ready or not, here comes dorian, packing hurricane-force winds. the tropical storm is about to deliver a major punch with puerto rico bracing for impact >> never before have we ever seen a member of a private industry offer so much money to try to deal with a public health crisis of this magnitude >> on the heels of the johnson & johnson ruling purdue pharma is offering up to $12 billion to settle thousands of lawsuits but the clock is ticking >> shocking new dash cam video a stolen police suv slamming into another cruiser new surveillance shows the struggle just before the

high-speed chase and the tragic end two 6-year-old girls killed. what police just revealed about the suspect. to the varsity blues college admission scandal. as lori loughlin and her designer husband get a major warning from the judge about their defense. and what do harry styles, magic mushrooms and paul mccartney's "ram" have in common find out as we kick off your wednesday. "early today" starts right now good morning i'm frances rivera >> and i'm phillip mena. president trump has approved a disaster declaration for puerto rico tropical storm dorian could bring flooding and near hurricane-force winds to the island today meanwhile, some areas there have not fully recovered from hurricane maria. >> we are much more ready than we were. but there is one thing that we have this time that we didn't have before. >> what's that >> we're scared. >> the mayor of san juan says an estimated 30,000 people are still living under those b tarps, meaning even a weaker storm still poses a big risk

nbc meteorologist janessa webb is tracking dorian for us. good morning >> good morning. it's not about the intensity we're going to see a ton of rain also kind of a storm surge that's making its way in you can see the center of this storm is making its way into puerto rico. this has been this kind of up and down weather pattern with sustained winds fluctuating from 50 to 60 miles per hour in the last 24 hours. right now it's making its way northwest at 13 miles per hour so what you can count on, hispaniola, puerto rico, we're dealing with flooding rain but this is going to take a slow jog to the north here and then really gain some steam now florida, georgia, and south carolina are currently on our radar as well. >> that's the story of the day the week thank you so much, janessa breaking news. a bar fire in veracruz, mexico has left 23 people dead and 13 others ingjured.

a group of young men attacked the bar called the white horse launching molotov cocktails inside nbc news has yet to verify these reports. authorities are working to find the suspects behind the attack this city is known as one of the most violent inside the state of veracruz as dorian is about to batter puerto rico, the trump administration makes a surprising move, pulling $271 million from disaster relief funds to pump up the southern border it's a move that has outraged several congressional democrats with nancy pelosi calling it a brazen theft and chuck schumer tweeting that it's backwards and cruel. joining us from d.c. is craig boswell. craig, talk about timing >> wow phillip, good morning. good morning, everyone democratic lawmakers say this administration is going around laws passed by congress, overstepping powers, and undercutting homeland security this money is being pulled from the department of homeland security and from fema disaster relief funds this money is going to be used

now for housing and temporary hearing locations for asylum seekers. the administration believes it has the ability to redirect or repurpose these funds after congress didn't pass nor funding for i.c.e. detention beds in june the administration says the sudden rise in border crossings has overwhelmed resources at the border and contributed to the bad conditions for migrants. there were some 82,000 migrants apprehended at the border in july back in may it was 144,000 this money intended for fema in disaster relief to prepare for things like hurricanes, really tough timing on this as we are now moving phillip into the meat of hurricane season. back to you. >> that's right. all right. craig boswell from d.c. this morning. craig, thank you the trump administration is changing a policy that protects some of the nation's most vulnerable migrants. medical deferred action allows immigrants to remain in the country legally if a child or family member is receiving care

for a dire health condition. cases were overseen by u.s. citizenship and immigration services well, now a spokesperson says ice will oversee the program but according to npr that change was never made clear to immigrants in boston, who received denial letters and now face the threat of deportation one parent told the "globe," "i feel like my i feel like i'm signing my son's death warrant mariela sanchez, a honduran whose son suffers from cystic fibros fibrosis, told the paper "he would die without a doctor, without health, without medicine our current is not in any position to help him." massachusetts storn edward markey calls the move, "the most inhumane of all of donald trump's policies." a spokesperson says i.c.e. will review each case on its own merits but immigration advocates fear that won't actually happen. a family accuse of fueling the opioid epidemic wants to settle a wave of lawsuits. the owners of purdue pharma, which makes oxycontin, are offering up to $12 billion to end the cases stemming from the crisis

and according to the "new york times," 3 billion of that will come straight from the family's pockets. nbc's kristen dahlgren has more. >> reporter: hey, good morning, phillip. of course this news comes just a day after a judge ruled against johnson & johnson in a similar case though insiders tell us this has been in the works for some time. purdue pharma ready to make a deal the makers of oxycontin and its owners the sackler family offering between 10 and 12 billion dollars to settle more than 2,000 lawsuits linked to the opioid crisis. >> it's very significant never before have we ever seen a member of a private industry offer so much money to try to deal with a public health crisis of this magnitude. >> reporter: people familiar with the deal tell nbc news purdue would file for chapter 11 bankruptcy and restructure the company into a for profit trust run independently. profits from sale of the drugs would go to the cities, counties, and states who have accused 3urd yue of pushing the powerful painkillers despite

knowing the risks. video of former chairman dr. richard sackler's deposition published by pro publica >> the way the sales scheme was set up, if they sold more oxycontin they made more money, basically? >> yes yes. the same as almost every other company in the industry. >> reporter: the sackler family ranked by "forbes" as the 19th richest in america, didn't return our requests for comment. purdue tells nbc while it is prepared to defend itself it sees little good coming from years of wasted litigation the people and communities affected by the opioid crisis need help now. according to the cdc, opioids have claimed more than 400,000 lives from 1999 to 2017. and susan allen samuel, whose son joe survived an addiction to oxycontin, says purdue isn't doing enough >> and they quite frankly didn't give a damn and 10 to 12 billion dollars now, what is one life worth? >> reporter: so for now this is just a proposal.

