i'm bianca nobilo. >> and i'm max foster. we're following this breaking news. a tragic scene unfolding at a building in johannesburg, south africa where fire has claimed at least 63 lives. we're to workers are conducting recovery operations. the flames proper out around 1:30 a.m. local time presumably while many inside were asleep. >> a spokesperson says the five-story building were filled with hundreds of settlements and we're hearing disturbing details about what theendured. >> let's go straight to david mckenzie. >> reporter: a terrible scene here. if we look at what is happening, there are police, firefighters. the building is just over my right shoulder. and in the early hours this morning maybe around 2w12:30 or 1:00, witnesses say the fire spread rapidly. and people were jumping out to try to escape the inferno. local administrators are saying that there were many children amongst those burnt in the fire. more than 60 people now dead and forensic teams were passing by our position getting dressed in their scrubs to try to start the very difficult process of identifying some of these bodies. as bizarre as it sounds, what they believe is that this building was hijacked. and that is unfortunately something that happens all over downtown johannesburg, an area where a landlord maybe vacated and criminal gangs or others dealt with the situation by bringing in people, cramming them into existing apartments, multiple people per apartment. and that is why as you describe, this is described as informal settlement, not an apartment building as you would normally understand it. and if we just look at this building for a second, you can see there was a large inferno, three or four stories up. and the worry is that there was a candle or some other illegal potential electricity connection. and now some of the local authorities are coming here to observe the scene. but people here are angry that over many years they were aware of the situation and not enough was done. >> as you say, the great challenge now will be to identify the bodies and working out exactly who was in the building because of the nature of the way that they were living. >> reporter: the firefighters are asking us to move out of the way. i'll just try a couple steps this way to finish this broadcast. yes, it will be very difficult to identify these bodies. it was a raging inferno at the very worst possible teime becaue many were sleeping. the cause of the fire is undetermined, but people myself included expected something like this to happen at some point. there have been over the years multiple very devastating fires in informal settlements around the country. this in some ways more dramatic, more tragic. it is people crammed inside a building. this is the only kind of housing they could afford. i think a lot of questions will be asked now. many promises over the years have been made to sort out the situation and the dysfunctional government that is in johannesburg hasn't figured it out. there is of course huge amount of people just off camera awaiting to try to find out what happened to their loved ones. i fear that the death toll will rise. firefighters describe how they have had to pick through the floors trying to find survivors or recover bodies. here is what one firefighter said earlier to the crowd. >> we are discouraging residents around here to go back to the building because we don't know about the structural integrity of the building. so we are discouraging them to try to take a chance to go there and maybe salvage some of their belongings inside the building. >> reporter: now, it is a tragic scene, but there are multiple bodies laid out on the street. we are removed from that area as you'd understand as the authorities try to pick up the pieces here. there is no sense that this was deliberate, but takes very tragic day and speaks to the deep inequalities of this country that people have to live like this. >> and we'll get back with you as you have more details. the death toll expected to climb as you say. thank you. and now tropical storm idalia which is losing strength as it moves along the coast of north carolina, the storm expected to move off sshore the next few hours but not doing an estimated $9 billion in damage across northern florida. >> georgia and the carolinas are seeing serious flooding especially in coastal areas. water levels at charleston harbor are rising to near record levels. residents are being asked to stay inside and avoid downed power lines. >> the flooding is our biggest concern right now. we've been lucky the winds have been not as bad as we anticipated which is a good thing, but the flood is still a concern. so when we have flooded streets, we're hoping a lot of that will subside very quickly before light. but we're still going to have those pocketed areas where we'll have standing water. so we don't want people to venture out even on foot if they are not driving through the area because they want to enjoy the city. we just ask that they stay in a little while, let our crews get out and assess the area. >> video from goose creek, south carolina shows a weak tornado tossing a car around like a toy. you can see it there. only minor injuries there thankfully. let's bring in karen maginnis. thankfully this has now been downgraded. however, storm surges and rainfall presumably continue to present risk. >> yes, there