good morning. thanks for starting your day with us. it is going to be a wet weekend for millions along the east coast. >> tropical storm ophelia is set to make life miserable. for everybody from north carolina through new england. it is september 23rd and this is "today." rained out. more than 20 million people on the east coast under tropical storm and flood alerts this morning as the tropical storm

comes ashore along the outer banks. fears of flooding with a half of foot of rain in places. angie is tracking it all. defiance. new jersey's powerful senator bob menendez says he has no plans to step down hours after he and his wife were indicted on federal bribery charges. prosecutors showing off the gold bars and stacks of cash they found in his home they say why given in exchange for the senator's influence. where the case goes from here. the big uneasy. a possible water crisis looming in new orleans with saltwater from the gulf of mexico now threatening to contaminate the city's drinking water supply. lights, camera, deal? negotiators for the writers guild in hollywood back at the bargaining table for the fourth straight day of talks. >> the ceos are in the room today. is that a sign of progress? >> absolutely. >> hopes the two sides could reach agreement as early as today.

all that, plus so long summer. break out the jackets and get ready for cooler temperatures and apple picking and foliage as we say hello to the first day of fall, today, saturday, september 23rd, 2023. >> announcer: from nbc news, this is "today" with peter alexander and laura jarrett live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. >> welcome to "today." thank you for joining us. fall is not wasting time. pack the ponchos if you are sitting on the side of the soccer game. >> i have been in denial. i cannot be in denial when i walked out today. it is chilly. we start with the tropical storm ophelia with rain forecast up and down the east coast all weekend. it just made landfall along north carolina's outer banks.

>> we will get to angie's forecast in a moment, but we start with aaron gilchrist. aaron, you are next in line. how is it looking? >> reporter: this storm is delivering as promises, peter. we are in a lull along the jersey shore with the rain not coming down as hard as it has been. we are getting the wind for sure. i want to show you what we are seeing in the atlantic ocean. the waves are getting more and more aggressive as the night has gone on. the concern here is we will see waves 10 to 15 feet high and that will create coastal flooding up and down the eastern seaboard with rain in virginia and pennsylvania and up into new england as you noted. that is driving some of the inland flooding concerns that you hear about with the gusty winds in the area. i want to take you to where the storm made landfall in emerald

isle. we are hearing reports of flooding in communities in that area. we are seeing images of homes surrounded by water. people who have been stuck in some of the homes as a result and it is important to note we're dealing with a significant number of power outages in places as the night has gone on with outages growing in north carolina and virginia. there are places north of there dealing with power outages as well. peter, it is worth noting this storm is so far from over for so many people. it is a massive storm covering a huge portion of the eastern seaboard and we are going to see this rain and this wind for hours and hours to come. peter. >> good reminder to be careful out there. aaron gilchrist watching this along the atlantic. aaron, thank you. >> let's bring in our expert.

meteorologist angie lassman. >> we will see a lot of rain and wind and storm surge. let's talk about the latest with tropical storm ophelia. it made landfall as a tropical storm. it has 70-mile-an-hour winds. at 6:15 in emerald isle, it came ashore. rain working in the northeast already. the tropical storm warnings are up from delaware and down to the carolinas. we will deal with this through the day today in the carolinas and tomorrow, it will be the northeast and new england with the rain. here are the storm surge amounts. inland north carolina is where we see the higher storm surge. especially with high tide which happens before 3:00 this afternoon. heads up for that. we could see inland flooding issues there. a lot of rain moving through. the flood watches are up for 23 million people right now. we continue to see the rain working to the north in the coming days. as we get through the day, expect gusty winds.

20-to-30-mile-an-hour winds. 40 or 50 miles are possible before it made landfall. this will be something that could bring 6 to 7 inches of rain across the carolinas. back to you. >> angie, thank you for that. new jersey democratic senator bob menendez is resisting growing calls to resign days after he was indicted on bribely charges. prosecutors found gold bars and hundreds and thousands of dollars of cash after the raid last year. they claim the senator used his powerful position to make himself a very wealthy man. chief justice contributor jonathan dienst is here. >> a growing number of people are calling on senator menendez to resign with several republicans calling the senior senator gold bar bob. menendez saying some are rushing to judge a latino to push him out of his seat. this morning, calls for senator

bob menendez to resign after a stunning corruption indictment. menendez ddefiant. releasing a statement overnight saying i'm not going anywhere. prosecutors accused the new jersey democrat of a wide ranging bribery scheme. he and his wife accepted gold bars and piles of cash and mercedes-benz. all in an illegal effort to help three business men and egyptian officials. >> the senator and his wife accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars of bribes in exchange for his power and influence to protect and enrich those business men and benefit the government of egypt. >> one business men, fred daibes is a fraudster who paid menendez and his wife with these gold bars. after getting the gold, the indictment says menendez went online to search how much is one kilo of gold worth. >> these kilograms are worth

