america." have a great thursday, everyone. breaking news in america this morning -- thousands of people forced to evacuate, as the situation in southern california grows more dire. new video just in as raging flames and keeping them under control. severe weather racing across the country. new video of a powerful tornado, touching down moments just before ripping trees apart and ripping apart buildings. heroic pet. a cat comes out of nowhere and saves its owner from a vicious dog attack. and hidden treasure. some college students buy an old couch. but they had no idea what was beneath the cushions. good thursday morning, everybody. overnight, the evacuations in southern california have grown to staggering numbers.

another 21,000-plus homes, along with a nuclear power plant, an entire university, and parts of camp pendleton, one of the military's biggest bases. >> san diego county is under a state of emergency right now, with at least 9 fires burning over 14-square miles. fire crews can barely keep up with one wildfire after another, breaking out and spreading randomly. >> one especially hard-hit community is san marcos, where fire crews have been battling walls of flames. they're bearing down on single-family homes. take a listen. >> some are completely destroyed. others, very badly damaged. rielle creighton from our san diego affiliate, has the very latest. >> i'm rielle creighton in san marcos. hours after the flames first sparked in this area, that area proving to be a problem to contain. we watched as the flames have spread up the hillside. one home burning in these flames at this hour. one of five structures we know that have burned in the flames

here. thousands have been ordered to evacuate this area. right now, most of the schools in the north county will remain closed tomorrow because of this fire. as san diego county remains under a state of emergency. we'll send it back to you. >> all right. one huge factor working against fire crews, the weather. temperatures are sweltering. winds are vicious. combining with years of drought, is fueling all those flames. >> and today's forecast is not going to help one bit. another day of record heat is on-tap, with highs expected to top 100 degrees. and it will be gusting again, though, the winds should die down by midday. abc's ginger zee is there and will have much more on "good morning america." and in the midwest, severe storms have been the problem. this tornado touched down in central ohio, tearing homes and farm buildings to shreds, injuring at least two people. witnesses say they saw debris swirling through the air and heard roaring sounds as that storm blew in. and here in new york, president obama attends dedication ceremonies this morning for the national 9/11 museum.

>> located on the side of the world trade center, the museum has already taken its place in the new york skyline. tahman bradley is joining us with a preview. >> reporter: good morning, diana. good morning, john. there it is, behind that reflecting pool. 10,000 artifacts. more than 500 hours of video. a fitting tribute to that day that changed everything. at ground zero, below the new world trade center, one of the largest memorial museums in the world is set to open its doors. the 9/11 memorial museum is a journey back to a day america will never forget. >> on september 11th -- >> reporter: clocks and watches frozen in time. a mangled fire truck. the uniforms worn by the heroes, the first responders. >> it's emotional. very, very, very emotional. >> reporter: the museum doesn't just house artifacts. it is an artifact. that's the bedrock from the world trade towers. the steel beams. and the survival stairs. an escape route used by hundreds during the attack.

>> running down these stairs to safety was a lifeline. >> reporter: on the walls, plaques and screens show how 9/11 unfolded, minute-by-minute. it's also a sacred place, filled with tributes to the people killed in new york, and at the pentagon and in shanksville, pennsylvania. >> the museum is a place where you can come to understand 9/11, through the lives of those who were killed and the lives of those who rushed here to help. >> reporter: before the public begins seeing it next wednesday, the survivors, the families of the victims and first responders, will take tours. >> folks who are so deeply a part of the history that this museum shares will be our very first guests. these are the individuals are the ones whose voices tell the history. >> reporter: the project was marked by construction problems, arguments over the $700 million budget and the best way to honor the families of the victims and the victims. president obama is here for the dedication later today, as well, as some of those victims' families. john and diana? >> abc's tahman bradley, live for us in lower manhattan this

