for the first time ever, the pentagon confirms north korea has successfully test fired an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching alaska. this as donald trump issued a stern message to china to act on north korea, ahead of moupting pressure for the u.s. to respond before the g-20 summit. a veteran female police officer is killed in an ambush-style attack. an incredible caught on tape accident. and it was a memorable fourth of july. security high around the nation, with american pride and patriotism on full display. "early today" starts right now.

good morning. americans celebrated the country's 241st birthday, north korea basked in what the pentagon confirms is the rogue nation's first successfully launched intercontinental ballistic missile. images of kim jong-un celebrating were projected around the world as the missile flew for a record 37 minutes, splashing down by japan, with some speculating north korea has a missile capable of reaching alaska. it prompted an immediate response, rex tillerson saying north korea's provocation represents a new escalation of threat. u.s. ambassador nikki haley is calling for a emergency meeting of the u.n. security council today as the u.n. looks for a global response. the launch is the tenth test since trump took office and on the eve of trump's visit to europe. the question is, what, if any,

response will come from the u.s.? we have this all covered, tracking the latest on north korea from london and matt bradley in warsaw, where the president will kick off his european visit. good morning, what is the latest on the nuclear standoff with north korea? >> well, gigi, as you mentioned, north koreans test fired an intercontinental ballistic missile yesterday, first time pyongyang has successfully done so. now, some experts believe the tests proves they have the capability to launch a missile that could hit alaska. south korea's defense ministry put the range on the missile between 4,000 and 5,000 miles. the question is, whether this missile could deliver a nuclear warhead or whether it has a working re-entry vehicle is still a question that remains to be seen. as of yet, the north koreans don't seem to have mastered the technology needed to miniaturize a nuclear warhead and fit it to

a rocket tip. pyongyang claimed the rocket carried a heavy warhead and accurately hit the targeted waters, but that hasn't been confirmed yet. north korean state tv sounding very proud and defiant, quoted kim jong-un saying the test was a gift to the americans on their independence day. the report warned of the possibility of more tests, saying that the north korean leader had ordered his officials to, quote, frequently send big and small gift packages to the yankees. now, in response to the united states and south korea, fired a warning shot across the bow by conducting a massive joint military exercise, launching a barrage of ballistic missiles into the east sea. we have to see how this all plays out and whether thereby additional sanctions, as there is a year-end security council meeting planned for later today. >> yes, will be difficult to craft the right response, thank

you. now to matt bradley in warsaw, where the president will kick off his visit thursday. matt, why is he starting this trip in poland? >> reporter: well, this is something of a pit stop for the president before he heads on to hamburg, where he's going to confront tens of thousands of somewhat violent protesters. the police have deployed water cannons in order to subdue protesters in that city, and the president will likely get confrontational and uncomfortable questions from european leaders about the environment, about trade, and about north korea, which you have been discussing all morning, but this in warsaw, this will allow him to kind of eat his dessert first, because any american president would get a rapturous welcome from this pro american country, but especially donald trump, and the reason why is because the leadership here and throughout a lot of eastern europe see

themselves as sort of ideological kinsman to trump and his far right populous politics, because so many have been outspoken about the policy of accepting immigrants and have been suspicious of environmental regulations and other pet issues that donald trump has made his own. and even here, this is going to be a symbiotic relationship for a lot of the politicians here. they want to be seen with donald trump. one leader here from the far right political ruling party said other european countries might be jealous donald trump had chosen this destination before he proceeded to hamburg and some politicians will be trucking in supporters from the countryside in order to give donald trump this fulsome welcome that he might come to expect from here in poland. gigi? >> interesting. matt bradley, thanks for giving us that update. serious news in new york city, a police officer was killed in an ambush style attack while on duty in an unprovoked attack and a clear

assassination. they say the suspect fired through the window of the female officer's marked police car, hitting her in the head. she died after being rushed to the hospital. law enforcement confronted the suspect and officials say the man pulled out this revolver. a bystander was also shot, but is in stable condition. cell phone video captured a scary tractor trailer crash in pennsylvania. in the video the trailer is seen swerving on i-476 before flipping and crashing, spilling its content on the road. the man who shot the video says he and several others approached the tractor to check the driver, but the driver was unresponsive. a few good samaritans broke through the window to free him, but he wasn't pulled out until first responders arrived. the driver was sent to the hospital with nonlife threatening injuries. in florida, another

