have created a strong home, very energy-efficient, a home that can be built and manufactured by us in charlestonuth carolina, and large scale volume and it delivers social benefit, if you will, around the world. the quality equation has been altered by us at this point. >> what is the challenge at this point? >> it is really adoption. the u.s. continues to build with wood. we use the strictures of the international building code which has very strict requirements as to seismic rating, wind shear, thermal efficiency, and being fireproof. a lot of these cannot come close to passing this. you have incumbent technologies, timber, or in a post-sandy environment, splinters. if you have built with our technology, we are hurricane proof, tornado proof, fireproof. that's the way to go. >> we've got to go but i would love for you to spend more time with us in the future. thank you very much, ken calliger, president of titan atlas global, thinking new homes. thank you for "taking stock." i'm pimm fox. have a good evening. ♪

have created a strong home, very energy-efficient, a home that can be built and manufactured by us in charlestonlina, and large scale volume and it delivers social benefit, if you will, around the world. the equation has been altered by us at this point. >> what is the challenge at this point? >> it is really adoption. wood.tinue to build with we use the strictures of the international building code which has very strict requirements as to seismic rating, wind shear, thermal efficiency, and being fireproof. a lot of these cannot come close to passing this. you have incumbent technologies, -sandy, or in a post environment, splinters. if you have built with our technology, we are hurricane proof, tornado proof, fireproof. that's the way to go. >> we've got to go but i would love for you to spend more time with us in the future. thank you very much, ken calliger, president of titan atlas global, thinking new homes. thank you for "taking stock." i'm pimm fox. have a good evening. ♪ >> "bloomberg west welcome to" where we cover -- welcome to "bloomberg west" where we cover the technology of the chang

in effect for west virginia. 300,000 people are affected. thousands of gallons of a chemical used to clean coal leaked from a storage facility along the elk river this charleston. it happened yesterday. people in nine counties have been told not to drink, bathe or wash their clothes in tap water until further notice. we're live in charleston. we're talking about 300,000 people in need of water right now. what's being done to help them? >> well, tony, a lot of people right now waiting for water. we're outside of one of the shopping centers, and really you see there is a tanker here. there were 12 of these tankers brought in from fema and homeland security. but there is no one waiting out here any more. they've actually given out a water here. no word when they'll have more water. they'll have energy drinks to give away. you're talking about a lot of people looking for water. 300,000 people effected in the west virginia area, nine counties. this has effected the whole town, the whole area. schools were shut down, restaurant, this whole thing came to light at 10:30 in the morning when this company reported there had been a leak from their facility into the elk ri

chris joins us in charleston, south carolina dealing with this storm. >> reporter: we are indeed right here in charleston, raj, and this right here, a bridge, one of the many bridges here that remain iced over, closed, pretty good evidence that the winter storm that put a big icy blanket over much of the deep south continues to create all kinds of problems. while much of the south is digging out from the strong winter snowstorm, metro atlanta home to more than 5 million people literally ground to a halt. at the height of the traffic jam, abandoned cars and trucks littered the highways and the national guard had to be called in to help stranded motorists. >> i didn't have control of high car any longer, so i just pulled over, i started hyper ventlating and i thought i just have to tough it out. >> reporter: yvonne toughed it out until her son was able to reach her this morning. >> i'm glad she's okay. it's going to be a trek getting back home, but at least we're together. >> reporter: this is the scene playing out all over atlanta. and the rest of the south. thousands of school students

nbc's luke russert is live in charleston for us following that story. is it could be spreading to other states and there's also the issue of the groundwater and how they are going to clean this whole thing up. >> reporter: yeah, it's a real big mess, richard. i stand before you right now and 15% of the state does still does not have access to clean, safe tap water. there's a little bit of a concern about the fact the river of where this chemical spilled out, it flows into the ohio river through northeast kentucky and parts of ohio. officials there are going to monitor it. they believe this chemical will be diluted because the river has more volume than the river behind me and the elk river. other states don't get too worried, it should be well below the limit for which it is lethal. as far as west virginia where i am right now, they hope to be able to get the water back on over the next day or two. that's the goal, and the way they'll do that is through zones. they'll say this zone is green, this zone is red. if your zone is green, you can use the water

in charleston, west virginia. the story keeps on getting more viveting as people here are still not quite sure whether all is well. tony? >> robert, appreciate it. robert ray for us in charleston west virginia. 16 people were killed today in a bombing in a restaurant in kabul. the afghan government says three suicide bombers were involved. it happened at a neighborhood home to several embassies and foreign consulit's a. the taliban issued a statement claiming responsibility for the attack. russia president vladimir putin said it is okay to be gay. just don't tell the children. just weeks before the start of the olympic games in sochi. >> yes. the former -- >> if you think that i created they had uniform, you are strongly misguided. we aren't banning anything. we aren't rounding up anyone. we have no criminal punishment for such relations unlike many other countries. so one can feel relaxed about please leave the children in peace. >> gay rights have become a con tentious issue because russia passed a law last year prohibiting the propagandaa of non-traditional sexual practices among minors. an amazing story. one of the last surviving japanese world war ii veteran

