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tv   CNN Newsroom  CNN  August 26, 2012 1:00pm-2:00pm PDT

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your vote. on twitter, @christineromans. ali velshi returns next week. hit twitter handle i iis is @alivelshi. thanks for joining the conferring on "your money." have a great weekend, everybody. hello, everyone, i'm fredricka whitfield, welcome to the cnn newsroom. let's start in tampa where they are bracing for tropical storm isaac. people are sandbagging, trying to put up protection against the storm to come. republicans are gathering there for the national convention. events are happening a day later than planned because of this storm. isaac isn't giving a clear indication yet where it will make a direct hit in the united states but florida could dodge the bullet, instead, just
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brushing by isaac. but new orleans may now be in isaac's sights. we have correspondents spread across the region. you see along the florida coast in particular and all wait down to the caribbean for starters where isaac first started to touch land. isaac right now, however, is lashing the florida keys right now. that's where we find cnn's john zarrella. gosh, it looks calm right now even though the water is moving rapidly. describe what's happening. >> that's right. we're watching this storm. it's been moving so fast, i think around 20 miles an hour or more now. we're beginning to wonder if the center of the storm is already -- is a lot closer to us or over us now. you're right, a couple of hours ag the waves were crashing all along here, a lot of white caps on in protected inlegality here. the buoys were going and all those sailboats in this
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protected harbor area, also bobbing around and feeling it. the wind and the rain, much stronger a couple of hours ago. look down here, fredericka. that's sunset island over there. even then we saw tremendous amount of wave action, very close up to the island. here's another good indication. take a look at the palm trees down here. barely moving. and just a couple of hours ago as we watched all this, the palm trees outside that hotel complex there really moving fast. one of the thing, fredericka that i mentioned a couple of hours ago was, they really had a sense of concern for this, even though it was forecast to maybe be a hurricane when it got here. maybe just on the borderline, didn't quite make it to hurricane status. but people were taking this more seriously than i've seen them take hurricanes in a lot of years. that i think is because what i hear was this hurricane will ma psyche they had from seven years
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ago when wilma came through and poured the storm surgeon the middle and lower keys. hundreds and hundreds of cars were under water, lots of flood damage. we saw more precautions being taking here for this hurricane than i've seen in a lot of them. we hear about the key west folks and how lightly they take storms. they don't want to evacuate. i can tell you, they were far more serious than even i expected that they would be. schools are closed here today, but florida keys officials say the way things look right now, they do expect to be back up and running. they ordered -- they asked tourists to leave and those who didn't leave were told to just batten down, stay inside, ride this out. but they do expect to be up and running again by tuesday, certainly at the latest. it's looking really good. unless we get something on backside of this storm as it comes by us, right now you can see it is quite -- it's calmed
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significantly. freed ra fredericka? >> that's encouraging. people were recalling memories of wilma. it caused significant structural damage, too. we'll check with chad myers so see if you are indeed in the center of the storm which would explain why it's calm right now but potentially get hit by the back end of it. you tell us, chad, what is happening where john zarrella is to explain why it seems so calm in comparison to an hour and a half ago. >> he's on th sunset side of key west. if you're on the east side of the ilan or far east as big pine and you're on ocean side, you're seeing all this wind come at you this way. whereas john, right there, the winds are coming across the island. he's not really going to get another side of this because what was the worst part, all
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this convection has now passed key west. there's not really any convection on the south and southeast sides of the storm. although, john, you are not in the eye. you'd have to be at about ft. jefferson to get the eye. that's where it will be passing. this would be the dry tortugas. the convection is to the west of this area and not any more coming in to john or from the keys. that's not saying there's not an awful lot of water piling up on some of the islands. you get up here toward vacacut or vocachica northward, i wouldn't want to be out there, you see the bubble of water rushing through the islands. if you've never been to the keys, it's an amazing place, all connected by bridges and roadways and causeways. some of the causeways get in the way of water going the way it
