hurricane dorian is now category 3 president slow-churning storm has absolutely devastated the bahamas, leaving five dead and at least 21 injured. >> all this as the u.s. is still bracing for impact dorian currently hovering 75 to 100 miles off florida's east coast. winds are up to 140 miles per hour making it still extremely dangerous. >> holiday tragedy at sea, families desperate for answers this morning after a boat sinks in flames off california one of the crew was rescued while many passengers depth get off the boat alive >> is this the tipping point the latest mass shooting in

texas is sparking new calls for gun control from lawmakers on both sides as we are learning more about the alleged killer in odessa >> panic at the airport, what sent people running with one person saying it was the most terrifying few moments of her life "early today" starts right now >> good morning. i'm phillip mena >> and i'm frances rivera. hurricane dorian turns dead lid and remains at a bizarre stand still over the bahamas the category 3 storm battering the island for the past 24 hours, shredding homes and leaving miles of debris on abaco island so far five people have been killed and as many as 13,000 homes destroyed. and here's a look at the flooding from freeport that's from somebody's front yard forecasters expect it will get dangerously close to florida nbc's jaime garola has the dee tames. >> reporter: there is a death toll after hurricane dorian whipped through the bahamas and stalled over the islands for hours. >> we know that there are a

number of people in grand bahama who are in serious distress and we will provide relief and assistance as soon as possible >> reporter: and now more than 24 hours since making land fall, the mission is rescue and recovery >> the initial report from abaco is that the devastation is unprecedented and extensive. >> reporter: in miami, much needed donations being collected for the devastated islands meanwhile, the rest of florida still on edge, waiting for dorian to make a move. florida's governor says dozens of medical facilities are moving patients to safer ground >> get out now while you have time, while there's fuel available and you'll be safe on the roads. >> reporter: more than a million people ordered to evacuate from florida to the carolinas across the u.s., thousands of flights canceled, and some airports are closed. all right. an airport in fort lauderdale

and west palm are both closed. miami international remains open however, orlando will also close sometime overnight so anybody with any sort of travel plans to florida should definitely check with their airline for any possible delays or cancellations in pompano beach, florida, jamie guirola, nbc news. >> so dorian is stalling let's see what the track is. where dorian can go. here's nbc's janessa webb again. >> good morning. it continues to stall out. look at this, the movement, stationary it has not moved across the grand bahamas in 24 hours. some spots going to be 36 hours. now, losing steam 120 miles per hour sustained winds, that will pick up this afternoon as it goes back into a large body of water that is very warm here this will go back to a cat-4 potentially cat-5, then be downgraded the storm surge going to be an issue. this is our latest update from the national hurricane center.

going to see sustained winds of 125 miles per hour later tonight, and then we still have that cat-3. the storm surge, the additional rainfall really going to be hectic across the florida coast. even though we're not seeing a landfall, the storm surge is justoing to be very mighty in that area. >> we have not seen anything like this. >> nothing >> just ridiculous what we're seeing janessa, thank you >> as dorian turns at a snail's pace, florida is facing evacuation orders. they are predicting the path will be turning east and getting dangerously close to florida as janessa mentioned. from nbc6 in miami, julia bagg in daytona beach, florida, julia, you've been tracking this storm several days now what are you seeing this morning? >> reporter: well, phillip, it's very quiet right now in daytona beach. we are under a curfew right now until 6:00 in the morning. and i'm talking with emergency managers who are telling me, you know, they don't know how long we'll be under a hurricane

warning officially here in the county you heard janessa saying, dorian is sitting there stationary and moving so very slowly. they can't evetell residents at this point how far out we will be under this warning, and a warning because even without dorian making landfall here as it is not expected to, we could still see winds in excess of 74 miles per hour storm surge also a big concern, especially right here where i am along the hal i fax river. this is the tin ter coastal part of the reason why these low-lying areas have been evacuated in the coastal communities. and this morning a lot of people in shelters. there is still room for them more than 1100 people in shelters across the county this morning, phillip >> dorian still holding the coast hostageage julia, thank you >> we are following breaking news in california eight people have been confirmed dead and dozens are still missing after a dive boat caught fire in the middle of the night off the coast of santa cruz