used in coal processing leaked from a storage tank just last week. american water company says some of the 300,000 people in the charleston area ask now use their water. jonathan martin is in charleston with more. >> while the do not use ban is being lifted it is done in a strict and methodology way. they really don't want the system to be overrun so they're notifying customers when they can use their water again. now we do know the process involves them flushing out their pipes for about 20 minutes. the governor told us today officials have tested about 200 samples of water over the last couple of days and they now meet federal standards. >> the numbers we have today look good and we are finally at a point where the do-not-use order is being lifted in some areas. >> the company responsible for the chemical spill, freedom industries, investigators want to find out how the leak happened, and how long it took them to notify authorities. >> so this company was able to operate close to the water supply without oversight or inspections for more than two decades. sheldon crimsky is a professor at tufts university. how did it happen, the company was able to

i'm greg jared, glad you are with us. 3 hub,000 people in charleston, west virginia are experiencing their third day without any tap water. forcing businesses and restaurants to close but it may be making people sick. and based on the press conference that just ended a short time ago, the prospect for any usable water soon is looking grim. doug mckelway is live in charlotteton, west virginia, with more. >> the press conference just concluded and it seems that it could be days before 300,000 people could safely drink tap water in the area. before the water alert can be lifted they have to extensively test the water and this is a huge system that stretches out to several counties. and this is only one part per million. listen up. >> the water treatment plant must consistently produce water samples indicating results at or below this level before the current do-not-use order is lifted. at this time, there are inadequate number of sampling results to report. even when the water produced by the plant meets acceptable levels, extensive testing must be conducted in the distribution system b

>> we have no idea when we'll get a report that the water is safe enough to use. >> steven blake is a hairdresser in charleston. >> my clients come in, they want the hair shampooed or it's necessary or water for chemical services. without that we can't work. >> charleston medical center is using two giant tankers. it's enough to last a few days. all nonemergency surgeries are on hold. a small number have come in complaining of symptoms relating to the chemical spill. they include nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea. they are testing and flushing out the system. >> the president of the water company says chemical levels are declining. they don't have a broad sample of the water to say it's safe to use. >> jonathan martin there in west virginia. when we return, a rod is out, but not as long as baseball wanted. prisons for profit. an al jazeera special. is it economical or ethical for private companies to run the country's gaols? >> idaho is taking control of its privately run for profit prisons. states taxpayers paid corrections corporation of america $29 million to run the facility. the company has been the subject

in the areas not to drink, bathe or cook with the water. the chemical which is used to process coal leaked from a factory located along the elk river in charlestonnd as al jazeera erica tells us the daycare centers, restaurants and schools are being told to shut down. >> they way please. >> reporter: shelves are empty in the west virginia grocery store, customers snatching bottles of water and when that runs out ice. >> now it's utter chaos. >> people are grabbing every ice bag they can. >> about gone. >> reporter: water is scarce following a warning from west virginia governor do not drink, bathe, cook or wash clothes using tap water and effecting people in nine countries near freedom industries, a coal processing plant in charleston and say early thursday a chemical crude chm used to separate coal particles leaked and seeped in the river and they have a treatment plant nearby and it's that company's customers who are effected. >> we sought advice from people and we are confident that our water treatment plant with an advanced activated carbon treatment plant could handle any issues that we had, but it's clear that that has migrated through to

i'm greg jared, glad you are with us. 3 hub,000 people in charleston, west virginia are experiencinghird day without any tap water. forcing businesses and restaurants to close but it may be making people sick. and based on the press conference that just ended a short time ago, the prospect for any usable water soon is looking grim. doug mckelway is live in charlotteton, west virginia, with more.

in the system. people are warned to not drink the water, use it to cook or shower or wash your clothes. all this startes thursday last week in charlestonofficials there say a chemical that companies use to produce coal, spilled into the elk river from a holding tank and eventually spread to nine different counties. we go live there. erin brockovich is with us. show was instrumental in building a case against pacific gas and electric in 1993. her story became the basis for the oscar winning movie "erin brockovich." i heard you were head us down -- heading down there. what is the message? >> we're in charleston tonight and we're having a big town hall meeting, and the message is, you know, we have had 5,000 people come to us from the community who have concerns and fears and frustrations, and it's just to create a platform to continue the awareness and information that not all of the communities are getting. and as the water does come back on, it will not be just an overnight process. how to flush, and most importantly, that the contaminant is still in the system and is tied up in your filters, so change coffee fit ifs, hot water heaters

in charleston which is the state capitol. more than 300,000 people have been effected by the contamination in at least nine counties. the chemical which is used is to process coal. it leaked from a factory along the elk river in charleston. >> we need to know exactly the quantities that we're dealing with. we're still trying to work with -- through the msds sheet and the company that manufactures the product with their toxicologists, hygienists to try to understand the risk assess assessment. so whatting kind of quantities can be present in drinking water and not pose harm to our customers. we don't know that the water is not safe, but i can't say it is safe. >> erica ferrari has more on how residents are responding. >> reporter: shelves are empty inside this grocery store. customers snatching bottles of water and when that runs out, ice. >> now it's utter chaos. >> reporter: water is scarce following a warning do not drink, bathe, cook, or wash clothes with the tap water officials say early thursday a chemical used to separate coal particles in the coal-prepping process leaked from an old storage tank and went seeping into the elk river. the

