NBC Nightly News with Tom Llamas - Wednesday, August 12, 2026

Episode Date: August 13, 2026

Midwest flash flood emergency triggers rescues; Two killed in military helicopter crash in Texas; Desperate search for earthquake survivors; and more on tonight's broadcast. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Breaking news tonight, the flash flood emergency in the Midwest. Families now trapped in rising waters. Catastrophic floods overwhelming Indiana communities. This man clinging onto a utility pole. Rescue boats going house to house, saving people and pets. Violent winds sending this gas station roof toppling over. Plus a house exploding in the height of the storms. Our Maggie Vespa in the disaster zone.

This just in, a million. military helicopter crashing north of Austin, Texas, killing those on board, what we're learning. Also breaking tonight, White House Press Secretary Caroline Levitt, leaving the Trump administration why she's now stepping down. Inside the rescue mission, the clock ticking to find survivors, our reporter on the 24-hour operation to pull people out alive. ICE's new shock gloves, the powerful new tool in officers' hands, electrical gloves. that can deliver intense zaps will show you how they work and why they're now being deployed. Also tonight, the search for an alleged arsonist, a masked man caught tossing a flaming object

into a home while people were sleeping inside, how they all got out alive. WNBA controversy, the coach booed by her own fans after the foul that rocked the league. You'll hear her fiery speech as calls grow for her to be fired. Legendary singer Rod Stewart, canceling the rest of his tour, the concern for his health tonight. Travis Kelsey breaking his silence on his wedding to Taylor Swift, what he's saying about his marriage era. And there's good news tonight, spectacle in the sky. We're there as millions look up to catch a rare glimpse of a total eclipse. Nightly News starts right now.

This is NBC Nightly News with Tom Yamas. And good evening. We thank you for being here with us on this Wednesday night. We begin with that state of emergency in Indiana. Deadly storms and flooding have devastated wide swaths of the Midwest this week. In the Hoosers state, entire neighborhoods swamped by floodwaters. Main Street in the town of Cambridge City, this is east of Indianapolis looking more like a lake. Emergency responders, you see them there at the water's edge. And drivers getting stranded. Even this man in a boat seemed clinging onto a uterner. utility pole, needing rescue to get to safety. During storms on Tuesday, neighbors say a massive explosion leveled this Indiana home sparking huge flames where one person was killed. And in Ohio, watch the moments, winds blew over this gas station canopy. And there could be more rough weather on the way. Here's why. 18 million under flood alerts tonight. Maggie Vespa and her team in hard hit Cambridge City, starting us off tonight. Tonight, catastrophic flooding in Indiana. The National Weather Service declaring multiple flash flood emergencies outside Indianapolis,

as much as 12 inches of rain falling in 36 hours. In Cambridge City, first responders carefully navigating floating debris to make high water rescues. Morning race here grew up here. We're just experiencing the worst flooding I've ever seen. This man holding onto a utility pole standing on a boat that's almost completely submerged. Rescuers coming to his aid. Watch as he crawls onto their boat. Rich Nye from our affiliate, WTHR, is north of there in Muncie. We have had nonstop heavy rain, and it's coming down in buckets. The Muncie Fire Department bringing people out of their houses with their pets, family by family.

Fire officials making this plea to residents on live TV. Please shelter in place. If they need evacuated, call 911. We'll get to them as soon as we can. The widespread flooding comes after two monster systems. Customs ravaged the Midwest in 24 hours. Our team taking refuge in our car as today's storms roared through. There's lightning there.

We just saw another one. It's crazy how fast this storm came in. In Portage, Indiana, neighbors telling me this home exploded during Tuesday's storm. And they're so bad. Ryan Parker running to see if he could help. Shucked my whole house. And I thought a jet had crashed. He thought a jet had crashed.

That's what it sounded like. Authorities confirm one person was killed, family identifying her as Leona Rice, a wife and mother in her late 80s. Residents there dealing with so much. Maggie Vespa joins us now from hard hit Cambridge City in Indiana. Maggie, we can see that water behind you and it's still rising at this hour? Yeah, Tom, that's right. And you can see how high it is on that house. And then look at that stop sign over there, barely peeking out. That foot of rain that parts of the state saw in the last 36 hours, that's five times. what they normally see for the whole month of August. Tom.

