and we even saw semis that were knocked over and they looked like boxes that were knocked over.

You really get a sense of just how strong this storm was as it came through the area.

KOSIK: Yes, we certainly do. George Howell, thank you.

BLACKWELL: Yes. Now that the sun is up and we're going to see more of the damage there in the Union City and El Reno community. Right down the road, as we know, is El Reno, that's where Nick Valencia is there this morning.

Nick, the sun is up now. What do you see?

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, the sun is just starting to come up and we are getting a sense of what went through here last night. We are seeing a lot of downed trees, Victor. A lot of debris scattered along the roadside here.

And if you take a look behind me, this is the Canadian Valley Technical Center. This is a school. Look at that, just this mangled metal that looks like it just came off the roof. So far, the sheriff's office said they are expected to release any information or details about how many people were injured or if there were any deaths here in this area.

We put in a call the sheriff's office earlier this morning. They say they're expected to release new information around 8:30 a.m., 9:00 local time. It's about 10:00 Eastern. But what we see so far, Victor, the damage -- it's in a pretty rural area. There's a lot of wide open space. We did see semis overturned and we saw first responders tending to those semis that were overturned and just a lot debris scattered up and down the road side here.

Earlier when we got here, when the sun was still down, we saw a sheriff's vehicle using a flashlight to look into the communities. It was very dark, with the exception of our news crew and a couple other news crews that are parked alongside of us. It was pitch dark here and it was just very, very difficult to see.

But now that the sun is up, just a lot of downed power lines, a lot of downed trees, Victor. It looks like this community could have escaped something that really had the power to cause a lot more damage here, but that gives you a sense of what we are looking at right now.

KOSIK: Is this -- is this a densely populated area? Or is it more country like?

VALENCIA: No, Alison, it definitely looks more country like. There is this building right here right behind us. And looking out into the fields here, it's just a lot of wide open space.

Beth, our photo journalist here can pan and you can see a parking lot and you see a structure in the distance there that looks to be partially collapsed if not entirely, but it just -- it doesn't look like there is that many people in this community. This is way different from what we saw on May 20th, what we saw here a week and a half ago in Moore, Oklahoma, which was, you know, a suburb of Oklahoma City, a lot more densely populated and a lot more subdivisions.

At least in the area that we are in, and the road that we drove up to, there's just a lot of wide open space. So, that's a good thing.

KOSIK: Exactly. All right. Nick Valencia, thank you.

Thousands of folks are in the dark in the Midwest this morning. Power is out for more than 12,000 homes and businesses.

I will show you the breakdown here. Missouri has 89,846 customers without power. Oklahoma has 86,204 outages. Illinois, it has more than 31,000, and Arkansas has more than 3,000 without power.

And there are more than 1,000 outages in Kansas. Indiana has about 500 who are sitting in the dark.

BLACKWELL: This is not over.

KOSIK: No.

BLACKWELL: Oklahoma to Indiana. More potentially dangerous thunderstorms with the flash floods and winds and possibly hail. Still a major threat.

Let's go to CNN severe weather center and meteorologist, Karen Maginnis.

Karen, what is the threat now. I know the wind was the threat overnight, we talked so much about the rain. Who is under the gun and what is the worst we are seeing?

KAREN MAGINNIS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: It's a multilayered event, as you well know. We saw the tornados and the freak lightning and hail. Now, we are looking at the flooding.

But the severe weather threat as far as the potential for tornado activity is not over. However, it is greatly diminished from what we saw yesterday. We knew we were in a moderate risk, and we knew that Oklahoma was going to be in that bull's eye.

Pretty much from Interstate 40 south, this is where we have huge storms being reported. The rainfall coming down, that's another thing we have to deal with.

In Oklahoma City, we saw a month's worth of rainfall in less than 24- hour period. The same for St. Louis. Those rivers continue to rise.

Somebody asked me, how many tornadoes did we see yesterday? We know about three big ones. The one at El Reno, and Union City, homes flattened there, and one a little further than Oklahoma City.

But actually there were 23 tornadoes. Those were unfiltered reports. We'll have to see if any of those overlap. The National Weather Service is going to send out a survey team and they will assess just how strong these tornadoes were. EF-5, that was in Moore, Oklahoma, on May 20th.

The ingredients: warm air coming up from the south, much cooler air on the northern edge, and you get low level rotation and temperatures that were over 100 degrees right around Oklahoma City.

