it's tuesday, may 19, coming up on "early today," behind the waco biker brawl. turf, drugs and now capital murder. >> at last count we have 170 individuals that we have arrested. those individuals are being charged with eaging in organized crime. and then president obama weighs in on how much military-style fire power local police should have. plus jumping into action to save lives from a burning wreck. news of the disturbing and bizarre on a busy tuesday. "early today" starts right now. good morning everybody. police in waco, texas, are on high alert following a deadly

biker brawl. investigators are still trying to determine what led to the brazen attack that left five dead and at least 18 wounded. right now police are on alert for possible retaliation by other gang members against rival gangs or police. >> what are you doing to prepare against possible retaliation? >> we won't talk about what we're doing. we'll just say we're prepared and able to handle any threat that comes towards us. take a look at this. this is just a small number of those arrested in the deadly brawl. at least 170 people are facing charges. those arrested are all being held on $1 million bond each. investigators are poring over evidence. more than 100 weapons were recovered after the shooting including brass knuckles, knives and clubs. police in l.a. had their hands full last night in a rush hour chase. the sheriff's office say they were after three men who were apparently part of a home burglary. the red chevy impala tried to get away, even driving the wrong way on a busy street. they stopped in a driveway and the suspects then bailed as you see right there.

it turned into a foot chase. one of them thought running on rooftops was a good idea. you can see him fall off. police had a chance to nab him. he slipped away. not to worry. police eventually caught all three of them. across the country police departments are rethinking their tactics, this after president obama announced a plan to scale back military equipment issued to local officers. >> we're going to prohibit some equipment made for the battlefield that is not appropriate for local police departments. >> nbc's edward lawrence is live in washington this morning. edward, is this an attempt to ease tensions between police and local communities. >> reporter: it is, especially minorities in the community. the president says he's concerned about the militarizing of police. certain military equipment will be banned for utes from police departments. other equipment will not be given to police departments.

>> president obama is concerned saying that it sends the wrong message. >> we see how sometimes it can give people a feeling like there's an occupying force. >> vehicles will no longer be begin out against other ideas and the police chief says that he is okay with military gear staying with the mill zpar not police.

president obama is challenging the police department to rethink the fact ticks. >> the president adds that reducing tension will keep officers safe and on the streets. now to north carolina and a remarkable car fire rescue. take a look at this. cell phone video captured it. a fire erupting after an suv and car collide. inside the burning vehicles, three people. the off-duty army captain smashing the car's window with a fire extinguisher. quickly he pulled out two people, then he helped rescue the third person. >> we all have a calling to do whatever we need to do. today i was called to be there at that spot at that time. >> the three victims were seriously hurt but should be okay. the driver of the suv was charged to failing to stay in his lane. can someone hack a commercial jetliner's controls while it's in flight? one computer expert claims he already has while sitting in the cabin of the plane. so did he really do it? if he did, could terrorists do

it, too? here is nbc's kerry sanders with more. >> reporter: computer expert chris roberts claims he hacked into a commercial airline's cockpit flight controls. >> it is definitely possible to manipulate the electronics through the in-flight entertainment system and satellite communications to get to the avionics of an airline. >> reporter: in an affidavit the fbi says roberts told agents he hacked into the flight management systems in commercial jets as many as 20 times and in one case caused one of the airplane engines to climb, resulting in lateral or sideways movement. >> i don't believe it. i consider it to be garbage. >> reporter: two government sources close to the investigation tell nbc news initial data analysis shows no proof of roberts' claims. but a federal report says that doesn't mean a hack is simply fantasy. the gao just issued a report. the experts they spoke to said any cockpit that is linked to the outside world should be

considered vulnerable and, in their words, open to malicious actors. >> the more we connect these systems using internet protocols, they're going to be more vulnerable. >> reporter: but not on board the type of aircraft that he flew. roberts was on boeing 737s and 757s. experts say they don't have the advanced fly-by wire systems and, therefore, can't be hacked. on the airbus a320 the fly-by wire system is closed. despite no proof of roberts' claims, one of the airlines on which he was a passenger, united, has banned him from their flights forever. kerry sanders, nbc news, miami. a severe weather system dropped hail the size of golf balls near pecos, texas on monday. the national weather service there was up to a foot of hail blanketed roads. it spawned at least two brief tornadoes in the area. let's get the latest bill karins is here with more. hail? my goodness.