morning. thank you. >> and join us this morning for the dedication of the museum. abc news will carry it live at 10:10 a.m. eastern time. you can also take a virtual tour of the museum on our website. also burning this morning is a fire, deep inside a mine in turkey. the scene of that country's worst-ever mining disaster. the first funerals for victims of tuesday's explosion have already taken place. the death toll was raised this morning to more than 280, with around 150 people still missing. anger over the accident is boiling over. the car of turkey's prime minister was attacked yesterday after he said, quote, these things happen. and breaking news from south korea this morning. prosecutors have indicted 15 crew members in last month's deadly ferry disaster that left more than 300 people dead or missing. the ship's captain and three others are charged with homicide. the indictment says that they failed to carry out their duties to protect passengers as that ship was sinking. now to the war of words involving hillary clinton's camp and republican strategist karl rove. as we have reported, it started

with rove's suggestion that mrs. clinton suffered brain damage back in december of 2012. he's since backed off, saying she suffered a serious health episode. hillary clinton wasn't seen in public for nearly a month around that time. after suffering from a virus and a concussion and a blood clot, that all happened at that time. yesterday, her husband fired back dismissively. >> now they say she's really got brain damage. if she does, i must be in really tough shape because she's still quicker than i am. >> mr. clinton did say his wife took six months to recover from her concussion. rove says hillary clinton's health will be an issue if she runs for president in 2016. the embattled head of the veterans administration faces tough questions today on capitol hill. some lawmakers have demanded that secretary erik shinseki resign over the growing scandal at a phoenix v.a. hospital. reports say administrators kept an off-the-books list to conceal long wait times as 40 veterans died waiting to get an

appointment. the secretary is appointing his chief of staff the oversee a review of the v.a. and gay weddings are on hold in arkansas, as county clerks try to sort out a new ruling. more than 450 gay couples have received marriage licenses since last friday. our friend and colleague barbara walters retiring from abc tomorrow. so, the company threw her a big party last night. walters, the guest of honor, wearing all red. being joined by disney boss, bob iger, and former new york city mayor michael bloomberg. current and former co-hosts of "the view" were also there. barbara might have had the line of the night, saying being honor, quote, is kind of like having an obituary that you're alive to see. pretty funny, right? breaking news overnight, involving casey kasem. the legendary deejay, no longer missing. and a feisty feline. a cat saving a young boy from a dog attack. the dramatic moments all caught on camera. plus, a true sign of sportsmanship. a twin sister comes to the rescue on the track.

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welcome back. despite delays, cancellations, higher fares and more fees than ever, airline passenger satisfaction is climbing. on a scale, satisfaction among aerial passengers rose 17 points higher than it was last year. it's the second year in a row that happiness with service in airlines has improved. minnesota has enacted the first law requiring smartphones and tablets have to a killswitch. the idea is to cut down on theft of the devices. the carrier can disable them. good news for fans of flapy bird. it's coming back in august.

the creator pulled that game over concerns it was too addictive. he says the new version will be less so. oprah winfrey's network has closed a deal to produce a documentary series following the life of michael sam. cameras will follow the first openly-gay player drafted by the nfl as he prepares for his pro season with the st. louis rams. sam says he hopes his story will inspire others to accept who they are. when we come back, an 8-year-old caught driving a car. but she's actually being called a hero. and roommates buy a couch for 20 bucks. and they find 40 grand hidden inside. we'll tell you what they did, next.

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and cut off power for part of the day. >> in ohio, teenager jake sawyer saw a carp struggling to survive in the water. he waded into the ankle-deep water, scooped up the carp and carried it to a pond. the roads around his house should be dry today. that's not the case in the east. from the great lakes south to florida, expect slow going along very wet roadways. >> if you're flying, airport delays are possible in charlotte, atlanta, detroit and miami. breaking news overnight in the family saga surrounding casey kasem. >> police say the radio legend has been found in washington state, just hours after his family filed a missing persons report. the 82-year-old suffers from parkins parkinson's disease and can no longer speak. his daughter suspected they took him to washington state. sheriff's deputies confirmed to abc news he is there and is in good health. and the former royal editor