$150,000. >> reporter: during a search of his home, prosecutors found $480,000 in cash, including these envelopes stuffed into one of the suits. more hidden in a safe and in closets. according to the indictment, senator menendez also abused his powerful position as chairman of the senate foreign relations committee. >> senator menendez allegedly provided sensitive, non-public u.s. government information to egyptian officials. >> reporter: menendez and his wife deny wrongdoing saying forces are trying to silence him with false claims. there is an active smear campaign. the excess of the prosecutors is apparent. they have misrepresented the normal work of the congressional office and attacked my wife for the friendships she had before she and i met. while many are remaining silent. the new jersey governor is saying the allegations are

disturbing and calling on menendez to immediately resign. the senator, his wife and three business men are all due in court on wednesday on the bribery and extortion counts. all are expected to plead not guilty. some new jersey democrats are planning to meet this weekend to figure out next steps since menendez is up for re-election next year. >> jonathan, thank you. >> great to you have, jonathan. a looming government shutdown now just a week away this morning. there are few signs of hope in washington. if it happens, it could be painful for millions of americans. nbc's capitol hill correspondent julie tsirkin is here with more. >> reporter: good morning. congress is no closer to averting a shutdown which is now a week away. lawmakers at odds over how much

to spend and for how long. at stake is critical programs and millions of low income families will find themselves without child care or food benefits. employees deemed essential like tsa workers and air traffic controllers will have to work without pay leading to potential staff shortages. fema is low on funding and would be unable to help communities hit by disasters. national parks shuttered. if you are planning to visit d.c., the museums will be closed. social security payments and medicare and u.s. posts office delivery will continue, but could be impacted if the shutdown drags on. the longest in history in 2019 went on for more than a month. laura. >> is there any sense, julie, that this is going to end without a shutdown?

what are you hearing? >> laura, it does not seem like we are nearing a deal so far. kevin mccarthy telling me he is not ready to reach across the aisle yet despite the fact some members of the republican party who represent districts won by president biden are frustrated by the inaction and say they will work to find a way to fund the government by october 1st. laura and peter. >> julie tsirkin, thank you. to the latest on the migrant crisis at the u.s. border with mexico. the homeland security secretary will be there to meet with the ambassador of honduras. thousands of migrants are crossing into the country. we have guad venegas with more. guad. >> reporter: peter, the numbers are growing as high as 9,000 by thursday. the del rio sector is the most

important and popular. the secretary is expected to arrive at the border and meet with the president of honduras to discuss the immigration problem. the main concern here is most immigrants are coming from venezuela. this week, the biden administration gave protective status to a half million venezuelans who arrived before the end of july. it is interesting to see what this does for his re-election campaign with people criticizing president biden for that move. and those who support the reform are criticiing those who have been overlooked by giving this protective status to the venezuelans which arrived before july. the president is sending more aid to the border and additional troops to help with everything going on here. then, we also have thousands of migrants which remain in mexico

stranded on the trains which stopped. as the trains resume, we expect hundreds on the trains to make their way to the border. we would then see more apprehensions if that migration continues at the border. peter. >> guad venegas at the border. guad, thank you. president biden is headed to michigan on tuesday to show support for those striking auto workers who are now in week two of the strike. this strike will expand nationwide. jesse kirsch is outside the gm plant outside pontiac, michigan. jesse, what's the latest? >> reporter: laura, those are expected hours apart this morning. the picket line is stretching across the country and as this strike gross, the potential consequences are also growing. this morning, the uaw strike now

stretching coast-to-coast. the union says it made progress, but just with ford. it is following through on the threat telling gm and stellantis workers to strike at all parts distribution centers in 20 states from new york to north carolina. texas, colorado and california. >> stellantis and gm in particular will need serious pushing. >> reporter: among those walking off the job on friday is eric shorter. he was among those in the striking ranks in 2014. >> are you ready? >> yes. we deserve it. we deserve a fair wage. >> reporter: that fight for higher pay could soon hit americans far from the picket line. >> this will be days we will feel the impact and consumers will feel it. >> reporter: scott runs 40 dealerships. he says they stocked up on high demand parts like brake pads, but warns new engines could be

harder to find with parts centers on strike. >> if the union really wanted to put more pressure directly on the companies, was this the best next step for the union? >> this tactic seems to put more pressure on the dealers and consumers than the company. >> reporter: in a statement, gm accusing union leadership of manipulating the process for their personal agendas. stellantis writing question we if they were ever going to reach agreement in a timely manner. it says it is close to a deal with ford highlighting the cost of living adjustments. ford says there is more work to do. even with the latest expansion, they are telling a tenth of the work force to walk offense the job from the big three. that means the union still has a good amount of runway to exert more pressure as they try to get more from the companies.