is still a lot of tropical moisture associated with this. and it is being thrown on shore. this is the forecast radar. this indicates what we expect as we go throughout the morning hours and towards the afternoon. look at this, it looks like there is spin here, but when you look at the satellite imagery, it is a very weak signature. but there is still so much convective activity, there is the potential for an isolated tornado. but mostly what we're seeing in these very vulnerable areas of north carolina from right around morehead city, kill devil, back toward piedmont, we could see significant rainfall amounts between 4 to 6 inches, maybe as much as 10 inches certainly possible here. south carolina didn't go unscathed. some of the heaviest rainfall totals was just to the west of charleston in an area called hampton. they saw nearly 10 inches of rainfall or about 250 millimeters. all right. this is what is happening right now. still has supporting winds of 60 miles per hour or 100 kilometers per hour. racing to the northeast at 21 miles per hour. so you would think that it would be out of the picture sooner than later. but that is not the case. this is still capable of throwing that moisture back on shore as i just mentioned. and there are a lot of met throw communities across this community. might not be densely populated, but a lot of beautiful small communities along the pamlico river and neuse river and the accompanying wind will contribute to the localized flooding there as well as it forces some of the moisture in some of those coves. a lot of rivers running out of their banks in eastern south carolina from midlands all the way to the low country region. but there you can see still some flash flood warnings out from just about if we triangulate from wilmington to fayetteville to moorhead, north carolina. so still dangerous conditions prevail. and this is unbelievable. the computer models are suggesting this will still be a tropical storm even as we go towards the weekend. and that interest in bermuda, be aware of idalia which is very curious thing in their statement. but anyway, we'll stay on top of it. allison chinchar comes up at the top of the hour. >> karen, thank you so much. north carolina residents should be on the lookout for tornadoes over the next few hours. dianne gallagher has more from carolina beach. >> reporter: as tropical storm idalia moves up the coast before it breaks away from land, here in the carolinas, we are feeling the effects of that storm and will likely do so until late thursday morning. according to officials here in newh hanover county, bands will go until mid-morning and they expect the worst of it to come right around the time most people would be commuting for work. the emergency management director telling me that they anticipate they could see moderate flooding and moderate winds and that their concern is that they could have areas that they already consider to be trouble areas, experience extra flooding because of the king tide. when those worries are already very high. now, in speaking to the town manager here in carolina beach, they say they are most concerned about flooding in areas and are asking visitors to stay not just out of floodwater but out of the ocean as well because of hurricane franklin out in the atlantic as well as the oncoming tropical storm idalia. the swells and currents are simply too strong they say for visitors and people not experienced surfers or swimmers. they are asking those visitors not to go into the water and they are saying that they will extend that request likely into the holiday weekend even as the weather gets better because they feel that it still may be dangerous as remnants of the storm remain below the surface. dianne gallagher, cnn, carolina beach, north carolina. idalia first roared ashore the big bend area as a dangerous category 3 hurricane bringing storm surge and wind gusts not seen in that part of the gulf coast in at least 125 years. you can see the fury of the storm near perry, florida where the roof of this gas station came crashing down taking gas pumps with it. >> and this home catching on firp as defini firestorm surge devastated communities. and in the island city of cedar key, a water level record was shattered when the water surged up to 9 feet. one resident who rode out the storm there says idalia left a lot of damage behind. >> crystal river is another florida community now dealing with the aftermath of the devastating storm surge. one official said the city was decimated. gloria pazmino brings us the latest from there. >> reporter: and we're here in crystal river, not far from where hurricane idalia made landfall to the north of where we are. and as you can see here, there are still -- they are still dealing with flooding here. a lot of the streets where we're standing are flooded and it is difficult to navigate as you can see this intersection still has a little bit of standing water. and i've been here all day watching as this tide comes in and out. and the water begins to recede. and this is a small community and we heard from the mayor earlier today who told us that city hall took on about 8 feet of water when the storm surge came in. city hall is in this direction and also in this direction is the gulf of mexico and the river. once they join, that is why we're seeing this water here as the tide has been