chica chicago, because chicago is the irish capital of the midwest. a city where it was once said you could stand on 79th street and hear the brogue of every county in ireland. so naturally, a politician like me craved a slot in the st. patrick's day parade. the problem was, not many people knew me or could even pronounce my name. i told them it was a gaelic name. they didn't believe me. so one year a few volunteers and i did make it into the parade, but we were literally the last marchers. after two hours, finally, it was our turn and while we rode the route and we smiled and we waved, the city workers were right behind us cleaning up the

garbage. it was a little depressing. but i'll bet those parade organizers are watching tv today and feeling kind of bad. because this is a pretty good parade right here. "go bulls." i like that. we got some bulls fans here. now of course, an american doesn't really require irish blood. to understand that ours is a proud, enduring, centuries-old relationship that we are bound by history and friendship and shared values, and that's why i've come here today as an american president to re-affirm those bonds of affection.

earlier today, michelle and i visited moneygall where we saw my ancestral home and dropped by the local pub and we received a very warm welcome from all the people there, including my long-lost eighth cousin, henry. henry now is affectionately known as henry viii. and it was remarkable to see the small town where a young shoemaker named falmouth cart, my grandfather's grandfather lived his early life and i was shown the records from the parish recording his birth.

we saw the home where he lived and he left during the great hunger that so many irish did to seek a new life in the new world. he traveled by ship to new york where he entered himself into the records as a laborer. he married an american girl from ohio. they settled in the midwest. they started a family. it's a familiar story, because it's one lived and cherished by americans of all backgrounds. it's integral to our national identity. it's who we are, a nation of immigrants from all around the world. but standing there in moneygall, i couldn't help but think how

heartbreaking it must have been for that great great great grandfather of mine, and so many others, to part, to watch moneygall coasts and cliffs recede, to leave behind all they knew in hopes that something better lay over the horizon. when people like falmouth boarded those ships, they often did so with no family, no friends, no money, nothing to sustain their journey but faith. faith in the almighty, faith in the idea of america, faith that it was a place where you could be prosperous, you could be free, you could think and talk and worship as you pleased, a place where you could make it if you tried. and as they worked and struggled and sacrificed, and sometimes

experienced great discrimination, to build that better life for the next generation, they passed on that faith to their children, and to their children's children, and inheritance that their great great great grandchildren, like me, still carry with them. we call it the american dream. it's the dream that falmouth carney was attracted to when he went to america. it's the dream that drew my own father to america from a small village in africa. it's a dream that we've carried forward, sometimes through stormy waters, sometimes at great cost, for more than two centuries. and for my own sake, i'm

grateful they made those journeys, because if they hadn't, you'd be listening to somebody else speak right now. and for america's sake, we are grateful so many others from this land took that chance as well. after all, never has a nation so small inspired so much in another. irish signatures are on our founding documents. irish blood was spilled on our battlefields. irish sweat built our great cities. our spirit is eternally refreshed by irish story and irish song. our public life by the humor and

heart and dedication of servants with names like kennedy and reagan, o'neil and moynihan. so you could say there's always been a little green behind the red, white and blue. when the father of our country, george washington, needed an army, it was the fierce fighting of your sons that caused the british official to lament "we have lost america through the irish." and as george washington said himself, "when our friendless standards were first unfurled, who were the strangers who first mustered around our staff, and when it reeled in the light, who more brilliantly sustained it

than aaron's generous sons, when we strove to blot out the stain of slavery, and advance the rights of men, we found common cause with your struggles against oppression. frederick douglas, an escaped slave, and our great abolitionist forged an unlikely friendship right here in dublin with your great liberator daniel o'connell. his time here, frederick douglas said, defined him not as a color, but as a man. and it strengthened the non-violent campaign he would return home to wage recently some of their descendents met here in dublin to continue that friendship between douglas and

o'connell. when abraham lincoln struggled to preserve our young union, more than 100,000 irish and irish-americans joined the cause with units like the irish brigade charging into battle, green flags with gold heart waving alongside our star spangled banner. when depression gripped america, ireland sent tens of thousands of packages of shamrocks to cheer up its countrymen. saying may the message of aaron shamrocks bring joy to those away. and when the iron curtain fell across this continent and our way of life was challenged, it was our first irish president, our first catholic president, john f. kennedy, who made us believe 50 years ago this week that mankind could do something

big and bold and ambitious as walk on the moon. he made us dream again nap is the story of america and ireland. that's the tale of our brawn and our blood, side by side, in making and remaking a nation, pulling it westward, pulling it skyward, moving it forward again and again and again, and that is our task again today. i think we all realize that both of our nations have faced great trials in recent years, including recessions so severe that many of our people are still trying to fight their way out and naturally our concern turns to our families, our friends and our neighbors. and some in this enormous audience are thinking about their own prospects and their

own futures. those of us who are parents wonder what it will mean for our children and young people like so many who are here today. will you see the same progress we've seen since we were your age? will you inherit futures as big and as bright as the ones that we inherited? will your dreams remain alive in our time? this nation has faced those questions before. when your land couldn't feed those who tilled it, when the boats leaving these shores held some your brightest minds, when brother fought against brother yours is a history frequently marked by the greatest of trials, and the deepest of

sorr sorrow, but yours is also a history of proud and defiant endurance. of a nation that kept alive the flame and knowledge of dark ages which outlived fallow fields, that triumphed over its troubles, of a resilient people who built -- beat all the odds. an ireland, as trying as these times are, i know our future is still as big and as bright as our children expect it to be. i know that because i know it is precisely in times like these, in times of great challenge, in times of great change, when we remember who we truly are. we're peoples, the irish and

americans, who never stop imagining a brighter future. even in bitter times. we're people who make that future happen through hard work and through sacrifice. through investing in those things that matter most, like family and community. we remember in the words made famous by one of your greatest poets that in dreams begin responsibili responsibility. this is a nation that met that responsibility by choosing like your ancestors did to keep alight the flachl knowledme of and invest in a world class education for your young people. today ireland's youth and those who come back to build a new ireland are among the best educated, most entrepreneurial in the world and i see those young people here today and i know that ireland will succeed.