laura. >> jesse kirsch live in michigan. thank you. the white house is taking new steps to address the ongoing gun violence chriss in the country. on friday, president biden announced the creation of the first ever office of gun violence prevention. allie raffa is live with more on that. >> reporter: peter, good morning. president biden was joined by survivors of gun violence and families for this office. the office overseen by vice president kamala harris aims to implement the safer communities act and work with state and local partners on more gun violence prevention measures. it will provide families with financial assistance and mental health resources. the president comparing these efforts to fema after a natural

disaster. the president talked about visiting the sites after mass shootings across the u.s. warning about the deadly price for inaction and urging congress to enact univeral background checks. >> this is unacceptable. it is not who we are. we have to act. we have to act now. let me be very clear. if members of the congress refuse to act, we need to elect new members of congress that will act. >> reporter: peter, there have been more than 500 mass shootings and 31,000 people have died from gun violence nationwide with guns being the number one cause of death among children. peter. >> all sides can agree. too much gun violence. ali, thank you. angie is back with a look at rest of the country's forecast. >> good morning. a couple of things. let's talk about the tropics and get into the fact it is the first day of fall.

we have tropical storm ophelia which is a headache for people across the east coast today and tomorrow. heads up for that heavy rain and flooding. we have a disturbance which is way out off the coast of africa. we will wait to see what happens with that. asyou now, it is not impacting anyone in the u.s. we have tropical storm downpours. we have hail and we will deal with plenty of heat across texas. we will see record potential highs across dallas and austin and houston with the chance to good morning. 5:18 first day of fall, waking up to a little haze filling in over san francisco and down here in san jose. we should see the air quality start to improve as we go on into the later hours of tonight.

definitely showing better signs of improvement from our sunday plans. what are temperatures looking like for the first day of fall? very chilly. napa, 47. good morning. 58 in palo alto and 57 and that's your forecast. not bad for the first day of fall. >> autumn? >> i'm a fall person. >> i call it sweatshirt season. >> technical term. >> thank you. still to come, nbc's lizkreutz is in hollywood with the latest on the writers strike. >> five months in and could a deal finally be within reach? i'll have the latest from the negotiations and picket lines coming up p. and critical shortage of the adhd medication and what you can adhd medication and what you can do if you cannot get the

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we are back on your saturday morning with the "weekly download." our look at the other big stories. >> we though your life is busy. we are catching you up with the latest with joe. >> a long awaited reunion for the americans involved in the prisoner swap with iran. emotional homecoming as five americans were friends from iran detention and returned to u.s. soil. >> five and a half years. >> their return after the prisoner swap with the u.s. unfroze $6 billion in iranian money that the u.s. says can

only be spent on humanitarian needs. a fighter jet crashed over the skies of south carolina. the military could not find it for more than 24 hours. >> the marine corps said the pilot ejected at 1:30 sunday. the residents reported their homes shaking after 2:00. meaning it could have been flying for a half hour on auto pilot. and authorities are investigating a death of a fan after the fight erupted in the stands at the gillette stadium. >> cpr administered to a fan dale mooney. >> punched him twice in the face. >> the preliminary autopsy results did identify a medical issue. no charges have been filed. alex murdaugh arrived in court and pleaded guilty to 22

counts of financial fraud and money laundering. >> our goal for holding him accountable in federal court is to ensure he is never a free man. >> murdaugh is serving a life sentence. prince william visited new york on the two-day tour focused on climate change. >> he stopped at the united nations and met with the secretary-general. hours earlier, prince william touched down on governors island experiencing the oysters project and harvesting with children from brooklyn middle school. >> what did he ask you? >> he asked how oysters were formed. >> some moments caught on camera. a car and truck collided on the highway. there were no fatalities.

this video with a family's houseboat going up in flames on lake powell. all people were able to escape. no injuries were reported. and a bear scare at disney world causing the magic kingdom to shutdown. officials were able to safely capture and release the bear back into the wild. finally in florida, beach goers pulled together to help the mako shark which was stranded on the beach. it took a few tries, but they were able to pull the shark into the water and it swam off safely. >> sharks have been getting a bad wrap this summer. it is nice to bring you a happy shark story. >> watching that shark flail around is reminding me of my toddler's teeth. still to come on "today," ryan

good morning. thanks for joining us, everyone, on this saturday. and you're watching "today in the bay." veto from the governor late last night rejecting a bill that would have required human safety drivers onboard self-driving trucks. the legislation would have danned driverless trucks from operating in public roads if they weigh more than 10,000

pounds including u.p.s. delivery trucks to semis. they have yet to hit the road in california, but supporters say it would have helped address safety kearns, and prevent truck drivers from losing their jobs in the future. the governor released a statement about his position calling the bill unnecessary, since existing laws give the state authority to regulate the new technology. parts of highway 87 are now closed in the south bay as caltrans workers work on pavement repairs. northbound lanes of 87 shut down between julian street and highway 85. the work is part of a $69 million project replacing pavement, update ramps at six intersections and improve drainage. guardrails upgraded as well and bike lanes resivd, too. southbound lanes get the same treatment on a separate weekend next month. detours in place for drivers.

