wet roadways, obviously. that's our view of the richmo richmond-san rafael bridge. that's what's happening "today in the bay." we're back at 7:25 with a live local news update. and much more ahead at 11:00. good morning. inside the cockpit, breaking this morning, recordings from that doomed lion air 737 max joe jet. and a new report that the very same plane nearly crashed the day before and was saved by an offduty pilot in the right place at the right time. new overnight, crews finally douse that stubborn inferno at a chemical plant in texas burning for three straight days but this morning lingering health concerns. >> i don't think anybody can look at it and honestly say everything is fine. war of words.

president trump escalating his feuds with the husband of a top aide and the family of senator january mccain. >> i was never a fan of john mccain and i never will be. >> cindy potter county cain now revealing the hate filled messages she's receiving online. >> all that plus deal or no deal? pats owner robert kraft offered a way out of his profession case but with a major catch. what women need to know about the first drug ever approved for treating post partum depression. and jackpot fever, powerball soars to more than a half billion dollars as the race for tickets kicks into high gear today, wednesday, march 20th, 2019. >> and you are dressed bright as

a sunshine so i'm going to hold this throughout the entire show so i'm with you all the way. >> did you bring your sunglasses? hope so. alarming new developments in the deadly crashes that have led to the global grounding of boeing 737 max planes including what was happening inside the cockpit of one of those doomed flights. tom costello has been covering this from the beginning. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. this was an all out emergency battle to save that aircraft. the pilots did not understand why that plane was in a nose dive and headed for the water. ultimately they were not able to save the aircraft, and we also know that the day before a very similar emergency happened to the same plane, different crew, but thanks to the very quick thinking of a third pilot on board, they did save the plane. new this morning as the 737 max fleet remains grounded amid multiple investigations, new

details about last october's lion air crash that killed all 189 people on board. according to three people with knowledge of the just released voice recorder, as the pilots of the 737 max were scrambling to keep control of the plane, they desperately began scouring a handbook struggling to understand why the jet was lunching downwards running out of time before hitting the water in indonesia. nbc news did not have access to the recording or the transcript. it comes as new information is released about another 737 max 8 flight just a day before the lion air crash where pilots got help from an unexpected source as that jet began diving downward. an off duty pilot who happened to be riding in the cockpit correctly diagnosed the problem telling the crew how to disable a malfunctioning flight control system and save the plane. investigators examining this month's indonesian crash considering how the computer ordered the plane to dive and

in response to data from a faulty acceptser and whether the pilots had enough training to respond appropriately to the emergency among other factors. meanwhile, captain sully sullenberger, one of america's best known pilots, is weighing in. sullenberger famous for that radio call during a harrowing emergency landing. captain chesley sullenberg saved the lives of everyone on board during the miracle on the hudson landing back in 2009. now with the 737 max fleet grounded, captain sully is criticizing the faa for letting boeing conduct certification inspections on itself saying it has created inherent conflicts of interest, and a market watch op-ed sullenberger writes boeing and the faa have been found wanting in this ugly saga that began years ago but has come home to roost with two terrible crashes. a former ntsb chief agrees. >> it's not a question of whether the faa has enough resources and enough talent to do the job.

it's their responsibility to do the job. >> reporter: under staffed and under funded, congress allowed the faa to delegate more authority to boeing to certify the new 737 max meets faa criteria. now boeing is under fire for not telling pilots about the new antistall software program called mcas, suspected in last october's crash in indonesia and last week's crash in ethiopia. the "new york times" reporting the faa gave mcas little attention. former faa accident investigations chief jeff guzzetti. >> boeing will always be perceived as being profit oriented as opposed to safety but i can tell you that boeing knows how much it costs when one of their airplanes crash. they're also motivated by safety. >> referee: amid all this controversy, the faa has been running without the head of the agency.

now the white house is nominating a new administrator for the faa. his name is steve dixon. he's a former fighter pilot and a delta air lines executive in charge of operations. he will be dominated. the senate will have to approve. most experience ts i talked to he's a good choice. >> the lion air crash happened in october. that was five months ago, and only now is information coming out about it. i guess the question is like what took so long? >> reporter: yeah, listen, it always takes a while to read through those black boxes and the indonesian authorities are responsible for deciding what they're going to release to the public. we did know that this was allegedly an mcas problem, a software problem. boeing is now pushing through a software upgrade to address that. as for why it took so long to get the actual information out of the black boxes, that's up to the indonesians. >> you mentioned the software program mcas, which i remember he you reporting about pretty early on. it was the leading theory that it was essentially going haywire that allowed this to happen.

why is that -- i mean, i know they're grounded now, but am i correct that the software update hadn't even gone through as recently as last week. what's taken so long with that? >> reporter: that's right. still hasn't gone through. boeing is saying it could come as soon as next week. i think this is an important point. that may address the issue with a software glitch with mcas. that is not going to get this plane back in the air when they update the software. this is now going to have to be certified again by the faa. they want to make sure there's not another problem or two that's playing into this scenario with two planes down in five months. and then once the united states decides that the max can fly again, other countries are going to have to make that decision and some of them may not be in a rush to do so. >> there's the whole question of pilots, training, 737 pilots who felt like they should have had a lot more training on this new version of the 737. >> reporter: and are now demandsing simulator time, by the way. they want simulator time, they

don't just want an ipad program. >> tom, thank you very much. crews have finally managed to extinguish that massive inferno that raged for three days at a chemical plant in houston, texas. nbc's gabe gutierrez has the latest on this one. >> reporter: hoda, a dramatic change here this morning. after initially planning to let this thing burn itself out, firefighters late tuesday went on the attack and a short time ago finally managed to put this fire out. this inferno had been raging since sunday morning. at one point, the plume could be seen more than 150 miles away as far as austin. now the company that owns this facility, itc, and local authorities had said that the air quality was safe. but some residents weren't so sure. they even kept their kids home from school when classes reopened yesterday. now, the chemicals that had been burning and were used in paint thinners. today, fire crew easy will be spraying the storage tanks that had been burning to try and make

sure that the fire does not re-ignite. still, there had been some lingering health concerns. now the breaking news, again, within the past few hours, the fire that has been burning for almost three days is finally out. hoda. >> good news there, gabe. thank you so much. vice president mike pence got a firsthand look tuesday at the devastation caused by those flood waters in nebraska and iowa, and he was joined by the governors of those states. the flooding there has left four people dead and has caused more than a billion dollars in damage to crops, livestock and roads. pence said fema is working to expedite a request for a federal emergency declaration which would open the way to provide more aid to those states. craig joins the table now working on another story. >> president trump heating up several ongoing feuds, one of those with the husband of top aide kellyanne conway. another with john mccain's family. nbc's peter alexander is at the white house covering this. good morning. >> reporter: hey, craig, good morning to you.

that emotional and bruising public spat with president trump and george conway is now getting intense. the president, whose own marriages have been a tabloid staple for decades, calling mr. conway a husband from hell. the feud between president trump and george conway spiraling to a new low this morning. the president referring to the husband of one of his president's most trusted advisers as mr. kellyanne conway saying he's jealous of his wife's success. conway writing back in a number of tweets. conway is suggesting the president suffers from narcissistic personality disorder with a need for admiration and a lack of empathy. george conway, who bowed out of

consideration from a justice department role two years ago has since become one of the president's most persistent critics. >> the administration is like a [ bleep ] show on a dumpster fire. and i'm like, i don't want to do that. >> mr. conway telling "the washington post" his now infamous tweets are aimed in part at avoiding conflicts with his wife saying, quote, it's matdenning to watch, the tweeting is, so i can move on. frankly, it's so i don't end up screaming at kellyanne about it. it comes as kindy mccain is speaking out after the president doubled down in his feud with her late husband, senator john mccain. >> i was never a fan of john mccain. >> mccain's widow posting a private message she received on the same day the president renewed his attacks. the message from someone saying they were glad her husband was dead before going after her daughter meghan mccain who has also been speaking out against the president. >> my father was his kryptonite in life.

he's his crypt nigkryptonite in. >> and it's not just the mccain's senator mitt romney tweeting i can't understand why the president would once again disparage a man as exemplary as my friend john mccain. hee roar -- heroic, empathetic and driven by duty to family, country and god. meghan mccain tweeting about her father as a man the president despised. >> thank you. we have a lot more to get to this morning including patriots owner robert kroit and the other men charged in that prostitute sting in florida. they're now being offered plea deals, but they come with some big catches. >> good morning. robert kraft is facing two misdem solicitation of a prostitute. but the deal prosecutors are offer him and the other men caught up in this bust would require them to admit they would

have to have been proven guilty at trial. this morning new england patriot's owner robert kraft facing his own decision, does he take a plea deal and avoid a possible criminal record or will he go to court and fight two misdemeanor charges of soliciting prostitution. if the 77-year-old kraft takes the deal, it's not without consequences. the billionaire businessman and two dozen others received this letter from the palm beach county prosecutors spelling out the offer. each man charged can avoid prosecution if they admit the evidence would be enough to convict, complete a course about the dangers of prostitution, get screened for sexually transmitted diseases, and if needed get treatment. plus, they would have to complete 100 hours of community service and pay a $5,000 fine for each charge. taking to twitter, palm beach county state attorney dave aronberg writing the offer of a deferred prosecution agreement with several conditions to first time offenders is standard in

cases like this. kraft has pled not guilty to the charges and has denied any illegal activity. his attorney did not respond to nbc news's request for comment about the plea. richard kibbey is a lawyer who represents some of the other men charged with solicitation. they could face professional consequences if, to avoid prosecution, they admit they would have been convicted. whether or not to accept this plea offer will depend on each client has different needs and wants, but again, anybody that has licenses or careers at stake may be forced not to accept it. >> reporter: for kraft, his legal choice here could have unintended consequences. according to the nfl's conduct policy, owners just like players are held to a higher standard. >> i think there will be immense pressure from my parties on roger goodell to at least do something with robert kraft even if legally he has all the charges dropped or is found not guilty.

