good morning on "early today." almost home. 33 miners trapped for months in chile may now be just hours away from their freedom. hot button issue, which topic is dominating political debates across the nation ahead of election day? and the big one, chilling predictions on a long overdue and the big one, chilling predictions on a long overdue earthquake in californi captions paid for by nbc-universal television hi, everybody. good morning. great to have you with us. i'm thomas roberts.

today, we begin with the final hours before freedom after enduring more than two months underground, chile's 33 trapped miners are now less than 24 hours away from being brought to the surface. tonight, rescuers are expected to begin hoisting the men up to no doubt what will be a celebration. kerry sanders filed this report for us yesterday from chile. >> reporter: teams here conducted a test. the escape capsule traveled 20 feet inside the steal pipe without a problem. so they went a step further and sent it down the shaft within feet of the trapped miners. >> we didn't send it down because we could risk that somebody could jump in. >> reporter: some of the equipment is still being anchored into a concrete slab. soon, the lift will be hooked up to a heavy duty wench. the capsule travels down the

shaft for the first 183 feet inside that steal reinforcing pipe. past that, driven simply by gravity, it sides down the rock walls 157 feet through slight s turns. the trip up is expected to take no more than 15 minutes. >> who comes up first? the list remains secret tonight. what we know is that the men down below were all fighting for positions. each wanted to be last, a sign of their brotherhood developed over the last two plus months. kerry sanders, nbc news, chile. back here in the states, the clock is ticking for canada. it's counting down to midterm election day now just three weeks away. last night, several issued were sparred over. health care was hand down the topic of the night. tracie potts is in washington, d.c. with all the details on that. >> reporter: good morning. that and fixing the economy,

republicans saying stop the spending, democrats saying we need to invest in the future. this election is becoming a referendum on the first two years of the obama administration. nowhere was that more evident than in kentucky last night where paul tried to make it the topic in the election. his democratic opponent came out in their debate and said this election is not about president obama. now, the president has not campaigned there, but he has been in wisconsin where democrat russ feingold is in a very tough race with the republican there, ron johnson, who as of now has a big lead. the big issue in their debate last night was funding for political ads and advertisements. president obama's focus, speaking of funding, is raising money for the democrats so they can get more ads on the air so they can get their message out. he was in miami last night doing just that.

thomas. >> three weeks left for the hard core race to the finish. tracie, thanks so much. >> now here's a look at other stories making news early today in america. producers and crew on the film set of "transformers 3" got some unscripted action when the bumblebee got side swiped by a police vehicle. some thought it was a scene from the movie. the wreck temporary halted production, but the filming will continue all week. a florida woman is going to get some help from a problem that's been buzzing over her. a company will remove a huge 30 foot high beehive in her tree after several others said they couldn't help. even the city refused because it was on private property. she warns neighbors to stay inside. at a competition in california, a gorgeous guard

tipped the scales at 1,435 pounds, measuring 10 1/2 inches across the top. the winner's secret, you wonder? pumpkin seeds donated by a previous win perpendicular. back in florida, ten little crocodiles cracked through their eggs one after another after another. but may be small now, but with a 1200 pound down nax maximo, they won't be strong for very long. now for a look at your national and regional weather, here is nbc meteorologist bill karins with the weather channel forecast. hey, bill, good morning. >> good morning, thomas. thomas, a lot of weather people, we like to go storm chasing. >> sure. >> i don't have to do that. the storm came to me last night. take a look at this hail video from brooklyn. listen to the sounds. almost looks like snow out there. this is out my front window. new york city got hit pretty hard by this storm and this is three weeks after getting hit by

a tornado. who knows, maybe new york city is the new oklahoma city. we had that storm system kick through areas of the aeft last night. we still have a little bit of rain. the storms rolled right over the jets and minnesota vikings game. two storm systems, one up in new england and the other one down here in louisiana. new york city looks okay, just like rain. but philadelphia is going to have a wet morning pipt goes back here into central p.a. and it's going to go straight through philly. we're talking rain early today. we had strong storms going through areas of louisiana. they're weaker now. but it looks like new orleans has rain heading your way in all of extreme southern louisiana. as far as the forecast for today goes, we're going to continue to watch showery type weather and rainey weather, cooler weather, too. d.c. looks like you're going to avoid much of this wet weather. and the rest of the country looks rather dry and rather warm with the exemption there of denver. that's your tuesday forecast.

