florida again bracing for a major storm as hurricane milton aims for the same area already devastated by hurricane helene. how strong could it get? nbc meteorologist michelle grossman is tracking milton's path. communities in north carolina still reeling from helene, now facing a new challenge. many affected homeowners don't have flood insurance. what that means for recovery efforts there. today marks exactly one year since the october 7th terror attacks on israel. remembrances being held around the world today along with new demands to bring the hostages home and end the war in gaza. the final push is on in the race for the white house. donald trump returns to the site of the first assassination attempt against him, while kamala harris and tim walz stage a media blitz as they face criticism that they're avoiding interviews. and a late night thriller in pittsburgh as the steelers take on the cowboys. we've got your sunday night football highlights on this monday, october 7th. "early today" starts right now.

good morning. glad you're with me. i'm frances rivera. we begin with yet another hurricane barreling towards florida. residents are preparing for hurricane milton, which could be at least a category 3 storm when it strikes the state's gulf coast on wednesday. this only a week and a half since hurricane helene caused massive devastation in the state. residents lining up to make sandbags ahead of the storm. florida governor ron desantis has already issued an emergency declaration in 51 counties and says a 24/7 cleanup is under way as they prepare for milton. let's turn now to nbc meteorologist michelle grossman who is tracking it all for us. michelle, good morning. >> good morning, frances. this is going to be impactful storm as we go throughout the next couple of day, strengthening to a major hurricane as we go throughout the next couple of days, eventually making landfall later on wednesday. here is the latest on milton. we're looking at 90-mile-per-hour winds. it's moving east at 6 miles per

hour. so we're going track this over the next couple of days as it moves throughout the gulf of mexico. we're going see it cross over florida, threatening the western portion first where we're going to see that landfall. and we will see at least a category 3 or a category 4 as we go throughout the next couple of days. so as we track this storm across the gulf of mexico, remember, really, really warm. we could see rainfall up to 15 inches in some spots. devastating winds, and life-threatening storm surge. that's going to be the big story as we go throughout the next couple of days here. now is the time to prepare as we head towards wednesday. expecting landfall around 7:00 on wednesday. so later on in the evening on wednesday. this is going to be something to watch over the next 12 days because the path is not set in stone, but we're looking at a chance for really big impacts in florida by wednesday. frances, we'll talk more about this. also talking about the rest of the country in just a few minutes. >> what a blow for that area. thanks, michelle. >> sure. >> and as florida braces for milton, some north carolinians

are facing new heartbreak as the state still reels. hardly anyone in the storm zone had flood insurance. nbc's jesse kirsch tells us how they're now paying the price. >> reporter: as helene tore through asheville, north carolina, this was the scene outside lee braber's back window, his neighbor's home floating away and flooding by the ferocious floodwaters. >> what we weren't prepared for it is started moving up the stairs of the lower deck. >> reporter: meanwhile, water was rising in his own home. and his family is one of so many confronting the unimaginable. their belongings and homes ravaged without any clear sense of how or even if they'll be compensated. what did the insurance company tell you? >> we're very sorry, you know. that's why we encourage you to buy flood insurance. >> reporter: more than a week after helene, this is where the water level is in his backyard. he said at its peak, the water got all the way up there. take a look at those leaves trapped along thebalcony fence.

like tens of thousands of people in helene's path of destruction, the br uv sseau's don't have flood insurance. an nbc analysis shows only about 2% of homes had flood insurance. in asheville's buncombe county -- >> we know that's going to be a special effort. >> reporter: fema does offer some help for people affected by floods who don't have flood insurance, but payments are typically a fraction of the amount needed for repairs, an amount that could bankrupt a typical household, leaving families like the brusseau in limbo. >> i don't think i'm going to come back here. i don't think it's worth rebuilding. this morning israel is a country united in grief.

one year ago today, hamas and gaza launched a large scale invasion of israel, killing more than a thousand in an attack that would change the middle east. in the resulting war, israel has killed more than 40,000 palestinians in gaza as a second front opens up in lebanon. a diplomatic solution seems far off. for latest, let's turn to claudio lavanga. good morning, claudio. how is the anniversary being observed this morning? >> good morning, frances. well, just a couple of hours ago at 6:30 a.m. in israel, which is the exact time when one year ago hamas launched that deadly attack, hundreds of people, including the victims' families and the president of israel, isaac herzog, they gathered a the site of the nova music festival, which is where almost 400 mostly young men who were there dancing were killed by militants that day. and 40 others were kidnapped. now the associated press was there and described the scene as

somber and moving. they said that there were moments of speeches by the families, but also singing as well as moments of silence that were broken by the very loud booms of the heavy fighting that is still ongoing in gaza, which is of course very nearby. in the mean time, and at the same time, 6:30 in the morning local time, the families of the 101 hostages who are still being held in gaza gathered near the residence of the prime minister, benjamin netanyahu, in jerusalem and stood for those two minutes siren that you heard in your intro. that is a siren that is being played out only in very important moments of the israeli calendar, including the holocaust remembrance and memorial day. now these are the same families that have been very critical of the israeli prime minister. they've been demonstrating the whole year, demanding a ceasefire, and demanding a hostage deal. and perhaps their claim is that

