flames fanned like a hurricane and every single structure in a couple of neighborhoods gone. >> massive fires still rage across california. more than 200,000 acres have burned. over 40 people have perished and hundreds are still unaccounted for. >> then to health care and members of donald trump's own party accusing the president of not understanding the payment system. >> breaking overnight, seven people injured and one still missing as an oil rig explodes near new orleans. >> two weeks after the president said his secretary of state was wasting his time with north korea, today a new tactic that also involves iran. >> and friday's king at the weekend box office. "early today" starts right now. >> good morning, i'm phillip

mena. >> i'm frances rivera. >> deadly wildfires are still raging through california, though the end to this disaster may be getting closer. officials say this weekend's winds came in less powerful than expected, allowing fire fighters to better contain the fires which have already scorched over 217,000 acres. nbc's morgan radford has more on this unprecedented destruction. >> reporter: 11,000 fire fighters gaining ground. one week after the blaze started. just as coroners rush in, sweeping the burn zone, the death toll rising. at least 40 now deceased, making this the deadliest week for wildfires in california history. 75,000 remain evacuated. hundreds still missing. >> this has been a massive undertaking. >> reporter: first responders working around the clock. >> we've heard instances of fire fighters going in, pulling people out of their bed literally and that is especially difficult when you have elderly. >> reporter: four more victims

named all were over 70. another who died 75-year-old carmen who was on vacation with her husband when the inferno broke out. unable to see through the smoke, the childhood sweethearts held each other in the pool for five hours as flames roared around them. >> they were taking breaths and holding themselves under water to protect themselves from the heat and the flames. >> reporter: he survived with second degree burns, but carmen was too weak from the smoke and died in his arms. >> they did that together. that was their strength. that was the beauty behind their relationship and everything they did. >> reporter: for others who survived, the journey home marks the beginning of a long road ahead. >> so, this is the front gate. >> reporter: chris returned to find his family home burned to the ground. there was only one thing spared. >> it's our statue of saint francis. good luck over the house. we got that the day we moved in and it's the only thing really

standing here. so, that will be the start of the new house. >> reporter: morgan radford, nbc news, santa rosa, california. >> thanks, morgan radford, for that report. as survivors pickup the pieces they are sharing dramatic footage from the disaster. >> we're going to [ bleep ] die, dude. we have to get out of here. >> the fire shows roommates having to escape the fire rushing through the flames to open a gate so their suv could make it so safety. both men escaped, they say they lost everything in the fire. nbc's sara dallof is in santa rosa this morning and, sara, people coping with the devastating wildfires there, but with some optimistic news that an end may be in sight. >> reporter: yeah, exactly, frances. an end may be in sight. fire fighters believe by as early as friday they expect 100% containment by then, and that will be welcome news to residents who have lived in this mix of fear, anxiety and sadness

for the past week. 5700 homes and structures destroyed, just a real staggering number, especially once you're here on the ground seeing what these folks will be returning to. a lot of people understandingly very anxious to get back in their neighborhoods and see the damage firsthand. authorities have held off on a lot of neighborhoods so far, citing safety concerns. there's also been reports of looting. they say people will be able to start going back within the next day or so as they continue to check gas lines and check the debris for possible remains. meanwhile, power has been restored to those whose homes are still standing, to all but 21,000 customers, frances. >> all right, sara dallof for us. thank you. >> breaking overnight an oig rig exploded near louisiana. seven people were hurt, five are in critical condition while others are stable. the explosion occurred on lake pontchartrain.

the rig was one mile offshore. they are searching for one man from the rig's eight-person crew who remains missing. meanwhile fire teams are working to stop any flow of oil. >> there's a number of wells in that location and the oil is transferred at that point. so, our first objective from the fire fighting standpoint is we are trying to stop the oil flow if there's any. and at that point we're going to have to cool it and let it burn off. >> authorities are still investigating the cause of the explosion, but they say the crew was cleaning some type of chemical on the platform before it blew up. officials say no drinking water comes from the lake and nearby residents are not in danger. >> president trump is under fire for an influential group of doctors, insurance companies and many in the business community after announcing he would end subsidies to offset the cost of obamacare for low income americans. even some leading republicans are saying the president's decision will hurt families, including many of the middle class who voted for him. here is nbc's tom costello. >> reporter: two days after

