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Early Start with Rahel Solomon

Death Toll From Catastrophic Texas Flood Rises To 104; Trump And Netanyahu Discuss Ceasefire; Trump Announces New Tariffs. Aired 5- 5:30a ET

Aired July 08, 2025 - 05:00   ET

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

[05:00:26]

MIN JUNG LEE, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning and welcome to our viewers, joining us from the United States and all around the world. Rahel Solomon is off. I'm MJ Lee.

It's Tuesday, July 8th, 5:00 a.m. here in Washington, D.C.

And straight ahead on EARLYT START.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ISABEL ROSALES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The river rising 22 feet in just 30 minutes, taking everything in its path with it.

ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Catastrophic flooding took the lives of 28 campers and counselors at the all-girls Christian camp.

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: President Trump and prime minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, answered questions from reporters at the start of a dinner that they were having behind closed doors.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: You have the greatest man in the world to answer that age old question two state. Go ahead. You give him your honest answer. Well, we've talked to most of the countries and pretty much they've had their way for many, many decades. As you know.

MARC STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Many of the tariffs targeted here in Asia are to longtime standing, loyal allies, South Korea and Japan.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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LEE: We begin in central Texas, where search and rescue teams are continuing efforts to find any survivors days after flash floods devastated parts of the region.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott says more than 20 state agencies and more than 1,700 people are responding to the disaster, and officials in other states, including California, Missouri, Colorado and Florida have announced that they are sending people to assist in search and rescue missions.

At least 24 people are still missing, including ten campers and one counselor from Camp Mystic. The all-girls camp that was devastated by floodwaters. That camp sits along the Guadalupe River, which rose rapidly early Friday morning before many young campers could escape.

Earlier, CNN's Anderson Cooper spoke with a Camp Mystic counselor who survived the terrifying ordeal, and here is how she described it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAROLINE CUTRONA, CAMP MYSTIC COUNSELOR: I thought it was just lightning and thunderstorm. I had no idea the severity. I mean, I was awake throughout the night because I -- it was loud and the cabins were shaking, but we've had thunderstorms and lightning at Camp Mystic multiple times, and it's always been okay. And so, I always thought it was going to be okay.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST, "AC360": Did -- were there any kind of alerts or warnings that that you were aware of?

CUTRONA: No. As camp counselors, we turn in our phone when we don't have our time off. And so, there was no alert or anything that I heard. No signal. To know that anything was happening.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEE: The camp has confirmed that 27 of its campers and counselors were killed over the weekend. Texas officials say 104 people have been killed in the disaster overall.

CNN's Isabel Rosales walks us through the timeline of the flash floods and how the extreme weather caught some Texas residents off guard.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX): Texas is grieving right now.

ISABEL ROSALES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Grieving and bracing for more rain as urgent rescues are still underway for dozens who are missing after the devastating floods that ravaged central Texas over the holiday weekend, bursting the seams of the Guadalupe River and taking the lives of at least 104 people, including 27 campers and counselors from a summer camp in Kerr County.

CRUZ: There's still ten girls and one counselor from Camp Mystic that are unaccounted for, and the pain and agony of not knowing your child's whereabouts, it's the worst thing imaginable.

ROSALES: Four months of rain fell in a matter of hours. The destructive and fast moving floodwater beginning just before sunrise on the Fourth of July, the river rising 22 feet in just 30 minutes, taking everything in its path with it.

And many are asking why alerts weren't received and evacuations didn't take place.

DALTON RICE, KERRVILLE CITY MANAGER: Well, evacuation is a delicate balance because if you evacuate too late, you then risk putting buses or cars or vehicles or campers on roads into low water areas trying to get them out, which then can make it even more challenging because these flash floods happen very quickly, it's very tough to make those calls, because what we also don't want to do is cry wolf.

ROSALES: But many families wishing they had taken that chance, the timeline as we know it now. The first flood watch was issued on Thursday in the afternoon, and in the early evening at 6:30 Central Time.

[05:05:03]

Then the first emergency alert came out at 1:14, the morning of the Fourth, and then again at 4:03 in the morning, just an hour before the river burst at around five in the morning.

Then, a second emergency alert was issued for Kerrville at 5:24 a.m., and then at 5:34, an emergency alert was issued for the Guadalupe River area.

But phone alerts were reportedly not received by some people in an area known to have spotty cell service.

