first to david mattingly in louisiana. the community is a virtual ghost town, and a place with a new challenge tonight, looting. david? >> reporter: that's right, john. looting is a component of just about any natural disaster, and just as authorities have tried to stay out in front of the flood, they now want to try to get out in front of the looting. t the problem they have now is the flood is not coming as fast as they hoped it would. when people thouggot the evacua orders, they thought the water would be up to here now. instead we have big ghost towns, these empty houses on dry land, and authorities are very concerned, keeping an eye in this parish alone, on about 700 empty houses. but the sheriff here is also taking it a step further, preparing water patrols to go out onto the water to watch for waterfront houses, to take care of them. also to be prepared for when the waters do get here to take advantage of the boats, to get to these house where the looters themselves may be using boats to go in. we saw one house today

that's where cnn's david mattingly is. ically around the mississippi. this one wasn't built with tax dollars. it's not maintained by the army corps of engineers. this was put here and is being worked on right now by one family. a family that's been in business, trying to protect its business that's been on the banks here for the last hundred years. and now this family that's been in business for five jeb rations generations is fighting the flood of the century by building this wall between it and the river. take a look at what we see so far. see how high the water is? it's usually about 100 feet that way to the river's edge. but look at where the lumber yard is. the jones lumber company here. it's down in a bowl. if this levee breaks, all of that's going to be gone. this family's legacy at this point is clearly on the line. >> we're trying to keep this thing going for the community, you know, and for these generations is what we're trying to do. and if we fail, we fail. you know, and if we fail we'll just say, well, we trie

cnn david mattingly has the latest as that city braces for the worst. >> reporter: just a little overuld have been standing here on dry land. but now this area along the mississippi river in memphis, completely under water, as the water continues to rise. memphis now is one big city trying to hold off one very big flood. city parks already flooded and water creeping closer to houses by the day. people in memphis watch the rising mississippi river and wonder. >> how high will the water get? you know, who is most at risk? which land sits lower. >> reporter: the mississippi river floods of 2011 are expected to break records to the north of memphis this weekend. and then. continue setting high water marks as far south baton rouge. in 1937 city officials tell me the river rose all the way to here where i'm standing which is four blocks away from the river banks. but there have since been big changes. a school flood walls, gates and levees developed since the 1950s should keep the city dry. but it's a system that's never been hit with this much water. >> they never been tested. but all of t

david mattingly, cnn, natchez, mississippi. >>> coming up next, a man battling brain cancer goes on ao make the technology we use every day safer. >>> but first, the average adoption in the united states can cost tens of thousands of dollars. this week's cnn hero decided something needed to be done after she adopted her two children. her organization helps parents adopt without breaking the bank. >> i don't care how you become a mother. it's a miracle. one is making the other laugh. it's the greatest noise ever. i waited a long time for that kind of noise. chase and brooke are both adotted. it was over $100,000 in after-tax money paid in full, paid up front. an adoption in this country can cost between $30,000 and $50,000 depending on the situation. there are plenty of loving homes out there, and the only obstacle is the cost of adoption. my name is becky fawcett, and i help people get adoptions by awarding them grants. it's the same dream, i dreamed of being a mother. our applicants are heard working applicants. >> she's the light of my life. she's everything to me. the the instrumen

cnn's david mattingly joins us live from memphis with more on the task ahead for residents in mississippi and elsewhere in the flood region. hi there, david. >> hi, hala. what we're looking at right now is an amount of water that no one has seen in the mississippi in generations. there's so much water here that it's pushing flood control systems to their limits all up and down the mississippi. i had an exclusive interview with a man in charge of that system, and he tells me about a grave decision he had to make early on in in flood and why he had to make this decision again before this is over. levees blown up, flooding 130,000 acres of rich missouri farmland and this is the man who gave the order, but the army corps of engineers major michael walsh now finds his decision questioned and misunderstood. >> in a sense are you playing god here, deciding who gets flooded and who doesn't? >> no, i don't believe that. i don't believe that. walsh's order to blow the levees did prevent record floodwaters from overtopping levees at illinois. now we find that that was just the beginning. walsh tells

