Top Story with Tom Llamas - Friday, August 25, 2023

Episode Date: August 26, 2023

Tonight's Top Story has the latest breaking news, political headlines, news from overseas and the best NBC News reporting from across the country and around the world.

Tonight, breaking news, trouble brewing in the tropics, and it could be headed towards the U.S. The National Hurricane Center closely watching this, a tropical disturbance in the Caribbean, with the potential to strengthen into a major storm, where it could make landfall in the coming days. Also breaking tonight a toxic inferno erupting outside of New Orleans, a massive fire, ripping through one of the largest oil refineries in the country, dangerous chemicals spewing into the air. The presidents who were ordered to evacuate are seen and breathing in as crews raced to contain that blaze. Deadly storm strike, at least seven confirmed tornadoes touching down across the Midwest, winds topping 110 miles per hour, torrential rains creating treacherous conditions on the roads.

What we're learning tonight about several fatal accidents. Final surrenders, former President Trump booked and out on bond after turning himself in, at the Fulton County Jail, all 19 co-defendants in the Georgia election probe turning themselves in by today's noon deadline where their cases head from here. We are continuing to follow those tragic wildfires in Maui, Hawaiian officials releasing a verified list of the nearly 400 people still missing, and the new concern tonight that those who survived could soon have nowhere to stay. Plus, poisoning thy neighbor? Unbelievable video capturing the moment, a Florida man appears to inject a syringe of liquid into his neighbor's front door.

So what was inside of it? The symptoms the people inside, including a 10-month-old baby, had been experiencing for days that led them to install this hidden camera. And breaking news, the moment a tree came crashing down in the middle of a live report and how the person inside that emergency vehicle that got crushed is doing now. Top story starts right now. And good evening. We are following several breaking headlines here on Top Story tonight, so we want to get right to that threat brewing in the tropics. Take a look at this. It might not look scary right now, but the National Hurricane Center tonight is keeping a close eye on this system in the Caribbean, warning that it could strengthen into a tropical storm, possibly a hurricane. Officials urging residents in Florida to stay prepared as things could develop very quickly. The storm could hit the west coast of Florida or the panhandle in the coming day.

So I want to get right over to NBC News meteorologist Michelle Grossman, who joins us now live in studio. Michelle, we know it's still early, but it is Friday. People may be already to be celebrating the weekend, not paying attention to the news. And this thing is sort of developing. It is, yeah, Tom, I'm so glad you said it's the weekend because now we have the time to prepare, right? We have the next two days because this likely is going to become a tropical storm, if not a hurricane. So let's take a look at the overall view of the tropics. What if this is telling me is it's really active.

There's not a lot of things that are stopping these storms. Now, all of these are not of concern, but we are looking at that concern in the northwestern Caribbean. That's what we expect to impact Florida as early as Tuesday, even Wednesday. Now is this time to stay informed, and now it's the time to prepare. So we're looking at 80% chance of development in the next seven days. We're looking at a 40% chance in the next two days to be a tropical depression. So we do expect it to become tropical over the next couple of days. This is why it's going to be moving to the north and also to the east.

It's going to enter the Gulf of Mexico. Think about all those warm waters we've been talking about for months and months. We're looking at bath waters, temperatures into the 80s, into the 90s in some spots. That is fuel for these storms. So most likely we will see this pop into a tropical system, a tropical storm, even into a hurricane. Again, really early to tell, it's an area of low pressure, but it's starting to get its act together. We're starting to see those convective bands of thunderstorms. These are the water temperatures. We're looking at temperatures in the upper 80s along the Gulf Coast of Florida, the west coast of Florida. This is where we're we expect landfall as early as Tuesday or Wednesday. We're going to continue to watch that for sure. But just looking at some of these spaghetti models, we call them spaghetti models, but they're really just models that is showing us where we expect the landfall. So anywhere from the Panhandle Florida, all along the west coast of Florida, places that were hit really hard last year. And just looking past the five years, we really have seen these storms pop once they enter the Gulf of Mexico because we have low wind shear right now. And we also have those really warm bath waters. We really pay special attention to the American, also the European, and we are looking

at development as we go through in the next two days. Landfall is still to be determined. This is still early, but we're going to watch this very closely. Tom. Okay, Michelle, I'm glad you broke down those two models for us. We will be watching that. We appreciate you, of course. And severe weather also slamming the Midwest, record heat and flash floods barreling through the region. Residents now cleaning up after those violent and deadly storms brought multiple tornadoes to hard-hit areas. Maggie Vespas there. Mayhem across the Midwest after a sweeping round of deadly storms barreled through Southern Michigan and Northwest Ohio overnight. Look it. It's flipped right over.

