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Indonesia Evacuating Thousands After Volcano Erupts, Causing Tsunami Threat; Once a Lush Mexican Lake, Now Dry Land. Aired 4-4:10a ET

Aired April 19, 2024 - 04:00   ET

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

COY WIRE, CNN 10 ANCHOR: What`s up, sunshine? Happy Friday, Fri-yay. I am pumped to finish this week strong with you, fuel our minds one more time

before we head into the weekend.

I`m Coy Wire. This is CNN 10. We begin today in Indonesia, where officials issued a tsunami warning and ordered hundreds of residents to evacuate

after a remote island volcano erupted several times, shooting fiery lava thousands of feet into the sky.

Mount Ruang, a 2,400-foot volcano has erupted at least five times since Tuesday night. Authorities say recent earthquakes in the area triggered the

eruptions, which are getting bigger over time, spewing large clouds of hot gray ash into the air. Officials fear these multiple eruptions could cause

the volcano to partially collapse into the sea, causing a tsunami, as it did in the year 1871.

About 800 villagers who live on Ruang Island have evacuated to a neighboring island. 270 million people live in Indonesia, an archipelago or

a series of islands with 120 active volcanoes. That`s more than any other part of the world.

The Southeast Asian nation is situated along the Ring of Fire, a 25,000- mile stretch of seismic fault lines that curve around the Pacific Ocean.

Next, we head to Venezuela, where for a brief moment, there was a glimmer of hope that the country`s authoritarian leader, Nicolas Maduro, would

allow free and fair elections to happen in the South American nation. But after signing a pledge in Barbados last year to allow for legitimate

elections in his country, Maduro`s government has put up roadblocks, halting the march of democracy.

Stefano Pozzebon has more on how the United States is responding.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): There is a new vibe in Caracas these days, nightlife has returned after years of economic

collapse.

RAFAEL BRAUMANN, GERMAN TOURIST (through translation): This show is wild.

POZZEBON: The U.S. dollar has replaced local believers. And this year, Venezuela`s economy is poised to grow more than Argentina, Brazil and

Colombia according to the IMF. Only one person seems to remain unmovable.

As a new presidential election looms, Nicolas Maduro seems all but assured to cement his position even further. On Wednesday, the U.S. announced the

reimposition of economic sanctions against the Venezuelan oil industry after last minute negotiations collapsed.

The sanctions were lifted in October when representatives of the government and the opposition signed an agreement that paved the way to free and fair

elections. But since then, that deal was broken several times. The opposition candidate, Maria Corina Machado, has been barred from running.

Her replacement, Corina Yoris, was also blocked by electoral authorities.

Political activists have been detained including members of Machado`s team. Notably the U.S. maintained a special license for U.S. major Chevron, who

has been operating since 2022. And U.S. officials told CNN they will keep engaging with Maduro despite the reaction.

NICOLAS MADURO, VENZUELAN PRESIDENT (through translation): If you want to hurt us, you`ll get hurt. We will grow with or without a license. We are

not a Yankee colony, nobody will stop us.

POZZEBON: Renewed sanctions could hurt Venezuela`s recent economic growth, its forecasts and push more Venezuelans to seek better fortunes abroad.

Venezuelan migrants are already reaching the U.S. southern border in record numbers. There are over 7.7 million worldwide according to the U.N. One

reason for last year`s detained was to bring those numbers down, particularly during an election year in the U.S.

LAURA DIB, VENEZUELA PROGRAM DIRECTOR, WOLA: I do think that the engagement is indeed a better policy than maximum pressure and isolation that led

Maduro to further deepen his relationship with governments like China, Russia, Iran and Turkey. But rather I think that it`s a proof that, of

course, the U.S. and the international community and, of course, the opposition in Venezuela is dealing with an authoritarian government.

POZZEBON: With opposition in Caracas is scrambling to rally around any viable candidate to challenge Maduro, experts will read this week`s fallout

will only bring the Venezuelan struggle for democracy closer to its end. And the music will fade once again in Caracas. Stefano Pozzebon, CNN,

Bogota.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WIRE: Pop quiz, hot shot. Which one of these days is known as Mexican Independence Day? May 5th, September 16th, October 12th, July 4th.

If you said September 16th, you are correct. It`s not Cinco de Mayo, which celebrates Mexico`s victory over French invaders in 1862. Mexico actually

declared its independence on September 16th, 1810 after activist and priest Father Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla urged the Mexican people to take up arms

and fight for independence from Spain.

Today in central Mexico, a popular tourist destination, Lake Patzcuaro, is under threat. Environmental factors and water theft had led to the lake

losing half of its volume since officials first noticed and began measuring its decreasing water levels. The local government says it formed a

commission to preserve the lake, and so far, that group has stopped the theft of nearly 160,000 gallons of water each day.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This video posted to social media shows that much of a popular lake in Mexico has dried up. Lake Patzcuaro, seen here in a

government tourism video, is a tourist destination in the western State of Michoacan. According to the local government, drought, deforestation, and

even water theft contributed to the lake levels dropping.

Michoacan has seen extreme drought for more than a year. The lake has lost over 50% of its volume since authorities started keeping track, according

to CNN affiliate Televisa.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WIRE: Up next, you might recognize this robot from viral videos jumping from scaffolding and making inverted flips. And now the company that makes

it, Boston Dynamics, has some big news to share. Our Jon Sarlin is on the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JON SARLIN, CNN DIGITAL PRODUCER: Boston Dynamics is retiring its most famous robot. In its farewell video, Boston Dynamics highlighted some of

Atlas`s most memorable spills. And demonstrated its impressive dexterity. Atlas, the hydraulic humanoid robot that leapt, crawled, and carried, has

starred in multiple demonstrations that have been viewed millions of times.

But Atlas`s retirement isn`t the end of the line for the robot. The company has announced a new version of Atlas that is fully electric. The new Atlas

is noticeably more trim, and the company says it`s stronger and has an increased range of motion.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WIRE: Today`s story getting a 10 out of 10, is coming to us from Butte, Montana, where Viola the elephant has had it with the circus life. She

decided to take a detour through the streets of town, eventually grabbing some lunch behind a nearby business. The city says the handlers eventually

tracked her down and loaded her back into the trailer. Viola is now back with the circus and no one was injured.

All right, superstars, it is time to show some love. We are giving a shout out today to Mr. Snow`s class at Fort Branch Community School in Indiana.

It is a great day to be a twig, isn`t it? Rise up.

And to the Panthers at Payne Junior High School in Queen Creek, Arizona, we see you. Let`s close this week out strong. Remember to make someone smile

this weekend. You are more powerful than you know.

I`m Coy Wire. This is CNN 10. It`s been a blessing to spend this week with you.

END