. coming up on "early today," hurricane gonzalez strengthens in the caribbean. severe thunderstorms and heavy rain are likely due wednesday. ebola nurse nina pham receives transfusion as she battles the virus. future of her dog is uncertain. the name calling is just starting. the walking dead premiere sets new records. and a monday night comeback in st. louis. it is tuesday, october 14th. "early today" starts right now. good morning. i'm milissa rehberger. storm nation. 36 million people could see severe weather today in the

storm's bull's eye is the southeast. folks are facing rain, wind and possible tornadoes. extreme weather walloped parts of the west on monday. twister leveled buildings in just seconds. the storm proved deadly for one family. >> their mother is in intensive care now, but she's stable. and then the father didn't make it. >> in louisiana, a state of emergency is on. homes crushed, trees crumpled and power poles snapped. in alabama, the damage was everywhere. a 75-year-old woman was crushed and killed by a tree. >> i tried everything i could to get her out. but there was a tree on top of her. >> and another weather threat. hurricane gonzalo is growing. it is packing 110-mile-per-hour winds. it battered the caribbean and is heading toward puerto rico. meteorologist bill karins is tracking it all and he's up here

in a few minutes. a quiet evening capped four days of organized protests in ferguson and st. louis. provide testers say it doesn't end here. as one of their final acts of civil disobedience, protesters took their demands for justice to the rams/49ers football game and clashed with police and fans who were attending the game. inside the stadium, they held up banners like this one which reads rams fans know black matters on and off the field. throughout the day, they braved the heavy rainstorm and tornado warnings holding demonstrations at an upscale mall, walmart, an electric company, city hall and the st. louis police station. that is where historian and activist cornell west and a handful of others were arrested. >> is this the start of a whole new movement? >> that's what i pray. >> what? >> that it is the start of a new movement, we can shatter the sleepwalking and have people come away morally, spiritually,

politically, concerned about poor people, concerned about poor people on this side of town. >> that was cornell west telling nbc news what is next just moments after his release from jail. he was among 49 people arrested yesterday. breaking news in germany, an ebola patient has died. he was a u.n. worker stationed in liberia. the man was brought to germany for care last thursday. this is the third ebola death in europe. president wants other countries to donate supplies to west africa. in dallas, mena pham remains in isolation. on sunday she got a blood transfusion from dr. kent brantly. had her family is hoping for the best. >> the family is in shock situation. they don't know what to do. >> as for her dog bentley, it remains under medical watch. health officials believe it is not a health risk. the infected nbc cameraman is feeling better. on twitter he thanked people, but ashoka mukpo is facing big medical bills, $500,000 worth.

nbc and others are working to cover them. on the battle front, a new call from the cdc, hospitals need to get up to speed on dealing with ebola. >> every hospital in this country needs to think about the possibility of ebola, and anyone with fever or other symptoms that might be consistent with ebola. >> a new fear inside the outbreak zone. a food shortage in sierra leone. 40% of farms have been abandoned due to the epidemic. today, president obama will be meeting with defense chiefs from around the world to discuss a takedown of isis. the u.s. assembled a coalition of nations to help fight that militant group. this afternoon general martin dempsey will host a discussion. nbc's tracie potts is live in washington for us this morning. one of the big questions today likely will be concern that combat troops will be on the ground there. what can you tell us about that? >> reporter: it seems that's the big question for the 22 nations, including the u.s. the air strikes so far have had

limited success. some success, yes, but isis continues to advance in iraq and in syria. and these nations, this coalition, they have to decide which country is going to put their own military in there to stop them. defense chiefs from ten arab countries and 11 others meet president obama and general martin dempsey at andrews air force base this afternoon. turkey is denying reports that the u.s. can use its bases for air strikes, but says it will help train syrian rebels to fight isis. the syrian town of kobani is barely holding on. isis is also closing in on baghdad. hundreds of u.s. troops are there. >> i believe the capability is there to defend baghdad. so i think we're somewhat confident. >> reporter: on monday, iraqis abandoned the base in anbar province, outside baghdad. the u.s. says air strikes are buying time to retrain the iraqis.

isis released this video of american peter ckasiccaskassig as abdul rachman. the 26-year-old former army ranger was captured last october. he was in syria helping refugees. his parents got an audio message two weeks ago. >> he described that his time is running out. >> reporter: hostages, refugees, and syrians at risk. the coalition needs to get the upper hand. that's the focus of today's meeting. now, back here on capitol hill, the top general for the army says he's concerned that all these budget cuts that are supposed to be coming up in the next year or so are going to affect military readiness. affect the ability of the u.s. to fight enemies like this. >> nbc's tracie potts in washington, thank you. it is possibly the most watched senate race this year, kentucky where a senate minority

leader mitch mcconnell fights off democratic challenger allison lunder again grimes last night. no love lost in their fiery first and only debate. both had some explaining to do as well. grimes refused to say if she voted for president obama and she doubled down last night by crediting a constitutional right. >> i'm not going to compromise a constitutional right provided here in kentucky in order to curry favor on one or other sides or for members of the media. >> mitch mcconnell is first to address allegations he enriched himself at public expense. t >> the claim i got is not at public expense. she knows that's a result of an inheritance, that my wife got when her mother passed away. >> recent polls are divided on who is ahead. and megahit, the walking dead returned this weekend with record-setting ratings.

