www.dns-ok.us. thanks for joining us. we'll see you at 6:00. good night. breaking point as more heat records are broken and the death toll rises some are starting to get a break from all of this severe weather. tonight a new threat of more dangerous storms. under attack, the vicious virus that may be hiding in your computer. what you need to do tonight before it's too late. adult playgrounds taking the gym outside in one of the hottest new exercise trends. best of all, they are free. and back to the future. how did a grown man find a way to interview himself when he was 12 years old? tonight the man behind the video that's gone viral. from nbc news world head quarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt.

>> good evening. as this long holiday week draws to an end, so does the crippling heatwave that has taken 66 lives since late june. temperatures dropped to the mid 80s in parts of the midwest that only a few days were sweltering under triple-digit temps. however, it remained dangerously hot further east in places like washington, d.c. which got into the 100s for the fourth consecutive day. we are still under excessive heat advisories and warnings, and around half a dozen daily heat records were set today as well, though far fewer than yesterday when over 200 daily records and ten all-time records were set. we'll check in with the weather channel in a moment. we begin our coverage here in new york tonight with nbc's michelle franzen. good evening. >> reporter: temperatures still hit 90 degrees here in new york city, but about ten degrees cooler than a day ago. that drew out more people here

to central park, one of the cities here on the east coast all the way back to the midwest enjoying a breath of fresh air following that unbearable heat streak. finally a break in the heat wave, enough of a drop to get most of the country out of triple digits but with temperatures still in the 90s not out of danger. >> since we had triple-digit heat around, we are thinking the 90s is a break. >> reporter: with the cooler air, a new threat, severe storms. in missouri the violent winds left a trail of destruction. authorities say flying debris killed a 28-year-old woman sitting in a car in a grocery store parking lot. in new jersey a woman is in critical condition after being struck by lightning following a fast-moving storm saturday night. >> there was witnessed a lightning strike on the sea wall. the woman with family and friends was leaving the beach. >> reporter: in the nation's capitol, temperatures broke 100 degrees for the fourth day in a row. >> we have seen quite a number of patients with heat-related

concerns. mostly heat exhaustion. >> reporter: the heat is being blamed for at least 66 deaths in the past two weeks. in indiana police in greenfield have charged a man with the death of his 4-month-old daughter. they say she died after being locked inside a vehicle as temperatures swelled above 100 degrees. in neighboring fishers a 16-month-old is in the hospital after police rescued the toddler from a locked suv. since the beginning of june, nearly 300 all-time record highs have been set stretching from the plains into the mid-atlantic and down the southeast. in the last two weeks, 36 states have reached triple-digit temperatures. the mercury in chicago hit 100 three days in a row tying the record last set in 1947. the ten-day streak in st. louis is second only to the dust bowl in 1936. a slight dip today, a welcome break whether competing in the new york city triathlon or having fun the old-fashioned

way. some other people in several states still enjoying the cool temperatures. an estimated 100,000 residents who are still without power more than a week after the heat and storm-related outages hit. lester. >> michelle franzen, thanks. for more on what we can expect from the heatwave, we turn to weather channel meteorologist kelly cass. good evening to you. >> 80s sound pretty warm, but we will take that over the triple digits we've been enduring over the past few days. raleigh, north carolina, getting up to 105 degrees setting a new all-time record high nine out of the last ten days in the triple digits. unfortunately for the carolinas, we continue to have these heat advisories in effect. also for portions of the ohio valley. the northeast is cooling down. we have a trough in place. it is the west's turn. look at the temperatures. spokane, well into the 90s. 99 degrees in salt lake city. we are paying the price here

in the east as the cooler temperatures come in. we have the severe thunderstorm watches in effect including washington, d.c. unfortunately, watch out for damages winds and possibly hail with some of these storms as well. as we've already noted, golf ball sized halt with some of these storms into nashville with a severe thunderstorm warning still in effect. >> kelly cass with a picture from home. thanks. we are looking overseas to europe. we have an update on the severe flooding there. in southern russia, the death toll rose to at least 153. most victims were from one town and were sleeping when the floods hit. more than a foot of rain fell on the area in less than 24 hours. president vladimir putin took a look by helicopter. and ordered an investigation into whether there were sufficient flood warnings. to syria where the deadly crisis shows no sign of ending. today there was tough talk from the united states and syria's president. martin fletcher is following the story from cairo for us tonight. martin, good evening. >> reporter: hi, lester. good evening.

