joining us. lester holt is next. >> good night. on the broadcast tonight, deadly collapse. a balcony at a birthday party plunges nearly 40 feet to the ground. tonight, the rising death toll the victims fighting for their lives, and the question how did it happen? direct hit from a powerful tropical storm tearing across texas barrelling north, storm surge and tornado watches, m major cities in the path. tens of millions in the threat zone right now. nbc news exclusive. the former naacp chapter president accused of lying about her race. tonight, our revealing new interview with rachel dolezal. >> i definitely am not white. >> what she told me about her physical transformation. and spy games? a shocking baseball scandal. did a powerhouse team hack into

a rival's computer? the fbi investigating. "nightly news" begins right now. >> announcer: from nbc world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news." reporting tonight, savannah guthrie. >> good evening. college students at an apartment building packed onto a balcony. it turned to horror when it suddenly collapsed, plunging nearly 40 feet to the ground. and tonight we know these are the six students who lost their lives. seven others gravely injured tonight. we begin our coverage with nbc's jacob rascon. >> reporter: tonight berkeley california is mourning the loss of six students and seven others are fighting for their lives after a four-story free-fall. >> to have this happen at the start of this season is something that has left us all frozen in shock and in disbelief. >> reporter: the victims late

today, olivia burke, owen culligan nikolai schuster miller walsh and ashley done hoe donahoe from california. >> people saying one of the balconies broke and at least ten from the second or third floor. >> reporter: it suddenly separated from the building collapsing onto the pavement some 40 feet below. fellow irish students say the collapse happened during a late-night birthday celebration, an irish woman turning 21. >> in the middle of the night, yeah walked outside and saw all the rubble on the street. >> reporter: northern california's a popular destination. hundreds of them staying near the university of california-berkeley working over the summer. >> it's truly terrible to have such a serious and sad accident. >> reporter: the deadly accident leading newscasts across ireland. the president of ireland speaking today.

>> i was absolutely devastated to hear the news particularly when one thinks of young lives. >> reporter: nbc news has learned the apartments built in 2006 and '07 are ownedgy granite library gardens and managed by graystar which also manages nearly a half million other apartments across the country. >> the deck should have a rating or a load capacity that's apparent that's visible so these accidents don't happen or occur. >> reporter: the deadly collapse near campus so far unexplained. the city has just removed what was left of the broken balcony. the property management says they're cooperating with investigators who are themselves turning to engineers to see if anything was the matter with the structure itself. meanwhile, family of those irish students are making their way to this country. one irish official saying this tragedy touches every family in ireland. savannah? >> jacob rascon starting us off tonight, thank you. another major story still developing at in hour the first tropical storm to hit texas in seven years, tearing across the state right now, bringing

torrential rain storm surge and the threat of flash flooding and tornadoes as it moves north. we've got tornado watches in at least four states now with tens of millions in the path. nbc's janet shamlian is there. >> reporter: coastal communities in texas took the first punishing blow from tropical storm bill. >> it's pretty crazy. kind of turned bad fast. >> reporter: landfall came at matagorda island 150 miles from houston. with 60-mile-an-hour winds and heavy rain that sent waves of water rushing over roads. >> we don't want to stay too long because we're worried about it coming up over the road. >> reporter: 70 miles south, a five-foot storm surge. the weather channel's dave mall malkoff is there. >> reporter: this is a beach park. the water is normally all the way over there, but you can see that park bench is under water. there were people camping here. police had to get them out of here in a hurry. >> reporter: across southeast texas, driving rain flash

flooding and tornado watch. in the bayside community of seabrook water lapping dangerously close to home. even visible from space. this photo by astronaut scott kelly from the space station. a region already battered. once again under siege. >> i think our concern is still the evening compute. that's the time when most people will be on the roads and most people would be in some danger. >> reporter: heavy rainfall now pushing through texas. al roker is in dallas. >> reporter: now that bill has made landfall it will be weakening. we look for the winds to start dying down but the heavy rain continues, moving into daalllas for the morning commute, into oklahoma by this time tomorrow night. rainfall totals anywhere from 8 to 12 inches in east central texas. about four to six inches as you make your way into oklahoma. >> reporter: as water pours into the region it's virtually disappeared from store shelves. as many stocked up. officials are warning people to