>> reporter: now one of the league's most prominent owners has a tough choice to make, take the deal or fight the case in court. >> we also reached out to the nfl for comment and have not heard back. kraft now has eight days to accept or reject the deal. if he accepts, the sources with the state attorney's office tell us that he will have to show up in court himself. guys. >> i know you'll stay on this one, kerry. thank you so much. in the meantime, guys, here we go again. better get your tickets. tonight's power ball jackpot is now worth a whopping $550 million. that's the eighth largest ever. if you win, you can choose annual payments or take home a lump sum of $335 million before taxes. >> we do that story every time and i love it every time. >> i know. >> happy spring by the way. >> happy spring mr. roker. >> not yet, 5:56 p.m. it's coming. >> winter's over. >> hey, hey, hey! don't steal our joy.

>> okay, you want some joy? i'm in on the office pool for the big power ball. gerard's collecting it. anyway, we've got rain making its way from chicago all the way back down to texas. nebraska, think of this, 95% of the people are affected by this flood in the state. 76% of the land mass. that is pretty amazing. they've got dry weather today. this system is pushing to the east bringing some rain to chicago, cleveland, detroit, all the way down to memphis. then it continues to the east. a secondary system is developing, a coastal low. if this was a month ago, we'd be talking about a nor'easter. it's going to be pushing to the north with heavy wind and rain, but snow on the back side of this thing for northern new england. here's what we're looking at as far as storm impacts. heavy rain and flooding airport delays, albany boston, new york

city, down to d.c., back to pittsburgh. isolated rainfall two inches. we're going to see power outages, wind gusts by friday up to 50 miles per hour along the coast, and then snowfall is if you'd stop in a monsoon to help someone change a tire, save a whale that had beached itself... you're gonna be ok big guy. push! lend a hand in an old-timey barn raising... you got it, jebediah! and if the middle school dance group was down one member and you'd step in and lead them all the way to glory... yes! then carmax is for you, because helping people is what our people are all about. good morning. i'm meteorologist kari hall. we are under a microclimate weather alert, tracking a round of some rain that has been quite heavy for parts of the bay area. we're seeing it now pushing off towards the east in contra costa county, as well as alameda counties and also some heavy rain in the south bay, as well

as the peninsula. this will all start to move out, becoming more scattered as we go throughout the day, and our forecast dries out for tonight into the day tomorrow. a new storm arrives and will bring us more rain on friday. i'm thinking hot dog, mustard, baby. >> you have to follow the train of thought. yellow mustard. because otherwise i don't know how to take that. thank you so much. just ahead, we have the very latest on that massive college admissions scandal. the first school has taken action against students caught up in the scheme. >> and imagine getting a call that your child has been kidnapped and will be harmed if you hang up the phone. what all families need to know about this terrifying new scam. but first, this is "today" on nbc.

♪ ♪ with the chase mobile app, jason wu could pay practically anyone, at any bank, all while putting on a runway show for new york fashion week. ♪ ♪ he could. or, he could make it even easier - and set up recurring payments to his neighbor. for cat sitting. (meow) whoa. you've groomed her, too. (cell phone vibrating) and now she's ready for the catwalk. life, lived jason's way. chase. make more of what's yours.

coming up, the support pouring in for wendy williams this morning after the popular tv host shares her secret

struggle with addiction. also this morning, baseball's new $430 million man, the record setting deal that is putting skyrocketing sports salaries in the spotlight. first though, your local first though, your local ne i'm amy tran, pure leaf tea master. i was inspired by nature's finest ingredients to create a new take on tea. introducing, naturally caffeine free, pure leaf herbal iced tea. ♪ a refreshing combination of juicy, peach, flavor and hibiscus. ♪ crafted just for you. new pure leaf herbals. iced tea blooming with flavor, and naturally caffeine free. iced tea blooming with flavor, forget injections and look up to 5 years younger in 12 weeks with no7 laboratories new line correcting booster serum. it works so well, 76% of women said injections can wait. exclusively at walgreens, target and ulta. [zara larsson - "wow"]

♪ ♪ baby i'm not even in a gown ♪ and the only thing u have to say is wow ♪ ♪ make you're jaw drop drop say oh my drop drop drop ♪ ♪ make u say oh my god my drop drop ♪ ♪ make you're jaw drop make u say oh my god ♪ ♪ and you never felt this type of emotion ♪ ♪ make you're jaw drop drop say oh my drop drop drop ♪ ♪ make u say oh my god my drop drop ♪ ♪ make you're jaw drop make u say oh my god ♪ show your gut some love. only activia has billions of our live and active probiotics. a delicious way to enjoy probiotics every day. with 20 years of devotion to gut health. activia. like no other. (v...especially when your easily distracted teenager has the car. the worst... at subaru, we're taking on distracted driving [ping] with sensors that alert you when your eyes are off the road.

the all-new subaru forester. the safest forester ever. thyou know what i do instead?eny your cravings. i snack on blue diamond almonds. wasabi & soy sauce?! mmm! don't deny your cravings. eat 'em! all the flavors you crave, in a superfood. blue diamond almonds. crave victoriously. we all care about amazing taste. that's why we've been making the best mayonnaise for over 100 years. best foods. we're on the side of food.

[ "werk it" by mama haze ] ♪ werk it now ♪ woo, werk iwoo, werk i♪ ♪ baby watch me werk it like ♪ ♪ werk it now, woo. werk it now ♪ ♪ baby, baby, baby ♪ baby watch me werk it now for adults with moderately syto severely activeou? crohn's disease, stelara® works differently. studies showed relief and remission, with dosing every 8 weeks. stelara® may lower your ability to fight infections and may increase your risk of infections and cancer. some serious infections require hospitalization. before treatment, get tested for tb. tell your doctor if you have an infection or flu-like symptoms or sores, have had cancer, or develop new skin growths, or if anyone in your house needs or recently had a vaccine. alert your doctor of new or worsening problems, including headaches, seizures, confusion and vision problems. these may be signs of a rare, potentially fatal brain condition. some serious allergic reactions and lung inflammation can occur. talk to your doctor today, and learn how janssen can help you explore cost support options. remission can start with stelara®. prestige creams not living up to the hype?

one jar shatters the competition. olay regenerist hydrates skin better than creams costing over $100, $200, and even $400. fact check this ad in good housekeeping. olay. alice loves the smell of gain so much, she wished it came in a fabric softener too. [throat clears] say hello to your fairy godmother, alice. oh and look they got gain scent beads and dryer sheets too! ♪ ♪ it's taking over ♪ there's no escape ♪ you better get moving ♪ ready or not ♪ it's about to go down here it comes now ♪ ♪ get ready ♪ oh oh oh oh ♪ oh oh oh oh ♪ get ready ♪ moving ♪ ready or not ♪ get ready ♪ oh oh oh oh oh ♪ hey (alarm ringing) wake up

to great tasting flavor. (alarm stops) belvita breakfast biscuits. flavors like delicious blueberry or decadent chocolate, gently baked in a tasty biscuit. (alarm ringing) belvita breakfast biscuits. it's time to taste the day. i )m - -... we )re in a microclimate weather alert. here )s a live look on 1-0-1 in san jose. the bay area - gettin a very good morning to you. it is 7:26. i'm laura garcia. we are under a microclimate weather alert. take a look outside, the drops on the lens, the rain on highway 101 in san jose. the bay area getting a healthy dose of rain this morning. meteorologist kari hall is tracking conditions. >> we're still seeing the rain moving through on storm ranger, that's our mobile doppler radar, and we are going to see still some wet weather in and around the bay area, at least for the next couple of hours. as we see this new storm moving in, we also have cooler temperatures and it will start to taper off as we go throughout the rest of the day, by 11:00 to 12:00. only still some spotty showers, a few isolated, heavy downpours and then it clears out in time

for the evening commute, into tonight. we will have a dry day tomorrow but another storm will be moving in as we go into friday, as well as early saturday morning. so a couple of waves of rain in the forecast here, with this one moving out by later today, as we officially welcome in spring by 2:58 this afternoon, there should be some mostly dry conditions, and our highs reach into the low 60s, much cooler weather than we've had recently, but it will get milder into the weekend as we see the next storm system clearing out. let's get an update on the commute now from mike. >> the richmond side of the richmond-san rafael bridge soggy, rain once again, slick roadways. be careful out there. lots of reports of standing water, big puddles, basically. on the san francisco side, look how jammed up 280 is toward 101, both directions slow, some lanes out of the freeway withstanding water. smooth drive for the tri-valley. a south bay hydroplaning north

280, the connector on to north 87 is an issue, i tweeted out a picture from damian trujillo, you'll not like what you see there. another update in half an hour.

