our breaking news coverage continues this hour, two major weather events on opposite he sa said -- ends of the globe. i'm george how will ell in wilm. still feeling the effect of tropical storm florence. >> and i'm anna coren in hong kong where we're bracing for a powerful typhoon threatening millions. >> and that is a major storm. we'll continue to follow that with you live in amohong kong. but first let's start in the united states. tropical storm florence, what is a major mess on the southeast part of the u.s. east coast and again, we are in the middle of it. a tornado watch here in wilmington, north carolina that will continue through 7:00 a.m. eastern time on the map you see

this big blob. it ain't going anywhere anytime soon. it is moving at a snail's pace, but it is powerful, it is dangerous. and that is the problem with this system. it is not leaving anytime quickly. the rain keeps falling and it is causing a great deal of floodwater. and you see here the northeastern quadrant of the storm where it seems to be moving like a train, that is the concern. that is the dirty side of the storm where we are. this storm has also proven to be a deadly storm. at least five people reported to have died as a result of florence and the damage along the east coast, the carolinas, it is extensive. both from wind and water. and the recovery will be long, slow, and no doubt an expensive process. nearly a million without electricity. and hundreds have had to be rescued. and here in north carolina alone, some 20,000 people

staying in shelters. cnn covering this of course throughout the region. let's check in with our derek van dam, he is in carolina beach, north carolina. tell us the situation there right now. >> reporter: george, we're still getting battered. you probably are too. you are only about 20 minutes away from where i am. but being on the coast, we are susceptible to the strong, strong winds of the feeder bands that are coming off of the atlantic ocean. and just when we think that there has been a bit of a calm, a lull in the storm, then we'll get smacked sideways by some of the tropical storm force gusting that are easily 8 on 0 to 100 kilometers an hour. it doesn't take much for some of that wind to spin around, so i have to brace myself for some of the stronger wind gusts that come through. we currently are part of the

millions of people without electricity where we are located in carolina beach, but that also means that we don't have much communication as well. we're doing whatever we can to keep our cellphones charged. the crew that i have, the cameraman, producer, technician, we'll go into our vehicles just so we can get a little bit of signal and a little bit of electricity for our all-important cellphones. and just sitting in the suvs, they are rocking back and forth because the wind continues to batter us in this region so hard. we have had chanced walls, fences blown over, multiple trees knocked to the ground. power poles snapped. and electrical lines on the ground, sometimes in some of the standing water that we have seen here around carolina beach. so lots of hazards across this area. and we know that the tornado threat is real tonight. we know the flooding threat is real because we've already experienced over a foot of rain.

there are places that are reporting nearly 2 feet of rain already. and there is no turning back, really no turning off that tap from the atlantic ocean because we continue to feed it in. and i know you experienced this with me a couple hours ago when the eye of hurricane florence came through, everything went ererily calm. the birds came out, i saw a little blue sky. it was so strange and it was a false sense of security here. people came outside, the ones that decided to rides out the storm. they checked on their property and all of a sudden ten minutes later the wind picked up and the hazard started right back up. and that is where we are right now, the dirty side of the storm. the threats continue. back to you. >> derek van dam live for us in carolie beacolina beach. and thank you for your reporting. throughout our broadcast, you may see some technical issues here, but again, that is all

part of it. when these storms are passing on over, it certainly causes problems. audio, communication. but again, good to get that information out to the many people, the thousands who are wondering when can they come home or the people who are hunkered down in their homes wondering what things will look like as the storm passes through. of course what can people expect in the coming hours? that is the big question. let's go now to the cnn severe weather center. karen maginnis has been following the radar loop. how fast is this thing moving right now? has it slowed down, is it speeding up? >> it is running about 5 miles an hour. you can walk fairly briskly at about that pace. but i want to point out a couple things. first of all, here is the coastline of north carolina and then there is south carolina. here is myrtle beach. the eye is positioned just to the west of mrytle peach. so there is conway, garden city.

