Families at great risk every day. Facing not only persecution and death threats, this weeks cnn hero is an army veteran whose new mission is to bring them to safety. Meet matt zeller. Affanyone and iraghan and ir are proud patriots. We owe these people a great debt of gratitude to feel like they have been honored for their sacrifice. Welcome. Thanks for everything. Thank you. We also owe them a chance at a new and better life we promised them in esh change for that service. To see how matt is transforming the lives of these brave heroes, go to cnn heros. Com, right now. Thanks for watching. Our coverage continues. Good evening the death toll from Hurricane Michael continues to rise. I want to begin tonight with breaking news on the mystery surrounding the disappearance and alleged murder of a the Washington Post columnist and the deep questions about the Trump Administrations response to it. Turkish authorities have audio and visual evidence that show Jamal Khashoggi, his interrogation, torture and killing were audio recorded and sent to the cloud and his phone which was outside with his fiancee. President trump hasnt said much about the whole affair. He did this evening on his way to a rally in ohio. Jim acosta has that. We know the turkish believe the saudis are responsible for Jamal Khashoggis death, but the president was not willing to take on that description. He says there are some theories as to whats going on right now. People have some ideas as he put it as to what happened to khashoggi. But he was not willing to say, yes, that the saudis killed one of their own journalists. He was also asked whether or not this entire mystery surrounding the disappearance of the saudi journalist calls into question whether or not the president , the u. S. Is doing enough to hold saudi arabia responsible for its human rights record, which obviously its had a lot of issues over the careers. Heres what the president had to say about that. I think a lot of records are overlooked. If you look at iran, if you look at so many other countries. You take a look at syria. A lot of countrys records have been overlooked, but this is very serious thing, and were looking at it in a very serious manner. Reporter now, the president did say that he plans to speak to king salaman of saudi arabia in the coming days, but, anderson, its not at all clear that the president is putting a lot of pressure on the saudi kingdom, as you heard him say yesterday hes reluctant to go after these arms sales that have been under way between the u. S. And saudi arabia as a way to provide a approach to prompt the saudis to do better to come clean in terms of what happened to khashoggi. All we know at this point is that Senior Administration officials have been speaking with the crown prince mohamed bin salaman. Has the president spoken to the crown prince or the king in saudi arabia . That is expected to be the next step, anderson. Hes expected to speak to king salaman. He said that to reporters as he landed in ohio earlier this evening. Anderson, we dont know at this point what assets have been committed to the investigation. He said this week u. S. Investigators would get to the bottom of this, but its not clear what kind of commitments to u. S. Is putting towards all this. Remember the president said yesterday in the oval office when he was there with kanye west, that, you know, hes not even he was not even sure how much the administration should do because khashoggi is not even a u. S. Citizen. And so there are lots of questions, anderson, has to how committed the administration is at this point to finding some answers to all of this. But at this point this evening they seem to have no real answers whats going on. Were going to have more on that later in the program. But we do want to turn now to the stories of the people that survived the very worse of Hurricane Michael. The death toll as i told you now stands at 17. It rose all day given the devastation in places like mexico beach, like what youre seeing it will almost certainly continue to rise. 286 people stayed through the storm. As you can see a lot of the town is heavily damaged or simply leveled. Crews have been making their way through town searching for people who may be trapped alive beneath wreckage, searching for survivors and of course for anyone who did not survive. Heres what we know of the 17 in counting who did not make it. Steven suit died when a tree fell on his home. He was 44 years old. His managed a local car dealership. His wife gale was with him when it happened. He was one of a kind. Always giving mind to people at the stop signs and stuff, would help anybody. Steven sweet. Firefighter brad clark was killed when a tractortrailer lost control on a rainy highway and hit his truck in harve overcounty, virginia. He loved the military, his family and the fire service dearly. He was 43 years old, brad clark. Sarah was at her grandparents house in georgia when a metal carport crashed into it. Shed recently started sixth grade. Her father says she loved playing the trumpet, acting and singing. She loved life, he says. She brightened my world, she was 11 years old and liked to play like she was 5, he said. No doubt were going to learn more about others who did not make it in