>> there are planes out looking now, boats out looking now, trying to scour the ocean for any sign of debris, satellites are being moved to look for debris as well and we should remember 239 people on board and that's why this is so important and we'll continue to cover it. i'm don lemon. thank you for joining us. good night. chinese crews say suspicious objects have been sighted in the search for missing malaysian airlines flight 370. we will have the very latest. >> plus, families of the 239 people on board are anxiously awaiting any news about their loved ones. >> u.s. president barack obama heads to europe for a nuclear security summit and talks about ukraine. and in washington state, a deadly land slide devastates a rural community in the u.s.

this is cnn newsroom. hello to our viewers in the united states and around the world. we will begin with new developments in the search for the missing malaysian airliner. >> china's state run news agency is reporting that the crew of a chinese plane searching for flight 370 has spotted suspicious objects in the southern indian ocean. a reporter says the chinese search team saw two relatively big floating objects with many white smaller ones scattered within a radius of several kilometers. >> we'll have a live report on those objects in just a moment. but we also have another development, which we are following this hour. cnn has new information which paints a different picture as to what happened inside the malaysian plane's cockpit. a course close to the investigation told cnn that military radar shows flight 370

making a sharp westerly turn over the south china sea and then changing altitude. we're told at one point the boeing 777 apparently flew as low as 12,000 feet. that's before it disappeared from radar. the source also told us the sharp turn seemed to be intentional. let's get the latest details now on those suspicious objects in the southern indian ocean. andrew stevens joins us now from perth, australia. i guess the question is, what is this debris, and whereabouts is it? >> reporter: at this stage, it's another new lead, another piece in the jigsaw that is this southern ocean search area. we are short on details at the moment. it is significant, because the chinese went up this morning and reported they had seen two large

suspected objects. they early said suspicious. that was corrected to suspected objects, large, which is key. we have had sightings from the australian satellite images and chinese satellite images. this is an eyes-on visual of more large objects. it was surrounded by smaller objects over an area of a few kilometers and the maritime services here say that those objects that the chinese reported seeing just a couple hours ago are in the target zone. don't know how farther away from the satellite images of the debris we've been talking about, but they are in the right area, and obviously need further investigation. the chinese planes who saw that are on their way back to perth, and new military planes and we understand civilian corporate jets, which are quicker to the

scene, are also making their way there. this is the biggest day of the air search operations. ten planes going up today to search that area. >> andrew, before we heard the news about the debris being spotted by these chinese search crews, there was news that the u.s. is sending a super sensetive pinger locater. what can be read into that? >> reporter: again, it's another link to the fact that authorities are seeing this still as the most positive lead, the strongest lead they have. what a pinger is needed for is to locate any distress beacons which may be deep, deep under water. now, the range of these distress beacons, which would identify where the flight recording boxes, the all-important flight recording boxes is, the range on those is just a couple of miles. in some places in the ocean,

it's up to three miles deep. so these are almost like relay pingers. they can pick up sound and relay it. again, this is just bringing all the technology they can get their hands on. you've got satellite pictures taking it from high above. i could point out, with the satellite pictures we've been seeing, very hazy, blurry, hard to see what they are. but a lot of reports in the australian newspapers saying that the authorities who have those images would have much sharper focused images. so they may have a much better understanding of what those pictures are showing. and this is joining dots at the moment. but that could be behind the australian prime minister's statements. he has seen this as the best lead and the hope that they may unravel this mystery.

so we're getting assets from high in the sky and there's a british warship coming up called the "hms echo" with sophisticated sonar equipment which can track images from the seabed. so it's all adding up. the assets build, and as i stay, time is running out. these pickers located in the flight recorder boxes may only last less than two more weeks. john? >> andrew, just very quickly. we know that the weather is not good. it's about to get worse. how will that impact what is now an incredibly big search with a lot of planes and ships in the region? >> reporter: it will impact significantly, john. the visuals are so important, getting human eyes onto a target to see if there's any identifying marks. the australians have been

talking about getting these visuals. think about it, we have these corporate jets going in there, that ultralong range. they can take 10, 12 spotters in there. there are people from local emergency services on those lanes being used as spotters. the chinese have described these planes as a great platform for visual sightings. so if the weather deteriorates, and the reports are patchy. some pilots are coming back saying there is low crowd right down to sea level. this is a big search area, 59,000 square miles. but all the forecasts say the weather is going to deteriorate. there is this cyclone we talked about north of the search zone. but still there may be some weather patterns from that which may affect the search zone. but certainly the weather is not

helping. >> andrew stevens live for us there just outside of perth with the latest on the search. thanks, andrew. let's turn next to new information cnn has obtained about the malaysian plane's movements just minutes after its march 8 takeoff from kuala lumpur. will ripley joins me now from the malaysian capital. will, this could be a break through in the search for flight 370. before this, cnn received that important information relating to the plane's sharp turn to the west. walk us through this new information and what it could mean. >> reporter: this is military radar data that was released to cnn through its source that we trust and have vetted. so here's the picture it paints. we go to 1:19 where the co-pilot last spoke and said "all right,

good night." military radar continued tracking for the next hour and 21 minutes. this is when we know something big happened on board. the direction of the plane took a sharp turn to the west and starting going down to 12,000 feet and sustaining that for an extended period of time. why would a pilot want to drop to 12,000 feet? we are told it would not help to avoid radar detection. so it could have been to depressurize the cabin. but at a higher altitude, that would lose consciousness and perish as a result of the conditions that high up in the sky. but here's the biggest question of all. there was no may day call. so we don't know, even though the pilots were able to do a calculated maneuver that took several minutes to complete,

nobody ever called for help. so while we have a better picture of what the plane was doing, we still don't have the answer to that bigger question -- why? >> so how much closer does this bring to determining what may have happened to malaysian airlines flight 370? >> reporter: it's another piece of the puzzle. it's another thing to add into our file of evidence here. but really the answers that we need are going to come from that inflight data recorder. time is running out, it only has a 30-day life span where it emits that pinger. after that, the pinger would no longer exist. so this is why that search in the southern indian ocean is so critical right now. this is why countries are moving more resources to perth, trying to fly out to the search area, about 2300 kilometers southwest

of perth, australia, trying to locate any sign of debris. >> exactly right. will ripley reporting there from kuala lumpur. many thanks to you. of course, john, the situation here, we have to emphasize there's still no evidence that shows that there was foul play here on the part of the pilots. >> yeah. >> at this point. >> the investigation has been covering all the angles. that's where it was leading last week. now it appears it may be some kind of catastrophic event. but all of it speculation. more bad news for malaysian airlines. hundreds of passengers on another malaysian airlines flight to south korea, is a little inconvenienced. >> the flight was diverted to hong kong because of an electrical problem sunday. >> it took off from kuala lumpur