this is a nation that met its responsibilities by choosing to apply the lessons of your own past to assume a heavier burden of responsibility on the world stage, and today people who once knew the pain of an empty stomach now feed those who hunger abroad. ireland is working hand in hand with the united states to make sure that hungry mouths are fed around the world because we remember those times. we know what crippling poverty can be like. we want to make sure that we're helping others. you're a people who modernize and can now stand up for those who can't yet stand up for

themselves. and this is a nation that met its responsibilities and inspired the entire world by choosing to see past the scars of violence and mistrust to forge a lasting peace on this island. when president clinton said at this very spot 15 years ago, waging peace is risky, i think those who are involved understood the risks they were taking, but you, the irish people, persevered and you cast your votes and you made your voices heard for that peace. and you responded heroically when it was challenged and you did it as the president has written, for all the apparent intractability of our problems, the irrepressible human impulse

to love kept nagging and nudging us towards reconciliation. whenever peace is challenged, you will have to sustain that irrepressible impulse and america will stand by you, always. america will stand by you always in your pursuit of peace. and ireland, you need to understand that you've already so surpassed the world's highest hopes that what was notable about the northern ireland elections two weeks ago was that they came and went without much attention. it's not because the world has forgotten, it's because this once unlikely dream has become

that most extraordinary of things -- it has become real, a dream has turned to reality because of the work of this nation. in dreams begin responsibility. embracing that responsibility, working toward it, overcoming the cynics and nay sayers and those who say you can't, that's what makes dreams real. that's what falmouth carney did when he got on that boat, and that's what so many generations of irish men and women have done here in ththis spectacular coun. that's something we can point to our children and show them, irish and american alike, that is something that we can teach

them as they grow up together in a new century, side by side, as it has been since our beginnings. this little country that inspires the biggest things, your best days are still ahead. our greatest triumphs in america and ireland alike are still to come. and ireland, if anyone ever says otherwise, if anybody ever tells you that your problems are too big, or your challenges are too great, that we can't do something, that we shouldn't even try, think about all that we've done together. remember, that whatever hardships the winter may bring, springtime's always just around the corner. and if they keep on arguing with you, just respond with a simple creed, [ speaking irish ]

yes, we can, yes, we can. for all you've contributed to the character of the united states of america, and the spirit of the world, thank you. and may god bless the eternal friendship between our two great nations. thank you very much, everybody. thank you, dublin. thank you, ireland. >> you have been listening there to president obama speaking in dublin, ireland. very inspirational message to the people of ireland certainly. saying he feels very much at home there. earlier in the day he had visited his long-lost eighth cousin henry in the irish village of moneygall where he shared a pint of guinness, apparently. he's known there as that town's favorite son. he spoke directly in this speech to the irish immigrants who he says have faced great discrimination. he also spoke to the young people in the crowd who he's always appealed to. you may recall that during his

campaign, genealogist actually from ancestry.com first shed light on president obama's irish roots when he was a candidate at the time. so this trip for mr. obama and his family certainly very important. welcome to cnn, everybody. and our coverage of the president there in ireland. i'm randi kaye, thanks so much for being with us. we also have a lot of other news to tell you about today. of course we've been following those tornadoes in missouri, even in a season of rampant and ferocious tornadoes. we're stunned by the devastation that one tornado can do. this hour, survives in joplin, missouri have two urgent priorities, even if they have little else. they want to know whether their friends and families are safe an they need to know about new storms that could be on the way. violent weather is again a possibility in parts of oklahoma and southwest missouri, along with parts of illinois, indiana and ohio. we'll get details from cnn's chad meyers in just a moment. but first, the details in joplin. 89 people confirmed dead in a

path of destruction half a mile wide and six miles long. authorities estimate 2,000 buildings, including one of joplin's two hospitals, are damaged, flattened or gone. threats to life and property persist and they may not be apparent as joplin's mayor told cnn this morning. >> i think part of the danger is that we have power completely out in some parts of the city, not completely out in other parts of the city. people need to be careful about getting into their homes or getting around the city in that with the power still on we have natural gas leaks, our water utility company has some breaks in the lines so there is a danger if we do start getting some fires that we won't have the fire equipment and water resources to put those fires out. i mention, this has been a horrible and historic spring. tuscaloosa, alabama was victim to the deadliest tornado

outbreak in decades. days before that, raleigh, north carolina was hit and another record fell. north carolina saw 28 tornadoes that day. the most on a single day in that state's history. so now let's go live to joplin, cnn's brian todd is outside what used to be a very busy hospital complex. brian, if you could, tell us what you're seeing there at this hour. >> reporter: randi, people coming through the wreckage of their cars right behind me here. these folks just came back to see what was left of their car. not much obviously so you feel for them as they poke through what's left and try to get some stuff out of it. with this car and some of the others here, look at these vehicles over here. you can see a van and an suv just on top of a pickup truck there. you see the green "x" on the driver's side door. that signifies that rescuers have come and looked to see if any people are inside and when they mark that like that, that signals other rescuers that they found no one, that they can move on to other vehicles. but take a look at what they've

got to go through. they've got to mark vehicles and houses. look at the scope of the devastation that they have to go through. entire city blocks wiped out. this happened last night at about 5:30 local time, 6:30 eastern time. it happened just in a matter of seconds. entire neighborhoods wiped out. about 25% to 30% of the city in the downtown area was here, leveled. back here, this is st. john's regional medical center. we've highlighted this building because it took a direct hit from this tornado and we're told e r e x-rays from this building landed 70 miles away, gurneys from the building were found five blocks down the street. you've got just complete and total devon station here. now the weather has complicated things. we've seen first responders just combing through this area over here. it is raining now. they've had severe thunderstorms rolling through this area all day, all morning and afternoon. that's making things much more complicated for rescuers so

that's what they've got to deal with as well. >> what's being done for the patients and injured at that hospital? >> they had a patient population here of about 183 when the tornado hit. we're told they got everybody out. they haven't given us specific figures on how many were injured by the tornado and may be being treated. what we have been told is they've taken them to other medical centers nearby, that those centers had the capacity to hold them and care for them until things can be sorted out. i guess in the fortunate circumstance was that they had about a 20-minute warning from when the first tornado warnings went off to when the tornado actually hit. that's more than twice as much as they usually get so they did have some time to evacuate people from this building, some other people had some time to get out. but as you can see, for so many people around here, that 20-minute gap didn't help much because the sheer force and scope of this thing, it was a half-mile to three-quarters of a mile wide at its widest scope. you can see all around us that it just created just enormous

devastation. >> brian, real quickly, have they brought in any type of search dog teams? are they just going on foot house to house trying to find people? >> right now, randi, they're combing doing what they call a house-to-house grid search. they break up the teams in different groups and they each kind of mark off a grid of the city. that's kind of how rescue teams traditionally do this. we have not seen canine teams o yet. i imagine they will bring in some. we have combed through this part of the city and we did not see any canine teams. right now it appears they're searching on foot for a moment. >> brian todd bringing us the very latest there from joplin. we also want to bring in now chad meyers. as brian said, the skies are certainly ugly. they've been threatening throughout the day. are these people in for more bad weather? >> they could be. except that the weather that just rolled through there in the past hour or so did something we

call wreck the atmosphere. it used up the energy, used up the moisture, used up the heat, and so that may be good news for the rest of the day, because there will be more tornadoes today across parts of arkansas, maybe kansas, and even sneaking into parts of missouri. but when it is cold, when it's rained, when it's not 80 degrees with a relative humidity of 75%, the chance of a tornado actually comes down. it is the heat of the day, it's that humidity. here's joplin right there. there's the weather that's just kind of slid down from north to south. there is still more weather back up here into oklahoma, and that could sneak up into joplin but any rain is certainly not a good thing. here's the tornado from last night. here's joplin, missouri, very tall -- or small little words right there but you talk about a hook echo, talk about the hook was a perfect hook, a major meso cyclone. big hail through in here, low pressure in here. the tornado on the ground right through joplin and that big bright spot is not hail, that's

