Top Story with Tom Llamas - Thursday, June 8, 2023

Episode Date: June 9, 2023

Former President Donald Trump is indicted in the federal investigation into his handling of classified documents, the dangerous smoke spewing from raging wildfires in Canada moves further south, Philadelphia residents speak out about the air conditions in their city amid concerns for vulnerable residents, a Utah school district bans the Bible over an anonymous complaint that it contains pornographic material, and the 8th-grade class 3D printing a prosthetic hand for one of their classmates.

And good evening. We begin top story tonight with that bombshell breaking news. NBC news confirming that former President Donald Trump has been indicted after an investigation that spanned nearly a year into his handling of classified documents. Trump breaking that news himself first with a post on truth social, writing in part, the Biden administration has informed me that I have been indicted seemingly over the box's hoax. Trump referring to those boxes of classified documents you see here that were seized from his Mar-Lago estate in Florida last summer. Trump's lawyers on Fox News saying the indictment contains seven counts, but that indictment tonight is sealed and will remain sealed until Trump appears in court. That date is set for June 13th next Tuesday.

Trump posting a video response on Truth Social. Here's an excerpt. There's warfare for the law, and we can't let it happen. We can't let it happen. is going to hell, and they come after Donald Trump, weaponizing the Justice Department, weaponizing the FBI. We can't let this continue to go on because it's ripping our country to shreds. We have such big problems, and this shouldn't be one of them. It's a hoax.

Trump, who has already been impeached twice and arrested on criminal charges related to hush money payments, is now the first sitting or former president to be indicted. Here's Alice Barr with the latest. Tonight, former President Donald Trump has been indicted for a federal crime, a first in American history. It stems from his handling of classified documents. Details are limited as the indictment is still under seal. But two sources briefed on the matter tell NBC News a grand jury is recommending seven charges,

including false statements and conspiracy to obstruct. Former President Trump made the announcement himself on his social media platform, truth social, where tonight he's fiercely denying any wrongdoing, calling the case politically motivated. I'm an innocent man. I did nothing wrong, and we'll fight this out just like we've been fighting for seven years. The former president is expected to surrender on Tuesday to a federal courthouse in Miami, where activity around the case has ramped up in recent days. The independent special counsel, Jack Smith, who's running the investigation, had originally convened a grand jury in Washington, D.C., but appears to have shifted to Florida, where more than a hundred classified

documents were discovered at Mr. Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate last year. Also under scrutiny, whether the former president obstructed the federal government's efforts to get the materials back. It's just one of several legal cases surrounding the former president who's already been indicted on state charges of falsifying business records in New York. The indictment landing just as the 24 Republican presidential primary is ramping up with the former president, the clear frontrunner, raising the stakes on a politically explosive prosecution. In Washington, Alice Barr, NBC News. We want to move on now to our other major headline tonight. That toxic air we showed you last night in New York is on the move. Thick and dangerous smoke making its way south, clouding skylines,

disrupting air travel, and making it difficult for some to breathe. Here's NBC's Emily Aketa. While New York has seen an improvement from this apocalyptic landscape, the danger zone now drifting south and west. I'm wearing a mask to protect myself because I have asthma. We were going to head for the pool, but I was like, nope, do something indoors today. Smoke smothering the Washington Monument, Philadelphia's skyline in a haze, as it recorded the worst air quality in the world early this morning with a reading of 444. There was a period last night when we had very, very polluted air in the city of Philadelphia. The scale goes to 500, so this is terrible. The smoke streaming south from Canada's devastating wildfires that have already displaced 20,000 people.

