my message is clear. disaster is at the doorstep, and it's coming in. >> a life-threatening storm surge is coming as florenc bein called a storm of a lifetime grows in sizes the hour grow shorter for those still hoping to evacuate. last-minute hurricane preps continue at this hour as millions brace for impact. what about those who choose not to evacuate because of specific health or financialas s? >> this morning the feds call it an epidemic and are warning of a major crackdown on the national e-cigarett craze. and to anotheredia titan being fired. the longtime executive producer of 60 minutes is forced out. then aerosmith gets "the tonight show" treatment for one

of the most iconicongs of all time. "early today" starts right now. good thursday morning. i'm phillip mena. >> and i'mri frances ra. for the first time in a decade, we have four named i storms the atlantic at the same time with one taking dead aim at the carolinas. hurricane florence. over 4 million people from virginia toar the southina coast are currently under storm watch or warning. georgia is now forecasted to follow along the hurricane's path. >> although then storm has b downgraded to a category 2, it is still considered extremely dangerous. forecasters warn the hurricane could hover for days, drenching the coastlinend punishing rain and leading to possible.nland floodi meteorologist bonnie schneider is tracking the storm. this exactly is it at hour? >> right now, phillip and frances, it's bearing down. you can see outer bands getting very close to the carolina coastline. i want to point out the size. you mentioned that it's larger. if we were to loo the at the entire storm, it's almost 400 miles wide. so even though hurricane frances

is now a category 2 storm, don't le t that intensity l your guard down. it will slow down by the time it approaches the coastline. we're expecting landfall sometime late tonight into early tomorrow. because it's such a slow moving storm, the landfall is important, but the duration and the issize of the storm is rlly what's going to contribute to the storm summary judgmedangero. lo long the storm persists, all the way till monday. inland floodin is also a possibility. looking at the storm surge, we're going through several high tide cycles today throughout tomorrow and that's going to be one of the reasons t duration. >> when you say 40 inches, th reminds me of last year, hurricane harvey. stas up andown the east coast continue to brace for us hurricane onst florence relentlessly barrels toward the mainland.

the fierce storm iso expected bury beaches under a life-threatening storm surge. so resid bts arerding up and getting out. coastal cityrttreets are lly deserted as people flee to higher ground before it's too late. as those peo flow inland, emergency shelters are quickly filling up with some saying are already at capacity. nbc's miguel almaguer gives us look at the race to get out. >> reporter: bracing forpa . this is the race to beat florence as the hurricane surges toward shore. coastal cities across the carolinas, parts of virginia, and georgia in a state of emergency. >> my message is clear. disaster is at the doorstep, and it's coming in. >> reporter: from myrtle beach -- >> i feel kind of scared. >> reporter: -- to wilmington, many fear a direct hit. with nearly 4,000 already in sh ters kenny nettles is

boarding up and moving out. >> i've got two kids in there and a wife. i just don't think we're going to take thatchance. >> reporter: with gas stations on empty, store shelves baer, and gent services shutting down, a final run onti ess supplies. >> just batten down the hatches and get ready to ride it >>t. eporter: with nearly 2 million heeding evacuatron orders,ms of cars are wpouring inlandhile a flood of first responders a making their way towards danger. two nuclear power plant prepared to shutter if hurricane-force winds blast in. promisingo deliver a unprecedented disaster, this is a look at thef eyee storm. >> a lot of the houses boarded up. ea>> reporter: carolina bch town manager mike kramer says 75% of his residents have evacuated. >> for those that refuse to leave, are they gambling with >> guaranteed their gambling with their life. >> reporter: the storm of a lifetime may still be out at

sea, but hurricane florenc is ready making an impact on land. miguel, almagu nbc news, carolina beach. >> florence may have been downgraded to a category the storm is still expected to deliver a devastating blow. the main ccern is that life-threatening storm surge powered by those 110-mile-per-hour the national weather service predicts a 13-foot wall of wat uld bury some beaches along the carolina coast before continuingurther land. nbc's terry sanders is tracking the hurricane and explains just how devastating that storm surge could be. kerry, good morning. >> reporr: good morning. m standing nine feet above sea level. the marker you see over here shows pt storm surges. the worst, 1954.t hazel7 feet. the question now, how bad willi et with florence? carolina beach is a ghost town. >> all residents must be off the island by 8:00 p.m.

