Good evening. Late today the death toll climbed near utahs border with arizona where a wall of water with breathtaking speed and power swept away vehicles filled with people, killing at least a dozen. This is what it looked like late yesterday as the flash flood waters came thundering down a creek near hildale, utah. The drivers of a van and suv helpless as water and debris carried them downstream. Passengers had to be pulled to safety after raging waters over took them. Nbcs ron mott is there for us. Took them. Nbcs ron mott is there for us. Reporter it happened in an in stand. Oh, it went over the fence. Reporter raging floodwaters and mud ripping across a road, two vehicles filled with three families, 16 people, disappearing. Swept away hundreds of yards. Three survived. As did others who were trapped. Rescued and able to wade away to safety in kneehigh water. Virginia black shot this video on her cell phone. Her concern building as fast as the water rose. The first thought was what about the people in the vehicle, wished we could do something but started to realize we were in trouble too. Today search crews continue their efforts to find the missing as the remains of rubber and metal were recovered, shelter for the victims one moment and a tomb the next. Ive lived here all of my life and never seen anything like this. A pair of Late Afternoon storm cells blew over the community of hildale, utah, and colorado city, arizona. Dumping an estimated 2. 5 inches of rain in just two hours. From top of the peeks near short to hildale is over a thousand feet and it is a wall of water rushing into hildale. The community is far less known than the man who inspired the creation, warren jeffs, serving a life sentence for child sexual assault. Tonight the mourning continues. An unimaginable loss that hit so suddenly, and touching so many. Yeah, it hurts. It hurts my heart hearing about all of these people. Reporter adding to the misery and sadness, the area has again under a flash i again under a flass again under a flash flood warning. Take a look behind me. The water from the creek runs under the road. And residents have never seen it like this and hope to never again and we are getting word that the tragedy has expanded 50 miles from here. Zion national park, there is three confirmed dead there and another four missing. Ron mott there for us, thank you. Now to the other disaster in the west. The catastrophic wildfire burns hundreds of people out of their homes in northern california. Some who fled are returning to find nothing left. Nbcs National CorrespondentMiguel Almaguer has the story. Reporter 600 homes in middletown, california, are suddenly gone. That is what main street used to look like. Now all that is left of the two story apartment complex is two feet of ash. It is devastating. Ive never seen anything like it. The homecoming for Chelsea Ripley is bittersweet. Her house is still standing, most of her neighborhood is gone. It is hard to think that a lot of these people arent going to be here any more. A lot of the town is gone and it is hard to live in a town where there is no one. Reporter this is winnie pughs home saturday night and this is what it looked like today. Im normally a fighter. But i cant fight any more. Reporter the socalled valley fire is still burning. Billowing toxic smoke and raining ash into the air. Thousands of homes are still in harms way. These are the tough choices firefighters face. At times letting one block go, to save another. You are basically looking out your windshield and making an instant decision what structures can you save and what ones do you have to let go. Eight firefighters have lost their homes here as they battle to save others. Among them, robert taylor, who now lives with most of middletown, in this evacuation center. It is very relatable and it is real. It happened to me. I feel for all of the people. I feel exactly the same way they do. Reporter tonight, much of middletown is a disaster zone. It could be several days if not several weeks before most of the public comes home. And this is likely what they will find. There is good news on the fire front. Cooler temperatures have slowed the blaze. Though it is grown to nearly 70,000 acres. Tonight, lester, it is nearly 15 contained. Miguel almaguer. Thank you. Hungary has declared a state of crisis on the southern border as it shuts out refugees and migrants headed north. As we reported from there last night. Thousands of men and women and children are on the move and facing growing obstacles and tightened borders on europe. As the journey becomes more difficult, they grow more desperate and turning to smugglers for help that carries its own risk. Chief Foreign CorrespondentRichard Engel now. Reporter hungary has sealed the southern border, stranding thousands of desperate refugees and migrants. But no fence is going to keep them out. This morning, soldiers repaired a hole cut overnight. And waiting for those who do get through are smugglers. The government promises to crack down. We are trying to step up against human smugglers or illegal organized crime and we are going to introduce draconian measures against organized crime. Like what . Prison up to ten years. Reporter but smuggling is thriving and it didnt take us long to spot the syrian men negotiating with two locals. When they spotted our camera, the smugglers walked away. And the rest of the family emerged from hiding. Translator we are scared of the smugglers but we have no choice, he tells us. You cant live in constant fear of death. You have to take risks to arrive at a safe place. We hide our camera in the tall grass by the side of the road and see the family approached by one smuggler after another. This one offers to take them to the next town over. The price, 100 each. Others offer to take them all the way to sweden for 1,000 each. Half off for kids. The family cant afford that. So they keep walking. You see them everywhere. Men, lingering in their cars. With a cell phone recording in my pocket, i approach one driver. If somebody wants to go to germany, can you take . How much . How many. Four or five people, all the way to germany. Germany . Germany. Yeah. Then he gets suspicious about my phone. We leave before things escalate but the smuggling continues with no shortage of potential customers. Richard engel, nbc news, ruske, hungary. Tonight round two of the republican debates is upon us. And it is expected to be explosive. With trump expecting to be a target and fellow outsider candidates gaining in the polls. And jeb bush once considered a frontrunner is looking for a come back. Peter alexander sets the stage. Reporter here at the Reagan Library the battle tomorrow night to win one like the gipper, with trump dominated and bush fading. Trump popping, with ben carson closing in and Carly Fiorina gaining steam. They now boast a majority of republican support. The early establishment favorite bush falling well behind. Im the tortoise in the race. But im a joyful tortoise. Jeb now hovering at 6 . Trump has bashed bush as boring. I think he is a low energy person. Reporter while trump is packing them in by the thousands. Bushs crowds are far smaller. Analysts say bush underperformed in the first debate and hampered by his last name. Hes tried to connect the conservative legacy to reagans. And reached out to latinos in spanish. [ speaking in a Foreign Language ] reporter still, with no traction, a republican insider insists bush needs to stand up to trump. He needs to take the fight to donald and take a page out of the donald trump playbook and point out to voters that donald trump isnt ready to be president. Reporter bush said this time hell be ready. Someone comes at me, bam, ill come back at them. Dont worry about that. Bushs trump card is his fundraising. More than 100 million in the first year and his superpac with a 20 million ad buy. Tonight a former adviser tells me bush has to be shorter, sharper and more passionate and urging patience saying trumps rise will pass by like a fever or the end of us. Peter, thank you. The ride to school turned tragic for students in houston when their school bus plunged off a highway overpass. And two students were killed and a bus driver was injured. Police say a car making an unsafe lane change hit the bus. That caused it to veer into and over the guard rail. No charges have been filed but the crash does remain under investigation. A grand jury is now recommending charges against 37 Fraternity Brothers in the death of a pledge during a hazing ritual. Some were accused of delaying help to cover up the crime. And five members face thirddegree murder charges. We get the details from rehema ellis. Reporter Authorities Say michael deng, a 19yearold college freshman, died in a brutal hazing ritual called the glass ceiling. You get through a line of brothers, while Fraternity Members shove and tackle the pledges. It happened two years ago at this home in the poconos in pennsylvania. According to court documents, deng, a freshman in new york, was blindfolded and ordered to carry a backpack carried with 30 pounds of sand across a snowcovered field. Repeatedly assaulted and eventually knocked out. Sustaining a significant brain injury. Instead of calling 911 right away, Authorities SayFraternity Members called the national president. He is one of the 37 indicted. Five were charged with thirddegree murder. Today a lawyer for one accused of lesser counts said charging everyone present is not justified and not provable. The college banned the fraternity and suspended all pledging activities. According to one report, there have been more than 60 fraternityrelated deaths since 2005. What do you think this particular case could mean Going Forward as far as hazing is concerned . That the code of silence will be broken and that there will be charges against everybody, not just one or two people. Reporter today michael dengs family said it will pursue a wrongful death suit so other parents will be spared the loss of a precious child. Rehema ellis, nbc news, new york. There is a lot more to tell you about here tonight. An extraordinary new view from the top of the world. We take you to the arctic where melting sea ice has triggered a new cold war with russia. Also stranded at sea with no way to call for help. Three teens with no way back until an incredible stroke of luck. Were back now to tell you about a power struggle at the top of the world. And the first of a series of special reports, nbc news has spent the past four months traveling to the arctic which has seen the most melting ice since nasa began keeping track in 1978. According to a new report released today, the warming waters are opening up the region and the race to dominate it like never before. Nbcs Cynthia Mcfadden has the story. Reporter it isnt easy getting to the front lines of the new cold war. A war many think america is losing. The suits are for safety. Survival in arctic waters is mere minutes. Were headed 20 miles out to sea. The cutter, alex haley, patrolling as part of the Coast Guard Mission arctic shield. Landing is terrifying, and thrilling. Captain seth denning welcomes us aboard. With no deepwater ports in the alaskan arctic, they are at sea for 60 days. We left nome. Were in this vicinity right here. Reporter the rapidly melting ice is bringing new opportunities and new headaches here. Including more sea traffic. Part of the Coast Guard Mission is to scope out who is up here and why. From november until may, ice makes the waters impassable without ice breakers. So after october, the haley is not coming out here. No, maam. The maps are old and incomplete. Even open water can be dangerous. So you are guessing when you are going through here . Right. North of nome there are a lot of blank spaces. Melting ice is making the treacherous Northwest Passage passable. If it becomes reliable enough for International Shipping it could shave thousands of miles off the route of the panama canal, saving 30 of the cost as well. Meanwhile, smaller ships are here in record numbers. But with just two aging ice breakers, the u. S. Is largely frozen out of here for nine months. Russia on the other hand has 41 ice breakers. Many of them nuclear and they are actively building more. The u. S. Has none under construction. Coast guard admiral told