NBC Nightly News - 1998-09-26

Channel: malgent

Transcript

Language: English (original, YouTube automatic captions)

[0:04] The new danger zone for an even stronger

[0:07] Hurricane George. New Orleans is bracing

[0:10] for a direct hit. Voluntary evacuations

[0:12] have already started in nearby

[0:14] communities.

[0:15] >> It reaches the Louisiana Mississippi

[0:17] coastline. This storm will have 115 mph

[0:20] winds or greater. As GF Coast residents

[0:24] prepare for the worst, people in the

[0:26] Florida Keys came home to see what

[0:28] George had done to them.

[0:33] >> From NBC News World Headquarters in New

[0:35] York, this is NBC Nightly News reported

[0:39] by Brian Williams. Substituting tonight

[0:42] is Sarah James.

[0:44] >> Good evening. Hurricane George takes aim

[0:47] at the Gulf Coast tonight after

[0:48] walloping the Florida Keys. Earlier, the

[0:51] storm killed almost 300 people on its

[0:53] march through the Caribbean. Now, it's

[0:56] predicted to gain strength in the coming

[0:57] hours, threatening thousands of coastal

[0:59] residents. We have three reports

[1:02] tonight. Carrie Sanders from Key West,

[1:04] where the cleanup is underway. Jim

[1:06] Cumins is along the Mississippi coast.

[1:08] And Kenley Jones tonight from the city

[1:10] that has forecasters most alarmed, New

[1:13] Orleans. First, Kenley Jones. Kenley

[1:16] >> Sarah. Just two weeks ago, New Orleans

[1:19] experienced major flooding when just a

[1:21] tropical storm blew through town. Now

[1:23] with Hurricane George bearing down, the

[1:25] city is faced with a much more serious

[1:28] threat.

[1:29] >> Further, mandatory evacuation.

[1:33] >> Evacuation plans are already being

[1:35] implemented in nine Louisiana parishes

[1:38] that lie in the path of George.

[1:40] Residents of low-lying areas boarded up

[1:42] their property before heading for higher

[1:44] ground at the urging of parish

[1:46] officials.

[1:47] >> We have to express to our citizens a

[1:50] grave concern and to make sure that they

[1:53] make appropriate plans to deal with this

[1:54] pending event.

[1:56] >> No mandatory evacuation has been ordered

[1:58] for the city of New Orleans, but all day

[2:00] heavy traffic has plugged Interstate 10

[2:02] heading out of town. It is the only

[2:05] major artery leading away from the city

[2:07] over Lake Poncha Train. New Orleans

[2:10] Mayor Mark Moriel urged a voluntary

[2:12] evacuation.

[2:14] >> What the mayor and other officials are

[2:16] worried about is the fact that New

[2:18] Orleans lies 6 feet below sea level. It

[2:20] depends on a series of pumps to get rid

[2:22] of excess rain water.

[2:24] >> But a direct hit by Gor with a predicted

[2:27] storm surge of between 8 and 15 ft

[2:30] coupled with perhaps as much as 20 in of

[2:32] rain would overwhelm the pumps and

[2:35] engulf the city. The hurricane center

[2:37] projects that we could have a category 3

[2:40] hurricane

[2:42] when it reaches the Louisiana

[2:45] Mississippi coastline tomorrow about

[2:46] noon.

[2:48] This storm could have 115 mph winds and

[2:51] it's moving very slow. What would be

[2:54] immensely helpful would be for George to

[2:56] move over the city rapidly. If it moves

[2:58] slowly or worse yet lingers, that means

[3:01] more water and more trouble. Sarah,

[3:04] >> not good news. NBC's Kenley Jones in New

[3:06] Orleans. Thank you. Now to NBC's Jim

[3:08] Cumins on the anxiety in other cities

[3:11] along the Gulf Coast. Good evening, Jim.

[3:13] >> Good evening, Sarah. Thousands of people

[3:15] along the Gulf Coast here 100 miles from

[3:17] New Orleans have boarded up their

[3:19] houses, packed their bags, and are

[3:20] heading north.

[3:23] If the predictions are accurate and the

[3:25] eye of the hurricane does pass over New

[3:27] Orleans, then the east side of the

[3:29] storm, the most dangerous part of

[3:30] George, could slam into the Gulf Coast

[3:32] of Mississippi and Alabama. In Mobile,

[3:35] there is a run on emergency generators

[3:37] and plywood.

[3:38] >> Have no idea where it's going to go

[3:39] right now, but uh it's better to be safe

[3:41] than sorry, you know, just make sure

[3:43] we're prepared.