stay alert as the threat is not over. heavy rainfall overnight could once again trigger those dangerous flash floods. savannah back to you. >> all right, janet shamlian in houston, thank you. now to the race for the white house. after decades of flirting publicly with the idea donald trump says he is running for president this time around. his announcement was vintage trump talking up his vast wells and combining his speech with his campaign controversy when he said this. >> when mexico sends its people they're not sending their best. they're sending people that have lots of problems and they're bringing those problems with us. they're bringing drugs they're bringing crime. they're rainist their rapists, and some i assume are good people. but i speak to border guards and they tell us what they're getting. >> chuck todd joins us thousand. chuck, you and i have seen this

public dance from trump before. i guess the question is is this candidacy for real? will it be significant? >> look it's more real than it's ever been. he's been flirting with running for president since 1988. each time he flirted with it it was clear it was a publicity stunt. and it's not yet clear to me that this isn't going to be yet another publicity stunt by him. he wants to get into the debate and things like that. and he wants to be taken more seriously. he's hired more serious operatives than ever before, but enthis you saw him vamp and say what he said before. let's not forget four years ago this man went on a birther tear by buying into the conspiracy theory about the president of the united states. the interesting thing here, sa savannah savannah is all the other republican candidates don't want hum on that debate stage, but they're afraid of saying it. why? we know he's a media bully. >> chuck todd in washington i should mention trump does have a relationship with this network which released a statement today saying quote, we will

reevaluate trump's role as host of celebrity apprentice should it become necessary. and now to our exclusive interview with the woman at the center of a cultural firestorm in this country over these last days. rachel dolezal, the naacp chapter leader accused of lying about her race. today we asked her whether she has been deceptive and just why there are so many questions now surfacing about her past. let me just ask you plainly, have you ever lied about your race? >> no because never have i been asked, are you human or not human, right? race as a construct, again, is a fluid understanding. so i would say no. >> you know when someone asks you, are you black, are you african-american. you know exactly what they're asking you. and for you to say yes, is that an honest answer? >> when somebody asks are you black, which i don't actually get asked very often until

recently since a few days ago, then i say yeah. i do -- i am black. >> do you understand why many people would think, given your parents and your heritage that is at best, a misleading answer? >> um i can understand that but again, up to this point, i know who raised me. i haven't had a dna test. there's been no biological proof that -- >> there's a birth certificate that has your name on it and their names on it. >> i'm not saying that i can't prove they're not, but i don't know that i can actually prove they are. i mean the birth certificate was received a month and a half after i'm born. it certainly -- there were no medical witnesses to my birth. >> it's one thing to embrace the questions as an academic matter. >> right. >> it's another thing to just actually be honest and transparent about who you are. >> right.

well i definitely am not white. i -- nothing about being white describes who i am. so what's the word for it? you know what i mean? the closest thing that i can come to is if you're black or white, i'm black. then i'm white. >> have you changed your physical appearance? >> well definitely i've -- i have experimented with my hair since living in mississippi, really. and doing hair on the porch, you know braiding. >> have you changed your skin color? >> well i don't know necessarily my skin color has changed. it depends on the season, right? i have not taken any melanin shots or any of like the black like me you know some of the previous experiments with transforming into a darker-skinned person.

i haven't had surgeries or anything like that. some days you know if i have you know brnzonzer or whatever glow. but other days i don't. i think even the word "disguise" has been put out there. it sounds very intentional and deceitful and structured. i just want to feel beautiful. and i feel beautiful. >> do you feel like a little bit under siege by all of this? >> oh for sure, yeah, definitely. but i really tried to kind of check thated out a bit and try to be present for my kids and the movement and make strategic decisions for that. but i am going to need to do a little regrouping and be able to really process all the implications now as i move forward. >> one other note dolezal's

