the loss of a beloved math teacher, mike landsberry served several tours in afghanistan and came back to nevada to teach 8th grade math where he was very much loved in the job he was doing there. had a website for the students to engage with the student and help them. little bit more we are learning about the teacher tonight, piers. >> what do we know about the shooter? how old he was? how old the victims were outside of the math teacher? >> yes, the shooter was 13. what we believe, and we are still trying to get the details together, is that after he shot those three people, he then turned the gun on himself. took his own life. that's what we are hearing at this point. the two individuals that were shot were 12 years old. one is in serious condition at this point. we just heard from the hospital here. at this point, we also know the school has shut down for the rest of the week. they're putting counseling into service for any teacher, student, anybody who wants it. this happened on the playground of the campus before school started on the middle school. >> anything about any motive o

the loss of a beloved math teacher, mike landsberry served several tours in afghanistan and came back to nevada to teach 8th grade math where he was very much loved in the job he was doing there. had a website for the students to engage with the student and help them. little bit more we are learning about the teacher tonight, piers. >> what do we know about the shooter? how old he was? how old the victims were outside of the math teacher? >> yes, the shooter was 13. what we believe, and we are still trying to get the details together, is that after he shot those three people, he then turned the gun on himself. took his own life. that's what we are hearing at this point. the two individuals that were shot were 12 years old. one is in serious condition at this point. we just heard from the hospital here. at this point, we also know the school has shut down for the rest of the week. they're putting counseling into service for any teacher, student, anybody who wants it. this happened on the playground of the campus before school started on the middle school. >> anything about any motive o

every time is mourning the loss of the math teacher, mike landsberry, in addition to teaching math here, he coached volleyball and basketball and soccer. everyone says he was definitely the hero in his actions trying to approach the gunman and take the gun away to buy everyone else more time to get to saver ground. back to you. >> thanks so much, joe fryer reporting there. i want to bring in martha bell isle. good to have you back with us. we had an opportunity to speak yesterday as these details were fresh and unfolding, but we're learning more about the teacher jo was talking about, the 45-year-old shot and killed in all of this, truly being hailed a hero and we're learning there is also a coach of volley bowba and soccer. what are you learning about his back frownground and family try get past this? >> reporter: i spoke with his sister-in-law several times and initially they didn't know for sure whether it was him. it took a while for them to figure that out. that was a little stressful and emotional for them. but when they finally learned what happened and what he did, chan da lands

a facebook page set up in mike landsberry's memory includes a touching message from his stepdaughter which was posted a few weeks ago that reads in part, this man, my dad, has been through so much to make me and my family happy and i don't know what i would do without him. she goes on to write no matter what, i'll always love him and to that, landsberry responded i love you all so very much. you all are my world. my everything. we want to talk to someone who witnessed some of the tragic events that played out yesterday. 13-year-old kyle newcomb is a student at sparks middle school and joins us live. kyle, thanks so much. first of all, i'm so sorry for what you've been through. i'm so glad you're okay. i'm sure everybody watching is so glad you're okay. thank you for joining us. tell us as best you can what you saw yesterday. >> i was just talking to my friends and then i heard a loud pop. for a second i thought it was a firecracker at first, and then i turned around and see a teacher approach the gunman and then the gunman is pointing the gun towards the teacher, and he fires a shot

math teacher mike landsberry asked the student to lower the gun but he was killed. two boys were also shot before the boy apparently took his own life. those two surviving students are in the hospital tonight. police don't yet have a motive for the shooting. >>> caught on camera, a copper they've strikes a substation in anne arundel county. it is a dangerous problem. meghan mccorkell has more on the crime. meghan? >> reporter: that latest that happened on thursday at a substation in gambrills and it's not the first time that facility has been targeted. police looking for this man who they say took a dangerous and sometimes deadly risk. investigators say he cut through a fence at this high voltage substation on thursday, a facility that requires workers to wear flame retardant suits at all times. >> many times those thieves can be severely or even fatally injured. >> reporter: investigators say the man stole various amounts of copper and got away and it's not the first theft case here. they've become a prime target for copper thieves with some stations, even power po

