ooh, did you see that? florida fire bomb. a plant goes up in flames. and dozens of workers manage to escape the inferno with their lives. flossie is downgraded to a tropical depression as it hits hawaii with the storm threatening to soak the islands with several inches of rain. and pope francis makes surprising remarks about homosexuality, saying gays should be integrated into society and asking, who am i to judge? this is the "cbs morning news" judge? this is the "cbs morning news" for tuesday, july 30th, 2013. captioning funded by cbs good morning, good to be with you. i'm anne-marie green. well, a series of explosions destroyed a propane plant northwest of orlando, florida, late last night.

seven people were injured, but no one died. the blue rhino plant in tavares resells propane tanks like the ones used in barbecues. up to 26 people were working the night shift when the first blast blew the roof off the plant. flames that shot hundreds of feet high could be seen for miles. tara mergener has more. >> reporter: a huge fireball shot into the sky, as explosions rocked a propane company in tavares, florida, near orlando. >> like a big circle of fire. >> reporter: the blast started around 10:30 at the blue rhino propane facility, a company that exchanges and cleans propane tanks. at least two dozen employees were in the building at the time of the blast. >> i heard an explosion, and it probably threw me back about three feet. i landed on my butt and i kind

of seen like blurry, and my ears were ringing real bad. all i could see is everyone just running. i just kind of got up and ran. >> reporter: there were more than 53,000 tanks at the facility. >> it sounded like a bomb going off. and hundreds of them. >> reporter: some of the 20-pound canisters ignited shooting into the sky. >> we started seeing the grill tanks, the gas tanks, shooting up in the air. literally, 200 feet in the air. >> reporter: the blast could be felt for miles in every direction. >> people from very far away, towns, six, seven, eight, ten miles from here reporting their homes shaking. >> reporter: officials initially evacuated all homes within a one-mile radius. >> authorities were knocking on the doors evacuating the houses. >> reporter: that evacuation order was later reduced, and police say everyone in the area is now safe. the cause of the blast has not yet been determined.

tara mergener for cbs news. well, this morning, the weather system that was tropical storm flossie has been downgraded to a tropical depression, as it moves over the hawaiian islands. but authorities warn the storm still poses a threat. with wind gusts of up to 40 miles per hour and up to six inches of rain, the storm may still cause dangerous flash floods and mud slides. yesterday, nearly three dozen flights were canceled at honolulu international airport. >> we're hoping to get in on another flight but there's nothing getting out of here so we're stuck here. >> reporter: high surf is expected and about 6500 customers on maui and the big island lost power. a flash flood watch is in effect until overnight. and overseas, one of egypt's top diplomats met with egyptian ousted president mohamed morsi. catherine ashton is in egypt trying to end the bloody crisis. the egyptian brotherhood has called for another day of protests. clarissa ward has more from

cairo. >> reporter: the european union says its top diplomat catherine ashton has met with deposed president mohamed morsi. this is the first time a western official has met with morsi since he was detained after his ouster. earlier this month, according to ashton the spokesperson, the two met late last night and had in-depth discussions for about two hours. ashton has also met with the man responsible for morsi's ouster the defense minister assisi. she tries to work with both to pull them back from the brink. all eyes on the protests where thousands of morsi supporters have been camped out since morsi's ouster. they're demanding his reinstatement. but the government has asked them to leave. they said that needs to happen soon. the concern is that some type of an operation will be

launched in order to forcibly remove them from those camps and that could quickly evolve into a bloody confrontation. here in cairo, the streets are tense today. the muslim brotherhood has called for another big protest. they're saying it's going to be a million man march. and of course, the last time there were big protests here on friday, more than 70 protesters were gunned down and killed by the next day. so certainly, everybody here a little bit on edge. clarissa ward, cbs news, cairo. in washington, the latest round of mideast peace talks resumes tonight. the meetings opened last night with a dinner hosted by secretary of state john kerry jewish settlements, the fate of palestinian refugees and the status of jerusalem remains the critical issues. this morning the president mahmoud abbas said the palestinian state must be completely free of israelis both civilians and militaries. and pfc bradley manning will

