Top Story with Tom Llamas - Tuesday, October 21, 2025

Episode Date: October 22, 2025

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. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Tonight, breaking news as we come on the air. Federal agents opening fire in LA, two people injured, including a deputy U.S. Marshal. DHS officials say it was an ICE traffic stop turned violent, an undocumented immigrant allegedly trying to ram their car before shots rang out. The new video showing someone on a gurney with emergency personnel near the scene. It comes on the same day, ICE carried out a raid in New York City and amid escalating violence surrounding ice operations. Also tonight, the startling image.

What slammed into a passenger plane injuring this pilot? What we're learning about the weather balloon that smashed into the United Flight, the balloon's company's CEO on what went wrong. Plus, a new hurricane threat. Tropical storm Melissa bearing down on the Caribbean and expected to intensify. Bill Karen standing by with the track.

Second summit on hold. The White House pressing pause on President Trump's upcoming with Vladimir Putin, is there still a path to peace in Ukraine? Baby left behind. The new images tonight of a woman wanted for questioning after a baby was allegedly abandoned at a subway station in New York City. Shocking video out of Georgia, a man pouring gasoline inside a daycare center and setting the place of blades, a manhunt now underway for the suspect.

And the haunted heist from a Dallas school, who stole this skeleton dressed as a Dallas Maverick, The surveillance video of the theft and of the Mavs mascot stepping in to make it right. And new questions rocking the chess world tonight after a 29-year-old grandmaster unexpectedly died. Top story starts right now. And good evening. I'm Ellison Barber in for Tom Yamis. We're coming on the air tonight with breaking news in Los Angeles. Federal officials, federal officers rather, say they opened fire on an undocumented. immigrant during an ICE traffic stop, injuring him and a deputy U.S. Marshal.

The new video, out of L.A., a man seen on the ground being treated by firefighters at the scene, someone nearby also seen on a gurney minutes after the incident. Authorities say federal agents were conducting a targeted stop when the person they've identified as an undocumented immigrant rammed them with his car. The agents opening fire hitting him in the elbow. That deputy U.S. Marshal also struck protesters gathering outside a news. nearby hospital now. DHS confirming both individuals are receiving medical treatment. On the other side of the country in New York City today, a show of force, dozens of federal agents converging on

lower Manhattan and conducting arrests. It comes amid escalating ice operations across the country. In Chicago last week, this chase captured on surveillance footage after Homeland Security said an undocumented immigrant rammed a Border Patrol vehicle. That same day, federal agents also deployed tear gas in the windy city after police. claimed protesters turned violent with some people throwing objects at agents. But we begin in Los Angeles where we're getting new details about the shooting there. Let's get right to NBC's Morgan Chesky, who is live in L.A. with the very latest. Morgan, what more are we learning about this incident? Yeah, well, Alison, apparently according to federal authorities, this all began

from what, as you mentioned, was an attempt by federal authorities to take this individual into custody in L.A.'s downtown area, an area known as the fact. district, and they said that they used what they called normal procedures, normal methods, to essentially corral this individual's vehicle. And it was at that point that federal authorities say the individual inside the car began trying to ram past federal authorities vehicles. And that was essentially the catalyst, according to federal authorities, for them to fire those defensive shots in return.

And it was from one of those defensive shots, according to authorities. that resulted in the hand of a deputy U.S. Marshall being struck as well as the individual inside that vehicle being struck in the elbow as well, both expected to survive this situation. And just within the last few minutes, Ellison, a council member on L.A. City Council believes to have identified the individual that authorities were trying to take into custody, saying that he is Richard Law, calling him an important. citizen journalist. There's a photo that just went up in a post minutes ago saying that he's been reporting on the immigration operation in District 9, calling him a pillar of the community, a fearless citizen whose authentic storytelling has consistently uplifted the unheard voices of South Central Los Angeles, saying that his unfiltered portrayal of real life has fostered a loyal following both on TikTok and throughout our city. Again, the man that the council

Mr. Perman identifies as Richard Law is recovering in a hospital. Important to note here, Alison, that federal authorities say that they were trying to take him into custody after he had already been able to escape custody prior. We're hoping to get new details on that front. I also want to share with you a statement from DHS saying that essentially the blame lies here partly on the rhetoric, saying that these are the consequences of conduct and rhetoric by sanctuary politicians and activists who urge illegal aliens to resist arrest. Resisting arrest puts the safety of illegal aliens, law enforcement, and the public at risk. That coming from a spokesman with the DHS, sharing that with our own Julia Ainsley earlier today. Alison.

Morgan, Chesky, I mean, a lot of developing details there that we will continue to follow. But while we do have you, I want to ask you about the context of the broader things happening around this, right? As we mentioned, this is the latest in a series of aggressive clashes between civilians and ICE officers. Could you tell us more about what we've been seeing? The tension certainly does feel to be growing as these ice operations grow nationwide, Ellison. One of the more recent incidents happened in Chicago. We have some video from what took place a little over a week ago, and it was in Chicago where two individuals were charged after allegedly ramming a Border Patrol vehicle prior to a shooting that took place there.