speaking in japan, secretary of state hillary clinton warned syria that time is running out for president assad and the state of syria could collapse. >> not only will fewer people die, but there's a chance to save the syrian state from a catastrophic assault that would be very dangerous not only to syria but to the region. >> reporter: and with another 100 syrians killed today the u.n. special envoy said the u.n. observers mission is a vail your. it's a step up in the war of words, but assad isn't climbing down. military exercises this weekend his armed forces were defending syria from outside aggression. he found support yet again in iran, syria's closest ally. iran warned of the, quote, catastrophe, if there's no

resolution to the crisis soon. assad said he is not afraid of meeting the same fate of the leaders of egypt and libya. who were ousted in disgrace. lester. >> martin fletcher, thank you. back in this country a cyber threat is making a lot of people nervous tonight. the prospect of a nasty computer virus could cut off internet access to tens of thousands of people. we will get more of that story from our justice correspondent pete williams. >> reporter: for six months now a system run by the federal government has helped computers infected with a virus connect to the internet supporting those who had no idea their computers were affected. that fbi run system shuts down midnight sunday for some in the u.s. logging on monday could be a problem. odds are your computer will not be affected, but if it is, you can blame this man, one of six estonians charged last fall of corrupting computers world wide. affected computers were hijacked into using internet servers that

sometimes directed a user's search to desired websites, but often redirected them to sites they didn't want. . the scammers made money for ads they posted on the destination sites. >> absolutely brilliant what these guys were doing. they had found a way to tap into one of the most lucrative sources of money on the internet and that's online advertising. >> reporter: when those behind the scam were arrested, the fbi took over the trouble-free surfing. that's what's about to shut down. the fbi estimates about 45,000 computers in the u.s. are still infected. you can check yours by logging on to this website, dcwg.org. that's dcwg.org. most internet service providers can help, too. >> the good news is the odds aren't very high that you will be infected. if you are infected, you probably don't know. and on monday if your internet goes out, you're going to have a

really hard time fixing your computer. >> reporter: a simple test now to save potential trouble later. pete williams, nbc news, washington. friday's lackluster jobs report showing the unemployment rate stuck at 8.2% has provided mitt romney backers plenty of fresh ammo. as they launch into another round of attacks on president obama's handling of the economy. but the obama camp is not lacking ammo of its own on the subject of jobs. >> reporter: the president today back from camp david to a sweltering south lawn as republicans kept up their fire on the weak economy. >> the president is the head of this country. the fish rots at the head. >> reporter: a conservative super pac is out with the $25 million ad by hitting the president on jobs. >> obama has lots of excuses for the bad economy. >> reporter: wrapping up his new hampshire vacation mitt romney spent the day fundraising appearing behind closed doors at the southampton home of david koch.

price per ticket $50,000 a head. $75,000 a couple. but not everyone was on message. >> thank you for being here today for mitt romney. >> reporter: roll call reported that at a recent fundraiser, house speaker john boehner was asked, can you make me love mitt romney? boehner responded the american people probably aren't going to fall in love with mitt romney. boehner add it shouldn't matter. he says the election is a referendum on president obama but underscored a gop concern. >> pioneers at helping companies. >> reporter: the president has launched his own ads with claims disputed by romney that romney shipped jobs overseas while at bain. >> mitt romney is not the solution. he is the problem. >> reporter: obama advisors continue to portray romney as out of touch. today they raised more questions about romney's personal wealth. and his use of overseas bank accounts. >> the best way to figure out if