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wantto. and so -- what is this? >> this is in key west there. you can see a lot of water has flooded that area. let's listen to the reporter where our affiliate wsvn out of miami in key west. >> all right, sorry, chad, we don't have audio there. we can see the picture and see they did get a lot of rain as you were just describing that, you know, some of the rain did make its way there in the key west area. maybe they are in luck. maybe we can hear it right now. let's take a listen. >> reporter: we can show you some video we shot from around 2:00 this afternoon. that is when we experienced the most severe weather. you are looking at the gulf of mexico. at times we saw waves at least 3 feet tall. visibility was reduced greatly. you could see about half a mile
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offshore. and here in the keys, a lot of people when a storm is coming who own boats, they will take their boats out into open water, drop anchor and leave a lot of slack. the theory being when the storm comes in and the water rises, the boats will just rise because they have all that slack and will weather the storm. some of the boats that were left out here definitely capsized and were turned over because we saw some of that today. even though this wasn't all that bad of a storm and people are i saing, you know what, we got lucky, there is still at least some damage, at least when it comes to the boat here in key west. lynn and mike? >> all right, kevin. >> you're listening to some of the coverage out of key west from wscn talking about the rain that has soaked duval street there in downtown key west. but, chad, just underscoring what you've already said, perhaps key west dodged a bullet so to speak in terms of real heavy elements from this storm
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as you showed us on that map. it just kind of brushed the key west area. it's the upper keys that may have suffered a little bit greater. >> the eye of the storm did miss key west. it may brush the northern eye especially just on the west, southwest side here, maybe down by the light, even the sombrero light getting a rough time of it. there's a large reef out here. that's why you don't find a lot of beach in the keys. the reef stops the waves from making sand. you're not going to find it. i bet that's completely inundated with salt water. i couldn't tell if that was duval. okay. live pictures, key largo. >> okay. >> boats, playing around. >> oh, boy. maybe that was from earlier. >> i hope so. >> yes. i'm being told yes from earlier. >> okay. that was earlier today. >> you don't want to be doing at. >> don't do the that. >> there's still more weather to come. the worst is gone for john.
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we'll try to get to that, too. talk about the keys and what they experienced and the water that was piling up on the ocean side, not bay side but ocean side. >> we'll check back with you. we know that based on your maps and what you've been reporting to us that perhaps a good part of this storm may brush by tampa, not make a direct hit there but republican party leaders there are trying to come up with their contingency plans. in fact, they've already made one change with the national convention taking place there. they made a decision today to delay the start of the convention in tampa until tuesday now. it was scheduled to begin tomorrow but that's exactly when isaac is forecast to pass by tampa. you're looking at live pictures right now. right now it's picturesque, looking great in tampa. but our political director mark preston is there. where, again, on the ground the palm trees are calm there. we know anything is going to change. likely there could be flooding.
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there could be up to a foot of rain that is dumped on tampa. so why did organizers decide that they had to make a decision and say let's go ahead and delay things right now? >> well, what they wanted to do, fredericka, we expect this storm when it passes by to bring in high winds and heavy rains that could in fact flood where i'm standing right now. with the storm tracking farther to the west, there's less of an issue about that. but more importantly to try to get delegates to the conntion center on monday in big buss across these bridges that link all the islands, it was not safe. these bridges were expected to be shut down. they made the decision to do so basically out of safety. so while the 50,000 people that are here in tampa, delegates, the international media, cnn, everybody here, there will be no evacuation. everybody will be safe. everything is going to be delayed by a day, no doubt about that, fredericka. >> that four-day convention becomes three now.
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the plan is, organizers still want to get in as many speakers as originally planned. does it mean that all of the speeches are being trimmed by a few minutes here and there? >> well, we're told by that in fact that these speeches will be trimmed down. you will see the likes of chris christie deliver the keynote speech. ann romney will also speak tuesday night. when we get into wednesday, things could be more precarious if the storm becomes a category 2 or turns and goes into new orleans, there has to be concern about holding a political convention at a time when a major hurricane is starting to hit landfall. we don't know what's going to happen. they're waiting to see what exactly they're doing to do. in the 6:00 hour, we should know more about what their plans are. all the speeches that we don't see on tv necessarily, some of those speeches will very likely get cut, others will be trimmed down. >> mark preston in tampa.
