Top Story with Tom Llamas - Wednesday, September 2, 2026

Episode Date: September 3, 2026

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, the flash flood emergency in Texas after tropical storm Edward charged inland. Neighborhoods completely underwater, rescue teams rushing to save families by boat. Dangerous winds knocking out power to tens of thousands. In the northeast, powerful storms blasting the region. We're tracking it all. Breaking right now a shooting in downtown Minneapolis, police officers hit. Jurors still deadlocked in the Lindsay Clancy case. The judge sending them back one last time to try and reach a verdict. And this woman, racing from the media after being arrested for filming jurors.

Outrage over dash cam video of a trooper punching a man and pulling his hair, allegedly after a high-speed chase that hit 130 miles per hour. Wild SWAT standoff, a man shooting at a drone after allegedly firing at landscapers. Moments later, an armored vehicle rams the suspect in his tractor. What happened next? New York City banning students from using AI in the classroom until they get to high school, the mixed reactions coming in. And emergency room crisis?

ER wait time surging across the country with some patients waiting more than 24 hours for a hospital bed. We'll tell you what's driving those delays. Plus, the airport that wants to bring back goodbyes at the gate, how you could get through TSA without a plane ticket. Top story starts right now.

Good evening. We are coming on the air tonight with breaking news out of Minneapolis, multiple law enforcement agencies responding to reports of an active shooter in the downtown area. We're just learning that Hennepin County Medical Center says they receive six victims and at least one person has died. The details in the images just coming into our newsroom tonight. I witness video capturing the chaotic scene, police and first responders swarming the area.

Officials say there are multiple victims, including two officers. We do not know their condition at this hour. The scene near the Minneapolis Convention Center officials urging residents obviously right now to avoid that area. Sam Brock has been following this one for us. Sam, I know there's a lot of late updates that we've just gotten into the newsroom and the governor spoken about this as well. I think it's pretty clear the gravity of the situation has deepened significantly since the last 20 or 30 minutes that we spoke. You talked about Governor Waltz-Wang and he said he's praying for first responders right now. If that gives you a sense, Tom, we know that two police officers were involved initially

in the shooting. As far as the information that you just mentioned, according to Hennepin County Medical Center, six people were admitted to the hospital, one of whom has died at this point. Not clear at all whether or not that is a police officer or if any of the people who were admitted were officers. But there is an evident, evident, very large police presence. What you're looking at right now, these aerial views, are near the convention center in downtown Minneapolis. On the ground level of time,

we're seeing just what looks like SWAT-type vehicles coming in, just a huge presence of law enforcement, state and local law enforcement. And so just we don't know at this point whether or not there is still an active shooter or not, and I think that's what I would emphasize in all of this, is not a single police or government entity. so far has weighed in to say whether or not they are still searching for a shooter.

Putting that to the side for a second, we also know that, according to CARE 11, our NBC affiliate in Minneapolis, the University of St. Thomas, which has campuses both in St. Paul and in Minneapolis, did push an alert out, according to them, to their students to say that there was one person in custody. But again, we don't know how many people police are looking for. We don't know the extent of how many victims there might be, just that Hennepin County, as we're coming on air here in Top Story, did just confirm six people in the hospital, one person dead, and a governor right now who was praying for the first responders who were involved in the response to this tragedy.

The Twin Cities have dealt with so many high-profile shootings over the last few years. We hope people are okay there. But again, you said six people in the hospital, at least one person has died. We're going to stay on top of this. Sam. We thank you for that report. We're going to move on now to the flash flood emergency in Texas

after Tropical Storm Edward ripped through the Gulf Coast, drone footage showing roads in Hardin County, completely submerged. Some areas getting nearly two feet of rainfall in just hours. This entire family, save from those rapidly rising waters, they say it all happened in an instant. And at this hour, the Northeast also on alert for new storms. Parts of New York State on tornado watch right now. Priscilla Thompson reports from the storm zone in Texas. Tonight, Edward's submerging parts of Texas. The storm unleashing torrential rain as much as 20 inches falling in some areas. A flash flood emergency declared.

NEARED NEARTHYSEN BEFORE sunrise. High water rescue teams out in force. Home after home completely surrounded by water. And in the town of Livingston, multiple families and their pets rescued by boat. This woman says the water rose in an instant. It flooded like that. It was a flash flood that happened.

And you've got all of this water running across this road, leaving the people who live back there cut off. This is what Robert Deerey. saw when he woke up with his wife screaming to get out. We just got up. It's like getting everything together. I grabbed the dogs, put the dog inside because they were, he was about to drown. Dangerous winds also wreaking havoc.

As East Texas gets soaked, more than 95 million from the planes to the Mid-Atlantic are sweltering. In Chicago, a heat-related malfunction preventing this drawbridge from closing, firefighters hosing it down to try to cool it. And in New York, the state. The state fair forced to close for a time. Flooding rains moving through the Syracuse area. Oh boy.

