[ ping! ] ♪ hi. totally new, awesomely-invisible tampax radiant. check out the whole radiant collection. i'm jim cramer. see you tomorrow.today," heat e millions of americans wait for relief from a record-breaking heat wave. fire in the hole. a decades'-old dorm at the university of alabama goes up in smoke. and a spectacular display, the largest fireworks show in theandmarks america's 236th birthday. captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello and good morning. i'm lynn berry. and today we begin with no relief. in many parts of the nation, it was a fourth of july for the record books with record heat as

an early summer heat wave continues. meanwhile in the mid-atlantic crews worked through the holiday to get the power back on after last week's deadly storms. nbc's john yang reports from chicago. >> reporter: across the eastern half of the country, americans spent the nation's 236th birthday trying to beat the heat. >> it's definitely really hot. >> reporter: chicago had only its second triple-digit force since it began keeping records. milwaukee set an all-time record high for the day as did madison, wisconsin, south bend, indiana, and paducah, kentucky. minnesota's half marathon was cut to five miles. philadelphia's fourth of july parade, marchers swelter as they passed independence hall. similar scenes in st. louis where they hit triple digit for weeks. the oppressive temperatures with

highs near the 100s from the plains to the atlantic are the result of a massive hot air stalled over much of the nation's midsection. >> typically we don't see it this hot so early in the season. we're talking about unprecedented temperatures for places like atlanta, even st. louis seeing 100 degrees seven days in a row. that is something we don't normally see. >> reporter: and if that weren't enough, nearly a million people spent the fourth like their founding fathers, no electricity, no air conditioning. last week's ferocious storms were blamed for 26 death ts. in washington there were no holidays for work crews for downed trees so utility workers can begin to restore power. >> i can't wait to go home. i'm so tired of this. >> reporter: this family owned grocery store in chevy chase, maryland, has been closed since friday night. >> we lost everything. we lost everything that required

refrigeration. else where they're trying to contain these wildfires that are burning in nine western states. montana's largest fire has burned at least 16 homes and charred 380 square miles. high winds are whipping up the flames of the ash creek fire, which is about 55% contained. and in colorado fire officials are expecting full containment by sunday of the waldo canyon fire. that scorched 28 square miles and destroyed almost 350 homes. >> now to the campaign trail where president obama begins a bus tour through the swing states of ohio and pennsylvania. meanwhile in new hampshire yesterday mitt romney spoke out about the health care mandate. nbc's tracie potts has more on this from washington. trac tracie, good morning. >> lynn, good morning. he will be targeting working-class men. the polls are showing us that while he's doing well with women and some other groups, this is a

group that seems to be wavering between president obama and mitt romney. a recent average of the bill polls shows the president with less than a three-point lead within the margin of error. on the fourth of july the president addressed military members who were newly sworn in citizens saying that we need more immigration laws in this country that allow immigrants to stay, like the d.r.e.a.m. act. meantime mitt romney was up in new hampshire add a picnic there, and while he tried to shy away from politics officially, talking about the issues on the campaign trail, he's been wrapped up on whether or not he's been contradicted in his campaign over the health care, is it a penalty or a tax. his campaign says otherwise. tomorrow we'll likely turn the focus back to the economy as new numbers come out for june. >> tracie potts for us in washington. tracie, thank you. and now here's a look at some other stories making news early today in america. in alabama it was a different kind of fourth of july blast.

crews blew up a 13-story building complex at the university of alabama. the rose towers as they're known, house more than 30,000 students and faculty over five decades. some of the alumnae even came back to watch a piece of their past come tumbling down. going take three weeks to clean up all the rubble from the implosion. in illinois there was a train derailment and bridge collapse north of chicago. it's not clear what happened first but several of the 138 train cars being hauled across the state were mangled up in that wreckage. the train was carrying coal from wyoming to wisconsin. no one was hurt. coincidently there was a derailment at the very same spot three years ago. and finally in missouri, patriotism can never start too early. look at these guys. newborn babies were wrapped up in red, white, and blue bunting. hospital volunteers put the

