ca ♪ ♪ captioning sponsored by cbs >> glor: the forecast takes an ominous turn. >> this is a catastrophic storm that our state has never seen. >> glor: more than a million have been told to evacuate as florida braces for a direct hit from irma. >> mother nature is going to win in the end. we just have to hope and pray for the best. >> glor: the strongest atlantic hurricane on record has already left a trail of destruction through the caribbean. >> the entire country has been decimated. >> mason: also tonight, bannon's new battle with the republican establishment. >> reporter: now that you're out of the white house, you're going to war with them. >> absolutely. >> mason: and... >> she's got it! >> mason: ...a red, white, and blue semif the u.s. open. >> madison keys joins the all- american semifinal party. this is the "cbs evening news."

>> glor: and good evening. i'm jeff glor in miami. anthony mason is in new york. and tonight, it's a race to outrun irma, the most powerful hurricane ever recorded in the atlantic. the fury of this category 5 storm was seen in the caribbean where at least ten people were killed when irma tore through there. here in florida, more than a million live in mandatory evacuation zones, and folks along the georgia coast have also been ordered to leave. >> mason: tonight, irma should pass over turks and caicos on its way to florida by sunday morning. sustained winds are 175 miles an hour. video from the space station shows irma's size. hurricane-force winds extend 70 miles from its center. we want to check in with lonnie quinn, chief weathercaster at our new york station wcbs. lonnie, the forecast is changing. >> it is. the new information pushes things a little bit more to the

west, and we talk about this being an ominous turn. well, let's get right to it. we haven't actually begun the turn yet. but there is a picture of irma. it's enormous. you could fit texas inside of that. the new forecast cone, from the national hurricane center, let's display that for you. we're very much in agreement, it will continue this track from the west-northwest. here's where it becomes a little iffy, though. this is the iffy part. when does it start this turn to the north? and you have to notice here between these two yellow lines, anything is at play. so the west coast, east coast, of florida, both the possibility. let me show you one possibility they'll we tend to look at pretty heavily these days because it's been performing so well be the european. this, the national hurricane center's forecast. this, right there, on the west coast of florida, is where the european model puts the storm. but even they have been waffling. because look at where this was earlier today. 12 hours ago it was an east coast storm with the eye right over miami beach. as far as the timing goes, tomorrow. tomorrow is the last time for you folks in south florida to

get your preparations done and then you either get out of dodge or you hunker down. this is a huge storm. it is forecast to be category 4 in your area, but we're talking winds 145 miles per hour, versus maybe 185, which is what they were at the strongest. but then it continues in some way, shape, or form either right up the spine of florida, up the west coast, or the east coast, still maintaining hurricane strength as it makes its way into georgia some time monday. georgia, south carolina, even north carolina, if it wobbles a bit, your shoreline it at risk as well. >> mason: all right, lonnie quinn, we know when your shirt sleeves are rolled up, you're serious. thanks, lonnie. let's go to my colleagues who will be following this in the coming days. here again is jeff glor in miami. >> glor: anthony, thank you very much. we have a team of correspondents covering irma, beginning with tony dokoupil, who is in puerto rico. >> reporter: from island to devastated island-- irma clobbered them with its brutal strength. in st. martin, almost every building suffered damage.

this man says he has nothing left-- no roof, no place to sleep, nothing. barbuda, one of the flattest islands in the caribbean, was even worse. 95% of the buildings have been destroyed, according to prime minister gaston browne. >> this has been one of the worst days of my life. the entire country has been decimated. i have never seen anything like this before. >> reporter: in puerto rico, irma left thousands homeless and most of the island in the dark. >> it was loud. it was loud. >> reporter: ron robles spent a sleepless night when his roof blew off. right here? >> that's the roof. that thing blew off. just a second, it took maybe three seconds to blow that thing off. >> reporter: in haiti, this poor town is prone to flooding, and the island is bracing for its turn with irma. and now, with barely a chance to breathe, another hurricane is bearing down on the caribbean. hurricane jose could hit the

very same islands that have already been so devastated. jeff? >> glor: tony dokoupil, thank you very much. miami is just a few feet above sea level and floods often in minor storms. mark strassmann now, on how it's preparing for irma. >> reporter: miami beach's most sought-after sand today sat in a parking lot. families could fill ten sandbags apiece to protect their home against irma. 16-year-old diego oropeza was doing his part. >> it's got to be terrifying. well, we've been watching the news all along, and we think it's, like, this one is a big deal. >> reporter: in miami-dade county, more than 650,000 people are now under a mandatory evacuation order. gridlock gripped i-95 all the way to orlando. by one estimate, nearly 40% of gas stations in miami and fort lauderdale have run dry. cases of water are also running low. miami-dade mayor carlos giminez: >> coming out of the southeast, especially, it's a pretty bad scenario for miami-dade county.

