[Costello:] We're going to continue with our coverage of Hurricane Ivan in just a bit. But I do have some developing news out of Iraq to tell you about this morning. Gunmen have kidnapped two Americans along with a British citizen in Iraq. Let's head live to Baghdad now and check in with Diana Muriel. Diana tell us what happened.
[Diana Muriel, Cnn Correspondent:] Well, Carol, a CNN team has been down at the location where the men were abducted early this morning. That's two U.S. citizens and one British citizen taken from a house in the al-Mansur district of Baghdad to the west of the River Tigris. And neighbors have been coming out talking about what they saw and what they heard this morning. It seems that there were two sets of guards who looked after that property, and the night guard never showed up last night. Normally, the guard changes at around 8:00 in the morning. The men were actually abducted at 6:00 in the morning. Every morning one of the men would come out and switch the generator on outside the building. The generator also served 12 other houses in the neighborhood. So neighbors were quite puzzled as to why the power hadn't come on. What had happened, it seems, is that two vehicles one a minivan and one a sedan car arrived at the house around 6:00. There were 11 men dressed in civilian clothes six in the minivan, five in the car. The five remained outside acting as lookouts. The six went into the building, took the three men, not a shot was fired, although police later did find weapons in the building, but they believe that those weapons are the property of the al-Khaleej Services Company, the trading and contracting company that the three men worked for. The police have expressed concern that the house wasn't being guarded. But a neighbor, a 60-year-old lady who lives in an adjacent house, told our CNN producer there that she hadn't seen the night guard come on the previous night. And it seems as though the men were unprotected Carol.
[Costello:] Diana Muriel bringing us up-to-date from Baghdad this morning. Thank you, Diana. Let's head live to Mobile, Alabama, near where Hurricane Ivan made landfall, and check in with Bill Hemmer on what's coming up on "AMERICAN MORNING" and more. We're getting a lot of e-mails from people in that area who have evacuated, Bill. This man from Fairhope, Alabama, which is south of you, he owns a mobile home community there. And he wants to know if you've heard of any damage report.
[Bill Hemmer, Cnn Anchor:] Yes, I have not there, Carol. I can tell you in a very general sense now, the officials here in Mobile are telling us that, you know, they've surveyed the area, especially in the city anyway, not where that gentleman is south of town. And they think they've come through this storm pretty well at this point, based on what they were expecting and based so far on what they have seen. The sun will be up in about an hour, Carol. And there will be a much better assessment at that point once the skies get a big lighter. Top of hour, we'll go to the National Hurricane Center in Miami. You know, this storm is still strong. Last hour, it was about 115 miles an hour inland. That's packed in a heck of a punch at this point. And we're going to get the backside in a moment here, Carol, as we go into "AMERICAN MORNING." And we'll talk with the mayor here in Mobile. We'll talk to the police chief also. And also further east, Pensacola, the panhandle, we really started to take note of this late in the afternoon yesterday. It just seemed like the storm was really pounding that area of Florida, and indeed that appears to be the case with the tornadoes there, two deaths reported there. We'll try and figure out what's happening at that hospital as well that took what some say is a direct hit from a tornado. And one more thing, Carol. As the winds continue to shift, they're now coming from the northwest as Ivan starts to move around us here in Mobile. Top of the hour, we'll have it all for you. Heidi is back in New York; so is Jack and Andy. We've got another busy day here on "AMERICAN MORNING" Carol.
[Costello:] Yes, we do. Thank you, Bill. We'll get back to you. Bill mentioned that hospital in Pensacola, Florida. We have confirmed that the West Florida Hospital in Pensacola was hit by a tornado. We don't know a specific damage report. When we get that, we'll let you know. We want to see how the hurricane might affect the airline industry now, because I know a lot of you probably have flights scheduled. For that, we go live to "USA Today" travel reporter Ben Mutzabaugh. Hello, Ben.
[Ben Mutzabaugh, "usa Today":] Good morning, Carol. How are you?
[Costello:] OK. Give us the bad news.
[Mutzabaugh:] Well, it's obviously, as you probably can tell from all of the correspondents CNN has down there in the Gulf Coast, it's going to be a rough morning, a rough day, probably even two days, for anyone headed to the Gulf Coast. The one bright spot, if there is one, is that New Orleans appears to have been spared from the worst of Ivan. It looks like flights will probably resume there sometime today and maybe even this morning. But really all bets are off for any travel today anywhere in the Gulf Coast area.
[Costello:] Well, let's talk about travel over the next several days, because this storm is going to move around. And I know it's going to affect Atlanta, and you know how big the airport is here.
[Mutzabaugh:] That's right. It is going to be move over Atlanta, and it is going to create some problems there. And anyone who is traveling through Atlanta Delta has a large hub there. AirTran has a large hub there. Those two airlines will be especially impacted. But it's going to impact a lot of flights. Especially when it moves over Atlanta, it's going to create low visibility. It's going to reduce the airport's capacity to land planes, which is just going to create backlogs, and we all know that's something that's prone to happen in Atlanta.
[Costello:] Yes, we do.
[Mutzabaugh:] Yes, as you probably well know. And it's also...
[Costello:] Yes, go ahead.
[Mutzabaugh:] It's going to create problems in other places as well; for example, a flight from Jacksonville to Memphis. For example Memphis is a hub for Northwest. So, a flight from Jacksonville to Memphis will have to fly around or over the storm. And some of them will go off OK, others will be delayed, others can even be cancelled.
[Costello:] OK. So, if I have an airline ticket and I really want to travel, what should I do?
[Mutzabaugh:] Well, the first thing the airline suggests you do is check their Web site. There it will pose their delay information. Most of them post their cancellation information. And they all have posted what their policies are for travel to hurricane-affected areas. And a lot of the airlines will have waivers that say if you are traveling to a city to or from one of the affected cities on a certain date, they're waiving change fees and some of the restrictions that will allow you to push up or push back your itinerary, depending on when and where you're flying. So, that's probably a good option for a lot of people who are headed to the Gulf Coast or other parts of the southeast.
[Costello:] And it's probably good to go to the Web site, because to call an airline on the phone would be pretty much of a nightmare right now, wouldn't it?
[Mutzabaugh:] That is true. I think even right now it's tough in the best circumstances. You know, a lot or airlines have had cuts, especially to the reservation centers. So, when you throw in all of these people who are being affected by the hurricane, it's going to tax what are probably already stressed reservation systems. So, your best bet might be to go to the Web site. And then, if you can't find what you need there, then try calling the airlines, but be prepared for a lengthy wait.
[Costello:] You know, you've got to wonder with all of the financial problems that Delta is having, and also US Airways, like, what effect this storm will have on them financially.
[Mutzabaugh:] Oh, clearly, it's going to have a big impact. And it's most unwelcome news for all of the airlines that fly to Florida. AirTran and JetBlue, for example, two discounters which have generally discounters have generally done well during the past two or three years even after the September 11 attacks. But even AirTran and JetBlue have issued earnings warnings, saying that all of these hurricanes heading towards Florida are really going to put a damper on their revenue for this quarter.
[Costello:] Ben Mutzabaugh from "USA Today," thank you for joining DAYBREAK this morning.
[Mutzabaugh:] Thank you.
[Costello:] And I hope you're not flying anywhere. We're going to have much more on the path of Ivan when DAYBREAK returns. You stay right there.