in the bay." we'll be back at 7:25 with a live local news update. a nice look. >> a beautiful shot there of san jose as we get started with this tuesday morning. >> the "today" show is next. ♪ good morning. ida's wrath and aftermath. >> this is unreal. this is nothing i've ever seen before. >> more than a million people, including the city of new orleans, without power. outages that could last for weeks as the frantic race intensifies to reach communities completely cut off from rescuers. and ongoing danger, alligator infested waters now blamed for at least one death. and the storm's threat far from over as it moves north. flood alerts now extending from alabama to massachusetts. we've got every angle covered

for you this morning. over and out, the u.s. completes the historic withdrawal of all military forces from afghanistan. the haunting image of a final soldier leaving the kabul airport, ending america's longest war after nearly 20 years. but hundreds of americans and thousands of afghans still left behind. officials vowing to help them. >> our commitment to them has no deadline. >> while voicing concerns over what happens next. >> we need to be prepared for future potential threats. >> the very latest from the region and the white house, straight ahead. breaking overnight, fleeing the flames. a mass evacuation of california's iconic lake tahoe ahead of the holiday weekend. thousands packing the roads to leave with flames from an intense wildfire closing in. just ahead, a live report from the front lines. those stories, plus remote

control. one nation's strict new rule to break kids from their video game addiction. could it help your kids unplug? and honoring diana, touching new tributes to the princess on the 24th anniversary of her death. we're live at kensington palace for a special event honoring her life and legacy today, tuesday, august 31st, 2021. >> announcer: from nbc news, this is "today" with savannah guthrie and hoda kotb from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. >> did we just say tuesday, august 31st? the end of the month. happy you're joining us. savannah has the day off today. >> and we have a lot to cover on this tuesday morning led by two major stories. first, ida's aftermath, and then the official end of america's longest war. the final c-17 flew out of kabul at 3:29 p.m. eastern on monday, drawing to a close the

military's 20-year presence in afghanistan. >> check out this picture. it's the final soldier to leave. it was captured in this photo. as we mentioned, though, up to 200 americans and thousands of afghanis who wanted out, they remain behind. richard engle will have the very latest, straight ahead. but we start this morning with ida, the massive flood threats stretching from the south to the northeast. >> we're getting an even clearer picture of the destruction in louisiana. crews trying desperately to reach people still trapped at this hour. and more than a million people facing the reality their power may not be restored for weeks. we will talk live to louisiana's lieutenant governor billy nungesser in just a bit. al is standing by in new orleans. but we begin with sam brock, in hard-hit laplace about 25 miles west of new orleans. sam, good morning. >> reporter: hoda, craig, good morning.

a little more than 24 hours after ida ripped through this part of louisiana, we are getting a look on the ground and in the air of the footprint of this disaster. governor edwards telling hoda he expects the death toll to rise after catastrophic damage. not far from where i'm standing, people were hiding in attics and leaping on to beds holding out hope they would be rescued. this morning, a sobering look at ida's devastation, homes submerged in water as far as the eyes could see, nearby roads completely washed out. >> it will ceilings in every room caved in. it was unbelievable. >> reporter: with families waiting for rescue. >> it was bad. worst thing ever. >> reporter: the louisiana national guard already rescuing 282 people, 32 pets. >> just progressively got worse. and it was ankles, knees, almost chest level so we just put the dogs on the counter and then we climbed into the attic.

>> reporter: water levels reaching heights many could not have imagined. >> we had about 8 feet of water. >> reporter: 8 feet of water inside your house. >> the water was past the couches. >> the road has collapsed, multiple cars are in there. >> reporter: overnight in neighboring mississippi, a highway collapsed involving multiple vehicles killing at least two and injuring ten others. officials point to torrential rain and the impacts of ida as a contributing factor. back in louisiana, many now struggling just for the basics. this line for gas stretching down the street as a mangled transformer dangles above the cars. in no response -- new orleans, eerie quiet, as hundreds of thousands remain without power. residents in the hardest-hit areas could have outages for weeks. and officials warning conditions are still very dangerous, including possible alligator infested flood waters. in slidell, a 71-year-old man is missing after being attacked by

an alligator and losing his arm. farther west, ida's wrath flexed in the form of crumbled roofs and twisted trees. in a show of force, the wind was so strong in gramercy, alabama, it was enough to tip over an 18-wheel tractor trailer. not just one, but three tractor trailers in one parking lot. out of so much devastation emerged moments of hope. the nurses inside the neonatal intensive care unit volunteering to stay through the night with newborn babies who so desperately need them. >> my team pulls together. doesn't matter what's happening. they're going to make sure the babies are taken care of and that their team members are taken care of. >> reporter: at children's hospital new orleans, a physician and chief there saying so many young doctors and nurses took their kids to safer cities like atlanta and birmingham, then came back into lockdown in new orleans to care for their patients overnight. many of them, guys, still have

not seen their own homes even at this point. hoda, back to you. >> somehow, sam, that does not surprise me how incredible those folks are. sam, thank you. >> that's what they do. let's bring in al roker now, mr. roker now in new orleans with more on the situation there and what we work expect from ida as that storm moves inland on a path to the northeast. al, good morning. >> hey, good morning, guys. right now, ida, tropical depression. 190 south/southwest of nashville, tennessee. 30-mile-per-hour winds. moving northeast at 12 miles per hour. today, it'll merge with a front up to its north. the combined moisture produces torrential rainfall. rainfall rates moving into the northeast out of the tennessee river valley, 2 to 3 inches per hour with this system. morning rain is going to be heavy for the northeast. the morning rush. the rain will move out by the afternoon and evening but not before causing massive flooding. 71 million people are under

flood watches or warnings, stretching from the gulf up into the northeast and new england. rainfall amounts, we're talking some places picking up locally 8 inches of rain. new york city could see a month's worth of rain in just one day. that heavy rain stretching from boston all the way back to atlanta. we are going to be watching this very, very closely as that rain continues to fall over already saturated rain. we'll have more a little later. guys? >> al roker for us once again in new orleans. al, thank you. >> and we're going to have a lot more obviously on what's going on in new orleans, the situation there. again, rescues are happening as we speak. we're going to look forward to -- we do. we're speaking now with lieutenant governor billy nungesser. we lost his shot for a second. billy, you're back. it's good to see you. i spoke with the governor yesterday, and he said something to me that struck me. it was about the number of

deaths we commented on, that there were very few. and he said he expects the number to go up considerably. and that kind of struck me. do you have an update there? >> yeah. no, we have no new numbers. we will be flying our first light today with the governor to some of the hard-hit areas. but knowing that so many people stayed behind, places like grand isle and lafitte where flood waters devastated thoeds -- those areas, we expect there will be more people found who have passed. too many people always ride these storms out and take their life in their own hands. >> yeah. as we're -- we're looking at these images and they're so striking, lieutenant governor. i know there are people at this hour who need rescued. but we've been talking about how there are so many issues with power and phones how do you even know where to go to find the people who need you? >> well, i know some of the people called in through the storm and they've identified those places but they actually go the first responders, the national guard,

firefighters go house to house checking attics and as the water goes down, checking those homes out. they make a first pass looking for survivors and then a second pass, obviously, looking for anyone that may have died in those homes or in those attics it's unfortunate that people stay behind and the first responders do a great job of getting there quickly to rescue the ones that did make it through. >> yeah. a lot of folks have been talking about the power issue. a lot of folks don't have power. the city of new orleans among them and some areas in jefferson parish don't have clean water. i don't need to edit ahead to say what happens in days or even weeks if those problems persist. do you have an idea? are you getting a clear picture on when the water may come back on an areas when the lights may be back on and, more importantly, the ac? because it's a real hot time in new orleans right now. >> yeah. that's a real concern.

