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An Update Out of the Southeastern U.S. Where About Million People Still Without Power After Helene; Patrolling the Arctic Ocean; Red Lobster`s New CEO on What Went Wrong With Endless Shrimp. Aired 4-4:10a ET
Aired October 04, 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: Hello. What`s up? How you doing? It`s Friyay. I`m Coy Wire. Welcome to CNN 10, where I tell you the what, letting you decide
what to think.
We have a huge announcement today, later in the show, and it has to do with you, especially all you teachers out there. But first, we have to get you
some of your news for the day. The best 10 minutes in news starts now.
We start with the power crisis, impacting about 1 million people in the Southeastern United States. Folks are still without electricity a week
after Hurricane Helene wiped away major portions of the power grid. You can see lots of lights throughout the Southeast from satellite images before
Helene and after. A whole swath of darkness left in Helene`s path from Florida`s Big Bend to the Carolinas.
The most impacted places by these outages are in Western North Carolina and South Carolina. The region`s power provider, Duke Energy, says that`s where
Helene caused unprecedented destruction and that the repairs will be significant.
Duke Energy says it`s deploying thousands of mobile substations that are being installed in some areas to help speed up the restoration process.
Helene`s swift floodwaters took out so many power poles and electric lines, infrastructure needs to be completely rebuilt before power can be restored
in some areas. And washed out or closed roads are making it very difficult for help to be sent to make those repairs.
On Wednesday, President Joe Biden deployed 1,000 troops from Eastern North Carolina to help in the hardest-hit Western part of the state. More than
3,500 FEMA personnel have been deployed, including 1,200 in North Carolina alone, all with the goal of helping communities get back on their feet.
Ten-second trivia. What is the shallowest ocean in the world?
Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, or Arctic Ocean?
Arctic Ocean is your answer here. Also the smallest ocean, covering less than 3% of the Earth`s surface, most of it covered with ice.
And let`s go now to the Arctic Ocean, where China has conducted a joint maritime patrol with Russia. It`s the first time China`s Coast Guard
entered those waters, a region where Beijing has been wanting to extend its military reach.
As China and Russia increasingly strengthen security and economic ties, the U.S. has raised concerns about the two countries` coordination in the
strategically and environmentally sensitive Arctic region. CNN`s Marc Stewart has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARC STEWART, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: For years, the Arctic Ocean has been a point of interest for China amid its strong ties with Russia.
While this patrol, if it did indeed enter the ocean, may have just been on the outskirts, the messaging and images from the Chinese government show
the symbolism and importance of the region to China.
Let me show you some of the pictures we`ve received. We see a shot from above of the Chinese Coast Guard vessel. There`s a helicopter taking off,
flying around. Officers are singing the national anthem on deck, along with some ceremonial moments.
An officer from the Chinese Coast Guard said this voyage is about security. Analysts point out this is a broader pattern of collaboration and designed
to send a message to Washington, whose maritime activities in the South and East China Seas have annoyed Beijing. A retired U.S. Navy captain who has
worked in intelligence feels this presence in the far north is significant because it implies China is extending its Coast Guard into areas the U.S.
has traditionally considered to be its own domain.
The U.S. has raised concerns about China`s presence in the region and its coordination with Russia as we see the two nations tighten their security
and economic ties on a broader level.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WIRE: All right, if you get hungry during this next story, my bad, I`ll be hungry too. There is a new CEO taking the helm at Red Lobster, not long
after the company filed for bankruptcy earlier this year, closing restaurants around the country.
CEO Damola Adamolekun, new to the job, has plans to improve the company`s profitability by investing in new equipment and technology for hundreds of
restaurants, hoping to even open new chains in the near future.
But will it work? And what goes into ensuring that a business can attract new customers for years to come?
CNN reporter Nathaniel Meyersohn has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAMOLA ADAMOLEKUN, RED LOBSTER NEW CEO: This is, without exaggeration, one of the most important companies in American history.
NATHANIEL MEYERSOHN, CNN BUSINESS REPORTER (voice-over): Embattled restaurant chain Red Lobster has a new CEO and a steep climb ahead.
ADAMOLEKUN: There were certainly big mistakes made over the last few years.
