Terror Suspect Didn't Fit the Role
PHILLIPS: Flooding is devastating, and the death toll is rising. At least 140 people are dead in the Philippines now. Hundreds of thousands of people have fled their homes. The capital and surrounding cities have witnessed the worst torrential rains in more than 40 years. An update on the ground now from our Dan Rivers in Manila.</s>DAN RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Much of the flood waters here in Manila are beginning to go down. In this area, it's sort of ankle deep or knee deep, whereas yesterday they were actually struggling to keep their heads above water in places. The authorities are beginning to get -- we've seen search and rescue teams making their way into some of the more flooded streets like this one. And you can see these houses now, the people are coming back in the beginning to try and assess what damage has been done and what is left of their homes. You can see in here where the water came up to several feet deep in some places. And obviously, everything inside was completely ruined. At one point the authorities estimate that perhaps up to 80 percent of Manila was under water, and some 450,000 people, it's estimated, now have been displaced. One other detail that's interesting and distressing for many of the people that live here: most of these houses, in fact, most of the residents here, we're told, haven't got insurance. It's very unusual to have household insurance. So all of the damage that you see will not be covered by an insurance company. Dan Rivers, CNN, Manila.</s>PHILLIPS: And there's a new storm churning in the Pacific. It could spark new flooding in the Philippines, right, Chad?</s>CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: There is, in fact. Right here. It's a W storm, western, obviously, Pacific. Not an east storm. Nowhere near the U.S. or the Mexican border. Sometimes these Pacific "E" storms, east storms, can be up there toward Cabo or maybe makes landfall along Mazilan (ph). This is completely on the other side of the globe. And there it is now. The 19th event of the year, now becoming a tropical storm. Just very much on the edge of our satellite picture here. This is Katsana (ph) right here, that came through Manila, literally a direct hit. But only as a tropical storm, not even as a hurricane. The storm has now grown an eye. It's a significantly bigger storm as it heads to Vietnam. And that line on our map's still the old border between North Vietnam and South Vietnam. But very close, probably, to what you know, you might know the sound of the city of Danang as it moves on by. Here's the event right here sliding through the Philippines as a "TS." Now up to 105 miles per hour. It may lose a little bit of strength as it gets into here, just a little bit closer to Vietnam. But I'm telling you, this is still going to be a very big event, Kyra, because of the way this whole area has -- it's just -- it's topographically enhanced. I mean, from what happened in the Philippines here. And in a lot of the infrastructure comes and goes in the Philippines with these storms. Just the roads that get -- gets washed out. Bridges that gets washed out, get washed out. But here, this is Manila itself. And you can maybe begin to see the city streets and how literally, how populated this area is, from the very rich to the very not rich. And literally, it is -- it is one world and then at other places another world. And so the rivers and the flooding going through the rivers here, coming down from what was 13 inches, 13 inches of rain in only six hours. Here's some pictures now that we have for you coming in. This is just the latest stuff that we have. This is the iReports coming in from Dorrane Lim. Anything that floats, literally, just trying to get things out of the water. That was a striking picture, trying to get this little motorcycle, moped out of the water, keeping it on some -- some kind of Styrofoam. I don't even know what it was. Not like they wouldn't save themselves. They were saving the little motorcycle. And obviously, all that going down. Three hundred and fifty to 400,000 people without a place to stay tonight as it gets dark there tonight. It is just going to be one -- another -- another flooded mess in an area. And we talked about Atlanta, how 1,000 people lost their homes. But, you know, what about 350,000 to 450,000? An exponentially bigger event there in Manila.</s>PHILLIPS: You can't even imagine. I mean, they don't even have the resources that we do here. It's overwhelming. We'll keep following up, Chad. Thanks so much.</s>MYERS: You're welcome.</s>PHILLIPS: All kinds of groups are stepping in to help people devastated by that typhoon. If you need their help or you'd like to get involved, please visit our "Impact Your World" page for all the details. That's at CNN.com/Impact. A war zone may seem like an unlikely place to find solar technology, but in Iraq, where there's an abundance of sunshine and a lack of reliable electricity, it kind of makes sense. CNN's Mohammad Jamjoom has the story now from Baghdad.</s>MOHAMMAD JAMJOOM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): There's new hope for patients of this clinic in Baghdad. Not because of the medicines inside but because of the equipment installed outside. The Al-Dakhil Medical Center is one of only three clinics in all of Iraq to use solar technology for power. Why is that a big deal? Because Iraq's power grid is so unreliable and blackouts so frequent most clinics can only open a few hours a day.