Headquarters in new york, this is nbc nightly news with brian williams. Good evening, the very same weather system that left behind a death toll of 35 from the tornados it spawned, churned over the south overnight dumping as many as 18 inches of water, five inches in the space of one hour and because flash flooding kills more people every year than tornados or hurricanes, the rising water has become a huge danger. Its a wild figure but the u. S. Geological survey estimates 2 trillion gallons of water will fall on the south and along the east coast just today. Roads are giving way, powers out for over 40,000 people, and the rescues continue. We begin with our teams on the ground tonight and Gabe Gutierrez in pensacola, florida. Gabe, good evening. Reporter good evening. The water may be receding, but the scope of this disaster remains massive. More rain fell here than during hurricane ivan, a decade ago. In the Florida Panhandle today, high water and high drama. First responders on boats rushed to rescue dozens of panicked families trapped at this pensacola apartment complex, some clutching their children. She escaped with her oneyearold daughter. All my memories, babys things, everything i own is gone. Reporter the governor declared a state of emergency as entire roads were washed away. This collapse swallowing unoccupied cars. I walked out this morning and couldnt believe it, never seen anything like that. Reporter the downpour reached its height late tuesday night, shutting down i10 and leaving drivers trapped in their vehicles, some for up to ten hours. One woman died when she drove her car into high water. Even this fire truck was no match for the rising flood waters, stalling on the way to a rescue. The area saw up to two feet of rain in 24 hours. Five inches drenched pensacola in a single hour. Nearly 6,000 lightning strikes were recorded in just 15 minutes. For the south, it was the latest round of Severe Weather after days of destruction. In alabama, more water rescues from mobile to summerdale, in georgia, one person died when a tree smashed their car and in north carolina, a possible tornado roared through. Her life was more important, to me it was. Reporter back in pensacola, three water line walkers were on their way to work this morning when they noticed something. I was concerned with how fast and rapidly the road was caving in. Look at the manhole right there. Reporter in the rising water, a woman trapped in her car, they took action fast, scrambling for a nearby excavator. She said please, dont let me die. I looked in her eyes, and thats all i needed. Reporter they managed to hoist Katrina Shannon to safety just in time. Thank yall. Yall saved my life. Reporter with all this debris, the cleanup here will take quite awhile. Forecasters think it was record rainfall, but its really hard to tell because the power to the nearby National Weather Service Reporting station was knocked out during the storm. Brian . What a mess there in pensacola. Gabe gut area yez starting us off. Gabe, thanks. Mike seidel witnessed a lot of weather in the past 7 two hours. Were in for more tonight and tomorrow. He happens to be in summer dale, alabama for us tonight. Good evening. Reporter good evening, brian. The six inches of rain, nearly six inches of rain in pensacola last night in one hour is a once in a 500year event. They had a record crest this morning. Take a look at the radar, dc and baltimore under flood warnings. Dulles airport has had their wettest april day on record, three inches and counting. Look at this in baltimore, the heavy rain washed out this road, at least six cars tumbled to the Railroad Tracks below. Its being sered by this freaky blocking pattern that looks like a giant tilted s. The white is the moisture shooting up the east coast today. The best news, some Severe Weather this evening and that tornado threat is much lower than it has been the past couple days. Another two inches of rain in spots and watches and warnings up in a dozen states tonight and tomorrow and brian, back here in the fish river, its expected to drop below flood stage, thats 11 feet by noon tomorrow. Well take good news wherever we can get it. Mike seidel in alabama tonight. Mike, thanks. So thats the situation in the east, and now out west. Just as we were leaving los angeles last night, we felt the santa ana winds kicking up. Today that meant fast and dangerous spread of wildfire. Day one in the new season. Live in San Bernardino, rancho cucamonga. Reporter the weather is right for disaster. All of Southern California in a fire threat. Its over 90 degrees with this fire and winds gusting to over 70 miles an hour, and this fire is burning through an area that has been droughtstricken for years. The winds are so powerful, the smoke blowing sideways, not billowing straight up, nearly a thousand acres have been charred so far, but its the potential, the threat this fire poses that has crews so worried. Schools have been evacuated, thousands forced from their homes. This