work expected to wrap up by 5:00 monday morning. all right. probably noticed the haze outside. things aren't as bad as they were, but still not great. cinthia pimentel is here with a quick look at the forecast. good morningth good morning. still not great. gradually improving and in the forecast for today we'll show better signs of improvement for at least the second half of the weekend. waking up seeing haze lingering over san francisco, and even down into the south bay. good morning in san jose. air quality today, still unhealthy for people that live in the north bay. finding themselves along the coast and bay. everybody else in the moderate category. we return to green for everybody tomorrow. start to see more of that breeze off of the ocean and really start to feel that improvement. we're not smelling the smoke so much right now, and we can see that this will continue to push on through. i'll guide you through the changes we're seeing and also the first rain of the season coming up at 7:00 a.m.

>> cinthia, looking forward to that green. still coming up on "today in the bay," feeling spooky? halloween season is upon us already, if you can believe it. a preview of this year's fright fest at six flags. that plus all top stories coming up at 7:00. for now, we'll send you back to the "today" show.

all right. we are back on a saturday morning, september 23rd, 2023. that is a live, wet shot outside studio 1a. >> look at that. >> we hope they brought their umbrellas. later today, we have a weekend

washout expected here in new york and all over the east coast from tropical storm ophelia. let's check the headlines. the east coast faces this deluge of rain, but louisiana is dealing with drought conditions. the mayor declaing a state of emergency with unsafe levels of saltwater moving from the gulf of mexico up the mississippi river toward the big easy's drinking water systems. fresh water in the mississippi is normally pushing the salty water back, but the drought means there's not enough to do it. the governor of louisiana is requesting a federal emergency declaration as millions of gallons of water is set to be delivered this weekend. federal health officials are recommending pregnant women get the rsv vaccine to help shield the babies in the critical first six months. the single dose shot is made by

pfizer. women get the vaccine between months eight and nine of pregnancy. rsv is the leading cause of hospitalization among babies. and a couple of epic post-game celebrations last night. >> championship returns. >> those are my minnesota twins which clinched the title with the 8-6 win over the angels at home. the third a.l. central title. in the national league, the brewers win 16-1 in miami. brewers need one more win to wrap up the central. could there finally be a happy ending in sight in hole -- hollywood? they will be back at the bargaining table later today. maybe a deal is on the horizon.

liz kreutz is in l.a. with latest. >> reporter: optimistic is how people are feeling right now. both sides are working into the weekend is certainly a good sign. this comes as a source which tells nbc news they are inching closer to a deal. this morning, hope in hollywood with new signs a deal with the writers strike could be reached. friday marked three days straight of closed-door negotiations with the writers union and studios. top executives are at the bargaining table from warner bros. discovery and disney and netflix and comcast nbc universal. the ceos are in the room today. is that a sign of progress? >> absolutely. yeah. >> reporter: out at the picket lines, writers are hopeful the end is near. >> the picketers have been out here for more than 140 days. >> reporter: that is months

without work or pay. they say it is worth it. >> i have been more optimistic. i think they are realizing this is the last window before it might go to 2024. >> reporter: a source tells nbc news progress has been made with royalties for the work and use of a.i. protections. >> what are the sticking points right now? >> the biggest appears to be the staffing levels for writers rooms. it sounds like a punch line, but it is not. how much writers does it take to write an episode series? the companies and writers are really struggling to reach agreement. >> reporter: the strike has taken a hit to hollywood. the fall tv lineup usually filled with scripted series and comedy shows now replaced with reruns and game shows and reality tv. if the wga reaches a deal with the screen actors guild still on

strike, it could be months before any shows get back into production. writers i talked to on the picket lines are hopeful this round of negotiations will end the strike. many feel with the holidays coming up, this would be the last chance they have to reach a deal before the end of the year. crossing fingers, guys. >> thanks for all that reporting, liz. >> for everybody who wants to see a new show this fall. angie is keeping an eye on the east coast. you mentioned east coast. the central plains, we don't want to leave you out. the bumpy weather with hail. a heads up. 12 million people included in this. it goes from minnesota all the way to oklahoma. kansas city has the best chance to see the hail and strong winds at 60 miles an hour or higher. looking ahead to sunday, a smaller area, but still deal with severe weather across parts

of oklahoma and arkansas and texas. abilene and fort worth included in that. the same threats included. winds up to 60 miles an hour and hail about 1 inch or larger. the system will work across the middle of the country. there will be stronger storms in the afternoon hours. we could see good morning at 5:36 on this saturday, we are talking about the air quality as we see some of that wildfire smoke lingering around the bay area. put you in unhealthy for sensitive for the north bay and children or elderly or you yourself have respiratory issues stay inside. everybody else through the santa clara valley in the moderate

and that's a look at your forecast. guys. >> angie, thank you. we know what we will stream this weekend? we have it all set. just ahead, an important story for anyone struggling with story for anyone struggling with adhd and the ongoing somedays, i cover up because of my moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. now i feel free to bare my skin, thanks to skyrizi. ♪(uplifting music)♪