And now, here are the paths, the El Reno, just to the west of Oklahoma City, along Interstate 40, and one to the south and one to the Southeast of Oklahoma City, and we will have to assess the track as well as the intensity as we go throughout the afternoon.

Now the big thing that we have to watch is for the potential for severe weather all the way from the Ohio River Valley, extending down towards the ArkLaTex, and that's Texas, Arkansas and Oklahoma.

And you can see, May is a big month for tornadoes. And, yes, already, 200-plus tornadoes reported. June is almost as bad and we are making up for lost time because it was a while before the severe weather season really started.

We'll keep you updated. Back to you.

HOWELL: All right. Karen, thank you.

KOSIK: All right. They were close enough to feel the wind and the debris.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNDENTIFIED MALE: Go! Go! No, don't turn, no!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Amazing video from inside that vehicle and what they were driving through. We will tell you more and show you more on what it's like to be a storm chaser.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go, Brett, go! Just go, get around him, man!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

KOSIK: You know, so much of the amazing video we have been seeing from these tornadoes, a lot of it comes from storm chasers, you know, people that drive toward the storm instead of seeking shelter.

BLACKWELL: Yes, Brandon Sullivan, he is one of them and this is what he and his team ran into in Union City, Oklahoma.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my goodness! Oh, my goodness! Oh, no. Man!

Just continuous vortices here. Just continuous vortices here.

Brett, turn the car around! Let's get ready. Brett, go! As fast as you can.

Turn right and go! Brett, go now! Hurry! Forty is not enough.

(INAUDIBLE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We OK? UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

(EXPLETIVE DELETED)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You are fine.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Duck down! Duck down! Go forward if you can. You are good.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Drive.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, (EXPLETIVE DELETED)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) Go! Go!

No, don't turn, no. Go south. Brent, if you don't go south we're going to die!

Go, Brent, go! Just go. Get around him, man.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

Are we OK?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, just go!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are we OK?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, just drive south! You are fine.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's blowing me off the road.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's fine, dude. Just go!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can't stay on the road.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're fine!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are we OK?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

(EXPLETIVE DELETED)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You are fine.

Get down. Duck down! Duck down! Drive forward, if you can.

You are good. Drive --

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KOSIK: Every time I see that video, the same reaction. I do get the chills. It's scary and we talked to Brandon Sullivan, the guy there making all that noise in the passenger seat.

BLACKWELL: Yes.

KOSIK: And he said, you know what, there were a few intense moments where he actually put his seat belt on.

BLACKWELL: Yes, he said they were close to the storm, and that's why you are seeing and hearing that reaction because part of it is the necessity of the sound, part of it is just the adrenaline, but he's seat there with his roommate and best friend Brent who is driving.

KOSIK: Chasing the storm.

BLACKWELL: And then a guy that just wanted to see a storm. Well, he saw one.

And Brandon here, 21 years old, he has been doing this since he was 14 and he will continue to do it.

KOSIK: He will, despite the fact that he was scare of this one.

BLACKWELL: His battered Jeep there.

We are going to Arkansas. There's a search for three people. It's a water rescue. Already the sheriff of this county has died trying to find the people who are missing.

This is a really bizarre story and a sad landmark already. We're going to tell you about the search that continues this morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KOSIK: Let's go to some affiliate video from Oklahoma. You are looking at video from KOKH, one of our affiliates. You are looking at a water rescue in Midwest City, Oklahoma -- or you were.

Floodwaters are an issue right now.

BLACKWELL: Yes, we know from the report here and you are seeing the video of the man stranded in the vehicle. He says he has called over and over and over, and you see the water is up to the door handle and he's just going to stretch his arms out like what do I do here?

He says, he tells a reporter at least from shooting over, that he has called time and time again to get some help and authorities said he should not have driven through the water in the first place. No word if they are en route now to get this guy.

But this is Midway City, which is very close to Oklahoma City in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma. And the man is -- he appears to be the only person there, and now he will try to get on to the roof of the car because the water does not seem to be subsiding at all.

KOSIK: Yes, I mean, it's a lesson, right?

BLACKWELL: Yes.

KOSIK: Don't drive into water that is that deep especially in a little car like that. Don't it at all. I mean, it just takes a little water to make that car buoyant, and that's it.

BLACKWELL: Even if you think you know the road, because there could be trees down and branches down, anything, anything under that water. If you think you know it and you can gauge the depth, still don't drive through it and you can end up like that man in Midway City.