>> here is your fun fact of the day. >> okay. >> i don't know. it's bad for both. texas worth wekter by far than any location in the country. two rounds of thunderstorms went in and reports of ten feet of water. airport is closed for the entire day because of flooding in the terminal there. they're clearing out, but it was a rough night. the storm continues to linger throughout the area. as far as colorado goes, you're next. it looks like a lot of heavy rain. there's snow in the mountains. even at this hours heading into new mexico and areas of north texas. there's a huge drought, and now there's too much here. this is the total monthly total

for rain in oklahoma city. not just for the month of may but recorded for the month of may. again, that should happen sometime this week. it's in the next 48 hours and one or two inches of rain. i will finally end you with what shardee lightburn cold. it could be worse folks. 23 is as we go through b oit could hit you also. i have to nominate seattle as a good weather.

just how concerned is the white house now that white house has captured a key iraqi city. if you ever bought anything at radio shack, your privacy could be at risk. caught on tape, a pleasure boat on fire on fire off the florida coast. details in two when "early today" returns. sblap a are you so congested... it feels like that brick's on your face? try zyrtec®-d to powerfully clear your blocked nose and relieve your other allergy symptoms. so you can breathe easier all day. zyrtec®-d. find it at the pharmacy counter.

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welcome back, everybody. this morning the fight for iraq after the fall of ram mad dirks there are reports isis is scouring the city looking for pro government troops. meanwhile this new video. a u.s.-led coalition air strike on an isis convoy headed to ramadi. the white house is vowing to help reclaim the city. nbc's bill neely has our report. >> reporter: the retreat from ramadi was fast and humiliating. iraqi troops in dozens of armored vehicles in a race for their lives. forcing them out, isis fighters who shot this propaganda video showing a city abandoned by the army. isis gunmen controlling the hospital in the city center. iraqi troops fought for just two days, leaving behind american supplied weapons and tanks. but it's a setback for the u.s. a decade ago nbc news was in

ramadi where hundreds of american troops gave their lives to hold the city. today ramadi is held by the world's biggest terror group, and it will be tough to retake. >> it is possible to have the kind of attack we've seen in ramadi, but i am absolutely confident in the days ahead that will be reversed. >> reporter: but u.s. air strikes have pounded isis positions around ramadi for weeks. it didn't work. air power has its limits. >> the fall of ramadi, it's huge. >> reporter: critics like senator john mccain are calling for u.s. boots on the ground which the obama administration has so far ruled out. bill neely, nbc news, london. near venice, florida, a private boat goes up in flames. the coast guard quickly responded. one person was on board and safely rescued. no word on what caused the fire. now to this. bristol palin, the daughter of former alaska governor sarah

palin, is no longer engaged. her wedding to 2011 medal of honor recipient dakota meyer has been canceled. the wedding was just days away. no reason for the cancellation was given. one rumor has surfaced that meyer was still married to another woman. her response, regarding salacious headlines in recent days about secret wives, dakota was legally divorced years ago. texas governor greg abbott signed into law a restriction that prohibits cities and towns from banning hydraulic fracking. the new law which trumps municipal government power was backed by oil and natural gas interesting. another casualty of the radio shack bankruptcy could be you. they will be willing to pay rent if they move back home.

students and parents are accepting of the new normal. can retailer auction list of names, remail addresses and to repay the debt. they promised not to sell the information. >> landon just a head. just ahead, manny pacquiao could have a fight this time in the courtroom over fans that want their money back. the condition of the indy car driver that crashed and flipped at more than 200 miles per hour. sports is next. join red nose day, a national event to help lift children out of poverty. it's easy: support red nose day at walgreens and start making a difference. it's a good laugh for a good cause. tune in on may 21st to watch

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oh, my god. >> this morning on "today," beach season is just around the corner. activities like parasailing may seem appealing, but are they safe? a rosen report investigation on what you need to know before you take to the sky. now to sports. game two of the eastern conference semifinals. tampa bay take on the rangers at the garden. tyler johnson recorded the first ever play-off hat trick in lightning history. his team beat the rangers 6-2. rangers goalie henrik lundqvist gave up six goals on 26 shots last night. the series is tied at one apiece. oakland a's taking on the astros in houston. lance mccullers making his mlb debut in what had to be the

coolest shoes on the field, a pair of batman cleats. mccullers had five strikeouts and gave up just one run, but astros still lost 2-1. indy car driver james hinchcliffe is in stable condition. he is the fourth driver in the past week to crash at the indianapolis motor speedway. he had just completed a lap at 221 miles per hour when he slammed into the wall, spun out and toppled over. indy car series officials announced sunday that cars would return to their prequalifying turbo charge boost levels that will reduce power by around 50 horsepower and hold cars to under 250 miles per hour. the fight of the century may soon be called the fraud of the century. in the aftermath of floyd mayweather's decision against manny pacquiao, some 32 class action lawsuits have been filed since monday claiming that pacquiao's pre-existing shoulder injury should have been disclosed prior to the fight. hbo and show time broke records raking in more than $400 million from 4.4 million pay per view fans.

the question some are asking, who did pacquiao have a legal duty to explain his injury to. >> announcer: "early today" is just to you by just for men mustache and beard. just you and the look you want. what do men do 23 times a day that makes them more vain than women. heart pounding video. a concrete law collapses on people. what this parrot is about to do will have you and your dentist squirming.