mitt romney is complying with american tax law is have him release more of his tax returns. >> reporter: it is about the swing states. this week president obama visits two more, iowa and virginia. mitt romney heads to colorado on to do -- tuesday. lester. >> mike, thanks. another kind of contest being watched closely today the men's tennis final at wimbledon. all british eyes on andy murray with hopes he would become the country's first men's champion in 76 years. >> reporter: as he walked on court, andy maury knew too well the hopes of a nation rested on his broad shoulders. imagine this not since 1936 has a british man won the singles title at wimbledon. britains have known nothing but double faults and disappointments. in murray's hometown in scotland the champagne was on ice. fans had camped overnight to be sure of a space in front of wimbledon's big screen. >> he is going to win.

he's got to. >> reporter: the eyes of a nation turned to center court. the duchess of cambridge watched from the royal box with sister, pippa. william had to work. muir lay took -- murray took the first set. victory seemed possible. then the rain came and the players left the court while the roof was closed. for some reason murray's game took a dive. he stumbled. he slipped. federer proved unbeatable. this is his seventh wimbledon win, a record he now shares with pete sampress. his young daughters shared his moment. >> i couldn't be more happy so it feels great being back here as the winner. >> reporter: murray struggles with the bitter disappointment of his loss. >> i'm getting closer. the support has been incredible. so thank you. >> reporter: there is a great sense of disappointment here but also recognition of roger

federer's amazing achievement. andy murray has played well. there is always next year. >> he is still young. he still has a lot to play for. >> reporter: and there is the olympics. both men will be representing their countries right here in wimbledon in three weeks' time. when "nbc nightly news" continues on this sunday night, taking your workout outside at playgrounds for adults. it's a hot new fitness trend. later how one man went back to the future interviewing himself when he was 12 years old. we'll explain about this internet sensation when we come back.

back with a growing trend aimed at keeping people fit. if you belong to a gym, then you

know they can be expensive and force you indoors to get your exercise. now more and more cities are turning to an outdoor alternative that has the added benefit of being freed. nbc's ron allen has the story for us tonight. >> don't quit. five. come on. just like that. >> reporter: playgrounds aren't just for kids anymore. just ask alfreda toyer to the account of her trainer. >> it's hot. it's early. >> it is. >> but you're out here. >> yes, i am. >> why? >> because i want to lose weight, stay healthy and fit. >> reporter: 30 pounds lost she says, 30 more to go at new york's first adult playground. it's just like a gym. >> this is a gym. this is our gym. >> reporter: there are more than just a few workout stations. adult playgrounds like this one in miami has equipment that works a lot like the stuff in those expensive sports clubs. that's what just about everybody says is one of the best things

about these public places. they're free. >> it helps a lot with your biceps. >> reporter: they are pumping up from miami to los angeles. it's no accident most are in urban areas with high obesity rates and other troubling health statistics. new york's park commissioner says the playgrounds are similar to efforts to ban outdoor smoking and high sugar ri drinks in schools. >> we want everybody to get exercise and this is one more way for people not to have an excuse to be seddentary and become obese. >> reporter: this playground is actually a test. if it works out well and it sure seems to be new york plans to bulk up and add two dozen more. companies that used to just make children's playgrounds have found a money making niche. by importing an idea that originated in china where adult playgrounds are everywhere. >> the growth has been explosive in the last 18 months. >> reporter: if you doubt the

playgrounds are places for serious workouts just ask. >> this helped build me right here. i don't think this is for kids. >> reporter: you are not intimidated by some of these guys? >> i'm here to work on me. >> reporter: here at the playground every morning living a healthier life she says, not for fun and games. ron allen. nbc news, new york. up next late word from hollywood, the death of an oscar winning star.

we're back now with safety concerns involving a growing family sport. riding those all-terrain vehicles or atvs. turns out june and july are the peak months for injuries and deaths associated with them. we have more on this tonight from nbc's tom costello. >> reporter: 14-year-old james was five hours away with a friend's family when caroline anderson got the phone call, there had been a terrible accident involving an atv and james was unconscious. >> i screamed. it was like a primal scream.