but experienced troubles with the airplane's generator, which supplies normal electrical power. >> the plane was diverted to hong kong where the 271 passengers were transferred to other airlines. >> the 239 people on board the malaysian airliner are not just passengers and crew members. >> exactly. they are also parents and spouses, beloved children, and co-workers. here are some of their stories. >> reporter: here's why we care so much about the missing malaysian jet liner. not for all that's unknown, it's about the people. 239 souls who have not been seen, hugged or talked to their kids, soul mates, partners, family or friends in two weeks. here now a snapshot of some of the lives so tragically interrupted. wife and mother of india is the

executive secretary of the international collective in support of fish workers. she was headed to a conference in mongolia. her husband let cnn read the note that says "i remain focused on what we have at hand by way of information and stay with the knowledge that she is strong and courageous, that her goodness must count for something somewhere. i carry the faith that the forces of life are eternal and ever present to keep the drama ever-moving. i'm neither favored nor deserted. no one is." others were also traveling on business. hollywood stuntman was headed home to beijing to see his two young children and pick up material for a project. paul weeks, a mechanical engineer from perth, australia was on his way to a mining job

in mongolia. he left his wedding ring and watch behind in case of the worst. >> they had a bit of a car accident accident earlier on the year before and discussed what they wanted to do and for some reason before he left to go to mongolia, he left them both behind and said that the oldest child should get his wedding ring and the youngest his watch if something happened to him. >> reporter: others on flight 370 were traveling for pleasure. this couple had been on vacation in vietnam heading home to beijing. these two were taking the honeymoon they had promised themselves for a long time. and two couples, four friends, who were seeing the sights abroad together. three americans were on the

flight, phillip wood from texas and father of two. the other two are children, brother and sister both under the age of 5. but it's not clear who they were traveling with. authorities say without waivers from the girl's families, there's nothing they can tell us about the children except that they are among the 239 missing. you're watching cnn newsroom. it is quarter past 2:00 here monday morning on the u.s. east coast. it is quarter past 2:00 in the perth, australia monday afternoon. after the break, we'll look at the logistical challenges. >> the sheer size of the search area isn't the only problem. the undersea terrain is, as well. >> searchers in the southern indian ocean have just a few hours left of good weather. when we come back, we'll go to the international weather center for more on what may be rough conditions ahead. marge: you know, there's a more enjoyable

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welcome back to our coverage. the main search area for flight 370 is so remote, it takes hours just to fly there. >> and once there, the weather and wild seas can wreak havoc with attempts to find the missing jet. here's alexander field with more on the challenges which searchers are now dealing with.

>> reporter: it's one of the world's most remote and punishing regions. >> it's about the most inaccessible spot that you can imagine on the face of the earth. >> reporter: massive waves and high winds. some of the conditions that have hampered searchers scouring a daunting swath of the south indian ocean for any sign of malaysian airlines flight 370 and its 239 passengers. more than 1400 miles off the coast of australia, the aerial search can last just a few hours at a time before pilots have to head back to refuel. >> that is really in the middle of nowhere. so they're working with weather patterns that can really hamper any operation, any sea operation. >> reporter: a nasa simulation shows currents and turbulence. these water conditions could push any debris further east and further apart. those objects, some of the

strongest leads in this case, could be anywhere in a 15,000 square mile area. that's roughly the size of belgium. below the water's surface, a murkier picture. the sea floor hsits more than 9,000 feet down. the mid ocean ridge rising from it making the search each more difficult. >> the depth is a factor here. the terrain is a factor. describe what it would look like down there. >> like the rocky mountains. >> it's so challenging and it's so hard to wrap your mind around what they are doing and how difficult this is. >> reporter: if the objects can be found, if they're from flight 370, if researchers can use the ocean's currents to zero in on the plane's data recorder, finding it among those peaks and valleys could be harder still. >> if it's in one of the deeper challenges, it's going to be more of a challenge.

>> reporter: alexander field, cnn, new york. >> as daylight dwindles, the weather conditions are also deteriorates. >> let's get a closer look at this bad weather rolling in. and what this means for the search. >> that signifies the importance of the next five hours to get out here in that four-hour flight. when you get here, you're looking for a white object. the main concern is going to be sea fog and white caps, which are white. so that makes it challenging. you see the royal australian air force-out there. we know in the past several hours, japanese sending their aircraft out. when you get out there and see clouds beginning to move in, it's disheartening, because so

much effort goes into making it in this remote location and you have weather pattern systems come in every other day that we have narrowed it down. we have high pressure to the north and east. it means the air begins to dry out. conditions begin to clear up. but the high pressure doesn't set up shop over the search zone but northeast of it, which impedes the motion of that storm system. so tonight and tomorrow, gusty winds, up to 90 kilometers per hour possible with this. that's about 55 to 60 miles per hour on the top end of it. and wave heights could be 13 feet high out in this region. because of the depth, john and rosemary, we saw in that previous story out there, the waves are not going to be the type that slam into shore. the waves, what they're going to

do is go up some 13 feet and come right back down toward sea level. so if you're on a vessel, you would get a broad perspective at the top. it just becomes a challenging, time consuming search effort the next couple of days. >> of course, you have the waves and weather. >> many thanks. we're going to take a short break right now and cover other stories across the globe. u.s. president barack obama is on his way to the netherlands for a nuclear security summit. >> but the crisis in crimea is expected to dominate the agenda. those details when we come back. so our business can be on at&t's network for $175 a month? yup. all 5 of you for $175. our clients need a lot of attention. there's unlimited talk and text. we're working deals all day. you get 10 gigabytes of data to share. what about expansion potential? add a line, anytime, for $15 a month. low dues, great terms.

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and welcome back. u.s. first lady michelle obama and her family continue their trip to china today. they visited the great deal wall on sunday. mrs. obama is traveling with her daughters and mother on what the white house is calling a personal diplomacy trip. u.s. president barack obama is scheduled to arrive in the netherlands in about an hour and a half. he's heading to the hague for a nuclear security summit and will meet with group of seven leaders on the summit sidelines to discuss the crisis in crimea. this comes as russian military forces continue to consolidate

their control of the region. >> reporter: president obama wants to see more severe action taken against russia, especially in light of these new military incursions in the crimean peninsula that happened on saturday. that will be the focus for this meeting that president obama will have on monday with leaders of the g-7. then he'll travel to brussels where he'll have a summit. what's going on in ukraine will be a focus of that meeting, as well. thursday, he'll head to rome to meet with the pope, but that will be about income equality. friday, he'll go to saudi arabia to meet with king abdullah. but of course, what's happening in ukraine will be a large focus of this week. >> and the u.s. president's trip comes as nato's top military

commander says he's worried about the buildup of russian forces on the border with ukraine. there are concerns that moscow may be looking to gain territory. >> reporter: just across ukraine's eastern border, russian troops continue massing. nato's top brass raised the alarm sunday this could be an invasion force, ready to roll across ukraine from east to west. >> there is absolutely sufficient force postured on the eastern border of ukraine to run if the decision was made to do that. and that's very worrisome. >> reporter: a breakaway region of the former state of moldova. to get there, russia's military machine would have to carve through the heart of ukraine. many are now renews calls to

join the russian federation. the kremlin says it's simply conducting military exercises. that explanation rings hollow to ukraine's new government. >> we are very much concerned about this development and the deployment of russian troops. we are ready to respond. >> reporter: ukraine government's most immediate concern is growing separatist sentiment in its own cities and close toast the border with russia. but a pro russian rally, turnout was small. organizers say only a few thousand showed up. >> translator: what is happening in kiev is not for me. russia, crimea, belarus are mine, and they are our brothers. we are them. and i want to appeal. putin, help us.