our david mattingly is there. >> t.j., as the flood makes its slow relentless rise into memphis, people here are in a very nervous guessing game. should i stay or should i go? four days from its projected peak in the mighty mississippi is not done with memphis by a long shot. a few houses already in the water. the owners apparently heeding evacuation warnings. but neighbors on a little higher ground still not so sure. >> it's 45 now, it's supposed to come to 48. if it goes over 48 -- >> how much faith do you have in those predictions? >> goodness, i don't know. >> all along the banks, water pushes into areas that haven't seen flooding in generations. anything that isn't protected by a levee is in danger of being covered by the relentless waters. some of the worst damage so far is no where near the river front. what the water in the mississippi continuing to rise, the water in the tributaries and other rivers around memphis have no where to go. the result is what you see here. widespread flooding and disruption miles away from the mississippi. and as you look at all this damage, city off

david mattingly, cnn, natchez, mississippi. >>> well, 41 minutes past the hour.out doomsday today. the prediction that one california pastor made. why you might not be expecting the rapture the cdc is actually trying to get you ready for zombies. this is not a joke. it's there on their website and the man behind it. you'll meet him after the break. ooo. sounds pricey? nah, with the hotels.com summer sale, you can find awesome deals for places nearby. interesting... wow, i'm blown away. you look great. hotels.com summer sale, save up to 30%. and get a free kindle. hotels.com. be smart. book smart. >>> all right. we're a quarter to the top of the hour. with all the tornadoes and flooding and everything else, would you believe it's time to start worrying about hurricanes. karen maginnis, as i bring you in. hurricane season is upon us. >> we dealt with a lot this year. an awful lot. >> yes. >> these folks have along the gulf coast, we dealt with an oil spill last year. they were hoping nothing would develop in the gulf of mexico. a couple things did, but the steering

david mattingly, cnn, memphis. >>> south of tennessee in neighboring alabama, tornado victims are living day to day overwhelmed by the devastation around them. cnn's reynolds wolf joins us live from the hard-hit city of tuscaloosa. reynolds, it wasn't just state officials touring the disaster zone this weekend. but apparently a few entertainers have come out including the likes of bill cosby. why and what's the message? >> reporter: absolutely. we've all been really been focusing in on tuscaloosa and with very good reason. but there are many places around the alabama that have been devastated by this tornado. pratt city, a smaller community just to the northwest of downtown birmingham, as we go to the video, i want to show you this video. you can see a couple of people, one of the people you mentioned, very familiar to just about everyone tuning in. we have mayor william bell of birmingham but bill cosby touring pratt city. i think both of them really taken aback by the damage, specifically in that area. >> what i've seen of trucks and maintenance things coming to clear up, as long as th

david mattingly, cnn, tuscaloosa, alabama. >> 13 mm people watch got gree" and his star.almost made "time" magazine's 100 list for most influential people in the world. he's a role model to millions of fans and hobb knobbing with celebrities. >> you bowed to lady gaga? >> well, she had a crown on. >> and he's even met the president. >> he said, hi, i'm chris. and when i get nervous i get high pitched so i'm like, hi, chris. >> and somebody who knows the first president better than anybody else. the first brother-in-law. >> what do do you say when you see him? >> mr. president or the guy who goes to his left all the time on the basketball court. >> michelle's brother, craig. this is "piers morgan tonight." >> google chris and you'll get more than 2.5 million results, "glee's" overnight sensation, fans hanging on his every word. he's here and i, too, will be hanging on your every word. >> thank you, thank you. >> i don't know why i do this to myself because i picked up "entertainment weekly" the cover, which has eluded me so far. >> it's coming. >> two copies of hollywood r