with so many people out of power and seniors in this hot weather, you know, entergy and cleco and the people working on this, 25,000 linemen and contractors are out there working day and night. some of the areas will come back on in days some areas will take weeks you know, you're hearing two or three weeks to get 90% back on i don't have an update on that but in the short-term, people are going to have to have places to go until their power gets back on. as you mentioned, the water. we've got to get the water pressure the beautiful oak trees in louisiana are great, but when they fall, they rip up those water lines. they're already working on replacing those as we speak. >> billy, i've known you for a long time. i know you rode through katrina. how are you feeling and how does this one compare >> you know, my heart sinks because i know what we went through to rebuild after katrina. i rode out katrina and rescued people and brought them to my home and to know we've got a long

road ahead of us, the good news is louisiana helps our neighbors out. people from all over the country are already on their way here to help out with covid on top of this, the stress on families is just incredible and we're just going to have to pull together and get through it i know we can do it. but it's going to be a long road and we're going to need a lot of help >> you look up the road resilience in the dictionary and louisiana is right there lieutenant governor, thank you so, so much. wish you the best. a lot of thoughts and prayers heading your way >> thank you >> you're welcome. of course, we'll have the very latest from louisiana throughout the morning. the united states departing afghanistan to end america's longest war. the final flight leaving the country on monday completing evacuation of more than 123,000 people just before today's deadline. but officials acknowledge they did not get everyone out. and there are mounting concerns this morning over what happens

next in afghanistan. nbc's chief foreign correspondent richard engle is in doha, qatar, for us again this morning. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, craig. this is victory day in kabul and across afghanistan. the taliban are flying their white flag. they believe that this is the start of a new era for the taliban running the country. but the collapse of a state in central asia, taken over by the taliban has consequences. it may be a relief to many americans, but it will have a tremendous impact on the lives of afghans, on the entire region, potentially on americans, as well. 20 years of war now come down to just two iconic photographs. one of the last american c-17s taking u.s. troops on the lonely trip out of afghanistan. and this photo released by the military of the last soldier to leave, major general chris donahue of the storied 82nd airborne division. >> i'm here so announce the completion of our withdrawal

from afghanistan. >> reporter: just hours later, the taliban rolled into kabul airport, taking over the final piece of afghanistan to be held by foreign troops. they fired in celebration and looked over the spoils the americans left behind. the pentagon says it made weapons and military equipment inoperable before american troops left. but they didn't destroy the airport, so the taliban-run government can use it. the u.s. needs the airport, too. it will be one of the only ways out for americans and vulnerable afghans left behind by the evacuation. but it's unclear when the airport will be up and running again. the state department says fewer than 200 americans remain. >> if an american in afghanistan tells us they want to stay for a now, and then in a week, a month, or a year, they reach out and say, "i've changed my mind," we will help them leave. >> reporter: the taliban said today marks a new beginning, and

it does. it's also a repeat of the past. the soviet union occupied afghanistan for ten years in the 1980s until they left bruised and humbled, beaten by a small band of islamic fighters backed by the cia. fighting in afghanistan then against the soviets was a man named osama bin laden and he was inspired by the russian's defeat. if guerilla fighters could topple the mighty soviet union, why not the united states? the world saw the results. now it's the united states being driven out of afghanistan by a group of islamic fighters. bin laden is dead, but a new generation of extremists may be learning the same lesson today from the land often called the graveyard of empires. and there are not only americans still in afghanistan. there are many translators who worked with american forces and there are many, many efforts, often by veterans, private groups, to try and stay in contact with those people, keep them safe, keep them hidden

until the airport can open up, they can get their documents and potentially they can be evacuated from the country. >> so many people anxious to see what happens next. chief foreign correspondent richard engel, thank you. sheinelle joins the table now. breaking overnight, another big story out west. >> yes, good morning. the so-called caldor wildfire, one of dozens racing across the west, is growing quickly and threatening lake tahoe. thousands of homeowners and tourists in the area now being evacuated. steve patterson is live with the latest. steve, good morning. >> reporter: sheinelle, good morning. firefighters right now are locked in a desperate struggle to save south lake tahoe, but they are up against it with red flag winds moving in and thousands of homes in the path of flames. this morning, an army of flames is marching towards south lake tahoe. the fast moving caldor fire driven by gusting winds is closing in on the famed california resort town,

threatening to wipe out more than 20,000 homes. >> there is fire activity happening in california that we have never seen before. >> reporter: with summer vacations in full swing, most of the region has been ordered to evacuate immediately. the mass exodus causing gridlock on the roads, thousands of cars clogging highways as people flee to nay por -- neighboring nevada. >> they should have planned this a little better. they should get some more traffic going out here instead of two lanes. >> reporter: there are so many fires burning in the state, overnight, all national forests in california were ordered to temporarily shut down. officials hope that will help reduce the number of new fire and he prevent people from getting trapped in burning forests. firefighters are struggling as powerful red flag winds are pushing the fires east on the front into tahoe with winds gusts up to 50 miles per hour. fire crews are using every available tool to fight the flames, but low humidity and steep terrain are at every turn. >> the fire was active. it's been very destructive to

certain areas here. >> reporter: the caldor fire sparked more than two weeks ago after charring close to 200,000 acres, it's become the highest fire fighting priority in the u.s. a drain of resources so dramatic, california's governor declaring a state of emergency. meanwhile, the battle for south lake tahoe being waged in a field of flames, now roaring at the gates. there are 13 large active wildfires burning across california, charring some 1.4 million acres. this fire has been burning two weeks and is only 15% contained. sheinelle. >> our hearts go out to those families affected. >> a lot of big weather events, fires out there. with al roker r the rest of the forecast. al, morning. >> hey, guys. by the way, speaking of that caldor fire, you want to talk about climate change, for the first time a couple of months ago, we had the dixie fire cross the sierra, the first time that

had ever happened. now the caldor fire is a trans-sierra fire, as well. two events that have never happened before. it's kind of crazy to even contemplate. let's look at what's going on around the rest of the country. for today, we are looking at that flood threat through a good portion of the eastern third of the u.s. with that system pushing through. rainy, stormy conditions. more rain in the southwest. we're going to look at that in a little bit. that fire risk continues out west. strong storms firing up through the northern plains, as well, today. we're going to get to your local forecast coming up in the next 30 seconds.

good tuesday morning. i'm meteorologist kari hall. as we take a live look outside in san jose, we're waking up to a mostly clear sky. we are going to see improving air quality as our temperatures today head towards 80 degrees. we will see mid 80s for livermore, 91 in antioch and oakland in the upper 60s. and some mid 60s in san francisco and near the coast. for our inland temperatures, mostly mid 80s today. it continues to cool off. smoke clearing out. we will be heating up by labor day weekend. telling you this time the at&t mobile network was down. they were working. we saw trucks all over they are up and running again. so if you're trying to reach folks who have an at&t phone, you should have better luck today. back to you. >> that's good news. al, thanks we're going to have more on ida's devastation coming up, including a firsthand look at

how people in louisiana are coping where emergency crews are not able to reach. two days after the storm's landfall miguel almaguer is live and is sharing a heartbreaking story. also ahead this morning, do your children spend too much time playing video games we're going to tell you where they're pulling the plug on this growing addiction with a law limiting kids to just three hours per we

still still ahead today's tribute to plin ses diana on the 24th anniversary of her death. >> how she's being remembered around the world including a rare move inside kensington palace. we'll take you there live after your local news. de the gates ofn palace we'll take you there live after your local news. 16 times in .

