francine lashes louisiana. the storm made landfall as a category 2 hurricane, packing

torrential rains and destructive winds, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands in the bayou state. our meteorologist, angie lassman, is tracking the path of the storm. wildfires rage in the west. a fast-moving inferno rages across southern california, destroying t thousands of homes ames and forcing thousands to evacuate. donald trump and kamala harris go off on a battleground blitz. and a day after backing the democratic nominee, taylor swift makes history at the vmas, we'll have all the big moments from the mtv awards. and talk about going overboard, we'll hear what it was like on that viral nine-month cruise around the world. it's thursday, september 12. "early today" starts now. good morning. glad to be with you.

i'm frances rivera. we begin in louisiana, where tropical storm francine is still bringing dangerous conditions. heavy rain has flooded new orleans. a local official says the canals and pumps are overwhelmed. this rescue was caught on camera and shows a good samaritan breaking the window of a truck to help get the driver to safety. francine has weakened to a tropical storm but made landfall as a category 2 hurricane. nearly 400,000 power outages are being reported this morning in francine's path. nbc's jay gray has more from louisiana. >> reporter: we're beginning to feel some of the stronger effects of francine, the storm that made landfall as a category 2 hurricane and pushing inland, bringing gusts over 100 miles per hour and a driving rain. some areas have already seen seven inches of rain, and that's going to increase as this storm moves through. of course, very low-lying area, new orleans, most of the city below sea level, and so that

water really has nowhere to go. it will continue to build, and flash flooding, again, is going to be a very serious problem here. evacuation orders remain in effect, obviously, along the coastline. shelters are open not only here in orleans parish but across several parishes here in the state. we know electrical and power crews are waiting as well as recovery teams just outside the strike zone. and as soon as this storm clears, they will move in. the storm had picked up some momentum, s momentum shifted to a category 2 just before landfall. it seemed to have slowed a bit. that could be an issue with the flooding problems. because, if this storm lingers, those water totals are just going to grow, and that's where you're going to see a major problem. the wind is something you have to watch. we already know there are tens of thousands just in the new orleans area without power. that number is expected to grow as this storm moves through.

it's just going to be a rough ride here and along the path of francine for the next several hours. that's the latest here in new orleans. i'm jay gray. back to you now. >> okay, jay, thank you. and hope people stay safe. for now, let's get an update on francine's paternity. wpath. what are you watching angie? >> it still has ha wha whole lo rain associated with it. it's got winds right now of 50 miles per hour, sitting just to the northwest of new orleans, about 20 miles. plenty of rain still to come for folks here as the system lifts to the north. it will likely maintain tropical storm strength as we get to tomorrow morning. then significantly weakens as it stalls out across parts of this region. still going to be bringing considerable flooding, as we've got another 3 to 5 inches of rain with this system. notice where the flood alerts are right now. flood watches for a good chunk of people. but we've also got flash flood

warnings near the new orleans area where we've seen low-lying arias areas dealing with a lot of flooding. the chance for some of those stronger storms from panama city to birmingham is there today. we'll see a couple tornados likely as we have circulation that could cause spinups. wind gusts will be upwards of 60 miles per hour, frances. let's turn now to the race for the white house. the candidates took a somber break-away from the campaign trail. vice president harris and former president trump shaking hands again, one day after their debate, as they attended a memorial marking the 23rd anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. >> harris joined president biden at several ceremonies honoring the victims. brie jackson joins us now. that day of remembrance came on the heels of a fierce debate. so what impact is that showdown having on the race now? >> reporter: we know that face-off in philadelphia did reach a lot of people. according to an estimate from

nielsen, more than 67 million people tuned in. that's over 15 million more viewers than the trump-biden debate. now it's looking less likely that we'll see a sequel to that showdown. former president trump says he feels like he won. so he's not sure he needs to do another debate. >> when a fighter has a bad fight, gets knocked out or loses the fight, the first thing he says is we want a rematch. so we won the debate, according to every poll, every single poll. i think that, we going to do a rematch? i just don't know. >> reporter: and it's safe to say the harris campaign also feels they won. they posted what they called their new campaign ad, and the video shows almost the entire debate, but it cuts away before mr. trump's closing thoughts. the harris campaign is also fund raising off the post-debate endorsement they got from taylor swift. they quickly started selling friendship bracelets which are