It was in Chicago, Ellison, that authorities used a maneuver where they tried to pin that vehicle in place that ended up in shots being fired. And then another incident unfolded in Maryland. This happened in the middle of the day, where, as you can see, two officers were taking an individual to the ground, trying to place him in custody when that officer lying on the ground there, you can see him holding that what believes looks like a handgun, and he's trying to secure it in his belt. But if we keep watching here,

he loses control of that handgun briefly, causing a very frightening situation there as they took that individual into custody as well. Alison. NBC's Morgan Chesky with that breaking news out of Los Angeles tonight. Thank you. We appreciate it. New updates on some frightening moments in the sky. Tonight, we are learning exactly what hit a United Airlines flight last week and forced an emergency landing after it reached cruising altitude above Utah.

And we have new details about another emergency landing, this one in Omaha, Nebraska, after pilots feared a possible hijacking. Here's Tom Costello. Tonight, a weather balloon company's Mia Coppa, one of its balloons likely hit that United Airlines plane, flying from Denver to L.A. at 36,000 feet, shattering the windscreen, sending glass. flying into the cockpit and leaving one of the pilots bleeding from cuts on his arm. Passengers on board startled when the pilot said they'd hit something and were diverting to Salt Lake City. It's saying, hey folks, I have some bad news. Unfortunately, the aircraft has collided with an object and shattered a window in the cockpit. Now, windborne systems says the plane likely hit one of its two and a half pound weather balloons seen here. Writing in a statement, we are grateful that to our

knowledge there were no serious injuries and no loss of pressurization. John Dean is the CEO. You believe that this was your balloon that impacted the 737. That's correct. So given our flight telemetry data, it appears likely to us that it was a windborne balloon that struck the plan, or rather the plane flew into a windborne balloon. Windbourne says it's launched 5,000 weather balloons so far, each one, transmitting a precise GPS signal and altitude. But somehow the plane still flew into it at 500 miles per hour. Now the company is reprogramming its balloons to avoid another collision. We always work at a local ATC in the region when we launch a balloon and we'll call the tower ahead of time before launch to the FAA of launching. NBC News aviation analyst Captain John Cox.

The FAA should be sharing this data so that pilots are aware any time there's a balloon like this in their airspace. Meanwhile, a very different type of scare in the air over Nebraska Monday night when The pilots of a SkyWest flight, operating as American Airlines, declared an emergency and return to Omaha. A faulty intercom system on board prevented any communication between pilots and the cockpit and their flight attendants. One or more flight attendants began banging on the cockpit door to reach the pilots who were prohibited from opening the door in case of hijacking. And one of the flight attendants had panicked because they thought there was something happening inside of the cockpit. So she started banging on the door. Fearing the worst, the pilots decided

to make an emergency landing back in Omaha. Since we weren't able to communicate with each other, we weren't sure if something that was going on with the aircraft or not. Once on the ground, police boarded a plane to ensure there was no hijacking attempt. And Tom Costello joins us now from D.C. Tom, we're just learning about new ground stops at airports today due to staffing issues. Yeah, that's right. Now, listen, it's virtually impossible to know whether this is related to the government

shutdown and air traffic controllers who, individually have been calling out sick either in protest or citing the stress of working without a paycheck. Nonetheless, right now we've got Houston in a ground stop. We've got ground stops possible, according to the FAA, due to staffing in Philadelphia and Jacksonville Center later, and then separately Newark until about 8 p.m. About 2,500 ground stops as delays, I should say. 2,500 flight delays nationwide as we speak. Compare that to yesterday. We had about 6,700 at total, and again, 7,000. 900 on Sunday. But Allison, I really want to stress. We have had an ongoing air traffic control staffing problem in this country that we've been talking about for years. We've highlighted the ongoing training to try to ramp up a new hiring. And now we have this, of course, the government

shutdown. It's really impossible to determine which of these is due to the shutdown and which is simply the new reality. Tom Costello, thank you. Turning now to the potential hurricane threat in the Caribbean. Tropical storm, Melissa, expected to intensify Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Jamaica, all bracing for destructive winds, flash floods, even the potential of landslides. Let's bring in an NBC meteorologist Bill Karens for the latest. Bill, what is the latest track here? You know, Allison, it figures. We're at the tail into hurricane season. We thought maybe we're going to sneak by without any devastating storms. And this one has a lot of potential, mostly just because of where it's located. This is our first storm that we've had in the Caribbean. And any storm it gets in the

Caribbean, almost like the Gulf of Mexico, it's going to hit a land area. And so this storm is now located south of Haiti, and it's going to slowly drift. That's going to be the problem with this over the next five to even seven days. Look at the path by the hurricane center. You can walk as fast as this storm is going to be moving by the time we get a Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, somewhere near Jamaica or Haiti. There's big, tall mountains in both of these locations. The slow moving storm is going to produce a ton of rain. Our European computer, everywhere you see the darkish, brownish red, that's 10 plus inches of rain. That's a lot of problems. That's a lot of problems in the mountainous areas of Haiti with mountain, you know, flooding and all things like that.