discontinuing insurance subsidies for low-income americans on obamacare -- >> that money is a subsidy for insurance companies. >> reporter: members of his own party accused the president of not understanding what the subsidies actually do. >> no, these were payments to insurance companies to make sure that hard working americans who don't make a lot of money can have their co-payments taken care of. it's a subsidy to do that. >> what the president is doing is affecting people's access and the cost of health care right now. >> reporter: here is why. 56% of americans on obamacare are low income. by law, their premiums are capped. so, the government has paid insurance companies a subsidy for their coverage. without those subsidies, insurance companies will be forced to raise rates on everyone else who buys obamacare coverage. individuals making more than $48,000 a year, families making more than $98,000 a year. middle class americans who analysts say could see their

premiums jump by 30 to 60% forcing some to go without. >> you know, the irony here is that with these executive orders, trump is really hurting his own voters. the people who are frustrated with obamacare tend to be people who have incomes too high for a subsidy and they have to pay the full cost of these premiums. >> reporter: in fact, an associated press analysis finds those states will be hurt the most voted for president trump last year, including wisconsin, kentucky, florida, arkansas, mississippi, and arizona. still, some republicans insist the subsidies are illegal. >> they're unconstitutional. a court has said so. >> reporter: but a coalition of some of the biggest health care providers, doctors, insurers, even business leaders are warning the cuts mean millions will face higher premiums, fewer choices and less access to the medical care they need. that group of business owners, doctors and insurance companies now wants congress to come to the rescue and fund those subsidies that president trump

is stopping. however, given how much house republicans hate obamacare, that seems highly unlikely. frances? >> all right, tom costello for us. tom, thank you. >> we want to bring in now meteorologist bill karins who has been tracking the weather in california. the wildfires hopefully an end in sight. >> we were scared with the high weekends that were going to come in. it wasn't as bad as expected. no one is complaining about that. we have rain chances in the forecast at the end of this week so the beginning of the week the winds are light, not much in rain chances. here comes the green. as we go into thursday evening, northern california especially not much for southern california, but northern california north of san francisco and sacramento would really like this. with the winds relaxing that will help the fire fighters, too. not many weather headlines today. a little shower activity "early today". the mid atlantic and chance of showers in florida. the southeast finally your cold front is coming through. vee one you'

we will be watching those temperatures in the southeast cooling off a little bit, especially in florida later today. that's a look at your monday forecast. >> all right, bill, thank you very much. >> at the box office this weekend, horror movie happy d t death day capitalized off friday the 13th. it knocked off blade runner taking in over $26 million. blade runner 2049 dropped to the number two spot with $15.$1 million. jackie chan brought in 12.8 million putting it in the number 3 spot. >> coming up next, secretary of state rex tillerson's direct response about his relationship with donald trump. snl takes on pence's nfl walk out. "early today" is back in two. ♪ if you're looking to save money on your medicare part d prescriptions, switch to walgreens.

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>> oh, it's starting now. >> what are the players doing, are they acting like little s. obs? >> no, they seem to be respectful. wait, one of them is kneeling. >> get out of there, mike, bail. >> we are inside the starbucks, mr. president. >> oh, mike, i need you to check the cups, okay. do they say happy holidays or do they say merry christmas? >> sir, it's october. they wouldn't have christmas themed cups yet. >> they would if they respect america, mike. of the cups would say merry christmas all year and they would show me as santa claus giving children coal. check the cups. >> the cups say pumpkin spice is back. >> where are you, buddy? >> we are inside the wedding, mr. president. everything seems very respectful. >> what do you see, mike? walk us through it. >> okay. i see the groom. he's waiting patiently at the altar, and then i see -- oh, oh, there's another groom. >> get out of there, mike, bail.