hey, everybody, 7:30 now on this wednesday morning, mor the 20th. that's official, spring arrives. it's not apparently according to al roker until 5:58 p.m. eastern. we're not waiting. we don't care. we feel like it's here. we're lining the plaza with plants and flowers and we'll head out in a little bit. >> we're ready to bloom. let's get to the headlines of the morning. and thouz those new details emerging about the lion air crash. pilots of the boeing 737 max were scrambling to keep control of the plane in the moments before it crashed. three people with knowledge of the recorder's contents say the

pilots began scouring a handbook struggling to understand why that jet was lurching downwards. one day before that crash pilots on the same plane lost criminal of the aircraft but were saved by an off duty pilot who happened to be riding in the cockpit. the suspect behind that mosque attack in christ church in new zealand was headed to a third target when he was caught by police. that's according to the police commissioner. he did not reveal where that third destination was but did say police searched the site for possible explosives. the shooter killed 50 people during friday prayers at two mosques. the suspect, a 28-year-old australian is being held at a christ church jail. a group of skiers say they're happy to be alive. they got caught up in an avalanche in the aus ree yan alps. a huge ridge of snow suddenly collapsed. the man who captured that video

said he was shocked. he didn't know how many of hi friends might be buried beneath the snow. everyone managed to make it out okay. now to the latest on that massive college cheating scandal. this morning at least one university taking action against the students caught up in the scam. nbc's joe fryer has got the latest on that. hi, joe, good morning. >> reporter: good morning. that's right. the university of southern california says it's now investigating students who may be linked to the admissions scandal. this is just one of the schools impacted by this scheme, and now all of those universities are wrestling with how to respond. a week after the admissions scandal rocked the college world, usc is taking action against students whose parents are accused of paying big bucks to get their kids into college. the school says it's placing holds on those students accounts. that means they can't register for classes or get transcripts. the school won't confirm how many students are impacted, but says these students have been

noti notified. following the review we will take the proper action related to their status up to revoking admission or expulsion. >> if usc and other schools want to claim themselves as a victim, they have to take action. >> at wake forest university, a different approach. the women's volleyball coach bill ferguson is on administrative leave after he was charged in the scandal. prosecutors say ferguson took a bribe to get one student into the school. wake forest says the student is currently enrolled. at this time we do not plan to take any action against her when there is no evidence she had any knowledge of the alleged financial transaction. nbc news reached out to fergu n ferguson, the coach for comment but has not heard back. he's one of 50 people facing charges, 33 of them parents including celebrities felicity huffman and lori loughlin. authorities initially said at least eight colleges were impacted by the multimillion dollars scandal, none of which has been charged with any crimes. now it has spread to another

school, uc berkeley which says it's investigating the acceptance of a former student after a parent was charged in the scandal. sadu is accused of making two $100,000 payments to have someone secretly take precollege exams in place of his two sons. one of those sons, jordan attended uc berkeley. prosecutors say in 2012 the fake test taker flew from tampa to los angeles and using a fake i.d. took the s.a.t. in jordan's place scoring 2280 out of a possible 2,400. in a new statement, uc berkeley says we are aware of the indictment and are looking into the allegation. david sadu has pleaded not guilty, and his attorneys say david sidoo's children have not been accused of any impropriety. any attack on the children is unwarranted. >> you mentioned usc in particular was talking about revoking admission, maybe even expulsion for students if they found wrongdoing, but there are some students apparently who

have already graduated? >> that's right. and experts in some schools say one possibility is that diplomas could be revoked. again, that would depend on what any investigation finds. >> what a tangled web. joe, thank you very much. and mr. roker is back with another check of the forecast. >> that's right. we told you about how warm it was in seattle questionyesterda. another daily record yesterday, 79 degrees. that's also a monthly record. all other records throughout olympia and hoquiam, and we'll probably see a third record today in seattle as temperatures soar. we're looking at a high today of 77. that's 22 degrees above average. bend, oregon, right where it should be. missoula, montana, 57. that's eight degrees above average as well. now, as we continue and look to the east, we are going to see cooler temperatures tomorrow in louisville, atlanta, even down into new orleans, but warming up as you get into minneapolis. 48 degrees, four degrees above normal and heading into the weekend, a dip on saturday, new

york city by sunday. 73 sunday in birmingham. dallas will see a high of 75, and warming up to we've had a big dip in our temperatures across the bay area, now that we do have some rain moving in, and storm ranger tracking those showers that made it a very soggy commute, and we will still be dealing with this rain for a few more hours, and see it gradually taper off as we go throughout the rest of the day. our dry weather comes back tomorrow but another round of rain in the forecast for friday afternoon into saturday morning. on sunday, it looks nice and sunny, a little bit milder but a new storm comes back on monday. >> and that's your latest weather. craig. mr. roker, thank you. coming up, an inside look at life in a sober house as tv host wendy williams reveals her secret treatment for addiction. then, what all women need to know about the first drug that specifically targets post partum depression. it was just approved by the fda.

plus, we're going to show you what happened when the home edit squad tried to work their magic on my hideous closet. >> i'm getting out the popcorn for this. first, a new alert on a frightening scam. how virtual kidnappers are using social media and spring break to target families. target families. that's right a itso chantix can help you quit "slow turkey." along with support, chantix is proven to help you quit. with chantix you can keep smoking at first and ease into quitting so when the day arrives, you'll be more ready to kiss cigarettes goodbye. when you try to quit smoking, with or without chantix. you may have nicotine withdrawal symptoms. stop chantix and get help right away if you have changes in behavior or thinking, aggression, hostility, depressed mood, suicidal thoughts or actions, seizures, new or worse heart or blood vessel problems, sleepwalking, or life- threatening allergic and skin reactions. decrease alcohol use. use caution driving or operating machinery. tell your doctor if you've had mental health problems. the most common side effect is nausea. talk to your doctor about chantix.

aww. yaaaayyy!!! aww. yaaaayyy!!! aww. yaaaayyy!!! we hide hotel names, so you can find four star hotels at two star prices. ♪ h-o-t-w-i-r-e ♪hotwire.com ♪ we'd love some help with laundry. here's how you do it. spray and scrub anything with a stain. soak your nasty jersey. it stinks! wash the really dirty clothes separately. remember -hard work builds character! new tide pods with upgraded 4-in-1 technology unleash a foolproof clean in one step. aww, you did the laundry! but you didn't fold it. oh, that wasn't in the note. should have sent a text. #1 stain and odor fighter, #1 trusted.

it's got to be tide. (lisa) tax rkinda like this stuff. tax reform with h&r block... ah, much better. (lisa vo) no one knows tax reform better than block. in person or online. block has your back. (alarm ringing) wake up to great tasting flavor. (alarm stops) belvita breakfast biscuits. flavors like delicious blueberry or decadent chocolate, gently baked in a tasty biscuit. (alarm ringing) belvita breakfast biscuits. it's time to taste the day. -jamie, this is your house? -i know, it's not much, but it's home. right, kids? -kids? -papa, papa! -[ laughs ] -you didn't tell me your friends were coming. -oh, yeah. -this one is tiny like a child. -yeah, she is. oh, but seriously, it's good to be surrounded by what matters most -- a home and auto bundle from progressive. -oh, sweetie, please, play for us. -oh, no, i couldn't. -please. -okay. [ singing in spanish ]

-please. -okay. we all care about amazing taste. that's why we've been making the best mayonnaise for over 100 years. best foods. we're on the side of food. a lot will happen in your life. wrinkles just won't. neutrogena® rapid wrinkle repair's derm-proven retinol works so fast, it takes only one week to reveal younger looking skin. neutrogena® the one you can't that never goes on sale. because it's too good for sales. just keep waiting for that sale. [whispers] forever. for the one you thought would never go on sale.

ebay. this morning on in-depth today, we've got a warning for parents about a scam that's making its way across the country, ask it's really scary. >> it is. it's called virtual kidnapping. it's happening more and more frequently with two new cases in southern california just this week alone. nbc's gadi schwartz has details on this one. >> good morning, hoda, this scam starts with a call from somebody who says they've kidnapped your child. sometimes you can even hear somebody who may sound like them struggling or crying for help in the background. everything they do is designed to make you panic, keep you on the phone and prevent you from

figuring out this is fake. >> imagine this, a stranger calls and says he's kidnapped your kid and you only have moments to act. that's exactly what kathy gross says happened to her. >> i was 100% certain it was her. she was hysterical, crying, mom, i need help. they took me. they put me in a van. >> reporter: the voice wasn't her daughters but sounded convincing enough. it was another detail that convinced her it was all a scam. >> a man's voice came on the line and said you better not call anyone, you better not hang up. we have him. >> reporter: but jordan is gross's daughter, not her son, that small slipup tipping her off to the scam. >> there's no limits what they're going to say to scare you to death and get you to send money. >> reporter: local authorities say there were two other similar cases in her community. federal investigators saying scammers have been targeting hundreds of affluent families all across the country and many

of them in southern california. the calls likely coming ing fro inmates in mexican prisons. >> they're learning your child's name, and learning where your child goes to school. >> reporter: investigators say a lot of that information may be coming from your own social media. some calls appear as unknown numbers. other scams are much more sophisticated. olympic swimming legend rowdy gains is and his wife got a call from what looked like their daughter's cell phone. >> it popped up her face and her number. i would have no reason to believe it was not her. >> the other person on the line was threatening to slit her throat. >> reporter: across the country, the same group of scammers were trying to extort money from madison. the scammers briefly connected the two calls. >> she said i'm okay, but i need help. >> reporter: that was all gains needed to hear. he set out to meet the scammer's demands recording some of it on his cell phone, but he grew suspicious when they asked for payments in gift cards, his wife