frightening incident caught on tape. a man crashed his car into a residential complex, if you believe it. police say the driver intentionally ran the car into an ex-girlfriend's apartment after an argument. he died on scene. police pulled several tanks of propane from the burned out car and some residents say the crash sent them fleeing for their lives. . both of the kids were running to the back, i saw that, heck no. car impacted with the building, burst on flames, we have to get out of here. >> no one in the apartment building was hurt, but 18 residents have been displaced. they are being assisted by the red cross. all across the country, america's annual birthday celebration hit all the right notes. one of the biggest shows right in our nation's capital, the 37th annual concert featured live music, live cannon fire. performers included the beach boys, the four tops, old-time favorites, trace atkins, as well as the blues brothers. millions were dazzled by the

macy's annual fireworks show that lit up the new york city skyline, and in d.c. the president and first lady welcomed military families for an afternoon picnic at the white house. president trump thanking those service members for protecting our freedom, and he spoke of the courage and sacrifice of those serving overseas. >> it is because of you that well over 300 million american citizens can live in freedom. >> while most americans displayed the stars and stripes in parade and parties, the largest flag waved proudly in utah. all 11,000 square feet of it. astronauts peggy whitson and jack fischer showed their american pride in the international space station with this charming video. and the country welcomed many new proud americans. 15,000 people were sworn in at over 65 independence day citizen induction ceremonies around the

u.s. that's pretty patriotic. and some people spent the day on the jersey shore. check it out, a giant sand sculpture of governor chris christie, built following the new jersey government shutdown that closed beaches and parks for much of the holiday weekend. nothing says patriotism like overeating on july 4th. joey chestnut, check it out, a new record yet again on coney island. he won for the tenth time and he, listen to this, put away 72 hot dogs and buns in just ten minutes. nauseating. on the women's side, miki sudo ate 41 dogs and buns, also in ten minutes. for a look at your weather, good morning, steve, what do you have for us? >> good morning, we have a lot of heat for you. it's stifling hot across many sections of the west for today. check this out, triple digit heat to the canadian border this

afternoon and that heat will not go anywhere for tomorrow. get used to it, hot and triple digit temperatures for much of theeekend across the w near 100 in the valleys. gigi, makes me want to cannonball into a cold pool, this heat out west. >> perfect for the fourth of july. all right. fifth now. steve, thanks. check out this scene in colorado springs, surveillance cameras catching a bear rummaging through a person's kitchen. the 375-pound bear made himself at home for about five hours before leaving. wildlife officers tracked down the bear and had to put it down because it was deemed an

imminent threat to the public. one man's garage is a pile of ashes after he used fireworks to fight bees. and high powered senators spend the fourth in afghanistan. stay with us. honey? can we do this tomorrow? (grunts of effort) can we do this tomorrow? if you have heart failure symptoms, your risk of hospitalization could increase, making tomorrow uncertain. but entresto is a medicine that was proven, in the largest heart failure study ever, to help more people stay alive and out of the hospital than a leading heart failure medicine. women who are pregnant must not take entresto. it can cause harm or death to an unborn baby. don't take entresto with an ace inhibitor or aliskiren. if you've had angioedema while taking an ace or arb medicine, don't take entresto. the most serious side effects are angioedema, low blood pressure, kidney problems, or high potassium in your blood. ♪ tomorrow, tomorrow... ♪ when can we do this again, grandpa?

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you saw it all there, whether you wanted to or not. police tasing a naked man after he slapped one of the officers. the witness who shot the video said the suspect there was spraying people on the platform with that pesticide before running on to the train. he was ultimately subdued by police and arrested. at a news conference the democrats and republicans agreed on the need for a new strategy in the nearly 16-year-long war.

>> the time for strategy has come. we need a strategy in the united states that defines our role in afghanistan. >> we need to have a strategy to win. the strongest nation on earth should be able to win this conflict. >> and senator graham said he has strategic advice for president trump. >> one thing i will tell you after this visit, you need to pull all troops out, because 8,600 will not get the job done, or add to their numbers. >> military officials have said several thousand more troops are needed to break the stalemate with the taliban. secretary of defense jim mattis will reportedly present president trump with strategic options by the middle of the month. police released this patrol video from last november, flames lighting up the night sky as officers helped evacuate homes and businesses.

at one point flames were sending embers flying across the road. 14,000 residents and tourists had to flee this area near the great smokey mountains where the fire started. 14 people died. 2,500 buildings were damaged. one man in michigan's garage is a pile of ashes after he came up a unique form of pest control. the man wanted to remove a bee's nest from his garage with a smoke bomb. emergency responders arrived and the building was ablaze. fireworks were shooting up into the sky. fortunately, only the garage and a neighboring fence were damaged. just ahead, how the battle over one little boy in england is setting off an international debate. really sad story. you're watching "early today." stay with us. from the first moment you met it was love at first touch and all you wanted to do was surround them in comfort and protection that's why only pampers swaddlers is the #1 choice of hospitals

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now to the story of a baby in the uk who has become the center of a global debate because of his medical treatment. nbc's kelly cobiella reports. >> reporter: baby charlie gard's parents stand watch, waiting for the hospital to remove his life support. it's not what he wanted. >> we can't even take our own son home to die. >> reporter: charlie was born with an extremely rare disease, deaf and blind, can't move or breathe on his own, has seizures and brain damage. doctors say there's no cure. still, his parents wanted to try an experimental treatment in the u.s.