Nineteen different local and state agencies are working urgently to find those still missing. Some rescue teams using the aid of cadaver dogs in their search.

A man in Center Point, Texas, heard the screams of a young woman who was clinging to a tree after being swept away in flood water from a camping site miles away with her family.

CARL JETER, CALLED FOR HELP FOR A STRANDED WOMAN: I didn't know that she was in a tree, but as it turned out, I finally spotted her in the tree and I began to yell back across to her that, "Hey, I see you, I'm going to get help!"

ROSALES: And many others have come out to volunteer their time in search before the next rainfall comes.

MICHAEL GUYER, VOLUNTEER: I figured I can at least come and help relieve them of some stress and exhaustion. Now, I know that up towards Hunt and everything, they're still expecting possibly more storm surges. So, we have to be --

ROSALES: A big problem.

GUYER: Yeah, and we have to be on the lookout for that too.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROSALES (on camera): This is rough and rural terrain that volunteers and first responders are having to go over. Also, dangerous debris at points, that it's not the heavy tree limbs and its downed barbed wire that people are stepping over. Even fire ants that have been biting up the volunteers and take a look right over there, you see that? That is a paddle boat all the way up on that tree, a reminder of just how powerful these flood waters were, and a reminder also to look up.

Isabel Rosales, CNN, Center Point, Texas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEE: Christian Fell knows exactly how powerful those flood waters were, he tells CNN he survived for three hours by hanging on to a meter box on the side of his house so the current wouldn't pull him away. Fell says he's grateful to be alive. Here is how he described his experience.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLPIP)

CHRISTIAN FELL, HUNT, TEXAS RESIDENT: I woke up to the sound of thunder and I didn't think anything of it. I thought it was just like any other storm, and until I heard some odd noises coming from deeper in the house and so I get up to investigate. And when I swing my feet over the side of the bed, I realized I was standing in water and you know, that's not -- never a normal circumstance to be in.

And so, I go to investigate, and I realize that the whole portion of the house is ripped up and there's water flooding through the floor. It definitely is a, I think, a blessing that the meter box was there, because I don't even think I remembered that that was on that side of the building. So as I started to climb, I just realized I needed to get out of the water as quickly as I could and just find something to hold on to, so the water couldn't take me away.

And I mean, I just saw cars getting carried away with their hazard lights flashing on and off, and industrial sized propane tanks just floating down, floating down through a park that used to be there, standing there with nothing else to hold on to but a metal pipe. You know, screwed into a wall. It's not like an ideal situation. Just -- I just have to be thankful that the rest of the house stayed in place because I saw everything else that happened afterwards.

And, you know, I'm just -- I'm really thankful to be here, and I'm quite blessed to be honest.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEE: Recovery efforts in Texas remain top of mind for the White House on Monday. President Trump said he's committed to working with Governor Abbott and announced his plans to visit the areas impacted by the devastating floods.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: It was a terrible event, terrible event. You saw that baby where Texas was just absolutely so badly hurt by something that was a big surprise late in the evening. So, we'll be working with the governor and all of the people of Texas. And we'll be going -- we'll be going on Friday. (END VIDEO CLIP)

LEE: Meanwhile, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer called for an investigation into what role staff cuts at the National Weather Service may have contributed to the tragedy in Texas.

Schumer cited a "New York Times" report that the vacancy rate at a number of NWS offices has increased significantly, due in part to the Trump administration's early retirement initiative for federal workers.

This is what the White House had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The National Weather Service did its job. Despite unprecedented rainfall, the National Weather Service executed timely and precise forecasts and warnings. So, to any person who has deliberately lied about these facts surrounding this catastrophic event, you should be deeply ashamed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEE: The Trump administration is facing scrutiny for slashing jobs at the National Weather Service, as climate experts say extreme weather events are only becoming more common as global warming intensifies.

Andrew Hazelton was a hurricane scientist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NOAA, before he and hundreds of others at the agency were fired earlier this year. I first met him back in March, right after his job with the National Weather Service was terminated. He now works as an associate scientist at the University of Miami -- and joins me now to discuss the role of weather scientists.

Andy, it is so good to see you again.

I know you have been closely following the tragic flooding in Texas, and I want to first ask you a question that so many people are wondering about right now. Do you think that the staffing cuts at the National Weather Service to scientists and experts, just like you might have in any way hurt the agency's preparedness and effectiveness around the Texas floods?

