his soul does live on in the music and above all the lies have touch and forever changed. that's all for us tonight. from cnn world headquarters in atlanta, this is "early start weekend." >> this was a storm that obviously came upon us very quickly without a great deal of notice. >> the storm that has left millions without power has now claimed 12 lives. temperatures are still in the triple digits. what could the blackout mean for your safety? an abortion-free state. a new law in mississippi takes effect today. could it force the state's only remaining abortion clinic to close. the highest court has made

its decision. one governor says he won't comply. i'll talk with florida governor rick scott about why his state is ignoring the health care ruling. and super guppy has landed. carla, the hologram, is ready to help you. and chicago has a new taxi law for your stomach coming up in "cross country." it is sunday, july 1. good morning, everyone. so glad you're with us. i'm randi kaye. we start this morning with a state of emergency. strong storms are being blamed for at least 12 deaths across the east and into the midwest. people killed by downed trees and loose power lines. three states have declared emergencies -- virginia, west virginia, and ohio. at last count, around three million people were without power. and in indiana, lightning may be to blame for this scene in noblesville. two you do pinellas countys were badly damage -- two duplexes

were badly damaged. no one was injured. storms, fire, and extreme heat. karen mcginnis is in the severe weather center. good morning to you. are we going to see more record high temperatures? >> we'll see minimal relief. looks like the next one to two days is when we'll see some triple digits readings. want to take you toward colorado springs. we're looking at the waldo canyon fire. the temperatures are still expected to remain in the low to mid 90s. however, for today, there is a red flag warning that is in effect because we could see wind gusts up to about 30 miles per hour. that could hamper what happens with firefighters there. they kind of got a little better grip on the fire yesterday. it's about 45% contained. high park fire, 100% contained. you may remember just about seven, eight days ago, this was really the one that we were looking at. now we have started looking at the waldo fire. looks like firefighters are kind

of managing that situation right now. down here across extreme southeastern colorado, the red flag warning meaning we're going to see low humidity, high temperatures, gusty winds. that could fuel the fires once again. yesterday, record high temperatures. up and down the eastern seaboard, across the southeast, into the central u.s. with columbia, south carolina, reaching 109 degrees. a lot of these have tied or exceeded records for the date. nashville yesterday, 109. and we did see 107 degrees for the afternoon on saturday. friday was 109 degrees. all right. look at those heat indices and record high temperatures expected all the way from st. louis to atlanta, into the carolinas. so those people who were suffering as far as the storms were concerned, as we saw on friday -- as a matter of fact, i'll go ahead and show you that right now. this is referred to as a

duratio. that means a strong line of storms that moves very, very quickly. it moved from indiana and ohio and raced toward the eastern seaboard. there you can see these waves that moved in advance toward the virginia and into kentucky regions where we saw widespread damage. let's go ahead and show you some of the video. this coming out of arlington, virginia. between virginia and maryland, they had six fatalities. some of the winds were estimated up to about 80 miles per hour. downed trees, downed power lines, and as i said yesterday, still millions of people without power. they are really going to be suffering over the next several days as the heat is not going to be abated any time soon. it will get knocked down, but nothing significant. >> karen maginnis, thank you very much. now to the fires in colorado. people forced from their homes by the wildfire near colorado springs will get their first real look at the damage today. as he has been for the past week, rob marciano is in colorado springs again this morning. rob, first of all, where do we

stand on the fire right now? sounds like they made progress overnight. >> reporter: yeah. a lot of progress just the past couple of days. we're up to 45% containment. 17,000 acres burned. it hasn't expanded, the boundary of that. and from what i'm told inside the fire lines, really more of a smoldering. there are some spot fires, and even intentional controlled burns to burn off fuel. the -- talking to firefighters, there is an air of confidence about them. the assault will continue today. some people will be allowed back. some evacuation orders lifted. still, a good 10,000 and change of people will remain out of their neighborhoods for the time being. some cool video i want to show you striking, actually. the time lapse, the past five days that somebody shot looking at the fire from -- just east of the front range. you see the life cycle of this thing, the different areas that it burned. and the different ways that the smoke and flames made their way

in different directions. and yesterday, you know, the focus now is obviously toward the victims. and how they start to recover. and yesterday we caught up with the family that not only had to evacuate, but now they're volunteering at their church that's giving away hundreds of thousands of dollars of supplies. and the mother and wife of that family had this to say about that video. >> saw the time lapse video last night of what's been going on since saturday. and i've just been like a mess because those are people's lives, and we're watching it. and so, yeah, my heart goes out to them. >> reporter: as you mentioned, some folks will be allowed to go see their homes on a bus tour today and tomorrow. they won't be allowed to get out because it's still an active fire zone. there are some evacuations that have not been lifted.

