but our t.j. holmesto one couple who took refuge in a barely used closet and saved their lives. >> you guys are accustomed to severe weather in the midwest and this part of the country. when did this start to feel any different? >> this storm, even though initially to me started like pretty much every other storm that we know, we hear the warnings on the television and we keep an eye out the window. >> when idid your own personal alarm bells going off? >> they were downstairs eating and i was upstairs watching tv, like i said, and i looked outside and it was dark, it looked scary, but it wasn't that much different, but just something said, go downstairs. as soon as i said it, the power went off. >> and we got in the room, she closed the door and then my ears started popping as if we're going up in an airplane. and i never experienced that before. >> how many times have you all used this in the past? >> never. been here three years. >> you have never used your safe room? >> never. two and a half weeks ago

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our t.j. holmeslk through a destroyed home. [ female announcer ] splenda® no calorie sweetener is sweet... and more. if you replace 3 tablespoons of sugar a day with splenda® you'll save 100 calories a day. that could help you lose up to 10 pounds in a year. that's how splenda® is sweet...and more. and you want to pass along as much as possible to future generations. at northern trust, we know what works and what doesn't. as one of the nation's largest wealth managers, we can help you manage the complexities of transferring wealth. seeking to minimize taxes while helping maximize what's passed along. because you just never know how big those future generations might be. ♪ expertise matters. find it at northern trust. >>> in joplin, missouri, hundreds of rescuers have fanned out trying to find survivors. there was huge amounts of hail and rain yesterday. so far, 17 survivors have been pulled from the rubble. 117 people confirmed dead, though and countless people have harrowing stories of their brush w

i'm joe johns in for t.j. holmesmfort today to the victims of the joplin tornado. president obama is expected in joplin shortly after 1:00 eastern. he's going to meet with tornado victims and deliver brief remarks at a memorial service at missouri southern university. that's at 3:00 eastern. his visit comes as the number of dead rises to 142, more than 90 people remain missing, more than 1,000 have been injured. later this afternoon at 5:41 central, the city is observing a moment of silence, that is the exact time one week ago when the tornado plowed a half mile path through joplin. >>> just a couple of days after that tornado hit, people were planning to rebuild. the president is expected to talk to local leaders about rebuilding efforts. our correspondent in joplin has already interviewed one man who was busy yesterday rebuilding his wife's business. other people there tell him they can't wait to get started. >> i just had two police officers stop by and said man, we want to shake your hand, the first glimmer of ho

t.j. hom holmes. we have weather to tell you about.dictions for a really busy atlantic hurricane season. all those details coming up. also acts of revenge. a convoy of u.s. vehicles attacked in pakistan and today a warning from the u.s. military's top general there about violence. a live report from the region just five minutes away. man: all right. we were actually thinking, maybe... we're going to hike up here, so we'll catch up with you guys. [ indistinct talking and laughter ] whew! i think it's worth it. working with a partner you can trust is always a good decision. massmutual. let our financial professionals help you reach your goals. we make meeting times, lunch times and conference times. but what we'd rather be making are tee times. tee times are the official start of what we love to do. the time for shots we'd rather forget, and the ones we'll talk about forever. in michigan long days, relaxing weather and more than 800 pristine courses make for the perfect tee time. because being able to play all day is pure michigan. your

i'm t.j. holmes. as always a special good morning to our military men and women watching us on the armed forces network. thank you for being here and thank you for what you do. we need to start with what's happening in louisiana, an intentional flooding that's taking place. look at this here, one floodgate is opened now at the morganza spillway. more gates could be opened later today. the whole point is to try to relieve some pressure on the swollen mississippi river. the army corps of engineers opened the spillway potentially flooding hundreds of homes in order to protect larger cities like baton rouge and new orleans down river. listen to ed lavandera. >> you you can see the water gushing out the spillway. there are 125 gates. for now only one has been opened. officials say they will continue to open up more in the coming days. right now they're trying to slow down the process. you can see the water making its way into this area that was just a big grassy area. the reason they're doing it slowly is