thousand people have been warned not to drink tap water after a chemical used in the coal industry spilled into a river in charleston this on thursday state of emergency has been declared for nine counties and has a drop of history the declaration of emergency declaration on friday schools and businesses have been close to the state capitol. several people of an injured in overnight clashes between protesters and police it yet. ukraine's former interior minister and leading opposition figure in theory that singtel among those wounded in clashes broke out after three activists were jailed over an alleged terror plot. the scuffles come amid sustained anti government rallies against ukrainian president's move to la on them are new deal. opting instead for closer ties with russia. us state department has issued a travel alert for americans headed to the winter of the games in the saatchi. washington says travelers should be vigilant about their security. due to potential threats. well the bad located some six hundred km north of sochi was the target of two deadly attacks. just last month the guys working in cooperation

use advisory. >> a company that helped process coal, first noticed a leak blocks down stream from the water company in downtown charlestonst virginia. an unknown quantity, probably thousands of gallons of a foaming agent used in the processing of coal, was now leaking from a tank and overrunning a containment area into the elk river from which hundreds of thousands of west virginians get their drinking water. the governor declared a state of emergency, warning west virginians in a nine-county area in and around charleston not to use their tap water. >> until we receive an all-clear, we are focusing efforts on hoping the most vulnerable, those in hospitals and in nursing homes. we have asked the department of health and human resources bureau of public health, senior services, and west guard, to develop a long-term plan to help insure that adequate supplies of water and food is available. >> in the charleston area, seven water distribution areas were set out. by early noon, this one had run out of bottled water. by 2:30, it had run out of all safe water to fill jugs. >> i'm having my wife go stay with family now, because

using a secondary water source. so this morning in the capital city of charleston, we have about four restaurants able to open so farsing bottled water, paper plates, hand sanitizers in rest rooms. at this point those are contingency plans. the public health department is taking those in, reviewing applications, doing on-site reviews before anybody can reopen. obviously that's a long process to get anybody to be able to open their business again. >> all right, west virginia public broadcasting, thanks so much for your time. >> thank you. >>> . >>> and now to our signature segment featuring original in-depth reports from around the nation and around the world. tonight we take you to germany. there nearly 70 years after the end of world war ii, the government is intensifying efforts to educate young germans about nazi war crimes and still pursuing those who committed them. just this week prosecutors brought murder charges against an 88-year-old man, a former member of an ss armored division that slaughtered more than 600 french villagers. our correspondent traveled to ludwig germany. there the search goes on for war c

using tap water. affecting people in nine counties, at a coal processing plant in charleston. on thursday, a chemical, crude chm, used to separate coal particles, leaked from an old storage tank and went seeping into the river. they have a treatment plant nearby, and it's that company's customers who are affected. >> we sought the advice of a lot of water quality professionals and we were fairly confident earlier today that our water treatment plant could handle any issues that we had, but it's clear that that has migrated to our finished water. >> officials are not sure what the health risks are, but so far, no reports of illness much the company is also not clear how much of the chemicals spilled into the river. many are questioning why officials waited eight hours after the spill to issue the water alert. >> people are angry. because this happened so early, and then why are we being told not to use our water? >> the water wasn't impacted in the day. we started to respond. >> fema or the federal emergency management agency to bring in the water, and they are making the best o

. >>> in west virginia, people are told not to drink, bathe or cook using tap water. that comes after a chemical spilled into a river in charlestonal is a foaming agent used in the coal preparation process. it leaked from a tank at freedom industries. this is affecting 300,000 people in nine counties. people are stocking up on bottled water but there's fears stores will run out of supplies. >> we have talked to our supplier and hoping they can bring us a tractor-trailer load of water first thing in the morning. >> restaurants, daycare centers and schools in some of the affected counties are closed today and the governor has declared a state of emergency. >>> new this morning, a pentagon report says the number of sexual assaults at military academies dropped slightly last year, 70 reported in 2013, that's compared with 80 the year before. the report does not speculate, however, whether the decrease is due to fewer assaults or fewer reportings. >>> 6:33. another check on the weather. >> looking good today a little patchy fog near the coastline mostly clear elsewhere but it's going to turn out to be a great friday and then we could

jeff joins us joins us there his charleston storefront. >> we were shut down for about six days, and our location inwas shut down in seven. >> and i understand you are still not trusting the water, and using bottled water to make all of your dough? >> no. i think most restaurants in town are doing the same. nobody personally i know are consuming the water. just using it to wash your hands and take showers with. it still has that smell to it. >> what goes through your mind as far as the customers that you have there, and wanting to treat them right? >> um, i mean, i wouldn't drink it myself or eat it myself, so i wouldn't expect anybody else to. so it's kind of that type of deal right there, so we aren't going to drink it or eat it, and we don't expect anybody else to. >> what sort of impact has this had on your bottom line? >> i mean it's really affected us, our employees, you know, everybody has missed out on a week of work, and now we're going to be behind on bills, and luckily the state is working with -- hopefully soon to get everybody kind of a no-interest loan or some type of a deal to help us