[3:44] >> Prepared to board up their homes and

[3:46] businesses and head inland. That's what

[3:48] Lloyd Fulton was doing today to his

[3:49] cottage on Dolphin Island, a barrier

[3:51] island near Mobile. Fulton remembers

[3:53] what Hurricane Frederick did to this

[3:55] place back in 1979. And he does not plan

[3:58] to ride this one out on the island. If

[4:01] it gets up to category 3, if you know,

[4:04] we get the high winds here. It's going

[4:06] to be bad. Main thing if you're here,

[4:08] you're not going to get off. At least

[4:09] you and your vehicles are not going to

[4:10] get off.

[4:11] >> Brent Kate remembers Frederick, too.

[4:13] That's why he's pulling his boat out of

[4:16] the water. There's a good chance a lot

[4:18] of those boats be up on their side or uh

[4:21] washed out into the bay out here and we

[4:23] just didn't want to take that chance. So

[4:25] >> all day people were fleeing the island

[4:27] with or without their boats. Arty Till

[4:29] was taking his freezer and a summer's

[4:31] worth of frozen fish because he doesn't

[4:33] have an emergency generator.

[4:35] >> And if the water gets high, we don't

[4:38] want our freezer to get messed up. We

[4:39] don't want to lose all what we worked

[4:41] hard this summer to catch. And the

[4:44] authorities are warning people here

[4:45] along the Gulf Coast from New Orleans to

[4:47] Alabama to leave, describing the

[4:49] situation as very dangerous. Sarah,

[4:52] >> NBC's Jim Cumins in Mississippi. Thank

[4:54] you. NBC's Carrie Sanders was in Key

[4:57] West yesterday when George blew through.

[4:59] He is still there tonight. Carrie?

[5:02] >> Well, good evening. The good news,

[5:03] Hurricane George did not kill anyone in

[5:06] Florida. Tonight, state officials say it

[5:08] is still too early to put a dollar

[5:09] figure on how much damage George did to

[5:12] this part of the state.

[5:15] Hurricane Jour hammered the lower

[5:17] Florida Keys for more than 12 hours.

[5:20] Waterfront homes destroyed, boats

[5:23] battered. This one carried on the

[5:25] storm's title surge and left behind.

[5:28] >> You got a curfew till 7 in the morning.

[5:30] >> In Key West, a curfew remains in effect,

[5:33] but the locals are curious and aren't

[5:35] paying much attention.

[5:40] Barbara Bowers had never been through a

[5:42] hurricane.

[5:43] >> It's chaotic and it's a mess, but it

[5:46] wasn't as destructive to bodies and

[5:50] property as I thought it might have

[5:51] been.

[5:53] >> Generators are providing the only

[5:55] electricity in Key West tonight.

[5:57] >> I guess we're not going to have power

[5:59] for about a week.

[6:00] >> Danny Ramy cooked up what fresh food she

[6:02] had before it spoiled. Utility company

[6:06] officials say it'll be days before they

[6:08] restore power. Houseboat Row in Key West

[6:11] is now houseboat rubble.

[6:13] >> Did you stay on the boat or the

[6:14] hurricane?

[6:15] >> Nope. I'm not dead.

[6:17] >> Kevin Boswell called this home.

[6:19] >> I've been living here for 18 years, you

[6:21] know, and I was gone.

[6:24] >> For those who left and now want to go

[6:26] home, a roadblock and frustration.

[6:29] >> We've been refugees since Tuesday. We're

[6:32] ready to get home and sort through our

[6:34] stuff. What's left after whoever is down

[6:38] there is picked through it. We're ready

[6:40] to pick up the pieces. There are some

[6:42] reports of minor looting, but police say

[6:44] they do have the situation under

[6:46] control. Meanwhile, those roadblocks,

[6:48] according to officials here, will be

[6:50] lifted sometime tomorrow afternoon.

[6:52] Sarah.

[6:52] >> All right, Carrie. Carrie Sanders in Key

[6:54] West. And some of the day's other news

[6:57] in just a moment.

[7:00] Charlie, you know how we're always

[7:02] trying to find something to watch?

[7:04] >> Yeah.

[7:05] >> Well, now we can get Primear satellite

[7:07] TV installed for just $49.

[7:10] >> Oh,

[7:10] >> hey guys.

[7:11] >> Oh, no.

[7:12] >> Or we can get it installed on two TVs

[7:13] for just $99.

[7:15] >> Who asked you? $49 installed. Chuck

[7:18] >> sports here. Movies there.

