right now, tropical storm isaac begins to make its impact on florida. we'll show you the path of the storm and introduce you to a bay area politician making the stage at the republican national convention in florida this week. >> i have totally lost all sense of -- depth perception, walking for me is very difficult. >> and how a scenic hot air balloon adventure took a dangerous turn. we investigate what happened. good evening, i'm diane dwyer. thank you for joining us. we're on a little bit early because of "sunday night

football." a hurricane warning in effect for the florida keys. the storm had wind up to 65 miles an hour. as the it swept the keys and south florida. heavy rain caused some pockets of flooding but no major damage was reported so far. across the gulf coast, nerves are on edge this evening as tropical storm gathers strength. nbc's jay gray is in myers, florida with the latest on preparation and what is expected to be one of the hardest hit areas. >> reporter: dramatic images, as the massive storm rips across haiti leaving floodwater, shelters, twisted and torn away, and at least one fatality. the pictures and problems and ominous calling card for this massive system that will soon turn its attention to florida and the gulf coast. everybody from louisiana over through florida need to be watching carefully and taking initial preparations. >> reporter: residents are moving sandbags into place in southwest, florida. >> it looks like it is going to be pretty serious. again with the category i,

that's just the wind. but it's the storm surge and the size of the storm itself that were's concerned with. so, we're very anxious about this. >> reporter: nerves on edge in part because of the new forecast path which shows the storm growingen the warm gulf waters to perhaps a category 2 hurricane before landfall. >> once it moves into the straits of florida that is a lot of really warm water, fuel for the hurricane. it could intensify if it holds together. >> reporter: holding it together is what many in pensacola, one of the potential strike points for isaac are working on right now. >> i'm buying plywood, to batten down my hatches. cover the windows. make sure nothing gets through. >> reporter: even those getting in one last day at the beach holding tight to what is most precious as they watch the growing surf and wait to see just what isaac might bring. today, florida governor rick scott signed an emergency declaration for the state.

most of the counties in southwest florida have already closed schools for monday in an tis passion -- anticipation of the storm. we want to bring in our meteorologist, tracking the storm as well. what is going on, rob? >> the latest on isaac. a tropp skal toical storm. central pressure, 997 milibars, now, 992. why that is significant. the pressure drops. the pressure gradient builds. wind will react to that. we'll see isaac wind getting closer to hurricane strength tomorrow. path of the storm as you heard jay mention will turn to category i hurricane, spinning 4 hours over the very warm surface temperature thousands of the gulf of mexico. by the time it heads to mobile bay, alabama or new orleans, could become a category 2 hurricane. this is what makes meteorologists nervous the a storm like this over the water two day's time, and high energy

environment. not much wind sheer there, which would tear the top off the hurricane and keep intensity down. wind sheer looks to be weak. could give the storm time to strengthen rather rapidly over 36 hours. right now does look like areas from, just east of houston, and, towards the florida panhandle. still pretty wide cone there, projected path for the storm. right now, does look like during the day, by winds day could see landfall close to new orleans. category ii hurricane. watching in the gulf of mexico here over the next couple days. watching that situation very closely along with some changes to our own forecast which include a big warm-up. seven day, have a look in a few minutes diet. ian. >> thank you, rob. the tropical storm is making an impact on the republican national convention in tampa. sensitive to the appearance of putting politics before safety, the gop canceled monday's schedule, planning now to start the convention on tuesday. nbc bay area's steve handlesman reports from tampa.

arriving in tampa, ahead of the storm, some republicans are worried. >> you know, we have got a lot of actives. we're going to be outside. a lot of heavy went and rain. >> reporter: it is already gusty downtown. steady rain expected overnight. even with isaac tracking west of tampa, getting to a monday convention session would have been miserably wet. no choice but to cancel day one and to kids further delays. most republicans in tampa are undaunted. >> say no to obama. >> tuesday we have got to make up for time we lose. >> trailing in national polls, mitt romney is counting on tampa for a challenging, image reboot. to be seen tougher on the president's record but more likeable. so more voters are comfortable with romney as an obama alternative. on tfox news sunday, romney wil take advice offered years ago

from is my father george who also ran for president. >> i have heard him give tight many people, which is be bold. don't worry about what people think. be bold. get the job done. >> but as bold as romney might been his thursday speech he will have to compete for the nation's attention. if isaac becomes a major hour cane and strikes new orleans wednesday on the anniversary of katrina. i'm steve handelsman, nbc news. hundreds of california republicans on the way to florida as well for the convention. among them a bay area congressional candidate invited to speak at the event. he is just 25 years old. nbc bay area's correspondent caught up with him before his flight and has more on why he stand out. hello, kimberly. >> ricky gill the only congressional candidate from the west selected to speak at the republican national convention. the candidate for california's 9th congressional district says he feels honored and is excited to address the thousand.

