cautious optimism, firefighters gain ground against california's biggest wildfire. >> right now if i were in a boxing match, i think we're even today. so we're not at the upper hand yet. breaking their silence, the american reporters freed from prison in north korea now admit they did cross the border. and sins of the father, bernie madoff's two sons may have to pay millions to their father's victims. captioning funded by cbs this is the cbs morning news for wednesday, september 2nd, 2009. good morning, and thanks for

joining us, i'm michelle gielan. there are glimmers of hope against the battle of the california wildfires. fire crews report significant process, and some evacuation orders have been lifted. elizabeth sanchez is in california this morning. good morning, elizabeth. >> god morning, michelle. the flames here in the angeles national forest have slowed. and behind me, there are some hot spots, and although it's a little hard to see right now, there are some hand crews back there trying to put the hot spots out. >> reporter: california firefighters now have nearly a quarter of a massive wildfire near los angeles under control. >> this is our first increase in containment since the beginning of the fire, and that's been due to a little bit due to the weather. >> reporter: higher humidity and cooler temperatures should continue to give crews a bit of a break today. they've been battling fierce flames for a week now, lighting backfires and attacking from the sky.

>> it was just amazing to watch. they were fabulous. >> reporter: this glendale resident witnessed firefighters moving into her neighborhood when the flames were just feet away. >> they knew exactly what they were doing. nothing to worry about. >> reporter: despite progress, fire officials remain cautiously optimistic. some residents have been allowed back into their homes, but still, thousands of others remain under a mandatory evacuation. >> if the temperature should go up again, the humidity comes back down again, it could be a very angry fire again, we're not out of the woods. >> so far, the fire has torched more than 127,000 acres and destroyed more than 60 homes. >> it's a little, you know, anxious to watch this going on. but i see a lot of firefighters and a lot of fire trucks back there and i feel confident they're going to take good care of the property. >> reporter: while full containment will take a couple of more weeks, california lawmakers are already worried about how much cash they're burning through. this round of wildfires has cost

the state $106 million. that's most of its fire fighting budget just two months into the fiscal year. now, let me show you what's burning in this area. this is dried brush and it's all over the hillside, fuel for the fire, the fire is now 22% contained, and although the weather helped, the fight is not over, there is a possibility of dry lightning strikes today. reporting live, elizabeth sanchez, cbs news. >> thank you for that report. about 800 miles southeast of l.a., hurricane jimena is battling mexico's peninsula. jimena was a powerful category four hurricane when it started skirting near the cabo coast. the popular area with american tourists was pounded with high seas and torrential rains. it has now weakened to a category two with 110-mile-an-hour winds. laura ling and euna lee, the two american reporters

imprisoned in north korea for over four months are breaking their silence about their arrest. they returned to the u.s. last month after former president bill clinton won their freedom. ling and lee said their guide led them across a frozen river into north korea and they said "they were firmly back in china when the soldiers apprehended us." newly released letters are adding to the fury over britain's release of one man convicted of bombing pan am flight 103 over lockerbie, scotland. megrahi was freed last month on supposedly compassionate grounds. many families of the 270 locker bie victims were outraged. and new documents showed britain negotiated with libya for years with the release. >> the british government stands accused and indeed the prime

minister stands accused of double dealdeal iingsdealings. on the one hand saying they wanted him executed, and on the other hand saying they wanted him released. a suicide bombing this morning in afghanistan killed the deputy head of afghanistan's intelligence agency. the blast hit a crowd of government officials in a town 60 miles east of the capital city of kabul. the taliban says the bomber was targeting the intelligence chief. he was at a mosque when the explosion went off. on the cbs -- excuse me. afghanistan will top president obama's agenda today and he and his family head to camp david to wrap up their end of summer vacation. there the president will get his first look at a classified assessment of the war. as charlie reports, it will not be easy. >> reporter: shifting strategy

in the fight against the taliban. that new plan could include more troops. general stanley mcchrystal is expected to ask the president to send additional u.s. service members into the country. but top aides in the white house are worried that the american people won't support that idea. a new cbs news poll shows less than half of the people surveyed approve of how president obama is handling the war. administration officials are doing their best to keep expectations in check. >> we're not going to see the entire thing turn around in a few months after years and years of neglect. >> the poll also shows a majority believe the u.s. should be pulling troops out of afghanistan instead of sending more in. but commanders are facing stepped up attacks by taliban fighters. august was the deadliest month for u.s. troops since the war in afghanistan began eight years ago. and another service member was killed by a roadside bomb tuesday. making matters worse, two weeks