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thanks so much. florida right now dealing with tropical storm isaac but first, it was haiti having to deal with it and this is the aftermath. we're going to let you know how they are coping. let's see if we can go inside and save you some money on your plan. you ready? sounds great! can you tell them about straight talk? sure. with straight talk at walmart you get unlimited talk, text and data for only $45 a month. but do i get the same coverage? oh yeah. it's on america's best networks. sounds great to me. well we saved you a lot of money, and your girls like their new smart phones. i sent you a friend request. [ both ] we know. [ earl ] save money with straight talk wireless. unlimited talk, text and data for only $45 a month. only at walmart.
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right now people in haiti are assessing the damage from tropical storm isaac. the rain left behind flooding and muddy conditions at camps where hundreds of thousands of people live in tents. country is still recovering from a devastating earthquake that struck more than two years ago now. cnn's gary tuchman tells us how people are coping. >> reporter: it always seems to amaze me after we cover tropical storms or hurricanes, the sunshine that is left behind. but it doesn't mask the grief that is left behind. the united nations is telling us here in haiti, at least six people were killed from tropical storm isaac, including an 8-year-old girl here in the capital of port-au-prince when a wall collapsed in her house. we're also being told at least 30,000 people have been taken to temporary shelters. what's notable about that, mote of those 30,000 people were also in so-called temporary shelters from the earthquake of 2010.
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the temporary tent which is have basically become permanent tents. we spent the last two days before the tropical storm arrived and after the tropical storm arrived in one particular tent camp, thousands of families live there. almost nobody evacuated. when the storm came, at the heart of it, at 2:00 in the morning, some buss did pull in and some people did get on the buss to evacuate. no one was killed or hurt in that camp. however, scores of tents were destroyed and most are looking for homes. some of those people are among the 30,000 who have been taken to temporary shelters. there's a situation with cholera. at least 6,000 people have come down with cholera since 2010. it could have been worse, the tropical storm but there's still a lot of grief in this nation. this is gary tuchman, cnn, port-au-prince, haiti.
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we're keeping a close watch on tropical storm isaac. let's listen in to our affiliate out of miami, wplg and their reporting. >> there's a couple of small showers developing just to the southeast here. of ft. lauderdale. these will continue to pull off and they'll do so at 30 to 35 miles per hour. they're a good ways offshore. the leading edge will be pushing towards ft. lauderdale, basing it on a 35 mile per hour movement. it will take well over an hour here for the rest of the rain that's developing to the east of government cut to move towards broward county. >> you see how people are bracing along the east coast of south florida even though tropical storm isaac is making its way across the tip of florida and heading now into the gulf, threatening other gulf states now. we're going to keep a watch on that, meantime, tampa on the western side of florida is also bracing for tropical storm
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isaac. in fact, the republican national convention has now come up with a contingency plan. that convention will not start tomorrow as originally planned. instead, it's being delayed a day and will now kick off on tuesday because of tropical storm isaac and all that it may bring. isaac is expected to pass west of tampa but still bring heavy rains and tropical force winds to that city. rnc organizers say none of major speeches will be cut in the now three-day convention. and one of those speeches will be delivered by mitt romney's wife, ann. she has been on the campaign trail, courting the female vote. she's been doing that by talking about the economy. it's an issue that's expected to take center stage at the gop convention. this weekend i talked to the congresswoman, marsha blackburn, the co-chair of the rnc patform committee. she says the party is focused on women and their pocketbooks. >> number on job with women in this country is jobs in the
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economy. that's the number one issue with them. women want to get back to work. the obama economy, if you will, has been very unkind to women. we've had 800,000 women lose their jobs. household income has decreased, cost of health insurance has increased. so when we're talking to women, and as you look at polling of women, jobs and economy is issue number one. look at the platform, i'm a woman. i am a -- an elected female representative. i have been in the work force for a long time. you better believe i'm going to be writing and looking at a platform that is going to be focused on the issues that women want, conservative are, we're wives, mothers, businesswomen, teachers, we're physicians, we're chief financial officers of companies and what we want to do is make certain that we address the fiscal health of this nation.