So, you know, we don't know exactly who's going to get hit by the hard winds, but the rain looks to be a huge life-threatening issue. Bill, are there any concerns that that could be felt along the eastern United States? All right, Allison, I'm going to give you a couple helpings of spaghetti here. So we call these lines our spaghetti lines. These are our main physics-based models, and yes, we do have AI models now, too. And these are kind of divergent on where they're going. But the point is that they're not near Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and they're not towards

Miami. So we actually have lines that come off of these lines. And we call these our spaghetti ensemble lines. And you could clearly see why we call on that. This is our American GFS. There's 20 different lines. So we take the main forecast. We change it just a little bit and tweak it. And then we rerun it. And then it gives us these lines. Again, nothing near Florida, nothing near Puerto Rico. And then you want the double helping of spaghetti. The European model has 50 of these lines. And you can see what a mess this is. But it's a lot of uncertainty for Honduras, Jamaica, Eastern Cuba, Haiti and Dominican Republic, Turks and Caicos. But Nothing in Florida. So it doesn't look like a threat for the U.S. at this time unless something dramatically changes later this week.

All right. NBC's, Bill Cairns, thank you. We appreciate it. At a other major story tonight, that big meeting between President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin now on hold. Just last week, Trump said he would meet with Putin in Budapest to figure out how to end the war in Ukraine. So what's changed? NBC's Gabe Gutierrez is tracking it all from the White House and joins us now. Gabe, do we have a sense of why the Trump? administration is hitting pause at this point. Well, certainly, Alison, President Trump was very optimistic last week after he had just spoken with Russian President Vladimir Putin for more than two hours, and he wanted to build on that

momentum from the ceasefire agreement that the president had reached in Gaza. Now, however, it appears these negotiations have fizzled. Now, Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke with the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov today via phone. And after that phone call is when the White House said that this potential meeting between President Trump and Vladimir Putin had been put on hold. Now, the Trump administration described this call with Lavrov as productive, Elson, but that's a diplomatic word, as you know, that diplomats say when they can't think of anything nicer to say. So it does appear that the Russians have not really made any headway with agreeing to any of these potential measures to get to a ceasefire.

President Trump, of course, his meeting with Vladimir Zelensky last week did not go all that well. He did not agree to provide those Tomahawk missiles that Zelensky has been asking for. So at this point, Allison, it appears there really is no place to go in these talks. And the president at this point appears not to want to meet with Vladimir Putin, at least, until the ball is moved in some way else. some other White House news today, this one related to construction, right? The president defending the ballroom construction that is going on at the White House. We should also note for our viewers that Comcast, the parent company of NBC Universal, was included on a list of top donors to this project.

But the White House today releasing a long list of other construction projects undertaken by previous presidents from the Rose Garden, added by JFK, to the press room that was added during the Nixon years. They are arguing, Gabe, this ballroom project, it's on that list, correct? Yeah, that's right. Look, the Trump administration, the White House, they've been arguing that any outrage from critics of the administration

over this construction project is unfounded. You see the video right there. Parts of the east wing being demolished starting yesterday. It's actually just over my right shoulder here in the distance. We don't have a good vantage point here from the North Lawn. But the White House is arguing that this is something that other administrations have done before, dating back to the early 1900s, for example, Teddy Rosa. building the West Wing and the Kennedy administration, renovating, or actually building the Rose Garden.

There have been other renovations since then. The president argues that this is something that the White House needs, that it needs a bigger ballroom, and he wants it to hold nearly a thousand people. And importantly, he is arguing that this will be privately funded, including some of the money that he will himself put up. So the White House is trying to make the case here that this will ultimately benefit the American people, even though Democrats. and other critics are saying that the president is taking upon himself to tear down part of the people's house. Senior White House correspondent, Gabe Gutierrez, on the North Lawn. Thank you. And in Israel tonight, the U.S.'s top negotiators had the chance to meet the hostages

they spent so much time working to free. Vice President J.D. Vance also there working to maintain the ceasefire despite renewed violence in Gaza. NBC's Matt Bradley reports from Israel. Tonight, some of the first images of many of the release hostages together since their release, meeting and embracing the two Americans whose diplomatic efforts secured their freedom. President Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner and Special Envoy Steve Whitkoff were architects

of the Seats Fire deal that now hangs by a thread. That I didn't see any victims in that room. I saw strong people who have come out under very difficult circumstances. Vice President J.D. Vance and his wife Ushah joined the pair today in a huge display of American diplomatic muscle, all to preserve a tenuous truce in Gaza, where Palestinian health officials say around 90 people have been killed by the IDF since the ceasefire took hold. Every time that there's an act of violence, there's this inclination to say, oh, this is the end of the ceasefire, this is the end of the peace plan, it's not the end.

Israel accused Hamas of violating the ceasefire by attacking Israeli troops. Hamas denied it, accusing Israel. of fabricating a pretext to restart hostilities. President Trump threatening Hamas again today over what he said was the group's violations of the ceasefire, writing, there's still hope that Hamas will do what is right. If they do not, an end to Hamas will be fast, furious and brutal. For Gazans who are returning to the ruins of their homes,

struggling to find food and clean water, the continuing violence is a grim business as usual. They say there's a truce, what truth, said this man. they violated the truce and claimed that we violated it. All of this talk is false. But the violence is only one threat to the precarious peace. Hamas has struggled to return all 28 of the slain hostages remains because the group has said many are buried under mounds of rubble.

