Cities across america. Ny of the children you killed a child. She didnt do nothing to nobody. Atlantas mayor saying enough is enough. You cant blame this on a Police Officer you cant say that this is about criminal justice reform. This is about some people carrying some weapons who shot up a car with an 8yearold baby in the car for what we will have the very latest. Fallen star. Broadway actor nick cordero loses his monthslong battle with coronavirus the powerful tributes from friends and fans now pouring in. Life in hiding new details on what finally led to the arrest of Jeffrey Epsteins longtime confidant, Ghislaine Maxwell. And overnight one of the most vocal victims shares what she wants to see happen next i really hope she comes forward and says a, b, c, d was involved and this is how it ran. Where the case goes from here and our live interview with an attorney for dozens of epstein accusers all that plus first pitch. Major League Baseball set to release its schedule for a season unlike any other. Today, monday, july 6th, 2020. Announcer from nbc news this is today with Savannah Guthrie and hoda kotb from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. Hey, guys. Welcome to today. So happy youre joining us on this monday morning. So happy youre here savannah hitting pause taking a few days off which she definitely deserves. You deserve some time off you got it last week you look refreshed thank you i had fun with the kids. I saw you were busy on the fourth of july hosting the fireworks teal thats a lot of fun. It was a lot of fun it was good to celebrate america especially in a time like this you did a great job on that we are going to start with our top story, and that is the coronavirus. New concerns sparked by images like this over the Holiday Weekend. Were talking about crowded beaches. Health officials fear they could add to the recordbreaking surge in u. S. Cases. And as we mentioned overnight we learned that broadway star nick cordero died from coronavirus. His wife who had documented his struggle with the virus for months posting, god has another angel in heaven now. Our thoughts and prayers are with amanda and baby elvis there. But we start with our indepth coverage with sam brock. Hes in miami where hospitals are being overwhelmed. Hey, sam, good morning reporter hoda, craig, good morning. It took almost four months in florida to get to 100,000 cases. It has taken two weeks to get to 200,000. Officials are hoping they dont see another holiday spike. Coronavirus concerns not enough to keep everyone home this holiday week. Myrtle beach brimming with visitors fire island in new york lit up with people. At this Michigan Lake party, attendees pack together and no visible masks. For many americans, this fourth of july felt a little foreign with shuttered shores and scaled back fireworks it is disappointing, but it is understandable. Reporter even though safety steps couldnt stop a furious covid surge this weekend, florida, South Carolina and texas among the states notching new daily records with almost 35 states seeing a rise in coronavirus cases. Texas adding 8,000 new infections on saturday and florida recording a stunning 11,458 cases in a single day a number not seen since new york at its peak. How close are we to being on the brink of catastrophe down here id say were pretty close. Reporter Jackson Health in miami just saw its Covid Patients jump 52 in one week. Dr. Nicolas worried whats next. I do anticipate that after this weekends parties were going to see a bump in the next, you know, week to ten days, two weeks. Reporter the warning as Health Care Systems start to bend under pressure. Covid hospitalizations in l. A. County are up 32 in two weeks with deaths approaching 3500 behind each one of those numbers is a name, a face, a Life Reporter americas Independence Day holiday dampened by a deepening crisis now, in some states like florida, the fatalities have not yet caught up with the ballooning number of cases guys, there is a lag between infection and serious illness, and that is raising concern this morning. Hoda, back to you. Sam brock for us in miami, thank you. A spike in cases has led to increased calls for nationwide requirement to wear masks. This as a coalition of International Scientists is set to push the World Health Organization to acknowledge that virus is airborne. Nbcs Gabe Gutierrez is in new york with the reopening of manhattan moving forward today good morning reporter good morning. New york is now entering phase three meaning more businesses like massage parlors and nail salons can reopen at half capacity but still here on restaurant row, there is still no Indoor Dining, amid concerns the virus can be spread even more easily through the air. This morning as covid cases mount across the country, the mask debate is intensifying. New jerseys governor is now calling for a nationwide Face Covering mandate we need a National Strategy i think right now. Masking has got to be at the core of that reporter the New York Times also reports that hundreds of scientists are set to publish an open letter to the World Health Organization urging the agency to revise its guidelines and acknowledge the virus can easily spread through the air indoors. Right now less than half of states require wearing Face Coverings in public despite cdc recommendations to do so even in those states, not everyones following the rules in North Carolina a mask mutiny of sorts nearly none seen at this beach more than a