florida hunkers down on hurricane helene. the storm now expected to make landfall as a category 4. meteorologist angie lassman is tracking the path and when it could make landfall. breaking overnight. new york city's mayor expected to face federal charges. eric adams' fiery response this morning as a growing chorus of leaders call on him to step down. the economy takes center stage in the race for the white house. we're live with the dueling messages from the candidates. the secret service rocked from another scandal. an agent on leave for allegedly sexually harassing a kamala harris staffer. plus a scathing new report on the first assassination attempt on donald trump. a group of impersonators

accused of scamming people. and santa may still be making his list, but retailers are already gearing up for the holiday season. the record amount expected to be spent this year. it's thursday, september 26. "early today" starts right now. good morning, glad you're with me early. i'm frances rivera. hurricane helene is barrelling toward florida, after slamming cuba and mexico. it is expected to strengthen to a category 4 storm before hitting the gulf coast later today, when it will bring life-threatening conditions. the storm surge warning has been issued for the keys and most of florida's west coast. storm surges could reach up to 20 feet, and officials are pleading with locals to evacuate the entire region. fema is preparing for a multi-state event, with tropical storm warnings stretching into farts of alabama and western north carolina.

let's bring in nbc meteorologist angie lassman who is tracking helene's path. >> we've got of course that category 1 hurricane swirling in the gulf of mexico. that is going to work in to parts of the gulf coast here as we get through the day today. we're we're expecting strengthening, talking about a category 4 hurricane in the big bend area and quickly working up parts of the southeast. we'll see widespread damage from this massive and fast-moving storm. some of that damage, wind damage. 75-95 mile-per-hour winds for apalachicola. farther away, we're still talking at least tropical storm force, and that potentially hurricane-force winds working up into places like atlanta. so the power outages will be there. the wind damage will be there, and a whole wall of water is expected across parts of this region. 10-20 feet for the higher end. places like tampa bay, up to 8 feet of storm surge.

that is life-threatening of course along the big bend area and south of that. the inland flooding is going to be a big deal. landslides possible for the appalachians. now to breaking news. new york city mayor eric adams is expected to face federal charges as early as today, according to two sources familiar with the matter. it would be the first time in history a new york city mayor has been indicted while in office. the charges are not immediately clear. it comes after a federal investigation into campaign fund raising violations and foreign influence. and earlier this month, federal investigators searched the homes of several top adams' officials. he maintains his innocence, releasing this video statement. >> it is now my belief that the federal government intends to charge me with crimes. if so, these charges will be entirely false, based on lies.

enough. i will fight these injustices with every ounce of my strength and my spirit. make no mistake. you elected me to lead this city and lead it i will. >> calls for the resignation of the former nypd captain now growing. congresswoman alexandria ocasio-cortez saying i do not see how mayor adams can continue governing new york city. for the good of city, he should resign. adams said he would be quote, stepping up and not stepping down. the fbi and the u.s. attorney for thfdny has failed to commen. the idf is preparing for two brigades being sent to the border. nor t

the u.s. and several allies are proposing an immediate cease-fire and negotiations. for the latest, let's go to daniele hamamdjian. what do we know about their cease-fire proposal? >> reporter: this is a joint statement led by the united states and france, calling for an immediate 21-day cease-fire across the lebanon-israel border to allow for negotiations. the statement itself was negotiated on the sidelines of the u.n. general assembly in new york where world leaders are meeting this week. it's being backed by a number of countries including the uk, canada, qatar to name a few. the expectation is that israel would welcome the proposal. benjamin netanyahu leaving tel aviv this morning for new york, and he's made it clear in the past two weeks or so, the return of tens of thousands of israeli kri kri civilians to their communities along the lebanese border is now a war goal. so a deal would need to guarantee their return. on the other side of the border, thousands of lebanese civilians

have also been displaced, and the death toll there as you mentioned, more than 600 now. as for hezbollah, it would not be a signatory to the cease-fire. the lebanese gofrtsvernment woue coordinating its approval with the group. the deal would only apply to israel and lebanon, but american officials say they would use the pause to restart negotiations for a cease-fire between israel and hamas in gaza where the war of course has been going on for nearly a year now. frances? >> danielle, thank you. a man is in custody this morning, accused in an explosion at a california courthouse. santa barbara county officials say than tmcguire threw an explosive device. the suspect was immediately detained. mcguire was due in court on a gun charge and is now facing charges for attempted murder and is being held without bail. new this morning, congress takes action to avoid a

government shutdown for now. the house and senate overwhelmingly passed house speaker mike johnson's funding bill. president biden is expected to sign it well before tuesday's deadline. it will add over 230 million dollars for the secret service and does not include proof of citizenship voting requirements that were pushed by former president trump. this will keep the government funded through december 20th. let's turn now to the race for the white house. vice president harris outlining more of her vision for the economy. promising $100 billion in tax breaks to boost manufacturing, as she spoke in pennsylvania. nbc's brie jackson joins us now. good morning, brie. donald trump also offering his vision for the economy. >> reporter: good morning, frances. this may be the closest we get to seeing another debate between these two candidates, outlining their competing plans in dueling speeches. take a listen. >> middle class tax cuts are just the start of my plan. we'll also cut the coast of