>> david mattingly in tuscaloosa. more on alabama's tornado recovery in our top stories.et innapolitano will visit. >>> the usda's food pyramid will go the way of the dinosaur soon. the department of agriculture is expected to reveal a new icon on thursday in a renewed effort to improve the nation's health and diet. what will it look like? the pyramid will be replaced by a dinner plate. >>> and former republican vice presidential candidate sarah palin, remember her? she's kicking off a national bus tour today in washington, coinciding with rolling thunder, the annual war veterans motorcycle rally in the nation's capital. >>> save money and help the troops. it's as easy as snip, snip. the king of coupons is coming up next with some tips to slim down your grocery bill, and more. ♪ things are gonna get easier ♪ ooh-oo, child, things will get brighter ♪ ♪ ♪ someday, yeah [ male announcer ] wherever you are, whatever it takes, like a good neighbor, state farm is there. ♪ yeah, let's check out the horses under the hood! show me the carfax. show me the carfax. horsepower, foxpow

tuscaloosa had a month to begin its recovery and that's where our david mattingly is tonight. >> reporter: tuscaloosa's tragedy occurreded just a month ago when the tornado touched down here and devastated neighborhood after neighborhood. we came here now to find an abundance of hope in this city, but recovery is moving slowly. one month since a monster tornado killed 41 people here. tuscaloosa, alabama, offers little hope for a quick recovery to the victims of more recent tornadoes in places like joplin, missouri. what's this over here? >> that's my grandson's tent. >> reporter: on the outskirts of tuscaloosa i find gail hard nn a moment of despair. >> today it just hit me that i'm not ever going to be able to go back home again. >> reporter: after living in tents for weeks with her family, almost everything harden had still sits in a massive pile next to the road. letting go of the life she knew has been the hardest thing of all. >> i don't know how to start over with everything because everything's just dirt and debris. but i got my family and we'll make it. >> reporter: a

david mattingly, cnn, tuscaloosa, alabama. >> you're in the cnn newsroom for this special report. this special joplin memorial service this sunday, may 29. it's going to begin any minute. live pictures of all those who have a ticket and a seat in place. president barack obama is also there. he's seen for himself the destruction that left behind the destruction of last world series eek tornado and he also met face to face with many of the survivors. our dan lothian is traveling with the president. he's also there in joplin. casey wian is there and jacqui jeras has more. dan, let's start with you, the focus here, his message to the people of joplin. >> reporter: the message being that the federal government will be here to assist inny way possible. he'll be delivering the remarks in a short time. he did get a chance to meet them up close, shake their hands. he promised that the federal government would take on this tragedy. that it was not just their tragedy alone but it would be a national response. also promising the federal government will be here long after the cameras lead. so

david mattingly is in one of the most threatened areas, in memphis, tennessee.d how serious of a situation are folks dealing with? >> reporter: suzanne, this is a riverfront park. it's completely under water. to illustrate how this flood is moving this spot where i am standing a little over a day ago was dry land. you can see how deep it is behind me. that lake behind me was a parking lot. if there were cars parked in it, the water would be up to the windows or higher. officials have identified the houses and businesses that will be vulnerable as this floodwater continues to rise. it may come up about another two feet and crest on wednesday. they are going to those properties, finding the people who live and work there and letting them know today now is the time to pack up and plan to move because by the time the water gets to your front yard, like it has here, then it's going to be too late. but the city has a vast system of flood walls, levees, and they have been calling in volunteers to develop sandbags to place around important buildings just in case one of

david mattingly, cnn, tuscaloosa, alabama. >> from the cnn center in atlanta, i'm drew griffin.ext.cnn, tuscaloosa, alabama. >> from the cnn center in atlanta, i'm drew griffin. piers morgan is next. >> the tender age of not quite he's already made "time "magazine 1 hurricane list of the most influential people in the world. he's a role model to millions of fans and hob knobbing with celebrities. >> i bowed to lady gaga. she had a crown on. >> he's even met the president. >> what did he say to you? hi. i'm barack. >> i get high pitched when i get excited. "i'm chris." >> someone who knows the president who's better than just about everybody else. the first brother-in-law. >> what do you call the president? >> when i see him i call him barack or mr. obama or mr. president. the best one is that guy who goes to his left all the time on the basketball court. >> this is piers morgan tonight. >> google chris colfort you'll get more than 2 million results. millions of fans across the country hanging literally on his every word. he's here now and itune will be hanging on your every word