>> reporter: earlier in the weekend, russian armored personnel carriers smashed their way into an air base in crimea. almost all military facilities have now surrendered. as president obama flies to europe this week, much of the crisis talk is likely to focus on whether western powers can do anything to roll back russian gains or hold the threat of a new advance. carl penhaul, cnn, kiev. >> when we come back from our break, there was so much conflicting information, all adding up to no information at all for the families of flight 370. >> just ahead, we'll have a report from china where so many of those passengers are from. mine was earned in korea in 1953. afghanistan, in 2009. orbiting the moon in 1971. [ male announcer ] once it's earned, usaa auto insurance

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at a company that's bringing media and technology together. next is every second of nbcuniversal's coverage 0f the 2014 olympic winter games. it's connecting over one million low-income americans to broadband internet at home. it's a place named one america's most veteran friendly employers. next is information and entertainment in ways you never thought possible. welcome to what's next. comcastnbcuniversal. welcome back to cnn newsroom. >> the headlines this hour, u.s. president barack obama arrives in the netherlands within the next few hours. later monday, he goes to the hague for a two-day nuclear security summit. but the crisis in crimea will top the agenda as mr. obama

meets on the summit sidelines with leaders on how to deal with russia and ukraine. at least eight people have died and more than a dozen are still missing after a weekend landslide at a rural community at the u.s. state of washington. the ground on a hillside, which was saturated with rainwater, gave way saturday. rescue and recovery personnel are still searching for the missing. five people are believed dead after their small aircraft crashed in the u.s. state of colorado. rescue crews have not been able to retrieve the wreckage or those on board. the water there is about 22 meters deep. let's turn back to our top story, the latest developments concerning the missing malaysian airliner flight 370. >> china's state run news agency is reporting that the crew of a chinese plane searching for the boeing 777 has spotted

suspicious objects in the southern indian ocean. a reporter says the search team saw two relatively big floating objects with many smaller white ones scattered. >> we'll have a live report in a moment. but we also want to tell you of another new development that we're following. cnn obtained new information that paints a different picture as to what happened inside the malaysian plane's cockpit. a source close to the investigation tells cnn that military radar shows flight 370 making a sharp westerly turn over the south china sea and changing altitude. >> we're told at one point the airplane apparently flew as low as 12,000 feet before it disappeared from radar. the source also says the sharp turn appeared to be intentional. perth in western australia

is the main hub for effort to find the passenger jet. >> this is a boeing p-8 alpha poseidon, newest patrol aircraft in the world. >> they recognize the gravity of the situation. they know they're going out to give people rest and closure. >> reporter: it looks like a passenger plane but not at all. >> without windows. it's the systems and sensors that we have on that make it different. >> reporter: what does it look like out there? >> it's stern at thousands of miles of ocean and can be very monotonous. i don't know if i would call it

frustrating. our job is to keep looking and looking until you find it. >> of course, the wait for concrete answers has been understandably agonizing for the family and friends of the 239 people on board. more than half of them are chinese nationals. david mckenzie has been speaking to some of their families in beijing. >> we've been talking to family members through these more than two weeks now. certainly the emotions go up, down, depending on the information flow coming out. right now, we're kind of in the situation that there is no new information. they're searching for this plane in the southern indian ocean and the families, of course, are following that search very cloemsly. they had a large delegation speak to the families in beijing sunday telling them what the latest info was. there's often anger and frustration coming out. there's still people coming in now to beijing who have family members on board.

they say that they are just angry at times. >> translator: this is my first day here. i said what i needed to say. i'm too angry. every day i watch the television and i'm going to go crazy soon. i'm very emotionally unstable. >> reporter: it's almost like a pressure cooker at that hotel, with all these families stuck in there. of the people i've spoken to, they publicly say they believe that their family members might be alive somewhere. to they're clinging onto hope. but where this plane ended up is gnawing at them. >> david, the emotional and informational support for these families has not been good. where does that stand right now? >> reporter: well, they have upped their effort to give information to family members, both the malaysian government

and the malaysian airlines. so certainly there does appear to be less direct anger at these authorities as the days stretch out. but certainly i've spoken to several counselors, one very experienced trauma counselor who said the open endedness of this is extremely difficult because people can't start the closure process. so people are stuck in this kind of limbo. they can't get on with their lives. they can't move to have any kind of family understanding of what hand, particularly those in leadership positions within the family structure. they feel they have to show a brave face, at least in public. so extremely difficult and everyone is in this limbo right now. >> david mckenzie there. the other big news we've been reporting is the plane made that westward turn and dropped in

altitude down to 12,000 feet. cnn's martin savidge spoke with a training pilot about making that turn and shows us what those moves are like in a flight simulator. >> reporter: you heard the description, it's a sharp turn. here's what we would say a sharp turn in an aircraft like this would feel like. we'll take off and you see the alarm that goes off? it's warning that we're turning more than this aircraft really should. you can see by the horizon, this is very dramatic. what is the degree of turn here? >> it's about 40 degrees. >> reporter: set it back up straight, put it on autopilot again. remember, the information that this source is giving us, it says that turn took two minutes to complete. that is a very long time to make a 180 degree turn. in fact, we'll try to give you a sense of what that kind of a

two-minute turn would feel like, and this is it, right? we're doing it now. it's barely perceivable. it's slight, but if you were a passenger, you would not sit here and say boy, this is like something really wrong. this is a very subtle, slow turn. it's sharp in that it will deviate you from the source to beijing eventually, but the perception that you're banking like in a fighter craft, that's not what the simulator reflects on that. remember, the plane was at 35,000 feet. we say it drops to 12,000 feet, but that reading on the radar was over an hour and 40 minutes. here's a precipitous drop. if you threw this over the top and set us down, kind of a dive. nose down. again, all the alarms that you're getting, warning you're going way too fast.