the coming days. As we mentioned in some of the hardest hit spots recovery crews are searching for the living and the dead. Communications are still spotty in some areas, and those who survived are doing whatever they can do reach out to loved ones who are waiting for word theyre okay. I want to take you to mexico beach. Our Martin Savidge is there tonight. Talk about what youve seen and heard. Reporter well, you know, its absolute agony on both ends of this. Youve got family members, of course, they run out the storm, they survive, but now theres no way for them to communicate and tell their loved ones theyre alive and well. And imagine being on the other end. You were talking to your brother, you were talking to your mother just before the storm and suddenly absolute silence. And what do you see . You see the images of mexico beach here and it is utter devastation. Instruct here has been totally eliminated. What we wanted to do was go into those communities. Not along the beachfront here. You go deeper, farther inland, the trailer parks there, and there youll find people who are still trapped, alive but unable to get word out. We tried to be that conduit for them, and i think weve got statements here. And i will just say that were all well and we thank god that were doing well. We made it. You know, be thankful for that. Alive, safe and well and that would be really my oldest because i think shes the most worried. We are alive, we are okay. Were dirty and filthy, but we are okay, and we do have food and water, so were getting there. Reporter let me just read you some of the names because this is important, of course, for family members of loved ones to share they saw watching on your show. Diana williams is alive and well. Shes one of those shes got family in georgia. She especially wanted to reach her son philip. Weve got fey littleton, shes got family. Weve got jary swain, family all over texas. She wanted them to know shes alive and well. And christine brinkmayer, and debby karroo. Another one i have to mention, billy kraft, and hes in his 80s. I believe 82 years of age. Hes not been able to reach his sister. He is desperate that she know he is alive and well. And there are others. They are in really desperate situations here. This is much like what you saw in the aftermath of katrina, that blackout where people couldnt reach out for help. But at least through their faces and their voices some families all across the country know that they are alive and well. Unfortunately in mexico beach today the first victim was discovered. The name has not been released. Its a male. It was a person who was discovered in what they say is the debris field several hundred yards away from his home, and unfortunately authorities believe it wont be the last such discovery. Anderson . And i just want to point out all those people whose faces we showed talking, they had not been able to reach their families. And hopefully their family members are watching right now, and they will contact them just to let them know theyre aokay, and theyre alive. Just in terms of the residents who are there, obviously im sure their homes are destroyed or badly damaged. Are they trying to get out . Are they able to get out of that area . Do they want to stay there now and just protect what they have or i cant imagine theres a lot of water, food available yet at this stage. Reporter no, there isnt. And its a bit of everything you just sort of described there. There are some people who are staying because they have to look at what little they have left. There are others who are staying because they cant get out. Their vehicles were swept away as well as their homes. And then on top of that there are just others who are trapped by their economic means. Some food and water has been brought in but that is for people who rode out the storm here. They are trying to get people to shelter, not shelters here. There are none. But the roads are still very difficult to pass, and its very hard both interest help to come in and for those who want to leave to get out. But the city is trying to organize a means to take those away who want to get away. Anderson . Martin avij, appreciasavidge your reporting tonight and saying those names for us. Theres welcome news about two people who rode out the storm there. Danny wiggins and his sister. At that point she had not heard from either one of them. Shortly after she appeared on the broadcast she got word on facebook both made it through. Danny made his way to a rare spot with cellphone reception and was actually able to dial his sister. Like mexico beach st. George island faces the gulf. Theres one bridge providing access to the maine island and thats it. So people who stayed hour after hour, not only physically cut off from the rest of the world but surrounded by water. Security camera video of a flooded neighborhood island. Last night we spoke to a close friend of a woman who owns this house. Gary tuchman, heres his report. Reporter with so many Florida Panhandle roads impassable, we dharter a bocharo get to st. George island where a few dozen people did not evacuate during Hurricane Michael. The devastation we see immediately making it clear those people were in peril. Tiaura walker was one of the people who