we want to send it over to healdsburg where our former anchor sam brock is now live for us. sam, i hate to say it's great to see you right now. haven't seen you since you moved to nbc news as a reporter and correspondent, but, you know, it's horrible to see you under these circumstances. you are at alexander valley elementary school for us this morning. >> reporter: yes, kira. very nice to see you as well. great to be back. certainly, don't want to be here for these reasons. we're at healdsburg elementary school. over my shoulder is the origin of the fire. ahead of it, it's up in the mountains. we've been followi t days. the big thing the wind direction has calmed down a little. but they were 50- to pushing across. we saw spot fires that popped up over my shoulder on one side over here toward healdsburg and over here toward windsor. you can't see it because it's so dark right now. but i have to tell you all of the fire personnel that's been zipping down 128 you're heading toward calistoga and here toward geyserville. vianey was talking about this seconds ago. 940,000 evacuati

we want to take you back to the video of sam brock. he was anchor with our nbc bay area and is now an nbc correspondent. he said fire on both sides of the highway in sonoma county. winds picking up. trees and power lines everywhere. gosh. it looks likerivi through hell. looks reminiscent of peop escaping two years ago in this exact same area. we have new video of structures destroying this home. this is just devastating. you see people who have been through this. they're going through it once again. we are with you here all morning to give you the very latest. >>> we now want to check in with meteorologist craig clemens with fire weather lab. craig, thanks so much for joining us this morning. where are you located? >> i'm on a road in santa rosa coming over. we were in knights valley. >> you're in an area that is now under evacuation. i assume you're being safe. i assume you know what you're doing. can you tell me what you're seeing? >> yeah. what we saw earlier this evening were winds gusting to 50 miles an hour plus at the surface, a

sam brock is in the northern california town of geyserville. sam? >> reporter: jose, good evening as you can see around me, just all of this destruction. it represents what people are dealing with tonight, the threat that they're facing new evacuation numbers going from 2,000 to 50,000 this afternoon, and all those new evacuees have to be out by this evening. fires ripping across northern california, forcing desperate residents to flee their homes. >> i'm a little shaken, but trying to keep calm for my family >> reporter: thousands of residents escaping flames fanned by what could be historic winds, stronger and more sustained diablo winds fanning the kincade fire into neighborhoods already bearing emotional scars. >> i lost my home to a fire two years ago i can't believe that we have to live through this again this is the last thing that we need >> reporter: alerts all day telling some 50,000 to leave the towns of windsor and healdsburg, vastly expanding the number of people affected >> it's just the reality that we live in you know, i -- i try not

a former "today in the bay" anchor so ma anchor sam brock is there reporting for the "today" show. >> reporter: overnight a massive tornado tearing through dallas. the twister touching down near university park launching debris at least three miles into the sky. leaving behind a 17-mill path of destruction. many homes sustaining serious damage and streets littered with downed trees and power lines and search and rescue operations underway, authorities going door-to-door to check on residents. this store front reduced to rubble while a local home depot is now in pieces as tens of thousands in dallas county wake up without power. several schools in the area are expected to be closed this morning after sustaining extensive damage. former president george w. bush and first lady laura bush also live in the dallas area. their spokesperson telling nbc news, president and mrs. bush are safe and praying for their neighbors. and we just found out from an employee who works here at this home depot that the operations manager last night let the crew out and all of the employees 30 minutes before

sam brock has been there throughout the weekend. sam, what are the biggest challenges tonight? >> reporter: kate, good evening, certainly countering the massive flames. but at the same time, look at all the hotspots and smoke. they are everywhere. with wind conditions like this, all it takes is one big gust for that to go south in a hurry. tonight the worst fire california has seen this season is tearing through wine country, burning homes, and reducing wineries to ash, fuelled by hurricane force winds, forcing nearly 200,000 people to evacuate, nearly 2.5 million ar without power. >> the winds that we predicted are here. the crews are actively engaged in a pretty intense fire right. >> reporter: the nightmare unfolding before our eyes. >> how close that is to the highway. >> reporter: with wind gusts peakint temrarily at least six spot fires, if not more. >> reporter: the governor has declared a state of emergency across california as historic conditions sparked other blazes like this one in vallejo. >> oh, my god. >> oh, my god. i can't believe they're letting us drive throug

