this. >> and manatees on the move, the rescue efforts underway to save sea cows stranded by hermine. good evening. i'm keith cate. >> i'm jennifer leigh. thanks for joining us this evening. tonight a traffic stop turned gun battle with a convicted felon opening fire on drug task force officers. it all happened on a quiet neighborhood street east of lakeland. peter bernard is live for us in polk county right now and amazingly none of >> reporter: absolutely amazing and the guy in this car just didn't care whom he killed. he is 32-year-old francis perry. i have a mugshot of him right there. he just got out of prison in march, but since then the sheriff tells me that he's already violated numerous laws. a bullet ridden dodge challenger sits in a driveway off golfview street. nearby evidence markers show where shell casings flew.

down the dark tinted windows when four law enforcement officers surrounded him. instead -- >> we are met with gunfire. he shoots out of the passenger side of the vehicle toward the height of officers. >> reporter: hita is an acronym for a task force made up by several agencies who target wanted felons in polk county. >> we shot back because he shot at us and we have shot at him a lot. >> reporter: cops dragged perry from the car, performed cpr and called an ambulance. police chiefs from the three judd saying how glad they are every one of them avoided being shot. >> these officers have families to go home to and tonight they were faced with a very dangerous situation. >> reporter: francis perry is facing a long list of charges to be added to a rap sheet that's at least 100 pages long. he has numerous arrests in polk county trying to kill law enforcement now one of the most serious. >> and the message is very

at law enforcement officers if you don't want to be shot. >> reporter: good message there. the sheriff tells me they found what appears to be meth, enough to traffic in that car. perry is a fugitive from justice and was wanted by law enforcement. tonight he's undergoing emergency surgery. back to you. >> peter, what are some of the charges perry is facing if he does survive? >> reporter: if he does survive, the charges are many, second degree attempted murder, resisting arrest, rs there's just so my don't have time for it, but needless to say it's a long list. >> peter bernard live in polk county tonight, thank you. right now an investigation is underway into a deadly crash in north port. we're told two vehicles slammed into each other head on. a man in his mid-30s died. a woman in her 50s is now in the hospital. those were the only two people inside the vehicles. we have just learned that the road is now back open. it had been closed. a pasco county school

arrested for stalking an ex- girl friend. 45-year-old russell knieriem tried over and over again to get in touch with his ex. he e-mailed, teched her and drove by her home. knieriem joined the pasco county sheriff's office in 1999. he's been at fivay high school since 2014. pasco county is now shifting into recovery mode after days of damage assessment from hurricane hermine. residents there are looking at a nearly $90 million price tag to make emergency managers put out that dan estimate today for homes, businesses and property. more than 300 homes sustained major damage in the storm and one woman told us today her house flooded and now has mold. she doesn't believe she can even move back in. >> i've got kids that are asthmatic. that's a no go. that right there just put an icing on the cake. >> this hurricane is now one of the costliest disasters in

and federal aid. they did not meet face to face, but hillary clinton and donald trump did square off tonight on the same stage. it was a televised forum focusing on national security and veterans' issues, nbc's matt lauer asking the questions to the candidates separately tonight. the presidential nominees were given 30 minutes each to answer the questions about judgment, temperament and why they are the most qualified candidate to serve as america's next commander in chief. it had thel presidential debate, but this was just a foretaste. first up in the back to back forum hillary clinton who was asked about the use of a private e-mail server while secretary of state. >> it was a mistake to have a personal account. i would certainly not do it again. i make no excuses for it. it was something that should not have been done. >> reporter: she was also questioned about her vote as a senator to authorize the war in iraq. >> i think that the decision to

and i have said that my voting to give president bush that authority was from my perspective my mistake. >> reporter: but she says it's imperative that we learn from mistakes to avoid being led down similar paths. donald trump was challenged to defend past comments that he knew more about the islamic state than they do? >> i think under the leadership of barack obama and hillary clinton the generals had been reduced to rubble. >> reporter: when asked about russian president vladimir putin, trump said he's been a better leader than president obama. >> i think when he calls me brilliant, i'll take the compliment, okay? the fact is look, it's not going to get him anywhere. i'm a negotiator. >> reporter: unlike the debates filled with

