[Simon:] She died on the floor of an emergency room hospital while employees, well they didn't do anything to help her. We now know what killed Esmin Green. Autopsy results show green died from blood clots. The hospital in Brooklyn has fired or suspended seven employees since Green's death last month. Her family says they plan to sue. A groundbreaking heart surgeon has died. Dr. Michael DeBakey pioneered the modern heart bypass surgery and invented a number of devices to help heart patients. DeBakey developed the mobile army surgical hospitals or M.A.S.H. units for saving lives on the front lines. Dr. DeBakey died of natural causes at a Houston hospital. He was 99-years-old.
[Kaye:] From the front lines to the firing lines, Iraq war veterans are now fighting a different battle in California. CNN's Kara Finnstrom has the story.
[Kara Finnstrom, Cnn Correspondent:] The fire ravaged woods of northern California.
[Unidentified Male:] Let's get those tool sharpen for tomorrow.
[Finnstrom:] National Guards men Mike Valdevia and Robert Rosbia are now deployed near the front line.
[Unidentied Male:] Keep your dime in
[Finnstrom:] They're half a world away and on a far different assignment from their dangerous duty in Iraq.
[Sgt. Robert Rosbia, National Guard, Iraq Veteran:] In Iraq, you know we're getting shot at and people are losing their lives.
[Finnstrom:] Rosbia operated a 50-caliber machine gun in Iraq. He served there for 15 months.
[Rosbia:] Here we're protecting lives and this time I'm doing it with a cloud instead of 50-caliber machine gun. A semi rakescraping tool.
[Finnstrom:] Rosbia, a truck driver is also a husband and a father. And his wife couldn't be happier to have him serving near home. He's one of the first California guard troops to fight on the fire lines in more than three decades.
[Rosbia:] She knows that there isn't somebody shooting at me and getting ready to cause me bodily harm, possibly take my life from me.
[Finnstrom:] California needs help desperately. More than 1,700 fires have torched the state this month, exhausting firefighters. These fresh guard troops have learned to hack through brush and create open spaces where fully train firefighters can make a stand. Sergeant Valdevia is a natural when it comes to cutting fire lines. The married father of three just happens to be a tree trimmer. He's also a veteran of enduring brutal heat.
[Sgt. Mike Valdevia, National Guard, Iraq Veteran:] The heat is actually kind of similar to the body. It start kicking up a lot of heat underneath the collar. So overseas we had temperatures of 117 plus.
[Finnstrom:] But no complaints from these sergeants. They say this very different mission, back home in California, just feels good.
[Valdevia:] We've been driving back and forth. We get a lot of waves. We also get just people on the side we don't even know just honking.
[Finnstrom:] Kara Finnstrom for CNN, Los Angeles.
[Simon:] And there's danger not just for those fighting the fires, but those who choose to remain in harm's way. Our Reynolds Wolf in Chico, California with news about an apparent fire victim and Reynolds, as you know, I was there for a couple of weeks. I passed the baton on to you. When I was there things were looking good and then you take over and things get worse. What's going on?
[Reynolds Wolf, Cnn Meteorologist:] It's been very bad. We have our first fatality, our first loss of life here in a community called Concow not far where from where we were located. The firefighters found the body yesterday. Still no identification yet. They're going to have DNA tests. They're going to look also at medical records, dental records to find out who the person was. But certainly a bad thing. We're talking about a fire, Dan, that has burned over 49,000 acres and the fire fighters are doing everything they can to try to keep that from happening again. Right now, we're actually in Silver Dollar Park in Fresno, California not Fresno, California, Chico, California. I'm sorry, where today places like Fresno, from Colorado Springs, from Flagstaff, Arizona, that come here to fire camp and today they're here just to get a little bit of a break, get something nice to eat, get a briefing, a pat on the back, and then they're going back out to the front lines. This is just actually a small sample, a small sample of over 300 fire fighters or rather fire trucks that have been out here coming from all over. This particular unit, part of the California department f emergency services. They're here, you see them over here getting their hoses ready. It's going to be another blistering hot day for them. The fire already about 55 percent contained, but we're talking about a fire of enormous scope. It's high up in those hills, they're going to be battling, not only battles the intense heat, but if you look way off there, John, I don't know if you can get a shot of the rising sun, looks almost red in the sky. Well, the reason it has the weird hue because of all the smoke. Right now, we've got very poor air quality in this part of the world, bad for residents, bad for the fire fighters. Conditions are going to improve in terms of the weather today. They're expecting temperatures not to be quite as hot. In fact, temperatures have been lower. The wind is also going to drop in intensity. The humidity is going to be going up. So conditions in that regard are going to be much better. But still, no one's letting down their guard just yet. You see these guys here getting extra supplies, taking them out, getting ready for another busy day, doing what they can to battle this blaze. Some over 3,000 fire fighters taking part in this. And one thing that's just spectacular about this entire event, it is not just from California, I pointed out the other units that have been here not just from around the region or just in the states. You got units from places like Mexico, from Canada, from even into Australia and New Zealand too. Sure the New Zealanders talk funny, I don't know how they're going to get the fire trucks across the ocean but they're here to lend a hand and they're going to do the very best they can. So, in that regard, it's a heart warming thing to see these guys work so hard and we're going to keep an eye for you as we continue to bring these stories, these guys from North Lake Tahoe. Let's send it back to you in the studio.
[Simon:] And they're going to have to get used to the California elements when you talk about the three things that fuel wildfire, fuel, terrain and weather in California, has the worst of all three. Reynolds, before we let you go, a few days ago I saw you hanging out at the camp where the fire fighters get a little rest. Talk about how they're able to sleep. Kind of unique in some parts.
[Wolf:] How these firefighters were able to sleep? Well, I'll tell you what, and speaking of sleep, that's one thing these fellows have been doing very little of. What's funny, so many people, so many of you at home, you're sitting and watching this, you go to work and you work your eight-hour day, you work 40 hours a week. And that's a lot of work, don't get me wrong, but many of these guys will go out in the field and work 24-hour shifts, but if they happen to be in an area where the fire pops up again, they may work 30, 36 hours without a bit of rest. Right now, they've had a chance to clean up a little bit, they're going back out, and the few hours they've had of sleep, they're very fortunate to get. Back to you.
[Simon:] All right. Reynolds, nice work, we'll check in with you later. Those California wildfires, looks like a record season, so many acres have burned and they have the driest spring on record. It's so bad.
[Kaye:] They're working hard though to put it all out. Reaction to is now pouring in to CNN to the death of former White House spokesman Tony Snow. Josh Levs has some of your e-mails.