moving in and out throughout the day. remember, we're still dealing with that super moon which is affecting the tides. so this water could change significantly in the next several hours. now, two rescues here in the area. local sheriff department telling us that they carried out 75 rescues so far. there is a curfew here in town and they are asking residents who have evacuated to just hold off before returning to the area. i want you to hear directly from one of those residents, her name is bernice. i spoke to her earlier today and she told me she was born and raised here in this town and she has never seen the water come up this high. >> sad to see it like this. as i was walking further down southeast of highway 44 area, the water began to get deeper and it was like pushing me back. and that is when i realized it was time to turn around. this is sad because i've been here all my life and i'm teared up because it is just sad. >> reporter: so you can see that people are still grappling with the devastation and the damage that their homes have had to endure. and really just in shock that so much water could move into this town so quickly. for the most part, people have heeded the evacuation orders, reports that we are getting so far looks like a lot of people did manage to get out before the storm made landfall. so that is good news. now to the power, still several hundred thousand people without power across the entire state of florida. but crews are out there trying to get the lights back on. that is going to take several days depending on the level of damage in the area. but it is one of the things that we did see throughout the day today, a lot of utility crews out there trying to get the power back on. so idalia has moved out of florida. it has moved on to the northern part of the country, to the carolinas and to georgia. but the cleanup and devastation and assessment of damage here is just beginning. back to you guys. for the second time in weeks, there are serious questions about the health of mitch mcconnell. >> the republican senator leader struggled to answer a question wednesday appearing to freeze while speaking to reporters. manu raju brings us the details. >> reporter: for the second time in as many months a health scare for senate republican leader mitch mcconnell, this after he froze back in july in washington for about 30 seconds during rep. his office said that he was lightheaded and republicans said that he was dehydrated. and then the senate recessed and has been gone since early august where they have been -- members have been back in their home states traveling across the country talking at various events as mitch mcconnell did on wednesday. in covington, kentucky he spoke to a local chamber of commerce, started to give a speech, answered questions. and then he had a press conference with reporters. at that press conference, he was asked by a reporter about whether he would run for re-election in 2026. at that moment, mitch mcconnell once again froze for 30 seconds. >> your thoughts on running for re-election in 2026. >> my thoughts about what? >> running for re-election in 2026. >> oh. that is -- >> did you hear the question, senator? running for re-election in 2026. >> yes. >> i'm sorry, y'all, we'll need a minute. >> reporter: in addition to the two moments in which mcconnell froze, there has also been other health scares this year, namely back in march when he fell down, hit his head, had a condition kugs, concussion, broke some ribs. recovered at a rehab facility. and he's had a couple other episodes in which he fell this year. mcconnell is a childhood survivor from polio, and he is also 81, walks slowly and there are questions about his health. he has indicated that he plans to serve as republican leader through the rest of this congress. he is the longest serving party leader of any party in the history of united states senate. but what will happen at the end of this congress at the end of 2024, will he serve in 2025 and 2026 as republican leader. those are still open questions. not saying if he would run for re-election in 2026. mcconnell who is 81 according to his staff is still feeling fine despite that episode. saying that he was feeling lightheaded and that he went to go see a doctor before his second event that day. but there is no word yet on what the doctor said, what the underlying cause was of this incident that has caused a lot of concern even among some of his allies. but mcconnell was on the phone with some of his allies in the aftermath of the incident including some top republicans including john thune. and we're told mitch mcconnell is feeling fine, he sounded like his usual self and look forward to seeing hill when the senate returns on tuesday. manu raju, cnn, capitol hill. two bcallistic missiles fird wednesday described as a strike drill. >> pyongyang says it is a response to the u.s.'s strategic assets. the missiles came down in the waters between korea peninsula and japan. >> and it happened a day after kim jung-un visited his naval command and caused on them to raise their war readiness and hours after the u.s. flew a b 1 b strategic bomber over the yellow sea as part of those drills. coming up, rudy giuliani will have to pay restitution after spreading the lies about two election workers. and this is just the first of many legal battles that the former trump