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our collective health is too important to take for granted ever again. the health of our nation cannot just be measured by the victories of our champions, it must be measured by the health of all of us. ♪ 7:26 on your tuesday morning. i'm laura garcia. we continue to follow breaking news. top story, red flag warning in effect for firefighters as the caldor fire bears down on south lake tahoe. the flames now approaching kirkwood mountain ski resort. south lake tahoe under evacuation orders meaning 53,000 across el dorado county are told to leave. flames as of this morning have burned 193,000 acres, or about 298 square miles, larger than the size of san jose and oakland combined. the containment is still at 15%.

>>i'm bob redell outside federal court here in downtown san jose where later this morning jury selection will begin in the trial of elizabeth holmes. homes' company theranos claimed it built a machine to test for dozen of medical conditions using a single drop of blood but the machines did not work and the many of the tests were inaccurate. did holmes lose hundreds of millions because her technology didn't pan out or intentionally defraud investors, doctors, regulator and patients. >> we'll continue following that. following our forecast meteorologist kari hall. >> we'll be cooling off as our temperatures come down for the mid 80s for the inland valleys and stay nice and cool, but heating up again for the valleys as we get into the labor day weekend. san francisco will see highs in the mid 60s, clouds and fog to start, clearing out with a little bit of sunshine for today. laura? >> thank you very much. thank you for joining us as well. another local news update in a half hour. hope to see you then. the "today" show coming up next.

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it is 7:30 on this tuesday morning, the last day of august, august 31st, 2021. this is literally the calm before the storm in new york city ida is making her way north and she is going to be bringing a lot of rain with her al will have that forecast with us from his post in new orleans. >> always nice to see central park in the morning. we're going to begin this half hour with the check of your 7:30 headlines big news for your u.s. travelers planning to go to europe in the near future. the european union recommended

yesterday that its 27 nations reinstate travel restrictions on american tourists. due to a rise in covid cases here in the united states. however, the guidance is nonbinding each nation really has the authority to decide whether or not to keep its boarders open to u.s. travelers a young lifeguard was killed and seven other people were hurt on monday when lightning struck a new jersey beach it happened island beach state park, 80 miles south of new york city seven people were taken to the hospital wit threatening injuries the beach will be closed through thursday as crisis counselors are made available to beach staff and lifeguards the best tennis players in the world are in new york this week as the u.s. open swings into action. >> that's it 34th winner of the match finishes it. >> there you have it the defending champion, naomi osaka picks up the easy opening round win.ce pulling out

6-4, 6-1 it was osaka's first match in a grand slam since pulling out of the french open in may in other action, 17-year-old coco gauff won her match ove magda linette. >> not far from here >> good to see fans back in the stands, too. back to the morning's top story, first the devastation and now the recovery in louisiana from hurricane ida >> the southern end of the state hit first and hardest. it remains totally off the grid, completely cut off and desperate efforts right now under way to reach those in the hard-hit communities. nbc national correspondent miguel almaguer joins us now with the very latest miguel, good morning >> reporter: guys, good morning. this is what rescue teams are facing all across the state of louisiana. downed trees, power lines and flood roads. at this hour, rescues are under way, but this is what they're dealing with in communities that are cut off.

the communities of grand isle, golden meadow and matthews were the first hit by ida's devastating force and are now the last to be rescued >> i needed help >> reporter: people living in the region are reeling and in some cases completely cut off. as water rushed in, many who stayed had no way out. josh welch rode out th hurricane on his barge in grand isle >> it was like being in a blizzard raining so hard, you could not see. >> reporter: those who survived the initial impact are struggling to escape the storm's aftermath. emergency teams can't make rescues because they can't cross roads that are now gone. this is pretty common what you're seeing here, right? >> yes all we're doing is clearing the debris to get traffic going back on this highway. >> reporter: highways and back roads across louisiana are a minefield of downed trees and power lines. >> i had to get them to rescue me from my house to get out. >> reporter: and you're out here trying to open these roads

>> yes that's how bad it is >> reporter: the stranded could be stuck for days. when there is a break in the road, there's no shortage of destruction on the side of it. as we get closer to grand isle, this is what we're finding neighborhood after neighborhood that was obliterated the trail of debris only ends where the flooding begins. this is where the only road to grand isle begins. it's still under several feet of water and broken into pieces just behind me it's the community down the road from here where neighborhoods were said to be on their rooftops waiting for help to arrive seven miles long, grand isle was the only inhabited barrier island in louisiana. our team in the air with the coast guard surveying the damage less than a thousand people lived here with the exact number of trapped or missing remains unclear. we've got a large population, got hit with a very large category 4 storm

everybody is hurting in different ways >> reporter: this morning, communities still out of reach but hanging on to hope >> i mean, miguel, you mentioned some places like grand isle, people in places completely cut off. have officials been able to at least make contact with them and communicate with them at all >> reporter: yeah, craig, there was good news overnight. we heard from a fire chief who believes nearly everyone got out of that community with their lives. nearly every building was destroyed, but most folks were able to run to a fortified local fire department and that likely saved dozens of lives. craig. >> okay. miguel almaguer for us >> that is good news because those people that stuck around there and got hit by those 150-mile-per-hour winds for hours and hours. >> yesterday you were talking to the president of jefferson parish and she mentioned that was one of their chief concerns. >> yeah. they couldn't get there. boy, i'm glad to hear that news this morning let's check in with mr. roker in new orleans, keeping an

eye on ida and the rest of the forecast al, morning. >> hey, guys, good morning we are looking at a severe weather situation getting ready to develop as you take a look at the maps, you can see we do have a risk of severe weather today from washington, d.c., all the way down to atlanta. 15 million people for damaging winds, tornados possible, hail threat low and then as we move into tomorrow, look at this, 20 million people at risk from new jersey all the way down myrtle beach. tornados possible, damaging winds and, of course, the rain is going to be a big problem now, we've had a very wet summer from lacrosse, green bay, cleveland, concord, down to jackson, all locations from 150 to 200% of the average rainfall will you add what is going to be coming from ida on top we're talking another 3 to 7 inches of rain from the mid-atlantic and the northeast this week and that is a real mess rest of the country, we are looking at a lot of rain in the southwest. fire risk continues out in the pacific northwest into the northern plains.

sunshine in upstate new york, but rainy, stormy and very, very wet as you make your way down to the lower mississippi and ohio >> good morning. i'm meteorologist kari hall. as we take a look at our temperatures for the inland areas we're headed towards mostly mid 80s for today and notice improvements in our air quality. not as much smoke. that will continue for most of us tomorrow although we may start to see some of the smoke returning to the north bay, but temperatures will stay cool. highs in the upper 70 and low 80s, heating up through labor day weekend into labor day. as we check out san francisco, expect highs in the mid 60s. clouds and fog to start each morning. >> and that is your latest weather. guys >> al, thank you coming up next, a growing concern for teens and their parents. we're talking about young people becoming addicted to online gaming >> the stunning way one country is now dealing with the issue and how to help your kids unplug

