chemical plant hours after the massive first blast. the fireball caught on doorbell cam. >> boom. then glass and the windows come flying in my house >> the force shattering windows, blowing doors off nearby homes residents forced to evacuate the inferno still burning tonight. the marine wanted for murder, captured after an 18-day manhunt across three states. the surprising place authorities caught him the rock climber speaking out to us after surviving a four-story plunge at yosemite, and the famous climber who came to her rescue. the new warning as you shop for the holidays fake money used in the movies spreading into the real world. how to spot those phony bills. and don't wait for black friday the best holiday deals you can score right now. >> announcer: this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt good evening i'm kristen welker in for lester we begin tonight with the treacherous weather wreaking havoc on the eve of this thanksgiving holiday two monster storms, hammering much of the country, canceling flights and shutting down highways and snarling holiday

traffic. 19 million people are under winter weather alerts from california to michigan and the growing threat of dangerous winds could mean the macy's thanksgiving day parade balloons may not fly tomorrow we've got it all covered tonight, beginning with molly hunter in minneapolis. >> reporter: there is heavy snow, treacherous roads and devastating winds. severe weather wreaking havo across the country nearly 10 inches of snow in minneapolis, the city's biggest november snowfall in almost a decade and as that system moves east, there's another one out west, causing this massive interstate pileup in washington after a bomb cyclone created blizzard conditions and in utah, a terrifying moment caught on camera two troopers were assisting other crashes as a car careened toward them. even though plows have been through here, all of this slush is going to melt and then freeze again, which is treacherous driving conditions for anyone on the road it's not just snow, a daring river rescue after record rainfall in california emergency crews fighting to

reach this man stranded in the rushing water, finally bringing him to safety. but the growing danger in the next 24 hours, high winds already causing thousands of power outages across several states and now four confirmed tornadoes in louisiana and mississippi. gusts up to 60 miles per hour whipping through chicago today, a tree crushing these cars. and in new york, macy's thanksgiving day parade organizers say whether or not the balloons will fly is still up in the air. >> we really have to see exactly what the wind conditions are going to be tomorrow it will be a game day decision i'm always optimistic. >> reporter: there are 94 million people under wind alerts across the midwest and northeast and most of them will still be in place tomorrow. kristen? >> molly hunter reporting from hard-hit minneapolis molly, thank you let's get to al roker now. al, there is much more severe weather ahead. what are you seeing ahead of the big day tomorrow >> a buffet of bad weather from

coast to coast 106-mile-per-hour gusts in oregon multiple tornadoes in louisiana, mississippi. chicago, 53-mile-per-hour wind gusts, and minneapolis picked up another nine inches of snow. and tomorrow a mess coast-to-coast again delays for boston, buffalo, new york and d.c and as you head out west, look at the problems for oklahoma city, dallas, the roads are a problem. albuquerque for snow and san francisco and l.a. for heavy rain and sunday, everybody is trying to get home. well, we've got more problems again from boston to new york to d.c., minneapolis, chicago and atlanta and out west along the coast we've got big, big problems and for those of you who are big fans of those macy's balloons, we could have some problems. the sustained winds of 23 miles per hour, wind gusts of 34 bring the balloons down. look at the forecast we're right within that. and with windchills in the mid 30s, well, thanksgiving could be a problem for the parade and others, as well. happy thanksgiving, kristen. >> and to you al, thank you. let's check on how all of this

is affecting air travel on this very busy travel day nbc's tom costello is at the faa command center in virginia what exactly can travelers expect >> reporter: good evening, kristen. this thanksgiving proving to be more challenging than last year. here they are monitoring every plane in the air, every airport, coordinating with the military and the airlines here is where we stand right now. thus far today, 137 cancellations nationwide 3700 delays and that number continues to build flight aware misery map is highlighting the trouble spots minneapolis is the most affected today. 342 delays and two dozen cancellations. the wind has affected o'hare in chicago. nearly 500 delays there. denver, still recovering from the snow and more than 500 cancellations yesterday. and the new york airports feeling the effects of the high winds, as the winds pick up through the night. we could see more delays through the day tomorrow and then we do this all again over the weekend when we have more storms and the heaviest travel day all year on sunday. kristen?

