martin savidge is on the ground in west texas, arrived just hours ago. the pictures we're looking are are staggering. what's going on now? >> reporter: the mental sense that's impacted this small town in texas. it has been a blast that has leveled people in many different ways. right now the effort is focused on still trying to evacuate those who may be caught up in the area of danger where there are the fumes from this fertilizer plant and also trying to rescue those who could be trapped in any of the debris. the first wave of those who could be injured, well over 150 people, have been transported. injuries range from minor to the severe. the second wave anticipated is when daylight comes because that's when authorities will have a greater ability to maneuver. it's very dark out around the plant now. it's very dangerous. but the threat of another explosion with the possibility of poisonous gas. there's so much debris, officials say, that it makes it very difficult for them to move around. here's what the public information officer told us just a few min

martin savidge is with us on the line from west, texas. we'll be talking to you as you continue to cover this. >> there is a haunting historical aspect to this story. this fire came one day after the 66th anniversary of the worst industrial accident in american history. that was the texas city disaster. that was another fertilizer explosion, and i'm reading here, that left 581 people dead. that was when a french vessel was hauling ammonium nitrate that caught fire. so a tragic coincidence there. weather, of course, has been a major concern here. we're watching that very closely, because we expect it to play a very big role as you heard throughout our coverage here. let's go back to our meteorologist ivan cabrera. this is going to make a big difference for first responders. >> they're going to have to contend with severe thunderstorms rolling through. this is horrific time. we knew this front was coming but didn't know what was going to transpire yesterday. here's texas. severe thunderstorm watch now in effect, very close to where we have t

cnn's martin savidge is there. martin, what's the latest? >> reporter: the latest is, of course, the ongoing rescue effort under way. the door-to-door searching you just described. now the weather. there's a severe line headed directly for west, texas, right now. that's going to be problematic, at least in the short term, because of the high wind it could bring. structures have already been weakened in that community. and it could impact the effort to not only try to save lives but could also have an impact on the winds. and the winds are potentially what could carry the anhydrous ammonia, the very dangerous chemical they're talking about here, that could be inhaled. there are three levels at which they're functioning and still worried about this disaster 10, 11 hours after the fact. that is, they've got to rescue, got to evacuate still, and they've got to keep an eye on that other tank that has not exploded. this community, you know, when that explosion went off, it shatter the buildings, shattered lives and it has torn this town upside dow

martin savidge, thank you so much. we'll go back to you and continue to follow that story. >>> and we do have this breaking news and for that let's go to pamela brown here in boston. pamela? okay, pamela? we do have some news we are told about the charges that the suspect may face, we're trying to get pamela back on the line so she can explain to us exactly what's happening. we'll bring that to you the minute we have that. >> hasn't been charged yet but he is in federal custody at the hospital, he was in serious condition. he suffered gunshot wounds in the first fire fight with police the day earlier but he may have had other injuries from the last moments, the last volley of gunfire before they actually got him out of that boat after he got out of that boat where he'd been hiding and went to the hospital so serious condition was the last check we had of his status there and we're waiting for news on exactly what sort of charges he will face and that's what our pamela brown has been following there from the hospital. >

for an overview of how the town is coping with the disaster we go now to martin savidge. >> reporter: the first aerial video of west, texas after the blast is stunning and emotional. >> i just toured the site, both from the air and from the ground. >> and, frankly, the observation along the area around the site is just total devastation. >> reporter: at least a four-block radius around the fertilizer plant is almost completely leveled. from the ground the view is just as horrific and heart wrenching. >> this appears to be what was a home over here, completely just obliterated, smoking, charred. >> reporter: all day thursday search teams continued looking for the living and the dead. including a number of the town's first responders of volunteer fire fighters, who raced to douse the flames and evacuate those in danger. they bought time for their friends and neighbors, paying for it with their own lives or injuries. they were trying to sit me down because i'm bleeding. >> i said, 'i've got a job to do. >> there's people hurt more than me.' >> reporter: west, texas is so small and the bl