MEYERSOHN: In the wake of bankruptcy this year, the chain is leaning on Damola Adamolekun --
ADAMOLEKUN: There`s a lot of regulations.
MEYERSOHN: -- formerly the CEO of P.F. Chang`s, and just 35 years old.
ADAMOLEKUN: You know, when I took over P.F. Chang`s, I was 30. So now I feel old.
MEYERSOHN (on camera): You`re 35.
ADAMOLEKUN: I feel experienced.
Hey, how are you doing? You rained the food out earlier. It was perfect. I appreciate it.
MEYERSOHN (voice-over): So, how does this new CEO plan to save Red Lobster?
ADAMOLEKUN: We`ll get the ultimate feast.
MEYERSOHN: We sat down for a chat over some, well, lobster.
(On camera): I`ve never had lobster on pizza.
ADAMOLEKUN: Well, you`re about to try it.
MEYERSOHN (voice-over): After ordering, we proceeded straight to the elephant, or shrimp, in the room.
(On camera): When you saw endless shrimp, you know, what did you think?
ADAMOLEKUN: I said that`s a very expensive product to give away endlessly. When you have endless shrimp and people are coming in and sitting down at
the table and eating for hours, as much shrimp as they possibly can, you stress out the kitchen. You stress out the servers. You stress out the
host. People can`t get a table. It creates a lot of chaos. And you saw a lot of that.
MEYERSOHN: Are you glad that endless shrimp is done? Was that pretty crazy?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Actually, yeah.
MEYERSOHN: Yeah.
ADAMOLEKUN: Food quality is very good at Red Lobster. It has been since its inception. Now, the menu has gotten too big. So we`re going to reduce
the menu, but in a very intelligent way.
MEYERSOHN: Do you think you guys might need to close more restaurants?
ADAMOLEKUN: We intend to be done closing restaurants and intend to grow from here.
MEYERSOHN: Grow from here?
ADAMOLEKUN: In terms of the business, right? There`s going to be investments in the product that will take time. Infrastructure investment
takes time. Technology investment takes time. There`s 545 restaurants. So fixing every broken HVAC and every broken -- every torn carpet and every
chair that needs replacing will take time. But the impact should be felt right away.
When you wake up every morning and you`re excited to do something, it stops being work. Because I was a server when I was young, but I understand what
it`s like to work in a restaurant business. So nothing keeps me up at night. I`m energetic about the work.
And the more quickly we can get it done and the better we are at achieving our goals, the better life will be for 30,000 people that work for us.
That`s the most important thing to me.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WIRE: All right, announcement time. I`ve said on this show before how grateful we are that all of you make CNN 10 part of your day. We work hard,
but so do all the teachers out there who choose us to help them give students the best learning opportunities possible.
So I am so pumped to announce that we are launching a brand-new segment highlighting some of the awesome teachers in this world. It`s called CNN 10
Teacher of the Year. We will be highlighting and even coming to visit some of you incredible difference makers at your school. And we can`t wait to
meet you.
You can email your nominations for Teacher of the Year to CNN10 at CNN.com.
Here`s what we need. The teacher`s name, the school, the city and state, plus a few sentences as to why they deserve to be a CNN 10 Teacher of the
Year.
The person submitting has to be at least 13 years old and make sure you give a strong example of how your nominee goes above and beyond to be the
best teacher they can be. Time to celebrate you and share your story with the world.
Today`s story getting a 10 out of 10. Can your janitor do this? Students at Providence Elementary School get a weekly lunchtime treat dubbed Freddy
Friday, named after the longtime custodian who really knows how to make lunchtime a show.
Think costumes, think leaf blower, trash bag juggling. Five years ago, Freddy Bucci thought lunchtime was getting a bit boring and he`s been
sweeping his young audiences off their feet ever since. That`s the janitor`s closet with quite the supplies.
All right, today we are giving a shout out to Minnehaha Academy Middle School in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Shine bright, Redhawks. And Mr. Nyland, I
hope that you were able to liberate yourself to be able to have an awesome weekend. Cue that Friday music, not air. I hope you all have an incredible
weekend. Remember, you are more powerful than you know. You never know when or how, but you just might be the light someone needs.
I`m Coy Wire. This is CNN 10. It`s been a blessing to spend this week with you.
END