Severe storms rolling through the Northeast overnight. In Philadelphia, fans at a Bruno Mars concert sheltering in place as the system passed there. All right, Priscilla Thompson joins us tonight from Livingston, Texas. Priscilla, we can see the rain still coming down there, that tree down behind you. There's an active weather threat right now. Yeah, Tom, still a lot going on here. You still have these massive trees that are down through. out the area down power lines and you have this rain that is continuing to come down.

We have a flash flood emergency in effect here for at least the next hour and a half. And there's more extreme rain that's going to be coming across East Texas through the night into the early morning tomorrow. So this threat is not over just yet. Tom. Okay, Priscilla Thompson, we thank you for that. Now to the closely watched murder trial of Lindsay Clancy. The jury once again saying they're unable to reach a verdict in the case against the mom accused of killing her young kids. The judge urging them to try one last time. Emily Aketa is at the

courthouse where this case could soon be headed for a mistrial. Despite five days of deliberations, tonight the future of accused murderer Lindsay Clancy remains unclear, with the jury telling the judge for now a second time. Saying after much deliberation, we are still unable to come to a unanimous decision. Prompting this last ditch effort by the judge called the Tui Rodriguez charge, instructing the nine women and three men to try again. In conferring together, you ought to pay proper respect to each other's opinions and listen with an open mind to each other's arguments. Is this the last tool the judge can deploy at this point?

Yes, absolutely. He is now reminding the jurors how important they are to this process in subtly reminding them of how expensive it is and how much time it took. Jurors have been pouring over hundreds of exhibits and testimony for more than 80. witnesses trying to decide whether Clancy intentionally murdered her three children in 2023 or if she was not in control of her actions and shouldn't be held criminally responsible in a case that swept social media and polarized the country. Today, 56-year-old Dawn Light was arraigned for allegedly taking photos of jurors in a restricted employee parking lot. The sanctity of the judicial system is at risk because of her actions.

Light pleaded not guilty to witness intimidation and called the incident a misunderstanding. The retired nurse briefly addressing the media before running off. All right, Emily, joins us now from outside the courthouse of Plymouth. So, Emily, the defense is already speaking about a possible retrial? Yeah, Tom, that's right. The defense addressing a couple of things. I asked him if he was concerned we could be heading for a mistrial to which he said that it's up to the jury. but he did note that the Tui Rodriguez charged, the instruction,

has made a difference for some cases in the past. When asked, though, about if he's prepared for a retrial, he said he's ready to try the case again next week, Tom. Okay, we're going to have to wait and see what happens. Emily, thank you for that. American sailors serving on the USS Abraham Lincoln back on land tonight for the first time in 286 days. The aircraft carrier docking in Thailand after the longest stretch at sea in Navy history.

Courtney Cuby is there on the ground, pressing the ship's commanding officer about concerns over-living conditions on board. A record long stretch at sea is now over. That's the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier pulling into port in Thailand Wednesday. It spent over 280 days on the ocean and all-time high for the Navy. More than 5,000 sailors and Marines now getting their first break in over nine months. Their time marked by concerns about conditions on the Lincoln. resupplying the vessel dangerous, so sailors went long stretches with limited delivery of mail and food, including fruits and vegetables. We asked the captain about those concerns.

How did you handle that as the captain of the ship? I think a lot of that is a little bit overblown. One thing that's a little different is the fresh fruit of vegetables, but other than that, it was very standard. Long days without basic comforts also prompted questions about mental health of the crew, with one sailor rescued after falling overboard. People having great days. Some people are having a little bit of rough time. And this is my 11th deployment. I would say well within the bounds of normal, you know, is kind of what I saw. Shakira Fairfax flew here from Newark. Her daughter Jada is a sailor on the ship. She said after the war started, there was a long period of silence from Jada.

It was an uncertain time. It was a scary time. But she has a support system. What are you the most excited about? I just can't wait to see her smile. I can't wait. to hear her say mom. I'm sure there's so many families across the country that want to hold their kids again, just like the ones we saw there. Courtney Kuby joins us now from Thailand. So Courtney, when do those sailors and Marines head back home? So they get four days of leave here.

It's actually three days per sailor, and then one day of that they'll be on duty on the ship because the reality is they can't just abandon the ship, even though it's in port. So they're splitting their time here between duty and free time. Once they finish up that on Sunday, they'll start their journey back. to San Diego. They already started it a couple of weeks ago when they left the Middle East, but they may get another port visit for more maintenance. We had a chance to speak with the captain, as you just saw. And I asked him specifically about that. He said, look, one of the reasons that the ship needs repainting right now is they couldn't pull into port for months and months during

this deployment. So they want to take advantage of a potential other port visit, maybe repaint the ship before they make their way back to San Diego. They should arrive there in just a few weeks, Tom. Okay, great news for them. We thank you for that. Now to the new deal between the U.S. and Venezuela over oil. President Trump says it will send tens of millions of barrels to the U.S., but how soon could it lower prices at the pump? Gabe Gutierrez is in Caracas, pressing the U.S. Energy Secretary for answers. Tonight, the Trump administration is diving deeper into the Venezuelan oil business, what President Trump has called the biggest oil deal in world history, with more American companies, including Chevron, signing agreements to expand operations here. Today is a historic day in the transformation of Venezuela and the expansion of the possibilities for the Venezuelan people. The U.S., now in a joint venture with another private company, will get 100-year rights over 17 oil fields, with proven reserves of over 65 billion barrels.

