our eyes are on the skies, and this peculiar sunday night mystery. hi, everybody, it's 10:00 in the east. glad you're with us. i'm alina cho sitting in for don lemon tonight, and we begin with the bad weather bearing down on the southeast. tropical storm beryl fast approaching hurricane strength and near landfall. you can see the palm trees struggling against the waves. waves onshore. this is jekyll island. flooding obviously a big concern, and beaches all along the southeast coast are posting warnings about the dangers of rip currents. for the past 24 hours, lifeguards and emts have been working overtime rescuing those who have ignored the warnings. our jacqui jeras is watching it all for us. a couple of questions. number one, pretty close to hurricane strength, right? >> yeah. >> and how close are we to landfa landfall? >> we're close. landfall not so important with this storm. it's a big storm, and there's going to be very widespread impacts. there you see the rain which has been coming down the last couple of hours, extremely heavy, and the winds have been picking up. this is a much different storm than what we were dealing with yesterday. beaches have been closed. the rip currents have been a big issue, and as we head through the nighttime hours tonight, we'll be worried about power outages, trees coming down and then our big concern, we'll focus on inland flooding which could be as much as six plus, maybe isolated spots to up to a fool of rainfall in the next 24 hours. this is what beryl looks like over the open waters. it's kind of difficult to pick out the center of circulation. we'll zoom in and give you an idea of how close it is towards jacksonville beach, and we think it's somewhere maybe about 25, 30 miles away from the coast. if you do the math, it's moving west around 10 miles per hour, so we're talking maybe midnight tonight for that landfall. intensity of this storm now, maximum sustained winds, 75 miles per hour. i think it's certainly likely that we're going to see some gusts along the coast that could be reaching that hurricane force strength, so that will certainly cause some damage associated with that. the track of this thing, after it continues to move westward tonight, we're going to start to see it hook on up to the north, move through the carolinas, and then eventually make its way off the shore. so it's really going to slow down in forward speed as it makes this turn, and that's one of the many reasons why flooding will be such a big issue. in fact, we've already heard reports of some heavy rainfall, one to two inches per hour coming along with it, and this is a computer model forecast that shows you the next 48 hours of where we think most of that will be. now, there's been a big problem with drought in north florida and southern parts of florida and the rain is welcome news. this is so much at one time, and the ground is very hard. it's dry, and it's kind of cracked even in some spots, so we'll see a lot of runoff. we're also getting some surge along the coastal areas, so be aware of that. you need to stay indoors tonight. i know it's tempting to go out and see how things are going, but when we're talking about such a strong tropical storm, nearly a hurricane, you know, it really doesn't make a difference if you call this a cat 1 or call this a strong tropical storm. the consequences of this are certainly going to be the same and really widespread in this part of the country. such a bummer, alina, over the holiday weekend when people want to go to florida, want to go to georgia and enjoy those beaches. >> that's right. these are vacation spots. all right. we'll be checking back with you in the hour. we'll go to new york where cnn has obtained new information about the man charged with killing etan patz. remember, that is the 6-year-old boy who disappeared from a sojo street corner 33 years ago. our susan candiotti today visited the church where suspect pedro hernandez and his family are members. you spoke with the pastor, susan. what did he tell you? >> reporter: first of all, alina, the first thing he talked about with the congress gays at his services today, and we heard this, he asked all of them to pray for the pedro hernandez family, both him, his wife and teenage daughter, and he also told us while visiting with us that he felt that, well, first of all that, he got a phone call -- rather, a personal visit from hernandez's wife and teenage daughter on thursday. this was the day after police had picked him up and taken in for questioning. and he said they came in crying and weeping. they were very emotional. he said he had the impression that they were completely blind-sided by the fact that pedro had been picked up and taken in by police for questioning. he said that he did not think that his wife had any idea that her husband had allegedly confessed to police, said that he didn't have the impression that she had a clue about what had happened allegedly so many