NBC Nightly News with Tom Llamas - Thursday, September 12, 2024

Episode Date: September 13, 2024

Louisiana grapples with power outages and flooding as Hurricane Francine heads inland; State of emergency expands as western fires spread; SpaceX crew performs historic spacewalk; and more on tonight���s broadcast.

Tonight, the path of destruction from Hurricane Francine. Power knocked out to hundreds of thousands in the south. The new images. Towns underwater after Francine roared ashore in Louisiana as a Category 2 hurricane. Heavy rain, powerful winds knocking down trees onto homes. The dramatic rescues. And tonight, Francine's remnants on the move. Millions under flood alerts.

Our team in the storm zone. Also tonight, a state of emergency declared as raging wildfires spread in Southern California. Dozens of homes destroyed. The race to escape the flames. An Alaska Airlines plane blows its tires after the pilot slams the brakes on during takeoff, avoiding a potential collision with a Southwest airplane cleared to land on the same runway. The FAA investigation. The race for the White House, Donald Trump now saying there won't be another debate as he and Kamala Harris hit the campaign trail for the first time since Tuesday's showdown.

Both candidates in key battlegrounds they hope to flip. The awe-inspiring images from orbit, the SpaceX Polaris Dawn crew making history, the first ever private spacewalk, and the life-saving scene playing out on live TV as Hurricane Francine hit, the hero ER nurse who came to the rescue speaking out to us. This is NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt. Good evening and welcome. 24 hours after Hurricane Francine roared ashore in Louisiana as a Category 2 storm, they are still trying to get all the lights back on. Places like Baton Rouge and New Orleans taking strong hits.

Winds gusting to nearly 80 miles per hour, bringing down trees and power lines. By mid-afternoon today, 285,000 homes and businesses across Louisiana were still without power. But it was the rain, torrents of rain, that triggered widespread flooding, worse than residents tell us they expected. Five to seven inches recorded in New Orleans. Some pockets seeing up to eight inches of rain. The rapid flooding leaving many people trapped, forcing some urgent rescues. The remnants of the storm moving inland now, but still dangerous, as Kathy Park reports. Tonight, towns across southern Louisiana are

picking up the pieces after a damaging blow from Hurricane Francine. Overnight, the powerful system slammed into Louisiana's Gulf Coast with damaging winds and drenching rain. Power knocked out to thousands. The town of Houma taking the brunt of the Category 2 storm. A lot of wind-driven rain, a lot of high winds, which ultimately resulted in about seven different rescues during the height of the storm. Francine weakened to a tropical depression this morning. We, as of right now, have no reports of any storm-related fatalities, and we want to keep it that way. Mother Nature's unpredictable. Dan Stevens says his store survived Ida in 2021.

And while Francine was a weaker storm, they took a bigger hit. What was your reaction when you came out here? Wow. You would think a small storm like that would not do this. This tree crashed into a power line behind David Mount's home. I heard this cracking and popping and I suspected it was one of the trees. And next door, Albert Short says a storm nearly took his life. We was prepared for it, but we was not prepared for this. The extreme winds knocking down trees that cut straight into his home. We heard a loud boom. All the ceilings just had fell down. Francine packing a powerful punch and now on the move again. Kathy joining us now from hard-hit Homa, Louisiana. Kathy, as we mentioned at the top of the broadcast, the threat from this storm isn't

over. Lester, that's right. What's left of Francine is now on the move headed north toward the Tennessee Valley. So flooding as well as tornadoes are a possibility. Meanwhile, here in Louisiana, as you can see, there's still a big cleanup ahead and thousands are still without power tonight. Lester. Okay, Kathy Park, thank you. We'll turn now from the storm to the raging wildfires in the West. California expanding its state of emergency as dangerous heat fuels three massive infernos. Dozens of homes destroyed.

Our Dana Griffin is in the fire zone tonight. High fire danger across the West. We hope the winds don't shift and, you know, we're still worried. Five million people under red flag warnings as low humidity and gusty winds threaten to spread existing fires. There's still a potential for more people to be disrupted and heaven forbid anybody to be injured or killed. Firefighters pushing back flames in four southern California counties. Governor Gavin Newsom extending the emergency declaration after touring the fire zone. After those fires exploded overnight Tuesday, harrowing tales of survival. As the bridge fire chewed through Wrightwood, California. The whole south side of Mountain High was fully engulfed and had tried multiple times to call 911, couldn't get through to them.

So Chris Duran says he drove to the fire department. I showed him pictures of where it was and everything, and they immediately said, okay, we're going to get right on it. The smoke leaving air unhealthy to breathe. A weekend music festival now canceled. And today, investigators hit suspected arsonist Justin Holstenberg with nine charges, accusing him of starting the line fire. I can assure the public that we're going to go hard on this case. He has not entered a plea. If convicted, the DA says he could go away for life. His family has declined to comment. Dana joins us now from Riverside County, where the airport fire, as it's known, spread from a neighboring county. And Dana, I understand this blaze was sparked by accident.