actually insulation, shingles, boards, things in the air. actually the radar picks up stuff in the air, picks up raindrops, raindrop's really small. think about how it might pick up a 2x4 ? it really reflects quite nice. that's debris from the storm. i know we have people with loved ones and people they know. really the storm moved south of downtown joplin. 20th street. if you know someone from joplin or northward, the northern half of the city is doing okay. that's it -- okay. now it's neighbors helping neighbors. >> when the fire chief there says that that tornado cut his town in half, i guess he certainly meant it. >> he did. >> chad, check in with you later on. our "sound effect" is the closest i hope you ever come to a monster tornado. while the devastation of joplin was in progress, several people huddled in the back of a convenience store, and then when the windows blew out, they moved to a walk-in refrigerator. it was a smart move. i'm going to play you some very

dark, very scary cell phone video. then we'll actually hear from the man who shot it. >> basically the only thing that was left standing was the cooler that we were in. everything around it was gone. it actually toor few holes in the refrigerator, so we climbed out of one of the walls at the end of the refrigerator, and when we crawled out, it was -- everything was just flattened. trees, houses, everything around there. >> on the phone with us now is governor jay nixon from nurou missouri. thank you for taking the time to

speak with us. a lot of people are very worried about people in your community and in your state. can you give us the very latest on the situation there? are you getting what you need in terms of help? >> absolutely. we have 500 firefighters on the ground right now doing search and rescue. we also brought in our top teams from around the state an city of columbia that worked after 9/11. we have had five families this morning that we saved from the rubble and that dug out. we are continuing that. it is raining hard down there and making it very difficult for dogs and other searchers to work. the number of folks that we've lost continues to rise but the bottom line is we still believe there are folks that are alive underneath the rubble and we're working hard to save them. >> at this point, what is the total number of people that you have lost, the current death toll? >> the most recent is somewhere north of 89 would be official but we see -- i just got off the phone with a nursing homeowner there who said there were 15

still missing. or unaccounted for. they've talked to city managers. it is very, very clear that we still have a lot of work to do down there but we do believe that there are people underneath the rubble and we're working in a way that can maximize the folks that we can get to safety. >> i look at these cars that have been tossed around there and i look at all the debris on the ground and i'm just curious, how do you have a means of even just getting around there to go house to house? how difficult has that been and have you been able to move that debris out of the way to get to these folks? >> it's been very difficult. we've had to go walking with dogs and with hand-held devices. you have to move through there very gingerly because you could cause something to fall. with big equipment, it is necessary to move bigger pieces afterwards but the bottom line is we were successful this morning in finding five families buried under refuge. bottom line is we believe folks are down there. we want to be careful as we move

through, while at the same time expanding our shelters for folks who have lost their home as well as making sure there's medical care for those with significant injuries. >> you've lost one hospital. have you had to set up triage centers, sort of make-shift hospitals in tents or anywhere in the area zbh. >> yes. we moved out all of the hospitals who survived, also long-care patients out of the hospital. to get that facility up and operating so it is fully capable of taking more people. we've also brought folks from afar as way as springfield, and other areas to make sure there's enough medical personnel in the area but it is very challenging especially with the continuing rain an lightning and front that's there right now. folks have to work in very difficult conditions. >> what are you doing, if anything, to prepare for the coming storms that may be headed your way even? >> well, the -- obviously we watch it very, very carefully. we had to take everybody inside

this morning for a period of time because of the danger. they're back out, even though it is raining now. we're trying to find out that are still alive and save them. and the folks that have been injured, get them to the health care they need. we are convinced seeing five recoveries of families this morning that there remain folks buried under these huge piles of rubble and we're going to do everything we can to find them. >> i'm curious what the communication is like in terms of cell phones or text messages. if there are people buried under there, are those services still up and running? >> 17 cell towers were knocked over when the tornado came through. we moved our mobile communications team down with their van down from columbia and jeff city, but that's for first responders so individuals are going to have a very difficult time with those cell towers on the ground getting coverage. but our first responders through that system we set up are able to communicate and have an organized search of the area. it is going to be very difficult for individuals over the day or

probably next couple of days to get any calls in or out of there though. >> if you can, just update me on the situation there with the broken natural gas lines that i understand caused several fires overnight as well. are they still giving you trouble? >> we had a number of fires overnight. hopefully that has subsided. there's been a lot of -- we got water pressure back so being able to fight those fires down. plus it is raining like heck. but you never know when another gas line's going to burst open because some gas lines have been ripped apart and there still smells like gas out there. our first responders indicated it is. we shut off major gas lines coming in there but there still may be gas on the ground and could be still flammable. >> you know what really struck me, governor, as i was listening to the press conferences today? listening to the first responders, including the fire chief there in joplin, who these people also have lost their homes and their belongings and yet they're still out there trying to work and rescue others. meanwhile they don't even know

what their situation is at their own home. >> this is a tornado that hit the center of the town. it not only knocked out a hospital, nursing home, a school, but also many businesses and homes. tragedy will be suffered by many in the region, but moissourians come together under difficult tim times. we'll find the folks in the rubble and still surviving. that's the focal point. when i talk to the city manager this morning they're trying to maintain focus on getting folks that were out there, alive, having a hard time communicating, especially with the wind and rain to make sure we have a thorough search of the area. >> governor, before we let you go, i just want to ask you, do you need anything? if our viewers want to reach out, what would you like? what do you need? >> i spoke with the president this morning, also the local officials down there. we're also folks if they want to help, go to the state webpage, we have a red cross button right there that will directly help folks there.

we'll have a long recovery. with the number of firefighters down there, we'll have to have a lot of help from churches to feed them and work them through our faith-based network. so far they've been very strong for us. we thank them. but if folks from around the country want to help, go to mo.gov, hit that button. the funds will go to help the victims in joplin, missouri. >> governor, we thank you for your time and wish you the best of luck in getting through this and whatever weather may be heading your way as well. thank you, governor, for your time. we will have much more from joplin, missouri, straight ahead. these pictures were taken by a woman who barely made it out of town before that twister hit. we are going to speak with her next. cer ] in 2011, at&t is at work, building up our wireless network all across america. we're adding new cell sites... increasing network capacity, and investing billions of dollars to improve your wireless network experience. from a single phone call to the most advanced data download, we're covering more people in more places than ever before