know these areas very well. but there is still enough of a circulation offshore that it is still picking up all of that moisture coming in off of the warm atlantic. and it can seemingly do this forever. it won't be forever, but it will be for a couple of days. so all those amazing rainfall totals that we told you about yesterday, 2 feet in some areas, well, take a look at this. this is what we call the forecast of where we anticipate the moisture to be. and look at this, it is not moving a whole lot. it is still picking up the moisture offshore. and aiming it at wilmington. aiming it at the sound. aiming it at myrtle beach. so it is just going to meander a little bit, maybe sneak its way over this vicinity, but it will do it at a very slow pace. it is in no murray to move out. and the doubters who were saying, oh, computer models are

probably way overblown? this is proving that those computer models were spot on. it made landfall during the early morning hours right around wrightsville beach. and we start to see now these just incredible lines muof embedded thunderstorms and that is why we have the tornado watch which goes until about 7:00 local time in the east. the winds associated with tropical storm florence now still holding at 60 miles an hour. just around top of the hour, we will see another update from the national hurricane center. these are the real problems, there is a real dynamic taking place here. as you said, the dirty side of the system and it is that right front quadrant, although it is not very powerful right now, but it is powerful because it is nearly at a standstill. moving to the west/southwest at about 5 miles per hour. but creeping along, it will move

in the vicinity of columbia and then weaken considerably takes heads up toward the blue ridge on mountains, smoky mountains. so if you were going to camp out there, may not be the best weekend to do that. but nonetheless, this has been powerful. trees down. horry county, but 50% of the county is without power right now. george. >> all right. and of course that will be something that people have to be concerned about for the next several days, without power and as the storm slowly moves inland. thank you very much. rescue work, that will be very important over the next 24 to 48 hours. many people who will be in need of rescue and these rescuers risking their own lives to do that work. dianne gallagher was with some of those rescuers earlier and when the national guard members drove into water, they found themselves in an unpredictable situation. take a look. >> reporter: situations like this really do illustrate just

the kind of danger that these first responders take on when they come out to do these rescues. we were embedded with the north carolina national guard. we were in a vehicle just like this one, just with a different paint job on it. called an lmtv. and you can see the area with the canvas, it is empty except is for some seats there. we were sitting, myself, producer, my photographer, with a member of the north carolina national guard. we were on our way to rescue three people who were trapped by floodwaters. the neighborhood that we were in was extremely flooded. the water was very high. and it appears that one portion of it, the road had washed out in a certain area. and so the back wheels of this type of vehicle here ran off the side, it caused the vehicle to kind of dip down. we started taking water on in that back area where we were sitting. now look, the national guard, they train for stuff just like this. they are trained. they did everything they needed

to do. they got us out, made sure we were wearing our life jackets, we had flotation devices, but we didn't need all of that because there happened to be a boat with some teenagers from new bern area nearby, they came over and got our news crew out and they were able to help some of the members of the national guard as well. they ended up getting their vehicle out and the three people who we were originally got to get rescued, they did get rescued. but again, we cannot express the danger that some of these first responders are putting their lives in when they do go out on the rescues. i think we take it for granted because they are also successful for the most part. and it is scary for them. almost every first responder i've spoken to has talked about some sort of frightening horror story that they have dealt with over the past two days here in the craven county area because there is so much water and so many rescues being done. more than 300 rescues at this point in this just immediate area because of hurricane

florence. so everybody in the situation is okay. our situation is not the story. but the story is the fact that, look, know the risk that these people are taking when they are coming to get people after these hurricanes and these conditions. >> thankfully, good to know she is be okay and the rescuers are okay as well. and that is the story and play over the next several days ahead, these rescue workers who will go into these communities where flooding has taken police, where rivers will be rising to make sure that people are okay, people who need help. our coverage continues here on cnn. breaking news coverage of two major storms affecting both sides of the globe. cnn live following the story across the philippines, this deadly typhoon bringing high winds and a lot of rain. anna coren is covering that story from hong kong as our coverage continues after this. hey there people eligible for medicare.

gimme one minute... and i'll tell you some important things to know about medicare. first, it doesn't pay for everything. say this pizza is your part b medical expenses. this much - about 80% - medicare will pay for.

