Transcripts For CNNW Wolf 20170830

And also 81,000 Power Outages and they are all working as swiftly as possible to restore power. For the texas tceq, i want you to know that we have been working with the epa on a daily basis to address environmental issues. They have deployed rapid needs teams to assess needs that have arids ariz arise on in certain areas, and on the corpus christi, engel side and port arreansass areas. They have 5,000 evacuees in the state of texas amount most of those are in shelters, cabins, or mobile homes. A report from the department of Public Safety, there are more than 2,000 department of Public Safety who are deployed to targeted regions and they will continue to deployments to ensure the safety and security is maintained in those regions. From the texas forest service, they continue assisting local Fire Departments in all of the affected regions, from the department of health, they have deployed multiple Health Care Teams to give you an example of what they are doing, they have set up two emergency room departments, at the george r. Brown center in houston as well as they are setting up a medical shelter at the new evacuee center in Harris County at nrg. New information about transportation and that is there are transportation busses that are available that will be transporting evook evacuees from the Southeast Texas region and taking evacuees to locations around the state, many of those will be transported from the Southeast Texas region will be taken to the dallas region, but not necessarily all of them. The information that we have compiled state wide is that there are more than 32,000 people currently in shelters in the state. Importantly we have approximately 30,000 beds that are available for sheltering as needed. And we continue to work on additional backup plans in the event that more than that is needed. Some updated information from fema. That just came out. This shows how important it is for everybody impacted by this storm to register. There have been 210,000 registrations for individual assistance. And fema has already approved more than 37 million in individual assistance and for those who have not yet applied, again, i give you the address to go to, which is disasterassistance. Gov. One of the things most important for me to help you the best i can, those who are affected by the storms, is to get you the assistance you need as quickly as possible. So i strongly urge you to sign up at disasterassistance. Gov so you can register to begin to receive the muffin and other on resources you need that you can get from fema for the next transition. One thing that fema is also doing that is very helpful. The shelters and Evacuation Centers are intended to be shortterm facilities. We want to quickly month people from Evacuation Centers like a convention center, into a location where there are lmivin rooms and bedrooms and bathrooms that people can use as a family unit. And already, theres transition housing, which means post Evacuation Center for almost 2,000 rooms. And we want to provide more as soon as possible. And fema has already provided more than 5 million meals. With that, ill take a few questions. Governor, watching whats happening right now in beaumont and port arthur, does it seem overwhelming right now for everyone . Certainly it is overwhelming for the residents and the people who live in that region. For the state and the responders, it is just part of our ongoing emergency Swift Response to make sure that we address and take care of the needs of the people putting protection and safety of life first. Are you satisfied or are you pleased to see how sheriffs departments, Police Departments, other places that have not been affected in the state, have caravanned headed down the road . Are you amazed by seeing that k50i67bd kind out outpouring . And people with boats helping people . People protect and aid their neighbor helping neighbor, friends helping friends, all the sheriffs office, all the Police Officers across the state for doing such a terrific job. I really applaud the Harris County sheriffs office, the Houston Police department, for the way that they have handled such an overwhelming demand upon their agencies, but the same can be said for sheriffs offices and Police Departments in all of the affected areas, i applaud them all for going above and beyond the call of duty, ensuring they have protect eed texans and maintained order, when you consider the magnitude of this catastrophe, what they have achieved is just stunning. What about price gouging, whats your message in regards to that. Price gouging is not only reprehensible, its illegal. And the attorney general of texas is taking swift and aggressive action to prosecute price gouging. Understand this, if you price gouge anybody, you could be subject to penalties of up to 25,000 picture incident. If youre a business, you can be put out of business by the Texas Attorney general if you dare try any price gouging, its untexan and we will not tolerate it. Do you know what the amount is that congress will be asked to cover this . When you look at comparisons, the population size and square mile size of the area impacted