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we do our best to make that work. deal! my money. my choice. my meineke. missouri governor jay nixon has sent a search and rescue team to joplin where tornado killed at least 89 people last night. jennifer par managed to get herself and her dog out of town though just before that twister hit and she joins us now by phone. jennifer, you say that this was a last-minute decision to get out right before the storm hit. what convinced you that it was

time to go? >> well, i heard the sirens go off. they finally stopped after a couple minutes. it seemed like the storm was going to go to the north of where my house is, but then i started hearing hail so i called my mom, said, mom, i'm not coming over. she said she was not sure if she wanted me to venture out, so i made the decision, got me and my dog in the car, started heading south. went even on 26th street, and then south on main street and at main street and 32nd street, the wind started moving my car around. it was just real scary. >> so did you make it to your mom's? >> yes, i did. i made it okay. >> and then i know that eventually you went back in to town and we have some pictures that you actually took when you went back into town. can you tell us a little bit about where you took these

photos and walk us through them a bit? >> oh, yes, i can. me and my mom, a couple of others, after the storm had gone through, we went in to joplin. we immediately saw complete devastation. as we were trying to get towards my house, a lot of the roads were blocked. we got on to some of the back roads and i couldn't even tell where we were. it was just very unrecognizable. we finally made our way through the st. john's parking lot where we were able to park and we had to walk about four blocks to my house. i started taking pictures in the st. john's parking lot. >> what struck you most about that hospital parking lot and what you saw? >> the cars that were piled on top of each other, all the windows blown out of the hospital. it just -- it was unreal. i almost felt like i was on a

movie set. as you can see, one of the pictures was the cross and the hands. that was the only thing that was there that was untouched. >> and what about your own home when you got back to your house? what did you find there? >> as i started working my way north towards my house, it's about three blocks north from 26th street, things started not having quite as much damage. when i finally made it to my house, parts of the roof were missing, all the windows were blown out. i was able to go inside an pretty much everything in my house was all blown around and twisted around. >> wow. well, jennifer, we really appreciate your i-report and sending us those pictures. we certainly wish you and your family well and hopefully you will all get through this. thanks so much. appreciate it. >> thank you. meanwhile, president obama starting his europe trip with a toast and a sip. our ed henry is tagging along to

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earlier this hour you heard some of president obama's speech in dublin, ireland. the president, or as they're calling him, the hero, barry obama, has been getting the whirlwind tour in his day in ireland, the first stoch his

european trip. senior white house correspondent ed henry joins us at this time every day. being in ire larnd has not stopped this, of course. it's been a pretty busy day, first day for the president. we heard him speak in dublin at the top of the hour. he was pretty fired up to a lot of us it sounded like he was on the campaign trail. >> reporter: it really did. it felt like a campaign event on this end, covering it. here in ireland. you saw the huge crowd. there were people shouting the gaelic version of "yes, we can." there were campaign style signs. you heard the fiery introduction by the irish prime minister. it almost sounded like the president when he spoke was talking about ireland winning the future, that the theme he's been talking about with the u.s. winning the future back home. bottom line is, his irish eyes, if you will, are no doubt focused on the irish-american vote. there's some 40 million irish-americans back home in the states and the president made a point of going to this tiny village, moneygall, where his

great great great grandfather lived and came to the states in the mid 1800s. that's the immigrant story that so many americans, whether it is ireland, italy, you name the european country or other countries around the world. he also had by the way a sly little reference to the birthers in his remarks. when he said, when you run for president, people start poking around in your past. it o would have been nice to know this information about his roots and whatnot a little bit earlier. you probably know this, because i know you've done a lot of research thon this, but do you know it takes 119 1/2 seconds to pour the perfect guinness? apparently guinness sent in a master brewer to make sure that the president's pint of guinness was just perfect. >> does that include the perfect a froth as well? >> you know, the staff and the press will have to do it after the president leaves the pub for security reasons, we can't be there. >> oh, there he goes. drinking it down.

>> you know, the funny part is that you can hear the roar from the people in the pub. he slammed some money down on the bar and said i want it to be known that the president of the united states pays his bar tab. he also wants to make sure that nobody thinks that he's a freeloader. >> that is great. guinness for the president. but ed, of course on a much more serious note, the president visited alabama, as we know after the devastating tornado there. is he able to keep up with what's going on in joplin, missouri from there in ireland? >> reporter: absolutely. he obviously has to be extremely careful. this happens to the president no matter where he's traveling domestically or internationally. to be hoisting a pint of guinness while people back home are suffering, he obviously wants to have a little bit of fun over here but he has to be thinking back to that. we're told that aboard air force one he was getting briefings as he was flying overnight as the immediate damage was being known. he also spoke to the governor as you just did, governor nixon in missouri, and has instructed the fema director, federal emergency

management agency director craig few gate fugate to get there on the ground as quick as possible. brianne in kieler, my colleague, just gave me new information saying air force one is going to leave ireland a few hours early because of some of the volcanic ash spreading around europe, concern about planes potentially being grounded. it happened when we were with the president in asia several months ago and he was moving around. now as well. he'll be leaving ireland a little bit early but we're told his schedule in the united kingdom tomorrow still on schedule as it was but he'll leave ireland a little early. >> that volcano in iceland is certainly causing trouble i guess, even for the president. ed henry for us in ireland, ed, thank you. appreciate it. >> great to see you. prisoners fighting to save their prison? yes, you heard me right. but it's not a board or government they're fighting. it is the mississippi river. behind the scenes with the criminals' fight. next.

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water flooding continues to be a worry. in butte larose prisoners there are help tok sandbag. a mandatory evacation order is expected at noon tomorrow. prisoners are at work in angola, louisiana. the inmates there have a personal fight before heading to missouri to fight the tornado. >> they hoist and haul sandbags. wedge barrels into the earth to catch seeping floodwater racing against a cresting mississippi river that surround them on three sides to save their community. but these aren't typical volunteers, they're murders, rapist, drug dealers. the worst offenders in the place of louisiana. the place they're trying to save is louisiana. >> this is god's work. can't nobody stop it. but if we can help ourselves, let's do what we can. >> darren jarvis is serving a

life sentence sfr cocaine distribution. he's one of the inmates helping to save the floodwater. is there any bitterness that you're working to save the institution that's housing you? >> actually, no. >> why not? >> there's a lot of worse places you can be. i'm a multiple offender. this is my third conviction. at the same time i've never been in a place that allows us the privileges in angola. i would hate to see what it would be like somewhere else. >> in some places it's too late. in many places you can't tell where the river ends. this is the outer ring levee that normally protects the prison grounds from flooding. it's been breached. that's normally a road with the telephone polls there there's a guard shack there. now they've got 18,000 acres. 26 square miles. angola's already evacuated about

2,000 prisoners. how tough is it to evacuate and get people displaced in a place like this? >> our plan is to run up on the levees. this is 18,000 acres. this is as large as manhattan. we're not as many people, but still we have to get them on the levees. we won't know where the breach is if it's at night. >> as they work away, the prisoners have to worry about the predators. we see gators and water moccasins on the ground. the warden says they've been shooting other animals that sabotages the work. >> it's got to go. armadillo, beaver, knew tree ya. we won't shoot the gators. >> why not? >> i like the gators. >> in fact, he says he considers the gators extra guards. the legend here even before these floods was if you escape and the guards don't get you,

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contender. >> that's right, the former minnesota governor made that official at the first caucus in iowa. he told the crowd he is a fiscal conservative not afraid of hard choices. he's not as well known, not as chris matting as others. he tried to make clear he wants to make up for that with some seriousness and sense of purpose. >> fluffy promises of hope and change don't buy our groceries, make our mortgage payments, put gas in our car or pay for our children's school clothes or other needs. so in my campaign, i'm going to take a different approach. i'm going to tell you the truth. and the truth is, washington, d.c.'s broken. >> reporter: with others like mike huckabee and mitch daniels out of the race, pawlenty is trying to position himself as a leading candidate who doesn't have the baggage that some republican voters might not like. mitt romney's massachusetts

health care plan or the fact that john huntsman did work for president obama. >> and speaking of medicare, it's going to be a major issue going ahead. but today one republican senator broke party ranks. what happened there? >> reporter: that's right. it's scott brown of massachusetts. he announced that he is against house budget chairman paul ryan's medicare plan. he said this plan which of course would change the system and would instead have people buy private coverage, he's worried that it would drive up costs for seniors. why is he announcing this now? democrats feel they have had great political success hammering house republicans on this issue. so they said they're going to bring this up for a vote in the senate this week to try to put people on record. scott brown is one of the few republicans who's probably facing a tough re-election battle. he says he's against it. >> thank you. and your next update from the best political team on television is just an hour away.

