Transcripts For WBAL Today 20100506

but just how long is that going to last? we'll ask her "today," thursday, may 6th, 2010. captions paid for by nbc-universal television and welcome to "today" on this thursday morning. i'm meredith vieira. >> i'm matt lauer. you have to sit here and wonder if we won the lottery, $266 million, would we be here this morning? >> you have to wonder about that? i don't wonder about that. i wouldn't be. >> it would be good morning, i'm lester holt. >> no! >> you'd want to work. you think your life would stay normal for a little while, at least. >> no. she's working for now, anyhow. also ahead, the most abishs attempt yet to try and contain that oil spill from growing even bigger in the gulf gets under way today. a massive 125-ton dome will be lowered into the sea to hopefully capture oil from one of the leaks. we are live with the latest on that delicate operation. we'll meet a remarkable woman with an incredible story. tere dupe row fassbender was just 11 years old while her family was murdered while on a sailing vacation. the killer tried to sink the ship and left her on it to die after four days, adrift and alone at sea, tere survived. this morning near 50 years later, she'll open bup that ordeal for the first time in a live interview. but we begin on this thursday morning with new details on the man accused of that attempted car bombing in times square. nbc's justice correspondent pete williams is here with the latest. pete, good morning. >> matt, good morning. somebody who is arrested is usually brought into court within a day or so to be formally charged in front of a judge. federal officials say faisal shahzad has decided he doesn't need a lawyer, or a court date, and instead wants to keep talking. according to several officials familiar with what faisal shahzad has told his interrogators, he claims he wanted to set off a car bomb in times square because he was angry at the u.s. for its predator drone attacks in pakistan, including one that hit while he was there striking very close to where he was at the time. some attacks he says killed people he knew. they say losing his connecticut house to foreclosure also made his despondent pushing him closer to the edge. as investigators work to build their case against him, they've discovered that he drove another car to times square last friday, the day before the attempted bombing, apparently to be his getaway car. but they say he left the getaway keys hanging in the here hatch door of the bomb-carrying suv and had to take the train home instead. and while police say they're now satisfied that the man seen changing his shirt in a surveillance video released sunday night had nothing do with the bombing attempt, they say they have found video of shahzad himself walking down an alley just after the suv was discovered with smoke coming out the back. shahzad's attempt to flee monday night on an emirates airlines flight to dubai has prompted new calls for tighter restrictions on passengers who book at the last minute paying cash, as authorities say he did. >> if you pay cash, maybe you have the most benign of motivation but you could have a more pernicious motivation. you don't want people to know you're flying. >> reporter: even though shahzad was on the no-fly list he was able to board the plane but was removed from the flight just before it was set to take off monday night and he was not surprised. when customs agents walked up to him on the plane he said, "i've been expecting you." investigators now believe shahzad started working on his makeshift bomb at least seven weeks ago. employees at this pennsylvania fireworks dealer say he bought men 88 firecrackers, the same used in making the times square bomb. one big question for investigators is whether he had help from anyone in the u.s. with help on his plot. officials say he's told them no, and they say there is no evidence to suggest otherwise but say there is a growing suspicion that the taliban in pakistan was involved. meredith? >> we are hearing from some of faisal shah dad's relatives in pakistan. nbc's foreign correspondent richard engel is in islamabad this morning. richard, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, meredith. it came as a shock to pakistanis that shahzad could have links to the taliban. he's from one of pakistan's most elite families and doesn't seem to fit the profile. although western counterterrorism officials say faisal shahzad appears to have ties to the pakistani taliban, few believe that here in shahzad's family village, home to military elite and government officials. "shahzad had no links with any jihadi group, says one family member. he wasn't a member of al qaeda or the taliban." "this is total propaganda," says another man. "his father isn't the type of person who would bring up a son like this." neighbors say shahzad wasn't brought up a radical fighter but he apparently aspired to be one. shahzad's father was one of the top commanders in the pakistani air force. he grew up privileged attending private secular schools and wouldn't known for expressing extremist religious views. but officials here say shahzad returned to pakistan for a visit last year with the goal of becoming a militant. what motivated shahzad? u.s. intelligence and pakistani officials say he was most likely seeking vengeance for america's mostly covert war near the afghan border in waziristan where the cia and special operations forces have intensified drone attacks on al qaeda and the taliban. encouraged by the united states, and in response to relentless bombings in pakistan, the pakistani military has also launched an offensive in waziristan. >> waziristan is really the heartland of insurgency and of anti-americanism. >> reporter: but why would the pakistani taliban train shahzad? because of his reach in the united states, and ability to go unnoticed. he's from a good family, married, kids, and most importantly, is an american citizen, not a usual suspect. many pakistanis now worry because of this attempted bombing, everyone in this country could face increased suspicion and scrutiny when they try to travel. matt? >> richard engel in pakistan for us this morning, richard, thanks very much. nbc news terrorism analyst roger cressy served as a top counterterrorism officials for both the bush and clinton administrations. he wasn't a typical suspect. that's what richard just said. here's a guy who came to this country 12 years ago, not intent on causing damage, and yet he seemed to set off on some kind of a slow burn. is that typical? >> well, what's so disturbing about this is that he wasn't the typical suspect, and i think that's the challenge for law enforcement and the intelligence community going forward. how do you identify people like this who don't fit the typical profile? life of privilege by pakistani standards, assimilated into the united states. he checked all the boxes of a person who shouldn't have been radicalized, and yet something triggered it. either as richard and pete said, his economic situation and what happened in pakistan regarding the predator, or something else. but it is a pretty disturbing picture how somebody can be recruited and come awfully close to conducting a terror attack. >> you say recruited. i was going to say he went there looking for training. i'm curious how that process goes. can an outsider just walk up to people in this area, waziristan, and ask for training? there must be some kind of a test or so they put him through to make sure he's not actually intent on revealing them. >> well, absolutely. there was a case recently of five northern virginia gentlemen who went to pakistan, wanted to fight against the united states inside afghanistan and were rejected by the network because they thought they were cia. so absolutely. he could have volunteered himself. it is a bottom-up process of recruitment instead of the top-down talent spotting that we saw before and leading up to 9/11. but the bottom line is he had to work with people inside pakistan, inside the broader taliban/al qaeda network. so one of the key issues that investigators are going to get at is the who, when and how. who did you work with over there, when did they train you and how did they train you. >> was there follow-up? they don't just train you on making a bomb, i would imagine, then send you on your merry way. do they share instructions, do they share plans once he left the country? >> one possibility, matt, they may not have trusted him enough and did not give him the highest level training, access to the inner circle which could explain why he did such a bad job in building his bomb. the other effect could be that the success of the predator program -- by the way, it is the most important thing we've been doing in the fight against al qaeda since 9/11 -- has so seriously affected the infrastructure out there that the people training him may not be as capable as ones who were there years ago that ultimately we've eliminated. >> it is a bit embarrassing that this guy was actually able to get aboard that emirates airlines flight to dubai before he was arrested as they brought the plane back to the gate. that was clearly a slip-up. the tsa has now changed the rules where airlines have to update the no-fly list every two hours. does that cut it, in your opinion? >> matt, think about it. up to this point we've always talked about trying to prevent people from coming into the united states if they have terrorist intentions and always put in procedures in place to prevent that, the layers of security. here is a case we were trying to prevent someone from leaving the united states and there was a loophole in our policy and procedures right now. that's in the process of being fixed but it is a reminder that threat evolves. how we have to deal with the threat that