faith says her math teacher mike landsberry, a veteran who has served several tours in afghanistan, tried to help. >> he was trying to tell the guy to put the gun down. but hit the boy shot him and i was very upset. >> reporter:landsberry was shot and killed. faith said after hearing the shots she ran with her friends to the nearby elementary school. as to what she knows about the shelter. shelter.hooter. >> ".a humanity issue" >> catherine: ahead at eight. the family of a woman whose body was found in the stairwell of a hospital say they're shocked by asaw the body - but did nothing. and a little girl is at the center of an international mystery. police in greece believe she was abducted.but now they don't know how to find her parents. >> catherine: and next - the investigation into the accident that killed two bart workers. >> jacqueline: the command was no fun out there today. we do see clear skies now i will have more on that coming up in al later in the show developing tonight. >> catherine: developed in tonight. we now know the person driving a bart train that hit and killed 2 bart

. >> reporter: jose told matt lauer that he ran away as math teacher mike landsberry calmly approached the suspect. >> he was telling him to stop and put the gun down. and then the kid, he yelled out "no" like yelling at him and then he shot him. >> reporter: the suspect wounded one more student before taking his own life. landsberry, a marine veteran, who was still active in nevada's national guard, died at the scene. but police say he gave other kids time to escape, which doesn't surprise his little brother, reggie. >> it is unlucky. you know? doggone, it's sickening. but in hindsight, thank goodness mike was there. because it could have been a lot worse. >> thank you. i'm sorry. >> oh, thank you so much. >> reporter: today, reggie landsberry got a personal thank you from jose and his mother. >> i'm glad you're safe. >> thank you. >> i'm glad you're okay. >> reporter: tonight, sparks middle school remains closed as students add to a growing memorial for their teacher. students called him "batman" for his love of the comic book character, but in the end they say it was landsberry hims

authorities say the boy first shot a student in the stomach and then math teacher mike landsberry triied to stop him. >> during the incident after the first student was shot, mr. landsberry calmly walked towards the shooter, putting his hands up in a motion to try to stop the individual's actions. mr. landsberry was fatally shot in the chest. mr. landsberry's heroic actions by stepping toward the shooter allowed for other students to flee the area. >> the tears and the tributes are pouring in here for landsberry, who served several tours in afghanistan. sparks police say they're still trying to figure out a motive here. again, the question why? a friend of the shooter says the boy was bullied. >> he was really a nice kid. he would make you smile when you're having a bad day. if you were -- he'd just ask you if he could buy you something. you know, he was just really a nice kid. i believe it was because i saw him getting bullied a couple times. i think he took out his bullying on it. >> cnn's stephanie elam is live in sparks for us. stephanie also hearing from police. they're crediting st

. >> the teacher killed in the shooting has been identify as mike landsberry. as a veteran of two tours of the war in afghanistan. the mayor of sparks, nevada, speaking with wolf, described the fallen teacher. >> from what i understand, he was a very well-liked teacher by the students and other teachers in the school district. he's also a member of the nevada national air guard and served a couple of terms in afc, is what i understand. so, you know, it's very unfortunate that someone like that, that protected our country over there and came back alive, had his live taken at work at a school. it's very devastating. >> we have new information gr justice reporter evan perez about the shooter, a federal law informati informationment -- the shooter then used the handgun to shoot and kill himself, according to our source. mayor martini says he does not believe the shooter came to the school targeting the teacher, but again we're very early in the silt ways police still investigating a possible movive. here is one witness account. all right. we may get that sound in a

on monday a 12-year old student brought a gun to school and shot and killed math teacher mike landsberryother students were wounded in the gunfire. one of them was 12-year old mason. he was shot in the abdomen as he tried to help his fallen math teacher. he says the shooting has given him a new perspective on guns. they are all weapons and they can kill you. they are not just boys. i used to treat them kind of poorly. they kill people. the other wounded student is in stable condition. investigators are still trying to determine a motive for the shooting. ♪ ♪ turn around ♪ every now and then i get a little bit hungry ♪ ♪ and there's nothing good for me around ♪ ♪ turn around ♪ every now and then i get a little bit tired ♪ ♪ of craving something that i can't have ♪ ♪ turn around, barbara ♪ forever i've been praying for a snack in my life ♪ ♪ and now i have a brownie ending all of my strife ♪ ♪ i finally found the right snack ♪ ♪ once wrote something on a sheet of paper ♪ the challenge always accepted. and the calling forever answered. ♪ introducing the all-new 2014 s-class. mercedes-benz.

