good morning, america. breaking now, that dangerous flooding causes a massive explosion, killing two and injuring hundreds at a florida jail.ucked from the top of a bus. and when the storm will finally move out. raging wildfire. wind-driven flames forcing people from their homes in southern california, as crews work overnight to get the blaze under control. trouble in toronto. this morning, a new video surfaces of embattled mayor, rob ford. what he's saying about the latest crack smoking scandal. and furry thief. this dog is not stealing bases. it's stealing something else on the baseball diamond. good thursday morning. the historic and deadly storm that triggered tornadoes and

severe flooding is still dumping rain on several states. >> yeah. the slow-moving system caused scenes like this one, from florida to new york, over the past 24 hours. there's been multiple rescues from cars and buildings overnight. >> and it's not over yet for millions of americans. abc's tahman bradley has the very latest. >> reporter: relentless rain is causing massive flooding along the east coast. the water has engulfed homes and wiped out roads. in baltimore, this road collapsed, sending cars tumbling into a ravine. >> the sidewalk's gone. the cars are gone. and everything just fell. it was like somebody came by and just ripped off the side of the road. >> reporter: outside washington, d.c., this man drove onto a bridge and got stuck. he had to be rescued by a team using an inflatable raft. the torrential downpour was too much for creeks and streams to handle. so, water went rushing into homes. this woman's basement is filled with sewage water. >> floored had buckled up.

i had hardwood floors down there. they buckled up. it's a mess in my house. it stinks. >> reporter: this is the same violent storm system that ravaged the south. from the air, you see the devastation. neighborhood after neighborhood, flooded. these homes, destroyed. >> just wet everywhere. >> reporter: rescuers pulled people from rooftops. this baby was saved using a boat. >> this car is floating right now. >> reporter: pensacola, florida, got almost 2 feet of rain in 24 hours. or 9 billion gallons of water, enough to fill 14,000 swimming pools. this stretch of pensacola's scenic highway, crumbled. some residents have replaced their cars with canoes. in mobile, alabama, an elderly woman was carried by firefighters after her car got stuck. another woman killed after driving though high water. after four days of tornadoes and thunderstorms causing all this damage, meteorologists say the system will head out to sea later today. tahman bradley, abc news, washington. >> man, oh, man. one more flooding incident to show you. this one from philadelphia. look closely. you'll see three people trapped on top of a commuter bus.

>> the bus got stuck in floodwaters off of the schuylkill river. and the driver and two passengers were pulled off of that roof and brought to safety. luckily no one was hurt. strong winds and high temperatures on the west coast are helping to fuel a dangerous fire burning east of los angeles. crews worked through the night trying to get a fire line around the flames at rancho cucamonga. more than 1,100 acres have burned so far. nearby residents were evacuated until they could go back. >> every time you think it's just going to go by, it doesn't. these houses, last time, the backyards burnt on these houses. so, we know it's real. and it can happen. >> strong winds prevented aircraft from joining in the battle against the fire. weather conditions are expected to be the same today. we're going to get a professional take on what you can expect today across america. >> for that, we're joined by accuweather meteorologist jim dickey. good morning, jim. >> good morning, john and diana. the same area of low pressure we've been dealing with all week here, that continues to spin across the nation's midsection, impacting the weather across the entire eastern half of the country.

keeping soaking rain in place along the eastern seaboard. the west coast, though, saying dry and saying mild. temperatures soaring again. in the east, the moisture is filtered up the east coast. flooding continues to be a major concern here along the coast with more heavy thunderstorms for florida. along the west coast, again, temperatures soaring. shattering records across the board. john, diana, back to you. >> all right, jim. thank you. new details about that twister which did so much damage in arkansas last weekend. it was a high-end ef-4. that means winds of up to 200 miles per hour bore down on those neighborhoods. experts say the main tornado also spun off weaker twisters on the destructive path through the state. the last time arkansas was hit by a tornado stronger than this one was way back in 1929. surveillance video at a mississippi car dealership, capturing the moment a twister tore through. take a look at this. employees and customers had to run for cover when the tornado sent glass and metal debris flying. the roof of the service center and a large bay door went flying. the owner says that blast of wind lasted only about ten seconds. you can see the damage, though.