evolves and we have to be on top of it as a result. >> roger cressey, thanks so much for your time. >> you look at these photos of shahzad, the last place he stayed in connecticut. they're in the newspapers today. had a two-bedroom apartment that he rented. basically nothing in it. it looks like a guy who was ready to leave -- is that exercise equipment there? little weights. he had the mattress, a table, the koran. he also painted and built po popsicle mosque models, according to the landlord. he told the landlord his original home was foreclosed on, he went to pakistan but came back, he told the landlord, because people here are honest. >> after he ran into financial times, his family went back to pakistan. as you can see, he didn't have a lot of roots put down here. >> there's also another picture that has surfaced that's kind of eerie, of him with friends in times square. that was taken about a year-and-a-half ago. but i have been everything that's happened, a little scary to see him standing there like that. a lot more to find out about him and the motive behind this. a 125-ton containment box will start to be lowered into the gulf of mexico today to try and capture some of the thousands of gallons of oil still leaking into the sea. nbc's chief environmental affairs correspondent anne thompson is in venice, louisiana with more on that story. anne, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, meredith. all along the gulf coast this morning, residents, tourists and fishermen are all hoping this latest attempt to send the flow of oil will finally work. this strange looking object is what bp is now betting on to slow the growth of the monster spill, a spill, it admits, could flood the gulf with as much as 60,000 barrels of oil a day, in the worst case scenario. 12 times more than the current rate. to begin to contain the damage well, a 125-ton dome of concrete and steel, untested a mile under sea. >> this hasn't been done before. it is very complex and it will likely have challenges along the way. >> reporter: later today, bp will begin to lower the dome down to the site. it will cover 1 of 2 remaining leaks. by monday, a pipe could carry oil up to a vessel on the surface, if it works. regardless of when the leaks are plugged, insteterior secretary salizar in venice, insists bp will split the final tab. >> they're responsible for everything. they're responsible for all the responses that are going out, millions and millions of dollars, all the environmental damages and they're also responsible for damages they'll cause to the people of the gulf coast and to this country. >> reporter: there is some good news in all of this. so far, only two birds have had to be rescued and the latest, a 1-year-old brown pelican, louisiana's state bird, is all cleaned up and could be returned to his natural habitat next week. later today, more obama administration officials will come to the gulf to reassure people that everything is being done to protect their coastline. most importantly, their way of life. >> anne thompson, thank you very much. let us get a check of the rest of the top stories of the morning now from ann curry over at news desk. good morning, everybody. we begin with a crucial test for a key u.s. ally. prime minister gordon brown, as people in britain go to the polls today, brown's labor party is facing a tough fight from conservatives led by david cameron. the campaign has largely focused on the economy and a big british deficit, and there is this development -- a candidate for a minor party was injured this morning when his plane crashed. the plane was towing a party banner that may have become entangled in the engine. in greece tensions remain high this morning after violent protested on wednesday. three people were killed. nbc's stephanie gosk is in athens this morning for us. stephanie, good morning. >> reporter: good morning. here at the acropolis tourists are still here but in central athens tear gas still lingers in the air as the city prepares for yet another day of protests. the government is set to pass its second sweeping budget cuts. it's the second this year and with each new measure, the anger grows. yesterday that anger turned deadly. outside a bank this morning, stunned colleagues and saddened athenians laid flowers for the killed bank workers. molotov cocktails set the building on fire and trapped people inside. among those killed, a pregnant woman. outside parliament riot police dealt with small groups of anarchists using stun guns and tear gas to drive them away. 41 police officers and more than a dozen others were injured. it was the largest protest since the economic crisis began in october with an estimated 100,000 demonstrators. the greek prime minister vowed a firm response telling parliament demonstrations are one thing, murder is another. even with the violence, the government says it will go forward with cuts that include increasing taxes, raising the retirement age, and cutting salaries. at 6:00 here tonight, the union will be gathering around the parliament. across the board, union leaders have said they condemn the violence yesterday but regardless of that violence, they're going to continue their struggle. ann? >> stephanie gosk this morning, thanks. overseas markets are mostly down this morning especially in asia. cnbc's melissa lee is at the new york stock exchange. are the markets still concerned about greece? >> they are. there is growing concern that the bailout for greece may not be big enough and that other heavily indebted european countries, especially spain and portugal, may need a bailout, too. the big question is, would germany which has the healthiest economy in the euro zone step in and pick up the tab or will the european central bank which is meeting today step in and perhaps buy the bonds most at risk of default. this could be a very critical juncture for the future of the your ona european union and the euro. two people were injured on wednesday when a truck loaded with fuel loaded at a san antonio refinery setting off a chain reaction of other explosions. hundreds of nearby residents had to be evacuated. look at that black smoke. not good. 7:17. let's go back to meredith, matt and al. >> ann, thank you very much. mr. >> good morning. we are off to a quiet start on this thursday. temperatures are in the upper 50s and the 60's. we will make it into the low 80s this afternoon, with a mixture of sunshine and >> and that's your latest weather. matt? >> al, thank you very much. nashville's mayor now says the damage from widespread flooding in his city could easily top $1 billion. as evacuated homeowners begin returning to see the devastation firsthand, nbc's ron mott is in nashville this morning. ron, good morning to you. >> reporter: hey, matt, good morning to you. look at the scene behind me, then multiply it by about 50. more than 150 houses in this neighborhood affected. a lot of things these folks own is on the street. floodwaters are gone, mostly a bad memory. but this is the harsh new reality left behind that a lot of people are now facing. along nashville's west side, all the houses here look alike, both inside and out. flood damaged possessions stacked curbside, memories of the past and present piled front and center. >> your whole life. that's 31 years accumulation, gone in a matter of minutes. >> but everything that we own is right here. >> reporter: residents like jeff perry who came back home again wednesday to clean up what's left are thankful to have escaped the fast-rising flood from torrential weekend rains, knowing others died. >> we knocked on some doors, got so many people out. there's two people that they said there's nobody there. we skipped the house and two people died. >> reporter: this woman's husband tried to save their daughter, both were swept away to their deaths as she watched. >> she was screaming for her daddy to help her and then about the time the rescue squad got here, i didn't see them no more. i didn't see them float away. >> reporter: for all the pain and hardships already endured, still more may yet come. many who suffered losses aren't covered by flood insurance. the perries, who are, met with their adjuster wednesday and look forward to starting their recovery. only they don't plan on it being here. matt, as you mentioned, the mayor says when all the property losses are totalled here in this city, it could easily top $1 billion. the emotional toll can't be calculated. >> our thoughts are with the people in nashville. thank you, ron mott. an emotional vigil at the university of virginia for murdered lacrosse player yeardley love and the possible missed signs in that tragic case. but first, this is "today" on just ahead, the woman left adrift at sea for four days as a young girl after her family was killed. we're going to talk to her. plus, the member of the nbc family who just won $266 million in the lottery. we'll talk to her and her husband after your local news. i love this dove creamoil wash. gorgeous lather. it makes my skin really silky and velvety. this is my body wash. what do you mean? this is it? why?! oh, don't do that to me! dove creamoil body wash. now with nutrium moisture. nutrium moisture. i'm a believer. the nourishment in dove creamoil goes somehow deeper. i'm happy about the change. change is good. dove creamoil body wash. parents magazine and edmunds.com called it "one of the best family cars of 2009." the insurance institute for highway safety calls it a "2010 top safety pick." consumers digest has called it a "best buy" two years in a row. and with a 100,000 mile powertrain warranty... we call it peace of mind. chevy malibu. during the spring event, qualified lessees, now get a 27-month, low mileage lease on this malibu ls for around $199 a month. call for details. see your local 