♪ why do people yawn why are there stars at dawn ♪ ♪ the questions and adventures never end ♪ on this sunday night, flood emergency, millions bracing for yet more deadly and catastrophic flooding on the east coast as more heavy rains threaten an already threatened south carolina. an apparent u.s. air strike that destroyed a hospital in northern afghanistan should be treated as a war crime. tonight, how could this have happened? shooters last words, chilling new details on what the gunman in oregon told his victims in the moments before he took their lives. and blast from the past, cassette tapes are making a major comeback with turns of millions sold last year alone. rewinding the way we listen to music. "nightly news" begins now.

good evening, it's been a dangerous day for millions of americans in the southeastern part of this country. the governor of south carolina saying this afternoon she's activated the national guard. there have been at least 200 water rescues just since last night, so many that officials have ordered mandatory curfews in several cities. rivers are rising, dams are being breached. power has been knocked out and rainfalling in record amounts and it's not over yet. 9 million americans remain under a flood watch or warning. we have a team of correspondents across the area tonight. let's begin with gabe gutierrez tonight. >> neighborhoods are preparing for another night, virtually cut off, evacuations are underw underway, more emergency shelters are

opening, and it's still range. already under a federal state of emergency, tonight south carolina is under water, one of the worst floods in its history, in a staggering water rescue effort is underway. >> it just happened, we thought we were clear and it started pouring rain. >> she was trapped in her home overnight. >> ever seen anything like this? >> never, ever. >> this area is amazing how much water is here. and it's just -- everything is inundated with floodwaters right now. >> more than 200 state roads impassable. a day after the city's wettest day on record. in 12 hours, more than 11 inches of rain. >> i've never seen this before in all my life. >> we got them out of the water, we can get to the vehicle now. >> dispatch centers flooded with emergency calls. >> the house is flooded and they can't stop it. requesting sandbags or assistance.

>> from georgetown to lexington to summerville. parts of the state saw 1 to 2 feet of rain. the relentless downpour blamed for at least six deaths in the carolinas over the past few days. >> we haven't seen this level of rain in the low country in 1,000 years, that's how big this is. >> officials urged residents to stay home and dry. >> even on days like these, some missions are too important. for her and for these rescue crews, the work -- >> gabe gutierrez, nbc news, charleston, south carolina. this is kerry sanders in columbia where it took a human chain of brave souls to reach one man trapped in the flood. what started under cover of darkness lasted through the day. >> you can see little children, kids being brought out of these homes.

>> reporter: the deluge overflowing several dams, 1,000 times more water than usual flowing over some of them. downtown lexington cut off because of the rushing waters. some roads collapsing under the weight of it all. state officials say it's never been this bad. keshia simpson among the 100 first responders today. >> we don't see anything like this in south carolina, it's shocking, scary. >> i'm thankful we got out okay. >> most of those rescued say they didn't realize they needed to evacuate until it was too late to escape on their own. >> we're at a total loss, everything gone. >> the interstate is closed to prevent drivers from getting trapped. this family feels lucky, they drove into standing water. their car began to float, the taurus started to sink. >> 10 minutes more,

that probably would have been it. >> it looks as if the roof has already given way on top because of all of the rain. >> in some cases, there was nothing anyone could do. >> residents tonight exhausted, physically and emotionally. >> you don't know how bad it is until you get through it. >> officials are asking people to stay off the roads because it's just so hard to get around. and kate, i understand that, i started my morning in greenville, south carolina, made my way here to colombia south carolina, usually that drive takes less than two hours, because of all of the knocked out bridges and the closed roads, that 110 mile trip took five hours. >> thanks so much. al roker is on main street. we can see a car behind you in the ditch. is the worst of it over? what do you expect in the hours ahead? >> sadly, kate, it is

not. we have more rain coming and it is coming at a quick clip. let's show you the radar right now, this is what we've gotten so far. some areas up to two feet of rain in columbia as you heard, already a record amount, over 12 inches of rain, and look at what else is coming, we have flash flood watches and warnings for 9 million folks. we talked about more rain at 2 to 3 inches per hour. in fact, for the next 24 hours, we look to one to four more inches of rain, could be another five inches, the rivers continue to rise after that rain hits. on to joaquin. 95 miles an hour west. it's starting to move a lot faster, north-northeast at 14 miles per hour, it will be a category one by monday and out of everybody's hair, it will be a problem for the fish and maybe our friends in europe. in the meantime, here kate we are looking at more heavy rain. not to be too macabre,

caskets were floating, that's how bad this rainfall is. >> al roker in south carolina, thanks so much. overseas now, the death toll rose to 22 today in the bombing of a doctors without borders hospital in afghanistan. it happened in the northern city of kunduz and a u.s. warplane involved in battling insurgents may have been responsible. the international medical charity is demanding an investigation saying the attacks should be treated as a war crime. john yang has our report. doctors without borders abandoned the hospital today, declaring it a total loss. >> there's no such thing as collateral damage. human beings,try loss of life, staff and patients -- >> firsthand accounts emerged of the horror of the hour long bombardment. >> a nurse at the hospital said there are no words for how