breaking overnight, an explosion has injured dozens of inmates at the escambia county jail in pensacola. the apparent gas explosion shook homes for several blocks right around midnight and reportedly killed two inmates. among the injured are prison guards. all inmates have been accounted for. and in virginia, a train carrying crude oil derailed in downtown lynchburg, sparking a massive fire. thick, black smoke could be seen miles away. the area was evacuated. and firefighters let that fire burn out. three of the tanker cars fell into the river, spilling an unknown amount of oil into the water. there's been eight serious oil train accidents just in the past year. a computer failure at an air traffic control center in southern california snarled traffic across the region. this is the scene of the tarmac at l.a.x. in los angeles. usually the country's third-busiest airport. all of those departures there, canceled. airports as far away as oklahoma canceled flights for about an hour.

meanwhile, dozens of planes were diverted to other airports. and now, to the ongoing mystery of the disappearance of malaysian airlines flight 370. the malaysian government is releasing a preliminary report today on its investigation. the boeing 777 vanished nearly 2 months ago with 239 people onboard. investigators believe it went down in the indian ocean. no debris has been found. the white house is back on the defensive over the benghazi consulate attack that left four americans dead. a newly released e-mail by a top political aide shows talking points used by ambassador susan rice after the 2012 attack came from the obama administration, not the intelligence community. that was on a series of talk shows. rice initially said the attack was a reaction to an internet offensive video. abc's jonathan karl wanted to know why it took a lawsuit to release the e-mail. >> why were you holding back this information? why was this e-mail not turned over to the congress? this is directly relevant. why did you hold it back? >> jonathan, again. >> why did it take a court case for you to release this? >> i can say it again and again, and i know, you can keep asking again and again. this document was not about

benghazi. thank you. >> the white house says the e-mail was kept secret because it was about broader unrest in the arab world, not specifically benghazi. the oklahoma board of corrections meets today to discuss possible lawsuits after tuesday's botched execution. clayton lockett died of a heart attack 43 minutes after the fatal drugs failed to work. the white house said the execution fell short of the humane standards required. today's meeting will be held behind closed doors. scientists say mount st. helens is coming back to life. sensors in the washington state volcano show that pressure is growing in the magma reservoir, five miles beneath the earth surface. it's showing some minor earthquake activity. mount st. helens erupted six years ago and looks like it's recharging for another one. coming up, facebook could be soon tracking more of what you do online. plus, seeking help. rob ford going to rehab. what surfaced overnight that has the mayor seeking help for drug use? and quarterback pinched.

what heisman winner jameis winston admits to doing that is going to have him doing community service.

did you know that people born from 1945 through 1965 have the highest rates of hepatitis c, but most don't know they're infected? people can live for decades without symptoms, but over time hepatitis c can cause serious health problems. if you were born during these years,

the cdc now recommends that you get a blood test for hepatitis c. so talk to your doctor and find out if you have hepatitis c. it could save your life. know more. the dowenin the dow is opening in record territory this morning. stocks closing at an all-time high yesterday, hitting 16,580, slightly topping the record set in december. the federal reserve said it would reduce its bond buying programs. but it plans to keep the benchmark interest rate near zero. the bailout of general motors has cost american taxpayers more than $11 billion. about $1 billion more than initially estimated. that loss includes more than $800 million the u.s. treasury wrote off last month, ending its

involvement with gm. and walmart is going into the car insurance business. they're teaming up with autoinsurance.com, to let customers shop online. a pilot program saved shoppers an average of $1,100. so, they're rolling it out nationwide. it's walmart's latest move into provide financial services. there may be another major telecommunications merger. this morning's "wall street journal," reporting that at&t has expressed interest in buying directv. the $40 billion deal would allow at&t to better compete against comcast, which is trying to buy time warner. facebook rolling out a new tool that will let you log in to apps and websites without sharing your personal information. the company wants its new anonymous log-in to be your all-access pass to the internet. but even though the new tool will protect your profile from third-party websites, facebook will know every site you visit and everything you do. >> i don't know if that's a fair trade-off. when we come back, celebrity suitors. if donald sterling decides to sell the clippers, the list of potential buyers has more stars