interestingly, there's actually been a couple neighborhoods where bears have invaded the area. obviously they're confused, their habitat being burned. their food supply, as well. so one more obstacle that these people have to overcome. >> wow. it sounds never-ending. rob marciano. thank you very much. and now here's a rundown of some of the other stories this morning. it is the last abortion clinic in mississippi, and it's under attack, but not by protesters. the state could force it to close its doors tomorrow. health care is the law of the land. so what's next for states like florida wanting out of obamacare? we'll talk with governor rick scott. plus, how many of us can swim 103 miles? a 49-year-old grandmother attempts to swim from cuba to the florida keys, but can she pull it off? and speaking of swimming, some welcome news for 14-time olympic gold medalist michael phelps.

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it's you, fully charged. get two times the points on dining in restaurants with chase sapphire preferred. in mississippi, women seeking an abortion may have to travel to another part of the country. a new law that takes effect today may force the state's only abortion clinic to close its doors. million is are asking is it really about protecting women's health, or is it just plain politics? george howell has the story from jackson, mississippi. >> reporter: the owner of this women's clinic closed the doors after being open this weekend, and what happens next really is anybody's guess because of a new state law here in mississippi that could effectively force

this clinic to shut down. the signs are hard to miss outside the only clinic offering apportions in the state of mississippi. and now the director of the jackson women's health organization is gearing up for a legal fight to keep the doors open. will this clinic be forced to shut down? >> i want to say over my dead body, but i'm afraid -- i'm afraid. hopefully not. we're going to do whatever it takes to keep servicing the women of mississippi. >> reporter: despite the letter she got in the mail -- >> we are licensed until june 30 of 2013. >> narrator: diane says the paper could be worthless if she fails to comply with a new state law effective jewel 1. doctors who perform abortions in mississippi must be board certified ob-gyns and have privileges with local hospitals to admit patients if necessary. >> we have all the applications in. we have called these hospitals almost daily, haranguing them.

again, it's a process. it takes a while for an answer. >> the clinic has had over 70 days to be kplientd wiclient wi legislation. they have not complied. >> reporter: some insist it's not to ban abortion. he signed the law brought by republican governor phil bryant. >> i think it's historic. today you see the first step in a movement i believe too do what we campaigned -- to do what we campaigned on, to end abortion in mississippi. >> we intend to lead. but this is not an example we're tree trying to show other states look at what we've done. >> reporter: if it eliminates the one abortion clinic in the state -- >> i'm pro-life. i believe that life begins at conception. i think a lot of people do, as well. >> reporter: in a socially and religiously conservative state, some say political pressure may be a reason hospitals haven't signed on to help the clinic. >> a lot of facilities like

hospitals and so forth no doubt don't -- don't want to from this standpoint look up to be labeled as the one facility that is hospitable to providing abortions. >> reporter: come monday, if this clinic does not have what it needs to be compliant with this law, what happens? >> if the clinic cannot get in compliance with this legislation, sure, i think, again, if we reduce the number of abortions, it is a positive result for mississippi. >> this is not about safety. this is about polits. and politics do not need to be in our uterus. >> reporter: people at the clinic say they filed a lawsuit and a temporary restraining order against the law to try to get more time to become compliant. state officials say that there is also an appeals process. but keep in mind, every day this clinic is open after july 1 and, again, after monday, the day that the clinic is supposed to open, employees here, the nurses, physicians, and management could face civil and

even criminal penalties. george howell, cnn, jackson, mississippi. and a reminder here. coming up in our 8:00 hour, we're going to explore this issue even further. what impact will this have on women? will other states adopt similar laws? we'll talk about that and much more with dr. leroy carhart, an abortion doctor. we'll get his take on all of this. and we also want to know what you think about this -- is mississippi's new abortion clinic law too harsh? is it about health, or is it really about politics? i'd love to know what you think on this topic. you can tweet me, @randi kayecnn. send your comment my way. a bomb blast during a funeral in syria. could a solution be in the works as leaders work to come up with a peace plan? this is new york state. we built the first railway, the first trade route to the west, the greatest empires.