blaze is threatening to take down power lines. The nearby ontario airport had to divert flights because of gusting wind and thick, blinding smoke. A red flag in effect for most of Southern California. Brian, as you can see, the big concern tonight is these winds. They are powerful and gusty. The blaze is burning just over my shoulder and just down the road here, subdivision after subdivision, this fire could quickly get out of control and out of hand. Brian . Miguel almaguer, thanks. Dicey situation tonight in San Bernardino county, and if we didnt need this, theres more trouble in the air tonight, starting with l. A. With a complete ground stop late today at lax and other big airports like salt lake and las vegas. Some aircraft were able to land, but no take offs due to a technical issue at los angeles center, the regional air traffic facility that controls air space. A relatively new Computer System apparently failed, along with its backup. The faa is gradually restoring the system they say because of the sheer volume of air travel that goes through that area. The ripple effects will be felt both nationally and globally. Then, there is the weather we were talking about here in the east. Nbcs lester holt is among those trying to land tonight in new york. He has reported to us the worst turbulence hes ever experienced. His flight has been, more than once now, diverted to an alternate airport along with several others. In virginia today, a train carrying crude oil derailed, exploded near lynchburg. No injury reported, but it prompted concerns about the water supply down river. This very subject, the safety of trains carrying crude oil and other material has been a source of controversy after several highprofile accidents. The feds are in the process of tightening regulations. Fair warning, this next story has to do with the grizzly subject matter of Violent Crime and execution in this country, specifically the botched execution of a death row inmate last night in oklahoma is raising new questions this evening with the Death Penalty as states deal with a shortage of the drugs used to carry out capital punishment. We get our story tonight from justice correspondent pete williams. Reporter shortly after the state started pumping drugs in the arms of this man, lockett, something went wrong. Reporter Graham Lee Brewer of the oklahoman was one of the key witnesses. He began kicking his feet, lifting his head and chest off the gurney and he must believed. Reporter it took 43 minutes for him to be pronounced dead. The governor postponed another execution and today ordered an independent review. The state needs to be certain of its protocols and its procedures for executions and that they work. Reporter oklahoma had never before used the three chemicals in the combination it administered to lockett. All 32 Death Penalty states are struggling to find lethal ingestion drugs after suppliers said they no longer wanted any part in capital punishment. Some are compounding pharmacies but refusing to disclose the sources. Last week one justice on Oklahoma Supreme Court said inmates are no more entitled to know the source of the lethal drugs than whether it was a nylon or cotton rope if they were being hanged. Lawyers for Charles Warner whose execution was also planned for last night say the state has no idea what its doing. We need to know the drugs will work the way they are supposed to so our clients are not subjected to a prolonged and torturous death. Reporter some say oklahomas botched execution amounted to cruel and unusual punishment. Very often these drug protocols are secret, in fact, the manufacturer is also secret, so basically what we have here in many situations is scientific experimentation on human subjects. Reporter some states are now looking for alternatives. Tennessees legislature approved using the electric chair if the supply of lethal drugs dries up. Pete williams, nbc news, washington. News from overseas, a terrible attack in syria as the civil war there, thats already cost at least 150,000 lives, continues to take an awful toll. A missile from a syrian fighter jet struck a school west of aleppo. At least 19 reported killed, including ten children. It happened as the school was preparing an exhibit of the childrens drawings depicting the nation at war. And benghazi bac in the news after Judicial Watch dog obtained internal white house emails that it claims to reveal more about the effort to get the thenambassador susan rice to assert on the sunday morning talk shows that the attack on the u. S. Consulate was a result of a demonstration over an internet video and not a failure of administration policy. The attack that killed four americans, including the ambassador took place in 2012 with the president s reelection less than two months away. Nba owners will take the first formal step tomorrow of forcing Donald Sterling out as the owner of the l. A. Clippers after those widely publicized racist marks he made. We get the latest on all of it tonight