touches on the blankets right down to the stars. well, now for a look at your national and regional weather, here's nbc meteorologist bill karins with the weather channel forecast. bill, you're a papa too. how are your swaddling techniques? >> they're pretty good, but the nurses in the nursery, they're professionals. name the minor leagues. well, good morning, everyone. yesterday, incredible heat. but first things first, the heat is rolling through michigan. a line of strong storms. all of michigan has numerous reports of power outages and downed trees. these storms are flying down through michigan. they're heading in the general direction of detroit and ann arbor. if they maintain the intensity, we're going to watch this developing. if you're driving anywhere on 94, it sooner or later will roll down your way. as far as what happened yesterday, just incredible heat, of course wrks the triple digits. i circled all locations that hit

the hundreds. even raleigh snuck in with 101. st. louis, what a stretch it has been. the heat index this morning has not gone down that much. it feels like 89 in st. louis and 86 in minneapolis. and because it's so humid out there and so warm, we have heat warnings for almost all of the lower great lakes, ohio valley and the great plains. 100-degree highs once again. peaking at 106 in st. louis. get ready in the atlantic. we're watching in d.c. and raleigh. that's a look at your national forecast. now here's a look outside your window. new york city, about 91 degrees. areas of new england, a cost moves to the south. going to be humid. a little less cooler there. in the ohio valley, no relief at all. so let's put a smile on this and say by sunday, the heat wave's over and done. details coming up. >> all right. love that. also coming up interest rates hang in the balance, another

blow for barclays, and the new skyscraper that towers over london. your early morning business headlines are straight ahead. plus, new details on how kay katy holmes orchestrated her split from tom cruise. nash find as home in hollywood, a wild daid in nhl free agency. and you thing you ate a lot of hot dogs yesterday? think again. you're watching "early today." 4 good morning and welcome

back to "early today." i'm lynn berry, and here are some of your top headlines this morning. a hughes report obtained by the "associated press" finds that countrywide got around the law and influenced members of congress. six current and former members of the house and senate who got discounted loans include both democrats and republicans. in mexico election officials

say they are recounting votes from more than half the ballot boxes used in the presidential election. inconsistencies were found in the vote tally. palestinian officials have agreed to exhume the body of former president yasser arafat because of sbigs suspicions tha was poisoned. radioactive substances were found on his clothing following his death in 2004. scientists in switzerland announced they've likely discovered the so-called god particle. colliding protons were created to make the particle that may explain how stars, planets, and even life were created. and the rockets' red glare filled the sky of new york's hudson river during new york macy's fireworks display. mobs of tourists watched the colored spectacle of 40,000 fireworks celebrating america's independence day.

and now here is an early look at how wall street's going to kick off the day. after being closed july 4th. the dow closed at 12, 943. up 72. nasdaq gained 17. in tokyo, the nikkei lost 24 points but in hong kong, the hang sang nudged up 99. well, the biggest new this week will be friday's jobs report. news out of europe could tricker some market movement today. the european central bank is expected to cut the region's interest rates to a record low today. the move is seen as essential in easing the eurozone's debt crisis. elsewhere oversees moody's downgraded barclays crediting rating this morning. he was grilled by england's parliament yesterday for he apologized for, quote, reprehensible fixing by traders. volkswagen has ended a

seven-year takeover zba, paying more than $5.5 billion in cash for the majority stake in porsche that it didn't already own. virgin, australia, has ordered 27 boeing 737 max airplanes. the price for those jets, $2.2 billion. word on the street is apple's parts supplier is gearing up for mass production of a smaller less expensive ipad, which will reportedly be under 8 inches. the current ipad measures 9.7 inches. renting an apartment in the u.s. just got more expensive last quarter. a new report shows rental prices jumped 1% while the number of vacancies set a new ten-year low. and, finally, you can bet renting a flat in london's newest sky scrapper won't be cheap. towering 95 stories high, the chard, which will be officially unveiled today is the tallest building in western europe.

coming up a phillies pitch getters a long awaited win and big papi reaching major league milestone. plus a hot dog eating champ hits his mark. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. after two weeks of this incredible heat, there's an end in seat. your forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today."

good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." and in sports, knicks fans can forget about steve nash. after the two-time nba nvp signed with the lakers. here's nbc's mario solis with an early look at all of your sports headlines. >> the lakers sent four draft picks to phoenix for the two-time mvp. nash will reportedly receive a three-year deal worth more than $25 million. independence day was also kind to a pair of american hockey player. the top two free agents in the nhl are headed to minnesota. the wilds signed them to an identical 13-year $19 million contract. it's a home coming of sorts for both players.