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>> do others in the republican party worry that there is a populous, a certain representative of the electorate that is difficult to reach right now, whether it be women, whether it be latinos? and being able to clinch that electorate is important for romney to win. >> yes. absolutely it is. you're exactly right. and our focus is on reaching every single american. >> as it pertains to abortion and rain, our representative akins' comments, a widespread point of view within the republican party as it per tens to the definition of rape, as it pertains to women's reproductive rights. >> no. i have said that his comments were indefensible, you know, they're disgusting. no. that is not a widespread point of view. and i think it is incorrect to try to act as if it is. >> representative blackburn in the latest cnn polls, mitt romney has an edge on president
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obama. when it comes to the economy but the president leads romney by double digits among female voters. be sure to stay with cnn for complete coverage of the republican national convention. later on today we have -- a romney reveal airing at 8:00 p.m. eastern time, followed by a preview of the convention itself and our political team is in place for complete coverage all week long. tropical storm isaac taking it rather easy on the florida keys. but what's next as this huge storm zeros in on the u.s. gulf coast? >> we're getting a continual fogging problem on the lens. i will tell you, i am relieved to say trent say we're on the tail end of this thing. there's nothing worse than being
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rain and wind already hitting the florida keys, the worst of the storm has passed the key west area and seems to be heading toward the gulf now. isaac is getting stronger in fact as it heads into those warmer waters of the gulf. the storm is tracking a bill to the west. u.s. hurricane center has placed the gulf coast, including new orleans under a hurricane watch. and we'll be checking in with chad myers momentarily. first let's go to john zarrella who's there in key west. now it's starting to look like a vacation where you are. >> well, not quite, fredericka. i would prefer not to come down here even in a tropical storm. but, yes, it's certainly much different than it was. you can see how calm the water is behind us, the trees are barely blowing over there at the -- over at that hotel complex, the palm trees barely waving right now. we're on a protected side of the island. that's part of the reason why it is as calm as it is. you're right, storms move by us.
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take a look at how it was when i was out here just a couple of hours ago, in that video back around 2:30 this afternoon. it was quite, quite different as we were blowing around and the wind was howling and the boats were bobbing behind me as well as all of the channel markers and you could really sense the feeling that you were in sort of that leading edge of the core of the storm. and you know, for the folks down here, for the folks down here in key west, one of the really good things about this whole thing is they really expected that by the time it got here it might well be a hurricane. which would have been a totally different scenario than what we have seen here this afternoon. now, it's been quiet on duval street, the main hub here. real quiet down there. most every shop was closed. we found one shop open today. very few people out there on duval street. a few people still boarding up as late as this afternoon, finishing up in preparation for
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what they thought was going to be a fairly significant hit here in the keys. but right now, everything looking very, very good down here in the lower keys in key west. fredericka? >> glad to hear that. thanks so much. john zarrella there. let's check in with chad myers. let's see where this is going next and what its potential is. thank goodness for the folks in the keys that it didn't appear as though the damage has been too severe. >> i'm not going to go there. really, honestly, because he is on base side of an oceanside storm. i would want to get a reporter down on the south side of that island before i would make those conclusions. even up toward big pine key, there very well may be surge piling on to this islands, because we're on the opposite side of where the storm is hitting, where the surge would have been hitting didn't it the mean there's not surge there, doesn't mean down by the backyard, down on the south
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side, down by the avalon bed and breakfast that there's not water lashing there. that buoy that says 90 miles to cuba, that thing has water around it for sure. there will be more call squall come in one after another. if you've never stood in one of these things, 99% of you, i hope, have never, the rain does stop and when the rain stops, the rain stops. they're all linked. when the rain starts to fall, it translates the wind from aloft down to the surface. you get gusty winds, 67 miles an hour. all of a sudden the rain stops and the wind stops. that's where they are right now. fred? >> thanks so much, chad myers, appreciate that. let's go to baton rouge, louisiana. louisiana governor bobby jindal is about to take to the microphones because of the concern along the gulf coast states is that tropical storm isaac may become hurricane isaac. let's listen in.