sam brock, nbc news. >> our thanks to sam brock for that report. >>> let's switch gears for a momentnd bring in nbc meteorologist bill karins. >> the severe weather outbreak that took place place from dallas to missouri and even into areas of arkansas. all the blue dots are the wind reports. this was the dallas area, and that was the tornado that struck just north of there. that was around 9 and 10:00 p.m. that was very close to where they were playing the football game. let's talk about the day ahead and the week ahead forecast. for today, pretty big storm system, the one responsible for the severe weather last night is going to roll through the deep south. it's going to spread rain through the tennessee and ohio valleys and a cool rainy day for our friends in wisconsin, minnesota, and the great lakes. the dangerous weather will be in the south, though, areas of arkansas, areas especially the western half of tennessee, louisiana, mississippi included. isolated strong storms, wind damage, there may be a brief tornado or two. the eastern seaboard is fine for today. into tuesday the ra

sam brock is in port of ranch tonight and has late details sam. >> reporter: good evening. we are entering a new phase now with fire officials telling me a significant amount of people are going back home. but look what some are encountering. roofs collapsed, cars burned down to shells. the total number of homes destroyed at this town now bumped up to 21 with many grateful they have their lives. for 48 hours, more than 1,000 firefighters have worked tirelessly trying to contain the flames tearing through the san fernando valley. now finally the raging red turning to smoky white. though the fire far from out with flare ups festering. already destroying nearly 8,000 acres. residents fearing for their lives. >> it felt like lain rain of ashes. >> melvin o fled under fire but went wak last night. >> i have a special needs child. we needed medication for him we had to come back. >> you snuck in. >> i snuck in, yeah. >> you had to. >> i belt that it was pretty safe. >> hopefully the wind don't give us trouble today. >> reporter: after strike teams and inspectors went street by st

nbc's sam brock is in northern california this morning with more. sam, good morning. >> reporter: peter, good morning. that is exactly right. it is bad now. the kincaid fire has already gone through 23,000 acres. it destroyed 49 structures, including 29 homes like this one in geysersville. property and cars are obliter e obliterated. the goal is to prevent devastation like this. an uphill battle being faced by firefighters. fires are feasting on the state of california. >> it's going to be fine. >> by 2:00, it was right on top of us, in our backyard, the front yard, everything was burning. >> reporter: just north of l.a., the tick fire tearing into neighborhoods and forcing 50,000 evacuations, some under extreme duress. then, later, jumping a highway on the back of 60-mile-per-hour wind gusts. and in the bay area -- >> i don't call it fall anymore. i call it fire season. >> reporter: a bad case of deja vu for sonoma county residents. >> we got a bang on the door at 5:30 in the morning, saying get out, quick, fire. >> we've been preparing for this mom

nbc's sam brock is here with more on what's next for the senator. sam, good morning. >> reporter: sheinelle, good morning. it is possible for the next nator sanders on the campaign trail. the staff said he will be on stage for the next democratic debate october 15th but rpg before that appears to be up in the air. still the image of the senator walking and waving, a welcome one for suppters. >> how are you feeling, senator? how are you feeling? >> great. great. >> senator bernie sanders is back on his feet, the 78-year-old presidential candidate lng a las vegas friday and just hours later -- >> i'm feeling so much better. >> reporter: tweeting out this video with a promise. >> i'll see you soon on the campaign trail. >> reporter: a far cry from a snapshot taken this week. >> yesterday we announced at this point in the campaign. >> reporter: supporters saw the normally buoyant sanders leaning against the podium and removing his jacket before finally taking a sheet. the campaign calling the condition a blockage in one artily before later clarifying it