listened intently and quietly as they considered their next commander in chief. the next time these two candidates appear on stage, they will be face to face at hofstra university in hempstead, new york, september 26th. you can count on news channel 8 to be there. caught on camera in hillsborough county, a jewelry thief makes ad many dash for the door while trying on an -- makes a mad dash for the door while trying on an necklace at westfield mall. a store employee chases the crook and what happens next puts him in the hospital. he chased the thief to his car, jumped onto it but was thrown from the hood of that vehicle. >> chased him out into the parking lot and when the suspect jumped into a customer row and started to leave, the employee jumped onto the hood of the car and was hanging on. he was yelling for help and this car took off with him on

got away with nearly $24,000 in jewelry. we checked and the employee is in critical condition tonight. a shocking case of child sexual abuse in polk county and there could be more victims. james malone is facing 197 felony charges for allegedly having child pornography on his computers and even worse, detectives tell us some of the images are of him molesting young boys. the case started when balone was picked up in ly child pornography sting. neighbors are shocked. >> it's hard to talk about because it's just not something you would expect from someone that you're close to. >> detectives seized 52 devices from his home and discovered the abuse. balone's wife claims she did not know about her husband's crimes and is not currently facing charges. new video tonight of some of the 178 pigs that are now in custody in the polk county sheriff's office. hard to believe these are the

and could barely walk while in custody at darling darlings animal rescue. the owners face more than 100 animal neglect charges and they can never own animals again. new tonight voters slow down in, an effort to protect wildlife the city of tampa just invoked idle speak and no wake zones on the river. the rules are effective immediately and you could be find 90 bucks if you do not comply. congress is back in washington with unfinished business when it comes to the fight over zika funding and today the house floor was literally abuzz. less than 24 hours after the senate blocked a zika funding bill, congressman david jolly brought live mosquitoes to washington. he brought the prop to convey the fear and anxiety that millions of floridians feel every day. all this is happenings is zika continues to spread. in pasco county a new travel- related case was discovered making eight in that county and 74 in the bay area.

testing in pinellas county where there was one nontravel- related case. flames and smoke could be seen for miles in spartanburg, south carolina, the massive fire burning stacks of wooden pallets at a business that stores them. this fire started around 3:00 today. it took several hours to contain, no injuries reported. and tomorrow ryan lochte is expected to be suspended by the u.s. olc swimming. multiple media outlets are reporting that lochte will be suspended for 10 months from both organizations. the other three swimmers will also be punished but not as severely as lochte. the four swimmers lied about being robbed during the olympic games. hurricane hermine left devastation and destruction in its path, but it also took its toll on some of florida's most beloved creatures. >> coming up next what florida fish and wildlife officials are doing to save manatees that

waters and trapped. >> plus counting calories? no worries. we'll show you which calorie free option starbucks is adding to its menu. >> it was a hot day, 92 degrees for a high, not much in the way of rain relief either. the wear is still a little bit drier. we'll talk about that and see if that trend will carry on and look ahead to the weekend

donald trump facing new criticism - he appeared to mock a reporter with a disability. "you gotta see this guy. 'i don't remember'." "putting a wife to work is a very dangerous thing. i don't want to sound too much like a chauvinist." "you have to be wealthy in order to be great. i'm sorry to say it." "he's a war hero because he was captured. i like people that weren't captured."

they are the gentle giants of the florida water, manatees, the huge mammals that we love to watch. >> but some didn't fare so well against the wicked ways of hermine and tonight paul mueller takes us to citrus county where two sea cows were rescued today and more rescued are on the way. >> reporter: at crystal river those two manatees were carefully lowered into the water earlier wednesday right into king's bay.

folks from fwc to the rescue. >> we could see it was a manatee. they had it out of the water on a sling of some sort. >> reporter: carefully using nets hoisting them out of the mud and bringing them to freedom. >> how in the dickens they got in that ditch. >> reporter: hurricane hermine, that's how, leaving them stuck with nowhere to go, but they aren't the only ones needing to be rescued. >> there was a bigger b previously planned. >> reporter: that job to rescue the manatees in that pond at the plantation at crystal river. right now they're okay eating all that vegetation. >> the fish and wildlife people say it's wonderful for them. it's wonderful food. it's freshwater rather than brackish water and they're in no hurry to get them out. they're not in any danger. >> reporter: doc reiner watched as they tried to rescue