The system packing 10 confirmed tornadoes, one with wind speeds up to 125 miles per hour, huge trees ripped up by their roots. This is the most intense storm I've ever witnessed in my life. In Lansing, one person died when this tree fell through a house. Another person was killed, several more injured after dozens of cars wrecked. on I-96 and near Grand Rapids three more deaths, including two children, after authorities say this car hydroplained. The storms at their peak knocking out power for more than half a million between the two states. We heard crash and boom and glass breaking. Near Lansing, a farm destroyed. Residents evacuated from a nursing home. The roof was ripped off the building and they had

people trapped inside. The storms follow Thursday's torrential flash floods. In Michigan, a state of of emergency. Officials noting in one county, hundreds of homeowners have reported damage. We pull together. We're a community. We know how to support each other. And we're here for each other. Another round of recovery underway as America's summer of severe weather continues. Maggie Vespah joins Top Story Live tonight. So Maggie, as you mentioned, there's so many without power in Michigan and Ohio. We also know there was crazy hot temperatures in the Midwest as well. Talk to us about what life is like over there and the latest on those outages. Yeah, exactly. I mean, it's like pick your natural disaster. Right over this past week, we've dealt with so much. And these affected areas that we're talking about in Michigan and Ohio have dealt with so much. I just checked in on the power outages between three and 400,000 people across, again, southeast Michigan and kind of northwest Ohio, still without power by my count. So crews are making progress. That's down for more than half a million, but it speaks to how massive this task is. And again, just think about it. As you point out just this week, a lot of these places have all also dealt with that record-shattering heat dome and just recently flash floods.

Tom. All right, Maggie Vespa, Maggie, we appreciate all your reporting. We do want to move on now to politics and the polarizing mugshot seen all across the world. Former President Trump booked at the Fulton County Jail in Georgia late last night, sitting for this mugshot the first we have seen of an American president. Trump and all 18 of his co-defendants surrendering before today's noon deadline. You can see all of them here in this shot. They are all accused of efforts to overturn election results in the state of Georgia,

a former White House chief of staff, a former mayor of New York City, and even a pastor, all getting their mugshots taken as well. Trump always the businessman capitalizing on this unprecedented moment. Take a look at all this merch, selling t-shirts, coffee mugs, and even bumper stickers featuring his mugshot in a fundraising push for his 2024 presidential campaign. Trump, of course, has maintained that he committed no crimes. NBC's Blaine Alexander, following it all once again for us tonight from Georgia. Tonight, former President Trump is speaking out about that unprecedented photograph, seen literally around the world.

His mugshot, a historic first, after surrendering at a Georgia jail. I was treated very nicely, but it is what it is. I took a mugshot, which I never heard the words mugshot. That wasn't, didn't teach me that at the Wharton School of Finance. Mr. Trump spent less than 20 minutes. inside the Fulton County Jail, where he was booked, his information already pre-submitted, height, weight, and hair color, strawberry blonde. He was then released on a $200,000 bond, afterwards saying he's only being charged because he's the Republican frontrunner.

I did nothing wrong. What they're doing is election interference. With the deadline of noon today, now passed, all 19 defendants have officially surrendered in Georgia. They are accused of running a criminal enterprise to try and overturn the state. state's 2020 presidential election results. Today, the first court appearance in the case. Harrison Floyd was denied bond appearing by video from jail. There's no way that I'm a flavor. Meanwhile, President Biden had this reaction to his predecessor's mugshot. Trump's Republican rivals are weighing in two. I mean, the idea that we're seeing a mugshot of a 77-year-old former president, I mean, how did we get to this point? I think it is a shame that our nation,

is going, is forced to go through these politicized persecutions. Mr. Trump is looking to turn it into a political asset. Within hours, his campaign started selling t-shirts. The caption, never surrender. And he posted the picture on X, formerly Twitter, his first post there in more than two years, following his suspension after January 6th. All right, Blaine joins us tonight from Atlanta once again.

Blaine, we did have a bit of breaking news, and it was your reporting about a bomb, threat at the courthouse, just because our viewers were probably watching last night. Whatever ended up happening with that? Yeah, great question, Tom. This came down just as we were watching the former president make his way to the jail, different facility. But we understand that the sheriff's office canine units checked it out.

Marta police checked it out as well. Nothing came of it, but it certainly speaks to the environment around here. When security is top of mind always, certainly a number of threats that they've always checked into, fortunately nothing came of that threat, Tom. And then I know we have some new reporting as well on some of the court dates moving forward. Walk our viewers through that. Well, we saw, as you said, we saw one of those defendants make their appearance before a judge today. The next time we're going to see a flurry of court activity is likely the week of September 5th, right after the Labor Day holiday.

That's when the DA is hoping to see arraignment. She asked a judge for that. Now, a judge has not approved those dates yet, so certainly watching there. But on Monday, we're going to be looking toward federal court. That's where we're going to see our first evidentiary. hearing in Mark Meadows' request to move his charges to federal court, Tom. All right, Blaine Alexander, who's been doing some terrific reporting over several weeks there out of Atlanta. We're also following breaking news out of Louisiana where a massive

fire broke out at one of the largest oil refineries in the country. The blaze causing a chemical that can cause serious health issues to leak out of a storage container, but some residents unable to leave the area. Tonight, a fire emergency at one of the largest oil refineries in the U.S. Oh, my God. Footage shows flames and thick black smoke ripping through Marathon Petroleum in Gareville, Louisiana, about 40 miles west of New Orleans. The fire burning through a storage tank

and causing the leak of a potentially dangerous chemical, prompting evacuation orders and schools to go on lockdown. The smell was bad, and I was like, we got to go inside. I didn't want to breathe it in any longer than I needed to. Lindsay Monsz lives near the plant. Her daughter, along with hundreds of her classes, sheltering in place at a local high school.

