CNN Student News:美國密蘇里州遭遇洪水

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

CARL AZUZ, CNN STUDENT NEWS ANCHOR: A color change, an egg roll, and an extraordinary talk show host. CNN Student News is back -- and so am I -- to bring you 10 minutes of commercial-free headlines from around the world.

First Up: Storm Aftermath

AZUZ: First up, police in Poplar Bluff, Missouri are going door to door, telling people to get out. That's because of concerns about a levee on the Black River. Levees are barriers that are designed to prevent flooding. But according to an alert that went out yesterday from the National Weather Service, this levee "is weakening by the minute and may fail at any time."

It's another way that the state is suffering from the effects of severe weather. Poplar Bluff is about 130 miles south of St. Louis, and that's where this damage happened. Parts of St. Louis hammered by a tornado over the weekend. If you're in the path of a tornado, you've probably heard the big safety tips, which might include get in the basement if you're in a building that has one. Dan Simon is about to show you why.

(BEGIN VIDEO)

DAN SIMON, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This was the most destructive tornado of the season. This is what an F-4 twister looks like. That assessment was made, in part, by the damage you see here at this house and what you're seeing throughout the Harmon Estate subdivision, where we are in Missouri. I believe we're in the kitchen area, and the reason why I'm saying that is because we see that the refrigerator is right here.

In any event, the guy who lives here has had a really rough time. He actually works at the airport. He was there when the tornado struck. He and his colleagues hunkered down there. Then he got a phone call saying that maybe his home was destroyed. He drove here and this is what he saw.

And there's something I want to point out here, because this is worth showing here on camera. You know how they always say that you should go to the basement. This is exactly why you should go downstairs to the basement during a tornado, because while the upstairs is gone, the house is destroyed, the basement is basically intact. You have a little bit of the roof coming down here from the rain, but for the most part, this basement is intact.

The guy who lives here has a couple of dogs. The dogs actually took refuge in the basement and are OK. But here's why you should go to the basement during a tornado.

(END VIDEO)

New Alert System

AZUZ: The U.S. government's updating its terrorism alert system to let Americans know about possible threats, and the new version goes into effect today. And you might be familiar with the old, color-coded system. It was put in place after the September 11th, 2001 terrorist attacks. There were five colors, from green through red, that indicated risks from low to severe.

Under this new system, announced by Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano last week, there will be two kinds of alerts: an elevated threat and an imminent threat. Napolitano said the goal of this change is to help people understand the threat better. That way they can know how to react. When she announced the new system last week, Secretary Napolitano said there is currently no threat that would qualify for either of the two new alert levels.

This Day in History

AZUZ: On this day in history, April 26th: In 1865, John Wilkes Booth was tracked down and killed 12 days after he assassinated President Abraham Lincoln.

In 1986, unexpected problems during a mechanical test at the Chernobyl plant in the former Soviet Union led to the worst nuclear accident in history.

And in 1994, South Africa began its first multi-racial elections, which would lead to Nelson Mandela becoming the country's first black president.

Syria Unrest

AZUZ: The United States is threatening penalties. United Nations Secretary Ban Ki-moon is calling for an investigation. All of it has to do with what's going on right now in Syria. People in the city of Daraa, in southern Syria, have been protesting against their government for weeks. What we know is that Syrian military troops went into Daraa yesterday morning. What we don't know is what exactly happened next. Some reports, including from the United Nations, say the military forces just started attacking residents, killing several people. But the Syrian government says residents asked the military to come to Daraa in order to protect them from supposed terrorists there. CNN hasn't been able to verify the reports out of Syria because CNN is not allowed inside the country.

NATO Strike

AZUZ: This is what Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's compound looked like after an airstrike hit it yesterday. The strike was carried out by NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. That's the group that's leading the military operation in Libya. NATO says the target of the strike was a communications center that Colonel Gadhafi used to direct attacks against civilians. But a Libyan spokesman said NATO was trying to kill Gadhafi. He added, "The message that was sent by NATO in the early hours... was sent to the wrong address," meaning that the attack missed Gadhafi. He also said the Libyan leader was still in command of the country.