i know you hate this word, abort, but abort, mike, abamanos. >> i like his detail, the wife is with him everywhere he goes. all right. could president trump be changing his tune on north korea? despite suggestions from the president on twitter that diplomacy and policy won't work with north korea, secretary of state rex tillerson a now says diplomacy is the first line of defense. he says the president agrees. >> he has made it clear to me to continue my diplomatic efforts, which we are, and we will, as i've told others, those diplomatic efforts will continue until the first bomb drops. >> joining us now with more on this is nbc's edward lawrence. good morning, edward. >> reporter: good morning, philip. the secretary of state there trying to show a united front after some discord that was reported by nbc news with the president. so, whom do you believe? this is a good cop in person, bad cop online. the president tweeting earlier this month that the united states, we have been dealing

unsuccessfully with north korea for 25 years. in another tweet the president saying that he told the secretary of state he was wasting his time, trying to negotiate with little rocket man. save your energy, rex. we will do what has to be done. some believe that means military action. still, secretary of state rex tillerson over the weekend in a series of interviews says not so fast. just listen. >> he has those military options on the table and we have spent substantial time actually perfecting those. but be clear, the president has also made clear to me he wants to solved diplomatically. he is not seeking to go to war. >> reporter: u.n. ambassador nikki haley is sort of backing up tillerson saying or signaling that the u.s. is willing to make a deal with north korea, but there will be some very strict conditions. frances, philip? >> everybody hoping for obviously a peaceful resolution to this. edward, thank you. >> still ahead, the 15 best cities to live in. so, is yours one of them? plus, america's united nations ambassador says the u.s. should remain a part of the iran

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in case you missed it over the weekend this was the scene in palo alto, california. you see a rabbit stealing the show. it was during the home coming game between stanford and oregon. somehow it got onto the field the first quarter.

nobody tried stopping him. stanford even blew the horn as it does when the team scores a touchdown. not quite the bandit on the field moment. >> no. not quite. >> still memorable nonetheless. >> that jack rabbit had some speed to him, too. leading the news this morning, u.s. ambassador to the u.n. says she believes the u.s. will remain in the iran nuclear deal. she has been critical of the deal but the president will be working with congress to improve on it. >> that's the goal. so, i think right now we're in the deal to see how we can make it better and that's the goal. it's not that we're getting out of the deal. we're just trying to make the situation better so that the american people feel safer. >> secretary of state rex tillerson also says he expects the u.s. to remain in the iran deal. >> a two-star army general has been fired for sending racy messages to the wife of an enlisted soldier. he commanded u.s. army africa allegedly sent inappropriate facebook messages to the woman from his post in italy including one in which he called her

hotty. an army spokesman said in a statement to the general who is also married was dismissed due to a loss of confidence in his ability to command. the disgraced general has been recalled to washington and is currently under investigation. >> 24/7 wall street released its annual index of america's 50 best cities to live in. top is carmel, indiana. with a low crime rate and well educated population. number two is a rapidly growing centennial, colorado, followed by its denver neighbors, nevada in third place, and high lands ra ranch in 5th place making colorado with three of the five best cities in the nation. >> hard to find anything bad about colorado. all right, just ahead, are you a fubbar? if you don't know what that is, we will tell you about it. plus details on the latest coffee concoction. here's a hint. it may go well with blue cheese. you're watching "early today." o.

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and ... i used to have cancer. i beat it. i did. not alone. i used to have no idea what the american cancer society did. research? yeah. but also free rides to chemo and free lodging near hospitals. i used to maybe give a little. then i got so much back. ... i used to have cancer. please give at cancer.org. yes, trump's plan is going to make insurance more expensive, and lose the federal government more money. it's a strategy that you can read about in his book, the art of being bad at stuff, parentheses, including book titling, no ends parentheses. [ laughter ] >> the emmy award winner right there. >> yeah, right. so much material. >> writer's peak. have you ever been fubed? you may be fubing somebody right

now as we speak. it's the practice of snubbing others in favor of our mobile phones. researchers are revealing ignoring others to be on your phone is causing major problems in interpersonal relationships. they have a lower marital satisfaction. a study shows having your phone out during a conversation interferes with your sense of connection. that seems very prevalent, right, nowadays. >> right, especially in elevators, guilty in elevators. >> elevators, down the street, any time you're trying to talk to somebody, they pull out -- they have a built-in excuse basically they're looking down at their phone at all times. >> at all times. here we go. mama mia, here we go, sheer che lending her voice. they are comprising their roles in the sequel titled, here we go again, earning 600 million, i believe, worldwide. first mama mia movie is the highest grossing movie musical.

