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Hundreds Of Flights Canceled At LaGuardia As Collision Probe Continues; Strikes Make Data Centers New Front Line In Iran War; New Mexico Jury Finds Meta Liable In Child Sexual Exploitation Case. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired March 25, 2026 - 07:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[07:30:00]

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: All right. This morning we've just learned hundreds of flights are canceled today at LaGuardia Airport as investigators continue to comb through wreckage to understand how an Air Canada Regional jet and a fire truck collided at one of the country's busiest airports.

Among the new details this morning the NTSB confirming there were two controllers working at the time of the collision -- standard staffing for LaGuardia at that time of night. This comes as six people who were on the plane remain hospitalized, according to Air Canada.

And get this -- this is an incredible story. We're learning about that flight attendant who was thrown from the plane while still strapped to her seat. Here is her daughter.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SARAH LEPINE, DAUGHTER OF FLIGHT ATTENDANT THROWN FROM PLANE (through translator): Miraculously, it is a big word to underline. It is quite a miracle. She has one leg that was broken in several areas, and it will need surgery. But she has all of her wits about her, and everything seems fine. I am still trying to understand how all of this happened, but she really had a guardian angel who was looking straight over her.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: Truly amazing.

Joining me now is CNN aviation analyst and former NTSB managing director Peter Goelz. Thank you so much for being here.

Let's talk about this flight and what's happening with it now because LaGuardia only has so many, you know, places for planes to go and now one of the runways is still shut down. Why is it taking so long in this particular case for them to try to clear this and have all the evidence they need?

PETER GOELZ, CNN AVIATION ANALYST, FORMER NTSB MANAGING DIRECTOR: Well, the NTSB's responsibility is to get this right. They were on -- they have to document this wreckage scene and make sure they know where every piece of wreckage was thrown to make sure they understand the full physical implications of this accident. It's going to be another two or three days at least until that second runway opens up but it's a small price to pay for getting the investigation correct and preventing this from happening again.

SIDNER: That is absolutely what people would feel after seeing what happened in this crash, which was shocking when you see the actual video of the impact there between this flight and the fire apparatus.

I do want to ask you about the things that are in place that could have stopped this and in the future should stop this. We are learning that the fire truck didn't have a transponder and that this surface radar didn't trigger an alert.

Are those two things that you think would have prevented this potentially?

GOELZ: Well, there's going to be -- you know, it's too soon to say definitively but there's going to be two major areas of the investigation.

One is going to be the staffing of the tower. There were -- there were two controllers on duty on the midnight shift and that's standard operating procedures, except last -- the night of the accident was not a standard night. There were storms. There were delays throughout the system. Instead of managing approximately 30 aircraft post-10:30 at night they were managing twice that, 70. So they were overstressed.

Secondly, the ASDE-X system works when all the aircraft, all the ground people, ground vehicles have transponders and it alerts on when there is a potential conflict. In this case they picked up the truck, but it was what they call a primary return. And it's not clear why the system did not alert but that's going to be examined very carefully because if you're going to stuff as many flights an hour into small airports like Ronald Reagan and LaGuardia then you better make sure your ground conflict system is working and is working accurately.

SIDNER: Yeah, and you make a really, really important point where you talk about the fact that this was double the amount of traffic that they're used to.

And for those of us who have never worked in air traffic control can you just give us some sense of how stressful it is just making sure that planes land and take off safely?

GOELZ: I have the greatest admiration for flight controllers. I mean, they have to manage aircraft taxiing to and from the gates, aircraft landing, aircraft taking off, and the multitude of vehicles that are traveling in a very confined space. They have enormous responsibilities and 99 percent of the time they handle these responsibilities with professionalism and skill. That's why this is, you know, such a tragic accident.

[07:35:00] These are -- you know between the pilots and the air traffic controllers and the flight attendants -- these are all professionals who do their job well every day. And when an accident like this happens, I know the NTSB will spare nothing from getting this investigation right and getting it into the public as soon as possible.

SIDNER: Yeah, and making sure that safety comes first.

Thank you so much, Peter Goelz. It's always great to have your expertise on these things. Appreciate it -- Erica.

ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: Democrats celebrating a big victory this morning in President Trump's backyard. CNN is projecting that Democrat Emily Gregory will flip a deep red Florida State House seat in Palm Beach defeating the Trump-backed Republican candidate Jon Maples. That districts in -- that district, rather, includes President Trump's Mar- a-Lago home. Donald Trump won that district by 11 percentage points in the 2024 election.