after afghans went to the polls, there's still no clear winner in their presidential election, but there are charges president karzai supporters engaged in massive fraud. president obama's expected to spend much of the long labor day weekend working on the new u.s. strategy in afghanistan. he's trying to find a way to victory abroad before he loses more support for the war at home. charlie d'agata, cbs news. stock markets in asia took heavy losses this morning. karen brown with more. >> and good morning to you, michelle. in asia the markets were down this morning. japan's nikkei dropped nearly 250 points. september is notoriously a bad month for wall street and is starting out just as expected despite encouraging news for housing and manufacturing. the markets took another tumble yesterday. the dow lost 185 points, the nasdaq fell 40. the financial sector led the

selloff as investors are concerned that more banks may fail. but wells fargo says things are going so well, they want to repay their $25 billion in bailout money. they want out from under the government's thumb and to ease scrutiny over executive compensation. and a new report out today says that half of the 20 financial firms that grabbed the biggest chunks of bailout money gave their executives a raise of sorts. the top executive saw the value of their stock options increase nearly $90 million. and the auto numbers are out, but not everyone came out ahead. only ford saw a big jump in sales. chrysler lost business because it ran out of fuel efficient cars and low inventory was a problem for general motors. and we were going to do this story yesterday, but well, you know, we put it off. today is national fight procrastination day. it helps people get organized and get motivated. michelle? >> karen brown here in new york, thanks. and just ahead on the morning news, ramping up the

fight against h1n1 as kids return to school. plus, the greatest muhammad ali gets in touch with his irish roots. plus, harry smith has a preview of cbs evening news. according to experts 3 out of 10 people lie on their resumes, but a growing number of employers are trying to catch would be employees who stretch the truth. versus 100 in the other leading brand and a taste you'll find... [sluuurrrrpppp!] irresistible. light & fit. great taste, fewer calories. ...that only lasts four to six hours? i discovered claritin has a new 12-hour. it works all day, so i can make it to the top. (announcer) introducing the only non-drowsy 12-hour allergy medicine. new claritin 12-hour. live claritin clear. this is humiliating. stand still so we can get an accurate reading. okay...um...eighteen pounds and a smidge.

a smidge? y'know, there's really no need to weigh packages under 70 pounds. with priority mail flat rate boxes from the postal service, if it fits, it ships anywhere in the country for a low flat rate. cool. you know this scale is off by a good 7, 8 pounds. maybe five. priority mail flat rate boxes only from the postal service. a simpler way to ship.

it was a sentimental journey back to ireland for muhammad ali, the three-time heavy weight boxing champ visited the home of his great grandfather abe grady. ali suffers from parkinson's disease and made no public comments. his wife said irish blarney may be part of his legendary way with words. a powerful earthquake in

indonesia has everyone on edge and triggered a tsunami alert this morning. the quake registered a preliminary magnitude of 7.4 and struck off the main island of java. on the cbs health watch, fighting the flu. the obama administration is saying that quick-spreading characteristic of the h1n1 virus may create serious problems. so the new school year is prompting preparations to try to prevent a major outbreak. drew levinson reports. >> reporter: as classes begin at schools and colleges around the country, students are learning a lesson about the spread of h1n1. >> you don't know who has it. they may be carrying it. >> reporter: since april, more than 1 million americans have come down with h1n1 or swine flu, and it has killed about 500. now the white house says in a worst-case scenario, about half the country could catch it and up to 90,000 people could die. president obama met with senior officials to outline the government's response to the virus.

>> i don't want anybody to be alarmed, but i do want everybody to be prepared. >> reporter: dr. peter gross says the latest strain of h1n1 will likely spread quickly. >> you're going to find it erywhere. you'll find it on doorknobs, you'll find it on telephones. >> reporter: administrators at schools across the country are doing what they can to fight the flu. here in new york, they plan to give out free vaccines as soon as they become available. >> our current plan is to offer them to students in every elementary school in the city, public and private. >> reporter: one long island school district is taking drastic measures, saying no to hand holding, chest bumps, and high fives. >> the high fives, i think, just to cut down on the transmission, it's probably a good idea. i think it's a good way to prevent. >> reporter: in chicago, hand sanitizers fill the classrooms and hand washing at least twice a day is mandatory. with a new school year starting, america is trying to find a way to close the book on h1n1, or at least make it a short story.

drew levinson, cbs news, new york. straight ahead, your wednesday morning weather. and in sports, the bronx bombers live up to their name in baltimore. i never thought it could happeto me... a heart attack at 53. i had felt fine. but turns out... my cholesterol and other risk factors... increased my chance of a heart attack. i should've done something. now, i trust my heart to lipitor. when diet and exercise are not enough, adding lipitor may help. unlike some other cholesterol lowering medications, lipitor is fda approved to reduce the risk... of heart attack, stroke, and certain kinds of heart surgeries... in patients with several common risk factors... or heart disease. lipitor has been extensively studied... with over 16 years of research. lipitor is not for everyone, including people with liver problems... and women who are nursing, pregnant, or may become pregnant. you need simple blood tests to check for liver problems. tell your doctor if you are taking other medications, or if you have any muscle pain or weakness.

