Transcripts For WJLA ABC World News Tonight With David Muir

WJLA ABC World News Tonight With David Muir May 26, 2015

Good evening. And as we come on the air tonight, those states of emergency in texas and oklahoma and just look at this behind me tonight. This is houston, just one of the flooded highways there, cars just left stranded. The headlights on. And tonight, at least 15 dead. And now new storms hitting this evening, all the way up to michigan. We have stunning images coming in at this hour. Houston under water. The nations fourthlargest city crippled. Schools closed families told to stay inside. In blanco texas, this suv flipped. The driver incredibly escaping. And is okay tonight. More than 60 reported tornadoes since saturday. This one in sherman, texas. Tonight, thor is. For the missing now. At least 13 in one county in texas, alone including that mother and two Young Children swept away in that home. Chief meteorologist ginger zee has the new storms hitting tonight, but first, abcs matt gutman from texas. Reporter tonight,houston still swamped. In just 24 hours, the city getting nearly a quarter of its yearly rainfall, turning highways into canals, cars sent floating like bath toys. Motorists abandoning them. Families carrying children through waisthigh water. We have 1,000 properties that we visually inspected. We believe that there may be as many as 4,000 with significant damage. Reporter these storms leaving at least 12 dead across texas. Overnight, dispatchers responding to more than 900 emergency calls. More than 500 of them, water rescues. The bayou has overflowed reporter rescuers barely able to keep up. We have a female whos stranded on top of her car underneath a bridge. Well need rescue. Reporter this mans dash cam rolling as he strives through the floods. I cant see. Reporter daylight showing the scope of the disaster. Rescuers launching boats in submerged neighborhoods. We saw the aftermath of the storms from above in the ktrk chopper. From the sky, you can see how high the water has been. There are still dozens of cars stranded down there and the traffic continues to back up more than 16 hours after all of that rain fell. In hayes county texas, at least 13 unaccounted for including laura mccomb and her two Young Children. They were inside this house when it was swept away. Her husband was injured, but is now safe. Their family dog found alive in a tree. She called me. She said, im in a house, im floating down the river. Tell mom and dad i love you and pray. Reporter nearby, this bridge on the blanco river washed away. The water taking this suv with it. Oh my god. Oh, my god. Reporter somehow, the man inside climbed to safety. We recently simulated how to escape of a submerged car. Experts say, dont wait. Open your windows immediately and get out, before the water gets too high. David, i want you to see that clearance sign right there. It leads 14 feet and the water has to be at least ten feet deep. City officials dont know whether or not there are still cars submerged in these waters. What they do know is that across most of this city the waters have begun to reseedcede. David . That is a good news. Matt gutman thank you. As you heard matt report there, the mother calling her sister saying pray for me. She and her children swept away while inside that home. The father did get out. Tonight, theyre not the only ones. At least ten others missing and abcs fill limbphillip mena now at the screen of that home. Phillip . Reporter good evening, david. This is all thats left of that Vacation Home that carried away that mother and her two children and, two other families. The blanco river rising so fast that it carried the home off these Massive Concrete stilts that were meant to keep it safe from floodwaters. Laura mccomb, her husband and two kids were here for the Holiday Weekend. The home sitting right along the blanco river, when it rose 26 feet in one hour. It ripped this house right from its foundation sending it crashing downstream. The sheer force of the river washing at least 70 homes right off their foundations and 1,400 damaged. Her husband managed to escape. Tonight, hes recovering in the hospital with a collapsed lung. He is absolutely devastated. He did everything he possibly could to save them. Reporter at least 12 are confirmed dead across texas, including alyssa ramirez. The homecoming queen and Student Council president was driving home from her prom when she got stranded in high water. She called 911, and even called her father, but it was too much too quick. And david, the family tonight releasing a statement, saying this remains an active search. More than 250 volunteers are out here right now, combing the area and asking residents to check their properties. David . All right, phillip, thank you. Of course now, the new wave of storms tonight. Some there in texas. The other Severe Weather from cincinnati all the way to detroit. And then moving eastward. Lets get right to ginger zee, who has been tracking this since gma this morning. Whats the track tonight . Reporter it is happening right now. We just got a bunch of new severe thunderstorm watches and tornado watches in. We have to go straight to the map. Much of michigan under the gun now. Clevelands in it. This is for tonight. Go back to the plains, though. And you see, right there in the heart of texas, from abilene up through wichita falls, you have a chance for severe thunderstorms. And a tornado watch right in the middle. Thats tonight. This is tomorrow. We get another one. Western kansas through the oklahoma and texas panhandles and another area of elevated risk there, that is for parts of the northeast and new england tomorrow. So get that in your head for now. And then watch this. Heavy rain, everybodys natural question through the end of this month, more for ft. Smith, Oklahoma City and wichita falls, places that have had more than their monthly ever. This is record and will keep adding on. Cant get a break. Ginger thank you. Were going to turn now to that terrifying