the republican national committee calls the 25-year-old, a young gun. gill says he plans to use the two-minutes he is a loud to talk about the place he was born and raised and to draw attention to an air y he sarea he says is lo forgotten by washington. >> i'm a young person who wants to make a difference. that cares about the community. the reason i ran, there is so much urgency, the people of the 9th district are more underrepresented. when i announced there was not a single. state or federal representative who lived in the seat. we are going to restore the people's place in politics. >> hoping to unseed the ninth district. mountain house, tracy, north of interstate 205, and majority of san joaquin, and contra costa county. the district created during the 2011 redistricting process. gill taking the run to tampa. though the schedule is influx because of the tropical storm he is at last check scheduled to

speak tuesday. diane. >> thank you, kimberly. a woman who jumped off the richmond san rafael bridge during a police chase is recovering in the hospital. officers say the 30-year-old woman, was weaving on southbound 101, at 2:00 clock this morning when they fried to pull her over. she sped on to the bridge. got of her car. leapt into the water and started swimming for corte madera. a coast guard retrieved her from paradise caye, identified as katherine tines. last day of racing on the san francisco bay. droves of fans, were treated to a thrilling fin, to america's cup world series. lawrence scott at marina green with the latest. hello, lawrence. >> hey, die naane. the racing is over. the experience continues here. and a fantastic experience

overall throughout the america's cup world series. especially here on the championship sunday. take a look. round one of the america cup world series is in the books. super sunday, the match racing final was a thriller between oracle teams. battling to the finish. where kutz takes victory. >> the old dog has still got old tricks. the young guys have forgotten them. >> and in a thrilling fleet racing final, the dramatic ending. while fending off team korea, jimmy spithill's second place finish gave oracle team usa just enough in the points standings to win the week. >> fantastic. i've mean for oracle. nice result to win the match. the fleet racing. and overall of the first world series. the first time in front of our home fans. and just exciting to be able to reward them with that. >> the day saw two men with eight olympic gold medals between them, sailing together as resident, track great,

michael johnson, joined them on the bay. >> speed is incredible. but also how close the boats get to one another. i mean it's -- it looks like there is going to be pretty good crashes out there. they are able to maneuver between the boats. they're pretty big boats as well. so, it's pretty impressive. >> for spectators by the bay the chance to get up close and personal. made for quite a memorable week. >> that's it. exactly it. being so close to them. you think it is something that happens. three, four miles offshore. when you see a couple hundred yard away. outstanding. >> a week full of experiencing something new in the bay area. learning about the history of the america's cup. enjoying a few giant experiences while watching world class racing. best of all, it all starts again in just a matter of weeks. >> yes, the very first week in october. the racing is back here in san francisco. live at marina green. lawrence scott. send it back to you in the studio. >> thank you very much. looks gorgeous. coming up next.

hot air balloons, a calm sceneic ride, right? coming up the investigative unit looks into how safe the balloons really are. also, some wild whale watching. show you what's pushing the whales closerer than ever to the shore. and the petaluma all-star team finished the little league world series in style. we'll show you how they did it. [ taste buds ] donuts, donuts, donuts! who are these guys? oh, that's just my buds. bacon, donuts. -my taste buds. -[ taste buds ] waffles.

how about we try this new kind of fiber one cereal? you think you're going to slip some fiber by us? rookie. okay. ♪ nutty clusters and almonds, ♪ ♪ almonds. ♪ fiber one is gonna make you smile. ♪ [ male announcer ] introducing new fiber one nutty clusters and almonds. with 43% daily value of fiber for you. crunchy nutty clusters and real almond slices for your taste buds. verizon wireless is teaming up with xfinity from comcast. now you get the xfinity triple play and verizon wireless

plus a great offer. call 855-704-7400 to sign up and you'll get up to a $300 visa prepaid card by mail. verizon wireless and xfinity. it's tv, home phone, internet and wireless. the little league world series wrapped up in petaluma back on the field they lost yesterday in the championship game after a dramatic come back. today the team played in the consolation game, beating panama. the petaluma nationals scored early and often as we look to say against the team from panama. cruising to a 12-4 win in the little league world series third place game. the team returning home to a hero's welcome. they arrive home tomorrow morning. at sfo at 11:00.