and, martin savidge is in west texas. let's start with you, martin. what's the latest from the ground? >> well, the weather that they had been talking about is now finally arrived. there's a mixture of good and bad that comes with that. we've got some pretty heavy steady rain coming down. temperatures dropped about 15, 20 degrees. here's the good news. overhearing froms a shul offici rain will help wash, clean the area of particles. that will help if there is any toxic fumes in the stid and it will help extinguish the embers and fire that is still burning. 12 hours after the blast. the bad side is, of course, it's going the hamper and hinder the search and rescue effort which the mayor says is still ongoing at this hour and the big thing is going to be waiting for daylight because they expect to learn a lot, both about what the impact has been and counting up those who have been lost. >> martin, thank you very much. >> cnn's george howell is standing by for us live from waco, texas. george, is at one of the medical centers where so many people have be

our martin savidge has more from kaufman, texas. >> reporter: the traumatized family of mike mclelland says not enough is being done to find the killer or killers and protect other possible victims, including them. >> they're on edge right now. if someone is willing to come out and shoot the district attorney and his wife in their home, obviously, their mindset is, you know, anything else is possible. >> reporter: according to the family spokesperson following the murder of his chief prosecutor in january, mclelland often worried local authorities didn't have enough resources to conduct both a murder investigation and provide security for other potential targets. >> if you're going to put folks to secure officials, who is doing the investigation. who is patrolling the streets? who's keeping the rest of kaufman safe? >> reporter: why in this video obtained by cnn news mclelland is in a local gun store. he was inquiring about protection for his staff. less than 234 hours later, mclelland himself was murdered, along with his wife, shot multiple times in their home. >> who was cynthia mcle

we want to go to martin savidge. martin, if you are with us, what is the best sense of how under control the fire is, and how much they have been able to do to make their way through the houses and how much the city is intact? >> well, daylight will help as far as doing some sort of cursory look at the damage, but as far as things being under control, quite clear that authorities feel more comfortable this morning than they did at 10:00 last night. fires are pretty much down to just embers, and as long as they burn, there is still concern, much less of a concern than they had. they don't believe there is the threat of explosion and no indication that there is a leak coming from the other tank of anhydrous ammonia, which would be devastating if that were the fact. so that sounds like they have the situation under control. other good news, the weather seems to be improving. temperatures dropped dramatically, rain, heavy wind pushing out of the area. that will help. on top of that, other factors, daylight, allows search

back to you. >> our thanks to martin savidge in the town of west, texas, this morning. >> a moment of silence, black ribbons and lots of police. the london marathon is going ahead tomorrow just six days after the boston tragedy. we're going to go live to the british capital to find out what's being done to keep the runners and spectators safe. ♪ (train horn) vo: wherever our trains go, the economy comes to life. norfolk southern. one line, infinite possibilities. man: how did i get here? dumb luck? or good decisions? ones i've made. ones we've all made. about marriage. children. money. about tomorrow. here's to good decisions. who matters most to you says the most about you. at massmutual we're owned by our policyowners, and they matter most to us. ready to plan for your family's future? we'll help you get there. >> it really is hard to believe that just days ago the world got its first look at the tsarnaev brothers in fbi photos. >> they were identified as suspect 1 and suspect 2 and now we know their names but what we don't know yet is why they allegedly carried out an attack that

joining us from kaufman county now, martin savidge. how do they relate to the murders at hand? >> reporter: well, they don't, as you pointed out. these arrests show that they're not going to tolerate any threat and they're going to come down hard on you if you do. one posted something online and another called in on a tip line. both now are being held on $1 million each and charged with a terrific threat. as far as the investigation, there is not a lot that is being said here. however, there is a tremendous amount of resources. have the state resources that are here and many federal assets have been brought in. again, this is the kind of attack on law enforcement that certainly won't be tolerated. they want to make sure they get it done and get it done right. they're not talking about who the suspects are at this particular time. mclellands were murdered a week ago. she spoke to anderson last night about them. >> they were amazing. they were the most amazing people i have ever known in my entire life. they had such conviction and such strength and they really believed in what t