learn his fate this afternoon. the former army intelligence analyst faces up to life in eye-n prison in convicted of aiding a military judge. manning has admitted to sending hundreds of thousands of classified documents to wikileaks and he said he leaked the documents to expose war crimes. the fbi says more than 100 children have been rescued from prostitution in a series of raids last weekend. nearly all were girls ages 13 to 17. as jericka duncan reports it's part of a decade-long effort to end child prostitution. >> reporter: the fbi gave a look inside the weekend sweep of the child sex trafficking. the agency released this video that shows some of the 150 pimps and other suspects arrested during a three-day operation. >> i'm pleased to announce that operation cross country 7 was the largest enforcement action to date focusing on the exploiting of children.

through prostitution. >> reporter: operation cross country 7 involves raids in 76 cities. authorities rescues 105 children between 13 and 17 years old. in the past ten years, the fbi innocence lost initiative has saved 2700 children. the fbi said pimps exploit troubled children's needs for food, clothing and a place to live. in fact, one of the victims rescued in a previous sweep was just 9 years old. the fbi released an interview with a young woman named alice who said she ran away from home and at the age of 16 turned to prostitution. >> at first, it was terrifying. and then it just became -- you kind of succumb to it. >> reporter: alice, now 21, eventually contacted the fbi and helped investigators send two pimps to prison. >> it happened. it can't change my future. >> reporter: the crackdown in the national center for missing and exploited children have led to 1300 convictions. most of the pimps were sentenced on 15 to 50 years behind bars.

several received life sentences. jericka duncan, cbs news. new york. coming up on the "morning news," tallying up the loot. new details on the jewelry heist in cannes as the value of the stolen rocks doubles. this is the "cbs morning news." test. with angie's list, i save time, money, and i avoid frustration. you'll find reviews on home repair to healthcare, written by people just like you. find out why more than two million members count on angie's list. angie's list -- reviews you can trust.

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alone. on the "cbs moneywatch," investors turn to the fed. and bmw goes electric. ashley morrison is here with more. good morning. good morning to you, anne-marie. investors are anxiously awaiting for the fed's next statement on the economy. the federal reserve begins a two-day meeting today and on wednesday. they will announce any policy changes. investors will look for any hints on when the fed could end its massive stimulus programs. on wall street, stocks fell. ahead of the fed's big meeting. on monday the dow tumbled 36 points to close at 15,521. the nasdaq dropped 14 points. asian stocks are mostly higher led by gains in china's shares. tokyo nikkei rose more than 1.5%. while hong kong's hang seng rose 0.5%. the battle between cbs and time warner is heating up. the two companies are fighting over retransmission fees.

late last night, time warner threatened to drop the network in new york, los angeles and dallas but backed off after being contacted by cbs. the two sides say they will continue to negotiate. hundreds of fast food workers across the country walked off the job monday. the one-day protest was held in major cities like new york and st. louis. the protesters are demanding the right to unionize, and calling for a raise in the minimum wage from $7 an hour to $15. opponents say giving in to their demands would kill jobs. and bmw is launching its first mass produced electric car. the german auto car unveiled the i3 monday. it can go about 100 miles and takes about three hours to charge the engine. the i3 goes on sale in the u.s. early next year, and costs about $41,000, but incentives could knock 10 grand off that price. those are pretty good incentives. >> yeah, a nice discount.

ashley morrison here in new york. straight ahead, your tuesday morning weather. and in sports, a controversial call at the plate puts one team in first place. plate puts one team in first place. for pain and swelling? apply cold therapy in the first 24 hours. but not just any cold. i only use new thermacare® cold wraps.