this one is particularly heartbreaking being shot in your own home. >> that was sam brock reporting for us. >>> the latest from syria, we're going to get a live report. >>> the latest in the impeachment push, what's happening on the hill this week and the new announcements from joe and hunter biden. we're going to tell you about those when we come back in a moment. >>> welcome back, everybody. i'm yasmin vossoughian alongside ayman mohyeldin. it is the bottom of the hour. let's start with the morning's top stories. we begin in syria where the trump administration has accelerated plans for a major troop withdrawal. turkey has ramped up its offensive and nearly hit an american base. a former u.s. ally has reportedly teamed up with american enemies, and isis detainees have started escaping. defense secretary mark esper described the situation and the trump administration's strategy yesterday. >> it's a very terrible situation over there, a situation caused by the turks, by president erdogan. in the last 24 hours we learned that they likely intend to expand their tack further south than ori

we now want to get to our former anchor and reporter sam brock.rt for us from the valley floor, valley center elementary building in alexander. the big issue this morning, kira, is the wind direction and the winds have calmed down. but they were at 50- to 60-mile-an-hour ranges. we saw spot fires that popped up over my fire on one side, on here toward healdsburg and another toward windsor. you can't see it because it's so dark out right now. all of the fire pes knell and police personnel zipping down 128 and here toward geyserville, all kinds of emergency people trying to evacuate people. 90,000 evacuations. despite that, getting all those people out, there are still folks who want to stay in their homes. what we've seen the people knocking door to door trying to get people out who decided to stay anyway. down this road i can tell you when we were driving up here, flames encroaching on the highway in both directions, the embers picking up. you'll see trees on fire, power lines douchbl everywhere i'm looking you see trees in the middle of the road.

sam brock is in the porter ranch neighborhood of los angeles, already hard-hit. sam, good morning. >> reporter: good morning. just to put this into perspective, there's 20,000 homes still under mandatory evacuation. that includes all of the homes in this porter ranch community. as we pull out, it will be easy to see why. the flames shooting up from the nearby canyon and smothering back yards and patios. in some cases, jumping on to rooftops. some i spoke with said they have mere minutes from the time they smelled smoke and when the flames descended on their property. southern california, under siege. as firefighters struggle to contain the saddle ridge fire. >> within five minutes, this entire hill was engulfed. >> reporter: the inferno expl e exploded across hills and down value lis on the northern edge of los angeles, as some people prayed for a hail mary. >> holy mary mother of god. >> reporter: those fortunate enough to flee didn't have much of a cushion. >> we started packing things and within, probably ten minutes, the fire was in the backyard. >> reporter:

sam brock is in healdsburg, california, for us right now. as i understand it, you are in front of what used to be a winery. >> reporter: it did. it was a winery, craig, for about 150 years, until sunday struck. it was standing then and this is the result afterwards, which is just total devastation. the amazing part about this is that it was, obviously, this is a wind-driven event. the fire, when this happened, was all the way on the ridge line up here, okay? so probably a good mile if not more away from where we are right now. the flames came all the way down here on sunday morning and tore this to pieces. this was here for 150 years. the wine tasting room right here. but it's not just that. there are all of these people who are living here as well. if you keep walking down here, there's a house on the other side we watched burn to the ground at 4:00 a.m. on sunday morning. so this is the sort of devastation that hundreds of businesses and residences are now -- or i should say, residents are going through. 200 structures destroyed total. 86