13-year-old son was watching our interview today and afterward asked to say something about his mother. >> i've always felt the maximum proud of her no matter what she does i'm going to be proud of her. i always felt like she deserved more. she deserved to be worldwidely known but not like this. not as a liar or deceiver. she should be known as a hero a person that has done so much. >> we have put an extended version of our interview on wourour website. to those two escaped killers and telling nbc news what has seemed apparent for days now, this is a trail that's gone ice cold. nbc's miguel ail pa gar with the story. >> reporter: tonight a senior new york official tells nbc news the manhunt for richard matt and david sweat has gone cold after no fresh leads in four days. the dangerous fugitives could be anywhere. with joyce mitchell behind bars today her husband, lyle visited

her in jail for the first time and later joyce's attorney's office. steven johnson says lyle is not speaking publicly but is supporting and standing by his wife. johnson responding today about allegations joyce may have wanted convicted murderers sweat and matt to kill her husband. >> i don't know very much about it other than i believe it's specious a specious argument. >> reporter: joyce and lyle mitchell worked at the clinton correctional facility where joyce is accused of helping sweat and matt escape. the prison considered among the most dangerous in new york. >> it is very violent. >> reporter: john mulligan served time with richard matt at clinton. >> it's terribly dangerous. i've had physical confrontations with people over the years. >> reporter: just weeks before the escape there was a prison yard brawl here. prison sources tell nbc news officials requested a lockdown, but it was denied. jeff dumas retired in november after working at the prison for 22 years.

>> if they would have done a facility frisk after the incident that they had in the yard if albany would have approved that there's no doubt in my mind that they would have found those two cells. >> reporter: dumas says guards no longer regularly patrol between walls, underneath buildings or on the very catwalks sweat and matt used to make their escape. >> those catwalks were part of a regular search always looked at but now we just don't have enough men. >> reporter: employees who used to work here say those budget cutbacks meant contractors would leave their tools in those catwalks just like the catwalks that the prosecutors used to escape from. we reached out to the department of corrections as well as the governor's office and did not get a response from them today. meantime officials concede those fugitives could be anywhere even across the nearby border here in canada or as far away as mexico. savannah? >> miguel almaguer thank you so much. we have a lot more still to get to tonight. shock waves from a major league

spy scandal breaking today. the baseball team being investigated by the fbi. did they hack into a rival team's computers? and later, a little boy who asked for nothing but cards for his birthday. the whole country responded, and now the most amazing gift of all from his best friend.

we are back with what could amount to a major cheating scandal for our nation's pastime but it's not the players in trouble. the fbi is investigating whether st. louis cardinals employees

hacked into a rival team's computer network to steal data on players. nbc's kevin tibbles has the story. >> reporter: an extra buzz at busch stadium as the hometown cardinals find themselves embroiled in a cyber scandal off the field. >> if the cardinals are in fact guilty then they should be condemned by major league baseball. >> can't believe it about my cardinals. sorry. >> reporter: the fbi and justice department say they have discovered evidence that front office officials for the cardinals reportedly using old passwords hacked into the computer network of the rival houston astros, whose general manager jeff luhnow used to work for the cardinals, possibly accessing closely guarded player and scouting information. >> i really don't recall another situation where an allegation of proprietary information being accessed or stolen. >> reporter: both the cardinals and the astros say they are cooperating with the investigation and will not comment further.

but one visitor from houston today was skeptical. >> it explains why houston has lost to the cardinals in the past. >> reporter: the big money world of sports has seen everything from cork bats to steroids. even deflategate in pro football. >> throw to the plate is -- >> reporter: now the much sought after winning edge might even include cyber spying. >> corporate espionage is at an all-time high and data is incredibly powerful. it's easy to get. it's hard to keep safe. and we're going to keep seeing this. >> reporter: the cardinals one of the most beloved and successful teams in baseball, today tried to focus on the field. >> right now we just go about our business and realize it's something that's being dealt with. >> reporter: historically when the astros were in the national league they were often owned by the cardinals. well, now the astros are in the american league and ironically lead the a.l. west. and by the way, savannah, the cardinals beat the twins this afternoon 3-2. back to you. >> kevin tibbles at the ballpark tonight. thank you.

