hostage are now safe after an 11-hour ordeal after the suspect is now dead. he was armed with a gun as he entered the synagogue. it was live streamed. let s go to cnn s ed lavandera who is on the scene for us in colleyville, texas. we were just following it all day yesterday, we were just worried sick about that. but we now have audio from inside that building. ed, what more are we learning? reporter: hey, jim. we reported extensively on this yesterday what it was like for congregation members of the beth israel synagogue here in colleyville, texas, to watch the beginnings of this hostage situation unfold on the live stream of the sabbath services. several congregation members told us they were listening to the suspects screaming frantically on there, vacillating emotionally between
third vaccine booster shot. and thanks to our cnn teams around the world. back here in the united states, colorado governor jared polis is calling it a new year s miracle that no deaths have been reported, after fast-moving wildfires engulfered parts of the state. winds up to 105 miles per hour fueled the fires that destroyed more than 500 homes and forced some 35,000 people to flee. the wildfire began thursday morning and spread rapidly across thousands of acres and the area is still too dangerous for residents to return. president biden is out with a new year s message for the american people. during a pre-recorded video on abc, the commander in chief and first lady struck an optimistic tone heading into 2022. no matter how tough the challenge, how high the obstacles, we always overcome. this virus has been tough. as we enter the new year i m more optimistic about america s
could happen. cnn s pete muntean joins us now. how is american airlines explaining how this person gained access to the cockpit? reporter: well, jim, some pretty big questions here about how he got into the cockpit. you know, this all took place during boarding, american airlines says. it was on the ramp in honduras, going from honduras to miami. and american says this all happened as the passenger came down the jet way, then stormed the cockpit. the door was open during that time, and we have heard from american airlines that this passenger did damage some equipment inside the flight deck. more on that in a second. you see in the video here. from a passenger, in the terminal, of this man hanging out of the flight deck window. you can slide that open in a 737, it can be used in an emergency, used to ventilate the cockpit, pilots can get down using a rope, it is a long way down and this passenger did not jump, but he was arrested.
left open, and what happens in cases like that, it allows the smoke to spread in a rapid fashion. it appears as though many who were injured in this case was due to smoke inhalation. i spoke to a young man who was an uber driver. his loved ones were in the building, and he s seeking information, so i can only imagine the uncertainty that is really engulfing those who have families that are connected. but this tragedy s impact layers apart from each other. and we re going to try to get as much information as possible to all those who are seeking it. i want to get right to cnn s polo sandoval live at the scene. polo, just an awful situation. is there any word yet on what started this fire, how it spread so quickly through that large building? reporter: yeah, and not at this point, too, jim.
ukraine and meet with the president there. the question is, will that be enough? jim, president zelensky had called for a three-way meeting between president biden, president putin and himself. and that fell on deaf ears. the question is, will this meeting that we re seeing today, and that took place with the senators, will it make any difference? there s a perception of division at home here in the u.s., so to have the two parties there together with the same message about u.s. support for ukraine, potentially significant. matthew chance, fred pleitgen and lauren fox, powerhouse team, thank you so much. still to come, despite positive signs across the country that the omicron surge is diminishing, hospitals remain overwhelmed. in oklahoma city, doctors say they are at a breaking point with no end in sight. plus, new cnn reporting on former president trump s plans for 2022, and crucially 2024. and former trump administration officials efforts to strategize