Gregory spoke with CNN about her win and what she says it says about the voters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EMILY GREGORY, (D) REPRESENTATIVE-ELECT, FLORIDA HOUSE DISTRICT 87: Everyone thought we were crazy for saying we could win this seat. Everyone said it was out of reach. I think it's a real reaction to the current policies at the national and state level, and I think that is a clear indication from voters it's the wrong track.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: The president cast a mail-in ballot in Tuesday's special election despite saying on Monday that "Mail-in voting means mail-in cheating."

We are standing by for the return of the -- to the U.S., rather, of an American citizen who had been imprisoned in Afghanistan. U.S. officials tell CNN Dennis Coyle, a 64-year-old academic, was released yesterday after being held by the Taliban for more than a year.

According to his family, Coyle was held in near-solitary confinement and was never actually charged with a crime. He had spent nearly 20 years working in Afghanistan.

According to U.S. officials, nothing was traded and nothing was given to secure his freedom. We do know there are at least two other U.S. citizens who remain detained in Afghanistan.

SIDNER: All right. New this morning gas prices have been rising since the Iran war began every single day for 25 days, with the national average sitting just below four bucks a gallon, and drivers in some states are already seeing prices above that.

Joining me now is Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy. Patrick, there is one thing that all Americans want to hear from you. Help us -- help us figure out what we can do to try to save ourselves some money.

PATRICK DE HAAN, HEAD OF PETROLEUM ANALYSIS, GASBUDDY (via Webex by Cisco): Yeah, certainly amidst a furious increase at the pump of over a dollar a gallon for the average American, and that's exactly what we're all looking for.

And there's a lot of different ways from breaking your norms and getting out of your comfort zone and trying a different gas station to a lot of different things. How you drive, how you pay. If you're stacking it with loyalty programs. There's a myriad of ways of reducing the price you pay at the pump even when it goes up as drastically as it has in the last few weeks.

SIDNER: Can you give us some sense of why there is what feels like a long lag between when oil prices do come down and gas prices because it always seems like the gas prices kind of stay there? Is that because, you know, the operators are like we can still, you know, make a living here -- we can add to our -- to our profits, or is there something else in the mix that causes this difference between when oil prices drop then the gas prices seem to kind of stay where they are for quite a while?

DE HAAN: Yeah, this is a really, really popular question.

And on the front side of things, when prices go up stations still do tend to have a lag of one to two, sometimes two to three days. And, you know, sometimes it's as simple as a station missing a text message that their cost went up. And that's also why then they lower their prices more slowly because they were two to three days behind in raising prices. They may have lost out on 20 to 30 cents a gallon of profit margin. They need to recoup that to keep their business open.

So when oil prices do eventually plummet, they absorb a little bit of that -- the decrease -- kind of like your bank. Your EFT takes two to three days. It could happen instantaneously, but those decreases are slowly passed along day after day.

By the way, stations really don't know if the coast is clear to lower prices. That's also why they don't plummet prices overnight. Oil prices fell eight or nine percent on Monday only to then surge again six percent on Tuesday. Imagine the whiplash for a station owner lowering your price all the way then having to re-raise it. There's a lot of contentions and considerations there.

But ultimately, to your point, the best pace we've seen in declines is usually a few cents a gallon a day, and that could last several weeks on where we've been in the last couple of days.

SIDNER: Yeah. I mean, we're watching them. We just had the prices on the screen. We saw them, you know, in the last couple of days spike up over $100 a gallon (sic) and then drop down to where they are right now, which is $87 bucks a gallon (sic). So it has been kind of a rollercoaster ride. I do want to get some sense from you as to what entire countries are trying to do to try to deal with this. Because there are some moves from some countries to try and kind of, I don't know, keep the -- keep the gas prices low by, what, telling people to stay home. Are you seeing that?

[07:40:05]

DE HAAN: Yeah. I mean, that's what we've been seeing in Europe -- people being advised to work from home where possible.

We've seen fuel rationing in Asia. That's the real area, by the way. Americans complain about prices but relatively insulated from the supply disruptions that you're seeing in Asia, and now that's moving over to Europe as well. Real potentials of supply disruptions because the Strait of Hormuz and all of the inventories that had been built up are now starting to deplete in areas like Europe and Asia. So absolutely, you're seeing a lot of that.

Eastern Europe, you're seeing rationing, which is something that we generally have not seen any of here in the United States.