martin savidge, cnn, atlanta. >>> i am don

martin savidge, reporting breaking news this morning. we'll be right back. mine was earned in djibouti, africa, 2004. the battle of bataan, 1942. [ all ] fort benning, georgia, in 1999. [ male announcer ] usaa auto insurance is often handed down from generation to generation because it offers a superior level of protection and because usaa's commitment to serve the military, veterans, and their families is without equal. begin your legacy. get an auto-insurance quote. usaa. we know what it means to serve. . >>> there is new information into cnn now about the bombings in boston. fran townsend saying a pressure cooker lid was found, believed to be found on a roof not far from the marathon site. not far from the finish line. that will be used with other information and other materials found to piece together exactly what happened. we're also being told the remains of the pressure cooker being found at the scene, there are metal pellets and ball barings, and a nylon bag, that were found at the scene, and they're being send where the pieces will try to be reconst

martin savidge joins us from cou kaufman county, texas. how do the threats relate to the case. >> reporter: as you point out the authorities are bound and determined to make sure this does not spiral out of control, that somehow other people try to glom onto this and use it for whatever means to talk about their issues so anybody who makes a threat either against law enforcement or against a public official down here is going to be charged and found. in the case of the threat made against the memorial service as yet that person has not been located but they are working hard and as you point out, two other people have been arrested a serious charge, terroristic threat and being held on a $1 million bond each. they are not fooling when it comes to that but as you point out, these two are not being considered suspects in the case of the murders. as for that investigation it's moving forward, the mclellands were found murdered a week ago and one theory coming out as a result of the investigation is perhaps that maybe they might have known who

martin savidge, cnn, atlanta. >>> straight ahead -- on some health news. how about those kids' meals? are they healthy for your children? a consumer group rates america's restaurant chains straight ahead. >>> and an investigation into hundreds of burglaries in a small maine town leading to the so-called hermit burglar. the life into a reclusive accused thief. if you're looking to go to school, you deserve more than just flexibility and convenience. so here's a few reasons to choose university of phoenix. our average class size is only 14 students. our financial tools help you make smart choices about how to pay for school. our faculty have, on average, over 16 years of field experiene. we'll help you build a personal career plan. we build programs based on what employers are looking for. our football team, is always undefeated. and leading companies are interested in our graduates. we'll even help you decorate your new office. ok. let's get to work. >>> here's a look at what's trending right now. the story of the first african-american to play in major lea

martin savidge live for us in west, texas, thank you very much. and before we even knew who the suspects were, one prominent muslim said, please, god, don't let the boston marathon bombers be muslim. we're going to talk to that man to get his reaction now. neil and buzz: for teaching us that you can't create the future... by clinging to the past. and with that: you're history. instead of looking behind... delta is looking beyond. 80 thousand of us investing billions... in everything from the best experiences below... to the finest comforts above. we're not simply saluting history... we're making it. we believe it can be the most valuable real estate on earth. ♪ that's why we designed our newest subaru from the back seat forward. introducing the all-new, completely restyled subaru forester. love. it's what makes a subaru, a subaru. 8% every 10 years.age 40, we can start losing muscle -- wow. wow. but you can help fight muscle loss with exercise and ensure muscle health. i've got revigor. what's revigor? it's the amino acid metabolite, hmb to help

martin savidge is live in west, texas. there are still who are unaccounted for. thankfully not as many as reported earlier, some 60 then but now only a handful. how likely is it they will find those people alive? >> reporter: not too likely. this is no longer a search and rescue mission, it's search and recovery, and that's a clear indication if they do find anybody they probably won't be alive. yesterday they talked about 60 unaccounted for, and today they said it's about a handful, and they have one other building that needs to be searched. the problem and the reason it has been slow, the devastation is so extensive, and before teams can go in to look for anybody live or dead, they have to make sure the building is structurally sound. they have to rebuild the building before they can dig down there. it's hope, as horrible as this sounds, that 14 may be the maximum of the death toll, but it's not for certain. you should point out the vast majority of the death toll are the first responders, the 45 volunteer firefighters and emss as well, and other firefighters t