ANDREW HAZELTON, ASSOCIATE SCIENTIST, UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI CIMAS: Good morning, MJ. Thanks for taking the opportunity to chat.

Obviously, first, I just want to say that just really sad to see what happened. As a dad of four girls myself, I'm just feel for those families and really hope for the -- hope for the best, for the -- for the rest of the girls that are that are still missing, but yeah, it's tough to say for sure, but from what we could tell, the office was fully staffed for that night. You know, there are some vacancies that are, that are there in terms of positions, retirements and things like that. But they had some kind of surge staffing where they had people that

were off duty come and basically work overtime during that event because they knew it was going to be a potentially bad one. And so, they had -- they were fully staffed for that night, and they were able to get the watches and warnings out on time. And it seems like they escalated things as it became clear that something bad was going to happen. So, it really just goes to show why it's important to have these experts and have the scientists and the forecasters constantly. They're ready, you know, as more and more of these events happen, as we get deeper into hurricane season.

LEE: Yeah, I mean, one specific vacancy at NOAA that we know about is in the Austin, San Antonio office. That office is currently missing a warning coordination meteorologist. CNN's reporting is that that role is vacant as a direct result of early retirement incentives that were offered by the Trump administration.

I mean, that sounds like a really critical position for ensuring that there are adequate flood alerts and warnings in central Texas.

HAZELTON: Yeah, like because like I said, the -- were the National Weather Service and NOAA works really hard to make sure that no matter what the situation is that they're -- they have the staff to do what they need to do, and things like that. But certainly, as you know, as you get fewer and fewer people, it gets more and more events. It gets harder.

So, they did, from what I could tell, based on the timeline, they did their job in this case and got those warnings out. And, you know, I think there's a lot of questions to be answered about, you know, why people weren't able to get them. And I think that's another area that calls for calls for research. And, you know, understanding and funding and development to figure out what are some ways we can effectively get these warnings out there and make sure that people are taking them seriously.

LEE: Yeah, because the National Weather Service did warn about life- threatening flooding along the river. It sent out a series of alerts, as we saw in that piece in the early morning hours. I mean, can you talk to us a little bit about how you think those alert systems can be improved upon just to make sure that these warnings are urgent enough, frequent enough, early enough?

HAZELTON: Yeah, it's a tough problem because I think sometimes people have a tendency to if you get too many warnings, it sort of becomes a boy who cried wolf situation. And so, some people may be used to sort of tuning them out. And so, we have to continue to improve our accuracy of our modeling. And, you know, really highlight where these extreme areas of rainfall could occur.

And again, that's where the research of NOAA comes in and why it's so important to continue funding that. But also, I think social science and emergency managers and everyone is going to be involved in trying to figure out what are some ways in these rural areas that maybe don't have cell service or and things like that. Are there alarm systems or sirens or what are some ways that we can get this information out even quicker?

And like I said, that's where it's going to take a lot of a lot of research, a lot of work. Between all the all the experts in these various arenas. And, you know, we want to make sure that something like this doesn't happen again.

LEE: Andy Hazelton, I know how passionate you are about your work. Thank you so much for joining us this morning.

HAZELTON: Thank you.

[05:15:00]

LEE: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is continuing his visit to Washington today with a stop on Capitol Hill to meet with lawmakers. Netanyahu met with President Trump on Monday as momentum toward a ceasefire in Gaza appears to be growing. One possible sign of progress. Trump's special envoy will join the negotiations between Israeli officials and Hamas and Qatar this week.

Our Kristen Holmes has the latest from the White House.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: President Trump and Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu answered questions from reporters at the start of a dinner that they were having behind closed doors. President Trump said that he was looking for a cease fire deal in Gaza. And Netanyahu said that underneath Trump's leadership he believed there could be broad peace between Israel and the rest of the Middle East.

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: I think Palestinians should have all the powers to govern themselves, but none of the powers to threaten us. That means that certain powers, like overall security, will always remain in our hands. We want life. We cherish life for ourselves, for our neighbors.

And I think we can work out a peace between us and the entire Middle East with President Trump's leadership. And by working together, I think we can establish a very, very broad peace that will include all our neighbors.

HOLMES: And now one thing to note is that some White House officials had hoped that there would actually be a ceasefire deal on Gaza before for this meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. That, of course, deadline has come and gone. However, as we know and have reported, Hamas has responded positively to the proposal that was agreed upon by the U.S. and Israel. So still waiting to see what the next steps are there.

