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Hurricane Irene Details; Steve Jobs Resigns

Aired August 26, 2011 - 04:00:00   ET


CARL AZUZ, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, I`m Carl Azuz, welcoming you to CNN Student News. Everyone`s getting ready for the weekend. Many Americans are spending this Friday preparing for what could be a devastating hurricane.

States of emergency, voluntary evacuations, Navy ships moving out to sea: all of it is because of Hurricane Irene. When it comes to these storms, there`s something called a cone of uncertainty. That`s what the area is called that could be impacted, depending on what path a hurricane takes.

With Irene, that cone of uncertainty includes most of the northeastern United States. And you can see why, in these images of Hurricane Irene, from space, it`s huge. Officials think it could get stronger.

Thursday afternoon, the storm hit part of the Bahamas. Forecasters predict it`ll approach the North Carolina coast on Saturday. That`s why people are packing up and heading farther inland. North Carolina`s governor has declared a state of emergency for several counties.

The governors of Virginia, Maryland and New Jersey have done the same thing. What declaring a state of emergency does is allows states to use certain money to help prepare for the storm.

In Washington, D.C., there are plans to dedicate the National Martin Luther King Memorial this Sunday. Organizers have been watching the path of Irene, waiting to see if they need to make a backup plan. As of Thursday afternoon, though, plans for Sunday`s dedication were still on schedule.

One U.S. official said the biggest concern is getting people to pay attention and make sure they`re ready. A hurricane hasn`t made landfall in the U.S. since 2008, and it`s rare that they hit the Northeast. But it has happened. And Anderson Cooper shows us it can bring devastating consequences.


ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST (voice-over): You`re watching pictures of the last major hurricane to hit the northeast coast exactly 20 years ago. This is Hurricane Bob, back in August of 1991.

The eye of the storm passed over Rhode Island before making landfall as a strong category 2 with winds of 115 miles per hour. Bob was blamed for over a billion dollars in damage and 18 storm-related deaths.

Just two months later, Hurricane Grace also threatened as a category 2 storm before being absorbed by an unusual weather system that led to the Halloween Nor`easter of 1991, later called "a perfect storm."

This storm lashed the east coast of the United States with pounding waves and coastal flooding, causing significant damage in Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire and New Jersey. Nine people were killed in the storm, which produced 100-foot waves, equivalent to a 10-story building. It inspired the novel by author Sebastian Junger, which later became a movie.

And then there`s the so-called storm of the century, Hurricane Gloria, in September of 1985, recorded winds of up to 150 miles per hour.

Gloria made landfall as a powerful category 3 storm on the outer banks of North Carolina, before rapidly moving up the east coast, making a second landfall on Long Island, then another in Connecticut, causing significant damage up and down the east coast, and eight storm-related deaths.

Hurricanes in the northeast are rare, but as Hurricane Irene approaches, meteorologists warn it could turn northward, threatening much of the east coast with another potentially dangerous storm.

Anderson Cooper, CNN, New York.


AZUZ: Over in Libya, in North Africa, rebel fighters control most of the capital city of Tripoli. But there`s still fighting troops that are loyal to long-time Libyan leader, Moammar Gadhafi.

The rebels are getting some help from special forces from other countries, including the United Kingdom and France. Those forces are on the ground in Libya, helping the rebels in Tripoli and other cities. This video was shot at the Tripoli airport, which is controlled by the rebels.

But they don`t have control of some of the areas around it. Gadhafi supporters are attacking the rebels from those areas. They destroyed three passenger planes, like the one you see here, in a 24-hour period.

We won`t be back with you until Monday, but cnn.com is updating constantly. So if you want to follow what`s happening in Libya or what is going on with Hurricane Irene, make sure to log on: cnn.com.


UNIDENTIFIED MALE: See if you can ID me.

I`m a computer pioneer who`s worked in technology since high school. What started in my garage became one of America`s most valuable businesses. I cofounded the company that makes the iPhone and the iPod.

I`m Steve Jobs, one of the cofounders of Apple.


AZUZ: It`s tough to overstate the influence of Steve Jobs. Mac computers, iPhones, iTunes, even the movie business. In 1986, Jobs bought an animation studio you`ve probably heard of: it`s Pixar.

He helped turn that company into the household name it is today, but this week Jobs announced he`s resigning as the head of Apple, the company he helped found in his garage. He`s had some serious medical problems in recent years, although his resignation announcement didn`t mention that specifically.

Poppy Harlow explores reaction to the news.


POPPY HARLOW, CNN REPORTER (voice-over): The impact was immediate. Apple stock fell 5 percent in after-hours trading Wednesday when Steve Jobs announce he`s stepping down as CEO. Fans of Jobs were surprised by the news.



UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I`m sorry to hear it, because he was so great for the company. They`re so creative, so innovative.

HARLOW (voice-over): Jobs, who has been on medical leave since January, released a statement.


ANDREW SERWER, FORTUNE MAGAZINE: It`s really hard to overstate just how important Steve Jobs has been to business, to the economy, what he`s done, because he`s really revolutionized so many businesses.

HARLOW (voice-over): Computers, mobile phones, digital music, Jobs` influence has been unparalleled. His latest product, the iPad, continues to break records. Analysts say it`s the fastest selling technological device ever.

Jobs cofounded Apple in 1976 from his family`s garage. Nine years later, a power struggle led to his exit. But Jobs returned again in 1996, soon after becoming CEO and transforming the company into what it is today, one of the biggest corporations in the world, worth nearly $350 billion.

Earlier this month, Apple briefly passed ExxonMobil as the stock market`s most valuable company.

STEVE JOBS, CEO, APPLE: An iPod, a phone, are you getting it?

HARLOW (voice-over): But it`s not only because of Jobs` innovation. He`s also a brilliant marketers.

MICHAEL COPELAND, FORTUNE MAGAZINE: The secrecy and the kind of theater that Apple brings to every product launch, every other company in the world, whether they`re in, you know, electronics, consumer electronics or clothing or automobiles, they can learn from Apple and what they do.

HARLOW (voice-over): In the only commencement address Jobs ever gave in 2005 at Stanford University, he touched upon the secret of his success.

JOBS: And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven`t found it yet, keep looking , and don`t settle.



UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Time for the Shoutout.

What did the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution do? If you think you know it, then shout it out. Did it give women the right to vote? Establish presidential succession? End prohibition? Or set term limits?

You`ve got three seconds, go.

The 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote. That`s your answer, and that`s your Shoutout.


AZUZ: That amendment was certified, meaning it became law 91 years ago today. And that`s why August 26th is Women`s Equality Day. Congress established the annual event in 1971. There are two goals: one, to celebrate the passage of the 19th Amendment, and two, to raise awareness about the ongoing efforts for full equality between men and women.

That`s something President Obama talked about in his Women`s Equality Day Proclamation. He said that women in America today are reaping the benefits of what earlier generations fought for, and, at the same time, they`re paving the way for future generations.

He called on Americans to mark Women`s Equality Day by celebrating the achievements of women, but he also urged the country to recommit itself to the goal of gender equality.

All right. Before we go, we want to show you a vacation spot that`s out of this world. It`s the first space hotel, or at least it`s what developers are hoping will be the first space hotel. This week they announced plans for it to open in 2016.

You`ll have to train for up to three months before you can go up in this thing, but you can stay there for up to six months, although once you`re there, it`s not like there`s a lot to do. Plus, the hotel has a maximum capacity of seven people, which means, ironically, there just ain`t a whole lot of space.

Still, it might be worth it. Being one of the first guests at the space hotel could certainly make you a "star". Hope you have a great weekend. For CNN Student News, I`m Carl Azuz.