devastation in the lonestar state. tornados touching down in texas overnight ast overnight astastor edges rains

flood the area. a highway inferno. why it's expected to take days before the road can reopen. >> britney spears peespeaking o after an apparent fight with her boyfriend ending with medics on the scene. the pop star's response to the chaotic situation. and it's hats off to the most exciting day in sports. and how fashion became almost as big of a draw as the main event. it's friday, and we're off to the races. "early today" starts right now. good morning to you, i'm frances rivera. we begin in texas where more than a week of wild weather across the central u.s. continues wreaking havoc. on thursday, a massive tornado was reported outside of abilene.

one resident caught the terrifying twister on camera as hail hammered down. meanwhile, near houston, floodwaters submerged homes and cars, after some towns saw nearly 12 inches of rain. officials issued mandatory evacuations for some residents around the san jacinto river. and more than a dozen school districts in the area are closed today. so far no injuries have been reported, but crews have performed numerous rescue operations. the disaster declaration includes 59 counties. the declaration now covers 88 counties. let's bring in angie lassman. good morning, angie. >> we, boy, had a whole lot of rain falling in this small area here across parts of texas over the past 48 hours. specifically, just to the west of livingston, you can see the highest totals. five to seven inches. some spots reporting upwards of

8 or 9 inches. we've got a lot of swollen rivers. notice where you're seeing river flood warnings across this entire region from beaumont to lake charles and up north toward tyler. we have those that are going to last through the day today. we've also got the flood watches for this same kind of region. 6 million people included in that, including parts of oklahoma as well. more showers and storms possible, some of them likely to become strong. we have a couple spots we're closely watching. the biggest threat is hail, of course we can't rule out strong winds and tornados. parts of texas and kansas are specifically the spots we're going to watch. abilene, garden city, lubbock, the same places we were dealing with the severe weather threat yesterday. >> what a week it's been, and what a way to end it. thank you, angie. breaking overnight, the d.a.'s office confirming that a nypd officer did fire a gun during the chaos on columbia's campus tuesday.

it happened while cops were clearing hamilton hall on demonstrators. the d.a. says it was accidental and nobody was hurt. no students was ere in there in ad immediate advice vicinity. >> reporter: president biden condemning disruptive protests. >> vandalism, trespassing, breaking down windows, forcing the cancellation of classes and graduations, none of this is a peaceful protest. threatening people, intimidating people, instilling fear in people is not a peaceful protest. it's against the law. >> reporter: dozens of universities and colleges across the country continuing to grapple with lohow to handle th growing movement of pro-palestinian demonstrators. at ucla, law enforcement breaching the massive encampment. you hear the flashbangs there.

the police are trying to make their way into the area. >> reporter: demonstrators, many of them in hard hats and gas masks appearing to use fire extinguishers aimed at police, trying to fend them off. police pushing back with overwhelming numbers. california highway patrol officers making hundreds of arrests. >> we're not going to back down. we hav >> reporter: they're asking supporters to bring them supplies, including for shields, umbrellas and water. the campus left with battered tents and debris. some ofthe those arrested now released from a downtown jail, spiking out. >> how do i feel? i'venever felt more proud of myself or my community. >> reporter: across the country at columbia university in new

york, the nypd releasing portions everybody cam video from tuesday night's raid to clear hamilton hall. police finding protesters sitting on the ground with arms linked. nationwide, more than 2100 arrests have been made connected with campus protests. portland state university campus closed down, as police made 12 arrests and cleared the school's library. four arrested at yale, 90 removed from campus at dartmouth. and, at the university of wisconsin's madison campus, defiant students reestablishing their tents just 24 hours after police disbanded the encan'tment there. we're going to be here indefinitely until they meet our demands. >> reporter: professor graham blair is defending the students' right to protest despite the tactics they've used. >> i think anyone how is worried about college campus needs to come to a

college campus. it's 18-year-olds who are learning for the first time how to express themselves. the civil war era ban on abortion in arizona has officially been repealed. k katie hobbs signed the change last night after the state senate voted to repeal the ban on wednesday. the ban allowed abortions only in instances to save the patient's life with no exceptions. a ban on abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy replaces the bill. a botat captain has been sentenced to four years in prison over a deadly fire. people died when the boat conception burned. he was found guilty of criminal negligence last year. in addition to his prison sentence, he will threee spend