i'm joe johns in for t.j. holmes.our day with us. president obama is in warsaw, poland, this morning as last stop of his six-day european trip. we saw celebrations in ireland, pomp and circumstance with queen in london and g-8 discussions in france but this stop is just a little more low key than all that. cnn's senior white house correspondent ed henry traveling with the president now joins us live from warsaw. ed, give us an idea about the big issues the president is talking to the polish leaders about today. >> reporter: it's interesting because the polish leader wants to hear from the president on the issue of visas for example. they want to get more students and workers from here in poland over to the united states and want to talk about missile defense which has been a very controversial subject. russia not wanting there to be a u.s. backed missile defense shield here in eastern europe. that could protect some of our allies against iranian weapons for example. poland wants to make sure the u.s. is going to try t

i'm at t.j. holmes.ponses, one actually faxed their middle finger to their loan officer at school, stuff like that. a lot of people said they would be praying, all kinds of things. also find me on facebook at t.j. holmes cnn. >>> yet another claim that the bicycle legend regularly used banned substances, but you need to hear who is accusing lance armstrong this time. >>> also, a lot of people getting ready for that summer vacation. i need to let you know, you better book it now. i'll explain why, coming up. building up our wireless network all across america. we're adding new cell sites... increasing network capacity, and investing billions of dollars to improve your wireless network experience. from a single phone call to the most advanced data download, we're covering more people in more places than ever before in an effort to give you the best network possible. at&t. rethink possible. in an effort to give you the best network possible. ♪ i was diagnosed with copd. i could not take a deep breath i noti

i'm t.j. holmes.organ city, louisiana, is a place that is on edge right now. we talk about the efforts to protect against historic flooding along the mississippi river. the flooding that hit the ohio river valley and upper mississippi now threatens cities on its path to the gulf of mexico. later today the army corps of engineers could open that huge spillway in louisiana. the last time i was opened was back in 1973. the governor is earning southeastern louisiana residents to get out of there. opening the spill way to divert flood watters from other areas in, particular, baton rouge, new orleans, but then other communities would get all of that water. of course, it has to go somewhere. the spillway which took 16 years to construct is just north of baton rouge. our cnn affiliate reporter, listen to him flying over northern louisiana giving us a look at what cities could face down river. >> reporter: we're flying over lake providence, louisiana. this is the old levee, not the new one, where water is flow

i want to go straight to t.j. holmes. where you are, where are folks and where you are with regard to the rescue effort. the clock is ticking because we know more severe weather is headed your way. >> reporter: yeah, like you said, a couple clocks are ticking. but you asked where people are. i'm going to show you an image and let my photographer move over and this will tell a story without me saying a word. this is what is happening here. this is not just staged. i didn't ask her to sit there. i didn't ask her to hold on to her dog. this woman has been here -- we've been here all day going through rubble. her house, you don't see it really because it's actually relocated to the other side of the street. if you pan out to the other side, that's it across the street. that's what she was going through. the rubble is over there. her address is over here. and she has been here all day. she was able -- her dog, as you can see, is with her. she's just sitting in front of her house. she didn't want to talk to us or do an intervie

i'm t.j. holmes. glad you could spend part of your weekend here with us, let me tell you what is happening in kabul, afghanistan. taliban claiming responsibility for a suicide bomb attack at an afghan military hospital. >>> also, 9:00 a.m. in oklahoma where a manhunt is under way for suspects who shot an off-duty sheriff deputy. >>> also coming up around noontime, just two hours from now, here in atlanta, another republican is jumping into the race for president. who is it, but exactly who is herman cane, anyway? >>> a suicide bomber and possibly even two striking an afghan military hospital. six people dead. taliban, though, claiming responsibility for attack and also saying that the death toll is a whole lot higher. in kabul for us. listen to what he told me last hour. >> at this point, we're told that they don't believe any americans were in that hospital. if americans would have been in there, we're told, it might have been just for a training capacity, but, as far as the patients, the doctors in