KOSIK: He looks to be OK. It could be worse.

BLACKWELL: Yes, we'll stay on top of that to see if they indeed get the man out of the water.

KOSIK: All right. This morning, crews are going to be resuming their search searching for three people after flash floods devastated a community in Arkansas.

BLACKWELL: Sheriff Cody Carpenter of Scott County was killed in the raging water while trying to rescue two women trapped in a house. Those women are missing along with a state wildlife officer.

On the phone with us is Keith Stephens, spokesperson for the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission.

Keith, how did this happen?

KEITH STEPHENS, ARKANSAS GAME AND FISH COMMISSION (via telephone): Well, the wildlife agent and the share it were doing what they were trained to do. There was a 911 call about people trapped in a house. They went and got in a boat and attempted to rescue them and were washed away in the floodwaters.

KOSIK: Was this sudden flooding or did it just seem to come out of nowhere?

STEPHENS: Well, actually, that area of the state, which is right on the Oklahoma/Arkansas border saw about eight inches rain in a very short period of time. That area is in a valley. The water is obviously rushing off of the ridges through that part of the state and it went into the Mill Creek Area and flooded a little community of Y City.

BLACKWELL: Now, this search has been going on for more than 24 hours, right? I mean, what is the optimism that these women and the wildlife officer are in good condition, are safe or alive?

STEPHENS: Well, we are still hopeful. We are still in search and rescue mode. We would like to find them. The wildlife officer is in good shape, he's a young man. He's only 32. So, we're hoping we can find him.

BLACKWELL: We talked about Oklahoma. We've talked a bit about Missouri. But give us an idea as we look at some of the video from our affiliate, KARK, give us an idea of the flooding in Arkansas?

STEPHENS: Well, right now, it's been along the western border obviously with Oklahoma where all the rain has been. I am looking at the radar right now and it looks like that area is going to get hit again today, probably throughout the day. So, there are real concerns about continued flooding and maybe more flooding in other areas of the state.

BLACKWELL: How did this sheriff get to a point where he was unable to not only rescue these women but lost his life? What was happening when he was killed?

STEPHENS: We're not real sure. It was dark. It was just after midnight when they went to the house. There were some officers that were across on the other bank of the creek.

Evidently, they heard a large crash and it's my understanding that maybe the house was washed away. We don't know at this time, we don't know if they were in it or the boat capsized. We're not just real sure.

BLACKWELL: All right. Keith Stephens, spokesperson for the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission -- thank you for your time, sir.

STEPHENS: Sure.

BLACKWELL: Just a huge storm, wasn't it?

BLACKWELL: Huge storm and deadly. I mean, we have seen this death in Arkansas, five in Oklahoma.

And we spoke with -- I think it was the 3:00 or 4:00 hour, we spoke with the public information officer for the Oklahoma City Police Department, and he says he expect the number of fatalities to rise. Fortunately, and hopefully, not too high, but he believes there are more lives that were lost. We will get that number sometime today as the day goes on.

KOSIK: And we're going to have more on the numbers of the tornadoes that tore through the Midwest last night. We're getting in more remarkable images and we're going to share them with you next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KOSIK: More on our tornado coverage coming up in a moment. But, first, an update on mortgages. Rates climbed higher again this week. Look at this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

KOSIK: Let's get you up to speed now on this morning's top story.

Seventeen tornadoes have been reported across five Midwestern states. The fatalities is likely to grow as the authorities survey the damage.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A horizontal!

RADIO: South of I-40, and it's going to be right here in front of me, Mike. It's coming down right now. (INAUDIBLE) entire vortex coming down to the ground, Mike. I've got to back --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: In Oklahoma, five people, including a mother and child, are dead. At least 71 others are hurt. But the town of Moore, where a tornado last month killed 24 people largely spared from the storm.

KOSIK: But with the sun now rising over eastern Oklahoma, that state and neighboring Missouri are under emergency declarations. Flights are still not taking off from the airport in Oklahoma City. And far east to Indiana, more than 200,000 people still don't have power. And after all that, another threat.

BLACKWELL: Yes, the heavy rain from the same storm system could trigger flash floods. In Missouri, more than 200 roads are closed this morning because of the flooding. Today's forecast also includes large hail and the potential for more tornadoes. Officials are warning people just stay inside.