week after a state mandate went into effect some customers outside a walmart there defiant. If you want to wear a mask, you can wear a mask. If you dont want to wear a mask, you shouldnt have to. Its a free country. Everyone has the right to do as they please. Reporter in california where masks have been mandatory for weeks, beachgoers in santa cruz are getting used to the routine. A mask is now part of your checklist. Reporter in new jersey, chris and c. J. Were among hundreds streaming into the newly reopened Six Flags Great Adventure theme park keeping up their july 4th tradition with masks in tow. Its the right thing to do. The only difference would be once we finish this were going to trade them into something more stylishrn such a drastic change in behavior wont happen overnight. If you think about things like seat belts or smoke free laws, that took years, decades even to change peoples habits and make it become just a part of everyday Life Reporter now, here in new york city there is no timetable for when Indoor Dining might return, but there is some encouraging news the Positivity Rate or the percentage of tests that are coming back positive is now down to about 1 . Hoda all right Gabe Gutierrez for us. Thank you. We are now joined by dr. Ashish ja hes the director of the Global HealthInstitute Good morning we were reporting about a Record Number of covid cases this weekend. That is prefourth of july celebration. Those numbers arent going to come out for another week to ten days so what do we have in store for us ahead and do you think the hospitals are ready . So good morning and thank you for having me on what i expect based on both some of the pictures we just saw and just in general the trends that the number of cases is going to continue to rise across the country. Certainly in those hot spots of texas and florida and South Carolina, arizona. And in terms of the hospitals, you know, a lot of hospitals are already starting to bump up against their capacity and maybe they can add more. Maybe we can set up field hospitals, start shipping patients across to other parts of the state but at some point, we are going to run out of all of our capacity, our ability to take care of people and so weve got to sort of shut this off and weve got to find ways of really breaking the increase in cases or were going to get into a lot of trouble sooner than we think lets talk about that how do we get these spikes under control . I mean, do some states have to go all the back to stay at home orders is this is a mask thing . Whats the answer . Theres no one answer i think all of us agree that having to go back to stayathome, shelter in place is really the last thing we want to do. So what can we do to prevent that one is i do agree with governor murphy, we need a National Strategy and every state should have a mandatory mask order. This is you know, one of the folks in the last segment talked about freedom and how everybody should choose on their own i dont get to walk into a retail store and light up a cigarette out of my desire to smoke indoors. I shouldnt be able to walk in a retail store not wearing a mask its the same thing in my mind so we do need a National Strategy i think we need to continue to hings like testing and tracing indoor bars, nightclubs, i think we just cant afford any of those right now. Not while having these kind of outbreaks. Lastly a lot of parents are looking ahead thinking schools supposed to start in two months. If you were reading the tea leaves, would you think children will be going back to school this fall . So we all need and want desperately to get our kids back to school. I certainly do as a parent the problem is were going to see the kinds of outbreaks were seeing in arizona, texas, florida, in other places its going to be very hard to keep schools open one of the reasons weve got to get serious about bringing the disease under control, if we dont theres no chance schools will stay open this fall i really do think people have to get serious now if we want to get a shot at getting our kids back in this fall. Dr. Jha, thank you for your expertise as always. We appreciate you. Thank you President Trump spent part of the Holiday Weekend playing down the danger of coronavirus claiming nearly all cases in the u. S. Are harmless. Nbc white house corresponden Peter Alexander has that part of the story. Good morning to you. Reporter good morning to you as well. Even as the president has said he hopes the virus will soon disappear, white house aides now acknowledge its not going away any time soon, and that americans need to learn to live with it. This comes after backtoback Independence Day weekend addresses where the president made no attempt to unify americans. Instead, delivering an us versus them message painting a dark picture of the country. With coronavirus cases surging, even setting records in parts of the country, President Trump dismissed the seriousness of the pandemic delivering this misleading claim. Now we have tested almost 40 Million People by so doing, we show cases 99 of which are totally harmless. Reporter most Public Health experts dispute that assessment, but the fda commissioner declined to fact check the president. So im not going to get into whos right and whos wrong. You wont say whether 99 of coronavirus cases are, quote, completely harmless as true or false, what the president said at the white house last night . Dana, what ill say is that we have data in the White House Task