what's left is on you. that's where an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan, insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company comes in. this type of plan helps pay some of what medicare doesn't. these are the only plans to carry the aarp endorsement for meeting their high standards of quality and service. so call unitedhealthcare insurance company today and ask for your free decision guide. with this type of plan, you'll have the freedom to choose any doctor who accepts medicare patients. and when you travel, your plan will go with you - anywhere in the country. whew! call unitedhealthcare today and ask for your free decision guide. know about cognitive performance? as you'd probably guess, a lot. that's why a new brain health supplement called forebrain from the harvard-educated experts at force factor is flying off the shelves at gnc. forebrain's key ingredients have been clinically shown to help enhance sharpness and clarity, improve memory,

and promote learning ability. and now every man and woman in america can claim a complimentary bottle. just use your smartphone to text the keyword on the screen to 20-20-20. scientific research on cognigrape, a sicilian red wine extract in forebrain's memorysafe blend, suggests not only sharper recall, but also improved executive function and faster information processing. your opportunity to get into harvard may be gone, but it's not too late to experience a brain boost formulated by some of their brightest minds. just text the keyword on the screen to 20-20-20 with your smartphone to claim your complimentary bottle of forebrain. do it now - before you forget. that's the keyword on the screen to 20-20-20.

back live here in wilmington, north carolina. feeling the effects of tropical storm florence, the storm that has proven to be a deadly storm, five people lost their lives in connection with this major storm

you you see here over the southeast u.s. it is a slow moving system that has hit the carolina coastline, hit the carolinas quite frankly with a lot of rain and much more to come. a mother and infant were kille , when a large tree fell on their home. firefighters you see here paused to pray for the victims. falling trees are also a big problem. downed power lines as well. and across the region, a million customers without electricity. a gas station canopy was torn off. take a look at that. by the very strong winds. and first responders have identified hundreds of people who have needed rescue from the rising floodwaters. again we're covering two major storms, one here of course on the u.s. east coast and another affecting asia. anna coren picks things up from hong kong. >> thank you, george. mangkhut was a super typhoon

foon, t packing winds of up to 280 kilometers an hour or 180 miles an hour. the storm has been downgraded to a typhoon, but it has turned deadly. within the past hour, we have learned of two deaths and there are dozens of landslides and hundreds of homes that have been destroyed. the storm is headed for southern china which is where we are based and could gain strength as it crosses the south china sea. alex sandan and a, what havare from authority, two deaths. any other updates? >> reporter: yeah, it has taken many hours to understand the impact. two deaths are linked to the super typhoon. dozens of landslides have now been reported and certainly there is a concern that there could be additional landslides

to come in the coming hours, that is the effect when you have hours and hours of the heavy rains that were experienced in this part of the philippines overnight and into the dade. in that region, they have about 20 roads shut down right now, part of that is precautionary measure as landslides continue to be a risk. weather of that and northwest part, concerns still about the storm surge and we're learning more about what happened in the northeast part of north luzon where this super typhoon initially made landfall here in the philippines. officials have discovered about 1,000 homes have been destroyed in that area alone. and certainly we expect these numbers to climb as responders make their way to the affected areas. we're talking about coastal areas and also mountainous terrain. they are not he is to geasy to . you had a storm that lasted about 12 hours, that hampers the efforts of responders to make their way to the areas hardest

hit. but there were preparations in place. we do know about a dozen helicopters are at the ready if needed to conduct rescue operations. there are cargo planes full of supplies that can be sent into the area if those are needed as well. still a lot to learn in the coming hours. >> obviously a huge operation will be carried out in the coming hours and days as those crews access those very remote areas. how difficult will it be getting to these parts of the country? >> reporter: there are a number of challenges that are faced here. this was a storm that was row jek -- projected to affect about 4 million people, but they are spread out. it is not a densely populated region. it is pretty rural. a lot of agricultural land. we're learning that a lot of what was damaged was the agricultural land. the issue with this storm has been communications. the storm cut off a lot of those

phone lines, so it was difficult in the early hours for first responders to have a handle on exactly where they needed to go. that is the work that has been happening now in the daylight hours and since those heavy winds have started to subside. that means that first responders can figure out where they need to go. you also have to depend on the weather clearing will order to bring in aircraft if it is needed. so a number of challenges, not the least of which is figuring out where people need help. >> a huge operation ahead. alex field joining us there from the philippines. many thanks for that update. george in north carolina, back to you. >> anna coren, thank you so much. and look here in the states, in a few hours it will be daylight again. daylight you could say, but we'll be under thick clouds so you won't see the sun. at the same time, rescue crews will venture out again to see who needs mehelp. they have identified almost 500 people needing rescue from the rising floodwaters. earlier i spoke to lieutenant