lawyer is now facing. donald trump is accused of inflating his net worth by staggering sums. we'll get into the numbers and possible motives as well. and later on an official at the u.s. department of health and human services is calling for easing restrictions on marijuana. we'll explain. ah, these bills are crazy. she has no idea she's sitting on a goldmine. well she doesn't know that if s she owns a life insusurance policy of $100,000 or more she can sellll all or part of it to coventry for cash. even a term policy. even a term policy? even a term policy! find out if you're sitting on a goldmine. call coventry direct today at the number on your screen, or visit coventrydirect.com. welcome back. the new york attorney general's office says donald trump is not as wealthy as he claims. lawyers say that trump inflated his net worth over a decades long period by as much as $2.2 billion. the findings were released as part of a civil fraud lawsuit against the former u.s. president, his adult sons and the trump organization. the attorney general's office accuses them of grossly inflating asset values to defraud banks and insurers and making false or misleading financial statements from 2011 to 2021. the trump camp denies the allegations. trump testified that he had very little if any involvement in putting the final depositions together. and max, you have some other trump legal news. >> indeed i have. two of trump's co-defendants in the georgia election interference case are asking a judge toorlly separate their trialsrom the sprawling indictment. lawyers syey powell and kenneth chesebro have both denied wrongdoing and invoked their rights to speedy trials which could start as soon as october. if the judge agrees, the move would undercut efforts by district attorney fani willis to hold one huge trial for all 19 defendants. she also wants proceedings to start in october. donald trump's former lawyer has lost a defamation lawsuit in the u.s. state of georgia. a federal judge ruled that rudy giuliani is liable for spreading repeated lies about two election workers in 2020. giuliani accused them of tampering with ballots but later admitted that he could no longer contest that he made false statements. sara murray has the latest on the case and what is next for giuliani. >> reporter: more legal problems for rudy giuliani, a jump -judg saying that he forfeits a case where election workers accused giuliani of defaming them. heed will accused them of ballot tampering even though he didn't have the goods to back up the allegations. a judge said because giuliani did not comply with discovery in this case, did not hand over the documents he needed to as part of the case, he forfeits meaning he loses. that means that there will be a trial to determine what kind of damages he could end up having to pay out to these election wor workers. the election workers say they felt gratitude about the decision and that rudy giuliani made their lives a living nightmare. and a political adviser to giuliani slammed the decision and says giuliani wants to try to reverse it. it is hard to see how the new york mayor will do that though, one of the issues he cited over and over again are his cash flow problems. sara murray, cnn, washington. the two women who just won the defamation case say rudy giuliani's unfounded claims of election meddling up ended their lives and caused them to suffer few can understand. they both testified before the january 6 committee. >> i've lost my name and i've lost my reputation. i've lost my sense of security. all because a group of people starting with number 45 and high school -- his ally rudy giuliani decided to scapegoat my and my daughter shaye. >> the women's attorney calls the ruling a step in the right direction but says rudy giuliani has more work to do. >> only he can explain why he has made the strategic decisions that he has made to show up and litigate this case, but just not turnover any of the discovery and evidence that we asked for and to not comply with the court's orders for everything from producing basic documents to us on his financial condition to paying us $89,000 in attorneys' fees that he was required to pay us and still hasn't. so i don't know why he has chosen this path. i can't speak for him or the strategic decisions he's making. but it has not been a very effective strategy, liability is now established and we really look forward to being able to put forward our damages case and to pu pursue that over the coming months. american airlines flight attendants are the latest aviation workers to vote in favor of a strike. >> it doesn't mean a strim ke i imminent. earlier this year pilots voted to authorize a strike but have since approved a new contract. scary moments for delta air lines passengers and crew on a flight from italy to atlanta on tuesday. a delta spokesperson tells cnn that 11 people were taken to hospital after the flight experienced severe turbulence right before landing in atlanta. >> a passenger who recorded this video tells cnn the first ten hours of the flight were fine. then the turbulence struck and the plane just dropped straight down. he says that she thought the plane was crashing and that several people were injured including some of the flight crew. a medication that can save a person for potential overdose will be available in the u.s. without a prescription. the