there inside the plane. >> congratulations to her. thank you for watching us here on this memorial day edition of our 5:00 news. >> hope to see you back here at 6:00. on this monday state of emergency. a ferocious outbreak of tornadoes and flash floods demolishing homes, tossing cars onto roofs like toys, high water rescues. tonight at least three dead and a frantic search for the missing including a mom and her young children swept away. also tonight, blown away. a day at the beach suddenly turned violent as tornado comes ashore seemingly out of nowhere sending a bounce house full of kids flying 20 feet in the air. air scares. fighter jets scrambled amid threats of ten planes coming into major u.s. airports. and paying tribute on this memorial day at arlington and ceremonies across america honoring those who have given their lives for their country. "nightly news" begins

right now. >> announcer: from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news." reporting tonight, kate snow. >> good evening. as we come on the air on this memorial day, it is a very dangerous night for at least 30 million americans under the threat of violent weather. historic, relentless rainfall and flash flooding combined with an outbreak of deadly tornadoes has already produced catastrophic damage. homes destroyed across parts of mississippi, oklahoma, and texas where the governor has declared a state of emergency. and there's a frantic search underway for the missing. some of whom were swept away in raging flood waters which are still a big threat right now as new tornadoes fire up on the radar. nbc's gabe gutierrez is in the flood zone tonight in wimberley, texas. >> we want to search some of the debris piles. >> reporter: tonight a desperate search for the missing as the magnitude of the historic flood

sinks in. >> i would describe it as a flood of biblical proportions. it's nothing like we've ever experienced. >> reporter: in the air and on the ground -- >> it's texans helping texans right now. these are our neighbors. these are people in our communities. it definitely affects us on a personal level. >> reporter: the texas army national guard scour the banks of the blanco river south of austin. >> we have drone capability we're bringing into this thing, gis'ing, you name it we're bringing it. >> reporter: the river floods at 12 feet. saturday night it crested at 43. >> moments ago i had the opportunity to fly over the blanco river and to observe first hand what the devastation looks like. and you cannot candy coat it. it's absolutely massive. >> reporter: jonathan macomb survived the rapids but his wife and children were

swept away. joe macomb is now praying for his grand kids. >> there's no report of any findings whatsoever which is, i guess, good in that there's still hope. >> reporter: at least five people have died in texas and oklahoma including alyssa ramirez. the homecoming queen was on her way back from prom when her car was swept away. the violent weather now turning even more deadly. this morning at least 13 people were killed in a mexican border town. a tornado tossing cars into buildings. in oklahoma, the fast-moving storms had prompted dramatic water rescues. >> we're not having any luck. taking on water. >> reporter: those first responders made it out safely. but in the town of clairemore, a heart breaking loss. captain jason farley drowned while trying to save people trapped in the rising waters. a memorial day many

here will never forget. we have seen heavy rains here on and off throughout the afternoon. the river behind me is rising and the list of the missing has now grown to 12. late today here in haynes county, authorities said they were temporarily suspending that search because of the dangerous weather. kate? >> gabe gutierrez in texas tonight. stay safe, thank you. meanwhile a tornado strike of a different kind today at a beach in florida. it was an ef-0, a water spout forming seemingly out of nowhere coming onshore and blowing a bounce house full of kids 20 feet in the air. nbc's mark potter has our report. >> reporter: on a cloudy and windy day at ft. lauderdale, a crowd of beachgoers were surprised and excited to see a rare sight. a water spout formed in the atlantic actually coming ashore

right in front of them. >> it's a tornado. >> it's a underwater tornado! >> reporter: at first there was laughter as the spinning winds chased a canopy down the beach. but quickly it all turned serious as the winds flipped over then lifted up two inflatable bounce houses. one with three children inside. police say the children were as high as 15 to 20 feet in the air when they were ejected onto the sand. >> the bounce house continued to travel across the parking lot, through the median, and onto the southbound lanes of a-1-a. >> it was horrible. it was like a movie in front of my face. >> reporter: two of the children with minor fractures have been released from the hospital. one is being held for observation. shemoia ferguson's daughter and stepson were in the bounce house. >> i was crying. i was crying and i was like, oh, my god. oh my god, i can't believe this. and i was like, she said she going to be okay.