mitchell russlander of swift water rescue. he and his team have been working around the clock and he told me how he believes the next few hours will be very important. >> my expectations are nowhere close to where i thought. that has been proven since i got here. it is way more than i expected. >> and when you talk about that, explain to us what is the bigger factor of this storm? was it the storm surge, is it the flooding that has been associated with the storm? what are you you seeing? >> seeing a little bit of everything, but the absolute worst is the flooding. it is like the part of -- where i'm at tonight, when high tide came in, it rose up an additional 12 feet from the

already flowing that it was. so we tried to get everybody up as quickly as possible that still remained, but we still get calls to constantly getting more and more people out. so on it is definitely tough. >> mitchell, a lot of people, they see what you do, they respect and really greatly appreciate the risks that people take, people like you take, you know, to help people in need. but look, there are many people who are watching us right now, people who left wondering when they can come back. what would you tell them? as far as making sure that the coast is clear, that things are safe enough for them to return. >> i would honestly say just play it by ear and continue to keep an eye on the storm. just because once the hurricane is over with, you think that it is okay to return and that is not necessarily true. you have the aftermath.

the more rain. it will take several days for all the water to go away. >> mitche lellmitchell, what ha as far as the rescues in play? >> with the storm coming, it affected a lot of people so quick, i don't think a lot of people that were affected thought that it was going to actually be that bad. like i said, it came to a point when we were out all night last night actually even cutting off roofs trying to remove people because the water level rose so high so quick. it is dangerously quick. and you never know how quick it is going to move or what it is going to do. just get out while you can. >> mitchell, one other question. you've seen plenty of this, but the storm sitting overhead, it is dumping plenty of rain, dumping plenty of water in rivers, in low lying

communities. is there is a concern, you know, about when the storm passes on, that water has to go somewhere. and the flooding along rivers, et cetera. >> absolutely. yes, the biggest concern is that it is just sit and it an unknown period of time how long it will actually sit. a lot of the main routes in and out of the smaller counties around here are definitely way overflooded. definitely have to keep an eye on it. and like i said, play it safe temperature it changes so quick. some of these roads instantly flood quickly. the part that i was in earlier on riverbend where it was a foot and a half of water and an hour and a half later, it was waist deep. i mean it comes quickly, it moves quickly. definitely need to keep an eye on it and do what you need to

do. >> lieutenant there telling us the situation with swift water rescue and they will be very busy in the days to come. take a look at the radar and you see exactly what we're dealing with right now here in wilmington, north carolina, right there on the dirty side of the storm, that northeastern quadrant, that is the side that can produce tornadoes. you see the training effect of the storms that continue to push in. floodwaters could linger for several days of course from this storm. and that could put lives at risk causing catastrophic damage to homes and businesses. stay with us. our breaking news coverage continues right after this. your mornings were made for better things than rheumatoid arthritis.

before you and your rheumatologist move to another treatment, ask if xeljanz xr is right for you. xeljanz xr is a once-daily pill for adults with moderate to severe ra for whom methotrexate did not work well enough. it can reduce pain, swelling and further joint damage, even without methotrexate. xeljanz xr can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections, lymphoma and other cancers have happened. don't start xeljanz xr if you have an infection. tears in the stomach or intestines, low blood cell counts and higher liver tests, and cholesterol levels have happened. your doctor should perform blood tests before you start and while taking xeljanz xr, and monitor certain liver tests. tell your doctor if you were in a region where fungal infections are common and if you have had tb, hepatitis b or c, or are prone to infections. don't let another morning go by without talking to your rheumatologist about xeljanz xr.

and i'm the founder of ugmonk. before shipstation it was crazy. it's great when you see a hundred orders come in, a hundred orders come in, but then you realize i've got a hundred orders i have to ship out. shipstation streamlined that wh the order data, the weights of , everything is seamlessly put into shipstation, so when we print the shipping ll everything's pretty much done. it's so much easier so now, we're ready, bring on t. shipstation. the number one ch of online sellers. go to shipstation.com/tv and get two months free.