mike landsberry leaves behind a wife and two stepdaughters.f you could speak to his family, what would you say? >> i want to say that they're in my thoughts and my prayers today and for the rest of the days. i hope that god gives them the encouragement that they need to move on and mr. landsberry, he sacrificed his life to take our kids to safety. i thank him for that. he's a true hero. >> thank you, both. i appreciate it. maricella, jose, thank you both very much. be well. take care of each other, okay? >> thank you. you too. >> our thoughts and prayers with the family of that teacher and the students who were wounded. also someone like jose who saw all of this unfold in front of his eyes. >> i couldn't stop thinking but for mr. landsberry and his heroics in that moment, we wouldn't be seeing jose sitting there. amazing story. >> middle school. happened at a middle school. >>> well, we move to washington now and the problems with the internet rollout of the president's health care law. he calls it an embarrassment and is promising to fix thin

many have credited that math teacher, mike landsberry, with risking his own life to save others. two students were also hurt but will survive. police say the suspect, that student, brought the semiautomatic handgun from his home. the boy's parents are cooperating but could face criminal charges. >>> still to come here at 6:00, a dog treat mystery. what the fda is now doing to try to put an end to hundreds of pet deaths. >>> plus it made san francisco the epicenter of the celebrity gossip universe. new details about the kanye west/kim kardashian proposal at at&t park. >>> and we're pin poining where the thickest cloud cover and fog will be in the morning. i'm jeff ranieri. that seven-day forecast coming up in just minutes. i love watching tv outside. and why can you move the tv out here? the wireless receiver. i got that when i switched to u-verse. but why? because it's so much better than cable. it's got more hd channels, more dvr space. yeah, but i mean, how did you know? i researched. no, i-i told you. no. yeah! no. the important part is that you're happy now. and i got you thi

but we are able to tell you about one other person who was killed, a teacher, mike landsberry, was killed when that boy opened fire. you're looking at mike there. he was said to have served a couple tours in afghanistan as you can see from that picture. a horrific tragedy, another school shooting in this country. let me just play for you how this happened when the first call went in to dispatch at 911. >> active shooter, sparks middle school. 2275 18th street. they have at least two down, one in the dropoff area for the buses. suspect is described as wearing khaki pants. teacher down in the playground. they have one victim in the cafeteria. one in the hall. >> we're inside the cafeteria where the students have been huddled. they're safe here. we're looking for the shooter now. >> red shirt, khaki pants. two to four victims at this time. >> it's looking like our shooter's probably down. let's operate on that premise for now. >> and here's what i can tell you about the shooter. the latest understanding that we have which was not updated there by the police was that the shooter was a student

we understand from one of mike landsberry's friends that their wedding anniversary was on the 18th. as far as the parents of the shooter, we're told they are fully cooperating with police but could face charges if it's discovered that their son was able to get his hands on a gun that was not properly stored. kate? >> thank you, stephanie. the investigation continues but in some way it will be impossible to ever understand what could lead a 12-year-old little boy to do something like this. thank you so much. >>> let's move to utah where the case of a doctor accused of killing his wife, first responders describing martin macneill as belligerent and destructive. miguel marquez is in provo with more. >> the macneills are eight children total, four biological, four adopted. the children are expected to be the star witness against their own father. at the moment we have three children testifying for the prosecution. today the children of dr. martin macneill, a step closer to testifying against their own father. prosecutors say the first up as soon as thursday expected to be 12-year-old ad