I was in shock. I actually took a video and I was like, oh, my God. I've never seen anything like that before. It was crazy. Marathon Petroleum, which runs the refinery, says the chemical being released into the air is known as naphtha. It's a partially refined product that we use it as feedstock or components to make gasoline. According to the CDC, short-term exposure is associated with eye and lung irritation, respiratory issues, and a slowing down of the nervous system.

We're pumping out the tank. We've since we're shutting down the refinery. Garville resident Tashel Miles captured this video after walking outside not knowing dangerous chemicals were in the air. I looked up and I just saw this, you know, gigantic bellowing cloud and my heart just dropped. I was like, oh, my God. She says there was a delay in receiving warnings about that toxic air. If we would have received any type of notice exactly when it happened immediately, we could have said, okay, well, let's at least drive out of the area. Now, hours after the fire began, Miles is still at home, which is near that plan. She's studying environmental science at LSU, aware of the risks of NAPTA, but unwilling to leave her pets behind to go to a shelter.

Unfortunately, some of the hotels are taken up. Some people cannot just afford to up and leave at the drop of a dime right now and go to a hotel. Mandatory evacuation orders have been lifted, but some residents like Miles left with concerns about her home and her family. I wanted to have kids here and everything, but there's a school that's maybe a mile away from the plant, an elementary school. So it's like we're almost, we're stuck. All right, for the latest on the fire, Cassie Shrim from our New Orleans affiliate. at WDSU is outside that refinery in Gareville and joins us live now. Cassie, what's the status on the firefight at this hour and the safety of that toxic air?

Well, the first thing is the fire has been majority contained. So you can see back behind me here, not a lot of plume, not a lot of smoke of what we were seeing earlier, but they still are having pop-ups. Occasionally, we'll see the plumes come right back up, and that's what the crews are working on right now. So that's not necessarily a concern. That's what authorities are telling us. They're saying it's pretty normal when it comes to something like this. But when it comes to the air quality, they actually have ran tests and they said so far things are looking okay. But right now as we speak, I mean, it's clear. Three hours ago, this entire area was nothing but smoke, very heavy.

It was hard to breathe. I was actually even having a hard time. We had to move our live shot a couple times earlier in the noon just because of how thick that smoke was. So it was definitely a concern for many neighbors in the areas they were trying to evacuate out. Cassie, did you have a chance to speak to those residents that were evacuating or those that decided to stay? Yeah, we were. We did speak to a majority of the residents that were staying in some of those church areas as well as the schools. It was a mandatory evacuation. So this entire area here has about 8,000 people who live within that two mile radius. And so we did speak to them.

A lot of them were trying to grab things as they were going. Because, I mean, it was scary when you're seeing a huge plume coming from this building here as you're driving by. I mean, people were stopping and taking pictures as they were leaving just because they didn't know. And we had talked to the refinery asking, you know, is any of this stuff combustible where it could possibly explode? And they said, you know, there's always a possibility with that. And they were just trying to make sure that didn't happen. And so that's why that mandatory evacuation was enlisted here. Cassie Sherm from our great NBC affiliate there, New Orleans, WDSU.

Cassie, we appreciate all your reporting. You and your team, we thank you for that. We want to turn now to the latest out of Maui, the FBI releasing their own list of missing people with hundreds of names, they say, have been verified. For those who survived, the confusion added to the grief. Many questioning if they will have a roof over their heads for the foreseeable future. NBC Sam Brock spoke with the governor of Hawaii.

today, pressing for answers. Lahaina's excruciating wait for loved ones has taken another turn tonight. The FBI releasing nearly 400 verified names of those still unaccounted for, a decrease from what was once estimated to be more than a thousand. As chilling new details emerge about the fire's youngest victim, seven-year-old Tony Takafua, killed trying to escape with a car full of relatives. It comes as residents like Pacalana Phillips face dual hardships. It's been a home that four generations have lived in.

Figuring out where to live as she steps over the crumbled pieces of her home while mourning the loss of a beloved uncle. Pakalana says her government-funded hotel room expires in a few weeks with no idea what's next. What is the scale of the challenge you're facing right now? Where do you find a place to live? In Lahaina, it was hard to find a place to even rent.

And then because so many families are displaced, is how do you stay in Lahaina after all of this? Pakalana's position is hardly unique in this devastated community. None of us have time to grieve. When you have to worry about where you're going to live, how can you even have time to grieve? How can you plan a funeral? Tihani and her mother, Sally Gomes, lost their family matriarch, Donna in the flames,

and tell us they've received virtually no guidance from state or federal officials. I'm being the Airbnb until the 11th, and then I don't know what happens after that. FEMA has not given any reassurance, really, besides apply at the end of September. Tonight, FEMA referring us to the governor, who we pressed for answers. We've had residents who've told us that they're in the dark right now. How long are you guaranteeing housing for? We intend to have a plan ready in the coming days to show people that they'll have this first essential six months covered. And then we're going to extend for the better part of 18 months to make sure we have stable housing for those who live in the region.