Shoutout

TOMEKA JONES, CNN STUDENT NEWS: Today's shoutout goes out to Ms. Capilla's students at Madrid Middle School in El Monte, California! According to a famous saying, what is the best medicine? If you think you know it, then shout it out! Is it: A) Love, B) Laughter, C) Money or D) Happiness? You've got three seconds -- GO! Laughter is the best medicine. That's how the saying goes, so that's your answer and that's your shoutout!

TV Host Inspires Others

AZUZ: It's an idea that Zack Anner is certainly familiar with. He's a comedian and filmmaker, and he's about to add another title to that resume: TV host. But one thing Zack says he doesn't want to be called is inspirational. He might not think so. But after watching this report from our Dr. Sanjay Gupta, you might disagree.

(BEGIN VIDEO)

ZACH ANNER, TV TALK SHOW HOST: I come from a very creative family. My mother is a playwright; my dad made videos, too. So, it was a great place to be.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: When he was growing up, Zach Anner always knew he wanted to work in film.

ANNER: It was always like, whatever you want to do, we can find a way to do it.

GUPTA: Now, at 26, he lives in Austin and spends his days writing, editing and brainstorming with his production and support team, his friends. A year ago, Austin -- and really, the rest of the country -- didn't know who Zach was. And then he decided to enter a contest to become Oprah Winfrey's next TV talk show star.

OPRAH WINFREY, TV TALK SHOW HOST: How old were you when you figured out that you were different than the other kids?

ANNER: I knew that I had a wheelchair, obviously. They didn't shield that from me.

GUPTA: As a result of the contest, Oprah gave Zach his own travel show, scheduled to air later this year.

ANNER: That's what the travel show is, taking life as it comes. And whatever you run into, you just learn to roll with it.

GUPTA: And rolling with life's obstacles, well, that's just what Zach does.

ANNER: You gotta have a sense of humor about everything. Because humor is just pain with perspective.

GUPTA: You see, Zach has cerebral palsy. It's a neurological disease that affects the brain's ability to control body movements. But having CP never stopped him from doing what he wants to do.

ANNER: Everybody has problems, is what I always say. And like, mine are no bigger than anyone else's. And I think that's the message that I want to get across. What I've got to deal with is really small in the scheme of things.

GUPTA: Zach gives his family a lot of credit for not dwelling on his disability. And his TV show won't either. He hopes some day to be an inspiration to others, but says he is not there yet and has this advice.

ANNER: I would say to anybody who feels really like they are bogged down by their obstacles, just really think of who you are without those. And imagine yourself doing what you love to do, because that will drive you to do things you never thought you were capable of.

GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEO)

iReport Promo

AZUZ: Excellent story there. All right, next today: Teacher Appreciation Week. It's next week. We're gonna give you the chance to brag about your favorite teachers. You know you love them. So, bust out the camera, shoot a quick video, and tell us who your favorite teacher is and why. Then we want you to go here. This is our home page. You're gonna scroll down to the "Spotlight" section, which you see over here. Click on the "Send Us Your iReport" link. And then maybe you'll see yourself -- and your teacher appreciation message -- on CNN Student News.

Before We Go

AZUZ: Finally, before we go today, we want to check out a White House tradition. It's the annual Easter Egg Roll! President Obama playing referee for the competition, but the entire first family was there. Although, of course, the Easter Bunny was introduced first. The event included readings from popular children's books and a special tent for cooking presentations. Guests also had the chance to do some yoga on the White House lawn and run through an obstacle course.

Goodbye

AZUZ: So, I guess the egg roll included a dairy dose of exercise, too. All right! We're gonna roll on out of here. But we'll be back tomorrow with another egg-cellent edition of CNN Student News. You saw that coming. We'll see you tomorrow.