>> tom costello tracking it all. thank you for that. we're following an explosion and fire tonight at a chemical plant in texas near the louisiana border residents evacuated, thanksgiving plans disrupted and late today a second blast. morgan chesky has that story. >> reporter: the overnight blast shook this texas town to its core the explosion so powerful it was caught on doorbell cameras across port neches, a coastal area east of houston stunned residents running from their homes to see what happened some even forced to evacuate. >> it sounded like a bomb went off. >> reporter: the blast whipping through tpc group, a company that produces chemicals making rubber, fuels and plastics three workers were injured tonight, it's the smoldering mess pouring potentially toxic smoke in texas skies that has residents worried. >> definitely worried about what's going in the air. >> reporter: officials warning to stay away >> take necessary precautions to

move cross or upwind from the event and find yourself not in that plume. >> reporter: not easy for residents living nearby, like the brown family the blast blew their doors off. >> i said my god, one of the plants out here is on fire the whole sky was lit up. >> reporter: over at ray fisher's, the windows shattered. >> after the boom, glass and windows just come flying in the house. it was pretty scary. >> reporter: the danger isn't over yet late today, residents rattled by yet another blast. >> a couple minutes ago, we heard two small explosions and a very large one it might not be as under control as it looks. >> reporter: tonight, the smoky skies remain a serious cause for concern. in fact, officials have increased the evacuations to a four-mile radius away from this plant. meanwhile, the cause of this blast remains under investigation. kristen? >> morgan, thank you. now to breaking developments in a multi-state manhunt for a marine accused of murder

today, he was finally apprehended where police believe he committed the alleged crime gabe gutierrez has the latest. >> reporter: tonight, an intense 18-day manhunt spanning three states is over awol marine michael brown was arrested this morning inside his mother's home in virginia. >> i am thankful this situation has come to a successful closure without no injury to the public and law enforcement personnel. >> reporter: police won't specify what led him to the unoccupied house, but brown's attorney tells us he surrendered. nearly two weeks ago while authorities combed the area, roanoke schools were closed, and this neighborhood was asked to shelter in place >> this was a person that should be considered armed and dangerous. >> reporter: investigators say the 22-year-old combat engineer deserted his post at camp lejeune in north carolina last month and made his way to the roanoke, virginia, area. the fbi joined the search and put him on the most-wanted list

after authorities say brown killed his mother's boyfriend in her home brown's attorney told us the man abused brown for years and forced him to live in the woods as a teenager. >> there is a lot of abuse in the home, physical as well as mental. >> reporter: now, investigators say they're speaking to brown, trying to find out whether anyone helped hide him gabe gutierrez, nbc news and turning now to the latest on the impeachment showdown tonight, the president is sharpening his attacks as his personal attorney comes under new scrutiny nbc's kelly o'donnell is traveling with the president >> reporter: 20,000 supporters welcomed the president back in his adopted home state of florida last night his fury over democrats' impeachment efforts on display. >> they are pushing the impeachment witch hunt and a lot of bad things are happening to them because you see what's happening in the polls everybody says that's really bull [ bleep ] >> reporter: tonight, new

scrutiny on the president's personal lawyer, rudy giuliani, who reportedly sought six-figure business contracts for his firm with the ukrainian prosecutor and the ukrainian justice ministry earlier this year personal business for giuliani while he was working with that prosecutor to investigate the bidens' activities in ukraine to help president trump that's according to "the new york times", which reviewed draft copies of contract which were never finalized last weekend on fox, giuliani denying making money there. >> let me make clear. >> yeah. real quick >> i have no business interests in the ukraine. >> reporter: the new report comes as the president tried to distance himself from his personal attorney, denying yesterday that he instructed giuliani to investigate in ukraine. >> no, i didn't direct him, but he -- he is a warrior. but you have to understand, rudy has other people he represents. >> no, i know. >> kelly, we're also learning more about that highly anticipated inspector general's report on the fbi's

investigation of the trump campaign what can you tell us >> reporter: well, kristen, one big takeaway was that the fbi did not infiltrate the 2016 trump campaign with an undercover agent that, according to a person who reviewed a draft copy of the report due out next month and that undercuts a main allegation of spying frequently made by the president but the report is expected to say some fbi employees made mistakes. kristen? >> kelly o'donnell with the president in florida kelly, thank you for that. there is some good news tonight about jimmy carter the former president is now out of the hospital, where he spent more than two weeks recovering from brain surgery after a fall. the carter center says he's looking forward to thanksgiving at home where he will continue his recovery there is a new warning from the secret service as you do your holiday shopping. millions in fake cash used in movies is being passed off in the real world, and could end up in your hands. nbc's pete williams on how to spot it.

