it's wednesday, september 2nd. this morning, making progress. slightly lower temperatures are helping firefighters in california. but this inferno is still burning out of control. nothing left. families face the prospect of starting over, as fires wipe out entire neighborhoods. and their story. the pair of american journalists held by north korea, talk about their captivity for the first held by north korea, talk about their captivity for the first time. captions paid for by abc, inc.

good morning. and happy wednesday. that massive wildfire above los angeles has now been raging for a week. and firefighters admit they're braking progress. >> the fire is still just 22% contained. it's burned a huge area. 199-quire miles. >> and it's taking a personal toll. 6,000 homes are under mandatory evacuation orders. meaning falies are living away from home. carla wohl is live in lakeview terrace this morning. good morning, kara. >> reporter: >> good morning, jeremy. firefighters are making progress against this massive wildfire. as one official put it, the fire is no longer angry, just cranky. the moon reflected the firefight below. but it was a better night for several hundred evacuated residents who were allowed back home. >> it was a pleasure going home, even though it's smoky. it's really bad. you don't appreciate what you have until you really lose it for a couple of days.

>> reporter: firefighters are using the massive canadian superscoopers to douse the flames. and they are finally getting an assist from the weather. the humidity is up, temperatures down. slightly. >> i do not believe that we've totally turned the corner on this fire at this point in time. the fire's laid down. there's still a lot of hot spots out there. >> reporter: in tehunga, winds created dangerous fire tornadoes that danced along the ridge tops and decimated at least 13 homes, including the one john gearset grew up in. >> there's so much loss. when we look at the properties, it's just a list of dollar signs. the memories and the keepsakes and the memorabilia. things you'll never recover. >> reporter: nearby, anxious monkeys were evacuated from the wildlife way station. with the flames dangerously close, all the animals had to be crated up and moved out. >> it's close. and all i can do is pray and

say, you know, god, please, do your magic. >> reporter: the fire is still moving toward mt. wilson. but so far, firefighters have been able to protect the important communications towers and are now confident any damage will be minimal. california has already spent more than half of its emergency firefighting fund. and the peak of fire season has yet to come. live in los angeles, i'm carla wohl. back to you jeremy and vinita. >> the fire so massive. what's the mood of the firefighters now? >> reporter: i think they're feeling somewhat optimistic. this one firefighter said, if it's a boxing match, i think we're even. i mean, the weather is really playing a major role. we're getting higher humidities. the temperature is supposed to moderate, dropping throughout the week. and that really will make a difference for them. and they haven't had the winds. you know? those fierce, dry, santa ana winds that can fan these flames.

and they have not yet had to contend with that. i think finally, they're feeling they're beginning to turn the corner on this. >> carla wohl, in the lakeview terrace section of los angeles. thanks. and among the homes threatened by the station fire, is a place of memories. this home was featured in the movie "e.t." now, it says it looks like the flames are moving in another direction. there are health warnings as far away as denver because of the smoke. at-risk people are being urged to say inside. areas affected the most are in northwest and north-central, colorado. we'll visit actress tippy he'd renn's annual preserve, which is also in danger for the blaze. thousands are expected to return home today, as the danger from hurricane jimena passes. overnight, the hurricane was downgraded to a category 2. here's what it looks like from

the space station a few hours ago. in populated areas, the storm did less damage than officials had feared, however. abc's david kerley is in cabo san lucas. >> reporter: the sun is going down. but hurricane jimena has a bit of a punch. the eye of the storm is about 100 miles offshore and moving north. what you're seeing here is the storm surge. this is all the water being pushed ashore by the hurricane. the good news is we were expecting 10-foot to 20-foot waves. we're in the 10-foot range. there was a problem with a lot of rain early. but there hasn't been any in the past several hours. that is a relief to those in the shantytowns. rain started coming down. streets became raging rivers. and the military and police are trying to move people out. they got a lot of people evacuated. material things are not worth losing your life, this marine tells this woman. like 10,000 others, she makes her home in a dry creek bed.

