this is going to be a storm that's going to be a very large one, far larger than we've seen in decades. it's tremendously big and tremendously wet. i would say everybody has to get out. listen to your local authorities. >> satellite images show a massive 400-mile-wide storm inside a well-defined walla. outrage from elizabeth smart as the woman involved suspect in the mysterious attacks on americans in cuba. and revealing details from sally field and her memoir. it is time to go for

millions across the southeast. highways and roads out of myrtle beach and charleston have transformed into one-way evacuation routes as motorists flee to higher ground. the storm is taking dead aim at the carolinas with sustained winds at 140 miles per hour. >> another worry, potentially devastating rainfall. it is expected to dump one to two and a half feet of rain in some areas. gabe gutierrez has the latest. good morning. >> reporter: frances, good morning. a hurricane warning went into effect in myrtle beach. this popular beacholinas bracin strongest hurricane in two decades. the rush is on to get out. from the carolinas to million p desperately trying to outrun hurricane florence. how terrifying is this storm? >> yeah, it's something that

i've been dreading since i moved here. >> reporter: in south carolina, authorities closed this highway in one direction. all lanes now leading west away from the massive storm that's ominously churning in the atlantic. this is the incredible view from noaa's hurricane hunter. >> we are in a very deadly and important game of chess with hurricane florence. >> reporter: in myrtle beach. >> hurricane nor pflorence, bri on. >> reporter: there's a rush on sand. she is using it to protect her home, but she's bolting for higher ground. >> we don't need to take chances or put personnel on the line to the mandatory evacuation order. instead, they plan to hunker ecided not to heed down in their retirement community and check on their neighbor. why are you staying? >> i've been through a lot of

storms, we felt like this is our home. >> reporter: a home now in the path of the most powerful hurricane to threaten the southeast coast in more than 20 years. the national hurricane center is calling florence's cloud cover staggering. and another potential danger is that the storm slows down once it gets inland, lingering, causing massive flooding. frances? >> all right, gabe, thank you. states of emergency have been declared up and down the east coast, ahead of the ferocious hurricane. the governo ten the unusual ste contacting the president and fema before the storm hits the state. kerry sanders reports on whether state and local governments are prepared for the worst. >> reporter: philip, even before the hurricane makes landfall, fema wants residents to recognize that over myrus are fh supplies to help them after the storm is gone. the u.s. army ordered more than80 choppers inland to

safety. the flight line now a staging area. so you're doing something different? >> we are. we're putting supplies in various places at an earlier time. usually you wait until after the storm. >> reporter: you chose to do that with this hurricane because? >> because it is so wide, so intense. >> reporter: on the coast, residents preparing, but some also skeptical the government will be there when they need them. >> it just seems like they're not doing as much as they need to. >> reporter: a recent gao report found fee ma was woefully understaffed. the agency was stretched thin, responding to 692 federal disasters. >> there are a lot of learned from 2017 and we are at the ready. >> reporter: in carolina beach, they are hoping fema will be there to help. >> there will always be little

bumps in the road. but i'm very confident we'll be able to weather the storm. >> reporter: also preparing, power companies like duke energy. crews coming from as far away as the midwest to help restore power. also at the red eaady, soldiers ft. bragg. among the equipment they have at ft. bragg, really big helicopters called chinooks that can pick up heavy items and rescue people. >> how about where the storm is now? here's bonnie schnyder with more on that. >> the storm track has shifted a little further west in the latest advisory. right now still a very intense category four with maximum winds at 140 miles per hour. unfortunately, we're likely to see the storm strengthen. notice the forecast calling for winds to get even stronger, just shy of cat five status.

by the time we get to the weekend, the storm will be onshore make landfall sometime thursday. but it slows down and lingers. that means the entire region from georgia to virginia are looking at this threat of flooding, particularly for the carolinas. we are likely to see over two feet of rain accumulate. so massive flooding is expected. this is expected to be a prolonged event. that's the biggest problem. the wind damage will be strong, but heavy rain and flooding will be a major concern as we go forward. something to keep in mind. and we are watching storm surge as well for flooding up to 13 layers of danger here. bon ey bonnie thank you. washingtonsa getti is getti. fema is sending resources to state and local governments. in the wake of hurricane maria's devastation in puerto rico there are lingering questions over whether it's enough.