i'm t.j. holmes. thank you for spending part of your weekend here with us. >>> let's start now with the case of saving new orleans at the cost of others. the latest on the historic flooding along the lower mississippi valley. now take a look at this. you see that picture? this happened yesterday. the army corp of engineers opened just one of the 125 gates at that huge morganza spillway north of baton rouge. this is something that has not been done since 1973. they could open two more of those gates today. the idea here is to flood south central louisiana slowly in order to relieve pressure on levees downstream in places like baton rouge and new orleans. to give you an idea of how much water we're talking about right now, in the last hour alone, 269 million gallons have gone through that gate. meanwhile, several homes near the mississippi river in greenville, mississippi remain flooded. the river hasn't even crested there yet. the crest is expected tomorrow morning, expected to be just under six inches

i'm t.j. holmes. >>> also a big breaking news story we are following for you this morning. cnn has been able to confirm the earth did not end yesterday. more on that in just a bit. >>> let me tell you about president obama following up on his vision for peace in the middle east as he addresses a group in about 2 1/2 hours. apec is t-- aipac is the name o. they can't be pleased with the president's stance as winds of change blow through the region. >> calls for change may give way in some cases to fierce contests for power. the question before us is, what role america will play as this story unfolds. >> cnn's senior state department producer live for news washington in advance of the president's speech. how is this supposed to play throughout the day? >> well, it is really a tense atmosphere that president obama goes into. these are some of america's fiercest defenders of israel. the israeli lobby aipac. they're really going to be looking for president obama to kind of clarify what he said the other da

i'm t.j. holmes. a special good morning to our military men and women who are watching us right now on the armed forces network around the world. thank you for being here. thank you for what you do. >>> we do have three major stories we are following this morning. among them libya, the government is claiming that moammar gadhafi narrowly escaped a nato air strike. >> this was a direct operation to assassinate the leader of this country. >> a direct hit by nato air strikes and the libyan government is outraged, claiming that mechanics of gadhafi's family were dleliberately kille, among them, reportedly one of his sons and a couple of his grandchildren. nato is disputing that claim. we'll give you much more in a moment. >>> also a major story and amazing pictures out of the vatican. pope john paul ii is now the blessed john paul ii, the former pope now moved a step closer to sainthood in a ceremony that started a couple of hours ago at the vatican and continues right now. we'll take you there live in a

i'm t.j. holmes. i'm reynolds wolf, we'll be checking in with him in a second. it's may 22nd on this sunday. as always, good morning to our servicemen and women watching us on the armed forces network around the world. glad you could be with us and glad you do what you do. >>> mitch daniels is not running for president. he doesn't have the flash of donald trump or name recognition of mike huckabee his decision could send waves through the republican party. gop insiders were pushing him alleges the clear conservative choice. here is how he summed up his decision in an e-mail, "in the end i was able to resolve every competing consideration but one, but that, the interest is and wishes of my family, is the most important consideration of all." so you see there, he's talking about the family consideration is one he couldn't get past. many suggested that daniels' family would have gotten a whole lot of attention if he got into the race. his family situation many would call a little interesting, maybe a little complicated. his wife, you see, left him in the '90s, marr

time now or the hand it over to t.j. holmes in atlanta and in for brooke baldwin. hi, t.j. >> yes, thank you, randi kaye. >> yes, thank you, randi kaye. i am in for brooke baldwin. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >>> we are learning that intelligence taken from the osama bin laden compound that he was in indeed in the loop and in touch with al qaeda. there is also evidence that bin laden knew about potential terror attacks. we will have much more on this in a moment. but first, maria shriver has now reacted to the news of her husband having fathered a child outside of their marriage. her husband, of course, we are talking about is arnold schwarzenegger, the newly former governor of the state of california. here is now maria shriver's brief statement, and she says quote. this is a painful and heartbreaking time. as a mother, my concern is for the children. i ask for compassion, respect and privacy as my children and i try to rebuild our lives and heal. i will have no further comment. end quote. very short statement making it clear there that she would like some