this may be a sign of a rare but serious side effect. i was caught off-guard. but maybe you can learn from my story. have a heart to heart with your doctor... about your risk. and about lipitor. dinner with the girls tonight. mmm... mexican, or italian? i really want dessert tonight. i better skip breakfast. yep, this is all i need. ( stomach growls ) skipping breakfast to get ahead? research shows that women that eat breakfast, like the special k® breakfast, actually weigh less. the special k® breakfast, now in blueberry. so why skip? when you can eat all this... and still weigh less. victory is... sweet. here's a look at the weather in some cities around the country. new york, sunny, 75, miami, thunderstorms 88, chicago, 74, denver, 89, los angeles hazy

sunshine and 86. and time now for a check on the national forecast. the latest satellite picture shows it's a crystal clear morning for the midwest to new england. but skies are gray over florida after last night's downpours. later today, thunderstorms will be scattered across the plains and southeast. most of the west remains dry and it'll be another gorgeous day from the midwest to the northeast coastline. in sports, it looks like the phillies have the old hammel's back. fired a complete game, two-hitter. at one point sitting down 21 straight batters. hammel's win for the first time since july. to the al and the red sox rays and tampa, red sox getting a boost from stellar defense and center by elsbury. sox win 8-4 and are now up 3 1/2 games in the wild card race. in baltimore, yankee catcher

jor hjorge pasata starts to return o the dugout only to realize it's just strike two. relax. two pitches later, he connects to left on a two-run homer. his second on the night. yankees beat the oriels, 9-6. and in tennis action, safina needed two sets to last the opening round. olivia ragowska. no women's top seed has lost in the first round in tournament history. and the sons of convicted swindler bernard madoff could be forced to pay up. ♪ yes, you're lovely... ♪ what do you think? hey, why don't we use our points from chase sapphire and take a break? we can't. sure, we can. the points don't expire... ♪ there is nothing for me... ♪ there's no travel restrictions...

we could leave tomorrow. we can't use them for a vacation. you can use the points for just about anything. i know... ♪ the way you look tonight ♪ chase what matters. get your new chase sapphire card at chase.com/sapphire. [ announcer ] you make healthy choices every day-- oh, max! and you want to do the same for your laughable, lovable dog. [ barks ] that's why purina fit & trim is specially formulated... with high-quality protein, including delicious real chicken, to help him maintain lean muscle and a healthy weight, so he can make the most of every day. long live your buddy. long live your dog. purina fit & trim.

on the cbs morning news, here's a look at today's weather. it'll be another beautiful day from the midwest through the northeast coastline. the southeast will remain wet,

the plains will hear thunder, and the west coast stays dry. here's another look at this morning's top stories. wildfires are still raging across california this morning, but firefighters report progress. and there's renewed outrage over britain's release of former libyan spy convicted of bombing pan am flight 103 over lockerbie, scotland. newly released letters showing britain spent years over the negotiation. investors who lost money in madoff's ponzi scheme may not get much back. his properties are being sold off and now his sons may also be forced to pay up. chief investigative correspondent reports. . >> reporter: cbs news has learned the court-appointed trustee overseeing the madoff

case is ready to up the ante on behalf of the victims. irving picard is going after his sons and his brother. >> there is a limit to what we can say. >> reporter: one source says picard will seek an excess of $50 million, including at least $30 million in loans to the sons. he is not accusing them of wrong doing, instead his goal is to recapture money diverted from bernie madoff's massive ponzi scheme. >> he's trying to get money back for the benefit of creditors. people who weren't entitled to receive it. >> reporter: other sources say picard intends to force the madoffs to reveal all of their assets. everything from bank accounts to fancy homes, including this one on nantucket island bought by mark madoff and his wife for $6.5 million in cash. money directly transferred, cbs news has been told in june of 2008rom the bank account of

bernie madoff investment securities. we wanted to ask mark madoff about the potential civil lawsuit. we caught up with him and his wife on the streets of new york. >> are you worried about losing your home? >> reporter: where his wife took exception to our question. >> mr. madoff? >> reporter: and mark madoff had only this to say. >> have you talked to your dad? >> i have no comment. >> reporter: before scrambling away. in a statement, a lawyer for the brothers said they had no knowledge of the fraud that they are the ones that turned their father in and continue to cooperate fully with authorities. still, it may not prevent picard from going after every asset that madoff gave to any member of his family. cbs news, new york. former manson follower susan atkins could be denied parole again. she goes before the parole board for the 13th time. she has terminal brain cancer and has been a model prisoner who admitted to killing sharon

tate in the murders 40 years ago. atkins is the longest serving woman in california's prison history. i'm michelle gielan, and you're watching the cbs morning news.

light & fit has 80 calories versus 100 in the other leading brand and a taste you'll find... [sluuurrrrpppp!] irresistible. light & fit. great taste, fewer calories. it

will be strongly recommended. >> reporter: but infectious disease