terrible it was. in the intensive care unit, six patients were burning in their bed. in an operating room, a patient was there on the operating table, dead in the middle of the destruction. >> he described how one of his sons was wounded in the chest. military officials say an ac-130 gun ship armed with multiple cannons like this one was over kunduz at the time. they were shooting at u.s. forces advising afghan troops. no one reported any fighting in the compound before the attack. >> the main hospital building where our medical personnel were caring nor patients was repeatedly and precisely hit. >> to avoid being targeted it gave the pentagon the hospital's precise gps coordinates, the military takes every precaution to avoid civilian casualties. how could this have

happened? >> fighting in an urban area, using smart munitions, but human people calling them in results frequently in a tragedy. >> defense secretary ashe carter spoke to reporters today on his way to europe. >> this is a tragic loss of life. your hearts can only go out to innocent people who are caught up in this kind of violence. >> apologies are not enough. we need to understand why this happened. >> in con dues today, the desperation deepens. a norwegian group also left as the city's only trauma center is in ruins. john yang, nbc news, london. police arrested four students who they say were in the early stages of plotting a mass shooting in northern california. that news, all the more disturbing just days after a gunman killed nine students before taking his own life at umpqua community college in oregon.

there are chilling new details about what that shooter told his victims before he took their lives. miguel almaguer reports. >> we're going to make a decision and move on. >> in rose berg today, they turned to god in their grief. the small town heart broken but healing. >> violence will not have the last word in roseburg. >> they remember the nine dead and injured. christopher harper mercer unloaded round after round into classmates. >> she remembers the pop and the thud of the body as it hit the ground. >> lacy's father speaking on her behalf says the gunman forced everyone into the center of the room. >> she remembers another lady that was called to the front and the shooter says, if you will beg for your life, you will not die. >> the lady begins to beg for her life, he shot her. >> another victim also

spoke to the gunman. >> she then heard another lady say to the shooter, i'm so sorry for what you've gone through. i bet you are, but it's not good enough, and with that, he shot her. >> uninjured, lacy laid among the dead and dying, she could hear gurgs elling and harper mercer picking one classmate inside snyder hall to survive. >> he called for another young man to come up front and said, you're the lucky one, you're going to live today. everything that you need to know about me and what i'm doing is in my backpack. >> the documents are now with police, the shooter's father who lived in los angeles wonders how his son had access to 14 guns. >> talk about gun control. every time something like this happens, they talk about it, and nothing is done. >> in rose burg.

guns are a way of life. shooting on a sunday as routine as church and prayer. cheyenne fitzgerald was shot in the back, from the hospital, her mom says she should have been armed. >> i say, america we need to pack guns if this is what it's coming to to have to protect ourselves. talks of guns and god. the shooting in so many sermons as they grieve for those who were gone and the lucky ones still here. miguel almaguer nbc news, roseburg, oregon. search teams found debris that appears to belong to a cargo ship. the elfarro was last heard from during hurricane joaquin early thursday when a distress call went out saying it lost power. kristen dahlgren is in jacksonville florida where families are still waiting for news. >> it was the first trace of el faro.

a life ring belonging to the cargo ship missing for more than three days now with 33 crew members on board. today there was more, what the coast guard is calling 225 square miles of debris field. more life rings, life jackets, containers and an oil sheen. officials wouldn't confirm they're from the elle faro. >> when we find the life ring that's tied to el faro. we can recalculate where we're searching. >> families of the missing crew members continue to gather together hoping to hear any word that their loved ones are okay. >> danielle ran off with the ship's second mate, she sent her e-mail to her mom before the storm. >> there's a hurricane out here, we're heading straight into it. winds are super bad, seas are not great, love to everyone.

>> just an agonizing weight for families, they're not giving up hope. the coast guard says it will continue to re-evaluate its search efforts day by day depending on what they find. when "nightly news" continues on this sunday, the hot button issues on the agenda as the supreme court begins its session. hillary clinton ♪song: "that's life" ♪song: "that's life" ♪song: "that's life" ♪song: "that's life"♪ that's life. you diet. you exercise. and if you still need help lowering your blood sugar... ...this is jardiance. along with diet and exercise,

