[Ali Velshi, Cnn Anchor:] Tony, you have yourself a fantastic afternoon. Always great to see you. I'm going to be in New York today and for the rest of the week. But I'll be with you today for the next two hours. Here's where we are headed. China overtaking Japan as the world's No. 2 economic power in the latest quarter. Is this a red flag for the U.S. economy? Or could this be good for American business? We'll find out. In Jerusalem, scientists taking a breathtaking new way to diagnose cancer in its earliest stages. All the patient has to do is exhale. An electronic sensor does the rest. I will tell you about this in great detail. And a new shrimping season kicks off today off the Louisiana coast with plenty of hope and fear over what might turn up in those fishing nests. We'll go there and find out. First I want to tell you about something that happened overnight. A Colombian jet liner crashed on approach to an airport in San Andreas as it was coming in, splitting into three different pieces. You can see it there. The miracle is that it appears only one person has died. That person might have actually died of a heart attack. A hundred and twenty-seven people were on board that plane. It came down 260 feet short of the runway. It had taken off from Bogata shortly after midnight local time, and the crash happened about an hour and 45 minutes later. Karl Penhall on the phone with us now from Bogata, Colombia. Karl, what have you got on this?
[Karl Penhall, Cnn Correspondent:] Ali, crash investigators are now at that scene, as you might expect, trying to find out exactly what caused this plane to crash. But some of the early theories are centering around the possibility that it could have been a lightning strike on the plane. Now, civil aviation says it was raining at that airport in San Andreas at the time of the accident. There were storms in the vicinity. But they haven't yet confirmed whether this was indeed a lightning strike. But as you see, and as you say, that plane broke into three separate sections, and according to the police, passengers were scattered across the runway as this plane broke apart. Now, there were 125 passengers on board, six crew members. And of those passengers, there were also six U.S. citizens. Now, we understand that most of the passengers are out of danger, that there are two that have suffered serious head injuries. We believe they're probably Colombian passengers. We haven't had their identity confirmed yet. They will probably be evacuated off the island for treatment on the Colombian mainland later on in the day, Ali.
[Velshi:] Karl, very unusual on a large jet liner like this to have survivors on a plane crash, if the plane is in the shape we're looking at right now on the TV screen. This probably has to do with the fact that this plane was on approach, it was very low altitude, probably coming in at a reduced speed, and into the airport. Do we know anything about why we've got this many survivors?
[Penhaul:] Well, again, that was something I put to both a senior officer in the air force on San Andreas island, and also the civil officials in civil aviation. And asking them, was this plane a few feet off the ground, almost landing, or had it actually touched down at that point? And they said that, quite frankly, right now, we do not know if that plane had wheels on ground at the time. That is something that they will be looking at. But certainly, as you say, remarkable. And also, considering that the passengers did scatter out of the plane and were spread across the runway. You would expect more serious injuries there, things like broken arms, broken limbs, and head injuries, as well. But as far as the authorities are telling us, there are two people with serious head injuries. And the remainder of the passengers really aren't that seriously injured, Ali.
[Velshi:] What a remarkable story. Karl, thanks very much for joining us. Karl Penhall in Bogata, Colombia. We'll get you more information as we get it on what brought that plane down. Cars, cries, and then chaos. The moments before and after this weekend's off-road racing tragedy. It's our "Sound Effect" this hour.
[Unidentified Male:] Hey, everybody off the track! Get down! Get down! Get down! Don't go down there. Don't go down there. It's not good.
[Unidentified Female:] Someone just crashed.
[Unidentified Male:] Someone just crashed. Is he all right? Someone just flipped.
[Velshi:] Eight people were killed, four others seriously injured when that truck lost control, flipped and rolled right into the crowd. The driver, unharmed. He's posted a message online, saying he is devastated over the accident. He's not facing any charges, because according to police, fans were much too close to the action. This was an amateur 200-mile race through the Mojave Desert in Southern California. A very "Mad Max" atmosphere, some critics say. No guard rails or barriers around the course, and no real enforced rules. Louisiana shrimp boats are back in the Gulf Coast today, but shrimpers are still worried about their future. And we're going to tell you why when we come back.