>> reporter: also all along florida's east coast more than 150 swimmers had to be rescued after getting caught in powerful rip currents. at least five have been killed since the weekend. stiff winds, rough seas, and a water spout making for dangerous holiday conditions on the florida beaches. mark potter, nbc news. nbc meteorologist dylan dreyer joins us now with new tornadoes firing up over the radar. what are you most concerned about right now? >> kate, we are still concerned about eastern texas and southern oklahoma. this is where we do have a tornado watch in effect until 10:00 p.m. central time. there have also been several tornado warnings. right near dallas and into parts of oklahoma where we do have the biggest threat of tornadoes, damaging wind gusts, but also the torrential downpours. tomorrow we are going to see an isolated storm or two still possible across parts of texas. but the main threat, the most widespread storms move into the tennessee and ohio

river valley down into the gulf coast states. that's where we could end up with 70 mile-per-hour winds, rain, and hail. that's the area we'll focus on tomorrow. >> thanks. tonight the fbi is looking into a series of phoned-in threats against commercial airline flights many of them involving flights from overseas coming into major u.s. airports. one of those calls even prompted the military to scramble fighter jets. officials say the calls were a hoax and now they're trying to find out who's behind them. we get the latest from our justice correspondent pete williams. >> reporter: two u.s. military fighter jets were scrambled to escort air france flight 22 into new york's kennedy airport today after an anonymous caller said some kind of chemical weapon was on board. the plane landed safely and nothing hazardous was found. >> thank god it's over and we're safe and the plane is safe. >> reporter: it was one of ten flights today that were the

subject of telephone threats. the fbi says the calls apparently came from the same person, a man, who phoned them in early this morning. the calls were made to local police, the fbi says, including in maryland, oregon, and new york each conveying the same threat but naming different flights. among others, a delta flight from paris to boston, a saudi arabia flight to jfk, american flights from england to the u.s. united from madrid and edinburgh and london to newark. the threats were not considered credible but they were passed along to the airlines to be extra cautious. >> they told us to get off the plane, pick out our luggage, don't touch it. they took it. >> reporter: officials say fighters were directed to escort the air france flight whose airline was closed for holidays could not be reached in time. telephone threats to airplanes are distressingly common, but this one was unusual because it involved so many flights. the penalty for hoaxes like this could be up to eight years in prison. pete williams, nbc, washington.

another scare, this scare on the ground near the u.s. capitol building in washington. as thousands gathered for the memorial day concert last night, police noticed a car with a pressure cooker inside and a strong smell of gasoline and propane. you can imagine after the boston marathon bombings, police were taking no chances with a pressure cooker in a car. they blew it up just in case. the owner of the car was charged with driving on a revoked license. he owns a food truck and says he had that for his business. tonight our nation is marking a memorial day at a unique motion in history. it's the first since the end of the war in afghanistan but it comes at a time during a debate about the u.s. military presence in iraq over isis. chris jansing has the report. >> reporter: the crosses at arlington national cemetery were bathed in sunlight today as president obama laid a wreath at the tomb of the

unknowns. he said hello to a 107-year-old world war ii army veteran and before a crowd of 5,000 paid tribute to fallen heroes. >> on this day we honor the sacrifice of the thousands of american service members, men and women, who gave their lives since 9/11. >> reporter: this is the first memorial day in 14 years without u.s. troops in a major ground war. but it also comes against the backdrop of growing concern. after american-backed iraqi forces lost the key city of ramadi to isis. >> the iraqi forces showed no will to fight. >> reporter: secretary carter's comments are raising questions about u.s. strategy in iraq. largely a combination of air strikes and training and equipping iraqis. >> no number of air strikes to assist on the ground are going to help if they're not going to seize and hold the terrain. they demonstrated they