years ago, that he might have played a role in the death of etan patztz, though he added he did not ask her directly about that. alina? >> this is a case, obviously, over the last 33 years that's seen many, many twists and turns. what's the latest now. what's next in the investigation? >> reporter: the investigators, alina, are very, very hard at work trying to come up with some evidence to bolster his claim that he strangled to death this little boy and then put his body, etan patz's bod knee a trash can bag and did away with him. they have acknowledged that they have no physical evidence so far and as well no motive, so investigators are literally pounding the streets trying to talk to anyone they can about this. as we all know and recall, pedro hernandez remains or was put under a suicide watch on friday, and the next legal step is that they are conducting as the court has ordered a psychiatric evaluation of him after the defense revealed that mr. hernandez has a long history of various psychiatric disorders. he is bipolar. he is schizophrenic and suffers from hallucinations, according to his defense attorney, and so a grand jury will also be getting together, and they will decide whether to indict mr. hernandez on the second-degree murder charge. >> that's right. bottom line, susan, investigators are in the unusual position now of having to prove that hernandez did what he said he did, so we'll have to wait to see what happens on that. susan candiotti, live from new york, susan, thank you, as always. >> you're welcome. turn to politics now and blame it on the ego. former new york city mayor rudy giuliani said, yes, it was his ego, that was the reason he took jabs at mitt romney during the 2008 gop presidential campaign. >> well, i mean, there's a certain amount of personal ego in that. at that point i was probably comparing his record to my record, and maybe it was circumstances or whatever, but i had massive reduction in unemployment. he had a reduction in unemployment of about 8%, 10%, 15%. i had a reduction of unemployment of 50%. they had a growth of jobs of about 40,000. we had a growth of jobs of about 500,000 so i was comparing what i thought was my far superior record to his otherwise decent record, but the numbers weren't as great. that's all part of campaigning. >> all right. hard to tell from what you just heard from him, but giuliani has thrown his support behind romney. he told cnn's candy crowley the digs, well, that's just all part of the campaign. defense secretary leon panetta took aim at romney today for the candidate's attacks on the withdrawal strategy in afghanistan. romney has criticized the 2014 date for pulling out of afghanistan saying that publicizing a timeline is naive. today on abc's "this week," panetta said the republican criticism is all campaign rhetoric >> i think you've got 50 nations in nato that agree to a plan in afghanistan. it's the lisbon agreement, an agreement that, you know, others, president bush, president obama, everyone has agreed is the direction that we go in in afghanistan. what is that direction? it's to take us to a point where we draw down by the end of 2014. that is the plan that has been agreed to. and it's a plan that is working. >> peytonia went on to say that the 2014 withdrawal timeline is the only way to ensure a successful transition to afghan forces, and as you just heard he says the plan is working. it's a memorial day weekend, of course, time to honor those who died defending our freedom. but we're also taking time to remember those missing in action. every memorial day thousands of motorcyclists honor these people by gathering in washington for rolling thunder. many of you have heard about this. this year one soldier in particular, army sergeant bo berrgdahl stands out as the only american prisoner of war. i was captured in afghanistan in 2009, and today his father made him a promise. >> thanks to you our pows and mias are never forgotten and never will be forgotten. bo, if you can hear me, are you not forgotten and so help me god you will come home. we will not leave you behind. >> today a rare emergency meeting of the u.n. security council. one topic on the agenda, of course, is syria. after more than 100 civilians were killed on friday, many of them, nearly half young children. protesters say the international community isn't doing enough. just stay off the freeways, all right? i don't want you going out on those yet. mmm-hmm. and just leave your phone in your purse. i don't want you texting, all right? daddy...ok! ok, here you go. be careful. thanks dad. call me -- but not while you're driving. ♪ [ dad ] we knew this day was coming. that's why we bought a subaru. ♪ of single mile credit cards. battle speech right? may i? [ horse neighs ] for too long, people have settled for single miles. with the capital one venture card, you'll earn double miles on every purchase, every day! [ visigoths cheer ] hawaii, here we come. [ alec ] so sign up today for a venture card at capitalone.com. and start earning double. [ all ] double miles! [ brays ] what's in your wallet? can you play games on that? not on the runway. no. and people. and the planes can seem the same so, it comes down to the people. because, bad weather the price of oil those are every airlines reality. and solutions won't come from 500 tons of metal and a paint job. they'll come from people. delta people. who made us one of the biggest airlines in the world. and then decided that wasn't enough. what happens when classroom teachers get the training... ...and support they need? schools flourish and students blossom. that's why programs like... ...the mickelson exxonmobil teachers academy... ...and astronaut sally ride's science academy are helping our educators improve student success in math and science. let's shoot for the stars. let's invest in our teachers and inspire our students. let's solve this. woman: what do you mean, homeowners insurance doesn't cover floods? [ heart rate increases ] man: a few inches of water caused all this? [ heart rate increases ] woman #2: but i don't even live near the water. what you don't know about flood insurance may shock you -- including the fact that a preferred risk policy starts as low as $129 a year. for an agent, call the number that appears on your screen. the u.n. security council has condemned friday's massacre in the syrian town of hula, and it isn't buying the government's explanation that that was the work of terrorists. 108 civilians were killed, nearly half of them young children. the opposition says this was the work of the military, and the u.n. agrees. after a rare emergency meeting today, the u.n. security council issued a statement pointing at forces loyal to president bashar al assad. meanwhile, syrian protesters are growing frustrated by what it calls the international community's inaction. cnn's mohammed jamjoom has more from lebanon. >> reporter: time and again over the past several months we've seen -- we've seen international pressures stepped up on syria, whether it be the u.n. or other agencies. we've seen the eu impose sanctions. arab league monitors were in there a couple months ago. now there are u.n. observers there, about 300 on the ground, and yet no matter who is there or what type of pressure is being applied on the syrian regime to end the cycle of violence, the brutal crackdown going on for 15 minutes doesn't seem to be ending. >> the u.n. wants to see syria implement a peace plan, but in towns like hula it appears there's little chance for a cease-fire. itn's alex thompson traveled to hula and filed this report. >> reporter: hula today, so far the world has seen only fleeting glimpses from rebel cameras. we're in the southern suburbs, not exactly controlled by the syrian army, but they are here. we can only film covertly, and they are scared, very scared. who knows how many dead bodies lie around here. when i pulled the blanket back, it revealed an old man way past fighting age with a gunshot wound. for well over an hour we were pinned down here by sniper rounds, terrorists, said the syrian army, their word for rebels. and about ten meters away from this position, one of the soldiers was hit and taken away quickly, but he left his mark on this town. because the fighting continues in this town, it's impossible to verify exactly what happened here. there are no eyewitnesses. there are no civilians. they have all been forced out by the fighting, clearly going on all around this town today. but this is rebel-held hula, a ghost town. ask yourself this then. why did people flee the area held by the army but remain in the rebel-held zone? after friday's massacre here, just who are the people afraid of? in these empty streets, the answer seems glaringly obvious. officials in afghanistan blame a nato air strike for killing eight civilians this weekend, most of them children. it happened in a province south of kabul. according to u.s. military spokesman, the support air strike was called in by nato troops who were under fire from insurgents. nato officials say they are aware of the incident and are investigating. a general's words about military suicides causes an uproar. i talked with a woman who was directly affected by those words. her husband, a marine, killed himself. made by bees. toucan sam. that's not cheese. grass fed. curry. gingersnaps. soup can tower. 