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[ jazz horns blow ] because expressive is never excessive. i guess some women are destined to wear chico's. ♪ chicka boom boom boom, yeah, yeah ♪ >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am stan stovall. time for a check on the morning commute. >> dealing with problems on northbound 95 in harford county. we have had been there all morning due to a tractor-trailer that split open. two right lanes past the aberdeen exit with the left lane sweeping by only. heavy delays in that area. take pulaski highway as your alternate. shut down between for under 40 and route 1 due to an oversight note passing through this area. delays on southbound 83, 67 miles per hour for northbound motorists with middletown to mount carmel southbound, you are looking at delays. under the perring parkway, backing up traffic and there. -- outer loop a perring parkway, backing up traffic there. let's give you a live view of traffic. in the area of 97, north and southbound traffic moving without delay. everything looking good across the bay bridge. we have problems, as we mentioned, getting towards aberdeen. the two right lanes closed. heavy congestion in that area. >> things are pretty quiet right now. a cool front is coming out of the mountains that is producing light rain showers. extending from southern pennsylvania down to maryland to frostburg. these will march to the east. there could be a light rain shower, maybe a thundershower in the late morning to the early afternoon. otherwise, mix of sunshine and clouds. high temperature of around 83 degrees. best chance for precipitation will be on saturday. breezy and cool on mother's day. >> check the bottom of your screen for updated news and screen for updated news and traffic 7:30 now on a thursday morning, may 6th, 2010. one week to go until sting kicks off our summer concert series right out there on rockefeller plaza. all those folks should make plans to come back next friday, may 14th, in our 8:30 half-hour. we look forward to that. inside studio 1a, i'm matt lauer alongside meredith vieira. just ahead, when good things happen to good people. get this -- a woman who was working the graveyard shift at our nbc station in los angeles early wednesday morning realized she and her husband, who recently lost his job, just won $266 million in the lottery. we'll talk to them in a moment. >> good for them. speaking of good news, rocker and "celebrity apprentice" bret michaels has mao been released from the hospital after suffering a near-fatal brain hej hmorrhage. the latest on his recovery and what he's saying about it in his first interview since the scare. plus, the survivor of a tragic ordeal. an 11-year-old girl left to die on a sinking ship after the captain of that ship murdered her entire family. the killer told police there had been an accident on-board and everyone died accidentally. but little did he know that little girl survived, floating alone on a raft for days without food or water. now nearly 50 years later she's speaking out for the very first time. we're going to talk to her coming up. it is an incredible story. >> really interesting. we'll begin this half-hour with an emotional vigil to honor a murdered lacrosse star at the university of virginia and new developments in the investigation. nbc's jeff rossen is on the charlottesville campus with the very latest. jeff, good morning. >> reporter: hey, meredith, good morning. this has been a very tough time here. people have been crying on campus for days. late last night they all got together and cried together. at a moment like this you don't want to look back and say "what if this," "what if that," but that's what a lot of people are doing this morning, including university official themselves. were there missed warning signs here in many friends say this was an abusive relationship that often got physical, especially lately, yet no one reported this to police or the university. in the heart of uva's pristine campus wednesday night, members of the women's lacrosse team broke down in tears honoring their star player, yeardley love. only 22 years old, murdered just weeks before graduation. thousands of students showed up at this candlelight vigil, including one of yeardley's friends who discovered her body that night. even the university president couldn't hide his emotions. >> yeardley love did nothing to deserve to be attacked and beaten, to deserve to suffer the injuries of which we've all read in police reports. to deserve to die. >> reporter: now, evidence is piling up against the fellow uva lacrosse store, george huguely, charged with beating love to death, some say over their recent breakup. investigators have recovered new clues against him. inside huguely's apartment, court documents say they found a la cross shirt with a red stain on it. a letter he wrote addressed to yeardley, a green spiral notebook, two laptop computers and dna samples. this on top of his admission the night of the murder, confessing to police he kicked his right food through the door that leads to love's bedroom. they got into an altercation and he shook love and her head repeatedly hit the wall, leaving her to die, police say, face-down on her pillow in a pool of blood. >> it horrifies and astoundz me. it was a terrible, terrible incident. >> reporter: but now many wonder if key warning signs were missed, if this brutal murder could have been avoided. huguely, friends say, had a turn lent romantic relationship with love and got physical with her, attacking her in public just weeks ago. police sources say he may have sent her death threats over text message. huguely has a criminal record, too. arrested in 2008 for public swearing and intoxication and resisting arrest. school officials defended themselves at a news conference wednesday evening. >> i never heard it. absolutely never heard it. >> speak for myself in saying we wish we had known that. >> reporter: didn't know it because yeardley never reported any of it, and neither did any of her friends, who reportedly saw the abuse firsthand. a missed opportunity, now consuming this campus. >> yes, this event might have been able to be avoided if others had spoken up maybe or if we just had a better support system. >> reporter: college friends say george huguely was especially aggressive when he drank. police sources tell nbc news he was drinking all day sunday in the hours leading up to the murder. like most college campuses, uva teaches students about the dangers of alcohol abuse. >> the reason we do these educational programs are because bad things happen sometimes and it is when people drink too much. >> reporter: here, the worst thing happened, the abrupt end of a young life after suffering in silence. university officials say never again. >> don't hear a scream, don't watch abuse, don't hear stories of abuse from your friends and keep quiet. speak out. find me. i will go with you to the police. choose to honor yeardley love's life. >> reporter: so sad. yeardley love's parents were supposed to be here on campus for a happy occasion, perhaps the happiest occasion of their life when their daughter was to graduate in just a couple of weeks. but instead, meredith, they now have their daughter's body. they brought her back to maryland. funeral services are planned for this weekend. as a parent i know you know, this is difficult to fathom for anybody. >> just awful, a nightmare. jeff rossen, thank you so much. pat brown is a criminal profiler and author of "killing for sport." pat, good morning. as jeff just mentioned, when george huguely met up with the officers the night yeardley love died, they went to his apartment after finding her, he told them that he had indeed broken down her door. at least that's what we're hearing, her bedroom door, he repeatedly smashed her head against the wall, then left taking her laptop with him. his attorney has not denied any of the statements made by his client but he did call the attorney -- the attorney did call love's death an accident with a tragic outcome. given huguely's statement, what do you make of the defense strategy that they seem to be building here? >> well, meredith, i think they better change it really quickly. everybody thinks that's ludicrous. there's no such thing as accidentally smashing somebody's head repeatedly into a wall, then leaving them there to die. and the fact there is premeditation in it when we talk about there's been possibly death threats and that he actually kicked her door in which was locked so he couldn't get into the room. i don't know where the defense attorney can get away with that one. they better work on a slightly different strategy. >> according to friends, they broke up weeks ago and he then attack her in public. there are reports of text messages where he may have threatened her life. what does that tell you about their relationship, the volatility of it? >> oh, it's really scary. i really wish women would take a lot more time getting into relationships. i think i'm starting a new campaign which i call two plus two equals "4 life." get to know a person you go out with, spend time with them in groups to see what their behavior is like. before you get into any kind of sexual relationship, take some time. be sure they respect you. you know? don't just rush into something. this is what happens to girls. they start -- go right out on a date before they get to know the person and before they get to trust the person, they're into a sexual relationship. then it is too late. because a person like this, like huguely, apparently he thinks he can get whatever he wants, thinks he's very entitled to anything. she was his new toy. he wanted his toy and when it was taken away from him he got mad. he didn't respect her as a human being. she was a possession to him. you should never