So this is really telling you that overseas this is becoming far more problematic. And while Americans may be griping about paying more, our energy independence -- the 13.7 million barrels a day that we're producing, coupled with reliable imports from Canada, make all the difference in sheltering us from those real supply disruptions they're seeing overseas.

SIDNER: Yeah. I mean, Americans would lose their minds if there was suddenly rationing. We saw what happened when there was an oil crisis back in '70s with the president in place at that time. And we are now -- you know, prices are high but it's still quite available in all states.

Patrick De Haan, we'll see what happens from here. Thank you so much. I do appreciate it -- Erica.

HILL: Turning our attention now to the war with Iran. CNN has learned about 1,000 U.S. soldiers with the Army's 82nd Airborne Division are on standby to deploy to the Middle East as President Trump is sounding an optimistic tone that a deal to end the war in sight while also claiming that the war has actually already been won.

The president says Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio are leading the current talks with Iran, although a spokesman for the Iranian military says the U.S. is essentially negotiating with itself.

Joining me now is Emily Harding. She is the director of the Intelligence and National Security and Technology program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Emily, it's good to have you with us.

So as we look at everything that is playing out militarily, you had a fascinating piece talking about data being the new front line in the war and frankly, in warfare at this point.

In the early days, Iran went after data centers across the region and then released a list of 29 different sites that they said could be targets. These are all U.S. companies. This has to do with your data. I'm talking Amazon Web Services, Oracle, Google among the companies that were named.

How does actually change the calculus of warfare in 2026?

EMILY HARDING, DIRECTOR, INTELLIGENCE, NATIONAL SECURITY & TECHNOLOGY PROGRAM, CENTER FOR STRATEGIC AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES: I think it really shows two big developments. Number one is that Iran is willing to go after civilian targets in addition to traditional military targets. And number two, it's a recognition that there's a blurring of the lines between what even is a civilian and a military target.

Data right now is essential to warfare. We're seeing that with the Maven system the U.S. is using. We're seeing that even with what Iran is doing as well. We're seeing it in Russia and Ukraine.

So data centers -- data is going to be more and more a question as to whether that's a legitimate target in warfare.

HILL: You talk -- you bring up Russia and Ukraine and legitimate targets in warfare. There have been questions obviously about what Russia has been doing for the last several years targeting civilian infrastructure. Targeting energy. The threats, right that we saw to target Iranian civil infrastructure -- what that led to in terms of reaction.

With there being no more line -- that line being blurred, as you point out, what does that mean for civilians, in this case, around the globe who may be caught in these wars?

HARDING: Right. So there's well-established law on the law of war and what is and is not a legitimate target. But in this case what we're seeing is that Iran has decided to do some extensive horizontal escalation. They're going after civilian targets like transportation. They're also willing to go after desalination plants. And then this data center thing as well is really going to have wide-reaching effects in the region and also globally.

I think the next big decision for the U.S. is how are we going to think about these data centers? Are we going to think about them as a domestic asset that exists in the Gulf? Are we going to think about them as American companies? Even as part of American critical infrastructure. What does that mean for what the U.S.' responsibility is in trying to deter attacks on these kinds of facilities or respond if they are attacked?

Meanwhile, we're seeing actual disruptions on the front lines. There was an attack on a data center in Bahrain. Amazon came out and said there would be severe disruptions. It may be days, may be weeks before some of those facilities are back online.

HILL: How prepared do you think the U.S. is for this new front in a war like this? And to your point, these growing questions about how responsible the U.S. may be for protecting some of these data centers in other areas?

HARDING: Honestly, it's not something the U.S. government has really thought through as much as it needs to. Part of our work here at CSIS is looking at this no front lines question and how the U.S. and companies should be thinking about this new problem.

[07:45:00]

There are some really difficult policy decisions to make here. I mean, for example, if you do decide that an attack on a Microsoft facility or an attack on an Amazon facility is actually an attack on U.S. sovereignty what does that mean for who is responsible for securing those sites? I mean, these companies have very talented and extensive resources to try to protect those facilities, but you can't put a Patriot battery outside every Amazon Web Services facility in the Middle East. They're going to have to make some really difficult choices.

And that's why I think that deterrence is something that the U.S. should really think about. If you talk about these sites as critical infrastructure, then it becomes something the U.S. is going to be willing to protect. But the modern warfare way is going to be datacentric. It's going to be essential to have this data and to have it at a moment's notice if you're going to fight wars the way that we want to fight wars.