to "the news of the world," claimed he repeatedly hacked the voicemails of the young royals. the hackings happening in the months before he was arrested for illegal eavesdropping. he acknowledged he listened to voicemails 155 times and prince harry's, 9 times. a couple may have lost a race this weekend. but they get kudos for sisterhood. when chloe fell, claire carried her sister and classmate on her back the rest of the way. claire later said the move was a no-brainer so they could cross the finish line together. >> that's the stuff, if you've got children, more than one, you have to teach that kind of stuff in your kids. >> yep. >> that's such a sweet story. >> that's a great story. now, to come pro sports. specifically basketball. steve kerr has reached a five-year deal to coach the golden state warriors. >> as for the playoffs, a couple of teams are moving into the nba

finals. >> good morning. welcome to our "sportscenter" studios. i'm stan verrett. this is neil everett. we're here to get you caught up on the nba playoff action you may have missed. >> not just good morning. but good morning, america. lebron james had 49 in the last game against the nets. he wouldn't need to score that many in this one. nets looked like they were going to force a game six. ray allen was 0 for 6 from three until he hit that in the final half-minute. and brooklyn, this is the play they were in, down two in the final seconds. and if that's the way they drew it up, brooklyn, well, that's what you get. good "d" by miami. they're going to face indiana or washington. spurs trying to close out the blazers. at home, kawhi leonard takes that from damian lillard. and no one's going to stop him. tony parker left this game with hamstring tightness. they didn't need him. parker played ten minutes. didn't score.

leonard was fantastic. 22 points for him off the bench. he had seven rebounds, five steals. spurs bench outscores portland's bench, 40-8 in this game. spurs going to the western conference finals, 104-82. they'll face the winner of the clippers/thunder series. oklahoma city up 3-2 games in that series. >> that's been a good one. >> yeah. this has been fun. >> yep. >> but we're done. now, to wisconsin, we go. a national symbol is once again free this morning. it is this bald eagle that spent the last couple of weeks in a rehab facility following a strange accident. >> it flew straight into a shrink-wrapped boat that a couple was towing from florida to the upper midwest for the local fire department. that bird suffered from internal injuries and hurt its eye. but after some tlc it's back to normal and free to fly. >> what a gorgeous bird. an 8-year-old kansas girl should be very proud of herself.

>> abby porter was in the car when her mom fell unconscious. the second grader took over the wheel. that's when she got unexpected but welcome help. >> i was starting to panic. and i got an idea to drive -- grab the steering wheel. >> let her vehicle dump into the back of me so i could stop it. she said she was scared and didn't want to do that. i explained to her, you needed to do that. >> whoa. both cars stopped safely. mom is okay. dad is thankful. and abby was able to make it to school in time to share her story. >> that's just amazing. >> i'm assuming what happened here is a police officer happened to see what was going on and drove in front of her. what a brave little girl. >> sounds like they nailed it. >> that's an incredible story. coming up next, we have "the pulse," more images from barbara walters' big day. and some of the pictures that people there were tweeting overnight. plus, the dramatic video of

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[ male announcer ] ask your doctor about xarelto® today. for more information including savings options, download the xarelto® patient center app, call 1-888-xarelto, or visit teamxarelto.com. all right. time for "the pulse," now. and we had to start with a big shindig we told you about earlier. abc honoring the legendary barbara walters, who is retiring tomorrow. >> some of the pictures being tweeted out overnight. barbara with our friend, katie couric. and gio benitez there, along with the guest of honor. >> and even though you can't see her face, that's abc's "world news" anchor, diane sawyer, giving barbara a hug. obviously, a good time by all. and just a big, major congrats

to her. what a trail blazer. an amazing career. >> we were invited. we were too busy getting ready for the show tonight. that's why we couldn't make it to the shindig. >> that's the story. and we're sticking to it. this video has everyone talking this morning. take a look at this. a cat is going to save the day. i promise you. roll that video. that beautiful bean footage. a cat saving the day, watch this. a boy on his bike, ambushed by a dog. a neighbor's dog. and the cat goes into action. fearlessly charging to the rescue. surveillance tape captures it all. >> the flash in the right side of the frame, is the kitty cat, pouncing on the pooch. just like that. jeremy going to be just fine. his mom, also very much relieved. >> to have her with no regard for her own life fly at the dog to protect him. i've never seen anything like that. >> she's a hero.

