This Church Steeple toppling over. Oh, my god. And power lines sparking an explosion with our reporter on the scene. The latest this morning. Battle over back to school. The video of a Georgia High School with packed hallways, some kids Wearing Masks, some not, drawing outrage from parents. In tennessee, multiple High School Football players testing positive. Mississippi now mandating face coverings for all students and teachers and a look this morning as australia imposes one of the strictest lockdowns on earth as a major city there faces a second wave. What it could mean for a second wave here in the u. S. Stars standing with ellen. Celebrity friends now coming to the defense of an embattled talk show host. This after those blockbuster allegations of a toxic Workplace Environment from staff. Crying foul. The wife of nfl star Matthew Stafford after her husbands false positive covid test. Why her family was harassed, she calls the last few days a nightmare. And a very special tell t. J. Surprise for some shining stars from tyler perry hallelujah. Hallelujah. Meeting two Unsung Heroes working tirelessly keeping hospitals squeaky clean. We have to do this because this could be your mother or your father. And just wait until you see their reaction when this guy popped in to make their day. Tyler perry is on the screen, tina hi. Good morning, america. Tell t. J. With tyler perry and look who we have at the desk. Welcome. Always good to be with you no matter what time i get the call to be here. Its good to be, but im here the day after a mess of a day for millions of folks in the country. Were talking about Tropical Storm isaias. 3 Million People now without power. The latest on the cleanup from that deadly path of destruction. And then we begin with that massive deadly explosion rocking the capital of lebanon. Look at that. Wow. All right. We have a live look now at this apocalyptic scene in the city of beirut this morning. It is just utter devastation. As rescuers search through the rubble, investigators are trying to determine if this was an accident or an act of terror. Our senior Foreign Correspondent ian is tracking all of the latest. Good morning, ian. Reporter good morning, george. Lebanons begun three days of mourning after what can only be described as a national tragedy. You know, were all struggling to cope with the pandemic, but lebanon is also in the middle of an Economic Health and political crisis when one of the biggest explosions ever seen erupts in the capital of beirut. What happened . Oh, my reporter this is the moment the heart of beirut was shaken to its core. The blast at the citys port sending seismic shock waves through lebanons capital picked up by earthquake detection equipment. This video from a local church, livestreaming at the time, shows how devastating the blast was. The priest running for cover, as stained glass rained down from above. Lebanons Health Ministry says at least a hundred people were killed and more than 4,000 injured. Already overwhelmed hospitals struggling to care for the wounded. The scenes around the city are apocalyptic. I mean, this is more than a catastrophe. Reporter President Trump offering condolences and aid. Our prayers go out to all the victims and their families. The United States stands ready to assist lebanon. Reporter the president suggesting without evidence that the explosion was an attack. They seem to think it was an attack. It was a bomb of some kind. Reporter and lebanons Prime Minister vowing to find whoevers responsible, telling the public that this disaster wont pass without accountability, and that those responsible will pay the price. The massive blast caused when 2,750 tons of Ammonium Nitrate exploded, the same material as the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995, but reportedly a thousand times stronger. New yorkbased artist Michelle Abboud shot these videos showing the immediate aftermath saying the entire event was surreal. Thats my car. As im walking, all of a sudden everything starts shaking and we heard a double bang and before we could think of what to do, everything exploded, and when i mean everything, i mean everything. As debris was falling i just hid under a car. The people they were literally standing right next to me, didnt get so lucky and a lot of them got hit on the head. Some of them died. Reporter officials in the disasterstricken city now searching for answers about what caused the enormous explosion and above all, who was responsible. Despite what the president said all fingers on the ground are pointing to a terrible accident, but given the economic mismanagement and corruption in the country, investigators are also going to be looking at whether this was just a mistake or perhaps negligence of the worst kind, amy. A surreal scene there. Ian, thank you. Turning now to the latest on that path of destruction from deadly Tropical Storm isaias leaving more than 3 Million People without power this morning. New jersey alone with more than 1 million outages and thats where we find Stephanie Ramos with the very latest on that. Good morning, stephanie. Reporter amy, good morning. This is what many people in new jersey are waking up to this morning, downed trees and branches, blocked off roads and no power after Tropical Storm isaias whipped through the east coast. This morning millions waking up in the dark after isaias raced up the east coast. The storm leaving at least six people dead in its wake including one person in maryland when a tree fell on their car. The same thing happened to a 