t.j. holmestrepreneurs are 60 seconds away from winning $10,000. that is, if they can come up with the perfect business pitch. the upstarts recently attended the 100 entrepreneurs event at howard university. they had 60 seconds to pitch their dream business idea to a panel of four judges. grammy award winning songwriter and producer brian plikle cox was among them. >> i'm looking forward to a business, even if it makes sense, it can be effective, if it can be profitable and i'm looking forward to it. >> pictures range from an interchangeable jewelry design business to ways of bringing organic food to the inner city. >> finally, someone came up with this idea. >> reporter: the team of toni hall and natalie crather was one of the five winners. their pitch -- size 12, a shoe boutique catering to women who wear sizes 10 to 14. >> i figured i was so frustrated at finding fashionable shoes. a lot of other women were frustrated, too. >> reporter: wanting to turn the agony of shoe shopping into something

t.j. holmes had a firsthand look. >> reporter: you guys are accustomed to severe weather in the midwest and this part of the country. of when did this start to feel any different? >> this storm, even though initially to me started like pretty much every other storm that we know. we hear the warnings on the television. we keep an eye out the window. >> reporter: when did your own personal alarm bells start going off? >> you know, they were down stairs, eating, watching a movie and i was upstairs, watching tv, like i said. i looked outside and it was dark. it looked scary, but it wasn't that much different, but something said go down stairs. as soon as i said it, the power went off. >> we got in the room. she closed the door and then my ears started popping. >> oh, terrible. >> as if we were going up in an airplane. i had never experienced that before. >> reporter: how many times have you all used this in the past? >> never. been here three years. >> reporter: you have never used your safe room? >>

i'm t.j. holmes, sitting in for brooke baldwin.a bin laden's compound. navy s.e.a.l.s wore helmet cams and much of the video is described as fast and violent. also described as hazy. let me give you an idea. we dug this up as an example of nighttime helmet cam video. this gives you a quality of the type of video we're talking about. this is not the actual video from the bin laden raid. this is just an example of what it could look like, similar to the technology used by the s.e.a.l.s during that condition. it's grainy and not a lot of detail to it. we can show you the example of a combat helmet with a helmet cam on it. take a look at this. >> in the front, you've got a really small camera. it's got some pretty high resolution to it but let's face it, it was the darkest night of that month. it's night vision. so you have a green hue upon things and things are very grainy and picxulated. it's one millimeter in diameter. you have a feed line here that goes all the way to the unit that does a number of things. it gives power, storage c

t.j. holmes spoke with aaron and asked him about the state of the game. >> it could be better. it could be a lot better. we don't have as many african-american baseballs playing baseball now as we used to. every time we have an economic struggle in this country we -- we, the blacks are going to feel the pinch a lot quicker than anybody. and baseball is a very expensive game. >> next hour, we'll look at how baseball is also using this weekend to focus on young people. >>> here is a quiz for you. the united states once had a booming textile industry. well, not so much now. which country produces the most bails of cotton? is it china, india, brazil or is it the u.s. still? building up our wireless network all across america. we're adding new cell sites... increasing network capacity, and investing billions of dollars to improve your wireless network experience. from a single phone call to the most advanced data download, we're covering more people in more places than ever before in an effort to give you the best network possible. at&t. rethink possible. in an effort to give you th

. >>> from cnn center, this is "cnn saturday morning" i'm joe johns in for t.j. holmes. borrowing from your 401(k) to make ends meet. many americans are forced to do it, but two senators say, it's a bad idea. and they want to limit the practice. the story this hour. >>> a government agency says thousands of swimming pools should not open this memorial day weekend. we'll tell you why. >>> and extreme couponing for a cause. find out how this man is sending care packages to military troops overseas without even coming close to breaking the bank. >>> but, first, six days after a tornado ripped apart joplin, missouri, rescue crews are still trying to find everyone. we're expecting an update shortly from state officials. but as of right now, 156 people are unaccounted for and the death toll has reached 132. more than 1,000 people are hurt. the federal government has approved nearly $3 million in aid and president obama plans to meet with survivors in joplin tomorrow. >>> all week we've been hearing extraordinary stories of survival, of strangers helping strangers and our paul