[7:20] Let's get it. Okay,

[7:22] >> HE'S GOING TO GET IT. ALL RIGHT.

[7:24] >> PRIMEAR, $49 on one TV, $99 on two. Call

[7:28] 1800 Primear. Visit your local Radio

[7:29] Shack.

[7:30] >> I was born hungry,

[7:32] >> but I was born Italian, so that never

[7:34] happened again. Tonight, we had the

[7:36] perfect meal for us. The Olive Garden

[7:38] never ending pasta bowl. You pick any of

[7:40] the special pastas and you get all the

[7:42] free refills you want. Ooh, spaghetti

[7:44] with meat sauce, fetuccini alfredo, you

[7:47] name it. The bowls keep coming until you

[7:49] say when. And the same for sale and

[7:51] bread sticks. All for $6.95. I'm going

[7:53] to eat them.

[7:53] >> That's cousin. Nobody's ever heard this

[7:55] guy say when.

[7:56] >> I love this place. the garden. When

[7:58] you're here, you're family.

[8:00] >> No more excuses. Zyban is here.

[8:03] Prescription medicine only available

[8:04] from your doctor. Ask your doctor about

[8:07] Zyban or call 1888650

[8:10] pill to find out more. Zyban. Now you

[8:13] have another choice.

[8:15] >> With all we have to do today, does it

[8:17] make sense to keep color on your hair

[8:19] for 30 minutes when you can get rid of

[8:21] the gray in five? Just five. Great

[8:23] color, body, and shine in five gentle

[8:26] minutes. Just 5. Smart hair color works

[8:29] for me.

[8:32] >> Hi, pumpkin. It's late. You should be

[8:34] asleep.

[8:34] >> Mommy said that I could stay up until

[8:36] you got home. Oh,

[8:37] >> what you eating?

[8:39] >> Cheerios

[8:39] >> for dinner.

[8:40] >> They taste just as good at night. And

[8:42] remember, I told you they were good for

[8:43] my cholesterol.

[8:44] >> Oh, yeah.

[8:45] >> An important new study shows that three

[8:47] cups of Cheerios, whole grain oats a

[8:49] day, added to a low-fat diet, can help

[8:50] push your cholesterol down.

[8:52] >> You know what else is good for my heart?

[8:54] >> A hug from you. The one and only

[8:57] Cheerios.

[9:12] A thought for those of you married to

[9:15] your job.

[9:17] Every once in a while, have a fling

[9:21] with your wife.

[9:24] Royal Caribbean like no vacation on

[9:27] earth.

[9:31] It's destined to die in a political

[9:33] crossfire, but the House of

[9:35] Representatives approved an $80 billion

[9:37] tax cut today, funded with part of the

[9:39] projected federal budget surplus. NBC's

[9:42] Joe John's is on Capitol Hill.

[9:45] >> After calling members of the House in

[9:47] for a rare Saturday session, Speaker N.

[9:50] Gingrich lashed out at the president.

[9:52] >> The record ought to be clear. This

[9:54] Congress is working to pass the

[9:57] legislation that is good for the

[9:59] American people, even as the president

[10:01] crisscrosses the country, failing to do

[10:04] his job as president, but being

[10:06] campaigner chief.

[10:07] >> The bill the House passed today would

[10:09] provide an $80 billion tax cut over 5

[10:12] years. It would give married couples a

[10:14] $243 a year break on joint returns,

[10:18] raise the earnings limit for elderly

[10:19] people who receive social security, and

[10:22] make health insurance premiums for small

[10:24] businesses 100% deductible. Today's

[10:27] House approval came despite a veto

[10:29] threat by the president. Congressional

[10:31] Democrats accused Republicans of

[10:33] election year maneuvering. Don't give in

[10:36] to cynicism today and irresponsibility

[10:39] and instant gratification and election

[10:42] year politics.

[10:43] >> Meanwhile, members of the House

[10:45] Judiciary Committee continued their

[10:46] review of still confidential documents

[10:49] from the Star report. Polls show that

[10:51] despite the disclosure so far, most

[10:53] voters oppose impeachment. Republicans

[10:56] say the public doesn't have all the

[10:58] facts.

[10:58] >> Ultimately, the American people will

[11:00] make their judgment about the president

[11:02] based on the truth. Late next week, the

[11:05] judiciary committee is expected to hear

[11:07] recommendations from top aids on whether

[11:09] it should pursue a formal inquiry of

[11:11] impeachment against the president. Joe

[11:14] John's, NBC News, the capital.