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voter in mexico are going to the polls to pick a president. wh whomever wins will have a tough road head. four candidates are running for office. because of mexican law, we aren't allowed to talk about them or even show them. we thought you should know. in israel, former prime minister yitzhak sham irhas died. he succeeded begin in 1983 and served in several capacity in the government over the next

decade. shamir was 96. a horrific attack in syria caught on tape. anti-government activists say a car bomb killed at least 85 people and injured 300. the blast came in the middle of a funeral procession. meanwhile, leaders meeting on the syrian situation have come up with a new peace plan, sort of. we have more live from abu dhabi this morning. good morning what plan did the leaders come up with in the geneva meetings? >> good morning, randi. the agreement calls first and foremost for the recommit by all parties in syria -- recommit by all parties in syria to kofi aunanimous's six-point peace plan and calls for parties involved in the crisis in syria to implement fully the cease-fire that kofi annan has been wanting to implement for some time now. throughout the day yesterday, annan stressed how dire the situation was in syria now. here's more of what he had to say. >> and the messages are clear.

everyone here is gravely alarmed of the situation in syria. we strongly condemn the continued escalating killing, destruction, and human rights abuses. today the international community has taken its corporation to a stronger level by being clearer and more specific. >> and mr. aunanimous went on to stress -- anan went on to stress that what was important about the meeting was that all parties involved agreed that the key point in this agreement is that syria must create a transitional government as soon as possible. randi? >> the question is, how will that work? do we know how a transitional government would be implemented? >> we don't. there's a lot of point in this agreement. and it is somewhat confusing. while annan had said specifically that this is something that syrians must create and that members of the current syrian regime could

actually be part of a transitional government there, you also heard from u.s. secretary of state hillary clinton yesterday that said that everybody there was aware that syrian president assad had no part in the future of syria, and that he could not be part of any future government. so still a lot of details to be worked out. all of this happening at a time when the violence is escalating there. we've heard new figures from opposition figures in syria saying that it's over 14,200 people killed in syria since the start of the crisis. and over half of those killed have been killed just in the last four months. randi? >> thank you very much. the supreme court has spoken, but that doesn't mean states have to listen. florida governor rick scott says obamacare still doesn't play in his state. he'll join me live. i'll ask what he tells the uninsured in his state. . and you may want to think twice about getting in a chicago taxicab. if you're not feeling so good, it could cost you $50. mother raised by herself,

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welcome back. let's check some stories cross country. first seattle, this massive cargo plane called the super gulpy is carrying a full-size replica of the space shuttle. it is the training shuttle that every nasa astronaut trained in before going into space. nasa gave it to the seattle museum of flight. the museum wanted one of the four retired space shuttles but placed fifth in the competition to get one. and if you're flying out of boston's airport, you may see carla. she's a video projected recording that gives passengers tips on security. the one you're seeing here was

unveiled at dulles airport in washington last month. they'll start appearing in new york airports. airport officials say they don't replace real staff, but they help remind passengers about the rules better than signs do. and starting today in chicago, taxi drivers can charge passengers a $50 cleanup fee if they vomit in their cab. drivers have fought for the law since 2009. apparently it happens more often than you think. i guess so. especially with drunk passengers. folks are boozing it up in chicago. you might not remember the name hugh mccutcheon, but you might remember his story. four years ago the u.s. volleyball coach led the men's team to olympic gold. shortly after the opening ceremony, a man attacked his family, killing his father-in-law while touring beijing. hugh mccutcheon didn't allow the tragedy to end his olympic ambitions. he hopes to make history in london. four years ago against a backdrop of tragedy and grief, hugh mccutcheon led the men's