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that this is apparently a very serious health threat? >> reporter: yeah, that's right. china says it's a very serious health risk to young people. you know, the word addiction gets a lot of people uptight regardless of what you call this, there is a growing recognition that this problem is getting worse in china and also here in the u.s. and it's gotten only worse with so many young people stuck at home on their computers during covid. it's happening in virtually every developed country in the world. young people, usually boys, unable to walk away from online video games. it could be fortnite, counter-strike, minecraft, the list is long as kids sacrifice family, friends, school, even sleep. for years, china has sent teens to addiction recovery centers. now it's setting tough new rules for minors, 17 and younger, banning online video games on

school days monday through thursday. only one hour a day on fridays, weekends and holidays. and every gamer must register with an anti-addiction center. >> that kind of mandate would not work here in the united states, period, full stop. >> reporter: but, says jim stier, it's a sign of how serious the problem has become. >> a beautiful shot. >> reporter: with few friends around during covid, 15-year-old james ricart turned to his xbox for online gaming. >> i got a weekly report saying he had been on for likes 40 hours. >> reporter: now, his parents had to set limits. >> he has to have his homework done and his chores, as well as maintain a 3.0 or higher grade point average. then we will basically unlock the xbox so he can play and we're able to pause the wi-fi to it. >> make us feel engaged. >> reporter: even a harvard psychiatrist says he, too, was a gaming addict once. >> i grew up playing video games. played a lot of video games in middle school and high school

and almost failed out of college for playing too many video games. >> reporter: now dr. alok runs the healthy gamer platform. he says 10% of gamers are addicted. often the addiction hides low self-esteem issues. >> they have difficulty with social interactions which gets worse the more that they play games. a lot of times, video games serve as an escape to something else. >> reporter: the gaming industry tells nbc news it supports digital wellness, adding nearly all video game devices offer parental controls which allow them to set time limits. common sense media says it's time for a national psa push, teaching teens and parents of the dangers of too much online gaming. >> at common sense, we strongly recommend a public awareness campaign around video game usage that is similar to what we did with kids and tobacco and smoking. >> reporter: a campaign to wean kids off of their online addiction. experts say it's important to

recognize that kids who are addicted to gaming, it may really be a symptom of deeper problems, insecurities, inability to socialize, maybe poor grades, not making friends, maybe not going out and playing sports. so getting those issues addressed and then getting kids into the real world not the virtual world, that's really what the challenge is here. guys, back to you. >> that sounds like a really, really important thing to do. what struck me was that china, the government is actually banning it. so i was wondering, like, how are they going to ban it? are they going to go knocking on doors? >> reporter: well, you know, this is a big brother society. what they're going to be doing is all these kids have to sign up. we believe their national identity cards with their dates of birth are linked with their ability to go online and do gaming. facial recognition will likely play a role here. so the government very much monitoring what each individual kid is doing. they know how old the kid is and they can shut down access based on your year of birth. >> wow. that's the ultimate big brother

going on right there. >> there are about to be a lot of angry teenagers in china. >> i bet. >> tom, thanks. >> back here at home for me, it helps when -- quite frankly, it's social for a lot of kids. for my little ones, especially during covid, they were playing with their classmates. so as parents, if you guys can come together and say, all right, on school nights, we're not going to do this. or three times a week. my buddy isn't on either, so i'm not missing anything. every shuts it down. call your group and see if they'll do it. >> that's good advice. >> try that. coming one the celebrations for princess diana on the 24th anniversary of her death how people are paying tribute and what we're learning about her two sons, william and harry, and how they're getting along. first, these messages. iable 5g . like 2 lines of unlimited for just $27.50 a line. that's our everyday price. plus, our plans always come with unlimited talk, text and data included.

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a very good tuesday morning to you. it is 7:56. i'm laura garcia. here's a look at what's happening now. >> i'm bob redell outside federal court here in downtown san jose where later this morning jury selection will begin in the trial of elizabeth holmes. holmes' company theranos claimed it built a machine to test for dozens of medical conditions using just a single drop of blood, but those machines did not work and many of the tests were inaccurate. at issue in the trial did holmes lose hundreds of millions of dollars because her technology didn't pan out or intentionally defraud investors, doctors, regulator and patients? let's check that forecast with meteorologist kari hall. some clearing skies today? >> yeah. it's going to be much better as our temperatures come down, our inland areas head toward the mid 80s and the skies should look

nice and blue. heading into tomorrow it's cool and breezy for our inland areas heading into the upper 70s. although we may start to see smoke returning to parts of the north bay and our temperatures warm up for the holiday weekend while san francisco will see highs in the mid 60s and at times clouds and fog but should also get more sunshine as well, better air quality which, of course, is going to help make it look much better around the bay area, but unfortunately may fan the flames around the caldor fire. we're monitoring that. >> yes. you can find a lot on nbcbayarea.com as well. i'll be back with another local news update in half an hour. join us for our midday news at 11:00 a.m. as well. have a good morning.

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it's 8:00 on "today." coming up, ida's aftermath. >> this is nothing i've ever seen before. >> flooding homes, washed out floods, structures ripped apart by hurricane force winds. inside the massive search and rescue mission currently under way. >> you can't see that, the wind was blowing too hard. it was raining. >> more than a million people still without power. officials saying it could be weeks until all service is restored. al is live in new orleans and will tell us where the storm is heading next. remembering princess diana

24 years after her death. we look at princess diana's legacy and the latest on the rift between her sons, william and harry. plus, bermuda triangle mystery. >> i'm thinking to myself, this looks like a turret. >> a new documentary investigating the disappearance of several planes off the coast of florida more than 75 years ago. the exciting discovery their team just made, just ahead. and back to school, five simple tips to help your family save on supplies. plus, recipes the whole family will love that are easy to whip up on a school night today, tuesday, august 31st, 2021. >> we are remarkable women on our first trip to new york. >> today is my birthday. >> we want to wish mia and tianna a happy 9th birthday and great-grandma a happy 95th birthday. >> good morning, "today" show.

>> celebrating my mom and stepdad on their anniversary. >> hi, gram. >> hi. we're the tripp family from cincinnati. >> i'm celebrating beating cancer twice. >> cheers to "today." >> yeah. you know what? there are a lot of good, happy moments. that one is top of the heap. welcome back, guys. we're so happy that you're with us. it's a busy tuesday morning. we're going to head outside. it's nice to see our crowd outside waiting for us, but we're going to go out and visit. savannah has the morning off. let's get to our news at 8:00. a lot going on. while rescuers search for hurricane ida victims and survivors, a lot of louisiana is facing weeks without electricity. nbc's sam brock joins us now with the very latest on the storm damage and what is going to be a massive, long recovery effort. hey, sam, morning. >> reporter: no doubt about it, hoda. good morning. the harsh reality right now sinking in as to what this state looks like after hurricane ida ravaged it.

i'm told from neighbors there was so much water in the streets here, you could get boats through and, in fact, in neighboring communities, they did. i'm going to point your attention right over my shoulder to a trailer flipped into a home that is completely emblematic of what so many of these communities look like right now. the louisiana national guard had to come in and rescue some 282 people and 32 pets, as well. this as we're learning about the death toll rising after two people died in the state of mississippi. a highway there washed out with flood waters from ida contributing to that. three other folks there are facing life-threatening injuries. in louisiana, governor edwards says he does expect that the death toll will continue to climb after catastrophic damage. in his words, the city of new orleans now still with no power except for generators. entergy, the main provider says it'll be 7 to 10 days for many people, maybe 90% of power customers, but there are some communities that are going to go weeks with no power. all of this as the mayor of new

orleans is telling people if you evacuated from the city, do not return right now until power has been restored and some semblance of normalcy. hoda, back to you. >> that 7 to 10 days from the entergy electric company is a little bit of good news. that's better than we thought. sam, thank you so much. meanwhile, the last u.s. troops have left afghanistan ending america's longest war. president biden has come under heavy criticism for the way the final chapter unfolded and the president is expected to address the nation today. nbc's chief white house correspondent and weekend "today" co-anchor, peter alexander, joins us with that story. peter, good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you. the president, as you know, likely to address the nation this afternoon explaining his decision to stick to his august 31st deadline, despite leaving some americans in the country. the president defending that decision says there was unanimous agreement among u.s. military leaders not to extend the date. overnight, the military did release this photo of the last soldier to leave, major general chris donahue, commander of the 82nd airborne division.