That sparked calls in Israel to return to war. But Hamas has said it's trying to recover the bodies and the American envoys seemed willing to give the militant group a chance. We're currently making progress on the hostages, the bodies that are still there. I think almost half are out now. Tonight, Hamas handed over two more bodies to Israel. Now only 13 remain. Their long-delayed funerals are being held this week, bringing closure to their families, even if Gaza's future remains an open question. And NBC's Matt Bradley joins us now from Tel Aviv. Matt President

Trump has been very clear in saying that Hamas must disarm, but that and the future governance of Gaza is still very much up in the air. At this point, what do we know about the second phase of the agreement? Well, Alison, I mean, the short answer is not very much, and that's because not a whole lot of it has actually been decided. It's all still under negotiation. Even the definition of disarmament hasn't really been decided. Hamas has said that they aren't going to disarm. We heard from the Minister of Defense of Israel saying that disarmament means dismantling all of Hamas's tunnels. And security officials that I've been speaking to have been briefed on this say that only 20 to 30 percent of Hamas's tunnels under the Gaza Strip have even been, you know,

discovered. So this is something that, if you can imagine, we're talking about a major construction effort to dismantle all of those tunnels, all while we're seeing the Gaza Strip kind of on the precipice of a renewed war. Then there's the question of post-Gaza governance. That is really a big one. We don't know who would be in control. And we've seen that there are about 200 U.S. personnel who have been deployed to Israel. The president has made it clear they are not going to be entering into Gaza whatsoever, but they've established a base here in Israel. That's where we heard Vice President J.D. Vance speaking from today, along with Steve Whitkoff and Jared Kushner.

You know, there is also talk of an international force that would somehow be the bridge between what we're seeing now in Gaza and a future Gaza governance. But even that, we don't know who would be a member of that. There's talk that Egypt, Turkey, all these other Arab or Muslim countries would participate, but we haven't actually heard from those countries whether they're signing on again when we're talking about the second phase and we're still very much in the first phase. This is, you know, unknown territory and it could really end the negotiations to further this deal. Matt Bradley, thank you.

We're going to turn now to some breaking news on one of President Trump's most controversial nominees. Paul Ingrossia, who is tapped to lead the Office of Special Counsel announcing he is withdrawing his name from consideration after allegations of racism surfaced following a report in Politico where they published a series of text messages he had allegedly sent within a group chat. And Gracia posting this on X tonight, quote, I will be withdrawing myself from Thursday's HSGAC hearing that is in reference of the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee to lead the Office of Special. Council, because unfortunately, I do not have enough Republican votes at this time.

I appreciate the overwhelming support that I have received throughout this process and will continue to serve President Trump and this administration to make America great again. All of this comes just one day after that exclusive report with Politico saying that they had reviewed messages Ingracia sent on a text change that included a half dozen Republican operatives and influencers, with Ingracia allegedly writing in one, quote, MLK Jr. was the 1916. 60s, George Floyd and his holiday should be ended and tossed into the seventh circle of hell where it belongs. In another one, he wrote, quote, I do have a Nazi streak in me from time to time. NBC News did not independently review or verify those messages, and Ingrossia, prior to his announcement tonight, had not responded to our request for comment.

NBC's Melanie Zanona is on Capitol Hill with the very latest. Mel, walk us through what we know right now. How did he come to this decision and how has he responded to those text messages? Yeah, well, and Grassy and the White House clearly saw the writing on the wall here. And based on our reporting, it was going to be a pretty embarrassing defeat if they were to put through this nomination. Because it wasn't just a handful of Republicans who were expressing concerns. It was pretty widespread in the GOP conference. They were uncomfortable with that political report that you mentioned,

but also a number of other controversies that have been dogging this nominee from the very beginning. He was part of the legal team that represented Andrew Tate, a very divisive. figure on the far right. He was also accused of sexual harassment, although he is denied all wrongdoing. And then when it comes to these text messages, he has not responded to our request for comment, but he did, through his attorney, tell Politico that if the text were real, his attorney said they were, quote, self-deprecating and satirical humor, making fun of the fact that liberals outlandishy and routinely call MAGA supporters Nazis. His attorney then also did say, though, that he was not confirming whether the text messages were real or not, and even suggested

that they might be manipulated with the sole intent of hurting Ingracia's nomination. But it is very clear that even Hill Republicans were not buying that argument, and that is ultimately why this nomination was pulled tonight. All right. So we withdrawal tonight. That breaking news, Melanie Zanona on Capitol Hill. Thank you so much. We appreciate it. Still ahead tonight on top story. Shocking video shows a man setting fire to a Georgia daycare. into who did it and what the owner told us about her business being targeted before. Plus, the latest on the investigation into that heist at the Louvre Museum in France. The new multi-million dollar value being put on the historic artifacts that were taken.

We'll talk with the former FBI agent about where authorities could focus next. And dramatic video of a coyote attacking a golden retriever and turning on the dog's family. That is next. Back now with a terrifying situation caught on camera. Security footage capturing the moment a suspect walked into a Georgia daycare and set it on fire. The owner saying it is the second time in less than a year she's been targeted. NBC's Valerie Castro has more. Tonight, an investigation underway after a suspect broke into a Georgia daycare setting it on fire.