sam brock, nbc news. >> thanks to sam brock for that report. >>> let's switch gears and bring in nbcill karins for a quick check of the weather. hey, bill. >> good morning once again. if you're just joining us, severe weather struck last night. we had a tornado that hit just north of downtown dallas, and north of the university park area. you can see it illuminated there during the lightening strikes. there's been an elementary school significantly damaged, five schools closed in the area of north dallas as we go throughout the day today. at least four homes have been destroyed, and the fire department says people cannot return to the homes, they're not safe. we have heard reports of minor injuries, no significant injuries, and no report of any fatalities. but a tree did fall on a house in rogers, arkansas, and we did have a fatality there. let me get back to where we are now, we have severe storms, a new tornado warning from pine bluff, arkansas, a possible tornado, again, these are all these nighttime tornadoes, the less lead time, you know, we get doppler indications and they put

nbc's sam brock son the ground in geyserville, california. any progress made overnight? >> same containment numbers right now, frances, 5%. the kincaid fire at 23,000 acres, a slight uptick from earlier in the day. just to set the stage for you, some firefighters told me they're on pins and needles about what's going to happen this weekend. there have been 49 structures destroyed here so far. the goal is to stop preventing destruction that looks like this. but the windspeeds expected to be between 80-90 miles per hour. tonight. what some folks are calling historic. fires are feasting on the state of california. >> it's going to be fine. >> by 2:00 it was on top of us, in the back yard. the front yard, everything was burning. >> the tick fire tearing into neighborhoods and forcing 50,000 evacuations, some under extreme duress and later jumping a highway on the back of 60-mile-per-hour wind gusts, and in the bay area -- >> yoe call it fall any more, i call it fire season. >> a bad case of day gentleman you for some sonoma county residents. >> we got a bang on the door at 5

sam brock reporting from geyserville, california in the north there. speculation that hilary clinton may be thinking about jumping into the 2020 race. we're going to talk to the former spokesman who threw some fuel on that very idea this week. threw some fuel on th vatery idea this week i've always been fascinated by what's next. and still going for my best, even though i live with a higher risk of stroke due to afib not caused by a heart valve problem. so if there's a better treatment than warfarin... i want that too. eliquis. eliquis is proven to reduce stroke risk better than warfarin. plus has significantly less major bleeding than warfarin. eliquis is fda-approved and has both. what's next? reeling in a nice one. don't stop taking eliquis unless your doctor tells you to, as stopping increases your risk of having a stroke. eliquis can cause serious and in rare cases fatal bleeding. don't take eliquis if you have an artificial heart valve or abnormal bleeding. while taking eliquis, you may bruise more easily and it may take longer than usual for any

, ranting at the students and driving recklessly, all of it seen on video nbc news correspondent sam brockas more. >> reporter: a chaotic bus ride home that could have easily turned catastrophic. earlier this month in a washington state suburb, the ride so terrifying for one 10-year-old student. >> i'm totally crazy i'm so fun crazy because i love life. >> reporter: he called 911. >> her breath sort of smells like alcohol. >> reporter: 48-year-old kathryn macarone eventually pulled over, after driving as many as 90 kids that day in between - >> my marriage sucks and my husband is a son of a gun. >> reporter: she rambled on to no one inside an empty bus according to a police report, she blew a blood alcohol level more than double the legal limit for bus drivers and charged with reckless endangerment and dui pleading not guilty to all charges. >> yeah, yeah, no. >> reporter: an apparent abandonment of critical trust. she did receive an extensive background check and has been working in that school district for years. they accepted her resignation days ago she'll be back in court in mid octob

confronted the armed student, but it is what he did next that has so many calling him a hero here's nbc's sam brock >> reporter: the ingredients are a recipe for disaster. a gunman, a school hallway, and students fleeing for their lives. >> active shooter in the park rose high school >> reporter: this story doesn't end in tragedy it ends with a heart-felt hug. >> obviously, he broke down and i just wanted to let him know that i was there for him >> reporter: in may, then 18-year-old angel diaz, brought a shotgun to his oregon high school, concealed under a garment bag. minutes later, sports figure keanon lowe also a security guard went to check on him not knowing he was armed >> in a fraction of a second i analyzed everything fast, saw the look in his face, his eyes and the gun. >> and prosecutors say the student tried to discharge the weapon on himself before lowe wrestled it away and handed the shotgun to a teacher and this hug that seemed to go on for minutes, and tightening the hug. >> compassionate hero h-hero this coach has tremendous courage. in another tweet, kindness speaks volumes. >> dia