>> reporter: among the last to get out, kate balmam and her sister karen. their condo right on the beach. the atlantic is there. cape fear river is over there. when that storm surge comes in, in. happens to this island >> the water levels. >> reporter: 50% of all deaths in a hurricane a drownings, often in that deadly powerful storm surge. >> we were going to stay, and then yesterday iid yeah, no. it's just getting too dangerous. >> the storm surge? >> yeah i >> reportee experienced it firsthand. this is what storm surge looks like. it's a fast-moving, faas-rising flflood with the power of the atlantic ocean behind it. what causes that of water known as storm surge?il 100-plus an hour winds whipping across the surface of the water, piled higher and higher, the storm surgebi cd with high tide may cause the ocean to swell as high as 13 feet, overrunning beaches and potentially traveling miles inland. >> storm surge comes in from the

hurricane and a violent amount of wer comes in destroying homes and it can take lives easily. that's the key is not there when the storm surge comes in. >> reporter: the national hurricane center measured a wave in the atlantic at 80 feet. so understandably all eyes are on the storm surge associated with hurricane florence. phillip? >> kerry, thank you for that report. president trump is a swift response once florence makes landfall. he says the federalovernment prepared for the hurricane and already has extensive resources in place. meanwhile critics have continued to hammer the president for claiming an a-plus response to last year's deadly hurricane maria in puerto rico. let's bring in nbc's tracie potts for more of the reaction from washington. >> reporter: good morning, everyone. president trump still responding to calling the government's reonse to maria a success, hearing it both here and from puerto rico. so now president trump is defending the government's response to two storms last year

and preparation for this storm. military has moved in. supplies are on standby.si and pnt trump is telling people along the carolina coast to get >> it's coming inst fairly and it's going to be one of the biggest to ever hit the east coast. one of the biggest to ever hit our countr residents in the path of these devastating storms should comy th all evacuation orders and other emergency instructions. protection of life is the absolute highest priority.te >> rep now, one of the things we're tracking here in washington, the money. confirmed $10 million was enifted from the federal emergency manag agency's budget into immigration and cuoms enforcement. this morning on their website, fema sayshat's a rumor that the money was shifted, but it was for travel andni tr, not for preparing for or fighting or

responding to thetorm. frances? >> everybody will be watching the present's response ashis storm approaches. thank you. the fda is sounding the alarm warning the use of ng e-cigarettes a teens is at epidemic levels. nbc's rehema ellis has more. >> reporter: vaping now the it thing for teens. the fda calling it a dangerous epidemic. >> the disturbing trajectory of use we're seeing in youth and a resulting path to addiction must end. >> reporter: the ancy sending out warning letters to retailers and giving an ultimatum to the makers of the popular juul and four other manufacturers. they have 60 days to show that theyan keep their nicotine products out of the han of underage users or face a possible ban on all flavored e-cigarettes, especially

appealing to the estimated 2 million regular users in middleh andigh school. >> the most popular flavors usually are ormang the mint. >> reporter: emily lynskey did a high school project on vaping. >> they don't know it's a harmful chemical. it tastes like candy. >> reporter:ar e-ctes have lower toxic chemicals but higher concentrations of nicotine. researchers say teenager' developing brains are especially vulnerable to addiction. th makers saidhey would work with the fda, adding in a statement we want to be part of the solution in keeping e-cigarettes out of the hands of young people. the fda says they have two months to prove it. rehema ellis, nbc news, new york. let's turn back to bonnie schneider with a look at florence heading our way. more crucial in the hours ahead. >> we want to break it down so u know exactly wha to expect. starting this morning, the onset of tropical storm force winds, winds stronger mhan 39es per hour.

this afternoon some of the outer bands will work their way a onshor unfortunately that's also going to bring about strong winds. as we look towardsni late t, that's when hurricane-force winds are expected. right now we're looking at ary cate storm, but it's just so wide. almost 400 miles in diameter. a long duration as well. there's the storm surge we'll ba hing. it will be increasing tonight and tomorrow night. that's a look at one of the big weather stories of the day. here's a closer look at the day ahead. temperatures are certainly warm andry summe across parts of the central plains. highs in the 80s but even hotter as we head south. pockets of 90s into oklahoma, texas, louisiana. it's definitely heating up, and it willum be there as well. the duration of this storm and i the size o really is the biggest concern, not so much the fact that it's a category 2 although that's intense. so we're watching it throughout the next few days even. >> bonnie, thank you. a storm of a much different sort swept through washington, d.c. and eagle bank arena got

hit the hard heest. the seattle storm went on the road and trounced the mtics 98-82. the storm took care of business, completing the three-game sweep to win the finals. this is the storm's third championship in franchise history. still e ahead, a cha own one of robin williams prized ossessions plus another major shake-up at cbs. when your blanket's freshness fades before the binge-watching begins... that's when you know, it's half-washed. next time, add downy fabric conditioner. downy conditions fibers with a long-lasting fresh scent. so your blanket will stay fresh through next week's finale. downy and it's done. with 2 x the almond oil enriched body lotion... it deeply nourishes skin for 48 hours