. >>> president obama is headed for the disaster zone on sunday, but cnn's t.j. holmes is there for us tonight. it's a part of the country he knows very well. he used to work there. t.j., you were very emotional last night when you saw the devastation. you've been back now to where you used to work and i know it's obviously bringing back horrible memories for you now, to see this place that you loved so dearly, just wrecked in this awful manner. >> reporter: yeah. and piers, we were talking about that last night, and here we go tonight. i mean, the question is, how are you supposed to now, with this tornado watch in place, seek shelter when you literally don't have a shelter left? that is the question for a lot of folks now. piers, this happened just a few minutes ago, literally, about three minutes ago. a state trooper -- two state troopers came up, just coming through the neighborhood and they said, hey, guys, they're telling us to come through the neighborhoods and tell folks, you need to start thinking about shelter because of the tornado watch in place and other wi

here is some of their conversation with our very own t.j. holmes. >> mr.agine, i guess there was a time you couldn't imagine there being a black player in major league baseball, but now there's a black president. what was your thought? >> it was very unique. i didn't think there would be a black manager, black general manager. jackie said this in 1972, he felt baseball had reached its pinnacle unless you see a black man standing on that third base coaching. it begins with him, back with him. jackie was really a pioneer. i think he's responsible for barack obama being the president of the united states going way back then. it was before the civil rights movement. jackie was a person who lived up to all of that and had changed that superiority and interiority to -- >> more equality. >> more of an equality. >> that was a very profound statement right there. jackie robinson is responsible for barack obama being in the white house. do you think people forget that sometimes and sometimes put it in the category because it was sports? >> it's a long string. but ev

i'm t.j. holmes. three big stories we are following. catastrophic flooding from missouri to tennessee. the swollen mississippi river is spilling over into neighborhoods. widespread evacuations are under way. >>> also, in another disast eer zone, a very serious message from a man known for his comedy. bill cosby. areas devastated by tornadoes. we will take you there. >>> the pentagon is expected to release new information today about what the u.s. has learned from that raid on osama bin laden's compound. >>> well, let's start along the mississippi river. a race against time right now. the worst flooding in decades has thousands of people on the run. the river is rising a foot a day in some places. now, rain is making matters even worse. take a look at these affected areas and affected states. goes right through the heart of the country and every state along the way being affected. we have been highlighting missouri. that is where the coast guard is closely monitoring traffic on the river. they're afraid the wake from the ships would make

i'll be joined by t.j. holmes from cnn. you used to work for an nbc affiliate in joplin.ou're now back there tonight. have you in your darkest nightmares you could never have imagined this kind of scene, could you? >> reporter: no. i'm coming in parts of a town that i know so well are unrecognizable right now. you have a tough time. i have a tough time getting my bearings in certain places even though i should know exactly where i am. i am from the south, from arkansas, worked in arkansas, been covering tornadoes a long time. it seems cliche but you never have seen anything like this in your life. it's something worth noting here about this town, joplin, missouri. this town, yes, it's small. 50,000 people. but this town is the economic life. it is the engine of this entire area here in southwest missouri because there are so many other towns around. so many towns come here during the day. the population of this city goes up to about 200,000, 300,000 every single day during the workweek because this is where everyone comes to actually work. i'll toss it back to you. i thin

about 33 minutes past the hour on the cnn saturday morning, i'm t.j. holmes.ere with us. one of the stories we're keeping a close eye on. the water levels. the ever rising water levels and memphis and other mississippi towns. oh, my goodness, spring storms are adding to this growing flood threat. experts say it could be the worst flooding in more than 80 years. with that in mind, memphis, the city and also shelby county authorities have issued some evacuation orders for residents living in low-lying, flood prone areas. i want to get on the line now with mr. bob nations. sir, thank you for being on the line here with us. i was talking to you in the commercial break and you said the river is wrapping its arms around you. what do you mean by that? >> we knew the eventuality would become a reality and we watched this now for about ten days and so our tributaries are beginning to back up west to east and the mississippi is rising, as has been forecast and it just looks like tenical ica tentacles thatg its arms around the county. >> when do you think it will stop ri