both by the hurricane swathe and the flooding, its far larger than katrina, far larger than sandy. And if i recall correctly, and i will not have a precise number here, but my recollection is that the katrina funding was well over 10 100 billion. I want to say it was over 125 billion so if we go on a parallel standard, it should be far in excess of that amount. I want you to know that i have been working with senator cornyn, whos on senate finance, whos providing me the categories of funding that were provided for fema. Were working to use those categories as a general outline of what will be provided. Is this the largest deployment of federal and state guard troops in state history to your knowledge . I am unaware of there ever being another incident in the history of the state of texas where theres been this much deployment. As you know, i have deployed 100 of Texas National guard and then on top of that, we are bringing in well over 10,000 from outside. And understand this, the amount of National Guard that we have in the state of texas now, will only grow. Because were operating in stages here. We are in the Emergency Response stage right now. As we go through the process, as the water recedes, it is essential that we have as many people as possible to continue to go door to door, for the rescue and Recovery Mission and the restore ration of order mission. And the National Guard is experienced at doing this. So i would anticipate, but cant say for certainty right now, but i would anticipate that a number of National Guard deployed in the state of texas will increase from here. For weeks, months . I would say for months. Have you had any problems with fuel . Youve had a lot of questions, come on, lets spread it around. Is it too soon for fuel rationing . Were working with both the epa as well as energy companies, as well as other authorities. To ensure that were going to get fuel out as fast as possible. We have a priority right now, fuel priority must be for First Responders so we can keep people safe and protected and rescued. And once we finish with the First Responder needs, then we can get into other issues, but having talked to leaders of energy companies, they are working as swiftly as possible to ensure that fuel operations will be restored quickly. Set to take effect september 1, has expressed some concerns that that may affect the amount of time, the way that people can get reimbursed for their home damage. Theres been discussion about changing the Effective Date of that bill. Any claims along those lines are absolutely bogus and im going to read you, to make sure you have it, the Statement Issued by the Texas Department of insurance. The Texas Department of insurance is reassuring texas policyholders that storm claims will be paid and that the agency will aggressively enforce state laws and policy provisions to protect victims of Hurricane Harvey and the widespread flooding that followed. The claims filing process and deadlines arent changing september 1. House bill 1774 does not change how Property Owners file a claim, doesnt change deadlines to file claims or how insurers process claims. It lost does not apply to claims with the texas windstorm insurance association, or the National Guard Flood Insurance program. Property owners with covered damages maintain the same rights to an insurance claim, whether they file their claim before or after september is the 1st. The Texas Department of insurance is sending staff to affected area this is week to help victims file claimed and has extended hours for its consumer help line. The Texas Department of insurance help line is 18002523439 and its open from 3 00 a. M. To 8 00 p. M. Monday through 23rid as well as 8 00 a. M. To 5 00 p. M. On saturday and sunday. Heres the reality of what is driving all of this. The implementation of this bill does not affect the ability of any policyholder from being able to file a claim or have that claim paid. What it does do, is it empowers policyholders to keep more money in their pockets as opposed to paying money to lawyers who may handle their claim. Because all it really does is require a notification by a policyholder to the Insurance Company before a policyholder files a lawsuit. And what that does is that spurs the Insurance Company to get that claim paid faster. Two more questions. Say again . Whats the official death toll at this point . I dont have that. We will defer to the local ju jurisdictions and what they categorize as a death related to the hurricane. Governor, have you made any decision as to accept help from mexico . We have and we are. And we have, i dont have with me here, we have a list of aid and assistance that they have offered to provide that we are accepting. I dont have the list, but i can tell you loosely, it involves things like vehicles and boats and supplies and food. One more and then we have to go. I know that some of the people that are affected are also undocumented. Some of them are even afraid of asking the Police Officer to come owl and rescue them. You really cant control what each police will do, what was your comment to that, what would you tell those people . The director of the department