island 39 people were on board when the fire started so far four bodies have been recovered by rescue teams. officials say four others were found on the ocean floor near the boat nbc's gadi schwartz is following this story as u.s. coast guard planes and ships continue to scour the coast for possible survivors. >> reporter: off the coast of a california island, a frantic call >> may day may day may day >> reporter: that may day coming from the conception, a 75-foot boat fully engulfed in flames. >> i can't breathe >> reporter: over the radio, a man identifying himself as the captain telling the coast guard dozens of passengers were trapped below deck sleeping in decks on the scuba excursion along california's channel islands. crew members awake on the upper deck jumped overboard to escape the flames and swam to a nearby boat for help while passengers remained trapped >> can we get back on board and unlock the boat, unlock the doors so they can get off? >> there's no escape hatch for any of the people on board

>> reporter: witnesses describe hearing explosions during the fire the charter boat had been outfitted for scuba diving with pressurized tanks as well as propane for cooking on board but authorities say it's still too soon to tell how the fire started. >> the crew try to help the other passengers >> i don't have any additional inrmation regarding that >> reporter: the conception's burned out hull finally sinking shortly after sunrise only 60 feet off santa cruz island. >> tragic. >> reporter: so far no sign of survivors. >> that was nbc's gadi schwartz reporting. >> this morning investigators are revealing new details on the texas highway shooting spree that left 7 people dead and dozens more injured. officials say the suspected gunman, 36-year-old seth ator, was on a downward spiral and was terminated from his job before the rampage began. they also say he made rambling but nonthreatening phone calls to both odessa police and the fbi tip line meanwhile, this latest mass shooting has re-ignited growing

calls from both sides of the aisle in washington for common sense gun control measures nbc's tracie potts joining us now from washington, d.c. with more on this tracie, good morning >> reporter: phillip, good morning. we've been here before we've seen this before and congress comes back next week with the same question, is there going to be any compromise one thing that both parties agree on, nothing is likely to happen without president trump pushing republicans to do something on gun laws, areas of possible cpromise, background checks, but the president backtracked on that under pressure from the nra. there is talk about red flag laws that would restrict weapons to people who are deemed mentally ill, forcibly restrict those weapons, and also gun buy-back programs and even democrats are split on whether those should be mandatory or voluntary. but the one thing everyone here seems to agree on, it 's president trump who is going to have to clearly articulate what he's willing to support to move

the needle this time >> see if he sticks with that, whatever it is stance he chooses. tracie, thank you. >> vrabel palestinian owe native and r & b singer khalid is using his celebrity to give back he broug the city together to help raise money for victims at last month's mass shooting that left 22 people dead. the concert raised $500,000 for the el paso victims relief fund. democratic presidential candidate beto o'rourke made an appearance along with actor matthew mcconaughey, singer sizza and yachty t-shirts and other memorabilia will be donated. >> between 150 and 200 passengers fled terminal a after they were told to evacuate by airline attendants according to port authority officials, a flight attendant with alaska airlines ibecame alarmed after speaking to two men near the gate. they sent out a tweet saying

there was no threat and passenger and employees were rescreened and allowed to return the flight attendant was questioned who triggered the alarm. >> here we are with more on dorian 14 days when we were first starting watch, here we are with dorian just stalled. >> yeah, we're going to be talking about it going into 21 days here. it's the storm surge, though, that today is really going to be vital for florida. 2 to 4 feet accumulation with this surge, this hurricane force winds are really going to be acting up those waves and really going to cause that surge in those areas. now, it's not in the forecast just yet, but national weather service already issuing a storm surge watch for charleston i do think north carolina, the outer banks, it's a little bit early, but it's time to get prepared here. by thursday, you could warnings as see storm surge

r florida, though, as we watch the storm system i feel like i'm saying this again and again. this is just the beginning >> wow we keep saying it's going to be a long week, even longer thank you, janessa >> it is a traveler's dream unless you're prone to sea sickness viking cruises launched its ultimate world cruise, a 245-day journey around the world >> 245 >> an eight-month trip will hit six continent, 53 countries and 112 ports along the way. tickets range from 81,000 to $234,000 it's the first of its kind and will attempt to set the world