Is that a promise that you're making to residents? Yes, it's a commitment. The hotels here that are housing thousands of people, we're hearing, they're planning on reopening to outside guests in October, which means you're going to have a lot of inventory that's being used right now for displaced residents that appears to be going away. So how does that work? Where are they going? We're going to keep the inventory that we need for those who have been displaced,

and we're going to pay adequate rates to make sure that we also keep our hotels hold because it's not an economic move for the hotels per se, although we're so grateful for their generosity. but that is also part of the way we keep the hotel workers right on site. Many of the hotel rooms are being used by the hotel workers themselves, but we want that money to flow the hotels so they economically stay alive so that they can pay people their wages. It's an ecosystem that has to be preserved.

The scale of the housing crisis, daunting. We just have water and some fruits and vegetables. Even as people like Pakalana put aside those concerns to hand out supplies to others. We're not going to be buried in the ash. We're going to help rebuild. This is one of the most beautiful places on earth to live, and it's not because of the beauty. It's because of the people. San Brock joins us tonight from Lahaina. So Sam, as we saw in your piece there, the governor says housing is guaranteed for the next 36 months, but residents have to re-up the request every 30 days. From the people that you've spoken to, is that information realistic? And is it

getting to them. Right. So clearly, they're very concerned, right? So whenever you have a conversation with someone who's lost a loved one, and they say, I'm having a hard time planning a funeral, we're really accepting that grief because I'm so worried about where I'm going to live. It tells you there's some alarm. However, it's just a lot of confusion right now. To give you broader context, there was some 5,500 people that had to be relocated. As you know, since you're on the ground here, from these shelters to largely hotels and Airbnbs. That has been done, but many those folks thought that I'm just going to be able to potentially get out of here and have no other place to go because the government hasn't been communicating with me. It turns out

that maybe that communication has been frayed, but if they go to the Red Cross and simply reapply 30 days at a time, they can stay in the hotels. Part of the confusion as well has been there's Airbnbs that have been provided partly by the company, partly by private donations, and those are short term. And so maybe the folks that were staying at those Airbnbs thought this is it. But the government wanted to make sure that folks knew they do have a back stop here for 36 weeks, which is roughly nine months, but potentially up to 18 months, it will always be there. He says, and we have them on the record now saying that for the folks here who have been displaced. So, Sam, I want you to explain to our viewers what we're looking

at just behind you, if you can once again. And also, if you can brief, I know this is a hard one, but we've gone from 1,100 at 1.1300 to now 400, and it's all happened kind of fast. People have been following all types of, you know, different headlines of stuff that's been happening on the mainland. How do we get there so quickly? for sure thank you for asking by the way because i do need to point out what's going on over my shoulder this is 150 or so crosses to honor the lives that were lost officially the toll right now tom is at 115 and as far as these numbers are concerned it has been fluctuating since i've gotten here it's been going on for weeks now right we knew a couple of days ago the fbi had said the number

was somewhere between a thousand and eleven hundred and now they're coming out and saying it's 388 what is going on here the reality is that they are verifying people based on whether or not there was both a first name, a last name, and a point of contact, a friend or relative, to reach out to. In many of the instances, people were reporting those who were unaccounted for, and they were only providing a first name, or no date of birth, or no gender. And so there were these broad lists that weren't being cross-referenced. So presumably what the FBI has done is more fine-tuning, more details to make sure that they're not giving an unrealistic number of how many people might still be out there. But the reality as well is that given the fact that many people may have been killed at sea, this fire was burning hotter than a cremature. their ashes may be unrecognizable at this point are not capable of being DNA tested.

It is entirely possible, if not plausible. We could be looking at several hundred other deaths in this case. But right now that figure is at 115. Yeah, and regardless of it's 1,300 or 388, it should be zero. It's a tragedy. It should have never happened. And it is so sad. But we're happy that you're down there reporting and not forgetting about Maui.

Sam Brock, we appreciate you tonight. Still ahead. The investigation into a deadly crash at a military base, a fighter. jet going down in a remote area of a San Diego military base, the hours-long search for that plane and the grim discovery late today. Plus, shocking video out of Florida showing a man, and it's hard to believe this, but you've got to see the video, injecting a substance into his neighbor's front door. What was inside that file that made the resident inside, including his baby sick? You'll hear from them. And breaking news, the moment a tree came crashing down in the middle of a live

newscast. We'll tell you what happened next. with us. Top story just getting started on this Friday. We are back now with a chilling moment caught on camera. Police say this hidden camera footage shows a Florida man injecting what they called a chemical agent containing opioids under the door of his neighbor's home in the Tampa area. The victim, not knowing what was happening behind closed doors, said the ongoing attack made his 10-month-old baby sick. NBC's Marissa Para has this disturbing details. Tonight, a Florida man allegedly caught red-handed, injecting a chemical agent inside of his neighbor's house.