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welcome back. temperatures 87 in dc and very warm there. the plains still look like we're struggling to get out of winter. even chicago at 55 is much colder than it should be. beautiful forecast in la and still sunny. san francisco is beautiful about 75 and phoenix 88 degrees. this time of the year you can be into the 1 hundreds and you will warm up a little bit and nice little stretch there in washington state over to next two days. beautiful eat lunch outdoor weather. >> that's nice bill. thank you.

for entertainment news. the final four sang for their chance to win it all last night on "the voice." koryn and sawyer from team pharrell, meghan from team blake and joshua from team adam all performed original songs. the winner will be announced tonight on nbc. nbc sister network e aired part two of a "keeping up with the kardashians" special called "about bruce" showing the difficulty and range of feelings involved in a gender transition. it also showed bruce jenner's emotional discussion with long-term wife kris jenner and their coming to terms with the decision. >> at the end of the day, it's not about me and my feelings. it's about you and i just want you to be happy. >> this makes me happy. >> i understand. >> jenner said he does not currently plan on having sexual reassignment surgery. on "the tonight show" jimmy fallon honored david letter who will host the final "late show" tomorrow night and revealed an early career prediction.

>> my eighth grade year at saint mary of the snow school. at the end my teacher makes predictions about what her schools were going to do. james fallon will replace david letterman on "the tonight show." he's always there when you need him. i remember after 9/11 we needed someone. he said there's only one requirement for any of us, and that is to be courageous. because courage, as you know defining all other human behavior. david letter -- [ cheers and applause ] david letterman is courageous. have a nice retirement, dave. >> i'm going miss him, aren't you? >> yeah. >> i got to admit i love a sense of humor. this is "early today." thanks for watching.

leading the news on nbc.com, hillary clinton e-mails to be released by january according to the state department. the proposal was made in a federal court filing last night in a freedom of information act lawsuit filed by vice news. the former secretary of state has said she wants the department to release all 55,000 pages of e-mails as soon as possible. in "usa today" supreme court says two states can't tax same income. on monday the high court declared maryland's income tax system unconstitutional because it denies a credit for taxes paid on income earned outside the state. here are some stories that people will be talking about today. we do have a warning for you. some of these images may be disturbing.

to china, this shocking video shows a wall collapsing due to strong winds onto nine people. two were killed, six are in good condition. in india, this man was shot in the head with an arrow. look at that, by his neighbors of all people during his cousin's wedding? why, because they were jealous of his family's wealth. police are still searching for the suspects. if you thought women were more vain than men, think again. a new british study shows the exact opposite. of the thousand people surveyed, women look at their reflection 16 times a day, while men do it 23 times a day. bill, get away from that mirror. >> i got the iphone app with the mirror in it so i can stare at myself. >> of course you do. 76% are all about their arms, 54% check out their legs. >> it's different.

in the past we have showed you a few creative ways people have pulled baby teeth. nothing like this. in this video, a parrot reaches into a boy's mouth -- >> i can't watch this -- >> and yanks out his tooth. after a couple tries the parrot finally pulls out the tooth. the boy in the video tells the "huffington post" this isn't the first time. he says the bird pulled another three years ago. here's a look ahead. attorney general loretta lynch travels to cincinnati to kickoff a national community policing tour, highlighting cincinnati's collaborative approach to policing. it is one that emphasizes a dialogue with residents and efforts to quell protests before they spiral. happy birthday to sam smith. he turns 23. actress and swinger grace jones is 67 and pete townshend of the who, 70 years old. i'm betty nguyen.

thanks for watching "early today."

while you were sleeping from fire to hazmat. a massive overnight fire is now a possible threat to your health and your morning commutes. mountain lion in san mateo. a neighbor tried to take matters into his own hands by firing a gun. why the mountain lion is free and man is facing charges. the stench is just too unbearable. what crews plan to do today with two beached whales along our coastline. a live peek outside. beautiful bay bridge from the distance. tuesday, may 19th. this is "today in the bay." you made it past monday all of the way to tuesday. >> one