you're going to overspeed. so doubtful they did anything like this. there's the ocean straight ahead. so pull it back. remember, if it really was over an hour and 40 minutes, that decent could have been very gradual. so what we're staying here is that those actions do not indicate energy. it's not a sharp turn to go to an emergency landing and it's not necessarily a steep descent to get down for the passengers to breathe. it could have been a slow descent and gradual turn. that's what the simulator tells us. >> our martin savidge reporting from the flight simulator in ontario, canada. cnn aviation analysts say the new information about the sharp turn and the change in altitude is very significant. he says it supports the theory that something catastrophic happened on the plane while it was flying at 35,000 feet. not long after one of the crew

members said "good night" to ground controllers. >> it prompted the crew to make a decision to do probably what is called a high dive, which is a rapid descent from an altitude where you can't breathe, down to an altitude to where you can, between 10,000 and 12,000 feet is what they're aiming for. that's that number 12,000 feet. when i heard that, any pilot is thinking the bells are ringing there. i should tell you that the -- at this point, they don't have a transponder that's operating on this aircraft. we don't know why that is. this is what's called a primary target, which means it's not broadcasting its open altitude as it would with the transponder, which enhances the radar blip. in the case of military radar, they have the ability to capture an idea of the altitude, because they want to intercept an intruder. so the accuracy of this radar is not perfect. so somewhere between 10,000,

12,000 feet is where they were headed. a two-minute turn is likely to be more than 90 degrees, probably 180 degrees. and it looks like you have an aircraft that had a problem, got down low quickly and headed back to land. what was the problem is the question we don't know. was it a fire? was it a rapid decompression because of some mechanical failure or a bomb or did hijackers form the cockpit? those are questions we don't know. >> that's right. an interesting perspective there from cnn aviation analyst mars o'brian. >> we'll take a short break here. when we come back, a rural community in washington state surrounded by hills with rain swollen ground -- >> and then there was a sea of mud. the story of a deadly land slide. also, it's now week four of the oscar pistorius murder trial. the prosecution is expected to rest. we'll have a look at what comes next. [ male announcer ] research suggests cell health

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midweek the government will release its final reading on fourth quarter u.s. gdp. so that is critical. then on friday, we'll get the latest personal income and personal spending data, important because consumer spending makes up about 2/3 of u.s. gdp. and investors will be paying attention to the earnings report from blackberry.

the company continues to struggle, so we'll see the latest number from that. that and all the breaking business news on "cnn money." just coming up on 2:45 a.m. on the east coast in the u.s. in the state of washington, rescuers are searching for anyone still alive after a landslide there. >> at least eight people have been killed so far and more than a dozen missing. the landslide covered more than two square kilometers with mud. in some places it's five meters deep. scott thompson has the story. >> reporter: olympia is the state capital of washington. but today, oso is the heart of the state of washington. this is what's left after a massive mudslide in oso, washington saturday. >> i was in awe. it reminded me of the photographs that you would see and the video that we saw when

mt. st. helen's erupted. >> reporter: several homes were completely buried. authorities say they were able to hear screaming coming from one house, but conditions were too dangerous for rescuers. >> they were not able to get there. the mud was too thick and deep. they couldn't hear any signs of life once they got closer to the structure where they thought it was. so the decision based on safety was to back out. >> reporter: evacuation orders were issued but have since been lifted. but those orders could be reissued at any time. shelters have been set up to those unable to return to their homes and the governor of washington has declared a state of emergency. new developments in the murder trial of oscar pistorius. the south african court says the

case will last until midway. he maintains he shot and killed his girlfriend in self-defense. he says he mistakingly thought she was an intruder. >> reporter: week three in the oscar pistorius murder trial was short and sweet. what to expect from week four? well, with us is our legal analysis. what do you think is going to happen over the coming days? >> week four is bound to be an exciting and important week. we know that the state is wrapping up. they've only got four or five witnesses left and there are still some pivotal witnesses we haven't heard from. for example, the first on the scene, we haven't heard from them yet. >> what's crucial nearly four weeks into this trial, the state had the option of bringing 107 witnesses. by the end of last week, we had

only heard from 18 of them. how have they performed essentially for the state in the last few weeks? >> it's not very unusual that the state has not called on all of their witnesses. it is unusual the number of witnesses that they tagged in order to be able to call on. but i never expected that they would call that many witnesses. already 18 witnesses is quite a healthy number. i think what has to be more worrying is as of yet, there still seems to be a lot of contradiction and lack of clarity in the state's version of events. >> reporter: we saw ballistic experts take to the stand and prove that pistorius' version of events is not incorrect or not impossible. >> the state will argue that those ballistic experts and the blood spatter expert put the state's version on the record,

but crucially what they didn't do was refute pistorius' version as a viable option. >> reporter: so there are two versions of events and we might hear pistorius on the stand. >> pistorius will be the most important witness for the state -- for the defense. he's the only person who was at the scene who know happened happen and the bulk of the defense case will rest on his retelling on the version of events. >> that was robin kerrnow speaking. we're going to take a short break again. but new details have emerged about flight 370 regarding the critical moments right before it disappeared from radar. >> when we come back, we'll look at the investigation timeline. and we will see just how bad the weather is likely to be for search crews as they hunt for the missing boeing 777.

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disappeared from radar. joe johns has more now on the investigation timeline. >> reporter: within hours after flight 370 vanished, malaysian officials had radar information saying the plane had flown on six more hours. today, malaysian officials explain why they waited as they tried to reach a consensus about the satellite data. >> from what we have gathered with the pilot, we have not come to any conclusion. >> reporter: march 12 is when the malaysian government said they got the satellite data. >> so the u.s. team and the investigation team of malaysia, they went it back to the u.s.

for processing. >> reporter: thursday the 13th, malaysia says initial results came back but it was agreed by the u.s. team and the investigations team that further refinement was needed. so the data was sent back to the u.s. again. friday the 14th, the results were received about 2:30 in the afternoon and presented at a high level meet bring the u.s., uk and others processing the information concurred. saturday the 15th, the malaysian prime minister was briefed on the results and announced them at a press conference. >> it then flew in a westerly direction, back over malaysia, before turning northwest. >> reporter: experts agree that it's hard to analyze the kind of satellite data malaysia received but the prudent move would have

been to scramble search teams as soon as possible. >> if they had an indication where this could have gone in, we should have had assets on it as soon as possible. >> reporter: another area is on communications with the cockpit. a pilot in a 777 flying 30 minutes ahead of flight 370 reported making emergency contact saying he heard mumbling and interference on the other end. no word from malaysian officials on what to make of that. joe johns, cnn, washington. on top of all of this, the strongest storm on earth right now is also churning on australia's west coast. >> let's find out where it's going and what impact it might have on the search. >> the search area to the south, not going to be impacted by it, because the storm system itself about 1900 miles or 3,000

kilometers north of the region. so imagine this over cuba and you're talking and areas around maine being the newly defined search area. the winds are 260 kilometers strong or 161 miles per hour. so this could be a category 5 hurricane if it was in the atlantic ocean. a menacing storm. and the reason i bring this to your attention, you take a look. the satellite picture gave us two arcs where the search is still taking place. but this area is where we have a lot of people and a lot of people have been disrupted because of the search and the weather pattern in that region. swells some 31 feet high. if there's any sort of debris on the surface, with 31-foot swells there, you're going to have that

submerged to the bottom. you take a look, go down to this level, two to three kilometers deep, talking about some five to eight empire state buildings. you can put them on top of one another and they would not reach the top. you can put 16 space needles atop one another and it would not reach the surface. so when you talk about swells reaching 31 feet, the last thing you want to see is on the very bottom. certainly a lot of search still taking place on the northwestern corner of australia and the storm system is expected to weaken. we are dealing with a cold front enter thing area. so weather not helping in any way, shape or form on the west coast of australia. >> offering just another level of challenge for all of those

searching. >> in the middle of nowhere and it's about to get a lot hotter. >> exactly right. thanks for joining us. >> stay with us. another hour of cnn newsroom is straight ahead. ♪ ♪ so you can get out of your element. so you can explore a new frontier and a different discipline. get two times the points on travel and dining at restaurants from chase sapphire preferred. so you can be inspired by great food once again.