calling 911 and finding out it was all a hoax. if you get one of these calls, the fbi says try to take these steps. slow the situation down by asking for more time to get the money. also, try getting ahold of your loved one using a separate phone. ask questions only your child would know, and finally, call police. >> so gadi, i know this is horrible. what are authorities doing to catch these guys? >> this is a really hard crime to trace. there have been some arrests here in the united states of people working with some of these scammers who call from mexican jails. because they use contraband phones tracking them is pretty difficult. the best thing you can do to protect yourself is talk to your family ahead of time. even come up with a family code word or questions and answers only your loved ones would know. >> a good thing to do is if you get one of those scam calls on, put them on speaker and quickly try to text your kid. sometimes you don't have a second phone. and also be wary of what your

kid posts online. if your kid's on spring break, they can make more poiieces of e puzzle. >> it makes it so easy for them to know so much. up next, talk about a home run, the super star who just landed the richest contract in landed the richest contract in sports history. if you have moderate to severe psoriasis or psoriatic arthritis, little things can be a big deal. that's why there's otezla. otezla is not an injection or a cream. it's a pill that treats differently. for psoriasis, 75% clearer skin is achievable, with reduced redness, thickness, and scaliness of plaques. for psoriatic arthritis, otezla is proven to reduce joint swelling, tenderness, and pain. and the otezla prescribing information has no requirement for routine lab monitoring. don't use if you're allergic to otezla. it may cause severe diarrhea, nausea, or vomiting. otezla is associated with an increased risk of depression. tell your doctor if you have a history of depression or suicidal thoughts or if these feelings develop.

some people taking otezla reported weight loss. your doctor should monitor your weight and may stop treatment. upper respiratory tract infection and headache may occur. tell your doctor about your medicines and if you're pregnant or planning to be. ready to treat differently with a pill? otezla. show more of you. ready to treat differently with a pill? from our crazy delicious family to yours. crave those crazy squares. (buzzer) please, sir, can i have some less? ♪ ♪ ♪

less sugar greek yogurt from chobani. readyaveeno's sheer formulaiant? packed with pure soy evens tone and texture. so skin looks like this. and you feel like this. aveeno® positively radiant get skin happy™ when cravings hit, hit back. choose glucerna, with slow release carbs to help manage blood sugar, and start making everyday progress. glucerna. your control. like bedhead. hmmmm. ♪ rub-a-dub ducky... and then...there's national car rental. at national, i'm in total control. i can just skip the counter and choose any car in the aisle i like. so i can rent fast without getting a hair out of place. heeeeey. hey! ah, control. (vo) go national. go like a pro.

...make nature's sweetener... ...even sweeter. pick nature's calorie-free sweetness. pick truvia. n you have nausea, ♪ ♪ heartburn, ♪ indigestion, ♪ upset stomach, ♪ diarrhea... girl, pepto ultra coating will treat your stomach right. ♪nausea, heartburn, ♪ indigestion, upset stomach, ♪ diarrhea... try pepto with ultra coating.

well, that's the richest new pl the richest new player in sports, that's the talker of the morning. >> baseball superstar, mike trout. he just agreed to a record $430 million deal with the los angeles angels. to put that in perspective, trout is going to make three times more than it costs to build the stadium that he plays in. he's the first $400 million man in sports. the angels re-signed mike trout for numbers that are eye popping. 12 years and $430 million, about 36 million annually. the 27-year-old is already considered by many to be the best player in the game.

in his seven full seasons he's won the american league most valuable player twice and come in second another four times. >> when you look back at mike's career, you're going to talk about mike in the same breath as ruth, dimaggio, william, maize, mantle, he's that kind of a player. >> i want to play like mike trout. >> center field, oh, he did it again! come on! >> when asked about a possible new contract earlier in the week, trout played it coy. >> i'm not going to talk about that. like i said, i'm going to get ready for spring, get ready for the season. >> reporter: if it seems like these massive sports paydays are getting more frequent, they are. three of the largest contracts in sports history have all come within the past month. trout, bryce harper joining the phillies and manny machado

heading to the san diego padres. nine of the top ten contracts in sports all major league baseball. trout's angels able to afford the massive contract in part because of the new tv deals bringing in big bucks. trout's is the largest total contract in sports history. >> that's drilled out to right center field. score! >> reporter: though his 36 million annual salary is still slightly behind basketball's steph curry who earns over 37 million a year with his shorter contract, but his $400 million blockbuster deal is pulling in more cash than many bona fide box office hits out earning what jurassic park and disney's the lion king made domestically. >> he's going to make about $220,000 a game, which breaks down to about 55,000 per at-bat. we did the math, outside the season just regular saturday or

sunday, $99,000 every day. >> just waking up. >> just waking up. >> there's an article this morning i read that they're saying it's actually a good deal. >> what? >> what do you mean? >> if you break down the analytics, which baseball is projecting him out 15 years from now versus value for a player like him, the best player through age 26 baseball's ever had, it's a deal. they said it could have been double that. >> wow. >> it presupposes that he stays healthy. >> he's a big weather fan, too. >> is he? >> he's done weather with jim cantore. >> now it's your turn. >> yeah. straight ahead, carrie underwood gets real about bouncing back after having her second baby. and jill's steals and deals is going to help you create the kitchen of your dreams, there she is. after your local news and weather. and jill's where does your almondmilk come from? almond breeze starts here with our almond trees in our blue diamond orchard in california. my parents' job is to look after them. at almond breeze we only use california grown blue diamond almonds

in our almondmilk. ♪ and it's my job to test the product. the best almonds make the best almondmilk. blue diamond almond breeze. and now the best almonds also make the best almondmilk creamer. before she puts them in the dishwasher. so what does the dishwasher do? (vo) cascade platinum does the work for you. prewashing and removing stuck-on foods, the first time. (mom) wow! that's clean! (vo) cascade platinum.

and back pain made it hard to sleep and get up on time. then i found aleve pm. the only one to combine a safe sleep aid, plus the 12 hour pain relieving strength of aleve. i'm back. aleve pm for a better am. so we improved everything.g. we used 50% fewer ingredients. added one-handed pumps. and beat the top safety standards. johnson's® choose gentle. (lisa) tax rkinda like this stuff. tax reform with h&r block... ah, much better. (lisa vo) no one knows tax reform better than block. in person or online. block has your back.

we all care about amazing taste. that's why we've been making the best mayonnaise for over 100 years. best foods. we're on the side of food. oh no. your new boss seems cool, but she might not be sweatpants cool. not quite ready to face the day? that's why we're here with free hot breakfast. book at hampton.com for our price match guarantee. hampton by hilton. [indistinct conversation] [friend] i've never seen that before. ♪ ♪ i have... ♪

good wednesday morning. we are under a microclimate weather alert as we track a new round of rain across the bay area for the morning commute. it has become more scattered and we're not seeing all the rain but it's still pouring in san francisco, down to where we have storm ranger parked on san bruno mountain into the south city area. we will see the off and on rain starting to become a little bit more tapering off as we go into the afternoon, becoming more widely scattered, and then for tomorrow, mostly sunny skies. we will have a new storm arriving on friday that will bring us some more scattered showers, that one also not looking like a strong storm. we'll dry out for the rest of the weekend, but we may be tracking some heavier rain in the forecast early next week, starting out late monday into tuesday, and for san francisco, a big dip in our temperatures today, mid to upper 50s the rest of the week, and we will see

some more scattered showers. we'll track that with more live updates throughout the day. mike, let's get an update on the commute. >> things are drier than they were before this morning. you see slick roadways around and jammed up, 101 bottom of your screen on the left coming up out of burlingame toward the split with 280. we have a big jam, an earlier crash tied things up a lot getting into san francisco. same thing for the east bay, approaches toward the maze. there is the richmond to san rafael bridge, rain actively falling, slick conditions. be careful. we'll send it back to you. >> good advice. thank you very much. 7:57. happening now, san jose is working to streamline the city's 911 and 311 response networks. on our twitter feed a link to the story including how dispatchers are struggling with the load. one down, 161 to go, the a's earlier this morning opened the major league baseball season in tokyo, where it's already wednesday night. as for the game, well, you can't win 'em all. they didn't win this one, but

there's a lot more to go. head to our home page for all the destataidetails. a bay area - flying purchase is grounded. our consumer team parachutes in to help. plus--march madness! east bay )s st. mary )s college basketball heads to the first round of the n-c-a-a tournament tomorrow! the watch parties you can attend cheering on the gaels! tomorrow from 4:30 to 7. ♪ no hormones! ♪ i found a birth control ♪ with no hormones! ♪ paragard's 100% hormone free ♪ and over 99% effective,

♪ that's key! ♪ no hormones! ♪ not an ounce, ♪ with an ingredient ♪ i can pronounce. paragard is a hormone-free iud that's over 99% effective at preventing pregnancy. if you experience pain, pelvic infection, or miss a period, call your healthcare provider. pregnancy is rare but serious and can cause infertility or loss of pregnancy. rarely, paragard may attach to or go through the uterus. want hormone free? ask for paragard by name. why are all these business owners so excited? we're going to comcast. it's ahead of the game, ahead of the curve. it's going to add to the productivity of our business. it's switch and save days at comcast business. right now, get fast, reliable internet for $49.95 a month and save $600 a year. just one more way we take your business beyond. but hurry, switch and save days ends april 7th. internet that's reliable. internet that's fast. that's super important. i just want to get it right now. call today. comcast business. beyond fast.