>> reporter: when hollywood studios want to show actors tossing around lots of money like this scene in "casino". >> everything looks on the up and up, right? wrong. >> reporter: or in "the wolf of wall street." >> i'm talking about this. >> reporter: it's seldom the real thing they use fake currency that looks real from a distance, but millions of dollars worth of it is showing up in america's retail cash registers, passed off as genuine, even though it's printed with disclaimers saying it's not real, for motion picture use only a counterfeit expert at the u.s. secret service says it takes a second look to see it's fake. >> in this case "for motion picture use only" is written in a similar font to a genuine $100 bill >> reporter: i would see how a harried cashier, who handles thousands of these a day, can easily skip over this. >> that's certainly what the correspondent f counterfeiter is hoping for. >> reporter: they seized a huge pile of fake movie money and another type of counterfeit rapidly on the rise is made to

look as real as it can be except for foreign language characters. it's widely available online, sometimes advertised as intended for training cashiers to handle money or as a gag gift >> these are clearly just almost exact copies, apart from the foreign writing. >> reporter: real money has features that are very difficult to counterfeit, like watermarks that show up when a bill is held to the light $5 bills and up have a security thread embedded in the paper $10 bills and higher have ink that shifts from green to copper colored when tilted. and the 100 now has a 3d ribbon that shifts from the number 100 to the image of a bell so the advice from the secret service while doing holiday shopping, take a moment to look closely at the money you get back in change don't assume it's real just because it's green kristen? >> good advice pete williams, thank you. on the issue of your money, new numbers show consumer spending rose again last month, continuing to fuel growth, but there are fears the trade war with china could spell trouble nbc's gadi schwartz visited one

company, proud to make its products in america but also worried about the future >> reporter: as the sun comes up in mountain view, arkansas, the enzos are already ringing. >> this is the forged part of our business we have 100,000 square feet. >> reporter: this is a family business in the foothills of the ozarks with 40 employees and 12 master blacksmiths and father and son owners of the stone county iron works that say business is booming. >> in this area, we have workstations for every one of our blacksmiths. >> reporter: it's one of the largest forges of its kind in the country, and they are bent on making everything right here in america >> what we do in particular, hand making everything, it's kind of has to be here. >> our model doesn't work in china or somewhere else. >> reporter: the massive stainless steel christmas trees for uptown houston's holiday display, the biggest order the bakers have ever seen. how do you see the economy right now? >> fantastic we couldn't ask for better. >> reporter: even here among the

forges of arkansas, they are feeling the effects from this trade war with china. >> when the tariffs were announced, within a matter of days, we got a letter from our steel supplier >> reporter: on the biggest project you were working on? >> the biggest project in the history of the company saying our stainless steel price, the vast majority of the cost, was going to go up by 25%. >> reporter: for now, they are eating the costs and forging ahead through a trade war with no end in sight. gadi schwartz, nbc news, mountain view, arkansas. and just ahead, the harrowing fall and dramatic rescue in yosemite how a top climber managed to survive. we'll hear from her. also, the price you pay. where to find the best deals before black friday.

we're back with the dramatic fall and rescue of an american climber as she was attempting a record feat in yosemite.