from nbcs joe frier. Reporter in one historic day, the la clippers won a playoff game and potentially lost an owner. It was almost like everybody wanted to excel tonight. One of the most emotional things i think ive ever been a part of. Reporter Donald Sterling has remained silent since he was banned for life saying he made offensive remarks about African Americans in audio recordings posted online. If sterling flights to keep the clippers, experts say it could be a tough legal battle. The commissioner, if hes acting within the four quarters of the nba constitution and bylaws, courts are not going to want to intervene. Reporter if sterling does sell, a number of big names are mentioned as possible owners. Today the team of Oprah Winfrey and more confirmed they would be interested in buying the franchise. But first, 75 of the leagues 30 owners must vote to remove sterling as owner. I spoke to several owners, and i have their full support. Reporter a vast majority of the teams have issued statements of support, including the bobcats Michael Jordan who applauded silvers swift and decisive response. Its going to be 290 or 291 if the Sterling Family or their representatives are able to vote. Reporter a committee of nba owners will have a meeting tomorrow to start the removal process. Sterling will have a chance to respond before the owners vote. Meanwhile, an attorney for v. Stiviano, the woman heard in those recordings, said his client never had a romantic relationship with sterling, adding shes very saddened that the nba did what they did. Stivianos attorney now says a third party was present when those tapes were made in september, but they wont say who. Joe frier, nbc news, los angeles. On wall street today, the closing bell didnt just mark the end of mondays trading but the 25th anniversary of cnbc and our friends were able to ring the closing bell remotely from cnbc global headquarters. As for the actual numbers, dow closed at an alltime high. Still ahead tonight, overmedicated. The warning about taking antibiotics seriously, because were making some common diseases impossible to fight. And later, the story for all the dog owners who swear their dog is just as smart as any other member of the family. Tonight, a Big Organization has a very powerful message for all of us. The World Health Organization wants us all try to treat antibiotics as serious medicine, not to be taken lightly. They say we take them so often for so many things on so many different occasions, that antibiotics are actually threatening the achievement of modern medicine because of all the things they no longer kill and because of the rise of socalled super bugs that antibiotics cannot touch. We get our report on this tonight from our chief medical editor, dr. Nancy snyderman. Reporter kims daughter was 25 and pregnant when she went into the hospital for routine gallbladder surgery. We were reassured that many of these procedures had been done on pregnant women and it was really nothing to worry about. Reporter but dianna picked up an infection called mer sa, resistant to antibiotics, and died a few days after she gave birth. That night i went back up to the hospital to hold her baby. I didnt know what else to do with myself. Reporter mrsa kills about 19,000 americans a year. Thats more than aids. A report today by the u. N. s World Health Organization says super bugs like mrsa have become so serious, they threaten the achievements of modern medicine, pushing us towards a postantibiotics era. Drug resistant tuberculosis is found in 92 countries around the world. Its an International Call to action taken seriously by u. S. Health officials. It now spreads around the world with the speed of jet travel. If there is a resistant bacteria there, its here tomorrow. Reporter doctors warn that we need to be smarter about how antibiotics are prescribed and used. The fact is, the things like colds dont get better with antibiotics, but were still prescribing antibiotics and it just doesnt provide any benefit. Reporter the World Health Organization has practical suggests. Dont pressure your doctor to prescribe antibiotics. If you are given one, take as directed and complete the entire course so partially killed baekt dont thrive and spread, and dont take anybody elses medicine. For kim, her granddaughter julia bell, is a daily reminder of this threat to modern medicine. We live in a culture where we overuse anti bacterial wipes and antibiotics are rampant in the food supply and all of these factors together are creating a new class of untreatable diseases. Not just here in but in places as far away from syria. Serious business. Nancy snyderman, as always, thanks. You bet. Back in a moment, after a break, with reason hitting the road might be about to get a lot more expensive. The Great British actor bob hoskins has died. As one remembrance today put it, he specializes in tough guys with a soft center. His spectacular turn in mona lisa won him a nomination for best actor. He may be best known for who