can do neither. >> reporter: tonight the iraqis are trying to prepare for retaking ramadi where many died to control the city now controlled by isis. >> many of us are frustrated and upset. it highlights that men and women in the military are willing to defend our nation regardless of when and where. >> reporter: in cities around the u.s. that sacrifice is remembered today. and this morning the american and p.o.w./m.i.a. flags flew at half staff over the white house then raised up again. a symbol of u.s. resilience. iraqi officials pushed back hard after secretary carter's remarks yesterday. so today vice president biden called iraq's prime minister. he pledged u.s. support in efforts to retake ramadi and promised to expedite training and equipment. >> chris jansing at the white house tonight, thank you. things remain tense in cleveland tonight. dozens of protesters appeared in court on this holiday. they were protesting after an officer was acquitted in the killing of two unarmed motorists.

nbc's kevin tibbles is there. >> reporter: a tense weekend in cleveland as police in riot gear confronted protesters angered over the acquittal of an officer charged in the shooting deaths of two unarmed black motorists. while demonstrations for the most part remained peaceful, more than 70 arrests were made. >> this initial decision to use force was constitutionally reasonable. >> reporter: an emotional 31-year-old michael brelo was among 13 officers who is opened fire on timothy russell and melissa williams following a high-speed chase in 2012. more than 100 officers and 60 vehicles were involved in the incident that ended with 137 shots being fired by police. timothy russell's sister says justice has not been served. >> i know that he

wasn't right as far as fleeing from the police, but i've said over and over again, that does not warrant a death penalty. >> reporter: in court today, many of those arrested were charged with misdemeanors. some pled not guilty. others no contest and were released after having spent the weekend in jail. >> we don't want no violence. we just want justice and equality. >> reporter: others in the city agreed with the verdict. >> i truly believe in his heart he felt he was protecting the community and himself. >> reporter: officer brelo remains on unpaid leave pending the results of an internal investigation. kevin tibbles, nbc news, cleveland. still ahead tonight, the price you pay for a summer getaway. lower gas prices mean big savings on the roads. we'll show you how much. and more americans than ever before are ready to fly, but why are airfares still going up? also tonight, remembering a beloved star of stage and screen, a career and a

love story that spanned more than half a century.

tonight the reality is setting in for a lot of families setting in traffic on the way home that the long weekend is over and tomorrow it's back to work. and if it feels like there are more people on the road this year, that's because there are. aaa said it's likely to be the busiest holiday weekend in ten years fueled by lower gas prices, but why aren't those lower gas prices translating into lower ticket prices at the airport? nbc's stephanie gosk, reports. >> reporter: have

cheap gas, will travel. or at least that's what it seemed like on the road this memorial day. gas prices are set to peak for the year this week at just $2.75. barring any unexpected supply problems. that's close to a dollar less than what people paid last year. for the average family with two cars that could mean $800 in savings. sounds great unless the cheap prices tempt you to drive more. when gas prices drop, do you drive more? >> yes. >> reporter: you do. why? >> it's not as expensive. we take a lot of day trips. >> i drive the same regardless. >> reporter: have you felt it recently? >> i have seen it recently, yes. >> reporter: air travelers may see the low gas prices and think fantastic. that will bring plane tickets down too. unfortunately not as much as they may hope. and it won't lead to

more leg room or space for that carryon either. round trip domestic tickets are down 1%. the average price is $454. >> what we're seeing a airline carriers using this year to make up a lot of the profits they've lost in the past five to ten years. >> reporter: summer airline travel will be at an all-time high this year. 222 million passengers expected to fly. that's more than two-thirds of the population of the u.s. though there may be no place like home, this summer many americans won't be sticking to their own back yard. stephanie gosk, nbc news, new york. up next tonight, one of the most famous men in the world admits he hasn't watched tv in 25 years. we'll tell you who and why when we come back. ♪