chil cost of child care and elder care and take on corporate landlords who are hiking rinental prices. >> the center piece of my plan for a manufacturing renaissance will be a 15% made-in-america tax rate. if you don't make your product here, then you will have to pay a tariff when you send your product into the united states. >> reporter: and last night, in an interview with msnbc, vice president harris reacted to mr. trump's plan. >> you don't just throw around the idea of just tariffs across the board, and that's part of the problem with donald trump. frankly, i, and i say this in all sincerity. he's just not very serious about how he thinks about some of these issues. >> reporter: the trump campaign responded by saying harris left many of trump's tariffs in place and even expanded them.

now the next issue in the spotlight is likely going to be immigration. vice president harris plans to visit the southern border in arizona tomorrow. frances? >> could very well have a split screen debate with that issue as well, thanks. a secret service agent in kamala harris' camp is on administrative leave after being accused of groping a harris staffer. that's according to two law enforcement sources. the news comes as a scathing new report is out on the first assassination attempt on donald trump. >> reporter: the secret service once again facing scrutiny. two law enforcement officials telling nbc news an agent in vice president harris' detail has been placed on administrative leave for allegedly groping a harris staffer. those sources saying the agent was allegedly intoxicated at the time. the agency says it's investigating. all of it comes on the same day as a scathing senate investigation outlined a long list of human errors made by the

agency on the day of the attempted assassination of former president trump in july. including a secret service counter sniper team not alerting trump security detail, despite se seeing local law enforcement are y running with guns drawn. the sniper says the thought did not cross his mind. >> there needs to be a housecleaning. >> reporter: a secret service spokesperson said the report was in line with the agency's internal review. all this as the trump campaign says u.s. intelligence officials have briefed them on the ongoing iranian threats against the former president. >> ryan, thank you. turning to baltimore, where state investigators now say that deadly bridge collapse was

quote, entirely preventible. in a new lawsuit, investigators say the ship set sail despite solving power issues from the day before. let's get a quick check now on your weekend forecast with nbc meteorologist angie lassman. hi, angie, good morning. >> good morning to you. we've got the heat, no surprise, across the southwest where it's been record breaking. 108 on tap for phoenix. minneapolis 82. chicago warm into the upper 70s. denver expected to hit 91 degrees. this heat continues well into the weekend. we'll see tomorrow temperatures into the 90s in albuquerque. big picture look for friday. the flooding from helene, the warmth staying with us for the rest of the country. that takes us into saturday. more records possible for the southwest. s sunny and cool conditions across the southeast, and we round out the weekend with autumn warmth and really warm temperatures for the west and a little unsettle e.

plenty of sunshine for dallas with ahohigh of 85 degrees in shreveport as well. >> appreciate it. coming up, our first look at the historic 50th season of "saturday night live." and we're back in a minute with why retailers are feeling extra merry about the holiday shopping season this year. season this year. camilla tried the new scent of gain relax flings and it changed everything. (♪♪) hey dave, don't knock it 'til you smell it.

new gain relax flings. if you're frustrated with occasional bloating... [stomach noises] or gas... your body is giving you signs. it's time to try align. align probiotic was designed by gastroenterologists to help relieve your occasional digestive upsets. when you feel the signs, it's time to try align. this charmin ultra soft smooth tear has wavy edges. it's no ordinary square. charmin ultra soft smooth tear has wavy perforations that tear so much better, with more cushiony softness. enjoy the go, with charmin. all right, so we know halloween is still over a month away, but stores are already gearing up for the holiday rush, if you've been seeing stuff out there on the shelves. i have. shoppers could spend $241 billion online this holiday season according to a new report. for more on what could be a

record-breaking year for spending, let's get to arabile gumede. good morning, arabile. >> good morning. can you believe it? we're already headed toward christmas. we're already talking about, my goodness, where's the year gone ultimately is the big question mark. a bumper holiday season, according to adobe analytics. they say americans are projected to spend $241 billion u.s. that's not even in the store. that's online from the first of november through to the end of the year. that would be an 8.4% uptick from last year. one would ask themselves where does all this come from considering that consumers have been so tight gripped when it comes to their finances, trying to save a little bit more. interest rates have certainly been a little bit higher. consumers are ultimately looking for a few more deals, in order to spend at a time like this. they are all looking for how exactly they can get themselves into a little bit more of those cost-saving deals, right? a lot of the shopping will

actually be done on the phone, believe it or not, as well. but here's the other side to that, then. credit card delinquencies, that's set to go a little higher, including household debt, because more consumers will rely on buy now-pay later services. that's set to make $18.4 billion worth of the entire spend. so ultimately, consumer spend is going to be quite heavy this time around, frances. >> i believe it, arabile, thank you. still to come. scammers channel their inner tyler durden. how they scammed from a fake celebrity encount ir. rom a fake celebrity encount ir. emerge as you, ir. r.kin. ...that stayed clear, even at 5 years. serious allergic reactions and increased risk of infections may occur. before treatment, your doctor should check you for infections and tb. tell your doctor if you have an infection, flu-like symptoms or if you need a vaccine.