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leading the news, some scary moments in one new jersey town over labor day officials in south plainfield canceled their holiday parade where governor phil murphy was scheduled to appear after a man was arrested for illegal possession of explosives on his property near the route. police don't think there was a plot to attack the parade. the suspect's family says he just had fire works and the allegations are exaggerated. >> the trump administration has walked back a plan to end deportation protections for sick undocumented immigrants. the announcement comes after the administration halted the protections for sick migrants earlier this month the decision was met with backlash from immigrant advocates and members of congress on monday, the u.s. citizenship and immigration service said it would reopen the deferred action process which allows undocumented immigrants to avoid deportation for compelling reasons, like critical medical care >> police respond to three-car

crash in rochester, new york, that i understanded with one car right on top of each other take a look at this. you can see they're all piled on top. the red kia on top of the honda on top of the mercedes the kia hit the honda and the car crashed into the third vehicle. one person was transported to the hospital >> to college football, coming off an undefeated regular season in 2018, notre dame is eyeing another shot at the college football playoffs this year. see how they got their season started, the 9th ranked golden domers opened up in louisville battling the resurgent team. notre dame's defense clamped down only allowing three the rest of the way. they went into the blue grass and beat louisville 35-17. to tennis, reigning singles champ on the men's and women's sides have both been eliminated. after novak djokovic's bad shoulder forced him out on sunday, naomi osaka battling a injury of her own.

she could not overcome an injured knee and she was upset by 13th ceded belinda bencic, 7-5, 6-4 >> still ahead, some of the relief efforts underway in the wake of hurricane dorian we'll get an extraordinary look inside the eye of the storm. u' wchg ar tay." fight for first dances fight for blast offs fight for piggyback rides fight for 7 am makeouts. every year, walgreens helps millions of people fight the flu. fight to protect the ones you love. walgreens. be a flu fighter. get your free flu shot today at your neighborhood walgreens. did you know you can save money by using dish soap to clean grease on more than dishes? try dawn ultra. dawn is for more than just dishes. with 3x more grease cleaning power per drop, it tackles tough grease on a variety of surfaces. try dawn ultra.

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as the devastation grows in the bahamas, people are stepping up to help those in need

valencia gunder founder of make the homeless smiles has gathered donations from diapers to bottled water and canned food to send to the bahamas. chef andres is on the ground in bahamas. he will be making 10,000 sandwiches for people there. and a pet shelter in central florida is making room for first responders, offering free boarding when the storm hits we're told they do have cots >> with dorian bearing down on the bahamas, we are getting an extraordinary look from inside the eye of a storm from a group brave enough to fly right into the belly of the beast nbc's catie beck has more. >> reporter: inside the cockpit of air force hurricane hunters, scientists look dorian square in the eyes major alex boykin is at the controls >> we'll be greeting the winds on the way into the eye wall and we'll be able to track its movement this one has been very hard to predict. >> reporter: the air force and noaa high flying weather

stations travel through turbulent conditions slicing through the eye wall of the hurricane to determine the conditions at the heart of the storm. probes are dropped into the hurricane to measure pressure, temperature, humidity, wind speed and direction. >> getting the information that we need vital to knowing how strong the hurricane is and also where it's going >> reporter: they've given all of the information gathered from up above, it's difficult for forecasters to predict what will happen along the coast >> we need to know the steering current well away from the storm. maybe a thousand miles away. >> reporter: forecasters use the data and other sources lik bowies, weather balloons and satellites to track slow-moving dorian analyzing new information as it comes in the slightest shift in course could be the difference between dodging danger or disaster the work continues as the powerful eye of dorian sets sights on the east coast catie beck, nbc news, savannah, georgia. >> incredible job. somebody's got to do it. janessa's forecast is just