already marked sold out on their website. more than 337,000 people visited the link that was shared, encouraging people to register to vote. the post had only been up about 15 hours when nbc news was given that total. vice president harris is kicking off a four-state swing. and former president trump will speak in arizona. mr. trump has schedule add a pr conference tomorrow, but the team has not said what he will be talking about. state election officials are accusing the u.s. postal service of failing to adequately prepare for the upcoming election. they say the postmaster general has failed to address multiple short coming that could lead to fewer people voting. it includes long mail delivery times. the usps spokesperson says they are currently delivering mail in 2.7 days on average. they recommend voter mail their

completed ballots at least one week prior to their state's deadline. in memphis, the federal trial is under way for three former police officers charged in the death of tyre nichols last year. prosecutors say the officers took turns beating the 29-year-old. the officers have all pleaded not guilty to using excessive force, as well as several other charges. >> during opening statements, defense attorneys say the cops' actions were in line with training. two other former officers have pleaded guilty and will testify. the officers could face life in prison if convicted. turning to the worsening wildfire emergency in southern california where dozens of homes have been destroyed and several people injured, including firefighters. dana griffin has the latest. >> reporter: in southern california, the race to escape. a barefoot woman narrowly rescued by a fire crew as flames surround her.

erratic winds burning across two counties, destroying at least 39 homes. this woman and her cat helped to safety near wrightwood, california, the hardest-hit area. here the fire has come down the hill. it is now burning along the roadway, jumping to this side of the street where you can see trees are now on fire, hollowing them out. this will likely fall on the road and block it. how do you wrap your head around all of this? >> you don't. not yet. >> reporter: chuck lyons' dream home is now unrecognizable. but he knows every inch. >> that's our basement. this was our living room. >> reporter: as fires rage, 34-year-old justin halstonburg has been arrested for arson, accused of starting the line fire burning for nearly a week in san bernardino county. his family declined to talk. two people have been arrested for allegedly trying to burglarize evacuated homes in the fire zones. >> if you're going to be an opportunist in san bernardino county and we catch you, you are going to jail.

>> reporter: air quality has plummeted as winds pushed smoke into las vegas. but, as homes fall to the fire's forward march, some vow to stop it anyway they can. >> i built that damn house right there. it's not mine, but i'm not going to let it burn. >> reporter: dana glitriffin, n news. now let's turn to angie. >> we've got warnings up across a good chunk of the country, specifically, most of it across the great basin, but we do have red flag warnings near l.a. county. those will stay in effect and denver, north platte all included in this as we have the conditions set for critical fire levels. we'll watch for low humidity and winds. temperatures for minneapolis, 86 degrees. we're running way above normal for this time of year across the northern tier of the country. back to the 80s we go in detroit, pittsburgh and new york city. we end up kind of more of the same as we roll into the weekend.

temperatures topping out into the mid-80s for new york and ending int northeast. mid-80s with cloudy skies in louisville today. and that's a look at your forecast today, frances, back to you. history set to happen in space this morning with the first-ever private spacewalk. two members of the all-civilian crew aboard the spacex polaris dawn are expected to take curturns walking along guardrails on their capsule. their main goal is to test out the new spacex suits. they have already travelled higher above earth than any human since nasa's apollo

program. we're back with good news about inflation, and justin timberlake takes a step to putting his summer dwi arrest in the rear view mirror. arrest in the rear view mirror. their four point lift design opens my nose for maximum air flow. so, i breathe better. and we both sleep better. better days start with zzzquil nights. did you know your skin barrier is more receptive to skincare at night? olay super serum night repair. delivers five benefits in one. visibly renewing surface skin cells while you sleep. you'll see visible results in 7 nights. olay. when you smell the amazing scent of gain flings... time stops. (♪♪) and you realize you're in love... steve? with a laundry detergent. (♪♪) gain flings. seriously good scent. why use 10 buckets of water when you can use 1 fire extinguisher. and to fight heartburn, why take 10 antacids throughout the day when you can take 1 prilosec. for easier heartburn relief, one beats ten.