but those familiar with the negotiations say purdue told the attorneys if they don't take this deal the company will declare bankruptcy, and they warned that could result in much less money phillip? >> all right, kristen, thank you. a powerful moment in federal court after more than a dozen of jeffrey epstein's accusers finally got their chance to speak out in front of a judge. many claimed they were abused by epstein as teens and then even after his suicide they're still seeking justice. nbc's stephanie gosk has more. >> reporter: jeffrey epstein isn't going to trial a federal judge still gave his accusers their day in court. to share what were at times harrowing stories of alleged sexual abuse >> i was recruited at a very young age from mar-a-lago and entrapped in a world that i didn't understand. >> reporter: shante davies says epstein raped her on his caribbean island and i ran fast as i could to my villa my feet bloody from the rocks. i cried myself to sleep that

night. >> reporter: 23 women issued statements in court, 12 anonymously. and while some were thankful for the opportunity there was also anger that epstein escaped accountability >> it was both empowering and infuriating to know that the person i needed to hear those words is not here to hear them >> reporter: the accusers and their attorneys called for more criminal charges >> we need to get to the bottom of everybody who was involved with that. starting with ghislaine maxwell. >> reporter: maxwell, who has not responded publicly since epstein's arrest in july, is accused of being his chief recruiter. something she has denied in the past five different women said maxwell played a key role in what prosecutors have called a sex trafficking ring >> it makes me sick to my stomach that there's perpetrators out there that obviously helped him in many ways for a very long time, and they're still out there with no punishment >> reporter: attorneys for the victims say their clients have been contacted as part of the ongoing federal investigation.

their stories after so many years not just being told but also heard >> stephanie gosk reporting. we turn now to dangerous fires still burning in the amazon brazil's president has issued an ultimatum. he's demanding an apology from france before he'll accept millions of dollars in global aid money. nbc's kerry sanders has the latest from brazil >> reporter: thousands of fires are still raging in the amazon but brazilian president jair bolsonaro is refusing $20 billion in emergency aid from g7 countries to fight those fires, calling it part of a colonial mentality. and now saying he'll only accept the money if he gets an apology from french president emmanuel macron on monday bolsonaro endorsed a facebook post mocking the appearance of macron's wife. macron responding saying bolsonaro was disrespectful. more than 26,000 fires have burned, many set illegally, to create cattle ranches for brazil's beef industry climate scientists say one of the most immediate impacts from

all of this is how much carbon is being released into the atmosphere the immensity of the fires overwhelming brazil's emergency responders environmentalists blame bolsonaro, who wants to open up more rainforests to industry we've reached what scientists believe could be a tipping point. if another 3% of the jungle here is destroyed, the lungs of the earth, as this is called, may go to a point of no return. president trump tweeting his support for bolsonaro, saying he's doing a great job bolsonaro responding, "we're fighting the wildfires with great success. but even brazil's environment minister says the area on fire is so vast bolsonaro should accept the emergency aid kerry sanders, nbc news, ondonia, brazil. >> waking up this morning and watching the tropics closely with the threat of dorian. let's check back in with jane a

janessa. >> now we have two tropical storms erin that is brewing as well out well toward the atlantic it's not going to be impacting any land areas maybe some higher surf across the areas. tough family, friends headed to the bahamas, erin is currently impacting that area as darialote look at the change in the weather pattern. back in the mid 70s. we have updates on this track. we'll take a look at that coming up >> thank you, janessa. in today's quick hits golf great tiger woods has revealed he underwent knee surgery woods said he had arthroscopic procedure to repair mild cartilage damage he said should be back to competing in october two-time fifa world soccer cup champion carli lloyd showed off her baseball skills before

the pirates-phillies game in philadelphia the two-time olympic gold medalist threw out the ceremonial first pitch for the world famous philly phanatic singer demi lovato is returning to her acting roots. the 27-year-old pop star announced she will appear in the il& acng and final season of "wl gre."early today" will be r back (speaking japanese) where am i? (woman speaking french) are you crazy/nuts? cyclist: pip! pip! (woman speaking french) i'm here, look at me. it's completely your fault. (man speaking french) ok? it's me. it's my fault? no, i can't believe how easy it was to save hundreds of dollars on my car insurance with geico. (pterodactyl screech) believe it. geico could save you 15% or more on car insurance. but one blows them allmany moisturizers... out of the water. hydro boost with hyaluronic acid to plump skin cells so it bounces back... neutrogena® and try our hydrating makeup.