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along with one deceased hiker described as a man in his 60s. authorities are asking the public to avoid the malibu hills area until further notice. >> all right let's go back to dorian and janessa and the possible outcomes to its path >> we're not comparing models from euro to american. they have now come into agreement. the problem is that we look at different model runs here. and american, european, there are about over 50. most of them have this well offshore you see about three to four squiggly lines here that makes its way on shore that's why we're just not comfortable with a possible potential landfall out towards the outer banks for wilmington, and that would be late week. so until these all come into agreement, you know, we're still watching >> that is unbelievable, this dorian still sticking around imposing that danger. thank you. when we come back, a hero student pilot springing into action whehiinn s structor passes out mid-air results?

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in today' top stories, hurricane dorian weakens to a category 3 the powerful storm remains stationary, pummelling the bahamas. here in the u.s., mandatory evacuations are underway in coastal cities from palm beach county all the way up to the georgia coast. fort lauderdale international airport will reopen today, but more than 1400 flights have been canceled meanwhile, the national weather service in miami has shared new photos overnight of coastal flooding in biscayne bay forecasters predict the storm could move closer to florida within the next few hours. >> search and rescue efforts continuing in california this morning following a deadly boat fire off the coast of southern

california near santa cruz island investigators expect the death toll to rise after a 75-foot dive boat with 39 people on board went up in flames. so far at least eight bodies have been recovered, but dozens of passengers remain missing >> despite massive public outcry, the amazon rain forest fires continue to burn according to data from the national space research institute, roughly 2000 new fires have started since just last thursday. many of the flames are thought to have been sparked intentionally by farmers trying to clear the land. so the brazilian government has put stricter limits on this behavior unfortunately it has yet to extinguish the blaze >> it was a nightmare for a student pilot taking one of his first flying lessons when his flying instructor palestinianed out mid-air in perth, australia. nbc's matt bradley has the incredible story of what happened next. >> reporter: you could hear the nerves in australian student pilot max sylvester's voice talking to air traffic control

>> do you know how to operate the airplane >> this is my first lesson >> reporter: in fact it was max's third lesson, but it was his first time landing an aircraft ever. inside the cessna's cockpit, the flight instructor had just passed out >> he's leaning on my shoulder he keeps falling down. >> have you landed any aircraft before >> no, i haven't >> reporter: max's response was literally fight or flight. >> you just have to deal with the situations that you've been thrown in front of and you need to react >> reporter: incredibly with the tower's guidance, max brought the plane down without a scratch. >> start braking now and you're down on the ground you did it, mate, well done. that's amazing >> you're going to show your kids that, you know. having issues like this, you've got to -- >> reporter: that pilot instructor was rushed straight to the hospital where he's now in stable condition. and max has already visited him.

matt bradley, nbc news >> wow, he's going to be some pilot. >> i know. >> he already is >> exactly it's all downhill from here. >> thanks for waking up with us. i'm frances rivera >> i'm phillip m

and good tuesday morning to you. september 3rd, the day after labor day, and the work week starts today for many of you. it started yesterday for three of the four of us. >> yes. >> one of us had the day off. >> everywhere i went, i was still watching the traffic. >> good morning to you all. thank you for starting your morning with us. i'm marcus washington. >> aim ekris sanchez in for laura garcia, she will be back tomorrow and the forecast is looking not too shabby. >> not bad at all. it's starting to cool off. that's the trend throughout the week with a clear start over the south bay. a live look outside in san jose with the start in the low 60s.