. it's 8:00 on "today," coming up, inside the cockpit, just released voice recordings from one of the 737 max crashes, the pilots struggling to read the manual. what does this mean for the grounded fleet? we're live with the latest. plus, medical breakthrough, the new drug just approved by the fda to treat post partum depression, what new moms need to know about this first of its kind treatment. and secret struggles, tv host wendy williams opens up about her battle with addiction. >> for some time now and even

today and beyond i have been living in a sober house. >> what she's saying about that ongoing struggle and the messages of support pouring in from all over, today, wednesday, march 20th, 2019. ♪ oh, i finally figured it out >> 1,900 miles away from our neck of the woods, fayetteville, arkansas. >> hi to my family and friends in tennessee. >> from st. louis, happy first day of spring! ♪ hi to our mom in cincinnati, ohio. >> we love you and sonny does too. >> we're enjoying the last snow of the year here in ohio. >> celebrating angie's 60th at "today"! >> my dream come true! >> that is just the sweetest, plaza full of dreams come true on a wednesday morning. our dream is coming true. spring is finally here. >> yes, it is. >> it is knocking on the door.

>> look at that crowd. >> that crowd is pretty phenomenal. if you're sitting at home saying how can i get in on this, we're waiting for you. send us a video with t the #mytodayplaza. look for yourself, you never know in the morning. >> right here on "today." it is a busy morning, here's the news at 8:00. we start with the breaking news about that doomed lion air jet that crashed in october. tom costello covers aviation for us. he's got the latest. t tom good morning. >> reporter: reuter ss reporting this morning that the pilots of that doomed lion air flight in october were struggling amongst themselves to figure out why was their plane in this fatal nose dive headed right for the water. they were talking back and forth, and actually consulting with one of their manuals, but they were unable to figure out what the problem was and ultimately the plane crashed. however, the day before that same plane was involved in another close call. in that case, a pilot who was

deadheading, in other words, catching a ride in the cockpit, he recognized what the problem was, the same problem. he said disconnect the mcas system, that automated software program we've been talking about for so long. they did, they disconnected it, and the plane landed safely. the next day the fatal trip. today captain sully sullenberger known for his miracle on the hudson landing is blasting the faa and boeing saying the relationship between those two is far too cozy with the regulator delegating some of its inspection authority to boeing itself. he says that's unhealthy, and now we have two fatal plane crashes in five months. the inferno that started sunday at a chemical storage site near houston was finally however, crews will keep spraying foam and water on storage tanks to keep them from reigniting. at one point, a smoke plume from that fire extended more than 150 mil

miles. there have been no serious injuries reported so far, but concerns havele been raised abo air quality. the company officials insist they have not detected any immediate health hazards. all right, we have an important medical breakthrough to tell you about. the fda has approved the first drug specifically developed to treat postpartum depression. dr. natalie azar is here with a closer look. put this in perspective forcl u >> yes. >> this is on the front i page every paper. >> it is. >> howth big of a deal is this breakthrough? >> hoda, this is incredibly welcome news for the thousands of women who suffer from postpartum depression. f so,fe what is this drug? this drug is actually a synthetic version, so a made version of a hormone that is normally produced by progesterone. and wee talk about progesteronea lot in the postpartum period, that those levels plummet. >> right. >> and that's one of the major explanations for why women suffer from postpartum depression.t so, it's a very, very targeted therapy, a very unique drug for this particular setting. >> butr it's not a pill that yo

take. >> correct. >> so let me ask, at any time if you experience a postpartum depression, say in the year following the birth of a child, you could go in and get this treatment, but you've gotot to to a hospital. >> tso, correct. absolutely, savannah. theoretically, anybody could be a candidate for getting this medicine. i think we're going to see it mostly in women who are suffering frome' moderate to severe postpartum depression where we need to see a response veryry quickly because the drug worked very quickly, within hours to days. >> wow. >> and also for women who have failed standard htreatment. >> and does it last? like, if you take that treatment? >> so, they only followed women out for about 30 days. we'll see in terms of more long-term benefits. but as you mentioned, savannah, it is something that has to be administered in a medical center or a supervised setting. one of the main side effects happened to be fainting and also some dizziness. so patients had to be monitore. they did well, were able to complete -- >> soo it comes through an iv ad you're laying in a hospital. >> and it'sou very expensive. >> $20,000. why so expensive? >> look, most new drug

therapies, especially intravenous therapies, are going to have a pretty big price tag. we are hoping because it is fda approved that insurance companies will cover it.ta we'ree waiting. the researchers are waiting to get sfda approval for use of it during breastfeeding. researchers optimistic that that will be the case. >> thanks. >>f very exciting news. >> thanks. >> thank you, hahanatalie. a police p pursuit in los angeles ended with some moves that nobody expected. highway patrol officers purposely hit the suspect's car, forcing him to spin out and stop. and then with guns drawn, they ordered the driver to step out, keep his hands up. he starts to comply andds then pulls this stunt. >> dancing in the middle of the street there. dancing in thetu middle of laur canyon. appears to be some type of break-dancing. >> yep. that happened. the suspectny eventually raised his shirt to show he wasn't armed, then he waited patiently handcuffed and arrested. >> not to speculate, but i would assume perhaps drugs and/or alcohol may have been -- >> something. yeah, i didn't seet the break-dancing coming. it's time for your "morning boost." you're y going to love this one.

savannah textedte me this last night. a soldier came home to tennessee early afterer nearly a year in e middle east. staff sergeant robert sestranino came into the tae kwon do class where the boy was blindfolded. but he drops a hint calling the boy by his nickname. >> daddy? >> oh. >> i know, every time. >> thatt 9-year-old overcome by emotion, by the way. sergeant sestranino has three older children who served in the military. he had special praise for his wife, the way she holds everything together. that is pretty perfect. >> i know. i think i sent you, there's like a two-minute sparring thing that goes non, and then he says "daddy," and it's just a crusher. even craig is crying. >> we should stop.

we should stop with -- we've got to stop -- >> every time i think we've seen --e it doesn't matter. >> yeah. >> i would watch it all daywa long. it's's beautiful. >> it is reallyy dusty in studi 1a. just ahead, a huge challenge, huge challenge, apparently. >> okay, okay. >> for the home edit team. >> could they organize hoda kotb'sco closet? we're about to find out. but first, a tearfulul admission from talk show host wendy williams. she reveals that she's living right now in a sober house. she's battling her addiction while she works on television every a single day. and theor messages of support ts morning, they are pouring in from her fans, right after this. i can't believe it. that we're playing "four on four" with a barbershop quartet? [quartet singing] bum bum bum bum... pass the ball... pass the rock.. ...we're open just pass the ball! no, i can't believe how easy it was to save hundreds of dollars on my car insurance with geico. yea. [quartet singing] shoot the j! shoot, shoot, shoot the jaaaaaay...

believe it! geico could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. believe it! geico could save you fifteen percent ...used almost everywhere on almost everybody. like the arm of an angel. or the leg of this little guy. for ages 2 and up, prescription eucrisa works at and below the surface of the skin. it blocks overactive pde4 enzymes which is believed to reduce inflammation. and it's steroid-free. do not use if you are allergic to eucrisa or its ingredients. allergic reactions may occur at or near the application site. the most common side effect is application site pain. ask your doctor about eucrisa. everof coursechool hshe wants that one.. and she wants the one with the doodads. no one has the one with doodads yet. because no one can find it. for the glittery one, and the one with doodads. ebay. even if you don't know what you're doing in the kitchen like me, we are going to help you

heat things up, steals and deals style. a haze ] ♪ werk it now ♪ woo, werk it now, woo, werk it now ♪ ♪ baby watch me werk it like ♪ ♪ werk it now, woo. werk it now ♪ ♪ baby, baby, baby ♪ baby watch me werk it now we all care about amazing taste. that's why we've been making the best mayonnaise for over 100 years. best foods. we're on the side of food. what does it take to work that's a great question. if you'd stop in a monsoon to help someone change a tire, save a whale that had beached itself... you're gonna be ok big guy. push! lend a hand in an old-timey barn raising... you got it, jebediah! and if the middle school dance group was down one member and you'd step in and lead them all the way to glory... yes! then carmax is for you, because helping people is what our people are all about.