food and drug administration approved the drug for over-the-counter sales back in march. >> sold under the brand name narcan, the nasal spray can revive an overdose victim in just a few minutes. the drug company says that makes it a two dose package, it will sell about $45. up next, streets and homes flooded along the gulf coast after idalia unleashes her fury. we'll hear from one man who chose to ride out the storm. >> those are all old school florida villas and they were just picked up and carried into the gulf. so that was heartbreaking to see. to duckduckgo on all your devie duckduckgo comes with a built n engine like google, but it's pi and doesn't spy on your searchs and duckduckgo lets you browse like chrome, but it blocks cooi and creepy ads that follow youa from google and other companie. and there's no catch, it's fre. we make money from ads, but they don't follow you aroud join the millions of people taking back their privacy by downloading duckduckgo on all your devices today. welcome back to "cnn newsroom." i'm bianca nobilo. >> i'm max foster. let me bring you up-to-date with the top stories. death stole from a five story building fire in johannesburg has risen to 73. a spokesman for the emergency services says that there were hundreds of informal settlements living inside the building. the fire has been put out and authorities are conducting recovery efforts. tropical storm idalia is making either way along the u.s. southeast coast and currently over north carolina. the storm caused significant flooding in coastal cities. >> and residents have begun the cleanup after idalia sparked widespread flooding and a trail of destruction. brian todd takes a look at just some of the damage left behind in the state's capital tallahassee. >> reporter: late wednesday governor ron desantis delivered much needed good news for residents of florida. he said the cedar key bridge leading to the community of cedar key which was cut off during the storm, that bridge was reopened late wednesday. that will be a crucial development because in the coming hours and days, officials will need to get a read on how many people might have been unaccounted for in cedar key, that place was isolated. one resident told us that the whole area didn't look very much like it used to look and they were really worried about elderly residents in isolated areas not being accounted for, so the opening of the cedar key bridge was a very important development. also the governor saying by late wednesday the number of customers without power had dropped but they are still frantically working to get hundreds of thousands of people back online. not only in florida, but also in georgia. there were reports of at least two weather-related deaths in florida, two car accidents not related to each other involving two men being killed. at least ten hospitals had to be evacuated during the storm. according to ron desantis, out of those ten hospitals that had to be evacuated, at least nine of them will probably have gotten back online by late wednesday night. here in leon county, this is the city of tallahasse the capital of florida, they are still assessing the damage. tens of thousands of customers are without power. and look at some of tof the vioe that occurred. this is a house on big oak street and look at this, this is a large pine tree and just the force of the storm and look at the root system here. it up rooted the entire root system of the tree, toppled the tree and in the process look what it did to this fence. it just up rooted the entire fence, slammed actionross the y broke the other part of the fence and stretching all the way across the street. luckily crews got here and cleared the street of that part of the tree. but again, also what i should tell you that in this area in tallahassee, there is a lot of spanish moss and other growth on the trees that makes them much heavier. and you can see how close it came to landing on this house, just a few feet from this house. we talked to the homeowner, everybody is okay but they were pretty shaken. in places here, this is still not a safe area. it is not safe to navigate around here. a lot of downed power lines like that one hanging down that you see. and several downed power lines on the street. so they say don't try to navigate the streets in a car or on foot. some of these lines could be live, they could kill you if you step on them. and a lot of people on the street running generators to function at their homes. a lot of generator-related deaths are often reported in the aftermath of these hurricanes. so just in the process of recovering and navigating your streets or running your generator, you may not be out of danger. brian todd, cnn, tallahassee, florida. and southeast of the state's capital, there was devastating flooding in cedar key. one man who rode out the storm there witnessed these images firsthand and described what he experienced and the damage left behind. >> here is the after math. this was an amazing -- these are all little old school florida villas. and they were just picked up and carried into the gulf. so that was heartbreaking to see. before i moved here, i used to stay in this very cottage number one down here. and hard to see, but the owners knew that this property floods. but just a real trial by fire. if you look by the water, all along the ocean, there are chairs