a state of e mergency in west virginia after a chemical used to clean coal leaked into the elk river in charleston. people in nine counties have been told not to drink, bathe or wash their clothes in tap water. a federal investigation has been launched. jonathan martin is at the scene. jonathan, what's being done in terms of getting people the relief that they need? >> reporter: fema has helped, they brought in water. the truck behind me. that was one of the trucks full of bottled water. he's gone. so many people have been coming by here, getting the bottled water they need and there is also behind me, you can see, a lot of people to bring canisters and fill those up to take home. a lot of people bringing some big canisters because they just don't know how long this water crisis will last. so, again, some 300,000 people told, do not drink this water. do not bathe in it. really, only they are being told that they can their toilet, the system. so at this point, that's what they are told they can do now. this all started on thursday, thursday morning, when this company freedom industries, an industri

in his city, welcomes a criminal investigation. but does not let the government off the hook. >> i'm not sure what responsibility the state has here, but if not them, who? >> jean casarez joins us live in charlestonre on the ground, you're talking to folks. how angry are people? >> you know, i think people are so upset, they have to make a joke out of it. because yesterday the federal courthouse was closed and i asked the u.s. attorney, why did you shut down the whole courthouse? he said well, if people can't take a bath, we don't want people to have to come to the courthouse. but this is something that is really disrupting their normal life. and, you know, freedom industries fell through the cracks and we spoke with the west virginia department of environmental protection that is saying that at the legislative level, there are going to be changes. i don't think they know what the changes are going to be, but it could be that storage facilities have to be regular lated and then they would be inspected, or that pesticides have to be regulated and then would be inspected, the facilities. we do want to let everybody know that a federal lawsuit has just been filed in regard to this case. they are sui

used here in the u.s. >>> some businesses in downtown charleston, west virginia, have re-opened, deemed safe after a chemical leak tainted the city's water supply, but more than 60% of residents are still not able to use their taps. schools in the four counties affected by the contamination will be closed again today, and downstream 250 miles away in cincinnati, officials have shut down two river intake valves until the toxin flows by. >>> a federal judge in oklahoma has ruled that the state's ban of same-sex marriage is unconstitutional, but same-sex couples won't be able to get married until the appeals process is exhausted. oklahoma's governor argues that the ruling ignores the will of the people who approved the ban by a 3-1 margin. utah is too on hold to allow appeals. >>> a bit of deja vu for president obama. welcoming nba champs, the miami heat, to the white house for the second straight year. >> the president praised the team for its accomplishs on and off the court and delivered a healthy amount of ribbing joking that despite those two titles plus another in 2006, the team still struggles for respec

don't have a broad enough sample of the water to say that it's safe to use. >> and our jonathan martin reporting there in charleston, west virginia tonight. >>> well, amex rodriguez is out for the 2014 season and arbitrator shortened his punishment for alleging using performance-enhancing drugs but not by enough. john henry smith reports that the fight is not over for the yankee slugger. >> reporter: the good news for alex record in the wake of the arbitrators ruling is that he won't have to serve the full 211 game suspension 11 i said last august by commissioner bud seeing big. the bad news for rodriguez, is that he is still suspended for a full season's worth of games, 162, as well as the post season. major league baseball released a statement that reads, quote, for more than five decades the arbitration under the basic agreement has been a fair and effective mechanism for resolving disputes and protecting player rights. while we believe the original 211-game suspension was appropriate, we respect the decision rendered by the panel. and will focus our continuing efforts to eliminate performance-enhancing substanc

use. and obviously, this is a big problem in charleston and the surrounding areas, because the businesses close down, because they can't use their water, either, so it is not only an economic concern, u but a health concern as well. and now for daily life, because people cannot cook with it. they cannot brush their teeth with this water, and it is a big disruption for that area. >> and erin brockovich, we know her as a well known environmentalist, and she is speaking out about the situation, and what did she say? >> well, kyra, she was on cnn last night, and you may remember her, because she has led class action lawsuits before, and let's listen to what she had to say last night. >> when there is a disaster like this, i'm usually flooded with e-mails from the community, and so our job is to go to assist, advise, help them in any way we can, and we will take a look at the site, and see possibly ourselves how that breach did occur, and then go from there. and so, as the disaster is unfolding, i'm getting more and more e-mails a and we will get on the ground and work with the communities and

is used in felt-tip pens, paint removers. jonathan martin is in charleston west vij. the leak happened on january 9th. are officials saying why it took so long to find this chemical. >> no, there's not. that's the question, why it took two weeks to learn about the chemical. we spoke to the governor's office. at this points there's little trust in the company at the center of the spill. we heard that yesterday the company, the tanks are behind us here, they notified the state through a document they turned over yesterday about the presence of the second chemical that leaked on jan the 29th. we only new about one chem cam. we were told it leaked some 7500 gallons at the time. that led to the state of emergency. people were told not to drink or bathe in the water. they tested and told people the water is safe so use. we find out about a second chemical. p.p.h. and what officials will have to go back and do is test the water for a second chemical. if there's good new, there's a smaller amount of the chemical in the water. some 300 gallons may have leaked. at this point th