there is a parade planned for the team next sunday, september 2nd at walnut park in petaluma. you have probably seen them drifting. the peak season for hot air balloon ride. how is the industry regulated. elise kershner look at the safety of the popular activity. >> reporter: launching up drifting into the cloud. it can be one of the most romantic experiences imaginable. >> it is absolutely gorgeous. >> that's exactly what hot air ballooning was for marcy cook. until, her pilot rammed into a power line in the texas countryside. sending 3,900 volts of electricity through her body. >> walking for me is very

difficult. >> there have been other accidents, take a look at this rough landing in albuquerque. >> are passengers strapped in at all? >> they're not. they're not required to have seatbelts. we want everybody to move around freely. >> reporter: with the picturesque setting, napa, and sonoma are top destinations. . >> 250 people a day. >> according to ntsb, since 1964, nearly 1,000 people have been injured hot air ballooning. 73 have died. seven of those deadly accidents happened in california. >> i have gone on 5,000 flights. nobody gets away for free. >> the experienced pilot says, accidents do happen with a high number of flights. he made an emergency landing that injured 15 passengers in sonoma county and blame an ab r abnormal weather shift that caused him to land in 30 mile an

hour wind gusts. >> situation that are extreme. >> it is not going to happen today. we err on the side of safety. >> wind was the cause or contributing factor of incidents in california, investigated by the ntsb. pilot error for bad judgment was the other reason things went wrong. >> you have to be a licensed pilot to fly a hot air balloon. we are all licensed. >> that's glen moyer with balloon fed raegs of eration of. >> we are restrict what areas we can fly in and out of because of federal regulations. we are well reg late ulated. >> the biggest challenge is common sense. you got to know when to fly. when not to fly. and knowing when not to fly is really what is critical. >> that's something marcy cook knows all to well. >> she doesn't have brakes and gas pedals. he is operating on the whim of

the wind. that's all he has. >> to give you come pareson par. seven times the number of skydiving accidents than hot air balloon accidents. make sure you are flig wiying w qualified pilot in good weather. make sure you are flying with a qualified pilot in good weather. still ahead. whale watching is big business in the bay area. why spotting earth's biggest tree ch creatures in the wild has become easier recently. if you want less, you can always have less,

but i like having a lot more a lot more than having a lot less. and the more more i have, the more i like having more. and that's exactly what i get at embassy suites. more post-meeting celebrations, more complimentary drinks, more for my money... mmm, more bar snacks... ♪ more olives. definitely. i want so much more it's more more than a mortal man can handle. now that's more like it. [ female announcer ] complimentary drinks. free breakfast. more room. embassy suites. get more. ♪ i'm thinking sweet

♪ and i'm thinking new ♪ i'm thinking all these brilliant colors ♪ ♪ shining through ♪ i'm thinking sunshine ♪ i'm thinking sunshine ♪ i'm thinking [ whistles ] ♪ i'm thinking [ whistles ] [ female announcer ] 40 delicious flavors that feel as good as they taste. yoplait, it is so good! nature putting on a show along the northern california coastline. migrating whales have been venturing closer than year's past. offering unbelievable views.

joe talked to one man whose job it is to find the whales. right now that job is better than ever. >> reporter: not just any day humans can get up close to the world's largest creatures that is unless you ride along with the captain, joe nasar. >> whale watching the best season i have ever had. >> reporter: his daily whale watching excursions with san francisco whale tours this summer have turned up plenty of the giants. >> we've had a tremendous year with blue whales. and an amazing year with humpbacks. >> normal years, nasar travels 30 miles to the islands to the whales' feeding ground. >> they're going out. in a couple hours they're out among the amazing creatures jumping out of the water, full breaches. >> this year, his trips have been much shorter because the whales have been coming closer to shore. >> weave aven've seen them comir

to shore, and coastline. >> biologist steve woods says that may be due to the unique current that supply krill for the whales to eat. >> this year, perhaps strong enough, a lot of plants and animal have been closer in to shore and not as much in deep water. whales have been following them. >> the situation here isn't as an extreme on central coast where humpback whales have been venturing into harbors next to boats and kayakers. >> you will see pictures of humpback coming up next to people. >> rare occurrence may make for great photos it poses dangers for the whales. >> it also could be a dangerous situation for the whales. one of the big threats to whales in this area that boats can hit them. and we came across humpback whales. and it was a -- a longitude, latitude i write down. >> he keeps a daily log of the