volleyball team to gold. now he has a chance to become the volleyball coach in olympic history to win gold with both a men's and women's team. and to be the first to lead the u.s. women to gold. >> one, two, three -- >> usa. >> obviously it would be a great achievement for a group of athletes that has gone through a lot over the four years but has dedicated their lives to the pursuit of being the best that they can be. >> he doesn't like to talk about the knife attack that killed his wife's father and severely injured her mother at the start of the olympic in 2008. he will correct those who believe his u.s. men's team used the tragedy as a rallying cry. >> i think it does that group a disservice to somehow think that anything that happened in beijing was a positive factor relative to our result. you know, the group did what we trained to do. and so to me it's more of a thing where i think we won in

spite of not because of. >> riley salmon, a member of this year's team, also played on the team in '08. he sees the tragedy in a different light. >> not that we weren't playing for anything to begin with, but it kind of gave us a really central focal point. and kind of put all of our individual goals aside. we put our team in front of everything. >> whatever the driving force behind the men's victory in beijing, mccutcheon had reached the pinnacle. so it was time for a new challenge. less than four months later, he was named head coach for the u.s. women. >> i'm a big believer in the journey. and i just thought this would be a really different journey to go on. and it has been. it's been very hard. and it should be, you know. we're trying to be the best at what we do. >> lindsay burg was also a teammates of mccutcheon's wife at the '04 games in athens. she's confident that mccutcheon

is the right leader at the right time. >> for me, hugh is -- he's calm, collected. during the games you'll see some emotion come out of him. normally he's -- he's our rock. >> make no mistake, while it would make history if the u.s. women's team wins gold in london, it shouldn't be a surprise. this team has been peaking under mccutcheon and is ranked number one in the world. so is there pressure? >> i don't see it as a pressure thing. i think it validates all the hard work we've put into this. you don't try to be an olympic champion without feeling like you're worthy of being an olympic champion. you know, we have a chance. we're not ranked 38th in the world in trying to be gold medallists. >> and we wish him luck. the opening ceremony for london's summer games is a few weeks away on july 27. a fast moving wildfire forced them to leave their moments. today they're being -- their homes. today they're being allowed to

return. what colorado homeowners will find remains to be seen. the postal service is critical to our economy,

delivering mail, medicine and packages. yet the house is considering a bill to close thousands of offices, slash service and layoff over 100,000 workers. the postal service is recording financial losses, but not for reasons you might think. the problem ? a burden no other agency or company bears. a 2006 law that drains $5 billion a year from post office revenue while the postal service is forced to overpay billions more into federal accounts. house bill 2309 is not the answer.

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welcome back, and thanks for starting your morning with us. i'm randi kaye. it is half past the hour. firefighters continue their battle against that monstrous colorado wildfire. and bus tours begin for some of the 36,000 displaced residents who want to see their homes and neighborhoods. nearly 350 homes have burned, and two people have died in the so-called waldo canyon fire. so far it's consumed nearly 27 square miles and is now 45% contained. millions of people are still without power this morning after deadly storms over the last two days killed a dozen people. extreme heat continues to complicate the situation for cleanup and recovery. triple-digit temperatures are in the forecast for many areas today. as a result of those storms, three states have declared emergencies -- virginia, west virginia, and ohio. and maryland will likely do the same. the state's governor says the

damage is on par with hurricane irene. the storm blamed for at least 20 deaths last year. hundreds of downed power lines, trees, and damaged homes have been left in the wake of this weekend's storms. simply disappointing. that's how florida governor rick scott described the supreme court's ruling on health care. the court upheld president obama's affordable care act. florida was one of the states challenging that law. so what's next for states like florida that wanted out? who better to answer that than florida governor rick scott himself. good morning, governor. nice to see you. >> good morning, randi. you know what is so disappointing is the issue we have in health care, it's a cost issue. it's not an insurance issue. this doesn't do anything to drive down the cost of health care. so we've got to rely on free markets to drive down the costs. this isn't going do it. so we're not going to implement it. we're not going to -- >> let me ask but that. the states still have options. one of them is on health insurance exchanges, and the other is the medicaid expansion. so you're saying that you're not