All of it captured on camera. Security video obtained by NBC News affiliate WXIA showing the suspect running across the backyard of the property in a black hooded sweatshirt, then using a tool to break through the back entrance. Another camera capturing the moment the suspect pours gasoline down a hallway inside the building before going back outside, setting a fire and running from the scene, jumping over the property's fence. Massive flames engulfing the interior of the building. Rockdale County Fire Rescue saying in a statement their crews arrived on scene Monday night

to find smoke conditions within the building and brought the fire under control. We've been in this community and owned this building since 2017. While the building is still standing and no one got hurt, Keisha Archer, owner of Star Kids Academy 2, says the grand opening set for next week won't happen. They don't want to see us opening, and it's very sad because the community needs this child care center. It's not the first time Archer's business fell victim to vandalism. She says eight months ago, someone else broke in destroying the toilets, causing flooding. Someone's upset, and I'm not sure exactly who it is, but they're very upset. No arrests have been made, and the cause of the fire is under investigation by the county's fire marshal, according to the Rockdale County Fire Rescue.

And Valerie Castro joins us now on set. I mean, we heard the owner there saying someone is upset. Does she believe she and her business are the target here? And if so, how come? So she's actually owned the building since 2017. So she says she has some theories about who might be behind this. but police haven't confirmed any of that. They are still investigating, of course, hoping that someone recognizes the suspect from that video and turns them in. No word on when she could possibly open the daycare now. NBC's Valerie Castro, thank you. Coming up, could Broadway go on strike?

The musicians, for some of the biggest shows warning, they are ready to walk off the job if a contract deal is not reached. Plus, the new product announced by ChatGPT today, why the company is now looking to take over your internet browser. But first, top story's top moment. And the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for one amateur musician, singer Shabuzi was performing at a concert in Jacksonville, Florida, when he told the crowd his guitarist could not make the show. That's when 17-year-old Lawson Langley volunteered to help out, joining the singer known for the massive hit, a bar song, on stage. Take a look at this. Thank you. I've never done this before, so, man, this money. Lange Langeley, thank you for me for my basketball.

It's going to say it. Langley, thanks Shabuzzi for the opportunity on social media. What a great moment. Stay with us because more news is on the way. Now with Top Story's news feed, starting with a pardoned January 6th rioter now arrested for making threats against Democratic House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Christopher Moynihan was arrested and charged with making a terroristic threat in New York. Charging documents show the FBI received an anonymous tip that Moynihan planned to kill Jeffries in New York City. Moynihan was among the 1,500 January 6th defendants pardoned by President Trump.

And a dramatic rescue along the coast of California after a boat overturned in the ocean. Video shows crews repelling down from a helicopter. This all happened on Saturday in Marin County. Sheriff's officials say they reached two people who made it to this remote beach. Three others were on board the boat, including a six-year-old child. Authorities say they were all rescued by what they described as heroic bystanders. Broadway musicians are now vowing to strike on Thursday if they don't reach a new contract deal with the Broadway League. The union that represents musicians has been working on a contract since their previous one expired at the end of August.

Union leadership says the league wants to cut wages, benefits, and potentially jobs. The strike could impact more than 20 Broadway shows, including Wicked, Hamilton, and the Lion King. And terrifying video of a New Jersey nanny getting attacked by a coyote while walking a dog in the backyard. You can see the homeowner running up to try and help. Police say the coyote bit the nanny on the arm, leg, and back. The coyote then chasing after the family's golden retriever before running off. Both the nanny and dog are expected to be okay. We're going to turn now to top stories, health check.

And tonight, a new measles outbreak quickly growing in Arizona and southern Utah. Mohav County, Arizona, just increasing its numbers, now reporting 80 cases. Just across the border in southwest Utah, officials say there are 43 cases. And that is where we find NBC News health reporter Erica Edwards. She joins us now from St. George, Utah, not far from Zion National Park. Erica, measles cases, they have hit record highs since the United States eliminated the disease back. in 2000, right? And tonight, the Utah Department of Health says a majority of the cases in this latest outbreak are among unvaccinated adults and children. What are you hearing on the ground?

Yeah, good evening. So I'm near the border of Arizona and Utah. The site of what's now become this second largest measles outbreak the U.S. has seen this year. Most of the 123 cases in this area so far have been among school-aged children, all but one. The public health department tells have been unvaccinated. Now, vaccination rates have been falling in this area for a long time. So if we look at some of the counties here, now just 79.2% of kindergarten kids are vaccinated here in Washington County, Utah, and even lower in Mojave County, Arizona at 78.4%. Remember, we need 95% vaccination rates to reach that herd immunity. Now, the numbers are not lost here on local public health officials, they anticipate that there are likely hundreds more cases here going undiagnosed.

Alison. When you talk to those local health officials, what are they saying about how they tackle this? I mean, this is somewhat of a remote area, right? Does that provide or cause unique challenges when it comes to dealing with an outbreak like this? Oh, sure. I mean, this area is very interesting because there's a small community bordering the Arizona and Utah. Locals call it Short Creek. That's where this outbreak has been centered so far. Historically, it's been home to a religious sect of the Mormon church called the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or F-L-D-S.