date a person and have a romantic relationship with somebody who considers you a possession. i think women need to slow down. you don't need a guy that badly. respect yourself and take a long time to say, wait a minute, if i don't really, really trust you, i'm not going there with you. >> there's also -- and the president of the university of virginia said this to students last night -- please, if you see abuse or hear about abuse, you must talk to us about it, you must tell someone, a relative of yeardley love's apparently said that last march she described huguely as aggressive, didn't say anything more. he didn't think anything of it. but there was a good example of a warning sign that could have been missed. >> absolutely. nobody should be in a relationship with anybody who's aggressive because you'll become the target of that when they get angry. every friend, every relative should say get away from him. when she started getting these death threats and knowing that he was that angry with her, she should have had 24/7 protection, never left alone so that he could come after her and think he could get away with what he wanted to do to her. you just got to take these red flags so, so seriously. i hope if nothing comes out of this, such a horrible ending for this beautiful girl, if nothing comes out of this, i hope every woman out there and every person out there realizes this is not acceptable behavior in relationships and slow down and protect yourself and protect your friend and protect your relatives. >> that 2008 arrest that jeff rengs mentioned where huguely was arrested and eventually tasered, university of virginia officials say they never knew about it. i don't know what they could have done had they known. but should police in a situation like that notify a campus that we have a student of yours and they were found guilty of such and such or arrested for such and such? >> well, i guess it will be how the whole campus deals with anything. found it interesting a lot of campuses ignore very, very bad behavior from the students. they don't require more. i had a son who went to india. on that campus had you to wear a collared shirt, call everyone "sir" or "madam." if you were caught smoking on that campus, you were expelled. we have students all the time on campus drinking like fish and acting in all kinds of ways and nobody has to act in a certain way. look at the duke situation. all these boys did all these different things. were they thrown off the team? no. there are all kinds of rules of how we should behave ourselves. we must act in a certain way and if we don't we'll be removed as students. unless they go that route, they won't be able to do anything about it. >> pat brown, thank you very much. now let's get a check of the weather from al. >> announcer: "today's weather" is brought to you by bush's grillin' beans. as we take a look at severe weather we can expect and where, looking from parts of kansas on into missouri and parts of iowa as well. we could see some large hail, lots of winds, damaging winds overnight. talking about anywhere from about a half-inch to an inch of rain. the rest of the country, we do expect to see plenty of sunshine along the west coast, though some fog in southern california. fog along the southeastern atlantic coast. morning showers move through the northeast, then clearing skies. look for some wet weather and snowy weather back >> most of the day is going to be quiet, but once we get to the late morning and early afternoon, there is a slight chance we can see showers and thunderstorms. most areas >> don't forget, if you want to keep track of your weather all day long, go to the weather channel on cable or weather.com online. meredith? >> al, thank you very much. up next, the winner of the $266 million mega millions lottery and she works at our nbc station. i just adore her! we'll talk to her right after i just adore her! we'll talk to her right after this. lack bean fiesta. but it's perfectly cooked black beans, in a zesty "south of the border" chipotle 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[ female announcer ] when you have kids the phrase good morning takes on a whole new meaning. capri sun sunrise is a good source of calcium and vitamin c so every morning's a good morning. capri sun sunrise, i can respect that. mega millions lotto which is played in about 38 states is 1 in 177 million. >> that's true. imagine the surprise at a staffer at our newsroom if l.a. won the $266 million prize. we'll talk to the couple in a moment, but first here's nbc's george lewis. >> i have 184 e-mails. >> i was trying to remain anonymous. >> reporter: gilbert cisneros can forget about that now. his wife jacki, an overnight assignment editor at the nbc station in los angeles, was on duty wednesday morning and saw that the winning $266 million lottery ticket had been purchased at a hawaiian restaurant gilbert had gone to the previous night. and, yes, had he played the lotto. >> she called her husband at home. he checked his ticket and all of a sudden she just started screaming. she started tearing up. >> i said, yeah, i said i got it. then she started just going hysterical, "oh, my god! oh, my god!" >> my hand was shaking on the phone. my legs felt like they were going to buckle. i just cried and laughed at the same time. >> reporter: though overcome with emotion, jacki kept on working in the newsroom phoning a colleague at 2:30 in the morning. >> she called and said are you sitting down? i said, i'm laying down. i was asleep! i'm like what's up? i thought something was on fire. >> reporter: when jacki got home, gilbert said he figured out the first thing he's going to do. >> i'm going to church, going to thank god. >> reporter: giving thanks while still not quite believing what had happened to them. for "today," george lewis, nbc news, los angeles. >> jacki and gilbert cisneros are with us now this morning. good morning to both of you and congratulations. >> yeah. >> good morning. >> good morning. thank you. >> jacki, jacki, jacki, why are you at work, jacki? >> to be on the "today" show. >> so honestly speaking, you find out you win this money. you stayed throughout your shift last night helping to put the morning news on the air for the people out there in los angeles. no thought of just getting up and heading out the door and saying, "see ya, suckers"? >> well, initially i wanted to go home but i was so nervous and i was shaking and i felt like my legs were going to fall out from underneath me that i probably should just stay there and sort of regroup. and then i thought, what am i going to home for? i'll just sit there and stare at a ticket. can't really do anything until daylight. i just continued working. and i probably will continue working for as long as knbc will allow me. i can't imagine not working. it seems kind of -- it is a foreign concept to me. >> gilbert, you recently lost your job. you were on jury duty, were on your way home. if you had listened to jacki, you wouldn't be sitting here as a multi-million dollar winners at all, would you? >> no, not at all. she said she had a craving for kfc. all i could think about was that double-decker chicken sandwich. i'm like, i don't want that. so she told me, you're on your own for dinner. actually, i was in downtown l.a. so my first thought was, you know what? i think i'm going to go get some mexican food. but driving around looking for parking, the parking there was like $8. i'm like i'm not going to pay that for parking. >> let your chauffeur do it from now on. so you ended up in the barbecue joint and the rest is history. >> yeah. i ended up over there, i ordered my food. and let me have ten lotto tickets, too. >> that worked out. just a few seconds left, what is the first thing you're going to do with the money? >> buy a house. somewhere. we don't know where now. we are like kids in a candy store. >> tahiti is nice this time of year. >> okay. that's an option. >> we're going to make sure we give back to those who need it and i know we talked about contributing to our alma maters, then also to give back to our church. >> that's awfully nice of you guys. >> try and do what's right. >> good for you guys. we're thrilled for you. it is so nice when it happens to people to deserve it. jacki, gilbert, congratulations. >> thank you. >> so nice. nice, nice, nice people. still ahead, what parents need to know about a newel recall of a popular over-the-counter cold medicines for children. but first these messages. in 14 hundred and 92. nice! follow me, the missouri river is this way! lewis and clark expedition of 1804. oh, he'll never get this. magellan, 1520. awww, my 8 layers must've given it away. help keep your kid full and focused with 8 filling layers... of whole grain fiber found in kellogg's frosted mini-wheats cereal. this is one giant leap for mini-kind. keeps 'em full. keeps 'em focused. hoo hooo! keeps 'em full. keeps 'em focused. - good night, honey. - and they could fix... - all better? 