they needed more people and more equipment. fortunately it's not a race against the clock, a good thing, the just for the manatees themselves, but for the people who live here and for all the people who come here around the world to visit. >> this is one of the few places in the world where man is allowed to interact with manatees. we have a lot of people out watching to make sure that people don't abuse them. >> it's one of the last draws to crystal river. >> reporter: a last draw that people will protect at any price. >> and now that they're free? i >> reporter: and no one really knows for sure just how many more manatees need to be rescued and that operation could take days. in citrus county paul mueller, news channel 8. >> we're told fwc is expected to head back out to plantation at crystal river next week to rescue the remaining manatees. now an 8 on your side consumer watch, uber is delivering more than people to their destinations here in tampa by bringing dinner to your door. uber eats launched today in the

participating restaurant through the app. after an average delivery time of about 35 minutes, your uber driver arrives with your food like in our newsroom today. the service cost? just a flat fee, $4.99. apple unveiling a new iphone 7 and 7 plus today. we learned that the new phones will be water resistant and that the display will be 25% brighter than last year's model. it will also come with longer battery life. both models get camera. you can read all about the new gadgets on the homepage of www.wfla.com. sony couldn't let apple have all the spotlight today. the tech giant is coming out with a powerful version of its playstation 4. gamers can expect to see the playstation 4 pro on shelves november 10th. the high end system is capable of playing on ultra high resolution and on high dynamic range televisions. the ps4 pro will set you back $399.

new choice to its menu. they are adding stevia as a sweetener option, a low calorie signal sugar substitute. they're also adding bantam bagels, keith cate, at a lot of location. they're bagel balls stuffed with creamed cheese. you're welcome. waterspout formed off the coast of palm earlier today. this video was taken from singer island near the palm beach inlet. the spout took a little while to form, then spun around a few minutes and then dissolved. this could be our side of florida. we see those quite often around the area. nice shot tonight from karl randall, a waxing gibbous moon

look to the sky. meteorological summer ends september 1st. of course, the official fall equinox is around september 22nd this year. 30.53 inches for that time period, over 9 inches of surplus. that's very good news and since that time, september 1st, 3.4 inches of rain since that date and the surplus running about 1.64. so needless to say, we have plenty of rain. 7 a.m. it's 75 a little bit drier. 76 is our normal low. 86 degrees at noon, 91 degrees at 4 p.m. it's now 82 degrees, but note that dew point number 67 degrees. it just means the humidity is a little bit lower. any time in the summertime we get low humidity days or nights, they're always welcome. 80 degrees in macdill, 79 palm

elsewhere you can see mostly 70s. the only rain cooled stuff was down across southern sections of sarasota county, de soto county with a few showers moving east to west, but dry air at the mid and upper levels of the atmosphere. deeper atmospheric moisture farther to the south colored in blue and green met a cloudier and wetter day in southern florida. this limits the amount of shower activity we've seen. most of the rain activity is farther to the south. we still have a few showers in that easterly flow trying to move onshore in south florida, places like west palm beach and ft. lauderdale. in the tropics this area that has a 70% chance over a five- day period is now down graded to 60%. still most computer models want to move this northwest and potentially keep it out at sea, but it's something we'll continue to watch as we do the

rpm forecast model, you might see a few more clouds in that area. drier cooler air likely wednesday and thursday morning in some of the northern spots. thursday afternoon the dry limits the amount of rain for the area and the easterly flow will kind of cruise across the state, same for friday morning, still a little drier in some of the northern spots. by now we know red is the dry air and, of course, slowly lift south to north across the area. so the moisture is slowly returning in that water vapor forecast over the next couple days and that's partly why combined with 90-degree temperatures we'll raise that rain chance a little bit. the next three days we're doing that incrementally starting at 20% tomorrow. southern areas probably have a better chance than northern areas because of the higher moisture levels. we're still in the rainy

off the 40% numbers and head toward the dry season. we're still getting 90-degree temperatures. there's plenty of humidity. just add the right ingredients to drive these showers. by the weekend i think we'll see a few more and probably early next week. >> not a bad week overall. thank you. coming up in sports the newest member of the bucs hits the practice field while another player is let go. >> one year after his nightmare winston tells us why this year's oping day feels so different. >> the 2016 heart -- opening day feels so different. >> the 2016 heart walk is right around the corner. the first $50,000 we raise is matched by kia. so every dollar you donate is two. it's on november 12th at raymond james stadium. you can go to

in florida, it used to be that if a child, a senior or one of our four legged friends was trapped in a hot car you and i were not allowed to save them unless we were willing to be sued. has government lost its mind? those who can not rescue themselves. that is the least we can do. after all the love they give. dana young for the florida senate.

