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Pelosi Indicates House to Vote Wednesday on Sending Impeachment Articles to Senate; Trump Retweet Fake Photo of Top Dems with Iranian Flag; Democrats Setting Stage for Trial After Weeks of Delay; Democrats' Last Debate Before Iowa Caucuses; Warren Says Sanders Told Her That a Woman Couldn't Win in 2020; Crumbling Iran Nuclear Deal in Jeopardy; Rouhani Says Iran's Government Responsible for Plane Shootdown; Climate Scientists Warn Australia Could Become the New Normal; Australian Town Ravaged by Fire. Aired 10-11a ET

Aired January 14, 2020 - 10:00   ET

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

[10:00:00]

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST: The impeachment process kicks back into gear as the most powerful woman in Washington plots her next move.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BORIS JOHNSON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: Let's replace it, and let's replace it with the truth deal.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: The U.K. Prime Minister is open to replacing the Iran Nuclear Deal with a Trump deal.

It could blow at any moment. Authorities in the Philippines urge a total evacuation around Taal volcano growing in a haze of smoke. Climate

scientists say get used to it. This is our future.

It's 7:00 p.m. here in Abu Dhabi. It's 10:00 in the morning in D.C. I'm Becky Anderson, and this is CONNECT THE WORLD.

I want to do something a little unusual for you here and start at the end of our top story this hour. Because when it comes to impeachment, Donald

Trump will almost definitely be acquitted. So let's put that to one side. The outstanding questions, how long it takes to get there and how painful

it is along the way.

So after a long delay, Democrats do appear to be moving forward towards the ignite button that will send President Donald Trump to trial. This is what

we know. Over the past hour, Nancy Pelosi, who is the House Speaker, has been meeting with her colleagues about how and when to hand what are known

as the Articles of Impeachment over to the Senate. When that happens, it will trigger a trial that has been delayed for almost four weeks.

Now this has been a long road. Let's remind ourselves how we got there. On December the 18th, the House voted to impeach President Trump. Charging him

with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. Well the next step would be for the House to hand over those official charges. The Articles of

Impeachment to the Senate. But Nancy Pelosi has been holding out for details on exactly how the Republican-led Senate will handle the trial.

A major sticking point, Democrats want witnesses to be called to testify. Senate Republicans have been resistant. But it does now appear Pelosi has

decided to move forward. Sources tell us she's indicates Democrats will name their impeachment managers. They essentially act as the prosecutors

and hand over the articles, tomorrow. Once the Senate has the articles in hand, President Trump's trial can begin. But the question is, did this

stalling tactic accomplish anything?

President Trump is lashing out on Twitter, and this one is a jaw dropper. It's a retweet of a fake photo showing Nancy Pelosi and the Senate's top

Democrat Chuck Schumer in Islamic garb with a caption suggesting they are in league with Iran. This is apparently pushback for Democrats' demands for

specifics on the imminent threats that President Trump said led to the killing of the Iranian military commander Qasem Soleimani.

Well the Anti-Defamation League is calling for an immediate apology. The group's CEO calling the tweet, quote, repulsive, anti-Muslim bigotry.

We are all over this from all angles as you would expect here on CNN. Athena Jones is on Capitol Hill where Nancy Pelosi has been holding that

meeting. We also have our legal analyst Elie Honig on board and Ryan Nobles is in Des Moines, in Iowa, the site of the Democratic debate taking place

just hours from now.

Let me start with you, Athena. Because there's an awful lot to digest and, to a certain extent, many of our viewers watching this will say, OK, four

weeks ago, we were talking impeachment. Then it all went quiet. So what's going on today? And where does this take us?

ATHENA JONES, CNN U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Becky, we are inching closer to the next and last phase of the impeachment process. We thought

that perhaps Speaker Pelosi would name the impeachment managers in that caucus meeting this morning.