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( gasps ) what's in your wallet? wait up! just ahead, a young girl left alone at sea to die by the man who murdered her entire family. >> five decades later, she shares her incredible story in a live interview for the first time after your local news. bye momma. i love you. i love you. bye-bye. you be careful on your way home. -happy mother's day. -okay. bye-bye. ♪ ♪ ♪ [ female announcer ] this mother's day, give her something she can hold on to. a card. it's the biggest little thing you can do. from crystal light. the first fitness drink with no artificial sweeteners, flavors, or preservatives. new purefitness... from crystal light. a pure way to water your body. try the first great-tasting, zero-calorie... natural sweetener borne from the leaves of the stevia plant. truvía. honestly sweet. find it at your grocery store. that means thousands of rollbacks throughout the whole store. and i should know that... because i'm mr. rollback. what's my super power? that's rolling back prices. there's a rollback. rollback prices here. these are rollbacks waiting to be rollbacks. that's how many rollbacks we have. we're cutting costs all over, which cuts prices all over, which means thousands of rollbacks. like this one right here. i'm darrell, and they call me mr. rollback. and i save people money so they can live better. >> live, local, latebreaking. this is doubly be held tv 11 news today in baltimore. -- wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am stan stovall. there were problems earlier i- 95. >> we have good news to report there. all lanes open to the tractor- trailer accident is clear. southbound 75 at the beltway, that accident coming into a spread -- into us. all lanes here closed. on any of the other major roadways, you'll be doing well. normal delays around the area. inner loop delays heading towards greenspring and towards the j.f.x. of 14 minutes is your inner loop drive time. 19 minutes on the outer loop from 795 down to 95 on the south side on in the prince of the 95 per cent as we have on the top there. let's see what we have as far as the life cameras. this is that is the spot. we can switch over to a live view of traffic. in contrast to what we saw a few minutes ago, these delays are passing through and dissipating and looking like a much better right. >> watching a few light rain showers coming out of the mountains right now. oakwood friend is getting ready to past were into baltimore to the -- a cold front is getting ready to pass through to baltimore later this afternoon. we have a 30% chance for a shower thundershower as we go into the late morning and afternoon. a mixture of sunshine and clouds otherwise. warmer and more humid than yesterday. the seven-day forecast into the weekend. best chance for rain on saturday. dry on mother's day. breezy and cool with a high of 64. >> at the bottom of the screen, you will find news and traffic 8:00 now on this thursday morning, the 6th of may, 2010. al says expect some showers this morning in midtown manhattan, but nothing that these folks on the plaza cannot handle. i'm meredith vieira, along with matt lauer and al roker. really good news for rocker bret michaels. he has been released from the hospital just two weeks after critical condition following a brain hemorrhage. he's speaking out in an exclusive interview. what he's saying about that medical scare and his plans for the future. a lucky man. also ahead, just the sole survival of a tragedy at sea. tere duperrault fassbender's family was on a sailing vacation back in 1961 when the captain of the charter boat murdered her entire family and then left her on the sinking ship to die. amazingly, four days later, she was found alive, floating in a raft. this morning, tere will share what is an unbelievable story for the first time in nearly 50 years. plus, the latest on an alarming recall of a very popular over-the-counter children's cold medicine as the fda now urges parents to use generic alternatives. dr. nancy snyderman will join us with information all parents need to know. first a check of the top stories with ann curry. good morning. a boat carrying a huge containment dome headed this morning to the site of the well that's been leaking oil in the gulf of mexico. british petroleum expects to start lowering that dome today in a dramatic effort to control the oil spill off the louisiana coast. also, homeland security secretary janet napolitano returns to the area today to discuss the spill's impact with local and state officials. officials say new york city car bomb suspect faisal shahzad drove nanother suv to times square the day before his terror attack to use as getaway car, however he left the keys in the door and had to take the train home. there is growing evidence shahzad was trained bit pakistani taliban and the u.s. is asking pakistan for help with the investigation. a three-day siege in dubai targeting a train station and a jewish outreach center claimed more than 160 lives. bank workers in greece are on strike to protest the death of three colleagues wednesday in violent protests. they were trapped in a bank set on fire by demonstrators opposed to tough measures greece is taking amid a growing economic crisis. now here's brian williams on what's coming up tonight on nbc knightly news. >> tonight on "nightly news," part two of a special report on the pill at 50. the possible new role for men, and yes, talk about a pill for men. that's tonight on "nightly news." for now, back to you. we end this little newscast with an awesome sight that's been attracting more tourists than usual to hawaii's big island. lava is creeping toward the ocean. the lava could eventually michamake the island even larger. let's go back outside for the weather with al. >> announcer: "today's weather" is brought to you by starbucks via ready brew. available wherever you buy groceries. good morning. we got a birthday lady here. happy birthday to you! what's your name? >> faith. >> where you from? >> buoy, maryland. >> there you go. hope you keep things afleet there in buoy. >> i will. >> only kidding. spelled differently but pronounced the same. hartford, connecticut, nbc 30. some morning showers and afternoon sunshine. high of about 76 degrees. looking ahead to the weekend, looks pretty good through the southern tier states, downright hot. showers and snow in the pacific northwest. rain in the northeast. on mother's day for the moms, wet out west, also from texas on into the central plains. mountain snows in the mountains of california. southeast look >> the weather should be fairly quiet today, but as we head into the late morning and early afternoon, there is a slight chance for showers and thunderstorms mix >> it's a happy birthday to beth. happy birthday! you're got your mom's day card there. i don't think can you get that in the mail. matt? >> thanks very much. singer bret michaels has now been released from the hospital and is speaking out about his life threatening medical scare. what he says in an exclusive interview right after this. who made a cup the next morning for "ladies man" as he was rushing out the back door. he shared it with "blondes have more fun" and "fiery redhead," who, after finding out about each other, shared starbucks via with their new boyfriends, "firemen keep it hot" and "drummers rock," who called his friend "know it all," who said he already knew about it. premium starbucks via ready brew. now available wherever you buy groceries. ♪ wore only what i was wild about. always knew what i loved, and insisted on wearing it. ♪ chicka boom boom boom i guess some women are destined to wear chico's. ♪ [ female announcer ] it's fun to get more! and now, during bonus daat petsmart, get more free with bonus deals on select items throughout the store. pestmart. we love to see healthy, happy pets! we are back at 8:07 with the remarkable recovery of sing of and "celebrity apprentice" star bret michaels. he's now been released from the hospital. today we have the very latest. maria, good morning. >> good morning. i was at the press conference in phoenix on tuesday where for the first time bret michaels' doctor spoke out about his condition. we're also hearing from bret himself for the fir time after he was hospitalized. just two weeks after rock star and "celebrity apprentice" contestant bret michaels was rushed to a phoenix emergency room with a life threat being brain hemorrhage, he's been released from the hospital, is in stable condition and expected to fully recover. >> 15% to 20% of patients die. mr. michaels was indeed a lucky person. a very lucky person. he can walk and he's talking very well. he's mentally aware of everything that's going on. >> reporter: in the upcoming issue of "people" magazine, the 47-year-old rocker-turned-reality show star says, "i'm lucky to be alive." during this exclusive interview, michaels described the excruciating pain he felt in his head and next the night of april 21st. he said, "i thought someone shot me in the head." adding, "it was the most severe instant pain i've ever felt in my life." in recalling the moments after what turned out to be a subarachnoid hemorrhage, michaels said, "i didn't have my entire life flash before my eye wlz it happened. i was just sad. not depressed, but sad thinking of my daughters growing up without me." >> to see somebody that you love in pain and knowing that his family is scared and worried, it was hard. >> reporter: on "celebrity apprentice," taped several months ago, michaels competed against other celebrities, and so far has won $140,000 for the american diabetes association. he was diagnosed with the disease when he was 6 years old. >> i take it we're all fellow d diabetics here? >> reporter: there is speculation whether he'll be allowed to appear on the live broadcast of "celebrity apprentice." >> we'll evaluate him at two-week intervals to determine when he can resume his normal life tile. >> reporter: but michaels says, "my first goal is to get back 100%. i want to continue to rock the world and i want to continue to be a good father." i've interviewed bret many times and have gotten to know him. i am willing to bet he'll be on the finale of "celebrity apprentice." as for his doctor, he said we will wait and see. >> maria, thank you very much. ann marie cruz wrote the cover story on bret michaels for "people" magazine. good morning. you talked to bret by phone. how did he sound? >> he sounded amazingly art clal considering how much pain he is still in. he used words like excoriate. i had to look that up. >> he's going to make a full recovery according to doctors but he's now