me a couple of years ago this was a ball game, the u. S. Wouldnt be in the field, we wont be in the stands, we wouldnt be in the parking lot. We are last. You have to gain the attention of the american people. Retired admiral bob papp is the former commandant of the coast guard. Finland has more ice breakers than we do. Sweden has more ice breakers than we do, canada has more ice breakers than we do. Yes. Papp is now the u. S. Representative to the arctic council. So on the scale of urgent, where is it . That is one of the most urgent things we need to do for the arctic. You need to have assured access into your maritime boundaries. U. S. On the right and russia on the left. Right. Passing through the Bering Strait, a clear reminder of who does have access, the russians. Vladimir putin has called the Bering Strait the next suez canal. The Russian Military has identified the arctic as a probable place for war in the coming century over resources. They had immense war games in may. And when the russians have a war game, who is the opponent . The opponent is nato so the opponent is us. Reporter back on the ship. The helicopter we rode in on is grounded. It needs a part that will take two weeks to get here. Our only way off, down the ladder and into the rubber boat. Navigating the rough and changing waters of the arctic takes on new urgency. President obama recently proposed speeding up the process of acquiring a new ice breaker but with a billion dollar price tag and tenyear production schedule, no one is expecting an american ice breaker any time soon. That is the price of one . Just one. Thank you very much. Were back in a moment with the camera that fell to earth and the amazing images it captured while it was lost in space. Some anxious and no doubt scary moments at sea for three teenagers who ran out of oil on their boat, 12 miles off the coast of florida. They had been stranded at sea for several hours with no way to call back to land for help. They had no radio, gps or cell phone. Fortunately a Good Samaritan stumbled upon them and called in a tow. Pope francis will arrive in the u. S. A week from today and when he gets here he is expected to give 18 speeches during visits to washington, new york and philadelphia. But only four of those speeches will be in english, according to the vatican. For the majority of his homilies, the hope will speak in his native spanish. And were finally seeing incredible images from a long last camera that journeyed to the edge of space and back. It was a go pro camera attached to a weather balloon and captured the grand canyon from 100,000 feet and on the way down. The Stanford University students who launched it in 2013 lost track of it but a hiker stumbled upon it earlier this year. Incredible pictures. When we come back, the attraction that has them lining up for hours in the lone star state. How you can cut right to the front. Kept working even after learning his own home was destroyed. Jess take vo plus a spike in gun sales in san francisco. Whats driving the increase. Next close the news is next. Janelle take vo right now at 6. Finally tonight, a story about patience paying off. Waiting as they say is the hardest part. But in a state where the barbecue is so good folks camp out for it, a young man can get you to the front of the line if the price is right. Here is harry smith. Reporter only in texas do they not consider you crazy for getting in line for barbecue at 5 00 in the morning. There is a line every day at franklins in austin, and at the front every day not in school is desmond waldin. Is there always a line. There is always a line no matter what. There is never a day where there is not a long line. The fires burn inside 24 7 and from them come melt in your mouth brisket and ribs you cant live without. But desmond is not here to eat. Being first in line is his business. What time do your customers show up. 11 00 a. M. Normally but im having them come at 10 50. Reporter it is called barbecue fast pass and he has a website. For 100 and up, desmond or one of his pals will hold a place for you. His customers are very impressed. Its unbelievable. Hes here at 5 00 in the morning. That is a lot of time. And were that not enough. Desmond donates 5 of the proceeds to the local Animal Shelter because that is where his dog came from. And every week desmond tweets about other animals in need of adoption. Hes placed a dozen so far. Wanted, for the future of america, must be ambitious, creative and must have a good heart. Hes the kid at the front of the line. Harry smith, nbc news, austin. And i have one question for him, do you deliver . That will do it for us on this tuesday night. Im lester holt, for all of us at nbc news, thank you for watching and good night. One firefighter battling flames near sacramento comes back to see his own home no longer right now at 6 00, destruction and devastation. One firefighter battling flames near sacramento comes back to his own home no longer standing. That story and our Team Coverage of the valley fire right now. Good evening, im janelle wang live in middletown. Were in lake county 30 miles north of calistoga. The damage so extensive and residents got a first look at what was left behind. Good evening as well. Im jessica aguirre. Im raj mathai. We have new video of the escape. About 600 homes have been destroyed but people are thankful that they simply made it out. This family driving away as you can see with flames on either side. I imagine how terrifying that must have been. Lets go back to janelle wang with new information. Have people been able to see their homes yet . Reporter just a handful, jessica and raj. Just a small number. But the majority still evacuated or staying with friends and family outside of this area. Im at jefferson court. You can see whats left behind. Nothing, basically. Just ash and rubble. Unfortunately, residents dont have anything to come home to. They want to get back and take a peek because they havent been able to see this area since saturday. Four days now. Fire crews still want to keep people out of the area. They say this place is not secure, its not safe. Pg and e crews working to