joining me with more on the investigation is martin savidge. why do police want these two guys? >> good evening, anderson. it's because they believe these two men have some important information pertaining to the case. also because they believe these two men are extremely dangerous. you know, this case has continued to push forward even though the prime suspect is dead. authorities want to make sure that he was in fact the murderer and they want to make sure there were no accomplices and also make sure if there were accomplices -- >> we just lost connection with martin savidge. we will try to reestablish it. i'm told he's back. hey, martin. we just lost you. you're back now. >> sorry. i was saying that the reason that authorities have been so adamant is that they're interrogating a lot of people, particularly members of that gang you talked about, and the names of these persons of interest came up out of those interrogations. the bolo, be on the lookout, went out to warn the public and more to warn authorities. these men are considered to be a real threat to any police officer t

i want to bring in martin savidge, he's in kaufman, texas. what's the latest on the manhunt for the d.a.'s killer? >> we just had a news conference that took place a short while ago from chris hisler, the spokesperson for the mclelland family. mike and cynthia mclelland that were murdered just a week ago. mark hasse that was murdered, one of the late prosecutors murdered a few months ago. this news conference, the family has come up and is highly critical with the way the investigation has been handled so far. they were critical. they said that they father was critical, especially after mark hasse had been murdered because he felt that his county, he felt that his department didn't have the resources to protect the personnel because they feared that there were other people that were going to be hit. and they also didn't at the same time have the resources to carry out the investigation. in other words, they were so stretched trying to protect everyone, they couldn't really move forward on the investigation. now the family is even more outrage

well, martin savidge and cnn crew went to five gun shows to find out exactly what this is. wound up leaving with more than just information. watch. >> reporter: it's a simple idea, just how easily can you buy a gun at a gun show? so a cnn crew took a weekend drive 600 miles with a pocket full of cash hitting five gun shows in three states, tennessee, south carolina and georgia. first up, north georgia, the venue is small and the selection limited. >> there weren't a lot of vendors. there wasn't a lot of product out there for people to buy. >> reporter: next, the crew went to saturday morning local gun show held in a convention center. it was a smith and wesson semiautomatic that first caught our producer's eye. asking price $625. >> it's a nice one. it's not brand spanking new. >> reporter: but it's early. and the team opts to keep looking. ten to 20 minutes later they circle back to the same table negotiating for the same gun. >> this one. >> reporter: it's a deal. no background check, it's not needed for a private sale. but the seller is legally required to check id, like

martin savidge, i think you're there for us. go ahead, martin, and tell our viewers who this person is who has now been arrested. it almost came out of the blue. >> you're right, wolf. yeah, this was one many people had not seen anticipated. there were names circulated in this investigation, kim williams is not one of them. however, she's married to another person whose name has been circulated widely. one name was eric williams, a former justice of the peace. the reason he's been looked at is because last year he was convicted of theft from office. the man who led that investigation was the d.a. who is now dead and also the assistant d.a. who is also dead. so could that have been a motive in any way? eric williams is being held, but he's being on a charge unrelated to the murder. he's being held for making a terroristic threat according to authorities. now his wife has been taken into custody. and the question is what is the exact link here? did she somehow facilitate? she is the first person to be charged in direct connection

the number of injured now stands at 200, wolf. >> martin savidge on the scene for us in west, texas, with the latest on that fertilizer explosion. the casualty numbers continuing to go up. what is encouraging though, they still think it's a search and rescue operation. they're hoping that they can find some people who may still be alive. >> right. when you hear the discrepancy between 60 still supposedly unaccounted for and the death toll being significantly lower at 12, you have to hope and pray that those people end up, some of them, being found alive. wolf, we just got this tweet that i wanted to share with everyone about what's going on here in boston from the boston police. they're saying that 60% of the search is done. they're saying that. >> in the watertown area? >> they're saying boston police here's the tweet 60% of the search is done but there's still more work to be done. boston police department referring to the massachusetts police department. again, that's just a tweet. >> which suggests this lockdown in the city asking everyone to stay put, don't use public transporta

