House Voting Today On Harvey Relief Bill; Mexico Quake Leaves At Least Five Dead
ROMANS: All right. Four people have died in the U.S. Virgin Islands as a result of Hurricane Irma. That brings the number of storm- related deaths now to 10. Hurricane warnings remain in effect for parts of Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and Haiti. This is just part of the devastation. A bridge connecting the Dominican Republic to Haiti washed away by a category five -- the category five storm.</s>BRIGGS: That's certainly the last thing Haiti needs. A hurricane warning also issued at Turks and Caicos where conditions rapidly deteriorated overnight. Governor John Freeman warning everyone on the islands not to test Mother Nature.</s>JOHN FREEMAN, GOVERNOR, TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS (via telephone): Hunker down, stay where you are because you can't get out because the winds are just far, far too strong. Nobody can get to you, either. So, you know, people ought are to a large extent, for a little while, on their own.</s>BRIGGS: The governor tells CNN 15 roofs have come off and there's damage to part of the roof of the hospital as well. And some news this morning on two other hurricanes as well. The National Hurricane Center says Hurricanes Jose and Katia, one in the Atlantic and one in the Gulf, getting stronger. Irma, meantime, downgraded to a category four storm churning across the southeastern corner of the Bahamas overnight. A hurricane warning now in effect as Irma takes aim at the central Bahamas today. Journalist Stefano Pozzebon joining us now on the phone from the Bahamas. Good morning to you. What are the conditions like there and what are people doing that need to evacuate?</s>STEFANO POZZEBON, JOURNALIST (via telephone): Yes, good morning. We are on the phone. The wind is definitely coming (audio gap) -- are getting worse by the hour compared to the early hours of today. We can understand that -- we can definitely feel that Irma is arriving. People here have been evacuated from the southernmost Archipelago of the Bahamas and they take shelter in the island where we are at the moment, the island of Nassau in the northernmost part of the Archipelago where the capital lays. And here, we expect to be a little bit more protected from the brunt of Hurricane Irma. But we've got most of the people are taking shelter, trying to stay safe. And now, the conditions are really, really getting worse, David.</s>BRIGGS: All right. Stefano Pozzebon on the phone with us from Nassau in the Bahamas. Stay safe.</s>ROMANS: Yes, be careful out there. Some major concerns for the energy industry in Florida, ahead of Hurricane Irma. Two nuclear reactors are shutting down this weekend. Turkey Point Nuclear Generating Station, it's located just south of Miami in Homestead. The St. Lucie Nuclear Power Plant is about 150 miles up the coast on a barrier island in Jensen Beach. Both are right in the predicted path of this storm. Florida Power and Light says the sites are among the strongest in the U.S. They are designed to withstand heavy wind and storm surge. Turkey Point's nuclear reactors survived a direct hit from Hurricane Andrew in 1992 and suffered $90 million in damage at that time. You know, a number of gas stations are also shutting down because they've run out of fuel. At least 42 percent of gas stations in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale region are without fuel according to GasBuddy. Panic buying is causing long lines throughout South Florida. Florida Gov. Rick Scott trying to ease these gas shortages by directing State Police to escort fuel delivery trucks. He's also urging gas stations to stay open as long as possible before the storm hits. All right, to politics. A senior Republican aide tells CNN the House will vote this afternoon on a $15.2 billion Hurricane Harvey relief package passed by the Senate on Thursday. It increases the debt ceiling and funds the government for the next three months.</s>BRIGGS: Meantime, all five living former presidents joining forces to help Hurricane Harvey victims.</s>BILL CLINTON (D), FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Hurricane Harvey brought terrible destruction, but it also brought out the best in humanity.</s>BARACK OBAMA (D), FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: As former presidents, we want to help our fellow Americans begin to recover.</s>JIMMY CARTER (D), FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Our friends in Texas, including President Bush 41 and 43, are doing just that.</s>GEORGE W. BUSH (R), FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: People are hurting down here, but as one Texan put it, we've got more love in Texas than water.</s>GEORGE H.W. BUSH (R), FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We love you, Texas.</s>BRIGGS: President Trump not included in the public service announcement, just these former presidents. But he did tweet his support for the initiative, saying he's "proud to stand with presidents for One America Appeal." Some breaking news. There's five people dead in a powerful 8.1 magnitude earthquake in southern Mexico just off the coast near the border with Guatemala. It's the strongest quake recorded in Mexico in a century, according to the president there, Enrique Pena Nieto. A hotel as reportedly collapsed, power outages now being reported 600 miles away in Mexico City where people were running into the streets barefoot in their pajamas. Forecasters continue to warn about the possibility of hazardous tsunamis off the coast of Mexico with waves over 10 feet possible near the epicenter. Guatemala has activated security protocols. Police reporting some damage along their border with Mexico. More than 60 aftershocks in this monster quake, Christine.</s>ROMANS: All right. One of the largest hacks ever -- 143 million of you -- 143 million of you could be affected. We'll tell you how to know if you're one.