9/11 the season of rampant and ferocious tornados we are stunned by the devastation one tornado can do. right now survivors in joplin, missouri, have two urgent priority even if they have little else. they want to know if their friends and families are safe and they need to know about new storms that could be on the way. violent weather is again a possibility in parts of oklahoma, indiana and ohio. we'll get the details in a moment or so, first the detail from joplin. 89 people confirmed dead in a path of destruction half a mile wide, six miles long. last hour missouri's governor told us five families were rescued this morning, but he also knows of a nursing home with 15 residents missing. authorities estimate 2,000 buildings including one of joplin's two hospitals are damaged, platened, or gone. threats to life and property persist and they may not be so

apparent. here's the word from joplin's mayor. >> i think part of the danger is that we have power complete oi out in some parts of the city. not completely out in other parts of the city. people need to be careful getting around the city with the power still on, we have natural gas leaks, our water, ewe fullity company has some breaks in tliens. there's a danger if we get fires we won't have the resources to put those fires out. >> i mentioned this has been a horrible and historic spring. less than four weeks ago, tuscaloosa, alabama, took a direct hit in the deadliest tornado outbreak in decades. five days earlier a giant twister hit st. louis. lambert airport in particular, remember that airport shaking. days before that raleigh, north carolina, was hit. north carolina saw 28 tornados that day. the most on a single day in that state's history. now i want to take you live to joplin, missouri.

cnn's brian todd is outside what used to be a very busy hospital complex. brian, tell us what you're seeing where you are. are they cleaning up or more focused on the rescue efforts right now? >> reporter: there is a focus on the rescue efforts. they're trying to comb through neighborhoods searching grid by grid to find survivors. frankly a lot of the buildings are completely flattened. we're not sure how that search is going to turn out. i'm joined by michael spetser a spokesman for the national red cross who's come to joplin to set up shelters. thousands of people have been displaced from their homes. michael, right now how dire is it for them? >> our biggest need is making sure people have a safe place to stay. many structures were completely destroyed. we're making sure there's a warm, dry place. as the rain and cold sets in. these people have been out here for many-hours. we want to make sure they have food and emotional support. >> reporter: are there a lot of

people still out there trying to find a place to say and getting shelter wherever they can? >> i'm seeing dozens and dozens of people asking me where to go to get a safe place to stay. there are dozens of people out there that do need a safe place to stay. >> reporter: do you have enough food and medical supplies? >> yes. our shelter can hold 3600. we're well below that. we have plenty of food and supplies at that shelter, but the situation may change at any moment. >> reporter: thank you for joining us. the weather here has complicated matters. some emergency responders behind us. again, they're searching grid by grid here trying to find some survivors. there have been severe thunderstorms rolling through this area, complicating the search. that hasn't helped matters any. they're warning people, you heard michael talk about people getting to the shelters, getting into a safe place. it's not safe yet. they're warning people don't go to your homes right away.

there are gas leaks, potential fires. downed power lines are all over the place. walking 15 feet here is a real challenge. people are encouraged to get to the shelters. wait it out for a few days. >> we talked to the governor, governor nixon there a short time ago. he told us that five families had been rescued, which is incredible news. i'm wondering if you're hearing anymore word on rescues and how exactly they're going about doing that? >> reporter: they're walking around the neighborhoods as far as we know right now doing those grid searches going into individual properties, individual lots and poking through. it's a pain staking process. it takes many, many days. of course, the window for survival is closing. the first 48 hours are crucial. we have not heard any dramatic stories on this end on this part of town of any dramatic rescues. we're hoping for that. they're still on the job trying to find people alive. >> what was it like for you getting around town to get us

coverage? how much debris is around and how difficult it might be for folks to get around there and try and help others? >> reporter: it's difficult to get around when you come to on to a lot. it's like an earthquake. walking 15 feet is a real challenge. the streets are summarizingly clear. you can navigate the streets with a vehicle. you can walk on the streets. they have done a good job of clearing the streets quickly to get the emergency vehicles and other vehicles through here. this is a positive. >> in terms of tornados, they're not exactly like hurricanes. parts of the city there seem to be in tact. >> reporter: there are some buildings in tact. some of the larger structures. tornados are notoriously fickle forces of nature. here's an example. look back here. you've got this neighborhood just kind of center screen here completely flat and devastated, trees uprooted. now look to the right. you see that townhouse development there.

they've got some damage to the roof and some shangles flew off. look at the structure. it's just a few feet away. what's the nature of a tornado. we talked to a survivor who actually stayed outside during this tornado, pinned herself against the building as it came over her and she didn't get swept away. she survived it. it really is often just luck of the draw with your own safety and the safety of your home. >> it's incredible when you hear stories like that, the survivor that you talked to pinning herself against the building. and another gentleman who said his dog warned him before the tornado warnings actually came through. so he was able to take cover. it is amazing to hear some stories of survival in a tragedy like this. brian todd there, thank you. appreciate it. i want to bring in chad myers with the outlook. looking uglier for that area, chad, is that true? >> it is true. oklahoma all the way up to st. louis. we had some information from our desk that there are pieces of

buildings down in st. louis because of a string of lines of weather not even a tornado, a weather that lined up called a bow echo. it blew out through st. louis and now things are down in st. louis, power lines, trees, pats of buildingings. so much of these pictures you don't get to look at them. take a picture and think about this. it looks just like junk at the bottom of your screen. there's the hospital in the background. but that red piece in front that is a life flight or was a life flight helicopter that was on the pad there at the hospital. it's almost unrecognizable. it just looks like something they just threw shrapnel at it. obviously the blade's gone. is that really the helicopter? and there it was. and everything, cars, you can't even tell what make they are for that matter. here's joplin, missouri. there is weather. it's moving to the south. a couple tornados still possible

today. maybe not so much for joplin because it's rained so much and the sar fairly cool. here's st. louis. right through downtown st. louis this arching, this almost a backwards c storm. at the point of the c on the st. charles is where all of that wind focuses together and pushes things down. it doesn't take a tornado to make that kind of damage. let's take you to damage for springfield and for joplin. i'm going to get to it right now. dave, go ahead and hit it. i-44 joplin itself over towards iron gates. south of downtown joplin from 20th to 26th street is where that damage is. right through the middle that part right there would be the hospital. and then all the way east of town and it continued all the way to i-44. all the way across the city. the south side of the city and then across i-44 all kinds of cars and buildings and things gone right there between mile

marker ten and 12 of i-44. people in cars were the ones that were probably hurt the worst. this was unsurvivable in a car. >> it's terrible. terrible news and terrible news for them that more bad weather is heading their way. thank you. >> you're welcome. meanwhile, our sound effect is the closest i hope you ever come to a monster tornado. while the devastation of joplin was in progress, several people actually huddled in the back of a convenient store and then when the windows blew out, they moved to a walk-in refrej rater. that was a very smart move. i'm going to play some very, dark, very scarey cell foeb video. and then we'll hear from the man who shot that video. >> basically the only thing that

was left standing was the cooler that we were in. everything, everything around it was gone. you know, it actually tore a few holes in the refrigerator. we climbed out one of the walls at the end of the refrigerator. when we crawled out, it was everything was just flattened. trees, houses, everything around there. >> we will have much more ahead from job lin, missouri, as the search for survivors goes on. people who live there say they've never seen anything like the destruction that took place last night. we'll talk to a woman who was actually in church when the twister hit. twister hit. her story is next. it blocks pain signals for deep relief precisely where you need it most. precise. only from the makers of tylenol.