>> reporter: irma is bigger and more powerful than hurricane andrew. the category 5 storm killed 61 people, destroyed 25,000 buildings, and forced florida to strengthen building codes statewide. it was a foundation-to-roof tightening. >> absolutely. i mean, everything. >> reporter: peter dyga is president of the associated builders and contractors in south florida. we met him at this hotel project where workers were installing impact-resistant windows, which are lab tested to withstand a 2 x 4 hitting them at a force of 140 miles per hour. >> the real challenge in a hurricane is the window not being hit once but being hit over and over and over. >> reporter: we have had hurricanes come and go in this area. this is the moment of truth? >> i mean, this is the real big test. mother nature is going to win in the end. and we've just got to hope and pray for the best. >> reporter: miami beach has set up three sandbagging stations like this one, which have given away almost 30,000 bags of sand over the last couple of days.

so much sand, jeff, the city has run out of bags. people have been bringing their own bags and in some cases, pillowcases. >> glor: mark strassmann with us here in miami. mark, thank you very much. potential danger from irma extends throughout the florida keys, which stretch 120 miles into the sea. elaine quijano is in key largo. >> reporter: the fishermen of the florida keys have begun a long-established tradition: searching the mangroves, hoping to shelter dozens of boats from the storm. what's the strategy here for tying up the boat? >> to keep her in the middle of the canal because the tide's going to go up and down. >> reporter: so what is your fear with the amount of wind that they're talking about with this storm? >> it's scary. if we get the backside of it, we'll get about 100, 100- something-mile-per-hour wind. that won't be too bad. >> reporter: gary sands is a commercial fisherman, like his father and grandfather before him. what would it do to your bottom line if you lost your boats? >> i would be out of business. because you can't go to a five

and dime and buy one. this is the heart of the operation. you lose that, you're out. >> reporter: it was in 1960, ahead of hurricane donna, that sands first secured a fishing boat in these mangroves. back then it was his father's vessel, and now his fellow fishermen are helping him protect his. feels kind of like a family out here. >> that's a lot of friends. i have a lot of friends here. i have charter boat friends. i have lobster friends. this is a nice community. it's really nice where we live. everybody sticks together. >> reporter: gary sands and some other boaters are not evacuating and say they plan on staying near their boats here in key largo. jeff, in the hours before irma hits, these mangroves will likely be filled with dozens more boat owners seeking safe harbor for their vessels. >> glor: elaine, thank you. the florida peninsula has more than 1,300 miles of coastline. millions are extremely vulnerable to the surge of sea water a hurricane like irma can unleash. and the best way to understand the threat to low-lying areas is to see them from above, so i

took a ride with pilot paul barth. there are about 2.5 billion homes in florida in hazard zones. that is more than three times as many as any other state's. >> this is a low area here. not very much, but two or three feet above sea level. so, if we have a strong storm surge, there's not much to protect it from the coastline. >> glor: so there's nothing stopping the surge from coming in. there's nothing stopping the wind. >> right, there's no barrier island on this side on key biscayne here. it's wide open to the atlantic ocean. >> glor: so if you're living in this area, what do you do? >> you better evacuate. >> glor: so right now, miami is directly behind us. you can see all these low-lying areas. this is some of the most vulnerable area. if irma comes in, it could bring that storm surge in ten feet or more, and it could stretch miles inland.