The White House announcing plans to send all available federal firefighting assets to battle an unprecedented star to Canada's wildfire season. As drier and hotter conditions that experts blame on climate change sent fire. danger soaring. Kind of like apocalyptic, but I mean, I would imagine that it's probably worse than Canada, so I feel for them. The heavy haze has canceled school, Broadway shows, and sporting events, including the Nationals baseball game tonight in D.C. Poor visibility in the skies, also prompting the FAA to order ground stops and delays at a string of major airports along the East Coast. As soon as I walk outside, I can feel my eyes getting irritated. It smells like campfire everywhere I go. We are constantly inhaling pollutants, but wildfire smoke contains uniquely

toxic particulates with traces of chemicals, metals, and plastics. What is happening with that particular matter when we are inhaling wildfire smoke? So the smaller they are, the deeper they can go into the body. And so it's the fine particles that tend to travel, can travel further into the respiratory system and sometimes even into the bloodstream. Health officials in New Jersey reporting an influx of asthmatic patients like Grace Menendez. Right now with this air quality, I notice that it just worsened like overnight. As millions are spending more time indoors, experts say keep windows closed, recirculate air in your car and homes air conditioning,

and avoid activities that would release more particles. Avoiding dusting, avoiding vacuuming, even things like cooking, and even things like burning incense or candles actually give off particles. So I would avoid all of that. All right, a lot of things to follow right now. Emily Aketa joins us tonight from Philadelphia there, with the skies sort of looked like they were yesterday in New York City. Emily, you mentioned there in your report those ground stops and delays.

What's the latest on air travel? Well, Tom, just as we see the levels of smoke change, so do the impacts on air travel. Just a few moments ago, we saw Philadelphia Airport, the ground delay there be lifted. But we continue to see because of low visibility delays play out at LaGuardia Airport and Newark Airport, the FAA emphasizing that this is. is an evolving situation, so people should be expecting changes throughout the rest of the week.

We saw across the country some 4,500 delays, Tom. Yeah, and I'm already seeing some flights canceled for tomorrow into LaGuardia, which is sort of interesting. Emily, the conditions look less hazy, but officials tonight, they're still concerned because even though it looks like maybe the skies are getting a little clearer, the air is still not completely clean. Yeah, absolutely, Tom. You make a very good point. In fact, the Philadelphia School District just announced. that it will be holding classes online tomorrow and other districts in the region,

including New York City, are doing the same because even as we see the smoke begin to dissipate, the air quality remains at unhealthy levels. Tom. Okay, Emily Aketa, again, leading us off on these wildfires and the poor air quality across the northeast. While Philadelphia's air quality is improving at this hour, there's still concerns for the city's most vulnerable residents, as we've been reporting. And now Americans across the country are taking extra consideration. concern in the air around them. George Solis has the details. The city of Brotherly Love still blanketed in the smoke from the Canadian wildfires.

It's pretty bad. As soon as I walk outside, I can feel my eyes getting irritated. This is the first time I've worn a mask since we had to for the pandemic. I did shudder to think what we would do. Like we're not going to go out today, especially with our asthma. Today's air still considered unhealthy, posing a unique threat to vulnerable. communities, including young children. Very young infants, three months and under, we're seeing some of those children coming into the emergency department with trouble breathing. Dr. James Rheingold, the chief of emergency at St. Christopher's Children Hospital in North Philadelphia,

see the effects firsthand. A mild amount of inflammation in an adult with a large airway wouldn't be very noticeable, maybe a mild cough. But for a tiny infant with the very smallest of airways, it can be extremely significant. And that is one thing we're seeing now. Reingold says the children in the neighborhood his hospital serves already have some of the highest rates of asthma in the city. Due to their living conditions or proximity to highways and train tracks. These type of environmental issues, the air quality that comes and goes over a week,

it hopefully brings attention to the longstanding inequalities for health. And as the smoke from those Canadian wildfires continue, used to move south. Concerns are growing in other major cities. The EPA's Air Quality app, now more popular than Facebook. Coming in as the number six most downloaded free app in the app store

today. Also beating TikTok and Instagram. Okay, George Salis joins us now from Philadelphia. So George, you live in Philly. Have you seen a change in conditions over the course of the last 24 hours? I know you also have an infit in your house. Talk to us about what that's been like.