now here is a look at the weather outside your window. partly cloudy skies in many locations, but still mild. we won't see record highs like we did yesterday through the southeast and mid-atlantic. but 80s and still above average in many spots. so what do you think, thomas, were you impressed by the hail video? >> i was. i think you're itching to get back out on the street there. and that was pretty steady work on your part. >> a little chasing. >> that was pretty impressed. bill, thanks. wall street is ready to ring in record play. who thinks playing with the boss will get you a promotion? your early morning business headlines are straight ahead. plus, courtney cox and david arquette, they're making some news and it has something to do with their marriage. are they going to remain friends? the giants try to finish off bobby cox and the braves. plus, could brett farve put aside all of the distractions and help the vikings beat the jets? you're watching "early today."

>> good morning, and welcome back to "early today." i'm thomas roberts. here are some of your top headlines this morning. president obama is promising an investigation into failed rescue attempts by u.s. special forces that ended in the death of a british aid worker held captive in afghanistan after reviewing surveillance footage. nato said yesterday it was possible that an american grenade mistakenly killed 36-year-old linda norgrove, not her taliban kidnappers. doctors are treating an unnamed patient in atlanta with a spinal cord injury is now helping scientists determine the safety of the procedure. oprah winfrey says she's disapoiptd with the acquittal of a woman accused of abusing students at her girl's school.

researchers are warning that a major earthquake known as the big one could strike southern california at any time. new research shows the san andreas fault is now overdue for a major shift, meaning it could trigger a quake between monterrey county and the sultan sea. now here is an early look at one of your top health headlines on msnbc.com. yet another health problem is being linked to hormones taken by women. those tain taking hormones were 20% more likely to develop kidney stones. women who are thinking about using hormone therapy to easy menopause symptoms, check your medications, they could be linked to more heart attacks and

health and kidney stones. and we turn now to market news and an early look at how wall street kicks off the day. the dow opens at 11,010. both the s&p and the nasdaq were up by a fraction. taking a look at overseas trading this morning in tokyo, the nikkei fell 200 points while in hong kong, the hang seng dropped 85. bond markets were closed for columbus day and stocks barrelly budgeted, but it wasn't quiet everywhere on wall street. corn futured soared higher marking the biggest two-day move in 20 years. usda slashed its crop outlook, driving fears of food and biofuel price hikes. ibm was on the rise yesterday. big blue closed just shy of $140 apiece. a little acquisition on the street, children's clothing region he tailor gymboree agreed

to purchase bybane capital. goldman sachs is joining the ranks of several banks to put the brakes on foreclosures. meanwhile, mercedes is recalling some 85,000 vehicles in the u.s. over potential power steering problems in some 2010 and 2011 c and e class models. microsoft unveiled a lineup of power phones. the updated system displays tiles instead of i cons on the home screen and boasts a camera button that works even when the phone is locked. "the wall street journal" is reporting that despite the struggling economy, paychecks on wall street are on track to break a record high for the second straid straight year. nearly three financial firms are set to pay 4% more in compensation and benefits over last year. finally, it sooed seems a large number of american workers

favor mixing business with pleasure. a recent so-called best boss survey found that 17% of those questioned think sleeping with the boss will help you get ahead. and 7%? well, they were speaking from experience. bobby cox takes its curtain call with the braves. plus, they say everything is birth in texas. that includes trick shots that you don't want to mess with. your early morning sports headlines are just ahead. well, the weather pattern in the northeast is only going to get rougher as it goes towards the end of this week. your regional forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today." experience the new air wick scent ribbons candle

from our winter luxury edition. with essential oils infusing luxurious ribbons, new air wick candles wrap the whole room with ribbon after ribbon of indulgent scent... like apple and sheer cinnamon. winter luxury by air wick. also available in scented oils. inherits a billion-dollar surplus, low unemployment. o'malley signs the biggest tax hike in maryland history. raids chesapeake bay fund to cover spending. gives raises to top aides. business climate ranks 45th worst in the nation. now 200,000 jobs lost. o'malley covers up jobs report