in rehab. you talk about the pain he's in. what kind of pain is he suffering? >> like massive pain. like having bad back disease. because he has diabetes his doctor can't give him steroids so he has to suffer through it with muscle relaxants and sed ti atives. >> did you tuk his doctor? he had that accident at the tonys last year where his head was hit. did any of those contribute? >> his doctor says, no, it was a completely separate incident and didn't have any actual cause. the tonys didn't have an effect and his life-long fight with diabetes did not have an effect either. >> in the article he says he's very lucky to be alive and will start working on his bucket list. >> he said whether that means helping other people who have the same situation as him, or rocking the world, he wants to make sure that everything he does from here on out is like embraced 100%. >> he also mentioned his long-time girlfriend, christy gibson. together 16 years, have two children. the possibility he might tie the knot. he sort of suggested that's a possibility. >> right. he said it is a positive work in progress. their relationship. and that we'll wait and see. he says, yes, that could be one of the big things on the list. >> did he say to you with any conviction he will be there for the finale? >> he did not. but knowing him, i think maria is right, if he has any shot at being there, he'll do it. his doctor said please don't promise. but it's bret and bret is a fighter and he wants to do -- if he sets his mind to it, he's going to do it. >> it is wonderful to hear him in his own words. ann marie cruz, thank you so much. let's bring in dr. nancy snyderm snyderman. >> how come someone who suffers the kind of hemorrhage bret michaels did cannot only be alive but expected to make a full recovery? >> i think we have to be very careful when we use the terms "full recovery." it depends where that bleed is. after a stroke, there's some kind of neurologic problem, whether slurred speech or weakness in one part of the body. the fact he's mao in a rehab unit means they're working very hard on getting that part of the brain that took the hit back to as normal as it can be. you can see progress sometimes in days, and sometimes it takes weeks. >> how is this hemorrhage different than an aneurism. they said he is fortunate he didn't haveaneurism? >> this is real ly just a weakening of the blood vessel like a ballooning that causes that to pop. what they're saying is the vessel blew, but not because of a weakening that they could see and the bleeding was self-contained. i think the real lesson in all of this is that that kind of excruciating pain is a hemorrhage in the brain until proven otherwise. it is a very narrow window where people have to get to the hospital. many times with stroke patients, we're talking hours, not days. if you have those symptoms, instant pain, some kind of weakness, slurred speech, disorientation, that's an immediate 911 call. then er doctors have to think stroke until proven otherwise. >> let me switch gears here. quickly ask you about the fda recall of those over-the-counter children's medications. how serious is this and what should parents know about this? >> three liquid medications. zyrtec, motrin and children's tylenol, all made by johnson & johnson. they found that there were some inactive ingredients, some ingredients that may have been too high for their safety profiles. some parents reported some kind of contaminated dots or contaminant in some of the fluids. according to the fda, no serious complaints, no concern of injury, but enough that johnson & johnson has done the right thing, telling patients throw it away, they will reimburse people for products used. this is what responsible companies do. if there is a concern about safety or contamination or product that doesn't meet internal standards, that stuff is pulled from the shelves. people are told not to use it. peggy hamburg of the fda has said no concerns right now about anyone being hurt. these products will be back after they can figure out whatever this manufacturing glitch was. >> thank you, dr. nancy. the lone survivor of a tragic murder at sea shares her incredible story 50 years later. right after this. on a second... come on up here where your 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bertolli chicken florentine is just minutes away, in a luscious white wine sauce. authentic italian for two... in the comfort of your own country. bertolli. italy is served. we're back at 8:18 with what started as a family vacation on the high seas and ended in tragedy. the loss of an entire family except for one remarkable little girl. now nearly 50 years later, tere duperrault fassbender is sharing her story. we'll talk to her in a moment, but first here's nbc's kerry sanders. >> reporter: the coast guard chopper arrived at miami's mercy hospital with a barely alive survivor -- an 11-year-old girl who had been floating at sea for 3 1/2 days. she was dehydrated, sunburned with a rapid heartbeat. but tere jo duperrault, the blonde-headed tom boy somehow outlasted the shark infested water after "the blue bell" her family was on sank. >> is there any indication there is somebody else out there? >> there is always a possibility where there is hope. we certainly have hope the search is going to continue. >> reporter: it would turn out every other passenger on-board "the blue bell" died in that november 1961 tragedy near the bahamas. tere jo's mother, father, sister, brother, even the captain's wife. dead. these photos were snapped by a sailor on the greek freighter that found tere jo at sea. had she not been rescued at sea, no one would have been the wiser. the ship's captain julian harvey had made to shore in a dingy and in his version, the ship caught fire and everyone drowned. >> she is in good spirits, the hospital reports. >> reporter: but tere jo was alive and she knew that fire, then sinking story was a lie. so, too, did captain julian harvey. when he heard tere jo was rescued, he went to this hotel and committed suicide. the real suicide, tere jo was asleep. she woke up, found her mother an brother on deck in a pool of blood dead. captain julian harvey clased her bolo decks, pulled the plugs in the hull and left her on-board to drown as he escaped in the dingy. but why the murders? detectives say, greed. >> the fact that he was the seosole beneficiary of his wife's insurance policy and that he was sorely in need of funds must be considered. >> reporter: captain julian harvey, the dashing one-time test pilot who once purposely ditched a b-24 in the river and then came out and combed his hair, was, in death, a suspected sociopath. for "today," kerry sanders, nbc news, miami. >> tere is here along with richard logan who, together, have written a new book, "alone: orphaned on the ocean." good morning to both of you. tere, first of all. i'm trying to look as you watched that footage. >> i've never seen any of that. >> how was it for to you see as an 11-year-old girl? >> it was nice for me to see that. >> 50 years after this happened. why are you coming out now and talking about it? >> i thought i was spared for a reason and that the reason would be to help other people. and so richard and i have been working on a book, and the book is finally come out. i would just hope that i could help someone after they read the book to give them inspiration. >> what happened on that boat is almost unimaginable. how much of the carnage did you actually witness? there was a commotion on-board. after the captain killed his wife, the other members of your family heard the commotion and went down to see what was going on and he, one by one, kill the other members of your family. how much did you witness? >> i didn't witness any killing. i did see my mother and brother dead with blood. i never saw my father. i never saw mrs. harvey and i never saw my sister. that was all that i did see. >> do you to this day understand why that man, mr. harvey, allowed you to live? why he didn't kill you before getting off that boat in the dingy? >> i think he probably thought i would go down with the ship. >> in no way would you ever be able to survive. >> correct. >> so he pulls the plugs on this boat so it begins to take on water and sink. you're in a room, the water starts to rise. and you go find a raft and you go overboard. what was it like? you're 11 years old. you're floating in the middle of the ocean alone. >> i was never frightened. >> no? >> no, i was never frightened. i was an outdoors child and i loved the water. i had strong faith. i believed in god and i prayed for him to help me. and i just went with the flow, i guess. >> you had no other choice, did you? >> right. >> there are a lot of uncanny things about this story. one is the contrasting character of tere with that of the captain. it is like a literary -- it's like your classic literary device of the hero and the antagonist. he was a golden boy in everybody's eyes until this was all discovered about him. but this lady right here turned out to be a person of real substance. >> you talk about certain things that happened that probably made the difference between life and death for tere. at one point the captain, i guess he had already killed your family members at this point, did something like he asked you to hold a rope and tere dropped it. why is that a key to this story? >> i think it was because he realized when he saw her on deck, oh, my god, she might actually -- there is a possibility that she might survive, i better kill her. he went forward to get a knife or something to kill her. but she did not hold on to the line and he -- the dingy started to drift away and had he to dive into the water. then tere had incredible presence of mind in that next moment to untie the lifeboat. >> and got into that raft. four days