On the phone with us now from Oklahoma City is Kelly Cain. She is the spokesperson for the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management.

KOSIK: Kelly, I know you have been following the storm all night. What are the biggest problems you are seeing right now?

KELLY CAIN, OKLAHOMA DEPARTMENT OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT (via telephone): Right now, the biggest problems are flash flooding and power outages that you already have mentioned. We still have nearly 100,000 people in the Oklahoma City metro area alone that are without power and additional people outside that area that are still without power this morning, and we still have a lot of areas that are flooded and making it difficult for people to get through and also rescuer workers.

BLACKWELL: The latest numbers we have are five who are killed and 71 injured. Do you have updated numbers?

CAIN: I don't have updated numbers this morning yet, no.

BLACKWELL: Tell us about the rescues happening. We have heard reports of water rescues. Are there still some happening this morning?

CAIN: We have seen reports of that happening as well. I don't have more information about that yet, but from what I can tell, it seems as though there are people who are being rescued this morning. Biggest thing that we can say to everyone is to please don't drive into high water. Really don't drive into any type of water at all, because once you get into the water, a lot of times, you don't realize how quickly it can get deep or wash your car away or anything else.

KOSIK: How difficult is it to get crews out there on the streets to restore power? I can imagine that we have lots of road blocks ahead of you.

CAIN: Absolutely. You know, the flooding definitely makes that whole process a lot more difficult and more time consuming. BLACKWELL: Give us an idea of the damage and how widespread it is.

CAIN: Well, right now, we have not really had a chance to get in and assess that. We know there is a lot of damage in Canadian County, in the El Reno area, and also south Oklahoma City that kind of gets into the Canadian County. We are hearing damage at Canadian County area, the technical school and the Stockyard City area, which is southern Oklahoma City.

KOSIK: All right. Kelly Cain, with the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management, thank you for your time.

BLACKWELL: Oklahoma has been under a statement of emergency every since a deadly tornado hit the city of Moore almost two weeks ago. Well, now, as the sun comes up this morning there is more damage to assess.

KOSIK: Juliette Kayyem is a former assistant secretary with the Department of Homeland Security.

Thanks for joining us.

Is FEMA still there and is it ready to handle the new damage?

JULIETTE KAYYEM, FORMER HOMELAND SECURITY ASST. SECY.: Yes, they are absolutely there. The way FEMA works it's divided into different regions. And there's a region that would cover Oklahoma. It's based in Texas. So, those people have been out there obviously since last week and they will continue.

But for purposes of disaster management and figuring out what happened, these are considered different storms, different tornadoes, one happened last week and one happens this week. And as you just heard from the spokeswoman from the state Emergency Management Agency, they're still at assessment stage. The sun is about to come up, if it hasn't already, they need to figure out how much damage these -- the events last night took and then they will start the process of, you know, sort of getting people safe, and starting to get a sense of how much damage and how much it's going to cost. And then recover, you know, for the people that live there.

KOSIK: And we are seeing right now on the screen, to the right of you actually, is St. Charles, Missouri. These are live pictures, aerials, of the damage from the storm. It's just incredible to see. And we see how this storm just didn't affect one state, it affected many.

So, what is the role now for federal versus state agencies in a disaster like this?

KAYYEM: Well, even a disaster this big, it almost always works that it's a local event and then the locals will ask for state resources, and then the state, if they are exhausted or if they need more materials and more help, then they will ask the feds. So, that's essentially how it works and how it's working today, it worked last week. FEMA is not an army. It's -- about 3,000 people work at FEMA. Their role is to coordinate all the resources that can go into Oklahoma. So, let's say for example a bunch of helicopters are needed, the state agency will ask FEMA, can you talk to the military and whomever else and get us more helicopters to do the kind of assessments you need.

So, FEMA is really a coordinating agency and that's important because the locals will certainly be exhausted and they're going to exhaust their resources. That's one thing about what is going on in Oklahoma. You know, this is just -- disasters are exhausting. And the people working them have been going from one last week to this one.

So, part of the management of this is to make sure that people do not -- the first responders are not overwhelmed by this disaster, and last week's disaster, and then, of course, we are coming upon hurricane season. We are in it actually as of today.

BLACKWELL: You make a good point, Juliette. Not exhausting the human resources.

But I also want to talk about the financial resources. This comes after Moore, which came after Shawnee, Oklahoma officials say they are strained. But if you add in the tornados in Texas and whatever will come in the hurricane season, does the federal agency feel that strain as well financially?