Venezuela's interim president, Delci Rodriguez, is now partnering with the U.S. after American forces captured Nicolas Maduro earlier this year. A U.S. official saying Venezuela and oil will hit the American market by November to help bring down U.S. gas prices, though some experts say it could take years. With the U.S. national average for gas now at $4.10 a gallon from $3.40 in Indiana to $5.60 in California. How can the administration say that this deal might help lower gas prices when it will likely take years to refine this oil? Well, I mean, as soon as the oil leaves here, it goes directly to a refinery. Massively lower oil prices, that's a few-year prospect for sure. But I think it's putting downward pressure on oil prices today. Venezuela is also still reeling from a massive earthquake in June.

Here in Caracas, months after that massive earthquake, the need is still overwhelming. This long line of Venezuelans gathered here early in the morning to register for government recovery benefits. This woman told us her home had been destroyed, and she was still sleeping in a shelter with her two children. I'm desperate, she tells me. Tonight, many we spoke with here say they're supportive of this new oil deal with the U.S., but just hope some of the benefits trickled down to them. Gabe Gutierrez, NBC News, Caracas. Tonight, back here at home, we're also following breaking news rocking the basketball world.

The NBA dropping historic penalties on the L.A. clippers, including banning the team. owner for a year, accusing them of, quote, flagrant violations of the league's salary cap rules. Liz Kreutz explains. The long two is in route. Oh, put it in the highlight reel. Kauai Leonard is on one. Tonight, a stunning move by the NBA, finding the Los Angeles Clippers $30 million in star player, Kauai Leonard $700,000, while also stripping the franchise of five first-round

picks after ruling the team had circumvented the league's salary cap rules. The team's owner, former Microsoft CEO Steve Bomber, also suspended for a year with the MBA saying in part that Bomber was knowingly seeking to help Mr. Leonard obtain off-court income opportunities. The NBA says their investigation into the Clippers began last year after the podcast, Pablo Torre finds out, reported that Leonard had an endorsement deal with a former fintech company called Aspiration, worth millions that had never been publicly disclosed. This is a $28 million endorsement deal. The NBA has a strict salary cap that limits how much teams can pay players at different levels. But the investigation found Leonard, through his representatives, pressured the Clippers to help him obtain outside income. Leonard, a two-time NBA finals MVP, saying, I accept full responsibility for lapses in judgment by people within my inner circle. The Clippers say it rejects the NBA's findings and will vigorously challenge these findings and penalties through every avenue available to us.

Liz Kreutz joins us now. Liz, are we hearing anything from Balmer? Yeah, Tom, we are hearing from his attorney tonight. He sent a letter to the league. And in it, he is calling this investigation flawed and a witch hunt. But we should say this even extends beyond Steve Bomber. The penalty to top executives for the Clippers have also been suspended without pay, one for six months, one for a year. They're vowing to fight this. But the NBA says that their investigation found this was actually not an isolated incident. They said they, quote, found a pattern of misconduct and multiple significant rules violations. And Tom, that this organization has previously violated salary cap rules before. Now, we should say as far as the player at the center of this, Kauai Leonard, he was announced. He was going to be traded over the summer to the Raptors in Toronto. Our team here at NBC that's been reporting this story out says that as of now, it appears that that trade is still expected to happen, Tom. Okay, Liz Croyd's for us.

We're going to turn out of the possible cancer treatment breakthrough, the landmark drug. just approved by the FDA to treat pancreatic cancer is showing promising signs of treating lung cancer in a new study. Ann Thompson is following this one for us, and Ann, this could be a game changer for those fighting lung cancer. It certainly could, Tom. And the results of these initial results are really encouraging, according to researchers.

This study involves the drug Diraxin-Rassum, and that targets a mutation in advanced pancreatic cancer, and now it's being looked at in the most common form of lung cancer. Though small, the study shows promise for this daily pill. It shrunk tumors in 31 to 37% of patients depending on the dose, and it resulted in overall survival of 8 to 16 months. That's a significant improvement over chemotherapy. Almost all the patients had side effects, including a distinctive rash. This is nowhere near FDA approval yet.

The next step is a much bigger trial in something we're all going to keep a close. eye on. This is really promising. It could be. It could be. We thank you for that. We're back at a moment with the investigation into an arrest after an alleged high-speed chase. Law enforcement seemed pulling a man by his hair and punched him in the face. What we're learning about this. Plus, cracking down on AI

in the classroom, America's largest school system now banning the tech for younger students, the impact and reaction tonight. And an incredible roadside rescue, a crowd of people working together to save a woman pinned under a car. We'll show you that ahead on top. We're back now with video of a violent arrest in Arkansas. Police body cam footage showing an officer punching and pulling a man by his hair.