. >> reporter: that teacher mike landsberry, a military man that served tours in afghanistan, those are him a hero. >> during the incident after the first student was shot, he calmly walked towards the shooter, putting his hands up in a motion to try to stop the individual's actions. mr. lansbury was fatally shot in the chest. his hero wick actions allowed time for other students on that playground area to flee the area. >> reporter: a long-time friend says the kids were his first priority. >> he was a soldier with us but always a teacher. he just wanted to always be there for the kids. they loved him. he would tell us stories all the time about them and as a coach, too. he did all kinds of things. we knew that he was there to protect them. >> reporter: officials have not released any information about the 12-year-old shooter. but they believe the weapon he used, a ruger .9 millimeter came from his home. >> he was really a nice kid. he would make you smile when you were having a bad day. if you were -- he would just ask you if he could bayou something and he was just really a nice kid.

a 12-year old student shot and killed teacher mike landsberry on monday on the school's campus. the student also shot and wounded two other students. 12-year old mason was one of those victims. mason says he was shot in the abdomen when he was trying to help landsberry. he says the shooting has given him a new perspective on guns. the other wounded student is in stable condition with non-life threatening wounds. authorities haven't said why they believe the boy opened fire. game two of the world series uz)Ñ let's start this hot weather that is listed this half hour with a quick check of weather and traffic. the morning erica. >>erica: we do have some high clouds. as for temperatures right now colder start and the bay. take a look at santa rosa per it wouldn't be surprised if we drop the upper forties before we approach your morning lows. mild weather and. once you cross the golden gate bridge visibility does improve for the rest of the bay area. we do have high clouds so it will be a great start to your warnings. take a look at the afternoon we will see the sunshine. mountain vi

from the school's outdoor basketball court and saw 45-year-old math teacher and former marine mike landsberry try to stop the shooter. he was then shot. >> the student was pointing a fun at the teacher after the teacher told him to put it down, and then the student fired a shot at the teacher and the teacher fell and everybody ran away. >> the two students also shot during the ordeal are recovering at a hospital tonight. the suspect apparently then killed himself. the school will remain closed for the rest of the week. >>> today's shooting happened while attorney general eric holder was telling the nation's police chiefs that fatalities from active shooting incidents have soared over the past five years. >> it's become clear that new strategies and aggressive national response protocols must be employed to stop shooters in their tracks. >> holder was speaking before an international conference in philadelphia telling that the average number of shootings have tripled while the number of people shot and killed jumped up 150%. he told the crowd that the justicede department over the last decade

many say it was teacher mike landsberry who stepped in, risking his own life, to save others. >> he wasut the gun down. and then the kid, he yelled out no, like yelling at him, and then he shot him. he was calm and he was holding out his hand like put the gun in my hand, like to just stop. >> landsberry died at the scene. two students were also shot. one was hit in the abdomen, one was hit in the shoulder. police say both are expected to survive. landsberry -- i'm sorry, the suspect, the young boy whose name has not been released shot and killed himself at the scene. at this point police do not know the motive behind the shooting. they say it all happened very quickly, the entire event from beginning to end lasted about three minutes. thomas. >> nbc's joe fryer reporting for us. joe, thanks so much. >>> here's a look at some other stories topping the news now. the main commuter train system in the san francisco bay area is running limited service this morning after b.a.r.t. and union officials reached a tentative deal. that ends a four-day strike but still has to be ratified. >>> high w

. >> reporter: witnesses say it was a math teacher, mike landsberry, who stepped in and tried to getnt to put the gun down. in the end, that teacher was shot and died at the scene. landsberry, a former marine, is being described as a fallen hero. two students were also shot. one was hit in the shoulder. one was hit in the abdomen. both were rushed to the hospital with critical injuries but have since improved. and police say that both are expected to survive. the suspect, though, did shoot and kill himself. kristen? >> all right. joe friar, thank you so much for that report. >>> well, the reviews are in this morning for the president's pitch defending the health care website, and they're not good. the most blistering criticism of the president's speech about the website yesterday may have come from "washington post" columnist dana milbank, who said, quote, not since the ginsu knife cut through an aluminum can and sliced through a tomato has america seen a pitch quite like the one president obama delivered on to monday. then there's the "daily show." >> give it to us straight,.gov. ho