going to implement either one. i'm curious as to why. >> no. let's first off talk about the exchange. the exchanges are not going to drive down the cost of health care. the issue is the cost health care. it's going to do nothing to drive down the cost. with regard to medicaid expansion, it doesn't work. it's about a $1.9 billion increase for our state, our taxpayer will be paying for that -- our taxpayers will be paying for that. it's not doing anything to improve the cost of health care. we need jobs in our state. we don't need another government program. every government health care program runs out of money. they always overpromise. they always run out of money. they don't pay providers properly. there's no care for those individuals. we're not going to do that in florida. >> but even without the exchanges and the medicaid expansion, as far as i understand it, about close to a million people would be added to your medicaid roles in florida. there are hundreds of thousands of floridians who would have to get insurance. your state ranks second in the percentage of people without health insurance. now they need, and aren't going to get the help from you.

what do you say to them, too bad, it's bad policy? or -- >> here's what we're doing to help people in our state. step one, we've had the biggest drop in unemployment of any state but one in the last 18 months. it's -- what wheer doing is making sure people get back to work so they can afford health insurance. we're working with the free market to ensure the cost of health care in our state stays as low as possible so people can afford health care and buy their own insurance. our focus is on getting people back to work. don't put more people on a government program that will always run out of money and ration care. it's bad for -- it's horrible for the patient. it doesn't work. >> you used to work, though, in the health care industry. and hospitals are saying that they need the states to participate. states like yours to participate in medicaid expansion. i mean, they were counting on those additional federal dollars. so they could be in financial trouble without that. so what do you say to that? >> randi, if you look at -- around the world and look at -- look at america, look at every government health care program.

they say they're going to cover everything. then they run out of money. then they don't pay providers well enough. then people don't show up. it doesn't work. i'm not going to put our citizens at risk of a program that doesn't work. we're not going to implement this medicaid expansion. these exchanges also don't work. if the exchange worked, the private sector would be doing it. they don't work. think about what this is going to do -- the program has guaranteed issue which means that if you don't have to buy any of the insurance until you get sick, what do you think will happen to insurance rates? they're going to skyrocket. >> do you believe that you can actually bring insurance rates down in your state without this? >> you surely can't do it by implementing it. if you implement it, rates are going to go up. it doesn't work. we've already seen rates go up because of this. we -- we've got to rely -- look, here's what works -- what works is give individuals the choice, let them buy the insurance they want to buy. don't tell them what insurance

they need to buy. two, make sure people know what health care costs are. have providers disclose prices. give people the same tax breaks, individuals, as employers get. buy your own policy so when you change jobs you don't lose your insurance. finally, reward people for doing what they -- the things that would drive down costs. don't smoke. eat right. exercise. you know, have more competition. competition will drive down the costs. if we do these things, the cost of health care will come down. that's our problem. the cost of health care. >> i want to switch topics because i want to ask you about a bit of a victory that you've been experiencing this week. a federal judge ruling against the justice department's effort to stop you from removing some voters from rolls, voters that you say are on the rolls illegally in your state of florida. what does this decision mean for florida? >> well, it was a nice win. i mean, look, i don't know anybody that believes that non-u.s. citizens should be voting in our elections.

so the department of the justice sued us. a federal judge says, look, we are -- our citizens will have irreparable harm if non-u.s. citizens vote in our races. i can't imagine why the federal government doesn't want to help us. they have the data base, department of homeland security has a data base that would help, and they haven't given it to us for whatever reason. >> you've been working for some time to get those names, correct? >> absolutely. working for almost a year. i have no idea why the federal government doesn't want to be supportive. we want to have fair, honest elections in our state. but only u.s. citizens should be voting in our elections. not non-u.s. citizens. no one think that way. this is not a partisan issue. this is not a republican or democrat or independent issue. no one believes that non-u.s. citizens should be voting in our races. >> how many people are you talking about? how many have been found to be voting illegal? >> here's what we know so far -- because we couldn't get the homeland security data base, we used our own motor vehicle data

base and looked at 2,600 names. we know over 100 people have registered to vote. they're non-u.s. citizens. we know over 50 have voted in our elections. we know people are registering to vote that are non-u.s. citizens, and we know they're voting. that's not right. it's a crime. and tim pacts our races -- and it impacts our races. >> great to have you on the program. thank you very much. >> have a great day. bye-bye. >> you, too. the livelihood of more than a billion people depends on this -- we'll tell you what one hero is doing to help save the planet. when you have diabetes...