let's go right to nbc's sam brock in northern california. sam, what's the scene there. >> savannah, good morning, wind speeds still an issue. i want to take you to southern california. we have another brush fire, this is any valsimi valley. it is quickly building up. people have been evacuated from their homes. schools have been closed. the ronald reagan presidential library, another example of another active wildfire season here in california. another night keeping the stranglehold on southern california. how worried are you about tomorrow? >> very worried. >> what's being called the worst santa ana wind event in years, prompting the national weather service to issue its first ever extreme red flag warning. the strong winds with gusts up to nearly 80 miles per hour could last for days adding fuel to already out of control fires and starting dangerous new blazes. the kincade fire in california's wine country now the most destructive fire in the state. just to give you a sense of how combustible this situation is, look at this house, when the

answers after a 28-year-old woman was killed after police were called to check on her welfare nbc's sam brock joins us now with more on the story sam, good morning. >> fellowshphillip, this traged when concerned neighbor noticed an open door across the street and called a non-emergency police number. it ended with a 27-year-old woman shot and killed. community leader, loved ones and a lawyer for atatiana jefferson's family want justice. >> she went to investigate at the window an officer was on the other side and before she had a moment to respond, he shot her to death. that's murder. >> reporter: speak out after police released body cam footage showing two officers responding to a welfare check when one officer calls for someone to put up their hands. >> put your hands up, show me your hands [ gunshot >> reporter: the fort worth police department saying the officer perceived a threat the officer drew his duty weapon and fired a shot, striking the person inside. community leaders don't buy it. >> she was in her own place and shot and killed her that is not only unacceptable, that's murder. >>

sam b sam brock is live for us in geyserville.at the weather conditions may die down later this afternoon. how do they stand now? >> reporte >> reporter: the last that we heard is that the peak conditions were earlier today, but it is still an issue because the red flag warning lasts into tomorrow. so definitely something to keep an eye on. just mind boggling numbers. you mentioned 180,000 people swrak eighte evacuated. can you imagine if i told you that some folks had to be coaxed in to leaving this morning because it is true, when we wrifed on scene around 3:30 this morning, we were told that they had just taken people door to door out of their homes. everything is charred down to the roots. and i use the word roots. this tree just fell, it almost hit us. we were across the street thankfully. but you see that the smoke is still coming out from the stump. trees are still falling. trees are an issue, power lines are an issue, structural in-telliin-tetelling gr integrity of the neighborhoods is an issue. so they are trying to deal

nbc's sam brock is covering those fires. as they are driving to work this morning, all of a sudden he seeing flames and clouds of smoke billowing as they are looking through their windshield. you can see the flames ravaging ridge lines, tearing in to communities. there are so many hillside communities right there. opportunities for the flames to get into what we know at this point is that 400 acres is the latest update on the total acreage, but the flames are moving west and south, so the mandatory evacuations have been expanding. initially they started near the freeway, now you are out toward the coast, malibu, folks there are under a warning to get out. the mayor of los angeles saying to be calm right now, but no matter what you do, you do have to leave. keeping a very close eye on this as again another threatening situation. >> yeah, sam and our colleague maria schriver just sent a picture of her driving in a car, taking pictures of the flames outside. we wish everybody there well. sam, thank you. >>> also breaking overnig