HILL: Yeah, Emily. So much to think about. I really appreciate you joining us this morning. Thank you -- Sara.

SIDNER: All right. Thank you so much, Erica.

This morning Meta says it plans to appeal after a New Mexico jury found it liable for failing to protect children from sexual predators and misleading users about the dangers of its platforms. The jury ordered the tech giant to pay $375 million in damages.

New Mexico's attorney general, who filed the suit, called it an historic victory, saying, "Meta executives knew their products harmed children, disregarded warnings from their own employees, and lied to the public about what they knew."

CNN tech reporter Clare Duffy joining me now. This is breathtakingly big because this is -- is this the first time that Meta has been sort of put in a position where the jury is telling them you are accountable for this?

CLARE DUFFY, CNN TECH REPORTER: Yeah, Sara, it's huge. I mean, for years we have heard these concerns from parents --

SIDNER: Yeah.

DUFFY: -- from lawmakers, from advocates about the risks to children on Meta's platforms, and this is the first time that we're seeing a jury hold the company accountable for that.

And this decision came after less than a day of jury deliberations following this seven-week trial. The jury finding Meta liable on all counts in this lawsuit. For violating New Mexico consumer protection law, including for willfully engaging in deceptive and unconscionable trade practices. And as you said, putting children at risk. They have ordered Meta to pay $375 million in damages.

And this is just the first phase of this trial. In the next phase the -- this case will be presented directly to the judge and we could see Meta ordered to pay additional financial damages and also to make changes to its platforms.

And I think this really gives you a sense of where sort of the American public -- where a jury is standing on this company -- on this issue right now.

Take a listen to what one of the jurors said following this decision yesterday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Social media has really become -- and Meta, as a company itself and what it has come to represent and should be trying to represent better and in just protecting teens and people that are going to be on those platforms.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It ultimately swung that way because the majority of the 12 people agreed that there was willful violation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DUFFY: So Meta does plan to appeal this decision, and I'll read to you what a spokesperson told me yesterday following the decision.

They said, "We respectfully disagree with the verdict and will appeal. We work hard to keep people safe on our platforms and are clear about the challenges of identifying and removing bad actors or harmful content."

But again Sara, I think this is such a significant moment in terms of setting a precedent that other states might end up following.

SIDNER: Yeah. It's huge in the -- in the fact that the Congress has not managed to do any reining in of any of the social media platforms. This is the first time that a jury is now saying hey, you guys have to do something or you're going to pay for it.

Clare Duffy, this is big. I know you'll be following it. I know Meta is appealing this. We'll see where this case goes from here. I do appreciate it -- Erica.

DUFFY: Thank you.

HILL: Well, just in, Savannah Guthrie is opening up now for the first time about her mother's disappearance in a new interview with the "TODAY" show. She says the thoughts about her mom wake her up every single night. More of that ahead.

Plus, a record-breaking heat wave that we're following now hitting dozens of states. The dangerous wildfire conditions that could come along with it.

(COMMERCIAL)

[07:53:13]

HILL: This just coming in to us here at CNN. We're hearing from Savannah Guthrie now seven weeks into the search for her mother, Nancy. Savannah sat down with Hota Kotb who, of course, has been filling in for Savannah while she spends time with her family.

CNN's Brian Stelter joining me now with a preview of this interview. So Brian, what did Savannah say?

BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA ANALYST: Yeah. Well, Savannah had been seen back in February in those heart-wrenching Instagram videos pleading for help amid her mother Nancy's disappearance. Now we're hearing from Savannah in a brand new way, sitting down with one of her best friends talking about his ordeal -- about how it's very much still an active investigation but how as the weeks have dragged on Savannah has become even more desperate for some form of closure.

She said she wakes up every night, perhaps around the time that her mom went missing from that Tucson home, and thinks about the terror her mom went through.

Here's the clip that NBC just shared.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAVANNAH GUTHRIE, NBC HOST, "TODAY" SHOW: Someone needs to do the right thing.

HODA KOTB, NBC HOST, "TODAY" SHOW: Um-hum.

GUTHRIE: We are in agony.

KOTB: Um-hum, yeah.

GUTHRIE: We are in agony. It is unbearable.

KOTB: Um-hum.

GUTHRIE: And to think of what she went through.

KOTB: Um-hum.

GUTHRIE: I wake up every night in the middle of the night, every night. And in the darkness, I imagine her terror. And it is unthinkable but those thoughts demand to be thought.

KOTB: Yeah.