Now, the other point that they had discussed during this dinner when they were taking questions was the next step in negotiating conversations on a nuclear deal with Iran. President Trump saying that he was originally skeptical about sitting down with them again, particularly because the United States had bombed those nuclear facilities, but adding that Iran had requested these meetings.

No details yet on what those meetings are actually going to look like or when they're going to take place.

U.S. Special envoy Steve Witkoff was also sitting there in the dinner and just noted that they were going to be happening quickly and in a very short amount of time.

Kristen Holmes, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEE: Ahead, President Trump issues blunt warnings about new tariffs after bumping back his deadline yet again.

Plus, the Trump administration reveals its plans for Kilmar Abrego Garcia if he's released from criminal custody before his trial.

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[05:22:10]

LEE: The U.S. president unveils punishing new tariffs and once again pushes them back. The so-called reciprocal tariffs that were due to take effect Wednesday after that 90-day pause announced back in April expired will now kick in on August 1st.

Donald Trump called the tariffs, quote, firm but not 100 percent firm, indicating it's not too late for trade partners to negotiate.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: All I say to the other countries is, you know, some of them wanted to make a deal and want to be fair. Others perhaps got a little bit spoiled. They were a little bit spoiled because for 30, 40 years, 50 years, they were taken advantage of the country. So we're going to -- I would say final. But if they call with a different offer and if I like it, we'll do it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEE: On Monday, he sent out a wave of letters warning of new tariff rates of up to 40 percent if no deals are reached.

The letters went to major allies like Japan and South Korea, who will see their levies rise to 25 percent without new agreements. President Trump warned that countries will see even higher tariff rates if they dare to retaliate.

And Wall Street is not liking any of this. The Dow shed more than 420 points on Monday. And all three major indices posted their worst day in about three weeks.

And let's check in on the U.S. futures. The Dow is expected to fall, as you see there in the red. S&P 500 futures up about one tenth of a percent. CNN's Marc Stewart is monitoring this all live from Beijing.

Marc, these tariffs could have serious consequences for so many families no matter where in the in the world they live.

MARC STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT : Indeed, MJ. Good morning.

Let's first talk about how this could impact American families, because it could be quite severe. Think about all of the products that come from South Korea and Japan, products that could be subject to this new 25 percent tariff. Sure. We're talking about cars like Honda and Toyota, but think about all of the electronics that come from this part of the world. Flat screen TVs, headphones, even washing machines from big companies such as Sony, Samsung, LG with bases in both South Korea and Japan.

So that could cost -- it could raise the cost of many of these everyday household products quite significantly for Americans. And then it could also have an impact on the individual economies in both South Korea and Japan.

Now, despite this threat, markets today actually did quite well. We saw a lot of green across the board, a lot of gains. Why is this? I asked one economist in Hong Kong who suggested the fact that President Trump left the door open for future negotiations, perhaps, is a glimmer of hope.

[05:25:05]

And perhaps that's why we didn't see such declines like we saw in the U.S. markets yesterday. But this is putting many governments in a tricky position, including Japan. Let's listen to the Japanese prime minister.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHIGERU ISHIBA, JAPANESE PRIME MINISTER (through translator): At the current time, there are some points on which the United States and Japan cannot reach agreement still remaining, and therefore no agreement has yet been made. This is because we, as the government of Japan, have avoided making any concessions and have pursued robust talks seeking what we ought to seek and defending what we ought to defend.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STEWART: So, markets will start opening in Europe, in the United States in the next few hours. We'll have to see if the gains here will continue across the oceans.

MJ, an important point to make -- South Korea and Japan are longtime American allies. There is a history between these nations and the U.S. Yet they are struggling to come up with a trade deal.

Yet at the same time, the United States and China appear to be having success. There are a lot of signs that things are moving into a positive direction, into a positive trade deal. Perhaps some irony as we look at the global economic landscape, MJ.

LEE: Marc Stewart in Beijing, thank you so much.

Still to come, President Trump announces plans to send Ukraine a new shipment of defensive weaponry. We'll bring you the latest on that, on what finalized his decision.

Federal officers and National Guard troops seen descending on a park in Los Angeles. We'll tell you what L.A. Mayor Karen Bass had to say about this. That's next.

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