prilosec otc. one pill. 24 hours. zero heartburn. some good news for everyone fed up with rising prices. inflation fell to its lowest level in over three years last month. wall street cheered the news with the dow jumping about 125 points, while the nasdaq was up nearly 370. and we'll get another read on inflation in just a few hours. >> cnbc's arabile gumede joins us with a preview. hey, there, arabile, good morning. >> good morning, frances. some issues that you pointed towards there, yes. that cpi yesterday did point to the lowest figure ult imately. 2.5% versus the 2.9% previously. let's remember the federal reserve wants the figure to be as close to 2% as possible. it also gives them a clear sign

that they will begin cutting interest rates at the very least by 25 basis points. >> the the market is still vacillating. but it was also the core, which is also very interesting to look at. because core inflation, which means it takes out stuff like energy as well as the volatile stuff there, kind of said, well, actually, there may just be a small indentation in this number, and that may be a little bit of cause for concern. on the other side, you spoke about the market having gone up. that's actually, let's not forget there was news out of nvidia speaking about the demand future for a.i. chips. the semi-conductors managed to move higher. nvidia gained significantly. overall, a better picture there. mortgage prices overall as well in the u.s. have actually dropped down to significantly-low levels. that is before the fed has even

cut. that tells you a clear story. once they do, mortgage rates are set to go down even further, frances. >> a lot of home buyers really looking forward to that. arabile, thank you. the rail company involved in the toxic derailment in east palestine, ohio has fired its ceo. norfolk southern was investigating allan shaw over an alleged inappropriate workplace relationship. they found he violated company policy by having a consensual relationship with another executive who was also fired. he has served as ceo since may of 2022, steering the company's response to the 2023 ohio derailment. justin timberlake is due in a new york courtroom tomorrow after reaching a deal with prosecutors in his drunk driving case. details of the deal were not immediately clear. he was arrested for dwi while visiting the hamptons in june. surveillance video appearing to

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chapp ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ >> all of her songs are so catchy. that's chappell roan who went medieval. she took home the moon person award for best new artist and dedicated her award to her lgbtq

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get to visit more than 60 countries and enjoy unlimited food and drink. passengers from royal caribbean's ultimate royal cruise are opening up about the unique experience after returning to port miami. sam brock has the story. >> reporter: dubbed the ultimate world cruise. >> this is nine months. and right now we are in miami. >> reporter: passengers on royal caribbean's serenade of the seas just spent the better part of a year with thousands of total strangers. >> it's just crazy all the things we've done, the places we've seen. >> reporter: the journey kicked off in the americas with stops at christ the regedeemer and mau picchu. >> i've never been on tiktok. around all of a sudden i was an overnight tiktok sensation. >> i need to clean. >> reporter: the public, vacuuming up videos from a ada

larsson. >> we are avid cruisers. i looked at my husband, and he said you're going to book it anyway. >> reporter: to the sisters, both students. >> we're going to take you to our room. >> boom, we got decorations. >> reporter: who craft add sweet dorm and connected with staff. >> they held us accountable for our homework. >> reporter: the trip was not without rough waters. videos of stormy weather racked up millions of views. and early on, the ship had to change course on account of the war in the middle east. they completed 75,000 miles with mo na no major issues so far. a clear highlight during a final stretch that stopped in new york where they hung out on the plaza with hoda and al. a trip many passengers said they were sad to see end. >> it's just the adventure of a

lifetime. >> they can go back again, i guess. thanks to sam brock for that report. if you live in the northern united states, make sure you keep an eye on the sky tonight. after more solar ru eruptions es week, the northern lights will be viewable across northern states. lenny kravitz will be on the plaza. something you don't want to miss. thank you for being with us on this early thursday. i'm frances rivera. hope you have a great one and that you're up early with us again tomorrow morning. have a good one. have a good one. early with us again tomorrow morning. have a good one. and news now.

stay right there, more news on the way. francine downgraded to a tropical storm, st