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9-year-old joshua off to school. two of the more than 6 million children on adhd medicine. caught in an ongoing shortage of the drugs. turning parents like jeremy into medical detectives. >> it is not serviced because it is unavailable from the manufacturer. >> do you have 20s? >> reporter: frustrating parents and physicians as the school year begins. >> this is the worst in my career in terms of the extent and duration. i've been in practice for over 30 years. >> reporter: what started as a shortage of aderaral has moved into shortages of other products. medicines that help four of jeremy's children focus in school and life.

>> i can't think of anything worse than knowing you are letting your kids down by not getting them what they need. >> reporter: most of the drugs are considered controlled substances by the dea with limits of how much can be produced. in the joint letter last month, the fda and dea pointed to high prescription rates and blamed manufacturers for not producing the full amounts allowed. several manufacturers told nbc news they planned to produce the maximum they're allowed and asked the government for permission to produce more. for "today," anne thompson, nbc news, new york. >> you see her with that frustration. dr. sue is joining us now to help families out. nice to see you here on an early saturday morning. a lot of families dealing with it. if you need adhd medication and you can't get it, where do you

turn? >> it is important you tell your doctor what the symptoms are that you or your child are dealing with so they understand the severity of them and what happens when you don't get the medication. you want them. you want to talk about the alternatives in the category of medication. you are taking a short acting medication available over a long acting. is there a 10 milligram? could that work? maybe you don't take the medication on hole holidays? there are a number of options. they are not ideal. if you have been on something for a long time and it is tried and true, trying something different can be hard. you will know within one or two days whether or not itis working. i would say give it time. we are hoping this would get fixed in the next few months. >> aside from medication and you

can't get the exact pill you want, what are other ways you can do to help your kids cope? >> a baseline is important. if the medications work, don't forget other treatment options. that includes the teachers to ask for an accommodation. ask for more testing time or more of a delay or a break when homework is due. apps are helpful. focus genie is helpful. it is a psychiatrist who has adhd. >> communicating with the schools. >> it takes everybody to deal with the situations. doctor, i appreciate your expertise. thank you very much. >> thank you for having me. joe, what is coming up? >> still to come, what ryan seacrest told willie about his plans when he (vo) if your thyroid eye disease was diagnosed

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all right. you know that music. we are back with "popstart." >> we have squid game. did you watch the show and think i wish i could try that? now you can. reminder, the series told the story of the secret survivor game of 456 players who faced execution if they lost. now it is turned into a reality competition show. here is the key difference. netflix says the reality of "squid games" is not a matter of life or death. netflix notes there is a lot on the line like a $4.56 million prize for the winner. the show gets the green light on netflix in november. if you haven't watched it, you don't know what i mean by green

light. >> prize money got my attention. we should get a pool going. >> grateful they got rid of the killing part. >> i want to be on the show. all right. we're all going in on it. finally, ryan seacrest. our pal, willie, sat down with ryan on sunday and chatted about the rise to fame from the radio gigs to hosting "american idol" and how he is taking the reins from pat sajak next year. >> he is an icon in the business. he made it so comfortable for everybody to watch it. i'm like a kid so excited about seeing the set. >> do you have any plans yet? i know it is still a year or so away. what your version of the show? >> my version will be the version that is. the game works. all you want to do is walk in and say good evening and grab your devices and here's the first puzzle.

>> you can catch the interview on "sunday today." if it ain't broke, don't fix it. >> that's a lot of pressure. that's an institution. >> i hope willie asks him when he sleeps. >> he hosts everything. >> exactly. >> and vanna white re-signed. thank you, joe. thank you, joe. still to come,eyonce b

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...you may be at increased risk of hospitalization... [coughing] ...from this highly... ...contagious virus. not all dangers come with warning labels. talk to your pharmacist or doctor... ...about getting vaccinated against rsv today. still to come on "today," why sir richard branson is now tackling climate change on top of his other busy ventures. and how we are trying to learn how to get more women of color into being pilots. >> all that after this messages.