david mattingly, cnn, natchenat mississippi. >> worry and wait. the waiting game continues.eorologist ivan cabrera at the world weather center. ivan. >> we're cresting in some areas, but it's also -- it has risen, expanded here in geography. it's just amazing what it's done. i'll share the map with you here, and you can appreciate the distance we're talking about. here is the area that's covering, of course, that's being impacted by this disaster. the mississippi, where is it in this blue here? there it is winding around as where it should be. it is now 40 kilometers wide. it's about 25 miles. incredible stuff, the likes of what we are not going to see for the rest of our generation. it is a 100 to 200-year plight. we talk about what people are doing to protect their homes. this is one of the most amazing pictures that i've seen. if the mississippi has tried to swallow your home, what do you do? do you leave, build sand bags? >> no. these folks have built a stadium. they will not have neighbors by the time this is done. if the levees do hold, they'll be the only ones certain

and cnn's david mattingly has that side of the story for us in new orleans. >> reporter: open floodgates, inundated floodways. thousands hit by floodwaters, so new orleans stays dry. the alternative, city officials say, would have been worse than katrina. >> we do live in a bowl, so there's going to be quite a bit of water, maybe 20 feet, 25 feet of water throughout the city. could easily happen. >> reporter: without the diversion of massive amounts of water by the army corps of engineers, this flood would soon be pushing water over the new orleans levees. with the morganza spillway opening, the rising mississippi is abruptly cresting here a week early. at 17 feet, it is still just 3 feet from going over the top. just 3 feet from the top. that still sounds like a near miss to me. >> well, again, it is -- we're watching this very careful. we are not out of the woods yet. >> reporter: and that, in part, is because of what the flood could do to commerce at this major port. if this water comes up just one more foot, then the coast guard could have to make the decision to shut down river traf

david mattingly joins us downstream in nach chtchez, mississippi where the flood is expected to crestarmy corp of engineers is keeping a watchful eye on that yazoo levee but the backwaters are already claiming property. what's the situation where are you? >> reporter: the situation is the same thing we've seen all up and down the mississippi. right now we are waiting for the crest here just as we've seen a little further north, just as we saw last week in memphis. the water creeping up to that crest, that historic level. right now all eyes are a little further north of here on the mainline levee along the mississippi here in the state of mississippi. the army corp of engineers addressing what they're calling a sand boil where water has been undermining one of the levee structures that they have there. they say it isn't a big problem but they expect to see a lot of things like this popping up as this water continues to press against the levee system all up and down the river. they sent a large number of dump trucks to throw a lot of dirt an stone at it to make sure it doesn't get any w

and david mattingly is in memphis where the people are obviously closely watching the river rise. >>ity parks already flooded and water creeping closer to the houses by the day. the people in memphis, watching the rising mississippi and wonder. >> how high will the water get? you know. who is most at risk? which land sits lower? >> reporter: the mississippi river floods of 2011 are expected to break records to the north of memphis this weekend, and then continue setting high water marks as far south as baton rouge. the river is expected to crest in memphis at 48 feet, the highest it has been in generations. >> memphis has not seen that much water since the disaster trodisasterous floods when i am told that the water came all of the way here which is four blocks from the river banks. but since, there are big changes to keep the river back, and a system of flood walls and gates and levees developed since the 1950s should keep the city dry, but it is a system that has never been hit with this much water. >> they have never been tested, but all of the subject matter experts are telling u

cnn's david mattingly joins us live from tusk tuscaloosa with a preview. >> reporter: people in joplin can see their futures. there have been significant steps forward. streets are now clear. the water is back on. and electricity is being restored to neighborhoods by the day. there are also significant things to point out like the house behind me. there are very large areas where it looks like the tornado just hit yesterday. i had a long conversation with the mayor of tuscaloosa and he tells me the time has come for a lot of tough decisions to be made by individuals on what they're going to do and the city has some tough decisions to make as well. >> we've moved 300,000 cubic yards but when you go around tuscaloosa it looks like we were hit by this tornado yesterday. and that is difficult because you hurt. you hurt for the people who have lost so much and there's just no easy path out of this and you have to be prepared for this long road. >> reporter: that is such an underestimate there. a long road indeed. what we've seen is that the city of joplin and city of tuscaloosa are linked n