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you're not actually going to show a clip from ever season. >> get plme drink and make it a double. >> stop it! stop it! knock it off already, all right? geez. can we make this a little bit

more about me? as i was saying, i'm very pleased to be hosting -- oh, come on! >> yes, the 50th anniversary celebration starting this saturday. no matter what jean smart may have to say about it. she makes her appearance as snl kicks off its 50th season along side jelly roll. who's your favorite? i know i have mine. >> i'm going to go with october 12. ariana grande, stevie nicks and coldplay. can't go wrong. >> i'm with you, too, with ariana grande. she does all those skits. >> her impressions, unmatched. now to an attempted heist, a little less successful than oceans 12. spanish police announced the arrest of five people who scammed two women as of by posing as brad pitt. the scammers who were arrested last november and this july reached out to the victims on an

online fan page, dead cased to t ka kadedicated to the actor. they scammed $250,000 from the two of them. the actor does not have a presence on social media and was not aware of the case. who thinks brad pitt needs more money? he has his own money? >> and just the world of deep fake a.i., all the scams out there. you got to be extra, extra careful, especially with big names and big bucks involved. when we come back, the y indiana fever got burned by the sun. and sonic is brewing up a spooky treat. c is brewing up a spooky treat. you see, i was diagnosed with obstructive hcm. and there were some days i was so short of breath. i thought i'd have to settle for never stepping foot on this trail again. i became great at making excuses.

but i have people who count on me so i talked to my cardiologist. i said there must be more we can do for my symptoms. he told me about a medication called camzyos. he said camzyos works by targeting what's causing my obstructive hcm. so he prescribed it and i'm really glad he did. camzyos is used to treat adults with symptomatic obstructive hcm. camzyos may improve your symptoms and your ability to be active. camzyos may cause serious side effects, including heart failure that can lead to death. a risk that's increased if you develop a serious infection or irregular heartbeat or when taking certain other medicines. so do not stop, start or change medicines or the dose without telling your healthcare provider. you must have echocardiograms before and during treatment. seek help if you experience new or worsening symptoms of heart failure. because of this risk, camzyos is only available through a restricted program. before taking camzyos, tell your doctor about all of your medical conditions, including current or planned pregnancy. today with camzyos, i don't lose my breath as often. my symptoms have improved, helping me go from expecting less to experiencing more.

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the world's fastest man slowing down for just a moment to visit kids at washington, d.c.'s children's national hospital. olympic gold medallist noah lyles lopihoping to inspire the with some of his own experience of needing to be in the hospital while he was a child, too. walter morris was there. >> reporter: the world's fastest man making a memorable stop. monday olympic gold medallist noah lyles swinging by children's hospital in d.c. for a very special visit. >> i feel very honored to be able to come back and everybody be so happy. >> reporter: weeks after taking home gold and bronze in paris the sprinting champ slowing down to take questions from patients turned deejays. the candid combo touching on everything from his favorite films, ice cream, anime, random

animal facts and his own battle as a child. autographs included. he says he takes visits like these very seriously. >> i remember when i was in this position. and it can feel like there is no other side. it just feels like this is going to be your life, especially when you're so young. i wanted to make sure that they, one, understood that it's not always going to be bad. but also know that there's going to be plenty of joyful things that happen in life. >> reporter: for many of the patients with their families, it left an olympic-sized impression. >> hearing his experience at the olympics and everything leading up to here. >> a tv show? >> reporter: this dad says it was a golden opportunity. >> it was great because he was able to get out of the room and take a break. >> reporter: lyles' family getting something special out of

the visit. his mom says she knows exactly what these parents feel. >> we know what it's like to be stuck in the emergency room, the world is going by you. it's really hard. we can encourage other people that it's not going to always be this hard. >> reporter: lyles' schedule has been jam-packed since the olympics, visiting several states, nfl games, u.s. open and walking in fashion week. after this, he's off to the uk. and after a little r&r, he's back to training. is it too early for you to start thinking about l.a. 2028? >> no, i've thought about it since my career started in track and field. l.a. was going to be my biggest performance. >> reporter: over the weekend, his foundation collected winter coats in his hometown of alexandria. and coming up on "today", janis mackey frayer will take us inside the zoo with the viral baby hippo taking the world by

storm. thanks foratchin w