The impeachment managers are, of course, the members of the House who will be prosecuting the case against President Trump in the Senate and who those

people are is going to be important because the stakes are high.

[10:05:00]

They have to make the case against the President and also perhaps convince a good number of Republicans to join Democrats in demanding witnesses later

in the trial. And so, that is what we expect to see today. Now we're seeing from sources in that meeting that Speaker Pelosi is suggesting that will

happen tomorrow. She'll name those impeachment managers and that the House will vote tomorrow on a resolution approving those managers and finally

transmitting those Articles of Impeachment over to the Senate.

But you raised the key question here which is, what has this almost month- long delay in the transmission of those articles, what has been gained during that month. Well, Speaker Pelosi has argued the delay has done a few

things. It's allowed the Democrats to focus attention on the need for a fair trial, a full trial, something that would involve witnesses and

documents. And also this several week delay has allowed time for some reporting to come out that supports the Democrats' case.

Reports about emails going from the office of management and budget, which is part of the White House, to the Pentagon. Just an hour and a half after

that fateful July 25th phone call the President had with the Ukrainian President Zelensky saying you should put a hold on that money. Other emails

it's been revealed saying -- showing that officials were concerned about the legality of holding that money. And then not least, the idea that

former national security adviser John Bolton has now said he's willing to testify if he's subpoenaed by the Senate.

So a lot of developments that Pelosi and her allies might argue -- support their case and their drive. They might also say that because there's been

such a focus on a fair trial with witnesses, that has pushed some of these moderate Republicans we're hearing from. Now we've got four prominent

names, Mitt Romney, Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski and Lamar Alexander, folks saying they're now open to witnesses. So they would argue that this

delay has been fruitful -- Becky.

ANDERSON: Elie, just remind us of the sort of process of this trial. And is there anything we can learn from the last -- that being the Clinton

impeachment -- that might help us look towards what happens next?

ELIE HONIG, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: So, Becky, one thing that's important for people to understand is we don't have a step-by-step manual on how to

conduct an impeachment trial in the Senate. In contrast to a criminal trial, for example, where we have a thick set of rules of procedures. So we

know exactly how everything is going to go. The constitution gives us the broad outlines. It tells us the Senate has the sole power to trial

impeachments. You need a two-thirds vote of the Senate. So 67 out of the 100 Senators in order to convict.

Now Bill Clinton's trial 20 years ago is the best sort of precedent to look to. It's not binding but it gives us the broad strokes. And I think what

we'll see first after some ceremonial pomp and circumstance, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court will come down. He'll preside. The articles

will be formally presented, as Athena mentioned. And then we'll see opening arguments.

We'll hear first from the House managers who -- as Athena said -- essentially serve as prosecutors of the case. Then Donald Trump's defense

team will make their arguments, and then we'll get to the moment of truth where the Senate has to decide whether they are going to hear from

witnesses or not. That in all likelihood will come down to a majority vote of the Senate. Right now it's 53 Republicans. So if four of those

Republicans flip over and vote with the Democrats then we will see live witness testimony which really could get dynamic.

ANDERSON: I want to bring Rudy Giuliani into this conversation, Elie, if I can. CNN reporting that Donald Trump's personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, has

pressed the White House to make him part of the impeachment legal team. Because he knows the case against the President inside out. He is a

witness, of course, too much of -- as one of our colleagues described it today -- Trump's off the books diplomatic scheme in Ukraine. Would it be a

gift for Senate Democrats?

HONIG: It would be a gift for Senate Democrats. It would be a terrible idea for virtually everybody else involved. As you said, first of all, Rudy

Giuliani himself is centrally involved in the whole Ukraine scheme or scandal. He is the driving force behind this. He was Donald Trump's point

man for Ukraine.

We heard testimony late in 2019 in the House from all these people who were involved. They basically all said Rudy Giuliani was Trump's point person.

