we will secede. >> lincoln's next moves will determine whether the american experiment survives. will he be remembered as the greatest president of the united states? or the last? live, from cnn center, this is cnn "newsroom" with robyn curnow. hi. welcome to all of our viewers here in the united states and all around the world. thanks so much for joining me this hour. i'm robyn curnow and i do want to get straight to our lead story. the engine failure of the united airlines flight from denver is having some very serious consequences. boeing wants all 777s that use the same engine as that flight grounded. united

united airlines has already done so. temporarily, taking two dozen of their aircraft out of service. and now, a team for the company that makes the engine will work with investigators to look into the flight's engine failure. and i want you to take a look at this. this terrifying video of the engine on fire. u.s. regulators are ramping up inspections of that pratt and whitney engine. officials say the early examination shows two fan blades were fractured and the remaining blades show damage. the flight landed back in denver with all 241 people on board, safe. but here's what happened to the debris. parts of that plane, falling outside a home in colorado. thankfully, fortunately, no one was hurt. meanwhile, the repercussions of this incident are being felt on the other side of the globe. japan is ordering all its domestic airlines to temporarily

stop operating boeing 777s, equipped with that same type of engine. pete muntean is following the story of the united-airlines incident, and has the details on that investigation. pete. >> we are getting our first window into what may have played a major role in that dramatic inflight failure of united airlines flight 328. the national transportation safety board now says one of the fan blades of the right-hand engine of that boeing 777 broke off, damaged another one, and other fan blades. in fact, investigators were able to find parts inside the inner-containment ring of the jet engine. now, begins the process of piecing this all together. and the focal point of the investigation will really be the pratt and whitney pw4000 engine. the one, specific, to the boeing 777 in this incident. in fact, the faa has ordered emergency inspections of the fan

blades on the pratt and whitney pw 4,000. and united airlines says it's reef removing all of its boeing 777-200s that includes. united airlines the only operator of that with that specific engine in the united states. even though the pratt and whitney, a workhorse in civilian and commercial aviation. more than 2,500 of them, in service. pete muntean, cnn, washington. >> thanks, pete, for that. so let's go to japan now where the transportation ministry is ordering all-domestic airlines to stop flying these boeing 777s equipped with pratt and whitney engines. bl blake essig joining me live for more on that. blake, hi. yeah, robyn. japan, the first act. but, you would be hard pressed to believe they are going to be the only country to move forward with the idea of grounding domestic airlines that operate

this boeing 777 aircraft with the pratt and whitney pw 4000 series engine. here in japan, there are two -- two air lines that have those planes in their flight. japan airlines and nippon. they operate 19 and 13 planes, respectively. now, the japan transport ministry has not issued a timeline regarding how long this suspension will take place. but they did say, essentially, that safety concerns and studies will need to be addressed, before that suspension is lifted. robyn. >> and there is, also, some suggestion that there was a concerning incident involving some of this equipment back in december. tell us more about that. yeah, robyn. japan is unfortunately familiar with the problems that boeing, you know, experienced just -- just yesterday in -- in denver. it happened, late, last year.

december 4th. there was a plane flying from okinawa to tokyo, that was forced to make an emergency landing back in okinawa. it was a japan airlines flight. they reported that the left side of the plane, the front-engine cover, essentially, fell off during the flight. nobody was hurt but, again, this is now the second time that we are seeing a similar problem. and explains why japan was, likely, so quick to act. now, cnn did reach out to boeing, as far as that incident back in december. and they didn't have a comment. again, the big question here is japan's the first act. will other countries follow, robyn? >> okay. thanks for that. good to see you, blake essig there in tokyo. aviation analyst joins me now from london. alex, hi. i want to get your take on all of this because, clearly, this is a catastrophic failure that we saw. luckily, no one was injured or -- or hurt. and one that could be repeated, that boeing seems to fear. what's the problem with these

blades? >> well, as you have seen, they are taking quick action. but, of course, with so many incidents, we often see the foreign nations take that action faster than the home country of the manufacturer, itself. and this was the case with this incident. so, japan started things off by not only restricting all of their own triple 7s powered by these engines from flying but they have actually banned all aircraft powered by these engines from even entering japanese airspace. really, setting the bar there with the ban. shortly followed by announcement by the united states with the faa who have specifically said that the fractured fan blades have played a significant part in what is a very initial part of this initial investigation, as to exactly what happened. you know, robyn, this was dramatic. as you say, this is an aircraft type this is the workhorse of the skies. the boeing triple 7. if you have ever flown a long-haul flight, i can almost

