in november? and beheaded. the mexican police commander investigating the death of an american tourist is found murdered. we'll talk to his wife "today," murdered. we'll talk to his wife "today," wednesday, october 13, 2010. captions paid for by nbc-universal television and good morning. welcome to "today" on a wednesday morning. >> the ninth miner has just come out of that mine. and you think that tse men have been down there for 70 days, each time one comes up, it's just a remark m image. they embrace family members and they look incredibly well. >> they are sending that capsule down a half a mile under ound, about one miner per hour being brought to the surface and as you mentioned, the scene when they get to the top is emotional to say the least. >> when the second miner came up, also named mario, he got out of the capsule, and he ran around the crowd leading them in a chant. now they're calling him supermario. >> some of the miners bringing cks up with them. you would thi they would have seen enough of rocks in the last few ys. the makeshift village set up at the mine has been dubbed camp hope, nataleeorales. >> it is an emotional scene, it has been a very long and exhausng night, a very long and exhausting 70 days r these families, but this is a scene that is going to be played out over and over again "today" and possibly even into tomorrow. a miracle at the mine, after 70 days trapped under ground, the first miner emerged. just after midnight local tim wednesday morning, 31-year-old florencio alvaros. was brought to the surface. the raw emotion is captured by hundreds of supporters. it's impossible to have a dry eye, as you can see those very first moments, the very first hug, a very emotional experience. and seeing the grown men out there t reporte out there covering this story, everybody's crying. one hour later, the second miner emerged. mario sepulveda embraced his wife. then an unexpected moment. sepulveda reached inside his bag and brought out only rocks. and this miner known as the comedian of the bunch, laughed it up with t presidentf the chile. this all began on august 5 when the golden copper mine collapsed. 17 days later, a sma drill broke through with remarkable news, the miners september a noa note to the surface saying they were alive. for more than two months the world watched as the miners hoped and prayed for a rescue. above ground, more than 1,000 experts planned the meticulous rescue, while family members gathered at what is now called camp hope, tuesday many of the women spent the last few hours getting ready, havingheir hair done, putting on makeup. baby esperanza which means hope is waiting for her father. throughout the overnight, almost every hour on the hour, rescue after rescue after rescue. over and over these brave men won the hearts of people all over the world. 33 miners, once strangers, now international heroes. and as you just saw, the ninth miner just pulled out of that hole. he's actually mario gomez, he's been ten into the triage area where they're going to do a medical evaluation. mario gomez is the oldest miner, he's 63 years old and they had some concern about his medical condition, he does have a heart condition and he has some respiratory conditions as well. they brought him up with an oxygen mask. they put the oxygen mask once again over his face as they sent him to the triage area. all of the miners have been in incredible physicalnd mental condition. the minute they jump out of that capsule, and some of them have literally jump out of that cab suddenly. -- capsule. >> it's somotional up here, you and natt have been up all night. can you describe the emotions there? >> it's electric, everybody's running on adrenaline. the folks who have been camping out here for 69, 70 days, who never gave up are wired. they are wired. and what i find interesting is some of the family members after their loved ones have ce up, because we now have nineiners who have come up, the loveds ones aone s are remaining here to watch the others come up. it's they have bonded the way the 33 miners have bonded. the nation here has unified in a way that rarely happens in any country. >> and in fact, if our cameraman, carlos, can pan over there, you can see an example of the crowds with each rescue you see there, a show of solidarity, a celebration here, this is what is going on over and over again now with the ninth rescue, next will be number ten and of course this is a very long process. it's going to be a very long day following a very long and emotional night. so clearly everybody's still on pins and needles until number 33 is out, they're not going to breathe a sigh of relief. >> to see the engineers pull this off, but it is working like clock work, everything they said this fenix capsule was supposed to do, it is doing. all indications are that it's working like a charm. >> natalee, as we understand, the last guy out will be the shift supervise from that day, someone who has bece kind of a leader down there? it's interesting because they were all fighting over not who would be first out there, but who would be last and he is leader, luis, osua who actually helped them, who said we're going to ration the food like nobody's business we're only going to have two spoon fulls of tuna each a da in all crisis situations, it takes one person to take the helm. and the reason he's coming up last, is like the captain of a ship, he's the last one coming up. >> so many hugs here, meredith, and a lot of thanks to the rescuers and all of th people who have been involved in this really superhuman and miraculous effort. >> it really is, natalee and key in copiapo, chile this morning, in a great moment of national pride. we're going to head outside to the plaza where "today" correspondent amy robach is going to see how it feels inside that capsule. >> with me is bill arnold, he is executive director of the fenix first response. and while we talk about this illustration, we're going to demonstrate what it's like for a miner to get in the capsule. what are the dimensions of this? >> it's around 22 inches on the outsid 21 inches on the inside and just over nine feet tall. >> how does it compare to the cab suddenly they're using in chile? >> the