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and time now for a check of the national forecast. a cold front moves into the midwest, bringing showers and thunderstorms. heavy rain could cause flooding in east kansas and missouri. showers and thunderstorms are possible around the rockies. and it will be dry in the northeast and south. the mercury could top 100 degrees in parts of the southeast. in sports, with major league baseball's trade deadline looming tomorrow, some divisional races are getting tight. boston and tampa bay battling for first place in the american league eefd. with the red sox trailing 2-1, daniel nava scored. check again, it appears nava beat the throw but it doesn't count and tampa bay wince 2-1. in texas the rangers erase a one-run deficit in the ninth inning. a.j. leading off with a home are to tie it up.

but santo wins it with a walk-off homer to left field. texas wins 4-3. and the cleveland inians complete their strong play. jason yee yamby belts his 406 homer of his career. cleveland is now just 2 1/2 games behind detroit in the a.l. central. in the national league, the pittsburgh pirates move to within a half game in the standings to the st. louis cardinals. pedro alvarez hit a home run for pittsburgh. the pirates send the cards to their fourth straight loss. 9-2, the final. when we return, another look at this morning's top stories. and pope francis makes some waves with comments about gays and the church. hurry in today for the amazing new subway $4 lunch. ♪ at subway!

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compromise could be out of e question. and how one bay area countys cracking down this morning speeding commuters who are "freeway jumpers" join us for kpix 5 news this morning... beginning at 4:3 good morning. it's tuesday, july 30th. i'm frank,,,, here's a look at today's forecast in some cities around the country. washington, d.c., partly sunny today. atlanta will be partly cloudy.

thunderstorms in st. louis. denver, partly sunny, 88, the high. seattle, partly sunny. ♪ here's another look at this morning's top story. a series of explosions destroyed a propane facility northwest of orlando, florida. the explosions began late last night and continued into the morning. the first explosion blew away the plant roof. up two 26 workers were in the blue rhino plant at the time seven were injured, but none were killed. revelations about anthony weiner's sexting scandal has taken a toll on weiner's bid for new york city mayor. weiner's plunge to fourth. in a queinnipiac poll.

the poll after he admitted to exchanging explicit messages with women after he resigned from congress. about half of those questioned say weiner should drop out of the race. and police in washington, d.c. have a suspect in custody following a wave of vandalism at popular landmarks. jiamei tian was arrested yesterday and charged with defacing property. she was taken into custody at the national cathedral shortly after green paint was found splattered inside there. similar paint was found on the lincoln memorial and later on friday, paint was found on the smithsonian. police have know motives for the vandalism. pope francis is back at the vatican this morning following his first trip abroad as pontiff. on the way home, francis was asked about gay clergy. as dean reynolds reports, his brief answer is reverberating throughout the catholic church and beyond. >> reporter: for a pope who spent a week in brazil embracing the multitudes, his words in an 80-minute press conference on board his flight home showed the

lengths and limits of his expansiveness. asked specifically about the presence of a gay lobby in the vatican, francis said he knew nothing of it. but then broadened his answer to gays in general with a compassionate and potentially controversial position. if a person is gay and seeks the lord and has goodwill, who am i to judge that person, he said. the problem is not that one has this tendency, no, says the pope, we must be brothers. >> i don't think gay people in general have felt loved in this church for a long time so they have any indication of being loved of being loved and welcome is huge. >> reporter: michael herman is a gay catholic who quit the priesthood in 2006 after he felt the church intended to purge gays. in the past, the church has called homosexuality a depravity, contrary to natural law which could never about proved. pope benedict xvi said as recently as 2005 that

homosexuality was incompatible with the priesthood. but herman said this pope's tone could have a ripple effect. >> for the kid who is coming out to their mom saying, but the church says this. and they can come back and say, well, the pope just said all people should be welcome. the effects that that will have on parents who have gay children, on gay catholics themselves, i think is extremely positive when all we've heard for many years is negative, negative, negative. >> do you think he's breaking with the vatican? >> oh, no. i mean, he's -- he is not -- his comment had nothing to do with the sexual morality teachings of the church. >> reporter: and on the question of the ordination of women, the pope said the answer is no. that door, he said, is closed. dean reynolds, cbs news, chicago. coming up after your local news on "cbs this morning" cardinal timothy dolan and new concerns about misconduct among tsa employees. i'm anne-marie green. this is the "cbs morning news."

