Arielle: Hey everyone. It is Monday, October 5. I am Arielle Hixson and Channel One News starts right now.
Let's start off with headlines. And first up, Hurricane Joaqin is moving away from the U.S., but the weather has taken a severe turn for the worse in South Carolina.
President Obama had declared a state of emergency as rain like this only comes along once every 200 years.
The rain just keeps coming, with more expected on the way. By Sunday morning water had covered many streets in the city of Columbia, South Carolina, turning roads into raging rivers.
Fire department trucks came in to rescue people trapped in their cars. Rivers and streams have gone well over their banks and are flowing into city streets, essentially shutting down much of the state.
Eric Thacker: This is a disaster. If you're coming downtown, you need an inflatable boat in the trunk of your car.
Arielle: And the heavy rains caused massive flooding in many other states including Virginia, North Carolina, even all the way up to New Jersey.
Somewhere near the Bahamas, a missing cargo ship that was in the path of Hurricane Joaqin is still missing. And the Coast Guard has expanded their search.
Several planes and helicopters are involved today in the search for the cargo ship called El Faro. The ship was lost in the ocean just as Hurricane Joaqin rolled through. Twenty-eight American citizens and five Polish nationals were onboard.
The last time the crew sent a distress signal was Thursday morning, saying the vessel had taken on water and lost power. At that time the waves were about 30 to 40 feet high, and the winds were punching in at 130 miles per hour.
Over the weekend the U.S. Coast Guard did locate a life preserver that belonged to the ship.
A medical charity running a hospital in the country of Afghanistan came under attack over the weekend. And the bombs fell around the same time as a U.S. airstrike, leading many to question, who is to blame?
Bombs blew apart a Doctors Without Borders hospital in the Afghan city of Kunduz Saturday morning. The attack left the hospital in flames and rubble, killing 12 staffers and seven patients, including three children. Nearly 40 were injured.
According to U.S. military officials, U.S. forces were conducting an airstrike in Kunduz around the time of the bombing. They say the intended targets were Taliban fighters who were firing on U.S. soldiers.
The U.S. military has not confirmed whether its bombs hit the hospital, but did acknowledge the strikes may have resulted in "collateral damage"or unintentional harm to the facility. Afghan officials claim terrorists were hiding in the hospital, a charge the aid group says is phony.
The U.S. is conducting an investigation. But Doctors Without Borders is calling for an independent investigation, saying the attack is a war crime.
Alright, coming up, a college mourns the lives lost after a deadly shooting.
Last week 9 people lost their lives after a gunman walked into Umpqua Community College and opened fire. Azia is here to give us an update on the tragic situation.
Azia: Over the weekend we found out the names of those who died in the shooting as well as their dreams and passions as their families mourn their loss.
The victims of the Umpqua Community College shooting are now known. They include three 18 year olds, recent high school graduates Rebekah Carnes, Lucas Eibel and Quinn Cooper. Police read a statement from Quinn's family.
Female: ‘Quinn was funny, sweet, compassionate, and such a wonderful loving person. He always stood up for people.’
Nineteen-year-old Lucero Alcaraz hoped to be a pediatric nurse, and 20-year-old Treven Anspach was the son of a firefighter.
Male: Treven was larger than life and brought out the best in those around him. In Justin and Kim's words, ‘Treven was a perfect son.’
Azia: Another student, Chris Mintz,was a hero last Thursday. The 30-year-old Army veteran ran toward the gunman in an effort to stop him. He was shot seven times but survived.
Nine others were injured including 16-year-old Cheyeanne Fitzgerald.Cheyeanne also helped save fellow classmate and friend Anna Boylan. Her brother Korre told CBS News the two were next to each other during the shooting and it was Cheyeanne's idea for Anna to play dead.
Korre Boylan: She played dead, she didn't breathe. And after he asked her to get up a couple of times, he asked the girl sitting next to her is she alive, and the girl said, ‘She's not with us anymore.’
Azia: Boylan says those few words saved his sister's life.
Investigators say the gunman was a student at the school and killed himself when police arrived on the scene. So far, it doesn't seem that he was tied with any group.
Some of his social media accounts glorify the Irish Republican Army and criticize organized religion. Recently, he wrote, "Seems the more people you kill, the more you're in the limelight." And he left a note for police that talked about going out in "a blaze of glory."
Sheriff John Hanlin wants to avoid giving him that glory by refusing to use his name.
Sheriff John Hanlin: I continue to believe that those media and community members who publicize his name will only glorify his horrific actions.
Azia: The victims’ families have also pleaded to not make the shooter famous.We have decided not to show his picture or name him.
Mass shootings are not only deadly occurrences, researchers say they are contagious. According to a recent study at Arizona State University, shootings that attract media attention inspire copycats and increase the chances that others will occur within two weeks.
It is also estimated a mass shooting that leaves four or more people dead occurs every 12.5 days in the U.S.That’s according to data from the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence.
A day after the tragedy in Oregon, the president called for new stricter gun control laws.
President Barack Obama: This will not change until the politics changes and the behavior of elected officials changes.And, so the main thing I'm going to do is I’m going to talk about this on a regular basis.
Azia: President Obama has delivered statements on gun violence 15 times during his presidency.
Arielle: Thanks Azia. Alright after the break, Earthlings flock to the movie theaters. But did the movie get it right?
Ok, so millions of people, myself included, got their geek on this weekend with the premiere of "The Martian," making it the number one movie at the box office.
Now, the Red Planet is red hot right now. So over the next few days, Keith Kocinski will take a look at the race to put a human on Mars, starting with the question, “How realistic is this new movie?”
Keith: So, we could use many words to describe most Hollywood movies about Mars, including just plain old weird. "Accurate" isn't usually at the top of the list. But that's about to change with the weekend’s release of "The Martian,” at least according to one NASA big shot.
Jim Green: I think "The Martian"is as close to science fact, as any science fiction that I’ve seen about the journey to Mars and going to Mars.
Keith: NASA'S director of planetary sciences, Jim Green, is a consultant on the movie about an American astronaut stranded on Mars.
Green: NASA doesn't do Star Trek. It's not 'go where no man has gone before,' as they say.We really have to look at where we are going, understand it completely, and that prepares us for the future.
Keith: Matt Damon stars in the movie set about 20 years in the future. But his living space, his spacesuit, the way he grows his own food in space are all based on the way NASA's doing things right now.
Matt Damon: Hopefully, the message in a movie like this is one that galvanizes participation in stuff like this and makes people excited about science.
Keith: That would be NASA's hope, needing billions more to finance Mars exploration. Money Congress has yet to authorize.
A mission to Mars may sound easy. Just build a big enough rocket and take enough supplies, and boom, you are there. But it is not that simple, especially when you are taking humans on the mission.
Green: There’s a new, younger group in town. And they’re the Mars generation. And indeed, that’s now a planet in their mind.
Keith: While the film does have some imaginary scenes, this windstorm could never actually happen. “The Martian" is a different kind of movie about Mars; not letting facts get in the way of a good story, but using them to construct one instead.
Keith Kocinski, Channel One News.
Arielle: Tomorrow, Keith introduces us to a young woman who wants to become a real-life Martian. And if you have ever wondered what life on Mars would be like, then check out the Imagine Mars project and see if your school can compete for the opportunity to work with NASA scientists. The info is up on Channelone.com.
Alright guys, have a great day and we will see your right back here tomorrow.
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