thanks so much, martin savidge. next hour we're going to talk with a west, texas, resident who is just allowed to return to his home. john, back to you in boston. >> all right, thanks so much, christine. ahead on "starting point" we will continue our live coverage of the boston marathon bombing aftermath. top of the hour we're going to look into charges that the suspect could be facing. and next we're learning more about the five snowboarders killed in colorado's deadly avalanche this weekend and what went wrong. you're watching "starting point." when our little girl was born, we got a subaru. it's where she said her first word. (little girl) no! saw her first day of school. (little girl) bye bye! made a best friend forever. the back seat of my subaru is where she grew up. what? (announcer) designed for your most precious cargo. (girl) what? (announcer) the all-new subaru forester. love. it's what makes a subaru, a subaru. progressive direct and other car insurance companies? yes. but you're progressive, and they're

our martin savidge is in texas, following up on the case. martin, how do these threats relate to the case of the murders? >> reporter: directly, they don't, miguel. indirectly, they are, of course, considered to be very important. law enforcement won't take any threats against police officer, sheriff's deputy or any county official lightly in light of the fact that three officials have been killed in the last two months. this investigation now is very tight lipped. they are not saying much about where it is going or who may be suspect. there have been absolutely no arrests. that, we can point out, directly tied to the murder investigation. three primary avenues we have heard being investigated, one is that it could be a white supremacist group. there have been investigations and prosecutions in this county. some suggest it could be drug cart cartels because this is a high drug trafficking area. others say it could be just sn somebody with a beef. right now, authorities are not speaking. the investigation, you can bet, is heavily under way, m

martin savidge live this morning. watch "a.c. 360" tonight for an exclusive individuaterview with widow of tom clements. >>> kaufman county distinct attorney mike mcclelland gunned down in his home with his wife cynthia. today, a public memorial held for them. their killings two months after the chief felony prosecutor mark hasse shot to death. police concede that white supremacists are among their focus. months before the killings, state officials warned the aryan brotherhood could retaliate for dozens of gang members being arrested. abc news reports they wanted to attack anyone involved in those cases. >>> this time, it could be much more than bluster. just last hour, cnn is learning north korea could launch a mobile ballistic missile within days or weeks, that's according to a u.s. official citing intercepted communications. this as the united states is sending ballistic missile defense to guam. barbara starr live at the pentagon with more. what are you hearing? >> carol as we watched north korean rhetoric the last

martin savidge joins us now in west, texas. martin, what's the latest? do they know at this point what caused that explosion? >> they're working to find that out, anderson and really there's an urgency to that investigation because this plant here is like a number of other plants, 6,000 similar plants located in many small town rural communities just like this one all across the country. investigators want to find out if what happened here was just something very unique to this particular plant, this facility, or is it something that maybe suggests the problem in handling fertilizer in general? that would mean there's a potential for other communities being at risk. investigators are today once again back at the plant site going over what is the obliterated remains of that facility. and the reason that the large parts of this neighborhood remain blocked off like you see here with the checkpoints is because all of that is considered valuable to the investigation. the files and the information in the warehouses of that building were destroyed. so it's real

we have martin savidge on the ground there in west texas. martin, what is the latest? >> reporter: chris, the latest is that it appears that the situation is stabilizing. and what i mean by that is that the fires are down to just embers. they're able to keep control of that. and they do not seem to notice that there is any leakage of any of that anhydrous ammonia coming from the second tank that did not detonate in the explosion. so both of those are good things. they've also done the look at all the initial area damaged in the blast. it took all night, but they've got it completed. now they go back and do as you heard the methodical door-to-door-to-door. they're not being joined by just local law enforcement or local fire departments rather, they have federal teams now come in. and also teams, federal search teams coming from ft. hood. and they're bringing their expertise, but most of all they need the equipment. some of these buildings are so structurally damaged that before they can send anybody in to look, they have to basically shore that building up to make sure