The Midwest cannot catch a break this summer. Okay, Maggie Vespa for us. We're also tracking breaking news out of Texas where a military helicopter has crashed north of Austin, killing two people aboard. Our Morgan Chesky is following this one for us. Morgan, a news conference just wrapped up. What did we learn? Yeah, Tom, authority state appears as helicopter went down in a violent crash and it sparked a fast-moving fire that forced some people to evacuate. This video from the sheriff's office captured the charge scene. Investigators say that downed Apache helicopter came from neighboring Fort Hood, and officials say there were two crew members on board, both pronounced dead. The aircraft crashed

into a field and authorities say no one else on the ground was hurt. Military officials are now investigating what caused that crash. Tom? A horrific crash scene there. Okay, Morgan Chesky on that breaking news. Now to that shakeup at the White House with press secretary Caroline Levitt announcing she's stepping down. Garrett Hake is there for us tonight. And Garrett, President Trump just weighed in. Yeah, Tom, the president praised Levitt today as one of his most trusted aides and said she'd be leaving at the end of the month to spend more time with her young family. Levitt gave birth to her second child in May. She's just 28, the youngest White House press secretary in history and the first to give birth while on the job.

Levitt calling her decision bittersweet with President Trump tonight saying she will remain a top outside advisor. Tom? Garrett Haig at the White House in Columbia, rescuers are holding out hope that they can still feel. find more survivors in that rubble. After that powerful earthquake rocked the country. Our George Solis is on the ground where crews are working through the night and the death toll just went up. Tonight, the search for survivors becoming more desperate. The death toll climbing above 260 after that 7.4 magnitude earthquake rocked Western Colombia Monday. We haven't slept, this volunteer searcher tells us, none of us have. The clock is now ticking.

This is the last 24 hours in that critical window to find survivors, workers, doubling down efforts. Here in Cali, 23-year-old Christian Menensis is clinging on to hope that his friends will be found, even as the odds of rescuing become more slim. None of us have lost faith, he says. We're all here for them. At this clinic, Dr. Claudia Gomez says her team has cared for more than 100 injured. It's not one person who are all. a family, she tells us. Our clinic responded with everything we have.

John Solarte breaking his knee when he hit the still shaking floor. Tonight, grateful to be alive. Across the country, we're seeing more of that incredible humanity on display. This woman pulled a safety from beneath thick concrete. And new images of that incredible moment a six-month-old baby was found alive. At the center of this rescue operation, no second is being spared, despite aftershocks, grueling heat and a lack of sleep. With the potential life on the line, the effort is ongoing. Tom? George, Solis still there in the quake zone for us.

George, thank you. Back here at home, ICE is making headlines tonight. Purchasing thousands of so-called zap gloves that deliver a shock to people who are not complying with officers. ICE saying it helps avoid deadly confrontations, though immigrant advocates are raising concerns tonight. Julie Ainsley shows us how they work and why ICE wants them now. Tonight, facing criticism over use of force and some arrest, ICE says it has a new tool for officers dealing with non-compliance suspects, spending $20 million to purchase thousands of devices known as the glove, which shock people who do not comply with officers. These demonstration videos released by the manufacturer. A senior DHS official tells NBC News, officers will be able to turn on the gloves, also known as zap gloves, at the touch of a button.

Amitting a shock, they say, won't leave a mark or hurt the person after they are released. Saying it allows officers to avoid using firearms and is better than pepper spray, which can impact bystanders. In a statement to NBC News, DHS says every decision is made with careful consideration, and appropriately reviewed to ensure any technology ICE utilizes is consistent with all applicable law enforcement policies and standards. Zapp gloves are currently used by corrections officers and several county jails. And it comes as President Trump praises ICE for a surge of deportations. We have the strongest border in the history of our country. We will always stand with ICE and border patrol and law enforcement. But tonight, immigrant rights advocates are worried.

This is an agency that uses force first and then lies about it and avoids accountability later. And in another major shift, a senior DHS official tells us all ICE officers now have body cameras. The call for cameras coming after two deadly shootings in July. Every officer is expected to be trained and wearing them by the end of the month. Tom? Julia, Anzley, with a lot of new reporting for us tonight. Julia, thank you. In Georgia tonight, investigators are searching for an arsonist who allegedly set fire to a home with six people in.

inside some of them sleeping. Jesse Kirsch has the video. Tonight, the search for an alleged arsonist, as new video appears to capture a person dragging a flaming object, briefly dropping it, then tossing it into the garage of a Georgia home. Moments later, the ring camera video obtained by our Atlanta affiliate WXIA, shows the individual their face seemingly covered, swings something else toward the garage before leaving. Soon after, the Lawrenceville home looked like this. Tonight, authorities say that fire was arson, and they want the public's help finding whoever is responsible.