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tell us what you want to pay. we do our best to make that work. deal! my money. my choice. my meineke. it's total devastation with the hospital down, the high school down. >> right now rescue workers are searching through the wreckage from last night's killer tornado in joplin, missouri, hoping to find survivors. sarah ferguson was at church when the twister hit. she joins us now on the telephone. thanks so much for making the time to chat with us. i'm sure it's a very difficult situation in your community. what was it like at church as that tornado closed in? did you know it was coming? >> caller: actually, my husband

stepped out. he looked at the weather a little bit. and other guys stepped out and started watching and someone had their laptop there and they started pulling up the news. we could see it was coming. there was warnings and then jusz a little bit then we heard the first siren. shortly after that i heard a second siren. we went to the classrooms and we just basically all started praying. it was pretty intense. it was raining really hard and -- >> tell me about those prayers. >> caller: well, we were just praying that the tornado would just lift and pass over joplin. we just parade for protection over our city. and for protection over the homes, businesses and everything. >> was everyone call or were these terrifying moments for you? >> caller: some of us were and some of us weren't. some of us were crying.

some of us were wondering about our families. it was all emotional. >> we spoke with your governor jay nixon a short time ago. i want you to hear what he told us and then we're going to talk some more. >> caller: okay. >> we have 500 firefighters on the ground doing search andres cue. we always brought in our top teams from columbia that worked after 9/11. we have had five families this morning that we saved from rubble and dug out. we're continuing that. it's raining hard down there and very difficult for the dogs and other searchers to work. the number of folks that we've lost continues to rise. the bottom line is we believe there are folks alive under the rubble and we're working hard to save them. >> what is the total number of people that you have lost, the current death toll? >> the most recent puts us somewhere north of 89 would be official. we see just got off the phone with a nursing homeowner there

who said that there were six teams still missing. it's very, very clear that we've still got a lot of work to do down there. we do believe that there are people underneath the rubble. and we'll work in a way that can maximize the folks that we can get to safety. >> let's get back to sara ferguson who was in church as that tornado struck. sara, how was it for you? when did you get the all clear? and what was that trip home like for you? >> caller: it kind of started -- stopped raining. we thought we needed to get home. we had no idea. we lived in the opposite end of town. we had no idea what had happened. we had two of our sons we were able to get in touch with. no cell phone service. it was pretty intense driving home. poir lines were down as we got closer to where the path of the

tornado wasn't through, we couldn't find a street to turn north and go home. >> did it take a lot longer for you? >> caller: it took us an hour where usually it's a ten-minute trip. >> how is your family doing? >> caller: my family is okay. i only slept an hour last night because we didn't hear about my brother until this morning. we thought that he and hi sister-in-law were gone. we did get in touch with them this morning. one of my nephews was in the walmart that got hit. he ended up with a broken arm. another nephew lost his home. we had a couple of friends that lost homes. >> well, sara ferguson, we certainly wish you and your people well and glad to hear that they are all safe and sound. i appreciate you calling in. >> caller: thank you. coming up next, new doping allegations against cyclist lance armstrong and his response.

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police have med an arrest in the beating outside dodgers stadium that left a san francisco giants fan in a coma. after pursuing hundreds of leads, police arrested a man early yesterday at an east hollywood apartment acting on a tip from his parole officer. ramirez, a known gang member is charged with assault with a deadly weapon and is being held on $1 million bail in the beating of bryan stow. stow's mother talked about the

attack with our sister network, hln before the arrest. >> it was just a brutal attack because whatever that guy hit my son with, bryan was unconscious before he hit the grounds. so he had no way to protect his head. his forehead just hit the concrete. so unfortunately that's where most of the damage is. but, you know, i'm just really upset that nobody stepped in before all that happened. >> police zayra mears was the primary agressor in the march 31st attack on stow. a paramedic and father of two. at a news conference in los angeles, police chief charlie beck became choked up when he was notified ramirez had been captured. >> by 7:00 this morning i got a phone call from my chief of operations, and he said the words that i've been waiting for for seven weeks. he said that we had bryan's -- assault suspect in custody. this is a huge step.

>> police are still searching for two others that may have been involved in that attack as well. turning now to lance armstrong in a stunning new twist to allegations that he has long used banned performance enhancing drugs. it's something that's dogged the seven-time tour de france winner for years and he has repeatedly denied. now a grand jury in los angeles is hearing secret testimony from some of armstrong's former teammates on the u.s. postal service team. one is tyler hamilton. he spoke out for the first time in public on "06 minutes" just last night. >> what did you actually witness? >> i mean, i saw it in his refrigerator. i saw him inject it. more than one time. >> you saw lance armstrong inject e.p.o.? >> yeah, like, we all did. like i did many, many times.

>> the international olympic committee announced friday that hamilton has voluntarily vended his gold medal won in the 2004 olympics after admitting to doping in his career. in response to the cbs report armstrong posted a statement on his website reading in part, cbc's reporting on this subject has been replete with broken promises, false asurnss and selective reliance on witnesses upon whom no reputable journalist would rely. a famous british footballer is at the center of a privacy dispute. it's over super injunctions. it's an old way that famous brits have kept their business private. the manchester united star had a superinjunction from keeping the press knowing about his affair with a reality tv star. now the cat is out of the bag. the mp won't be punished because he's allowed to break the

privacy orld as long as he's in parliament at the time. gigs name has been burning up twitter anyway that led the mp to say the privacy laws were unsustainable in the face of social networking. president obama is leaving ireland early because of a severe weather threat. after touring the devastation in alabama, country legend hank williams junior is leading an effort to raise money for the tornado victims of the southeast. he helped organize a benefit concert this month and continues in support of the relief efforts. here's today's impact your world report. >> i'm hank williams junior, and you can make an impact to help the people of alabama, georgia, mississippi that have been totally devastated by the worst disaster in the history of the state. you have to be here. you just can't describe it. absolutely unbelieve. these cities need not millions,