it is slated to be released july 20th, 2018. >> all right. are you a fan of a sweet and spicy? you like sweet and spicy? >> i like sweet and salty. i like spicy, too. >> how about in your coffee? >> not this. tell me. >> tim horton's, the canadian coffee and donut chain they did a buffalo latte over the weekend. it was in honor of the birth year of 1964. they started with a classic espresso latte and then they add buffalo sauce flavor, and then they dust it on top with zesty buffalo seasening. it is only available in two locations in buffalo, new york. i have a feeling there will be lots of supplies. >> i can't imagine anybody would want that in their morning cup of joe. new allegations of sexual assault against move if mogul harvey weinstein. mark, get set, wait. servers face-off to see who is fastest. where's gary? 'saved money on motorcycle insurance with geico. goin' up the country.

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welcome back. let's talk about the week ahead forecast. as we go through this week, watch much cooler conditions to start the week early, especially the great lakes and northeast. rain kpilting the southeast, florida will have wet weather to deal with, not a lot. sunny and mild conditions will continue in the middle of the country and we look at the west, very dry by the end of the week. we'll have a chance of a little more rainfall in the west, but not a ton out there. in the pacific northwest watch out by the end of this upcoming week some heavier rains are possible. we'll watch what happens there. again, northern california, the best hopes is that we finally get some wet weather. >> all right. they much need it, too. thank you very much, bill. all right. another woman has a come forward with allegations against harvey weinstein. british actress lizette anthony says the hollywood producer raped her in the late 1980s. in an interview with the sunday

times, he assaulted her in her own home. she accused him of stalking and sexually ma rasing her fo years before the alleged assault. she earlier met with him in new york. anthony said she finally filed a complaint with police last week. >> british meetd i can't is widely reporting they are investigating weinstein for allegations. three women made allegations against the same man for incidents alleged to have taken place between the late 80s and 2015. but did not confirm the identity of either the accusers or the accused. weinstein has denied all allegations of nonconsensual sex. meanwhile late night host jamds corden is apologizing for comments made. he was not trying to nhk light of the inexcusable behavior, but to shame him, not his victims. actress melissa tried to bring to light the prevalence of sexual harassment and assault with this tweet. asking those who have been victimized to tweet "me, too." the hashtag took off with more

than 24,000 replies to the tweet. filled mostly with me, toos, celebrities and ordinary people alike. all right, check please. servers in argentina were put to the test over the weekend. nearly 500 waiters raced through the main street of gwen buenbueno buenos aires. it was sponsored by the hotel and hospitality workers union with hundreds of thousands of dollars in prizes in line for winners in different categories. >> they have the cover -- those are bottles, two bottles they got. it's not too bad. >> they're not totally hustling. >> what's up with that? you would think there is prize money at stake. >> some fast walking, speed walking. >> when it's full, it is difficult. i was a waiter as a teenager. it was hard to do all that. >> what is worst somebody at the table offsets the balance. you're like, whoa. pretty impressive. >> not an easy job. >> we hope your monday is off to

a great start. i'm frances rivera. >> and i'm phillip mena. thank you for watching "early today." today." be sure to follo ♪ w ♪ making it today." be sure to follo ♪ ooh ooh ooh. ♪ making it ♪ thick, carved turkey breast. the autumn carved turkey is back for a limited time at subway. so much turkey. ♪ making it ♪ ooh ooh ooh. ♪ making it ♪ thick, carved turkey breast.

the autumn carved turkey is back for a limited time at subway. so much turkey. fire fight, but it )s not over yet. good mog gaining ground in the north bay fire fight. it is not over, yet, as you can see here. i'm marcus washington. right now, a new threat lingers as some evacuees are allowed to return home. >> i'm laura garcia. this eighth day brings more hope and a bigger sense of community. one of the worst fires in california history. the headlines at this hour, 40 people are confirmed dead with hundreds more still missing. all eyes on another new fire, which continues to burn in the oaklawn area between santa rosa and kenwood. in some areas, people returning to their home including calistoga, which has been dese f