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>> whatever they made need in the evolcano of an evacuation. we're encouraging our people to stay alert and follow what local officials are telling them. with every storm, we hope for the bev as we prepare for the wors that's why we're taking a number of steps to protect our people and property that i'll outline now. we have issued a state declaration of emergency for the storm. i'll tell you about the parishes that have done so as well. also, secondly, i am now calling on and we are in contact with local officials, calling on folks who live in low-lying areas in the 15 parishes that are in a hurricane watch area in louisiana to go ahead and stor voluntary evacuations today. those are folks in the 15 parishes identified by the national weather service. that's ore liens, st. bernard, plaquemines, aassumption, st. james, st. john, ascension, livingston, st. tammany and washington parishes. we're calling for those folks
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that live in low-lying areas, people that are outside of levee protection. south of the intracoastal waterway. we are strongly encouraging those folks to participate in a voluntary evac today. i think there's a good chance some of those areas could face a mandatory ecuation tomorrow. it makes sense to go ahead and start those preparations, those plans today to get ahead of traffic and get ahead of this storm. let me start with a briefing from the national weather service. they'll be giving additional information at 4:00 p.m. today, central time. we see tropical storm isaac is continuing to form and strengthen over the -- >> you're listeni to louisiana governor bobby jindal talk about the low-lying 15 parishes. he's urging them to start voluntary evacuations as tropical storm isaac may become hurricane isaac by the time it makes its way in their direction. if you want to continue to listen to this press conference with governor jindal go to cnn.com/live.
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let's go back to chad myers in the severe weather center. precautions are being made there. give us an idea, the potential of this storm. >> i think it's a really good idea what governor jindal is doing, saying if you're queasy about this, get out thereof, make a reservation at the hotel somewhere, get 100 miles, 200 miles off the coast and let's see what's going on. at least you'll be out of here. you wouldn't be in line with everybody else when we say mandatory. if this storm gets its act together, as soon as it passes key west, it will not be a tropical storm. it may not be a 1 or 2, it might be a 3 land faing hurricane. the longer it takes to get to you, depending on where you are, the bigger it's going to get. if it turns to the right and gets into florida, it's not going to be in the water very long, probably a cat 2. if it stays in the water and makes it all the way to louisiana, it will definitely be a strong 2, if not bigger than
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that. plaquemines parish, all these low areas, it's tough to get out of there. new iberia, you are in this warning. it's probably going to get upgraded as it gets closer to louisiana. anywhere from mobile to louisiana, this is the danger zone right now. all of the computer models have shifted to the left. less of a problem for tampa and up toward the big bend and apalachicola right now. >> you mentioned plaquemines, yes, that's one of the 15 parishes, the low-lying parishes that the governor says start those voluntary evacuations right now. >> all right. so florida isn't completely out of isaac's cross-hairs. a live report coming from naples and how folks there are preparing for a brush by the storm.
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become to our coverage of tropical storm isaac. southwest florida already starting to feel tropical storm right now. brian todd is in naples. so brian what kind of emergency preparedness is under way there? >> that's right, fredericka. this is an illustration here of what they're worried about. they're under a voluntary evacuation status here right now. they may impose mantry. we'll talk about that in a second. this is what they're worried about as tropical storm conditions start to kick in here. a lot of intense rain, wind is not so much a factor right now. what they're worried about here is tide. the high tide will not really be here until the overnight hours.