moment. Families on the beach in ft. Lauderdale enjoying the Holiday Weekend when a bounce house goes airborne. Picked up by a water spout. Three Young Children inside. The whole thing coming unhinged. And tonight, there you are new questions. Should it have been there at all . Abcs gio benitez now. Reporter its the video startling the nation. A bounce house right on ft. Lauderdale beach with three children inside, taken up into the air by a water spout 30 feet wide. Watch. Police first notice the water spout at 12 30 p. M. Monday on the water. Around the same time, a memorial day beachgoer starts recording this video. Oh, my god reporter seconds later, that water spout comes ashore. You can hear the laughter turn to horror. Oh my god reporter it was airborne for 17 seconds, slamming into a concrete basketball pole and a light pole then landing in a parking lot. The kids inside falling out during the ordeal. All three injured, but okay. The last thing he remembers was seeing the top of a palm tree. Reporter tonight, the families sharing some of the pictures of the injuries. At least one family now retaining a lawyer. One of the little girls speaking to abc station wplg. I was thinking i was about to die. Reporter bounce houses have gone flying before. This incident captured on camera last children were inside and injured, too. An operators Training Organization telling abc news today these houses collect the wind much like sails on a ship and that force can become overwhelming. And now tonight, new questions about whether that bounce house should have been out here. There were strong winds even before that water spout. The company says it has no comment. The city calling it all a freak act of nature. David . Gio benitez tonight. Gio, thank you. Now, to cleveland. The city reaching a landmark settlement with the Justice Department tonight after accusations of police misconduct. Those cases making national headlines. You might remember the young boy killed moments after that officer pulls up to that gazebo. Dont, abcs alex perez with three major changes. What that police force can no longer do. Reporter a Police Officer firing 15 shots into a car windshield an unarmed black couple inside. 12year old tamir rice playing in a park with a toy gun, shot and killed by a Police Officer within two seconds after the officer pulled up. Images that have put the Cleveland Police department under a microscope, but todays settlement with the Justice Department includes major changes. Police officers now banned from using force against people who just talk back to them or run away. Banned from pistol whipping suspects. And, from firing warning shots. We have to have a better relationship with our community. Reporter since 2010, the Justice Department has reached settlements with 14 Police Departments after finding patterns of excessive force. Among them . Seattle, albuquerque, new orleans and newark. In cleveland, the Police Department will now mandate new training on use of force, higher more minority officers and outfit every cop with body cameras. So many here are untrusting of the Police Department. Do you think they believe this reform is actually going to happen . I think the people are going to have to see it to believe it. Reporter todays announcement comes days after a judge acquitted officer Michael Brelo of manslaughter charges for firing those shots into that windshield calling it a reasonable use of force. Cleveland now wondering will there even be a trial for the officer who shot 12yearold tamir rice in that park. Police and prosecutors tightlipped about that six months after the shooting. The investigation still ongoing. And still no word on when a decision on the rice case will be announced. The memorial here in the park where he was killed still growing. David . Alex thank you. Now, to late word this afternoon, that urgent warning from the irs tonight. 100,000 americans, their private Tax Information hacked they say. Abcs Pierre Thomas live in washington tonight with late details. Reporter david, the 100,000 taxpayers will be getting very bad news. Thiefs who had already stolen some of their personal information including names, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, used that information to get past irs security. And heres where the story gets worse. Once inside the irs, they targeted those specific taxpayers, getting more sensitive information, commonly found on tax returns like where they work salaries Bank Accounts and personal family information. The irs says it has fixed the problem and is offering free credit monitoring to those who got hacked. Like i said david, bad news. All right, Pierre Thomas in washington. Pierre thank you. Tonight, the fbi is investigating a series of false threats. Ten passenger jets landing. This one at jfk. The passengers never knowing that their plane had been trailed by fighter jets. Authorities now warning there will be serious con consequences for anyone making these threats. Heres abcs david kerley. Reporter the fbi tonight is looking for the anonymous suspect responsible for this. Air france 22, shut down at your discretion, youre going to be there for a while. Okay, shutting down engines. Reporter an air france jet surrounded at jfk. As it approached the u. S. , fighter jets scrambled and watched from a distance as the jetliner landed. Just one of about ten flights in which an unidentified caller made a threat to local authorities about a chemical device on board. Jets landing at five different airports, all fakes. The fbi has to take every one of these seriously . They almost dont have any choice, particularly if the plane is in the air. What are you going to do . You are going to search it. Reporter tonight, the fbi is trying to trace back the phone caller. Was the call made in the u. S. Or overseas . Is that person linked to an organization, or just an individual . You actually want to charge them. This cost hundreds of thousands of dollars and they have to send a signal out, if you do this, we are going to lock you