guarantee you have flown onboard this aircraft type. but combined with those engines, the pratt and whitney pw 4,000. these are the engines that are now under the international spotlight, and while they are only in service powering the 777 in the united states with united airlines but in south korea and japan, also. we anywaknow they have had to c forward and reassure the aviation world, that they will be keeping a very close eye on this investigation playing an active role because this was a dramatic incident. we have the inlet, which is that outer, silver ring of the engine, totally separate from the engine, itself, coming down into suburbs around denver. of course, it's being reported a lot as if it were debris and some of it was debris. but actually, these were large, major aircraft parts falling from the sky, from the engines. and it's -- it's shaken not only airline customers who are operating these aircraft. but also, the wider-aviation

community and the public, given that boeing can't seem to catch a break right now with the headlines. >> yeah. and i mean, absolutely. and also, if you were wone of those folks seeing one of the parts of the engine coming down at you around the suburbs of denver, that wasn't too pleasant, either. i do want to ask you, though, about all those passengers on the plane. i mean, how lucky were they? i mean, we saw this engine on fire. these blades could have punctured, perhaps, the main body of the plane. how lucky were they? >> well, the engine, to a certain extent, did exactly what w it was supposed to do after it suffered its explosion. so after engine number two had exploded, the intention is to keep everything contained within the engine casing. and that's to avoid any situations, as you say, like, heaven forbid, a situation where fan blades, ultimately, leave the aircraft and have the ability to slice into the

fuselage, where, of course, passengers are sitting just centimeters away. but this was a testament to the professionalism of the pilots and the crew. to the aircraft and the engine, itself. yes, of course, it has suffered in this dramatic way. but ultimately, the majority of the interior part of the engine, so those fan blades, they were kept inside. of course, the investigation shifts to the parts that ultimately became separated. but, of course, the passengers will be feeling very lucky. these were very dramatic scenes. and given the modern day of social media, we have this extraordinary footage of passengers filming a very dramatic scene of the engine on fire. i will update you, with the developments in the last few moments, which is that korean airlines. they are the operator of the 777 with this engine type in south korea. they have grounded their active fleet of triple 7s powered by these engines for many of the operators, including in japan, and also, in the united states with united. most of these aircraft were already on the ground in long-term storage because of the

pandemic. >> that's interesting. and, of course, cnn just needs to confirm that. but, an indication, perhaps, of just how serious this is in terms of the widespread concerns about this anomaly. y but you rightly point out about these pilots, alex. extraordinary piloting not just bringing them down but also safely landing. >> exactly. ultimately, all pilots are trained for these type of circumstances. there wasn't an error made in the textbook return of this aircraft making a safe landing. of course, and it's something that they're training for. you know, aviation prides itself with continuing to be the safest form of transport. you're probably most in danger in the whole-air-travel process, in the taxi ride to the airport. so aviation continues to go on even in the pandemic, with all implications and even with these high-profile sufferings and the reputation damage that boeing is suffering right now. of course, this is unlikely to be a global story for too long because there are only three

operators, worldwide, to operate this combination of aircraft with those engines. but nevertheless, this is a very important investigation that is now under way with all parties involved. >> alex there, thanks so much, aviation expert. appreciate you sharing your expertise there. thank you. >> thank you. so officials in the netherlands are investigating an incident that is eerily similar to what happened in colorado. so, just listen to this. several cars and houses were damaged when pieces of metal fell from the engine of a boeing 747 cargo plane shortly after takeoff on saturday. two people on the ground were slightly injured by falling debris. the plane was diverted to belgium, and was able to land safely. it's worth noting that, while both boeing planes had pratt and whitney engines, the issue with the fan blades that caused the problem in colorado was specific to the 777. we'll keep you posted on all of those developments. meanwhile, still ahead on cnn. covid cases are falling in the u.s. and around the world.

but is this because of vaccines? or could it be another factor? a health expert weighs in ahead. plus, the energy collapse in texas has led to a different crisis, as residents line up for bottled water. we'll get a report on the storm fallout from houston. that's, also, just ahead. and i'd like your best new smartphone deal. oh do ya? actually it's for both new and existing customers. i feel silly. but i do want the fastest 5g network. oh i want the fastest 5g network. are we actually doing this again? it's not complicated. only at&t gives everyone the same great deal. like the samsung galaxy s21 5g for free when you trade in. start your day with crest 3d white and from mochaccinos to merlot, your smile will always be brilliant. crest 3d white brilliance. 100% stain removal, 24 hour stain resistance to lock in your whitest smile. crest. the #1 toothpaste brand in america. (soft music)