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this week's cnn hero has watched the beauty of the sea disappear. he's working to bring life back to an under water world in crisis. meet ken needemeyer. >> i grew up diving in the florida keys, and it was just the most magical place. the coral reefs were so pretty, and i decided that's what i wanted to do for a living is dive on coral reefs. in an area where there's live coral, there's always more fish. reefs provide protection for coastal areas and recreational opportunities for millions of people. i was diving for 40 years. over time, i saw the coral reefs start to die. coral reefs worldwide are in decline. if coral reefs died completely, coastal communities would be bankrupt, tourism would be virtually gone. a billion people in the world will be impacted. i started thinking, you know, how can we fix this problem. my name is ken nedimyer. and i grow, protect, and restore coral reefs.

we've developed a system that's simple and something we can train others to do. we start with a piece of coral this big, and we hang it on a tree. after about a year or two, it becomes this big. and then we cut the branch off, and we do it again. >> ken's coral nursery is one of the largest in the wider caribbean. ten times larger than others in existence. >> in 2003 we originally planted six corals here. now there's over 3,000 growing in this area alone. >> before i felt helpless watching it die. now i think there's hope. it's not too late. everybody can help. and i see all those corals and all those fish. so it's like this whole reef is coming back to life. and making a difference is exciting. for a terminally ill vietnam war veteran every day could be his last. the one day he wanted to live to see was his son's graduation from marine boot camp. >> i've done this trip a million

times in my mind. >> you'll be touched by this family's heartfelt story.

a navy vet who survived a year in vietnam had one wish -- to see his son become a marine. but after being diagnosed with a terminal illness, he thought he might not see it happen. here's cnn's sarah hoy. >> reporter: it was thanksgiving for the burnes family on a sweltering friday morning. charles burnes had one wish -- see his son ryan graduate from marine corps boot camp. >> i've done this trip a million times in my mind. >> reporter: on friday, his wish

came true. the 65-year-old navy veteran is dying, but not even a series of strokes, diabetes, and worsening heart condition would stop him from making the trek from massachusetts to south carolina to see his boy. >> ryan. he's an amazing kid. there isn't anything he's done or will do that he doesn't excel in. >> reporter: with his wife lisa at his side, the proud parents endure the south carolina heat wave to watch ryan from the stands. ♪ >> reporter: charles even found the strength to stand during the national anthem. >> just every child, whether boy or girl, when they say they want to be a marine or want to be something other than just a civilian, that means a lot to me. >> reporter: military service is a burns tradition. charles joined the navy following high school in 1965. he served a one-year tour of

duty in vietnam. ryan's grandfather served in the army during world war ii. and now it's mission accomplished for ryan. now an official u.s. marine, and his terminally ill father. >> me and my dad had a bet when i came here from paris island. it was i'll finish boot camp as long as you make it to my graduation. so we both had mission accomplished. and we're here today. so i couldn't ask for anything more. i saw you standing. >> yeah. >> reporter: ryan says he doesn't know what keeps his father going. as for charles, it's one day at a time. >> have a little pride in yourself, and stick to it. whatever it is, don't let up. even if you fail, tomorrow you can stand again. >> congratulations, dad. we did it. >> yes. >> together. >> reporter: sarah hoy, cnn, paris island, south carolina.

they're the often forgotten victims of the destructive fires sweeping across colorado. i'm talking about our furry friends, dogs, cats, and other adorable little pet. the amazing rescue effort. ♪ why not make lunch more than just lunch?

