good morning. breaking news, florence's fury. the dangerous hurricane pounding the east coast with torrential rains. a life-threatening storm surge and high winds. this morning, hundreds of people in north carolina already trapped. emergency rescues under way. flooding, damage, pooutage quickly piling up, as the storm slowly makes landfall. the worst still to come this morning, and we have complete coverage, live. "today," friday, september 14th, 2018. >> from nbc news, this is a special edition of "today," hurricane florence.

with savannah guthrie and hoda kotb, live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. good morning, everybody. welcome to this special edition of "today." millions waking up this friday morning to the power, the force, the fury, of hurricane florence. >> i think some people woke up and said, wait, this is a category 3, a 2, a 1. this is a rainmaker. on the coast, flooding is a major concern. we've been talking about people being plucked from their rooftops. >> for some, they're stranded and it's just not safe for first responders right now. and the size of this storm, effects being felt from florida all the way up to new jersey. let's get to the latest. al talked about power outages. that's what's happening. 400,000 homes and businesses in the dark. it could take weeks before the

power is restored. >> high tide is expected around 11:00. atlantic beecach, north carolin already received 20 inches. some cities could see eight months' worth over the next two days. >> around 12,000 people in north carolina are riding out the storm there in shelters this morning. they're the lucky ones. our team is across the region. let's go to al. he's on the path of florence. and we expect official landfall any moment. >> i believe it has made landfall at this point. we have to wait for the national hurricane center to verify that. but the sprawl of this, 600 miles from north-to-south, 700 miles from west-to-east. and it continues to grow and push in. this was the last reading we got at 6:00 a.m. ten miles east of lm north carolina. 90-mile-per-hour winds. it is moving west at six miles per hour.

as it comes onshore, we have a tornado watch in effect now. that's going to be a problem for a lot of folk there's. we' we're not looking for massive tornados but they will cause damage. it will be happening in minutes. friday 2:00, making its way toward south carolina. tomorrow morning, still a category 1 hurricane. 70-mile-per-hour winds. and it continues as a slow crawl, making its way west. columbia, on top of it, by sunday morning. they will be seeing tropical force winds, as well. the tropical force winds extend out 130 miles. hurricane-force winds extend out about 60 miles. there's a wide swath that can cause a lot of damage. this is what we're looking at for today. wind gusts, right now, wilmington, 8. kingsville, 39. 79 on the buoy just offshore.

and we're expecting the storm surges to come in. and up to 3 million people could se the storm surge is going to be the big story, anywhere from 7 to 11 feet in some areas. and some other areas, we're getting reports that the high tides will be one to two feet above what they were expecting. that's going to be an issue, as well. rainfall anywhere from 10 to 20 inches, which we've been talking about. it is going to be a problem. as you saw, you just heard, upwards of 20 inches in some areas already. we could see 40 inches before it's all over, guys. >> it's hard to fathom that much water. the national hurricane center says, the 7:00 a.m. position, the center of the eye of the hurricane is about to make landfall. just as we were on in the last few moments. >> and that coast, the carolina coast has the ocean on this side, filled with rivers and inlets and things. craig is in wilmington, and that area is getting pounded as we speak. craig, tell us what you're

seeing. right now, hoda. the 80-mile-per-hour-plus winds al was just referencing. we're feeling every bit of that. this was a full tree easily an hour ago. in the past hour, we've seen branch after branch torn off this tree. it's roughly half the size it was. another major concern right now, shingles off roofs. these shingles are flying about. this one came from the roof of our hotel. the last time we talked, about an hour ago, we actually had power. since then, we've lost power here, as well. one of the tens of thousands in the dark right now. we've also moved locations. we were right there on the cape fear river. we moved after the last hour because it was no longer safe to continue to report from there because that river had swelled to a point, the water was

also want to show you some video. this is from jacksonville, north carolina. this is the scene in jacksonville. 70 people in jacksonville, had to be rescued at a hotel. there's a hole in the side of that hotel the size of a basketball. could have been far worse. but at last check, we're told everyone there is okay. we're getting word of other rescue operation s under way. but the winds are continuing to pick up. the rain has been unrelenting over the past hour or two, it's gotten worse. we've seen trees uprooted, as well. we just lost this fence. we were in contact with a number of officials here in wilmington. at least up to an hour ago. officials here tell us they expect close to every resident in wilmington proper to lose power.

there's growing concern that the savannah, hoda, back to you. >> this is just the beginning. the eye is just coming onshore. we were talking about how at 11:00, 11:30, high tide comes up. dylan happens to be on the ground in wilmington, too. hey, dylan. >> hey, hoda. this is madness right now. things have taken such a turn here. we were talking about a category 1 hurricane. that's 90-mile-per-hour winds. can you imagine for a seconds a truck going down the street at 90 miles per hour. even though that's a category 1, that's no joke. you can just see, now that the sun is trying to come up, the daylight trying to come up, this tree is starting to go down here. and it's the relentless battering of the sustained wind. that's going to take down a lot of this debris.