The arrest happening after a high-speed chase that reached 130 miles per hour. Shaq Brewster reports. Tonight, this use of force capture on dash cam video following a high-speed pursuit in Arkansas is under review. Crawl out the car. Crawl out! Watch as an officer orders the man sitting in the back seat to crawl out of a shattered window. the door initially would not open. Croll out!

Go out of here! Before yanking him repeatedly by his hair and punching him in the face. Police say the chase happened last month, the driver hitting 130 miles an hour. Fights, strips, ready. Troopers attempting to ram the vehicle again and again. The SUV finally spinning around and coming to a stop. The driver jumping to the back seat and out of frame. Seconds later, State Trooper Teddy Henderson, a person.

with his gun drawn. Put your hands up. Put your hands up. He uses his baton to break the window before grabbing Tedrick Washington. Police arresting and charging Washington with obstruction of governmental operations and resisting arrest, while the driver faces nine charges, including driving while intoxicated. Arkansas State Police say they will not comment on specific incidents, but that any use of force is a regrettable last resort and reviewed carefully. carefully. Later adding, they're driven by two common denominators, unlawful activity and noncompliance. Blightville Mayor Melissa Logan, writing we fully understand the pain, anger, and concern it continues

to provoke. The mayor also saying that this will be reviewed by state authorities and that while the images in that video were involving state troopers, there were city police officers there. They will be participating in that investigation as well. Meanwhile, state police, they're saying tonight that state troopers should be evaluated by the entirety of the circumstances, not just the most dramatic moments captured on video. Tom? Okay, Shaq, thank you. Just ahead tonight, have you spent hours or even days waiting at the ER? New data pointing to a looming crisis at our nation's hospitals. We'll speak with an expert about what's behind the wait. Plus, Tiger Woods striking a plea deal after his DUI arrest, the punishment he now faces.

But first, top story's top moment in the fist fight breaking out in a London train. station and going viral for what might be the tiniest takedown ever. Take a look. Yeah, those are mice. Do get it out in the underground. The rival rodents putting on a show for commuters. So does this still count as MMA mouse? Mount Martial Arts? Oh, man. All right, stay with us. More top story after this. All right, now to Top Stories News Feed, we start with Tiger Woods, reaching a plea deal after that car crash and DUI arrested March. The golf champion appearing in a Florida courtroom today. He changed his plea from not guilty to no contest, avoiding prison time. Woods also agreed to have his driver's license suspended for five years.

In Oregon, a 10-swat standoff after a suspect allegedly opened fire on workers cutting trees near his property. Here you can see deputies moving in as the suspect fire shots at their drone. Video then cuts to them, rushing a stop, and the suspect is seating on a tractor when a SWAT truck just speeds in pinning him against the house. Those deputies run out to arrest him. And here in New York, a scary scene at JFK, a fuel truck crashing into a plane, sending fuel pouring out of the wing, while still connected to the refueling truck. The Air China flight was scheduled to fly to Beijing, but airport officials say the flight was scrubbed and that investigators are looking into what happened. And a remarkable rescue caught on camera in your Philly. You can see a woman riding an e-bike crashing and getting trapped underneath a car that Volkswagen bug.

Crowds of people rushing working together to lift the vehicle and pull the woman to safety. Our NBC station reports that she was taken to the hospital. She is expected to be okay. Here in New York City Mayor Zoran Mamdani announcing a sweeping ban on AI in classrooms for the nation's biggest public school system. When students in elementary and middle school return to class next week, they will no longer be able to use AI at all. Take a listen. Children need their teachers and human connection in order to learn and in order to grow. And they need to develop skills alongside their peers, build relationships with their teachers,

and wrestle with tough problems on their own. The tech industry wants us to believe that AI in early education is not only inevitable, but that it is necessary. We do not see it that way. The ban will last one year to start impacting roughly 600,000 students from preschool. school to eighth grade. The new policy also limits the use of laptops and tablets for students and bars teachers from using AI to grade assignments, though they can still use AI to lesson plan. Six thousand parents, teachers and artists had signed a petition pushing for these restrictions,

including actress and comedian Ilana Glazer. Take a listen. And now even the people profiting the most in big tech and AI are sounding the alarms on how AI is existentially dangerous to humanity. So why would we shove that in any child's face? But some critics argue the ban goes too far is just too broad. Joining us now with his thoughts is Jean-Claude Brazard. He was the CEO of the Chicago Public Schools from 2011 to 2012, and is the CEO of Digital Promise, a nonprofit that encourages innovation and education, which obviously means the use of technology. John, thanks so much for being here.