opened fire outside sparks middle school last week, wounding two students and killing math teacher mike landsberrye taking his own life. but in the days that have followed, landsberry's family is finding comfort in a story of love. >> he has told everyone that everyone he loves and cared about, he would lay down his life for them, and that's exactly what he did that day. >> reporter: police say that he bought other students time to get away. what does that mean to you? >> that they were safe and he did what he told them that he would do. >> reporter: why was it so important for you to do this? >> i wanted everyone to know how much he loved his country, his family, his students. the last thing i heard from him that morning was, "good-bye, beautiful. have a good day. can't wait to be home with you so we can go for our walk. i love you." and the last words he heard from me were "i love you, too." >> he is my stepfather, but to me, he's my dad. he loved me and my sister so much. >> reporter: because the shooter is no longer with us, we may never actually know why this happened. >> knowing why to me do

mike landsberry, math teacher, passed away just about 50 hours ago. he was 45. an alabama native, high school athlete, coach, husband, dad, marine, nevada air guard senior master sergeant and a friend. mike landsberry observed the horror of an active shooter at his school monday morning and simply moved without hesitation instinctively into harm's way to protect others. in so doing, mike made the ultimate sacrifice in service to the end to his students, his school and his community. coach, you humble us all with your warrior's spirit, your compassion. they will be your lasting legacy. thank you for your service and may you rest in peace. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition? the gentleman from new jersey is recognized. mr. sires: mr. speaker, i rise today to honor steven sr., the founder of the north ward center and inspiring figure of newark, new jersey. to recognize his achievements and contributions, a statue of him reading to two young children will be

mike landsberry survived two tours of duty in afghanistan. dent with a gun. landsberry tried to get him to hand over the weapon burks that boy shot and killed him. >> he was just a good-hearted person. he'd do anything for anybody. it's so surreal. i just can't fathom what happened. cherish every chance you get because you don't know when the last one will be. >> that is for sure. police believe that that gun came from the boy's home. authorities are now looking at whether or not his parents can be charged in that case. we'll keep you posted on that case. >>> remember this city of bell, california? it's back in the news again today and that is because this woman, the former assistant city manager, she goes on trial. she's accused of setting these insanely high salaries for city employees and then trying to hide it. she was making $375,000 each year before she was indicted. her boss is this guy, disgraced ex-city manager. he just made a deal to testify against other defendants in that case. he paid himself a million and a half dollars a year to

along with mike landsberry, a math teacher who died trying to stop the shooter.olice say he died a hero. >> "because of his courage. i'll leave it at that for now but he had some courage." >> police say the suspect died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound and law enforcement did not fire their weapons. two other male students were taken to renown regional medical center. one was shot in the shoulder. the other was shot in the stomach and underwent surgery. line"the best description is chaos. it's too early to say whether or not was targeting specific people or just going on an indiscriminate >> students were evacuated to sparks high school -- where their parents picked them up. mayor geno martini says training may have kept a tragic situation from being even worse. >> "difficult, difficult situation. you know, you never expect something like this to happen but in the back of your mind, i think you always think sooner or later, something like this may happen, and hopefully, you're prepared. and i think were were very, very prepared." >> police say staff and students

mike landsberry, a math teacher being hailed as a hero. >> he said i will do anything for you guys. i guess that meant taking a bullet. >>> san francisco b.a.r.t. workers have reached a deal with management putting an end to a four-day strike. >>> passengers aboard a delta flight to atlanta are safe after a fire on their plane forced an emergency landing. >> there was smoke coming from a coffee pot. >> meanwhile, another delta flight made an emergency landing in eastern washington state. >>> there's no excuse for the problems. >> there's an apology for the problems consumers have been having signing up. >> "the washington post" reports his administration may have known about early trouble days before it was rolled out. >> they've had four years to get ready. it's not fixable. >>> investigators in greece are looking to find the biological mother of a little girl whose identity remains a mystery. >>> a passenger ends up on the tracks in boston. she may have been sleepwalking. >> oh, my god. >> number one in the seen! >> i finally said let me get all my lines out of the way because my