up. Reporter causing havoc threatening a jetliner can mean five years in prison. David kerley, abc news, washington. David, thank you. Overseas tonight, the new concern over isis. Just days after those chilling images from ramadi in iraq those iraqi fighters seen fleeing and isis seized the city. Tonight, iraqi soldiers now vowing to fht back with help from americanmade weapons. Heres abcs chief Foreign Correspondent terry moran tonight. Reporter today, new weapons made in america delivered to iraqi troops. The iraqi officers checking out the shiny new guns and ammo courtesy of the u. S. Taxpayer. These shipments arriving as iraqs government announs a counteroffensive to retake the crucial city of ramadi just days after it fell to isis fighters. A major isis victory, with many of those u. S. Trained iraqi troops just running from the fight, fleeing in convoys, even airlifted out, even though they vastly outnumbered isis fighters. And leaving millions of dollars of u. S. Weapons and equipment behind for isis to use now. Secretary of defense ashton carter, speaking of the iraqi army almost with contempt, saying its soldiers showed no will to fight. U. S. Officials are deeply skeptical about the entire iraqi effort right now, because for all the billions americans have spent training and equipping the iraqi army it seems the people who are willing to fight the hardest for that country right now are the isisces who are trying to conquer it. David . Terry moran, thank you. New developments tonight in that murder mystery back here at home making national headlines. The young couple out kayaking. Tonight, the mans fiancee now indicted. Heres abcs linsey davis. Reporter on the surface, they appeared happy. But today, new york prosecutors indicting her for allegedly murdering him. It happened april 19th. The athletic couple taking their kayaks down to the hudson river. But in this choppy frigid water, something goes wrong. Graswald describing frantic moments in a local tv interview. He was just trying to figure out how to paddle the waves because they were getting crazy and and then i just saw him flip. Reporter she says the 46yearold disappeared, and she couldnt save him, calling 911 and later posting this on facebook with the caption, if only i could have paddled harder. On april 30th graswald is arrested. Prosecutors saying she killed her fiancee for insurance money, telling him it felt good knowing via forwas going to die. Prosecutors revealing today they have reason to believe that before the couple took this walk down the path to the water that graswald removed the plug from his kayak, causing it to fill up with water. Today, graswalds attorne denying all of it saying his client is innocent. Try to paint her as a murderer you know when in fact she was just a fiance who was very much in love. Reporter viafores body missing for more than a month, was finally found this weekend, here on the shores of the river. Linsey davis, abc news, new york. Linsey thank you. Still ahead tonight, anyone with a smartphone is going to want to stay tuned for this tonight. How to save hundreds on your cell phone bill right now. The free help spotting mystery charges. You can knock off those hundreds and well show you how its done. The simple stems, just ahead from our Real Money Team. Also authorities now responding tonight to those allegations from b. B. Kings family some claiming he was poisoned. The medical examiner now weighing in. And take a close look at this couple tonight. They met in high school but what led to this breakdown this weekend . Both of them crying there. Its been seen nearly 2 million times. That couple standing by tonight. Hey, david. Its caleb and maggie. Stay tuned for this. Headache . Motrin helps you be an unstoppable, letsrockthisconcert likeits1999 kind of mom. Back pain . Motrin helps you be the sideplanking keepingupwith yourgirlfriend eventhoughyoullfeelit later kind of woman you are. Body pain . Motrin helps you be an unstoppable, icantotallydothis allinonetrip kind of woman. When pain tries to stop you, theres motrin. Motrin works fast to stop pain where it starts. Make it happen with new motrin liquid gels. Do you want to know how hard it can be to breathe with copd . It can feel like this. Copd includes chronic bronchitis and emphysema. Spiriva is a oncedaily inhaled copd maintenance treatment that helps open my airways for a full 24 hours. Spiriva helps me breathe easier. Spiriva respimat does not replace rescue inhalers for sudden symptoms. Tell your doctor if you have kidney problems, glaucoma, trouble urinating, or an enlarged prostate. These may worsen with Spiriva Respimat. Discuss all medicines you take even eye drops. If your breathing suddenly worsens, your throat or tongue swells you get hives, vision changes or eye pain or problems passing urine stop taking Spiriva Respimat and call your doctor right away. Side effects include sore throat cough, dry mouth and sinus infection. Nothing can reverse copd. Spiriva helps me breathe better. To learn about Spiriva Respimat slowmoving mist ask your doctor or visit spirivarespimat. Com tonight, two of the nations largest cell phone carriers agreeing to pay 158 million after claiming they overbilled kuts hers. So tonight here abcs Rebecca Jarvis and the Real Money Team with simple steps to spot mystery charges. Reporter its a top expense for families like the wilsons. Feel like we are paying a lot of money for cell phones. Reporter tonight, this dallas family of five wants to cut their 195 monthly wireless bill and add their daughter to the plan. Enter insider todd dunphy. He helps businesses cut wireless waste. He says use free websites like whistleout. Com and myrateplan. Com. You tell them what you needand theyll tell you if theres a cheaper plan available. Cost is very complicated now, it is not like what it used to be. Reporter watch out for common mystery charges. Like service fee, membership usage fee or voicemail. See this iphone 6 impact check smoke item on the wilsons bill . Thats fanc

© 2025 Vimarsana