You led the third largest school district in the country. What's your reaction to what New York is doing here? You know, Tom, I'm also a former New York City Schools teacher, a principal in a of four, three are in middle and high schools. I really worry about the reflective, reflexive, perhaps banning of technology or even AI in schools, given is, again, it's everywhere. It's part of the instructional program. So this kind of blanket push, especially a week before school actually opens, really worries me about how this would be implemented in schools across New York City. So many kids are hooked on tablets, though, right? So many kids are just going straight to

the computer or straight to their cell phones to figure out the answers, right? And I mean, we do it too, right? We jump in the car. We turn on ways or turn on Google Maps to even drive our cars. But I do wonder, is it a bad idea to take sort of the tablets out, take the technology out, and just kind of kick it old school for a little bit with these kids? You know, we talk a lot here about the instructional program, the proper use of technology in supporting of what kids do in school, the learning experiences, students actually have. Yes, there are times what technology should not be used, but there are times it should be protected because it does sort of elevate the kinds of learning experiences students have in the classroom. A blanket ban is not going to solve that.

So I look, I applaud the mayor and the chancellor for trying to put some control, but I feel this is reactive and not proactive in the way to be frankly. What's the harm in maybe waiting, and I'm playing devil's advocate here, but what's the harm in waiting till high school to sort of introduce the tools of AI? They'll have four years of high school. They'll have all of college if they end up going to college. But I mean, that's a lot of time with AI, right? And they could still use AI if their parents want to at home. I have an 11-year-old, a sixth grader right now in schools, in public schools in California. And I can tell you, he's leveraging technology for what is learning every single day.

It does enhance the experience. It does enhance the curriculum. I think what needs to be done is really move that pedagogical practice of teaching and learning experiences. so kids can leave valuable experiences. He's learning Mandarin, he's learning languages on technology, assisted by a teacher. And I think, frankly, this kind of, in my opinion, rushed a policy a week before school opens is going to tie the hands of principals and teachers. And exactly what this means every day is going to be a challenge. I really push the fact that the kinds of work we need to do in schools is to make sure that the technology is supporting the instructional

program. Across the country, time, we've seen things like in New Mexico, an AI-powered, science reading material is being banned or baby banned in a state where literacy is a huge challenge. So we say instruction first, curriculum first, pedagogy first, technology supported, but let's make sure we're doing this in a sensible way and that sort of react to what is happening quickly so many parts of our country. So you're essentially arguing like, look, an application like Duolingo, right? It's great. It can get you kind of in the door. want to learn French or Spanish or maybe Mandarin. I haven't done the Mandarin one yet. But I will tell you, as somebody who studied languages for a very long time, nothing will

replace sort of conversing with a human, right? You can try to gamify this language learning. But, you know, at the end of the day, conversing with a human, learning the proper syntax, the grammar, all that fun stuff. It just goes a little further. What you're arguing is like, listen, you can do both, just maybe enforce or reinforce with the AI. What I'm pushing very hard here is that the evidence that we are seeing is that when this is teacher directed, teacher control, party instructional program. You get real magic. We have a ton of evidence coming here.

We want an evidence shop, and we have a lot of it here that shows that when AI driven by a teacher, by an instructor, you get really amazing things actually happen. We should not be outsourcing our teaching to machines, but when it is driven by an educator, wonderful things can actually happen. And that's the point I'm trying to make here. Can I also ask you something else? Do you think AI has just become so political that the mayor just scores brownie points

with whoever is against AI, which seems to be a lot of people by saying, we're going to ban all of AI, and he somehow becomes his hero, and it's not thought out. And I just wonder, and it's not the same exactly as the debates we were having during the pandemic, during COVID.

But there was a point where you couldn't question anything about COVID, right? And now we've come to learn five years later, we should have been questioning some of this stuff, or at least asking those questions because we would have gotten to the truth faster. Again, I want to make sure that I'm supportive of what Mayam and Donnie is trying to do with the chancellor here. And I applaud them for their efforts.

My push is making sure that they are listening to all sides of the conversation, that this is not driven by a subset of folks in New York City. The fact is that many parents support the use of technology in schools. Let's make sure we're looking at that. We know the evidence is pointing to the proper use of technology. And I also worry about the equity play here. As a parent, my kids are using technology every day at home. If you ban it, the kids who may suffer the most or the kids who are most at risk of success in our schools, the poor black-brown kids. So this is also an equity issue and access to good technology and how it can support the instructional program.

Great point there. John Claude Brazzar, we thank you for joining Top Story tonight. Thank you. That a Top Stories health check at the staggering wait time for Americans at the ER. New data revealing that the average ER wait times across the country is now two and a half hours, and it varies by state. Take a look at this. 34 states average two to three hours, including places like Texas, Colorado, and New Hampshire. 11 states average three to four hours, including Arizona, North Carolina, and of course, New York. And the longest average wait time? Five plus hours in D.C. and Puerto Rico. Data shows that the more people wait, the more likely they are to leave.