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the u.s. death toll from covid is steadily approaching half a million people. the country is expected to reach this disturbing milestone in the next few days. it will be just over a year after the first american death was reported. now, the good news, though, is daily infections and hospital admissions are declining but experts say the public must still double down on safety measures. >> it's something that is historic. it's nothing like we've ever been through, in the last 102 years, since the 1918-influenza pandemic. it really is a terrible situation that we've been through, and that we're still going through. and that's the reason why we keep insisting to continue with the public-health measures because we don't want this to get much worse than it already is. >> u.s. president joe biden plans to mark this grim death

toll next week with a candlelit ceremony at the white house. erin bromage is a professor of biology, specializing in immunology, at the university of massachusetts dartmouth. he joins me, now, from west port. thanks, very much, for joining us, aaron. lovely to see you, again. so we have nearly half a million people dead from covid in the u.s., in just the past year. dr. fauci's right, when he says it's devastating, isn't he? and this is far from over. >> yeah. this really is far from over. i mean, we -- everyone seems to be, you know, breathing this collective sigh of relief, right now. and yet, we've still got more people in hospitals than what we did, at the peak in april and even the summer-time peak. so there's a long way to go just from this wave that we had over december or january. we can see the end of the tunnel here. but we've still got a pretty strong, big fight to go, to get all the way to the end. >> and how on earth-- these var

especially the ones find in uk and south africa. do you think they'll be dominant and in circulation in the u.s., for example, in the next few months? >> yeah. so the b.1.1.7 variant, that was originally identified in the united united kingdom, looks like it's going to be the dominant variant that we are going to see worldwide for a while, now. it, certainly, is more transmissible. there's some really interesting evidence to suggest that people infected with that variant are able to transmit the virus for longer. so, they have a much-longer, you know, period in which they can infect others, which allows it to find more hosts, more quickly. so, we are seeing it start to, well, you know, it roared through the uk and then denmark and ireland. you know, we are now seeing it in florida, really pick up steam there. you know, los angeles. it really is starting to, you know, gain momentum. and it's going to be the -- the thing that really determines what the next four, six, eight,

weeks actually looks like for much of the world. >> and i think you have analyzed how infectious this variant is in an actual setting, in a scenario. tell us about that. >> yeah. so, you know, part of the -- the work that i'm doing is working with different industries to -- to get them back and get them up and going, again. and we actually came across the variant. we were able to identify it through sequencing. and unlike many of the cases that i have seen up until now, where an infected person maybe gets infected on a sunday, for example. and then, they start transmitting on a wednesday or a thursday. what we found, with this one, was the person got infected on a sunday. by tuesday, they were infecting other people. and they're infecting other people, not just in close proximity, but over a distance, eight, ten feet away from them. those people, subsequently, developed an infection that could be transmitted to others, by thursday. so we actually went through two serial intervals in the time

that, in the past, we've seen only one. so, two rounds of going through people. so, it was scary to observe, to sort of witness this, not firsthand with me, but be brought in to actually look and see what's going on. and it's just like, it takes your breath away when you can see just how quickly it can move through a population. >> certainly, a warning for what might be coming. but with that in mind, we are seeing numbers dropping not just here in the u.s., but in places around the world. is this because vaccines are slowly kicking in? is this the slowing aftermath of the holiday period? why are we seeing these graphs go like that? >> yeah. the drop in numbers is really quite perplexing, at the moment. and i mean, a lot of people are putting out different ideas about why -- why it's happened. so one of the things that did happen, almost globally, was the -- the holiday period started to synchronize infections around the world. so, in the u.s., you know, we had a number of holidays, back

to back to back, that made the whole country sort of uniform in the way it was infected. united kingdom and europe, we had the same type of holidays there. so everyone saw this surge, at roughly the same time. and then, what happened is, you know, the lockdowns, the restrictions, the cir circuit breakers, whatever you want to call them. and people's risk. as you start seeing those case numbers surge and hospitals fill up, more people become risk averse to being infected and actually pull back what they are doing. and then, we had the rollout of vaccines, which did have an effect. it's not a big effect, yet. but the more people who get vaccinated or the more people that get infected and become immune, the more effect things, like mask use or lowering the number of contacts that you actually have, really have on lowering transmission. so, we are seeing a lot of different effects, at the one