david mattingly, cnn, tuscaloosa, alabama. >> from the cnn center in atlanta, i'm drew griffin. piers morgan is next. >> 13 mm people watch got gree" and his star. he's almost made "time" magazine's 100 list for most influential people in the world. he's a role model to millions of fans and hobb noboknobbing with celebrities. >> you bowed to lady gaga? >> well, she had a crown on. >> and he's even met the president. >> he said, hi, i'm chris. and when i get nervous i get high pitched so i'm like, hi, chris. >> and somebody who knows the first president better than anybody else. the first brother-in-law. >> what do do you say when you see him? >> mr. president or the guy who goes to his left all the time on the basketball court. >> michelle's brother, craig. this is "piers morgan tonight." >> google chris and you'll get more than 2.5 million results, "glee's" overnight sensation, fans hanging on his every word. he's here and i, too, will be hanging on your every word. >> thank you, thank you. >> i don't know why i do this to myself because i picked up "entertainment weekly" the c

. >> david mattingly, thank you. here's how you can help. log on to cnn.com/impact. check out our special page. it's all the tools you need that you can help make a difference. i'm drew griffin in atlanta. piers morgan is next. >>> i'm at the flamingo theater in las vegas, current home of american pop icon donnie and marie osmond. >> i'm a little bit country. >> and i -- ♪ i'm a little bit rock and roll >> they gave me an interview in which marie talks about her remarriage to her first husband in vegas. >> we are grateful for what we have now and he is my best friend. we have history and my children love him. >> she talks emotionally about the death of her son last year. >> it doesn't heal. it just -- god gives you respites. you know, just little breathers. you know, he's my baby. >> donnie gives great advice to justin bieber about life after being a teen idol superstar. >> if i was justin bieber, what would you say? >> put on the seat belt. it's going to be a bumpy ride. >> and the pair of them also explain how they look so good after 40 years in the business. you a

. ♪ >>> cnn's david mattingly joins us now on the phone from memphis.erstand there was a confirmed tornado in midtown memphis. what can you tell us? >> what we saw was a spectacular sight, was a wall cloud, the leading edge of this storm front that's across the mississippi river, headed east through the city of memphis. this spectacular wall cloud appeared to have some rotation in it. at least that we were able to see from here open the ground. no defined funnel that was formed with this. and there was some rain and some very vivid lightning coming out of it. from our vantage point no tornado. there is a tornado warning here in the memphis area for this county. we've been listening to sirens going off for about the last half hour. but we saw the dramatic cloud coming through. now there's actually a huge hole in the clouds above us, some sunlight streaming in to downtown memphis right at the moment. very dramatic. some rain falling. again, some vivid lightning off in the distance as this continues to move to the northeast. and you might be able to hear s

david mattingly, cnn, mississippi. >> it is the judgment day according to camping.vangelist preacher is saying that this catastrophic event will begin with a major earthquake and a sweep through the globe. this prediction has some believers shoving aside their homes and others many with their loved ones. prepared to be swept up to heaven. one of these billboards or put up into the bay area, the judgment day is may 21st. it's the bible. he's it. camping, a retired civil engineer a this same prediction 13 years ago but the error is mathematics ms. speculations. skeptics are even throwing parties what is going to be the failure. his mathematical-spec mistakes. >> u.s. airways who were kicked off a flight at sfo last week. this dispute was because of the rudeness of an airline attendant, so far there is little satisfaction. >> hazelwood, and his girlfriend were reporting and s f o charlotte flight but was delayed because of bad weather. he's a with that after a flight attendant got on the intercom numerous time telling passengers face missing the connections and chart c