I wish no one else has to go through what we went through. That neighbor, Umar Abdullah, telling NBC's Tampa affiliate WFLA, he realized something was wrong when his 10-month-old baby started vomiting. Around the same time, he began smelling an unusual scent around his apartment. I actually double-checked. I started sniffing that place like a dog. Abdullah says he called the fire department. He changed his water heater, but nothing was working. Then he said he thought about his downstairs neighbor, Shu Ming Ling, who had been complaining to him about noises from upstairs for months. So Abdullah installed a hidden camera and a plant outside his front door and what he saw terrified him. There was Leon camera, appearing to fill a syringe with liquid and then injecting it right under his front door. The first thing that came to my mind, my daughter and my wife, they need to be safe. Abdullah says he got his family out of the house and then immediately called police. Lee was arrested and charged with multiple counts, including possession of a controlled substance and aggravated stalking.

This is a situation that had this not been ultimately caught, could have resulted in someone dying. According to a Tampa Police Department affidavit, a hazmat test found the liquid chemical agent contained both methadone and hydrocodone. both opioid pain medications. Even during war, the worst enemies do not attack the opponent and the other party with chemicals. It poses grave risk to the health of any human being, in particular young children, who can easily be overcome by the side effects from these medications. Lee's attorney did not respond to our request for comment, but told WFLA that Lee pled not guilty, and all of the facts will come in due course of time.

He's now out on bond, but facing another lawsuit from Abdullah over domestic violence. We do not know the details of that case. His next hearing set for the start of December. Mirsapara, NBC News. Some scary stuff there. We thank Marissa for that. When we come back and undercover sting turning deadly in New York City, a man who was fleeing from police. You see it here hit with a cooler by a cop and crashing his bike.

The investigation now underway after that suspect died. Stay with us. All right, we are back now with Top Stories News Feed. We begin with a deadly fighter jet crash at a military base in San Diego. The F.A. 18 fighter jet crashing just before midnight last night in a remote section of the Marine Corps Air Station Miramar base. For hours, the U.S. Coast Guard and San Diego fire rescue searching by air and on the ground, ultimately finding the pilot dead at the scene. No word yet on the cause. An NYPD sergeant has been suspended after throwing a cooler at a suspect who then died.

Surveillance video shows the moment Sergeant Eric Duran throws the picnic cooler, causing the suspect to crash his motorbike and hit his head. That man Eric Dupree pronounced dead at the scene. He had allegedly been caught selling narcotics to an undercover cop before fleeing. The officer has been suspended without pay as the department investigates. And a man stalking, Drew Barrymore, was arrested near her home outside of New York City. 43-year-old Chad Michael Busto was allegedly riding his bike into private driveways looking for the actresses home, according to South Hampton Police. His arrest comes only three days after he appeared to rush a stage in Manhattan during an event with Barrymore and singer Renee Rapp.

He's now facing a misdemeanor stalking charge. And one of the largest unions in the country voting to authorize a strike. An overwhelming 97% of the United Auto Workers Union voting in favor of striking against a strike. voting in favor of striking against Ford, General Motors, and Stalances. The union is demanding a nearly 50% increase in wages, restoration of traditional pensions, and a reduced work week. The vote does not necessarily mean there will be a strike just yet. A 40-day strike in 2019 cost GM $3.6 billion.

Okay, we want to head overseas now. The Kremlin is denying any connection to the private jet crash that's believed to have killed Russian mercenary leader, Yvgeny Progoshin after U.S. officials said it's possible a bomb may have been placed on board. Richard Engle has the reporting on this one. Russian investigators say they've recovered the flight recorders from the corporate jet that crashed suspiciously on Wednesday evening and are using genetic testing to identify the remains of the 10 passengers and crew.

U.S. officials say the mercenary leader Yvgeny Prigosian once a loyal aid to President Putin who rose against him two months ago. likely among the dead. The jet was ripped to pieces at 28,000 feet. The Pentagon assesses that it was most likely destroyed by a bomb on board. Today, Russian social media showed what appeared to be the wing, ripped off in mid-flight, landing nearly two miles from the rest of the debris. President Putin, who many believe ordered Pregojin's assassination, isn't giving any hints. Today, he was back at work, chairing a national security. meeting. His spokesman said any suggestion that Putin was involved is western speculation and a

complete lie. Putin has said a Russian investigation will reveal the facts, but can it if this was an inside job. The Kremlin is moving quickly to take over Progogsian's powerful mercenary army, the Wagner Group, and tonight issued a decree requiring all Wagner fighters to pledge their loyalty to Russia. leadership. Tom? Richard Engel for us tonight. Richard, thank you for that. For more on what's happening around the world, time now for Top Stories Global Watch. We begin with those raging wildfires in Greece. Officials say hundreds of fires are burning across the country, including one in the north that has burned more than 178,000 acres of land. It's one of the largest wildfires on

European soil. At least 21 people have died, including 19 were believed to be migrants. And those wildfires in Europe, also leading to a scary scene that was caught on camera during a live TV broadcast. Look at this. New video shows the moment part of a tree fell onto a car during a live report in Turkey. An emergency worker was inside that car. He was eventually rescued and taken to the hospital with a broken leg. The reporter was actually covering the aftermath of fires in that region. And an unexpected delivery on a flight in Myanmar, video shows other passengers helping deliver a baby mid-air. Officials say the mother started going into labor just 20 minutes after takeoff, although there were no doctors on board. Passengers stepped in and a baby

girl was delivered safely. The newborn and the mother apparently are both okay. It's a great story there. Okay, coming up, the big change for MLB. The league rolling out a new way to enter the game with just your face. No physical ticket required. We'll explain and we'll show you the technology. Back now with money talks and new developments in the fight against inflation. The Federal Reserve has hiked interest rates 11 straight times since March 2022, bringing those rates to historically high levels. Earlier today, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell indicating even more hikes may be coming. Although inflation has moved down from its peak, a welcome development, it remains too high.