time, actually cause this really sudden drop in infections everywhere. i -- you know, that's the -- i think, the best that we can come up with at the moment because it is a little perplexing. but it's really what happens, now, in the next three or four weeks. do we keep going down? does it stabilize? does this b.1.1.7 variant start taking over and, you know, infecting people at a faster rate? it really is an unknown for -- for me and, i think, many scientists right now, what's going to happen. >> okay. always good to speak to you. erin bromage there, thank you very much. >> thank you, robyn. warmer weather is in the forecast for many texans but the crisis brought on by last week's deadly winter storm continues. thousands are still without electricity and there are long, lon long lines for food and bottled water. natasha chen has the latest from houston, texas. >> we lost power, on sunday night, and we got it back wednesday. things have defrosted enough that we are able to get in and

check out stuff. and we had lines that were just gushing water. so now, we've got zero water in the house. turn it off until somebody can come out here to start fixing things. >> reporter: rachel stephens was without power and water for days. now, her family is left to clean up the damage left behind from frozen pipes. conditions found now across much of the state. >> right now, with so many homes across the city having pipes that burst because of the frigid weather and major leaks, major-water damage, we need a lot of plumbing materials and supplies, like right now. >> reporter: in the meantime, texas officials are investigating the massive bills some customers who pay variable rates for their energy are now facing. >> i am trying to get, you know, gas and groceries and make sure that my pipes don't explode. the last thing that i am thinking about is a $7,000 bill from my utility company. >> all of this iswas foreseeabl. i wrote about it in 2011. and so, for this exorbitant cost, it's not the consumers who

should assume that cost. they -- they're not at fault. >> well, who should then? >> the bill should go to the state of texas. >> reporter: calls for accountability are, also, coming from the other side of the aisle. >> this was preventable. this wasn't a -- a -- a problem with any, individual-fuel source. this was a problem of lack of leadership, and lack of long-term planning. >> we all have a voice and we all need to use it, accordingly, because there's a lot of people in leadership that are just really just chilling in cancun. >> reporter: also, this weekend. embattled, texas senator, ted cruz, is tweeting pictures of himself handing out bottled water to residents. he's been under fire after being spotted jetting to cancun with his family, while many texans suffered through the storm. >> look. when a crisis hits my state, i'm there. i'm not going to go on some vacation. i know, mr. cruz called it a mistake and he's owned up to that but i think that was a big mistake. >> reporter: state leaders are

now turning their attention to address those skyrocketing energy bills. the governor said today the public utility commission called an emergency meeting to issue a moratorium, as well as to restrict electric providers from sending invoices at this time. abbott said that would allow time for them to address those huge energy bills. >> natasha chen there reporting. so coming up here on cnn. protestors are marching in myanmar even as the country's military leaders threaten violence. we'll bring you the latest. stop struggling to clean tough messes with sprays.

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lovely to have you back with me. it's 28 minutes past the hour. i'm robyn curnow. welcome to all of our viewers here, in the united states, and all around the world. so, story we have been following here, at cnn. myanmar's military leaders are warning protestors that they will, quote, suffer the loss of life, unquote, if they keep up their civil-disobedience campaign. but abctivists aren't planning o stop. the leading pro-democracy group calling for historic demonstrations today. tens of thousands of people have held marches and rallies, every day, for more than two weeks. and those demonstrators have already suffered the loss of life. crowds are holding a vigil for two protestors, who were shot and killed by police, just this weekend. and the u.s. secretary of state is promising, quote, firm action, against anyone who commits violence against the protestors. i want to talk about all of this with paula hancocks. paula is covering this from seoul. hi, paula.