sam brock on the emotional reaction to the latest police shooting. >> reporter: tonight community leaders, loved ones, and the lawyer for atatiana jefferson's family want justice. >> she went to investigate at the window. an officer was on the other side who shot shouted a command and before she had a chance to respond, he shot her to death. that's murder. >> reporter: body cam footage shows two officers responding to a welfare check when one officer calls to put up hands. put your hands up! [ gunshot ] >> reporter: the fort worth police department saying the officer perceived a threat. the officer drew his weapon and fired once. community leaders don't buy it. >> she was in her own place and shot and killed her that is not only unacceptable, that's murder. >> there's no reason for her to be dead, because there was nothing violent going on. there was no distress at this particular property. >> reporter: even the mayor of fort worth striking an emotional tone. "this is tragic and something that should never be necessary. a young woman has lost her life leaving her family in unbelievable gr

nbc's sam brock has the latest out of geyserville, california. sam?rter: kendis, good afternoon. there are more than 1,000 firefighters right now working around the clock on the kincade fire, which flared up a little yesterday but generally was contained. acreage from 23,05,000 to 23,00. and it ripped through neighborhoods. this is an example of one house that did not fare well. burned out cars, lawn furniture beyond, it's unrecognizable at this point in addition to people's homes, personal items, they're whole lives wiped out. the number of homes stable at 21. the biggest concern heading in to today is the wind. calfire says it will be unlike anything they've seen in history. certainly in the last couple of weeks. could be historic. you hear that word arlt. wind speeds up to 80, 90 maybe even 100 miles an hour qualifying as a hurricane-force wind. coming through, and longer than the last event a couple weeks ago. in which case it lasted six or seven hours. this, i'm told, could go 12, 15 hours mayber longer. as far as power shutoffs, a double whammy.

nbc sam brock is on the ground right there in northernridge, los angeles. sam?is, more resources being thrown right now at the saddle ridge fire. 1,300 firefighters on the front lines trying to make sure the fire doesn't move more than it already has. good news talking updates. now at 19% containment. earlier this morning just 13%. that may not sound like a lot, but to put this in context, firefighters and those camp crews were dealing with difficult terrain overnight and low visibility. when they go around trying to dig up dirt and vegetation and clear the lines it's tough to do that at night. we expect the numbers to rise moving into saturday. as far as the damage that we have seen. i'm standing on porto ranch. look at this house. one of 31 affected by flames over the course of the last couple days. this is a bad example when it comes to just widespread damage and perhaps lack of livability after the fact. the couple that lives here told me they saw flames coming from this canyon over their shoulders here. you see it totally charred from top to bottom. the fla

nbc's sam brock is live in southern california. hey, sam. >> reporter: richard, good afternoon. residents as they have contained the saddle ridge fire enough to this point where they are starting to repopulate some of the communities including the one here in puerto ranch that's been very badly hit. there are still homes that are destroyed. roofs collapsed. in this case cars burned down to the very shell. the chassis of the car. utter destruction everywhere. the latest numbers have been bumped up to 21 homes destroyed, 32 total structures affected in some way. nonetheless, this right now is the exception not the rule. there are tens of thousands of people who are moving back into their communities tonight, talking with the folks from the los angeles fire county, telling me right now they're going street by street, community by community, and the emphasis has shifted from the winds they were initially worried about to structural integrity and infrastructure on the power lines and the water lines and the utility lines sound and if that is the case they will move folks back. this w

that this is a life worth living. >> that was nbc's sam brock. ahead, reversing course and why president trump abruptly dropped his plan to hold next year's guilt d 7 s7 s his south florida resort. 7 summ his south florida resort one third of our classic crust is made with cauliflower but that's not stopping anyone o, that's good! frustrated that everyday activities cause wrinkles and there's nothing you can do about it? now there's a solution! downy wrinkleguard is a fabric conditioner that helps protect you from wrinkles all day. just pour the dye free liquid into the rinse dispenser. after a day of wear, pants washed with downy wrinkleguard and detergent are virtually wrinkle free. it even comes unscented. if you don't love downy wrinkleguard, we'll give you your money back. but allstate helps you. with drivewise. feedback that helps you drive safer. and that can lower your cost now that you know the truth... are you in good hands? it's what gives audible themembers an edge.listening; it opens our minds, changes our perspective, connects us, a