whales, blues, grays, humpbacks. to his delights. the pages are felling up faster than ever. >> great for the species as a whole. they need not to be forgotten and protected at all cost. >> i want to go whale watching. let's checken with rob on the weather. it is going to warm up, isn't it? >> good day out there today. sunshine for the american world series. needed sunglasses at times. late this morning. sun broke through the low clouds. outside in san francisco, looks pretty out there. the wind is still pretty gusty. at least you got the sunshine there. eventually see low clouds spilling back in. after a fairly cool finish to the weekend. temperatures reflect that across the bay area. numbers in the 60s and 70s. look at san jose. low 70s in the try valley. normally should see 90s. the warm spot.

72, santa cruz. got sunshine today. still gusty. and once again. wake up tomorrow morning. and low cloud. misty skies. giants game, 5:00, against the braves. bundle up. low 60s around first pitch time. it will stay breezy through the game with low clouds. moving on in. speaking of low clouds. notice we started out. lot of low cloud earlier. drier air. kind of mixing down, breaking up the marina version. and most of the coastal areas. pacifica and san francisco. looking at the sunshine. off to the north. weather system. passing on by. lift off to the north of us. high pressure will start to build in. for the start of the workweek. though we still have this kind of trough pat artern across the pacific. high pressure, back into the 80s. around parts of the north bay tomorrow. east bay val yez leys as well. mid to upper 80s. as early as tomorrow. temperatures turning warmer through the middle part of the

week. for the morning. interesting. 8:00. see some of the fog. actually all the way into stockton. sacramento. good push of marine air, once again. areas of drizzle possible. few spots. peninsula, coast. for the afternoon. look today. see mostly sunny skies inland. few sunny breaks on the seashore. big difference. tomorrow's temperatures warping up. 5, 10, degrees. most places inland. 40s, 50s outside. you wake up tomorrow morning. dress in layers. a jacket for the morning. and back to t-shirt weather for most in the valleys tomorrow. getting closer to 80, san jose. mid to upper 80s around morgan hill. trivalley. mid to upper 80s. around pleasantton. 87, danville. mid to upper 80s. fairfield. in the north bay, big change. south wind not as strong the should be back in the 70s, and low 80s. as we get towards monday. and tuesday. so the seven-day forecast. going to warm things up toward the middle of the week. may see a couple low 90s out there. wednesday and thursday. and then, unfortunately next

weekend if you want the hot weather inland, it's going to be going away. sea breeze picks up for next weekend. and cooling down. but overall. pretty nice. great day to get the sunshine over the final day of the america's cup world series. looks gorgeous out there today. >> i know. very nice. yesterday had the fog coming in. and all right. when we come back, jimmy fallon. [ mom ] dear chex cereal, i've never written a fan letter before, but you've done the impossible. you made gluten free cereals in a whole bunch of yummy flavors.

cinnamon chex and honey nut chex are two of our favorites. when my husband found the chocolate one, we were in cereal heaven. the only problem is, with so many great flavors, you're making it very hard to choose. your fans, the mcgregor family. 'cause we love chex. ♪ [ male announcer ] and now try new gluten free apple cinnamon chex.

jimmy fallon will not host the oscars, and the two producers of "smash" locked up the job. that guarantees lots of singing and dancing because they also produce the the movie version of "chicago" and "hairspray" and both versions of "footloose" who is on their short list to host the show. well, maybe queen latifah and john travolta. queen latifah sang and danced in

"chicago" won the oscar for best picture. we know what is coming up with the weather? >> summer coming back. >> about time. >> cool weekend. sunshine over our shoulder, in san francisco. back in the 80s, starting tomorrow. warmest days of the week, wednesday, thursday. trivalley. >> thank you, rob. thank you for watching this special edition of "nbc bay area news" we have "nbc nightly news" next, and john madden special. game time at 5:00, panthers/jets. more local news follow the game. of course at 11:00, following the top score as well. the cheerios bandit got you again? [ both laugh ] ♪ the one and only, cheerios ...and now...

you! [ giggles ] ♪ the one and only, cheerios a great clean doesn't have to take longer. i'm done. i'm gonna read one of these. i'm gonna read one of these! [ female announcer ] unlike sprays and dust rags, swiffer 360 duster's extender gets into hard-to-reach places without the hassle. so you can get unbelievable dust pickup in less time without missing a thing. i love that book. can you believe the twin did it?