th spend three years under supervised release. a fiery explosion shut down part of i-95 in connecticut. emilie ikeda has the details. >> reporter: with thick plumes of smoke darkening the sky, a nightmarish scene in norwalk, connecticut. >> [ bleep ]. can feel the heat from here. >> reporter: after a crash involving a passenger car, tractor-trailer and fuel truck ignited this massive fire on i-95. flames fully engulfing the tanker that officials say was carrying 8500 gallons of gasoline. >> i couldn't believe what i was seeing. it looked surreal. >> reporter: remarkably, no one was seriously injured, but officials are urging people to avoid the area, as the aftermath, coated in fire-suppressing foam continues to chlog traffic. >> can't stay home. take the train. >> reporter: this corridor sees 160,000 travelers per day.

now diverted to other local roads and interstates. >> hour and 40 minutes to get to work today. >> stop, start, stop, start. >> reporter: a section of i-95 will remain closed for several days in order for this section to be demolished. gasoline-fueled fires can get hot enough to deform even steel, leading to bridge collapses like this in philadelphia last year. back in the tri state, drivers bra bracing for this travel headache to linger. >> and our thanks to emily for that report. authorities responded to an incident involving britney spears in los angeles early thursday. two sources close to the singer say she got into a fight with her boyfriend, paul solis, but went home with her security team and is safe. the sources disputed a report that she threatened hotel employees. but the source did say she was crying and screaming. spears later took to social media, acknowledging an incident, saying that she

twisted her ankle and that paramedics showed up at my door illegally. this comes hours after the pop star and her ex-, sam ashgari settled the terms of their divorce. spears representatives did not respond to request for comment. the l.a. fire department did not identify her as the subject of a 911 call but confirmed paramedics responded to the hotel. so, will rain put a damper on your weekend plans? let's check back in with angie lassman. >> good morning, frances. we've got rain in the forecast for sure, across the country this weekend. let's start with the temperatures. upper 70s in cincinnati. warm in charlottesville. more than 15 degrees above normal in some of these spots. that will start to cool off here as we get through the weekend. but big picture look. there's that rain, heifery rain across parts of the east. if you're looking for a little sunshine on sunday, it's the

midwest and parts of the great lakes that will see a little of that. otherwise rain and snow out west. much of the gulf coast stretching up into the northeast will see unsettled conditions. stormy weather across the gulf coast and showers for the northeast. the kentucky derby forecast looks great. partly sunny skies to cleveland. mid-60s for new york and plenty of sunshine for boston. and that's a look at you ar forecast, frances. "early today" is back in a minute with the new highway tech that could save hundreds of lives. and he'll play the fall guy but not the bad guy. why ryan gosling says fatherhood changed the roles he's willing to play. the roles he's willing

to play. [sfx: spilling sound] nooo... aya... quick, the quicker picker upper! bounty absorbs spills like a sponge. and is 2x more absorbent so you can use less. bounty, the quicker picker upper. wanna know a secret? with new secret outlast, you can almost miss the bus... but smell like you didn't. secret fights 99% of odor-causing bacteria. smell fresh for up to 72 hours. secret works! it's a crime to smell that good. we're in a limestone cave, letting extreme residue build up to put finish jet dry to the test. dishwashers are designed to use jet dry to defend against tough residues for a practically spotless shine. i love that my daughter still needs me. but sometimes i can't help due to burning and stabbing pain in my hands, so i use nervive. nervive's clinical dose of ala reduces nerve discomfort in as little as seven days. now i can help again feel the difference with nervive.

it is a high-tech solution that could prevent hundreds of deaths along roads. new sensorw sensors cas can hel. scott friedman shows us how it works. >> reporter: along the turnpike near dallas a car makes a u-turn, reentering going the wrong way. the highway is one of the growing number of roads with directional sensors, calling police. but authorities are unable to stop the driver who travels eight minutes before slamming head on into another car. killing the wrong-way driver who investigators say had a blood c alcohol level twice the legal limit and the other driver on his way home to his wife wendy. >> he was just a kind soul, and he was so undeserving of this.