historic level of floodwater back in a way they never would have been able to back in the 1930s. >> david mattinglyis. david, appreciate you as always. i want to turn to chad myers. chad, we often see the flash flood watches and warnings when the flood water can come up on you, but this is not the case. this is a slow-moving deal and people know it is coming and still they can't do anything about it. >> completely different story. this is a dreadful watching paint dry while your house is inundated by water type of flood. flash flooding is dangerous when cow don't know how deep that water is, and especially at night. when the water is coming up. this is not flashing. it is just rising. there is nop soing itch the force of the water, no stopping it. here is where memphis and mud island is outside of memphis there. is the pyramid there somewhere. you see memphis a little bit up on a little hill, and bluff, and that bluff will help memphis all of the way out, but if you get north and south of memphis where the levee system does not help you, that is where the flooding will be, and why? why is it so bad

cnn's david mattingly. >> reporter: one month since a monster tornado killed 41 people here, tuscaloosavery to the victims of more recent tornadoes in places like joplin, missouri. >> what's this over here? >> that's my grandson's tent. >> reporter: on the outskirts of tusk loose sashgs i find gale harden in a moment of despair. >> today it just hit me, you know, that -- that i'm not ever going to be able to go back home again. >> reporter: after living in tents for weeks with her family, almost everything harden had still sits in a massive pile next to the road, letting go of the life she knew has been the hardest thing of all. >> how to start over with everything, because everything's just dirt and debris. but i got my family and we'll make it. >> reporter: a thought echoed daily across tuscaloosa as small signs of hope slowly emerge. the streets are finally clear. water is back on. electricity returns to more homes by the day. but one thing hasn't changed. so many neighborhoods like this remain in pieces, abandoned, lifeless ghosttowns. in fact, if you look around and look at all thi

. >> reporter: david mattingly, cnn, winfield, alabama. >> with the killing of osama bin laden, you canama bin laden has topped the fbi's most wanted terrorist list more than ten years now. now that he is listed as deceased on this list, we want to look who might become the fbi's new number one most wanted terrorist. number two is adam gadahn, an american, born in california and moved to pakistan in 1998 at the age of 20. he is charged with treason and supporting al qaeda. the fbi offers $1 million for his arrest. number 3, daniel andreas from san diego. number 4 on the list, ayman al zawahiri, al qaeda's second in command, said to be the intellectual and ideological force behind the terror group. a trained physician and bin laden's personal doctor. he is wanted in connection with the 1998 u.s. embassy bombings in africa and 9/11 attacks. he is charged with murder. for him, there's a $25 million reward for information leading to his arrest. number 5 on this list, fahd ahmed al quso, wanted in connection with the bombing of the "uss cole." >> this is a picture of ground zero. president o

david mattingly is in memphis. what are you seeing?, carol, just a little over a day ago, i would have been standing on dry land right here. this is a slow motion disaster. the mississippi river coming up one inch by an inch and an inch at a time. it is giving officials here a lot of times to prepare and today, they will be going out identifying specific areas around the city where properties are probably going to be in danger of flooding and they are going to be telling those property owners, now is the time to start packing up and making plans to move. don't wait until this river is sitting in your front yard. now, strangely enough, we are looking at a possibly a very close to a record here in memphis. the last record was back in 1937. the river went four blocks into the city at that time. we are not going to see anything like that because of all the levees and floodwaters they have in place. the big concern is the rivers that empty into mississippi. this is going to push waters back up into the tributaries. that's what they are watc

. >> reporter: david mattingly, cnn, alabama. >>> a lot of people weighing in on bin laden's death, includinge's been asked about his death. according to the l.a. times, he says that he may have deserved compassion and forgiveness as a human being but "forgiveness doesn't mean forget what happened. if something is serious and it is necessary to take counter-measures, you have to take counter-measures. the bin laden question came up yesterday during his appearance at the university of southern california. >>> we are a couple of minutes away from the blitzer in "the situation room." wolf, you are going to hear from the chair of the homeland security, peter king. and i remember him speaking yesterday. he's seen the pictures and he says they should have been released? >> he says they should have been released. i'm not so sure he's seen the pictures. i don't think he's physically actually seen the pictures. but, you know, he respects the president and says, this is a decision that the commander in chief has to make and he's not going to criticize the president on this. he does disagree with the wh