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that's also when storm surge could be at its worst. high tide going to start probably around 3:00 p.m., between 3:00 and 9:00 a.m. that with the storm surge pushing in is what they're worried about. they're inland waterways behind us here which may cause some storm surge from the other direction. as far as the rainfall we're told they may get about 10 inches of rain here in the next several hours. not good news, obviously. not only is that tropical storm condition can cause flooding on its own but the ground here already saturated from previous storms. as far as the evacuations, the area south of here, marco island, and everglade city, everything is under voluntary evacuation right now. they may in the coming hours impose mandatory evacuations. i talked to dan summers, the emergency situations coordinator here. >> i think it would be substantial changes in the angle of the approach of the storm and rapid intensification, if we go
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beyond a hurricane to a category 2 event, that offiously will change things but there may not be enough time. >> so time is going to be a key factor here. he's talking about a sudden change in intensity of the storm, a sudden change in the angle of approach to the storm as the rain kicks in here, that's what they're concerned about fredericka. it will be high tide in the coming hours plus the intense rainfall and it's getting worse here. >> okay. rain, wind, big concerns. what about tornadoes? >> tornadoes are going to be a factor. we're told there's a fairly strong possibility of tornadoes here. they're under a tornado watch here. and what happens is when these outer bands of the storm hit land, the storm's already churning in circular directions anyway. when that hits land it causes a friction. according to david henin and chad myers, it causes the tornados to whip upward. that could happen here. main not the most intensend largest tornadoes you've ever
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seen but they could be a factor here. they say that is very much in play in the next several hours. >> brian todd in naples, florida, thanks so much. our tropical storm isaac isn't the only distraction for republicans before their big convention in tampa. ♪ ♪ ♪
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louisiana governor bobby jindal just declared a state of emergency in louisiana. live pictures. the press conference that continues out of baton rouge. a spokesman told cnn he will not leave the state if there is a dampger to people. jindal was also supposed to speak at the 2008 convention but had to skip that because of, at
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the time, hurricane gustav. the convention may be delayed by a day but we get word that republican officials are considering extending the convention for eye day, until friday. meanwhile, the city's security measures are already in place. joe johns walks us through it. >> reporter: in some ways when you drive into the city of tampa, at least downtown, it looks like an armed fortress right now and the convention hasn't even started. thousands of police officers from all over the state of florida are expected to converge here in the city of tampa to start patrolling the streets during the republican national convention. they're not just from the city of tampa you see over there or the secret service you see walking around the streets, they come from all over this state. the concern is and some of the authorities have expressed it, is that a number of police officers might actually have to stay at home to protect their own turf if the weather gets too bad. there's also a military
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component to the republican national convention and the question of moment is about the national guard. there are at least 1,700 members of the guard available to the governor to use as he so chooses. the question, of course, is whether he will use all of those members of the guard here in the city of tampa during the convention or send them to some of the outlying areas. it all depends on what the weather does. >> joe johns joining us live in tampa. joe, what more do yo know about the republican convention organizers considering extending the convention that they've just delayed by a day? >> reporter: well, it's pretty clear they haven't ruled it out. our paul steinhauser reporting just this afternoon that authorities are considering extending this convention by a day. that would take it to friday. they say it all depends on what happens. it's clear that there is going to be some type of a conference call within the next few minutes, perhaps the next hour here in tampa for authorities to
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discuss what their plans are going forward. as you know, fred, they got rid of monday. so they're trying to figure out how to make up that day and include as much as possible without shorting anybody. because you know, you get offered not a lot of chances in your lifetime to speak before a party convention. there are certainly people who would like to do that if the officials can manage it, fred. >> organizers said they want to try and get everyone in as scheduled, even when it was a four-day shrunken down to three but maybe they did some math and realized that will be hard to do. they have to consider extending it after all. thanks so much, joe johns. keep us posted on that out of tampa. tropical storm isaac, barreling towards florida and some parts of the state are already feeling its fury. our i-reporters had their cameras rolling. [ male announcer ] count the number of buttons