martin savidge reporting live for us. really appreciate you there. and still ahead the financial cost of the city on complete lockdown. who pays in a situation like what happened in boston? christine romans is running a tab for us. you're watching "early start." ♪ [ male announcer ] a car that can actually see like a human, using stereoscopic cameras. ♪ and even stop itself if it has to. ♪ the technology may be hard to imagine. but why you would want it... is not. the 2014 e-class. it doesn't just see the future. it is the future. it doesn't just see the future. ...and we inspected his brakes for free. -free is good. -free is very good. [ male announcer ] now get 50% off brake pads and shoes at meineke. >>> it is 23 minutes past the hour. we're "minding your business" this morning. the stock market is set to rebound following big losses last week. christine, the market is still up for the year. let's put everything in perspective. >> i know. it's up big for the year. you keep hearing us say look, last week was the worst week of the year and tha

martin savidge in suwanee with the latest. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, carol. as you point out, really a troubling story here. it was according to authorities, a phony call that lured the firefighters to come here, believing they were treating somebody who needed to be rescued. once firefighters got here, they found out they were the ones in need of help. >> we know that firefighters routinely run toward danger. but not this. >> when they made entry into the home, they were taken hostage by him. >> began 3:40 wednesday afternoon. firefighters near atlanta, called to what they thought was a man having a heart attack. this is radio traffic from one of the five firefighters taken hostage. >> we are in a situation where we have an -- an armed person. >> the gunman began making demands. >> and he is requesting a certain -- certain utilities to be turned back on at his house, and he is armed. and we are in the room with him. >> he is going through some financial issues and the power was turned off, along with cable and cell phone. >> reporter: about 30 minutes into t

martin savidge is there for us. martin, have they made any progress or have a better sense of how many people are still missing? >> reporter: no. those numbers you continue to hear five to 15, that's the number of casualties. but i've also been told, you know, don't put a lot of stock in that. they really just don't know at this particular point. i asked them, well, what about missing? do you have any idea of how many people are missing? they say no. there's a couple reasons for that. primarily in the chaos in the aftermath of that event last night, they were literally taking the injured and throwing them into the back of police cars and squad cars and sending them off to hospitals. nobody was writing down names at that point. lives were on the line. there were a lot of people disbursed, may be displaced but not necessarily missing. and that process is working its way through. so that's why the numbers are very fluid. talking about the search and rescue. they did it all night long. and they have covered the entire b

martin savidge is live for us in the town of west, texas. authorities just held a press conference. what's the latest, martin? >> reporter: jake, they're still focused on the crater which you mentioned. today there was some sophisticated equipment 3d measuring they were using to gauge how wide it is, how deep it is. all of that critical evidence that could tell them more about what exploded. more importantly, they want to know why it exploded. they're focusing not so much on the blast but the fire that preceded it. they know 0 it was the fire that triggered the blast. so what causeded fire? that's the focus. the evidence they say is like processing a -- well, a forensic site or any site like, say, you were searching back in time digging carefully layer by layer, slow methodical work. some have said, well, what about reports of sloppy recordkeeping at that facility. investigators say they'll look at that, but now they're looking at the evidence that could perish, they want to get that stuff first. >> martin, we understand the blast did extensive damage to the city's infrastructure. t

cnn's martin savidge is live in suwanee with more. good morning, martin. >> the house behind us here is where that ordeal all played out. it went on, that drama, for about four hours. but it ended in seconds. and when it was done, the gunman was dead, firefighters were freed, and a police officer wounded. we know that firefighters routinely run toward danger, but not this. >> we maidenry into the home. they were taken hostage by him. >> reporter: it began around 3:40 wednesday afternoon. firefighters near atlanta were called to what they thought was a man having a heart attack. this is radio traffic from one of the five firefighters taken hostage. >> we are in a situation where we have a -- an armed person. >> reporter: the gunman began making demands. >> and he is requesting certain -- certain utilities to be turned back on at his house, and he is armed and we are in the room with him. >> he's going through some financial issues. and the power is turned off along with the kacable and cellphone. >> reporter: one of the five hostages w