than his team. and dog delay. and a four-legged friend interrupting a softball game by stealing the equipment. ment. ♪ i think the sun might be shining ♪ ♪ just a little more bright ♪ ♪ i think the stars might be hanging ♪ ♪ just a little more high ♪ ♪ come on, love ♪ a new day is calling, and it feels so right ♪ [ female announcer ] with ingredients like roasted hazelnuts, skim milk and cocoa, there's a whole lot of happy in every jar of nutella. spread the happy.

i'm saving a ton of time by posting them to my wall. oh, i like that one. it's so quick! it's just like my car insurance. i saved 15% in just 15 minutes. i saved more than that in half the time. i unfriend you. that's not how it works. that's not how any of this works. [ male announcer ] 15 minutes for a quote isn't how it works anymore. with esurance, 7 1/2 minutes could save you on car insurance. welcome to the modern world. esurance. backed by allstate. click or call. welcome to the modern world. i've quit for 75 days.

15 days, but not in a row. for the first time, you can use nicorette even if you slip up, so you can reach your goal. now, quit on your own terms with nicorette or nicoderm cq. welcome back. flooding is going to be a major problem for this morning's rush hour, up and down the east coast. a day and a half of rain in maryland and lots of other places to the north and south has roads closed. the storm has homes and businesses flooded throughout the entire region. morning road conditions. not a pretty picture for the northeast. slippery and snow for the upper midwest and northern plains. >> if you're flying, expect airport delays from d.c. up to boston. also in southern california, due to high winds and wildfire smoke. and now, to the story breaking overnight. toronto mayor, rob ford, says he's seeking immediate help for substance abuse. ford made that announcement after a canadian newspaper

published photos and video set to show ford smoking crack-cocaine last weekend. >> in a statement, ford admits having a problem with alcohol. and he is getting help, making a leave from his re-election campaign. a second newspaper is reporting he has audio tapes of ford making offensive remarks at a bar overnight. parents in massachusetts are on-edge after a strange abduction. a 9-year-old boy got into a car after school because the driver looked like a friend of his father. the man drove him around and then dropped him off. the boy was unharmed. they fear he may have been conducted a dry run for a future abduction. montana teacher at the center of a controversial rape case faces more prison time. stacey rambold served just one month for an attack on a 14-year-old student who later killed herself. the judge sentenced rambold. and it sparked outrage that the victim was older than her chronological age.

now, the montana says rambold must serve at least two years. parents are on alert in one san diego neighborhood after two children stepped on razor blades at a park. police using a metal detector found more than a dozen other blades. it's not the first time. razor blades were found in the area last august and september. heisman trophy winner jameis winston has been cited for shoplifting. the 20-year-old florida state quarterback walked out of a tallahassee supermarket with seafood. winston's attorney says the athlete forgot to pay. calling it a terrible mistake. winston was accused of rape last year. but that was dropped because of lack of evidence. and hockey and the series three deciding games. the l.a. kings taking down san jose 5-1. >> the minnesota wild needed overtime to finally put away the colorado avalanche, 5-4. and the rangers took a close one from the flyers, winning 2-1. by the way, new york has never lost a game seven at home. there's also plenty of nba

action to tell you about. >> last night's highlights, now, from our friends at espn. >> good morning. welcome to our "sportscenter" studios here in bristol. along with kenny mayne, i'm stan verrett. nba playoff action from wednesday night. kenny's going to tell you about it. >> 2-2 series. tony parker. his fiancee just had a baby. he has a bad ankle. who says obamacare doesn't work? he is working it. spurs up 101-94. 52 seconds to go. spurs up five. parker to tim duncan. he travels and then scores. spurs go on to win it, 109-103. they take a 3-2 series lead. parker had 23 points. dirk nowitzki was sad. rockets taking on the blazers. houston had to win to stay alive, with portland up 3-1 games. dwight howard had problems with foul trouble. jeremy lin picked up the offensive slack. >> lin-sanity. >> damian lillard, he had 26 for