to summarize, one of them, yehuda cohen, the father of one of the hostages said in new york last week. just take a listen. >> the only way my son will return is by a deal, along with a ceasefire. and yes, we want ceasefire. and the only one who is delaying it, the only obstacle is benjamin netanyahu, our horrible prime minister. >> other ceremonies, protests and vigils organized all around. and around the world, frances. >> a lot of profound reflection today. claudio, thank you. here at home, there is just one month to go in the countdown to election day. in this final push, both the harris and trump campaigns are increasing their efforts to get their messages out to voters. nbc's aaron gilchrist has the latest. >> reporter: former president trump in battleground wisconsin attacking his opponent almost

immediately. >> kamala is a disastrous, radical and grossly incompetent vice president. >> reporter: trump appealing to a crowd of thousands in a rural part of the state, encouraging them to stake part in early voting. >> if you have an absentee ballot, return it as soon as you can. >> reporter: this after a mavis rally in butler, pennsylvania, the same venue where an assassin shot trump in the area. elon musk at his first trump rally, publicly throwing his support behind the former president. >> i wanted to decide what to do with my body. i don't want government in my personal business. >> adding that she and her husband have different beliefs. >> he respects that and i respect that. i let him be his own person. he has different beliefs. >> reporter: meanwhile, the

democratic ticket launching a new media blitz with vice president harris on the popular call her daddy podcast, appealing to a large female audience and responding to criticism about her not having biological children. >> this is not the 1950s anymore. families come in all shapes and form and they're family nonetheless. >> reporter: tim walz on fox news sunday defending what he's described as past misestimates. >> i will own up when i mistake. i will own up when i make a mistake. >> reporter: with just 30 days until election day, harris planning what a official called high impact appearances including "60 minutes," voouz "the view" and town hall on univision. >> thanks to aaron for that report. now the forecast coming up with michelle grossman. >> hi there. all eyes on milton. heavy rain in florida ahead of milton that will make landfall later on wednesday. look at the rest of the country. nice and dry. plenty of sunshine throughout the great lakes, the midwest and the central and southern plains,

still scorching in california, portions of the west and southwest. we're going to see that continuing. wednesday we're going to talk a lot about milton because that's where we're going to see the landfall. could see up to 15 inches of rain in some spots. life-threatening storm surge. temperatures in the 60s for day. and then well above average once again in the northern plains, the southwest still warm as well. as we near friday, we're still looking at lingering rain througho n the '80s and '90s. lots of sunshine. nice and dry. 89 in dallas. 88 degrees in san angelo. all right. that's your monday forecast. >> okay. thank you so much, michelle. >> sure. "early today" is back in a minute with a new helmet protecting nfl players. plus, the cowboys and steelers burn the midnight oil in a nail te tbihey're just wrapped up a few hours ago.

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prescott, touchdown! >> dak prescott proved why he is the highest paid man in the nfl on sunday night football. dallas' $240 million man led his team 70 yards in the final minutes and hit jalen tolberg for the go ahead score versus the steelers. the cowboys get the win in the storied rivalry, 20-17. a behind-the-scenes look at t science of helmets. the league is taking the tech further, designing helmets specifically to protect different player positions. our sam brock has a closer look. >> a perfect sunday night for football. >> reporter: for america's most popular sport, the nfl making a big play toward protecting

players from violent hits using high-tech research to design helmets for each position. the league subjecting dummies in a lab to hit likes this in order to shield players from hits like this. >> going to run for the first down. and takes a shot. >> reporter: tua tagovailoa recently suffering his third documented nfl concussion, shake up the sports world. the league recently transforming its safety measures from new rules to those guardian caps. >> they're dramatic changes over the last couple of years as we got closer to position specificity. >> reporter: and now helmets designed for where players line up. >> a quarterback and a linebacker are not necessarily playing the same sport on every play. and the frequency of their head impacts demonstrates that. >> reporter: researchers first analyzed game footage from some 1500 onfield concussions, who was involved, what position were they playing. >> these interest locations on the helmet that are contacted. >> reporter: then reconstructed each one, gathering data from those tests and sensors in the

helmets to build a superior product. and that helmet is an example of that. it's designed specifically for quarterbacks and has extra padding in the back four when the qbs are sacked. linemen helmets have more protection from the front and many can be customized. a dozen new helmets debuted this year, and we got a look at them with nfl executive president jeff miller at the new york giants practice facility. how many position groups have their own helmets? >> offensive and defensive linemen, very similar. that's one. and quarterbacks are the other one. >> reporter: giants star tackle andrew thomas use as helmet with 3d-prohibited padding. >> they're doing a good job with helmets for us that are supposed to protect us. >> reporter: miller says concussions in the preseason are down roughly 50% each of the last several years with some helmets as effective as wearing a guardian cap. but there is no silver bullet. how you explain a player wearing better equipment just experienced what tua did on