but it's anything but dry in this hurricane. if this storm does pass, as it has been, those people should be able to return to their homes on so, it looks like the damage expected from hurricane jimena may be less than forecasters and officials predicted. we'll know in just a few more hours. david kerley, abc news, sabo san lucas, mexico. in the atlantic, forecasters are keeping an eye on tropical storm ericka. strap cal storm watches have been posted for the islands in the northeast caribbean sea. in washington, it seems the battle over health care reform and the deadly war in afghanistan are taking a toll on president obama's approval rates. one new poll puts his overall approval at 53% of all americans. that's down from 76% in early february. a major concern for the president is afghanistan. where an apparent suicide bombing killed that country's second-highest ranking intelligence official this

morning. the blast happened at a city about 60 miles east of the afghan capital, kabul. a taliban spokesman that the official was targeted by a suicide bomber. it's unclear how many others may have been killed in the attack. the body of a woman who drove the wrong way on a new york highway back in july, is going to be exhumed for further examination. tests showed that diane schuler was drunk and high on marijuana, before she crashed her suv, killing herself, four others and three men in the suv. her remains will be tested in an attempt to counter the finding that she was intoxicated. the lawyer says she believed she may have suffered from a stroke. vermont has become the fifth state in the u.s. to allow same-sex couples to marry. some couples tied the knot as soon as they legally could, at midnight yesterday. nine years ago, vermont was the first state to allow civil unions. last april, lawmakers voted to legalize gay marriage. to mark the occasion, vermont ice creammakers, ben & jerry,

changed the name of their chubby hubby ice cream, to hubby, hubie. scattered showers and thunderstorms in the carolinas, to florida. widely-scattered storms in tennessee, alabama and kentucky. stormy in the rockies, with heavy rain, gusty winds and isolated flooding. and showers from south dakota to oklahoma. >> upper 70s across much of the midwest. 70s also from boston to atlanta. a oighf 91 in miami. 87 in new orleans. and 92 in dallas. it will be even hotter out west. 105 in phoenix. 93 in sacramento. and 94 in salt lake city. and coming up this morning, oprah proves she can even control traffic in chicago. and money news. did cash for clunkers do more harm than good? plus, after five months of captivity, uniya lee and laura ling are sharing details of their imprisonment for the first time.

new jitters about the nancial system sent stocks sliding overseas this morning. tokyo's nikkei average tumbled 2.4% today. hong kong's hang seng is down sharply. in london, the ftse opened lower. wall street led the decline. the dow plunged 185 points as the banking fears overshadowed upbeat reports. the nasdaq fell 40 points to close at 1968. wells fargo is joining the list of major banks looking to pay back its bailout. it intends to return $25 billion in federal funds shortly.

just yesterday, it was reported that bank of america will pay back part of its bailout. cash for clunkers was a boone to the auto industry last month. but now, not all companies are seeing their sales rise. ford sales jumped more than 17%, compared to a year ago. but chrysler and general motors suffered double-digit declines. august was the best month for the industry in a over a year. but analysts say sales may dry up in the coming months now that the rebates are over. southwest is cutting 1 flight per day on 92 routes, while increasing service on 42 routes. southwest will stop flights on three of its routes. american airlines is cutting more than 900 flight attendants. but it could have been worse. it planned to cut its staff by 1,200 workers. one morning in the

not-too-distant future, you may be watching us in 3-d. sony is saying it has flat-screen tvs. sony and other manufacturers hope 3-d will help boost slumping flat-screen sales. the windy city is bracing for another dose of the "o" factor. chicago has agreed to shut down one of its busiest streets for 48 hours by the request of oprah winfrey. this will be closed starting monday, for the season premiere, starring the black eyed peas. oprah is picking up the tab for security and traffic control. next on your wednesday, we go along with california families, after wildfires reduce their homes to ash. and the mental journalists held by north korea, admit to right color.