</s>DR. THAMER AL-MUSAWI, AL-DAKHIL MEDICAL CENTER: This is a hot area, a hot spot. So people here need medical services, especially at night.</s>JAMJOOM: For Dr. Thamer al-Musawi, the frequent blackouts meant dropping child vaccinations. Without reliable power, the vaccines couldn't be kept cool. That changed with the solar panels.</s>AL-MUSAWI: That means we can give them services and they can get medical help for 24 hours (ph).</s>JAMJOOM: A clinic that stays open around the clock is almost unimaginable in Iraq. Besides providing jobs and much-needed medical care, it also brings hope. Before the panels were installed, Al-Dakhil had to rely on expensive and polluting diesel generators like this one. Solar technology is cleaner, and in the long run should be far more cost- effective. (on camera) There's 64 solar panels up here on the roof of the clinic. They were installed about four months ago and with great fanfare. The panels are linked to batteries on the ground floor. The equipment automatically runs off the batteries. When one battery loses its charge, another kicks in. (voice-over) The solar panel technology was underwritten by the U.S. military and supported by the Iraqi health ministry. Solar systems are now installed at three clinics. The latest opened last week. Colonel Joseph Martin, on hand for the grand opening, says that now the doctors can concentrate on what they're good at.</s>COL. JOSEPH MARTIN, U.S. ARMY: Everything within the clinic operates under this system: air conditions, to medical equipment, to refrigerators, everything. So it allows the doctor to focus on their patients instead of focusing on what's supporting them in the system.</s>JAMJOOM: But not always. Before we visited Dr. Thamer's clinic, someone tampered with a key circuit board, preventing the clinic from using electricity stored in the batteries. Until it's fixed, the clinic is back to using that unreliable diesel generator.</s>PHILLIPS: Mohammed Jamjoom joins us now, live from Baghdad. Mohammed, were you able to speak to any of the patients at that clinic? And what did they tell you about this?</s>JAMJOOM: Well, Kyra, you know, I visited clinics in Iraq before, and what I heard from the patients at Al-Dakhil Medical Center was amazing. I mean, they were full of hope for what was going to happen at this clinic. And I spoke to one man who brought his 5-year-old son there that day. And he said, you know, before, you know, we couldn't depend on the fact that there would be vaccinations for children. We couldn't depend on the fact that they would have the right medicines because, you know, even medicines couldn't be stored at the right temperature. But now they really think that they're going to be able to get the kind of care they need. They are concerned, however, because somebody has tampered with the circuit board there at the clinic, and solar power is no longer, basically, flowing through the clinic. But they are thinking that it will be restored sometime in the next two or three days -- Kyra.</s>PHILLIPS: Yes. It's just -- you know. This country already is having such a hard time getting back on its feet. It's so frustrating to see people tampering with things like this, because it's so innovative. Do you think that there will be more clinics in Iraq that will be outfitted with this type of solar technology?</s>JAMJOOM: The Iraqi company behind it, Kyra, they do believe that they will get the opportunity to outfit more clinics with this. They think that this is just going to be the reality of some point. And they think that it's more cost-effective, especially when you compare how much it costs to run those diesel generators that, you know, pollute the air in the neighborhood around the clinics and all neighborhoods of Baghdad, to what it will be, you know, after a few years of this solar technology. They believe that it makes sense. And Major Andrew Atar (ph) with the U.S. military, project manager of this project, you know, he told us that this is going to be the future of, basically, clinics in Iraq. And they hope that they're going to get other companies to come in and partner up and invest and make this a reality for Iraqis -- Kyra.</s>PHILLIPS: It's pretty amazing to watch. I mean, here we are, trying to go green in the U.S. We've been trying to conquer solar technology for a long time, and now seeing Iraq attempting it, it's pretty amazing. Great job, Mohammed. Thanks so much. Three teenagers have been charged in the killing of Chicago teen Derrion Albert. You see him brutally beaten right here, to death, in this graphic video. They're in police custody, and all are being charged as adults with first-degree murder. A vigil is planned today for the 16-year-old. Some believe that Derrion lost his life because he wouldn't join a gang. The father of a terror suspect, Najibullah Zazi, is expected back in court today. A status hearing is scheduled for Mohammed Zazi in Denver. The elder Zazi and another man are accused of lying to the government in connection with the alleged terror plot. And today could be another painful day for actor John Travolta in the Bahamas. He could be called back to the witness stand in the trial of two people accused of trying to blackmail him. Prosecutors say the suspects threatened to embarrass Travolta by revealing details about his son's death. Jett Travolta died of a seizure in January. Drugs, guns, human beings. An unholy trade is flourishing across the U.S.-Mexican border. Cops on both sides say they're outgunned.