stayed behind. Did you think you were going to die . There were a few points in times i thought it could happen, that i could die. Reporter tiara stayed at an armt, o apartment. There was a point i thought the roof was going to fly away so i flipped the couch over and tried to prepare for the worst situation. Reporter this incredible video comes from a Security System as Hurricane Michael arrived on the island. Torrents of water from the gulf of mexico creating currents in the front yard of an evacuated home. This is the video camera that shot that video. It still remains. And this is the exact vantage point. The waters gone but the damage is oh, so obvious. Residents now just returning to their houses. Krista Millers Family lived on this island. We were pretty worried this place would no longer be here. If that storm had not, you know, taken that little turn, this place would be leveled completely. Reporter but most homes on st. Georges island have been damaged, many very expensively. Like the home of Christopher Crosier who has lived here for 38 years. One of the risk as you take when you live on an island you can get devastated by a hurricane. Will this make you give up on living on this island . Hell no. No way. Its too beautiful. I discovered this place in the 70s and worked every bit of life to be here in this county. I got a job as a schoolteacher. So youre staying . Im here. Im not going anywhere. Is everybody accounted for . Reporter well, anderson, whats slightly problematic is we dont know exactly how many people stayed behind. But and this is very important, there have been no calls from people saying their loved ones or friends are missing from the island. And no one on the island today say they know of anyone whos missing. Coming up last night on the broadcast i should mention we spoke with senator marco rubio. Tonight his senior colleague senator nelson joins us. I spoke to him a short time ago. Senator nelson, i know you just got back from mexico beach. Whats your assessment . How are things . It is the worst destruction that the panhandle has seen for however long that ive been living. Its akin, anderson, to hurricane andrew back in 1992 south of miami where everything was leveled. It is clear in mexico beach the buildings that were built to the new code, they have survived and some partially survived. Unless they were right on the beach. And the ones that were older dwellings, i mean theyre gone. But people were already starting to come back in today, and theyre very resilient. Theyre going to rebuild, and itll be a greater place for people to come and enjoy the beach. Are there enough resources there, shelters, water and food for not only those who survived but for people who are coming back . Because i was talking to some officials yesterday who were saying, look, please, dont come back yet. Its going to interfere with search and rescue operations, and theres just not enough resources. In mexico beach specifically the answer is no. Theres not going to be there. They basically had to evacuate, although, i talked to a fellow who rode out the storm on a second floor and his windows did not break. He said they were bulging six inches, but they did not break. Wow. In panama city, in a city thats in the dark, it is going tobe to be a while. And this is what happens after a hurricane, especially one of this magnitude. Theres going to be a period of time where its going to be difficult to get plies in. Now, as we were going back out of the city, i saw all of the convoys of the trucks coming in with supplies. But its going to be a while, and peoples patience is going to be tried. I guess what message do you have right now for people who may be watching, perhaps staying with friends or families, theyre worried about their homes, theyre not even sure if their homes are still there or if theyre not, they want to get back to their homes. Theyre not even sure where to begin of putting this process back together. Whats your message tonight . Well, the best news other than floridians are tough and resilient, and i saw that every place. Neighbors helping neighbors, at the hospital, completely now evacuated, but they were keeping the emergency room going. And then there was an Emergency Team that had come in that were setting up a lower threshold operating room out in the parking lot, but the only good news is that the weather ended up after the storm flew through, the weather ended up being beautiful. No rain, clear skies. 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Yes, thank you, anderson. Yesterday we began at daybreak and we did what we consider to be a primary search, which is we went through the entire area very quickly, and attempted to touch as many lives as possible. Once we get through that process then we go back and do it all again, something we could call a secondary search. So we got about 85 complete yesterday. We had about 15 remaining. We began that process today, and we were able to complete that and get about 50 of our secondary search accomplished. So well be out here again in the morning at daybreak continuing that process. And chief kelly, do you have an accurate number of how many people are still unaccounted for or even how many chose to stay for the storm . Yes. Wha