All I heard was orange flames and pop, pop, pop, pop, pop. Christopher Hammond and his five roommates were inside their home early last Wednesday, about 30 miles outside Atlanta. Some were sleeping, but Hammond says he happened to be up later than usual. I started yelling a guy for the people up sales. I started yelling their names. Authorities say firefighters arrived just before 5.30 a.m. The home partially collapsing with no injuries reported.

It's now I start running and I see the fire coming out from the garage. Another roommate, Dakota Perry, shocked by the ring video. We were just like, that's crazy. It wasn't just a random fire. So far, no arrests have been announced. And when we asked officials about the ring video, they told us the incident is under investigation. Tom. Jesse, thank you.

we want to turn now to a growing firestorm in the WNBA, the high-profile coach of the Indiana fever facing criticism for her reaction to a flagrant foul on one of her own players. Now she's firing back at critics. Here's Sam Brock. Any suggestions that I don't 100% always have my players back. I ride with them 10 toes down all the time, all the time. Indiana fever coach Stephanie White at a fever pitch

responding to those calling for her to be fired over her reaction to this play. Fever guard Sophie Cunningham, taking a hard foul from the Chicago Sky's Dijunet Carrington Saturday that blow to the head and neck leading to Carrington's automatic ejection, after which she posted the words, White privilege on social media, though later saying the post wasn't about the assessment of the foul. Coach White's initial reaction to that play, ripped by some as too sympathetic to her former player Carrington. She's going to play her butt off, man. She's going to compete. Nobody's going to go walking in for a layup. Some Indiana fever fans booing their own coach last night. And White's going to bea. now clarifying her position on Saturday's flagrant foul.

Was it egregious? Absolutely. When you have a chance to watch that over and over and over on replay, you can see that. The coach also clapping back at those fomenting controversy throughout the WNBA by exploiting tension over issues like transgender athletes and race. The hate, the fear mongering, the divisiveness, the stuff that's trying to hijack our league will not win. It won't win. through it all, both Cunningham and teammate Caitlin Clark standing by their coach.

White making it clear, she's not going to let the naysairs divide her from her players. I stand by them. I will always stand by them. Everybody else can go to Hill. Sam Brock, NBC News, New York. We're back in 60 seconds with first comments from Travis Kelsey about his wedding night with Taylor Swift. We're back now with news out of the music world. Legendary singer and songwriter Rod Stewart is canceling. his farewell tour dates after undergoing a heart procedure for a coronary stent. A statement posted on the 81-year-old's Instagram says he's doing well, but is taking the next four weeks to recuperate. Also tonight, we're getting new details on the wedding of the year from the

groom himself. Travis Kelsey speaking for the first time today about his star-studded wedding to Taylor Swift at Madison Square Garden, calling it, quote, the best night of my life. Take a listen. It's kind of cool to be able to, you know, live out my childhood dream of being in that venue and, you know, the mecca of all sports venues, being able to get married in there. All right. When we come back, solar spectacular, the rare total eclipse that had millions staring at the sun. That's next. Finally, there's good news tonight. A total solar eclipse sweeping across Europe, millions looking up at the same sky at the same moment and agreeing on one thing.

It was beautiful. NBC's Gotti Schwartz takes us into the darkness. Streaking across parts of the earth tonight, a sunset before the sun sets. When we first saw it, it was above Iceland, the moon sliding slowly into dazzling position. Look at that. That is quite the diamond.

Yeah, oh, and beautiful solar prominences too. Oh, my gosh. Right at the edge there, the sun's crown of plasma arching off into space with solar flares as big as the, Earth itself. The cheers are going up here. This is it. In Spain, NBC's Ralph Sanchez was watching his first eclipse from a hillside. And that's it. It's disappeared, Gadi. It is just the most extraordinary, this perfect circle of blackness and all around it, this just totally majestic corona of the sun.

It looks like somebody has just punched a hole in the sky. And then the light came rushing in. The former family came all the way from Las Vegas. Big fireball. A big fireball. People marveling at the magic of a mathematical coincidence that the moon is 400 times smaller than the sun, which is 400 times farther from us than the moon. That's what is happening right now.

I'm going to try to do this right here, okay? So we've got the sun over there. Let's see if we can line it up a little bit. Boom, right there. That is a perfect position. It's almost like somebody, place this perfectly with this 400, 400 equation and allowed this to spin around the earth in this perfect way.

A twilight reminder of our cosmic dance and the brilliance of our sun. Gotti Schwartz, NBC News. All right, that's nightly news for this Wednesday. We thank you for watching. I'm Tom Yamas. Tonight, and always, we're here for you. Good night. Thank you.