5% cash back. right now, get 5% cash back at grocery stores. it pays to discover. [ engine turns over ] [ male announcer ] we began with the rx. [ tires squeal ] then we turned the page, creating the rx hybrid. ♪ now we've turned the page again with the all-new rx f sport. ♪ this is the next chapter for the rx and the next chapter for lexus. see your lexus dealer. it's memorial day weekend, and in between all of the picnics and the beach and tomorrow's day off we are remembering the men and women who died while serving our country. the pentagon, specifically the army, is reporting a spike in the number of suicides in the ranks of active duty soldiers, national guardsmen and reservists, 278 people in the army took his or her own life last year alone. this week the commanding general of ft. bliss took back some of the comments he made. his personal opinion about military suicide and the people who chose to do it, but the damage was already done. major general dana pittard wrote these words on the ft. bliss website. i have now come to the conclusion that suicide is an absolutely selfish act. he went on to say soldiers who commit suicide leave their families, their buddies and their units to literally clean up their mess. there is nothing noble about suicide. the general says he wrote those words when he was frustrated by a rash of suicides on his base, but even though he retracted those words, clarified his feelings, it speaks to a culture in the military where people contemplating suicide are often reluctant to get help. well, last night right here on cnn, i spoke to a woman who not only works with service members suffering from mental health issues, she's an expert for personal reasons. her husband, a marine corps officer, killed himself five years ago, and this is part of our conversation. >> yeah, i mean, i was really sad to hear the comment, and, you know, it's too bad because we -- if we know about mental health and people who are considering suicide, that they are -- the last thing they are thinking about is dumping their baggage. they are really feeling like they are no longer valuable to their unit, they are no longer valuable to their families. they feel like they have nothing left to give and everyone will be better off with them, and it's a mental health issue and an injury issue, not an issue of selfishness or trying to drop their pack or leave their problems for other people. >> tell me about your husband, john. it's been seven years now since he killed himself. >> yes. >> so tragically. >> yeah. >> what happened? >> well, he -- you know, it was a culmination of trauma and loss and untreated depression, and in the military so often our men and women are asked to live very stressful lives with very little sleep. they are sacrificing a lot. they are separated from their support systems. they gett exposed to a lot of trauma in their lives and seeking counselling is not a strong thing to do but something that is maybe weak or something you should avoid. in my husband's case, when he started to really suffer, he was afraid to ask for help for fear of how that would change the way people viewed him. >> that's right. there's that stigma, right, that we hear so much about. >> yes. >> with the military. i want to play some tape of vice president biden. he was at an event yesterday in washington. >> yes. >> you were there. >> yes. >> and he made some pretty powerful comments. let's watch. >> that black hole you feel in your chest, like you're being sucked back into it, looking at your kids, and most of you have kids here, and knowing it was the first time in my career, in my life, i'm saying that someone could go out and i probably shouldn't say this with the press here, but, no, it's more important -- you're more important. for the first time in my life i understood how someone can consciously decide to commit suicide, not because they were deranged, not because they were nuts, but because they have been to the top of the mountain, and they just knew in their heart that they would never get there again, that never going to get, never going to be that way ever again. >> pretty powerful stuff, kim. what was your reaction? you were there in the room. >> well, i was amazed because vice president biden was speaking to 2,000 of our survivors who were gathered for a weekend of -- of support around their grief, and for him to speak so candidly about his own loss and his own thoughts and feelings really touched our survivors and really made them feel like they were heard and that people really understood their loss, so i -- i was really grateful to the vice president for opening up his heart and for letting us know that we weren't alone in our grief and some of our struggles around grief. >> you know, it's been seven years, as i mentioned, since your husband killed himself. i'm curious to know from your standpoint whether you think the military has gotten any better in terms of helping people who come back from war zones and who suffer from ptsd and who might be on the edge. have you noticed a difference since john -- >> well, i've noticed people working really hard to make changes and providing -- putting in a lot of programs and doing a lot of different things to try to prevent suicides, and i know that the leaders really care, but we've got to do more. we've got to know that our -- if we're asking our troops to go in harm's way over and over again and to be exposed to all kinds of trauma, that people shouldn't have to see as human beings