good to see you. why don't you just talk us through the quite dramatic images that we're getting out of myanmar? and also, this threat from the military to the protestors. >> well, robyn, we are seeing significant numbers of people coming out onto the streets. this is what the movement wanted, this monday. they had called for an historic day, as to the amount of people that have come out. they called on people to -- to close shops, to close businesses, and to come out onto the streets. calling for the reinstatement of their democratically-elected government. and it seems as though that call has been heeded. there are massive numbers on the streets, in different cities around the country. but as you say, there is that ominous warning that we did hear from the military. this was on the state-run military channel. this was saying that they warned protestors they will, quote, suffer the loss of life. now, the military has been saying that the protestors are inciting violence. and saying that this is the

reason that, over the weekend, that they had to return fire, as they put it. now, it was the most deadly weekend since the february-1st coup. two people were killed, two protestors were killed on saturday. and also, the first casualty, one died on friday after having been shot in the head about ten days, earlier. so, certainly, there is a great concern, at this -- this military warning. we did hear from the u.n. special reppertore, a little later on in that tweet, he also says unlike 1988 which was when there was a brutal-military crac crackdown with the uprising then. actions are being recorded and you will be held accountable. and this is really the -- the consistent message that we are hearing from the u.n., from the u.s., that the world is watching. and you will be held

accountable. talking to the military, in the hope that that would prevent them from using force against the protestors. robyn. >> paula hancocks there, thanks for that update. we will continue to monitor those pictures and those street scenes coming from myanmar thought the day. paula, thank you. so china thinks its relationship with the u.s. has been damaged, immeasurably, by the trump administrationment the country's foreign min sister delivered that message in a speech earlier today. >> translator: in the past few years, the u.s. had cut off bilateral ties at almost-all levels. and that became one of the main reasons of the deteriorating relationship. we are always prepared to start an open-and-public dialogue with the u.s., that is aimed at solving problems. >> china, also, says it's making human-rights progress. but the u.s. accuses it of carrying out genocide against uighur muslims and other minorities. coming up. it was one year ago today that

europe saw its first glimpse of what life under covid lockdown would look like. we'll take you to italy, where it all started. that's next. pnc bank believes that if you can get a pair of goggles that helps with h your backhand. yeah! ...then you should be able to get a bank account that helps with your budget. (laughs) we created virtual wallet® to help people save and spend smarter. easily see the big picture of your finances... ...and set up alerts to help avoid overdrafts. you see that? virtual wallet® for digital banking. on start your day with crest 3d whiteerence at pnc bank. and from mochaccinos to merlot, your smile will always be brilliant. crest 3d white brilliance. 100% stain roval, 24 hr stain resistance to lock in your whitest smile. crest. the #1 toothpaste brand in amica. myudible library is just like scroll scroll scroll scroll scroll scroll, 's a lot. i downloaded audible and really, really enjoyed it.

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monday marks one year since italy's first coronavirus lockdown. and the first lockdown in europe. the images of those silent streets, and auexhausted medics spooked the continent, and certainly poignant of things to come. so, dealia gallagher joins me from rome. dealia, hi. i can't believe. it's been a year. the longest year. and also, like yesterday, when we were speaking when things, suddenly, shut down in italy. just give us a sense of how -- how the country and all of you there are doing. >> well, you know, robyn. like for everybody around the world, it's been a very tough year. particularly, for italians in the beginning. nobody really knew what to expect.

that first case that happened in the tiny town of cardona, italy, that triggered a national lockdown, the first of its kind in europe. we returned there, robyn, one year later to speak to some of its residents. here's where they had to say. february 21st, 2020, is a date the people of italy will never forget. it was here in this tiny town that italy's first case of covid-19 was reported. resulting in a complete lockdown of their town, and the beginning of what would become a national and international pandemic. this resident says it was the mother of all tests. we live differently, now. the mayor says he still gets goose bumps when he remembers that day which took them all by surprise. seeing the risk in europe, he

says was practically zero. nothing. instead, it was among us and had already stricken. from that first patient, italy has seen the disease spread to more than 2.7 million citizens and close to 100,000 have died. 324 people died in the town from covid in the first three months, alone. in a town of only 16,000 residents, this past year has taken its toll. we lost so many friends, says resident dario. so many relatives and they are never coming back. cardona was the first town to go into strict lockdown. the model was soon followed by other towns and eventually the entire country. one year on, residents echo sentiments felt by many across italy. >> it's crazy. i don't want to live like this, anymore. no. it's -- no. no.