. >> that's a cnn reporter named martin savidge, who did a recent und undercover reporting and an expended capacity 30 round magazine he bought without filling out a single form, all cash and no paperwork whatsoever without exchanging names of the person the gun was bought from. needless to say they never asked if he was a felon or adjudicated mentally ill or check a database to see if that was the case. the same previously banned weapon used to kill those first graders at sandy hook, the same weapon bushmaster, that purchase took 70 seconds. no paperwork, no names, no questions, no receipt, no background check. that is how we enforce the federal law in this country that says no one can sell you a weapon if you are a felon or seriously mentally ill. that's how we enforce it. the vote yesterday in the senate on the manchin toomey bill was a bill to take one baby step to actually enforcing the federal law that says felons and those seriously ill cannot buy guns. and we don't enforce that because cash and carry guns are still legal at gun shows. if this bill passed it would still be legal but

savidge, which aired on anderson cooper's show earlier and we've got a picture of the guns that martin savage was able to acquire going to four or five gun shows around america. there they are. including the ar-15 assault rifle, which was used at sandy hook, and a variety of handguns, not a single check was made. nobody knew his name. nobody asked for his name. nobody knew if he was a felon, he was mentally insane. nothing. that was our guy. just paying cash to people who didn't ask any questions. when you see that happening, what is your reaction? >> well, 20% of all gun sales are done without background checks. >> some say as high as 40. >> it could very well be. i'm being conservative saying 20%. i urge congress to be reasonable and work with each other. and pass a background check for all gun sales to keep our family safe. >> senate voted to bring the gun bill up for debate tomorrow at 11:00. that's the first step. what will happen in the house? joining me from the gun vlt violence prevention task force, congressman mike thompson. congressman, is this just the first step in a much

joining me with more on the investigation is martin savidge. why do police want these two guys? >> good evening, anderson. it's because they believe these two men have some important information pertaining to the case. also because they believe these two men are extremely dangerous. you know, this case has continued to push forward even though the prime suspect is dead. authorities want to make sure that he was in fact the murderer and they want to make sure there were no accomplices and also make sure if there were accomplices -- the authorities stopped talking. >> martin, appreciate the update. thanks. >>> let's take a few minutes with us, if you will, and just listen to lisa clements and her daughters tell us about the man that they lost last month, a man they continue to love deeply. i talked with lisa earlier today. her first interview since the murder of her husband, tom. her daughters rachel and sarah joined me as well. we talked about loss and about coping with the enormous void in their lives, but also about finding hope and perhaps surprisingly, the capacity to even fo

. >> martin savidge in waco, texas, waiting for president obama to speak. texas senator john cornyn is now speaking and will introduce president obama who will address the citizens of waco and west, texas in a moment. before i let you go do you know if president obama had an opportunity to inspect the blast site? >> he did that from the air, marine one helicopter passed over the site. he was able to get a good look. it's from the air that you see the tremendous power of the blast which triggered a 2.1 earthquake and was also felt some 50 miles away. and the shattering impact it had on not only a small town of 2600 people but on this full part of texas here. there are many still out of their homes who will not be able to return to that community for sometime. this is going to affect as one person put it that small town for generations to come, jake. >> you're looking at live images of a memorial ceremony in waco, texas where president obama will address the nation momentarily. the explosion last week destroyed not only the town but took a number of more than