KAYYEM: Absolutely. I mean, you hear FEMA Administration Craig Fugate talked about it. Now, there's $11 billion left in the bank, so to speak, for disaster relief. The only reason that number is as high as it is, is because hurricane Sandy and the resources need for that was given its own line item because that's a $40 billion or $50 billion price tag.

And so, you hear FEMA leadership and the Department of homeland Security Secretary Napolitano talked about, you know, we need to reserve this disaster relief fund.

And there's a big debate in government and you are hearing it with the governors as well about how we are using disaster management money. In the past, it has been used to made people whole again. Your house goes down, we're going to give insurance money or disaster relief money to help you rebuild it.

There's a strong debate and it's a difficult one about using that money to make people more resilient, to make home, cities and states more resilient to the kind of climate threats that we are seeing over the last year. President Obama has overseen over 30 disasters that are a billion dollars or more.

So, he is a lot of things but he is also the master of disaster at this stage and we have to re-think how we are expending disaster funds at this stage.

BLACKWELL: Juliette Kayyem, CNN national security analyst and also former assistant secretary with the Department of Homeland Security -- Juliette, thank you so much. KAYYEM: Thank you.

BLACKWELL: And we've got these pictures --

KOSIK: It's incredible. I am watching him go through what presumably is his property, and he is picking through everything and I am watching him step here, and I hope he doesn't misstep. It's incredible to see this.

BLACKWELL: Looks like the second floor of his home, he had a picture, looked like a framed picture in his hands. He is going through what it looks like a chest of drawers there.

The second floor, the roof, the walls, all gone. And this is St. Charles, Missouri. Aerial pictures courtesy of KMOV.

I mean, this is what we expected to see at first light once the sun came up. It's hard overnight to assess the damage. But the first responders and the homeowners come out now to determine if there is anything that's worth salvaging, trying to separate the good from the bad.

Now, this may not be -- I would go as far to say -- this is not the safest thing to do. You have no idea how secure the structure is. But imagine the emotion, imagine the shock just trying to save whatever you can before demolition comes in and tears down where you raised your kids, where you brought your babies home, where you slept every night.

So, he's trying -- I think that's a picture in his left hand. He is just picking whatever he can.

KOSIK: So, we will keep an eye on this. Oh, God, as he's stepping like that makes me nervous.

BLACKWELL: It's terribly unsafe. He's at the edge of a second story building. He should probably step away from that.

We've got a lot more ahead on the storms.

KOSIK: Also, the other big stories of the day. So, stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLACKWELL: Right now, we have an update on those threatening letters sent this week to President Obama and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Conclusive test results are in and they confirm the letters did contain ricin. Now, CNN has also obtained photos of one of the letters.

CNN national correspondent, Susan Candiotti, joins me now in New York.

Susan, you have a copy of one of the letters involved in this investigation. Does it differ than the one sent to President Obama and Mayor Bloomberg? Are they the same letter?

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It does appear to be the same letter, Victor. Good morning.

Yes, , the wording in one of the three ricin letters that we've obtained matches word for word the letter that was sent, for example, to Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

And this letter that we are talking about, it was sent to Mark Glaze. Mark Glaze is the director of Mayor Bloomberg's group called Mayors Against Illegal Guns. It was dated May 20th, like the other letters were.

A third letter, as you've said, was sent to President Obama.

A letter to Glaze and Mayor Bloomberg reads like this, quote, "You will have to kill me and my family before you get my guns. Anyone wants to come to my house will get shot in the face. The right to bear arms is my constitutional, God-given right and I will exercise that right until the day I die. What's in this letter is nothing compared to what I have planned for you."

So, again, wording exactly the same, and you are seeing a copy of the letter right now.

BLACKWELL: Susan, what are the stains on the letter?

CANDIOTTI: Yes, these stains are described as from law enforcement sources as markings that are consistent with how the letters were tested for the ricin. So, those blotches that you see, that's what that is all about. And as you indicated those additional tests do show that all three letters tested positive for ricin in low concentrated levels.

BLACKWELL: So, where is the investigation now? There's a couple in Texas that authorities have been interviewing, right?

CANDIOTTI: Well, there is a man that is being interviewed in Texas, as well as his wife. And they are talking to him and asking him questions after frankly the wife made a complaint against him according to our sources.