Yeah, Tom, it's been tough. Yeah, the air quality is starting to improve, but it is still dangerous. And as you saw a number of people that we spoke with here at the airport, many of them are heating the warning from experts, and they are wearing their mask because they know that at this point, even though you can't see the smoke, it is still dangerous out there. I walked outside, my eye started to water. I developed a little bit of a cough. So that signals to you that even though you may not be able to see these smoke particles,

They are definitely out in the air, and a lot of people in Philadelphia also taking those precautions. Officials here are also canceling a number of events, including pausing trash collection to just encourage people to stay inside of their homes that much longer. Yeah, talk to me about some more of those events because it looks like even though the air seems to be sort of getting a little bit better, the skies are clearing up, it's still kind of dangerous out there, so there's still school closures, event cancellations. That's absolutely right. Emily touched on this. Philadelphia schools going virtual tomorrow, and that joins other school districts. New York also going virtual tomorrow. Some events will still go on, including a Phillies game that was canceled yesterday, but make no mistake that officials are keeping a close watch on these conditions hour by hour to see if they have to make adjustments. We also are approaching the end of the academic school year. A number of graduations have also been shifted from outdoor to indoor because of these air quality concerns. Tom. Okay, George Solis for us from Philadelphia tonight. Air quality alerts still in place here in New York, as we mentioned at the top of the broadcast. We are headed towards the weekend. So let's get right over to Al Roker, who joins me now in studio. Al, any idea? I know it's kind of a complicated question, but any idea when this is going to clear up? Well, you know, it's interesting, Tom. We thought that Saturday we might be pretty much in the clear, but things are changing now, even as we're speaking. Now, you can see it's kind of hard to spot all the smoke, but it's in there, especially now between Williams, Ports. Pennsylvania, Washington, D.C., Atlantic City as well. This is going to be a slow-moving system.

It just doesn't want to get out of here. Problem is we're in what we call an Omega Block. We've been in the same system for about five days. So those wildfires, while we've had wildfires to our north before, this time we've got this system that is just stuck in place. So unhealthy air for 100 million people from wildfire smoke. About 20 million more people under unhealthy air from ozone. But what we're looking at now, worst air qualities from Scranton, Pennsylvania, all the way down to Richmond, Virginia. In fact, as we look at theairnow.gov readings for air quality, very unhealthy in Harrisburg. Unhealthy in New York City for sensitive groups, that's at least good news in that that number has come down, but still very unhealthy in Philadelphia, Washington, Richmond,

and Charlottesville. Here's the smoke forecast. So we are looking still Detroit, getting some They get out of it by Saturday morning. But look what happens. From Buffalo, all the way down to Philadelphia, Salisbury. We're going to start to see those wind shift, but not enough. So we are still looking at winds and smoke from Ohio, Richmond, Salisbury, Philadelphia. And we have to keep an eye on this because it could back up back into New York. So, Tom, we're not quite done yet, hopefully, by Sunday.

But we're just going to have to watch this on an hour-by-hour basis. Hour-by-hour basis, you said it, Al. All right, Al Rilke for us tonight. We do want to turn now to another big story we're following out of Alabama. The man suspected of playing a role in the disappearance of Natalie Holloway almost 20 years ago is on U.S. soil to face fraud and extortion charges. Yoran Vandersloot was transferred today by authorities in Peru, where he was serving a 28-year prison sentence for the murder of a woman.

Sam Brock has the very latest. Almost two decades after Natalie Holloway's haunting disappearance, the prime suspect in the case, Yoran Vandersloot, touching down tonight in Birmingham, Alabama, facing charges of extortion and wire fraud. Flanked by federal agents, his journey began in Peru this morning. As cameras flooded Interpol car windows and a scramble to spot Vandersloot, who's serving a 28-year sentence for murdering a college student there. Peruvian officials and special police forces temporarily handing him over to American authorities.