We are prepared to raise rates further, if appropriate, and intend to hold policy. policy at a restrictive level until we are confident that inflation is moving sustainably down toward our objective. This comes as mortgage rates hit their highest levels in 20 years. Look at that. Today's rate for a 30-year mortgage, 7.39%. That stings. Frustration over mortgage costs, even reaching social media, as some potential homebuyers

say the increased rates have them second-guessing a new purchase. We're seeing some pullback. We're seeing some buyers that are saying, you know what, I'm going to hold on. And they're sitting on the sidelines. These record rates, the culmination of years-long climb since the pandemic. Two years ago today, a 30-year mortgage rate, this is crazy, was just 2.98%. I wish I would have bought back then. Today's rate more than four full points higher.

Another symbol of the mounting cost to Americans, the price of gas climbing all year across the country, a gallon of regular now 378, up more than 70 cents since December. I saw this when I filled up the other day. I thought to myself, this is crazy. for more where these interest rates could be going and what home buyers need to know. And someone who apparently has a crystal ball. I'm joined now by Carlton English, a reporter at Barron's, who covers financial markets. Carlton, thanks so much for being here tonight.

We appreciate it. So, I mean, the big question, I mean, you know, obviously it's hurting people's pocketbooks. Everything seems to be more expensive. Let's start with homes. What do we think about those mortgage rates? Yeah, mortgage rates, you're still going to see pressure there because you have a bunch of dynamics. As you mentioned, the Fed is intent on possibly raising rates to get control of inflation. But if you are sitting in a home that you bought at, you know, one of those fantastic sub-3% mortgage rates, you're not going to sell it.

So then you have buyers, you know, maybe some young Gen Z, maybe some millennials, first-time home buyers are looking for that first house. There's no supply. There's still no supply. Exactly. So you're going to have that pressure on housing pricing and then also on the mortgage rates. And the other thing to think about is, you know, when you look at something like a, you know, two percentage point increase, three percentage point increase, at first you don't think. too much of it, that adds hundreds of dollars to a monthly payment. Yeah, no, it's crazy. As far as gas prices go, they seem to be fluctuating, still very high. But like I said, the other day, I was at the

pump and I was like, wow, they're really up again. Any relief inside it when it comes to that, or is it going to sort of be cyclical? I think it's going to be cyclical. Now, yes, you are 100% correct. They are creeping up this year. We are not where we were at this time last year. So, I mean, not great news, maybe just better news. But what you have going on is production cuts at some of the OPEC countries. You also have that unseasonably hot summer that we had. That caused U.S. refineries to actually cut back on production. So that's going to put a little bit more pressure on.

You're going to the Labor Day holiday weekend. People are going to be traveling. People still want to fly and travel after all that pent-up pandemic demands. So expect a little more pressure for a while. You know, you told me you cover the financials, you cover the big banks. What are you hearing from them? I mean, what are they seen in the data? Because we've been reporting here on Top Story.

People are maxing out their credit cards. There's now delinquent car payments. Everything's still sky high. People are still traveling. At what point do people start to pull back? Yeah, you are seeing some signs of that pullback. You listen to maybe some of the retailers. They're talking about maybe higher credit card delinquency rates.

They're talking about their buyers, maybe, or their shoppers trading down a bit. On the banks, you're seeing slowing loan growth, right? Because people are nervous. Are we going to be entering a recession? Well, this isn't a time I want to be taking on debt. If I'm worried that I might be losing my job. Thankfully, so far, we haven't seen that sort of weakness in the labor figures, but people are just feeling cautious. They want a little bit more certainty before they make big moves.

Where are we on that recession watch? We have people on here almost every week, and some people are saying hard landing, soft landing, some people, we had this great columnist from the New York Times, who still believes from the data. We will have some type of recession either this year or early next year. Where's the smart money out on that? It's so funny. It's everyone's just, it's like the waiting for Godot recession or something like that. But one of the strategies I spoke with talked about this notion of the rolling recession, which is what you saw happen with.

The tech companies at the end of last year early. A rolling recession. Yes, where it hits, you know, different industries, different geographies at different times. So the whole economy might not feel the sting of it. That feels like what we have going on right now. Still waiting for the effects of those fed rate hikes. Some of them have certainly been there. There's always an eight-month lag.

Exactly. We're starting to hit that. Just hopefully, I don't think it's going to be a no landing, but expect some weakness maybe later this year early 2024. Okay. So great to have you. Carlton, we really appreciate it. Thanks so much. Okay, turning now to some big sports news, a big change coming to the ballpark. Major League Baseball unveiling an app that will allow fans to essentially just walk right in. They don't need to show a physical ticket anymore. Just scan their face and the technology launches in Philadelphia, NBC's George Solis, was one of the first to try it out. Right off the bat, baseball fans finding themselves in

a game of hardball while just trying to get into the stadium, fidgeting with phones, or even worse, paper, but no more. Your face, now your only ticket into the ballpark. Yeah, it was much quicker. Almost seems too good to be true, doesn't it? Major League Baseball rolling out go-ahead entry, which allows fans 18 and older to upload a photo and register on the MLB Ballpark app. All set.