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new information in the search for that missing malaysian airliner. a chinese plane has spotted suspicious objects in the indian ocean. those details ahead. and developments in the investigation. more details about what happened before that plane disappeared. also, a dangerous search for survivors in washington state. a community buried in mud more than a dozen people still unaccounted for. you are watching cnn newsroom. >> welcome to our viewers in the united states and around the world.

>> we begin with new developments concerning the search for malaysian airlines flight 370. >> china state news run agency is reporting the crew on the chinese plane has spotted what it calls suspicious objects. a reporter says they saw two relatively big floating objects with many white smaller ones scattered within a radius of several kilometers. >> and we'll have a live report on that in just a moment. but we want to tell you of another new development. information that may reset the picture as to what happened inside flight 370's cockpit. a source close to the investigation tells cnn that military radar shows the boeing 777 making a sharp westerly turn over the south china sea and changing altitude. we're told at one point the airplane apparently flew as low as 12,000 feet. that's 3700 meters, before it vanished from radar.

the source told cnn the sharp turn seemed to be intentional. we want to get the latest now on this new report we've been following. those suspicious objects spotted by a chinese search plane in the southern indian ocean. andrew stevens joins us now on the line from perth, australia. andrew, the sighting of these two relatively big floating objects with the other smaller objects could very well prove to be a break through in the search for flight 370. but how long is it likely to take to confirm what these suspicious objects are exactly? >> reporter: that's the question, rosemary. if you look at what -- it could be longer than we think. you remember back to two or three days ago when a jet spotted debris in the water.

that was two days ago, yet we still don't know anything more about that debris. but i can tell you this obviously -- [ indiscernible ] it is in the target zone. it is in the area of interest. it is not far from the satellite images which have been released by the australians and the chinese. the chinese aircraft took photographs of those two objects you're talking about. that aircraft is now returning to perth here. and other military aircraft have been dispatched to that search zone.

so at this stage, it could be a breakthrough, if it's still -- [ indiscernible ] >> andrew, the weather in the southern indian ocean is never ideal for a search of this magnitude. now the weather conditions are deteriorating. what impact is that all having on this intensified search operation? >> reporter: it's going to have a significant impact if the weather deteriorates. we've been getting reports saying -- it is still a big chunk of sea. we're talking 9,000 square kilometers, that some areas of that -- that makes it very difficult.

the australians have been stretching it for the last two or three days saying visual sightings are now so important. the weather as we know has been deteriorating over the past couple of days. there is a typhoon a long ways north. and also this is an area known for its severe weather and it blows up quickly and ferociously. so that is what search crews have to deal with.

the weather is going to continue to deteriorate and visibility will get lower and lower. that is going to be a significant problem. >> of course, despite the challenges presented by the weather, this search effort has been relentless. cnn's andrew stevens joining us there on the line from perth, australia. >> let's get more about that new information about the malaysian plane's movement. we know it turned to the left intentionally and it was not preprogrammed to the flight computer. also the plane then went down to 12,000 feet. will ripley joins us from kuala lumpur. this news about the possible suspect debris being found in the indian ocean, it's been out there a few hours now. any reaction from official there is in kuala lumpur?

>> reporter: not yet, but we are expecting reaction from officials at their 5:30 press briefing, and we will bringing that to you moment by moment what we learned. malaysian authorities will be very cautious when it comes to new leads. what they say is, we're certainly looking into it. but we're going to continue searching the northern or southern corridor, continue locking at all of our options here, taking them equally seriously. the malaysian government has been cautious with what they released, trying not to put too much out there. but you mentioned, john, about this new information and it's really pretty interesting. it gives us a better idea of what we think may have happened inside the cockpit of the plane, the movements that the pilots had to do. the plane was flying on course to beijing, no problems whatsoever. 1:19, last communication with

air traffic control. military radar kept tracking this aircraft for the next hour and 21 minutes. this is when we know the plane took the sharp turn to the west. it headed for the strait of malacca. then descended down to 3700 meters above the ocean. why is this significant? it would not help the 777 avoid radar detection. 12,000 feet would be sustainable for life. if they needed to depressurize the cabin, if you're down at 12,000 feet, you could survive in those conditions. passengers could stay alive. we know that the pilots had to punch in this movement. we know it took several minutes to complete, a manual turn. if they were able to do that, why were they not able to make a

may day call? that's probably the biggest mystery in all of this. >> the old saying, aviate, navigate, then communicate. but the other question, what does this say about the pilot's intentions? because there's been a lot of focus on what they were doing in the cockpit at the time and what may or may not have happened. >> reporter: isn't that the biggest question? what were the pilot's intentions? the fbi and the united states have been going through the flight data recorder. of course, everybody who knows these pilots has been interviewed by authorities extensively. and certainly all the interviews that cnn has come across have painted these two men as being upstanding citizens. we know there have been background checks on the passengers. >> okay. it seems as if we have a few problems with will's live shot there. but what he was say is that we

keep getting this contradictory information. all the way along, this information has been at odds with each other. but now it appears that maybe it was some kind of catastrophic event. so maybe now we're getting a clearer idea, but everyone keeps saying we will not know for certain until we foot the cockpit recorder. >> it's all speculation, but for the pilots particularly, the focus was very intention on their intent. >> and all the time the search continues and the weather, as we heard from andrew stevens a short time ago, playing a big factor in all of this. i know you've been tracking it. how bad is it going to get? >> it's going to be the worst storm we've seen since the search was narrowed down to this region.

i just want to talk about this part of the world. if you look on a map or globe, this is 40 degree latitude and this area, sailors call this the roaring 40s. if you're transporting goods out of africa or europe, you would come down the west coast of africa. sailors would try to line up in this latitude of 40 degrees because the westerly winds are always howling. so you can catch good sail and pick up significant speed. but white caps are the concern at this area. high pressure has been camping out over this region. it the high pushes off to the northeast of the search zone and replaced by a storm system. we think it will park in place tonight, monday night and

tuesday, perhaps as early as wednesday morning before it lifts. as this happens, winds would be upwards of 55 to 60 miles per hour. the swells in the ocean here would be upwards of 13 feet high or three to four meters. we know the aircraft have fueled up so far today, multinational effort. there is the u.s. boeing p-8 poseid poseidon. i want to show you this, because this is the current perspective of the ocean in this region. the area of debris is very little in the way of ocean current us. about 0.2 meters a second, or about six miles a day. unfortunately, it's not just the currents, it's the wind speeds,

so if there is debris there, a wing or the tail of an effort that is sticking up, that creates a sail and the winds will move that debris far more than the currents would. so something to keep in mind here. >> of course, the depth is extraordinary. >> the last thing you want to do is see that go to the bottom. >> coming up, we'll be speaking with an around the world yachtsman. he was stranded in that part of the world for four days in 1997. he can tell us what he experienced and maybe what the searchers will be experiencing, as well. >> also ahead, a rural community in washington state surrounded by hills with rain swollen ground. >> and then there was just a sea of mud and a deadly landslide. and it appears russia may not stop at crimea.