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good morning. it is saturday and you're waking up with "today in the bay." i'm in for kira klapper. kaiser permanente on notice. health care workers plan to strike if a new labor deal isn't reached by end of the month. union leaders say the strike centers on what they describe as kaiser's short staffing crisis. kaiser doesn't come to agreement by september 30th, 75,000 kaiser workers across california, colorado, oregon, washington, virginia and d.c. will walk off the job. it would be the largest health care strike in u.s. history. in a statement kaiser said, the last 26 years of our historic labor management partnership we have reached agreements with coalition every time with no strikes. our top priority is caring for our members and patients and have plans in place to ensure we can continue to provide

high-quality care, should a strike actually occur. all right. time to check in with cinthia pimentel for a look at our forecast. good morning, cinthia. >> good morning. good morning, everyone. we continue to talk about air quality. i think today could be the last day that we continue to see those hazy skies as we get better air quality for tomorrow with moreof that onshore breeze before clearing things out. the bay, coast, immediate bay unhealthy for people with respiratory issues. a good day to stay inside and also temperatures will maybe feel like it, too. a good start to the fall season here. 47 in napa. 55 in concord and 56 in san jose. as we take you on some of the weather headlines we'll talk about in more detail at 7:00 a.m., hazy skies continue today, better air quality for just about everybody tomorrow, and due to the first rain of the

season now, some sprinkles for some of us, but heavier rain up in the pacific northwest. guide you through that storm track coming up at 7:00. >> keep air purifiers on at least one more day. air quality in your neighborhood, made easy. go to nbcbayarea.com/airquality. there you can type your address in to the map search box, and see what things are looking like where you live. all right. and coming up, still ahead on "today in the bay" -- one east bay community gets ready to host its first-ever pride celebration, but drafting for your help. we'll tell you why. that, plus all your top stories coming up at 7:00. for now we send you back to the "today" show.

good morning. ophelia arrives. the tropical storm roars ashore along north carolina's outer banks this morning and it's going to be a weekend washout for tens of millions all the way up to new england. this morning, angie has what you need to know. the next frontier. billionaire richard branson has

taken on aviation and record labels and hotels and now something new. climate change. >> you can't fix it. >> why he is taking on this new challenge. and beyhive to the rescue. social media saves the day after a young man voiced frustration he could not attend the beyonce concert he waited on for decades because his wheelchair could not fit on a plane. days later, he was at beyonce's show. how queen bey and her legion of fans got him there. today, saturday, september 23rd, 2023. >> today, we're on the "today" show. >> i'm libby from little rock, arkansas. >> we're from texas. >> i love it.

good morning. welcome back to "today" on saturday morning. great to see those folks. great to see the folks who have braved this wet weather for us on the plaza. >> you have to give them a little love if you come out to the plaza. >> the rain is holding off a little bit for them. that's good news. i do see one umbrella. >> we appreciate everyone out there for sure. >> we will get to the news. tropical storm ophelia making landfall a few hours ago bringing tons of rain for the weekend and for much of the east coast. >> we will get to angie's forecast in a minute, but aaron gilchrist is along the jersey shore in jersey shore. aaron. >> reporter: the rain has been steady and fairly light. the winds have been gusting through the morning. as you look at the atlantic ocean, you see the wave action which has been growing

throughout the night. this is the part of the concern. the expectation of coastal flooding because we could see gale-force winds as the day goes along here along the jersey shore and east coast. inland flooding is a concern because we will see a ton of rain dumped on communities up and down the east coast today. i want to show you north carolina where the storm came ashore after 6:00 this morning. tropical storm ophelia making landfall near emerald isle. you see concerns of people being stuck in their homes as well. we have gotten reports of power outages. the numbers have doubled in the number o 80,000 this morning. it is worth noting, peter and laura, this storm will spin for hours and hours on end. the flooding concerns and power

outages are a concern and they will grow as the day goes on today and tomorrow. back to you. >> aaron gilchrist, thank you for being there for us. >> let's check in with angie who is keeping an eye on the forecast. i was looking at my weather app app. it is rain as far as i could scroll. >> let's see when we will see a break. it is not until early in the workweek this will move out of the picture. we have a tropical storm, but winds have come down after making landfall after 6:00. 65-mile-an-hour winds. we have tropical downpours in the area. the highest amounts of storm surge are in north carolina which is 4 to 6 feet. you will see that closer to the high tide time around 2:45. the heavy rain, i mentioned with the bands working inland.

you will notice dry spots just from the folks who visited us on the plaza. we have periods of drier skies. we have soggy conditions continuing for the next couple days. we have flood watches in effect for 20 million people. the landfall time is here and look at the totals for the rain. over 5 inches in new bern. we will see 6 to 8 inches along the coast by the time this moves out. let's talk about how it moves. new england will be in this today and tomorrow. the worst is through the carolinas today. we are starting to get the rain and soggy conditions working up to the northeast and new england in the afternoon hours today as well. this will weaken through tomorrow. the rain will linger and we see impressive rain totals.

>> a mess for a lot of folks. angie, thank you. this morning, new jersey senator bob menendez is resisting calls to resign the day after the indictment of federal bribery charges was unsealed. he released a statement saying i'm not going anywhere. prosecutors say they found gold bars and half a million dollars in cash during a raid last year. he and his wife accepted these items and a mercedes-benz. he and his wife deny wrongdoing. we are learning more about the horrific bus crash in new york that killed a band director and chaperon on the high school trip to band camp. emilie ikeda has more. >> reporter: the bus packed with band students went careening off the roadway.