since this is occurring over an extended period of time, we're going to see more and myrore debris.int t, but the water that's rushing down the street right now has nothing to do with the storm surge we've been talking about. that high tide is not until 11:30 this morning. the water rushing down the street is just the rain. there is so much rain coming down. it is getting tossed at 70 miles per hour to 90 miles per hour down the street. we've moved into the parking garage and i am no longer standing out there because it is crazy, guys. >> dylan, you're holding that yellow piece of equipment is a kestrel. anamometer. that's a wind gust of 83 miles per hour. >> looking at dylan is making me nervous.

>> she's talking about this much rain. she's seen a thing or two in her day. the storm is going to park there and we're going to see the rain for days. >> that's right. >> this is only a category 1 storm. and we're saying, don't pay attention to the category. falssense lly something that's of security. >> you pointed this out. sandy was a category 1 storm and look at the damage it did to the folks on the east coast. garrett haake is in a town called new bern, south carolina. a lot of people are trapped on attics and some in their cars. what can you tell us? >> 30,000 people live in this country. i don't know how many stayed. but all of those that did will be happy to see thing light of

day. this town is wrapped by the noose river. and normally the driver striver where it belongs. but about noon yesterday, it came up out of its banks and pushed into the town. i'm eight-tenths of a mile away from the river. and even here, there's intersections you can't get to. the raay but it's not been torrential further south and other parts of the storm. it's been about the storm surge. and now, the city is asking people to extend what had been an overnight curfew for 24 hours. at 7:00 this morning, if you stayed here, stay off the roads for another 24 hours, let rescue crews get 150 people still trapped in their homes out of their homes into safety, and let cleanup crews work, let the power crews start to restore

power here, as we hope to see the water comes back out. this is a very important time period for first responders, where the winds are a little low. a lot of people are excited to see morning light and low tide and a chance to get out of their homes if they were stuck overnight. >> there is a window before high tide. >> we were talking to the mayor the last hour and he said, this is the moment we will try to get out there and get these folks. he said there were 150 folks that need a rescue. they're up against it because >> trying to prioritize, there's children and elderly trapped right now. >> one man keeping his eye on all of it, north carolina's governor, roy cooper. governor, good morning. if you can give us the lay of the land, sir.i'm sure you're g from all over your state. how is it? >> north carolina has made

strategic plans for this. now, it's time to move from preparation to determination. we've had over 100 people in new bern, north carolina, rescued. people rescued from jacksonville. search and rescue teams that are ready to go. people are waiting for the light of day, not only to see about the damage, but to be ready and to be in place, to rescue people. we're dealing with significant storm surge with historic rains that in many places will be measured in feet and not inches. i believe we're ready for this. we have no reported storm-related deaths at this point. we evacuated a lot of people from postal ae acoastal areas.

we have shelters across the state. rohing 350,000 people who have lost power and we know that number is rising even as we speak. we know people will be without power for days. and sometimes maybe for weeks. we're asking for common sense and for patience. and make sure you protect yourself and your family. dial 911 if there's an emergency. dial 211 for information about shelters and other help. we don't want people getting out in the storm right now. >> we should point out, too, governor, there's a lot of urgency here. there's a small window to get some of the folks who are trapped out before that. high tide comes rolling out at 11:30. are you e kwiquipped and preparo get that out before the high tide comes? >> there's search and rescue

te our local, state, federal. we have help from 19 states. we knew the situations were going to occur. we have a significant storm surge that's pressing against a big river with historic rains on top of that. was nhere else to go. we're going to see high water in some of our cities. we're going to need help. we have brave. he and women who are first responders that are there to help them and take them to higher ground. >> governor, this is a slow mover. al keeps talking about that one of the problems with this storm is it's sitting and talking. people will say, wow, we escaped this thing. but this is a days' long event. that just won't leave. when you're talking about those winds and that kind of rain with the storm surge.

in fact, even when the storm moves through, the rivers will continue to rise. we can't be complacent when the sun comes out because this water, this rain, will increase the levels of our rivers. some of them, predicted to get to historic levels. we know there will be flooding even in weeks after the storm. we're ready for a tough one here in north carolina. but we north carolinians are resilient, we're prepared for this and we're ready to take it on. >> governor, it's good of you to spend some time with us on a busy morning. thank you. we're talking about this being a days' long event, in terms of the storm surge. when would you expect the worst of that to be here? >> for 24 hours for wilmington. and we'll just move it along. depending on the speed, sometimes when you get landfall,

it does start to pick up speed. it just kind of meanders. that's the problem. and so, for the folks down along through saturday where they're still dealing with it. >> a lot of the rain events, katrina, the levee issue. it was a wbig water event. >> and with harvey. >> only a category 1, you saw in craig melvin's report, the tree limbs are stripped off. those are projectiles. dylan was talking about a tree ready to fall. they go out once the eye hits, oh, great. and now, weakened root systems give way and you have trees falling left and right. >> we'll have a lot more on hurricane florence straight ahead. jacksonville's mayor will join us with the latest on the motel collapse and the rescues going on there.