let's get to nbc's sam brock in north ridge, california, for us, covering this growing fire. sam, we spoke earlier today. what's latest since we spoke five or six hours ago? >> reporter: alex, good afternoon. i know you mentioned you're from southern california. just to give you a snapshot of the conditions in the state, the office of the governor just tweeted out that the cal fire, which is the state's firefighting agency, has dealt with and put out 300 wildfires -- 300 fires, i should say, 39 wildfires just in the last 24 hours. >> what? >> reporter: obviously, the saddle ridge fire far from put out. i know, that is hard information to digest there. they are at this point, you said 13% contained. that's been upped slightly to 19%, according to cal fire, although lafd, the los angeles fire department, has confirmed that yet. that doesn't sound like a huge number, 13% to 19%. part of the reason why is the fact that they were dealing with overnight terrain last night. so while they're walking around, some of the camp crews with their shovels and scooping away vegetation, the vi

nbc correspondent sam brock joins me on the phone from puerto ranch, california.g trouble with your picture because of the elements. >> yes. -- talk about the wind conditions -- this is the problem because there was certainly initially some hope that the winds would die down. and i had just spoke with the los angeles fire department. they told me we are between 20 and 30 miles an hour right now with sustained gusts up to 60 miles an hour. -- winds were going to cooperate. but so far have not materialized. and i am standing in port o ranch of los angeles. there was fire that just ate off the hill side, barrelled down these canyons and came right up to the edges. -- what i'm looking at the -- >> unfortunately we've mostly lost sam because of the wind in the area. so we're going to try and reconnect with him and get his accommodation of his shot and his audio working. that is part of the problem because of the gusty winds where we are. we cannot get a stable shot with sam. but you can see the situation around him. we are going to be right back after this quick break.

nbc's sam brock is in porter ranch, california right now. en structures have been wiped out. so sam, dismal time there. what's the latest? >> alex, good morning. it was such an eerie drive into this community this morning. there are about 20,000 plus homes under mandatory evacuation right now. and autumn of them are empty. there are few lights on, a few fire trucks in the street. firefighters actually sleeping outside right now getting ready to reengage if they're needed later today. what you're looking at right here is snapshot of one of those 31 homes affected by the flames, you can see burnt-out furniture and lawn chairs, remnants of a fan, heating lamps knocked over. at one point the flames shot up from the canyon, hitting the rooftop. i'm told from the residents who lived here, they had mere minutes from when they smelled the smoke and the fire to about 1:00 a.m., until the flames descended on their property. >> southern california. under siege. as firefighters struggle to contain the saddle ridge fire. >> in five minutes the whole hill

nbc's sam brock is on the ground in geyserville. that's in northern california. a mess there behind you. what's the latest, sam? >> reporter: total mess here, alex. and you hate to use the words unprecedented, because that gets bandied about so often, but this here really is unprecedented. i talked with pg&e yesterday about how widespread these outages are going to be. they have nine geographic zones in their coverage area, which is a huge expanse of land. eight out of the nine are under high watch right now with large chunks of those areas possibly getting shut down today. so we are talking about just so many people, and they are trying to prevent a scene that looks like this, utterly destructive. this is 1 of 21 homes so far that's been destroyed by the kinkade fire, and you can see the level of that destruction. people's furniture in front yards turned into rubble, cars that no longer look like any semblance of what they were a second ago, and just the overall destructive nature of this. what we know right now, alex, this morning is that there's been some impr