[zara larsson - "wow"] ♪ ♪ baby i'm not even in a gown ♪ and the only thing u have to say is wow ♪ ♪ make you're jaw drop drop say oh my drop drop drop ♪ ♪ make u say oh my god my drop drop ♪ ♪ make you're jaw drop make u say oh my god ♪ ♪ and you never felt this type of emotion ♪ ♪ make you're jaw drop drop say oh my drop drop drop ♪ ♪ make u say oh my god my drop drop ♪ ♪ make you're jaw drop make u say oh my god ♪ we're back with more of our series "battling addiction today." as popular tv host wendy williams gets candid about her struggle. >> yeah, on her show yesterday, the 54-year-old shared what she called her truth, revealing that she is living in a sober house to deal with her addiction issues. >> nbc's senior national correspondent kate snow joins us now. kate, you've reported on

substance abuse for years. this was an incredibly brave thing for her to talk about. >> it was. >> you've been to some of these facilities. >> i have. i have. and it was brave of her. i've talked to so many people who go into recovery and then they transition back to everyday life by living in these sober homes. now they're in the spotlight, as wendy williams tearfully shared her struggles. >> well, for some time now, and even today and beyond, i have been living in a sober house. >> reporter: an emotional wendy williams opening up on her talk show tuesday, saying she's been attending several support meetings every day. >> they don't know i'm wendy. they don't care i'm wendy. there's no autographs. there's no nothing. it's the brothers and sisters caught up in the struggle, and it's been really interesting. this ride. >> reporter: the longtime host revealing only her husband and her son knew. >> not my parents, nobody.

nobody knew, because i look so glamorous out here. >> reporter: sharing details about her sober home, this photo taken out of it just yesterday. >> i am driven by my 24-hour sober coach back to a home that i live in here in the tri-state with a bunch of smelly boys who have become my family. lights out by 10:00 p.m., so i go to my room and i stare at the ceiling and i fall asleep to wake up to come back here to see you. so, that is my truth. >> reporter: williams has been open in the past about abusing cocaine, saying she was able to stop without formal treatment. she didn't clarify what brought her to the sober home now. >> either you're calling me crazy or the bravest woman you know. i don't care. >> reporter: her candid talk applauded by many. aerosmith singer steven tyler

tweeting "you know what's brave? admitting your failure, admitting your trufz without a care for judgment." >> thank you so much for waiting for us. >> reporter: williams returned to her show on march 4th after being off the air since december, her family saying in january she was taking an extended leave to focus on her personal and physical well-being, telling fans she would be seeking treatment for complications with graves disease, a diagnosis she revealed last year. >> i don't need an operation. >> reporter: williams also fractured her shoulder last year. and when she slurred her words on air, she said she was taking pain medication, that on the heels of a 2017 halloween show where williams fainted, saying she overheated in her costume. for those struggling with substance abuse, sober living can be key to recovery. the home's a bridge between recovery from substance abuse and independent living, allowing people to live their everyday lives while still having support around them. >> how are you? >> good, how are you?

>> reporter: a few years ago, i visited faith farm ministries in florida where robin otto shares what it's like living a sober home. >> they're on the same path. >> the same path as i am and the same place. no matter their background, they were still here doing the same thing i'm doing. >> reporter: it's the concept williams talked about, now urging others to find help. >> there are people in your family, it might be you, who have been struggling. williams recently launched a hotline for people struggling with substance abuse as part of her foundation that supports drug education prevention and rehabilitation programs. plenty of people praising her for being brave and speaking out, hoping that such a public person talking openly about sober living might help reduce the shame and the stigma. and i just want to tell you guys, ryan, who we just showed in the piece who we visited three years ago. i met him five years ago. his mother thought that he would die. >> wow. >> i mean, he was in terrible shape. and he is now married. he got married in october.

>> wow. >> just for anyone who remembers his story, i am so proud to say he is doing so well. >> nice. >> so really, it can work. people can come out the other side. >> it's very brave of her to open up and say this isn't something that happened in the past, this is something happening now, today, this morning, this afternoon. i mean, that's just incredibly krou courageous. and i think to shine a light on what it means to live as a sober person that it's an everyday struggle and a battle. and she's saying, like, i'm doing it every day, and it isn't easy. >> that's right. and i say all the time, everyone has mental health, you know? so there's no shame in talking about it and saying what your struggles are. >> i got to see her just last week on her show, and i've got to tell you, there was a vulnerability and a strength about her. and i've kind of always admired that she's always stood up. and when that day happened, i was a little surprised. i knew something didn't feel right in that moment, but watching her stand up and say her truth, man, it made you feel good, really good. >> she's always lived out loud. our thoughts and prayers are with wendy. we've been fans for a while.

>> rooting for you. mr. roker, how about a check of the first day of spring forecast? >> that's right, almost first day of spring, looking good. anyway, we're expecting to see a developing storm along the southeastern atlantic coast, affecting the northeast tomorrow into friday. high surf advisories southern california, mountain snows back through the rockies. high surf advisories also along the eastern shore of the coast of florida. we're looking at sunny skies around the gulf coast and the plains are looking nice as . i'm meteorologist kari hall. a live look at storm ranger, mobile doppler radar. the rain tapering off. just some scattered showers while it continues to move into the north bay. we will see a lot more, some widely scattered showers going into the afternoon. and a little bit more clearing in time for the evening commute. tomorrow looks nice and sunny. highs in the low 60s. another storm system moves in on friday, brings more rain into the first part of the weekend.

and that's your latest weather. >> all right, mr. roker. how about a little "pop start"? >> why not? >> the first official trailer for "toy story 4." in the trailer we see the franchise pick up with a new toy when it's added to the group. >> everyone, bonnie made a friend in class. >> oh, she's already making friends. >> no, no, she literally made a new friend. i want you to meet forky! >> hi. >> hello. >> ah! >> he's a spork. >> yes, i know. >> forky is the most important toy to bonnie right now. we all have to make sure nothing happens to him. >> woody, we have a situation. >> i am not a toy! i was made for soup, salad, maybe chili, and then the trash! >> buzz, we've got to get forky! >> affirmative. >> ow! >> huh? >> and so, the journey to get forky back to bonnie begins. we're going to also meet some new characters in the film as

well as see the return of some of our favorites. "toy story 4," very excited, hits theater yours june 21st. carrie underwood opening up about body image since the birth of her son jacob, admitting that getting back into shape after her second pregnancy has been tougher than the first, posting on instagram "i get to the gym and i can't run as fast or as far, i can't lift as much weight or do as many reps as i could a year ago. i just want to feel like mey myself again" and adds "right now i promise to myself to start appreciating what i can do and stop focusing on what i can't. i promise to stop analyzing every angle and every pound and every meal, focus on the journey." by the way, she looks amazing. will smith on an upcoming episode of his facebook watch show "bucket list," will heads to cuba with the goal of running a half marathon. and in an exclusive clip, we hear from the actor about why he wants to take the challenge on. >> in my deepest honesty with myself, i really am not sure i can run 13 miles.

my father died about a year and a half ago, and it didn't hit me so much emotionally as it hit me existentially. it was like, oh, [ bleep ], i'm next. in terms of pushing my body, i want to keep my body conditioned, and more than anything, i want to keep my mind strong. it's like -- >> smith only trained for three weeks before the race. to get ready, he did some pretty intense exercises, like carrying 45-pound weights, as you see there, under water. the race took place back in november. if you'd like to see whether or not he accomplished his goal, you can watch the full episode of "will smith's bucket list" on facebook watch later today. michael buble, the crooner returning to nbc tonight in his seventh music special for the network, simply called "buble," or is it bubbly? we have an exclusive first look at his performance, here singing "it's a beautiful day." ♪ it's a beautiful day and i

can't stop myself from smiling ♪ ♪ if we're drinking then i'm buying, i know there's no denying, yeah ♪ >> looking and sounding great. good to see bubbly. you can watch it tonight, 10:00 p.m. right here on nbc. >> cool. now on this first day of spring, more of our "spring clean today" series. the home team was here yesterday sharing tips and advice, but they have a real challenge before them. >> they are in high demand organizing celebrity homes, but their latest job was not glamorous at all. it was cleaning out my closet. >> we are professionals here. >> professional what? >> meet joanna and clea. >> put everything into different categories. >> today, they make up the home edit, some of the most sought-after home organizers in the business. their work is a work of art. their signature rainbow aesthetics, matching bins and baskets and labels galore. their immaculate spaces earn them a full roster of a-list

clients. >> oh, my! >> some mandy moore's pantry to gwyneth paltrow's play room. and the homes of khloe kardashian, kacey musgraves and dwyane wade. with a million instagram followers, a tv series called "master the mess" and a brand-new book called "the home edit," klea and joanna are decluttering and dominating. their last project was a major closet cleanup. it's like a landfill. and that mess was mine. come here, come here. okay, is this neat or messy? >> messy. >> what? >> hello! >> hi! >> look who's here! i know you guys have seen some big, amazing closets, okay? this is the opposite of that. okay, are you ready? >> we're so ready. >> we're ready. >> ta da! >> hey -- >> you know -- >> there's a lot of room to improve. >> okay. >> we just have to get rid of a few things. we want to keep a space 80% full, so you have room to move, room to grow. so if we could get rid of about

20% -- >> are you horrified? >> no! >> not even afraid. >> but later -- >> oh, god. >> oh, dear. >> -- they'll realize they were so wrong. >> what about this? >> yes, that i love. my closet cleanout was officially under way. no. >> oh, my gosh! you're so fun. >> no xp by the. way, are those ski pants? okay, i have never gone skiing. how many saints jerseys do i have? >> four. >> no. >> okay, we will keep all of these. >> this is awesome! i can't believe it. >> i know! >> in the depths of my closet, we found the unimaginable. >> why are there socks in a mug? >> there's socks. >> i just want to move into the bathroom, is all i'm saying. some cards that did not get sent. brochure for a cruise ship. where did you find that? that's a mary poppins drawer. >> and just like mary poppins, my handbags were bottomless. >> there's just one shoe! >> one shoe. >> more pepsid. >> raisers? >> a razor?