thursday? >> as great as our sport, the injuries still occur. >> reporter: still, the new wave of held melts has vastly increased player safety overall. >> the players are improving nine times they were before. >> reporter: the league adapting to tackle one of its toughest challenges. >> the game is getting safer. no less exciting. it's getting safer and we'll continue to. >> reporter: sam brock, east ruth rutherford, new jersey. still to come, nobody is ghoing gaga for this hit. bombing at the box office. well have the full report right after this. let's do something about it. no7's future renew serum, reverses visible signs of sun damage. with a world-first peptide technology. no7 don't regret, just reverse hi. i use febreze fade defy plug. and i use this. febreze has a microchip to control scent release so it smells first-day fresh for 50 days. 50 days!? and its refill reminder light

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it may have topped the box office, but moviegoers did not

find joker adieu anything to laugh at it. opened to a disappointing $40 million this weekend. that's a huge drop-off from its oscar-winning predecessor, which debuted to $96 million on the same weekend in 2019. dreamworks, the wild robot fell to number two on the charts while "beetlejuice beetlejuice" came in at number 3. this is shocking because there was so much hype over it. it being a musical, i know a lot of mixed feelings. i was kind of excited to see not only lady gaga sing, but joaquin phoenix also getting musically involved. >> so interesting. i think it was projected to make $70 million. $40 million, that's a big disappointment. now to a music icon reaching out to help her devastated community. ♪ helene, helene, helene, you came in and broke us all apart ♪ ♪ helene, helene ♪ >> she is the best. on friday, dolly parton announced she and her companies

are partnering with walmart to provide aid to those affected by hurricane helene. the country legend who hails from east tennessee is giving $1 million to the mountain ways foundation, which provides immediate assistance to flood victims in that area. parton's companies are matching that donation while walmart will provide an additional $10 million. and it is so needed there. they're suffering still so much and it's going take a long time to recover. >> really tough. and big heart, as big as her star. when we come back, there is a new favorite candy among trick-or-treaters this year. and a major update for an egg recall that began in august. g b. start to break away from uc with tremfya... with rapid relief at 4 weeks. tremfya blocks a key source of inflammation. at one year, many people experienced remission... and some saw 100% visible healing

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states. lego's website was hacked claiming the country was launching a cryptocurrency, according to the brick fans. a link led to a cryptocurrency platform selling the so-called lego tokens. no user accounts were compromised in the incident. the faa is cleared space falcon nine rocket to launch the harris spacecraft. the mission will visit the asteroid that nasa's dart spacecraft knocked off course in 2022. and for the first time, m&ms dethroned reese's cups as the favorite halloween candy. that's according to store.com. (knock on the door) are you using all the old spice? oops. ♪ (old spice mnemonic) ♪ what do people want more of? more “oh yeah!” more laughs. more hang outs.

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a little love can go a long way. and students and staff at east tennessee state university created an organization called letters of love to send heartfelt letters to flood victims and first responders impacted by hurricane helene. from our bristol, virginia affiliate, natalie hill em has more. >> reporter: letters of love gathering letters from students and the community to show love to flood victims and first responders affected by helene. >> when the hurricane happened, we really wanted to figure out how we could show love to our campus and to our community. so we received laters from a lot of different members of the community outside of etsu. so dance studios, churches. >> reporter: they're even receiving letters from people who live outside the state. >> we had a school in texas actually write letters for our organization. and they wrote some in spanish. so we're also collecting letters in different languages as well. >> reporter: and the initiative immediately took off.

>> we're now at a total of 15 hn and counting. so it's been really incredible to see. >> reporter: vice president of the organization payton gentry tells me what it means to give back to first responders who risked their lives in our region. >> you know, they're working these long hours, and they're put in situations that are mentally and physically tiring, just knowing that their community loves them and a student from etsu sees their sacrifice. >> reporter: one of the places where the letters are going is carter county 911. >> thank you. >> appreciate the letters of love here. writing some encouragement letters to us. it really means a lot. the last week has been really hard. and it helps build our confidence. thank you, ladies. >> thank you. >> reporter: president of the organization shaina thompson always felt that love is an action. >> i really just wanted to find a way to do that on our campus and to put love into action and bring our campus and our community together.

>> reporter: if you want the send a letter, you can visit their instagram page at letters of love etsu and submit a form. >> we'll reach out through email or call them and coordinate a time to meet and pick those up. >> that's the power of the written word right there. thanks to natalie hillem for that story. a lucky dog is recovering after miraculously surviving a fall from a highway overpass in seattle. the dog came crashing down on to the windshield. good samaritans attended to the dog and rushed her to an emergency medical veterinary center and got in touch with the dog's owners who say she was home alone when she managed to get out. washington state patrol are investigating that incident.