of Public Safety made clear the other day is that when people are going to Evacuation Centers when people are seeking help or anything like that, no one is being asked about their status, were here for one purpose, and that is to save and help the people that are here. Thank you very much. We have to go, im sorry, were really late. There you go, you have Governor Greg Abbott updating the situation in texas. You can see brian todd, he is on an airboat, navigating some of the areas that are affected by harvey. And were seeing some extraordinary pictures coming in from him, well touch base with him in just a little bit. But we want to start with a desperate call for help in east texas. Tropical storm harvey came back on shore this morning bringing flooding in louisiana. The flooding is being blamed for at least 19 deaths at this point. In houston people are still being helped from their flooded homes while the scope of this humanitarian disaster is still widening, meanwhile president 2ru6 thu trump last week, released this trump. My heart goes out even more to the people, the great people of texas. And some of the worst of what were seeing right now is in port arthur, texas. Kaley is in nearby orange and far eastern texas. Kaley, its been a dramatic day of rescues, we just saw brian todd on an airboat a few moments ago, navigating those waters, like what is behind you right now, what can you tell us . Reporter right as you cross the state line, this is the first large scale rescue effort that we saw as we traveled out of texas. But just as people are being loaded up and the few belongings they can bring with them, they believe they have cleared most of this area to this direction, but there is a large apartment complex that direction, where they say some people just dont want to leave. Now those same volunteers who have been on these waters, they dont think thats a good idea because nobody who lives in this area, is familiar with this area, thinks that this water will recede any time soon, that they dont really expect it to rise much higher. Yesterday over a 24hour period, orange saw 26 inches of rain and that was before harvey made landfall. These rescues like i said started in the middle of the night, they actually had to suspend rescue operations around 3 00 a. M. , because the weather was so terrible. And the Fire Department was coordinating some of those rescues, lightning struck their bui building but you heart Governor Abbott talk about provisions being made for transportation of these people. Once you get people out of these waters and on to dry ground, then the question is where you do you, and the hopeful rumor right here now is that school buss are on their way, many people have been here since 7 00 a. M. This morning, no one can really quantify how much time people have spent under this overpass, we believe the closest shelter of any large scale is in lake charles, down i10, the eastward way about 30 miles from here, their centers are still open and still accepting evacuees. And theres a gentleman sitting on his walker under that overpass, there are People Living out on the streets right now. The sun is out in houston for the First Time Since harvey hit and Officials Say floodwaters are starting to recede in some parts, but the rescue is far from over. We have a video of a little boy being lifted up and this crew also rescued a 1monthold baby. And brian todd whos on an airboat in houston, i dont know if youre on the back of one right now, we can only see you from the chest up there, but we saw you making your way around these waters a few moments ago, what can you show us there, those cars are parked right behind you and youre on a boat. Thats right, jim, this is the Lakeside Forest neighborhood west of houston, the water rose very high late in this process, really just this morning, and were going around with these search and rescue guys trying to see who might be in these apartments that are flooded right now. We just saw a towel being tied to a railing, so joe climbed up there and banged on the window to see if anybody needed rescuing, and nobody came out, and hes going up here, sometimes a towel or a sheet signifies they need to be rescued and they want to get out. Hes checking that out right now. Mark, talk to us about some of the difficult problems trying to navigate these waters here, its chest high water. These cars, the water is up to the roof. You get lower water, you hit a drainpipe or something, a lot of boats are getting destroyed out here. Im not saying dont bring your boat, we need help out here, but the logistics of running your boat is just a mess. Do you think about the danger out here . Not really. Why not . Just come and do it. I have run a boat all the time, i have run into horrible crap on a consistent basis, people need help, you come and help them. Very little sleep, my house is safe, a lot of people have lost their cars and theyve lost everything, i have lost nothing, so im going to be out here. Reporter take a look down there and i think they see something or someone around that corner of that apartment that might need help. They were signaling to someone over there, jim, this is