You cannot be both a co-conspirator in the case or someone who is being testified about in the case, and a lawyer in the case. The conflict of

interest would just be impossible to navigate and negotiate. It would be a huge mistake by the White House to have Rudy Giuliani representing Donald

Trump on the floor of the Senate. It's a disaster waiting to happen.

ANDERSON: Ryan, we still don't know exactly when the Senate will take up the impeachment trial. That's one of the outstanding questions we are

likely to get more on that in the hours and days to come.

[10:10:00]

But it is already taking its toll on the race, the 2020 race for the White House. Senator Cory Booker cited the impending trial as one of the reasons

he ended his presidential campaign. Explain, if you will.

RYAN NOBLES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right, Becky. You have a number of United States Senators that are a part of this Democratic

primary. Many of them will be on the debate stage here behind me. And the fact they are going to be call back to Washington to participate in this

trial comes at a crucial time in the run up to the Iowa caucuses. We're a little less than two weeks away from the Iowa caucuses taking place.

That's why the debate tonight becomes so important. Because this is going to be the last opportunity that these candidates have on such a big stage

to make an impression on these Iowa caucus goers. And if you are in that group of candidates who are also United States Senators, essentially almost

all of them are making plans to get back to Washington as soon as possible.

Now under normal circumstances, this would be a sprint to the finish. They would leave the debate stage here and then head right out to events the

rest of this week and on into February. They'll not be able to do that right now. In fact, Senator Elizabeth Warren, Senator Bernie Sanders,

Senator Amy Klobuchar, none of them have events planned in Iowa this week because they just do not know what is going to happen with the Senate

impeachment trial.

It's also going to be a big part of the discussion here. These aren't the things that the Democratic presidential candidates necessarily wanted to be

talking about. Yes, they do want to talk about the problems with Donald Trump as President of the United States. But that's not what's going to win

them the Democratic primary. They'd much rather be talking about their policy issues as it relates to health case, climate change, you know,

eliminating student debt, economic inequality. Things along those lines.

So the fact you have this impeachment going on in the background certainly complicates life. And let's not forget, Becky, we're not just talking about

the United States Senators that will have a role in this trial. Joe Biden, the former Vice President, is a part of it, even though he doesn't want to

be. Because of the way that the Trump administration has looped him and his son into this conversation. So there's no doubt it's impossible to ignore

this and it certainly complicates the situation here for these Democratic candidates.

ANDERSON: Yes, it's fascinating, isn't it? Ahead of that debate then tonight in Iowa, a very public feud playing out between two leading

Democrats, Ryan, Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders. Warren tells CNN that back in 2018, Sanders told her that a woman can't win the 2020

election. Something that Sanders denies. What can we expect from these two tonight?

Well, first of all, Becky, I just have to say how surprising this is. I mean, few people following this campaign expected that you'd see Warren and

Sanders battling it out at this stage of the campaign. For the most part they've held each other harmless. In fact, that was the point of that 2018

conversation. That private conversation was basically to agree they weren't going to attack each other. But now we have this essentially a he said/she

said between Sanders and Warren.

Where Warren left that conversation with the impression that Bernie Sanders told her that a woman couldn't win in 2020 because of the dynamics of

Donald Trump in the campaign. Where Sanders left that saying, no, that wasn't my impression. I was just telling Warren his view that it was going

to be more difficult for a woman because of the current climate.

I think what you're going to find tonight, Becky, is an opportunity for both of them to give their side of what occurred in that private meeting.

There were only two people there, Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. Both of them will be on this debate stage behind me tonight. So both of them

will get the opportunity to give their impression of what happened there. Warren made it clear, she left that meeting thinking that that was what

Sanders felt. Sanders called that ludicrous. We'll have to see how Democratic primary voters value the authenticity of both of these

candidates here tonight.

ANDERSON: Ryan, Elie, thank you.