Now, we've seen similar outbreaks of measles in other very close-knit religious communities, but I spoke with the mayor of one of those towns today, and she said that residents there are paying attention, and they're taking action. Have you ever seen an outbreak like this? I've never seen an outbreak like this before, not since I've been here. I just feel like it's brought a lot of awareness, a lot of education. People have been talking, studying. There's been a sharp increase in immunizations given. So I spoke with one young mom today who said that she had never been vaccinated, but once this outbreak began, she and her young son both went to go get their shots.

Alison. Erica, this is the second major outbreak we've seen in the southwest. after that wave of cases earlier this year in Texas. I want to put up some data NBC News has. This is nationwide showing that 77% of American counties have seen a decline in vaccination rates since 2019. Is there a connection? And for parents, what do they need to know moving forward?

Yeah, so, I mean, for parents moving forward, this could be sort of a new normal. Remember, measles is the most contagious virus known on the planet. And this is a very complicated, sensitive issue from many families. But as you heard from the mayor, people here are seeing the impact of the vaccines, how well they work, and they're increasingly stepping up to get vaccinated. Alison. Erica Edwards, thank you.

And if you want to take a closer look at the vaccination rates in your area, NBC News has an interactive map breaking the numbers down county by county. That's available to you at NBCNews.com forward slash vaccine divide. Next tonight to the investigation to a woman in New York City who authorities say abandoned a newborn child on the steps of a bustling subway station. NBC New York's Gus Rosendale has this report. Police releasing these images today of a woman wanted for questioning in the Penn Station abandoned baby case. You can see her walk down 7th Avenue near West 34th just across from Penn Station. Investigators believe the bundle she's holding contains a newborn baby girl with her still attached umbilical cord. The woman seen wearing distinctive pink pants, a red headscarf, and dark glasses.

Police say she left the baby on steps off the southbound 1-2-3 line at Penn Station around 9.30 Monday morning. An unknown person notified police who found the newborn girl safe and alert before taking her to the hospital. That's new video now of a woman they think left the baby on the steps downstairs. Oh, boy, that's terrible. Oh my gosh. NYC Transit President DeBetrius Critchlow described the discovery this one. later that afternoon. I'm calling it the miracle on 34th Street. But it's a mystery on 34th Street, too. As police and everyday people wonder about the woman's connection to the baby and why anyone would leave an infant in such a chaotic and bustling place at the tail end of the morning rush hour.

These days, nothing surprises me what goes on in New York City, especially here in this area. If you don't want the baby, then bring the baby to a hospital or a fire station. You should never abandon a baby. That's an innocent baby that. is dependent on care. The baby cannot survive, and it should never be left at a train station, ever. And an important reminder that New York does have what's considered a safe haven law, which allows someone to leave a healthy infant in a safe place,

like a hospital or fire station, face no questions, and face no charges. Obviously, that did not happen in this case, and so the people involved could face felony charges. At Midtown Manhattan at Penn Station, I'm Gus Rosendale. Ellison back to you. Gus, thank you. We turn now to the latest on that brazen museum heist in Paris. The international manhunt still underway after thieves broke into the Louvre and brought daylight and stole multiple pieces of royal jewelry.

Tonight, we are learning the estimated value of the items stolen, $88 million, according to the Paris public prosecutor and the museum's curator. In U.S. currency, that's more than $100 million. For more on this, I want to bring in Jeff Kelly. He's a former FBI agent who led the investigation into the Isabella's. Stewart Gardner Museum heist back in 1990. So Jeff, I mean, you were an original member of the FBI's art crime team. Talk to us about this Louvre heist

and what stands out to you based on what you've seen thus far. Well, it was certainly a brazen heist. And I think that what stands apart from others similar heists, what we would call a smashing grab at the end is the fact that it took place in Paris while the museum was open. But this is nothing new. We're seeing a change, a trend where thieves are now going after stolen, excuse me, stealing jewelry as opposed to iconic artwork,

which is much more difficult to fence or to introduce into the illicit art market. So these thieves, they reportedly dropped one of the stolen crowns as they were doing their getaway or trying to make their getaway. Could there be any clues on that item that was left behind? What else would you be looking for at this point in terms of evidence? So right now I can tell you that the French police are continuing to do really basically a holistic investigation. They're looking at everything. Obviously, you saw from the videos, the crime scene investigators in Tyvec suits, they're going to be processing the scene or they've probably completed the processing by now. Probably not going to yield much in terms of fingerprints, but they're going to be focusing on potential DNA.

The crown that was dropped, doubtful that it's going to have any DNA of value, but I'm sure they're going to be focusing heavily on that truck with the ladder that was supposed to be torched. I think they attempted to light it on fire and they were unsuccessful. So that could yield a trove of DNA evidence, which is going to be very important in their efforts to identify the subjects. I do want to show our viewers a map of the Louvre because of the Louvre because the thieves, they allegedly entered through a war. window at the bottom of the screen here and then stole items from cases in the middle of the room doing all of this in about seven minutes. I mean, clearly they knew where they were going from the crane to the high vests, high vests, right, in broad daylight. It was, as you said, a very bold effort, seemingly very coordinated. It sounds like something out of Ocean's 11 to a lot

of us, right? What does it tell you about who is behind this? Do you think this is something they've done before? They certainly organized. They certainly knew what they were doing. They had they were in and out of the museum, I believe, in under four minutes. And that speaks to a group of thieves who practiced this, and they may have done something similar to this before. It's not uncommon for the fact that they were able to get in and get out, because obviously security guards at museums, they're there to provide general security for the public. They're not there to go hand-to-hand with any robbers that are coming into the museum.