tracy potts joins us with more. >> reporter: questions about what's the track record here with the trump administration dealing with these stoorms, thee has already been a state of emergency declared from south carolina all the way to washington, d.c., despite what happened with hurricane maria last year, this year president trump says they will be ready. >> we are totally prepared. we're ready. we're as ready as anybody aef'sr been. it looks to me and to a lot of talented people who do this for a living that this is going to be a very large storm, far larger than we've seen in perhaps decades. it's tremendously big and tremendously wet. >> reporter: he also said puerto rico was an unsung success. reevi re referring to the hurricane that hit there last year, marie yeah. the estimate initially 64 and

now 3,000 people who died. san juan says if they consider that a success they are concerned about the response to this storm. >> we'll see how he handles hurricane florence. thank you so much. turning to the surpriseness about o -- news about one of the most inf infamous kidnappings, the woman who helped kidnap elizabeth smart is expected to be released years sooner than expected. elizabeth smart is calling it incompnseal! it's real! >> reporter: 15 years ago, elizabeth smart's father announced his abducted daughter was final lip comily coming hom. now in a surprise move, one of her captors is about to go free. she was accused of helping kidnap smart and will be released in eight days. >> i despise them.

>> reporter: smart, who produced a movie and wrote a book about her nine-month abduction says she was surprised and disappointed. it is incomprehensible. >> utah authorities are tracking down more than 100 leads. >> reporter: kidnapped from her bedroom at knife point in 2002, she knew the 72-year-old could be released soon, speaking to megyn kelly just last year. >> she's up for parole, we'll see what happens. if she gets out then i'll cross that bridge. >> reporter: barzee was sentenced on state and federal charges. the smarteleased in 2022. but the parole board now saying they must count timeowntds her state sentence. mitchell is serving life. for smart, a grim reminder of how her past can still haunt her. miguel almaguer, nbc news. let's bring back in bonnie schnyder.

by the looks of that map behind you, that looks like hurricane peak season. >> wou >> we are looking at peak season. one of them threatening the u.s., hurricane florence. we will be watching that one very, very closely. we're also watching another system that is likely to develop and impact texas and louisiana. this invest has a 70% chance of becoming a tropical depression. and that's something we're going to be watching as we look toward the xt fivene of the northern tier of the country we'll look for cooler weather feeling more hike fall wi like fall with numbers in the 40s and 50s. this is one to watch. landfall's expected thursday

into friday. >> a tough go for the next few days. bonnie, thanks. time to fast forward to wednesday. apple ceo is expected to unveil several new products, including the biggest and most expensive iphone yet. there's speculation we could see three new iphones. amazon is branching out. it plans to sell live, full christmas trees this year. they will be boxed and shipped within ten days of being cut. wendy's giving away a free dave's cheeseburger. the offer can be redeemed once a day. an be redeemed once a day. tremfya® is for adults with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. i'm ready. with tremfya®, you can get clearer. and stay clearer. in fact, most patients who saw 90% clearer skin at 28 weeks stayed clearer through 48 weeks. tremfya® works better than humira® at providing clearer skin, and more patients were symptom free with tremfya®. tremfya® may lower your ability to fight infections and may increase your risk of infections. before treatment, your doctor should check you for infections and tuberculosis. tell your doctor if you have an infection or have symptoms

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included bernie sanders son levi. on the republican side, former police chief eddie edwards got the nod. if he wins, he could be the state's first black congressman. >> a lot firsts potentially. as the senate prepares to vote on judge kavanaugh, one republican senator is now on the presreulgar and profane phone calls demanding she vote against kavanaugh, one calling her feckless. another using a slur. the recordings were obtained by nbc news through her office. collins is also the target of an unusual crowd funder, raising more than $1 million for any future opponent of collins should she vote in favor of kavanaugh. the senator's office calls it bribery and extortion, saying it will not work. and of course she's being targeted, because she's thought to be one of the more moderate republicans. if there's going to be some vulnerability there, it's going to be her. >> she's got a target on her when it comes to that. two-time oscar-winning

actress sally field talked about her memoir, it involves her stepfather. until she was 14 years old, he would frequently summon her into his bedroom alone. it details sexual abuse and otherand is due to be out septe 18th. she is glad f lover burt reynolds who passed away last week will never be able to read what she wrote about him in the book. >> that was the love of his life. >> one truee. >> that's what we heard about loni anderson. >> we'll see what comes out of that book. your defining moment of the morning. the new words coming to our dictionary. plus, the nationals player bringing a whole new meaning to fighting tooth and nail. you'll have to see this. you're watching "early today" on wednesday. ching "early today" on wednesday. tries to get in my way?