You can watch all of the action right here. Six Democratic candidates will take part in what is the next Presidential debate hosted by CNN and the

"Des Moines Register." That is 9:00 p.m. Eastern, 6:00 a.m. Wednesday morning if watching here in Abu Dhabi. And wherever you are watching in the

world, I know you'll be able to work out what time it will be on locally.

Well the Ukrainian company at the heart of President Trump's impeachment trial has been hacked. The cybersecurity firm Area One says employees at

Burisma, where Joe Biden's son Hunter served on the board, were tricked by Russian hackers into giving up their passwords. It is not clear what

information the hackers wanted or how deeply Burisma was compromised. "The New York Times" reports the hacking attempts first started in November with

the Bidens in the news headlines and the impeachment hearings under way. Make of that what you will.

[10:15:00]

A police officer in the U.S. state of Georgia is truly lucky to be alive after he was hit by a train. It happened as he was chasing a burglary

suspect. Incredibly, the officer's bodycam caught it on video. Have a look at this

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(VIDEO OF TRAIN HITTING POLICE OFFICER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

Wow. The officer Andy Anderson broke several bones. Here he is giving a thumbs up. He was released from hospital Sunday. Two arrests were made in

connection with the burglary that the officer was responding to. You really could make it up could you.

Still ahead -- Iran says it has arrested people connected to the shooting of a Ukraine -- shooting down of a Ukrainian passenger jet. The warning

Iran's President is giving about what will happen to those who are found responsible.

Also, as Australia struggles with one of the worst wildfires in decades, we'll bring you a closer look at how one small town is coping with the

disaster.

Plus, Philippine officials warn people evacuated from near the Taal volcano not to return home. We'll tell you why some are not heeding warnings of an

explosive eruption to come. That, all after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: Well we return now -- or we don't return. We're going to turn to a story that we have been doing front and center now for now on two weeks.

And that is Iran. A country facing two crises. One of them stemming from its own actions, the shooting down of a Ukrainian passenger plane. The

other, a diplomatic mess as the already crumbling Iran Nuclear Deal faces another big setback.

Iran today announcing the first arrests in connection with the downing of that plane by an Iranian missile last week. His spokesman said several

people have been detained but did not reveal their alleged roles.

Iran's President today told his nation that his government is responsible for the tragedy. He warned that those who caused it will be punished. And

also said Iran will fulfill its financial obligations tied to the downed plane.

The country is now also responding to a decision by Britain, France and Germany that could officially kill the nuclear deal within weeks. The three

countries today triggered what's called a dispute mechanism. It cites continued Iranian violations and demands that Iran comply with the JCPOA's

provisions or face its termination.

Now Iran's foreign ministry calls that joint statement passive and weak and says those countries must be ready to accept the consequences with the

agreement seemingly hanging by a thread. Britain's Prime Minister today offered a surprising idea for a potential replacement deal.

[10:20:00]

Let's get you to London and Nina dos Santos for more on that. Nic Robertson is here with me in the region for sort of wider analysis. Nina, first and

foremost, just explain where Prime Minister Boris Johnson is at with this.

NINA DOS SANTOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, he seems to be slightly at odds with his own foreign secretary here, Dominic Raab. We've had slightly

conflicting statements from these senior most members of the British government today. Starting out with Boris Johnson, as you pointed out. He

gave wide-ranging television interview. The first, in fact, big television interview that he's given to any network, to BBC earlier today, since his

general election. And he discussed, obviously, the issue of Iran going forward and his support for this plan.

Essentially what he said was, well, if the JCPOA is going to be scrapped, it needs to be replaced with something that's already there to replace it

with quickly and swiftly. And there he appeared to give his backing for Donald Trump's deal. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHNSON: If we're going to get rid of it, then we need a replacement. The problem with the JCPOA is basically, this is the crucial thing. Here's why

there's this tension. The problem with the agreement is from the American perspective, it's a flawed agreement. It expires. Plus, it was negotiated

by President Obama. And it has -- and from their point of view, it has many, many faults. Well, if we're going to get rid of it, let's replace it,

and let's replace it with the Trump deal.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK.