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nbc's ron allen has that story >> repter: angry parents expected at a meeting in cherry hill, new jersey after a school official suggested enforcing a policy that would deny students meals until their parents fully pay overdue lunch money bills. >> i'm going to recommend as we start this new school year that we do adhere to our policy >> reporter: the policy under state law says a student gets no lunch if their family falls behind by $20 or more. the district saying the debt for unpaid lunch tabs is some $18,000. rick short, whose bill is fully paid, spoke up for families who've fallen behind >> it shouldn't be the child's fault that the lunch meal isn't paid for >> reporter: facing a backlash, the superintendent in a letter assured the community, "we have not denied food to our students." and as school officials keep trying to reach families with unpaid bills to work out assistance if necessary. at least eight states still have laws banning practices like forcing students to do chores or wear wrist bands if they can't

pay for their lunches. here in new jersey many expected to demand that every student gets lunch when school starts next week. >> all right, ron, thank you for that report. still ahead, wrong direction? harry styles turns to drugs to get creative plus new hampshire's dmv is p-'ed off with hotty humor drivers fight to keep their vanity plates, next. sensitive lately. well 80% of sensitivity starts at the gum line, so treat sensitivity at the source. new crest gum and sensitivity starts treating sensitivity immediately, at the gum line, for relief within days and wraps your teeth in sensitivity protection. ohh your teeth? no, it's brain freeze! you sure you don't want me to come with you? i'm very sure. because i can. make good choices. you make good choices. i am. fiber is good for digestive health.

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up some sunshine." styles adds at one point while recording the bit off the tip of his tongue while he was on some shrooms. >> now we know where this inspiration comes from >> now i want to hear this album. that's a nice teaser i didn't care before now i want to see what's up. >> atop new hampshire's license plates is their motto "live free or die." a woman is fighting the government to keep a piece of her independence the case revolves around this license plate which has an abriefated version of the frayed p before we go." the new hampshire state officials want her to give up the 15-year-old plate because of what they call excretory acts that are not permitted she has submitted an exemption waiver to the dmv to keep the plate. but the state has yet to respond. can't they grandfather her in? 15 years >> security mes ptcaracaure a brazen break-in at a botox clinic you're watching "early today." ,

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in today's top stories there is shocking new video from dayton, ohio showing the moment a stabbing suspect crashes a stolen police suv. authorities say the chase ended with a horrifying crash that killed two children. nbc's ron mott has the details >> reporter: the wild scene captured on police dash cam. >> he just ran into me car's out of service he stole the car >> reporter: a stabbing suspect on the run from police monday night in one of their vehicles, going 97 miles per hour, officials say, before eventually hitting a van full of children, killing two girls, both just 6 years old. >> we've dot proet substantial

injuries multiple medics if you can >> it's an incredibly tragic event for our city >> reporter: police identified the driver as 32-year-old raymond walters, jr. who was released from prison earlier this month the chase began when waurlths allegedly stabbed his father in his truck and took off >> his father was -- had him in the vehicle with him and was intending to take him to the hospital for some mental health treatment. >> reporter: walters crashed the truck into a tree, police say, and as they responded to the scene he stole their cruiser the deadly incident happening just blocks away from the site of a mass shooting three weeks ago. last weekend the city held a block party to hodge the nine victims. dayton still mending from tragedy dealing with heartbreak again. ron mott, nbc news police in texas with looking for a woman who was caught on camera allegedly breaking into a botox clinic officials say the woman used a battery-powered griengd saw to bust through the clinic's door once inside the authorities say she stole an undisclosed amount

of anti-aging products before driving away in an suv zplt lengths you'll go, huh? >> staying young smoke could be seeing pouring out of the greater bibleway temple it's a 115-year-old church there. firefighters stayed through the night to watch for possible collapses. one person who was in a nearby building was taken to a hospital the pastor says repair work was being done on the roof he called the situation heartbreaking. netflix is giving a rare theatrical release to martin scorsese's huge mob ter thriller "the irishman. the streaming site was originally planning to play the film nationwide but reportedly could not come to an agreement with some of the major movie chains so instead the 3 1/2 hour-long movie that features joe pesci, robert de niro, and al pacino will play in select theaters on november 1st it will hit netflix 26 days later on wednesday the 27th. perfect for that thanksgiving turkey weekend and with that trio together --

>> 3 1/2 hours i'll gladly watch that >> and pay for it at the movie theater to see it in advance thanks for waking up with us i'm frances rivera >> i'm phillip mena.

and good wednesday morning to you. august 28th. taking a live look in downtown san jose. thanks for starting your morning here with us. i'm marcus washington. >> and i'm laura garcia. let's get a look at the forecast, half way through the work week. >> and almost through the humidity, too. so yesterday it was really muggy. we're going to feel the same thing again today, with a few more clouds moving in, but at least we're clear to start, as we head over to evergreen, we'll see partly cloudy skies this morning and some mid-60s leading into some low 80s at 11:00 and normally we're reaching 82 degrees. i think we're going to be slig