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to fetch up to $000. macy's says it plans to hire 80,000 temporary workers for the holiday season. olding a ler will be seasonal hiring event at macy's stores nationwide on october 18th. leading the news this morning, more shake-up at cbs. the company saying it has hired 60 minutes chief jeff fager just days after les moonves' resignation. cbs f sayser violated a company policy with one reporter saying she was the target of threatening xt messages from nbc's stephanie gosk has the details. >> reporter: jeff fager was just the second head of 60 minutes in its 50 year history. he is out. in a statement the o president cbs news writes in part, this action today is not directly related to thellegations surfaced in press reports. he violated companypolicy. according to ronan farrow in the new yorker, six former employees said that fager touched collgues in ways that made them feel uncomfortable. >> this is where everything

starts. >>ter: fager responded in a statement. the company's decision had nothing to do with f these allegations printed in the "new yorker." stead, they terminated my contract early because i sent a text message to one of our ownc reporters demanding that she be fair in covering the story. my language was hars reporter jericka duncan said he sent the text to her. >> fagert in a taid to me, quote, if you repeat these false accusations without any of your own reporting to back themup, you will be held responsible for harming me.t he w on to say, be careful. there are people who lost their jobs trying to harm me, and if you pass on these damaging y claims withoutr own reporting to back them up, that will become a serious problem. >> reporter: fager said in his st sement, oneh note should not result in termination after 36 years. but it did. stephanie gosk, nbc news, new york. just ahead, a blueprint for success.

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and today's news by the numbers, spotify raised its song download limit in their new update. instead of listening to only 3,333 songs on three y devices can now listen to 10,000 tracks

on up to five devices. after month-long tours and endorsement deals, forbes released their list of the highest paid rappers. dropping the mic this year is jay-z with over $76 million. falling to second place is p. diddy with $64, millillowed by kendrick lamar with $58 million. drake at number four. ji cole and dr. dre are tied at number 5. finally in support of his i promise school in ohio, lebron james teamed up with channing tum on ellen to raise money through hilarious dares. >> no. oh, my gosh. she just gave me the evil laugh. >> all right. [ laughter ] >> what is that? it's like >> it is. it's a kiwi!

>> how did you know that? >> wow. >> impressive that he guessed that. >> you'd never know, huh? >> well worth eait. dare was worth $10,000. the two raised over $100,000 and fwaf us aunch of priceless laughs. >> kiwis are so delicioyo but never think about that. >> not the fuzz on the outside. >> some sort of animal? >> it's not moving so that's a good sign. >> for such a great cause to see lebron james and his promise school there. straight ahead, we will have the latest details on hurricane florence. we're of course tracking that for you all morning long. plus the new iphones. they have been revealed. why this is apple's biggest announcement yet. you're watching "early today" on a thursday. psst! craig and sheilawhat, really? craig and shelia broke up!? no, craig!? what happened? i don't know. is she okay? ♪ craig and sheila broke up! craig and sheila!?

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take an 20% off when you spend $100 or more! save on footwear.ec home. and the newest fall fashions. save even more during our fall style event! plus - getohl's cash! this weekend - at kohl's. hurricane florence, a category 2 storm now. 235 miles east-southeast of nawilmington, north caro and the storm is expected to stay at that intensity as it approaches and makes landfall sometime late tonight into tomorrow. boys it sticking around through the weekend. eventually dying down but it's the storm surge associated with this storm that's even more important than what we're looking at in terms of intensity. we're also watching a system in texas that will bring rain to the southern portionsf that state. as we'll weigh in, do they stay, do they go, why they have no choice, some say.

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some folks from the clooi carolinas to virginia are calling it the storm of a lifetime. >> the initial effects of hurricane florence on the carolinas may be felt as early as tonight. we're showing you the last-minute preparations. >> all right. we're keeping a close eye on florence out here over the western atlant ic

ur just away now, hurricane florence continues its push toward the east coast. this as nearly 2 million people make a final effort to get out of harm's way. good morning, every>>e.

e're not talking days anymore. we're talking hours at this point. here at new 4, we' tracking this hurricane very closely. >> sheena is keeping an eye on the storm's path, but we'll begin with your commute and stor team 4 meteorologist chuck bell. >> we'll eventually have tdeal with hurricane florence's remnants once they get here early parts of next week. for now, all eyes on the carolina coastline. locally, we don't have to worry about that for a couple more days. what we do have to track thisre morningain showers across parts of shenandoah valley. moreain across parts of northern maryland, the panhandle of west virginia. not much rain around the city yet, but a stray shower or two can't be ruled out. it's a warmnd humid start after an 86 yesterday afternoon. we're back down only low and mid-70s this morning. a very warm and veryy,umid much like yesterday. cloudy, kind of a showery start for some this morning. a few peeks of