>> reporter: the mayor is optimistic that things have improved. last year, we were really fighting bare handed, he says, an enemy that we couldn't see and didn't know. this year, we make giant steps both in prevention and in diagnosis. the mayor says he is proud of his town. a frontline, he says, where the battle was fought and where resistance and resilience continue. >> and, you know, robyn, resilience is still being required of italians. still, under curfew. under travel restrictions. but win thone thing has changed. italy has a new prime minister. mario draghi just installed last week. while respected economists and many hopes are pinned on him not only for the vaccine rollout plan to help speed that up. but, also, importantly, for an

economic recovery plan for this country. robyn. >> yeah. with that in mind, what do we know about -- about the vaccine-rollout plan in italy? >> well, italy, like many countries in europe, robyn, is having difficulty receiving the right amount of vaccines. they have begun their rollout plan for residents who are over 80 and for health-care workers. but the emphasis, right now, is on trying to get enough vaccines from the companies, in order to cover all italians in the shortest amount of time possible. so that's where the emphasis right now is, especially, with this new government. to try and work out how best they can get those vaccines to all of their citizens in a short amount of time. robyn. >> thanks so much live in rome. thank you. so, thanks for watching cnn. i'm robyn curnow. for all of our international viewers, world sport is next. enjoy that.

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welcome back. i'm robyn curnow. so in the coming hours, president joe biden's nominee for attorney general is set to go before senators, for the start of his confirmation hearing. and we are already learning what judge merrick garland plans to say during his opening statement. arlette saenz has the details from washington. arlette. >> president biden's pick for attorney general, merrick garland, will be in the hot seat for his confirmation hearing, up on capitol hill. garland is expected to talk about his commitment to the rule of law, and, also, will be talking about that insurrection up on capitol hill on january 6th. garland will be speaking about

the plans for prosecuting those rioters that were involved. he is expected to say, if confirmed, i will supervise the prosecution of white sp supremacists and others who stormed the capitol on january 6th. a heinous attack that sought to disrupt a cornerstone of our democracy. the peaceful transfer of power, to a newly elected government. now, garland is, also, expected to face some questioning from republican senators about those federal investigations into new york governor andrew cuomo. and also, joe biden's son, hunter biden. there is also the possibility that there could be questions into possible investigations into former-president trump. now, biden has insisted that he wants his justice department to be independent. that he wouldn't be interfering in their decision. so, that is something that garland will, likely, try to stress, as he is pitching himself before this committee, later today. >> arlette saenz there. and while the senate takes up

more of joe biden's nominees, the house is pressing ahead with the president's $1.9 trillion stimulus package. the biggest hurdle? a proposed minimum wage hike that even some democrats aren't on board with. here's suzanne malveaux. >> a very busy week here on capitol hill, as democrats say that the aid that is desperately needed by millions of americans will be on its way, just weeks away. this is a $1.9 trillion covid-relief package. the democrats, pushing it through without the support of republicans. they point at things that they believe all americans will appreciate. the $1,400 in stimulus checks. the enhanced-unemployment aid assistance for small businesses. for vaccine distribution. for schools, as well as state and local governments. the main, sticking point here, however, the minimum wage, the increase, $15 an hour. now, that is something that progressive democrats are pushing for. saying it is essential that it be a part of the covid-relief

package. >> the president came out, very strong, early on, saying he wanted a $15 minimum wage in this bill. he has been fairly consistent on that. i know there are questions about whether or not the senate can get it through. but i can tell you, dana, this $15-minimum-wage increase would mean 30 million americans would get a raise. a million americans would come out of poverty. and 30% of those minimum-wage workers are black. 25% are latinx. it is, absolutely, essential that we do it. and i believe, the senate will do it. >> the senate parliamentarian must, actually, approve of that increase. the minimum-wage increase, that it is not an extraneous provision inside of this budget bill. it is a reconciliation process. the rules are pretty tough there. but also, there are several democrats who are calling out against this provision, as well. it is not likely to survive this

massive-covid-relief bill. but americans, rest assured, they believe that the relief will come. it will come, quickly, and is on its way. suzanne malveaux, cnn, at the capitol. mexico's deputy-health minister says his country is expecting its first shipment of the russian, sputnik v vaccine to arrive on monday night. it comes amid anger and frustration over the pace of mexico's vaccination effort, so far. >> reporter: has been waiting a long time to stand in this line. the 65-year-old, about to be vaccinated against covid-19. he says, honestly, there's been some flaws but at least they've gotten started. the process is slow. but it's moving. and the vaccine rollout here is picking up speed. more people have been vaccinated in just the past week, than in the previous, two months. the government says, all health-care workers will be fully vaccinated by this week. all people, aged 60 and older, are now eligible. and mexico, also, has agreements