soon thereafter, the taliban rolling in, taking over the airport, firing into the air in celebration, lighting up the night sky. the secretary of state says fewer than 200 americans are in afghanistan. the administration says it'll help them get out, of course, with cooperation from the taliban. in total, the u.s. evacuated more than 123,000 people in 17 days. but tens of thousands of afghan allies who want to leave remain. the frantic end to america's longest war likely to cast a shadow on biden's presidency. those chaotic scenes at the kabul airport. later the death of the 13 american service members. the president's handling of the evacuation, criticism is unlikely to go away. one republican calling the u.s.'s exit shameful and a national disgrace. >> peter, thank you. nbc news will have live coverage of president biden's address later today on many of these stations. former silicone valley billionaire elizabeth holmes goes on trial in san jose,

california. she's charged with using her medical testing company to cheat both investors and patients. natalie morales joins us with the surprising details expected to come up in court. natalie, good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you, sheinelle. the silicone valley entrepreneur who dreamed of changing world with a simple blood test presented herself as a strong female working in a man's world. but recently unsealed court documents suggest she's about to tell us a different story as her trial starts today. >> i'm the founder and ceo of this company. anything that happens in this company is my responsibility at the end of the day. and i hold myself responsible for that. >> reporter: that was elizabeth holmes in 2016, well before her world and her company, theranos, collapsed. then the young then the youngest female self-made billionaire in the world, she graced magazine cover "game changer," wh started a health care tech company at 19 with the idea to

draw and analyze blood with a tiny pinprick, turning it into a $9 billion business. john carreyrou broke the story in the "wall street journal" in 2015, exposing the company's faulty medical technology and reporting on what the u.s. attorney called a scheme to defraud investors, doctors and patients >> i'd say where she crossed the bright red line is in the fall of 2013 when she commercialized a product, a medical product, that she knew did not work >> reporter: holmes and theranos' coo were indicted in 2018 on two charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and multiple counts of wire fraud. both deny all charges against them but shocking new court documents reveal her defense will likely present her as a victim, claiming a decade long abusive relationship with ramesh balwani, her ex-boyfriend. holmes' attorneys writing that balwani's control including

monitoring her calls, text messages and emails, physical violence such as throwing hard, sharp objects at her, restricting her sleep, monitoring her movements and insisting that any success she achieved was because of him. and further claiming mr. balwani controlled her so much, essentially dominating her and erasing her capacity to make decisions. >> i think it's an opportunity for her to get the jurors to sympathize with her. she has incredible charisma. she's a chameleon. she can put on a terrific act. >> reporter: balwani eegs attorneys are firing back, saying ms. holmes' allegations are deeply offensive to m mr. balwani, devastating personally to him. now, elizabeth holmes is expected to testify in court now if convicted, she could serve 20 years in prison a separate trial for balwani will be held in january of 2022 and nbc news reached out to attorneys for both holmes and balwani and both declined to comment on the case. guys

>> natalie, thank you. it feels like a good time. >> for what? >> a boost >> yeah. >> here we go. a houston neighborhood said good-bye last week to their beloved mail carrier after 14 years of service [ applause ] >> come on there's a crowd there to bid farewell to mr. james. >> look at that. >> and it would not be a proper good-bye without an official passing of the torch in this case, he passed the mail bag. this little guy couldn't have been happier about it. one neighbor said of mr. james, he was always so kind to their kids, letting them deliver the mail on her street, even picking up the kids when they couldn't reach the mailbox. he took every opportunity to show kindness and made everybody feel special happy retirement, man, that's beautiful. >> congratulations just ahead, a day of remembrances for princess diana 24 years after her untimely death. >> we are going to take you live

to kensington palace where people are being let in today to celebrate her life and legacy. plus, new details emerging about prince harry's relationship with the royal family that's right after this. one that's been paved and one that's forever wild but freedom means you don't have to choose just one adventure ♪ ♪ you get both. introducing the all-new 3-row jeep grand cherokee l jeep. there's only one. frank is a fan of fast. he's a fast talker. a fast walker. thanks, gary. and for unexpected heartburn... frank is a fan of pepcid. it works in minutes. nexium 24 hour and prilosec otc can take one to four days to fully work. pepcid. strong relief for fans of fast. (driving upbeat music) hey, google. to four days to fully work. turn it up.

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kelly cobiella is there for us kelly, good morning to you >> reporter: guys, good morning to you the brothers, prince william and prince harry are said to be marking this day privately, but here at kensington palace, which is usually closed today, they're opening the gates to the sunken garden later this afternoon so people can visit that new statue dedicated to diana this morning, a solemn anniversary. 24 years after princess diana's death, people are remembering her life >> diana will always be a t. she was a person who moved moved the dial lasting figure she was a great philanthropist and moved the dial on many issues but at the same time, also, she's the mother of the next king of england. >> reporter: diana was 36 years old, the most photographed woman in the world, when she did in a car crash in a paris tunnel august 31st, 1997. sons william and harry were just 15 and 12.

her tragic story still resinating today with "spencer," a new movie imagining her life due out in november. and the fictionalized drama "the crown" still a hit on netflix. it comes at a turbulent time for diana's sons, prince william and prince harry were last together on july on what would have been their mother's 60th birthday to unveil a statue in her honor at kensington palace with high hopes it would bring the brothers closer today. in a new biographer, "finding freedom," released today, the authors claim that harry saw his grandfather's funeral as a chance to fix the rift he had a one-way ticket because he didn't know how the trip would pan out. there was a feeling that the trip might present an opportunity to come together and talk without the filter of go-betweens. the authors say the chat between the brothers outside the chapel was their first face-to-face conversation in 15 months. and they went on to have at

least two further conversations. and that prince harry spoke to his father, prince charles, but their problems remain unresolved as prince william and kate carry on with royal duties, prince harry and meghan are expanding their growing private empire and "finding freedom" authors say entering a new era of visibility with multi million dollar speaking, streaming and publishing deals "finding freedom's" authors claiming the two have no regrets. they add harry and meghan have reinvented the fairytale romance with a self-made independent woman playing an equal role alongside her knight a spokesperson for the sussexs said they did not collaborate on this book, that they were not interviewed for it, that this is all based on reporting by the authors. guys >> and kelly, that book you mentioned has new details about a recent meeting between prince harry and the queen.

what more can you tell us? >> reporter: yeah. so the authors claim that prince harry had a very special reunion with the queen back in april when he was here for his grandfather's funeral, that he has the utmost respect and love for his grandmother, despite everything that's happened over the past year, and that he regards her as sort of an inspiration for his own life of service. guys >> kelly, thank you. let us now turn to mr. roker who remains in new orleans for us this morning. al, what are we looking at now, buddy? >> well, we've got two big stories on each coast. we start off, of course, with ida. it's of course devastated the gulf as you look, you can see its effects are going to be widespread 71 million people impacted under flash flood watches and warnings pushing into the northeast and we're going to be looking at this heavy rain starting to develop later today into the mid-atlantic states, tennessee river valley some places could be picking up to 8 inches of rain.

out west, those california mega fires, the caldor fire now breaching over the sierra mountains, that's the second fire that has done that this season 2021 fire season almost 2 million acres burned, third most active on record and we have a high fire danger today, red flag warnings stretching from california to colorado with no chance of rain in the forecast and strong gusty winds that's good morning. i am meteorologist kari hall. we are continuing to watch what's happening near the caldor fire. we're going to see the winds increasing today. that's going to help clear out smoke for the bay area and cool off our temperatures. some warmest spots in the inland valleys reach into the 80s. we cool down the next few days, then it will heat up in time for labor day weekend. we head back to the low 90s by sunday into labor day. san francisco is looking at highs in the mid-60s over the next few days.