what you do, you just troll around these neighborhoods, you look for people waving, we have picked up about 15 people and about five dogs today. And this is the water level, theyre talking about that controlled release of that addicks reservoir, but this is the result of it, jim, a late rising floodwater situation here after the brunt of the storm has passed. Absolutely, brian todd, a very desperate situation there, and you can see those guys behind you, doing their best to try to find people in those apartments in that neighborhood. Brian todd, were going to check back with you, keep us posted e iif you see any of those people being brought out of those apartments. And the mayor of houston is updating people on whats happening in his city which of course has been devastated by harvey. Lets listen in. Basically im talking to the chief and it was effective, i dont believe any citations were issued. People were very cooperative last night and as you know, there were other jurisdictions that also followed houstons lead so i want to thank people for cooperating on the curfew from 12 00 to 5 00, its going to remain in effect until we kind of get past the situations that we are in, but it was quite effective. On curfew, sir . Curfew is the question . Yes, curfew. Thank you, mayor, good morning. Or good afternoon. The curfew last night went very well. We did not have to make any arrests for curfew violations, obviously we have made other arrests for burglary and a couple of looting incidences, you can call it burglary or you can call it looting, on a regular night you would call it burglary, but in this environment were in, its probably more called looting. The bottom line is that the curfew that we have instituted here and other cities in the area, so its important for viewers in this entire region, other cities have launched curfews as a tool to keep people safe and provide security to this entire community. So a real quick update so i can get out of the way, mayor. So far which have had 88 Police Vehicles that have been flooded and damaged. 161 officers have reported significant damage to their homes, 47 of our Police Facilities have been damaged and some we might not ever preoccupy. Calls holding as of this morning. First you did it to him, now youre doing it to me. Hes a good man. As of this morning, we had 111 calls pending, hpd responded to 5, 5,031 calls over the night, during the operational period and we continue to have additional agencies throughout the state, Police Agencies that are responding for Law Enforcement purposes and for search and rescue. Again, were working with our Fire Department college to try and move back away from the search and rescue mission and start focusing on the Law Enforcement mission. [ speaking spanish ] all right, there you have officials there in houston updating the public on relief efforts in that city. Were going to take a break in just a few moments, but first, up next, as waters in houston recede, people are returning home, a live report when we come back, but first a brief moment to rest and recharge from relief efforts, youre looking at exhausted Texas National guard troops getting a rest on brandnew mattresses on Furniture Stores that opened their doors to them. As we have been talking about all day long, texans taking care of texans. We have 14,000 National Guard members deployed and more are on the way, well be right back. People confuse nice and kind but theyre different. Its nice to remove artificial ingredients. Kind never had to. We choose real ingredients like almonds, peanuts and a drizzle of dark chocolate. Give kind a try. One leavee broke yesterday, and we can see that theres plenty of sunshine out there now. Reporter ill paint the picture and the scene here of what is going on. We are just outside of brazoria, texas. And people are monitoring whats going on with the two different rivers, and they are monitoring that situation to see when those rivers are going to crest, and in the mind, signs that this river water is pushing into some of these neighborhoods putting these home at risk. Were with Vernon Snyder and his family, this is their home, they anticipate that water will get inside, but in the meantime, theyre trying to take the precautions to prepare for this. Watching this is just going to be slow and painful. Yes, sir. Like i said, ive been out here since 85. 1985. About 20 years ago it got like this, but we havent seen it at this magnitude. Even though it was slow going and this come up in a matter of about 24 to 36 hours like this. And theyre still predicting more to come, so were trying to get all kinds of antiques and stuff like that raised up out of harms way because its fixin to come through. Reporter you have been dealing with it the last couple of days, you said that youve been moving cows and horses out of harms way . We have been moving cows and horss out of the street. Reporter did you see after the storm had passed that you were going to be okay . I knew it was going to come up, but i didnt know it was going to come up this high. But its got nine inches before it comes into the house. So people understand whats g going on, all of the floodwaters