use. >> steven blake is a hairdresser in down-town charleston. >> my clients come in, they want a sham pu, we need water for some of the chemical services we perform. >> the hospital has two giant tankers, enough to last a few days. nonemergency surgeries have been put on hold. only a small number of patients came in. west virginia's water department is testing and flushing out the system. the president of the water company says chemical levels are declining but they don't have a broad enough sample of water to say if it's safe to use. >> a travel alert has been issued for americans planning to attend the winter games in russia. u.s. citizens should be on alert because of terrorist threats. washington is not aware of specific event, but large events like the olympics is a target for terrorist. >> officials say grenades, ammunition and explosives were found on some arrested people near sochi. >> a special measures agreement is designed to help share defense cost. the foreign ministry amount seoul will my 865 million to keep u.s. troops in south korea. 6%, more than what the government paid

in charleston. hundreds of thousands of people in nine counties cannot use their tap water right now.eral authorities investigating the circumstances of that leak. disappointing jobs data out today. there were only 74,000 new hires in december. economists had been expecting far more than that. the unemployment rate fell but that's likely because more people sto stopped looking for . college grads are having an especially tough time finding a job. al jazeera has the story of one young woman and her struggles. >> when whitney mcdonald graduated from college with honors she was optimistic about her job prospects. >> i was feeling good. my education was strong. i had graduated top of my class, and i was feeling great when i graduated. >> reporter: three years on the 26-year-old has yet to land a full time position in her chosen field. instead she's under employed. juggling two part-time jobs that don't require a college degree. >> since graduating i've been working in a restaurant for five nights a week and nannying three days a week. >> reporter: mcdonald is hardly unique. in 2001 34% of

. >> a chemical spill in west virginia leaves 300,000 when a product used to process coal seeps into t@e elk river in charlestonhe effect, and dozens@&eek eatmenin the hospital. many left to depend on bottled water for drinking, bathing, and cooking. restaurant owners experience the impact of not having clean water. >> we're at a loss. i'm losingusiness every single day. i'm gonna lose my product from us not being able to sell it. so, right now, those things are >> former israeli prime minister ariel sharon dies at the age of 85 after suffering a stroke which le him in a coma for eight years. people in israel flocking to the western wall to pray for their former leader. he spent much of his career in the military and politics, moving up the ranks before becoming the nation's 11th prime minister. he was known for promoting jewish settlement and leading(m the 2005 israeli withdrawal from the@gaza strip. vice president joe biden was among the international dignitaries at his state memorial service. >> a country that has@been tested as much as israel, loses a man like prime minister sharon, it doesn't just feel lik

brockovich >> that waserin brockovich speaking to west virginia residents in a town hall meeting monday night. she's joining us now from charleston west virginia and also joined in washington by mike elk. he has extensively covered chemical regulations in the united states including at the west texas fertilizer plant where 50 people died in an explosion last year. we welcome you both to democracy now! let's start with erin brockovich . what did you find that the town hall meeting last night? >> good morning. >> it is great to have you with us. >> we were glad we got the town hold together on extremely short notice because we weren't even sure if we would have a facility here. for the folks that came out, i actually heard numerous stories that were disturbing at many levels, but they were mostly very calm. they were frustrated. they felt a sense they could not get through to anybody to give them further explanation. and then many, many questions that were excellent that needed answering. i think a couple of things that really startled me were photos that people had taken as the water had come on. the color. there was great concern

use the tap again following the chemical leak. two-thirds of the people in the affected counties are told not to drink the water. the do not use order was lifted on monday for charleston. freedom industries, the company responsible for the spill is under investigation. a restraining order is in place to make sure documents are not destroyed. >> lawmakers have been working for weeks to restore unemployment benefits. congress crowned to a halt as tensions rose between democrats and republicans. the senate has until the end of the week to extend benefits for 1.3 million unemployed americans. >> a senate panel was told reining in the data mining will not impaid data intelligence. they are recommending 46 changes, including stopping u.s. citizens mta data. mama is expected to announce the changes to the agency on friday. >> it seems surprising a love affair in france will make headlines. francis hollande's alleged relationship with a younger actress has people wondering who exactly is the first lady of france. >> francis hollande wanted to use the news conference to relaunch his presidency, to lay out decisions for reviving the french economy and reclaim france's place on

been covering. 300,000 people in charleston, west virginia experiencing their third day without usable tap water. with officials in nine counties ordering people not to use it. the toxic chemical spill is not only forcing businesses and restaurants to close but it's also making a lot of people sick. doug is live in charleston, west virginia. did you get any information out of that press conference that just took place, doug? >> reporter: it's still going on to the best of my knowledge now. here's the bottom line. a lot of people are involved all speaking of the various components. bottom line they say that the west virginia american water company is a big company, is system is extensive. it's going to take extensive study and testing. that means it is probably going to be a matter of days before the water service is restored and it will probably happen in a phase-in approachal consumption of the water being the last phase. as a result of that, charleston people and the surrounding counties will continue to get their water the way you see it behind me right here, from trucks np is one of 16 distribution centers here. there are many others in the surroundi