portland, as lamarcus aldridge struggled in this game. blazers down one. james harden didn't shoot particularly well. but that one was a big one down the stretch. he had 17 points. dwight howard, 22 points, 14 rebounds. so, the rockets cut it to 3-2, portland. game six coming up in portland on friday. blazers will try to close it out. >> california chrome is your kentucky derby favorite. we're done with this little sports thing we just did. >> thanks, guys. one more note for you from the nba. the l.a. lakers are looking for a new coach. that's because mike d'antoni has resigned. >> he stepped down yesterday. during that time, the lakers lost 20 more games than they won. >> that ain't good. >> nope. you never know what you're going to see at a college softball game. this is our "play of the day." this happened in oregon. >> the game was going fine until a dog invaded the field. it took a glove off of one player's hand. then, it went in the outfield. it wasn't interested anymore. and it took a glove from another

player's hand. >> it just wanted to play. someone got the glove back. everybody had a good laugh. and the game went on. >> adorable. >> yeah. up next in "the pulse," an old favorite coming back to the big screen. our first look at the upcoming ninja turtles movie. and hold on tight. the viral video of one determined cub. [ male announcer ] this is jim. a man who doesn't stand still. but jim has afib, atrial fibrillation, an irregular heartbeat not caused by a heart valve problem. that puts jim at a greater risk of stroke. for years, jim's medicine tied him to a monthly trip to the clinic to get his blood tested. but now, with once-a-day xarelto jim's on the move. jim's doctor recommended xarelto. like warfarin, xarelto is proven effective to reduce afib-related stroke risk. but xarelto is the first and only once-a-day prescription blood thinner for patients with afib not caused by a heart valve problem

that doesn't require routine blood monitoring. so jim's not tied to that monitoring routine. [ gps ] proceed to the designated route. not today. [ male announcer ] for patients currently well managed on warfarin there is limited information on how xarelto and warfarin compare in reducing the risk of stroke. xarelto is just one pill a day taken with the evening meal. plus, with no known dietary restrictions, jim can eat the healthy foods he likes. do not stop taking xarelto, rivaroxaban, without talking to the doctor who prescribes it as this may increase the risk of having a stroke. get help right away if you develop any symptoms like bleeding, unusual bruising, or tingling. you may have a higher risk of bleeding if you take xarelto with aspirin products, nsaids, or blood thinners. talk to your doctor before taking xarelto if you have abnormal bleeding. xarelto can cause bleeding, which can be serious and rarely may lead to death. you are likely to bruise more easily on xarelto and it may take longer for bleeding to stop. tell your doctors you are taking xarelto before any planned medical or dental procedures.

before starting xarelto, tell your doctor about any conditions such as kidney, liver, or bleeding problems. xarelto is not for patients with artificial heart valves. jim changed his routine. ask your doctor about xarelto. once-a-day xarelto means no regular blood monitoring -- no known dietary restrictions. for more information and savings options, call 1-888-xarelto or visit goxarelto.com. all right. it is time to check "the pulse." we start with a group of potential new nba team owners. they are lining up possibly to buy the l.a. clippers if and when the team is sold by donald sterling, following his lifetime ban for racist remarks. >> oprah winfrey leads this

list, along with her friends, media mogul david geffen, and oracle ceo larry ellison. boxer floyd mayweather says he has a group of potential buyers, as well. even actor matt damon said he'd like to have a small stake in that team. >> between the two of us, we could get together maybe 150 bucks. >> let's get in on it. i want to be part-owner, too. new details on what contributed to prince harry's sudden split of his girlfriend of two years. >> friends say cressida bonas and harry had a heated argument over money. she was planning to accompany harry to his buddy's wedding in memphis this weekend. but cressida was reportedly paying her own way and concerned over the $900 airfare. >> there is word cressida was also unhappy about being in the public eye. and the royal relationship kept her from pursuing her dance career. the teenage mutant ninja turtles are climbing out of the sewers once again. a new movie is in the works. and here's a little bit of a preview for you. the turtles come to save new york city, which is once again in the clutches of the evil shredder and his foot clan.