this wi-fi is fast. i know! i know! i know! i know! when did brian move back in? brian's back? he doesn't get my room. he's only going to be here for like a week. like a month, tops. oh boy. wi-fi fast enough for the whole family is simple, easy, awesome.

in many cultures, young men would stay with their families until their 40's. welcome back to viewers here in the united states and around the world. i'm george howell live here in wilmington, north carolina where we are still feeling the effects of tropical storm florence. right now we are under a tornado watch here in wilmington. that tornado watch lasting until 7:00 a.m. eastern time. this storm no longer a full blown hurricane, but look at the map there, you see this big blob moving ever so slowly. it is still very powerful and dangerous. that is why the system is creating so many problems. it is not leaving quickly enough and it is dumping a great deal of rainfall, record amounts of rain and again strong winds. in fact one record-breaking

report at the airport of 105-mile-an-hour, a wind gust. you get a sense of how strong the storm is. take a look at this tv station as well. this station that was flooded out after the staff had to leave due to floodwaters. the storm has proven to be deadly. at least five people reported to have died as a result of florence. the damage across the carolinas is extensive. just in the area around where we are, we are seen roofs torn offer of buildings, we've seen beautiful 100-year-old trees toppled due to the strong winds. also tonight a million customers without electricity, including us here as we cover this storm and also we know some 20,000 people are staying in shelter here in the state of north carolina alone. the next 24 to 48 hours are all about first responders in this area. tell be working arou they will be working around the clock. by the time the system finally

moves out, this area will have been hit with record rainfall and flooding. many people who thought that they could ride the storm out, they are calling 911 for help and these rescuers are in position to do the good work that they do. >> in a matter of seconds my house was flooded up to the waist and now itsz 's up to the chest. >> trapped and waiting for help, tropical storm florence is becoming more life-threatening. >> my husband was yelling for help. tried to go outside, but then like the water got up like above his chest and then he had to come back inside and it is the worst feeling in the world like to hear people yelling and you can't do anything. >> emergency crews across the carolinas are working to rescue as many people as they can from catastrophic flooding, worsening by the hour. >> rain and that flooding equals

danger. and that means that we'll have to have patience. >> in the meantime flying debris, downed power lines, and uprooted trees show the force of florence battering the carolina coast for more than 24 hours. here in wilmington, north carolina, a family of three was trapped when a tree crushed their home. crews worked to save them. some firefighters even prayed outside. but the storm claimed the lives of a mother and her infant. >> thises lo of life is devastating. >> reporter: the tragedy adds to the death toll officials warn may worsen. >> this is going to be a very trying period. this is something that we haven't had before. >> reporter: powerful slow and relentless, the deadly storm is inching further inland, promising days of severe flooding. during times of crisis like these, it really shows the strength of community. in lumberton, north carolina, residents came together to do what they could to protect their

city. polo sandoval has this report for us. >> reporter: everyone after the rain stops, the flooding threat will remain for the community inland throughout the carolinas. including here in lumberton, north carolina where on friday we witnessed something truly incredible where neighbors came together to try to defend their community against potential flooding from florence as we saw strangers came together filling sand bags, creating a barrier under an overpass along interstate 95. you see that location had been identified as a problem spot when hurricane matthew swept through the region two years ago. that is when water essentially flooded much of the community particularly on the west side of the city. so this time neighbors determined not to let that happen again. a call on smoed for peopocial m

people to come together to join city workers to create this barrier here. now they are with their families waiting for the worst to be over in terms of the weather, but the potential flooding threat will remain. the forecast calling for some of the rivers and streams in the region to reach major flood stage in the coming days. polo sandoval, cnn, lumberton, north carolina. >> again, a lot that we're covering here with two storms on opposite sides of the globe and other news this day. my colleague anna coren is live in hong kong to pick that up for us. >> yeah, that's right, george. donald trump's weekends on what could be a sour note. his former campaign manager has joined the list of those flipping. details on the implications of paul manafort's guilty plea coming up next. can be relentless. tremfya® is for adults with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. i'm ready. with tremfya®, you can get clearer.