>> i heard it roll over the hill. i heard screaming. >> reporter: officials say the crash landed virtually everyone in the hospital. >> the kid next to me was covered in blood. >> reporter: the farmington high school band director died along with her close friend. her daughter says the retired teacher chaperoned the trip for three decades. >> my mom's impact on so many people throughout her time as a teacher and time in the community was profound. the reason i'm talking today is to honor that. >> reporter: among the seriously injured is natalie and ashley betts. their mom found their sister ashley and screamed for help to get her out. the freshman suffering a broken clavicle and jaw and limbs. the now damaged bus moved to nearby police in orange county,

new york as investigators zero in on a faulty tire. >> when you travel at a high rate of speed with the vehicle that is a mass of a bus. it is difficult to steer. >> reporter: five students are still in critical condition as the memorial for the retired teacher and band director continues to grow. emilie ikeda, nbc news, farmingdale, new york. that is the news now. we could use a boost. >> this is a good one. we have been talking about this the last couple days. this shows the incredible power of the beyhive. john heatherington had waited for years to go to the beyonce concert. he got the ticket to the show in seattle. when he got to the airport, the airline could not accommodate his electric wheelchair which he uses due to cerebral palsy.

>> after 25 years of waiting, i'm not seeing beyonce tonight. >> get this. fellow fans saw the tiktok video and lobbied queen bey to help him out. it worked. >> he made it! he made it! >> beyonce's staff arranged for a ticket to the show in arlington, texas as well as his transportation. that includes the flight. he got to meet beyonce in person and her mom. he was grateful for an amazing night. we partied, we sang, we danced. beyhive, you made this happen. >> there is so much about social media that is toxic and horrific, but that shows you the power of people coming together in a beautiful way. >> righting a wrong. >> he will not talk about what

we talked about. it is between us. it's our thing. coming up next for you, nbc's chloe melas is here and she goes one-on-one with sir richard branson. richard branson. >> we satown to d travis, did you know you can get this season's covid-19 shot when you get your flu shot? huh. two things at once. two things at once! ♪ two things at once. i'll have the... ...two things at once, please. now back to two things at once. ♪ two things at once. that's not two things at once. moooom! travis? ask about getting this season's covid-19 shot when getting your flu shot. ♪ "give it to me" by timbaland ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

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or insulin increases low blood sugar risk. side effects like nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea may lead to dehydration, which may worsen kidney problems. need to get your a1c down? you may pay as little as $10 per prescription. we're back on saturday morning. news this week that sir richard branson is expanding his reach and turning attention to a new venture. >> if he doesn't do enough already. chloe melas sat down with branson this week. chloe, welcome to saturday today. >> laura, congratulations. this is wonderful. richard branson was in new york for the united nations where he announced a new initiative to combat climate change. i had a chance to talk to him about that and more. sir richard branson has built a

multibillion dollar empire and rocketed into space. now he has a new project. >> helping to bring together. >> reporter: he launched the guardians. 14 world leaders to take what they're calling a planet approach to safeguard the earth. >> if you can't measure something properly, you can't fix it. we will measure the nine principle boundaries every year. how many of the rainforests are we cutting down? exactly where we are with climate change. exactly where we are with species disappearing in the world and make sure we can push the world into trying to address them. >> reporter: branson, whose virgin group includes virgin galactic, talks about lowering the carbon footprint. >> you have to run a space line,

you have to reduce the costs from the carbon point of view. all of us in the position to make a big difference and we have to make a difference. >> reporter: branson turning attention to the war in ukraine. he was appointed last bring by president volodymyr zelenskyy to lead fund raising efforts to rebuild the war-torn country. >> we cannot allow countries in this day and age to take over the territory of other people's countries. they are dying for the freedoms of all of us. the least we can do is make sure we can help. >> reporter: branson founded the virgin group in the 1970s which includes hotels around the world. the newest in manhattan. >> do you have a hand in designing everything? >> i take credit for all of the beautiful things. >> reporter: that includes virgin galactic. >> do you believe in our lifetime, anyone who wants to go will be able to pay for it and affordably go to space? >> in your lifetime? yes. i have to hurry up and develop a

virgin life to be in my lifetime. we are building a fleet of spaceships. >> will you do it again? >> i built it for a 80th and 90th. >> reporter: as for his free time? he is grandpa to five. >> we all need to make a bit of a difference in our lifetime and how you bring up your kids and how they live on. >> he will make a virgin pill so we can live longer. i'll take that. as we were walking around the hotel in new york here, he stopped at all of the tables and talking to people. people could not believe they were seeing him. we were in the part of the hotel with live music. we stopped and talked at every table. we talked about ufos and artificial intelligence and