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louisiana's governor just declared a state of emergency as tropical storm isaac targets the gulf coast. governor bobby jindal also called on 15 low-lying parishes to start voluntary evacuations. isaac is still about two days away, depending on what kind of tracking you look at there on the map from the louisiana coast but right now, isaac far lower than that entering the mouth of the gulf of mexico. just moved past the florida keys and it's leaving behind some flooding there. u.s. hurricane center says isaac is now tracking west and is due to hit the u.s. gulf coast as a hurricane. so right now, people in florida are getting ready for isaac, especially along the west coast of florida. some have already sent in videos and pictures of the storm that they've seen, nick valencia is tracking the i-reports, all that people are saying they're seeing and experiencing, for example, what, nick? >> we've been working hand in hand with our i-report team and
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social media team going over the latest user-generated content. we're hear at the heart of the news gathering operation. this is the cnn national desk. these ederer itors on the phone helping us get information and video. this one of the harder hit and impacted areas. this coming to us from bill curtain who sent in this video from the i-report. this gives you an idea of how heavy the winds and rains are. this is in boynton beach, florida. bill says he's lived through hurricane francis, will ma and john. he's seen a lot heavier thunderstorms but the florida department of emergency management has told us they are getting inundated from calls from south florida residents asking whether or not if they should evacuate. one resident who was thankful he did not evacuate was frank guido. he sent this in from ft. lauderdale, shot from the apartment complex he was staying in. he says water poured into the lobby of the apartment complex.
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he says he feels he made the right decision in staying put there in ft. lauderdale. but fredericka, some of the most dramatic video we saw, that's from the freedom of the seas cruise ship, right in the florida straits between cuba and florida. take a look at this video. >> what an idiot. >> some of the cruise ship passengers are taking a break, going inside, shooting the individual row from inside the cruise ship. that cruise ship is now safe. they experienced winds as high as 65 miles per hour. folks out there getting impacted by the storms. remember you can always send us your latest video and information to i-report.cnn.com. we want to hear from you. just remember to stay safe out there. >> pretty bold move for that one person to be walking on the ship's deck there. those winds are unpredictable. nobody else try that, please.
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meantime, let's talk about how schools, colleges, all of that, might be bracing, especially along the west coast of florida, bracing for isaac. are there any notices that they're planning to close or open late, anything like that? >> our national desk which we show you a while ago has gotten releases from hillsborou county public schools, they're cancelling classes for tomorrow. florida atlantic, the classes have been cancelled there. we verified that on their website. the storm system moves westward into the gulf, bp and shell are taking advanced precautions as head of the intensifying storm conditions, we hear that bp and shell have evacuated some of their workers and bp has actually temporarily halting output in their oil platforms in the gulf. you see some of the examples of the precautions that these businesses and people are taking ahead of the storm, fredericka.
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>> that's great. thanks so much to are that. we'll talk more about the oil rigs and the gulf and what it might mean to your pocketbook and gas prices and all of that potentially in the next hour. stay tuned to are that. thanks so much, nick valencia. isaac isn't the only storm out there. we're watching a massive typhoon that's being called one of the worst in decades. we'll tell you where it's headed. [ female announcer ] these are the crescents you love on a holiday. and these are the ones you'll love on a school night. pillsbury crescent dogs with just a few ingredients you have an easy dinner...
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louisiana's governor just declared a staft emergency as tropical storm isaac heads toward the gulf coast. govern be bobby jindal calling on low-lying areas to voluntary evacuate. isaac is leaving behind flooding so far. the u.s. hurricane center says isaac is now tracking west and is due to hit the u.s. gulf coast as a hurricane. so isaac is not the only dangerous storm out there right now. a powerful typhoon is actually heading toward the korean peninsula. it made landfall over the japanese ilan of okinawa earlier today. the storm is expected to bring up to 12 inches of rain, last night wind gusts reached 132 miles per hour. hundreds of people are without power there. and the syrian regime released what it says is new video proving the country's vice president has not fe