kiev and nato's top brass are worried russian forces may roll into parts of eastern ukraine.

welcome back. just after 3:15 monday morning on the east coast of the united states. and in the state of washington, rescue workers are scrambling to search more than two square kilometers now covered in mud for any possible signs of life. the small town of oso, washington was hit with a major land slide on saturday. a hillside gave way and crashed into the town covering structures within minutes. >> eight people have died, seven are injured, and more than a dozen are still missing. rescue crews say the mud is like quick sand, making their work treacherous. the state's governor was on the scene. >> we spent about 15 minutes on

location at the location of the lost today. the devastation, of course, is overwhelming. and i got a sense that we are going to have some hard news here. but i can tell you that there are very vigorous search efforts under way. >> it's been very surreal. the tragedy is unthinkable. but the community, as stated before many times, comes together and friend helps friend and family helps family. even people you don't know you stop and help. >> the state highway has been blocked by the mud flow and a local river is partially dammed by the debris. >> u.s. president barack obama arrives in the netherlands next hour for a nuclear security summit in the hague. >> he will also meet with a group of seven leaders on the sidelines to discuss the crisis in crimea. as russian military forces continue to consolidate their

control of the region. we have more now from washington. >> reporter: more severe action taken against russia, especially in light of these new military incursions into the crimean peninsula that happened on saturday. and that will be the focus for this urgent meeting that president obama will have with leaders of the g-7 at the hague on monday. then on wednesday, he's traveling to brussels where he'll have a summit between the united states and the eu. what's going on in ukraine is likely to be a focus of that meeting, as well. then on thursday, he'll head to rome to meet with the pope. but that will be about income equality. friday, he'll go to saudi arabia to meet with king abdullah. but of course, what's happening in ukraine will be a large focus of this week. >> and the u.s. president's trip comes amid claims by ukrainian

defense ministry spokesman that russian troops stormed a naval base. that's stoking fears that russia is looking to seize more territory outside crimea. >> reporter: just across ukraine's eastern border, russian troops continue massing. nato's top brass raised the alarm sunday this could be an invasion force, ready to roll across ukraine from east to west. >> there is absolutely sufficient force postured on the eastern border of ukraine to run if the decision was made to do that. and that's very worrisome. >> reporter: a breakaway region of the former state of moldova. to get there, russia's military machine could have to carve through the heart of ukraine.

many are now renews calls to join the russian federation, too. moscow has given no hint the enclave may be the next stop in an expansion plan. the kremlin says it's simply conducting military exercises. that explanation rings hollow to ukraine's new government. >> we are very much concerned about this development and the deployment of russian troops. we are ready to respond. >> reporter: ukrainian government's most immediate concern is growing separatist sentiment in its own cities and closest to the border with russia. but at a pro russian rally, turnout was small. organizers say only a few thousand showed up. >> translator: what is happening in kiev is not for me. russia, crimea, belarus are mine, and they are our brothers. we are them. and i want to appeal.

putin, help us. >> reporter: earlier in the weekend, russian armored personnel carriers smashed their way into an air base in crimea. ukraine is has not formally relinquished control of crimea. but in practice, almost all military facilities have now surrendered. as president obama flies to europe this week, much of the crisis talk is likely to focus on whether western powers can do anything to roll back russian gains or hold the threat of a new advance. karl penhaul, cnn, kiev. another story we're watching closely, turkey says it shot down a syrian fighter jet near the border after it crossed into turkish air space. the turkish armed website says two syrian planes were warned several times but only one left the area. syrian state tv says the pilot ejected and rescued.

turkey's prime minister says anyone who violates air space will receive a "hard slap." we'll take a short break here. when we come back, a robot submarine may help in the hunt for the missing flight 370. >> the device that's already found one plane that was missing at the bottom of the ocean. i reckon a storm's a brewin'. reckon so. reckon you gotta hotel? reckon, no. reckon priceline express deals will get you a great deal. wherever you...mosey. you reckon? we reckon. vamonos the spring hotel sale is on at priceline.com. save up to 60% on any express deal hotel, when you use code: spring '14. i reckon this is one deal you won't want to miss. it's where you email, yshop, even bank.e here, but are you too comfortable?

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as we've been telling you, searchers are now trying to locate what china's state run media are calling suspicious objects spotted in the southern indian ocean. >> it's an area 2500 kilometers southwest of perth. the chinese aircraft that spotted the objects today have just returned to the air base

outside of perth. ten aircraft, as well as a chinese's ice breaker were all participating in the search. >> the u.s. navy is sending a hydrophone listening device to be on stand by if the plane is found and a search for the plane's data recorders can be carried out. in the u.s., a team that built an underwater robot is waiting for a request to go to austral australia. >> it can scan wide sections of the ocean floor with sonar. randi kaye tells us more. >> reporter: this robot submarine may hold the key to finding malaysians flight 370. it's called the remus 6,000, developed on cape cod. it's 13 feet long, weighs almost

a ton and costs about $2.5 million. mike persell is the principal engineer. >> very stable, you get really good data almost all the time. >> reporter: why would it find something that others haven't been able to find? first of all, the torpedo shaped vehicle can reach depths up to 6,000 meters, or more than 3 1/2 miles below the surface, and survey wide swaths of the ocean floor, using side scan sonar. >> they fend a sound beam out to the side and it bounces off the sea floor and we get a reflection back. >> reporter: they call the process mowing the lawn because it works its assigned grid back and forth before returning to

the surface, captured on a high resolution camera. all done at the touch of a laptop on dry land. how would you tell the difference between a fish or a rock? >> you can tell man made object. metal responds very strongly. >> reporter: the team hasn't been asked to help yet to search for the plane, but it won't be the first time if they are. they were called on to help air france flight 447 in june 2009. two years later, a search team located the wreckage of the jet about 2 1/2 miles beneath the surface. after months of searching. something only possible because of this underwater robot. this is the initial shot of the air france debris field captured. >> there were obvious signs that this was from the plane. >> reporter: one team member first noticed a backpack on the ocean floor belonging to a

passenger. closer images revealed the plane's landing gear. before you put one of these in the water, you have to narrow down the search area. the team from here searched 5,000 square miles for the air france flight and took them more than 100 attempts to find the debris that. is just a fraction of the area they're looking at for flight 370. and while the team here with their underwater robots is ready for the call if it comes, what they hope to discover more than anything are survivors. >> randi kaye reporting there. you're watching cnn newsroom live from cnn center. still ahead -- >> as the search for the missing malaysian jet continues, the families are suffering through what is an incredibly painful time. we'll go live to beijing for more on that. also, what are the chances that searchers will be successful in finding the plane?