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you just saw images of the devastation caused by the tornado in joplin, missouri. we want to bring in our chad myers who's watching this. it sounds like they're heading for more storms. more storms are heading their way. >> the cold air, the cold front has not pushed all the humidity away yet. until that happens you can always get storms that fire during the day in the heat to have day to go back up again, to start spinning again. then eventually it's like a big broom. when the cold line comes by or the dry line comes by it pushes it farther and farther to the southeast and gets to the gulf of mexico we don't know they're in the tornados because they're in the water. they're water spouts. they don't matter unless you're

boating out there. a couple of tornado warnings in effect today it's not that hot yet. that's mountain view. they're traveling to the north of mountain view into the ozark. that may be something that we worry about later on for today. let's get rid of this. in st. louis a bow echo line of weather right there has moved right through st. louis. why is that significant? when you get weather that lines up like that another broom and that broom pushed wind through st. louis between 60 and 70 miles per hour. we know of damage not from tornados, but if it's a 70 miles per hour wind or 100 miles per hour tornado. it's insignificant how the damage got there. there is damage in st. louis proper right now. >> i want to ask you about this

value cay know in iceland -- volcano in iceland. we got word that the president may be leaving ireland because of this volcanic ash. >> i think that would be a very good idea if he did leave because -- >> why? >> this is iceland. this is part of google earth. this is the volcano. this is my interpretation. the ash has puffed out of the volcano. not the same one from last time. >> oh, a different one. >> there are many, many volcanoes over iceland. >> what's the concern in ireland? >> some of this will sneak down towards ireland this is the ash cloud here. much of the ash will go high in the atmosphere and over to europe and russia. a few particles will run down toward ireland. if you take a look at the ash

advisory coming out out of europe, this is ireland right there. enough coming down right through here that the president needs to get out tonight because this is not even into the morning. 6:00 in the morning local time over there ash will be between where the president is driving, where the plane is taking off and where he wants to go, you cannot fly through ash. >> there's a difference between tonight and tomorrow for sure. >> the jet will melt it back into lava and that will form on the backside of your aircraft engine. your jet stream and that will crash your plane. no one wants that. there will be many more flights, not just the president's cancelled out of northern ireland tomorrow. >> all right. now we know why he may leave early. certainly sounds like he will. thank you. meanwhile an unforgiving tornado claims at least 89 lives.

this the joplin, missouri, now. an inside look at the storm and the latest on the search for survivors is next. car connection calls the xf, yet an instant classic." with sports car styling and power, plus the refinement and space of a luxury sedan, the jaguar xf is a timeless blend of performance and craftsmanship. see how jaguar outperforms the competition

at jaguarperforms.com or visit your local jaguar dealer. rescue efforts going on right now after a monosister tornado hits the heart of joplin, missouri. parts of the town of 55,000 people are unrecognizable. at least 89 people are dead. and just in case you missed it, we take you there. the unforgettable, chilling moments. >> oh my gosh. >> this is what the massive tornado looked like as it was

baring down on -- bearing down on joplin, missouri. but listen to this. this is what it sounded like from inside a convenient store where terrified customers rode out the storm jammed inside a dark refrigerated storeroom. we talked to one of those who was crammed inside. >> and missouri governor jay knicksson told us just a short time ago, 500 firefighters are on the ground and there are still people buried under collapsed buildings in joplin. this tornado season is the did lest since 1953. the death toll in joplin is only

expected to rise. we'll be right back.

welcome back. time for a little globe trek at this hour. reports today that the taliban founder may be dead. joining us with a little bit more on this to help sort it out the michael holmes. what do we know? >> not much, really. this came from an afghan intelligence source who said that the taliban founder was dead. they said his trusted his source. this was a usually reliable guy. everyone else is saying no. there's one of the very few photographs of him, too.

this was a guy when he set up shop in afghanistan and founded the whole taliban regime also banned photography. there's hardly any photographs of this guy around. he blew up the borders, remember the big statues in the mountains and everything. what we're hearing from everyone from nato to the pakistan intelligence is there is no evidence that he's actually dead. they just haven't heard from him. those in afghanistan hadn't heard from him in five days. what's interesting if they haven't heard from him in five days there's admissions that there are talks going on. that's something that people have been going on for a long time, too, is getting reconciliation talks. >> do we know much about his whereabouts? >> he's been in pakistan, or thought to been in pakistan for years now, ten years since he escaped after the u.s. went into afghanistan post 9/11.

it's a head of helders who run the taliban. he's been there for ten years. if everyone knows he's there, high hasn't he been caught yet? >> that's a good point. >> we rant heard from him in five days. you're that much in contact. >> speaking of pack stage, in a bold attack pakistani taliban attacked a base splchl there's been so much violence going on. one of the pakistan spokes people was saying there's a 9/11 impact virtually every day. they've lost thousands and thousands of people. six guys got over the wall at a major naval base and ran amok. they blew up a couple of planes several million dollars worth and started shooting up the place. killed ten pakistani security. >> was this a suicide attack? >> a couple were wearing suicide vests. one detonated they did no.

they think there's another body under the rubble. one of them got away. >> to hear they have a 9/11 there every day, that does say alove. >> it is true. even many the frontier area of pakistan, it is true that the pakistanis have lost more soldiers just soldiers than all nato troops combined. >> in 20 seconds, can you give me the latest on this volcano in iceland. >> i'm not going to say it for you. >> pretty devastating. >> everyone's worried about it. not as much as the last one. parentally the ash is different. the ash in this volcano is heavier. it's bigger bits of ash. so they think it will come down to earth a lot quicker. but it is heading across to britain. there are precautions being taken. if you're watching in england and you've got a flight in two days, get out now if you can. >> this is probably why is

president is leaving ireland early. >> it's the biggest eruption in 100 years. >> much bigger eruption than the one last year that caused all the trouble. >> michael holmes, good to see you. with the deadly tornados in missouri last night, 2011 is now the deadliest year on record in the united states since 1953, but how exactly do these storms form? we take you inside the anatomy of a tornado next. let me tell you about a very important phone call i made. when i got my medicare card, i realized i needed an aarp... medicare supplement insurance card, too.

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rescue efforts going on right now after a monster tornado hits the heart of joplin, missouri. parts of the town of 55,000 people now unrecognizable. at least 89 people have lost their lives. and just in case you missed it, we take you there the unforgettable, chilling moments. >> oh my gosh. oh my kbosh. >> this is what the massive tornado looked like as it was bearing down on joplin, missouri. but listen to this. this is what it sounded like from inside a convenient store where terrified customers rode out the storm jammed inside a dark refrigerated storeroom. we talked to one of those who was crammed inside. >> caller: there was about 20 people in the back huddled down. and everyone was kind of deciding what to do. all of a sudden the blasz in the front of the building just got

sucked out. completely blew out. so my buddy who was with me had the idea that we should all run as fast as we can and get in that cooler. >> these people inside thankful to be alive. >> basically the only thing that was left standing was the cooler that we were in. >> in a matter of moments the tornado was gone. in a flash, lives changed. >> there were semis on the side. sempl on the ramp. several people up on the banks hurt, bleeding. they were walking wounded. >> one of the hardest hit places, the hospital. >> every window looks to be blown out. there's debris hanging out of the windows. there's just cars stacked all over the parking lot. >> the power of the storm sent x-raies flying. they were found as far as 70 miles away. the tornado was at least half a mile wide.