at sea. it didn't just happen, were you rescued, then your life turned for the better. there were times throughout your life, tere, i think it is fair for me to say, you experienced your share of ups and downs. >> oh, most definitely. >> were there child psychologists at the time that were brought in to assist you? how did you cope with this, the loss of your whole family and what you had seen on that boat? >> well, everybody was told not to speak to me about it. and so i never was able to talk about it. so it was always in my mind. i did see a psychiatrist at one point, but he didn't really get to the meat of what was my problem and that was the loss of my family. it was more teenage heartbreak, that type of thing. and so that never helped and then i saw a psychiatrist later when i was in my 30s, and that's when it started to begin. >> stitting down and finally telling this story with richard, has it helped to kind of finally be able to verbalize this? >> most definitely. most definitely. >> it is an extraordinary, extraordinary story. thank you for being here. the b >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. let's get a final check on the morning commute with sarah caldwell. >> problems to watch for as you head out this morning. northbound 29 at 100, and you might find some delays. one at the outer loop at liberty road and liberty road and washington ave. you can see some delays on eastbound i-70. pretty jammed packed ride in both directions, actually. accident on inner loop at perring parkway. southbound 95 is still dealing with plenty of the volume. 16 miles per hour towards the 895 split. shut down between four to 40 and route 1 due to an oversized load passing through the area. 21 minutes on inner loop on the northeast corner. it is going to take to 80 minutes to travel on the west side from top to bottom. -- a.q. 18 minutes to travel on the west side from top to bottom. we will switch over to a live view of traffic at the accident scene. inner loop of perring park right off the left shoulder, not a major delay behind it. john collins joins us now. >> to the west of us, clouds and sprinkles. a front is off to the west. that will be coming in during the day today. we stand a chance to see a shower or thundershower. southwest wind at 9 miles per hour. 72 at tv hill. texter of sunshine and clouds. jets for about shower or sprinkle it on. pleasant day. a little cooler tomorrow. >> another update at 8:55. we're back now, 8:30 on a thursday morning, the 6th day of may, 2010. they're already packed into the plaza today in large and loud crowds. we like that. if they come back next week, we have a big summer concert kicking off our season with sting out here on the plaza. that's mr. sting to you. professor sting. meanwhile on the plaza, i'm matt lauer, along with meredith vieira, ann curry and al roker. coming up, our latest installment of "bow to wow." this is where we make over needy pooches, needy in terms of needing a home. then you do your part and hopefully adopt these pooches. jill rappaport will be here with a new group of dogs in just a couple of minutes. also ahead, the challenges of being a caregiver. coming up, best selling author gail shehee shares her personal story of caring for her husband following his cancer diagnosis. we'll talk about what her experience has taught her that everyone can learn from. we're going to school this morning. "today's cooking school." mario batali is going to show us how to make a tomato sauce rather than having to use the tired old one we get out of the jar. sounds yummy. and we will help you change your child's behavior from bad to good in five easy steps. >> come on. >> really. >> five easy steps. before we go any further, can we say hi to joel mccann? nice to see you. congratulations. >> thank you. >> your show's been picked up, another season. you have to be excited about that. how did they break that kind of news to you? >> dan harman brought us into a trailer and threatened that we were all canceled. he said you would all have to work with chevy chase for another year, he was really sorry. he filmed it all and put it on the internet. >> cool. >> right there. that's us. >> was there a moment when you thought you were going to told that were you canceled? >> we knew going into the trailer it was going to be either really good news or bad news. dan, our creator looks like a homeless man. >> he's ready then. >> they didn't capture the drunken brawl that happened afterwards. >> no, they didn't. that happens almost every morning. >> good news for the female fans. tonight there is an episode where you actually remove your shirt. >> there is a lot of that in the show. >> want to give us a preview? >> yes, here we go. but i'm covered in scabies. there's a lot of oiling up there. that's a "diehard" parody we're doing. apparently it looks like i have a horrible back problem. we trashed set. yeah, it is armageddon. it is every man for himself. >> had you ever played paintball before? >> i have. >> if we were to get involved in a paintball competition, the four of us, who do you think would win? >> ann. >> why do you say that so quickly. >> well, she's so pretty. then she would just take you down. >> i don't want to hurt anybody. >> maybe al. i don't know. if willard was in the match -- >> he would take us out. you see the word "willard," you're like huh? and you're shot. >> you and your co-star were involved in a very serious bromance. >> we are. there it is right there. that's in my dressing room. we just spend a lot of time holding each other and he weighs about 90 pounds. >> you're a heavyweight, too. >> yeah. but he -- i don't know if he saw one of the episodes, he was just walking around in his underwear with a helmet which i thought, well we're canceled now. that's the way it is. >> as a matter of fact whe, you not canceled. you'll be back for another season, tonight 8:00, 7:00 central time right here on nbc, >> most of the day is going to be quiet, but once we get to the late morning and early afternoon, there is a slight chance we can see showers and thunderstorms. most are >> and don't forget, check your whether he any time of the day or night on weather channel on cable or weather.com online. >> all right, al. up next, "from bow to wow." our latest and greatest doggy makeovers. but first, this is "today" on nbc. we're back now with our popular series "from bow to wow," where we take dogs from the shelter, clean them um, give them a little makeover, then find them wonderful, loving homes. jill rappaport is here now with a new batch of dogs. hi, jill. >> we just celebrated our one-year anniversary and we want to keep up our great track record. today we have another great group, all shapes and sizes, all hoping for that loving home. animal care control in new york city brought us some wonderful mix of fabulous pooches. starting with a golden girl collie mix named foxy. here we have foxy, as in foxy lady. >> her face looks like a fox. >> but a sweet fox. >> very sweet. she's about 6 years old. she was found as a stray. she's going to need tlc. she's a little underweight. she has a little matting going on. some special person will need to give her a little extra care. >> on to a pomeranian mix, wally. >> he was found the street by a law enforcement officer. >> compared to most of the dogs in the shelter, he is in exceptional shape. great weight. his coat is beautiful. >> but he's going to require some attention. whoever adopts him will have to groom him, brush him every day. >> this dog is a major shedder. don't hold it against him. but with the adoption we should give out some lint rolls. now meet marvin who was definitely in need of a serious grooming. >> marvin has eyes underneath there. there you go. >> marvin is a 3-year-old shitzu mix. his owner recently passed away. none of the other family members could take care of him. he's been a real good boy. >> he is a sweetheart. and last, but certainly not least, this big guy named boomer. he has the appropriate name of boomer. >> the ground shakes a little bit when he walks. >> oh, you didn't hear that! >> boomer is a 2-year-old lab mix. >> he was just abandoned. >> found wandering the streets. little weight management and he'll be great. he's very, very healthy otherwise. a wonderful temperament. >> i love his markings. i love the white patch in the front. huh, boomer? you're a beauty. four dogs all longing for a loving home. >> we're joined as always by richard from animal care and control in new york city. welcome back. i like these dogs, i have to say. i think this is a really nice group. let's start with our first dog, wally. let's take a look at the before picture. ann, come on out with wally after. wally is a pomeranian mix. >> he's looking for a candidate to be a therapy dog? he would be a perfect dog. he's really sweet. he'll sit in your lap. i think he'll provide a lot of comfort and joy to somebody. >> the sweetest dog. the ultimate laptop dog. but you need a lint brush. lots of lint brushes. >> all dogs shed. wally sheds a little more than others. >> but he's worth it. >> wally is really cute. ann, thank you very much. now we're going on to marvin. look at the before picture. marvin needed a haircut. there was no question about that. you don't have the grooming, richard, but tell me a little bit about marvin as natalie brings marvin out. what a difference. >> marvin's owner passed away. there was some grooming issues. there was some matting especially around his paws. they really had to shave them all the way down to make him more comfortable. but he loves to play with toys and he's been good with cats so far, too. >> another sweetheart. >> really cute. >> 6 years old. >> marvin, natalie, thank you very much. on to boomer. let's take a look at boomer before. boomer is a cute dog, too. really