In net motorcade is Yorin Vandersloot, who is now in American custody about to go into the attention to face charges in the Holloway case for the first time. In 2005, Holloway went missing on a graduation trip to Aruba and was last spotted with Vandersluad and two brothers. By the end of 2007, Aruban authorities closed their investigation, never finding a body. In 2010, Vandersluid said for $250,000 he'd provide information on Holloway's body, which he never accurately delivered. He tried to extort her mother for information about the location of her body. And in the course of that extortion, he managed to commit a couple of federal crimes, and we were able to indict him for those.

Joyce Vance is an NBC News legal analyst and former U.S. attorney in Alabama, whose office brought the indictments in 2010. How solid are you that this case will lead to a conviction? 100%. Today, Natalie's mother issuing a statement saying she's hopeful that some small semblance of justice may finally be realized. All right, Sam joins us from Birmingham tonight. Van der Sloot's arraignment is scheduled for 11 a.m. tomorrow. Do we know what we should expect to happen at that? So it's open. We're going to have someone attending, Tom, at 11 o'clock. We expect that the charges will be read of extortion and wire fraud, and he is expected to plead

not guilty. Also, VanderSloot likely will have the federal prosecutor assigned to him. It's kind of like a public defender, I should say, the federal defender. And according to what he's told, NBC News employees has no intention of speaking to the press, which would make things very interesting in the weeks to come. It is also noteworthy that Peruvian officials say that once this is all over, probably about a year and length his trial. Vanderson has to go back to Peru and finish out his murder sentence, which will take him to 2035, Tom. Yeah, we're going to have a conversation about that just when we wrap with you. Sam, one more question, though, give me a sense of what it's like in that community. They sort of have been waiting for this moment for 20 years. So many people were

We're hoping that Natalie Holloway would get some justice, and this may be it. No question about it. I can tell you, experientially, from being out on the corner here for a couple of days. Every time someone would see us, it would walk up naturally human nature and say, what are you doing? And as soon as I mentioned why we're out here for Yorne Vandersloot, their eyes sort of just lit up. Like, oh, man, he's coming back to Birmingham now, and this is finally going to get resolved. Other folks would even kind of guess, are you here because of Vandersloot? But I can't believe, after so many years, really starting in 2005, Birmingham, nationwide, internationally, Tom. This just captured headlines for so long.

And there is, at least, in the words of Natalie's mother, a semblance of justice, finally being delivered to this town and to this community. All right, Sam Brock for us, Sam, we appreciate all of that. With Vanders Flutza Raymond set for tomorrow, what does his legal fate look like back here in the U.S. and in Peru, to be honest? I want to bring in a friend of Top Story Attorney Angela Senadella, also known on TikTok. as the lawyer, Angela, with more than one million followers and growing, growing all the time. Angela, I want to go back to what Sam was reporting, because I think this is going to be confusing of people, because at least from a reporter's perspective, I don't know if I've ever heard this. You have a suspect in another country who's been extradited, they're going to be tried here,

and then he's going back to Peru? Yes, that's precisely it. So the Peruvian government said that the original agreement was for him to be extradited after completing his 28-year sentence for the murder of Stephanie Floreau. However, the U.S. government reached out to Peru and said the witnesses in this case were elderly, and it was unclear if they would still be around in 2035, 2038. As a result, they requested to the Peruvian government a temporary location change, which means that he will only be here for the course of his trial if he's convicted,

then for sentencing he'd be sent back and then brought back again to the U.S. if he is convicted to the U.S. if he is convicted to the U.S., he finishes his sentence there, which I think is 2035 or something, back over here. Again, if he's convicted. I don't know if this is part of the case. I don't know if it's possible. Is there any kind of plea deal here where if he did kill Natalie Holloway, he lets authorities know what happened, where he disposed of the body, or where she's buried her remains? Could that get him any leniency anywhere either here or in Peru? I think it's unlikely that would give him any leniency because the charges that are being brought now are reduced. They are for wire fraud and extortion, which is much less than a murder charge. So this is