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extremely dangerous situation in the suburbs of boston. >> what a situation. a series of gas explosions and fires tore through several neighborhoods. it's very mysterious that caused this. one person was killed, dozens were injured, and thousands had to evacuate. let's get to ron in massachusetts. good morning to you. >> reporter: daylight is giving us a good look at what happened and the extent of the damage. you see back there, a home that is completely destroyed and the one next to it is untouched. pe their homes. the power is off as a precaution. there were reports of gas odors in 70 different structures leaving one person dead. chaos in massachusetts. >> it looked like armageddon. it really did. >> reporter: unexplained explosions rocking communities north of boston. some in lawrence, andover, and

north andover, where some 150,000 people leave. terrified residents making calls to 911 about the smell of gas. firefighters overwhelmed, as flames rip through homes and businesses. authorities blaming a series of gas leaks, o evacuations. >> the focus is every house, go in there, shut the gas off, make it safe so people can get back in their house as soon as possible. >> reporter: authorities warn not to turn things on or off, and to use their phones. some suffering from smoke inhalation. leo rondon was killed when a chimney from a house explosion landed on his car. crews responding to get to the roaring flames. some homes burning out of control with no firefighters in sight. veteran firefighters at a loss

for words. >> i started my 30th year in june. i've never seen anything quite like this. >> reporter: some five hours into the disaster, a statement from columbia gas of massachusetts, with no explanation. writing in part, the first priority of our crews at the scene is the safety of the people in the community. as the harrowing day turned into night, schools turned into shelters. residents unsure when they can return home and what they will find when they do. >> nerve-racking, scary, panic was kicking in. >> ron, this is so perplexing. are investigating closer to figuring out what caused this? >> reporter: not really. we heard no explanation so far. it was scary because the explosions and fires seemed to

be happening so randomly, one here and one there, over a wide area. some of these things were happening miles apart. and residents didn't know what to expect next. there's no warning about a gas explosion. right now, the focus is on safety, trying to make sure the homes are secure and figuring out when people can get back. >> what a terrifying situation. investigators will be working just ahead, we'll have more coverage of hurricane florence. the powerful storm hammers the carolinas. first, this is "today" on nbc.

more throughout the morning as we watch that radar. what do you see? >> i see that eyewall pounding wilmington. they're in the middle of it right now. it's going to be another hour before they get into the actual eye. >> the worst is apparently yet to come. we're going to have more on this

storm coming up in the program. >> we will. and we await high we )re trackie florence - which has now made landfall a live look at - - - - - - - - - good morning and thank you for joining us. i )m scott mcgrew in for marcus washington. and i )m laura garcia.

as kerry has mentioned.

this morning the carolinas continue to take a beating from hurricane florence.. the storm may have lost a bit of intensity ... but it is still delivering quite a punch, as it moves over land. is storm is soasrequired a wide capture it from space. these photos are from the international space station. pical ea of trond storm surge watches and warnings cover about 450 miles of coastline. the ter has already washed over roadways.. and is starting to swallow communities all along the coast. officials are warning people that the severe conditions are just begining. hundreds of thousands have

lost power in north carolina alone.. and that number is expected to grow.. stay with nbc bay area for hurricane coverage through the morning. developing right now: some people who escaped from their homes .. say it felt like armageddon: dozens of those homes are now destroyed after a series of gas explosions in massachusetts. at least one person has died. 20 more people are injured .. after blasts that rocked 3 awrence is about 30 miles shaken. once the explosions began .. "columbia gas of massachusetts" quickly ordered everyone to evacuate immediately. it may take days or even weeks for investigators to figure out an exact cause. the gas line explosions in massachusetts will likely remind many in the bay area of

the gas line explosions likely remind you of the bay area's deadly pg&e pipeline explosion in san bruno. that killed eight people eight years ago this month. the city's former mayor says elected officials back east need to bring people together quickly. >> you have to get your community together as soon as possible and tell them what you t have all the answers but we're with them hand in hand. >> the me massachusetts to get to the bottom of w