GUTHRIE: And I will not hide my face.

KOTB: Um-hum.

GUTHRIE: She needs to come home --

KOTB: Yeah.

GUTHRIE: -- now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[07:55:00]

STELTER: For anyone who knows Savannah, who loves Savannah, this is another really hard moment to watch, but an important moment.

It's a transition moment for Savannah as she starts to think about returning to her job. She said there at the end -- she said, "I will not hide my face." Now she is actively planning a return to the "TODAY" show. A source at the network tells me she will return in April and that plan will probably be firmed up in the coming days.

So this interview is part of a process as she begins to try to return to some semblance of normal life even though she has not had closure about her mom, Nancy.

And she talks later in the interview, which is going to air in full later this week, about how she has relied on her faith and about how she will not allow this terrible crime to take away the joy elsewhere in life. That she will find ways to find joy in life. And I think for her returning to work and having the comfort of that routine and that normalcy is going to be part of her finding a way to return to some sense of normal.

But, of course --

HILL: Yeah.

STELTER: -- people are going to be very curious to see what else she shares in this interview.

And I will say Erica, one notable element of this is that there's not a new bit of information about the investigation. She's not coming out today sharing something new about the probe because unfortunately there's nothing new to share about the status of her mom.

HILL: And yeah, that is -- that is I think what is so heart-wrenching as people watch this too. People who feel so close to Savannah because she has shared so much of her life, so much of her mother with her "TODAY" show family and with the viewers. It is -- it is agony to watch, and your heart just goes out to Savannah and to her family.

Brian, appreciate it. Thank you -- Sara.

SIDNER: All right. Thank you, Erica. This morning is already one for the record books and just wait for what's coming next. A blistering heat wave has been baking the Southwest and West Coast and shattering records across dozens of states. Now nearly the entire country will be seeing above-average temperatures this week.

CNN's Derek Van Dam tracking all of this for us. First, we were complaining about the cold and now what?

DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Sara, this is a tough one to discuss. I mean, this is decimating what was already a low-season snowpack across the Rockies, for instance. It is increasing the fire threat from the Plains through the Rockies. And, of course, the sweltering heat is downright dangerous, especially when you're talking about triple digits.

I mean, there is a rapid attribution -- a rapid study from the World Weather Attribution society. So they have said that this is virtually impossible -- this heat wave virtually impossible without human- induced climate change. We need to call this what it is.

We've had over 9,000 daily heat records set since the beginning of the month. And get this, over 1,100 all-time monthly records that have been set over the western U.S. because of that incessant heat dome.

Now today it's still hot. Mind you, not as hot as what we've experienced earlier this week across the southwestern parts of the country. Where's the heat? Well, a lot of it has actually moved towards the central parts of the U.S. where temperatures will run 20 to 35 degrees above average today.

So the heat wave and the record-setting heat slightly shifting eastward temporarily before our ridge recycles and builds out over the West starting to just erode any available leftover snowpack that is in place. Remember, that snow in the mountains is so critical for spring and summer water availability, for agriculture. Over 50 million people that depend on the water from the Colorado River basin down to the southwest. I mean, there's so many stories that are unfolding with this heat wave.

So look at these forecast highs for tomorrow. We'll reach just shy of 90 degrees in Kansas City, 92 in Oklahoma City, 81 for Atlanta. There is a cold front that will cool temperatures temporarily but again, we'll start to see that heat shift eastward amongst a very dry lower 48.

We have critical fire conditions across parts of the Plains today -- Sara.

SIDNER: Derek Van Dam, am I allowed to complain about the heat? Yes, I am. And it's going to happen and probably tomorrow.

VAN DAM: Today, you are.

SIDNER: All right. Appreciate it, Derek. All right. On our radar for you this morning, gripping testimony in the attempted murder trial of an anesthesiologist. Dr. Gerhardt Konig is accused of trying to push his wife off a cliff while they were on a hike in Hawaii a year ago. His wife took the stand in day three of the trial. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ARIELLE KONIG, HUSBAND THREW HER OFF CLIFF IN HAWAII: I'm screaming and he's telling me, "Shut the (bleep) up. Nobody's going to hear you out here. Nobody is coming to save you." Um, and I'm saying, like, "You can't do this. Everyone knows we're on a hike. They'll know this wasn't an accident and our kids will be orphans. You'll go to jail and I'll be dead."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: Horrific testimony.

Prosecutors say Konig hit his wife on the head with a rock and tried to inject her with a needle.