tonight, she's sharing her harrowing story. here is miguel almaguer. >> reporter: the cliffside rescue unfolded in the shadow of el capitan emily harrington surviving a four-story fall off the mountain battered and bruised, but incredibly escaping a serious injury >> i hit a few things on the way down, but the rope caught me my gear caught me. >> reporter: a climbing champion whose feat includes summiting everest, she set out to climb one of the most challenging routes on el cap in a single day. she was scaling the 3600 foot wall with alex honnold, who made history during his free solo using no rope or harness to scale the yosemite mountain. after harrington's fall in freezing temperatures, he stabilized her spine before

rescue teams arrived. >> he is in general a rational and calm person, so it was kind of nice to have that voice in my ear in a time like that. >> reporter: with climbing season coming to an end at el capitan, tonight harrington is recovering from torn muscles and a concussion, but next year promises to be back on the mountain, hoping to climb into the history books. miguel almaguer, nbc news. that is brave. next, some of the best shopping deals and strategies heading into black friday.

back now with the price you pay. why wait for black friday or cyber monday nbc's jo ling kent has the big deals you can score right now. >> reporter: tonight, the holiday dash for deals is on consumers on average estimated to shell out more than $1,000 each this season with tech and toys in high demand, retailers aren't waiting until friday amazon is offering $125 off this samsung gear sport smart watch and 50 bucks off the fitbit versa now. best buy knocking $350 off a samsung 70-inch 4k smart-tv

coming in at $550 starting thanksgiving and 'tis the season for toys geoffrey the giraffe making a comeback today. >> we have been waiting. he's been on facebook asking for them to come back. >> reporter: after the iconic chain liquidated all 700 stores last year, two new stores are opening in new jersey and texas. and the toy brand is partnering with target, to sell the hottest toys online, offering buy two frozen toys, get one free. that sale ends tonight with so many price cuts, one in five people are expected to shop on their smart phone from the thanksgiving table tomorrow, while major stores open their doors on turkey day. but not every deal is really a steal. some stores set prices higher so after the markdowns, they are still bringing in a profit so check for the coupons and discount codes before you buy. kristen? >> jo ling, thank you for that and coming up, a real thanksgiving high note for one father and his daughter.

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finally tonight, a thanksgiving dream come true tomorrow for a father/daughter team from the kansas city area here is sam brock. >> reporter: high school freshman savannah allshouse has a special bond with her band her father, tim, is the director >> there is a special bond between fathers and daughters, isn't there? >> reporter: for 20 years, he's led the blue springs golden regiment performing at prestigious events all over the country, including the macy's

thanksgiving day parade twice. the last time, a 5-year-old savannah watching from the sidelines. >> i do remember, like, the floats and confetti. >> reporter: how hard is it to be able to get this invitation >> it's probably the hardest invitation, i think, to get in the country. >> reporter: even for a band as skilled as the golden regiments, a third invitation was a long shot. >> it was sad because i wanted savannah to experience this. >> reporter: it's been her dream for years. >> sophomore year, i want to go and march in the macy's parade. >> reporter: then, music to their ears. >> the 2019 macy's thanksgiving day parade [ cheers ] >> reporter: they did it again and more than 200 students packed up for the big apple. how long do you think this memory will stick with you >> i'm going to remember this forever. when i'm retired and 80 years old, this will be the one thing that i remember for the rest of

my life. >> reporter: a father and daughter grateful for this high note over the holidays sam brock, nbc news, new york. >> that is something to be thankful for. don't miss the macy's thanksgiving day parade tomorrow at 9:00 a.m. right here on nbc that's "nightly news." i'm kristen welker, we'll leave you with a look at the final preparations underway. thank you for watching have a good night and a great holiday. ♪ guess it's true ♪ i'm not good at it one night stand ♪ ♪ but i still need love because

i'm just a man! ♪ ♪ these nights never seem to go to plan ♪ ♪ i don't want you to leave ♪ will you hold my hand ♪ oh, won't you stay with me? ♪ ♪ because you're all i need, this ain't love, it's clear to see ♪ ♪ but darling, stay with me ♪ oh ♪ oh, won't you stay with me ♪ because you're all i need ♪ won't you stay with me,

because you're all i need ♪ ♪ this ain't love it's clear to see ♪ ♪ but darling ♪ stay with me ♪ [cheers and applause] >> kelly: give it up! [cheers and applause] welcome to "the kelly clarkson show" y'all! give it up for my band on the te "the kelly clarkson show"! literally, those are people that work with us at the show and they been rehearsing. my music director, young nailed it! great job. you sounded