JOHNSON: That's what we need to see. And I think that would be a great way forward.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DOS SANTOS: So question is, what does that Trump deal involve, Becky? At this point, nobody really knows. What we do know is that, obviously, the

United States pulled out of the JCPOA back in 2018. Largely because it felt that it didn't address other issues that Iran needed to address, which was

largely its ballistic missile program and also its support for proxy activities outside of Iran. The very ones that led to the targeting of

Qasem Soleimani just last week.

Now as I said, there was a contradictory statement coming from the foreign secretary. Of course, is the one who's negotiating with the other members

of the E3, France and Germany.

Dominic Raab made a statement to the House of Commons earlier today in which he said, we pull out of this in good -- so we activate this dispute

mechanism in good faith with the overarching objective of preserving the JCPOA and in the sincere hope of finding a way forward to resolve the

impasse.

So on the one hand, what you've got is three members of these big European powers trying to focus minds saying this is the last-ditch attempt for this

deal. If they find that Iran is still in contrivances of this deal it would mean that the JCPOA could actually be dead in about 35 days from now. As

you can see, the E3 also issued its own statement in which they largely said that Iran continued to break key restrictions. And they also said they

had registered their complaints publicly on November the 11th, but that Iran had not reversed course.

So it's not looking great here for any of the sides, Becky. I should point out, obviously, as I said, the animosity has been there since 2018, and

Iran has continued to step up what the E3 views as contrivance to this deal throughout the course of last year and early this year -- Becky.

ANDERSON: Nina is in London. Nic's with me here in Abu Dhabi. I want to lay out the key points of this statement, Nic, from Britain, France and

Germany. It was issued because those countries say Iran is not meeting its commitments under the JCPOA. Triggering what's known as a dispute mechanism

which essentially puts Iran on the clock to start complying or the deal could end, as Nina points out, within weeks. We're talking about paragraph

36 of what is an extremely long text on the JCPOA deal.

If Iran doesn't comply, the U.N. Security Council would be notified and sanctions, of course, according to the deal could be reimposed. Look, some

say this was a deal that was dead in the water as soon as the U.S. pulled out. The Europeans have worked long and hard behind the scenes to try and

keep this deal alive. Are they giving up, all but given up at this point?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: No. I think what they are doing is the diplomatic version of what President Trump did with

Soleimani. Trump acted militarily against Soleimani for his military actions, for escalating tensions. But Iran has been carefully telegraphing

and slowly escalating its withdrawal from the JCPOA. Well the Europeans have been quite comfortable with that for a number of months, but they've

decided now to monitor diplomatic offensive against it and call Iran out. Call it to account, diplomatically doing the same thing, challenging the

direction that Iran was going in.

[10:25:03]

ANDERSON: Passive and weak is how the Iranian foreign minister has described the Europeans today.

ROBERTSON: Yes, and they've really indicated it's unhelpful but what they haven't done is thrown it out. Of course they'll be upset because they know

this path, the dispute mechanism leads them back to U.N. Security Council. If you read into this what Boris Johnson is saying, that you get to the

U.N. Security Council and does the United States then present a tougher formula that President Trump wants. Longer sunset clauses on various parts

of the deal, controls over ballistic missiles from Iran. All this has been in the air in the background. Everyone knows this is where we're going.

They don't know how to get there. And today the Europeans are taking the diplomatic initiative.

ANDERSON: Busy times in Tehran. With some important admissions from the leadership today, without an awful lot of substance, it has to be said.

Where do we stand with regard taking responsibility for the shooting down of this Ukrainian plane.

ROBERTSON: If the Iranians are going to be successful in this, they need to give transparency to the international community. And this is what's

been demanded by the Swedish, by the Canadians, by the Ukrainians that the investigation has to have transparency. That hasn't happened today. It

doesn't mean that it won't happen tomorrow.