and stay clearer. in fact, most patients who saw 90% clearer skin at 28 weeks stayed clearer through 48 weeks. tremfya® works better than humira® at providing clearer skin, and more patients were symptom free with tremfya®. tremfya® may lower your ability to fight infections and may increase your risk of infections. before treatment, your doctor should check you for infections and tuberculosis. tell your doctor if you have an infection or have symptoms such as: fever, sweats, chills, muscle aches or cough. before starting tremfya® tell your doctor if you plan to or have recently received a vaccine. ask your doctor about tremfya®. tremfya®. because you deserve to stay clearer. janssen wants to help you explore cost support options.

the rains come and go, the

winds pick up and they stop. we are still feeling the effects for sure of tropical storm florence inching its way inland. but at a snail's pace moving ever so slowly, causing flooding and endless rainfall. officials are concerned the impact of all that water could be catastrophic before all is said and done. keep this in mind. florence was once a category will hurrica4 hurricane, so it is bringing major storm surge and leaving behind a great deal of debris. the storm has proven to be deadly, at least five deaths associated with florence. hundreds of people who did not follow the warning to evacuate, many who were unable to leave, many had to be rescued from the rapidly rising waters. more than 900,000 customers this hour are without electricity. and there is no clear idea of exactly when power will be restored. that is the latest here on the u.s. east coast in the southeast part of the country. anna coren is now following other news of the day live in

hong kong. >> george, at its peak, mangkhut was a super typhoon, strongest storm anywhere on the planet this year, packing winds of up to ometers per hour. it has been downgraded to a typhoon, but it has turned deadly. at least two people have died. there have been dozens of landslides and thousands of homes destroyed. the storm is headed for southern china here and could strenggain strength as it crosses the south giant sea. karen maginnis has the latest on the typhoon. >> we do have another update. this from the joint typhoon warning center. winds have decrease bed. that is not enough. typically when they move across land especially terrain like this, they lose a little bit of energy. but now that it is moving out over the open waters of the south china sea, it is probably

going to regain intensity. not probably. the computer models are saying that it will. right now 120-mile-per-hour winds, moving west/northwest at 10 miles an hour. so it is moving slower. the slower it moves, it will be picking up more energy. there is more energy there that can feed into the system. when i saw this yesterday, i was frankly startled when i saw this eye. this is the eye of what was our latest super typhoon, the 22nd of the 2018 season. the system moved onshore, slammeded into the coast during the early morning hours. and we have phenomenal reports of storm surge there, some unofficial reports of about 16 meters of storm surge. well, this is what we anticipate will happen. as we move to the other waters, a lot of that preceding convection will impact regions around southeastern china and it

looks like by sunday, this is expected to make another landfall. it moved across the marshall islands and guam, plowed into northern luzon and will make landfall somewhere around 100 kilometers to the south of hong kong. at least those are the projections right now. some of the rainfall totals that we've seen, in excess of 200 millimeters or over 8 inches of rainfall. so take a look at this. we bring the system out, still essentially the equivalent of a category 3 hurricane. and then is expected to move into the southeastern coast of china. but that does mean that for hong kong, you will experience some gusty winds, maybe dangerous surf. it is a very, very busy port. and that could be impacted as well. additionally the airport there, which isle very busines l l l l

be impacted. >> yeah, a very busy city. more than 7 million people here. obviously folks taking necessary precautions, very much on high alert. thanks for that update. turning now to other news that cnn is following. u.s. president trump's former campaign chairman is now among those who are cooperating with the special counsel. as part of a plea deal, paul manafort pleaded guilty to conspiracy and agreed to cooperate with the justice department. in exchange a number of other charges are being dropped.ra mu. >> reporter: paul manafort striking a plea deal and agreeing to cooperate with the justice department and special counsel robert mueller's russia investigation. manafort pleaded guilty in washington, d.c. friday to one count of conspiracy against the u.s. and one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice. that is after attempts to tamper with witnesses according to court filings. manafort agreeing to cooperate fully, truthfully, completely on