we'll take a look at that, as well. ♪ ♪ ♪ [ female announcer ] with five perfectly sweetened whole grains... you can't help but see the good. whole grains...

welcome back to cnn newsroom. if you are just joining us, china state run news agency is reporting the crew of a chinese plane spotted suspicious objects in the southern indian ocean. >> they say the crew saw two relatively big floating objects with many white smaller ones

scattered within a radius of several kilometers. mentime, there is new information that may reset the picture as to what exactly happened inside malaysian airline flight 370's cockpit. >> a course close to the investigation told us that military radar shows the 777 making a sharp westerly turn over the south china sea and changing altitude. we're told that the airplane flew as low as 12,000 feet before it vanished from radar. also, the sharp turn that it made appeared to be intentional. >> of course, the wait for concrete answers has been agonizing for the family and friends of the 239 people on board that plane. more than half of them are chinese nationals. we're joined now live from beijing. so pauline, a living nightmare continues for these families, waiting news in beijing on their

loved ones. the details change from day-to-day on somewhat may have happened. what are family members telling you? >> reporter: they're still very frustrated with the lack of information and the flow of information. in fact, they asked in the news briefing today about the issue john was talking about, about that report coming out that possibly this airplane had gone down from 35,000 feet to 12,000 feet. one relative asked the officials today what he knew about that and whether or not it was on military radar. that official said we can't answer that, we don't have a military representative here. so that's the kind of dead ends these relatives are hitting, these brick walls in terms of their questions being answered. now, earlier today i did speak with a group of families and

among them, they represent ten passengers on the plane. most of them come from all parts of china. we photographed them from behind. they say they don't want to show their faces on camera because many of their grandparents, their elderly relatives don't know that their families are involved in this malaysian airlines flight 370. we'll have more from them later in the hour. but they said that there's a general mistrust. they're not getting consistent information and they want a consistent point of contact from the government and malaysian airlines. right after the morning briefing, we did catch one a father who did speak with us on camera. he's mr. lee, he have talked to him before. his only son is on that flight and he talks about his great mistrust of the government. >> translator: our relatives were on that flight. this wasn't an accident. instead, it was caused by the malaysian government. they are covering up something.

>> reporter: and that is a sentiment we're hearing from a lot of families, rosemary. they say they're just getting inconsistent information. they're asking real specific questions. the officials aren't able to answer a lot of them, and they just want consistency and they want a consistent flow of data coming out, or at least hard facts. they have also said what we've heard before is that they still do have a little bit of hope that the relatives may be alive and some of the relatives we spoke with in that video you saw, they said listen, we still hope this is a hijacking, because it could be that they're still alive. >> that's totally understandable, given the circumstances. we're of course seeing china getting more involved in the search, and now the news that may prove to be a breaktrough with the chinese air crew

spotting what they're calling suspicious objects in the southern indian ocean. what else is china doing? >> reporter: china is doing quite a lot. the news agency is reporting about those suspicious objects that have been spotted. we do know that earlier today, two chinese planes have left perth to go over this search area. one of them has just come back. so we're trying to get more information, at least wait until they get off the aircraft to tell us what they found. we also know there's a chinese ice breaker, that's supposed to arrive in the area on tuesday. and also a chinese warship is heading to that area, as well. so china has thrown a lot of

resources in this. this is very personal to the country, because more than half of that plane, 154 passengers, are chinese citizens. rosemary? >> absolutely. many thanks to you. of course, the main search area for flight 370 is so remote, it takes hours just to fly there. and once you get there, the weather and wild seas could wreak havoc with attempts to find the jet. hear's alexandra field with more on the challenges searchers are confronting. >> reporter: it's one of the world's most remote and punishing regions. massive waves and high winds, some of the conditioners that have hampered searchers. more than 1400 miles off the

coast of australia, the aerial search can last just a few hours at a time before pilots have to head back to refuel. >> that is really in the middle of nowhere. so they're working with weather patterns that can really hamper any operation, any sea operation. >> reporter: a nasa simulation shows currents and turbulence. these water conditions could push any debris further east and further apart. those objects, some of the strongest leads in this case, could be anywhere in a 15,000 square mile area. that's roughly the size of belgium. below the water's surface, a murkier picture. the sea floor sits more than 9,000 feet down. deeper than most submarines can go. the mid ocean ridge rising from it making the search each more difficult. >> the depth is a factor here. the terrain is a factor. describe what it would look like down there.

>> like the rocky mountains. >> it's so challenging and it's so hard to wrap your mind around what they are doing and how difficult this is. >> reporter: if the objects can be found, if they're from flight 370, if researchers can use the ocean's currents to zero in on the plane's data recorder, finding it among those peaks and valleys could be harder still. >> if it's in one of the deeper channels, that's going to be more of a challenge. >> reporter: alexandra field, cnn, new york. >> few people know the southern indian ocean than tony. he survived for five days in his capsized yacht. he was rescued by the australian navy. he joins us now on the phone from his home in bristol, england. tony, tell me about your experience out there in the southern indian ocean.

just how rough can it get? >> well, it can get really, really bad. i got caught in a violent storm, which meteorologists call a bomb. it was like a hurricane, winds in excess of 1 miles per hour, trying to hang on single handedly. unfortunately, the keel sank and the racing boat capsized. i was in the water for five days. obviously hypothermia and frostbite started to really get serious. i had no water, no food, et cetera. and you really just think this is it, this is the end of the road. i was very lucky, and the

australian navy and air force put up with a rescue plan and came out and got ahe would of me. i was just extremely lucky. >> with this weather about to get worse, what do you think the search crews out there are about to experience? >> well, i think it's extremely sad what's happening. it's either things have happened either because they have been purposely -- someone is up to some tricks, or there's been some incredible disaster. but once the aircraft has gone down, hopefully it's gone down on the land somewhere, which puts the situation in place. or if it's gone down in the sea, they've got really big problems, trying to put a boeing 777 down

on big waves is incredible. >> and tony -- >> people have to rapidly get off an aircraft and get into life rafts, et cetera. and being there for a few days in the southern ocean, it's freezing, really, really cold. and no water, possibly no food. medication. trying to keep warm. children. the whole thing, i don't want to talk about. >> tony, what sort of debris is out there? some people have described this part of the ocean is being a bit like a garbage dump. >> no, it's not really. i've sailed around the world on several occasions and been down in the southern ocean on more than one occasion from around cape horn, et cetera. quite frankly, i have rarely seen any debris or water logged

containers, whatsoever. it's actually quite clean and nice down there. and there's a wonderful feel about the place. it's like the last great ocean. i suppose you get satellites s scanning over large areas, you'll pick up some debris. but it's really quite clean. >> tony, thanks for talking with us and sharing your experience what this part of the world are like. few know it quite as well as you do. tony bullimore on the line there. coming up, israel strengthens its border. >> the israelis say it's to stop extremists in the area. but will their efforts be effective? sportier. annnd done. ok maxwell, just need to ah contact your insurance company with the vin number. oh, i just did it. with my geico app.