coming from houston is coming down these rivers and you guys are anxiously awaiting to see just how high its going to go . For the last couple of days, we have been just moving things out, moving travel trailers out, and moving things up out of harms way, because in 40 years, we have not seen anything like that. Do you think theres any way youll be spared or are you anticipating the worst . Im anticipating the worst, it came up over 12 inches last night. We havent even seen the rain coming from houston, this is just from the rain. It is what it is and well deal with it when its over. Reporter im sorry you guys are going to go through all of this. One cheerful moment, we have to show them their kids, right over here, right . Theyre quick moving, but before we go, well tell you this, they have turned a piece of plywood into a surf board, anyway trying to make the best of a horrible situation, jim. Absolutely, kids will be kids even in all that flooding, its good to see them having at least a little bit of fun with all this going on, and those folks you were talking to ed lavendera. Right between houston and beaumont, texass 36th congressional district. And texas congressman brian babin represents beaumont. Congressman, what are the conditions there, everywhere we turn, every reporter we go to live on the air, they are either riding on boats or theyre standing next to water that will come up to your chest or higher. What are things looking like 23 your area . Well, im in the middle of tyler county, texas, in our county seat ofwoodville and i am absolutely trapped in my house. I dont have a way to get out until we have floodwaters recede here. Youre trapped in your house right now, congressman . Im in my home and we could not get out unless a helicopter plucks me out of here or i get in my boat and launch it. But were fine, these waters are going to recede hopefully sometime this evening. And were doing well. This hurricane is of a magnitude that i have never seen before. Im from this part of the country, i have seen many tornados and hurricanes and flood events. Never have i seen one like this. Congressman, can you paint a picture around your home right now . Why cant you get out . Are there other folks in there with you . My familys here, ive got one of my children and my grand children with me, and we are behind a creek and that creek is at flood stage and it has completely blocked our exit to get out of here. Buzz we but were not worried about it at all. Were worried about other folks who may have their lives in danger throughout this nine county district. This hurricane for the last four or five days has dumped a lot of rain on the west side of our district, but now the east side is getting pounded now that the storm has moved northeast. And quite frankly, until last night, ive been out in my district kind of making the rounds and today i cant get out until these floodwaters, until it stops raining and these flood waters recede. I know congressman, you want to put your constituents first and so on, i just want to make sure that you and your family are not in danger . Are you in need of some kind of rescue . Should we be getting people to your home . Or are you confident that these waters are going to recede . Oh, yeah, im fine, were good here, im just one of hundreds of thousands of people in this district and across our state that are being affected by this Tropical Storm and Hurricane Harvey, which has gone back out in the gulf and made landfall now three times. And this wonderful district that i represent has more petro chemical refining facilities down along the coast than any other district in the country and my colleagues around me and the house of representatives also have numerous petro chemical facilities and i think from a National Stand point, this is going to be a tough thing because some of the largest refineries are right here and they are closing up business for the time being until these floodwaters recede so thats why its so important that we get our infrastructure built back as quickly as we can. Because this is going to be felt by i think all americans at the gas pump and other areas of our economy. If you dont mind, i want to say how much i think of all of our First Responders, our state, local and federal officials who have worked together and my goodness, the volunteers that have come out by the thousands to rescue people, and we keep talking about texans helping texans and that is true. Im proud to be a texan, but ill tell you we have had some neighbors come over from other states, notably louisiana. Hundreds of boat teams and crews have come over here to help us out. People from florida all over have pitched in to help us with this huge storm which covers an unbelievable amount of geographic territory and has such massive Population Centers that its going turn out to be in my opinion and many others, if not one, but maybe the most expensive natural disasters, storm in your history. Congressman you said it perfectly, thats right and i dont think anything we have seen a lot of images, we have seen a lot of stories, but it affects people from all walks of life, when you have a congressman trapped in his home, congressman babin we wish the best to you and your family. And dont be too brave, sir, if things start to get dire, we need to get you and your loved ones out of your home as well. I appreciate your time. Thank you very much, sir. We appreciate you. With more than 30,000 people in shelters across texas right now, the need is enormous, youre looking at piles of clothing that people have donated, and i could imagine that you can just keep it coming and that will put a definite in texas and louisiana right now. To find out how you can help, log on to cnn. Com impact. Well be right back. For him and simply styled for her plus hot deals on jeans for kids, starting at 8. 