nice. and now boomer is being brought out by our page, adrian. adrian, come out with boomer. >> now you see why they call him boomer. >> they call him boomer for a reason. he could use a little diet, little exercise. >> can't we all? >> he's active. loves to go to the park. he'll sit on a bench. he waits for people to walk by and pet him. he loves to be petted. he's 2 years old. >> 2 years old? okay, great. adrian, thank you. nice to have you. we appreciate it. and last, but not least, we have foxy. there's foxy before. and it is amazing that meredith would want foxy. she gets to bring him out. hello, foxy. richard, talk about her. >> foxy came in very underweight. she's gaining her weight back. she would do well in a quiet home. she's a little shy and timid but she loves to lay out in the backyard in the sun and relax. >> she's so much better now. when we were there at shelter she was shaking like a leaf. look how much happier. >> she gets comfortable in her new home, she'll be great. >> foxy and foxy, thank you very much. >> oh! >> richard, thank you, as always. jill, thank you. if you'd like information on how to adopt these dogs as we bring them all back out, go to todayshow.com. still ahead, mario batali shares his secrets for making three great pasta sauces. we're back. this is "today" on nbc. back at 8:45. this morning on "today's family," care giving. author gail shehee is confronting the issue in her new book, "passages in care giving." first her story in her own words. >> i met him when we were both working at the "herald tribune." a big shot editor, "new york" magazine. i was in the women's department, the estrogen zone. but somehow we met, collaborated on many, many stories. then we had a whirlwind courtship. 17 years. we got married in his apartment. i stopped parsing the pages of adult life at 50. well, what happens after 50 that's interesting? then i got to 50. thought this is great! and then i got the call. cancer? my husband has cancer? we don't expect it. no one is prepared for it. we don't know how long it is going to take. i had nine months to prepare for the birth of my child. i had about nine hours to prepare for the dependence of my husband. he told me i had a new role -- caregiver. again. we're all going to have this role. i mean this is a big passage for boomers today. gail sheehy, good morning. it really is the big passage. so many things happen. so many of them emotional. but also when you're faced with something like this, there are so many challenges you have to deal with. how do you begibb n to get organized? >> i think you should have the conversation before the crisis. you know? if you notice that you have a white-knuckle drive with dad or mom is forgetting how to make thanksgiving dinner, there is a creeping crisis, get together with your siblings and talk about how to help keep your parents independent in their own homes as long as possible and start forming that circle of care. you can't do this alone. no one can. >> you need the circle of care. you say the question not whether you'll be called to act as a caregiver, but how you will respond. can you ever really prepare yourself emotionally? >> i tell you, that's why i wrote this book. i wasn't prepared. but if i had known that it is a long journey. it is usually at least five years. in my case it was 17 years but it has many different phases. if you have the idea of how you prepare and change your coping mechanisms for the shock and mobilization, setting up the new normal. then if you get into playing god, you can't play god because you're not god. you can't control it all. take that pressure off yourself. moving on to create a circle of care and moving on to coming back yourself. you can use dangerous illness as a way to jumpstart your lives. my husband and i actually did that. we tore up our lives in new york. we moved to california. he started a new life shaping young journalists. i commuted. we felt young and in love all over again. >> there can be something positive that comes out of it is what you're saying. >> absolutely. this is a time when you can become more intimate with your mother or father, reconcile differences, come together with siblings instead of still arguing about what color to paint the bedroom. it really can help. >> i think what happens very often with caregivers, they're so consumed with helping someone else they forget about their own needs and how important they are. >> you know that as well as i do. you cannot do that. i always say if you have a job, hang on to it. even if you'll be exhausted. you have to have someplace to go back to. at one point my husband's doctor actually ordered me to go away for a week. he said, you're a writer. be yourself. go out on a presidential campaign and work. when i came back, i was able to take my husband out for the evening. we had a marvelous evening. we forgot that night that he was sick. i couldn't have done that if i didn't replenish myself. you have to do it over and over -- >> almost on a daily basis. >> absolutely. >> you write even for the most loving and dutiful family members, the financial and emotional burdens of long term care giving can be unbearable. the only way families can afford the shift from institutional care to home care for seniors is if government helps to support family care givers. do you think we'll see more aid from the government? >> there is a beginning in the new health care reform law. there's a way that certain people who can't do so many activities on their own can get $75 a day to pay a family member to help them. it's not much but it is a beginning. >> a start. >> the other thing is, a lot of us are alone. we don't have a nearby family member to take care of us. we don't want to get sick and be alone in a hospital. the book is full of national resources and community organizations people don't know about. there are volunteers that want to help keep people at home, safe and comfortable as long as they can, including with the care towards the end of their lives. >> most of us will end up as a caregiver, as you write in the book. thank you so much. gail sheehy, "passages in care giving." up next, mario batali makes some homemade pasta sauces. but fi >> announcer: "today's cooking school" is brought to you by bertolli frozen skillet meals. a menu of reasons to make tonight a bertolli night. and this morning on "today's cooking school." getting saucy. if you plan to make pasta, an average sauce can make a cook seem like an old pro. mario, nice to see you. good morning. how you doing? you're going to make several different sauces. i'll start with a classic putonesca. puton is the name for -- prostitute. >> lady of the night. >> why would this be called pasta lady of the night? >> she would make something relatively fragrant, delightful and really smelly. so as the workers went home on their way from work, they caught a whiff of this and said, maybe i'll just stop in for a little bowl of spaghetti. and well, as the spaghetti turned into something else, profit was made. >> you did your research on this -- how? >> reading! strictly in the library, my friend. >> what's the basis of this sauce? >> onions, garlic, anchovies. just a couple. we dry them out, soak them in milk, then cut them into pieces. >> if someone simply recoils at the thought of anchovies, can you make it without them? >> of course. you can always take stuff out of a dish if it bothers or offends you. you add just the amount of hot chilies you like. >> this is papalino refers to anything that the pope likes to do. take a little bit of the cheese. al? >> yes, sir! >> we're making a sicilian dish. this looks a little bit like celery. we're going to add the sardines here. these are canned sardines. if you can find fresh ones -- hold on! i'm coming. what would happen is you'd have a beautiful omelet with peas. which isn't a bad thing. you'll toss it carefully. add a little bit extra olive oil. we'll take some of the penne and go into this one here -- >> by the way, why do you like penne with these particular sauces? >> there is kind of a classic understanding in italy about the different shapes that go with the different pastas. penne is one of the greatest things because it is very easy to eat. >> now i dump this? >> now hold on. >> now do i dump this? >> why are you in such a hurry? >> because she's hungry. the trick to this is making sure that after this point it never goes back on the heat. the residual heat of the actual pan will cook that -- you don't want raw eggs or for it to look like scrambled eggs. take just a little bit of parsley. you've got a good toss going on there, meredith. little gratd parmesan on top of that. al, you're looking good! all those years on the food network have paid off! >> finally! >> a little fennel sauce. >> the dog's in here. >> breadcrumbs. there you have it. >> we're back after your local news. >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. if you used baltimore city water, but be prepared to pay up to the department of public works is proposing a 9% fee hike to improve infrastructure. it would cost a family and extra $80 a year. it is for the city to replace and repair pipes. there were more than 1300 last year alone. customers can expect to see more crews on the street and quicker repairs. the board of estimates wi >> now let's look at the forecast with john collins. >> it is a beautiful morning. temperatures in the 60's and a cool front is moving in. that will pass through today. there are couple of showers ahead of that. they may give up the ghost and redevelop later on today we could see a shower or thundershower during the afternoon. maybe just a sprinkle of the week friend. 80 to 85 for the high. slightly cooler tomorrow behind the front. >> we will have another

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