sam brock is live in southern california. hey, sam. >> reporter: good afternoon.ve contained the saddle ridge fire enough to this point but they are starting to repopulate the communities including the one here that's been very badly hit. there are still homes that are destroyed. roofs collapsed and in this case cars burned down the very shell. the hchassis of the car. the latest numbers have been bumped up to 21 homes destroyed. 32 total structures that were affected in some way. this is the exception, not the rule. there are tens thouf saof thous people who are moving back into their communities tonight. talking to the folks of the los angeles fire. they are going street by street and the emphasis has shifted from the winds to structural integrity and infrastructure are the power lines and water lines and the utility lines and if that's the case, they will move folks back. this is a process that will play out over the next day. richard. >> absolutely catastrophic. thank you so much. that's going to wrap it up for me this hour. for now, have a great night. not es

joining us now is nbc news reporter sam brock.county. >> reporter: very appropo as the winds began to pick up when you said that. battered homes, simmering hot spots, which is a real concern. as the winds pick up, especially in the late evening, the worry is that an ember could get caught, carried and all of a sudden start a spot fire which could be quite large. what we saw earlier this morning, apocasm lyptic in a sense. power lines down, trees down, fires on both sides of the highway. very, very dangerous. crews have done an amazing job so far of trying to contain those flames and get people out safely. you mentioned 200,000 people displaced in this event. they all want to get back home and find out what their home looks like at this point. that cannot be done until the risks and dangers have been mitigated here. unfortunately, we're expecting a severe wind event coming up in a couple of days this week. we'll have to see how it plays out. jeff? >> our best to the for examples who are affected there tonight. sam brock in sonoma c

let's go live to healdsburg, california, where nbc's sam brock is standing by. right now, stephanie, the wind speeds are really the most important factor right now. we are in northern california at the kincade fire, which as of last update, 76,000 acres, only 15% contained. we're seeing winds that are gusting between 30 and 50 miles an hour at the highest elevations. and what firefighters are telling me right now is that this is make-or-break at this moment. we know that the wind speeds are going to go down going into the next couple of days. they're hoping to hold down the fort in the meantime and make sure that there's no major sparks, because look behind me right now. this used to be a winery as of a few days ago. on sunday, when the rest of the fire was in other areas of sonoma county, winds carried embers, and all of a sudden, this was all on fire. right down the street from where i'm standing, there was a house that went unscathed for the first several days and then just yesterday ignited for the same reason. so, that is why we're paying such close attenti

sam brock has more from los angeles. sam, good morning. >> peter, good morning. this image is something that's going to stick with you. but heard of coach's takedown back in may. this morning, we're seeing for the first time the moment he was able to disarm the 18-year-old student, by showing him kindness instead of anger or fear. this morning, newly releelsed surveillance video, showing a stunning moment of compassion, after a thwarted shooting at an oregon high school. >> active shooter at park roads high school. i need more cars. already >> reporter: it happened when this student made his way inside with a shotgun. >> i realized it was a real gun. my instincts just took over. >> reporter: the security officer and football coach, sprung into action. lowe, a former university of oregon wide receiver, wrestled the gun away as students ran for their lives. then, a powerful embrace, after handing the gun off to another teacher, lowe wrapped diaz in a hug. >> i wanted him to know i was there for him. i told him i was there to save him. i was there for a reason. that

northern california, a wildfire has exploded overnight threatening homes, forcing evacuations nbc's sam brockhas been following this one sam, what's the latest >> reporter: those images terrifying craig, good morning. the kincade fire erupted in sonoma county, an area that's been battered by deadly wildfires in recent years and this one fueled by wind gusts as high as 50 miles an hour, going through about 2,000 acres every half hour. video shows flames and thick smoke blanketing a rural road and making its way toward a small town called geyserville. giant cones of orange rage on hillsides. latest stats we have, the fire at 10,000 acres and 0% containment. wind conditions and low visibility at the moment making it very tough on first responders right now, craig, there are no reports of any injuries but several areas are under mandatory evacuation a nearby casino river rock was evacuated last night and i'm told firefighters have been spraying it down in case an ember gets lifted from the swirling winds we know that the state's largest utility, pg&e, preemptively shut down power yesterday to lar