99. Hurry sale ends september 4th. saved money on motorcycle insurance with geico. Goin up the country. Later, gary i have a motorcycle wonderful. Im goin up the country, baby dont you wanna go . Im goin up the country, baby dont you wanna go . Geico motorcycle, great rates for great rides. Welcome back. One of the shelters set up to help flood evacuees is in port arthur, texas that is facing some very Serious Problems of their own. You can see the civic center, you can see how the rain came up around the cots that had been set up for people to sleep on. Joining me by phone is barry bork. Barry, youre inside that area now. I know your wife is working the phone for us so we can bring this live interview, tell us how things are going there . Theyre going real good. Its last night we probably had about 600 people and probably down to about probably half right now, maybe 250. Theyre transporting everybody to Higher Ground to the old Woodrow Wilson middle school. So its probably about ten miles down the road. Well be safer down there. Its about two feet deep right here. And barry, what was that like when the water was coming in . That must have been very scary for everybody when the water was actually coming around the cots. But i tell you what, jim, everybody worked here as a team. We got all of the water on high ground, on tables, we put out these bleachers that were sitting on right now. Im going to take the phone away from my wife. These are the bleachers that everybody is sitting on right here. We had about 600 people here last night and theres where all of the cots were. You can still see the water in there . Is that what were looking at . Yes, thats still two feet of water. Two feet of water still inside that shelter. Show us again if you can. Theres a gentleman thats fixin to walk in it right there. He is walking in it right there, isnt he . And that water is over the cots. So what did you have to do when that happened . Did you have to sleep on the bleachers there . There wasnt much sleeping here last night. Are you getting food in there . Blankets . No food. We ate last night around 6 00 or 7 00, and nothing since. Are the authorities coming in there to help out . Are you seeing any officials or authorities to check on you . Yeah, theres firemen, theres Police Officers, fema is here, the red cross is here. I think thats it right there, jim. And have you talked to other folks there, how are they do . I suppose everybody is sort of in the same situation, their homes have been damaged and they have had to flee. I hope no loss of life have you run across any stories, anything of that nature . Not around here, jim, but we i mean we have been in here since yesterday at 7 00. We actually left the house yesterday probably about two miles down the road about 3 00 yesterday afternoon, we arrived here at 7 00. Two miles, it took us four hours to get here, just to find a ride here. A kind gentleman by the name of cass that owns texas offroad. He had a big jacked up jeep that brought us here, thank you, cass for getting us here taf. We appreciate you showing us those pictures and if you can show us one more time the situation in that shelter where you are in port arthur, texas just in case there are authorities there in that area, please keep in mind, those folks there have a shelter with water covering those cots, those people are going to need a better place to sleep that is better than those bleachers inside live pictures from houston, texas, thats getting the brunt of Tropical Storm harvey. As it makes landfall for the second time. You can see that shelter right there is in a lot better shape than the one we showed you a few moments ago first, proof that the most challenging times can bring out the best in people. In houston, neighbors formed a human chain to help a woman to wade through some waisthigh water to a rescue truck. Incredible there. And look at this. A group of people rushing to save an elderly man from a pickup truck swept up by the flood waters on the interstate, also forming a human chain to get him to safety, just some of the incredible stories happening out there, people helping people make their way through harvey. David. Whats going on . Oh hey thats it . Yeah. Everybody two seconds dear sebastian, after careful consideration of your application, it is with great pleasure that we offer our congratulations on your acceptance. Through the Tuition Assistance program, every day mcdonalds helps more people go to college. Its part of our