One to three percent of patients walk out when wait times are under three hours and 20 minutes. But add another 20 minutes, and that walkout number jumps to 4 to 6 percent. One of the biggest issues, the struggle to secure an actual hospital bed. This article in a New York City paper caught our eye. It details how some people are awaiting an average of 27 hours in an ER or hallway before getting into a room. That's crazy. To understand more on what's behind this troubling trend, I want to bring in Dr. Alexander Yonka, an emergency medicine physician and assistant professor of emergency medicine at the University of Michigan.

Doctor, thanks so much for joining us. It seems like this isn't caused by one issue. There are staffing shortages and aging population, people showing up for unnecessary reasons, insurance issues. Walk us through the factors at play here because how can it be an emergency and you're waiting two to four hours to get help? Yeah, without a doubt, you're right. Thanks for having me, Tom. There are a lot of factors at play here. And one of the most important ones that you pointed to is the problem of waiting for a bed upstairs. We call that hospital boarding of admitted patients in the emergency department.

And there's two different clocks in hospital care. One is at the front door in the emergency department. When you first hit the door and teams are looking for and starting treatment for strokes or heart attacks. And then there's another clock after that initial emergency department care stabilization has happened, where you're ready to move to the next step, you're ready to be admitted to the hospital,

and that's where we see the biggest source of congestion all over the country. So explain to our viewers what is ER board? boarding that essentially puts patients in a holding pattern after being admitted. I mean, I've seen this even with our own children where you get a bed but you're in a hallway. Is that what that is? That's exactly right. It's when you are physically in the emergency department, but that first step of your care,

that emergency department care has come to an end. And those clinical teams are ready to hand you off to the next step that might be a couple of days in the hospital. and there isn't literal physical space or there aren't available nurses to staff beds upstairs in the hospital where you belong. Is there a standard across the board for what kind of injuries or illnesses are prioritized? There are different approaches that we use to prioritizing patients both when they hit the front door and at the time where they are being admitted to the hospital. Many of those are built out of individual hospitals and health systems setting their own priorities. There is not a national standard for what that overarching priority looks like. I mean, I don't know.

So can you give me an illness, an injury, that kind of thing, or not really? Yeah, so to give you an example, we would choose to prioritize older adults to get a bed upstairs in the hospital when wait times for beds upstairs are very badly delayed. And the reason for that is because older adults might suffer greater consequences from those care delays because it can damage their circadian rhythm if they're stuck in a hallway spot not able to get a good night's sleep or because they're on a large number of complex medications and they need a medication reconciliation to be completed where those next steps in care are really important where there's some fragility in the process, we would prioritize

those patients. But ultimately, I don't think anybody should be okay with. I don't think that we should normalize having to wait hours and sometimes even days in emergency departments for a bed to become available. And then are there solutions for such a wide-scale problem? I think that there are solutions. I think that we need action on the part of government, of regulators, of health system leaders to move the needle on this problem. I want to point to one example, which is the idea of surgical smoothing. And so there's a researcher named Eugene Litvak who's done work to describe how there are these

very predictable surges in patient volume and demand for hospital beds. It's basically centered on days of the week. So hospitals fill up on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, and then they decompress predictably on Saturdays and Sundays. And smoothing out the demand for hospital beds by smoothing out surgical procedures is a way for hospitals to manage capacity to avoid these dangerous delays in emergency departments. Dr. Alexander Yonka, we could probably speak hours about this. We thank you for coming on Top Story tonight. The problem definitely needs to get fixed. All right, coming up on Top Story, we'll hear from a man who says he's thankful to be alive after getting attacked.

by a bear bitten in the face. You're going to hear from this guy. Plus, our Richard Engel is in Ukraine, taking us inside an underground maternity ward as the war rages on all around. Stay with us. Back down with Top Stories Global watching the intensifying war in Ukraine.

Russia ramping up strikes, launching a major new wave of attacks. Our Richard Engel visited a maternity hospital where women are giving birth in underground shelters to stay safe. Russia has a new tactic. Attack everything in Ukraine all the time in what may be President Putin's most relentless campaign yet in the war.

Russia launched a massive bombardment across the country with more than 100 missiles and drones, setting fires and killing at least a dozen people, according to Ukrainian officials. Ukraine is threatening a new kind of retaliation. President Zelensky warned that Russia's airspace will be swarmed with drones to ground flights and disrupt air traffic. Russian airspace will be effectively closing, he said. President Putin called Zelensky's threat, state terrorism, and said Russia will continue attacking Ukraine's infrastructure.

But Russia isn't only attacking infrastructure. In fact, nothing seems to be off limits. This morning, we visited a maternity hospital in Kharkiv near the Russian border. The city has attacked so often. deliveries now take place in the hospital's bomb shelter. So down here is the shelter. It's astonishing, tragic that four and a half years into this war, people are still living underground, having medical procedures done underground, giving birth underground, and it doesn't seem to be getting any better.

We watched as Marina Maslova, who works in a beauty salon, gave birth by C-section. The shelter is well equipped, and there were no complications. It's a boy, healthy. We heard his first cry. After the mother and son connect and cuddle, a nurse takes the baby to see his father, Timor, a Ukrainian soldier. They've named the baby David. What is it like the fact that your wife just gave birth in an underground bunker? From one side, it's ridiculous that the 21st century we need to do it underground.