the best that the prosecutors can do right now. However, I do think it's possible that if through the course of the trial, Vanderslut says something or gives up some information that could possibly lead to more evidence, new evidence, then the prosecutors could use that to bring future murder charges. Well, that was my next question. I mean, could we learn something here? Could sort of something be uncovered that would lead to new charges? And would it be a whole new case? Yes, so it's possible. But I have to say it's quite unlikely. He's been arrested twice. This case happened so long ago in 2005. Usually new evidence, unless it's related to DNA or new technology, doesn't just immediately come up years later. Also, we know Vanderslut has credibility

issues. So if he starts to say, look, I did this, I did that, it's not certain the prosecutors would even believe him. You know, as we look at that video again, I want to play it again if we can, Brett, of Yorin van der Sloat leaving Peru. He's got the full sort of, if you will, bulletproof vest. That's what it appears to be covered all the way up to his neck. What kind of protection do you think he's going to get in Alabama? Because as Samman was reporting there, I mean, people's eyes were lighting up when they heard that Yorne VanderSloot was coming over here. He's going to be a prime target, I would assume, in prison while he's on trial here. You think he's going to have special protection? I think he certainly will. But I would also say that the prison

in Peru was likely far more dangerous than whatever's going on in Birmingham, Alabama. That's allegedly one of the most dangerous prisons in the world. So will he have more protection here than in Peru? Okay, Angela Senadella, we thank you so much for that legal analysis, as always. Still ahead and update on a missing Minnesota bomb we've been covering here on Top Story. Authorities discovering her remains more than two months after she disappeared. The person has just been arrested in connection to her death. Plus, banning the Bible why one Utah school district is pulling the King James edition of the Holy Book from Shells after an anonymous complaint will explain.

And a scary encounter at sea, the moment a fisherman came face to face with a great white shark. Stay with Stop Stories just getting started on this Thursday night. Back now with the story we've been following out of Minnesota, 26-year-old mother Maddie Kingsbury went missing more than two months ago. Now, tragically, police have found her body and arrested her ex-boyfriend and the father of her children on suspicion of second-degree murder. Valerie Castro has the details. Tonight, the search for a missing mother of two in Minnesota coming to a tragic end after the discovery of human remains. Law enforcement has confirmed the remains are those of Madeline Kingsbury.

Loved ones could be heard sobbing at the news. Her sister releasing a TikTok video. It's a long time coming and it's a relief, but it's also like the whole situation is just so sick. The body of 26-year-old Madeline Kingsbury found Wednesday afternoon in a wooding. area near the town of Mabel by a Fillmore County deputy. He was searching that area about an hour south of Kingsbury's Winona home based on a tip and what investigators say was digital evidence. The area had been previously searched, but Maddie's body was covered and concealed in

such a manner that she was not visible. Still unclear, exactly how she died. The discovery leading detectives to arrest the father of Kingsbury's children, Adam Fravel, who repeatedly denied any involvement in her disappearance. So far, he hasn't been charged with a crime, according to the district attorney. We had enough evidence to make a probable cause referral. Police say it was Fravel who last saw Kingsbury on March 31st, the day the two dropped their children off at school. Fravel later telling police, he left Kingsbury's home in her van for about three and a half

hours. When he returned, she was missing. The case launching numerous searches with thousands of volunteers, scouring the Winona area and beyond. The family never gave up. Law enforcement never gave up. The community never gave up. Fravel's attorney previously claiming his client's innocence.