coming up next tonight, a new twist in the case of the armed intruder who made it deep inside the white house.

tonight the feds have officially banned trans fats, ordering food companies to phase them out over the next three years. it's a move we first told you was coming last night. the government says it will prevent thousands of fatal heart attacks every year. the man who pleaded guilty to jumping the white house fence and getting deep inside the building was sentenced today to 17 months in prison. but with time served omar gonzalez could be released in december. gonzalez had a folding knife on him in september when he ran into the white house and was finally tackled in the east room. and we want to show you an amazing moment on the mound in seattle. this is 56-year-old tom willis. he was born without arms. and he threw out the first pitch at yesterday's mariners-giants game. it was perfect. right down the middle. how's that for inspiration? and when we come back, one

little boy, 100 holes of golf, and the friendship driving him to attempt something incredible.

berkeley? ===take vo=== a structural engineer reveals what investigators will be focusing on. ===take raj vo=== also, our investigative unit is examining the building's history... and the owner. ===next close=== next. ==take sot== "we heard a loud bang then he finally tonight an update to a story we brought you last

summer with a little boy facing the battle of his young life whose wish inspired so many including his own best friend, who's about to make a difference by doing something that would make his buddy so proud. here's nbc's ron mott. >> reporter: like most golfers 6-year-old ryan mcguire is always working on his game. whether in the rain, even snow. but these days his drive isn't just about playing better. it's about playing for something meaningful. what's this big thing that you're doing? >> i'm playing 100 holes of golf. >> 100 holes? in one day? >> yeah. >> wow. let me feel your muscles. have you got enough muscle for that? on a course built for kids ryan will play for his friend, danny nickerson. ♪ whose birthday wish last summer was for a few cards. he got them. 750,000 of them. sadly, what he didn't get was more time. he died in april from an inoperable brain tumor.

>> we're going to golf. >> reporter: so to honor danny with the vocal support of their kindergarten classmates, ryan is raising money to help fight childhood cancer. $14,000 and growing fast. part of a larger golf fights cancer fund-raiser his mom organizes every year. >> i always want him to have hope. hope, hope, hope that a person can beat cancer. and that's why right now more cancer survivors are coming out to shake his hand and say guess what? i beat cancer. >> you have to earn your birdies. >> reporter: his granddad will help him pick the right clubs. >> my grandfather's going to be my caddie, and he's a cancer survivor. i'll just hit it straight. >> reporter: and in a sport where keeping score is paramount, ryan isn't counting birdies and pars. he's settling a different score. teeing off on a deadly disease. >> because my friend passed away. danny nickerson. and he was a really good friend of mine. >> reporter: ryan is determined to fill 100 holes and countless hearts with hope.

ron mott, nbc news, norton, massachusetts. >> and we are rooting for you. that'll do it for us on this tuesday night. i'm savannah guthrie. i'll see you bright and early tomorrow on "today." for all of us at nbc news, good night. "we heard a loud bang then heard ambulance sirens coming down the street" a 2bi we heard a loud bang and then we just heard the sirens down the street. >> a 21st birthday celebration turns into a tragedy. the balcony they were standing on splintered. now nbc bay area brings you more on the lives lost. investigates the construction of the balcony and into the history of the building. >> and we are now some 18 hours since that first frantic emergency call coming into 911. a live picture right now. gone is the chaos. replaced with grief, sadness and many many questions. good evening, and thanks for

joining us. i'm jessica aguirre. >> the heart-wrenching arrival. the families will begin arriving into sfo from ireland. a building in disrepair. balconies red tagged. on the right side of your screen, a memorial of flowers. >> and we want to show you the front page of the irish times. the faces of the six that died while trying to celebrate a birthday. five of the six from ireland. the sixth, a woman of irish descent, all plunged to their death in a second. >> 911 whenat's your imagine? >> that balcony collapsed at a popular apartment building with students. we have more on the