>> that's right. she's his personal hero. that cat, by the way, was adopted by the couple five years ago, following them home from the park one day. what's so wonderful about that video is the cat not only pounces. but then, like -- >> chases him away. follows up on hit. >> don't you think about coming back. they used to sleep in the crib together. that's my buddy. >> watch this. >> and i love this part. you better go. >> no you don't. there's video on the other side of the car. that cat keeps following that pooch, by the way. now to another wonderful story. it's all about some college kids who did the right thing. >> they bought a couch for 20 bucks from the salvation army. they had it in their apartment for a couple months. they decided to find it why it was so lumpy. >> the reason wasn't hard to find. that's when things got exciting for them. >> there's a zipper on the bottom. and he pulls out a plastic bag. box-shaped. immediately, it's either drugs

or money. and we, like, freak out. we run and get cali and open it. it's a stock of 100s and 50s. >> we pull it out of the couch. we're freaking out. like we're shaking. and at first, i swear, this is the first thing that lara said, lock the doors. >> by the way, they found more than 40 grand in cash and a deposit slip with a woman's name on it. so, they tracked her down. >> she's 91 years old. she didn't trust banks. that's why she kept the money in the couch. of course, they gave it all back to her. it turns out she was in the hospital. and her kids said, let's get rid of this old couch. >> uh-huh. and having no idea. her life savings were in that couch. she's grateful. she gave them a little reward. if i see that couch in the salvation army, i don't think i'm buying it. >> no? i'm going to look for a lumpy couch today. >> it's 20 bucks. for some of you, your local news is next. >> for everyone else, we'll be right back with hidden dangers

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live from the kgo-tv broadcast center this is abc7 news. good thursday morning at 4:28. well find out if it is going to be as warm today. a cool down...maybe? mike? >> not a "cool" down but not so hot. the winds show how the morning is. it is stuffy. live doppler 7 hd showing the sea breeze has not developed. it will this afternoon. before it does, it is going to be warm to hot in many areas. here is the forecast, 84 to 93 around the bay. up to 96 inland. the coast and san francisco are 74 to 80. the huge cooling trend is ahead in the seven-day outlook but, first, leyla gulen. >> isn't there anything in between?

not too hot? not too cold? >> good morning, everyone. a big closing in the north bay at vallejo eastbound and westbound highway 37 is shut down and will be until 5:00 this morning. if you can wait, avoid it. the bay bridge toll plaza shows wide open and empty as you make it in from emeryville clear with construction ahead. 4:28. breaking overnight in san francisco, a big rig slammed into a funeral home in the castro district in the early hours of the morning sparking a major fire. amy hollyfield has more on the scene. >> the wreckage is still he and you have to see this. look at what is left. it is a mess. a charred frame of a truck. believe it or not the driver and passenger inside the truck we survived and they will be fine.

they were taken to the hospital. one has been released from the hospital. they okay. we are in the castro district in san francisco on market street. this happened at 12:35. the truck crashed into the sullivan funeral home and burst into flames. the funeral homeowner and his wife are here. they say they cannot believe this. we just had our 90th and was and nothing like this has happen before we had people get hung up or hit a guardrail or something but nothing like this. we are not positive how it happened or what happened but it is unbelievable. take a second look at the wreckage outside: unbelievable. you are expecting bad stuff inside, right? weighing in, ev