do you get the sense that people are appreciating what might happen? >> i think the people that were here in andrew and people who understand the power of a hurricane, who have watched other hurricanes, like in texas now, houston, those people now have seen so much and they finally realize. >> glor: the biggest threat here in miami is not the rain. as you saw in houston, with harvey, it is the wind speed and the storm surge, and the storm surge is the most difficult thing to predict. farther up the coast where irma could hit early next week, states of emergency have already been declared in georgia and the carolinas. and don dahler tonight is outside savannah. >> reporter: georgia's governor nathan deal is taking no chances, ordering a mandatory evacuation for savannah, as well as other coastal areas. that order takes effect on saturday. residents began boarding up and sandbagging houses and businesses in anticipation of the storm's arrival late monday

or tuesday. even if it makes a glancing blow, savannah, a historic jewel of the south, could suffer considerable damage. last october, hurricane matthew did not make a direct hit here, and yet still caused tens of millions of dollars in damage. savannah has been fortunate when it comes to major storms. only three have made a direct landing here in over 100 years. the governor has activated 5,000 national guardsmen, both to protect life and property, as well as assist in rescues. jeff. >> glor: don dahler in georgia. now let's go back to anthony mason in new york. >> mason: thanks, jeff. the senate overwhelmingly approved an aid package for victims of hurricane harvey today, about $15.3 billion tied to raising the nation's debt limit. the house votes on this tomorrow. tens of thousands are living in temporary shelters and hotel rooms in texas. at least 63 people were killed by harvey's winds and floodwaters.

today, education secretary betsy devos announced big changes in how colleges should handle allegations of sexual assault on campus, rolling back obama-era policies. jan crawford spoke to devos. >> the truth is that the system established by the prior administration has failed too many students. >> reporter: education secretary betsy devos said her department would soon begin the process of undoing the obama-era guidelines. >> there must be a better way forward. every survivor of sexual misconduct must be taken seriously. every student accused of sexual misconduct must know that guilt is not predetermined. >> betsy devos has got to go! >> reporter: protesters chanting outside said the 2011 guidelines protected victims of college sexual assault. they lowered the standard of proof for sexual assault cases and often denied the accused a right to cross-examine witnesses

or hear evidence against them. opponents say they have created another class of victims: innocent students wrongly punished. devos spoke to cbs news after her speech. so you'll be rescinding those guidelines, today, the near future? >> that's the intention. some time in the near future. and in the interim period, during the rule-making process, we will come alongside institutions to ensure they are meeting their obligation under title ix. >> reporter: but you are not going to level enforcement action against universities that don't follow the obama guidelines as of today? >> the intention is to withdraw that letter, but the facts remain that schools need to take their title ix obligations seriously. >> reporter: now, devos will solicit public comment in developing new rules. she mentioned a series of proposals by harvard law school professors who have been highly critical of the obama guidelines as one possible way to restore

fairness and due process. anthony. >> mason: jan crawford. thank you, jan. and coming up next on the "cbs evening news," steve bannon accuses republican leaders of trying to destroy the president. and later, a once-in-a- generation feat at the u.s. open. when itrust the brandtburn, doctors trust. nexium 24hr is the number one choice of doctors and pharmacists for their own frequent heartburn. and all day, all night protection. when it comes to heartburn, trust nexium 24hr. that just tastes better. fresher.

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>> mason: steve bannon calls himself a street fighter and is declaring war on the republican establishment. president trump's former chief strategist sat down with charlie rose for "60 minutes" for his first extended interview since leaving the white house. >> the republican establishment is trying to nullify the 2016 election. that's a brutal fact we have to face. >> reporter: the republican establishment? >> the republican establishment. >> reporter: ...wants to nullify the 2016 election? >> is trying to nullify the 2016 election, absolutely. >> reporter: who?

>> i think mitch mcconnell and, to a degree, paul ryan. they do not want donald trump's populist, economic, nationalist agenda to be implemented. it's very obvious. it's obvious-- it's obvious as night follows day. >> reporter: give me a story that illustrates that. >> well, mitch mcconnell, when we first met him, he was, he said, i think in one of the first meetings in trump tower with the president, as we're wrapping up, he says, "i don't want to hear any more of this 'drain the swamp' talk." flat out. he goes, a guy on capitol hill can't buy a coke unless it has to be reported. he says i can't hire smart people because people are on him for reporting requirements and the pay, et cetera, and the scrutiny. you have to back off from that. the drain the swamp thing, mitch mcconnell, from day one, did not want us to go there, and wanted us to back off. >> reporter: you are attacking, on many fronts, people who you need to help you, to get things done.