welcome back. these are the latest headlines from abc news. president obama'spproval rating is suffering. americans approve of his performance, down from 76% in february. the resort are along mexico's baja peninsula appear to have escaped major damagage from hurricane jimena. the category 2 storm could bring rain to the desert southwest an>> weekend. ttbe> er weather coconditions are helping fire crews in southern california get a handle on the fireses around l.a. some residents have been allowed to go back home. the fires burning in southern california are by far the state's largest. but the most destructive place was not far from sacramento. for many residents in the town of auburn, there's nothing left but memories. >> reporter: it's hard to take it all in. the destruction covering areas that were once people's homes. the first look can be emotional.

many fire victims had hoped they'd find something in the ashes. anything. unbelievably, shanna rasmussen found a purse with old photos intact, one with her sister and niece. and a baby picture of her son. how thankful are you that you have some of his younger pictures? >> i'm more an grateful. more than grateful. >> reporter: over at the willis home, the mission was recover hair loom jewelry. they can't help but wonder if things would be different if they stayed to defend their home. they're thankful, though, they got out alive from the fast-moving fire. >> i wish we would have had more time to evacuate. i lost my wedding ring. a lot of my mom -- you know, hair loom jewelry. >> reporter: jeanette thought she would never have to live this nightmare again. >> when i was 11 years old, we had a house burn to the ground

just like this. >> you figure that's -- >> i thought that was it. >> reporter: in aburn, anyonette miranda, abc news 7 news. this morning, for the first time, we're hearing new details about the nearly five months that two, american women were held inside north korea. >> laura ling and euna lee were reporting on a story about human trafficking. their story appears today in today's "los angeles times." >> they describe the day they were captured. but say it is still too painful to talk in depth about what they endured in prison. the women's saga began on a frigid march morning, on the frozen river between china and north korea. a hired guide took them to an area popular with smugglers. they describe spending about one minute on north korean soil before turning back across the river. once halfway across, they heard shouting from north korean soldiers. they started running.

laura and euna write, we were firmly back inside china, when the soldiers apprehended us. we tried with all our might to cling to bushes, ground, anything that would keep us on chinese soil. but we were no match for the determined soldiers. they violently dragged us back across the ice to north korea. and marched us to a nearby army base. in the early days of our confinement, before we were taken to pyongyang, we were left for a very brief time with our belongings. with guards right outside the room, we furtively destroyed evidence in our possession, by swallowing notes and damaging videotapes. once in pyongyang, they were isolated from each other, put on trial, and sentenced to 12 years of hard labor. two for trespassing, ten for being journalists. theys didn't anticipate their release last month. they said one moment they were preparing for labor camp. the next, they were face-to-face with president clinton, who told them he would be taking them home.

laura and euna continue to cope with mentalening wish, but feel fortunate to be reunited with their families. all they say about their imprisonment is they endured fruent interrogations. they realize people may want to know more. but they would rather direct that interest to the story they were originally reporting about north korean defectors who flee to china,nly to find themselves lured into arrange marriages or the sex trade. and you can read more at l.a.times.com. coming up, a busy first spacewalk for "discovery" astronauts. and kids will be kids, even astronauts. and kids will be kids, even inside the oval office. i'm ftte, ...and i smoked for 29 years. the one thing about smoking - is it dominates your life, and it dominated mine. and the sad thing about it is that you can always use an excuse if cigarettes don't kill me, oh well - something else will. but, you can't use that as an excuse. i honestly loved smoking,

and i honestly didn't think i would ever quit. it was very interesting that you could smoke on the first week. chantix gave me that extra help that i needed to get through a tough time. (announcer) chantix is a non-nicotine pill. in studies, 44% of chantix users were quit during weeks 9 to 12 of treatment, compared to 18% on sugar pill. it is proven to reduce the urge to smoke. i did have an unopen pack of cigarettes in my purse and then i think i opened my purse and realized it was still there. and i said, "what the heck, i don't need these..." ...i said, you know, "bye, i don't need you anymore, you're not my crutch, i don't need a crutch." (announcer) talk to your doctor about chantix th f (announcer) talk to your atthigt r'sht for you.x some people have had changes in behavior, hostility, agitation, depressed mood and suicidal thoughts or actions while taking or after stopping chantix. if you notice agitation, hostility, depression or changes in behavior, thinking or mood that are not typical for you, or if you develop suicidal thoughts or actions,