any and all matters the government deems relevant according to the plea agreement. it is still unclear what prosecutors want from manafort, but the agree requires him to turn over documents, testify in court proceedings and provide interviews to the special counsel. manafort waived his right to have lawyers present. the plea deal is after convictions of eight counts in virginia and was facing another trial in d.c. in exchange for his cooperation, prosecutors dropped a number of outstanding charges against manafort in both d.c. and virginia. president trump allies quickly distanced him from manafort's legal activities, which were related to manafort's business dealings rather than his campaign work. trump's lawyer rudy giuliani saying once again an investigation has concluded with a plea having nothing to do with president trump or the trump campaign. the reason? the president did nothing wrong. still the news is a blow for the president. he has decried mueller's probe as a witch hunt even as mueller

has secured guilty pleas from manafort, manafort's campaign deputy rick gates, and former national security adviser michael flynn. as for trump's former personal attorney michael cohen, he has also pleaded guilty to charges in new york. sara murray, cnn, washington. one remarkable woman is braving florence's wrath in south carolina all to help out some of the state's most vulnerable population. her story and much more coming up. hey allergy muddlers. are you one sneeze away from being voted out of the carpool? try zyrtec®. it's starts working hard at hour one. and works twice as hard when you take it again the next day. stick with zyrtec® and muddle no more®.

a book that you're ready to share with the world? get published now, call for your free publisher kit today! welcome back to our breaking news coverage here in wilmington, north carolina. i'm george howell where we continue to feel the effects of the tropical storm florence now, the winds just now picking up again. not as strong as we've seen in the last several hours, but again, the winds certainly here, the winds are a factor in this storm and rain also a major factor as this storm continues to creep throughout the southeast united states. the storm has proven to be a deadly storm. we understand that five people have died as a result of this major storm. and about a million customers without electricity. recovery is going at a slow

expensive pace. first responders have identified hundreds in need of rescue from the rising water. and here in wilmington, it is important to keep in mind we are under a tornado on watch. and that is because we're in this northeastern quad rarant o the storm. you hear the emergency cue there. because again, we are under a great deal of risk. you see that square there, the red square wilmington right there in the middle as the train effect happens with the storms that continue to bring in moisture, bring in that water from the ocean and just dump it on land. wilmington right there in the middle. new bern it seems in that tornado watch area. but again, not experiencing as much rainfall as they have seen in the past several hours. very, very significant rainfall over the next several days for sure. certainly this is a dangerous storm. a lot of people here across the

carolinas are being impacted by it. nick watt has been following the storm from north miles per hour te -- myrtle beach and explains why it is a serious threat there. >> reporter: we are on what is known as the grand strand, a 60 mile stretch of the beach that is normally sun kissed and welcomes 14 million visitors every year. hurricane florence has changed that. the water is ready coming up and up this beach. the fear here is that onshore winds, this could be a deadly combination. onshore wind, a high tide in the middle of the night, and storm surge. this town has flooded before. hurricane hugo back in '89 destroyed all of the homes along the beach front here. and that is a fear. i mean listen, these houses have been rebuilt up on stilts, but there are hazards behind that are not on stilts. and since 1989, a lot more

people have moved to this area. a lot more people that could be impacted. now over 400,000 people have evacuated from the coast of south carolina. expecting florence to come. here in north myrtle beach, 85% of the people left. maybe 2,000 or so hunkered down hoping for the best. they told us -- one guy told me when it was downgraded from a 3 to a 2, i decided to stay. but listen, the winds may be not as strong as feared, but this storm is still carrying so much water and moving so slowly and dumping all that fresh water inland. and as i mentioned, we have the threat of the ocean. nick watt, cnn, north mrytyrtle bea beach, south carolina. >> nick, thank you very much. now cities and counties throughout the region are now trying to assess exactly what is the impact of this storm. earlier i spoke with tim harper, the county administrator for marian county, south carolina.