From the other side, it's nice that we do have this chance to do it more or less safely. Back in the OR as Marina's C-section was being closed, she told me it's hard and scary to give birth during wartime, but wonderful to be a mother. Richard Engel joins us now from Harkiv, Ukraine. And Richard, great, that mother and the child are OK. Can't imagine delivering under those circumstances. As Russia ramps up these strikes, what do Ukraine's defense capabilities look like right now? Tom, they're not looking very good.

During that delivery, while we were underground, while this woman, Marino, was giving birth, the air raid sirens were wailing just outside the hospital. We've heard them several times in Harcive today. And there have been attacks today in several. different locations all across this country. There was an attack on a university, there was an attack on a train, an attack on a food storage facility.

So it seems that Russia is able to attack at will. And a lot of the attacks in Kiev, in particular, are a new development. Russia is able to fire large ballistic missiles, hit Kiev, and the Ukrainians are having a very tough time stopping this incoming fire because they are lacking Patriot missiles. The Patriots are just not here. They've run out. And a lot of the supplies

that were supposed to be coming here have been diverted to the Middle East because of the Iran war. And Ukrainians are very worried about what's going to happen in the winter. Because traditionally, the Russian attacks intensify during the winter. Russians attack Ukraine's infrastructure, the heat, the power, which of course is even more important in this country during the cold weather. So it is one of the most vulnerable times for Ukraine since the war began. Richard Engel for us in Ukraine tonight. Richard, thank you for that. Back here at home to a terrifying attack out of Alaska.

A man is recovering after getting mauled by a bear while on a hunting trip. Georgina Fernandez from our NBC station, KTUUU spoke with him. But we do want to warn you, some of the images you're about to see are very graphic. Alaska's vast terrain. It was like the sun was shining. and everything. It was just gorgeous. It's a place where hunters dreambound and come back with stories. There was like not bugs, kind of everything that you hear about Alaska. We didn't have. So we were having a good time. This hunting trip was a dream for Washington resident Jaden Nicarra, who was out

hunting with his family last week in search of Kerou. So we were on a pretty steep hill, and there was some bushes up above us that started moving, and I don't know if I said it or thought it, but I was like cariboo. And in the blink of an eye. And I turned around to my right and there was a bear just running at like probably 15 or 20 feet straight toward me. That story quickly changed. I just remember it like being exactly how you'd think like in the movies. It was growling. Its mouth was open and it was just running full speed.

Nekora tumbled to the ground as a brown bear attacked him. It was just biting like again and again and I could hear all the bones crunching in my nose and I saw stars and I was like, okay, this is kind of where it ends. Nicara's cousin shooting at the bear, causing it to turn on him. As Nekora acted quickly, shooting his own gun once at the bear, causing it to flee. What was going through your mind to keep pushing yourself forward? So I was just thinking about my wife and my little girls back at home, and I just wanted to make it back to them. So I breathed through it and prayed a lot, and I just didn't think it was an option to not get home. Nicarra now back at home recovering.

Yeah, so I have like some pretty good lacerations on my arms, both arms on my legs, my foot got chewed on pretty good. And while his recovery journey is just starting, he plans to someday return to finish his dream hunting story. Yeah, it kind of feels like I have unfinished business up there. This time on his own terms. Georgianne Fernandez, Alaska's news source. Our thanks to Georgina for that report. Still to come tonight on Top Story, the new push at one airport to bring back

Gateside goodbyes. But is it a security risk? We'll speak with the man spearheading that effort. Plus, the sweet show of support how a boy with Down syndrome worked up the courage to ask a girl the homecoming. That moment. Next. Whoa, whoa, excuse me, do you have a boarding pass? No, no, no. I just have to talk to someone. I'm sorry, you cannot go any further without a boarding pass.

No, no, no, but you don't know. What's doing here? Okay, you're all. That, of course, was an iconic scene from the Friends finale where Ross rushes to the gate to stop Rachel from getting on her flight to Paris. But those picture-perfect airport moments have been a thing of the past for a long time, as post-9-11 safety restrictions prevent anyone without a ticket from reaching the gate at most airports. But one California hub is looking to change that. The Fresno-Yosemite International Airport is considering allowing people without boarding passes, past TSA, opening the door for those final farewells or even confessions of love at the very last second.