>> they, again, encounter reporter april o'neil, played by megan fox, who is startled when michelangelo drops in. >> whoa. whoa. chill. just a mask. see? don't freak out. all right? >> all right. notice the turtle suit's gone, replaced by a sophisticated c.g. look. >> the movie debuts on august 8th. i said it before. i'm going to say it again. i prefer when they were in those old-style costumes. >> i didn't see the first one. you said it was good, right? >> it was excellent, of course. and this will be excellent, too. it's "the teenage mutant ninja turtles." but the c.g. thing is not my favorite when it comes to something that i remember and nostalgic about it. we've all heard the little engine that could. but how about the little bear? >> pretty incredible. look at this. this is in texas. who knew that bears were rock climbers? momma bear easily scaled the canyon wall. but as you can see, it was a bit more of a challenge for the baby bear. >> the cub refused to give up. after a few missteps, it made it to the landing just like momma

bear, no safety equipment necessary. we were talking about the fact that you can't run from these guys. >> yeah. another thing. >> even climbing walls. >> another thing that bears can do. you can't climb a tree. you can't outrun them. they can swim. and now, we learn, yeah. they can actually scale a rock face. so, i don't think you can get away from a bear. i don't think it's possible. >> i think you're pretty right. and the little one, the fact he can get up there, means you can't get away from a baby bear, either. >> yeah. right. even the little guy can do it. check him out. he looks so human. doesn't he? looking for a little foothold. >> wait a minute. if i can get my left foot in the -- i would -- got it. all right. for some of you, your local news is coming up next. >> yeah. for everyone else, we'll be back with the teen that was accepted to all of the ivy league schools. remember him? he got into every, single one. well, when we come back, we'll tell you what decision he made and which school he's actually going to go to.

jim's hair is perfect. so's his serve, and his mandarin [speaking mandarin] xieúxieú, hou chiú but like up to 90% of americans, jim falls short in getting important nutrients from food alone. making jim more like us. add one a day multivitamins, rich in key nutrients you may need. [ male announcer ] if you can clear a table [ sneezes ] without lifting a finger, you may be muddling through allergies. try zyrtec® for powerful allergy relief. and zyrtec® is different than claritin® because it starts working faster on the first day you take it. ♪ zyrtec®. muddle no more™. [ female announcer ] and now introducing children's zyrtec® dissolve tabs for full 24 hour allergy relief.

live from the kgo-tv broadcast center this is abc7 news. good thursday morning. at 4:28. thanks you for starting this "hot" day with us. >> a warm up to the warm up this speaker. not in triple digits. thank goodness for that. >> a town of summer year. we will have near report warmth today. the wind are light and variable. in the 50's and low 60. it is comfortable. getting into the house is another chore, you need the fans going. we will be 82 to 90 from san francisco to san jose. inland spread is from 84 in petaluma to 94 in antioch and the coast is warm again maybe not so warm as yesterday with the sea breeze kicking in at 75 to 80.

now the traffic. leyla gulen? >> i left the windows open last might and may have swallowed a couple of flies. i have a fog in my throat but i don't think it was a frog. we have construction an the bay area. westbound 580 from eastbound 80 is where we have the blockage until 5:00 this morning and this will go on until may 20. plan ahead. 580 westbound from tracy to dublin is 23 minutes. highway 4 westbound antioch to concord is 15 minutes. walnut creek shows 680 from pleasant hill is clear as you make it up to the 24 junction. >> a gas explosion as a jail if pensacola has killed two and

injured 150 inmates and correctional officers. a blast in the county jail book ing facility with 600 inmates in the jail that was flooded tuesday and wednesday because of storms and they are vetting if it was related. >> our hot spell has firefighters on alert. antioch firefighters battled a fast-moving grass fire this morning. amy hollyfield is in antioch with more on that story. amy? >> can you believe we are talking about the fire over overnight. three acres burned in antioch at 12:35. it did not reach any structures. no one was hurt. this is what they are worried about: all over the bay area. it