17.3 million viewers tuned in for the season five premiere, making it the highest rated show in cable television history. the previous record holder was a season four premiere with 16.1 million viewers. and not only that, it surrounds out this episode was the most talked about with more than 1.3 million tweets. nbc meteorologist bill karins is here now with today's severe weather forecast. good morning, bill. >> good morning. that severe weather we had at the top of the show yesterday, that happens every now and then in october. not every year, but you get two or three day outbreaks. this is day two. tornado watches from atlanta to tallahassee. not going to be as bad today and headline-making as it was yesterday. this afternoon, when this line re-energizes itself, somewhere near the charlotte, raleigh area, through southern virginia, maybe columbia, we'll have serious storms. 32 million people at risk of the damaging winds and tornadoes in that region. now, the other big story that will happen, all eyes on bermuda

as the hurricane moves away from the virgin islands. we were expecting this to be one of the strongest storms we had in the atlantic basin, category 4, wednesday, 2:00 p.m., gonzalo heads for bermuda, takes a turn, category 3, between a 2 or 3 as it crosses over bermuda. all eyes on that island there, we wish them the best. the northwest, cold front heading through. there is a lot of cool air behind it. that means on shore flow and showers in the northwest over the next couple of days. after the rain goes through this morning, showery weather for the next at least three days. that's your nationas fall. in the west, clouds and rain, temperatures in the 60s. i'll let everyone know how long we'll have that wet pattern

coming up. the 25 most influential teens in the world. what redskins owner daniel snyder doing with the president of a navajo nation. and the tonight shows' jimmy fallon on the political silly season. >> i saw that president obama played his 200th round of golf yesterday. democrats were, like, he can do whatever he wants, as long as he's not campaigning for us. that's just rude.

stories making news this morning. he's alive. appears to be well. and still the leader of north korea. new pictures of kim jong-un making his first appearance in public in 40 days. it was at a newly built housing development. he was holding a cane, which would support claims that he had surgery on his ankle last month. the obama administration tells nbc news they are looking into the report's authenticity. the new hampshire congressional race is getting ugly and we mean that literally.

a republican state senator made an argument on a blog post that looks matter in politics. a democratic congresswoman ann customer believes does anybody not believe that -- as for her opponent, he says, quote, republican marlinda garcia is one of most attractive women on the political scene anywhere, not so attractive as to be intimidating but truly attractive. garcia released a statement saying, quote, a state representative's recent comments about representative ann custer are sexist and have no place in political discourse. no word from congressman custer or vaillancourt. the youngest person to win the peace prize is on the list of the 25 most influential teenagers. also on the list, the first daughters and another set of sisters, reality stars kylie and

kendall jenner. and crews had to help the driver of this british hovercraft land his vessel because his blood alcohol content was three times the legal limit. the daily news obtained this video after he was sentenced to eight months in jail. he was carrying 36 passengers at the time and reportedly had just missed an oil tanker. now to business with cnbc's jackie deangelis. >> good morning. stocks falling for a third straight day. the nasdaq near correction territory, 10% drop from recent highs. investors continue to fret about the slowing global economy and they are awaiti ining earnings y from jpmorgan, citigroup as well. card holders can use reward points to buy their next big mac or happy meal. the option launched in new york first and should be at all mcdonald's restaurants by december. the controversy over the washington redskins name heating up as the head of the navajo nation was seen sitting with dan

snyde ar during the game. a navajo spokesman said jobs are a bigger issue than the team's name. that's it for us here at cnbc. back to you. >> thanks, jackie. a monday night football comeback. the play of the week, but it is not from the nfl. "early today" is back after these messages.

this morning on "today," putting it to the test. we're talking with lisa freeman, the editor of shop smart, about your coffee. the experts weigh in on the best cup of joe. now the latest in sports from nbc's betty nguyen. good morning, betty. >> good morning. let's get the latest in sports. the rams hosted the 49ers for monday night football. st. louis wore their throwback uniforms and got off to a strong start, 14-0. they give up a huge play to the 49ers just before the half, making it a four-point game. the 49ers dominate the second half, colin kaepernick threw for are 343 yards and three touchdowns in a 31-7 win over the rams. tampa bay certainly had a bolt on the ice against montreal. a hat trick for the lightning, netting three goals first two periods. tampa bay blitzes montreal 7-1. last night's game three of the alcs between the orioles and royals has been postponed due to rain.