that proved maryland's economy stalled. if re-elected, o'malley will raise taxes again. whether he does, is up to you. hi, everybody. good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." in sports, the atlanta braves manager bobby cox made his final farewell last night after 20 years in the dugout. here's nbc's fred roggin with an early look at all your sports headlines. good morning. we start with the baseball playoffs where it was the end of an era in atlanta. in a thrilling back and forth game, bobby cox's braves could not avoid elimination against the giants. picking it up in the sixth, the braves lead, 1-0. this pitch to cody ross, deep and gone. ross's solo shod shot tide the game for one. in the seventh, ross came

through. a base hit to johnny venters. giants, however, back in the lead, 3-2. to the ninth. braves down to their final out. two men aboard for cabrera. that did it, the giants beat the braves, 3-2. they win the series. and that is the final game of bobby cox's incredible career. he now hndz heads into the retirement. to the vikings and the jets. at least in this game, farve putting the distractions behind him. farve fumbled a handoff to adrian peterson. the ball is loose and the jets recover. that would lead to a ñijets' fid goal. later in the third, this time farve delivered to randy moss, farve's 500th career touchdown pass. ahead to the forth, jets leading, 22-20. farve tried to rally the vikings. he was picked off by lowery who went 26 yards for the score. farve and the vikings lose it,

29-20. they're now 1-3. the jets are 4-1. with basketball season right around the corner, we thought we would get you in the move by this incredible trick shot. from the top deck of cowboys stadium, nailed it. one more look. if it's a fake, it's an incredible fake. it looks pretty real to me. that's your early look at sports on "early today." i'm fred roggin. and the sexiest woman alive title goes to -- you've got to wait for it. your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. plus, a soldier's return home from iraq is one of several reasons to celebrate. your early morning entertainment you're watching "early today." you're watching "early today."

today." welcome back. the forecast is rather quiet today. we are watching some rain, though, moving through philadelphia this morning in areas of new jersey and new england will get some showery weather, especially southern new england. the rest of the nation looks pretty knight nice today. rain will be existing areas of southern louisiana. we have pollen near south florida and the keys in the next couple of days. we'll keep an eye on that storm system. most of the country looks really nice on wednesday. watch out new england, rainey, windy weather on thursday and friday. if you're watching us on wmaq 5 in chicago, experience the studio at one big art studio during chicago artists month. that's your "early today" event of the day, thomas. >> it's a beautiful city, piece

of art. thanks, bill. now here's a look at this morning's headlines in entertainment. the major marriage of popular hollywood couple is coming to an end. courtney cox and david arquette are calling it quits. the two remain friends and coparents to their 6-year-old daughter, coco. esquire magazine has named its sexiest woman align. 36-year-old minka kelly stars on "parenthood." kelly's issue of esquire hits the stands november 19th. and be sure to set your dvrs for thursday night. you never know what will happen on a live show. in this week's episode of "30 rock" is doing just that, airing live. details for the script of the nbc comedy are under wraps, but the cast is expected to get visits from guest starts like giant ham and matt damon.

are you a fan of "30 rock inspect" >> you know something? i didn't start in the very beginning so i need to go and catch up. . >> you do. it's really good stuff. but the live episode will be really, really good. >> i remember when "er" did it. >> teenie fey, how can you be wrong? a soldier's girlfriend got the surprise of a lifetime. army specialist steven cantarzi returned from iraq to the cheers of his family, friends and his girlfriend, kayla, who thought she would pride surprise him at the airport. well, the surprise was on her when he proposed with her grandmother's diamond ring. thankfully, she said yes and the two plan to marry before he heads to korea coming up in december. congratulations to the happy couple. i'm thomas roberts, and this is "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station.

>> good morning, everyone. we have a little bit of rain to contend with this morning. i want to emphasize the little bit but it could affect the drive time. most of the rain is in southern pennsylvania but the northern suburbs could get clipped with a few showers. the forecast today variable clouds with a 30% to 40% chance of shower or thunderstorm so it won't be a steady rain. highs mid to upper 70's. we will check the seven-day forecast in a few minutes.

>> it is now 4:57. 62 degrees. here is a look ahead to "11 news today." the two candidates for governor went head to head in a debate last night. i will have all the highlights. >> more voters in more states are casting ballots early this year. we will have a look at now that is impacting campaigns. >> we are looking at the compute. we have a water main break in parkville. that is com

[captioning made possible by constellation energy group] >> good morning, i'm mindy basara. >> i'm stan stovall. >> tony pann has a check of the forecast. was that lightning i saw on the way in? >> yes. >> i couldn't tell. i was half