Adam has been consistent with law enforcement from the first time he sat down with him that he didn't have anything to do with Maddie's disappearance. Today, not responding to our request for comment. The whirlwind is just starting all over again. This is definitely a silver lining. All along, Kingsbury's family wondering if Fravel could be responsible. We, from the beginning, thought that Adam had something to do with this,

and so we think that the right person is in custody. Valerie Castro joins us now in studio. So Valerie, talk to us here. What happens to those kids, the two kids? So the couple shared a two-year-old and a five-year-old. They have been in the care of Madeline's family ever since she. disappeared. But earlier this week, Adam was in court asking for custody of the children, although a judge denied his request and said that the children should stay in the custody of their maternal

grandparents. And we're just talking right now. This is interesting. He's been arrested, but he hasn't been charged? No, we're still waiting for the district attorney to officially file charges. He has been arrested on suspicion of second-degree murder, but the district attorney tells us there is a chance he could appear in court sometime tomorrow. Okay, Valerie Castro for us. Valerie, appreciate it. Not a Utah on a controversial decision to pull the Bible from some square. It comes after an anonymous complaint urged the school district to ban the book because it claimed it contained pornographic material. Parents rally against the decision at the state capitol as another religious text comes under scrutiny. NBC News correspondent Ellison Barber explains.

Inside Utah State Capitol, the latest clash over banned books after a school district took aim at the best-selling book of all time, the Bible. Is there evidence that the Bible does not have serious artistic value? With the holy book in one hand and signs in the other, frustrated parents calling out the recent decision by Davis School District that voted to remove the King James Version of the Bible from elementary and middle school libraries. Period. Thank you very much. The move coming after a complaint was filed with the district in December when the district received an anonymous grievance that said the school district was ignoring, quote, one of the most sex-ridden books around, the Bible, adding that this edition of the Bible, quote, has no serious values for minors because it's pornographic by our new definition. Get this porn out of our schools. A response of sorts to Utah's controversial sensitive materials law,

which bans, quote, pornographic or indecent materials. Bans have included perks of being a wallflower, handmaid's tale, and Tony Morrison's the bluest eye. But the law now being applied to the religious text, something the legislator's author says is going too far. Yes, the Bible is best taught at home. That does not mean that the Bible should be, could be, must be removed from schools. That's a leap of logic that some have inappropriately made.

The district's review board said the Bible was not considered pornographic in nature and did not violate the law. However, they said it was inappropriate for younger readers due to quote vulgarity or violence. But it would still be available in high school libraries, along with other trends. translations of the book. I just thought it was retribution. Some parents now pushing back against the Bible ban, including Utah Parents United, a group that is called for restrictions to books in schools. They would set precedence that things that were very discrete mentions of like sexual, sexually explicit or sexual content would really lower the bar and so many other books It would be removed. Similar challenges to the Bible have been seen in states that have their own book banned legislation, like Texas and Florida. In Utah, school officials have created a form that allows parents in the district to submit review recommendations. And just last week, another controversial submission. This time, the Book of Mormon, a review committee now going through the text and their decision pending. All right, Ellison joins us now in studio. So, Alison, I want to talk about that last part of your story, the form, the online form.

Can anyone submit a book to be banned? So it's interesting because you don't have to have a large group. Say you're one individual. You can go online and submit a form there. You do have to have what this district considers standing, which basically means some tie to the school district. You either have to be a parent or guardian of someone who is currently enrolled, a student yourself, a district employee or a member of the school board.

But one thing that is interesting and perhaps a bit unique here or what maybe people wouldn't expect is that, The books that are being challenged, it doesn't have to be something taught in the classroom. That's what happened in the case of the Bible here. This is not something that was part of the curriculum. It's simply in the libraries. It was just in the library. It's just in the library.

So people can go online, fill out this form if they are deemed to be someone who has standing and challenge by themselves any book that might be in this school district's library. Talk to me about an appeal process. So this appeal, this has already been appealed for the Bible specifically. An appeal has to be filed within 15 days. of when a decision is initially made. In this case, an appeal was filed as it relates to the Bible on May 31st. Exactly when they will make a decision on that appeal is a little bit unclear.