>> there's a car driving the wrong way. >> reporter: wrong-way crashes kill about 400 people each year in the u.s. despite an increase in road sensors and highway message boards that can warn of wrong-way drivers. the trouble is alerting people in the path of danger, not just police. >> everyone knew except for the people that were driving the right way and were in imminent danger. >> and that's what you want to change? >> absolutely. >> reporter: her husband's friends who used to work with michael and are spread across some of the biggest tech companies believe cell phone alerts are the biggest answer. >> we need to let the people in harm's way know so they can take action. >> reporter: they can already send alerts through a federal cell phone warning system used for amber alerts. he says alerts can be tailored to reach phones always moving near a wrong-way vehicle. it's a concept possible as we saw in detroit where bosh showed

us a test vehicle. we obviously can't drive the wrong way, so, for this test, bosh engineers have flipped the detection system just on this freeway ramp upah ahead. >> if you're inwrong way, stop in the nearest shoulder. >> reporter: we got the alert still in plenty of time to pull off the road. it can also alert other cars using the bosh softwarenearby. >> we are working with many partners to bring this feature into this apps, and we're in active discussions with car makers. >> reporter: meanwhile, jackson's friends are hunting for state highway systems, willing to do more with their sensors and cameras.

>> the technology is there. it's just getting the authorization and getting the right people in place who can al lou allow us to do this. >> reporter: her hope that they find the will to implement technology that will save lives. scott friedman, nbc news, dallas. still to come, a crucial victory just in the nick of time. the knicks are moving on to the next round of the nba playoffs after toppling a hated rival. after toppling a hated rival. [dog whimpers] [thinking] why always the couch? does he need to go to puppy school? get his little puppy diploma? how much have i been spending on this little guy? when your questions about life turn into questions about money... there's erica. the virtual financial assistant to help you spend, save, and plan smarter. only from bank of america. sometimes jonah wrestles with falling asleep... ...so he takes zzzquil.

the world's #1 sleep aid brand. and wakes up feeling like himself. get the rest to be your best with non-habit forming zzzquil. ♪ ♪ skin feeling rougher than sandpaper? don't let it ruin your day. try new dial exfoliating body wash... ...with a touch of creamy cocoa butter and orange extract. reveals soft and healthy- feeling skin after just one shower. dial up your day. feeling ughh from a backed up gut? ughh. miralax works naturally with the water in your body to help you go. free your gut and your mood will follow. for 8 grams of fiber, try mirafiber gummies. inez, let me ask you, you're using head and shoulders, right?

only when i see flakes. then i switch back to my regular shampoo. you should use it every wash, otherwise the flakes will come back. tiny troy: he's right, you know. is that tiny troy? the ingredients in head and shoulders keep the microbes that cause flakes at bay. microbes, really? they're always on your scalp... little rascals... but good news, there's no itchiness, dryness or flakes down here! i love tiny troy. and his tiny gorgeous hair. he's the best. - make every wash count! - little help please.

he's the best. working with hartenstein. brunson lines it up. bingo, three. the divincenzo drive. >> nothing but buckets for brunson. the knicks shook off their heartbreaking game-five loss earlier in the week with a thrilling series-clench,ing win.

jalen brunson's third consecutive 40-plus-point effort powered the knicks to victory and brought an end to philly's season. they will come face-to-face with an explosive indiana pacers squad. they clench their first playoff series win in a decade. milwaukee finds itself bounced from the first round of the playoffs in back-to-back seasons. man, they had it in the first quarter. the second quarter went to philly. and then the back and forth? what a series overall, right? >> what a series. that's what you want, excitement, and we definitely had that. now to ryan gosling breaking down what led to a change in his career. in an interview, the fall guy star said that his real-life role as a father has made him shy away from taking jobs with a da darker tinge. he didn't want to play

characters thatare too psychologically affected. he shares two daughters with his wife eva mendez and credits "la,la land". it was a different vibe. he's done a mixed bag. >> i remember googling him, he can sing, too. as we know from barbie. when we come back, what to know from the april jobs report. and an orangutan using a plant in a way they've never seen before. way they've never seen before. d's plaque psoriasis. ned, ned, who are you wearing? he thinks his flaky red patches are all people see. otezla is the #1 prescribed pill to treat plaque psoriasis. ned? otezla can help you get clearer skin, and reduce itching and flaking. with no routine blood tests required. doctors have been prescribing otezla for over a decade.