capsule in chile is about three feet taller, but the inside dimensions on the same. >>'m going to give it a shot just to give it a real feel of what it's like to be in that cab suddenly. how was it used during that rescue effort in pennsylvania? >> quecreek, we couldn't get the men out through the portal because the mine was flooded so we had to drill a boor hole down from the surface and extract them from the top. >> this is actually a very rare vehicle. worldwide, how often is this used? >> it is. in all reality, it's only been used twice, here in chile and then in quecreek in 2002. the capsule was developed in 1972, specifically in response to a similar disaster. but it was fortunately not used until 2002. >> it doesn't happen to be used very often, but it's a very safe haven for miners being rescued. >> i can feel the excitement of these rescuers, the same way we did at quecreek. it's a very successful rescue, but they're cognizant that this isn't done until they're all out safely. >> meredith, back to you. and now closer to home, we're now less than three weeks from the midterm elections, candidates in some hot contested races have faced off their final debates before election day. kelly o'donnell has the details. >> reporter: good morning, medith. and today a new face heads out on the campaign trail. first lady michelle obama heads out to wisconsin. there were important races, the connecticut senate race, the california governor's race and those candidates d not hold back. >> let me answer that if you wouldn't mind. >> reporter: defining the race is simple. republican and former ceo meg whitman. >> my business is creating jobs, your business is politics. >> reporter: veteran politician democrat jerry brown. >> she's been in the bleachers looking at what's happening in government. >> reporter: tom brokaw raised the latest controversy. >> somebody in your campaign referred to ms. whitn as a whore. >> reporter: that was caught on voicemail after brown left a message but failed to hang up. his staff's conversation was recorded. >> we have heard no outrage from yo >> reporter: brown was defense at f ive at first and then apologized. whitman hit back. >> the fact that you're defending your campaign from a personal attack on me is not befitting of california, it's not befitting of the office you're running for. >> reporter: whitman had her own controversy, she had employed an illegal immigrant. >> it broke my heart, but i had to fire her. >> reporter: brown added his own. >> after nine years, she didn't even get her a lawyer. >> reporter: turning to connecticut's nal senate debate, a nastier grudge match, with a hissing, booin audience. >> dick blumen thal attacked linda mcmahon and to the wrestling empire that made her rich. >> my opponent has notnly marketed sex and violence to children, but she actually paid hundreds of millions of dollars to lobby in washington against penalties for sex and violence marketing to children. >> reporter: mcmahon countered that the wwe provides jobs and became more family entertainment. but also acknowledged there were problems. >> i think there were times when we pushed the envelope. >> reporter: she knocked blumenthal again for falsely claiming he fought in vietnam. >> the people of connecticut knew you, but i think what they know now is that you have great difficulty in always telling the truth. >> reporter: a there will be more debate spectacle tonight with christine o'donnell and chris cos will be facing off . it is 7:15 and here's matt. according to a new "wall street journal" report, pay is on track to break a record high for a second consecutive year. jim cramer is host of "mad money" on cncb. >> $144 billion. these are the people who got us into the financial mess, they're making record amounts of muffin while i lost my job, my homend my retirement savings, is it an emotional argument or is it rational? >> it's completely rational. don't forget also that these companies would not be making any money if the government had not bailed them out. >> here's what one business analyst said about this, quote, pay is the 800-pound gorilla on wall street and the gorilla does not nt to go on a diet. a lot of these firms say wait a second, if we don't pay top doar in salaries and bonuses, we lose top people and we can't compete. >> there's 10 million people who work for a quarter of what these ople work for. i cannot believe how outrageous these guys are being. >> public relations wise, you talk to these people on wall street all the time. >> i have known them for years. >> do they also realize that god forbid if a fure bailout is needed, the peoe of this country are going to say no way. >> they're going to make so much money between now and then they don't care. >> are the same people who got us in this mess still working for these firms by and large? >> there experienced, that're the 800-pound gorilla that demands to be fed. >> what is it they need to do? >> they're going to continue to keep rates low. i think they're creating an atmosphere and ben bernanke is doing a great job which says look, hire soone, don't worry about it, rates will stay low. good man, trying hard. >> you can catch jim on mad money, that's week nights on cn. we have got amy outf the capsule and back to the news desk. we begin with a high profile resignation of washington, d. school chancellor michelle reid highlighted in the film "waiting for superman" she is considered by some to be the national face of education reform. rehema eis joins us now. is this a surprise? >> not at all. in fact it wasnticipated tha the man who hired her for the job lost his business for re-election last month. she was brought in to make some bold changes in one of the worst school districts in the country and she did. she shut down two dozen faing schools, fired 500 teachers and negotiated a landmark teacher contract. but some people say she was like a bull in a china shop, not paying attention to politics which she said she was not mindful of and she alienated teachers, parents and voters. if there's more work to be done in this schooldistrict, it will have to be done by a new chancellor. a plane crashed into a mountain outside kabul, eight people were on board