[11:16] >> Also in Washington today, a rally to

[11:19] demand more money to fight cancer. NBC's

[11:21] Bob F reports.

[11:24] >> They came from throughout the nation,

[11:26] not just to honor cancer victims, but to

[11:29] bury the disease, which kills 1500

[11:31] people EVERY DAY.

[11:33] NO MORE CANCER.

[11:37] >> From famous performers like Artha

[11:38] Franklin

[11:40] >> to the juniors from Wheaton, West

[11:42] Virginia, it was partly celebration for

[11:45] survivors, partly education, Doug Man,

[11:48] who survived a deadly skin cancer, urged

[11:51] young soccer players to cover up.

[11:53] >> Kids spend, you know, Saturdays and

[11:54] Sundays out in the sun all day, and it's

[11:56] important that we uh make sure they know

[11:58] how to protect themselves. And it was

[12:00] very emotional, especially the display

[12:02] of quilts from 20 states, each with 50

[12:05] tributes to children with cancer.

[12:07] >> It's a way to to show how uh vast this

[12:11] disease is.

[12:12] >> Looking on Teddy Valeninovich, who's

[12:13] winning his battle with cancer, and the

[12:16] Wilson Whites, whose son Zach lost his

[12:18] struggle.

[12:19] >> He was our only son.

[12:21] >> Oh yeah, we can do that.

[12:22] >> We'll never forget him.

[12:24] >> And seeing this now is a way of keeping

[12:26] him alive.

[12:27] >> Yes.

[12:28] 28 years after President Nixon declared

[12:31] war on cancer, these people want the war

[12:33] effort intensified. They want faster

[12:35] cures, better care, and better access to

[12:38] treatment and more money without it.

[12:41] Dana Olsen's mother died from cancer.

[12:43] >> She died because she had no health

[12:45] insurance. She knew for months she was

[12:46] sick and she did not go to the doctor on

[12:48] purpose because um my family was very

[12:51] poor. So today, Olsson wrote a tribute

[12:53] to her mother and put it on a wall of

[12:55] courage with hundreds of other messages.

[12:57] It was one more way to remember and to

[13:00] rededicate all evidence, said one

[13:02] speaker, of a war that hasn't been won

[13:05] yet. Bob Faw, NBC News, Washington.

[13:09] >> When NBC Nightly News continues, a

[13:11] dispute over tactics in the war on

[13:13] drugs.

[13:14] >> The party of the first part did not

[13:16] intend or the party of the second.

[13:17] >> I should have used preparation H.

[13:19] >> If you had, you wouldn't be suffering

[13:21] now. Preparation H helps stop itch and

[13:23] further irritation with a soothing layer

[13:25] of protection.

[13:25] >> I should have used Preparation H.

[13:27] >> Stops itch stops irritation.

[13:29] >> I'm 64. Is there anything I can do to

[13:32] stop bone loss?

[13:33] >> Absolutely. Here's proof. In a landmark

[13:35] clinical study, Calrate actually stopped

[13:37] bone loss in women at risk for

[13:39] osteoporosis. Whatever your age,

[13:42] >> it's never too late for CalRate.

[13:45] >> There's something new in St. John's Bay.

[13:47] Dark denim. It's the latest look in

[13:49] jeans. And St. John's Bay has it in

[13:51] styles from classic to carpenter.

[13:53] >> JC Penn, I love your style.

[13:57] >> Only at J C Penney.

[14:11] Folklore has it the spices they cook

[14:14] with in the West Indies are

[14:17] aphrodesiacs.

[14:19] As if in a place like this you need any

[14:22] help.

[14:24] Royal Caribbean like no vacation on

[14:28] earth.

[14:29] Another hair clog. Well, I think the red

[14:42] max toughest on hairy clogs.

[14:44] >> Has frequent heartburn been a persistent

[14:47] problem for you? Have you treated it but

[14:49] still suffer on two or more days a week?

[14:52] Do you keep getting heartburn even

[14:54] though you've changed your diet? Your

[14:56] heartburn may be due to acid reflux

[14:58] disease. Ask your doctor about Pryloac.

[15:01] One capsule daily can provide complete

[15:03] 24-hour heartburn relief because it

[15:06] controls acid for 24 hours. 24 hours.

[15:10] Ask your doctor if Pryloc is right for

[15:12] you. Call to learn more. The most common

[15:15] side effects are headache, diarrhea, and

[15:17] abdominal pain. Want 24-hour heartburn

[15:20] relief with one daily dose? Ask your

[15:23] doctor about the most prescribed acid

[15:25] control medicine in America, Pryloac.