And so it speaks to a level of sophistication, and I'm hopeful, based on this level of sophistication, that they're going to continue to be sophisticated criminals, and they're not going to be breaking down these jewels immediately. Hopefully there's going to be a cooling-off period, which would be smart, and that's what I would do. They're going to take some time to make sure that the police aren't on their trail, because if the cops show up at the door to arrest them, they really better have some kind of bargaining chip that they can provide in exchange for some type of clemency.

Yeah, I mean, that was going to be in part my next question. We often hear whenever a crime has occurred, investigators say the clock starts ticking from the moment it has occurred, and as time passes, it can become increasingly difficult to solve something. What is the timeline that investigators are working with in a case like this to hopefully recover these items in whole? Well, certainly as time passes, it becomes more and more difficult, but in a case like this, you're going to be in it for the long haul if you're an investigator.

Our stolen artwork is recovered either shortly after the theft occurs or it's going to be generational. It wasn't, it would be unrealistic to think that these pieces were going to be recovered within a few hours. But we're hopeful that if the French police continue to do their investigation, they're going to come up with some good clues. And certainly the location where this happened in the center of downtown Paris, on a Sunday, morning. There's going to be a tremendous amount of surveillance video, which I'm sure they're exploiting right now, not only municipal surveillance video, but private entities. And they're going to be going through a lot of video to try and track these guys down. And then, of course,

the next thing they're going to do, which is going to be part of a long-term investigation, is to start reaching out to their intelligence network. Any informants or sources that they have, not just in France, but throughout Europe. All right. Jeff Kelly, thank you so much. We appreciate your time and insights. Thank you. Thank you. Now to a new product just launched by the maker of chat GPT, OpenAI rolling out its very own web browser, calling it chat GPT Atlas. But the big question tonight, could it unseat Google's long held crown as the entry point to information online? Joining us now is Lance Yulanov. He is the editor at large for Tech Radar. Lance, thanks so much

for being with us tonight. I mean, look, OpenAI already has two apps, right? Chat GPT and SORA, what does Atlas add for them? Well, you know, this is how you start, right? This is how you start your journey on the web, right, through a web browser. So it's not just a chat bot where you can ask questions. It's a place where you can browse the web. And then, oh, by the way, chat GPT is fully integrated here and just standing there ready to help, ready to see what's on the page, ready to be your agent.

And not for nothing, this is exactly what Google has done with Chrome. You may have noticed that there's now an AI mode right inside of your URL, your address bar. So it's not a surprise this is happening. And I should also add that Atlas is built on what's called Chromium. All of the major browsers are built on the same engine. So it's really a skin on top of the same web browser you're using over and over again. Interesting. Okay, so given that, I want to show kind of the trend of Internet browser use

because the number one is Google Chrome by an incredibly wide margin. But it wasn't always that way, right? Those of us who are old enough to remember when the internet was not on your phone, remember the program called Internet Explorer that came bundled with your computer. All right.

Yes, right? But the default option on Windows, right? That graph there showed the rise of Chrome kind of slowly eating away at that market share year after year. Is another big browser realignment in store now? I mean, we're having really something far greater than that. A search, a finding things, getting things done realignment. You know, chat GPT changed the

game. It changed the game for Google and search. So the browser is certainly part of it. And I always tell people that, you know, there's no such thing as, you know, something owns the market forever. Things change. You know, we were all using Blackberry phones at one time. Remember that? Now we're using iPhones. So, you know, I know that I remember very well Internet Explorer being, you know, before that was Netscape, but Internet Explorer being the browser. Chrome showed up. We all tried it. It was, you know, the thing is, just the way Google Search was better, Chrome was the better browser.

It's one of the reasons we all switched to it and kept using it. It has remained in a poll position for a long time, but everything is changing now. It's all about the prompt. and who can make it easiest to enter a prompt and find information. The combination of one of these generative tools with web browsing is basically perfect. That's exactly what you want, to what Google's trying to do with Chrome as well. So, you know, we don't know who's going to end up on top, but at least Google has a big market share right now.

It will be fascinating to watch in the months and years ahead. Lance Yulenov with Tech Radar. Thank you so much. We appreciate it. That's fun. Still ahead on top story, the growing questions tonight surrounding the death of this 29-year-old chess grandmaster, how he's being remembered by fans and competitors alike. Plus, the deadly tornado tearing through the suburbs of Paris, the trail of destruction it left behind.

And we are back now with the unexpected death sending shock waves through the chess world. 29-year-old Daniel Naroditsky, a grandmaster of the game, died yesterday. The Charlotte Chess Center announced his death in a statement on social media. Tonight, there are growing questions surrounding the circumstances and the cause of the promising young chess star's untimely death. Naroditsky faced cheating allegations from another chess player the last year, something he denied. And a friend of Narodzky's, who is also a grandmaster from India, posted this on X. Quote, the relentless, baseless accusations and public interrogations he faced in recent months caused him immense pressure and pain. This has to stop when respected figures spread unfounded allegations without accountability.