use their water for drinking or cooking or even taking a bath. cnn's alina machado talked to residents of one of the impacted places in charleston. >> reporter: the governor's office tells us chemical levels in the water are going down. good news. they're also saying it will likely take several days before they can actually lift this water ban. residents here are very anxious. they're eager for things to go back to normal. and we got a sense of that normalcy this afternoon when we went inside a chili's restaurant in downtown charleston. we want to show you some of that video. the restaurant opened its doors for the first time since thursday yesterday. it was very, very busy. we did talk to a woman who lives here in charleston about her concerns once this water ban is lifted. take a listen at what she had to say. >> i think that it's going to take some time, but i would probably wait, myself. i would still smell it before i could trust i could use it. >> even if there were to lift the ban in a few days -- >> i would probably wait a few days maybe to a week to actually consume it. >> reporter: as you just heard, it will likely take several days for

use in parts of west virginia. officials have declared charleston and a number of surrounding counties disaster areas after a foaming in coal process leaked into the elk river. 300,000 people have been told not to drink or cook or even bathe with the tap water. >> last night the legendary poet, playwright passed away at the age of 79. he was combative and controversial and central figure in black arts movement of 60s and 70s which used poetry and other art forms to expand on civil rights. some consider him among the most important writers of his name. that's your news cycle. >>> a development in the fight for immigration reform. house republicans are preparing to release a document outlying principles for an overhaul this month. it's not the only reason to be hopeful 2014 will breakthrough year for the hot button issue. in a recent u"usa today" column he outlines that speaker boehner will push back against the far right and immigrants are ready to come out of the shadows and have voicesing be heard. we have to accept reality this will not be rolled out in one fell swoop. if there's anything we learned about obamacar

using bottled water. that's sort of the mantra here as most of the people in charleston west virginia are going about here. the smell in some parts of the city are is like a licorice or a cough drop. the government here is sending out messages to the media, saying they're doing testing on the plant and the elk river and that the water is safe. yet if that is the case, what is the odor, why are some homes still having the odor, and some people reporting discoloration of the water. when we were driving to the restaurant this morning there were two major tanker trucks out there that are flushing the system in the hospital ten days after the chemical spill. let me talk quickly to an advocate mia, in west virginia. what is your advocacy group what are you about? >> the group is people concerned about chemical safety. we are concerned because our community is the only place in the world that the chemical mic was called, that was stored in five times the amount of what caused that disaster until just a few years ago. so we are -- i he am from the community i was born and raised here and i have ties with the chem

using water again. we're live in charleston, doug has the latest. >> reporter: yeah, greg, authorities are really loath to put a time frame on when water service might be restored. the closest they came to that was in an afternoon press conference today in which they described how big the water system serving charleston and surrounding counties is. they say it requires a lot of manpower to reach these extended counties, a lot of time. and the key part of this is the epa mandates before the water service can be restored, it has to reach a level of one part of the dangerous chemical per million parts of water. listen to the president of the water company here. >> acceptable levels, extensive testing must be conducted in thes distribution system before the do not use order is lifted. >> reporter: so it would not be surprising to see these water restrictions maintained perhaps for several more days. that means that 300,000 people in this area are going to have to continue to use bottled water or trucked in water to brush their teeth, to take a bath, to use, to drink. so far things have been moving fairly c

us in napa valley, california. thank you so much. >>> the water contamination that has been affected over 300,000 people in charleston, west virginia, is the only latest incident of pollution by the coal industry. the environmental protection agency said coal plants are now responsible for 50% to 60% of all types of pollution in the united states. loopholes and deregulation has allowed the contamination of waterways and well water sources to go unchecked for decades. and it's more dangerous than the charleston elk river. >>> the royal majesty pulled into port in miami with 16 people sickened by a stomach virus that is believed to be the noro virus. for many it turned their dream vacation into a sea nightmare. >> the whole night at the hoy toilet. >> we all brought medication and we were cautious. >> the ship returned to miami where it was scrubbed and disinfected. they're now offering passengers an opportunity to reschedule their trips. >>> more details are emerging about the friday suicide attack at a kabul restaurant. national security adviser susan rice called the attack a heinous and cowardly attack. >> only after sunrise was t

in charleston, west virginia. there are now reports that the city is preparing to sue. what can you tell us? >> reporter: indeed, good afternoon, del. city council members have talked to local businesses. they're convening this afternoon in what they call a closed door meeting, an emergency executive session with city council members where they're considering to file a lawsuit with losses caused by the comment spill and water outages here. they could have a vote as early as tomorrow evening. in the meantime a lot of people here are drinking bottled water, and not drinking it out of their taps, and the concerns are everywhere. in west virginia roadside water distribution sites dot the highways and county roads. >> well, some are still afraid to actually drink the water. >> over the past 11 days nearly 300,000 people have lived through the unprecedented do do-not-use order from west virginia american water, but the problems are not over yet. >> we're still getting complaints from from various residents. in and out of the area they still smell the chemical from their water stream. >> there is l