60yearold man in new york. A man in rehoboth, massachusetts thankful to be alive after getting trapped under a fallen tree in the front yard of his home. Heavy rains quickly flooding roads and trapping drivers close to interstate 76 near philadelphia. I was scared. She thought she was going to drown. Reporter images from google earth showing neighborhoods like this one in pennsylvania before the storm. But after, the same streets overwhelmed and underwater and the tornado warnings in birdie county, north carolina, a possible tornado mangling homes and flipping cars. Two were killed, 20 hurt. Tanisha thomas was home with her daughter clinging to her in the bathtub. We made it in the bathtub, and i put my body over hers and thats when it hit. One day at a time. Did you lose everything . Everything. Reporter this childrens day care facilitys roof torn off when a possible tornado ripped through. No lifethreatening injuries reported. Other possible tornadoes like this one in ocean city, new jersey, and wind gusts causing downed trees, wild power lines and causing this Church Steeple to come crashing down. Oh, my god reporter in cape may, new jersey, someone reported this sparking power line. This is basically a result of the storm. Power lines down causing fires and explosions. Thats correct. Thats correct. So you saw what can happen. Reporter meanwhile, the damage being assessed in the south. In north carolina, the surge tossing boats like toys leaving them piled on top of one another in the morning. And along the areas where the storm hit hardest, coronavirus patients still filling hospitals. To say this is not an easy endeavor in the midst of a pandemic would be the understatement of the day. Reporter wind gusts here in bergen county, new jersey, reached 55 Miles Per Hour knocking down power lines like these. This morning there are still a million customers without power across the state. T. J. . Stephanie, thank you so much. We have to go from one emergency to another. The ongoing coronavirus emergency, and the battle now over reopening schools. Thats intensifying as millions of households prepare for their kids to go back to the classroom and we are getting a look at what some students are facing in those hallways. Our Steve Osunsami joins us from atlanta with more. Steve, good morning. Reporter good morning to you, t. J. For many parents it is not so easy to keep your kids at home even in the middle of widespread Health Concerns and for Many School Districts that are now allowing inperson instruction, its a struggle to meet the new challenges. This is the picture from inside a Georgia High School that flew around the internet bringing the debate over safety to people around the world. This is North Paulding High School with crowded hallways as students were changing classes this week. Most of them werent Wearing Masks. The School Superintendent had to email parents saying that in the middle of the pandemic there is no question that the photo does not look good, but also sharing that his schools are following covid19 protocols. He says the high school has more than 2,000 students so class changes are a challenge. He said students are only in hallways for a brief period and theyre working on ways to keep students from gathering. About 30 minutes north four Staff Members at an Elementary School have tested positive for covid19 and the school is opening for inperson instruction today. Another 30 minutes to the east a second grader in Cherokee County received a positive test result a day after returning to classes and now the classmates and the teacher need to quarantine at home for two weeks. This family in georgia says they want whats best for their kids and are sending them to school with masks. I wasnt really happy with the people who werent Wearing Masks. Reporter its a decision many teachers, parents and government officials are struggling with. In greenville, tennessee, theyve had to cancel the football teams first game after kids on the team tested positive. In mississippi where a handful of High Schoolers have tested positive for the virus, the governor is now requiring face coverings for everyone in all Public Places for two weeks. Hes also delaying the start of inschool instruction for older children in areas with outbreaks. Today i will sign an executive order that requires the use of masks by all adults and all children in our schools unless there is a medical reason not to. Reporter in Central Florida one teacher is doing it for herself, installing pvc piping in her classroom with a plastic shower curtain to try to protect herself and her students. I am nervous, and ive never felt this way. Reporter according to the federal government, the death rate from the coronavirus across the country is 24 higher this week than last week. 28 states plus d. C. And puerto rico are seeing an increasing number of hospitalizations like in mississippi, where at the university of Mississippi Center in jackson, they ran out of icu beds weeks ago. Any time a bed opens up there are multiple patients waiting for that bed. Reporter Health Officials here at the cdc say that were expecting a very busy season of covid19. Were already at the start of the school year seeing schools shut down classrooms and School Systems tell us they are very prepared, george, to shut down entire schools. George. I hope they are prepared. Thanks very much. As we face more cases in the u. S. , the global death toll is over 700,000. In australia which had the virus under control a few months ago, theyre locking down a major city