Now, one of our sources is telling us that they have -- there are some questions being raised about the credibility of what the life is telling them so we don't know how that interview and part of the investigation will turn out. But, certainly, this is a very active investigation, and they are still looking for the source of these three letters.

BLACKWELL: All right. Susan Candiotti joining us from New York -- thank you, Susan.

We are following other headlines including a tragic fire in Houston that claimed four firefighters' lives.

KOSIK: Flames and smoke engulfed a Houston hotel. Firefighters went inside to find anyone who may have been trapped, and then the walls collapsed on them. It's a really sad story and we're going to take you live to Houston. That's coming up. But first -- a man with chronic outbreaks of acne as a result of a spinal injury develops a skin cream to solve his problem and ultimately creates one of fashion's favorite skin care lines.

Here is Dr. Sanjay Gupta with a preview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: This week on "THE NEXT LIST", beauty innovator, Francesco Clark.

FRANCESCO CLARK: Clark's Botanicals didn't start as -- it wasn't a business idea.

GUPTA: How he overcame a devastating accident --

CLARK: I was told, you will never get better. You will never move your arms. Don't even think about your legs.

GUPTA: -- to create one of fashion's favorite skin care lines.

ALEXANDRA PARNASS BEAUTY EDITOR, HARPER'S BAZAAR: All of his new products that come out over the years have developed a bit of a cult following. And a lot of people in the fashion industry, models and fashion designers, really can't get enough of his stuff.

GUPTA: That's Saturday, 2:30, on "THE NEXT LIST."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLACKWELL: This is some of the latest video in to CNN, storm chaser Chris Lee with our affiliate KOCO was on the scene of a tornado last night just west of El Reno, Oklahoma. Now, some of the worst damage reports have come in so far from that area.

Now, across the Midwest today, flash floods battering winds, large hail, are still a major threat. Authorities in several states are advising people do not go outside, just stay in.

KOSIK: Houston is in mourning today, the city's fire department has suffered its worst loss in history. Four of its firefighters died as they battled a blaze that engulfed a hotel.

CNN's Sara Ganim is following this story for us. She's in Houston.

Sara, what is it about this blaze that took the lives of these four firefighters?

SARA GANIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Alison, authorities here believe that these firefighters may have just simply underestimated the sheer force of these flames when they went into this inn and this restaurant. This is adjacent inn and restaurant behind.

I want to show you video that shows how intense this fire was, how intense this fire was.

You know, authorities believe the firefighters mistakenly thought there were people inside that needed to be rescued. We now know that's probably not true. All of the 13 injured and the four who were killed when a wall collapsed, all of them were firefighters.

Now, some of the injured were injured when they went to try to dig through the rubble and help free their colleagues. Others are simply hospitalized for heat exhaustion. They were working really through the night to put this blaze out. This morning when we arrived, they were still on the scene trying to put it out. I mean, it was really a massive, massive fire -- Alison.

KOSIK: Sara, do investigators have any idea what fueled this blaze to make it so fierce?

GANIM: They do know that it probably started in the restaurant side of this building, I guess that it's an inn, restaurant adjacent to each other. There's going to be a fire marshal along with dozens of state and federal authorities on the scene today, and they will determine an exact cause. But at this point, all they really know is that it was probably, it started somewhere in the restaurant area -- Alison.

KOSIK: Sara Ganim in Houston, thank you.

Our breaking coverage of the deadly storms in the Midwest continues after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KOSIK: Throughout the morning we've been showing you a lot of pictures of the rain and the flooding that followed Friday's tornadoes but here's another look. These are storm tunnels underneath the town of Yukon. As the floodwaters come in and cover that floor pretty quickly there, you can see the people who were in the tunnel, they got out fast.

BLACKWELL: Storm chasers Aaron Estman and Cody Howard captured this monster tornado yesterday near Union City, Oklahoma.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A large tornado, a very large tornado.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: He says "very large tornado." Do you see it? Well, that block of dark clouds, it's known as a wedge tornado, because it looks wider than it is tall. The whole thing is the tornado.

When this video was shot, authorities were calling the situation on parts of Interstates 35 and 40 a nightmare. They said people just sitting in traffic were sitting ducks. Think big rigs and cars tossed around and thousands of commuters stuck on the road. Two of the five people killed were in Union City in southwest Oklahoma.

Thanks for starting your morning with us.

KOSIK: We've got much more ahead on CNN SATURDAY MORNING which starts right now.

(MUSIC)