and it appears none survivesurvived. a man was swept more than a mile after his safely line got unhooked. the obama administration has lifted a ban on deepwater oil drilling, drilling firm also have to meet new safely regulations. george clooney met tuesday with president obama asking that the u.s. work to prevent violence ahead of sudan's january election. clooney said if there's any way to get ahead of this and stop this before it happens, we better. president obama is related to sarah paip and rush limbaugh. they say both of tm are the president's tenth cousins. and in a scene that could be out of the tv sw "glee," a high school boy born with cerebral palsy, was allowed t live his dream of a football player, not only getting in the game, but also scoring a touchdown. it is n 7:20, back to matt, meredith and al. good for him. mr. roker, h are you? >> i'm pretty good. we're keeping an eye on a nev nor'easter, possibly. >> good morning. that rain will be moving in here by tomorrow morning. right now off to a dry start. mostly clear sky. it's chilly. things have changed with a northeast breeze. 50 degrees in the suburbs. 40s in many of the rural areas. ghs today climbing into the 60s with sunshine. but then clouding up today and this afternoon. rain likely off and on through thursday. highs near 60 endinghursday night. small chance of a shower friday and saturday. and that's your latest weather. al, thank you very much. still ahead, much more from chile where the rescue of these trapped miners is going on right now. more from that emotional scene. just drive, we'll get there! adventure runs on dunkin', with our maple cheddar brkfast sandwich. breakfast just got a whole lot sweeter. bob ehrlich says he wants to fix maryland. but he increased state spending by record amounts. ehrlich raised $3 billion in taxes and fees... including property taxes... and a 40% increase in clege tuition. and now he's made over $1 billion in new promises... with no plans to pay for them... except for cutting education. cuts that will lay off teachers and increase cla sizes. that's not a budget. and bob ehrlich's not the kind of leader... we can trust. still to come, tdo you know what this is? 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[ doorbell ngs ] oh, it's original little bite™. we're off to practic keeping 'em full and focused. yeah! we've gotig shoes to fill! 7:26 now on this wednesy. at least one person has been shot near the intersection of 12th and w streets. the crime is on the property of depament of public works. right now the police have not told us the circumstances behind the shooting. we have a crew on the scene and we'll bring you more information. weather and traffic coming up next. next. the moment you feel run down or achy nip flu-like symptoms in the bud, with oscillococcinum. get oscillo and feel like yourself again. oscillococcinum, nip it in the bud. good morning. clear and chilly this morning. temperatures in the 40s and # 50s. high in the 60s with increasing clouds. rain tomorrow with a high near 06. saturday andsunday, sunny, highs in the 60s. dry in t next week. how's the traffic, jerry? tom, tough times making the trip in on new york avenue. a broken down truck on brentwood parkway. look out for the sunshine. one more stop, the drive to maryland and vaf loaded up from at least germantown. aaron? >> ahead on npbc 4, amazi and [ male announcer ] martin o'malley sworn in. inherits a billion-dolla surplus, low unemployment. o'malley signs the biggest tax hike in maryland history. raids chesapeake bay fund cover spending. gives raises to top aides. business climate ranks 45th worst in e nation. now 200,000 joblost. o'malley covers upobs report that proved maryland's economy slled. if re-elected, o'malley will raise taxes again. whether he does, is up to you. 7:30 now on this wednesday morning, october 13, 2010 that is the latest miner rescued. i'm meredith viera alongside matt lauer. we're going to check in with natal natalee morales in a bit. coming up, "today" investigates just how dangerous your words can be when you don't really know who can seethem. and david arquette opens up about his separation from courteney cox in a surprisingly candid interview. the disturbing new development tied to the murder of an american tourist allegedly by mexican pirates. the mexican police commander investigating that shooting has now been murdered. janet shanlian is in mccowan, texas with more. >> reporter: this story has taken a very dark turn, the lead investigator in the case has been decapitated and his served head delived i a suiase to the mexican military. what started as one couple's personal tragedy has now turned into a sign of mexico's escalating drug war and its spillover right here. what was supposed to be one couple's fun day on the water has turned into an international incident, sning a bright light on the escalating violence in the mexican drug war, as the investigation into the murder of vid hartley grinds on for two weeks now, grim news tuesday, a local mexican police commander, the lead investigator on the case was found dead, decapitated. >> this offer was an innocent victim of the ongoing drug wars in mexico. >> reporter: and the escalating war has hampered the search for david's body. they had to suspend the search because of threats from mexican drug cartels who have taken control of the area. david's wife tiffany is concerned aut mexico's handling of the search for david. >> until we get some more footage and video or pictures that say this is what they're doing, you know, we're just kind of hoping and praying they're doing what they say there doing. >> reporter: two brothers were suspected in david's murder. and the documents reportedly came from the same mexican official that was savagely killed. >> again, directly involved with the supposed identification of the suspect. i believe the death of this investigator is very much linke to the death of david hartley. >> reporter: for david's grieving family, it's just another horribleloss. >> it's just a terrible, terrible, another terrible tragedy adding to what we're going through. >> reporter: david and tiffany's outing two weeks ago was supposed to be their last adventure in