and microwaves and hair dryers. it is a pretty surreal experience. and when the wind was kicking in the middle of the night and when the water was coming towards us from all three sides, it looked like a la vie than reaching out of the water to devour its hole. >> and if you want to help the reads, head to cnn.com/impact. wall street opening in just a few hours. here is a quick look at how the u.s. futures are looking. the dow is positive, nasdaq slightly down. china's largest home developer country garden warns that it could default on its debts after reporting a $7 billion loss for the first six months of the year. and it is the latest sign of trouble in the housing market there. kristie lu stout is joining us live from hong kong. i believe this loss was a record. what does this tell us about the post-pandemic recovery of the second largest economy in the world? >> it is still very much wbly. the property market which makes up 30% of china's gdp, as you mentioned, country garden is china's largest residential developer and now it is battling this liquidity crisis. wednesday it warned that it may default on its debts as it reported a loss of about $7 billion for the first half of the year. we looked at a filing to the hong kong stock exchange filed by country gardens. and it said "the coffel company deeply remorseful for unsa unsat unsatisfactory performance." china is facing rising pressure to pay off its debt and the company was kept off guard by the depth and persistence of the ongoing property slump especially in smaller cities. this has been going on for the past two years. china has been stuck in this historic property slowdown resulting in scenes like you see there on your screen, unfinished homes. incompleted residential buildings. unpaid suppliers and creditors. and this slump has been deepening according to relatively fresh data, new home sales fell more than 34% year on year in july. chinese officials have been scrambling to find ways to shore up the sector, they have introduced a series of measures. on wednesday the chinese mega city in the south relaxed mortgage rules for home buyers. but analysts say it won't be enough and such measures haven't been enough because consumers across china are reluctant to buy new homes because of rising unemployment, because of the economic situation and because home prices are falling. and i also want to mention that after we heard this warning from country garden and the loss reported, a crucial test is currently under way. creditors are preparing to have a proposal to delay payment for a private bond. this will be another critical test for country garden. >> and we know you'll keep an eye on it for us. kristie lu stout, thank you very much. russia has seen multiple drone attacks over the past few days, but it still pummeled kyiv with the most powerful strike in months. that story is up ahead. plus celebrations 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[ding] cannonball! book direct at choicehotels.com. that's why comcast business de is launching theal. mobile made free event. with our business internet, new and existing customers can get one year of unlimited mobile for free. it's our best internet. powered by the next generation 10g network and with 99.9% reliability. plus one line of free mobile for an entire year. it's the mobile made free event-happening now. get started for just $49.99 a month. plus, ask how to get one free line of unlimited mobile. comcast business, powering possibilities. ben wall ace has formally resigned. he informed number 10 that he was leaving after four years in post. he also published a resignation letter yesterday. prime minister rishi sunak praised wallace for his dedication and skill and for taking a leading role in western support of ukraine. russia shot down four drones in separate incidents over its territory earlier today. officials say air defenses intercepted three drones over western russia. and one more that was headed towards moscow. that came on the hee of the business wave of drone attacks russia has seen since the war began. >> these six russian regions came under attack tuesday night and wednesday morning, but across the border -- >> kyiv also came under attack with the most powerful assault in months. ukraine says it shot down dozens of drones and missiles. >> and our investigative producer has been monitoring these developments. katie, they say they believe moscow is likely to reconsider its air defenses as a result of the attacks. how might that happen? >> well, it is a good point because clearly drone warfare, the use of these drones is happening with increasing regularity and showing that it will be shaping the conflict to come. and it is worth noting here that these drones if they are ukrainian drones, they are very likely to be homemade because the agreements that the ukraine has with western allies, it gets military equipment and that it is not to be used in russian territory. so if these are ukrainian, if they are the ones deploying these with increasing regularity, it is likely that they are manufactured in ukraine which hints to a domestic manufacturing capability increasing which could change where the war is going. and as you pointed out, there was an increasing number of range in these drone attacks. this is not just the frontline anymore, this is close to moscow, in the north and