they will play tonight at 8:00 p.m. eastern. the royals lead the best of serve series 2-0. big injuries for the new england patriots. out for the season, linebacker jarod mayo and steven ridley, both from injuries suffered during sunday's game against the bills. ridley tore both the acl and mcl in his right knee. mayo suffered a severe right knee injury. the pats have a short week ahead facing the jets on thursday. espn reports florida state quarterback jame ous winston is being investigated on whether he was paid to sign more than 340 autographs by authentication. that is the same company linked to suspended georgia running back todd buehrle. coach jimbo fisher voiced his support for winston. >> i think we need to be more responsible in our reporting, in our opinions, and base the facts and not write articles that are half true and not all the way

true and put things that are out that are truthful before we ruin someone's career based on facts and not opinion or what people think it is. a high school pulls off a hat trick, not a hat trick, just a trick. a player near the sideline has the ball, it was nicely done. back to you. thanks, betty. america's greatest ally says it is time we recognize the palestinian state. the vatican has a new outlook on divorce and homosexuality. you're watching "early today."

now for entertainment news, scrooged bill murray intends to star in an upcoming christmas special where he'll be performing classic christmas carols. zach galifianakis made his second appearance since 2013 on the tonight show starring jimmy fallon last night and boy does he look good. the hangover star explained how he lost all the pounds, by stopping drinking and they just came off. earlier this year, jennifer lawrence declared her love for curb your enthusiasm creator larry david. she said, i love woody allen but i don't feel it below the belt the way i do for larry david. david finally responded saying, smart kid. it is a shame i'm about 40 years older than she is. and now for something you

just can't unsee. we all remember how geraldo rivera posted this selfie. it looks like he's at it again. and wanted to show a little more skin. >> there is a really nice clear sky and water. >> also the foreground. >> the foreground. i hadn't seen that part. >> you just look past -- >> the wind is blowing through his hair. it is beautiful. >> you're happy for geraldo, i appreciate that. >> i guess so. >> a positive man. i'm milissa rehberger. this is "early today." we hope it is your first stop of the day on nbc.

leading the news in chicago, a man joins chicago marathon while trying to run from the police. brian duffy was reportedly being chased by officers when he joined a pack of runners in a marathon this past weekend. clever idea, but he was eventually tackled to the ground by police. and in the sydney morning herald, nurse suspected of killing 38 annoying patients. italian police say they found the disturbing selfie on the nurse's phone showing her with a thumb's up sign in front of one of her recently deceased pati t patients. the nurse is accused of giving a fatal dose to least one patient. other stories we're following, british lawmakers voted in favor of recognizing palestine as a state. the move carries symbolic value for palestine, but in a pursuit

of international recognition, a spokesperson for prime minister david cameron says this will not affect foreign policy. a new document from the vatican is calling for parrishes from around the world to have a more open mind about issues like divorce and homosexuality. in what is being called a radical shift, the vatican says that monday that homosexuals have gifts and qualities to offer. bishops also called for new ways to minister to families of divorced. and this 8-year-old has become a viral sensation for his dirty dancing moves. look at him go. his mom tells buzzfeed he's probably seen the movie ten to 12 times and loves to dance along. it looks like he's got the moves. >> a career. >> patrick swayze would be proud. look at him go. he's all in. >> he's only -- >> a little jennifer grey. ever want to set sail on a pumpkin. it is october. giant pumpkins weighing more than 500 pounds were hollowed into boats.

the annual pumpkin regatta in maine drew more than 4,000 spectators. they paddled in their boats. they raced along the harbor. when the race is over, the boats can be turned into pie. i'm not sure i want to eat something that had a motor attached. >> no. but i want to see the things grow. i want to grow one. that's what we'll do next year on your balcony. >> you want to ride one. later today, a news conference willing be held to announce the shakeout day. it is an effort which is scheduled to take place this thursday. nearly 24 million people are expected to take part in the largest earthquake drill. we want to wish a happy birthday to grammy winning singer, songwriter usher who is turning 36. designer ralph lauren is 80. former james bond actor roger moore turns 86. now keep it right here for more news, weather and sports. i'm milissa rehberger. thank you for watching "early

today." have a good one.

a good tuesday morning to you. it's 4:30. i'm sam brock. >> i'm laura garcia-cannon. let's check the forecast with meteorologist christina loren. good morning to you and everybody at home. today is the day we've been waiting for. the pattern change i promised you kicks in today. we are noticing the changes out there today with temperatures all over the place. it is mild in oakland. 56 degrees this morning in san jose. and i've got to tell you, we'll wake with a mostly clear sky. then the clouds thicken up throughout the day. i'll let you know when to expect the first rain drops on your doorstep coming up in my n