>> they're not going to help you unless they're put on notice they're going to be held accountable if they do not support the president of the united states. right now there is no accountability. they have totally-- they do not support the president's program. it's an open secret on capitol hill. everybody in the city knows it. >> reporter: and so, therefore, now that you're out of the white house, you're going to war with them. >> absolutely. >> mason: you can watch the charlie rose interview with steve bannon this sunday on "60 minutes." in the big interview on capitol hill today, donald trump jr. was grilled by senate judiciary committee staffers for more than five hours behind closed doors about his june 2016 meeting with a russian lawyer. the president's son explained that he took the meeting because he was intrigued that the lawyer might have damaging information on hillary clinton. trump jr. said nothing came of it. coming up, the golfers who refused to let a wildfire ruin their game. that's why you drink ensure. with 9 grams of protein, and 26 vitamins and minerals...

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they've destroyed nearly 1.5 million acres. a satellite image earlier this week showed smoke drifting all le way to the great lakes and beyond. while the fires have forced many indoors, these golfers in washington state were undaunted by the wall of flames raging across the border in oregon. the credit report company equifax today revealed it was targeted by a major cyber attack earlier this year. equifax says hackers may have stolen personal information, including social security and credit card numbers, from as many as 143 million customers. the company is now alerting those customers affected. amazon announced plans today to hire as many as 50,000 people to fill a brand-new second corporate headquarters. the online retail giant, currently based in seattle, wants to open its $5 billion second home near a north american city to be selected next year.

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>> mason: for years, fans have wondered about the state of american tennis. no american man has made the semifinals at the u.s. open since 2006. but jericka duncan assures us this year, there's no need to worry about the women. ( applause ) >> reporter: when coco vandeweghe and madison keys won their matches last night, american tennis declared victory. that's because they joined venus williams and sloan stephens to make the u.s. open semifinals an all-american affair. the last time that happened was

in 1981, when players like martina navratilova and chris evert dominated women's tennis. >> i really feel that the success of the americans right now is largely due to serena and venus williams, and the impact they have had on the sport and on young girls. >> reporter: united states tennis association chairman, c.e.o., and president, katrina adams, says this semifinal milestone is serving notice that the american game is back. >> to now know that we have a next crop, the next generation, if you will, that are under 25, that can perhaps be at the top of their games for the next five, 10 years, that's huge for us because we want our kids to get into the sport. >> reporter: and there's another headline at this year's u.s. open. three of the four women in the semifinals are women of color, and that's never happened before. one of those emerging stars, stephens, was just four years old when her opponent tonight,

venus williams, debuted here as a 17-year-old back in 1997. >> it is extremely important for all youth to see themselves in the game. and what i mean by that is that they see people that look like them, maybe walk like them or talk like them, so they can say, "hey, i can do that, too." >> reporter: which could be a sign that the best is yet to come. jericka duncan, cbs news, new york. >> mason: a star-spangled semifinal. that's the "cbs evening news." i'm anthony mason in new york. >> glor: and i'm jeff glor in miami, where we keep watching irma. remember, this storm, unlike andrew in miami 25 years ago, which cut east to west straight through, this is going to be over florida and the southeast, it looks like for a long time. we will be watching and have the latest tomorrow on "cbs this morning," and right back here for the "cbs evening news" tomorrow night. good night from miami. captioning sponsored by cbs captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org

california school kids skipping their shots. parents opposed to vaccines are getting around a tough, new law. good evening, kpix5 news begins with california school kids skipping their shots, parents opposed to vaccines getting around a tough new law. good evening. i'm veronica de la cruz. >> i'm ken bastida in for allen tonight. california got rid of the personal belief excuse for school vaccinations, but parents may have found another way around this. a new study in the journal of the american medical association shows a sharp spike in medical exemptions. now there has been a threefold increase in the number of unvaccinated kindergartners with a doctor's note. kpix5's emily turner is live in see sebastapol where one school -- sebastapol where one school is concerned. >> reporter: the health of the child is paramount, the most

basic concern, but there's a second concern when doctors see these numbers and that has to do with the ethics of these medical exemptions. when parent protest against ending the personal belief exemption failed, it seems they turned to a different loophole to achieve the same effects. anti-vaccs parents changed methods this year. >> we had maybe 30%, maybe even 40% of our kindergartners with the medical exemption. >> reporter: the choice is ultimately up to the parents he said and he respects that, but that unvaccinated percentage doesn't come without its concern. he and his staff have spent days working solely on vaccination paperwork to make sure they're state compliant and there is always the threat of an outbreak that may put his students in danger. >> my concern as a worst case scenario if we had