>> and that is your latest weather. guys >> mr. roker, we're going to take it from here because it's time for, as we like to say, our favorite time of day first up, simone biles recently sat down for an interview of probably with her favorite journalist. sorry, it's not you this time, hoda >> bummer. >> asking the questions this time around, simone's mom, nelly biles. they share add conversation about mental health from the tokyo games. simone opening up on what it felt like to take a step back on the world stage. here is a little bit of what she had to say >> not a lot of people can relate to winning and to being an elite athlete and to doing the things and breaking the barriers that we're doing, but a lot of people can relate to, like, mental health and normal people stuff because we're not seen as normal people walking around but then once i kind of took a step back, i obviously was expecting to feel, like, a lot of backlash and embarrassment. but it's the complete opposite

and that's the first time i felt like human, like besides simone biles, i was simone and people kind of respected that >> hoda, you were there. what's your take on that conversation >> first of all, what beautifully intimate conversation and i was just thinking how tough it must be for nelly to listen to her daughter talk about the pain she endured she loves her little girl so much and to hear her be so open and honest about it. but i was texting nelly during the olympics and she just kept saying pray for simone, sending hearts to watch them sitting together, seeing that -- >> do you think her mom has a good idea of how many millions of people she is going to help by being so brave to talk about her mental health status >> you know what i don't know that that has probably dawned on her incredible athlete she's probably going to impose a -- influence a lot more people through this you're right >> it's a great conversation hear it on today.com next up on popstart, lil nas x. he sings, he dances and i guess he skateboards

he posted a tiktok showing off his new skills >> today i'm going on be doing some airs, maybe a mctwist let's go let's go go. ♪♪ ♪ and that's how you skateboard. thank you. >> that makes more sense that makes more sense. >> i see a little switch-a-roo there. that is tony hawk, in case you're wondering the "old town road" singer sharing this picture on instagram. hang, tony writing, the blood brothers. cute video there next up, the velvet underground in new york city, the subject of an upcoming documentary. the first trailer gives fans a look at both new and archival interviews from the velvet's history.

also, andy warhol and the band members. here's a peek. >> we have a new band, it's called the velvet underground. >> music was very heavy. everything he does in that crackly voice of his resinates ♪ >> that weirdness, it shouldn't have existed in this space >> the music sounded like nothing else all of a sudden, it would stop like that, and the audience would be dead silent the velvet underground had hypnotized them. >> a lot of people have been waiting for this documentary "the velvet underground" is going to hit apple tv plus on october 15th looks great. next up, kim kardashian and kanye west over the weekend, ye released his 10th studio album, donda, and no surprise it set a bunch of new records including number one on apple music's top album charts in 24 hours also more than 60 million streams. that's just here in the u.s. kim took to instagram to show her support for the new album

showing screen grabs of th track she was listening to, but fans were quick to notice that something didn't look quite right. i don't know if you can see what's going on there. >> what? >> how about the volume is turned all the way down. twitter lit up in response one user commenting not kim listening to donda on mute clearly, you cannot get anything past kanye's fans. >> that's how my wife listens to me >> when you post a photo on instagram, it's never about the subject, it's always about what is that book on your bookshelf back there finally, dwayne johnson, pro wrestler and movie star may be used to playing a hero on the big screen, but the rock recently drew some attention online thanks to a tiktoker comparing his good looks to that of a real life hero. >> i really don't think y'all are ready for this because this is insane. look at him. you cannot tell me that is not mr. dwayne dwayne "the rock" johnson. it's him that's dwayne "the rock. you're not convincing me otherwise.

>> that's actually lieutenant eric fields of morgan county, alabama, on the left >> oh, wow >> his look alike gone viral now, the rock responded to thi on twitter writing, wow, guy on the left is way cooler stay safe, brother, and thank you for your service >> a doppelganger? >> crazy >> yes >> not surprisingly, lieutenant fields says he hears this comparison of looking like the rock all the time, and for good reason >> you can use that to your benefit, for evil, getting into all the great restaurants in alabama. sign autographs. coming up, kerry sanders has an exclusive tied to one of the bermuda triangle's most enduring mysteries. what happened to the so-called lost squadron more than 75 years ago? kerry is going to explore it, coming up. but first, your local news

a very good morning to you. 8:26 on tuesday morning. i am laura garcia. a vehicle fire putting up a lot of thick, black smoke in the south bay. you may have seen it. video shows it could be an rv or a truck. the fire is burning near 101. no word on cause of the fire. so far it hasn't effected traffic. breaking news, a red flag warning for firefighters as the fire bears down on south lake tahoe. it is approaching kirkwood mountain ski resort. south lake tahoe is under evacuation. containment this morning is back up to 16%. winds in the area could be

destructive. in our neck of the woods, things looking better, kari? >> look at the clear blue view over the south bay as that smoke blows away from us. we are looking at improved air quality today. cooler temperatures, headed towards 80 degrees in south bay. hot in antioch. mostly 70s and low 80s for inland areas, 60s near the coast. we'll continue to see breezy winds, cooler air for inland valleys through the middle of the week and heating up for labor day weekend. >> thank you very much. thank you as well for joining us. another local news update in a half hour. hope to see you then. enjoy your tuesday morning.

morgan stickney out of carey, north carolina, with just a few minutes to go and it will be morgan stickney that gets the gold jessica long holds on and takes the silver >> go, morgan. we're back with an amazing moment that was at the paralympic games this morning how about that, guys, a one-two finish for team usa in the 400 meter freestyle. gold for morgan stickney brought her incredible story last week on "today. we got a silver for jessica long it's her third medal in tokyo.