commitment to being americas best first job. We will return to our coverage of Tropical Storm harvey in just a few minutes, but first, to another big story we are following, and that is, of course, north korea. If t media there reporting that pyongyangs Missile Launch over japan was just the beginning, the next target, they say, is guam. Hard to sort out some of the bluster from the facts here, but meanwhile, the u. S. Conducted its own test, shooting down a medium range Ballistic Missile off the coast of hawaii this morning. U. S. President donald trump tweeting out a response to all of this and the escalating tensions,writing the u. S. Has been talking to north korea and paying them extortion money for 25 years. Talking is not the answer. Thats the word there from the president. But note this, secretary of defense, james mattis, did not seem to share that same sentiment when asked about ittier this morning. Were never out of diplomatic solutions. We continue to Work Together and the minister and i share a responsibility to provide for the protection of our nations, our populations, and our interests, which is what we are here to discuss today. And secretary mattis is meeting with the south Korean Defense minister later on today, and as north korea escalates its threats against the u. S. , a military base in alaska is preparing for a worst case scenario. Cnn shows us what stands between the United States and a north Korean Nuclear missile strike. Reporter this is americas final shield, the last and only protection against an incoming north Korean Nuclear missile. Housed deep underground in the heart of alaskas wilderness about 150 miles north of fair banks. The heavily armed 49th Missile Defense battalion secures 38 missile silos, dotting a landscape frigid even in late summer. The tip barely revealing what lies beneath. Were allowed rare access to bring you up close to americas groundbased missile intercepters or gbis. This is what will be launched here out of fort greeley to intercept any threat thats coming into the defended homeland. Reporter the key piece of equipment is right here. The kill vehicle is right there towards the top. Reporter the kill vehicle to take down any potential intercontinental Ballistic Missile coming to the u. S. , including from north korea, which the u. S. Could face in the future. Heres how it works. North korea launches. Impact location is los angeles. We are engaging this threat at this time. Reporter instantly activating a secured room in fort greeley. What youre seeing now is a drill, declassified so we can show you generally how the ground. Based intercepters work to protect the u. S. As the alarms go off, what youd see is those white shells that you see behind us would separate extremely quickly and immediately youd see a flash of flame as that gbi would leave the tube at a really incredible rate of speed. Reporter outside the earths atmosphere in space, the intercepter kills the incoming nuclear weapon. We train to shoot a bullet at a bullet and destroy it so it doesnt destroy us. Reporter have the drills this year taken o a new meaning . On that does is that just makes it more real for us. Because now, ive got a leader of a foreign country who says, im going to take my missile and im going to kill your citizens with it. Reporter what kind of confidence do you have if north korea launches a missile that this system will work . I have 100 confidence this system will work. Reporter thats despite a 60 success rate. Out of 18 test launches, the intercepters have only struck its target 10 times in controlled launches. Just because weve had some failures, doesnt mean were not learning. Reporter alaska senator dan as a ru sullivan believes the intercepters are still americas best shot as a last defense as north korea moves rapidly closer to being able to strike the u. S. Mainland, introducing a bill boosting the number of missiles to a total of 72, setting the possibility of 100 missile intercepters. So far, a cost of 40 millibillo taxpayers. Doing nothing in the face of this threat when we clearly have the capability to make sure we have a very protected homeland is not an acceptable option, and i think most americans would agree with me on that. Reporter so what about the argument that north korea will never actually fire a missile . That this is just for it to gain a bargaining chip . Well, senator sullivan says the flaw in that thinking is that it assumes that kim jong un is rational. He calls it expensive but a necessary insurance policy. Kyung lah, cnn, los angeles. Thats it for me. Brooke baldwin picks up cnns special coverage of the effects of Tropical Storm harvey right of Tropical Storm harvey right now. Captions by vitac www. Vitac. Com my hi there, im brooke baldwin. You are watching cnn live coverage of this historic and deadly flooding gripping the state of texas. Former Hurricane Harvey dumping a record amount of rainfall all over again and the number of People Killed in this storm now rising to 19. And that number, according to officials, will rise again. Here is the Texas Governor talking about what is to come. Major flooding will continue for a few days in the beaumont