>> if it doesn't work, we'll let him go, but know we've done everything we can. >> reporter: british courts sided with the doctors, who said the treatment would only prolong charlie's suffering. last week the european court of human rights rejected the appeal. the case united a global debate, president trump tweeting support monday, if we could help little charlie, we would be delighted to do so. pope francis said the parents' rights should be respected. under british law, the rights of a child generally come first, unlike in the u.s. >> the court sees itself as the final guardian, if you will, of charlie and charlie's best interests and they found any effort to extend the treatment would only extend his suffering, the suffering of a baby that is going to die. >> reporter: supporters of charlie's parents are now calling on the prime minister to step in, but charlie's fate has already been decided. charlie is still being cared for at this hospital in london. doctors say they are working with the parents to give them

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second-degree manslaughter. president trump departs for poland, where he will kick off a european visit that will culminate with a face-to-face meeting with vladimir putin in germany. and rock n roll legend paul mccartney is back, starting things in miami. a ticket people are definitely going to be clambering for. worldwide investors are cautious followed by concerns following the north korean launch of a icbm capable of reaching alaska. kate rogers is keeping an eye on your money and telling us all about this. good morning, thank you for being with us. >> wall street could come under early pressure after a mixed session on monday that saw the dow briefly touch an all-time high. european markets are mixed this morning, but asia was mostly higher as investors appear to shrug off the north korean missile launch. qatar is throwing a wrench into

the plan, the company's state-run energy conference, the world's leading exporter of liquefied natural gas. the news threatens to add to a projected glut on the world market in the coming years, including from the u.s. and beef, it's what's for dinner again on american plates, on a comeback. now the department of agriculture is seeing a rise. the average american ate almost 56 pounds of beef in 2016, that's up from 54 pounds in 2015. analysts say low prices and a thumb's up from the health community helped spur the comeback. over to you. >> the strong marketing efforts, as well. thank you. >> thank you. just ahead an incredible american ninja warrior to tell you about. plus, remnants of world war ii after all these years. stay with us, you're watching "early today". noo

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delays in dallas today, dog days of summer. gigi? >> thanks, steve. devastating news this morning out of lebanon, where the united nations say a refugee camp for syrians burned to the ground. the images you see are after the fire. unfortunately, there was one fatality, that of a 2-year-old child, and at least nine cases of suffocation. officials say the fire broke out due to natural causes triggered

by the high temperature and dry weather. national public radio held its fourth of july reading of the declaration of independence, including tweeting the full text, but things got ugly after iconic lines about life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. self proclaimed trump supporters didn't recognize some of the lines like a tyrant is unfit to be the ruler of the free people, they saw it as an attack and wrote responses out, including npr is calling for a revolution, propaganda, is that all you know? and this is why you're going to get defunded. ouch. other users were quick to point out the source material, but perhaps it's a sign we could all use a bit of a refresher on that history. a bomb squad in britain detonated a world war ii explosive. the controlled explosion happened at a seaside resort in southern england. the beach in the town was briefly closed for the detonation, but was reopened for the public shortly thereafter.

and this is really an inspiring story. american ninja warrior competitor is changing the lines of millions by overcoming many more obstacles than those on the agility course. he's 27 years old, diagnosed with parkinson's disease. 14 years later, choi is now an endurance athlete competing on ninja warrior on behalf of the michael j. fox foundation for parkinson's research. michael j. fox himself sent a message to choi before the race. >> no matter what happens tonight, you're an inspiration to your family, people with parkinson's, everyone watching, and me. >> he made it to the third section of the course. he hopes to return in 2018. really touching story. i'm gigi stone woods. thank you so much for watching "early today" and check us out on facebook, twitter, and instagram. have a great wednesday. we will see you right back here tomorrow.

good wednesday morning and thank you for joining us. i'm sam brock. >> and i'm laura garcia-cannon. we begin right away with breaking news in the south bay. a building in san jose up in flames this morning. crews scrambling, they have been, overnight to put it out. >> sbob redell with what's goin on right now. bob, have crews made some progress? >> reporter: it looks like they definitely have. good morning to you, sam and laura. the building in question right beyond the fire trucks here is an abandoned office building, used to hold a dentist office and some other offices and businesses in had there. this is situated in a residential area. a lot of homes around here. you have this two-story building that attaches to a single sto