>> reporter: the andersons didn't even know james was riding an atv that weighed 700 boun pounds, but in a morning rain he crashed it into a tree. >> i asked him is my son still alive? he said, no. i'm sorry. we did everything we could. he's in the a -- he's not alive. >> reporter: the kid who loved baseball, fishing and played the saxophone died before his parents could get to the hospital. he is not alone. in 2010 at least 55 kids younger than 16 were killed in atv accidents. more than 28,000 were seriously injured leading the american academy of pediatrics to warn simply put atvs are dangerous to children and the risks are not limited to kids. >> every year 700 people die and 136,000 go to the emergency rooms because of atv related injuries. >> reporter: a lot of that has to do with bad behavior with plenty of examples on youtube. it's why the atv industry has put great emphasis on safety.

now in classes across the country, industry instructors are stressing the golden rules, like always wear a helmet, never ride on a public road, never ride with a passenger. importantly, one size atv does not fit all. that's especially important with kids. this yellow atv is not supposed to be ridden by anybody under the age of 14. this bigger blue one not supposed to be ridden by anyone under the age of 16. >> they need to be on one designed for their abilities, both engine size, speed size, and also the size of the atv. >> reporter: atvs have never been more popular. 11 million are now in use. compared to 4 million in 2000. a growing family sport but with risks. tom costello, nbc news. and a wedding announcement this weekend for a prominent member of congress. barney frank was married to his

long-time partner. frank became the first member of congress to marry someone of the same sex. he has announced that he will retire at the end of the current term. earnest borgnine died today. in a career of more than 60 years, he starred in dozens of film roles. "from here to eternity," "the dirty dozen" are just some of them. he often played the villain but it was his role in 1955 as a love sick butcher in "marty" that he won an oscar for best actor. later fans loved him in the tv sit calm "mchale's navy." earnest borgnine died in los angeles. he was 95 years old. when we come back here tonight the man who found a way to go back to his own future.

finally tonight one man's version of "back to the future." it's gone viral on the internet. a conversation between the young filmmaker and himself at age 12. 20 years ago jeremiah mcdonald left himself a videotape. when he combined it with video of him today, the results were a hysterical look at growing older and an instant hit. here's nbc's kristen dalgren.

>> reporter: for anyone who has ever wished -- >> i think i would like to talk to myself in the future. >> reporter: 32-year-old jeremiah mcdonald and his 12-year-old self from 1992 have made it happen. the result is a youtube sensation. over 4 million views in just three days. >> very clever, jeremiah. glad i thought of it. >> reporter: mcdonald says he thought of it as a 12-year-old fooling around with a camera and obsessed with time-travel stories, but never thought this far into the future. >> i just started talking to him. clearly couldn't come up with much more other than asking which pets were still alive or not. >> are all your questions going to be about pets? >> yes. >> the answer is they are all dead. >> reporter: the elder mcdonald the comedian and film maker and his preteen counter part spar over things that have changed. >> older than 32 you mean? even better. >> reporter: and the things that haven't. >> do you still like dr. who?

>> no. >> reporter: while it is a light hearted look at life mcdonald who also works as a parking attendant to make ends meet, hopes the video might relaunch another career. >> do you still draw? >> no. i don't draw much anymore. >> reporter: he has gotten thousands of requests for drawings on his website. after a reference to a dating status -- >> no wonder i'm single. >> reporter: offers for dates have been pouring in, too. >> in a way announcing i was single was the smartest move i made in the thing. >> reporter: leaving more to talk about if mcdonald decides to question his future self. thanks to the power of the internet. >> the internet is a thing you'll know in a few years. that's "nbc nightly news" for this sunday. brian williams will be here tomorrow. i'm lester holt reporting from new york. i will see you shortly on "date line." for all of us here on nbc news, good night.