26 overall when you think about what morgan -- >> oh, her story >> couldn't even walk. 18 months ago, she had both legs amputated because of a broken bone in her foot condition that prevents blood circulation. she prepared for the game in her neighbor's pool through freezing temperatures >> love it love her story by the way, can we just say hello. we're outside. thanks for coming. meantime, coming up, our kerry sanders is going to take a deep dive into a bermuda triangle mystery what scientists are discovering about an unsolved disappearance there 75 years ago plus, it is back to school season and this year the cost is certainly adding up quicker than ever backpacks, sports gear, new clothes. well, we have some simple and smart ways to save you money we'll get into that in just a bit. and a new school year is a great time to change up your week night dinner routine. we're going to show you three

classic indian dishes. they're perfect, easy, and perfect for kids and parents coming up in a few minutes on the third hour of "today," we're going to talk about the a new album for one republic the front man is joining us, and the band will have a performance for us, as well. >> looking forward to that and if you're in the marke for some new kicks, be sure to join us tomorrow we're going to unveil the best of the bunch from self's sneak awards and we're going to dive deeper into the return of school work we have some recipes that you guys are craving just ahead at today food on instagram. siri daly, hey before we go to al, can we take a look at our crowd they've been sitting out here. just give them a little hey. hey. oh, wait hey. >> all the way down. >> looking good, guys. all right. lots to get to, but before we do any of it, we check in with mr. roker once more down in new orleans. al

>> who dat i know hoda knows that who dat. that's right anyway, you know, we've been talking about what's been going on in the east well, in the southwest, they've got flood advisories and flood watches out for 7 million people a lot of moisture coming up from a defunct tropical system. that's coming up out of mexico it's going to bring heavy rain some places are going to be looking at rainfall rates 1 to 2 inches per hour and that could cause big problemsits way throur again, we've got the remnants of ida, tropical depression making its way through the tennessee river valley bringing a flood threat there plenty of sunshine in the northeast through the great lakes. fire danger continuing from the pacific northwest on into northern california and parts of the northern rockies that's what's going on a good tuesday morning. i am meteorologist kari hall. we take a look at our temperatures. cooling down from the coast to inland areas. we're going to see changes,

especially with some of our valley temperatures coming down 10 degrees compared to yesterday. it is hot in antioch, 91 degrees, better than the 100 we had yesterday. we'll see temperatures cooling off with a stronger westerly wind. it is also helping improve our air quality. it will heat up again for labor day weekend. >> and that is your latest weather. guys >> mr. roker, thank you, sir now to an enduring mystery tied to the legend of the bermuda triangle, that area off the coast of florida that extends into puerto rico and north to bermuda >> it's where some people believe ships and planes are disappearing because of forces perhaps unknown to mankind kerry sanders joins us from florida with the preview of a scientific investigation it airs next week on the history channel. kerry, good morning.

>> reporter: good morning. the mystery of the bermuda triangle captured the world's attention when those world war ii planes disappeared into the vast area of the atlantic ocean. it was 1945 and planes of this vintage had taken off on a routine training mission, but they became known as the lost squadron today, 75 years later, we still do not know what happened. december 5th, 1945, five avengers take off from naval air station ft. lauderdale on a routine training mission 14 airmen headed to the bermuda triangle they were never seen again flight 19, the so-called lost squadron in "close encounters of the third kind" -- >> who flies planes like these any more >> no one. these planes were reported missing in 1945. >> reporter: the mystery disappearance was answered

they were taken by aliens. but that's a movie now, in a new history channel documentary -- >> the hoodoo sea, the graveyard of the atlantic, or as we know it more commonly today, the bermuda triangle >> a more than year long well funded scientific mission into the bermuda triangle resolves some unanswered questions. mike barnett, the team's lead under water explorer making a significant discovery as they filmed the documentary history's greatest mysteries >> and then you finally found the avenger. >> we found an avenger >> but is this the avenger from flight 19? >> that's the question we don't know yet. there are hundreds of aircraft lost off the coast of florida. >> reporter: with careful examination, the jigsaw puzzle of a debris field reveals itself >> we see this round piece of wreckage with -- in the middle

of it, teeth like for gears. i'm thinking to myself, this looks like a turret. emotions are running off the chart. could this be an avenger >> reporter: yes, it's an avenger, but is it from flight 19 >> this potentially might not be one of the avengers from flight 19, but it still has a story to tell and by knowing what this aircraft is, we know where flight 19 isn't. >> reporter: confounding his discovery, researchers find navy records that suggest this may be a different avenger crash. since 1930, more than 325 planes have crashed or disappeared in the bermuda triangle, more than 1200 ships sank or missing for decades, sailors and aviators have speculated the bermuda triangle has forces we do not understand. extra terrestrial involvement, ufos, something beyond our

earthly science. i dove into the mystery off bermuda three years ago. while we found countless wrecks, we found no evidence of explicable phenomenon. but you don't buy into the idea there are mystical events that have happened >> rank it with the easter bunny and the tooth fairy. >> reporter: what remains is the mystery of flight 19 >> you're pretty certain they're somewhere out there. >> definitely. i'm sure they're out there >> reporter: out there in the bermuda triangle, you out there in an area the size of alaska in the deep is an explanation of what really happened to the lost squadron and that's an avenger right there. the guys who are pilots that flight here at the museum, they think there's a logical explanation. but temporal shifts remains a popular idea, in part because when those avenger planes disappeared, the navy sent out a

search plane, a martin mariner, and it, too, disappeared with its crew of 13 ♪ >> the sound effects >> for those of us that still believe in the tooth fairy and easter bunny, we're holding out hope for some close encounter action down there in the triangle that is fascinating. i could watch that all day you can watch more of history's greatest mysteries expedition next tuesday at 8:00 eastern on the history channel. kerry, thank you so much coming up, we're going to back to school supplies, hitting pants' wallets harder threan

(music plays throughout) oh! we're dancing. woah! oh. ok! and that's a yeah. (music stops) i'm a dancer now.

we are back with our ongoing series, back to school today if you spent the last month perhaps two months shopping for school supplies, we're sure

you've noticed prices are higher than ever. >> on average, families are spending nearly $850 this year but we've got some good news there are super simple smart ways to save you know who is going to tell us all about it brandie braxton. editor for "real simple. she's here to share a couple ideas with us. we know prices are high. that ain't great but i like your solution you say diy may be the way to go >> yes so buy plain diy. we have simple folders and binders. buy them in bulk you'll save a little there you know how kids always want those fancier folders? they're often pricey so get some simple ones and decorate them yourself >> stickers. >> hoda, this one is for you use stickers, markers, even do a magazine collage a folder like this is 50 cents compared to the jazzier ones that can be $3 you're definitely saving. >> kids could have a lot of fun doing it. >> a lot of fun. >> you do suggest, though, that perhaps we should splurge a bit when it comes to certain items

like backpacks >> so your backpack is your mvp of the school year it is your workhorse if you buy a really good one this year, you might not have to buy it next year or the year after. you could save some money. so check the zipper. make sure it's moving nice and freely, that it feels durable. check the stitching on the backpack make sure it is uniform, doesn't look sloppy. and last and most importantly, check those straps those should feel durable. this backpack from scout has a u-shaped design which helps it to fit on shoulders a little nicer. and you don't have to have the same backpack every year if your kid is using it for a few years, grab some patches, these are from mary mary or from hamilton they can make the backpack feel new every year >> diy again >> often, people use zip locks and paper bags but you say skip the disposables. keep something that will stick around >> yes so those disposables, they can seem cheap, but you have to

replenish them every week. so pricey. we recommend that you grab some reusables. i love these bags. they're silicone my fiancee is a teacher. he brings these for his school lunch. dishwasher safe. >> those are good. >> yeah. the prep and go container from oxo, also great. and then we have a classic lunchbox from whisk wear this is a lot more durable than a paper bag, easier for your kids to tote and it's insulated and you can wipe it right out. i love these snack containers. how cute are these >> are those stackable >> they are. fit three snacks in there. water bottle pocket. >> brilliant. >> love those. >> is it expensive >> this is about $12 the lunchbox is under $20. so -- >> it's cute >> so here is the thing. if you're a parent and you've got a kid in sports, they play an instrument, that gets really expensive really fast. >> it does i played the trumpet in school very expensive instrument. but luckily, you can tap your