i'm t.j. holmes. welcome to this "cnn saturday morning." glad you are right here and right now, boy, a lot of attention being focused on the mississippi and so many cities that are sitting on it. we have an agonizing wait going on right now in louisiana. they are literally just waiting on the water to come. and they're also waiting on a major flood gate, which is expected to be open in maybe just the next few hours, leaving residents in low-lying areas preparing for the worst. we have a live report coming your way in just a second. also, can i tell you about some surprising discoveries at osama bin laden's compound and the intensifying diplomatic fallout. >>> then a little later, so happy to share with you a candid conversation with baseball legend hank aaron. the home run king. some say still the home run king talking about what it was like breaking babe ruth's record. why it wasn't necessarily the career highlight that it should have been. >>> we do need to start with what's happening to a lot of folks in the south. louisiana, so many cit

i'm in for t.j. holmes. >>> members of congress promised an end to earmarks, but guess what? they found another way to spend your money. >>> plus, a dramatic escape for passengers aboard a delta flight. we'll show you what happened in this memorial day weekend, the fleet has arrived in new york. i'll speak to a marine who survived being shot and is headed back to combat in afghanistan. >>> we start with spending cuts on capitol hill. every politician is looking for a way to save a little money, whether it's from medicare or public television or what have you. but funding cuts may not be on the menu when it comes to pet projects. yes, they say they have banned earmarks, but somehow lawmakers are finding a way to keep the money on hand. they're taking it from other projects. so instead of cutting that money from the bottom line, they're funneling it to a little known pentagon fund. senior cnn congressional correspondent dana bash has a look at that. >> reporter: redstone arsenal in alabama could go et $2.5 million added to a defense bill for unmanned vehicle technology thanks t

i'm t.j. holmes. glad you could be here. i'm talking about the army corps of engineers expected to open a spillway which will determine who gets spared and who gets flooded. the decision is being made and they're going to have to sacrifice some homes and businesses in order to save many, many more. the army corps expected to open louisiana's huge morganza spillway when the river flow hits 1.5 million cubic feet per second. what does that mean? all you need to know is that rate continues to go up and getting closer and closer to that point. the spillway was last opened in 1973, but we are expecting it today and maybe in the next few hours. now, doing that, what does that do? it takes the pressure off levees in baton rouge and new orleans and it will also flood seven louisiana parishes west of the river. the national guard is out. you see them here, they have been working around the clock filling sandbags in morgan city. that's a community of 12,000 that is expected to be just flooded out when this water is released. can you i

i'm t.j. holmes, happy mother's day and a special hello to our military men and women watching us on the armed forces network around the world. >>> let's start now new videos of osama bin laden, fascinating stuff we are starting to get to see, they are part, these videos of the large amount of materials, information taken from that compound after his death. unlike the pictures of a dead osama bin laden that the u.s. government did not want out, the u.s. government is sharing these images with the world. cnn pentagon correspondent barbara starr takes us through the new images and the message the white house is sending with this video release. >> reporter: t.j., the message is osama bin laden is dead and this is what he really was like. it's the osama bin laden you've never seen, huddled in front of a television in a modestly furnished room, intently watching broadcasts of himself. this is bin laden, obsessed with monitoring and controlling his image, a u.s. intelligence official told reporters. in mor

. >>> i'm t.j. holmes on this saturday, may 14. it's 8:00 a.m. in morgan city, louisiana.flooding. a lot of places taking steps right now trying to save major cities along the mississippi river from flooding, the army corps of engineers could open the huge morganza spill way. the trig sir when floodwaters are throwing at 1.5 million gallons a minute. the last time the spillway was used was back in 1973. opening this thing will divert water from baton rouge and new orleans, possibly saving them from massive flooding by taking pressure off their levees. that would also flood homes and farms in seven louisiana parishes in the south central part of the state. the national guard has been called in, they're working around the clock trying to fill sandbags in morgan city. and president obama is going to be giving a graduation speech to memphis seniors. there's not everyone anybody can do to comfort those who know their homes are going to be lost. >> it's worse than we thought. it's really worse than we thought. we thought maybe we might have water in our yard and stuff, this is g