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welcome back to cnn newsroom. oscar pistorius arrived at court just a short time ago for day 14 of his murder trial. this could be a pivotal week. the prosecution is expected to call just four or five more witnesses and then may rest its case. this week may also see the moment many have been waiting for. oscar pistorius could take the stand in his own defense. he's charge with killing his girlfriend, reeva steenkamp. israel has finished building a border fence with egypt, what it hopes will be a front line against lawlessness. so far it's reduced human trafficking and drug smuggling, but will it be effective from stopping extremists from launching attacks in the area? >> reporter: smaking through the sinai mountains is israel's latest defense against terror. a newly completed, 264 kilometer

as long steel and razor wire fence, cutting the country from egypt. >> i think it's a matter of time we will see ieds on this fence and global jihad and having an active attacks on this border. >> reporter: just last month, a few miles from the fence, egyptian jihadists blew up this tourist group, killing three south koreans and their driver. not long before that, in a string of attacks against the egyptian military, jihadists brought down an army helicopter, using a sophisticated surface-to-air missile. it's impossible to say just how many jihadists groups there are on the other side of the fence. but what is clear since the arab spring, they've become stronger, better organized and more

sophisticat sophisticated. the fence stretches from the red sea to the mediterranean. and on the other side is the sinai peninsula. long time a home for smugglers. but since egypt's military took control of the country last year, it's become a haven for jihadists. >> we know that the -- they're saying we're going to target israel, our prime target for us. >> reporter: in january this year, rockets were fired into the red sea tourist town, threatening israel's billion dollar tourist industry. the same group claimed the downing of the egyptian army helicopter claimed responsibility. some politicians and lobby groups are pushing the united states to help egypt's military and unblock weapons supplies, including apache helicopters they say could be useful in securing the sinai.

>> we are sharing information with our allies and trying to do our best to find those groups and we know the egyptians are doing also their best. >> reporter: but best has not been good enough. and evidence grows that jihadists armed and trained in syria are making their way to the sinai, only adds to concerns here. nic roberson, cnn, israel. back in the united states, a massive land slide has killed at least eight people in an area north of seattle. more than 12 people are still unaccounted for. the land slide encompassed more than 2 1/2 square kilometers. it was caused by ground water saturation after heavy rainfall throughout the past month. >> and the terrain is making it difficult to get there and find the people still there. >> our meteorologist, in fact, is that from area.

so you have a very good idea of this terrain. >> the terrain here, comparable to what we talk about sinkholes in florida. this region well known for the weak, loose sedimentary deposits in place. six houses were destroyed, 16 damaged and the fatalities that rosemary just told you about. but here's a google earth perspective. you see this exposed bedrock here. we've seen some 261% of the normal when it comes to rainfall so far in march. everett, washington, 31 miles south of this region, you see this give way and collapse down below. an initial in this county is saying this is comparable to mount st. helen's eruption back

in 1980. so it pucks it in perspective. but i want to share you with you a photograph i took last july or august of 2013 when i was hiking along this trail several miles away from oso. this region right here, that exposed bedrock, when i hiked up this looking down, we knew we had a landslide take place this this area. very common to see it this this portion of the united states and the rainfall continues to come down. you look at how much we're above average year-to-date. 143 millimeters, that's about 6 inches above rainfall average in seattle. to the south, in san francisco and los angeles, 4 to 6 inches of rainfall below average. so all that rain causing all the problems around the northwest u.s. >> thanks so much. they haven't been seen by their loved ones for more than

two weeks. >> after the break, we'll take a closer look at some of those who were on board malaysian airlines flight 370. male announcer ] this the cat that drank the milk... [ meows ] ...and let in the dog that woke the man who drove to the control room [ woman ] driverless mode engaged. find parking space. [ woman ] parking space found. [ male announcer ] ...that secured the data that directed the turbines that powered the farm that made the milk that went to the store that reminded the man to buy the milk that was poured by the girl who loved the cat. [ meows ] the internet of everything is changing everything. cisco. tomorrow starts here.

239. we've heard that number over and over again, since the malaysian airliner went missing more than two weeks ago. >> it's more than just the number of people on board that plane. it also represents parents, spouses, children, co-workers. here is a look at some of their stories. >> reporter: here's why we care so much about the missing malaysian jet liner. not for all that's unknown, it's about the people. 239 souls who have not been seen, hugged or talked to their kids, soul mates, partners, family or friends in two weeks. here now a snapshot of some of the lives so tragically interrupted. wife and mother of india is the

executive secretary of the international collective in support of fish workers. she was headed to a conference in mongolia. her husband let cnn read the note he wrote to friends and families to thank them for their crucial support. it says -- "i remain focused on what we have at hand by way of information and stay with the knowledge that she is strong and courageous, that her goodness must count for something somewhere. i carry the faith that the forces of life are eternal and ever present to keep the drama ever-moving. in the ultimate analysis, i'm neither favored nor deserted. no one is." others were also traveling on business. this hollywood stuntman was headed home to beijing to see his two young children and pick up material for a project. paul weeks, a mechanical engineer from perth, australia was on his way to a mining job in mongolia.

the father of two young sons. he left his wedding ring and watch behind in case of the worst. >> they had a bit of a car accident earlier on the year before and discussed what they wanted to do and for some reason before he left to go to mongolia, he left them both behind and said that the oldest child should get his wedding ring and the youngest his watch if something happened to him. >> reporter: others on flight 370 were traveling for pleasure. this couple had been on vacation in vietnam heading home to beijing to their two joining sons. these two were taking the honeymoon they had promised themselves for a long time. tlanld were also these two couples, four friends, who were seeing the sights abroad together. three americans were on the

flight, phillip wood, executive from texas and father of two. the other two are children, brother and sister both under the age of 5. but it's not clear who they were traveling with. authorities say without waivers from the girl's families, there's nothing they can tell us about the children except that they are among the 239 missing. >> and that does it for this hour of cnn newsroom. >> "new day" is coming up next and for everyone else "world business today" after a short break.

breaking overnight, 17 days after flight 370 went missing, a chinese plane spots suspicious objects off the coast of australia. as we're learning more details this morning of what happened on board that jet, we are live with the very latest on the search, the investigation and what the families this morning are saying. the death toll is rising this morning after a landslide buries homes near seattle. rescuers hold out hope as they try to get through a square mile of mud to find any survivors. good morning. welcome to "early start," i'm christine romans this morning. >> and i'm deborah feyerick. it's monday, march 24th, 4:00 a.m. in the east