and he told me how his county is preparing. >> we still got a little bit of way to go, but we're expecting probably another 10 to 17 inches of additional rain on us in the coming days. >> tim, are you concerned about the need for the work of these rescue you crews that are in position? are you concerned that there are people who will certainly need that help and assistance? >> we are concerned. we've experienced a lot of flooding in 2016 with hurricane matthew. and -- but we're seeing more people are taking heed and are responding to the emergency notifications that we're putting out to seek higher ground and to find shelter. so we have three shelters open now. we have over 350 people in our shelters right now. >> tim, i want to ask you, we're hearing right now that there is a tornado watch where we are right now. is there is a concern that the weather that we're hearing --

that we're seeing is going to get worse for you in the coming hours? >> we expect it probably will in the coming hours, we expect more wind coming in on us as the storm passes through your count and especially the flooding that will come. so we're expecting to have more serious problems coming up. >> tim, over the next several hours, what would you tell people? there are going to be people who are certainly going to be affected by this as the week progresses, people will obviously have to delay some plans. how important is it just to wait to give it a beat for this storm to pass through and give your crews time to be prepared? >> we hope that people will take notice that if they live in a flood-prone area, if there is any possibilities that the area floods, especially if it flooded back in hurricane matthew, that they need go ahead and seek shelter or get inland or get to

higher ground. because the storm is a dangerous storm. they need to be aware of that and to make what changes they need to do to be prepared. >> thousands had to evacuate ahead of this storm. many forced to leave their pets behind. many shelters wouldn't allow pets. i spoke earlier with crystal webb in myrtle beach, south carolina. crystal chose to rides the storm out from her home and now she is on a mission to help those animals that were left behind. >> one of the main reasons i stayed behind, i stayed behind with matthew, and i became aware of just how many people when they evacuate, they just leave their animals to fend for themselves. and these animals needed rescue. so, you know, i took that chance just to put my faith in and said i'm going to be okay, i'm going to be here. and, you know, before the storm i was out looking, you know, i

was getting messages from people all around saying hey, we've heard there is a dog at this address or there is a couple dogs at this address. or, you know, and people have left their dogs in pens or chained up. these dogs don't have a chance for survival especially when the waters start to rise. they will drown. and if we can't get to them, you know, nobody is going to help them if we don't. i do rescues throughout the year, and any rescue is going on to be a risk. i have been injured doing rescues before. but, you know, it is worth it. when you save that dog and you know that dog shows you that love, you bond with that dog because he is showing you appreciation for saving him, because animals know when they have been rescued. and they will show you that love, that appreciation. and they never forget you. i have seen dogs a year or two after i've rescued them and they

act like i was their long lost friend. and just happy to see me. but they never forget. >> in the middle of chaos and crisis, you always find incredible people doing amazing things. we thank you for being with us for our breaking news coverage this hour. this tropical storm slamming the east u.s. i'm george howell in wilmington, north carolina. >> and i'm anna coren in hong kong. for our viewers in north america, "early start" begins shortly. for everyone else on cnn international, stay tuned for more of cnn's breaking news coverage with natalie allen. what do harvard graduates

know about cognitive performance? as you'd probably guess, a lot. that's why a new brain health supplement called forebrain from the harvard-educated experts at force factor is flying off the shelves at gnc. forebrain's key ingredients have been clinically shown to help enhance sharpness and clarity, improve memory, and promote learning ability. and now every man and woman in america can claim a complimentary bottle. just use your smartphone to text the keyword on the screen to 20-20-20. scientific research on cognigrape, a sicilian red wine extract in forebrain's memorysafe blend, suggests not only sharper recall, but also improved executive function and faster information processing. your opportunity to get into harvard may be gone, but it's not too late to experience a brain boost formulated by some of their brightest minds. just text the keyword on the screen to 20-20-20 with your smartphone to claim your complimentary bottle of forebrain. do it now - before you forget. that's the keyword on the screen to 20-20-20.

they have businesses to grow customers to care for lives to get home to they use stamps.com print discounted postage for any letter any package any time right from your computer all the amazing services of the post office only cheaper get our special tv offer a 4-week trial plus postage and a digital scale go to stamps.com/tv and never go to the post office again!

this wi-fi is fast. i know! i know! i know! i know! when did brian move back in? brian's back? he doesn't get my room. he's only going to be here for like a week. like a month, tops. oh boy.

wi-fi fast enough for the whole family is simple, easy, awesome. in many cultures, young men would stay with their families until their 40's. this is cnn breaking news. >> so glad to have you with us. an hour earlier than usual here. good morning to you. i'm christy paul. >> in myrtle beach, south carolina. we continue our live special coverage of now tropical storm florence. the storm that beat on and battered north carolina is now coming south. we're see thing stronger sustained winds here, although the rain has died down. this is not primarily a wind event. the