And you look at this review committee, and they have a lot to review right now. Currently, Tom, they have 40 pending initial reviews and 16 pending appeals. So they have a lot to go through. We'll be right back after this break. All right. We're back now in Top Story. Time for our news feed. And we begin with a deck packed with teenagers collapsing on a Texas beach. Aerial footage shows officers on the scene in Surfside Beach after that deck gave way. At least 20 people between the ages of 14 and 18 were hurt. They were taken to the hospital. They were all expected to be okay. Officials said the group was at the beach for a summer camp. No word yet on what caused that deck to collapse. Police in California searching for the suspect who stole $50,000 worth of. bikes from a Bay Area business. Surveillance video shows the group using a crowbar to break into the Redwood City store before walking out with the products. Police say the suspects hit that store twice in one morning grabbing six e-bikes and one high-end road bike. Managers believe the

heist was planned and that the thieves had scoped at the store beforehand. The startling shark encounter caught on camera off the New Jersey coast. Take a look. Video shows a fisherman coming face to face with, yep, you see it there, great white shark. Not too bad, though. This is just a few miles from Point Pleasant Beach. That part is scary. The shark attempting to steal the fisherman's catch before disappearing underwater. The fisherman was on a fishing trip with his daughter at the time. And the National Weather Service announcing today that El Nino is back. The climate phenomenon in the Pacific arrives about every seven years and can intensify some extreme weather events in multiple countries. This year, it's expected to bring warmer

temperatures across the northern U.S. and wetter conditions across the south. Experts say this Elinio could help make 2023 the warmest year on record. And we will be right back. We are back now with a major update on the war in Ukraine. We've been reporting for days on that damn break, and tonight our reporter is there. This has the counteroffensive we've been hearing about for months from Ukraine has now begun.

Ralph Sanchez and his team in a region underwater and at war. Tonight, NBC News Learning after months, Subplanning and training, Ukraine's long-awaited counteroffensive to try to take back Russian occupied territory is finally underway. That's according to two Ukrainian military officials. This unverified Russian military drone footage from Zaporica in the east appearing to show Ukraine using Western battle tanks in combat for the first time, analysts say. Tonight, Russia's defense minister insisting that their forces are holding firm. currently occupies nearly 20% of Ukraine.

President Biden today weighing in, meeting with the British Prime Minister, and vowing to keep backing Ukraine with military aid. We're also discussed our unwavering support for the people of Ukraine. In Hurson, these rescuers under Russian shelling as they try to evacuate civilians from flooded streets after the destruction of that key dam. Here in Zaporichia, water levels have fallen dramatically. disrupting clean water supplies across southern Ukraine and raising fears about the nearby nuclear power plant. Ukraine says there's no immediate danger, and there's still enough water to cool the plant's six reactors.

Raf Sanchez joins us now from southeastern Ukraine. Raft, give us a sense of what it's like there. You have something quite unique, right? A war, and on top of that, a flood, and they're possibly connected. Yeah, Tom, Ukraine says they are directly connected. They're saying, the Russians blew up this dam over the Nippur River to stop Ukrainian forces using it as a crossing point for this counter-offensive and to use the flooding as a way to kind of scramble the battlefield.

But Ukrainian authorities have been saying consistently since the dam exploded on Tuesday, they would not allow it to interfere with their military operations. They have stayed true to that promise. And it's really kind of a sign of their ability to multitask their bandwidth that they are simultaneously launching

this major military operation. while also dealing with this unfolding humanitarian and environmental disaster. So that's the view from the battlefield, right? But give me a sense of being on the ground there and these towns and villages that have been flooded. What is life like there? Well, on the Ukrainian-controlled side, authorities are doing everything they can to evacuate people. They're sending these small speedboats into flooded streets, trying to get people sometimes from the roofs of their home.

