i'm sheinelle jones. >> i'm craig melvin and dylan dreyer is here as well. been a while since -- >> the gang is here. >> they say our name now, i'm very excited. >> you can't leave, you're stuck. >> i'm glad to be stuck. >> how about this guy, this lottery winner? >> $24 million. can you imagine how we'd be talking about this story if he missed it by a day. >> he found a ticket two days before it was set to expire in a shirt pocket. >> i didn't know they expire. >> oh, they expire. >> we'll get to him in a moment. >>> to the top story this morning and that is the devastating scene out west as hundreds of thousands of acres burn out of control and the death toll from the california wildfires rises once again to 35. and today, near hurricane-force wind gusts in the area could make the situation even worse. we have team coverage this morning including dylan's forecast, but let's begin with the latest on the fires. morgan radford is in santa rosa, california. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. there are currently 9,000 firefighters in this state of califor

morgan, thank you. >>> dylan dreyer is here now. here's the other part of this story, the wind. >> and that's the problem. i mean, we could really use some rain, but that's not even in the picture. now we just want less wind to deal with out there. because of this area of high pressure, it is continuing to pump in this northeasterly wind. that's a very dry wind for the west coast. that means we aren't going to see any moisture being drawn in, so humidity levels will stay very low. these winds are also gusty, especially in the higher elevations. when you have those gusty winds, it spreads the embers that trigger more fires and help t fires spread. we have this critical risk to the northwest of sacramento. down through santa barbara, into l.a. the orange areas is an elevated risk because of the stronger winds. northern california, the risk is through this afternoon. southern california, it lasts through at least sunday afternoon. then we could see that get extended as these conditions are not expected to change. relative humidity is a

. >> announcer: from nbc news, this is "today" with sheinelle jones, craig melvin and dylan dreyer. live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. >>> and welcome to "today" on this saturday morning. thanks for joining us. i'm craig melvin. >> and i'm sheinelle jones. dylan dreyer is here as well this morning. >> good morning. >> lots of folks talking about game seven tonight. >> why do they have to play so late? it's so hard to stay awake for these games. >> yankees/astros going to seven. if you were a yankees fan, it was hard to watch it. they were dominated by the astr astros. let's get right to our top story and that is president trump speaking out overnight about the controversy over a phone call that he made to the family of a fallen soldier. it is just the latest twist in what's been a week-long debate. kelly o'donnell is at the white house this morning with more on that. kelly, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, craig. the center of this story is not really at the white house today, as friends and family gather for the memorial of a fallen american soldier. but for days the

dylan: i'm dylan dreyer.e're on an epic adventure over thousands of miles to witness one of the most spectacular migrations on earth; the flight of the monarch butterflies. we're flying high alongside millions of tiny insects as they complete a journey like none other on earth. we'll watch their amazing transformation, visit their hidden habitats and discover their important place in our ecosystem. and we'll hear the amazing story of how a young boy's curiosity grew into a lifetime obsession. and how the great mysteries of the monarchs was solved. ♪ music - intro

dylan dreyer is here, as well. hard to believe we're talking about the possibility of a tropical storm for the northeast this late in the year. i know you're tracking it. you'll have the latest in a bit. >> hurricane season does go for a little bit longer. but still, the fact that we could see the impacts of a tropical system is interesting -- >> we'll get to that coming up in a moment. >>> let's begin this morning with some breaking news overnight. a report that a major step sfrd has been taken -- forward has been taken into robert mueller's investigation into the meddling in the 2016 election. kelly o'donnell this morning with more. >> reporter: good morning. so many unresolved questions about russia's extent of interference in the 2016 campaign and who if anyone in the orbit of donald trump might have been involved. those questions have been the work of the grand jury and the special counsel, largely in secret. but today there is a potential new development. this morning, what could be a major step forward in sp

dylan dreyer is here, as well, this morning. >> good morning. >> lots of folks talking about game seven. >> why do they have to play so late? so hard to stay awake for the games. >> yankees, astros, going to seven. last night, it was -- if you were a yankees fan, it was hard to watch it. they were dominated by the astros. we'll look at that in a moment. let's get right to our top story on a saturday morning. >>> ptd truresident trump speakt over the controversy of a phone call he made to the family of a fallen soldier. it is the latest twist in what's been a week-long debate. kelly o'donnell is at the white house with more on that. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, craig. the center of this story is not really at the white house today. as friends and family gather for the memorial of a fallen american soldier. for days, there has been intense political squabble over the right kinds of words and gestures appropriate to pay respects. a controversy president trump says he did not expect. >> i was very surprised to see this, to be honest with you. >> reporter: in a fox interview to a

. >>> time to turn to the orange room and dylan dreyer. >> up next, it is the day's biggest debate, whyr of these shoes. we'll get when you have moderate to severe ulcerative colitis, id, where to go, and how to work around your uc. that's how i thought it had to be. but then i talked to my doctor about humira, and learned humira can help get and keep uc under control... when certain medications haven't worked well enough. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened; as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. before treatment, get tested for tb. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common and if you've had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flu-like symptoms or sores. don't start humira if you ha