That's right, Lester. You can see the devast devastation these homes can go up within minutes it was actually an orange county public works crew that used heavy equipment sparking this fire they are now reviewing their policies lester all right dana thank you just in tonight a close call on the runway in nashville an alaska airlines plane blowing out its tires when it slammed on the brakes to avoid a collision with a Southwest plane. And it comes, as we hear for the first time, from the hero FedEx pilots who avoided another near miss last year. Here's Erin McLaughlin. Today at the Nashville airport in Alaska, airlines take off aborted and plane tires blown out after a Southwest flight was cleared to cross from the

same runway, according to the FAA. Alaska Airlines released a statement saying the pilots of its Seattle-bound plane immediately applied the brakes. The stop so abrupt, the plane tires deflated due to heat buildup from the rapid stop. No one was injured and passengers deplaned. The NTSB and FAA are investigating. The whole tail of that CRJ is off. The news just days after a slow speed collision at Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson Airport when a Delta Airbus bound for Tokyo hit a much smaller regional jet, knocking off its tail. You could hear the metal scraping against the outside of the plane and

it was just shaking really badly. Southwest aboard. FedEx is on the go. There have been a number of close calls on runways across the country, including this near miss in Austin last year. A Southwest Airlines flight cleared for tank off and a FedEx plane cleared to land from the same foggy runway. Today, for the first time, the FedEx pilots spoke out. Never did I imagine that the plane was going to be right there. I thought, at worst case, he would be at the end of the runway about to lift off. Tonight, there's relief, but also concern after news of yet another potential close call. Erin McLaughlin, NBC News.

We'll turn out of the race for the White House. Former President Trump today saying he will not agree to another debate with Vice President Harris as both candidates hit the campaign trail for the first time since Tuesday's face-off. Gabe Gutierrez is in North Carolina tonight. Tonight, dueling rallies in critical battleground states on opposite sides of the country. Vice President Harris in North Carolina. While Donald Trump is trying to pull our nation backward, we are fighting for the future. Former President Trump in Arizona. Kamala Harris showed up spewing empty rhetoric.

He says Tuesday's fiery debate with Harris will be their last. Because we've done two debates and because they were successful, there will be no third debate. But Harris wants another. We owe it to the voters to have another debate. Her campaign says it's entering an aggressive new phase and trying to flip North Carolina, which Democrats haven't won since 2008. Donald Trump intends to end the Affordable Care Act. He has no plan to replace it. He said, he said, concepts of a plan. Harris's team now ramping up its push for younger voters.

Today, we met this group from Wake Forest University. They say enthusiasm is surging since President Biden dropped out. Having someone who looks like you, who has the same values of you on the ticket, that's just so encouraging, exciting. What do you make of her shift to the center on some issues? I think that she's doing what politicians do, which is try to represent everyone in America. While former President Trump in Arizona, a state he narrowly lost in 2020,

going after Harris's record on the economy. I'm angry about rampant inflation destroying our middle class, and the American people are also very angry about that. Trump supporters say he delivered at this week's debate. I think Trump won because he hit all the marks. He touched on all the points that I think Americans are looking to hear about. She didn't tell us what her agenda was or what she was going to do for us. She just talked. And Gabe, joining us now from that Harris rally in Greensboro

and Gabe, the vice president will be getting some heavyweight help on the fundraising side. Yes, Lester, three sources familiar with the matter tell NBC News that Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama will hold fundraisers next week for Vice President Harris. Meanwhile, a judge today dropped two counts against former President Trump in his Georgia election interference case. He still faces eight more in that case. Lester. All right, Gabe Gutierrez, thank you. There is growing fallout from something former President Trump said during the debate, pushing a baseless claim about Haitian immigrants in Ohio.

Today in the city, at the center of it all, a rash of bomb threats. Our Yamiche Alcindor is there. Yamiche, good evening. Good evening. That's right. Today here in Springfield, bomb threats led authorities to evacuate City Hall and a number of other buildings, including an elementary school. Officials say they are working with the FBI to investigate. It's not clear who made the threats or whether they were connected to the baseless claims

about Haitian immigrants abusing pets. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre called the unfounded allegations, quote, very bizarre and very hateful smear. Meanwhile, some residents were so concerned with the tension that they kept their children home from school. Lester. All right, Yamiche, I'll send door tonight. Thank you. And there is another controversial claim often heard from the right that undocumented immigrants are voting in America's elections. But is there any evidence to back it up? Julia Ainsley with our Vote Watch report. What's up, good to be here. Nice to see you. Have fun.