Joining us now is Mark Thorpe. He's the aviation director for the city of Fresno. Mark, thanks for coming on, Top Story, and taking time out to talk to us. Why does Fresno need this? Why do your passengers need this? Well, thanks for having me on today, Tom. I think there's three really important reasons why these programs, and we won't be the first, by the way. We'll be probably the 27th or 28th airport in the country to begin these day-pass programs. There's three things, though, it allows for. First of all, you know, those experiences like you referenced in the opening, whether it's the, you know, something at the scene of friends or, you know, wanting to go to dinner

at an airport or meet people at the gate. A lot of times, particularly with family members and loved ones that might need assistance with a wheelchair or some other special requirement they have, you can accompany them to the gate. You can also meet your loved ones when they come home. So it's really that connecting, you know, people being able to connect again in a different way like we used to before 9-11. I think the other main thing is that it gives a community a sense of really ownership and experiencing their own airport. Airports are tremendously important, you know, assets of a community and a region, and the local public should be able to be part of it and try the new restaurants, try the stores that are there. And then the third thing is it's a

great source of revenue for airports. It's a distinct third, but it's a really important source of airlines being able to pay for all the infrastructure that we build and maintain. and not having to just have airlines and users pay for it. No, I get it. I get it. I'm unsure of the amount of people that want to go to the airport to eat there. But listen, I haven't been to Fresno, so I don't know, maybe you guys have great eateries there. Listen, I think your heart's in the right place. I love the idea.

I've also been flying so much around the country for the last decade because of this job. And I know airports can get very busy. I know that TSA lines can get very long. TSA staff shortages are a real thing. Will this add more pressure to the system? No, I'm glad you have. that because I think one of the misunderstandings about these misunderstandings about these programs is that it'll impact TSA in a negative way. Every one of these programs at every airport

across the country has a daily cap that you adjust according to, you know, congestion at TSA checkpoints. But it's also something where we will monitor with TSA the peak periods at any, in our airport, just like any other airport, and there will only be so many passes at different times of the day, specifically so that they don't impact the peak periods. But I also want to tell you, not only our restaurant's great, Tom, we're going to also have a discount for people to use a day pass so they can come and try it and not necessarily pay the higher airport prices when they do. Yeah, no, I get you there. At the end of the day, this was all implemented because of safety. Do you think in any way this new plan could make your airport less safe? No, it doesn't because you go through the same process that you would as if you were flying.

You have to, you can check in up to seven days in advance or you can check in the day of, but you have to have the same real ID you would have to have here in California. to fly out of the airport. You have to have that same ID and pass the same checklists, no fly lists, all those things that you would if you were flying to get a day pass. And it'll be limited the amount of time you can stay there within the airport. But no, I don't think that there's going to be any difference,

because it'll also be an identifiable pass that is very distinct from a boarding pass for an airline. Yeah, and would you have to staff up your airport more for this? I mean, if you do have those great celebrations, where someone's getting welcomed home, and it's just as people are getting off the plane, and people are kind of tired, they're grumpy. I mean, we've just seen so many incidents right at the ticket counter. And maybe it's because people have phones now, but it's all over social media, right?

When brawls break out or people are nasty and rude, would you have to staff up more to make sure that you still can kind of keep the airport in line? And you hope people are civil, but, you know, sometimes they're not. Yeah, well, I think we won't because we're going to be careful about the volume of passes that we have available each day. But also, I think that the kind of things we're going to promote, we're really going to be specific about trying to promote events for those that just want to come visit the airport. You know, another group that will really benefit are what we like to call, you know, the aviation nerds that love to come take pictures. Since 9-11, airports have had to build parks and areas, you know, plane spotting areas.

Well, now they can come back in the terminal and take pictures. It's not, I don't think it's going to bring in the type of that kind of activity to an airport. That cell phone waiting a lot, right? That's such a pain. Mark, thank you. It's an interesting idea. If it works out, when I land in Fresno, I hope to see you there. Hope to get a big hug and maybe a sign, all right? Mark Thorpe. Absolutely. Let us know when you're coming. You got it. Thank you. Finally tonight, it's back to school season. For so many high schoolers, that means the homecoming dances right around the corner. But it can be nerve-wracking to ask a date. So when a team named Jack, who has Down syndrome,

went to ask his friend, Ava, his brother, friends showed up to give him a little extra courage. This is 10th grader Jack Dowdell. Say cheese. He has Down syndrome and has never been to a high school dance before. But that's about to change. He's on his way to ask his friend, Ava, to homecoming. Is he good?

Yeah, go ahead. In this moment, he's feeling a little nervous. But he has a sign ready and his biggest supporters by his side. His older brother, Luke, and his friends, there to give him some extra confidence. One of them, even dressing as a slurpy, Jack's favorite treat. Finally, the big moment. Oh my gosh, I would love to. Ava and Jack had been friends for years.

He loves slurpy, so I loved how he incorporated that into the proposal. I felt honored and I'm honored that I get to go with him, I mean, it's just going to be the best night ever. Parents, Kimberly and Devin, happy to see their son thriving. That was awesome. That's what he's going to do at the dance. As a parent of a child of special needs, you often worry about how they're going to be accepted and included and treated among their typical peers. It just meant so much that these friends cared this much about Jack that they wanted to drop everything to make time for him and go do this because they know it was important and would be really special.

We hope Jack and Eva have. fun at that homecoming dance. We thank you for watching Top Story tonight. I'm Tom Yamas in New York. Stay right there. More news on the way.