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for decades an unusual fishing tournament has been held off the coast of new york's long island, but this year, they cleaned up their acted and tried something new. chip reid introduces us to some fishermen who are now letting sharks off the hook. >> reporter: 64 sharks were reeled in this weekend during a tournament about 20 miles off the coast of montauk, long island. and for the first time ever in the long bloody history of shark tournaments here, all of the sharks were released. >> see you later, buddy. >> here we go. come on! >> reporter: jason behan, a third generation fishing captain has been catching and killing sharks here since he was a young boy. >> there's a whole different move here now in a tournament where you're not killing the sharks?

>> absolutely. a tournament like this, this type of tournament for the first time is going to change a lot of people's minds. it's going to open people up to, hey, there's another way of doing this. >> you don't need to see them hanging up? >> no, i don't need to see them. it was nice to watch. >> good job, buddy! here you go. >> reporter: montauk is where america's shark fishing frenzy began in the 1970s, led by legendary local fisherman frank mundus who served as the model for the shark hunter quint in the blockbuster movie "jaws." >> i don't know, chief, he's very smart or very dumb. >> the movie "jaws" came out. we wanted to get as close to them as we could. >> reporter: tournament organizers sean and brooks saxton, known as the shark brothers, started out killing sharks but for the past decade, they've been abdicating catch and release. >> we realized we can enjoy

the sport but doing it in a sustainable way. >> reporter: sharks are in trouble? >> sharks are in trouble. certain species are down 80%, 90%, from the late '60s and '70s. >> reporter: much of the demand is for asia, but changing the recreation of shark fishing would make a difference. >> sport fishermen are taking in the trophies and that's the end of it. it's a wasteful practice and one of the biggest problems for declining populations. >> reporter: satellite tracking devices were attached to four of the sharks caught this weekend, this one a seven-foot, 250-pound blue shark was named beamer by the local sixth grade class which plans to track his travels online. >> that's the beauty of satellite tags because any kid, anywhere in the world, can go on and track these fish. we could catch a fish here in montauk today, and it could be in cuba in a few months, in florida. it could be anywhere, and just the fact that kids can see where these fish migrate and keep them interested because that's what we want to get, the next generation that care about these fish. >> reporter: sharks play a crucial role in the marine ecosystem, even creatures with teeth like these sometimes need a little tender loving care.

chip reid, cbs news, off the coast of long island. coming up after your local news on "cbs this morning," we'll go to florida for the latest on the plant explosions that have injured more than a half dozen workers. and we'll speak with cardinal timothy dolan on comments by pope francis on gay catholics. that's the "cbs morning news" for this tuesday. i'm anne-marie green. have a great day. ,,,,

>> your realtime captioner: linda marie macdonald good morning, tuesday is here, it's july 30. i'm frank mallicoat. >> i'm michelle griego. time now is 4:29. welcome back! >> yeah. hope i remember how to do this. it's been a while. >> we missed you. >> you have been gone what, a

month? >> i think it was two. >> i was working out. >> good to have you back. we are back with low clouds and fog out there this morning. temperatures in the 50s. might be warming up. we'll talk about that coming up. >> and outside right now here's a live look at the bay bridge, pretty typical commute right now, quiet getting into san francisco. there is some overnight roadwork through the macarthur maze. a lot of this should be wrapping up in the next half hour. we'll tell you about it. >> thank you, liz. we're following this developing news out of florida where a series of explosions at a gas plant sent seven workers to the hospital. the blast lit up the night sky. this is a live look over what's left of the plants this morning. it all began last night near the town of tarvaris. as cbs reporter tara mergener. >> reporter: , there are no reports of deaths -- as tara mergener reports, there are no