otezla is also approved to treat psoriatic arthritis. don't use otezla if you're allergic to it. serious allergic reactions can happen. otezla may cause severe diarrhea, nausea, or vomiting. some people taking otezla had depression, suicidal thoughts, or weight loss. upper respiratory tract infection and headache may occur. audience: ohhh... with clearer skin, movie night is a groovy night. (♪♪) live in the moment. ask your doctor about otezla. camilla tried the new scent of gain relax flings and it changed everything. (♪♪) hey dave, don't knock it 'til you smell it. new gain relax flings. (♪) join the millions who're feeling the power of osteo bi-flex®, the #1 pharmacist recommended joint care supplement. (♪) find our coupons in sunday's paper.

wanna know a secret? with new secret outlast, you can almost miss the bus... but smell like you didn't. secret fights 99% of odor-causing bacteria. smell fresh for up to 72 hours. secret works! it's a crime to smell that good. i love that my daughter still needs me. but sometimes i can't help due to burning and stabbing pain in my hands, so i use nervive. nervive's clinical dose of ala reduces nerve discomfort in as little as seven days. now i can help again feel the difference with nervive. so rich. so indulgent. it's new olay body wash. silky indulgent moisture. bye bye, dry skin. hello glow in just 14 days. indulge.

with olay body wash. [stomach growling] it's nothing... sounds like something. ♪when you have nausea, heartburn, indigestion♪ ♪upset stomach, diarrhea♪ pepto bismol coats and soothes for fast relief when you need it most. here's what's making headlines this friday morning. the april jobs report will be released, expected to show the unemployment rate holding steady at 3.8%. pair payment global, a has

received a bid. a wild orangutan appeared to be streeting a wounds with a medicinal plant. they saw the animal chew the leaves before applying it like a bandage. it helps treat inflammation. we'll be right back. inflammati. we'll be right back. with keratin blonde by schwarzkopf. lighten your hair up to 9 levels and protect it from breakage with our bond enforcing system. let your hair tell your story. schwarzkopf keratin blonde. what story will you tell? sometimes jonah wrestles with falling asleep... ...so he takes zzzquil. the world's #1 sleep aid brand. and wakes up feeling like himself. get the rest to be your best with non-habit forming zzzquil. ♪ ♪ (whisper) air wick. how far would you go to control the fragrance in your home? there's an easier way. try air wick vibrant, with 2x more natural essential oils for up to 120 days

of amazing fragrance per dual pack. now that's a breath of fresh air wick. -we're done. -what about these? looks right. nooo... nooo... quick, the quicker picker upper! bounty absorbs spills like a sponge. and is 2x more absorbent so you can use less. bounty, the quicker picker upper. we are just one day away from mint juleps and big hats. the kentucky derby is set to take off at churchill downs, and of course fashion has always played a role.

we look back at the trends of years past. >> the fashion tradition was very much part of the kentucky derby from the very beginning, because it was a place where you were coming to see and be seen. >> reporter: jessica whitehead is the curator of collections at the kentucky derby museum. she says the founder ever the kentucky derby, meriweather lewis clark jr. did his homework. he and his new socialized wife went to a derby in paris. >> there they saw how beautiful the ensembles women and men were wearing to the races and wanted to cultivate a similar atmosphere of social elegance and of fashion elegance. >> reporter: his wife and her friends got that point across before the first derby in 1875. >> they dressed up to the nines. they all got into a beautiful open carriage and rode around the streets of louisville, encouraging people to come out

to the kentucky derby, dressed in their finest. >> reporter: for the early derbies, fashion would have looked something like this. hats for men and women were a part of every day ensembles. in the 1940s, the designs became bigger and brighter, racing fans hoping to catch the eyes of the media. >> that journalists would immediately pick you out of the crowd and say ooh, i want to feature you in the courier journal. >> reporter: in the 1950s and '60s, people stopped wearing has every day, but not at the kentucky derby. here's barbie at the 135th run for the roses. cyndi lauper wore this to the derby? >> she did. it has the wild and outland ish derby style that you can only get away with at the kentucky derby. >> reporter: in the 2000s and 2010s, the royal influence of the fascinator was introduced. and it's becoming more popular. and the derby during the covid

pandemic is a time to be remembered. >> we were seeing milnliners designed to go with masks and selling sets of accessories. >> reporter: what will we see for derby 150? anything goes. >> and more is more when it comes to the derby. you can catch a full preview of the 150th run of the kentucky derby coming up on the "today" show. and all the action starts right here on nbc at 2:30 eastern.

in the line of duty overnight. we are live at the scene with the new information about the investigation, and we have an update on the officer's conditions, plus new revelations about the suspect. all of this that we've gotten overnight. this is today in the bay