us on twitter. that's it for this week's show. thanks to my panel, especially to all of you for watching. hope to see you right here next week. >>> 300,000 people in charlestonst virginia experiencing their third day now without any usable twater with officials in nine different counties ordering people don't use it for any purpose under any circumstances. imagine that. trying to get by without water. >> my goodness, that's tough. >> welcome everybody to america's news headquarters. last you're with us. >> thanks for joining us. so the toxic chemical spill is not only forcing businesses and restaurants to close, but it may also be making people sick. boy, doug live in

in charleston. people are told not to use the water for anything except flushing the toilet. schools and businesses are closed. president obama declared a state of emergency there as the feds are now investigating. no word on how much chemical spilled or how long that ban will last. >>> meanwhile new jersey governor and potential presidential candidate is doing more damage control today. a lawsuit has now been filed in connection with the bizarre scandal over a huge traffic jam. and as alison harmelin reports, hundreds of pages of documents relating to the case should be release later today. >> reporter: more than 900 pages of documents including internal emails are scheduled to be released today in the new jersey political scandal many are calling "bridge-gate." >> i am responsible for what happens under my watch. >> reporter: governor chris christie a possible 2016 republican presidential candidate apologized to the democratic mayor of fort lee for the traffic jam's christie's allies created in the city allegedly for political pay back. he said it was done behind his back.

use order has been lifted. disturbing, right? because that must mean traces of that chemical remain in the water supply despite the drink order. cnn's jean casarez's that's true. she is in charlestoneporter: weigh want to tell everybody that 730% of the people in the areas can now drink the water. the cdc is saying that if there is any detectable amount of the chemical, even in water that's in the blue zone, pregnant women should not drink it. so what's exactly in the water around here? we did our own testing. here is what we found. while officials continue to test the public water supply here in charleston, west virginia, cnn decided to do our own testing with test america, a private company out of ohio. >> i'm going to collect five of these bottles for this particular sample. >> reporter: we wanted to sample water from our hotel where the do not use order has been lifted as well as from the home of tw coxe where the ban is still in effect. >>. both samples were drawn within about an hour of each other. they ran the water for 20 minutes before filling the bottles. lab testing was done overnight with control samples. the result, both samples contained mchm. the chemical that leak

in water deemed safe but well below the one part per million threshold. that water is now being used by more than 200,000 people in the affected area. dr. gupta, director of the kanawha charlestonple are using tap water hospital visits spiked midweek. >> they report right after they've taken a shower, they have this rash. we've had people walk in here with scary-looking rashes. >> reporter: after after earlier chemical explosion in this area, the chemical safety board recommended in 2011 that west virginia give dr. gupta the authority to establish a hazardous chemical release prevention program which could have included monitoring the chemicals stored just upriver from charleston's water treatment plant. >> that would have helped us at least to have an idea to develop some sort of a comprehensive program in order to ensure that those chemicals are being stored in a safe matter. >> reporter: but the state decided not institute that program and with the safety of this chemical in question, this family isn't sure they want to stay in west virginia. >> i have a child and i want to raise him here. and i want to know that he's going to grow up safe. i feel like west virginia's lettin

in the charleston area. this morning, a state of emergency remains in effect as more than 300,000 residents are being told not to use tap water for any reason. with hundreds complaining of nausea, vomiting, headaches and skin rashes. >> do not use tap water for drinking, cooking, cleaning, washing or bathing. >> reporter: for a third day now, residents like jane keefe are getting hydrated at check points and surrounding areas. >> i got like one bottle of water left. so i guess i have to come here like every day. >> i understand boiling water not being able to drink it, but not to put it on your body is outrageous. >> reporter: all this due to a chemical spill at freedom industries. that contaminated water flowing downstream to the west virginia american water treatment facility, which supplies water to nine counties. >> this is a chemical used in the process of cleaning coal. it's definitely an acute hazard. it's an irritant, so it will cause symptoms right away. it's not something that would -- you would want the to breathe or have in your drinking water. >> reporter: freedom industries has been ordered to cease op

in charleston. that is where we find luke russert who joins us live to talk about this. s in every way, shape and form. what is the latest? >> reporter: well, the latest is this morning 15% of the state's population will wake up and not have access to clean, accessible tap water. it's spread over 300,000 people over nine counties. officials tell us they expect it to be problematic today as it was for the past few. they will set up water distribution sites around the nine counties. for a lack of better words, bottle water is currency, it is king. it's had a huge impact on people's daily lives. you know how much you use water from brushing your teeth to cooking and showering and whatnot. a lot of folks here in charleston, can't go about their daily lives. a lot of hotels shut down. restaurants can't serve their patro patrons. officials are going try to test the water in the elk river to see if the chemical introduced in the spill thursday die luted to the point where the water is safe and accessible. right now, officials say there's time before that and how much time we do