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welcome back. we've been talking a lot this morning about the colorado wildfires. a lot of you have been asking what's happening to the animals driven from their homes by those fires. i talked with with jan mchugh smith of the local humane society who told me shelters are being set up wherever they are needed. >> our shelter is on thewide, but we're down -- the west side,

but we're down south. we opened a temporary shelter on the east side so we could take in more animals when tuesday's firestorm happened. >> tell me about the operation. i think what you've done was such a smart move. you opened shelters right when the fires began. >> that's right. exactly a week ago on saturday. we saw the smoke, our staff jumped into action, and we put a temporary shelter at our current facility along with our homeless animals and the stray animals. that filled up in one day. immediately we got on the phone and were able to find donated space at an expo center. we went into action. there we were able to set up a shelter for emergencies, and we were taking in 165 animals. >> and how many animals -- that's how many you've taken in already, or you're still taking in more? >> well, we've taken in over 300 animals total. about 145 at our facility on the west side, and then another 165 on the east side.

so we've had over 300 animals in our care. and people have been so grateful that we've been able to help them during this difficult time. >> what kind of animals are you getting? is it just the dogs and cats? >> it's a wide variety of animals. the majority are dogs and cats. but we've also taken in exotics. big birds, small bird. we even got in chickens last night. >> wow. do you have enough volunteers? i mean, how is it going in terms of staffing and taking care of these animals? >> well, we've been on 24/7 since the fire started. luckily we have very dedicated volunteers who have been assisting our staff night and day to take care of these animals, to assist the families that are in dire need of knowing how their animals are. yesterday, our animal law enforcement officers went up into these mandatory evacuation areas, and they were able to pull out 76 animals that were left behind. >> that's what i wanted to ask you. i mean, are most families dropping them off, or are they leaving in such a rush that they're abandoning their animals

not for lack of love, but because they don't know what else to do? >> it was such a rush, many people may not have had a chance to get into their homes when the fire started. a lot of people brought them to us. we have been concentrating the last two days on having officers go into mandatory evacuated areas and pulling these animals out of their homes. yesterday morning, his a couple come in. they were crying, they were just distraught over their three cats that they had to leave behind. luckily we were able to get into their home and save those animals. >> and how are the animals doing in general? >> in general everybody's doing great. our staff and volunteers have been doing really well taking care of them. we've had local veterinarians coming in and doing health checks every single day. it's very stressful in the emergency shelter because of the noise level. but we are working very hard to keep everybody comfortable. and hopefully reunite everyone with their pets as soon as possible. >> and is that the plan? i mean, you do expect that these people weren't dropping them off

for good, right? you expect that they will be reclaimed? >> yes. the plan is to have everybody be reunite reunited with their animals at some point. but obviously with 347 homes being lost and many more being badly damaged, there are some animal that will be remaining probably in foster homes for the long term while those families try to get situated and back on their feet. >> yeah. we're just -- as you know, we're looking at the pictures of these dogs and cats and the animals that you're sheltering. i'm curious, though, how long can this go on. the u.s. forest service says it could be mid july before this fire is under control. can you afford to do this? >> well, we're seeking donations to help with the cost of caring for these animals. our community has jumped in and been supportive, helping with crates, blankets, food from our food donations, from -- hill's science diet has been tremendous. we have the basic necessities.

at this point financial donations would help us with the long-term extended care we think we're going to have to provide for some of these animals. >> i don't know how you could look at the pictures and not want to reach out to your group. jan, appreciate what you're doing to help save these animals. >> thank you very much. speaking of animals, we're not the only ones trying to stay cool. check out our smart friend here. and coming up, "sanjay gupta m.d." today we break down what the supreme court's decision means for your health. a lot of people have questions. also, what a woman struck with lupus couldn't find support, she started looking to other patients like herself. and $5 doctor visits? they still exist, but where? we'll tell you about all of this coming up on "sgmd." thanks for babysitting the kids, brittany.

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road on his first bus tour of the general election campaign. he'll be visiting western pennsylvania and northern ohio. and the president may have had a big win last week with health care, but friday's job report could be crucial to his re-election. make sure to watch us on cnn to get those numbers. and saturday is the extradition deadline for julian assange. the wikileaks founder has been hiding out at the ecuadoran embassy waiting to see if the south american country will grant him asylum. thanks for starting your morning with us. we've got much more ahead on cnn sunday morning which starts right now. this is a storm that obviously came upon us very quickly, without a great deal of notice. >> the storm that has left millions without power has now claimed 12 lives. temperatures are still in the triple digits. what could the blackout mean for your safety? >>