parise was born in minnesota. robinson cano has been hotter than an m-80. single and pair in the eighth. yankees win, 4-3. kevin youkilis is fitting in nicely with the sox. first walk-off yesterday. the game winner against the rangers. sox won 5-4 in ten. time to change our sox. red sox and a's. david ortiz wraps a home run around the foul powell. that's number 400 in big papi's career. unfortunately not enough. oakland wins, 4-3. cliff lee is off his schneid. took him two months. striking out nine over eight. phils beat the nets. here's one guy who can eat you out of house and home. the national annual hot dog eating contest. joey chestnut tied his record with 68. the ores couldn't cut the

mustard. he's the top dog. aisle sure he'll relish his win. that's your look at sports on "early today." i'm mario solis. always tough to watch. coming up, baby news from two celebrity couples. your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. plus, one wisconsin to a fitting tribute to america's favorite sheriff. you're watching "early today."

welcome back to "early today." hope you had a wonderful fourth of july. the heat continues. no end in sight at least till the weekend. i guess there is an end in sight. sunday. 103 in chicago. here's the good news. the cold front in the northern portion of the plains is ever so slowly going to drop to the south. notice tomorrow 88 in minneapolis compared to 100, that will probably feel on the cool side. so, again, that cold front is the one that will cool everyone down by sunday. well if you're watching us on wlwt news 5 in cincinnati, ohio, take a trip into a world buried under the ash and lava of a volcano catastrophe at a day in pom pay. and that's your "early today" event of the day, lynn. and now here's an early look at this morning's headlines in entertainment. and we're going to begin with the latest of the tom cruise and katie holmes sega.

an attorney reports that he wants an emergency hearing on child and custody support. holmes filed an application that could have resulted in a public hearing. meanwhile published reports say katie holmes planned an intricate escape from the marriage including securing a new york city apartment, cutting all off communication from her friends and switching cell phones and i'm addresses. >> two weeks after tying the knot, matthew mcconaughey tweeted he and his wife are expected their third child. congratulations to them. >> they're going to need nanny, nanny, nanny. and rep confirms actress claire danes and actor hudoncy who wed in 2009 are expecting their first child. and finally -- that was fast. days after pulling the plug on his personal twitter page alec baldwin sent out a tweet on his foundations page plugging an upcoming podcast. he quit after all the

scuttlebutt of the wedding. >> he couldn't go cold turkey. >> it took as while to get you on the bandwagon. you're here to stay. this comes to us from kare 11 news in minneapolis where in wisconsin mayberry lives on. inside a bed and breakfast it was remodeled to look exactly like the set from the aroundy griffith show. look at that. each room has been duplicated to the smallest detail. they even fourchld space in the basement for a replica of the jail. sheriff andy taylor watched over. way for fans everywhere to remember one of the most famous series in tv history. that's pretty remarkable. i'm lynn berry, and this is "early today," just your first stop of the day, today on your nbc station.

>> live, local, late-breaking, this is wbal-tv 11 news today. >> good morning. we're off to a quiet start on this thursday. we had some thunderstorms in some areas last night. 77 in parkton. the forecast for today -- a hot one with hazy sunshine. a slight chance for a thunderstorm. high temperature in the upper 90's. we will check the seven forecast in just a few minutes. >> thank you. 81 degrees on tv hill. >> fire officials are trying to

figure out what startedtw two fires. >> president obama heads out on the highway. >> we have a [ male announcer ] now at your neighborhood subway: the new santa fe steak melts. get extra grande flavor with the santa fe steak & bacon melt. juicy steak, crispy bacon, and melted cheese with creamy santa fe caesar. or try adding egg for a santa fe steak, bacon & egg melt -- a favorito for breakfast but muy bueno any time of day. get to your local subway and claim your steak today -- with new santa fe steak melts. subway. eat fresh.

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[captioning made possible by constellation energy group] captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- >> live, local, late-breaking, this is wbal-tv 11 news today. >> good morning. i am jennifer franciotti. >> i am stan stovall. welcome back to 11 news today. >> it was such a streak. >> 80 degrees at 5:00 a.m. >> today, more of the same. at the airport, itas