What we've heard from officials in Iran is that they've arrested a few people. Have they arrested the people who push the button on the missile or

have they arrested the officials who didn't ground the civilian airlines because there's a potential culpability there. I think the clue perhaps

comes from the President. President Rouhani who said today that he is -- let's say, pleased with the IRGC's response. This is what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HASSAN ROUHANI, IRANIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): The fact that our armed forces very clearly and openly confessed for their mistake and

apologized to the people was a good first step and next steps shall be taken as well.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Nic, quick.

ROBERTSON: So if the Iranians really want to get international support and backing for this move, that transparency is going to have to come. It's not

there yet.

ANDERSON: Fascinating. All right, Nic, thank you.

And we are just going to have a quick whiz around the region for you. Let's get you up to speed on some of the other stories that on our radar right

now viewers.

And Russia's military says the commander of the Libyan National Army has asked for an additional two days to discuss a cease-fire agreement with

supporting parties. The draft was proposed on Monday in Moscow during peace talks brokered by Turkey and Russia. Another Libya peace summit will be

held in Germany next week.

And protesters in Lebanon are demanding an end to a month's long political vacuum, saying this would be a week of rough. Demonstrations started, of

course in October, you'll remember that fueled by crippling economic crisis. Lebanon has also been without a government since Saad Hariri

resigned as Prime Minister in October.

Do stay with us. Ahead on this show, scientists say the Taal volcano in the Philippines is about to explode. The latest in the effort to get nearly a

million people out of the danger zone.

And as smoke shrouds the Australian city of Melbourne, climate scientists say this could be the new normal in a warmer world. It's a busy day of

news. Stay with us.

[10:30:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: It's half past 7:00 in Abu Dhabi. This is CONNECT THE WORLD from CNN's Middle East programming hub. And if you are just joining us, you are

most welcome.

Philippine authorities are urging nearly a million people living near the Taal volcano to get out and get out now. The U.N. says about a half a

million people live within the 14-kilometer danger zone and nearly a million live within 17 kilometers.

Right now smoke from Sunday's eruption is still billowing. Scientists say it could be hours, it could be days or weeks until it erupts with explosive

force. They just do not know when it might unleash its fury. Well you can get a real idea of just how big this threat is from space. These are

infrared satellite images showing toxic ash billowing 14 kilometers into the air.

The head of the Philippine Red Cross says it's working to set up places to care for people who are experiencing respiratory problems. Well that ash

has dropped down onto towns and villages like this one. Blanketing everything in sight. It is extremely heavy and it dries like concrete and

can collapse roofs which you can see this area is big on tourism and relies on agriculture and those industries have all but been shut down.

Well folks, this is serious stuff. The Taal volcano sits on a lake and it could cause a tsunami. Here's a look at how that could happen. After an

explosive eruption, the sides of the volcano can be weakened, and they can suddenly collapse. Volcanic debris then slides downwards and becomes a

landslide that displaces an awful lot of water all at once. Generating violent waves that can become a dangerous tsunami. More on that story of

course as we get it.

We are still tonight monitoring the Australian bushfires now having an impact on the Australian Open Tennis Tournament. We'll tell you what

happened that caused one player to call it quits.

First, up, though, a climate solution by one of the world's largest cities. CNN's "GLOBAL ENERGY CHALLENGE" is next. And John Defterios looks at how

building developments are implementing these new energy efficient targets.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN DEFTERIOS, CNN BUSINESS EMERGING MARKETS EDITOR (voice-over): This iconic New York City skyline is set to change over the next ten years.

Under 2019's City Climate Mobilization Act, buildings larger than 25,000 square feet must slash emissions by 40 percent.

(on camera): For over a century, success in New York was defined by how high you could build or design. But in this modern age, value will be

increasingly linked to energy efficiency in the buildings.