>> excuse me, while i cut -- why are there two razors? >> after sorting what to keep and what to donate -- good luck. all right. i let the home edit team get to work. >> we could do boot boxes. how many boots? >> on with baskets, boxes and hangers, the girls folded and finessed, sorted by color and style. >> look how happy, klea, bathing suits? >> maximizing every inch of my closet. the puzzle was almost complete when -- >> this is getting chaotic. >> we have to make a choice. >> where are the boots going to go? we were very pleased with our progress, but we've hit a snag. >> yeah, we did. >> we have to compromise over a shoe box situation -- >> compromise is not very friendly to either of us. >> no. >> after a few finishing touches, my home edit was done. >> are we done? >> yeah! >> so ready! >> let's go! >> okay, go. one, two, three, open it! ah!

okay, this is unbelievable! >> and smart. >> i kind of want to start crying. >> it's everything that you use and love. even your journals are, like, on display. >> oh, my god! >> these are all sweaters and tops, and these are all pants and jackets. >> so all the stuff that comes out of your purse or into your purse lives right here. this is sweatshirts. and then last but not least, bathing suits, cover-ups and tanks. >> oh, my god! you guys, i love it. i don't know how to thank you. clearing the clutter and the chaos and finding peace at home. >> wow. >> the only one more surprised than me was joel. he was like, oh, my god! and i've left it open and clean. >> what's it look like now? >> that is incredible. >> it's still okay. it's not perfect. >> that's a work of art. >> they're incredible. if they get that excited to do the things we procrastinate and don't like to do. >> and they're coming to savannah's house next. >> i don't have a play room, just toy clutter. they're going to get control of

it. >> clean it up? >> yes, can't wait. >> for more spring cleaning ideas, including a room-by-room guide, check it out at today.com. >> love that. while we're on the subject of sprucing up homes,good morni. i )m ... a live look in san rafael. we )re in a microclimate weather alert .. and in the past it's 8:26. a live look in san rafael where a microclimate weather alert and in the past half hour, we've seen a lot of rain moving through there. meteorologist kari hall has been tracking conditions throughout the bay area. >> a wet morning commute. looking at storm ranger, radar showing still scattered showers. it was more widespread earlier this morning. the rain working its way into the north bay. we are going to see the rain off and on for next couple hours and then start to taper off going into the rest of the day. a wet morning commute but a dry evening commute. then we'll see a break in the activity going into the rest of

the day. into tomorrow. but then by friday, a new storm moves in. we'll be tracking that. an update from mike. >> b.a.r.t. continues with the major delay. over 20 minutes for the castro valley area, dublin pless sabtton line. it's an equipment problem, not weather related. wet roadways is the weather we're worried about. very slow in patches through oakland and the 24 interchange. oakland a live shot past the coliseum. slippery conditions there. a crash cleared from 101 south through san rafael. better flow approaching san pedro road. >> more local news coming up in 30 minutes.

hey, everybody, welcome back. it is 8:30 on a wednesday, march the 20th. mark your calendars. today is the very first day of spring. it actually, al says, begins at 5:58. >> 5:58, yes. >> 5:58 this evening, but we do have a rolling spring break crowd here, so we want to say hi to everybody.

>> a lot of birthdays, too, a lot of springy birthdays. >> you got a crowd moment? >> let's say hi to the folks, i've got sunny with me, take a little walk. hi everybody, let's stop right here. what are your names? >> rhonda. >> william. >> how you doing? where are you from? >> pendleton, indiana. >> how's new york treating you? >> it's fabulous, warm weather, sunny skies. >> lovely. you had a dream about florida. you're missing somebody. >> we're missing maddox, tour 11-year-old, the only thing he wanted to do is come to new york and get on tv. >> where's maddox? >> he's in jersey city. >> doing what? >> he's watching right now. >> you want to say hi to maddux. >> let's say hi to maddux one, two, three, you guys worked him hard last night, he was too tired, right? >> ten miles. >> tough for an 11-year-old. >> enjoy your stay maddux, we're

thinking about you buddy. come back and see us. >> we love that it's the first day of spring. it's also plant a seed day. just ahead we're going to do that very thing with members of the musk family as we catch up with elon's brother and super model mom who are getting together for a great cause. also ahead this morning, jill martin's here with a special steals and deals on products that will make the kitchen your favorite room in the house. >> oh. >> also in studio 1a, dean lewis is here going to perform the number one song on billboard's adult pop chart, you're going to know it when you hear it. it's fantastic. he's about to show us why he is so darn good. and coming up on the third hour of "today," can you believe that they have been married 15 years already? we're going to be catching up with the original bachelorette couple trista and ryan, and we've got the producer challenge where all of us have to bring you our favorite spring tips. >> i like that.

and guess who's hosting with me today at 10:00. >> who's that? >> carson daly! >> boom shakalaka. >> double duty. >> mr. roker, you've got a check of the weather. a developing storm along the southeast coast, high surf along wi the california coast. rain through the mississippi river valley. for tomorrow heavy rain starts to make its way up the mid-atlantic and into the northeast, mild in the rockies, mountain snows in the central and southern rockies. sunshine from the gulf coast all the way up good morning. i'm meteorologist kari hall. it's been a soggy morning commute. the rain is becoming a lot more scattered but still pouring heavily in parts of the north bay. the rain winding down. still wet roads in the south bay as we go into the next several days, we'll catch a break from the downpours for tomorrow and see a new storm arrive on friday. that will move out on early

saturday morning for a dry sunday. and then we'll be tracking more rain early next week. >> don't forget, you can always take the "today" show with you, just go to "today" show sirius xm channel 108, and you can take us with you. back inside. all right, al, thank you. now to our special kitchen edition of steels aals and deal today lifestyle contributor jill martin is cooking up big discounts on tools and appliances to help you build your kitchen. a lot of people are going to be interested in this one, jill. >> full disclosure, i'm not very comfortable in the kitchen. you're not quite the chef as well. >> right. >> however, i saw your spring cleaning piece of your closet, amazing s and we want to do that in the kitchen, too. even if you don't cook, some of these things may motivate you. maybe i want to redo my kitchen as well. starting with the olivia stand mixer. the retail is 349. this is a mixer. it makes everything quicker. the bowl is stainless steel.

it comes in red or silver, it comes with the whisk, the beater, and then the dough hook. if you pour this in. >> okay, you want me to do that? >> okay. now what? >> you're much better than me. it has different speeds. we didn't put the power on, but it works. >> that's okay. >> it would be powered up. and so the deal on this is 125. it's 64% off. a lot of the kitchen makers are very heavy, this is actually really light, so if you -- >> that's a good one. >> so baking set. your mini me and you, she has started with her baking set, but this is the alder creek baker set. it's a luxury set, the retail 117.99. it comes with an assortment of gourmet food. the scones actually -- i did not make them so you can try them if you want. comes in here. there's also the coffee and the tea, but really well-known brands, and it comes wrapped like this, so a great gift, and you can make pancakes with this. >> it's a perfect house warming

gift to show up at someone's house. >> retail 117.99, the deal 47. >> okay. the pressure cooker, retail $249.99. you get the four quarter and the six-quarter pressure cooker, and it's stainless steel cooking. for roasting, for steaming, this i'm told is a time saver, quick for chicken, for rice, for stock, you can save almost a quarter of the time by using this, and it's like a one stop shop. >> i feel like pressure cookers were so big so long ago, and they came right back in, didn't they? >> do you use a pressure cooker? >> i don't. i have a new york apartment. you can only have like a certain number of pans and pots and things. i streamline, so no. >> so the retail $249.99, the deal $95, 62% off. >> a knife set, if you could try to chop here. i won't even give you advice for how to do it. for those of you who want to learn this is a really good

knife. the retail 131. it's a six-piece definition prep set. >> i'm putting no pressure on this knife, and it's slicing, literally, look at this. >> with precision they're known for. they're dishwasher safe, which i also think is important. the retail 131, the deal $42. 70% off. >> and it comes with the scissors too? >> yes. >> and the sharpener. >> perfect. this the phantom cook ware frying pain, the retail $79.99. i misspoke saying you don't cook. you do have a signature dish, right? ty tilapia? >> what's great about these pans $79.99, the retail, the 8 inch and 11 inch, but they come in these fun colors. sometimes in the lighter colors it will start to look tarnished, they're really fun. if you keep your pans out, they come in these bright colors. they're nonstick, oven safe up to 500 degrees, the retail

79.99. the deal $19.50. >> they're not super heavy. these are great. love, love. >> now, how do you cook? last night eric and i went to milk bar to try out -- have you ever been there? >> it's cereal milk so the ice cream has the cereal left over. it's on my insta story right now. this is how you could actually do it at home, which is so exciting. the penguin random house cooker set, there's 18 sets to choose from, and a lot of our friends "today" show pals, giada, you have the pressure cooker book. that goes with the pressure cooker if you're getting that, bobby flay, the retail 57.50 to 78.97. the deal $24. this is a whole situation. it's a megadeal. this is the countertop steam oven, the retail 499.99. >> it's a steam oven? >> this is an extra set of hands for the countertop oven.