savidge and myself, rather sad greeting crew there, why not treat them to something like this. congratulations to kate middleton and best of luck to carnival and those red bags. as your life and career change, fidelity is there for your personal economy, helping you readjust your retirement plan along the way. rethink how you're invested. and refocus as your career moves forward. wherever you are today, a fidelity ira has a wide range of investment choices to help you fine-tune your personal economy. call today and we'll make it easy to move that old 401(k) to a fidelity no-fee ira. [ female announcer ] from more efficient payments. ♪ to more efficient pick-ups. ♪ wireless is limitless. ♪ from tracking the bus. ♪ to tracking field conditions. ♪ wireless is limitless. >>> yesterday, we did a story about the high priced world of clock and watch auctions in which we questioned whether the wristwatch is on the way out. a survey indicated 60% of men under 35 now use their cell phone rather than their watch as their primary timepiece. so we asked you to weigh in on the issu

. >> that's a cnn reporter named martin savidge, who did a recent undercover reporting and an expended capacity 30 round magazine he bought without filling out a single form, all cash and no paperwork whatsoever without exchanging names of the person the gun was bought from. needless to say they never asked if he was a felon or adjudicated mentally ill or check a database to see if that was the case. the same previously banned weapon used to kill those first graders at sandy hook, the same weapon bushmaster, that purchase took 70 seconds. no paperwork, no names, no questions, no receipt, no background check. that is how we enforce the federal law in this country that says no one can sell you a weapon if you are a felon or seriously mentally ill. that's how we enforce it. the vote yesterday in the senate on the manchin toomey bill was a bill to take one baby step to actually enforcing the federal law that says felons and those seriously ill cannot buy guns. and we don't enforce that because cash and carry guns are still legal at gun shows. if this bill passed it would still be legal but

martin savidge is joining you now from west, texas with more. martin, what exactly are they looking for in that blast crater? >> reporter: good morning, wolf. yeah, just so you know, this is one of the main check points to get this to the explosion zone directly behind us here. it is pretty much off-limits and here is the reason why. getting into that crater is crucial as part of the investigation. a lot of figuring out what happened, what went wrong, will be based on forensic science because the records and everything that was in that facility that could tell them things like how much and what sort of chemicals and what kind of fertilizers, that was obliterated along with the plant itself with that terrible explosion on wednesday night. so going in there, and everything in that explosion zone is considered evidence. that would include say the debris, that would include the kind of damage that was done, the blast pattern coming out from the plant itself. it would even include the victims' bodies and that's one of the reasons they have not been r

cnn's martin savidge has the latest for us. >> good morning. a lot of questions being asked in this subdivision. is it possible that the homeowner in danger of losing their home may have somehow been pushed over the edge? drama went on for hours but it ended in seconds. we know that firefighters routinely run toward danger, but not this. >> when we maidenry into the home they were taken hostage by him. >> reporter: it began 3:40 wednesday afternoon. firefighters near atlanta were called to what they thought was a man having a heart attack. this is radio traffic from one of the five firefighters taken hostage. >> we are in a situation where we have a -- an armed person. >> reporter: the gunman began making demands. >> and he is requesting certa certain -- certain utilities to be turned back on at his house. and he is armed, and we are in the room with him. >> he's going through some financial issues and the power was turned off along with the cable and cellphone. >> reporter: about 30 minutes into the ordeal, one of the five hostages was release

i want to bring in cnn's martin savidge in texas. what led to this arrest? >> reporter: chris, a number of things that led to this arrest, primarily events that happened over the weekend, search warrants that focused on this woman's husband. eric williams. he's a former justice of the peace in this county here. he was pushed out of office, actually, forced out as a result of the fact that he was convicted of theft from office. and here is the key element to know in that. the man who prosecuted that case, the chief lead prosecutor in the courtroom, mark hasse. the assistant d.a. who was later murdered. who oversaw the entire investigation, that was mike mclelland, the district attorney who was also murdered along with his wife cynthia in their home. so now apparently it is kim williams who has come forward and said, yes, she was part of that, she implicates her husband, the authorities classify it as a confession. they say that she confessed to involvement in the scheme and in the course of the conduct of the shooting deaths of hasse, mclelland, and cynthia m