(voice-over): Once crowned the tallest skyscraper in the world, today the Empire State Building's green credentials are making headlines.

DANA SCHNEIDER, SR. VP DIRECTOR ENERGY AND SUSTAINABILITY, EMPIRE REAL ESTATE TRUST: We did a huge deep energy retrofit in this building starting

in 2009. And we publicized all the work that we did. We shared everything in the hopes that we would not only succeed in the Empire State Building

that we would motivate others to replicate what we had done.

DEFTERIOS (on camera): Extraordinary that people didn't think of buildings before as part of the energy transition.

SCHNEIDER: But buildings are a huge part of the solution.

DEFTERIOS (voice-over): The building's trust spent $550 million on initial energy upgrades.

SCHNEIDER: It's a lot you can do with the building envelope which is basically the exterior of a building -- the walls, the glass, the windows,

the roof, things like insulation, infiltration. There's so much that can be done there to control energy usage.

DEFTERIOS: More than 6,000 windows were changed, insulated and optimized for natural light within three years. Energy efficiency has reached 40

percent. Annual cash savings hit $4.4 million. In light of the new act, it will have to do even more. For those in real estate without the capital to

fund the mandated changes.

[10:35:00]

NYCEEC, a nonprofit financial solutions company was created to bridge the gap. Developers, Urban Greenfit, borrowed $4.5 million to upgrade Roosevelt

landings, a mixed income complex.

(on camera): Does the city need case studies they can present to owners and say let's get going?

FRED LEE, CO-CEO, NYCEEC: There are so many different buildings, many different sectors. You really need to show a variety of different types of

owners, the value proposition of doing energy efficiency.

DEFTERIOS (voice-over): Implementing heat, power and hot water co- generation systems and giving each unit a simple thermostat control led to a $1 million saving per year.

LEE: 70 percent of emissions in New York City come from buildings. So it's the low-hanging fruit of emissions reduction.

DEFTERIOS: Going forward, it's up to the city, developers and occupants to meet the challenge of energy efficiency. The Big Apple hopes to create a

blueprint for others to follow.

John Defterios, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: To Australia where smoke from the bushfires is blanketing the state, further enshrouding its capital Melbourne. Victorious chief health

officer says the air quality right now is the worst in the world. And that is a quote. It's making people cough and wheeze and causing nose, eye and

throat irritations.

Well this year's bushfire season has been one of the worst in Australia's history. At least 28 people have died nationwide. More than 3,000 homes

have been destroyed or damaged. But that doesn't really, really give you any real sense of the scale of this thing.

While heat and drought triggered the fires, climate change making matters worse. Climate scientists warn this could become the new normal. A sign of

what the world will experience as temperatures rise 3 to 5 degrees this century. NASA warns the smoke can affect atmospheric conditions around the

world. The massive infernos have raged along Australia's east coast now for months, pushing smoke across the Pacific.

The U.S. Space Agency says the smoke is about to make at least one full circuit around the globe. Isn't that absolutely remarkable? And it's

devastating. These devastating fires may cost Australia tens of billions of dollars. Residents in some of the hardest hit areas are coming home to

assess the damage. They say they were surprised at the speed and the ferocity of these fires. As CNN's Will Ripley now reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Here in New South Wales, we are getting a bit of a break from the smoke that we've been breathing in over the last

several days. It really is exhausting when you're outside for an extended period of time breathing in that heavy smoke. And there've even been

reports of birds falling out of trees because they can't handle it in places like Canberra, the Australian capital.

But for people who are able to breathe a bit better and get back to their homes, start assessing the damage, they are realizing what a monumental

task lies ahead as they try to rebuild their lives.

[10:40:00]

RIPLEY (voice-over): In Wingello, Australia, no one imagined the fire could move so quickly, the front line was miles away from David Bruggeman's

home and store last week.