ageism as we lead to the presidential election. you can find that on numbers -- nbc news now on monday. >> the genius of branding. >> they have big plans. he is 73 years young and he has a lot of living left to do. let's go to angie and look at the forecast for the rest of us. >> i would like to go to space. if you are watching, i'm your girl. let's talk about the temperatures. it doesn't feel like fall in texas. you have a brutal summer and you will see triple digits across the area. potentially record-breaking in a lot of spots. tomorrow, more of the same. 80s for nashville. mid-60s on monday for

philadelphia. good morning. 6:17. waking up in oakland. 59 degrees and still holding on to that hazy start to the day. also seeing hazy sky mixing in with touches of blue hues over san jose. 56 degrees will do it to start our saturday around the bay area. as we move you forward in what we can expect in our weather headlines, hazy skies continue today with better air quality tomorrow as the system works to push all of this out of the and that's a look at your forecast. guys, not bad. >> keeping you busy. >> yes. >> angie, thank you. still ahead, getting the next

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we are back on your saturday morning with the organization that is looking to empower young women to reach for the sky. >> the group sisters of the skies is hoping to get more women of color in the cockpit to become pilots. >> we have more from zinhle. >> what i like about flying is we get to see different things. >> reporter: that dream of a career in aviation is a rare one for black girls to accomplish. with fewer than 1% of pilots women of color. >> it was tough. there was no one that looked like me. >> reporter: now captain clayborne is part of the pilots hoping to increase the number of pilots. she was the first female black pilot in the air force and president of sisters in the skies. she is now a united airlines

pilot. >> why are more black women becoming pilots? >> it is expensive. it takes up to $100,000 to get licensing to fly. if our young ladies are not seeing it or parents don't have the funding, it will not happen. >> reporter: the sisters of the skies provides scholarships and mentorships and interactive events like this one in colorado. >> put it on this one. >> i like flying in planes and i want to learn how. i kept watching videos and learned a lot about flying. i wanted to try it. >> i love the planes and electronics. it was cool. i never met a pilot before. >> reporter: madeleine was part of the program. now she is paying it forward. a mentor herself and pilot for united airlines. just like her mentor. >> it was helpful to know i wasn't alone. one of the young girls said you

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good morning. you're watching "today in the bay." thanks for joining us. i'm bigad shaban in for kira klapper. and the governor rejected a bill for driverless trucks. self-driving big rigs have yet to hit the road in california but the legislation would have banned 10,000 pound or more trucks. driverless trucks that is. from operating on public roads. that would have included vehicles from u.p.s. delivery trucks to semis. supporters of the bill say it would have helped address safety concerns and prevent truck drivers from losing their jobs in the future. the governor released a statement about this decision calling the bill unnecessary since existing laws already give the state's dmv authority to regulate the new technology. parts of highway 87 are now closed in the south bay.

caltrans is working on pavement repairs. all northbound lanes of 87 shut down. the work is part of a $69 million project replacing the pavement, update ramps at six intersections and improve drainage. detours in place for drivers. work expected to wrap up by 5:00 monday morning. all right. that smoke haze is still hovering above a lot of us this morning. bring in cinthia pimentel. cinthia, when will we see blue skies again? >> i promise you, they're on the way. meantime, we are starting to see the sunrise mixing in with some haze. start over on in oakland seeing hazy sky greet us this morning. also temperatures at 59 degrees. san jose in the 50s. perfect representation of smoke hovering. futurecast for that smoke, we

are all going to see more hazy skies today for our saturday plans, but then as we go on into sunday, we're going to start to see the wind ushering in a better chance of some clearing, due to a cold front that will start to move in later on, on sunday. sunday afternoon, seeing better clearing and everybody moving in to the good category for our air quality. walk you through all of that and our temperatures. first official day of fall seeing 60s at the coast 70s inland and tell you about the first rainfall of the season coming um at 7:00. >> looking forward to that. cold front and clear skies. still ahead on "today in the bay," spooky? halloween season, if you can believe it, is already upon us. we'll have a preview of this year's fright fest at six flags. also have all of your top stories coming up at 7:00. for now, send you back to for now, send you back to "today." (♪♪) rsv can be a dangerous virus...

[sneeze] ...for those 60 and older. it's not just a cold. and if you're 60 or older... ...you may be at increased risk of hospitalization... [coughing] ...from this highly... ...contagious virus. not all dangers come with warning labels. talk to your pharmacist or doctor... ...about getting vaccinated against rsv today. . narrator: when you see this symbol, you know you're watching television that is educational and informational. the more you know on nbc. corey: ever wonder what your favorite athletes do when they're not winning titles or setting records? stay right here and find out on "oneteam: the power of sports". today, u.s. figure skater ilia malinin deals with the pressures of rigorous olympic training and physics homework. then, the emotional story of a boy and a horse and the relationship that makes them both winners.