in place to secure up to about 232 million doses of different vaccines. >> translator: the mexican president said we're doing well for getting them and yet despite all of that, mexico is woefully short of vaccinating its people. as of saturday 6.5 million doses have been administered. .3% of the population has been vaccinated. the u.s. has done 50 times that number. though it has agreements, it's unclear when they'll actually get here. >> we have this uncertainty on how many doses will arrive into mexico and when. we really don't know. we're just guessing. >> reporter: the government has said 900,000 doses will get here by next week and hopes to get millions more in march, but the vast majority of expected doses have no set in stone delivery

schedule. cnn repeatedly asked the health ministry for time lines but officials refused to answer. it has been slow and confusing. his mom couldn't get a vaccine this day. her mom lives with her in the neighborhood that the clinic services. her mom's official i.d. said she lived somewhere else so vaccine denied. she said, i'm very, very angry because i've taken someone out who hasn't walked to the corner and they won't give her some way. the 87-year-old cooped up. he was denied a vaccine with the same problem with his i.d. she says, i'm super frustrated because everything is badly organized. they don't give you any clarity. examples like that make juan manuel happy.

so in he went to get his first dose. in mexico how many can follow him and how quickly is an open question. matt rivers in mexico city. british prime minister boris johnson will soon announce his plan to lift the lockdown. his biggest priorities are getting kids safely back into school and reuniting people with their loved ones. this will be done in phases starting march 8th but only if the ongoing vaccine program continues successfully. there's evidence the vaccines are reducing hospital admissions and deaths. there's not been another surge in hospital admissions and if new virus variants don't fundamentally change the government's risk assessment the. now covid infections are falling in england. more than 17 million people across the u.k. have received their first vaccine dose. a south carolina woman is now among the oldest people in the world to be fully vaccinated

against the coronavirus. at age 111 this is the second pandemic she's been through, she's also lived through two world wars. gary tuchman has her story. >> reporter: maria allenbacher is the oldest known person in the state of south carolina. one of the oldest people in the united states. on this day the 111-year-old is getting her second dose of the covid vaccine. maria allenbacher, now one of the oldest people in the world to get the vaccine. she lives with her daughter and son-in-law near the blue ridge mountains. two of her children and great grandson live nearby. she was born in germany and lived there a long time. more than a century, in fact. incredibly shortly after her 100th birthday she moved across

the ocean. >> omi, it's sunny and beautiful again in south carolina today. isn't it so nice to live here? >> yes. yes. it's beautiful. >> reporter: maria is incredibly optimistic. she loves her family, reading, naps. has a daily ritual that she's convinced has increased her longevity. >> ms. maria, what is the secret to living to 111 years old? >> i drink beer, i eat what i like. >> maria was a little girl during the first world war and in the influenza pandemic. she became a widow more than 75 years ago. her daughter and son-in-law say she's had to be strong. >> we look forward to seeing her every morning come out cheerful, ready to have breakfast, a couple of cups of coffee and take on the day. >> reporter: how important was

it to you that your mother get that he is vaccines? >> well, we kind of felt like it's -- it's a civic duty. everybody has to get this vaccine because if you ever want to get over this, we all have to go and have the vaccine. >> reporter: maria is well aware she is now a role model. >> i'm ready to get the shot. >> i really feel blessed i can have her for such a long time and i hope i can have her for many more years. >> how old do you want to be? >> reporter: like metusula, she lived to 969 years old. i hope you get there. i think if anyone can, it would be you. gary tuchman, cnn, travelers rest, south carolina. >> what a nice woman. thanks to gary for that story. finally, moving to a new

home we all know is hard enough on its own, but physically moving the house itself is even a bigger challenge. i want to show you these pictures before we go. that's what happened in san francisco when a tall victorian home was transported through a narrow street by a truck. dozens of people lining up to watch this as crews moved the new building to its new location. it's the first time the city has seen a move like this in some 50 years. it reportedly cost the homeowner about $200,000 in fees. that's something. thanks for watching. i'm robyn curnow. it's been lovely having you the last hour. connect with me on twitter and instagram. @robyn curnow cnn.

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hello and welcome to our viewers here in the united states and all around the world. you are watching "cnn newsroom" and i'm rosemary church. just ahead, airlines taking action after an engine failed on a boeing 777 scattering debris over colorado. within hours the u.s. will hit 500,000 deaths from covid-19 as medical experts plead for vij against from americans. mass protests in