. >> 45-year-old former marine mike landsberry a math teacher being hailed as a hero. >> he said i willo anything for you guys. i guess that meant taking a bullet. >>> san francisco b.a.r.t. workers have reached a deal with management putting an end to a four-day strike. >>> passengers aboard a delta flight to atlanta are safe after a fire on their plane forced an emergency landing. >> there was smoke coming from a coffee pot. >> meanwhile, another delta flight made an emergency landing in eastern washington state. >>> there's no excuse for the problems. >> there's an apology for the problems consumers have been having signing up. >> "the washington post" reports his administration may have known about early trouble days before it was rolled out. >> they've had four years to get ready. it's not fixable. >>> investigators in greece are looking to find the biological mother of a little girl whose identity remains a mystery. >>> a passenger ends up on the tracks in boston. she may have been sleepwalking. >> oh my god. >> number one in the seen! >> i finally said let me get all my lines out

was just monday when a 12-year-old boy police say shot and killed middle school math teacher mike landsberry in sparks, nevada. danvers is just about a half hour drive north of boston and we can tell you all seven of its schools were shut down because of this investigation. the prosecutor says both the teacher and this young teen went missing tuesday, and that led them to her body and ultimately his arrest. >> at approximately 11:20 p.m. last evening, the danvers police received a report that a danvers high school teacher had not returned home from work and was not answering her cell phone. as a result of that report, danvers police initiated a search for the teacher and discovered blood in the second-floor bathroom at denvers high school. >> alexander fields is live there in danvers. we saw the first few pictures of the 14-year-old inside this courtroom. what happened today there? >> well, brooke, it was just about an hour ago, he was arraigned on the murder charge. he was ordered held without bail. he's since been taken to essex county correctional facility. that's an adult facility and th

first hitting another student in the shoulder before taking down math teacher mike landsberry who was trying to stop the gunfire. you heard the gunshots. you saw mr. landsberry was down, your instinct was to run to him? >> run to him and help because i'm a very helpful person. >> reporter: but in the chaos, mason came face-to-face with the gunman identified by city officials as 1-year-old jose reyes. >> i'm like please don't shoot me. you need to get in the building. please don't shoot me. then he raised the gun and shot me. >> reporter: mason considered reyes a friend. >> i don't understand why he would aim a gun at me. >> reporter: shot in the stomach mason found the strength to run and the first person to come to his aid was security guard lou bergerelolo. >> i got closer and he said, i've been shot. i lifted up his shirt and got him over to the sidewalk and laid him down. and then i called for the ambulance. >> reporter: mason was so grateful, shortly after leaving the hospital, he wanted to surprise his newfound hero. >> thank you. >> reporter: now his family hopes their story ca

. >> reporter: officials say 45-year-old mike landsberry, the popular math teacher and coach, calmlyalked toward the shooter, hands raised, trying to convince him to put the gun down. >> mr. landsberry's heroic actions stepping toward the shooter allowed other students to flee the area. >> reporter: landsberry has been hailed a hero. the decorated marine playing the role of batman as the students affectionately called him. >> he was a soldier with us but he was always a teacher. he wanted to always be there for the kids. >> reporter: landsberry leaves a wife and two stepdaughters. his wife sharon posted this on facebook, "he was my everything, my world, he touched so many lives and was an incredible man." >> stephanie elam joins us live. what do we know about this boy's parents? >> reporter: well, at this point carol we know they have some police protection grappling with the loss of hair son and the acts he committed. as the investigation continues if it is found that the parents were negligent in how they kept this weapon, if it did in fact blopg belong to them they could potential

it came just days after nevada medical school teacher mike landsberry was killed while protecting hisn, and knives at his middle school. he is charged with attempted murder. nina joins us with more. >> reporter: good morning, natalie. the bell will be ringing in the next few minutes here at frontier middle school. there are serious questions to be answered. where did this 11-year-old boy get these 400 bullets, the knives, and the gun police found him with at school? what else did they find to charge him with attempted murder? those weapons were found yesterday morning and it sent two schools into lockdown for hours. some students reported they hid under their desks for a time. no one was hurt and police aren't commenting on if any specific threat to a teacher or another student was made, but this morning parents are really angry at this school district for not telling them about this very scary situation until after it happened. and then only with the facebook post to a few hundred followers and a letter home. there was no automated phone call home to parents. that suspect, the 11-yea