stop taking chantix and call your doctor right away. talk to your doctor about any history of depression or other mental health problems, which can get worse while taking chantix. some people can have allergic or serious skin reactions to chantix, some of which can be life threatening. if you notice swelling of face, mouth, throat or a rash stop taking chantix and see your doctor right away. tell your doctor which medicines you are taking as they may work differently when you quit smoking. chantix dosing may be different if you have kidney problems. the most common side effect is nausea. patients also reported trouble sleeping and vivid, unusual or strange dreams. until you know how chantix may affect you, use caution when driving or operating machinery. chantix should not be taken with other quit smoking products. as a non-smoker it's wonderful. the best thing that ever happened. the best thing i have ever done besides my husband, and dogs, and family. with the chantix and with the support system, it worked. it worked for me.

(announc ta) lk to your doctor to find out two shus shuttle "discovery" astronauts have wrached up the first spacewalk of their mission. it took them several hours to remove an ammonia tank from the international space station. and earlier, a treadmill, named after comedian stephen colbert, was unloaded on the space stion. book here on earth, it's time for sports highlights. here's anesh shroff. >> good morning. jim thome didn't make his dodger debut tuesday night. remote-control airplane, delayed the game in the sixth inning. in the eighth inning, d-backs could have tied it on this, if not for andre ethier.

spider-manesque. he caught it. ethier taking away extra base hits. and the dodgers survive, 4-3. giants, tied with the rockies in the n.l. wild card hunt. facing the phillies. bottom of four, no score. ryan howard, off jonathan sanchez. 1-0, philly. cole hamels, had six earned runs and ten hits. hamels throws the fourth shutout of his career. phils win 1-0. rockies beat the mets. the giants, a game out in the wild card picture. over in the american league, rematch of the alcs. red sox and the rays. boston had won three-straight entering tuesday. bottom four, carlos pena, his 39th of the year. 8th home run in 11 games. tampa down 4-2. jonathan papelbon gets help from grere cacatch.h.

run n esesn'n't ore.e. reresosowiwin, 4.4. boononeads t the a ariricacaeage wildld carardd standidis.s. >let't's s se i itt b bacacoy ananddininitit a and " "ericica morning." m mayaye ththleader o o t thehe worlrl t t tois kiki,, h he'ss j jusu ananololdd d dadad ththwhwhitithoususee j jt t lel thth p phohoto o oprpresesidenea haha att wkk inn thehe o ovavao stst momoh. it l lkeked l likik b binesas ususuaual, b but ltle e h h kn daughter sasha waslanning a hohoe phphototogographere ththo > > fofoe of you,u,our lalal thth mororng" " ntntinins after this. )

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finally, what happens when a click of the mouse meets the stroke of a brush. >> many artists travel the world to get inspiration for their works. but a self-taught painter in kentucky is canvassing the globe using google street view. >> i get on street view almost every day. and i find something almost every day that i want to paint. ♪ i did a state series. one painting from each state. i think the andrometa tattoo, is one of my favorites. i searcd for salvage yards in google maps.

phoenix salvage yards. i ended up painting a back alley, i think, in savannah. i've never heard of stevenville. i dropped to it, hoping to find something. came up on their town square. here was this huge, plastic cow on top of a sign. there was one, i think it was utah. beautiful rock formations out in the desert, with snow on the ground. beautiful area. and when i saw the view in street view, i thought, man, i've got to paint that. but also, when i saw, inarson city, nevada, coming up on the street light. i looked at that view also, with a gas station. man, i've got to paint that. with the technology today, you can go anywhere you want to go and see things that you've never seen in person, and you probably won't see in person. i hope the viewer of the painting can see what made me stop and say, man, look at that. man, i've got to paint that. and i pe