Real lives are destroyed, end quote. To be clear, we do not currently know if those allegations are connected to Naroditsky's death. NBC's Priscilla Thompson is following this one and joins us now. Priscilla, we do not have a lot of details about the circumstances surrounding Naroditsky's death. Take us through what we do know. Yeah, Alison, what we know that he had just posted on YouTube on Friday, saying that he was back and better than ever explaining to his fans and viewers that he had taken a creative break, but that he was back, appearing to suggest that he was going to be posting

more. And then obviously, a few days later on Monday comes his untimely death. And obviously, this came as he was facing some of those allegations of cheating, which he had denied. Now, as for his death, we did reach out to the medical examiner to try to learn more about the circumstances and what exactly happened. but have not heard back. But his family has released a statement tonight saying Daniel was a talented chess player, commentator and educator, and a cherished member of the chess community, admired and respected by fans and players around the world.

So certainly a major loss for the sport tonight. Alison. Priscilla, can you tell us a little more about Naroditsky? I mean, he started having great success at a really young age, right? Talk to us about his impact in the chess world. Yeah, he was a child prodigy who grew. into one of the best American chess players of his time, and American chess players in the world for that matter. We know that when he was growing up, he was already writing chess strategy

books. That was just how good he was. And of course, he went on to hit one of the highest titles in the sport at just 18 years old when he became a grand master. And some of those tributes that are coming in are crediting him and his live stream where he would play chess with exposing more people to the sport. We also heard from another amazing. American Grandmaster, saying he loved streaming and he loved trying to be educational. The chess world is very grateful. Alison. NBC's Priscilla Thompson.

Thank you. Turning overseas now to Top Story's Global Watch, starting with a deadly tornado tearing through several suburbs near Paris. You can see the tornado barreling through the French commune of Armand, sweeping up debris and ripping off roofs. Multiple cranes crashing down within seconds. Authorities say a 23-year-old construction worker was killed at a job. site and at least 10 others were injured.

An update on the investigation into the streetcar crash in Portugal that killed 16 people and hurt 21 others. According to a new report, the steel cable that broke and sent the streetcar hurling down the hill was not strong enough for the job and the brake system did not function properly. The investigation cited five instances where the maintenance program for the streetcar referred to, quote, outdated or non-existent standards. In Japan's parliament, electing the country's first female prime minister, conservative Sanei Takakichi, was elected head of the Liberal Democratic Party after the former Prime Minister resigned. She underscored her commitment to boosting Japan's defense and strengthening its alliance with the U.S.

ahead of President Trump's visit to the country next week. When we come back, the Halloween theft at a Texas school caught on camera, how the Mavericks basketball team got involved to try and make things right. Finally tonight, a Halloween theft turning into a heartwarming surprise for one Fort Worth school. The school's Halloween skeleton all decked out in Dallas Maverick's gear was stolen in the middle of the night. Kenan Willard with our Dallas-Fort Worth station, KXAS, explains how the Mavericks stepped in to turn it all around. This is my office. Onesimo Bazan is probably the biggest Mavs fan you could ever meet. I have a bunch of my Mavs stuff, huge Mavs.

is at Trail Lake Montessori School in Fort Worth is basically a shrine to Dallas's NBA team. And every year, when Halloween rolls around, one decoration is the school's centerpiece. I usually turn stuff into math stuff, so I turned them into a Dirk Skeleton. All October long, a skeleton dressed in Bison's Dirk Nowitzky, Jersey, welcomes families to the school. Last week, though, Bazan got an unexpected scare. And when I got here this morning, I noticed it was gone. The Dirk skeleton was nowhere to be found. When they checked the school's security footage, they saw this.

What looks like three teens with bandanas covering their face trying to enter the school and neighboring church in the middle of the night. Bazan says in the back of his knowledge, he always knew the decoration and Jersey could get stolen. I also figured, man, no one was still from the church and a school, you know, but, yeah, unfortunately, that's what happened. The school filed a police report, and in the meantime tried to deal with the disappointment, especially among the preschool age students. So they're all sad because they know that's, you know, the dirt. You know, a lot of them are Mavs fans because of me, too. Well, I'm just hoping we find it so I can get my dirt back. That's all.

A friend of the school posted the surveillance video on social media, and after NBC5 interviewed Bazan, we got an email from the Dallas Mavericks, saying to come back to the school Monday for a big surprise. Today, champ the Dallas Mavericks mascot, A Trail Lake a visit. Hello, hey man. Go champ, go champ. He passed out Mav's swag to the kids. And replaced Bazahn's stolen dirt jersey with a brand new one.

And most importantly, the mascot made sure the school had a new Mavs skeleton. This one, repping the jersey of Star Point Guard. All right, everybody, look this way, friends. Let's go Mazz! Let's go Mazz! Let's go, man. Pazan got to put his new spooky sports decoration in its rightful place, telling NBC5 it feels like Halloween is now back on track.

Mazz are a big part of my life, and so it's a school. my kids and having them all together, it was amazing. Dream come true for me. Kenan Willard, NBC News, Fort Worth. And thank you so much for watching, Top Story. For Tom Yamis, I'm Ellison Barber in New York. Stay right there. More news is on the way. Thank you.