and hit residential areas and businesses alike. including the city's home depot and walmart. >> i don't think you can single out that any one area, the entire path of the tornado it took through town has basically devastated the central portion of joplin. >> not even rescuers themselves were spared. also hit the fire chief's home. >> it's been destroyed. >> joplin, missouri, literally cut in two. it may not be over yet. more storms are on the way. nearly every time a tornado slams into the town, we get videos of pictures and storm clouds. but what do that mean? how does a storm like this form? chad myers is here to talk to us about the anatomy of the tornado. why do we get more in america than elsewhere? >> we have three things happening in america that other places across the world don't have. we have a mountain range to our west. we have the rocky mountains. when air comes out of the rockies it is pushed from 14,000

feet, colorado back down the slope. when it comes down it dries up and warms up. it can be called a dry line. dry air don't ask me why, it's because of the way the molecules work, dry air is heavier than moist air. it's exactly opposite of what your brain things. moist air has water nit it must heavier. no, moist area is buoyant. when the dry air comes of the rockies, there's buoyant air here, it pushes it up. there's canada and the northern plains. that's where the cold air comes down. that cold air is heavier so the air goes up. now let's watch, dave, hit it. now let's watch what happens when warm air and cold air collide. the warm air starts to go up, like a hot air balloon. >> this is how they form? >> this is how they form. the heat of the day, there's a lot of humidity and the storls want to go up. the air wants to go up. think of this as bubbling. the air bubbles up.

you get clouds that become taller and taller. they're turning into cumulus nimbus. because the whole world is spinning. if you get this storm all by itself part of the back of the storm can turn into a low pressure system itself a small cyclone. and here's the picture of the cyclone on joplin, missouri, yesterday. it actually looks like a big hook echo. we talk about this hook. it is hailing here. it is storming back here. but right through here not much is going on. if you want to be a storm chaser you want to be here. you don't want to be here in the hail core and you don't want to be here for very long. >> you don't want to be there at all. >> what stopped people from taking great pictures of this is because this was called a rain wrapped tornado. by the time it got to joplin, it was wrapped up in rain. the tornado was many the middle of the rain. all you saw was a bunch of rain moving around. not realizing there was a 200 miles per hour tornado probably something like an ef-4 tornado

at 200 miles per hour inside that spinning. >> wow. all right. thank you, chad. that was very interesting. i feel like we went inside the tornado. wow. too young to vote. too young to drive and too young for free speech? that's the argument in court today. do elementary school kids enjoy first amendment freedoms? our stream team will weigh in on that one next. that's a lot of red tape! step on it! [ tires screech ] ♪ i can't escape the red tape! now you can with rapid rewards! come on! [ tires screech ] [ male announcer ] join rapid rewards and enjoy unlimited reward seats, no blackout dates, and no red tape. ♪

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it's a basic right of all americans or is it? i'm talking about the first amendment, freedom of speech. a rare court hearing today calls that right into question for one group, children. specifically elementary school kids. today's hearing before all 17 judges on the fifth circuit court of appeals has to do with a series of moves by the plano, texas, school district. they stopped one group of students from handing out candy cane pens with a religious message attached to it at a school party, which is why this is called the candy cane case. a couple other incidents cited prohibit students from writing merry christmas on cards for troops overseas. even one girl's pencils were

confiscated because they mentioned god. we wanted to ask your team, are elementary school students too young to have first amendment rights. and here is the first amendment before we get started. congress shall make no law establishing an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof or abridging the free exercise of speech. seems like a simple question, can kids too young to vote, drive or drink have freedom of speech? >> well, unfortunately many rights that children -- that adults enjoy, children don't enjoy in schools. and there are a number of ways in which their civil liberties are limited and restrained and often violated. there are many searches that occur in schools that are unlawful or would be regarded as unlawful outside of schools. i think even in this case their speech is often limited. so i would say that

unfortunately the rights of children not the same as the rights of adults, the courts have consistently ruled that. >> steve, we gave a few examples here of things that the children were no longer able toe do. as a principal would you say that all of these cases are the same or sound the same? >> no. no they're not all the same. this isn't as much about freedom of speech. freedom of speech is not absolute. i as a principal have the responsibility to make sure it's safe for all children to express themselves. expression is one thing. when you go so far as to infringe upon others rights meaning you try to sell your idea of a religion or sell your idea against a religion. we can't look it it from the side to have religion, we have to look at it from the people who don't want that. i want to make sure my school is safe for all children regardless of the side of religion they fall. >> william, you're our legal expert here. how rare is it to have all 17 judges hearing a case? certainly a case like this one?

>> well, these reviews are very unusual. ordinarily in courts of appeal they hear them in panels of three. the fact that this is being heard by all judges is an indication that it's an issue of considerable importance and occurs very often. they would like it settled in that large area for which this is the principal court of appeals if the united states. >> pe dro, part of the argument is kids may be too young, the kids may be too young to truly understand the messages that they're giving in these cases where they're handing out pencils or christmas cards. what do you think? >> clearly they are too young to understand the full implications of the law and the ways in which their rights may be regarded as a violation. this is an example where very often the reasonable standards are not applied. clearly children giving out candy canes or sending letters to troops would not be regarded

as a violation of free speech or even a violation of the separation of church and state. so hopefully the courts will view this differently than some of the more i think extreme examples that come up. >> steve, quickly, don't you think there's a message here or a lesson for the kids and what would that be? >> the message is that everything ain't supposed to be done everywhere. meaning when you're in a school there's certain rules you have to follow. at our school you're supposed to respect the rights of ors and they will respect your rites. what that specifically means in this case, if the child wants to express his or her religious interest, then they have to do it in such a way that doesn't infringe upon other people's rights. i'm a principal, i'm not a legal person. i want to make sure that school feels good for everybody. >> interesting discussion as this case gets underway. thank you so much for coming in talking about it. another hat in the ring for the republicans. who is in and who is out?

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web browsing on the new blackberry playbook? tr ♪lash! ah ahh... that's right, it runs flash. so unlike some tablets we could mention, you get the best of the internet, not just part of it. ♪ flash! ah ahh... ♪ tim pawlenty has joined the ranked of republicaning running for president. he made the official announcement a couple hours ago. cnn's political editor mark preston joins us from washington. mark, not really any big surprise here. >> no big surprise. tim pawlenty had already formed an exploratory committee.

he had kited that he was ready to run for president. he did make that announcement today officially as you said. he had a new campaign theme. it's called a time for truth. what it appears like tim pawlenty is going to run on the whole idea that he's going to tackle the tough issues facing this country. in fact, he gave his announcement speech in iowa. he was critical of ethanol subsidies which is very important to farmers out there. he's going to florida later this week where he's going to talk about reforming social security. he'll be in new york city where he's going to talk about wall street reform. tim pawlenty is in it for the republican presidential nomination. >> what do you make of some of the folks who used the b word. they say he's a little bit boring. >> they do say he's boring. that might be his ace many the hole so to speak. tim pawlenty says he'll tackle the tough issues. he's not about a lot of flash. he says he can get things done. we'll see what happens especially with mitch daniels,