well, we thank you for being with us on this memorial day. but one person who is definitely not watching our broadcast tonight, pope francis. in fact, he told an argentinian newspaper that he hasn't watched television in 25 years. he says he simply decided it wasn't for him. he doesn't even watch his beloved soccer team. but he says his security team, they update him on all the scores. tonight we remember a beloved star of stage and screen who passed away this weekend. anne meara, the actress and comedienne was half of a legendary comedy duo for more than 50 years. stiller and meara along with her husband jerry stiller. tonight he and his son and daughter, the actors ben and amy stiller and millions of fans are mourning their loss. nbc's joe fryer takes a look back. >> hi. >> how you doing? >> reporter: we can safely assume anne meara laughed a lot in her 85 years. >> some fancy carpet, huh? >> reporter: clever

enough in her own right, meara was matriarch of a funny family starting with jerry stiller, her husband of 61 years. >> and 38 of those years in therapy. >> reporter: together they formed the comedy team stiller and meara rising to fame in the '60s. amazingly not too early for a sketch on computer dating. >> those computers are a good thing. >> oh, terrific. >> i was reading all about it. >> takes all the guess work out of meeting someone. >> reporter: there was no straight man in this duo. >> you've grown. >> what? oh. i forgot. >> reporter: yet the tall redhead also excelled on her own appearing in many tv shows like "rhoda." >> right now i'm cleaning my bathroom bowl. >> reporter: today her son actor ben stiller tweeted, all of us in our family feel so lucky to have had her in our lives. later in life stiller and meara still performed together like in this episode from "the king of queens." >> i know we could learn to love each

other. >> i already love you, arthur. >> reporter: a true team to the end. joe fryer, nbc news, los angeles. we're back in a moment with our "making a difference" report. recline, reuse, recycle into something really special.

finally tonight, a story about getting a few more miles out of something you'd think would be headed for the crash. airplane seats of all things after they've worn out their welcome being given a whole new lease on life thank to some very special workers who are "making a difference." here's nbc's hallie jackson. >> reporter: the landing is just the start of the journey for these southwest plane seats. ready to be retired, they're stripped and shipped to workers like ron buck. what do you find on these usually? >> gum and candy. >> reporter: he and his colleagues work for gartin. a company that provides jobs for developmentally disabled people. here they take the first step in upcycling some of southwest's old seats made of leather. 43 acres of it. originally destined for landfills.

now diverted to places like this. >> since there was a lot of heavy stitching and three dimensional shape, it made sense to turn them into three dimensional items. >> reporter: things like satchels and bags and totes. >> some of them are fanatics around aviation, sustainability, and some say that's a great looking bag and i love the story. >> reporter: it's a story that started a year and a half ago when southwest sent the leather overseas that created jobs for people in ken da for soccer balls and sandals for kids that never owned shoes. >> it's brought a lot of joy to people because it took them on trips but bringing a lot of joy to children in africa. >> reporter: for them it's a trend that's taking off and taking recycling to new heights.

hallie jackson, nbc news, portland, oregon. that'll do it for us on this memorial day monday. i'm kate snow. from all of us here, thank you for watching. have a great night. right now at 6:00. more trouble for former 49er ray mcdonald. tonight he's out of jail but also out of another nfl job. good evening, thanks for joining us on this memorial day. i'm raj mathai. >> i'm jessica aguirre. embattled football player ray mcdonald in more legal trouble. lock yourself in a bedroom and he broke the door down. >> that's a 911 dispatcher after ray mcdonald allegedly broke down his door in his apartment

building on the other side of that door, police say a woman and a baby. now, this is mcdonald leaving the jail about an hour ago. michelle roberts joins us outside that jail in san jose with more. >> reporter: ray mcdonald spent the afternoon here he was here for several hours. bailed out about an hour and a half ago. investigators say he's cooperating with police. now, police are just trying to figure out exactly what happened early this morning inside the santa clara home. >> how y'all doing. >> ray mcdonald has been cut from the chicago bears, six months after the 49ers took him off the roster due to what team officials called a pattern of poor decision-making. today he ran from reporters outside the santa clara county jail after making bail. >> ray mcdonald was arrested for a misdemeanor domestic violence. >> police lieutenant kurt clark says police were called to his home just before 4:00 a.m.