the weather channel's jim cantore is in charleston, south carolina, with more for us this morning. jim, this is really bad for the south. they're just not used to this type of weather and they don't have the resources to combat it. >> reporter: right, but you know what? here's the deal, thomas, we're really good at forecasting the weather. but you know what, sometimes we miss one miles per hour this case, we didn't do that. and atlanta, as big as that city is, has to buy in when we're talking about it on a national media level, when the national weather service has got advisories out, when local media's talking about it. also absolutely no excuse to have that kind of gridlock. they should have shut it down early on in the day. you can't play with the fine details of the forecast. yes, it came in a couple hours early, but still, the point is, is with a city that big, you've got to plan way ahead, because it is just human nature. when people see the snow coming down outside, i've got to get out of here. that's what everybody did, and that's what caused the absolute gridlock. it kept

no idea when we are going to get a report that water is safe enough to use. >> steven blake is a hairdresser in downtown charleston>> my clients come in, they want their hair shampooed or it's necessary to shampoo or water for certain services. charleston medical center is using two tankers. the hospital says it's enough to last a few days. nonemergency surgeries have been put on home. hospitals report a small number of patients come in complaining of symptoms relating to chemical spills. >> that was al jazeera's jonathan martin reporting from charlton west virginia. >> good morning to you. no need for the umbrellas across eastern u.s. thanks to a frontal boundary that has cleared the coastline, it's the air moving in behind it that is blowing in over the lakes, giving away to the lake effect snow showers seen across upstate areas of new york. high pressure building in giving way to quiet conditions from the lakes to the golf coast, active into the north-west where there's a boundary on the move, creating problemsment still wintry weather is expected. and we are getting a persist ept on-sure flow, keeping the mois

use their tap water. the water supply in the counties around charleston was tainted by a chemical spill thursday. officials say tests near the state's largest water plant are encouraging. some 300,000 residents are affected. >>> iran has agreed to start freezing its nuclear program on january 20th. in exchange iran will get relief from economic sanctions. it's part of an interim deal that will last for six months while a final nuclear agreement is negotiated. susan mcginnis is in washington. susan, good morning. >> good morning, anne-marie. president obama says he has no illusions about how hard it's going to be to achieve the objectives of this deal but he says for the sake of national security, now is the time to give diplomacy a chance. still many in congress are not fully on board. iran's foreign minister appeared announce a six-month deal to limit its nuclear program. he says beginning next week iran will limit enrichment of uranium to 5%, a level used for power producti production. iran also agrees to dilute its stockpile of 20% enriched uranium, which is just below weapons grade. in exchan

use the water. alina machado there in charleston for us. ents released in the investigation of the new jersey bridge scandal. it is plaguing chris christie's administration. >> late last night, the documents were released and show angry e-mails and confusion over the lane closures. officials close to christie tried to cover up political motives and block the media from learning more about it. >> it gave us insight to the resignations into the controversy. the documents do not seem to show that governor christie himself played a role. cnn's alexandra field is live in ft. lee. i know you have information about the specific e-mails, alexandra? >> reporter: we are seeing fiery exchange in a clear attempt to keep things quiet. one e-mail from the port authority patrick foye. he expresses his outrage he wasn't notified when three accidents were taken down to just one access lane leaving people gridlocked for four days back in september. he sent a scathing e-mail to other port authority officials, he writes in part, quote, i will get to the bottom

in west virginia. chemical that is used to clean coal leaked out of that set into a river. near charleston. le notice the leak because the it is no struggle of black or licorice. >> : people in the area are told been told not to use or drop in the top water in any way. >> : but charlotte that don't trinket. you can't just boiler. it's not a boil water revisory don't deny us vice repeat >> : 46 people and hospital related to the contamination. >> : tinges thousand people are supposed to be affected and west virginia. >> : was ordered to freedom industries to stop all operations and a veteran government is now involved. >> : rob for gorgeous friday were the sun changes for your saturday high cloud coverage in that area right now there's a storm approaching the coastline here is the tail end of it is moving in it tonight and tomorrow morning and see lorraine. in the north bay and 10:00 hour that's what i expect they'll start. all the right rein in over santa rosa. >> : more moderate for the afternoon. i'll think we'll see much of the golden gate until afternoon. 1:00 mr. it will swear still see

tomlin said it had been progress made in the cleanup of this bill but officials couldn't say when the ban on tap water use would be lifted from the capital charleston and the surrounding counties as many as eighteen thousand nine hundred meters of an industrial foaming agents known as crude and c h m we can see the elk river last week. the amount of contaminants is confirmed to be falling but is not yet consistently low enough for people to safely use the water according to officials involved in the cleanup. this bill for schools and businesses to close in charleston and surrounding communities the federal emergency management agency has said seventy five tractor trailers filled with bottled water amounting to one million meters for distribution to the more than three hundred thousand people unable to use the tap water. so far seventy three people have gone to emergency rooms and five have been admitted for observation since secretary karen bowling of the state department of health and human resources and its symptoms include nausea vomiting dizziness and diarrhea and or actions. . pastor of the residential neighbourhood houses to jerusalem institu