south. and i think that that speaks to the intention here as well. to create a sense of angst, a sense of anxiety. let's not forget the drone attacks are not having serious damage, as far as we know no casualties, no serious damage to buildings as far as we know. but clearly if the intention here is to bring the war back to the russian people, make the russian people feel the impact of this war in the way that the ukrainian people are clearly feeling it, the same night that the most serious drone attack happened, there was also a drone attack and missile attack on kyiv. and so this is at the same time that ukraine is feeling it back home and we saw yesterday a ukraine special adviser to the president said that this war is increasingly moving to russia's territory and it cannot be stopped. so although he is not claiming credibility and responsibility for this attack, that is clearly the intention here that ukraine is telling russia that the war will be felt on their own front. >> and these type of drone attacks obviously as far as ukraine is concerned, a form of say symmetric warfare that creates more uncertainty. katie poll glas, thank you so much. people were celebrating in the streets of the capital after junta staged a coup on wednesday. >> and the president was placed under house arrest. his family has ruled for more than 50 years. the man who led the coup was later named as the transitional leader of the country. stephanie busari is covering this story for us. and she is joining us from lagos. a lot of criticism about any coup in africa but a huge amount of popularity within the country for this one. >> reporter: max, yes, another day, another coup here. and this time in central africa. this is a tiny country of about 2 million people but oil rich in crude oil and other resources. and there has been a lot of jubilation and celebration and criticism from abroad, from international partners. not as pronounced as we saw with the niger last month. but the simple fact is that time is simply up for president bongo who had ruled for 14 years and was going for his third term. the military takeover action happened soon after the announcement of results that he had won a controversial election. and his father ruled for nearly 42 years before him. so the people of gob gabon simp had had enough and they were saying that it is time to put a stop to this democratic dictators who conduct sham elections and hide under guise of democracy. we saw people on the streets of gabon giving beer bottles to the so you wouldiers thanking them for freeing them from this more than 50 decades -- 50 years of the bongo rule. >> steph in lagos, thank you for bringing us that. the u.s. drug enforcement administration is initiating a review of marijuana after a court eased restrictions. we'll have the details ahead. t. you trying to ice me out of the bed? baby, only on game nights. you know you are retired right? am i? yaya! the queen sleep number c2 smart bed is now o only $999. plus free home delivery when you adddd a base shop now only at sleep number.. - [announcer] do you have an invention idea but don't know what to do next? call invent help today. they can help you get started with your idea. call now 800-710-0020. novak djokovic continues to impress on his return to the u.s. open. the serbian tennis star is heading to the third round after winning in straight sets on wednesday. the 36-year-old is looking to add to his record tally of 23 men's grand slam titles. he missed the u.s. open last year because he was unvaccinated depends covid-19. djokovic will take on his davis cup teammate and fellow countryman in the next round on friday. university of nebraska is wild about women's volleyball. the school set a new world record for the largest announced crowd at a women's sporting event wednesday night. 92 92,003 were on hand to see the team take on their rival. and they won their fourth match in a row. the previous record was set last year in spain. and jimmy kimmel host of jim h my kim medical live said he was intent on retiring until the strike made him think it is nice to work. >> and all late night talk shows have been off the air since the strike. now they are hosting a podcast saying that the proceeds will go to the shows' crew members while they are out of work. and senior official at the u.s. health and human services department is calling for easing restrictions on marijuana. and the drug enforcement administration has begun a review. >> the official recommended marijuana -- they recommended it be reclassified as a schedule three substance which is for drugs with a low risk of dependence. right now marijuana is the same schedule one controlled substance categories at most dangerous like heroin and lsd. and in nebraska, motorists were doing double takes at the sight of this bull riding shotgun along the highway. it is a real bull by the way. it may look liken an inflated toy. >> the automobile was modified to carry the huge beast. but as you can see, it can still barely fit. police were called to investigate and they eventually sent the driver away with a warning to take the animal back home which he purportedly did. i hope he was comfortable because it is a tight fit. >> one car you don't want to crash into. thanks for joining us here. i'm max foster. >> and i'm bianca nobilo. 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