framed roger rabbit. And the british film classic the long good friday. He was born during world war ii in the eastern uk, where his parents had moved t escape the bombing in london. Bob hoskins had parkinsons disease, he was 71 years old. Good news and bad, the American Lung Association Says while the Clean Air Act has helped our country come a long way, the city of los angeles has, on average, 120 days a year of unhealthy air. They say close to 150 million americans live in places where the air is unhealthy. Weve put there a list of the top four cleanest places to live on our website for you tonight. And a big bellwether coming soon, according to the financial times. They report the u. S. Is on the brink of losing its status as the Worlds Largest economy. They say were likely to slip into second place behind china later this year, thats earlier than most experts had anticipated. The u. S. Has been the Global Economic leader since surpassing the uk back in 1872. It was president eisenhower who gave the highway system and the Obama Administration is at least floating the idea of states charging tolls to pay for repairs. In the way, this is a cost of good intentions. Normally taxes on gas go to road repairs, but cars get better mileage and younger people are buying fewer cars, so with 47,000 miles of highway to attend to, the states may get to charge tolls, if they so choose. When we come back tonight, inside the mind of your dogs, some new insights on the way. Finally tonight, it has taken the good folks at Yale University to try to figure out once and for all whats going on in the heads of the dogs we love, what they are feeling, trying to tell us with their eyes, and it turns out, as so many had suspected, it has a lot to do with us. The story tonight from nbcs stephanie gosk. Reporter there is a look dog owners say, an allknowing mindreading look. Sometimes she has very inquisitive eyes, so its almost like shes got something going on in there. Reporter dog owners may want their pets to be more smarter and human like than they actually are. I love you. Reporter but some researchers believe dog intelligence is more than just wishful thinking. One of the reasons we need to do the science is that we have such strong intuition about whether a dog is smart, social, what makes them special. The nice thing about this, we can really see. We can put it to the test. Reporter to do that, lorrie opened Yale Universitys Dog Cognition Center last december. All breeds are welcome, sausage treats included. One theory they hope to confirm, is that dogs anticipate our behavior by closely tracking what we do. What we seem to be seeing so far, although we have to finish the studies to know for sure, is dogs seem to have sophisticated intuitions. Reporter dogs are more likely to use their paws than their snouts to open the box. Dogs learn from masters some of the ways human babies learn from their parents, by comparing the two, you may learn more about human development. Reporter she hopes to publish her first book next year. Tom hopes to get insight into what holly is thinking. Shes extraordinary conversational sometimes. She has a very talkative bark when she wants something. Which is adorable. Reporter actually, conversing with our dogs may still be a ways down the road, but understanding them better could be close at hand. Stephanie gosk, nbc news, new haven, connecticut. That is our broadcast on a wednesday night. Thank you for being here with us. Im brian williams. We, of course, hope to see you right back here tomorrow evening. Good night. Nbc bay area news starts now. Right now at 6 00, hot during the day and hot this evening. Record breaking temperatures. Well tell you how long this heat wave will last. Good evening. Thanks for being with us. Im raj mathai. Im jessica aguirre. Its not even may and were seeing our first burst of hot weather. Recordsetting heat. A rare sight when you see san jose toastier than miami or even houston there. And probably a lot of this across san jose. Kids trying to keep cool any way they could. That means the fountains downtown. Marianne favreau shows us how hard its been to stay nice and cool. We begin with chief meteorologist jeff ranieri. So far, hottest day of the year. Most certainly. Some of the hottest weather youll see here in more than a year. Were updating them moment by moment. So far the hottest temperature today in the south bay. Cupertino, 98 degrees. Palo alto, 95. And a thing of note about this hour, those dry northerly and slightly out of the east offshore winds heating up the airport in San Francisco to 90. Also Half Moon Bay at 88 degrees. So lets go ahead and get a look. Last time it was this warm in san jose, september 7th of 2013 with 95 degrees. Much more impressive for the heat at the airport. Last time it was 91 degrees that we could find was october the 1st of 2012. So about 20 to 25 degrees above average for parts of the peninsula and also the coastline. Were Still Holding on to the heat across parts of san frano