Once tickets are also uploaded, go-ahead technology at the gate will recognize those. opted in fans, letting them simply just walk in. Everyone should just be moving straight through this, right? Just keep walking. Just keep walking. Just as you would normally walk in life, you just keep walking. MLB partnering with the Philadelphia Phillies who stepped up to the plate to launch this high-end facial authentication tech exclusively at Citizens Bank Park.

Lines, as long as ever with Philly fans looking for another World Series run. It's been packed, the energies like never before. and this is another way for our fans to enter quickly and get right to the game. All right, so we're going to give this thing a test run. I have no paper ticket. I phoned during my pocket, so here we go. Officials hope to expand the tech to ballparks across the country. All right, I'm coming.

Based on feedback from fans like Jenna Merzig, who was first in line. So let's just go ahead. All right, thank you. Is this the future of all stadium entry, you think? I think so. Yep. Use of similar facial recognition technology has been under scrutiny over concerns of privacy. Madison Square Garden's parent company sued for its use of the tech to ban entire law firms out of its venues.

MLB officials say their machines won't be used the same way. So anyone that is worried that this is linked to some law enforcement database somewhere, not the case. It's not linked to any law enforcement. It's not even linked to the security scanning on site. MLB reps say facial scans are deleted, and all that remains is some digital. data on your account for future entry. Is there any going back for you now that you've used? Go ahead? No, no, I got it on the

ballpark app, so if there's a stadium that offers it, I'm all in. America's pastime, now moving into the future. I made history. George Solis, NBC News, Philadelphia. We thank George for that. When we come back, a look at what you can binge watch and listen to this weekend.

Adam Sandler and his entire family star in a new movie, plus the documentary about former Texas A&M football star Johnny Manzell, and new music by Miley Cyrus and Selena Gomez. Stay with us. Welcome back. It is Friday, which means it is time for bingeworthy. Our look at the best things to watch and listen to this weekend, and we're so excited to bring in our friend of Top Story and, of course, entertainment journalists and pop culture expert. Yes, expert, Brian Balthasar, the one and only. Brian, it's so great to see you. Thanks for being here. It's been a while. It's been a bit. And we're actually starting with somebody that we love over at the Yama's household, Adam Sandler. He's got a new movie with his daughters, that they're both in it.

Yeah. Let's take a quick look. Yeah, let's do it. I'm not popular. What is happening? You look insane. Slave queen. I'm not a loser.

I look like the lady that pulls kids out of class when their parents get into car accidents. How often does that happen? I might be a little obsessed. One day, Indie Goldfar will be mine. And you will have a cool boyfriend, too. And then we'll have a joining loss and try back out in Taylor's Building.

Yeah. Oh my God. Oh, my God. Brian, I can predict the future. We will be watching this weekend in my house. Tell us a little more about it. It looks funny.

Right, and it basically stars his whole family, and it's a story about teenage friendships and obviously the epic adventure that is planning your bat mitzvah nowadays, which you need to have like a headliner and also, you know, like a bar, you know, for kids. It's like it's very, funny. And I watched this trailer and fell in love with it, not even knowing that the kids were his.

They are just so naturally funny. Sandler's made a lot of movies over the last decade, especially with Netflix. Some have been great. This one looks like it's a good one. I have a good feeling about this. Okay. All right, we look forward to that. Next up, Disney Plus. I'm sorry to all the Star Wars fans out there. I know I'm going to mispronounce this. Ashoka, starring Rosario Dawson. It's the fifth live action series in the franchise. Let's take a look. I started hearing whispers. as heir to the empire. What happens when we find

Thron? Power, such as you've never dreamed. I've spent most of my life fighting a war. That's why I'm trying to convince you to help me prevent another one. All right, George Lucas called. It is Asoka.

Is that right? That's what I believe. When I'm down, I just say it fast. Rosario Dawson looks like a badass in this series. Tell me more. Right. We first saw her character in The Mandalorian. She's an ex-Jedde Jedi fighter, and there's a threat to the galaxy, and she's the one to stop it.

We have two episodes that are on Disney Plus right now, and the remaining will come really up. Brian, so I was told she's the apprentice of Anakin Skywalker. Anakin, of course, becomes Darth Vader. How does that relationship play out? Do you have the answer? Yeah. I don't want to read the tea leaves on this. I have no clue.

No spoiler. It's like a tiramisu. There's a lot of layers. Yeah, exactly. Okay, Brian. We will take your advice on that one and definitely see it. Next up, who's Aaron Carter? Let me tell you, there were staffers on Top Story

that were going crazy for this. We actually had a producer who watched all seven hours in a single day while coming to work. Do the math. I don't know. That's kind of scary. Anyways, it's got to be a great show. Here's a clip.

Shut up! Say quiet. You handled yourself pretty well. I don't know what to tell you. Who exactly the f-are-you, Mrs. Carter? I think you've mistaken me for someone else. Rob, the stage manager apparently, here on Top Story, also has seen this. Right, everyone looks very tired today.