DAVID BRUGGEMAN, OWNER, WINGELLO VILLAGE STORE: Then we saw the sky go red and we go, that's not normal and we heard the sound of the fire like a

furnace, like a freight train right next to you.

RIPLEY: That familiar sound, followed by a terrifying, almost apocalyptic scene, the Morton fire, so intense it created its own weather, raining down

fiery embers on this village of about 500.

BRUGGEMAN: And there's houses exploding, fire everywhere. My house is gone for sure.

RIPLEY (on camera): That picture you took you thought would be the last you would ever see of this place.

BRUGGEMAN: For sure, I thought that's it, gone.

RIPLEY (voice-over): A feeling shared by Wingello fire captain Mark Wilson.

MARK WILSON, WINGELLO RULE FIRE SERVICE: It is different when it's your hometown. Like I've been everywhere else, helped out everywhere else but

the emotions and everything kick in going, this is my house, my friends, my loved ones.

RIPLEY: Wilson's team of volunteer firefighters battled throughout the night.

WILSON: It is a feeling like you're losing. You don't realize how much you have saved until the next day. We saved well over 80 houses that night.

RIPLEY (on camera): Even the most season firefighters say it does not make sense how a house like this can be standing and the bushes are green. And

yet just a few steps away, everything next door, gone.

RIPLEY (voice-over): The fire danger is far from over.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've got a fire over at Peter and Simona's.

RIPLEY: As temperatures heat up, small fires reignite.

(on camera): How quickly can a small hot spot turn into a danger situation?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, very easily. Because we still have a lot of unburned trees on this property and very quick, especially with little

breeze that picks up.

RIPLEY (voice-over): Here in New South Wales, Australia's hardest hit state, the fire season is only halfway through.

BRUGGEMAN: We are the shop, there's no other shop here and we are at the center of where everything is.

RIPLEY: Bruggeman says he's doing everything he can to help neighbors who have lost everything.

BRUGGEMAN: We thought we should have lost about 50 houses and people dead. No one died, no one injured and we lost a dozen houses all have been take

care of now. It's a miracle. I call this the miracle of Wingello.

RIPLEY (voice-over): Nobody knows how long that miracle will last.

(on camera): Insurance claims are already starting to pile up. The Insurance Council of Australia estimates more than US$1 billion so far. A

number undoubtedly that will rise in the coming days and weeks ahead as people get back to their homes and start to assess the damage.

Will Ripley, CNN in Mittagong, New South Wales, Australia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: Defies belief, doesn't it. These fires are affecting all walks of life. Have a look at this. A tennis player Dalila Jakupovic was leading

an Australian open tennis qualifying match in Melbourne but had to quit, due to a coughing fit and apparent breathing difficulties, unbelievable.

Amanda Davies joins us with more -- Amanda.

AMANDA DAVIES, CNN WORLD SPORT: Yes, and, Becky, serious questions being asked of the tournament organizers in the countdown to the Australian Open.

Of course, this, the qualifying campaign. And I've been able to speak to Jakupovic in the last couple of hours. It's fair to say she isn't happy

about the duty of care being shown to these players. That's coming up, Becky, on "WORLD SPORT" in just a couple of moments.

ANDERSON: That's fantastic. Taking a short break. Back after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:45:00]

(WORLD SPORT)

[10:58:00]

DAVIES: The Boston Red Sox manager Cora was at the Astros in 2017 as their bench coach. He says Cora was one of the masterminds behind the scheme. So

MLB is now investigating Cora's illegal use of the Red Sox video room to steal signs in 2018. That was the year they won the World Series. This is a

story with plenty more twists and turns to come which, of course, we will be following. Time now to hand you back to Becky.

ANDERSON: Indeed. Thank you.

Coming up -- imagine you were right next to one of the world's deadliest volcanoes and it's threatening to blow, and you just go back to your house

right next door. Well, people are doing just that in the Philippines. We're there to understand why after this.

[11:00:00]

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