in the face of a second wave, raising new questions about the course of the pandemic in our country. Matt gutman has the story. Reporter the streets are empty this morning in australias second biggest city, melbourne, where a Strict Lockdown is being enforced as covid cases there soar. The hardhit state of victoria declaring a state of disaster. Two months ago victoria reported three new cases of the virus. Today its 725. Australia, which once seemed to have covid under control, now taking what officials call a shock and awe approach to contain the surge of cases, enacting stage 4 restrictions in melbourne, and that means an 8 00 p. M. To 5 00 a. M. Curfew. Just one hour of outdoor exercise and one household member allowed out for shopping. An official there saying where you slept last night is where youll need to stay for the next six weeks. For americans living abroad like professor maria rubely, the inconvenience is unfortunate but necessary. While we feel depressed and really, do we need to go through this again we understand the need for it and happy to abide by it and support it. Reporter and the state of victoria is now sending out health or military teams to doorknock people who are waiting for their test results or who have tested positive and should be in selfisolation. For those who break that selfisolation rule, they are handing out 3,500 fines. Apparently, amy, nearly 1,000 of those citations have been issued so far. Wow. My goodness. Matt gutman, thank you. Joining us is the director of the Harvard Global health institute. Dr. Ashish jha. Dr. Jha, thanks for being with us. We just heard about those extreme measures being taken in australia. The question is do you think were looking at a similar lockdown here eventually . Is this a predictor of what is to come . Good morning and thank you for having me on. Its worth remembering that what is happening in australia is 700 cases. Were at 50,000 cases a day in the United States so were at a wholly different level, and australia is taking this, you know, extremely seriously. I dont think that we will need to do anything quite that serious. Excuse me. I certainly hope not, but i do think we should understand that when the weather gets colder, people start spending more time indoors. We will see a number of cases starting to rise. So i think australia is indeed kind of a warning of what might be ahead of us in fall and winter. Right. Theyre the opposite in the seasons for us and interestingly australia is reporting a reduction in flu cases and that flies in the face from what weve heard from medical experts here predicting it could be a nightmare scenario with flu season mingling with the coronavirus emergency. What are you anticipating . Im hoping we have a milder flu season because people are social distancing and washing hands and Wearing Masks. If people dont do those things in our country, we will be in for a lot of trouble. In a normal flu season the hospitals start filling up under normal circumstances and if you throw in flu with covid we may end up in a very difficult situation. So it will be that much more important that people practice the things that we know can make a big difference. And dr. Jha, we are already seeing some of those images from inside the hallways and classrooms. Down south, schools have reopened and many of them have been forced to close down. So what do you believe is the future . Can we safely reopen our schools back open, and keep them open . Yeah, so, look, we have very clear sort of scientific guidance on what we need to do. A lot of School Districts are defying the science and you cant really ultimately win by defying the science. The virus will catch up to you. So people are opening up in schools in areas where Community Transmission is way too high and were starting to see schools shut down and what ive been saying to School Districts is you get one chance. If you do this irresponsibly and you have to shut down it will be very hard to open up schools again. People have to work on bringing Community Transmission down, preparing schools and get kids to wear masks. That photo had very few kids Wearing Masks and if we do all of that i think we can bring kids safely back to school, but if we are irresponsible about it we will be home for a very long time. Dr. Jha, very important to remember what you said for everyone. Thank you for your time and expertise today. T. J. . Lets get a little good news about covid19, particularly from a patient, a particular patient who was in the hospital for 132 days. Chris rogan is now at home. Hes from new york, was intubated twice, lost a leg due to blood clots and coded once and managed to stay alive and this morning he is recovering at home. And listen to this. This is what he says about it all. This is not the end of the world. It doesnt define me and i feel like my quality of life is going to be better because i appreciate it so much more. Direct quote from that guy. So good to pass along a story of somebody who went through something but made it through. He has a good perspective now on life. So grateful to be alive. A real spirit right now. We are following a lot of headlines this morning including the latest on the fall for Ellen Degeneres, and some stars are defending her amid allegations of a toxic Work Environment. Also this morning, why the wife of nfl star Matthew Stafford is lashing out at the league after he received a false positive covid test, but first, lets go to ginger. I just have to note such a remarkable Hurricane Season in the atlantic. Weve had two