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tomorrow is the first monday in october, that means the u.s. supreme court is back in session. some major cases are expected on the docket this new term, including the controversial issue of abortion. pete williams has our report. >> the justices will decide whether to take up one of the most important abortion cases in 25 years, it's a challenge to a controversial texas law requiring abrorgs clinics to meet the same standards as ambulatory centers. and doctors to have privileges at nearby hospitals. supporters of the law say it protects the health of patients. >> we want to make sure that those -- not only those we're taking care of women's health care were qualified and had many procedures. at the facilities they were operating in had good common sense for health care. >> since the law was past, the number of

clinics providing abortions in texas has fallen from 32 to 19. if it's upheld, the number could drop to 10. it unconstitution ali burdens the right of abortion. >> the purpose is to shut down clinics so there's less abortions that are taking place in texas. and women have less access to abortion care. >> the issue of affirmative action in college is back. the school says students learn better when there's diversity on campus and in racial groups. that's too vague to justify making admissions choices based on race. >> the fact that this conservative supreme court reviews every single time a lower court upholds the program, leads you to believe they are skeptical and limitations are coming from the supreme court. >> and the court is likely to take up another challenge to the contraceptive requirements of obama care. religious affiliated

groups, including the little sisters of the poor say taking any steps in the process, even to opt out of the requirement violates their religious freedom. >> the government demands that we choose between the elderly and our faith. >> pope francis paid the little sisters a surprise visit during his u.s. trip. the vatican called it a sign of his support. >> the justices all seem healthy, there's a tradition of avoiding retirement that would touch off nominating a new justice during a presidential campaign. the word biden you drop 40 grand on a new set of wheels, then... wham! a minivan t-bones you. guess what: your insurance company will only give you 37-thousand to replace it. "depreciation" they claim. "how can my car depreciate before it's first oil change?" you ask.

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donald trump? isn't he the one that's like, uh, you're all losers? >> that was hillary clinton making fun of donald trump last night on the season premiere of "saturday night live." the real clinton played a bartender serving drinks to kate mckinnon. hillary poked fun at herself over how long it took her to make decisions over the keystone pipeline and gay marriage. joe biden slammed the republican presidential field last night during his keynote address at the human rights campaign national dinner. >> there's homophobes still left, most of them are running for president, i think. >> when asked about his own 2016 admissions for the white house. biden didn't drop any hints. he's expected to make

a decision sometime this month. when we come back. still have some cassette tapes in the basement like we do? we may have waited just long enough that we're hip again. 130 yards now... bill's got a very tough lie here... looks like we have some sort of sea monster in the water hazard here. i believe that's a "kraken", bruce. it looks like he's going to go with a nine iron. that may not be enough club... well he's definitely going to lose a stroke on this hole. if you're a golf commentator, you whisper. it's what you do. if you want to save fifteen percent or more on car insurance, you switch to geico. it's what you do. this golf course is electric... technology empowers us it pushes us to go further. special olympics has almost five million athletes in 170 countries. the microsoft cloud allows us to immediately be able to access information, wherever we are. information for an athlete's medical care, or information to track their personal best.

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and with greater financial clarity and a relationship built for the unexpected, she could control her cash flow, and keep the ranch running. chase for business. so you can own it. now the making of a good compilation tape is a supple art, many dos and don'ts. >> that's john cusak in "high fidelity" talking about making the perfect mix tape. those of us who grew up in the '80s remember that well. when the cd came along we chucked those old cassettes, guess what, they're back. the national audio

company sold more than 20 million cassette tapes. the most in its history. kevin tibbles shows us what's behind the resurgence. >> all this may sound like a racquet to you. but it's music to the ears for the folks here at the national audio company. >> we attribute our success as i say often to stubbornness and stupidity. >> when many orca set tape manufacturers surrendered in the battle with cd and digital music, they turned up the audio literally. they fill orders from around the world. >> i wear out a lot of shoes. >> you don't stop. >> we're too busy to stop. >> why are consumers all of a sudden starting to listen to around log music cassettes again? >> it's for sound. >> they'll hear the warmth and presence in

an analog recording that you won't here in the digital recording. >> how old is all this stuff? >> 1970s, almost new equipment by ow standards. >> he bought up everyone's old equipment and brought it here and keeps it running. >> i was a geek before there were geeks. >> robert and his team tore these machines apart. to learn what makes them tick. this one used to wrap cigarettes in the 1930s. now, it wraps cassettes. >> you can't learn this stuff at school. >> no. >> you don't learn this at school, you learn this at the school of hardknocks. >> and it is the young up and coming independent musicians who are driving the newfound demand. >> cassette culture is kind of reaction to digital streaming. because digital streaming is so short

term, whereas a cassette is so stacked up with tangibles. >> rewinding the way we listen to music. kevin tib ils, nbc news, springfield, missouri. pulling mine out of the basement. that's nbc nightly news for this sunday. up next, football night in america, the dallas cowboys versus the new orleans saints. lester holt is back with you tomorrow night. for all of us at nbc news, thanks for watching, have a great night.

>> announcer: nbc sports, home of the 2016 rio olympics, the nhl, premier league, the nascar chase for the sprint cup playoffs, and primetime's number one show "sunday night football" only on nbc. >> the mercedes benz super dome in louisiana where tonight the saints host the cowboys on sunday night football. drew brees and the saints are still looking for the first one of the season. a game brees missed because of injury. at 2-1 brandon weeden and the cowboys begin in first place. but facing several weeks without