force those data show this is a serious problem. People need to take it seriously. Reporter President Trump in a pair of fourth of july celebrations with social distancing optional and few masks stoked partisan divisions. The radical left, the maxists, the anarchists, the agitators, the looters reporter leaning into the culture war in an effort to reboot his campaign casting other americans as the threat. We will never allow an angry mob to tear down our statues, erase our history, indoctrinate our children, or trample on our freedoms reporter looking ahead the Trump Campaign announced the president s next rally after you will remember facing Harsh Criticism for his decision to host that recent rally inside an arena in tulsa where cases were rising that arena was half full by the time it was done this saturday, a different approach President Trump will travel to New Hampshire, a state where cases are declining to host an open air event in tulsa, masks were optional. This time the Campaign Says all ateendys are strongly encouraged to wear them craig . Peter alewhite house, thank. Another major story coming out of the Holiday Weekend. Gun violence. The celebrations in a number of major cities like new york, chicago, and atlanta all marred by deadly shootings. A number of the victims were young children. And atlantas mayor had a very powerful statement for those responsible. Nbcs blayne alexander joins us now with more on this story. Good morning. Reporter hoda, good morning to you. Across the country we saw communities, cities all rocked by gun violence over the Holiday Weekend. Here in atlanta at least 26 people were shot between friday and sunday including an 8yearold little girl who was riding in the back seat of the car with her mother. Enough is enough. Reporter overnight Atlanta MayorKeisha Lance Bottoms denouncing the gun violence that killed 8yearold secoriea turner. Shot and killed a baby. It wasnt one shooter. There were at least two shooters. Reporter turner was shot saturday night riding in a car with her mother near the burned remains of a wendys where Rayshard Brooks was killed last month. Many have taken over the area at times blocking the street refusing to let cars pass. The mayor slammed any protests that are not peaceful. It has to stop. You cant blame this on a Police Officer. You cant say that this is about criminal justice reform. Were fighting the enemy within when we are shooting each other up on our streets. Reporter this shooting just one of many during a violent Holiday Weekend in cities across the country. Dozens of People Killed by gunfire. In chicago at least 17 People Killed, including another child, 7yearold natalie wallace. Memphis, omaha and cleveland also reported an Alarming Number of shootings. And in new york city, shootings have doubled every week for the last three weeks. Mayor bill de blasio facing fierce criticism from current and former members of the nypd accusing him of, quote, surrendering the city with hefty cuts to its police force in the wake of calls for reform. President trump calling out the rise in shootings saying the federal government is ready, willing, and able to help if asked. As cities across the country grapple with a new wave of violence. Guys, back here in atlanta less than 24 hours after little secoriea was killed, three more people were shot in that same vicinity, including a 53yearold man who died on sunday. Hoda . So sad. Blayne alexander, thank you. Were going to take a turn now. Lots more to get to on this monday morning, including a big day for sports fans. Major League Baseball expected to release its 2020 schedule this morning. The shortened season will start beginning july 23rd or 24th due to the team. They will play 60 games and stay mainly in their own region as well. Not to be outdone, the nhl cleared a major hurdle on sunday to get its league going again. They finalized a return to play protocol for Training Camps and for games. So the agreement still needs final approval from all the players. The nhl will finish out its season in two hub cities. Toronto and edmonton. And in this case games are expected to start on august 1st. You just like the sound of sports coming back. Looks like its happening, right . Wait. Are you and dylan about to be reunited . Looks like it. Yes. Theres dylan dreyer. Ive seen a lot of you over the past few days. I know. Youre not sick of me already, are you, craig . Heck no. One night. I enjoyed seeing you on the fourth. It was nice that night. It was nice saturday night in the city. But its about to get hot. Yeah. I mean, the temperature dropped in time for the fireworks on the fourth of july but now the temperatures are going back up. We are going to see highs stick around the 90degree range for quite some time. Its not just here, its back through the great lakes and it is going to be scorching the next several days. Were still going to see high temperatures well up into the 90s with your feels like temperature up around 100 degrees. Indianapolis will feel like 99 philadelphia 95. 93 in raleigh. 95 in savannah those are your feels like temperatures as we go int wednesday, thursday, friday, temperatures are still going to stay on the warm side. Really no break in sight except new york might get down into the upper 80s by friday. If you want to call that some relief, there it is. Thats a look at the weather across the country well get to your local forecast in the next 30 seconds l coach . Yo devin remember to brush in a circl