Now we know why. So Aaron Carter is what we believe, a school teacher, but she's in the parking lot with her daughter. Trouble happens, and she reacts like a spy or an action hero. So clearly, there's a history here. And we're trying to figure out what that is, and it unfolds over the course. And there's, like, I think, six or seven episodes on Netflix. Okay, cool. We have a new documentary coming up, and it is one that I recommended.

I love this one. Johnny Mansell, Untold, if you like college football, if you like good documentaries in general about complex characters, this is right up your alley. Let's take a look at this one. He transcended college football and also sports. But I had a bone to pick with the NCAA. The organization continues to profit off a student. athletes. People have been making millions on the back of Johnny.

I remember this guy comes up to me and he's like, hey, I've got 30 grand feet of sign autographs. And once that happened for the first time, it was like game on. After that, I saw a different side of him. When you take one step onto a slippery slope, it goes pretty quick. So I actually watched this, Brian, with my wife, who's not a huge college football fan. And you don't have to be a fan because he's such a compelling character. Right. First freshman to win the Heisman trophy, and it was just skyrocketed of fame. And then there's this interesting story about him, you know, taking money for autographs, which is against the policy.

And just like the Heisman Trophy Award winner for parting. The guy could party like a maniac. Yeah, it's a $5 million binge. But it's also really sad. It's about mental health and it's about stardom and football. It's about a lot of things. And what happens so many goes to the NFL on what's happening right now? Yeah, I highly recommend it that's a great one.

We also have another good documentary, HBO Max. You may know that. You may be part of that family. I don't know. But another documentary. It's called BS High. It's a really crazy story. And we want to show you the trailer.

We'll talk about it on the backside. Bishop Sycamore does not happen if there wasn't an abundance of money in high school sports. Let's go! Did I break a law? Is it illegal? Am I in jail? We're on ESPN. When lose or draw, we win.

This is not what we were supposed to create. How do I tell my mama that codes want me to do the same stuff that you try to get me away from? You say you care about that, but did you really? This is so crazy. Again, it's called BS High. And there's a reason for that, right, Brian? Yeah, Bishop Sycamore, but the BS is how, that it wasn't a real school. And there was a football team, but no school.

Right, right. And so Roy Johnson, the coach you saw there was recruiting a forgotten and underprivileged kids who wanted a chance at college recruitment created a team that wasn't good. He wasn't a great coach. They didn't have an athletic director. They didn't have all the reasons. Sometimes they didn't have a place to live how it happened and how they got teamed up against IMG, which pommeled them. The game went viral. because it was on ESPN.

And that kind of blew the lid on how did this happen and then realize it all unfolds in this documentary tells my story. I definitely want to watch this one. And also the filmmakers made the Kobe Bryant documentary muse, which was incredible. So I'm looking forward to that one as well. We want to move on now to music.

Miley Cyrus out with a new song today. I heard it in the car. It's a little deep. But if you love Miley, you're going to love this one. Here's a clip of that. I know it used to be crazy I know I used to be fun You say it used to be wild

I say I used to be young You tell me time is don't change me That's fine I've had it going right Brian she still She has an incredible voice And it's a beautiful song You just got to be in the mood for it Yeah and she's shooting up the iTunes charts right now

and she thinks she used to be young. She's making me feel old, you know, but she's getting introspective in her career. It's interesting to see the evolution of this person we've seen since she was a teenager. I know. And speaking of Miley, when she was younger, we have another Disney star coming up.

Selina Gomez has got a new one. Picking out this dress, trying on these shoes, because I'll be so soon, I'll be so soon. I know he'll be a mess when I break the news, but I'll be single soon.

We have a six to me. I'm going to take her on you. Stay a like if I want to. I'm going to do what I want to do. We have a sixth grade audience member today, and she, Quinn, she says she loves it. So there you go. Yeah, well, I mean, she's still a pop artist. Even though we see her on Only Murders in the Building, she's fantastic.

And beautiful voice. It's one notch, yeah, one notch behind Miley. And she's not single yet. She'll be single soon. So she knows she's going to break up with her man. And she's out in the town. Things are going to happen. Brian, you a K-pop fan at all?

I am. I actually really. Are you really? A lot of people are. This group Black Pink, we've shown them before here on Bingeworthy. They have a new song out. This one's called The Girls. Here's a listen. Live fast.

We do it like that. And we don't lie. We want to be mad. Better come right. I'll never come back. Don't mess with the girls, with the girls. Stop side. They're barely in a down.

Better watch out. We're coming in a lot. I'm going to be cranking this one in the minivan over the weekend. I think it's catchy. Right. So it's their first single of the year. It's teeing up with the release of their video game. But what's so interesting is the average shot length of a K-pop music video is just over

half a second. So to see long shots, like music videos for K-pop are like, boom, boom. Half a second? Yeah, there's about 300 cuts in an average K-pop music video. That's why you were, that's why your Hall of Fame. That's why your Hall of Fame is. Only you know these kind of stuff. Anyways, Brian Balthasar, we love you.

Thank you so much for being on. We thank you for watching Top Story. Have a great weekend. Stay right there. More news on the way.