neighborhood marketplaces. look on places like facebook marketplace, next door, ebay you can save some money on sports equipment and instruments. >> the outfit is important but you say don't go crazy pump the brakes. >> exactly if you can stretch those clothes from summer and wait until the fall, you can save a lot of money on jeans and sweaters. and your kids go back to school, see what's in school before you buy. >> brandie, thank you. all good pieces of advice. find these solutions on our website at today.com/shop. meanwhile, back to school season has you wondering how to get those week night meals on the table quickly, we've got you covered on that front, as well not one, not two, but three simple but tasty dishes that the entire family is gng to love but fioirs

we are back with today and more with back to school health. >> and you're probably looking for easy recipes that you can get out on the kitchen table here with a few suggestions is children's book author sara thomas she's on a mission to help kids try some new foods in the book, kalamata's kitchen. sara, it's good to have you. kids are tricky. do you think it's a good idea to try and get them when they're younger to try new cuisines to set those trends early on? >> yes thank you. i'm so excited to be here. absolutely i grew up eating these foods kids do enjoy these foods. it's just a matter of when and how they're exposed to them. >> so you said this smells like your home and it smells amazing. what is the first ditch? the first dish >> chicken stew. this is a traditional stew where my family is from in india i've fried off some shallots in this oil we started off by cooking some onions for about a minute. take some of those curry leaves

off the branch >> okay. >> yeah. >> how do you get these specific leaves can you get them from grocery stores >> yeah. i think you can find them in most grocery stores. indian stores, offline they're super fragrant i recommend the fresh ones with the curry leaves, we'll add in the ginger and the chiles, as well >> like this >> thank you and we really just like lightly -- you know, you can tone this up or down for your spice pallet >> how powerful are those chiles for kids >> if you're not used to eating them, use one or de-seed them. >> this is where you start to add in new flavors for your kids >> exactly right >> something i've never cooked with before. >> this is a great recipe to try them out >> i'm intimidated with indian food >> perfect >> cardamom. >> throw those in. >> fresh >> and you can add in two of those cinnamon sticks and cloves, as well. this is where it starts to smell really, really good. >> when do we add the chicken? >> now we're going to put in the chicken.

>> how much chicken? >> go all in go all in. and this we're just going to cook >> skinless, boneless. >> you can use bone in, too. it adds a really nice flavor >> you cannot beat that. >> cook this for two to three minutes. >> oh, thank you yes. thank you. >> slightly cooked >> thank you sorry. you're like, why are we -- >> no, the point is to eat it and enjoy it, right? >> this is a one-pot dish, right? >> yes >> after the chicken has cooked for a little bit -- >> oh, my gosh >> i love those firsts impressions. >> oh, so good >> so potatoes in. a little bit of vinegar. it's really minimal effort for so much flavor and it's such a good way to introduce kids to this cuisine >> yumm. >> what is this next dish before we run out of time >> this is my mom's dal recipe this is one of the foods that i grew up eating

this is a staple enjoyed by indian families all over it's a recipe found in the back of the book, as well it's inspiring the adventure in the story. i was really inspired as a kid by the sounds and scents of spices going so we're going to temper or bloom or spices. >> vibrant >> what spices are you using >> these are mustard seeds they are popping like fireworks. just like in the book. as soon as they start popping, you're good to go. and we're going to add in some garlic, chiles and ginger here, as well. we're going to cook these until -- just for a little bit because i like that fresher flavor and that smell -- this is like a really engulfing smell i remember this being like what my house smelled like all the time so thanks, mom i was really lucky so we cook this for a minute, let everything get kind of lightly browned. but that's it. >> and what is this that you're putting in what is that >> that is a dried lentil. the nice thing about dal, you

cannot mess this up. >> okay. >> that's delicious. >> isn't it great? it smells good >> i love that >> these are so good >> it is so good >> tastes like a grilled cheese dipped in a tomato it's a comfort food. >> absolutely comfort food did you dip it in that >> yes >> i've never actually done that, but dal on toast is great. great thing. >> we want to thank you. that recipe, again, is in the back of the book "kalamata's kitchen. that book out right now. great job. it's taken a lot to get to this moment. ♪ grew up at midnight - the maccabees ♪ dreams are on the line. you got this. refresh... it all, comes down, to this.

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...but when you have an insurance question, you can always count on your local geico agent. they can give you personalized advice and could help you save hundreds. who wants some dress shirts!? for expert help with all your insurance needs, get to know your local geico agent today. we're back as dylan joins us because it's time to celebrate some milestone birthdays >> we're excited to celebrate some birthdays i love showing up this time to spin around those smucker's jars let's see who we have first up this morning a happy 100 birthday to betty jacobson she is an avid bingo player from

strongsville, ohio loves guard penning, golfing, and spending time with her family love all those things. florence toots dougherty is from thermopolis, wyoming 100-year-old musician can't read a lick of music but plays the piano and oregon like an expert. that's all that matters. happy 100th birthday to eugene williams from jacksonville, illinois loves to stay active we thank you for your service, sir. dolores "mushie" vokes from clearfield, pennsylvania. celebrating 100 years old today. let's say hello to doris geller from princeton, new jersey find this 102-year-old sitting by the pool playing penny slot machines, line dancing or hanging with her family. and happy 100th birthday to margaret colucci, from new castle, pennsylvania painting enthusiast. margaret's recipe to longevity, it's simple, family.

that's all you need. >> i have this thought of mushie waiting for the nurse to walk by her room and as soon as she's gone, she pours a little wine. hey now. well deserved. >> thank you, hon. coming up on hoda and jenna, clever products to create more space in your garage but first, a man giving new life to the trash he finds, proving value is in the eye of the beholder and be sure to check out our new podcast. download at apple and spotify or subscribe and listen wherever you get your podcasts. we're back after your local news and weather. very gofrm to you. 8:56. i am lawyer laur. long awaited criminal trial about to begin in san jose. jury selection starts in the fraud trial for elizabeth holmes whose company became a wall

street darling. they bill beinged investors saying they could test for dozens of medical conditions using a single drop of blood. at one point was valued $9 billion, then the bottom fell out and it was found inaccurate. she plans to testify in her own defense. kris sanchez has a full report at midday newscast. and the caldor burning 191,000 acres, racing towards south lake tahoe. we'll talk about evacuations. creating a supply kit, and including your whole family in practice drills. for help creating an emergency plan, visit safetyactioncenter.pge.com homelessness, housing, taxes, for help creating an emergency plan, water, electricity,

crime, wildfires. [sfx: bear roar] gavin, you've failed. we have to immediately cut taxes twenty-five percent. fix housing and homelessness. and make life in california affordable again. i'm a businessman, the only cpa running. shouldn't we choose ability this time? do you think john cox will be a better governor than gavin newsom? [sfx: bear roar] does a bear sh*t in the woods? a little preparation will make you and your family safer in an emergency. a week's worth of food and water, radio, flashlight, batteries and first aid kit are a good start to learn more, visit safetyactioncenter.pge.com . under threat. tracking late night developments as the caldor fire rages on. >> join us tomorrow, 4:30 to

7:00.

live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza, this is the third hour of "today." >> good tuesday. welcome to the third hour. it is a public service announcement, the last day of august. >> isn't this crazy? >> the 31st. craig melvin, sheinelle jones, dylan dreyer. >> metrological fall starts tomorrow, just saying. >> it's the metrological fall and what's the other one? >> then you have your regular start of fall, which is at the end of september. >> that's the fall we're going to take. >> right. >> but the point