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like what's coming at us in 25, 30 years. maybe ever. it's tremendously big and tremendously wet. [ laughter ] >> don't worry, i'm building an ark and mexico's going to pay for it. very wet. >> it wouldn't be a false give

len -- equivalence. >> i tho t little strange. a young man got the chance to sing the national anthem at wrigley field. he challenged the chicago raise $5,000 for the special olympics. he collected more than it. staying true to their word, he was able to built out the anthem. ♪ home of the brave [cheers and applause] >> and that is the spirit, right there. all the way around. >> well done. a memory he can take with him forever. what a thrill. it is that time again for the english language to grow ever larger with merriam webster adding words to the dictionary. some of the words hangry, hungry because of angry.

zoodles. bingable. lots ofabbrevs, including guac. people say useful words. wait until the end of the year, it will probably get in there. i'm sure the tooth fairy will love this. right before his at-bat, he's spitting something out of his mouth. know what it is? turned out to be a tooth and kind of a good luck charm. in the same sequence, he went on to smash his first career homer. here's thing about that tooth he spit out. it wasn't even real. it was a temporary tooth. >> fake tooth. >> so i guess it was bothering him. so he said all right, i'm going to rip this thing off. i'm not going to bother playing with it. >> baseball players are

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slighter weaker storm but sticking around throughhilip an. still ahead, a nbc news exclusive. russia is the primeysterious at americans in cuba. americans in cuba. and your sister-in-law's... tennis partner's... chatty coworker's... youngest daughter's... entire judo class. one shot can make a world of difference. walgreens has specially trained pharmacists, that know which flu shot is right for you. protecting the world... over 60 million flu shots and counting. starts with protecting yours. walgreens trusted since 1901. what's the #1 new skincare product in 2018? omg! it's olay. that's crazy! olay regenerist whip. olay whips absorbs faster than the $100, $200, and even $400 cream. i feel like it just melted into my skin better. it's really smooth and it's not heavy.

i really really love this. i will 100% swap up my moisturizer. can i have it? olay whips. try whips with spf 25. finally, sun protection that feels light as air. now to a nbc news exclusive and the strongest indications yet of who could be responsible for those mystery attack last year when 26 u.s. diplomat and intellige intelligence officials were struck ill in cuba. the prime suspect? russia. andrea mitchell has the story. >> reporter: the mystery. who or what caused american

officials to sufficient headaches, dizziness and some serious brain injurya concussio. last year, cuban officials said they would never allow their territory to be used that way. but now russia is the leading suspect according to two u.s. officials. evidence they say backed up by highly secret intercepts conducted during a lengthy investigation involving the fbi, cia and other agencies. investigators now believe the americans were deliberately targeted. >> this is not an accident. for those who think this is a rogue operation, they are operating in a fantasy world. >> reporter: the state department is still investigating. >> we have not assigned any blame and continue to look into this. >> our thanks to andrea for that report. comedian norm mcdonald is apologizing after a controversial comment he made

about the me too movement. he said admit wrongdoing and you're finished. the only way to survive is deny, deny, deny. he referred to louis ck and roseanne. he said there are very few people who have gone through what they have, losing everything in a day. people go, what about the victims, but you know what? the victims didn't have to go through that. some twitter users called the comments insensitive and out of touch. the backlash prompting the tonight show to cancel mcdonald's appearance last night. he later issued an apology on twitter. if my words seemed like i was minimizing the pain that victims file to this day, i'm sorry. reminders of years after the attacks. twin columns of light beamed over the city. memories still live on.

almost two-thirds of the employees at cantor fitzgerald died on the attack on the world trade center. the ceo missed work that day taking his child to school. but he turned the day into a charity. actress lucy hale manned the phones. the charity has raised over $147 million for families of the fallen. thank for>>ad lib live picturen

san jose welcome to wednesday morning. let's take a live look outside overlooking downtown san jose. half way through your work week. let's just make it through now. good morning to you. thanks for joining us. i'm laura garcia. >> i'm marcus ton. look at your traffic, probably not too bad. >> it's early. >> it's going to be much cooler today, and we're all going to

have a nice cooldown as we check out the forecast. live look outside san jose, over to campbell the temperatures for early afternoon will only be up to about 70 degrees. we will see some more clouds moving in, that will help hold down our temperatures as