[15:30] >> In focus this evening, the debate over

[15:32] the merits of methadone. Here's NBC's

[15:34] Pat Dawson.

[15:36] >> Each morning, Hansy Oppenheimer's day

[15:38] begins at this New York clinic with a

[15:40] small sip of freedom.

[15:42] >> I'm doing so well. You know, I mean, I

[15:44] have my own apartment. I pay my rent. I

[15:45] have a daughter. I have a great

[15:46] relationship with her. I mean, if it

[15:48] wasn't for the methane, I'd probably be

[15:49] dead now.

[15:50] >> Like thousands of heroin addicts,

[15:51] Oppenheimer has achieved a relatively

[15:53] ordered life with a daily dose of

[15:55] methadone, the synthetic drug that

[15:57] blocks heroin cravings. It's widely

[15:59] described as the most effective drug

[16:01] treatment ever devised.

[16:03] >> I'd say they're misinformative. But if

[16:05] New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani has his

[16:07] way, the 2,000 methadone users treated

[16:09] in the city's public hospitals and

[16:11] perhaps many more will be taken off the

[16:14] drug, pushed toward abstinence.

[16:16] >> We shouldn't be giving people money to

[16:19] remain addicted and dependent for the

[16:20] rest of their lives.

[16:21] >> Giuliani sees this as a moral choice

[16:24] that will liberate people he says are

[16:26] enslaved by methadone. But this policy

[16:29] of tough love is at odds with what the

[16:31] vast majority of drug treatment experts

[16:33] believe. and three decades of scientific

[16:36] and medical evidence.

[16:38] >> It's about as sensible as saying that

[16:39] somebody that has a severe mental

[16:41] problem is being enslaved by the uh

[16:45] medications that he's being given by a

[16:47] physician. There isn't anybody in this

[16:49] country that believes America is doing a

[16:51] good job in fighting the problem of drug

[16:53] addiction. If anything, we've sustained

[16:56] it and continued it. And maybe it's

[16:58] because the experts don't have the

[17:00] answers. According to federal

[17:02] statistics, there are more than 800,000

[17:05] heroin addicts in the United States.

[17:07] 115,000 are treated with methadone.

[17:10] >> The science of it is pretty conclusive.

[17:13] This is a valuable tool for the patient,

[17:17] their families, and the community.

[17:19] >> People like 81-year-old musician Jimmy

[17:21] Maxwell.

[17:22] >> Opening night in Moscow is like opening

[17:24] night on Broadway.

[17:26] The dark side of his addiction began in

[17:28] 1962 when Russian doctors prescribed an

[17:31] opium derivative for a medical problem

[17:33] while Maxwell was touring with the Benny

[17:35] Goodman band.

[17:38] >> Jimmy Maxwell.

[17:40] >> Soon he tried heroin. The addiction

[17:42] almost led a husband and father to

[17:44] suicide until doctors began methadone.

[17:47] >> I take the methadon, but I don't have to

[17:51] wait until I feel terrible. I just

[17:53] automatically take it every morning and

[17:55] I I don't ever have it ups or downs.

[17:58] >> In fact, methanone offers the users no

[18:00] high or sense of euphoria like heroin.

[18:03] >> So even though the person stops or is in

[18:05] a state of abstinence, the brain

[18:07] chemistry hasn't changed. It's still

[18:10] showing a dependence. And the reason

[18:12] methadone works so well is because it

[18:15] normalizes the brain function. And a

[18:17] government study says 85% of users who

[18:20] try abstinence revert to illegal drug

[18:22] use.

[18:23] >> Methodon really works.

[18:25] >> Despite the public furer, Mayor Giuliani

[18:27] insists that treatment that leads to

[18:29] abstinence, like this residential group,

[18:31] is the best solution.

[18:33] >> 6 months I'm here. Tomorrow I have 4

[18:36] months drugree.

[18:38] >> But programs that practice abstinence

[18:39] are a costly long-term investment in

[18:42] counseling, psychotherapy, and job

[18:44] placement. It's a gamble the evidence

[18:46] says is bucking the odds. Pat Dawson,

[18:48] NBC News, New York.

[18:51] >> That's our abbreviated edition of NBC

[18:53] Nightly News for this Saturday. Len

[18:55] Cannon will be here tomorrow. I'm Sarah

[18:57] James. Thanks for watching and good

[18:59] night.

[19:09] NBC News, America's news leader.