. >> reporter: that teacher, mike landsber landsberry, a military man, those there wash show county are a hero. >> mr. landsberry was fatally shot in the chest. mr. landsberry's heroic actions by stepping towards the shooter allowed students to flee the area. >> reporter: a longtime friend and national guard supervisor said the kids were always his first priority. >> he was a soldier with us but he was always a teacher. he just wanted to always be there for the kid. he loved them. they'd tell stories all the time about him. and as a coach, too. he just did all kinds of things. we knew that he was there to protect them. >> reporter: officials have not released any information about the 12-year-old shooter, but they believe the weapon he used, a ruger .9 millimeter semi automatic handgun came from his home. the middle school student knew him personally. >> he was really a nice kid. he would make you smile when you were having a bad day. he'd just ask you if he could buy you something, he was really a nice kid. i saw him getting bullied a couple times. i think he took out his bullying on i

landsberry's little brother. >> it is unlucky, you know. doggone, it's sickening. but in hindsight, thank goodness mike was there, because it could have been a lot worse. >> officials say there is evidence the shooter tried to enter the school but failed. >>> today may be d-day in australia where dozens of wildfires, stretching more than 100,000 miles now. ian williams is right outside the city. good morning to you. what are the strategies being used to fight these fires? >> reporter: good morning, richard. this has been the biggest firefighting of its kind ever mounted in this part of australia. this evening, they are tentatively saying it has been a success, the disaster many have been predicting was averted. the waeeather was every bit as extreme today. we saw soaring temperatures and winds gusting at up to 60 miles an hour, creating fresh fires and it also meant that existing fires flared up even more intensely than before. pacific highways north of sydney was closed for a while because of one fire. firefighters spread out. this evening, they are tentatively saying that their operation was a succes

reggie landsberry tells nbc news he's not surprised his brother sacrificed his own life for the kids. >> it is unlucky, you know. it's sickening. but in hindsight, thank goodness mikehere, because it could have been a lot worse. >> it's still not clear whether the shooter was targeting his victims or shooting randomly. two students are still hospitalized. >>> nearly 600 dogs have died, thousands more dogs and cats got sick after eating jerky pet treats made in china. now the fda is trying to figure out why. vets say if you feed your pets jerky, watch them closely and report any problems to the fda. >>> people living in the midwest waking up to some of the coldest temperatures of the season. in fact 10 to 20 degrees below average. we're talking about highs in the 30s and 40s. some areas are even seeing freezing rain and snow, and the cold air is heading east as we get closer to the weekend. lots of groans here in the studio. >>> betty white may be 91, but she certainly is still hip. look at her on a wrecking ball, a la miley cyrus but this clothes on in a promo for her show "off their rockers." >> i got some ideas from recent pop culture event that really got the ki

. >> reporter: reggie landsberry was looking for his big brother mike. a math teacher at the school. he soon learned mike was the only gunshot victim that didn't survive. >> i'm still in shock, man. it's unbelievable. it's like a terrible dream. terrible. >> reporter: but as the hours passed he also learned how mike physically put himself between the 12-year-old shooter and students like jose cazares who spoke to us yesterday on today. >> he was telling him to stop and put the gun down and then the kid yelled out no, like, yelling at him, then he shot him. >> reporter: police say landsberry actions gave other students time to escape. >> i love my brother and i wish he was here but thank goodness he could help in any way possible. >> reporter: that bravery was no surprise to students that gathered around a growing memorial that pays tribute to landsberry. the teacher they called batman because he loved the super hero so much. >> he just touched our heart in ways we can't explain. he was a real life changer. >> reporter: that's why jose and his mother want