you pour the water in here, and then it steams it, so you could cook with super heated steam, to toast, to warm, to bake, to reheat, to broil, to grill. apparently if you are making a lot and you need more spaces to cook, so the retail 499.99, the deal 249. 50% off. we have the stand mixer, baking gift sets, we've got the pressure cooker frand the ja ha ls knife set, a frying pan set, a cook ware set from penguin random house, and the sharp countertop steam oven. you can find all these deals at today.com/deals. just ahead, we're about to get our hands a little bit dirty with the musks in honor of plant a seed day. shall we plant a seed? >> i'm going to put a hole in here for you. >> put it right there. first this is "today" on nbc. >> did i get

welcome back, as we mentioned, it is not only the first day of spring but also the first ever plant a seed day. this is part of a national campaign by the nonprofit big green really trying to encourage families to grow healthy food and learn more about how that food gets to our plates. kimbal musk is here along with his mom dietitian and super model. good morning, welcome. >> thank you. >> this is all about these learning gardens. why did you get interested in this issue? >> we watched how school gardens have made such a difference over the past 100 years and learning gardens are a more scaleable, more durable, easier to teach in environment. we have built 600 of these learning gardens across the country in detroit, chicago, l.a., denver, memphis, indianapolis and pittsburgh. >> you can see that some of our anchors are here with some of the kids planting seeds this morning. these aren't decorative plants.

this isn't a garden to admire. this is stuff you're hoping people can eat. >> absolutely. over here we have chard, spinach, carson's planting kale over there, i know he's not a huge fan of healthy food. if he bakes it, it will be better than french fries. >> he's okay for healthy food, if he has a cocktail with it. mrs. musk you're a dietitian in your own right, you've got these incredible children, why is this important? why did you want to get involved? >> as a dietitian for 50 years and i've never had anyone who eats enough fruits and vegetables. >> true. >> and so now we can eat more fruits and vegetables and we can encourage children who actually don't have access to vegetables to eat more, and now people in australia, in japan, they're getting plant seeds too.

>> kimbal you had great success with paypal, you could have done anything in the world, why was this important to you? >> i grew up cooking. my mother's an amazing dietitian, but i'm the better cook. >> and you became a chef, right? >> i became a chef exactly. i trained in new york. i saw how good real food tastes if it's freshly grown, and teaching kids that delicious food comes out of the ground was just something that i needed to do, and connect kids around the world with food. plant a seed day is taking the learning gardens to another level where we hope to reach every child in the world by letting them plant a seed today on the first day of spring for what they believe in. >> so you plant a seed today. when are you going to see the fruits of your labor? >> these will harvest around memorial day. if you plant a seed today lettu lettuce, carrots, around memorial day is when you'll harvest. >> childhood obesity, another issue you both are very concerned about. >> yes.

that's why you need to increase fruits and vegetables, besides all the nutrients in them to keep you healthy, they fill you up, and you have less time for the fried foods. >> just put vegetables on your plate. it doesn't mean you don't eat the other things, put the vegetables on your plate and eat that too. >> your mom is always being asked, how did she raise these incredible children who have been so successful, now we know. with fruits and vegetables. >> fruits and vegetables. >> what's a simple way for families who think they don't have a learning garden near them but maybe want to get involved in this and teach their children about growing plants and the food we eat? >> in their backyard they can put a little fresh soil down and plant a seed today. inside their kitchen they could do a little plant of basil or herbs, and it teaches kids not just how delicious it tastes but teaches them about looking after something and it grows and thrives. >> it's beautiful. makes you feel good too. >> it's a pleasure to have you here. that you think so much. >> thank you so much. we're going to have more on the fourth hour as kathie lee pays a

visit to a special garden she helped create. we're going to get a live performance of his chart topping hit, dean lewis is here, but first this is "today" on nbc.

sarah's last tuition payment, sent off. feeling good? oh yeah. now i'm ready to focus on my project. ♪ ♪ this is why we plan. ♪ ♪ you never cease to amaze me, maya. see how investing with a j.p. morgan advisor can help you. visit your local chase branch.

>> announcer: the citi concert series on "today" is proudly presented to you by citi. sing me a song, dean, sing me a song. we're back with dean lewis, singer song writer from down under leaving his mark on the global music scene. his debut album a place we knew is out this friday, and it is fantastic. he's going to perform for us in a minute. dean, good to have you. congratulations to you and your mates from down under. >> they brought the band out, thank you so much. >> be all right is a huge song. what is that like to be an australian and have so much success here. >> it's so rare. you grow up hearing it's not a possibility. for the song to be connected over here, it's kind of blown

away our minds. >> incredible, you didn't start doing this writing and playing until 18 or 19. it happened late for you. >> i didn't think it was that good. i think a lot of people are like that. you're writing songs and you read them, and you're like oh, yeah it's all right. a lot of people came around me and first song came out. >> the new album is great. it's out on friday. be all right you already know, recently it's gone platinum, and we have hoda, your platinum plaque to deliver to you. >> oh, nothing, dean, just a platinum plaque. >> something for the tour bus. >> this is huge. >> how about that. >> that's something man, a platinum record here in the states is a huge deal. congratulations. >> this is amazing. thanks to my amazing record label and all my fans. thank you. >> pretty cool. >> thank you. >> i'm going to hold this for you, i promise. >> you all right? >> dean, fellas, thank you so much. take it away.

♪ to see your sad and tier ri eyes, you look away from me ♪ ♪ and i see there's something you're trying to hide ♪ ♪ and i reach for your hand, but it's cold, you pull away again ♪ ♪ and i wonder what's on your mind, and then you say to me you made a dumb mistake ♪ ♪ you start to tremble and your voice begins to break ♪ ♪ you say the cigarettes on the counter weren't your friends, they were my mate's ♪ ♪ and i feel the color draining from my face ♪ ♪ and my friend said i know you love her, but it's over mate ♪ ♪ it doesn't matter put the phone away ♪ ♪ it's never easy to walk away, let her go, it'll be all right ♪ ♪ so i still look back at all the messages you'd sent, and i know it wasn't right, but it was messing with my head ♪ ♪ and everything deleted like the past, it was gone, and when i touched your face, i could tell you're moving on ♪

♪ but it's not the fact that you kissed him yesterday, it's the feeling of betrayal that i just can't seem to shake ♪ ♪ and everything i know tells me that i should walk away, but i just want to stay ♪ ♪ and my friend said i know you love her, but it's over mate ♪ ♪ it doesn't matter put the phone away ♪ ♪ it's never easy to walk away, let her go, it'll be okay ♪ ♪ because it's going to hurt for a bit of time, so bottoms up, let's forget tonight ♪ ♪ you'll find another and you'll be just fine, let her go ♪ ♪ but nothing heals the past like time, and they can't steal the love you're born to find ♪

♪ nothing heals the past like time, and they can't steal the love you're born to find ♪ ♪ but i know you love her, but it's over mate, but it doesn't matter put the phone away ♪ ♪ it's never easy to walk away, let her go, it'll be okay ♪ ♪ because it's going to hurt for a bit of time, so bottoms up, let's forget tonight ♪ ♪ you'll find another, and you'll be just fine, let her go, it'll be all right ♪ ♪ it'll be all right, it'll be all right ♪

♪ it'll be all right, it'll be all right ♪ >> that's how you do it, ladies and gentlemen. dean lewis. fellas, thank you so much. >> thank you so much. >> who is your mate that told you that, the good advice? >> my brother. >> your brother, a smart man. >> thank you so much, a place we knew, that's in the record, pick it up on friday when it's out. good to see you. but first this is "today" on nbc

there's always more stories to enjoy at today.com/all day. it's very hungry caterpillar day. in honor of the 50th anniversary, we're sharing a list of 20 children's books that every nursery needs. that and more on today.com/allday. speaking of anniversaries it's a big one. >> jim gains, 30 years at nbc. >> here's to 30 more, jimmy.

>> he won't call for his own shot, will he? >> he should. >> someone push the button. >> he's going to take a shot later today. >> yes, he is. >> t right now at 8:56, we're in the last few hours of winter and we do have some rain still moving through the bay area. becoming a lot more spotty compared to the widespread rain earlier this morning. as it continues to move into the north bay, the rest of the day, we will see some hit or miss showers. but also some mostly cloudy skies and much cooler temperatures. we should see clearing tonight

and some sunshine tomorrow. at times. we'll have a new storm going into friday especially during the afternoon. that will continue into early saturday morning. so some off and on rain in the forecast and then drying as we head towards sunday. we'll be tracking more rain and also we'll also have more updates throughout the day. >> thanks, kari. happening now, ucsf workers are staging a one-day walkout involving pensions. pete is looking into the impact on appointments scheduled for today and have a live update at midday. >> one down, 161 to go. the a's opened up major league season in tokyo where it's already thursday morning. that's where the game you can't win them all. i'm marcus washington. a bay are-

flying purchase is grounded. our consumer team parachutes in to help. plus--march madness! east bay )s st. mary )s college basketball heads to the first round of the n-c-a-a tournament tomorrow! the watch parties you can attend cheering on the gaels! tomorrow from 4:30 to 7.

live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza, this is the third hour of "today." >> is that a new voice? >> it's a new voice. >> it's spring here. >> is it because it's spring? >> it's spring. >> spring has sprung, not quite. >> i feel like we impredressed spring. sheinelle and i did. >> the shirt underneath is kind of -- it's al roker. >> seriously, this is really pretty. yesterday we had snow behind it. >> now -- >> it's a whole new world. >> at some point -- >> that was