. >>> from cnn center this is joe johns in for t.j. holmes. it's may 28th. good morning. a holiday weekend is usually a great time to see an air show, but this weekend the blue angeling will not be flying. i'll tell you why. head out for holiday shopping. pretty soon you may be able to leave your wallet at home as long as you have a smartphone with you. >>> and sarah palin, is she about to go for a run for president of the united states? she's certainly making herself a lot more visible these days. >>> almost a week after a tornado tore a half mile path through joplin, missouri, they're still searching for the missing. here's the information on the latest. in one of the most deadly tornadoes in the country. 156 people are unaccounted for as of this morning. the number of dead stands at 132, with more than 1,000 injured. we expect an update on the number of missing and hurt at 11:00 eastern time. >>> more than 2,500 people have applied for federal disaster assistance. fema has approved a $2.8 million grants and aid. president obama will be in joplin tomorrow to meet with o

i want to go to my colleague t.j. holmes who has found amazing stories of survival. where are you?ardest hit of joplin here if you make your way that way, if you will, and that is where the hospital is, and st. john's getting so much attention. but today, quite frankly, we have watched this neighborhood become kind of a busy little spot, and say they because people are starting to get out. we have seen the u-haul trucks and different trailers and people are active and not sitting around. they are getting it done. look down the street as i speak. here comes another truck. this is constant. you see it on the right of the picture as well. a guy from the red cross who is here as well. there is a lot of activity, and people are quite frankly getting their lives back together already, and what choice do you have? to the left, if my photographer can look to the left of the house, you can see the hammer going, and guys up on the roof, and everybody is working and constant sound of chainsaw and this is a good sign, because the work is under way, but the other side of the story, randi, is th

"cnn newsroom" continues right now with t.j. holmes to start with what they are calling epic flooding. what we are seeing along the

i'm t.j. holmes in for brooke baldwin. you're seeing a live picture of leon panetta about to introduce the president of the united states. the president stopping by the cia to give them a thank you for the work they did over the past several years and here recently with success of osama bin laden. let's listen in to the cia director for a moment as he introduces president obama. >> we are grateful to have a commander in chief who is willing to put great trust in our work. and in return, as we approach the tenth anniversary of 9/11, we commit to you that we will continue to do everything in our power to fulfill your mission of defeating al qaeda and their militant allies. we will do whatever it takes to protect this country and to keep it safe. this has been a long and tough fight, and it's not over. but as we have just proven, it's a fight that we're going to win for you, mr. president, and for the american people. ladies and gentlemen, it is my great honor to introduce the president of the united states. >> thank you. tha

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i'm t.j. holmes sitting in for ali velshi. we are at bottom of the hour now.aught up on some of the stories you might have missed. you can't miss this, flooding in some parts of the south and midwest, memphis we're showing you here, people are being warned this stuff could get worse. one official says rainfall 1600% more than normal. the mississippi river won't likely crest until this weekend well above flood stage. the coast guard says it will close a five-mile stretch of the mississippi to commercial traffic due to the high water. in louisiana, governor bobby jindal says he will enlist the help of the national guard as floodwaters head downstream. >>> a team of rescuers in florida are working franticly now to save a group of pilot whales that stranded themselves in shallow waters. at least 16 whales stranded in a four-mile area about 20 miles north of key west. despite their efforts, two whales have died. the other whales are being brought into a holding pen where rescuers are monitoring their vitals, trying to keep them wet, out of the sun. the situation fo

newsroom continues now with t.j. holmes in for brooke baldwin. >> thank you very much. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com s. >>> we're going back to it, more than likely, a lot in the hour as we wait on the attorneys to come out. attorneys were dominique strauss-kahn who we can say is the former world banker charged with trying to rape a hotel maid, former, we're saying here, because dominique strauss-kahn resigned as head of international monetary fund. he's going through a hear, as we speak. we did find out that he has in fact, been indicted in this case and charged in the sexual assault. you know this by now, the story by now that he's accused of trying to or accused of sexually assaulting a hotel maid at a high-end hotel in new york city. we have a couple of reporters covering this for us, one being richard roth, outside the courthouse right now. richard what can you tell us about what went on inside that courtroom? >> reporter: the hearing is still going on. as the prosecution and announced, there's an indictment fi