- marco. - polo. - marco. - polo. marco. marco? marco? but it's not a game when our senator doesn't show up. i'm patrick murphy. solving problems means showing up. showing independence. it's why i worked to protect women's health care and worked with both parties to stop cuts to medicare. i'm patrick murphy and i approve this message because florida needs a full-time senator. marco? marco? my son has meningitis b. but how did we end up here? his mom thought he had the flu and that he was covered by the meningococcal meningitis vaccine he had received. until 2014 there were no vaccines

now there are. while uncommon, meningitis b can lead to death within 24 hours. trumenba is a vaccine for 10 through 25 year olds to help prevent group b meningococcal disease. trumenba should not be given if you had a severe allergic reaction after a previous dose. most common side effects were injection-site pain, fatigue... headache, muscle pain, and chills. ask your doctor or pharmacist about all the risks and benefits of trumenba and tell them if you've received any other meningitis b vaccines. meningitis b can be spread by typical sharing like... a drink... a spoon... a kiss. it all started here... it might have been prevented with trumenba.

sports on news channel 8 is sponsored by your gulf coast honda dealers. >> brand-new bucs wide receiver cecil short today cramming in as much of this offense as he can in a few days. meanwhile running back mike james placed on waive with an injury. a decision on his roster spot one year ago bucs quarterback jameis winston was preparing for his first game. it was all about winston versus marcus mariota that day and after a nightmare beginning winston has evolved into exactly what the bucs had in mind when they drafted him. it was the most anticipated debut in bucs history, not just for the quarterback jameis winston, but also for the guy calling the plays, then bucs

koetter. so when winston's first nfl pass went 26 yards the other way for a touchdown -- >> we return for a pick 6. >> reporter: -- there was nowhere to go but up. >> i got amnesia over that. the main thing is improving on this year and focusing on this year. >> reporter: one year later no more questions. jameis winston not only has the respect of his team but command of the koetter playbook. >> last year we were still in that phase where jameis was turning it over times every day and, you know, he's not doing that now. >> he threw the whole playbook at me day one. so i guess it's just me being more comfortable with the playbook, being able to actually see things more clear because i know what situation we're looking at. >> during training camp koetter praised winston's decision making ability. he ran more during the preseason instead of forcing throws to covered receivers. if that carries into the

chances to extend drives, fewer interceptions. >> being able to know the offense and beak able to execute and apply -- being able to execute and apply it on the field instead of every week trying to learn what i have to do, i guess it's a plus for me and the team. rays and the orioles this afternoon at the trop, kevin kiermaier in the 1st inning. we call that a mistake pitch, keith. that's the result. that went through the wall i think in right field. h corey dickerson the runner on first and drops to the gap in left center. the rays win tonight 7-6 and now head to the bronx. they take on the yankees. so jameis winston one year ago. >> boy, the confidence and the receivers will have to catch the ball. >> it's a different situation for sure on offense. >> thank you. look forward to it. >> we'll be right back with

i'm hillary clinton and i approve this message. there's a race going on right now. the world's clean energy super power's either going to be germany, china, or us. and i'm going to make sure it's us. from 500 million solar panels installed by the end of my first term, to precision manufacturing. we'll beat the competition and create new high wage jobs.

in the morning, mr. jerve? >> a nice start to the day for some. most folks are feeling slightly drier air, so it might feel just a little bit cooler. obviously there's still plenty of humidity around. it's still early september. the rain chances are fairly low tomorrow, only about 20% in favor of areas where we saw rain today like sarasota county. >> all right. rio dejaneiro is celebrating the opening of the paralympic games with fireworks over the stadium. deja vu all over again. thousands of people arriving at the stadium to watch these paralympics. sales of tickets picked up from 200,000 to 1.5 million at the start of the paralympic games, very encouraging and motivating to watch. good luck to all those athletes. >> absolutely. that's going to do it for us.

jimmy fallon is coming up next. >> our next newscast is at 4 a.m. we'll see you back here tomorrow. >> good night.

[ cheers and applause ] ? >> steve: from studio 6b in rockefeller center in the heart of new york city, it's "the tonight show starring jimmy fallon." tonight, join jimmy and his guests -- michael strahan. zachary quinto.