On the Russian-occupied side, Ukrainian authorities are saying civilians have basically been left to fend for themselves. In some cases, they are using military drones to drop individual bottles of water to people there. So it is a dire situation all across the south of this country, even as the fighting rages in the east. And, Raff, I'm just curious here, when we talk about that flooding, how deep of water are we talking about? Are we talking about water when it rushed in? it was as high as roofs, or is it somewhat controlled at this point? As high as roofs in the worst cases, some of these images remind you almost of the scenes from Hurricane Katrina.

You have families stranded on the roof. They are waving desperately at the drones overhead, and they're trying to flag down these rescuers who are in these very little speedboats trying to cover an enormous and treacherous territory to get to people who need help. Raph Sanchez for us tonight. Raf, we thank you and your team. Please be safe out there. And with that, we turn out of Top Story's Global Watch

and the dangerous scene of an escalator in South Korea. Look at this. It's new video showing the moment that escalator suddenly changed directions, sending dozens of people toppling over each other. It happened at a train station south of Seoul. At least three people were taken to the hospital with serious injuries.

Okay, nearly 100 migrants were rescued off the coast of Libya, Coast Guard racing to the scene after an inflatable dinghy capsized in the Mediterranean Sea. You can see the panic there. This is near the capital city of Tripoli. According to officials, a majority of them were rescued, but at least eight people, unfortunately, drowned. Authorities believe the migrants who were from Mali, Senegal, and Gambia were headed towards Europe. And the drug bus at the Canadian border, all thanks to a wrong turn. Listen to this. Canadian officials say a 60-year-old American man was arrested, after police found about 400 pounds of marijuana and $600,000 in cash in his car.

He ended up at a border crossing in Niagara Falls after putting the wrong destination into his GPS. Officials conducted that search because the driver didn't have his passport. All right, quite the story there. When we come back, a life-changing project, the group of eighth graders making a prosthetic hand for a younger classmate, how they did it, plus the incredible moment he received that gift, even getting the attention of his favorite hockey team. You're going to love this story. So stay with us.

Finally tonight, a school project like no other, an eighth grade class in California printing a 3D prosthetic hand for one of their classmates. That project not only changing his life, but also theirs. NBC's Maya Eaglin has this one. In this classroom at Almaden County Day School in San Jose, California, these eighth graders are learning the basics of 3D printing and modeling.

So what I want you guys to do is work on this mold part. But they were presented with an advanced opportunity. When the mother of a third grade student in the same school, asked teacher Joanne Pepini if the class could print a prosthetic for her son Trent, who was born without a fully formed right hand. And in my mind, I'm like, yeah, that'll be nice for college and high school kids, but I wanted to do something with it. Middle schooler Sarah Vendor, up for the challenge.

I was a little unsure because I've never made a hand before. With some help from online instructions, Sarah and her classmates got to work on their own prosthetic prototype. So this is our failure box. Working for a whole month to improve their design. I really wanted to make sure it was perfect because I knew that this would change his life if it went well. And all that hard work?

Yeah! Paying off. I was so relieved that it works. I was like, yes, it works. The hand even made in the colors at the colors. the San Jose Sharks, Trent's favorite hockey team. I felt happy and I was super excited to show my class. Oh, look how excited they all are you.

Trent thrilled to show off his new hand to his class. We were crying. We were all, we were just ecstatic. We're running around and Trent's running outside. And the kids are high-fiving him and, you know, everybody was just emailing me and crying and I'm tears. And even a surprise visit from the shark's mascot. What started as an elective class, now inspiring Sarah, proving her work can help others. Yeah, I just saw that he was so happy, and it made me feel so good that I was able to do something that could help him so much.

And, yeah, I definitely think that I want to pursue that. Trent, you have some awesome classmates there at Almitting Country Day School. We want to thank our station in the Bay Area for their help with that story, and we thank you for watching Top Story tonight. I'm Tom Yamis in New York. Stay right there. on the way.