On the debate stage. A lot of these illegal immigrants coming in, they're trying to get them to vote. And at campaign stops across the country. They're not citizens. They're not allowed to do it. It's illegal as hell. Former President Trump frequently repeats false claims about migrants voting. They can't speak a word of English for the most part, but they're signing them up. That's not true. It's illegal for non-U.S. citizens to vote for president or in any federal election. And there have been few recorded incidents of non-citizens

trying to vote illegally. There's also no evidence of anyone trying to get undocumented migrants to vote, according to experts. Those 17 different cities and towns allow people who are not U.S. citizens to vote locally, including in D.C., where non-citizens, even those here illegally, can vote in local elections. Here at this voter registration fair in D.C., any D.C. resident can register to vote, even if they're not an American citizen. But when they get to the polls, they'll be given a different ballot, like this one, that only lists local candidates for positions like the school board and city council. I do not have a driving license in social security. We changed the law to make sure that all local residents are able to help have a vote and have a say in their government and the decisions they make.

Charles Allen is on the D.C. City Council. Could you be registered and say another country and vote here? You would have to be a resident here and claim residency here for more than 30 days. So we've seen hypotheticals where people throw things like that out and they just don't happen. The state of Texas says it's found almost 2,000 non-citizens who have previously voted, but it's unclear if they've been charged and liberal advocacy groups question the claims. Still, the laws allowing non-citizens to vote locally have sparked backlash across the country and fueled Trump's claim of widespread migrant voting, which have been echoed by Elon Musk and conservative media hosts and inspired a bill that would require proof of citizenship to register to vote. If you've seen the form, you just check a box. So non-citizens are on voter rolls. The right to vote now under an even sharper spotlight as the election looms.

Julia Ainsley, NBC News, Washington. In just 60 seconds, the history-making moment high above the earth. The all-civilian crew on the first-ever private spacewalk. The incredible images are next. History was made today hundreds of miles above Earth as the crew of the Polaris Dawn opened their spaceship to the blackness of space to perform the first-ever spacewalk by private astronauts. Tom Costello with the awe-inspiring images. Jared now opening Dragon Resilience into space. It happened somewhere over Australia and New Zealand. I have a feeling the crowd is about to go wild.

For the first time ever, a commercial astronaut, Jared Isaacman, opened the hatch to his SpaceX ship, then stepped into the blackness of space. Back at home, we all have a lot of work to do, but from here, Earth sure looks like a perfect world. This was the riskiest part of a five-day mission, orbiting three times higher than the space station. And without an airlock, all four Polaris Dawn astronauts had to suit up before opening their ship to the vacuum of space. Though today's spacewalk, really more of a space stretch. These are the suit mobility checks that Jared is performing. As Isaacman and engineer Sarah Gillis tested their brand new spacesuits that astronauts might one day wear on the moon.

Already they've climbed 870 miles above the Earth. The furthest humans have traveled since the Apollo missions and the first time women have traveled so far. Conducting research and testing new technologies and posting hello earth on x using new laser light communications nasa chief bill nelson said today represents a giant leap forward for the commercial space industry senator and retired astronaut mark kelly this expands the ability for commercial operations and we're moving to commercialize more of especially low Earth orbit. And just maybe the final frontier. Tom Costello, NBC News, Washington. Glad they could hang on. And coming up, the good news tonight about the ER nurse who saved a man on live TV

as Hurricane Francine raged. He speaks out to us next. Finally, there's good news tonight. A hero ER nurse speaking to us after saving a man's life on live TV at the height of Hurricane Francine. Here's Jesse Kirsch. With Hurricane Francine hammering New Orleans, the city told people to stay home. This is why. That water is almost to the window of that pickup truck right there. NBC affiliate WDSU was live on the air as this pickup truck wound up in feet-deep floodwaters, floating and spinning with a man trapped inside. Reporter Jonah Gilmore alerted police. Officer, they have a truck right here. My brother had texted me saying somebody had just

driven into the water. Miles Crawford lives close by. The University Medical Center nurse grabbed a hammer and walked into the water. It looked like they're climbing out of the backseat right now. That guy just broke that window. The man escaped with difficulty. Oh my goodness, he just fell in the water. That good Samaritan's helping. As the pair moved toward higher ground, the fire department arrived. Then we learned about Miles Crawford and his humility. I'm a nurse, so I've got to save lives, right? There's a real difference between someone being brought to you in a hospital

and you putting your own life at risk in flood water to save a life. Honestly, that was easy compared to what goes on behind those doors right here. We just do the best that we can with the situation at hand. Be kind to others, and if they need any help and you're able to help them, just help them out. Kindness, exactly what so many in Louisiana could use tonight. Jesse Kirsch, NBC News, New Orleans. That's nightly news for this Thursday. Thank you for watching.

I'm Lester Holt. Please take care of yourself and each other. Good night. Yes, that's the life-saving measure right here. That guy, hold on to the pole. This is the life-saving Good Samaritan right here.